By MADDY VITALE
Ocean City Schools Superintendent Dr. Christian Angelillo is new to the district and is ready to learn what works, help with what doesn’t and just enjoy being a new, much-needed addition to the community.
Angelillo spoke to SeaIsleNews.com about his first week in the district, which began Aug. 1. The new school year begins Sept. 3.
“What I found is the community has been overwhelmingly welcoming and certainly wonderful to me,” he said. “I’ve spent my first days in the district getting to know people, forging relationships with school staff and the community. I’ve always believed that the greatest way to accomplish things is to forge meaningful relationships with people.”
The nearly 2,000-student district includes the high school, intermediate school and primary school. Sending districts are Sea Isle City, Upper Township, Corbin City and Longport.
Angelillo, who has a doctorate of education, comes to the district with 29 years of experience in education on various levels. He has worked as a social studies teacher, assistant principal, principal at both elementary and high school levels and superintendent in New Jersey.
His latest roles include being the superintendent and principal at Boonton Township School District and an adjunct professor at Centenary University in Hackettstown. He has also coached high school track and field and football.
He understands that the Ocean City school district needs “stability,” he said.
The district has not had a long-term leader since former Superintendent Kathleen Taylor retired in August 2021 after 15 years of service. Since then, there have been three superintendent searches over roughly three years.
“I know since Kathy Taylor, the district has lacked the stability she brought,” he said, noting that he was going into his 10th year in Boonton Township when he took the position in Ocean City.
New School Superintendent Christian Angelillo began Aug. 1.
Interim Superintendent Tom Baruffi filled the void until the district hired Matthew Friedman as superintendent in June 2022. His salary was $190,000. Friedman resigned at the end of March to become superintendent of the Quakertown Community School District in Bucks County, Pa.
Retired longtime educator Dr. Scott McCartney, of Egg Harbor Township, stepped in and served from June through Dec. 31. Interim Superintendent Terrence Crowley Sr. stepped in to replace McCartney and served as interim superintendent until Angelillo began this month.
Angelillo said in addition to working with school staff and parents, he looks forward to collaborating with the Ocean City Board of Education.
“I’m looking forward to working with the board. They all strike me as people who care deeply about the educators and students,” he noted.
In a letter to the school community on Aug. 1, Angelillo laid out some of his thoughts and plans. To read the letter in its entirety click:
https://5il.co/2sq5d
Here is an excerpt from the letter: “I am dedicated to empowering our administration and staff to be the catalysts for student achievement. By working together, we will ensure every student succeeds regardless of ability level. In addition, I believe the community looks to us to give its young people the start in life they deserve, and to train the next generation of the local and broader workforce. I look forward to forging relationships throughout the community and building on our strong tradition of excellence while working to become the bridge between Ocean City and its schools.”
School Board President Kevin Barnes said in an interview that the board is excited about having a permanent superintendent in the district. He said that Angelillo had all of the qualifications to be a major asset to the school district.
“When he first walked in for his first interview, my immediate impression was, ‘There’s a leader,’” Barnes said. “That’s who I was looking for, and so was the board.”
Angelillo also looked “wonderful on paper,” Barnes said.
“He has proven leadership, is a nice person with impeccable credentials and is laser-focused on student achievement,” Barnes said.
Out of 50 candidates, he was simply the strongest of them all, Barnes said.
“He really deals well with people. He had a strong command of his interviews in front of the committee and also the full board,” he said.
Barnes said he stopped by to see Angelillo this week.
“Right away, he had his sleeves rolled up and he was getting his work done. There is no doubt in my mind we made the right decision,” Barnes said. “Now that we have a permanent superintendent, we will learn his ways and we’ll learn his and we will get things done.”
Angelillo and his wife, Carol, have a son, Joseph, 22, a college graduate now in the financial world. and a daughter, Jenna, 19, a sophomore in college.
School Board President Kevin Barnes, left, watches as new School Superintendent Christian Angelillo signs his contract.
