Washington Township School District board members swore in three newly elected directors and completed leadership elections during a meeting that also cleared routine agenda items and set committee and school representative assignments.

The board administered oaths to newly elected members Terry Schechter, Julie Cazemple and Connie Baker, with oath language referencing the U.S. and New Jersey constitutions and statutory eligibility checks under RS 19:4-1 and NJSA 18A:12-1. One newly sworn member’s background-check result was reported as still pending.

After roll call the board opened nominations for president. Nominations and repeated rounds of voting highlighted differences among members about experience and conflicts of interest. After several unsuccessful ballots and discussion about board policy requiring a majority of the quorum, Patricia Bloom was re-nominated and elected board president; members congratulated her.

A motion to nominate Terry Schechter as vice president carried on a subsequent roll-call vote. Supporters of Schechter pointed to her consistent meeting attendance and absence of conflicts, while some members cited relative lack of prior board experience during earlier rounds of the president contest.

The board moved and approved a package of routine action items (items 1–6), including the district’s tentative meeting calendar for the coming year. Staff noted the teacher-of-the-year recognition will be held at the Playhouse on Jan. 20, and flagged scheduling shifts in March (tentative budget), May (staff renewal deadlines), September (religious holidays) and October (New Jersey School Boards convention) that may affect meeting dates.

Board members reviewed new-business items, discussed committee rosters and proposed combining personnel and negotiations committees while no bargaining is active, and began assigning school representatives with the stated goal of having two representatives per school where possible.

During public comment, Washington Township support staff Chrissy Coizar thanked the new board members and urged collaborative work to support students and staff safety. The board also discussed scheduling a meeting between the board and the district’s attorney to review litigation and conflict-of-interest procedures; members agreed to first arrange a session with administration and to plan any necessary executive session later.

Votes at a glance
- Approval of election results: motion moved, seconded and carried by roll-call vote.
- President: Patricia Bloom elected after multiple rounds of nominations and roll-call votes; earlier rounds failed to reach the required majority.
- Vice president: Terry Schechter elected by roll-call vote following nomination by Scott Laliberte.
- Approval of items 1–6 (consent package including tentative calendar): motion carried on roll-call vote.

"Do what is right even when no one is watching," one board member said when outlining a platform of restoring trust and focusing meetings on students and staff. "I'd just like to take a few minutes to thank everybody, to thank the new board members," Chrissy Coizar, a district support staffer, said during public comment.

What’s next
The board concluded that discussion with the district attorney should be scheduled after administration-level briefings and reserved any legally sensitive topics for an appropriately noticed executive session. Committee assignments and final school-representative lists will be finalized in follow-up communications to the clerk.