Brick School Business Administrator Honored

BRICK – Brick Township Public Schools’ Business Administrator/Board Secretary, James W. Edwards, Jr., CPA, was recently received the NJ Association of School Business Administrators Distinguished Service Award.

The NJASBO Distinguished Service Award is awarded to School Business Officials who have provided long-term, continuous, exemplary service in their role. Nominations for this award are reviewed by a regional panel consisting of the county presidents of that particular region. Edwards was one of six Business Administrators in New Jersey recognized for this award.

Edwards has been a member of the Central Office team in Brick Schools since 2007, according to the district.

Superintendent Dr. Thomas Farrell applauded Edwards for receiving this prestigious award and expressed his gratitude for his services.

“Jim possesses outstanding leadership skills coupled with a wealth of experience that has been very beneficial in service to the Brick District especially during these arduous times,” Farrell said.

At the June 18 Board of Education meeting, Board of Education Vice President Victoria Pakala recognized Edwards.

“This is a well-deserved award for all Mr. Edwards has done over the years in service to the students, staff, parents, and community of Brick Township Public Schools,” Pakala said.

Upcoming School Projects

During the meeting, Edwards discussed many ongoing as well as upcoming projects happening at various schools in the district.

He provided several updates on HVAC projects in the district with many of the installations taking place during this Summer. However, HVAC for Veterans Memorial Middle School have been delayed due transformers expecting to arrive in September. The project requires a four to six week shut down of the building, Edwards said. As a result, the project has been pushed back to the summer of 2025.

The district was awarded a $5 million Environmental Protection Agency grant for 25 school buses, which includes the infrastructure work and the school busses themselves, Edwards said. They are currently working on the next steps.

“I want to congratulate Mr. Edwards and his team. He submitted that grant with the team and we received $5 million for electric school buses… this helps us tremendously,” Farrell said.

In addition, the district was awarded a $68,000 local recreation improvement grant for food court improvements in the mall area at Brick Township High School. This will be an expansion of the food court seating and shade areas. This is expected to be done this summer, Edwards said.