Union President to BOE: Know the Rules Before You Break Them
Hardyston's teachers union president publicly rebukes Board President Donna Carey over an executive session misstep involving a tenured staff member and labor rights.
Let’s set the scene: Tuesday’s meeting opened on a high after the district’s #1 county ranking celebration. Staff applause was still in the air.
Then public comment started, and the mood changed fast.
Jennifer Rosen, president of the Hardyston Education Association, stepped up to the mic and delivered exactly that: a direct, no-nonsense reality check.
So… Who Thought It Was Okay to Pull a Union Member Into Executive Session?
According to Rosen, Board President Donna Carey tried to pull a tenured union member into executive session to speak negatively about that employee’s administrator during a contract-renewal discussion.
If that sounds like a labor-rights problem, that’s because it is.
Rosen said the staff member had no prior knowledge, never agreed to speak, and was being portrayed as if they were part of behind-the-scenes coordination. The union made clear they weren’t letting that slide.
“Such behavior not only undermines the trust we place in this board, but also goes against the ethical standards expected of public officials,” Rosen said in a letter formally submitted during the meeting.
To be blunt: does board leadership understand how executive session is supposed to work?
Trying to pull staff into a closed-door personnel conversation without clear process and representation is not “bold leadership.” It’s reckless.
What Followed Was… Awkward
Carey’s response was to distance herself, saying the name came from the superintendent, not her. There was back-and-forth. There was deflection. It did not inspire confidence.
And here’s the frustrating part: this was avoidable. Follow basic procedure, and this never becomes a public mess.
But instead, we got a teachable moment - delivered not by a board member, but by the president of the teachers’ union, reminding everyone in the room that tenure, protocol, and labor rights actually mean something.
It’s not every meeting where someone has to publicly correct the board president on due process. Then again, these days… maybe it is.
Final Thought
Here’s hoping this served as a wake-up call. Because if you’re going to lead a district, you should probably learn the rules first - especially the ones that protect your staff.
Because next time? The stakes might be higher than just a scolding at the microphone.