Schools

Sampson Outlines Goals at First BOE Meeting

Charles Sampson took the reins as Freehold Regional High School Superintendent on June 6

Freehold Regional High School District Superintendent  spoke of transparency and accountability Monday in his first appearance at a Board of Education meeting since taking on his new role. Sampson, who was selected as the district’s new superintendent in February, started on Monday, June 6.

“The community has been overwhelmingly supportive,” Sampson said. “I’m going to continue to conduct what I call my listening tour. The public should not hesitate to reach out to me.”

Sampson emphasized transparency while outlining a three-part entry plan of acclimation, accountability and student achievement.

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“The acclimation piece is key to me. I’ve been meeting with individual board members, and I’ll be expanding that out and meeting with faculty, staff and community members,” he said.

Sampson said he would use the school’s Web site to increase avenues of communication. To that end, the superintendent established a blog and made his entry plan available online during his first week in the office.

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“As many ways as I can find to get out the message and put [information] out in a transparent manner is incredibly important,” he said.

In addition to meeting with staff and community members, Sampson has been in discussions with members of the elementary school districts that send students to Freehold Regional. Sampson and elementary school district leaders will hold monthly meetings to discuss regional issues.

“Cultivating relationships with K through eight districts is important to me,” he said.

In addition to focusing on students who will soon arrive at Freehold Regional, Sampson said he is also interested in looking at the success of the district’s graduates. As part of his student achievement goal, Sampson would like to look at the district’s metrics for tracking these achievements as well as monitor what students are doing after they leave school.

Members of the public were responsive to Sampson’s address and his plans for sustaining a culture of accountability. Leon Sirulnick, of Manalapan, praised what he saw as a shift toward greater transparency in recent meetings. Sirulnick also complimented new Board President Harold "Heshy" Moses for the tenor of the meetings.

“Mr. Sampson, we’re looking forward to working with you to restore the district’s reputation. The circumstances of the Breyer State Affair was stunning in its defiance and arrogance,” Sirulnick said, referring to the 2008 incident in which administrators in the district obtaining doctoral degrees from an unaccredited online institution, Breyer State University. “I’m happy to say what we’ve seen in the last few meetings is different from what we’ve seen in the past. The open discussion of band policy (in relation to a future pay-to-participate policy) is a perfect example of how these meetings should progress.”


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