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Students and parents call for board member Sarah Forman’s resignation after classroom remarks
Summary
Students and parents told the Mountain Lakes Board of Education that a board member’s remarks during a recent AP government classroom visit were inflammatory and targeted; speakers demanded accountability while others defended the board member’s longtime community service.
Mountain Lakes High School student Graham Walter told the Mountain Lakes Board of Education that during an AP U.S. Government presentation by board member Sarah Forman on March 30, he heard language he described as "inflammatory" and "categorically false," and he said Forman told him, "your family can suffer," after he challenged her remarks. Walter demanded Forman's immediate resignation from the board.
"At this point, it was clear to me that this would continue unchecked unless someone intervened," Walter told the board during the student public-comment period, describing what he said were political and religiously charged assertions by the classroom guest. He said the guest had linked a candidate in the 2025 New York City mayoral election to calls for "the mass execution of Jews," and that the guest cited the phrase "from the river to the sea" as evidence.
The comments drew additional student testimony. Mountain Lakes High School student Laura Blandon, who said she was present, told the board "her inflammatory language and conduct towards Graham have no place in a classroom and should never happen again." Student Grace Fu, who said she saw the incident's effects across campus, urged the board to apply professional standards to elected members who speak to students.
During later public comment, parent and grandmother Eileen Zico Walter said district responses so far have been "troubling" and echoed her grandson's call for immediate removal. "As an adult, parent, and board member, Mrs. Foreman's biased words are inexcusable," Walter said, adding that no apology had been offered.
Not all public commenters supported the resignation request. Elizabeth Festa and Jennifer Kate — both identifying themselves as longtime community volunteers who said they have worked with Forman on local boards and school projects — urged the board to consider Forman's record of community service and cautioned against drawing broad conclusions from a brief interaction. "Sarah Forman is a dedicated member of the Mountain Lakes community and a strong advocate for both the schools and our students," Festa said.
The board chair thanked the students and parents for speaking and reiterated the meeting's rules for public comment, noting the meeting forum is not designed for back-and-forth dialogue. The board did not announce any disciplinary action or vote on the public comments at the meeting. The board adjourned at 9:20 p.m.; no formal vote on Forman's status was recorded in the public session.
What happens next: The transcript shows the board held an executive session earlier in the evening for personnel and legal matters; the public meeting included students' and parents' statements but no recorded board action on the allegations. The matter remains unresolved based on the meeting record.
