She’ll take superintendent’s job in Readington Township
By Gene Robbins, Managing Editor
Hillsborough’s Barbara Sargent, who resigned May 10 as the assistant superintendent of schools in Madison after six years, has accepted the job as superintendent of the kindergarten through eighth grade Readington Township district in Hunterdon County, effective July 1.
She stepped down as a member of the Hillsborough Board of Education on Monday night, effective at the end of June. She has been a school board member for two years.
Coincidentally, she was a member of the board that hired former Readington Township Superintendent Jorden Schiff as head of schools in Hillsborough last December.
There’s no law that bars her from continuing on the school board, but she said she owed her new employer her “full attention” to the job.
Dr. Sargent was paid $145,000 per year in Madison as assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction and was hired in Readington on May 3 at a salary of $155,000.
”She’s a great person and a terrific educator,” said Dr. James Dwyer, the interim superintendent in Madison. “It’ll be a loss to the Hillsborough board but a plus for Readington.”
The board will select her successor, who will serve until next spring. If the person wants, he or she could run for a full three-year term next April.
Interested persons should send a cover letter and resume to Board Secretary Aiman Mahmoud. The board will interview candidates in public, and deliberate in private, said Dr. Schiff.
In her board tenure, Dr. Sargent said she was proud of her work promoting AP classes and science, and to focus on student achievement and instruction.
In her career, she has been principal at Orchard Hill and Village elementary schools in Montgomery Township and Dickerson Elementary in Chester Township.
Her doctorate in educational administration was earned at Seton Hall University. In 2003, Ms. Sargent was named Elementary Principal of the Year by the N.J. Principals and Supervisors Association.
According to the Madison website, she has presented workshops at a variety of educational conferences, and been published in magazines and educational journals.
Dr. Sargent and her husband, Chris, are parents to three sons.

