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Jefferson Township Board of Education names leadership, approves annual appointments and personnel actions
Summary
At its Jan. 6 annual organization meeting the Jefferson Township Board of Education swore in newly elected members, elected Mrs. Poulas president and Mrs. Wildermuth vice president, approved annual professional appointments and delegate assignments, and adopted multiple personnel actions including interim administrative appointments.
The Jefferson Township Board of Education convened its annual organization meeting on Jan. 6, 2025, at 7:30 p.m. at the district central office. Rita Oroho Giacchi, serving as president pro tem, called the meeting to order and read the Open Meeting Statement.
The board read the results of the Nov. 5, 2024 school board election and the Board Secretary administered the oath of office to Christopher Brown, Christine Mallimo-Orna and Christopher Natale, each elected to three-year terms.
Mrs. Small moved and Mr. Natale seconded a motion to nominate Mrs. Poulas for board president. The motion carried with the board voting in the affirmative; Mrs. Poulas assumed the president role. Mrs. Grater moved and Mr. Brown seconded a motion to nominate Mrs. Wildermuth for vice president; that motion also carried.
By motion of Mrs. Grater, seconded by Mr. Natale, the board approved the slate of annual appointments. The board adopted its 2025 meeting schedule (Attachment A) and approved professional and administrative service providers, including Brown & Brown Consulting Group as health insurance agent of record; The Morville Agency/Arthur J. Gallagher Risk Management Services for property/liability insurance; Nisivoccia & Company as auditor; Cleary Giacobbe Alfieri Jacobs, LLC as attorney of record; Busch Law Group as special counsel for special education matters; and Scarinci Hollenback as special counsel for construction, facilities and procurement matters. The board also designated First Hope Bank, Fulton Bank, Provident Bank and TD Bank as official depositories and named the Daily Record and the New Jersey Herald as official newspapers for 2025. The board adopted the existing Pre-K–12 curriculum, textbooks and co-curricular programs and continued existing bylaws, policies and regulations until amended.
The board approved delegate appointments to statewide and county associations: Mr. Stewart will serve as delegate to the New Jersey School Boards Association; Mrs. Grater and Mr. Natale will serve as co-delegates to the Morris County School Boards Association; and Mrs. Perez and Mrs. Small will serve as co-delegates to the Morris County Educational Services Commission.
The board took action on personnel matters on the superintendent’s recommendation. Approved personnel items included resignations (for example, Javiera Bahamondes, special education aide, last day 1/9/25; Kristen Sibblies, school psychologist, last day 2/14/25; Rebekah Woolery, special education aide, last day 1/30/25); schedule adjustments for transportation staff; and appointments. Notable hires and assignments approved include Steven Fiedeldey as interim special education supervisor (PCN–TBD) at an annualized salary of $128,000, effective Jan. 13, 2025 through March 31, 2025, and Jodi Reinstein as interim school principal at White Rock at an annualized salary of $147,000, effective Jan. 6, 2025 through March 31, 2025. The board also approved several special education aide appointments, a school social worker appointment (Katherine Mateo, MA/1, $60,290, JTMS/White Rock, effective Jan. 21, 2025), and other staffing adjustments as listed in the personnel section.
One vote of record: an abstention was recorded by Christine Mallimo-Orna on the annual appointments and personnel motions where noted in the minutes. The meeting schedule in Attachment A notes that regular 2025 meetings will convene into closed session at 6:30 p.m. followed by the public portion at 7:30 p.m., with Jefferson Township High School listed as the meeting location.
Before adjourning, Board President Poulas asked members to email committee preferences and interest in Committee Chair positions to her and Mrs. Wildermuth by Jan. 15. A motion by Mrs. Grater, seconded by Mr. Natale, to adjourn the meeting carried; the meeting adjourned at 7:47 p.m.
Authorities and legal references cited during the meeting included the Code of Ethics for School Board Members, Title 18A:12-24.1, and the personnel-related statutory citations referenced during certification and emergent hiring procedures (N.J.S.A. 18A:6-7.1 et seq., N.J.S.A. 18A:39-17 et seq., N.J.S.A. 18A:6-4.13 et seq.).
