Board may be close to appointing new super
Ex-Holmdel schools head may get top post
By charles w. kim
Staff Writer

Leigh Byron

Leigh Byron may become South Brunswick’s new superintendent of schools.

"He is the only candidate that we are moving forward," Board of Education member Carole O’Brien said Wednesday.

Byron spent part of Tuesday in the district, meeting with the staff.

"We are getting feedback forms from the staff," O’Brien said.

Byron, who lives in Bound Brook, worked as the superintendent in the Holmdel district from June 2000 until July 17, 2002.

Prior to that, he worked as the superintendent of the Bound Brook district, a K-12 district in Somerset County with an enrollment of about 1,500 students.

Before that, Byron was the principal of Princeton High School, and East Hampton High School on Long Island.

He started his career as a math teacher in New York and eventually became a district director of mathematics.

"I think he is a very intelligent man, and is very committed to children," O’Brien said.

Byron is the last of several candidates interviewed by the district for the superintendent’s position.

The current superintendent, Sam Stewart, will leave the district in June.

"We will be making some kind of decision in the next 10 days," O’Brien said, adding that Byron is the only candidate currently under consideration.

O’Brien said that if Byron is not offered the position, the board will have to start the search over again.

"We have not made a decision one way or another," O’Brien said.

While Byron has impressed the board members, he comes to the district with some controversy behind him in Holmdel.

During his tenure there, 300 members of the Holmdel Township Educational Association (HTEA) gave Byron a vote of no confidence during a March 2001 meeting.

Doug Snecki, who was president of the association at the time, said that Byron made the staff feel "abused and underappreciated."

During an April 2002 meeting, 200 residents attended to oppose extending Byron’s contract for another three years.

In a 5-4 vote, Byron got the new contract, only to be bought out after a new board majority was seated weeks later.

Byron resigned as superintendent in July and has stayed on as a director of special services at an annual salary of $75,000 per year plus benefits.

He earned $133,670 as superintendent.

"We are still looking into his references," O’Brien said, but added that Byron was forthcoming about the problems he faced in Holmdel.

"We are aware of the information," O’Brien said.

O’Brien said that the she thinks that the board "felt strongly about what he offers South Brunswick."

She added that the body did not feel it had to bring more than one candidate forward.