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The Asbury Park Board School District has a new chief schools administrator.

Carteret High School Principal Dr. Lamont Repollet [above, at center] was issued a five-year contract effective September 29, 2014 at $157,500 per year for the balance of the current school year and for a further term of four years. His salary for the 2013-2014 school year will be pro-rated.

The vote was 7-0. Board President Geneva Smallwood, Vice President Nicolle Harris and board members Angela Ahbez-Anderson, Felicia Simmons, Corey Lowell, Barbara Lisinski and Connie Breech voted yes. Board member Kenneth Saunders, Jr. was not present for the vote and board member Christian Hall did not attend the meeting.

Repollet will resign from his position in Carteret effective today and will look to fill that position and be in Asbury Park full time by October 6, he said.

“Building a Brighter Future” will be the district’s overarching theme under Repollet’s leadership, he said in a public address at the Wednesday regular board meeting. The theme is based on three basic tenets: rebuild, retool and restore.

Armed with a white construction worker’s hard hat in his hand that displayed the three words alongside an Asbury Park schools logo, Repollet explained the three foundational elements.

“Together we will rebuild our educational foundation that will be strong enough to support our students’ academic needs. We will retool ourselves to ensure we have the capacity and the ability to produce students that are college and career ready. Lastly, we will begin to restore the community’s faith and confidence in this educational system and restore the ‘Blue Bishop pride’ of this iconic city by the sea,” he said.

Year one starts with accountability, from maintenance staff to school administrators, focused around three “essential questions,” he said. “How does it [the program, idea or precedent] benefit district kids? Does it bring honor and distinction to the school district and the community? And lastly, is it is fiscally responsible and feasible?”

Repollet’s appointment comes after over a year of operating with an interim schools chief. The position has been vacant since former Superintendent Denise Lowe left the position at the end of the 2012-2013 school year. The district voted not to renew Lowe’s contract in November 2012.

Board members were at odds last year during the selection process, with State Monitor Carole Morris overturning two majority votes to place Gregory Allen, a former Pleasantville schools administrator, in the postition.

“I know it [the selection process] hasn’t always been easy and we havent always agreed, but this is a proud moment for the district,” Board President Smallwood said.

“I think he will find it exciting and challenging, and from what I have seen and been told, he is up to the task,” Morris said.

Interim Superintendent Robert Mahon will continue to handle the day-to-day operations of the district. Some overlap will occur between the two as Repollet makes the transition from his current role in Carteret. Mahon expects about a week or so, if not more, of overlap, he said.

“He’s attended a curriculum meeting already, he’s anxious to get started,” Mahon said.

Repollet’s public address to the community and board members is printed below, verbatim:

I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Asbury Park Board of Education for my appointment and the State Monitor for supporting their decision. I stand here this evening as the Chief School Administrator; I am humbled by the opportunity God has given me. I am however, not naïve to the fact that with this opportunity comes a great deal of responsibility. The journey that lies ahead will be at times challenging, exciting, and rewarding. With that being said, I pledge my commitment to this school district, community, and more importantly the students of Asbury Park.

​Webster’s dictionary defines a ‘bishop’ as a person that acts with integrity, is well respected, and committed to their community. These characteristics of a bishop will serve as our district’s building blocks as the Board and I work together to create a set of Core Values that will guide our actions and define who we are as a school district.

​Tonight begins an educational journey that will bring a community together to “BUILD A BRIGHTER FUTURE” for the students of Asbury Park. Together we will Rebuild our educational foundation that will be strong enough to support our students’ academic needs. We will Retool ourselves to ensure we have the capacity and the ability to produce students that are college and career ready. Lastly, we will begin to Restore the community’s faith and confidence in this educational system and restore the “Blue Bishop Pride” of this iconic city by the sea.
​My approach to ‘Buiding a Brighter Future” will be systemic in nature. We will create opportunities for our students by identifying our strengths and acknowledging our weaknesses, our mission will be clear with specific goals that are measureable and attainable. The strategic action plan will help us prioritize strategies and make better decisions.

Our schools will have:
1. High standards and expectations of students
2. Effective School Leadership
3. High Levels of Collaboration and Communication
4. Curriculum, instruction and assessments aligned with Common Core standards
5. Frequent monitoring of learning and teaching
6. Focused professional development
7. A Supportive learning environment
8. High level of family and community involvement​
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As you can see, we have our work cut out for us. I don’t know about you but I came prepared. I brought with me my hard hat! When you see someone wearing a hard hat, you think “that person works hard” and “is not afraid to get his or her hands dirty.” Well this hard hat is a symbol of my commitment to the students of Asbury Park Public Schools, that I will work hard daily for their best interests and I will not be afraid to go into the trenches and get my hands dirty!

For the sake of our students’ academic success. As the Chief School Administrator I will:
 Lead with Confidence
 Inspire a Culture of High Expectations
 Promote a Climate of Mutual Respect and Trust
 Deliver a Quality Education to ALL Students
 Communicate Effectively with All Stakeholders
 Think and Plan Strategically
 Demonstrate Fiscal Responsibility
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​Lastly, I am reminded of the phoenix. The phoenix is a beautiful mythical bird that is long living and has the ability to regenerate itself. A phoenix is reborn from the ashes of its previous life. Asbury Park School District is that phoenix that will no longer operate under “Business as Usual.” Like the phoenix we will rise from the ashes of our former self and create a new paradigm for which people will judge us on. Before I leave, I would like to dedicate this paraphrased poem “Still I Rise” by the late, Dr. Maya Angelou to my students of Asbury Park School District.
You may write me down in history
With your bitter, twisted lies,
You may trod me in the very dirt
But still, like dust, I’ll rise.
Leaving behind nights of terror and fear
I rise
Into a daybreak that’s wondrously clear
I rise
Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,
I am the dream and the hope of the slave.
I rise
I rise
I rise.
Blue Bishops I’m here to tell you that we will rise!

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