Complaints Filed Against Middletown Board of Education Member

MIDDLETOWN, NJ - A series of ethics complaints filed against Middletown Board of Education member Joan Minnuies were made public Dec. 18 and published in the Absury Park Press.

This summer, a bloc of Middletown Board of Ed. members — Bob Banta, Michael Donlon, Ernest Donnelly, Vinnie Brand and president Jim Cody — filed several complaints with the state Department of Education, accusing Joan Minnuies of:

• voting against hiring a teacher because she believed the board wanted to usurp Minniues' daughter's position as an assistant coach.
• using students as unpaid volunteers at her granddaughter's birthday party in exchange for community service credit.
• involving herself in education-related community groups despite directions from the state that board members should avoid these kinds of relationships.
• using her position in these community groups, including the now-defunct Great Race, to promote herself as a candidate.

According to the APP, the state Department of Education's School Ethics Commission found no probable cause to investigate Minnuies. However, the Middletown Board of Ed. refused to drop the complaints and pressed their case to the state Office of Administrative Law, which often handles school board issues and is now investigating. The Middletown Board of Education has hired a law firm to try and prove their case against Minnuies.

Minnuies wrote to the Asbury Park Press, denying the allegations and said she is being harassed by other Board members.

"There have been several complaints filed against me in an attempt to establish a pattern of unethical behavior on my part, and to have me removed from the Board," Minnuies wrote. "In my opinion, the only pattern being established is one of harassment against me."

Read the full Asbury Park Press article here.

Patch file photo of Joan Minnuies from this 2012 article: Middletown Board of Education Candidates Share Views at Forum