BOE's Strumolo Calls for Choffo's Resignation; Governor Denies Giving Board Member a Gift

School board member Michael Strumolo demanded Andrew Choffo's resignation from the board Friday night as Gov. Chris Christie's spokesman denied allegations that the governor provided New York Jets tickets last month in exchange for a sneak preview of the controversial contract for Parsippany Superintendent LeRoy Seitz.

"I'm appalled,'' Strumolo said. "I want to be the first to demand his resignation. I think he should step down.''

At Thursday night's Board of Education meeting,  or a "high-ranking state official.'' In exchange, Choffo said the board member may have supplied the governor's office with confidential information about Seitz's contract.

But Christie's press secretary Michael Drewniak said Parsippany board member Robert Crawford had paid for a ticket for the Jets' game against the Cincinnati Bengals on Thanksgiving night.

Drewniak said Crawford purchased the ticket so his son, Christopher, could attend the game with his close friend Max Berns and his father, Andrew Berns, the chairman of the State Ethics Commission.

Drewniak said Berns and the boys, who are both freshmen at Parsippany High School, briefly stopped by the governor's box at New Meadowlands Stadium. Berns introduced Christopher Crawford to the governor, who had never met the teen before, Drewniak said.

"They ate a few chicken wings and then they left,'' Drewniak said. He said Christie was not aware that Christopher was Crawford's son and that he didn't know Crawford.

According to Drewniak, Berns, who has Jets season tickets, spoke with the Christie the night before the game and told the governor that he would stop by the box to introduce him to "Max's best friend."

Christie never spoke to any board member about Seitz's contract, Drewniak said. Christie has publically denounced Seitz and the board, which last month approved a five-year contract for Seitz that exceeds Christie's proposed $175,00 cap for school administrators in a district the size of Parsippany.

Under the contract, Seitz's salary would jump from $212,000 to $216,000 this year and $234,000 by 2015. Crawford voted against the contract on Nov. 9 and has since raised three motions to rescind it. His last motion was denied by Board President Anthony Mancuso Thursday night before Choffo raised the allegation. Choffo has recused himself from all votes because his wife works part-time for the school district.

Drewniak called Choffo a "jerk" for raising "half-baked conspiracy theories'' against Crawford in a public forum.

"Whatever ruminations were spinning in his head, he has maligned someone's reputation,'' Drewniak said.

Choffo, however, said he had no intention of resigning. "I stand by my record as a board member for six years," he said.

He also said the board still had grounds to do an internal investigation on whether Crawford had violated state school ethics codes. 

In response to allegations that Christie knew in advance that the board would vote to approve Seitz's contract, Drewniak said Christie had received some information from a story in The Daily Record. Christie lashed out at Seitz and the board hours before they approved the contract.