Castriotta v. Roxbury Twp. Bd. of Education, A-5222-10T3; Appellate Division; opinion by Fuentes, P.J.A.D.; decided and approved for publication August 9, 2012. Before Judges Fuentes, J.N. Harris and Haas. On appeal from the New Jersey Department of Education, No. 139-7/10. DDS No. 16-2-7319 [18 pp.]
Petitioner Maureen Castriotta, an elected member of the Roxbury Board of Education, learned from news reports that high school students were planning a statewide protest of a proposed reduction in state aid to local school districts by walking out of their classes and gathering outside school buildings. On the morning the local demonstration was scheduled, she received a call from “a concerned community member” asking whether Roxbury High School students were participating. In response, she decided to go to the high school to see for herself. Unbeknownst to her, Roxbury Superintendent of Schools Michael Rossi and Principal Jeffrey Swanson had decided, in the interest of student safety, to allow the protest as long as it was conducted in an orderly fashion.
