JACKSON – The township school district has been informed by law enforcement that “Board Vice President Tara Rivera has been indicted on charges of cyber harassment via a social network.”
In a statement provided by School District Coordinator of Communications and Technology Allison Erwin, “because this is an ongoing legal matter, we are not going to comment any further. All other inquiries should be referred to law enforcement.”
Rivera is accused of sending images of “intimate parts” of an individual without their permission. The charges include cyber harassment, hindering and giving false information.
Documents show a court date has been set for June 16 and the incident occurred in Jackson Township two years ago. The issue became public on April 6. She is accused of committing the crime of cyber harassment “while making a communication in an online capacity via any electronic device or through a social networking site and with the purpose to harass,” the documents state.
Rivera is facing fourth degree charges from her indictment from a Monmouth County grand jury for cyber harassment claims involving photos of an individual who is only identified by the initials J.D. to another person identified as N.K. on March 27, 2020 according to a report by New Jersey 101.5.
The indictment states that the pictures were sent with “the intent to emotionally harm or place N.K. in fear of physical or emotional harm.”
She is also facing an additional charge of invasion of privacy for sending the pictures of J.D. “in an act of sexual penetration or sexual contact” without their permission.
Rivera, who has lived in the township for over 25 years and has two children, served as board president last year with Michael Walsh serving as vice president. The two switched roles in January of this year during the Board’s reorganization meeting.
During the reorganization meeting, four new members of the board were sworn in to office. That left Walsh, Rivera and Scott Sargent as the three senior members of the panel. This year marks her fifth serving on the Board.
The news brought shock and concern from residents. Parent Jennifer Gallagher who often speaks at Board of Education meetings offered comment to The Jackson Times about what parents she knows are talking about. She said, “the main concern for parents is, is this kind of behavior being tolerated? The schools and the Board enforce a very strict anti-bullying policy, so for one of their own to be…behaving in this manner but also being criminally investigated and indicted doesn’t align with the message being set for students.
“This needs to be addressed at the (next BOE) meeting at the very least. The Board needs to make a statement to the public that they don’t condone this type of behavior. If a Board member is violating the same policies that are set forth for staff and students then an example should be made that under no circumstances is this tolerated at home or at work/school because a lot of bullying incidents don’t actually take place at school. They happen at home very similarly to the incident with Ms. Rivera,” Gallagher added.
She added “for this to be tolerated or allowed or excused just doesn’t send a clear message in regards to their stance on bullying. She’s a board member and she should know from her years of experience being on the board that how she acts or what she does in her personal life is still a reflection of her professional image.”
Gallagher stressed, “we know Ms. Rivera has done amazing work for the special education department and we don’t look to discredit all her hard work. This is just a response to this incident.”
Erwin told The Jackson Times on April 7 that the Board of Education was not currently seeking to fill any vacant positions, meaning that it had not received a resignation from Ms. Rivera.
Rivera’s bio featured on the Jackson Board of Education website states she received a master’s degree and has background in “education, special education and psychology.” It also states she has extensive experience in advocacy and working as an integral part of a team in decision making processes.
The bio adds that she is “committed to working alongside other board members in all aspects to ensure all students reach their maximum potential with the highly qualified staff that support them. Her vision is to have transparency in all areas and to help families and staff work collectively and respectfully.”
Ironically, during the Board’s March meeting, their security director presented the bi-annual Harassment, Intimidation and Bullying (HIB) report that covers incidents of physical and cyber harassment along with incidents of students concerning vandalism, violence and substance abuse.
Rivera was contacted for comment for this article but at press time had not yet replied.
Charges are merely accusations until proven in a court of law.
