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Parents and alumni urge Roxbury board to reverse reassignment of long‑time middle‑school music teacher
Summary
At a June 15 board meeting, Jessica Harrison Calderon, a 22‑year Eisenhower Middle School music teacher, told trustees she was reassigned to an elementary role; multiple parents, alumni and local educators urged the board to keep her in the middle‑school position, citing program continuity and student development.
ROXBURY, N.J. — Jessica Harrison Calderon, a music teacher at Eisenhower Middle School for more than two decades, told the Roxbury Township Board of Education on June 15 that she had been reassigned to an elementary classroom and asked the board to reconsider.
"This decision is not just a reassignment on paper," Calderon said during the non‑agenda public‑comment period, describing the move as "heartbroken" and saying it would disrupt the choir program's continuity and the pipeline to the high‑school music program.
In response, a string of parents, former students and community members urged trustees to keep Calderon in her middle‑school role. Susan Steroff said Calderon had built long‑running outreach events and choirs that "have brought our community together," while John Summers and other alumni described Calderon as an essential mentor who prepares middle‑school students for high‑school music expectations.
Superintendent Dr. Santoro acknowledged staffing changes in his earlier report and framed recent moves in the context of the district's broader budget picture and personnel process. "The total number of staff members and the positions that were reduced was 27," he told the board earlier in the meeting, adding that reductions and reassignments reflected input from building principals, instructional supervisors and central office reviewers and were based on enrollment and program viability.
Several commenters also flagged concerns about reductions to other specialist roles in the district. Kevin Jala, a parent, said changes to media‑specialist assignments could leave at least one school without a dedicated media specialist next year, and urged the board to consider the role's importance to students in an era of online information and AI.
Board members did not announce any immediate reversal of the reassignment during the meeting. The reassignment and related personnel resolutions were part of the personnel slate the board approved later in the evening. Calderon and supporters said they plan to continue engaging with district leaders; Dr. Santoro reiterated that parents with questions may contact building principals or him directly.
The board will next meet in July; no additional personnel action was announced publicly at the June 15 meeting.
