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Trustee disputes and privacy concerns surface during Hackensack school board meeting
Summary
Public commenters and trustees clashed over interim legal counsel, unanswered emails and the handling of closed‑session matters. Legal counsel cautioned against discussing attorney‑client privileged matters in public.
Tensions over communications and process surfaced during public comment at the Hackensack Board of Education’s Feb. 11 special meeting.
One commenter said she had several unanswered emails to President Maureen Harris and Vice President Stein, accused trustees of publicly shaming her and urged trustees to ask before assuming she had not done due diligence. The commenter asked for elaboration of policies 0174 and 0177 to ensure regulations about attorney processes and full-board awareness.
Board legal counsel responded publicly that matters discussed in closed session are attorney‑client privileged and should not be relayed in detail in open meeting. The exchange escalated when the presiding officer and another trustee disputed whether privileged matters had been handled appropriately; at one point the presiding officer told another participant, "You are a liar," according to the meeting transcript.
Trustees and counsel urged that committee procedures, clarifications about interim hires and communication processes be handled through proper channels and asked the public to file concerns so staff could follow up. The board did not take formal disciplinary action at the meeting; legal counsel recommended confining discussion of closed-session details to privileged channels.
