Former Woodbridge teacher's license revoked for forging document to bypass mask mandate
The state has revoked the teaching license of a former Woodbridge elementary school gym teacher who forfeited any future public employment as part of her plea agreement with the Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office on a forgery charge.
Gayle Hadley, 55, of Toms River, a former teacher at Lynn Crest Elementary School No. 22 in the Colonia section, was admitted into a pre-trial intervention program (PTI) on Feb. 25, 2022, on charges of fourth-degree forgery and fourth-degree falsifying medical records.
The Middlesex County Prosecutor's Office accused Hadley of submitting a forged document to the Woodbridge school district in order to gain exemption from its face mask policy, on Sept. 8, 2021.
As part of the PTI agreement, Hadley agreed to the forfeiture of any future public employment.
But Hadley, who had been working in the school district since 1997, argued before the Department of Education's Board of Examiners that while she agreed to the forfeiture, that should not affect the status of her teaching license.
Hadley contended that the revocation would violate her constitutional right to a due process hearing whether she had engaged in "unbecoming conduct" that would warrant revocation.
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The Board of Examiners disagreed in its Dec. 8 decision, writing that "an individual who has been disqualified from public employment should not be permitted to retain the certificate that authorizes such service."
The Board added that the "mere possibility that a private school might require licensure for employment or Hadley's ability to become a certified teacher in another state may be affected" does not violate her constitutional claim to keep the license.
Hadley was accused of submitting a forged doctor’s letter to the district in which she claimed a fictitious medical exemption from the district’s face mask policy, according to the prosecutor's office.
A month before that, Gov. Phil Murphy signed an executive order mandating masks inside all public, private and parochial preschool, elementary and secondary school buildings, with limited exceptions for the start of the 2021-2022 school year due to the COVID pandemic. The mandate applied to students, educators, staff and visitors.
Email: mdeak@mycentraljersey.com
Mike Deak is a reporter for mycentraljersey.com. To get unlimited access to his articles on Somerset and Hunterdon counties, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: NJ teacher's license pulled for forging document to skirt mask mandate