Toms River School Board Appoints Citta As Superintendent

TOMS RIVER, NJ — Michael Citta, the principal at Toms River High School South, has been appointed to become the next superintendent of the Toms River Regional High School District.

Citta was appointed on Wednesday night during a special meeting of the school board, ending 15 months of turmoil that ensued after former superintendent David Healy announced he was retiring.

Contract terms still have to be negotiated, but it is anticipated he will take over the district May 1, relieving interim Superintendent Stephen Genco, the district said in a statement Thursday morning.

"I'm overwhelmed by the support," said Citta, a 1993 graduate of Toms River North, after the announcement was greeted by a standing ovation from most of those in attendance. He acknowledged the turmoil during a brief speech he gave after the announcement and in private remarks.

"I think I am the first superintendent who can say he started in this district in kindergarten," Citta said. "They wanted someone from within the district; it doesn't get more inside than that."

Citta, 46, who has been a teacher and administrator in the district, earned a bachelor's degree at Georgian Court University and his master's degree from Kean University.

"My wife and I got our master's together," he said, referring to his wife, Jacqueline. The couple has two children; their son, Michael, graduated from Toms River South in June and their daughter, Sophia is a freshman now.

Citta had been one of three candidates whose names became public in early 2021 amid accusations of political interference in the hiring process, when board member Kathy Eagan said Toms River Councilman Daniel Rodrick pressured her to try to pressure another board member on a vote on the final candidate. Read more: Toms River School Board Member Accuses Councilman Of Interference

Eagan's accusations led to counter-accusations from board members Ashley Palmiere Lamb and Lisa Contessa, who said Eagan had pressured them on the matter. Read more: Accusations Fly Over Toms River Superintendent Search

Then-board president Joseph Nardini also accused Rodrick of urging him to try to "flip" votes on the board in the superintendent search. Read more: Toms River Board President: Rodrick Pressed Me On Superintendent

An ethics investigation was started in June but aborted soon after, much to the anger of residents who were frustrated by the politics that had dominated the discussions much of the spring.

The turmoil led to a stalemate last June, when the board could not muster enough votes to approve either James Ricotta, assistant superintendent in the district now, or James Altobello, director of secondary education in the Hamilton Township Schools in Mercer County, who had been the finalists chosen by the search committee. Read more: Failed Superintendent Vote Prompts Special Meeting In Toms River

Altobello had been the choice of Contessa, Lamb and Kevin Kidney, and Ricotta had been the choice of Anna Polozzo, Michele Williams and Alex Mizenko. Jennifer Howe, now board president, voted for Ricotta at the time but made her preference for Citta known then. Nardini and Eagan were not eligible to vote because both have family members who work in the district.

Wednesday night Howe, Contessa, Lamb, Kidney and Mizenko voted to appoint Citta. Polozzo and Williams voted no. Eagan and Nardini were not present for the meeting.

Citta, whose name surfaced last spring after he told friends he was not a finalist, was the subject of vitriolic coverage during the controversy. He had been assistant superintendent briefly under the disgraced Michael Ritacco, who was arrested in 2010 and later convicted of taking bribes in an insurance kickback scheme that cost the Toms River schools millions of dollars. Ritacco was sentenced to 11 years in federal prison in 2012 for his crime. Citta stepped down from the assistant's job and returned to being a principal in 2010 after the district suffered a $14 million state aid cut under then Gov. Chris Christie.

Citta said he reapplied for the superintendent position when the hiring process restarted because he believed he has the commitment necessary to lead it.

"This town means too much to me," he said.

He will replace interim Superintendent Stephen Genco, who was appointed last June to replace interim Superintendent Thomas Gialanella, who had led the district after Healy retired Dec. 31, 2020.

In his remarks to the audience, Citta acknowledged the controversies of the past year and the challenges the district has faced with the S2 state aid cuts and the coronavirus pandemic.

"It's nice to be in a room in this town with you people talking about the future of our students, and our staff and our great community," Citta said. "The bar is high and we set it."

"I'd much rather talk about solutions and opportunities for kids," Citta said. "I promise not to let anyone down."

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