Washington Township board elects Julie Cazemple president, Steven Serrano vice president after dispute over conflict memo

The Washington Township Board of Education on the night it reorganized sworn in four new members and elected Julie Cazemple as board president and Steven Serrano as vice president, following a contentious discussion and two attempts to move into executive session for attorney‑client advice about a conflict counsel memorandum tied to one nomination.

The swearing‑in, at the Eileen Abbott Central Administration Building, included Elaine Clancy, Linda Hartung, Julie Cazemple and Steven Serrano. After the oath and roll call the board opened nominations for president. A motion to move into executive session for legal advice about a conflict counsel memo was made and voted on before the first roll call for president; that motion failed. After further discussion a second motion to go into executive session passed and the board briefly left public session.

Why it matters: the board’s leadership votes set the governing tone for the coming year and the attempt to use executive session underscored legal questions the board said it had received about candidate eligibility and conflicts. Those questions were the central point of the debate immediately before the president vote.

The board first considered Carol Chille for president, nominated by Scott Laliberte. That nomination did not win a majority when the board took a roll call vote. Connie Baker then nominated Julie Cazemple; the roll call on that nomination resulted in five members voting yes and four no, and the motion carried. Shortly afterward the board elected Steven Serrano as vice president by roll call; that vote also carried by a 5–4 margin.

The organization meeting included repeated procedural questions about whether new board members had received a conflict‑counsel email the afternoon of the meeting, and whether that memo could be discussed in public. Several board members said they had read the memo but that substantive discussion and legal advice should happen in executive session. Other members and members of the public urged the board to handle any legal guidance openly.

Public commenters and some board members urged transparency. Resident Randy Ford told the board: “There’s a lot of whispering... it’s an open meeting,” urging that training and legal presentations be made public if possible. Board counsel and several members explained that attorney‑client advice often requires private discussion to avoid airing privileged legal opinions in public.

After the reorganization votes the new president and vice president spoke briefly. Incoming vice president Steven Serrano told the room he was “filled with immense gratitude and a deep sense of responsibility” and laid out an agenda emphasizing the board’s mission to focus on students and constructive work.

The board also voted on a package of action items later in the meeting (see “Votes at a glance”). The meeting record shows the board scheduled an ethics/legal training presentation to be held publicly at a future meeting, with a private follow‑up session reserved for any attorney‑client questions.

The board announced it would go into executive session for attorney‑client privilege on pending matters; the public notice read before the session said any action taken in executive session could be announced when public session resumed or at a later public meeting.

Ending: With the leadership positions filled and the board temporarily meeting in executive session for legal counsel, members said they planned follow‑up work on onboarding, training and calendar planning in the weeks ahead.