Piscataway Board of Education Swears in Three New Members – TAPinto.net
Alexandra Lopez Is Re-elected to Serve as Board President; Adelita Deepan Will Serve as Vice President
Piscataway, NJ, January 9, 2018 – Piscataway Township Schools welcomed three new Board of Education members at its reorganization meeting held on Thursday, January 3, 2019. At the meeting, Ms. Shelia Hobson, Mr. Jeffrey Fields, Jr., and Mr. Nitang Patel were sworn in to begin their three-year terms. Ms. Alexandra Lopez was again elected to serve as Board president, and Adelita Deepan was elected Vice-President of the Board.
Shelia Hobson
Shelia Hobson is a retired Homicide Lieutenant with over 25 years of experience, including working as the first female homicide detective with the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office. A former Peer Counselor and Program Development Specialist with the Cop2Cop Program, Hobson provided Crisis Management Training and Stress Awareness Education to more than 16,000 officers and their superiors. Hobson is a Licensed Ordained Minister and Pastor of Grace Baptist Church in Fords, and serves as Chaplain for the New Jersey Women in Law Enforcement and the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives. She and her husband Robert Johnson have four grown children and are proud grandparents.
Jeffrey Fields, Sr.
For the past 25 years, Jeffrey Fields, Sr. has worked for Piscataway’s Department of Public Works, while also serving as a part-time Public Safety Officer at Union County College. A dedicated volunteer at Arbor Hose Company, he has served for 14 years as Lieutenant, Captain and Chief. He coached Piscataway’s Recreation Basketball for more than 20 years, and currently volunteers and serves on the board of the Plainfield Vikings America Youth Football League (AYF), where he is forming a youth mentoring program with his fellow coaches. Fields is also a Deacon-in-Training at Second Baptist Church in Matawan. His children graduated from Piscataway Schools and his grandchildren are currently enrolled in our school district.
Nitang Patel
Nitang Patel has been a Piscataway resident since 1995 and a practicing pharmacist for the last two decades. He works for a leading New Jersey long term care pharmacy that provides pharmaceutical services to approximately 13,000 nursing home residents. As their Director of Pharmacy, he manages approximately 200 employees and the company’s financials.
For the past 10 years, Nitang has been an active volunteer at the Gayatri Chetna Center and worked to have groups come together to volunteer at health events, social events and clean ups. He and his wife Paxa have two children, Deep and Yesha, who graduated from the Piscataway school system and are currently attending medical school and college respectively.
“We welcome our new Board members and offer them, along with President Lopez and Vice-President Deepan, our warmest congratulations,” said Teresa M. Rafferty, Superintendent of Schools. “We look forward to a successful year, serving Piscataway students and their families.”
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About Piscataway Township Schools
Serving over 7,000 students, Piscataway Township Schools provide K – 12 and preschool programming, special education instructional programs and services, as well as before and aftercare, adult education classes, youth enrichment programs, and summer youth programs. The mission of the Piscataway Township Schools is the continual development of each child’s intellectual, aesthetic, social and physical abilities in a positive environment that fosters self-esteem, to help all students realize their abilities and gifts.
Photo Caption:
Board Secretary David Oliveira administers the Oath of Office to new Board Members Nitang Patel, Jeffrey Fields, Sr., and Shelia Hobson.