Colts Neck board elects Jessica Ramirez as president following previous president’s death

Jessica Ramirez was elected board president of the Colts Neck Township Board of Education during the board’s July 10 meeting, the board announced. The election filled a vacancy created by the recent death of the board’s prior president, identified in the meeting only by the given name John; the transcript did not record a last name.

“I am deeply appreciative of your trust that you have placed in me,” Ramirez said after the roll-call vote, which the board recorded as carrying. Ramirez said she was taking the role with “humility” and pledged to uphold standards set by the previous president. “John’s leadership and commitment to our community were unparalleled and his absence is profoundly felt by all of us,” Ramirez said.

Ramirez told the board she will continue the process to fill the open seat: the board plans to conduct interviews on July 31 and to appoint a new board member at the Aug. 14 meeting. She said that schedule is intended to keep the board compliant with its bylaws, which require filling a vacancy within 65 days.

Board members and administrators also offered brief remarks of support and gratitude during the reorganization portion of the meeting. The board’s actions were taken during a regularly noticed public meeting; the board read the statutory notice published in the Asbury Park Press and referenced the Open Public Meetings Act in opening the session.

The next procedural step is the July 31 interview session; the board expects to name a replacement on Aug. 14.