Superintendent retires (updated)

According to an account in the Home News, Edison Schools Superintendent John DiMuzio is retiring effective June 30.  His decision follows a 4-4 vote by the board to offer him a new contract.  A majority of five would have been required.

The article does not say who the acting superintendent will be.  DiMuzio’s salary, according to Gannett sources, is $177,480, and he has 41 years’ experience.

UPDATE: Ronald Bolandi, a former Pisacataway superintendent, has been named acting superintendent.

Great book & website

The Citizens’ Campaign’s Citizens Manual is available online.  What an excellent resource!

Also check out this new website, NJ Spotlight.  It’s showing great promise.

New police litigation; school litigation news

Updated September 20, 2010

Another civil rights case has been filed against the Edison PD.  The complaint on behalf of Linus Germe (No. 10-cv-2528), filed May 17, 2010, claims that Germe was subjected to two severe beatings at the hands of the Edison police during an arrest on May 20, 2008.  It also claims that the police wrongfully exonerated the officers involved in later internal affairs proceedings.

Germe is represented by attorney Lennox Hinds of New York and Somerset.  Hinds is a well-known and sometimes controversial warrior for civil rights plaintiffs, which promises to make this case an interesting one.

Turning to schools, we read here about an Edison teacher whose tenure was revoked in a May 5, 2010 decision.  From Judge Futey:

[The Edison BOE has] presented consistent and corroborated evidence . . .  regarding the unauthorized leave and abuse of the attendance policy by respondent [Carol Ziznewski], failure to follow approved and acceptable educational plans and protocols of Edison, disrespect and disregard of her authorized supervisors . . . . selective teaching of certain students and selective disregard of the [Basic Skills Instruction] and [English as as Second Language] learning requirements of other students, unacceptable BSI schedules, thoroughly and unprofessional conduct in the manner in which she challenged both school authorities and fellow teachers at parent/teacher conferences, her disgraceful insolence directed at her principal Gerald Young and ESL supervisor Martin Smith, and several Affirmative Action complaints lodged against respondent from other staff members alleging repeated and grossly unnecessary minor incidents/confrontations by Ziznewski as well as repeated and recurring disturbing instances of harassment, intimidation and bullying by her, frequently in or near the immediate presence of school children during school hours or in environments in which either children or their parents or other visitors could overhear these confrontations in the immediate after school environments. In several of these incidents, the teachers whom the Ziznewski confronted became physically and/or emotionally upset by these encounters to the extent that they required medical attention. Further, her conduct jeopardized the tranquility, orderliness, stability and general professional school environment to a large degree. I FIND and CONCLUDE that all of the allegations against respondent, Carol Ziznewski, as to the each of the three charges cited against her in the Statement of Tenure Charges and Statement of Evidence Under Oath by John DiMuzio, dated April 30, 2008, are sufficient to constitute insubordination and conduct unbecoming and that she is GUILTY of all of the charges contained therein relative to same.

UPDATE: On August 3, 2010, the Commissioner of Education affirmed the decision. Read more about this and other recent litigation at our Edison and the Law page.

Election results from the primary

Big yawn . . . But for the record:

For the one year unexpired term on the Edison Council, the sole democratic nominee Robert Karabinchak received 1,161 votes.  Eleven write-in votes were cast, and 128 people declined to vote for anyone.

For the same office, the sole Republican nominee Mary Lou Resner received 1,070 votes.  There was one write-in, and 146 people declined to vote for anyone.

No independents filed by the June 8 petition-filing deadline.

Of the township’s 52,000 registered voters or so, about 2,500 showed up, just under the county-wide turnout rate of 6.06 percent.

Sourcing, and information on other towns, can be found here.  For information on past Edison elections, visit our elections page here.