Superintendent Set To Leave West Morris Regional Schools

LONG VALLEY, NJ — The West Morris Regional High School District is preparing for a leadership change as Superintendent Barbara Sargent has announced her upcoming retirement.

The news, which came as a surprise, was revealed at the West Morris Regional High School Board of Education meeting on Monday evening.

She is retiring effective April 1, 2025.

Sargent, who has been with the West Morris Regional High School District since 2023, succeeded longtime superintendent Michael Ben-David, who resigned in early 2023 after serving in the district since 2015.

A 1986 graduate of Rutgers University, Sargent began her career in education as a 7th grade Language Arts and Social Studies teacher in the West Windsor-Plainsboro School District. Throughout her career in educational leadership, she has had the opportunity to work in several New Jersey communities, including Somerset Hills, Montgomery Township, Madison and Readington Township.

She has also published work on women's leadership, literacy instruction, and effective leadership practices in state and national educational journals.

Before joining West Morris, Sargent served as the Superintendent of Schools for the Parsippany-Troy Hills Township School District for over four years.

The West Morris Regional High School Board of Education has not yet made any public comments regarding the process for selecting a new superintendent.

The West Morris Regional School District, which serves grades nine through 12 at West Morris Central and Mendham high schools, has an enrollment of approximately 2,240 students.