Marlboro School Superintendent's Legal Bills Still Mounting

Marlboro, NJ-March 18, 2021

On November 26, 2020, the legal bills defending Mr. Eric Hibbs, school superintendent of the Marlboro School District, has totaled $40, 557.00. Four months later, it has climbed even further.

An Open Public Records Access (OPRA) request indicates legal bills defending Mr. Hibbs against ethics charges have climbed an additional $13,910 dollars, for a grand total of $54,467.00 dollars.

However, in light of climbing legal bills, there is light at the end of the tunnel. According to Ms. Candice Hendricks, Assistant Director of Judicial Standards of the Office of Administrative Law, states, “There are no scheduled hearing dates at this time…” This may be an indicator that the matter is about to wrap up with a final decision being made before Judge Jacob Gertsman, of the Office of Administrative Law.

Bills regarding Hibbs' defense of his alleged ethics violations have been pouring in from two fronts: Mr. David Rubin, the lead attorney, charging the district $300 an hour, and the school board’s attorney charging the district for services rendered such as reviewing Attorney General correspondence, telephone calls, and attending Dr. Hibbs' ethics proceedings via Zoom.

Mr. Hibbs, on February 16, 2021, was stunningly and inexplicably awarded a contract, nearly one and a half years before the expiration of his current contract. This development amid the nationwide Covid-19 pandemic, the school district losing 1.13 million dollars in state funding, and Mr. Hibbs' pending ethics charges. The contract, commencing in June of this year, awards Mr. Hibbs over 1-million dollars over a 5-year period.

The sole Board member voting in opposition to the contract was Ms. Kathleen Amster, who stated, “This is not a popularity contest or a statement on Dr. Hibbs. No employee of the district should receive a new contract before their current contract has expired.”

The total cost of Mr. Hibbs’ contract in its last year (5th year, 2026), will bring total compensation to $337,006.00 dollars. According to Data Universe (see above) as of December 31, 2020, Mr. Hibbs is ranked 7th in salary out of 10,368 employees in Monmouth County, enrolled in the Teachers’ Pension Annuity Fund (TPAF).

Ms. Robyn Wolfe, the school board president had this to say about Mr. Hibbs: “...As to Dr. Hibbs' contract, we have the utmost confidence in him and are confident that the meritless charges will be dismissed.” The School Ethics Commission thought otherwise, and felt 'probable cause' indeed existed. After an investigation, the case was forwarded to the Office of Administrative Law for adjudication.

In a blow to transparency regarding district operations, a request for copies of e-mail exchanges between Board president Robyn Wolfe and Superintendent Hibbs, in the weeks leading up to the final contract approval, was subsequently denied. What is this school district hiding from the public?

Ten (10) e-mails regarding the contract were exchanged between Hibbs and Wolfe during an 8-day period between February 8th and February 16--the day of the contract proposal hearing.

Preventing the public from the thought processes in place at the time in approving this blockbuster and inexplicable taxpayer funded contract, are alarming.

The district relied on the most commonly used OPRA exemption to withhold information from the public: the "ACD" or “inter-agency or intra-agency advisory, consultative, or deliberative material” exemption.

Had the e-mails been released for the sake of transparency purposes-- justification-- or the lack thereof, would have made more sense to Marlboro taxpayers and parents of children attending the K-8 District, why members of the Board of Education approved the superintendent's early contract.

The refusal to release the e-mails, serves one purpose only: the arousal of mistrust and suspicion.

A record 300 participants watched via Zoom the public hearing regarding Mr. Hibbs' contract proposal

This November, three members of the Marlboro Board of Education are up for re-election. Ms. Wolfe, the Board’s president, Mr. Steven Shifrinson, and Ms. Kathleen Amster. A fourth member, Mr. Robert Daniels, is resigning for personal reasons, and his seat will be up for election.

This is the opinion of the Monmouth Watchdog
--MonmouthWatchdog@Gmail.com