Teacher says contract not renewed, says he filed complaints with NJ education authorities

At the May 20 public comment portion of the Palisades Park Board of Education meeting, teacher Alex Contreras said he was forced to resign after his contract was not renewed and alleged inconsistent treatment by building leadership. Contreras told the board he believed one of his evaluation observations was falsified and that he had filed a formal complaint with the New Jersey Department of Education investigations unit and with the School Ethics Commission.

Contreras said he had never been disciplined and that when he asked for specific reasons he was directed to review past observations; he said most past observations were positive but that one appeared to be recorded during a time when teachers are not normally observed (lunch duty), which he described as evidence the observation was falsified.

During the question and answer exchange following public comments, district representatives responded that contract negotiations for the bargaining unit had concluded and retroactive pay had been issued to the PPDA bargaining unit. The administration said rising health‑care costs and revenue shortfalls required the district to make staffing reductions and that layoffs were a fiscal necessity to avoid overspending.

Other public commenters at the meeting raised related concerns, with a recently resigned teacher describing long‑standing frustrations about responsiveness and parents asking why contract settlements coincided with teacher reductions.

What the transcript shows: Contreras stated he submitted complaints to state authorities; the district representative described the budgetary context but did not provide a transcripted rebuttal denying or confirming the specific allegation about the single observation's accuracy during the meeting. The board did not take an immediate personnel action on the claim during the public comment period; the speaker said the matter had been submitted to state review.