This letter is for the Freehold Regional High School District Board of Education, FRHSD Superintendent of Schools James Wasser, current FRHSD administrators, and the members of the public.
In the interest of clarity and accuracy of impression, the following is a transcript of my exact words delivered at the FRHSD Board of Education meeting on Sept. 22, 2008. It was delivered with passion, conviction and veracity, but not, as previously reported in a daily newspaper, with tears.
“My name is Theresa Morales. I have been a math teacher in this district for 36 years and I have been a math supervisor for 32 of those years.
“I was in Freehold Borough High School for 19 years, Freehold Township High School for 14 years, and this is my third year in Manalapan High School. I have worn the hat of a supervisor almost as long as I have worn the hat of a teacher. I am here this evening to speak for myself and myself only.
“Having been in this district for many years, I believe I know the qualities that a good superintendent should possess: ethics, vision, the ability to listen, the ability to not slide away from accountability and integrity.
“The only superintendent I worked for who possessed all of these qualities, and then some, was Dr. Victor Crespy. He had the vision to create the supervisory group. A group whose ideas he embraced because he was not threatened by them. He also had the vision to create the learning centers and academies and gave them the respect they deserved.
“I am appalled at the climate of fear and intimidation in this district that is stopping people from speaking their minds. Is this not a democracy? Do we not have that right?
“A few years ago, while still at Freehold Township High School, the decision was made to do away with the physical education supervisors. That group asked its members to attend the board meeting, not to speak, but to show support by their presence. Hours before the meeting, word leaked out that any supervisor attending that meeting would be transferred.
“That threat, whether real or imagined, worked because the only supervisors present that evening were the six phys ed supervisors losing their jobs, the president, vice president, secretary and the treasurer of the supervisory group, and me. Within a month, my transfer was put on the table with the other two officers who were math supervisors.
“One of them planned on working one more year, but she subsequently put in her retirement papers. My transfer was then taken off the table to be put back on the following year.
“That last year at Freehold Township, my father-in-law died and I took five bereavement days. The third day of mourning, an administrator called my home under the guise of expressing condolences; then got to the real reason for the call, to ask if I was married to see if I was entitled to take those bereavement days. Of course I was. What a cold, heartless, callous thing to have done. Never mind that I have a daughter and the person who died was her grandfather.
“And that is how I ended up at Manalapan High School. Transferred and also given the responsibilities of the Science and Engineering program with no written job description, nor having the expectations or requirements of the program explained to me. And contrary to any of your expectations, I am very happy to be at Manalapan High School with such dedicated and committed math and science and engineering teachers.
“That first year in Manalapan High School, various underhanded tactics were tried on me: the threat of a letter in my file, the threat of withholding my increment, and the threat of putting me between two schools. None of this worked. Why? Because there was no basis.
“The other reason that they failed is because they never took the time to know who Terry Morales is. But I will tell you now. She is someone who was raised to have integrity, ethics and pride. Someone who was taught not to be a troublemaker, but if trouble finds you, don’t run from it, but confront it and stand up to it. And I did stand up to it and never allowed it to get in the way of why I became a teacher.
“Before any administrator in this district thinks of cornering me in a stairwell or hallway to berate me or chastise me for speaking at this meeting, and I know that this has been the modus operandi, be prepared to wait a few seconds while I set up my tape recorder so that the conversation can be recorded. And if you’re planning on sending a letter to my home for the same reason, be prepared for me to forward a copy to the (newspapers).
“In conclusion, I would like to say that as my career reaches its summit, I would like to see the students, teachers and supervisors in this district flourish without the fear and disillusionment which I have currently witnessed.
Theresa Morales
Manalapan High School
Manalapan

