Ruling Against Former BOE President Upheld

A decision by the state School Ethcis Commission to reprimand former Brick Board of Education President Daniel Woska will stand, Education Commissioner Christopher Cerf has ruled.

The decision by Cerf, which was rendered June 22 and recently released, upholds the decision of the full School Ethics Commission which was . The complaint against Woska was filed by former Interim Schools Superintendent Melindo A. Persi, who was suddenly ousted as superintendent at a reorganization meeting of the Board of Education where Woska was elected board president.

Woska, whose legal defense was being , appealed the February decision to Cerf.

Persi alleged in his original complaint that Woska, who already sat on the board before the reorganizational meeting, unilaterally instructed the assistant board secretary to issue him a Rice notice, a notification given to a public employee whose employment status will be discussed at a meeting, when he was not authorized to do so. Persi's attorney, Robert Shea, argued in legal documents that Woska, who was not yet the board's president, did not inform fellow board members about the notice, a violation of ethics laws.

Issuing the Rice notice "had the potential to compromise the Board," the commission's decision said.

In a separate civil lawsuit, Persi argued that the board broke its contract with him by failing to provide 30 days notice before his dismissal. A court in that legal action as well, and ordered the district to pay $21,000.