The East Orange School District has hired a safety compliance coordinator who was accused of sexual harassment at two different New Jersey colleges, including one case that ended in a $145,000 settlement. Brian Agnew began the role on August 17 and is set to serve through June 30, earning a salary of $74,000.
Agnew's hiring was approved by the East Orange Board of Education, according to NJ.com, which reported that he departed at least two previous jobs under murky circumstances. District spokesperson Teresa Corallo confirmed only that “Agnew's job began Aug. 17 and runs until June 30,” declining to answer questions about his past or whether a background check was conducted, telling the outlet, “That's all the information we are sharing.”
Agnew previously served as executive vice president of Bergen Community College, a position from which a 2020 federal gender discrimination lawsuit emerged. The suit, filed in U.S. District Court, named Agnew, Bergen Community College, its board of trustees, and its human resources director as defendants. According to Bergen Torch, the complaint was brought by former benefits administrator Brandie Bookhart, who alleged that Agnew sexually harassed her.
Allegations of a Pattern Across Campuses
The complaint alleged Agnew was “a particular danger to women in the workplace” and that he had issues at previous places of employment, claims that human resources staff and others knew or should have known about. One woman claimed Agnew tried to kiss her, repeatedly asked her to meet on her days off, and texted her while she was on vacation, leaving her feeling coerced into playing along and fearing for her job. Co-workers were reportedly subjected to similar alleged conduct, and the lawsuit also alleged that Bergen Community College officials failed to properly vet Agnew before hiring him.
The 2020 suit additionally named the college's HR director and Title IX coordinator, Gwendolyn Harewood, as a co-defendant, alleging she was complicit in failing to investigate or address harassment complaints against Agnew, per the same Bergen Torch report. A federal judge ultimately dismissed the lawsuit and terminated all pending motions in the case; a settlement order was signed on February 2, 2021, with the parties agreeing to a $145,000 settlement, as reported by northjersey.com.
Agnew resigned from Bergen Community College in January 2020 amid the harassment investigation and deleted his social media accounts.
Earlier Accusations at Georgian Court University
Before Bergen Community College, Agnew worked at Georgian Court University in Lakewood in 2016 and 2017, where the Asbury Park Press reported in April 2020 that five former students and employees accused him of sexual harassment while he served as Vice President for Institutional Advancement. Five of those women claimed Agnew sexually harassed them during his time at the university. Agnew also held roles at Rutgers University and Robert Wood Johnson University Health System.
Agnew is from Piscataway, New Jersey, and works as a volunteer firefighter there, per NJ.com's reporting. He has also been listed as co-editor of TAPinto East Orange. The outlet earned TAPinto's 2024 Rookie of the Year award, according to William Paterson University, while Lauren Agnew was appointed communications director for Montclair Public Schools that same year.
What the State's 'Pass the Trash' Law Requires
New Jersey's 2018 “Pass the Trash” law, codified at N.J.S.A. 18A:6-7.6, requires public school districts and contractors to review the 20-year employment histories of applicants for positions involving regular contact with students by contacting past employers to check for pending or substantiated sexual misconduct or child abuse allegations, according to the New Jersey Principals and Supervisors Association. The law, enacted in June 2018, was designed to prevent school staff with misconduct histories from transferring between educational entities unvetted. Because Corallo declined to clarify whether East Orange performed that review for Agnew, it remains unknown whether the district complied with the mandate in his case.
A 2026 bill proposes employment-history reviews for higher-education applicants with regular student contact, according to the New Jersey Legislature.
The district describes the safety compliance coordinator role as ensuring that facilities, employees and operations comply with applicable health, safety, environmental and life safety regulations.
