By TALIA WIENER
[email protected]
An investigation funded by Montclair Public Schools has confirmed at least some of the many accusations in a self-described whistleblower’s letter — a 32-page missive alleging buildings and grounds staffers were mistreated for years, and that in the process health and safety hazards were allowed to fester in district schools.
But it remains unclear which of the many specific allegations by Montclair Buildings and Grounds Supervisor Robert H. Kelley IV were substantiated by former Wood-Ridge schools superintendent Nicholas Cipriano. He’d been hired in a June 22 contract to investigate the allegations, then in August to be Montclair’s new business administrator, succeeding Emidio D’Andrea — one of the officials he’d investigated.
The investigation found a disrespectful work environment that fostered negativity and cultural insensitivity, schools Superintendent Jonathan Ponds said at a school board meeting Monday, Nov. 22.
There was also “a lack of urgency” to ensure work orders were completed in an appropriate time frame, Ponds said.
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