School Board 'Hopeful' Superintendent Solution is Near

With four weeks until students return to school, the Fort Lee Board of Education has not yet filled critical vacancies at superintendent and high school principal, but has vowed to be working “as quickly as it can.” 

While there were no substantive announcements or moves to hire for the positions at the Monday night public meeting, according to one media report, the board had interviewed a superintendent candidate earlier that day, Board President Yusang Park told the gathered crowd.

“We are hopeful that this process is nearing its end,” he said.

Interviews had been conducted and offers floated to candidates recently, Board Attorney Dennis McKeever told northjersey.com, but none of those offers had been accepted.

The district has been without a superintendent for approximately four weeks. Trustees had previously feared state or county intervention in the selection of a superintendent, but school officials now contend that their "good-faith effort in getting the position filled" has relegated outside action to an outside possibility.

Assistant Superintendent Sharon Amato was selected to temporarily ascend to the superintendent position after the school board accepted the resignation of Steven Engravalle in March.

Her contract as interim super expired on June 30, however, and since then there's been an impasse on who will be the district's next leader.

Amato, once again serving as assistant superintendent, acts as de facto leader of the district in absence of a superintendent.