Dr. Barbara Sargent, an educational leader with more than 20 years of experience in New Jersey schools, began her tenure as Readington's Superintendent of Schools on July 1, 2011. Barbara is a graduate of Rutgers University where she earned a B.A. in English and Sociology. Her M.A. degree in Reading/Language Arts was earned at Rider University and her Ed.D. in Educational Administration is from Seton Hall University. Barbara served most recently as the Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction for the Madison School District and was an adjunct graduate professor in the Caspersen School of Graduate Studies at Drew University.
Barbara began her teaching career as a 7th grade Language Arts and Social Studies teacher in the West Windsor-Plainsboro School District. She worked as a supervisor at Maplewood Middle School and was Language Arts Coordinator for the Somerset Hills School District. Barbara was principal of Dickerson School in Chester Township and opened the Village Elementary School in Montgomery Township in 1999 before transitioning her students and staff to the larger Orchard Hill Elementary School in 2003.
Barbara has presented workshops at a variety of educational conferences, including the Phi Delta Kappa International 2004 Conference in Las Vegas, the NAESP 2005 Conference in Baltimore, and the 2003 Women’s Leadership Conference at Oxford University. In November 2011, Barbara presented “Establishing a Strong School Literacy Climate” at the 22nd Annual Literacy for All Conference in Rhode Island. Additionally, she has been published in Parents magazine, Educational Leadership, The Reading Teacher, and several state educational journals.
Barbara and her husband Dr. Chris Obropta, a professor of Environmental Engineering at Rutgers University, are parents to sons Cody (16), Tyler (14), and Quinn (11) and reside in Hillsborough where their home lives are pretty much consumed by Scouts, TaeKwonDo, soccer, and dirty laundry.
