Middlesex County mourns loss of Freeholder Valenti, a trailblazer for Latinx in politics ×
Messages of support are pouring in for the family of Blanquita (Bird) Valenti, a longtime Middlesex County Freeholder and New Brunswick City Councilmember.
“It is with great sadness that we learned of the passing of a colleague and friend, former Freeholder Blanquita Valenti. Blanquita was an inspiration across the county, particularly for those in the minority community, as she not only shattered convention by becoming the first Latina to win a countywide election in Middlesex County, but she founded one of the county’s most active human services organizations, the Puerto Rican Action Board (PRAB). A mother and grandmother, Blanquita’s love for the youngest in our community was reflected in her career, spending almost four decades as an educator in both high school and university settings,” the Middlesex County Board of Commissioners, which was previously named the Middlese
N.J. school fired me because of my race, former vice principal says in lawsuit
Updated Jan 08, 2021;
A former high school principal in Middlesex County has filed a discrimination lawsuit against the New Brunswick school district, claiming the district terminated her because of her race and her age.
Rene Edghill Smith, a 60-year-old Black woman, claims in court papers her contract was not renewed after she wrote up a teacher who allegedly used the N-word in class and gave a verbal warning to a teacher who supported President Donald Trump’s efforts to build a border wall.
Smith, who lives in Franklin Park in Somerset County, was hired as vice principal at New Brunswick High School in 2016. Part of her job was to counsel teachers at the school and conduct their evaluations, the lawsuit states.