Parsippany Teachers Plan Rally Opposing 'Mounting Burdens' from Superintendent

It’s only been slightly more than five months since new Parsippany superintendent Scott Rixford took over the district’s top spot, but a disconnect between his administration and the teacher’s union has grown mightily.

Because of that, the majority of the 750-member Parsippany-Troy Hills Education Association is coming together and will hold a rally outside the Board of Education office on Thursday, Nov. 13 prior to the board’s regular meeting.

The rally is being held “as a show of unity in the face of mounting burdens placed on our members by the current district administration,” a statement from the group said.

The statement, sent to Patch by the union’s vice president, Jay Duhl, continued by saying, “We are frustrated by our inability to work as professionals with our students, as we have in the past, due to the increasing demands issued by the superintendent and his cabinet, as well as the blatant hostility or indifference toward us when we raise legitimate concerns or identify issues that should be addressed. We believe the duty of administrators is to support education and promote good teaching; under the current administration our thoughts and pleas go unanswered, or are met with condescension. But we are most troubled by the time that ill-conceived and weak policies are taking away from the teaching, counseling, guiding and coaching that this community has come to expect from its educators and that is our passion to provide.”

Duhl told Patch that the rally has nothing to do with contract negotiations and the teacher’s group is in no way targeting the nine-member board of education. Just the opposite, in fact.

Duhl said the union has enjoyed a positive working relationship with the board of education and hopes it will continue. He said the gathering is in complete regard to the superintendent and his cabinet.

The rally will be held at 292 Parsippany Road from 6 to 6:30 p.m. prior to the board of education’s closed session meeting. When the meeting opens to the public at 7:30 p.m., some 150 PTHEA members are expected to attend wearing blue shirts to signify its solidarity.

“We are rallying to make them aware that the District administration (superintendent and his cabinet) have imposed demands that take time away from working with children, and have misplaced priorities such as inspecting teachers pant pocket designs while we face an uphill battle trying to do our jobs as professionals,” Duhl told Patch in an email Tuesday.

The board of education meeting is open to the public and residents are encouraged to attend. It’s the first meeting since two incumbents were unseated in the November Election.

Rixford was hired in March of this year after serving as the interim Executive County Superintendent for Bergen and Passaic Counties. He was chosen from a list of seven final candidates and replaced interim schools chief John Fitzsimmons, who stepped in when longtime superintendent Leroy Seitz retired in 2013.

Rixford’s contract spans July 1, 2014 to June 30, 2019 – a five-year accord, the longest allowed by New Jersey. Rixford earns a salary of $175,000 annually, based on the size of enrollment in the Parsippany school district.