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Principal in a coma
(by Karen F. Mrnarevic - February 06, 2008)
to a report issued on Tuesday, Jan. 29 by Superintendent Ben Tantillo, Pascack Valley Regional High School (PVRHS) Principal Barbara Sapienza is currently in a coma. She fell into the coma shortly after undergoing knee surgery on Wednesday, Jan. 23.
On Wednesday, Jan. 30, during first period, all teachers at PVRHS read a statement to their students regarding the situation. School counselors and the Child Study Team, under the guidance of the Bergen County Trauma Response Team, were also available to comfort and assist students and staff members to come to terms with the news.
Sapienza has been in the district for 40 years, serving as principal for the past 14 years. Tom DeMaio, an assistant principal at
Pascack
Valley
High School , is the acting principal.
Tantillo confirmed that Sapienza remains in a coma, as of Monday, Feb. 4, but said, “we are sharing our prayers that she will come out of the coma and recover.”
Asked why a week passed between when Sapienza fell into the coma and when the news was revealed to the community and PVRHS students and staff, Tantillo said, “We just wanted to make sure we had all the facts before releasing any information.”
Additionally, said Tantillo, Sapienza’s surgery was a scheduled procedure, and the school’s students and staff had been prepared for her to be absent for a month or more following the surgery. Therefore, while her coma came as a terrible shock, the school was expecting her to be absent and had planned accordingly.
“Our students, staff and community will be deeply affected by her absence,” wrote Tantillo in his announcement, “She has dedicated her life to
Pascack
Valley
High School and her commitment to our entire community has been extraordinary.”
Karen F. Mrnarevic's e-mail address is Mrnarevic@northjersey.com.
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