L.B. superintendent will retire in 2011

L.B. superintendent will retire in 2011
Ferraina leaves open possibility of running for public office
BY KENNY WALTER Staff Writer

Long Branch School District Superintendent Joseph M. Ferraina announced last week that he will end his 15-plus-year tenure and retire at the end of the 2010-11 school year.

Superintendent Joseph Ferraina heads a district with 10 schools and over 5,000 students. CHRIS KELLY staff Superintendent Joseph Ferraina heads a district with 10 schools and over 5,000 students. CHRIS KELLY staff Ferraina will remain as superintendent of the prekindergarten-through-12th-grade district, one of 31 Abbott districts in the state, for another year and a half, until June 30, 2011.

He said he has rejected numerous attempts by the Board of Education to renew his contract.

"I was offered a new five-year contract five times already, but I said, 'Thank you but no thank you,' " Ferraina said in an interview last week. "It is a wonderful opportunity for me to be able to retire at a time where I love what I'm doing.

"About three years ago I sat down and said, 'I'm not going to do this forever. I'm not going to go beyond 61 years old.' "

Factoring into Ferraina's decision is his desire to begin a new career.

"The time to leave is now when I can still hit home runs," he said. "I'm young, I'm healthy, and I'm looking to do some consulting."

Ferraina, who heads a diverse, multicultural district with 10 schools educating over 5,000 students, said his new career would not be as intensive as his current one.

"I'm going to do it on my time, on my terms," he said. "Meaning if you call me up and say, 'I'm having problems,' I'll come and help you.

"It's not going to hold me down to anything," he added. "It's not about making money; I have a good pension."

Ferraina also left open the possibility of running for public office.

"Everybody asks me many times to run for many different offices," he said, adding that there have been rumors that he would run for mayor.

"There has always been a lot of speculation," he said. "A lot of people got nervous when I bought my house in Long Branch.

"They were so worried that they were checking whether or not you can be superintendent and mayor at the same time," he added. "I can be superintendent and mayor at the same time.

"The problem is there is no way you can work as superintendent and do anything else. You can't do both."

Although he would not close the door on running for public office, it would have to wait until after his retirement, he said.

At times a controversial public figure, Ferraina has been criticized in the media for his $300,000-plus annual salary and generous benefits.

He said he is not afraid to address controversy, particularly the payout for his sick days.

"There has always been controversy about me getting paid for my sick days," he said. "I was the poster child for the sick days five years ago."

He acknowledged that most have already made up their minds about him.

"It's not about what other people think," he said. "There are two kinds of people in Long Branch: those that love me and those that hate me. Everybody knows me, though."

As for a successor, Ferraina said giving the board more than a year's notice would allow for an easy transition.

"We always try to promote from within," he said. "Hopefully, in the next three or four months [the board will] pick someone as my replacement, and I will work with that person for a year."

One person who is out of the running is Assistant Superintendent George Catrambone, who will be retiring at the end of the month.

As for his accomplishments as superintendent, Ferraina cited improving school facilities, a goal achieved with the help of some $9 million in Abbott funding.

"Facilities were an issue. If you walk around Long Branch, you'll find that virtually every school is a brand-new facility," he said.

"In our facilities, we have things that no one else has … because we've made it happen.

"Our sports facilities are second to none," he continued. "We have an amazing football stadium, and we are going to have an amazing baseball field."

Ferraina described some of the other amenities the new classrooms enjoy, some of which can be used in case of an emergency in the city.

"At every school in Long Branch we can lock down our classrooms," he said. "Every classroom has a portable bathroom. We have food in every school so that we can provide shelter for people.

"One of the things that we fought very hard for is for every school to have a backup generator— major league generators, not little generators," he added. "You can run those facilities as shelters for the city."

Ferraina said he is also proud of the steps taken to enhance the curriculum that give students an academic advantage.

"Every fourth-grade student has a laptop computer all the way up," he said. "We have the best academic programs, from AP courses to students with the greatest needs."

Ferraina, who rose from Long Branch police officer to school superintendent, shared his theory on how to curtail problems that are plaguing schools across the country.

"Teachers have to have connections with students," he said. "By having connections with students, then we will be able to understandwhenwe have a drug problem, when we have a violence problem.

"We can curtail it prior to it happening," he added. "Long Branch has really been in the lead of providing a safe environment for children."

Ferraina also said that teachers' interaction with students could help keep them out of gangs.

"Gangs are a problem across the county, across the state and across the country," he said. "It all has to do with [that] we try to have connections with students, and that's how we reduce the problem.

"Do we have students that I'm sure want to be gang members? Definitely," he added. "Do we have some that are? Probably. Our goal is to let those students know that there is a much better place with the school than with the gang."

While the district is in good shape, Ferraina said there are some things to be concerned about.

"The major challenge they are going to face is going to be funding," he said, alluding to the state's budget crisis and uncertainty over Abbott funding.

Last year, voters rejected the $86.2 million district budget by just nine votes.

Ferraina acknowledged that the budget would be a concern, particularly with a new governor taking office.

"The biggest issue is with the incredible shortfall of the state. How does the governor balance the budget?" he asked. "Once he makes that tough call, we are all going to have to react to the tough call.

"I made a plan on how we are going to do what we have to do to best serve our students," he added. "I always have to rely on whatever the state's going to give me. I don't have an option.

"The second challenge is going to be maintaining these amazing facilities," he continued.

"You're going to have to have the expertise to keep these systems going well 20 or 30 years down the road."

The challenge for his successor will be to move the district forward, he said.

"The person that takes my place is going to really look at where technology is going, how are we going to get there, and how are we going to deliver services."

Ferraina said that his retirement is coming at a time when he has accomplished one of his main goals.

"I've dedicated my life to my profession," he said. "My goal was to have all the facilities built and retire by the time I was 60.

"The last facility we are going to build is going to start probably when I'm 60," he added.

"The truth of the matter is, I told the teachers in September I would go," he continued. "I am very confident that this was the best time to do it."

Ferraina also said the district is heading in the right direction. According to the state Department of Education report card, scores for students in the Long Branch Public School District rose for language proficiency by almost 5 percent and math scores by more then 10 percent from the 2006-07 academic year to 2007-08.

"The schools are great, the children are doing a great job," he said. "Our test scores are going up. Everything is going in the right direction."

Ferraina was born in Argentina and immigrated to New Jersey when he was 13. He earned a bachelor's degree from Jersey City College (now New Jersey City University) and a master's degree from Monmouth University

He started his career as a special police officerwith the Long Branch Police Department. He then took a job as a Spanish teacher at the Long Branch Middle School, working his way through the system until he became superintendent in 1994.

In his 15-plus years as superintendent, Ferraina said a few traits have helped him succeed.

"People always knew I was dedicated to a cause," he said. "I'm not afraid to make decisions.

"I'm not afraid to take whatever heat comes from those decisions. If I believe in it and I think it's good for the kids, then I'm not going to give up on it."

Ferraina credited the people he surrounded himself with for his success.

"I surrounded myself with people who are smarter than me and as dedicated as me," he said. "When I have a great teacher in the classroom, I look good. The teachers here are dedicated, they care about children."

Ferraina said he was grateful for the opportunity he has had in Long Branch.

"They gave me this great opportunity in Long Branch," he said. "There are times with a lot of pain where you have to be there for them, and there are times of great success stories.

"You can't have sunshine without rain," he added. "I have fun every day I come to work."

Contact Kenny Walter at kwalter@gmnews.com.
CHRIS KELLY staff