If anyone thinks that the Jersey City Board of Education will be less volatile as a result of the Nov. 8 election, the resignation of Vice President John Reichert and the battle over his replacement will likely be eye opening.
The Nov. 8 elections will shift the balance of power on the board, giving those who have been critical of the schools superintendent a majority for the first time since 2012.
Voters elected three new members who will take their seats on Jan. 10: Luis Felipe Fernandez, Sudhan Thomas, and Angel Valentin.
Reichert, who was often the swing vote between factions on the Board of Education, resigned last week, citing personal commitments.
“I have some business opportunities I would like to pursue,” he said. He works in a paid position as an employer for Jersey City developer Silverman.
But the board that is charged with naming Reichert’s replacement will be the old board, voting in a lame duck session before the new board is sworn in to office in January. The board will have 30 days from Nov. 18 to name a temporary replacement and then 65 days to fill the vacancy. The seat would come up for a public vote next November. The board has the option to leave the seat open until January, allowing the new board to appoint the replacement until the November election.
Reichert became controversial
Elected in November 2015, Reichert was originally seen as a part of the pro-schools superintendent faction. But he soon broke away from the pack and became a critical swing vote on a number of controversial issues.
He also became controversial on his own. A retired NJ Transit cop, he is allowed to carry a concealed firearm. School board rules prohibit private individuals from carrying weapons in schools, and since the regular meeting is held in a public school, it became an issue when the board refused to give him permission.
Earlier this year, he became the focus of attacks because he posted a picture that depicted the alleged Seaside Heights bomber side by side with San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick on his Facebook page and called them both “turds.” Colin had refused to stand during the National Anthem as a protest in sympathy with the Black Lives Matter movement. Reichert later removed the posting and offered apologies to those offended. But the post brought about accusations of racism, and more importantly raised questions about his residency – since the posting had the tag Summit on it.
Reichert’s defenders, however, said calling him a racist was unfair, noting that he had worked the World Trade Center beat during the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, and had lost friends in the attack. The comment on Facebook, they said, was about lack of patriotism, not race.
It didn’t help matters for Reichert when he supported a move to name School No. 34 after board member Marilyn Roman against the wishes of parents and others at the school who had pushed to have it named after President Barack Obama.
Reichert, however, said this was an unfair attack, since he had proposed earlier naming another school, No. 20, after Obama.
Who should name the replacement?
Reichert, however, appeared to have maintained the respect of many fellow board members, including some of the newly elected board members who believe he had a positive impact as a peace maker.
“I wish John Reichert and his family the best. I thank him for his service as a police officer and for his contribution to the Jersey City Board of Education,” said Trustee elect Sudhan Thomas, who will be sworn in as board member in January.
Thomas would like the new board to name the replacement, not the existing board.
“John’s replacement is a matter that should be decided by the board that is formed after inaugurating the three newly elected board members in January,” he said. “The current board is in a lame duck session. The new board should take into account the sense of the Jersey City citizens who chose three candidates to represent them among a large field, 10 candidates across an intense, expensive, and bruising campaign that lasted over four months resulting in a historic high participation of 36,000 voters.”
Some believe the board might try to have Gina Verdibello named to replace Reichert because she finished fourth in the election, calling it “the proper democratic move.” But others argue that Verdibello has lost four elections in a row and that the board should look to other possible candidates.
“I understand this will be an interim appointment through the next election in November of 2017,” said Thomas. “I believe the new board should invite eminent citizens, potentially a former board member who has had experience with the workings of the board to serve out this nine-month interim appointment. I would like to see consideration of former board members such as Sue Mack or former board member Imitiaz Khan. These are special times and need special consideration. We should not allow this unfortunate situation to allow any one a back door entry into the board in contravention of the electoral decision of the citizens of Jersey City. This replacement process has to be handled very carefully in accordance with the process and we are already in touch with counsel to ensure no breach of policy or procedure.”
Superintendent contract will be reviewed
Although a court ruled that the Board of Education acted properly in renewing the contact of Schools Superintendent Dr. Marcia Lyles, School Trustee Lorenzo Richardson, who was among those who filed the suit challenging the board’s action, said he would appeal.
A lame duck board last December used a legal loophole to reappoint Lyles without having the matter come to a vote.
Richardson argues this was not legal. But a superior court ruled otherwise late in October, and issue is bound to become one of the balance of power shifts to a much less Lyles-friendly board.
But even if an appeal fails, the board is likely to push Lyles to become more accountable to them with some anti-Lyles trustees, saying this has always been at the heart of the conflict. They claim that she has withheld information they have requested on numerous issues.
Al Sullivan may be reached at asullivan@hudsonreporter.com.