Two and a half years ago Joseph Putrino, the principal of Renaissance Middle School, in Montclair was placed on administrative leave. The reason for his abrupt removal, a district spokesman said, was he showed a video of a Black man, played by comedian Josh Pray, yelling about virtual learning and the difficulties of home-schooling, to staff during a Zoom meeting.  Teachers and the Montclair Branch of the NAACP complained. Also, a year earlier six Black teachers at the district’s Glenfield Middle School, where Putrino was then principal, charged he “only gave white teachers the opportunity to teach more classes and earn more pay.”

The district then filed tenure charges against Putrino in order to fire him but last month an arbitrator ruled that Putrino must be “immediately” reinstated as Renaissance principal,  with back pay for his 120-day suspension period. The ruling conceded the district “sufficiently demonstrated” that Putrino “unwittingly showed an inappropriate video that offended a portion of the staff and some members of the public,” but the district did not have “just cause” for his firing.  This ruling was confirmed by an Essex County judge.

Now Montclair Local is reporting that this back pay includes $391,070 in earnings and $12,500 in health waiver funds between Sept. 15, 2020, and Feb. 28, 2023, according to payroll documents.

The current principal of Renaissance Middle School, Maria Francisco, has been called an “outstanding principal and amazing role model” who has transformed the school into a “special place” where children learn and morale is high:

In a March 15 message to Montclair Local, Francisco said she was “often humbled by the overwhelming support I receive from our parents, students and staff. It is my hope that we can go on with our school year without students being impacted negatively,” she said. “Student well-being must be the focus of the work we do and will absolutely be my top priority.’

Putrino is suing the school district for filing the tenure charges. He says the charges were in retaliation because he objected to the School Board’s decision to reopen for in-person instruction after pandemic closures.