TOMS RIVER – The deadline to apply for the Beachwood representative on the Toms River Board of Education has been moved to 4 p.m. on September 10.
This was announced at the most recent Board of Education meeting. An application packet is available at TRSchools.org.
Beachwood’s representative on the Toms River Board of Education, Melissa Morrison, has resigned but did so after the deadline for her seat to be on the ballot in November. Whoever is chosen will fill the spot through December of 2025.
Those who applied already don’t need to apply again, officials said. However, if there was a deficiency in their original application, they can correct that when they re-apply.
The Board has nine members. Toms River has six representatives. Beachwood, Pine Beach, and South Toms River each have one member.
People didn’t have an adequate amount of time to apply, said Toms River representative Ashley Lamb.
She noted that the state sets a deadline for when a replacement must be chosen, so the short timeframe is because of state law. The board is not trying to rush people or “disenfranchise a community.”
South Toms River representative Anna Polozzo said she received several phone calls from people asking why the open position wasn’t advertised better.
A school board has 65 days to replace a member, which means they would need to interview applicants and choose someone by the end of September.
In related news, there are two, three-year terms on the Board of Education representing Toms River on the ballot this year.
Dominick Farro is using the slogan “Education, Transparency, Accountability.”
Lisa Contessa is using the slogan “Fight! Fight! Fight!”
Maria Matarazzo and Diane Oxley are using the slogan “Students First.”
Jennifer Howe is using the slogan “Advocating Educational Funding.”
