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Superintendents 1
- 1. $1.00 | Saturday,June 18, 2011 Final edition NJ.COM Tomorrow: chrisTie’s insiders How this team of advisers helps the governor get what he wants. Support group acknowledges that parental insecurity School about diapers and car seats isn’t just for mommy chiefs fleeing Welcome to Fatherhood 101 pay cap Expected changes to pensions push 25% to leave jobs By Jessica Calefati and Julia Terruso star-Ledger staff Lisa Brady has had a 25-year career in education, the past 14 in Hunterdon County. She’s been superintendent of the Hunterdon Central Regional School District for the past four years and this week was named county superintendent of the year. But when Brady realized a new cap on superintendents’ salaries would reduce her $183,759 pay by $40,000, she decided to look for a new job — out of state. “You multiply that by seven or eight years and compare it with your career plan lead- ing up to retirement and the certain dollars you had in your head and all of a sudden it doesn’t add up anymore,” said Brady, 55, who on Aug. 1 will become superintendent of schools in Dobbs Ferry, N.Y., where she will earn $225,000. Brady is not alone. One quar- Photos by Mitsu yasukawa/For the star-Ledger ter of New Jersey’s superin- Brendon Schlitt of Hackettstown plays with one of his 3-month-old twins during a group meeting this month at Postpartum Place in Chatham. tendents will retire or seek employment elsewhere at the By Carmen Juri end of this school year, a figure twice as high as last year’s rate C star-Ledger staff of attrition, statistics show. radLing one 3-month-oLd in his arms while using his The new salary cap and pend- foot to rock a car seat holding another, brendon schlitt ing changes to the state’s pen- sounded like any parent adjusting to life with a baby or, in his sion system have influenced case, twins. many educators’ decisions to leave, said Frank Belluscio, a “they went down at 7:30, then back up at 3:30. my wife fed them at spokesman for the New Jersey 7:20, then she put ben in the bed with us, but i don’t remember,” said School Boards Association. schlitt, of hackettstown. “i woke up and there was a baby next to me.” Gov. Chris Christie has schlitt and the other men who gathered with babies in tow at championed the changes as vi- Postpartum Place in Chatham early one saturday morning brought tal cost-saving measures for a state in fiscal crisis, but educa- with them the anxieties and uncertainties of first-time fathers. tion officials say these dramat- are their children reaching milestones on time? When does Schlitt joined other fathers to exchange advice on child rearing at a ic shifts in salaries and benefits crawling start? how do you balance work and family? monthly meeting, recently organized by a psychologist. could erode the high quality of the state’s public schools over And a question for themselves: When will find a mothers group,” said Worth, a father of share similar experiences is well worth the $10 time. they sleep again? two sons. “But dads are on their own feeling the cost for the meeting. “I really hadn’t planned to Usually, the answers come from others in same way. They feel incompetent and are ask- Alex Zaltsman’s 6-month-old son, Nathan, has retire, but you can thank the their same shoes. ing the same questions.” finally started sleeping through the night, and governor for that,” said Owen While new mothers have organized support Worth is blazing a trail in the area of fathers that gave the other dads hope slumber will one Snyder, 60, superintendent of groups for years, new fathers are often left to groups, though Bruce Linton, program founder day be within their reach. the Randolph schools in Mor- figure things out for themselves. So with that in of Fathers’ Forum programs in Berkeley, Calif., “Every two hours, waking up. That was crazy, ris County who will depart his mind, psychologist Michael Worth in January began offering men’s groups for expectant and crazy, crazy. It’s been a rough six months,” said post in two weeks after a 36- began a monthly group just for fathers. new fathers in 1986. Zaltsman, of Maplewood. year career in education. “You can’t drop a hat in the country and not The fathers agreed that having someone to SEE FatherS, PAGE 8 Snyder earns $189,000, and his contract runs through June SEE SuperS, PAGE 8 Christie looking for quick fix to bring in OThER nEWS Mandate in benefits bill Xanadu’s tax breaks in line with law draws Democratic attack Sweeney rule limits • N.J. Dems make new push By Matt Friedman statehouse bureau The Economic lawmakers on Monday and out-of-state care for “millionaires tax.” Page 8 asked them to quickly shep- Development Authority Last month, Gov. Chris Chris- does not currently herd a bill through the Leg- for Jersey workers tie stood inside the partly fin- islature that would make the While Senate President Ste- ished entertainment complex have the power Meadowlands eligible. By Salvador Rizzo and Jarrett Renshaw phen Sweeney (D-Gloucester), formerly known as Xanadu — A spokesman for the gover- who inserted the provision a name that had become asso- to issue up to nor, Kevin Roberts, insisted statehouse bureau into the legislation, said it was ciated with a boondoggle in the $200 million in yesterday the administration Democratic legislators intended to benefit New Jersey swamp — to announce a deal financial incentives to knew all along it would have to mounted a challenge yesterday hospitals and keep down the with a new developer to get the amend the law. “This was the to eliminate a controversial cost of health care, lawmakers stalled $1.9 billion project off the developer selected expectation,” he said. Plea deal rejected section of the pension and ben- and health care experts said it the ground. to rescue the complex. State Sen. Raymond Lesniak in schoolyard killings efits bill that would bar public would have the opposite effect. It would now be called the (D-Union), the chairman of Shahid Baskerville was at a employees from getting out-of- Assembly Speaker Sheila “American Dream at Mead- There was one catch: The the Senate Economic Growth “sleepover” and did not take state hospital treatment. Oliver (D-Essex) said the provi- owlands,” developed by the Economic Development Au- Committee, said he agreed to part in the Newark slayings, The provision, which ap- sion was one of few unresolved Triple Five Group — owners thority did not have the legal sponsor the bill and put it be- his attorney said. Page 2 peared midweek in the hotly issues she had with the bill. of the Mall of America in Min- authority to issue the financial fore the panel Thursday. But contested legislation, would put “We’ve got to make sure neapolis. It would be even incentives. The company plans he said he had no idea whether Woman is arrested medical care in New York and we’re not hurting consumers,” bigger than the 2.4-million- to invest $1 billion to expand the governor had misread the in slaying of neighbor Philadelphia out of reach for she said. square-foot complex originally the mall, which has already 2009 law he wrote that created Yvonne Walker of Irvington thousands of teachers, firefight- Legislators from both par- planned. And the state would cost $1.9 billion, by adding sev- the tax breaks. is accused of fatally stab- ers and police officers — unless ties said Sweeney took them provide up to $200 million in eral new features. “I can’t read his mind,” Le- bing Cassetta Blunt, 88, they paid for it out of pocket at by surprise with the provi- tax breaks to make sure the The Christie administration sniak said. “I don’t know. I who was found dead inside what would be prohibitive costs sion, which allows certain dream came true. reached out to Democratic SEE Xanadu, PAGE 8 her home. Page 10 for most public workers. SEE penSion, PAGE 8 TOday TOnighT MORE 16 ABBY/ADVICE 19 COMICS 5 EDITORIALS 16 SUDOKU Chance of showers Chance of T-storms. Enter your ZIP code at 16 ALMANAC 16 CROSSWORD 12 OBITUARIES 20 TV SCANNER and T-storms. Cloudy, Partly cloudy, with nj.com/weather for 11 BUSINESS 16 CRYPTOQUOTE 21 SPORTS 15 TWO DAYS with a high near 86˚. a low around 64˚. hour-by-hour local forecasts. 31 CLASSIFIED 17 DISH 17 SPOTLIGHT 2 WEATHER