Lower Merion school board member charged with stealing over $50,000 from employer has resigned from the board
The school board will meet next month to vote on Jennifer Rivera's resignation.
A Lower Merion school board member accused of embezzling more than $50,000 from her employer has resigned from the school board.
Jennifer Rivera, who has served on the school board for eight months, tendered her resignation from the board effective yesterday, Amy Buckman, spokesperson for the Lower Merion School District, confirmed in an email Wednesday.
The board will vote on the acceptance of the resignation at a special meeting on Sept. 14.
Rivera could not immediately be reached for comment.
Rivera has been charged with theft, receiving stolen property, and related crimes in relation to funds she allegedly stole from SMB Team, a Bala Cynwyd-based marketing agency that works with law firms.
An affidavit of probable cause for Rivera’s arrest said she used more than $25,000 in company funds to pay for airline travel and family vacations. Rivera also allegedly used SMB funds to pay a coworker to film a friend’s son’s bar mitzvah. Rivera used the company credit card to fly the same coworker and his wife to another employee’s wedding, where he was hired to be a photographer, according to the affidavit.
She was released on $25,000 unsecured bail and is scheduled to appear before a district judge for a preliminary hearing on Sept. 2.
Rivera was elected to the Lower Merion Board of School Directors in November on a Democratic slate. She was the highest vote-getter of the eight candidates who ran for a spot on the board last fall.
Buckman said additional information about the process to fill the board vacancy will be “shared in a timely manner” to comply with Pennsylvania’s Public School Code.
Under Pennsylvania code, a school board is required to appoint a replacement for a vacated board seat within 30 days of the member’s official resignation. The replacement serves through the next municipal election that’s more than 60 days after the vacancy occurs until the first Monday in December, when new school board members across Pennsylvania are typically sworn in.
Rivera also sits on the board of directors of the Montgomery County Intermediate Unit, a Norristown-based educational service agency that supports local schools. Margaret Wright, Montgomery County Intermediate Unit board president, did not immediately respond to questions about whether Rivera was still serving on the board, however Rivera’s name and photo were pulled from the intermediate unit’s website after a reporter’s inquiry.
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