The author is a community member of Asbury Park who wishes to remain anonymous. Editor’s Note: we have added a few links and contextual notes.

Here is what [Asbury Park superintendent] Rashawn Adams said after the last athletic eligibility debacle: It’s a “coverup” based on “piss-poor preparation.” What could he mean? Here we go!

Do you remember last year when the Asbury Park football team had to forfeit a game because some of their players were deemed ineligible? It’s happened again.  Several students on the Asbury Park High School football team were supposed to play on Friday—at the Homecoming game against Manasquan!—but were declared ineligible, probably based on low achievement and/or chronic absenteeism. (The Blue Bishops didn’t have to forfeit but they lost 31-0 for a record of 0-5.)

That’s right …it has happened again!!! If my memory serves correctly, Athletic Director Troy Bowers should be suspended. [Note: then-Athletic Director Mark Gerbino was suspended last year when the team had to forfeit and then was demoted to “Administrator-on -Special-Assignment.”] Better yet, Bowers  should lose his job since this is not his first screw- up!!! Everyone remembers his bullying and intimidation of students and staff! I have heard that there has been heated altercations between Bowers and [Asbury Park High School] principal  Bridgett O’Neill about who is at fault for this. The funny thing is that they are both at fault!! 

Who does Adams suspend now? And if he doesn’t suspend anybody, then he is showing his hypocrisy in suspending Mark Gerbino’s for the same “allegations” last year.

 Oh yeah, and a secretary, Tyshell Bellamy, was suspended too, even though she followed a directive given to her by her superior to enter grades, signed off by Principal O’Neill!

The ANSWER is ..that it was a “cover-up.” But can you cover up this one?

Were the suspensions of Gerbino and Bellamy really based on the fact that they did something wrong but somehow Bowers did not?.

So who gets suspended? 

How about the head football coach? Maybe he needs to be suspended. Oh, but  he is a friend of Troy Bowers and that’s why he got the position. So do they suspend him or fire him and keep Bowers and O’Neill? That would be the wrong thing to do since the eligibility issue is based on the athletes’ end-of-year grades for the 2022-2023 school year. Seems like someone needs to be suspended and or fired for this second “cover-up”! 

Here’s a question: if there are ineligible players, this means that even though the team has not won a game this season, those games should have never been played. Especially if an athlete from the other school got hurt or injured and the game should have been forfeited from the start of the season. 

Here’s what O’Neill and Adams should have known and done as per NJSIAA Rules:

Ineligibility Lists – Member schools must submit an affidavit of ineligible students to the Executive Director of the NJSIAA annually for each of the three seasons prior to the beginning of those seasons. This form, signed by the Principal, will certify that any and all students listed do not meet the eligibility requirements of the NJSIAA. This affidavit should be based on carefully compiled lists of ineligible student/athletes for all sports in that season which are on file in each member school and in the event of any questions, are available upon request by other member schools and/or appropriate NJSIAA officials.

Schools may use their own form as long as all the information is provided on that form.

Enforcement of Eligibility Standards

To assure that member schools carry out the responsibilities of making certain that all Student-Athletes comply with eligibility standards or obtain appropriate waivers where necessary prior to competition, the NJSIAA has imposed a uniform penalty against any school which utilizes an ineligible player. If the ineligible student participated in a TEAM SPORT, then that team will forfeit any games that it has won, irrespective of how long the ineligible student participated in that contest, as there is no reasonable method to calculate a student-athletes impact on the outcome of a contest. In cases where the ineligible player participated in an INDIVIDUAL SPORT, then the team will only forfeit the points earned or the events in which that player participated, since the impact of individual players can be calculated with some certainty.

Although the penalty of forfeiture for the use of an ineligible player is mandatory and not appealable to the Executive Committee, the school may appeal the determination of eligibility provided such request for waiver occurs prior to the participation by the Student-Athlete.

And who is ultimately responsible as per NJSIAA?

Eligibility Responsibility – The Principal of a school is responsible for the observance of the eligibility rules contained in this Article and for the entire program of his/her member school.

Yes, that’s right, the principal!!!!

If you remember, Adams was quoted on September 6, 2022 by the Asbury Park Press saying it was a very difficult decision to forfeit. “As heartbreaking as it is, I could not knowingly send players to play who are ineligible, ” Adams said, “Those eligible student athletes will be able to play JV (junior varsity) where appropriate.”

And then again, check out this video from NJ12 when Adams refers to “piss-poor preparation” and adds the phrase “cover-up.”

Additionally, on the sidelines of the homecoming game this past weekend, people witnessed Tron Goldfarb, volunteer coach, Asbury Park alumni, and assistant to the district’s Supervisor of Buildings and Grounds [Walter Sosa], get into a verbal altercation with the head football coach. Was it over the eligibility of players or the score against Manasquan? I guess we will never know.

Sidebar: the attached email was sent by Walter Sosa, Supervisor of Buildings and Grounds:

Good Afternoon All,

Please be advised that in the absence of Mr.Jordan [who was suspended by superintendent Adams: more on Jordan here], beginning Tuesday October 10th all security personnel will be managed under the Buildings and Grounds Department. Mr. Goldfarb and myself will hold individual building meetings to introduce ourselves and to go over District Policies and Procedures. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. I have included my cell number so that I can be reached.

Thanks,

Walter Sosa, C.E.F.M.

Buildings and Grounds Supervisor

Asbury Park School District

This is the same guy Adams was going to put into Lou Jordan’s position as AP District Security Manager when they tried to get rid of him last year! This way Sosa gets a promotion and so does Goldfarb. Even though both Sosa and Goldfarb are not qualified for these new positions. Goldfarb only has a high school diploma!!!

There has been a lot of sneaky, backdoor bullshit going on since Carol Morris, the State Monitor, left in August.

Who is going to stop this from happening?

[Interim Executive County Superintendent of Schools] Lester Ritchens? [Senator] Vin Gopal? It is a voting year and if you want Asbury to vote for you, you better start to fix this!!!

Additionally, What happened to the vote of no-confidence [by the Asbury Park teachers union]? Why don’t the elected members of the Asbury Park Board of Education consider this plea from 90%+ of the staff and vote Adams out? Make things right with the staff who are bullied and intimidated daily and reassure parents that things can and will improve when Adams is gone? 

Maybe Adams is doing this because he is afraid the people on the board who support his delusional ideas of how to run a district may finally lose their seats at the table. The Asbury Park community needs to make a change and voting new board members is a good start. What the School Board doesn’t realize is that Adams works for them  and he does what they say and not the other way around! Someone needs to step up and fight for these kids, the district, and their future!