Online battleground

“Yea it’s absolutely disgusting. This is why my kids will bring lunch from now on.”

The mom’s horror-filled social media commentary was spurred by an earlier post on one of Middlesex Borough’s community Facebook pages. It detailed the issues a health inspector found on Feb. 5 in Von Mauger Middle School’s cafeteria.

The inspector’s nauseating report noted five critical violations and eight non-critical violations, including brown/black substances inside the ice machine. The report contained the following damning assessment:

“Too many critical violations observed. PIC (Person in Charge) fails to demonstrate knowledge about food safety.” The Mauger cafeteria received a “conditionally satisfactory”  rating and is subject to an unannounced followup inspection. In the Middlesex High School cafeteria, an inspection found mouse droppings and other issues.

Just another day on one of Middlesex’s numerous community Facebook pages. Recently, it has not mattered which one you might be scrolling or what day it is. There’s likely criticism of the K-12 district, Board of Education and/or its administration occurring or happening soon.

But the district has had its supporters. Some are calling on the community to support the school board’s efforts. Others claim recent naysaying is overblown.

“Just remember that the board members are our friends, our family our community members, so instead of posting negative comments, we should be kind and respectful because they volunteered to be there,” wrote one resident. “They all have one thing in common and that is to have the students’ best interest at heart.”

The ongoing community conflict is playing out on Middlesex Borough residents’ cell phones and laptops.

Most Central Jersey officials refrain from engaging with the public on social media. They will claim they do not read the barbs launched at them via Facebook and other platforms. However, their constituents do and it can color their perceptions.

In 2017, the board held a $50 million referendum. It’s typically an uphill battle for a school district to get voter approval for such a sizable building program. In Middlesex, the proposal endured weeks of taxpayers’ scorching criticism on Facebook.

That voters rejected the referendum was not a surprise. But an almost unheard of 88% of voters opposed it, a huge margin no doubt fueled by weeks of Facebook hammering.

District spending and stalled contract negotiations with the Middlesex Education Association (MEA) have also drawn recent scrutiny. 

MEA members packed a recent meeting. The next day, a photo of board member Todd Nicolay scrolling through his phone was posted anonymously on Facebook. The poster inferred the photo was taken while a constituent voiced heartfelt concerns about her child’s education the prior evening.

Touché – Nicolay’s wife then posted a scathing rebuke of the nameless photo poster.

“You know what’s disgusting is that you take a picture of a person without them knowing and post it on social media with no context,” she wrote. “I’m so over people coming on here and without knowing a full story of any situation and try to degrade a family man who has done more for the town of Middlesex than most.”

The district’s new budget has drawn questions for including a 2% tax increase. Meanwhile, the Borough Council is striving for a 2.5% hike in its portion of the tax bill and there’s hardly been a peep. 

A Facebook post urging attendance at the school board’s upcoming budget hearing, spurred one person’s biting analysis:

“The budget is self-serving and does not keep the safety nor academics of our kids at the forefront.”

Former Councilman Martin Quinn has recently been the board’s most persistent Facebook critic. He brought the troubling health inspections to light. Quinn has also highlighted the district’s “misleading” email system, which apparently copies the superintendent and board president on all correspondence sent to board members. His wife, Shannon, is a school board member whose term expires at year’s end. She is not seeking re-election, running instead for a council seat.

Former Board of Education President Kelly Giardina has questioned Quinn’s tactics, accusing him of stirring “drama.”

Quinn instead sees his posts as drawing attention to legitimate district deficiencies and problems.

He did not name names, but Quinn told Inside – Middlesex he is disappointed with certain board members he’s worked to help get elected in recent years.

“They all claimed to be fiscally conservative or I wouldn’t have helped,” Quinn wrote in an April 4 email. “Nearly 10 million dollars of increases later… that’s proving not to be the case. They all seem to get up there and drink the Kool-Aid. Or get offers they can’t refuse.”

Quinn said he and Councilman Jeremiah Carnes are considering campaigning for board seats this fall, but “nothing is set in stone.” Carnes is the council’s liaison to the district and has commented publicly at several recent school board meetings. The duo may defer their candidacies, instead backing other “like-minded people,” according to Quinn.

“it will be an uphill battle as at least three of them up there now are solidly in the ‘everything is great’ camp,” Quinn wrote.

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