By MADDY VITALE
Ocean City Schools Superintendent Matthew Friedman has accepted a position in another district.
That leaves the Ocean City Board of Education in the same position as 2021 -- in search of a new leader.
OCNJDaily.com reported on Friedman’s possible resignation on March 25, after it was disclosed in a Bucks County, Pa., newspaper that he was a finalist for superintendent of the Quakertown Community School District. On Tuesday, the Bucks County School Board approved his hiring, the Bucks County Herald reported.
The Ocean City school district hired Friedman in June of 2022 after conducting a search that started in 2021. His salary is $190,000 per year in his three-year contract. According to the contract, Friedman is required to stay through the end of June, before leaving to take his new job in Pennsylvania, officials have said.
Now, the Board of Education will begin a search for a new leader who will meet the needs of the district.
The first step in the process to find qualified candidates will be at a special meeting on Tuesday, April 18. The meeting, which will be held at the high school, will be closed to the public while the board meets in executive session since it is a personnel matter. No action will be taken, according to a school news release.
The Board of Education will be seeking new candidates for superintendent.
The primary reason for the meeting is to lay the foundation for the next steps in the search process, with plans to further update and involve the public following the April 18 meeting, the release states.
Friedman took over from then-acting Schools Superintendent Thomas Baruffi. Baruffi had filled the position since the retirement of Kathleen Taylor in 2021. Taylor served as superintendent of the district for 15 years until her retirement on Aug. 1, 2021.
The Board of Education was presented with a strong slate of candidates for the superintendent in 2022, receiving applications from across the United States.
In partnership with Strategic Educational Advantage (SEA), a superintendent search firm, the board set a high bar for finding a new leader to take charge of the Ocean City school district.
School Board President Chris Halliday said in an interview last week that SEA will conduct another superintendent search.
“The search committee (SEA) is obligated to do the search for free if the superintendent leaves,” Halliday said recently of Friedman leaving prior to his three-year contract being up.
For more information about the Ocean City School District visit www.oceancityschools.org.
