Lodi schools OK resignation months after superintendent arrested outside bar

⚪ NJ schools superintendent was arrested after a brawl in Ocean County

⚪ The man punched a woman that he knew outside a Seaside Heights bar, cops say

⚪ Months later, the school district he led accepted a resignation, to crowd applause

LODI — Nearly an entire school year after his arrest, the disgraced superintendent of Lodi public schools has officially resigned.

Douglas Petty was arrested last August in Seaside Heights, accused of punching a woman he was within the head during a fight outside a bar.

The Lodi Board of Education named Acting Superintendent of Schools Frank D'Amico in the weeks following Petty’s arrest.

At the same time, the board voted to suspend a school employee whose name was not publicly disclosed — restricted by employee privacy requirements.

Months later, on Wednesday night, the board accepted an unnamed employee’s resignation, to cheering from those in attendance, as reported by NorthJersey.com.

Earlier in the week, the New Jersey Education Association had urged public support for Superintendent Douglas Petty to resign.

The NJEA on Friday confirmed to New Jersey 101.5 that it was Petty's resignation accepted on Wednesday.

“Stand with the Lodi Education Association (LEA) as they take a stand against domestic violence and urge the Lodi BOE to accept Superintendent Douglas Petty’s resignation. Public schools should be led by the best role models the educational community has to offer, and clearly this isn’t it,” an earlier Facebook post by the NJEA said.

The post linked to a form letter, that said in part, “Lodi Superintendent Douglas Petty has been found guilty of assault in an act of domestic violence against a woman. This behavior has no place coming from someone hired to oversee our schools, let alone one who is in a profession that is predominately occupied by females. Moreover, Dr. Petty has an ongoing history of poor decision making prior to coming to Lodi."

The same NorthJersey.com report said that a “decision had been reached in Petty’s case” two weeks earlier in Seaside Heights Municipal Court.

Erin Vogt is a reporter and anchor for New Jersey 101.5. You can reach her at erin.vogt@townsquaremedia.com

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