Conflict Of Interest? Heated Exchange Within Cherry Hill School Board Draws Controversy

CHERRY HILL, NJ — On a night when the Cherry Hill Board of Education voted on a new superintendent, a lower-level job appointment was the greatest point of contention.

The board voted Tuesday on selecting Kristen Viglietta as assistant to the superintendent. Board Member Kimberly Gallagher claimed that the board president should recuse herself from the vote, since Viglietta served on Miriam Stern's 2020 campaign for school board.

Gallagher and Board Member Renee Cherfane both abstained from voting on Viglietta's appointment to the role at the prior board meeting. On Tuesday, they claimed that Stern disparaged them both to community members thereafter.

Stern said she doesn't disparage fellow board members for dissenting votes.

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The discussion became heated during the four-hour meeting, reaching a point where Stern banged her gavel and initiated a recess. Ultimately, most of the board voted in favor of appointing Viglietta, who is also the district PTA's president.

"I think we've done something which I've never seen in a board meeting before," Stern said, "which is that board members are attacking other board members, and I'm not a fan of that. But I'm also not going to stymie board members if they have something to say and they want to say it in public."

A Late Addition

The agenda for March 26's meeting featured an addendum: the late addition to vote on the appointment of Viglietta to become the superintendent's administrative assistant with an $80,000, prorated salary. The current assistant is retiring.

Gallagher and Cherfane abstained from voting on the March 26 vote but did not state a reason.

Viglietta's appointment was back on the agenda for Tuesday's meeting. Earlier in that session, Cherfane referenced an item on March 26's agenda that she wanted to ask more questions about because of a person's connection to a current board member. She also mentioned that board members do not have to state a reason for their votes.

Cherfane didn't specify who she was referencing. But Gallagher echoed her remarks and filled in details, claiming that Stern criticized her to community members for her prior abstention.

"Ms. Stern has continued to disparage me to the community members unjustly and unfairly," Gallagher said. "Her claims that I'm acting unethically are actually a reflection of her own actions."

No Conflict Of Interest, Board VP Says

Board Vice President Joel Mayer defended Stern, claiming it wouldn't be a conflict of interest for her to vote on Viglietta's appointment.

Mayer referenced an August meeting in which the board approved a longterm substitute teacher, who he did not mention by name. The substitute previously ran for school board, and Gallagher served on her campaign, Mayer said.

"You voted yes on her appointment," he told Gallagher. "I knew that. And again, I'm just going to speak for myself and not anybody else. I didn't feel that it was a conflict, so I didn’t raise it."

Gallagher, however, proclaimed that the position in question made a "massive difference."

The discussions arose during a portion of the meeting when each board member can take an opportunity to speak on different matters. Mayer used part of his turn to question Gallagher's accusation of a conflict of interest from Stern.

When Stern tried to move the meeting forward, Gallagher tried to raise another point. They interrupted each other, and Gallagher told Stern to "be careful how you email community members please."

Stern responded with the following: "Mrs. Gallagher, this is not the place. This is not the place. I think we're going to take a recess."

The board president then banged her gavel. Following a 10-minute recess, the meeting resumed with a scheduled presentation on a different matter.

Community Comments

Later in the meeting, several community members discussed the heated exchange.

Amanda Greenstein, a local resident, commended Gallagher and Cherfane for speaking on the matter.

"I think Ms. Stern's bullying and shutting down of Ms. Gallagher's comments tonight was absolutely appalling," Greenstein said, "and I sincerely applaud Ms. Gallagher for her composure."

Beth Becker, another community member, said she didn't feel that Stern voting on Viglietta's appointment was a conflict of interest. Becker, who directed a Cherry Hill school musical, mentioned that her own appointment would've been "last-minute" if she had received her state substitute-teaching certificate just 15 minutes before it had been issued.

"To call something a conflict of interest," Becker said, "when everybody who's involved in the community knows each other and works together — when it’s not a real conflict, is kind of silly to me."

Watch Tuesday's meeting below: