Greg Troxell was named superintendent in the most Phillipsburg way possible -- amid controversy.
A son of Phillipsburg will soon lead the town's schools as superintendent, a position for which he was chosen in perhaps the most Phillipsburg way possible -- amid controversy.
Only a few weeks ago, supporters of Greg Troxell -- and there are many -- accused school board members of conspiring against him. There were rumors of feuds, allusions of collusion and claims of campaign favors that were supposedly steering the board away from the internal candidate for the superintendent job.
Then, on Monday, the vote to name Troxell as the district's next schools chief was a unanimous 12-0.
So what's next for the district of 3,500 students and a new, $127.5 million high school?
The first step, according to Troxell's predecessor, is to move past the controversy.
"You look beyond all that and you move forward. That's how you get things accomplished," said George Chando, who will retire as superintendent at the end of June.
Troxell did not respond to requests for comment on his immediate plans.
Phillipsburg Superintendent George Chando is retiring at the end of June. He is also a candidate for the Easton school board. (Saed Hindash | For lehighvalleylive.com) The careers of Troxell and Chando seem to mirror each other. Both attended Phillipsburg schools and returned in their careers, starting as teachers and working their way through the administrative ranks. Since 2015, Troxell -- a father of three who lives in Palmer Township -- has served in the district's No. 2 position as assistant superintendent.
That is partially what drew supporters to a school board meeting last month. For hours, past and present students and teachers, among other residents, said they wanted to see the job go to "a Phillipsburg lifer" and praised Troxell for his seemingly constant presence at school events.
Community backs Troxell for superintendent
Many also came to that meeting because they were angry. The teacher's union in a letter days before the meeting said Troxell had already been eliminated from contention. It accused a "political influence of a (singular) special interest" of having "infiltrated" the board via campaigns, under a deal that asks board members "deny the best candidate the seat they have earned."
Board members could not respond to the allegations at the time because the selection process was not complete.
On Friday -- days after the unanimous vote in favor of Troxell -- school board Vice President Matt Scerbo said the allegations and comments from the union were "in poor taste."
He added that the union president, Gregg Babbitt, "means well" and said Babbitt's public statement after Monday's vote affirming Troxell was "sufficient for me."
Babbitt did not return calls for comment. But at the latest board meeting he said the vote "shows that you (the board) had an open mind, that you listened to our voice, you listened to what we want moving forward and in the future and so we do appreciate that."
Greg Troxell is applauded following his unanimous appointment as superintendent of the Phillipsburg School District during the May 8, 2017, meeting of the board of education. (Tim Wynkoop |Lehighvalleylive.com contributor) Scerbo, the board vice president, said Troxell was always high in the running for the job. He praised the soon-to-be-superintendent as someone who is in touch with both the staff and the community: "Going forward," he said, "the sky's the limit."
"I think we have a lot of faith in Mr. Troxell, who's been a P'burg guy all his life," Scerbo said. "He's a hometown hero."
Still, be it Phillipsburg or anywhere else, it's only a matter of time before controversy arises again.
Chando reflects on long career
Chando -- who will receive the Phillipsburg Area Chamber of Commerce's Citizen of the Year award at a banquet June 6 -- offered his successor advice for how to handle it.
"Whatever challenges you face, you always have to ensure you have all your facts," he said. "The only thing you have to keep in mind is what's best for the students and the staff of the district."
Chando added: "I have no doubt Greg will be very successful."
Steve Novak may be reached at snovak@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @type2supernovak and Facebook. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.