Current Bordentown
MARCH 2026 FREE
COMMUNITYNEWS.ORG
Q&A: Bordentown superintendent James Altobello BY JOE EMANSKI After a year of some upheaval at the leadership level, 2026 began on a positive note as new superintendent James Altobello joined the district. Altobello officially took the reins on Jan. 2, having been unanimously selected as the next superintendent by the board of education on Oct. 29. He succeeded interim superintendent Edward Forsthoffer, who himself was appointed in March following the sudden resignation of former superintendent Trudy Atkins. Atkins was not the only sudden and high-profile departure from the district in 2025. School board president Mike James also quit abruptly in February of last year. James told TapInto Bordentown this was due to “the accumulation of many things over time.” The district went through protracted and contentious contract negotiations with its teachers’ union until reaching an agreement in December 2024. The conclusion of negotiations brought with it yet another sudden resignation—
from longtime school board member Stephen Heberling. In announcing his resignation, Heberling bemoaned what he described as poor treatment by the community. On top of all of that, the district also saw state aid cut with little notice in 2025, leaving Forsthoffer and the school board to scramble to adjust the budget for the 2025-26 school year. Altobello, then, enters a district crying for stability. He has the sort of background that has many hoping he will be just the person for the job. Altobello joins the district having served as director of administration for the Hamilton Township school district since 2018. Hamilton, the eighth largest school district in the state, has more than 14,000 students and 2,200 staff across 17 elementary schools, three middle schools and three high schools. Before that, he was a principal for six years in the Middletown school district in Monmouth County. Altobello’s contract is for five years. His salary for the current See SuPER, Page 4
See our ad on pg 3
Emma Acampora, center, with sister McKenna and mom Teresa Jo Conroy.
Scotties’ Acampora notches 100 wins, eyes state wrestling run BY JuSTIN FEIL Emma Acampora hit a huge milestone in late February and this month has a chance to exit high school career on top of the state in girls wrestling. The senior returned to Bordentown Regional High School for her final year after spending last season at Rancocas Valley. She’s back where her career
took off and it seems only fitting that she picked up her 100th career win in Scotties’ black and gold. “To hit that milestone is something that I kind of dreamed of since my freshman year,” said Acampora. “I remember I had gym class in the morning, and I go in there for gym and you see the banners up on the wall and everything. And I was like,
one day my name’s going to be up there – I’m going to have my name on that 100 wins. And so when that actually happened, it was just like a surreal moment.” Acampora has continued to add wins to her total as she enters the postseason. Despite sitting out the first 30 days due to New Jersey’s transfer rule, she is 20-1 and top-seeded at 100 See ACAMPORA, Page 6
Now Open! see our ad on page 27
SPECIAL SECTION STARTS ON PG 9