BOE Members Defend Choosing Edward Pearce for Vacancy

Several Gloucester Township Board of Education members this week defended the selection of Edward Pearce, a union official without a college degree and with ties to the local Democratic Party, to serve the final year of a vacant board term.

"The requirements for serving on the Board of Education are that you are at least 18 years old and can speak English," said board member William Fontanez, who nominated Pearce last week. "Here's the thing, if you had all educators here it'd be lopsided. We're trying to get a blend of a lot of folks. We represent taxpayers, the people of Gloucester Township. You've got to have different flavors in different positions, keep taxes low."

Fontanez and five other board members selected Pearce, 55, a Teamsters union official, from a field of 16 candidates for the vacant board seat. Other candidates included an attorney and a teacher. 

"I think this is what the board needed," said board member Joseph Gunn, who seconded Pearce's nomination. "All the trouble we had with labor, I think it could have been avoided with someone with experience."

The district settled a yearlong contract dispute with teachers in June and support workers in the fall. The contract runs until 2015, but board officials said they expect negotiations for a new contract to begin as early as next summer. Pearce's experience negotiating contracts was cited by board members who voted for him.

Linda Gilch and Ellen Reese did not vote for Pearce last week after a three-hour, public meeting in which 14 board candidates were interviewed. Both said they favored other candidates.

Another member, Felicia Reid, did not attend the special meeting in which Pearce was selected. She said she had a previous commitment. Reid said Monday that she didn't like the process used to select Pearce and hoped the board would "do a better job of managing a process for such important decisions."

Sean Hengst, a teacher who ran unsuccessfully for a board seat in the fall and the vacant appointment, also questioned Pearce's selection.

"I think the public right now would like someone more in the education field to assist on things that I have background with, like profession development, curriculum development and selecting resources."

Pearce will have to run for a full three-year term next fall to remain on the board. The current board President William Collins finished fourth among six candidates for three board seats last month. Two other incumbents, Gilch and Reese, were reelected.

A contentious contract negotiation with teachers and support staff and seven of the township's 11 schools not meeting state achievement standards were among the key election issues, some voters said.