TOMS RIVER – Just after two former students filed lawsuits accusing the Ocean County vocational district's superintendent of allowing sexual abuse by teachers under her watch, the school board hired her son-in-law as her replacement.
The Ocean County Vocational Technical School board on Thursday promoted the district's curriculum director, Gary MacDonald, as its new superintendent on a five-year deal. MacDonald previously worked as a vice principal and teacher in the district.
MacDonald is the son-in-law of Karen Homiek, who worked as OCVTS superintendent from 2019 until her retirement in June. Homiek spent the previous 15 years as principal at the OCVTS Performing Arts Academy.
In the last two weeks, two former students filed lawsuits alleging they were sexually abused by their teachers at the Performing Arts Academy during Homiek's tenure. Both lawsuits allege that Homiek should have known about the alleged sexual abuse.
Exclusive: OCVTS arts school was 'breeding ground for predatory teachers,' suit says
OCVTS board president Stephen Scaturro and attorney Robert Shea did not immediately return requests for comment.
In a complaint filed Aug. 12, one former student alleged that Homiek confronted Douglas Bollinger in 2017 about his relationship with a different student, saying she and Bollinger "did not want the relationship … to be discussed throughout the school" as much as a relationship between an unidentified vocal teacher and a different student.
"The results of said discussions were simply that Bollinger had to try not to make the relationship so obvious," the lawsuit states.
In an Aug. 5 complaint, another former student alleged that, under Homiek's leadership, the Performing Arts Academy became a "breeding ground for predatory teachers." Bollinger eventually pleaded guilty to endangering the welfare of a child and admitted to a sexual relationship with the Aug. 5 plaintiff.
In 2023, another teacher, Zachary Slater, pleaded guilty to the same crime and admitted to a sexual relationship with a different student. Slater resigned in 2019; Bollinger resigned in 2022.
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According to the complaints, inappropriate teacher-student relationships were known by students, parents, teachers, staffers and administrators. Teachers who tried to report them were told to "keep their mouth(s) shut" lest they "go down with the ship," the complaints state. A group of students who reported the vocal teacher's relationship with a student were themselves disciplined for bullying their classmate, according to the complaints.
And when parents protested, administrators told them they had "no control whether a teacher has a crush on a student," the complaints state.
The complaints also allege that Homiek dismissed a teacher's reports of sexual assault by a "highly influential OCVTS/PAA administrator" at a 2005 field trip. The administrator later followed the teacher home and attempted to confront them, according to the complaint.
Mike Davis is an investigative reporter with the Asbury Park Press, where he's covered local news, politics, transportation and the cannabis industry. His work has changed laws, prompted government investigations and even won a few awards, which make his parents very proud. Contact him at [email protected], @byMikeDavis on social media platforms or send an encrypted message via Signal @bymikedavis.22
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: OCVTS hires ex-superintendent's son-in-law to replace her