What about deducting 50% of his pay for 2 days each week?

EPPS: ANOTHER TURN RUNNING SCHOOLS?

Saturday, March 10, 2007
By KEN THORBOURNE
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER

Soon after deciding not to seek re-election as a state assemblyman, Jersey City's schools chief, Charles T. Epps Jr., has apparently set his sights on another term as superintendent.

"He (Epps) told me he and the (state Education) Commissioner (Lucille Davy) would be speaking about a new contract," Jersey City Board of Education Chairman William DeRosa said yesterday. "Yes, he indicated he would want that."

Appointed by the state to run the Jersey City public school system in 2000, Epps is in the middle of a three-year contract that ends June 30, 2008. In 2005, Epps, who earns about $230,000 a year as superintendent, was elected state assemblyman for the 31st District, which pays $49,000 a year.

Earlier this month, Epps - who's been heavily criticized for juggling the job of running the state's second largest school system with his two-days-a-week Trenton post - announced he will not seek re-election to the Assembly in order to concentrate on shepherding the district through a state review process that could return it to local control.

Even though DeRosa and three other board members said they understood Epps would be seeking to renew his contract, Epps said yesterday he hadn't made up his mind.

"I have no idea," he said. "It's a little early to start discussing that. I would like to see the district through this extraordinary time and the possibility of the district returning to local control."

School board member and former Jersey City Mayor Anthony Cucci said he'd welcome Epps back.

"This man has put together a crackerjack team to run the district," Cucci said. "He (Epps) clearly said he's giving up the Assembly spot and staying entirely in education."