Superintendent Lawsuit Hearings Complete Testimony

Judge's decision could come by summer, but the embattled schools chief says he expects the issue to continue for a long time.

Months after it quietly began last September, the hearing to decide the validity of Parsippany's Superintendent of Schools LeRoy Seitz's contract with the school district is finally over. On Tuesday, in the final day of the oft-delayed hearing at the Office of Administrative Law in Newark, dramatic testimony was offered that, if found credible by the judge, could swing the case in Seitz's favor. Then again, it may not. "It's a very complicated case," the superintendent told Patch. Seitz took legal action against the BOE, the state Department of Education and former County Executive Superintendent Kathleen Serafino over the board's rescinding of a five-year contract struck in November 2010. Under the pact, which Seitz said was approved by …

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Seitz Addresses NCLB, Student Achievement

Schools superintendent says waiver or not, getting students to excel is the goal.

Parsippany Schools Superintendent LeRoy Seitz defended district student achievement in remarks made before the Board of Education last week. Seitz's comments came hours after the Obama administration announced that 10 states, including New Jersey, were granted waivers from having to adhere to federal No Child Left Behind standardized testing benchmarks. The waiver comes at a fortunate time for Parsippany. Eleven of the district's 14 schools did not meet federal Adequate Yearly Progress standards as of the end of the last school year. "With regard to the waiver, it really does not change the fact that we want all of our students performing at the proficient or advanced proficient level, period," Seitz told Patch.   As such, he said …

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Calabria: 'Ready to Move On' From Seitz Issue

BOE president says it is time to get back to the issue of teaching kids.

Parsippany Board of Education President Frank Calabria said he is "exhausted" after the latest go-round in the body's back-and-forth with the state Department of Education over the contract of the district's superintendent. "You would think there was nothing else for us to do," Calabria said. "But there is the budget and contract negotiations and the turf field. And there are all of those students counting on us to teach them. "How long have I been president? Ten months?" he asked. "This contract business has been such a distraction." The most recent distraction was the latest threat from Executive County Superintendent Kathleen Serafino. Twice in the past 10 months, Serafino has held the prospect of Parsippany public schools losing up to…

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Seitz: Schools Will Follow Anti-Bullying Law

Though law is ruled unconstitutional, Par-Troy schools superintendent says effort to keep kids safe will continue.

Anti-bullying efforts in township public schools will continue, says Parsippany schools Superintendent LeRoy Seitz. His statement comes after the state Council on Local Mandates on Friday ruled that the new law designed to reduce acts of harrassment, intimidation and bullying in schools is unconstitutional.  The law, which went into effect in September, requires schools to invest time into training staff, compiling reports and investigating bullying incidents in an effort to promote tolerance and keep children safe. The state panel struck down the measure because it found that  the law doesn't provide funding for schools to be able to comply fully. The council's ruling goes into effect in 60 days. "Our HIB process has been up and running …

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State Tells BOE to Take Money Back From Seitz

Officials say superintendent was overpaid by $38,000 over the past 18 months.