March 13: Week in Review

Here are some noteworthy news items from around town you may have missed last week. 

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1. Nicole Ientile, 23, of Lakehurst, in the Ridgeway section of Manchester, has been discharged from Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune, said an official there.

Ientile was admitted to the hospital on March 2 in stable condition with head and shoulder injuries following the 3 a.m. crash, Manchester police reported. She was airlifted to the hospital by MONOC paramedics after her car collided with a guardrail and struck a utility pole.

According to Manchester Police Traffic Safety Officer Douglas Higgins, the official cause of the crash remains under investigation, though the vehicle's speed appears to be the contributing factor.

The intrusion from the telephone pole was mostly on the passenger side of the vehicle, which, according to Higgins, could be the reason the driver did not sustain life-threatening injuries.

A toxicology report is not yet available. That information will be released through the Ocean County Prosecutors Office when it becomes available, police said.

2. A Manchester Township dentist whose license was suspended is by continuing to practice dentistry and submitting claims for reimbursement to five insurance companies.

William M. Griefer, 54, of East Windsor, is charged in an indictment voted by an Ocean County grand jury this week with theft by deception, insurance fraud and illegally practicing dentistry in Manchester Township between Nov. 1, 2007 and Dec. 1, 2009.

3. The Manchester Hawks Youth Football and Cheer teams last week joined a number of neighboring towns in voting to .

According to Hawks president Renee Hourigan, the move to American Youth Football and its more flexible weight classifications will benefit both larger and smaller players. 

"It's more about the children and what the children can do," she said. "There's not a lot of weight restrictions with this versus Pop Warner." 

Finances also played a part in the switch, as Hourigan said AYF offers lower fees for maintinance, insurance, dues and competitions.

4. Three Manchester Board of Education members' seats are up for grabs and as many candidates have declared that they will run for the positions. 

Tuesday afternoon marked the deadline for candidates to file petitions to run for school board seats.. 

According to the Office of the Ocean County Clerk, the terms of three members are set to expire this year. Board President Mary Walter of Whiting, who has served since 1996, and Board Member Steve Placido of Manchester, elected in 1995, will run for re-election.

Board member Gary Rhodes, who has served on the board since 1996, will not seek another term, said Craig Lorentzen, buiness administrator and board secretary for Manchester schools.

5. Manchester high school juniors got to have some fun following their HSPA standardized testing last week when  .

The game show gave students a chance to unwind while also testing their knowledge on a variety of subjects. The administration felt the best time for the show would be at the end of testing as a way to decompress, said Connie Soper, an assistant principal at the school.

“A big part [of why we have the show] is to thank them for being so attentive and cooperative with testing,” she said.