AUGUST 29, 2015 LAST UPDATED: SATURDAY, AUGUST 29, 2015, 1:21 AM
BY LINH TAT
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD
FORT LEE – A school trustee in the midst of his third term resigned this week, creating a vacancy on the board that, by law, must be filled before the end of October.
Yusang “Jimmy” Park, the only Asian-American ever to serve as school board president in Fort Lee, said he and his family are moving to a house they purchased in Ridgewood, leaving him no choice but to resign. Trustees are required to live in the town in which they hold office.
Park was the top vote-getter when he was elected in 2007, outperforming the three incumbents in that race. Fellow board members nominated him as president in 2012 after former trustee Arthur Levine resigned.
“Looking back, I ask myself, ‘Are we in a better place than we were seven years ago when I started?’ I would say yes,” Park said, reflecting on the state of the district.
When he was first elected, Park noted, the district was reeling from the fallout of a superintendent who plagiarized a speech delivered to honors students. That was followed in 2009 by a grade-altering scandal when officials found that a high school counselor had tampered with college transcripts, and widespread frustration in the community over an absentee superintendent during the 2012-13 school year. That superintendent eventually parted ways with the district.
Now, Park said, the district has voter-approved funding to build and expand classroom space, has adopted new campus security measures and has hired a new permanent superintendent
https://www.northjersey.com/news/education/fort-lee-trustee-resigns-because-he-s-moving-1.1400539
