Holmdel BOE Member Defends Opining On Middletown School Reopening

MIDDLETOWN, NJ — Terence Wall, the Holmdel school board member who caused an outcry Tuesday night when he spoke at the Middletown Board of Ed. meeting, urging Middletown to reopen schools, said he did not speak at anyone's behest.

Nobody asked him to call into the Middletown BOE meeting, he said.

"I would be less inclined to make a call if asked to make a call," Wall told Patch. "I want to note there is nothing to defend. I’ve gotten mainly appreciation. (I did it) because children matter. It’s that simple. I attended Middletown BOE meetings a couple of years ago in support of the YMCA programs that were in jeopardy. The reason is the same. Children matter. It doesn’t end at the property line."

Newly elected Middletown school board members Jacqueline Tobacco and Harmony Barry Heffernan, who ran on a platform of aggressively reopening schools, both said they did not ask him to speak at the meeting.

"Absolutely not," said Tobacco.

Wall said it was an open public meeting, and he felt free to speak during the legally required public comment period, as per New Jersey's Open Public Meetings Act.

“The issue of neighboring, contiguous schools opening is significant and relevant in my individual opinion," said Wall. "Each district impacts each other. When contiguous school districts are open and educators live locally the staffing issues and conflicts are reduced tremendously. It aids the working folks who we entrust our children to, and favors the district staff and their children as well. When one is open and one is shut there are inherent conflicts that we need to work together to address as a region.”

“The CDC, American Academy of Pediatrics and other science-based organizations as well as mental health organizations are stating that children go back in school," he added. "This is not a layman’s opinion and it need not be a controversy. A virtual element is always an option to families according to the Executive Order."

In this Dec. 19 letter, the Holmdel Board of Ed. called the union's demand to close schools for half days an "unacceptable option." In return, the Holmdel teachers' union took a nearly unanimous vote of "no confidence" against Acting Superintendent Lee Seitz in January, after he forced the district to go back full time, against the union's wishes.

While it doesn't appear that any Holmdel schools have closed due to outbreaks, "It's a mess with the staff. People are being infected," Middletown resident Michelle Collins said in the public meeting forum Tuesday night.

Wall took another dig at the state teachers' union in his statements to Patch.

“Quite beyond Middletown, folks should follow the major negative impacts on communities across the state," he said. "They are being bullied, especially in communities of color and areas of significant disadvantage, where the impacts of the NJEA position on remote school to urban families is extreme. Children don’t have a paid union; they have dedicated citizens and local leaders who can choose to remain silent or fully embrace their respective roles. Hats off to those that fight for the kids.”

Initial Patch report: Holmdel Board Member Calls Into Middletown BOE: Get Kids In Class

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