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Board honors Ethel C. “Connie” Montgomery with formal resolution
Summary
The Morris School District Board of Education read and adopted a resolution honoring Ethel C. Montgomery’s decades of civic and education leadership, citing her local organizing, PTA service, role in school‑district merger efforts and appointment to the state board of education.
The Morris School District Board of Education on Monday honored the life and civic work of Ethel C. “Connie” Montgomery with a formal resolution entered into the district’s official minutes.
Warren Kersy, dean of students at Freeling Heisen Middle School, told the board Montgomery was a “driving force” in organizing parents in the Second Ward and a “trailblazer” whose activism shaped generations of local students and leaders. “She was a pillar of the Morristown community,” Kersy said, describing Montgomery’s leadership in the Lafayette PTA and neighborhood preservation efforts.
Kevin Stansbury, introduced by Kersy as a longtime mentee and Montgomery’s nephew, recalled her role in desegregation efforts and public service, noting she was the first African‑American woman appointed to the state board of education and later served on the Morristown council. A written statement from former board member Leonard Posey, read into the record, praised Montgomery’s mentorship during Posey’s own tenure on the board.
Board member Mrs. Perry read the resolution aloud, detailing Montgomery’s civic milestones: Morristown High School alumna, co‑founder of local youth and scholarship groups, leadership in the PTA, service on the interim Mars school district board during a merger, and a gubernatorial appointment to the New Jersey State Board of Education from 1975 to 1981. The resolution asks that a copy be forwarded to Montgomery’s family and be recorded in the district’s official minutes.
The board held a brief reception for Montgomery’s family following the presentation. The recognition concluded with the board’s thanks to the speakers and a motion to include the resolution in the minutes.
