Hunterdon Central rejects CarePlus contract amid dispute over long-running school-based counseling

The Hunterdon Central Regional High School Board of Education on Aug. 18 declined to approve a professional-services contract for CarePlus counseling services after more than an hour of public comment and board discussion about the district’s long-running school-based counseling programs.

Superintendent Jessica Candelosi Haid told the board earlier in the meeting that the district had not reached an agreement with Hunterdon Behavioral Health to continue the School-Based Youth Services (SBYS) program for the 2025–26 school year. She said the administration had worked with Hunterdon Behavioral Health and the New Jersey Department of Children and Families but “we have not come to an agreement to continue those particular services at this time.”

Public speakers urged the board to maintain on-campus clinical supports. Resident Ronald Levy told the board he had gathered a petition supporting CarePlus with “425 signatories” in three days, and said: “Care plus is a vital part of the school based youth services offered alongside traditional assistance counseling.”

Several students, parents, teachers and community leaders described personal experiences they said demonstrated the services’ role in crisis intervention and keeping students in school. Subhash Turbo read a statement from recent graduate Alex Otushni that said the SBYS program “has saved his life,” and multiple speakers described instances where on-campus clinicians performed assessments and cleared students to return to school without emergency-room visits.

Board discussion and administration explanation

Administration told the board it had raised a series of implementation and legal concerns while negotiating a revised affiliation with Hunterdon Behavioral Health. The superintendent and a board representative outlined the administration’s stated concerns: counselors seeing students at times without affirmative parental consent, inconsistency between practice and a short one-page affiliation agreement previously in place, indemnification and liability language, the provider’s refusal to share requested data about student contacts, and an unwillingness by the provider to amend the affiliation to address the district’s concerns. The superintendent and board representative said some deadlines the provider cited were not imposed by DCF.

That account drew sharp pushback from the public. Multiple commenters said the SBYS program had operated for decades at no cost to families and had high satisfaction rates; several cited the program’s on-campus availability, intake process and the ability to perform urgent clearances as key benefits.

Roll-call outcome and next steps

The board’s roll call on operations items later in the meeting included a vote on the CarePlus professional-services contract; the motions covering routine operations passed but the CarePlus item did not pass on the same roll call. The board did not approve a continuation of Hunterdon Behavioral Health’s school-based grant program during the meeting.

Board members said they would continue to pursue alternative supports. Superintendent Candelosi Haid told the board the district is now eligible for the state’s New Jersey statewide student support services (NJ4S) hubs and that administration would evaluate other mental-health vendors and hourly professional arrangements, and consider using hourly clinicians for urgent clearances. She also noted the district’s counseling staff and existing multi-tier supports. Administrative follow-up and committee review were promised: the superintendent said she would bring options to relevant committees and continued work on metrics and service pathways.

What the meeting did and did not decide

• The board did not approve the CarePlus professional-services contract (agenda item referenced in operations). The roll call recorded that item 11 did not pass while other operations items passed.

• The board did not, in this meeting, vote to renew the Hunterdon Behavioral Health School-Based Youth Services grant; the administration has not recommended that renewal because of the concerns it outlined.

• The superintendent said the district will pursue NJ4S hub services and other vendor/hourly options and asked the board for committee-level guidance on next steps. She also said the district will continue to rely on existing counselors and student-assistance counselors while additional arrangements are made.

The discussion prompted a tense public forum, a short recess and an eventual executive session later in the meeting. Board members and administration said they would continue to press for workable, legally sound agreements or other service pathways before the school year begins on Sept. 2.