Washington Township school board won’t renew embattled superintendent’s contract
A motion to award Eric Hibbs $27,000 in merit pay for the 2024-25 school year was also defeated 5-4 Tuesday night.
After months of legal wrangling, the Washington Township school board has decided to part company with embattled Superintendent Eric Hibbs.
The bitterly divided board voted 5-4 at a sometimes contentious meeting Tuesday night not to renew Hibbs’ four-year contract when it expires in June. Hibbs has been the South Jersey school’s chief since 2023.
Before the vote during a three-hour meeting, Hibbs read an impassioned statement defending his tumultuous tenure in the district. He cited millions of cost savings, the largest pre-K expansion project in the district’s history, and facility upgrades.
“The question that you should just be ready to answer is why. Just why?” Hibbs told the board. “I have tried every day to lead this district with integrity, accountability, and unwavering commitment to its students.”
Board President Pat Blome declined to comment on next steps for the district. She voted in favor of the motion to serve Hibbs with notice that his contract would not be renewed.
“This is a very emotional night for everybody tonight,” Blome said before casting the deciding vote. “But I feel it’s in the best interest of the district for me to vote yes.”
Five favorable votes are needed to adopt measures concerning the superintendent. The board has been divided by infighting and has not been able to agree on other matters involving Hibbs.
A motion to award Hibbs $27,000 in merit pay for the 2024-25 school year was also defeated 5-4 Tuesday night. It was the fourth time that Hibbs has requested the bonus pay for performance.
Hibbs has said he met four of the five goals approved by the board and listed with his contract. He earned $220,375 during the 2023-24 school year, putting him among the highest-paid superintendents in South Jersey.
According to his contract, Hibbs is entitled to an annual merit bonus of up to 14.99% of his salary, if he meets the goals. The goals were set by a previous board.
Hibbs’ goals include completing Google training presentations, taking online professional development courses, and beefing up security processes.
He received $25,000 in merit pay for similar goals for the 2023-24 school year, according to district records obtained by The Inquirer under New Jersey’s Open Public Records Act.
Board member Scott Laliberte said a special committee comprised of three board members without conflicts who discussed Hibbs’ request believed he had met the merit pay requirements.
“You did a great job and I appreciate all of your efforts. And you did all of that with the board fighting you on the majority of the way,” Laliberte told Hibbs.
Laliberte and the two other special committee members resigned Tuesday night. Laliberte expressed frustration that their recommendations were not followed.
The board had until December to notify Hibbs if his contract would not be renewed; otherwise, the contract automatically renews for four years.
The board also rejected Hibbs’ five proposed merit goals for the 2026-27 school year. It agreed to allow Hibbs to carry over up to 20 unused vacation days.
The proposed goals were not made public Tuesday. Board member Julie Kozempel said she voted against them because she believed that “they were for things that a superintendent should already be doing.”
The decision to end ties with Hibbs was just the latest legal showdown between Hibbs and the board. He has a pending whistleblower lawsuit against several board members.
» READ MORE: Washington Township school superintendent who was placed on leave files lawsuit against district
The nine-member board made few public comments Tuesday because of procedural rules. Six members were barred from commenting because they have a conflict of interest with Hibbs, whom they suspended last year until he was reinstated by a judge.
In order to vote, the board had to invoke a rarely used “doctrine of necessity” because it otherwise would not have a quorum. The six members either have family members who work for the district or are named defendants in Hibbs’ lawsuit against the district.
The doctrine of necessity allowed the conflicted board members to participate in the vote. But they were barred from any deliberations in executive session or public discussions.
Hibbs has been at odds with the board since last year when local union leaders filed a complaint against him with the New Jersey School Ethics Commission alleging that the superintendent provided preferential treatment to a board member’s relative by changing a failing grade in September 2023.
The board suspended Hibbs in March 2025 and hired a conflict lawyer to investigate the allegations. Hibbs was eventually cleared of any wrongdoing and reinstated after a judge found that the board had violated the Open Public Meetings Act when it suspended him.
» READ MORE: Judge orders Washington Township school board to pay $16K in legal fees in superintendent battle
In his own ethics complaint, Hibbs accused Kozempel and board member Elayne Clancy of not following procedures when the board hired an insurance carrier in 2021, prior to his tenure as superintendent.
“I am proud that when I believed something needed to be said, I had the courage to say it,” Hibbs said Tuesday night.
Hibbs filed a whistleblower lawsuit in May 2025, alleging his suspension was in retaliation for raising questions about the insurance contract. He alleged that the selection procedure was “procedurally flawed.”
In other business, the board agreed to reinstate the work schedule for nursing assistants whose hours were reduced because of budget cutbacks. Hibbs and business administrator Janine Wechter said the district will likely face a budget shortfall next year and cannot afford the additional expense.
“We can’t consistently adopt a budget and then turn around and change it. It’s alarming,” Wechter said.
