News reports out of New Jersey are talking about twelve people arrested for taking bribes “from companies that offered insurance and roofing services to school districts and municipalities”. The arrests included the chair of the Pleasantville school board, another school board member and three former school board members.

In the Avery Doninger case, people have been quick to point out that some of the costs of defending Superintendent Schwartz and Principal Niehoff have been picked up by the insurance company, Massamont Insurance. Regular readers will recall that on August 23rd I sent this letter to Massamont Insurance. I have not received a reply from them.

As I look at the coming Board of Education elections in Burlington, I note that two of the Republican candidates, Phillip Penn, and Jeanne Doerr work in the insurance industry.

While Region 10 Superintendent Paula Schwartz came to Burlington from being Principal at Summit High School in New Jersey, which saw a “$22 million capital improvement project for the high school” while she was there, I have seen no evidence of corruption regarding insurance or building contracts in Region 10. Afterall, Region 10 as well as Summit High School are in wealthy communities. Pleasantville is a poorer community just outside of Atlantic City.

However, my father-in-law, a retired special agent for the U.S. Treasury Department was part of the Tri-Town Amity Investigation Committee back in 2001. I have not yet read the report of that committee, but it does seem that wealthy communities in Connecticut also are worth investigating.

So, if I were a taxpayer in Burlington, CT, I would be asking a lot of very serious questions about building and insurance contracts of all the Board of Education candidates for this November’s election.