Middletown BOE President, Superintendent Spar Over Who First Introduced Idea To Close Schools This Year

MIDDLETOWN, NJ — On Wednesday, Middletown schools superintendent Jessica Alfone and BOE president Chris Aveta made the surprise joint announcement they are withdrawing a recommendation to close three schools in the district.

But on Thursday, the two argued over who initially proposed the idea to close schools this year.

In 2025, it was Alfone who originally recommended closing Leonardo and Navesink elementaries, and turn Bayshore Middle School into an elementary. The idea was met with immense public backlash from Middletown parents, particularly parents who send their kids to those schools.

Alfone says it was Aveta and Board vice president Frank Capone who resurrected the idea this year — not her.

"At the end of January, following the Finance Committee meeting, Mr. Aveta and Mr. (Frank) Capone met with me to discuss resurrecting the school-closure plan after our business administrator updated them on the current status of the budget, which at the time reflected a deficit for the 2026-'27 school year, that the administrative team was working to address," Alfone told Patch Thursday. "Given what had transpired last year, I did not feel comfortable recommending school closures at that time. We were in the middle of strategic planning and had not engaged with the school community regarding the possibility of school closures. The Board and administrative team had just spent months encouraging the community to engage and participate in the process and closing schools would undermine that trust — not to mention the administration team had not considered this as an option for the fall of 2026."

Also, Alfone said last year's 10.1 percent school tax increase gave the district more money to work with and thus, the flexibility to keep schools open.

"The 10.1 percent tax increase from the previous year had given us the runway to plan thoroughly and collaboratively, and we had started that process," Alfone continued Thursday. "Because of these factors, I informed them that I would not put it on an agenda as my recommendation. In absence of my recommendation, they (Aveta and Capone) decided to move forward through the creation of a resolution."

Aveta said in response Thursday:

"To correct the record, Dr. Alfone, Mr. (Frank) Capone and I connected after the February Finance Committee meeting. Mr Capone and I shared our grave concerns about the projected budget deficits we still faced, even after the colossal 10.1 percent tax increase imposed upon the community last year. Dr. Alfone shared that she still supported the plan she put forward in 2025, but was hesitant to put it on the agenda as she was unsure it would be supported. A discussion with the entire Board ensued, based on the Finance Committee report from the February 17 meeting that required direction for budget preparation. To note, in March, I sent her an email asking if we had another viable plan. That email went unanswered. We then discussed this topic in our public meeting, which resulted in a vote to approve school consolidation for the '26-'27 school year. Subsequent conversations were had which led me to email Dr. Alfone for clarification regarding the proposed plans and the need to provide the Board with a budget based on her recommendations. The tentative Budget presented at the March meeting was the outcome of this communication."

Board vice president Capone said he backed Aveta's statement.

The Middletown school district has said many times it will have future budget deficits if it keeps all 16 schools in the district open.

In her statement to Patch, Alfone continued:

"To be clear, I fully believe the district must take steps to reduce operating costs and create greater efficiency. Consolidating the district footprint is an important step to take. I do also feel that the (current school closure) plan is completely viable and could still be part of a larger plan in the future to move the district forward. However, what I did not agree with was the timing and lack of transparency with the community. While I appreciate the need to reduce our operating expenses, we did have the ability to follow through with the promised strategic planning process as we are not in the same financial position we were in a year ago. There were other mechanisms at our disposal to close the budget deficit for the '26-'27 school year. At this point, without an approved long-range facilities plan which reflects school closures, we cannot move forward due to anticipated staffing implications."

Alfone is quitting the district at the end of June. She is leaving Middletown schools with two years still left in her contract. The school board must now search for a new superintendent.

"I am confident that my successor will be able to continue strategic planning and lead the district stakeholders to create a plan that everyone can get behind," said Alfone.

District currently does not have enough time to close the 3 schools this year

Because the board did not pass a long-range facilities plan (LRFP) at its board meeting Tuesday night, there is now not enough time to properly carry out school closures, Alfone reiterated.

She said this at Tuesday night's school board meeting, and in the letter she sent to the community Wednesday.

Specifically, the district now does not have enough time to notify staff that their positions and job locations will change for next year, said Alfone.

"The board already knew we needed the long-range facilities plan approved in order to close schools," said Alfone. "It was also shared with the Facilities Committee at their meeting. My statement was directly related to staffing. Without the LRFP amendment being approved, our status for school closures was still in limbo. A large part of this consolidation plan involves staffing. We are bound by certain statutory staffing deadlines that are quickly approaching. In absence of this approval and uncertainty if it would be approved in the future, I was not comfortable moving forward with our consolidation staffing plan knowing that we have a statutory deadline to meet and so many unknowns."

School board member Mark Soporowski, who, like fellow Board members Erin Torres and Joan Minnuies, has vociferously said for months that school closures were rushed, celebrated Alfone's decision.

"The announcement that the three schools would not close confirms what should have been clear from the start. The push to close schools was premature and well outside the proper role of an elected Board of Education," Soporowski told Patch Thursday. "These decisions must come from administration after a thorough review of student needs, operations and financial impact, not driven by an arbitrary vote."

"The timeline was completely irrational," he added. "There was no meaningful discussion, no supporting analysis and no demonstrated focus on student outcomes. I commend superintendent Jessica Alfone for making the responsible call. That is leadership grounded in process, not succumbing to political pressure."

Board member Sara Weinstein supports closing schools, particularly citing the age of some Middletown school buildings. She said Thursday:

"My vote regarding school closures was based on an understanding of plan feasibility stemming from discussions held prior to our vote, as well as the timing of the original plan presentation last year. I am now extremely worried about our projected budget issues this coming year, especially due to our lack of reserve funding given our aging sixteen school buildings."

Finally, board member Caterina Skalaski has been a swing vote on the hot-button topic of whether or not to close Middletown schools. She voted against school closures when Alfone first recommended them in 2025, but this year she voted to close the schools. On Tuesday night Skalaski voted against the long-range facilities plan in its current form, saying she had concerns about how special-education children would be accommodated in closing schools.

"It's been really hard being the swing vote because I really do see the logic of both sides on this issue," Skalaski told Patch Thursday.

"I have been called corrupt for how I voted, and I had a parent in this district email me and wish ill will on my children for how I've voted. So, being the swing vote on all of this has been really heavy. I want the best for all children of this district. We can agree to disagree, but we do all want the best."

Board members Deb Wright, Erin Torres, Joan Minnuies and Jacqueline Tobacco did not respond when asked to comment for this article.

While school closures are now off the table for this year, the board did pass next year's budget at its Tuesday night meeting. Stay tuned for more details on the budget. The next Middletown school board meeting is May 12.

Middletown Abruptly Cancels Its Plan To Close Schools Next Year (April 29)