The Sayreville Board of Education approved the suspension of the school’s five tenured football coaches Tuesday night, voting 9-0, in the wake of the hazing scandal that resulted in the cancellation of the powerhouse football program’s season and the arrest of seven team members, NJ.com Advanced Media reported.
The coaches — head coach George Najjar, Edward Mish, Michael Novan, Mark Poore and Timothy Ballard — are suspended with pay, NJ.com reported. The reason for the suspensions, board president Kevin Ciak said, according to the website, is to conduct a thorough investigation into the disgraced football program. Ciak, who upheld district superintendent Richard Labbe’s decision to suspend the coaches, is unsure how long the suspensions will last.
“[The suspensions] are consistent with the ongoing and not yet completed investigation,” Ciak said.
It is unknown whether Najjar was aware of the alleged sexual assaults that took place in his team’s locker room. Labbe previously said he didn’t believe Najjar, or any of the program’s other coaches, were aware of the incidents.
Najjar, who has coached the program for 20 years and won three state titles, has yet to speak publicly about the alleged incidents. He coached at Lincoln High School in Brooklyn earlier in his career.
The board also moved to halve the coaches’ stipends. Najjar, who was contracted to make $11,700 for his coaching duties during the 2014-15 school year, will now make $5,850, according to the report. The seven other members of his staff reportedly each saw their stipends reduced from $8,866 to $4,433.
The district is prevented from suspending employees without pay who have not been charged criminally, per state laws. No adults have been charged in connection with the alleged hazing, which included harassment, intimidation and bullying from the month of September and the beginning of October.
The Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office said earlier this month four football players were abused between Sept. 19 and Sept. 29. The names of those charged — all juveniles — have yet to be released. They could be charged as adults, according to reports.