By MADDY VITALE
The Board of Education met Wednesday night for a special meeting to discuss the search for the next schools superintendent to lead the district.
Superintendent of Schools Matthew Friedman resigned at the end of March. His last day is June 30. He accepted a position as superintendent of the Quakertown Community School District in Bucks County, Pa. Friedman and his wife and three children reside in Bucks County.
In April, the district took the first step in the search process by posting the superintendent’s position through the New Jersey Association of School Administrators (NJASA), https://www.njasa.net and on the school district’s website, https://oceancityschools.org/superintendentsearchinformation.
The deadline to apply was Friday, May 5.
Board of Education President Chris Halliday said in a text on Wednesday, prior to the meeting, that no formal action would be taken with regard to the search for a new superintendent.
The board went into executive session for more than two hours to discuss the applicants.
Halliday said in a statement Thursday that the district received 45 resumes for the position of superintendent.
During the closed session the board went over the applications.
“The board summarized the application packages and got right to work,” Halliday said. “We are committed to moving forward with the search in a deliberate, thoughtful manner.”
The board’s next step will be to narrow the list of interested candidates to a smaller field that would best meet the needs of the school district, he said.
“As I said previously, our goal is to bring an exceptional, dedicated leader to our schools,” Halliday continued. “While we prefer to move forward quickly, the process may take time; time well spent as we strive to meet the needs of our students, families and the Ocean City community today and for years to come.”
The advertisement for a new superintendent lists many attributes the board and the district would like to see in a qualified candidate for the top post.
“The successful candidate must be a decisive, collaborative leader, committed to working with all stakeholders. Ocean City’s highly engaged school community participates in key conversations and contributes to the district’s success,” the job posting reads.
It continues, “Ocean City’s three schools, their students, and faculty have achieved National, State, and County recognition for excellence. The next Superintendent will have the distinctive opportunity to build on the district’s many accomplishments and will possess exceptional communication skills. Prior experience as a district level administrator is preferred.”
Friedman was approved by the school board in May of 2022 and joined the district on July 1. His salary is $190,000.
When the next superintendent is hired, there would likely need to be an interim in place, while the winning candidate gives leave of their other position, Halliday noted at the April 27 school board meeting.
In other matters Wednesday, the board approved the hiring of an assistant high school principal to officially replace Wendy O’Neal as assistant.
Nicholas Bailey will be the assistant high school principal, effective July 1. His salary will be $123,000.
On Thursday, Halliday also commented about Bailey’s hiring.
“Mr. Bailey comes to the district with a wealth of experience. We welcome him to the district and look forward to him joining the administrative team,” Halliday said. “As an Ocean City High School alumnus, Mr. Bailey comes to us with an overflowing amount of “Red Raider pride.”
The school board gave the nod to O’Neal to become the high school principal in February.
She will officially serve in that capacity on July 1 at a salary of $143,000.
O’Neal had been interim principal since the spring of 2022 upon the retirement of longtime principal Matthew Jamison. O’Neal was the assistant principal at the high school since 2015.
Editor’s Note: This article has been updated to add comments from Ocean City School Board President Chris Halliday.
For more information about Ocean City schools, visit www.oceancityschools.org.
