Teacher Drug Overdose Incident Addressed By Westfield Superintendent

WESTFIELD, NJ — Following an incident where a Westfield art teacher overdosed in a classroom and was charged with numerous drug-related crimes and offenses, Superintendent Raymond González released a statement to the school community.

It remains unclear whether 57-year-old Frank Thompson, the Roosevelt Intermediate School teacher that was discovered unconscious on the floor by students after overdosing on fentanyl, still works at Westfield Public Schools.

González declined to clarify or comment further on Thompson's employment status when asked and instead issued a statement to Patch on Monday:

"Appropriate action was taken by the administration of the Westfield Public Schools in accordance with the laws and regulations governing school personnel and this particular situation. Since this is also an on-going police matter, it would be inappropriate for the school administration to comment any further at this time. Personnel matters are also deemed confidential," he stated.

Roosevelt School's Resource Officer, Fortunato Riga, informed Westfield Police on Nov. 29 that a teacher was unconscious in a second-floor classroom. When Riga arrived, Thompson was unconscious and unresponsive on the classroom floor due to an apparent drug overdose, according to Chief Christropher Battiloro.

Thompson was first discovered and observed in distress by students, according to police.

After Riga observed signs indicative of a drug overdose, he administered Naloxone Hydrochloride, or "Narcan," which resulted in Thompson showing marked signs of improvement.

Following an investigation of this incident, police discovered a quantity of a suspected controlled dangerous substance and various items of drug paraphernalia inside a closet in the classroom.

Thompson was then charged with possession of controlled dangerous substance (fentanyl), possession of drug paraphernalia and endangering welfare of children, police said.

Read more: Westfield Art Teacher Faces Charges After Drug Overdose In Classroom

"While this directly affects the Roosevelt Intermediate School community and Principal Gechtman has reached out to Roosevelt families, the nature of the incident impacts the entire school community and the need for a continued dialogue around the use of controlled substances," Superintendent González wrote in his message to the community.

González said "every necessary step was taken to immediately care for the employee and to ensure the safety of students and staff, including but not limited to the following":

• The incident was immediately reported to law enforcement, the New Jersey Department of Health and the Division of Child Protection and Permanency within the New Jersey Department of Children and Families (DCPP). The school district also reported the incident to and consulted with the school district’s physician, Board attorney, insurance broker, and an environmental consultant.
• The affected classroom was sealed off and then appropriately remediated and sanitized under the supervision of our environmental consultant during non-school hours.
• Classes were temporarily moved to an alternate location and a former teacher returned to maintain the continuity of instruction.

"This matter highlights and reinforces the importance of the conversations about substance abuse that take place as part of our health curriculum, and in your homes as a family," Gonzálezsaid.

He added that members of the school community should not hesitate to reach out the school's counseling staff or principal with any concerns.

A Special Board of Education meeting will take place Tuesday night in Cafe B at Westfield High School. Board members will move into private session at the beginning of the meeting to conduct interviews for a Board vacancy.

Public comment will resume at 7 p.m. The meeting will also be live streamed on YouTube.

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