United States of America the for stands na indivisible andice welcome everybody um I'm filling in tonight welcome to the meeting of the Board of Education of Branchburg please be advised that this and all meetings of the board are open to the public and media consistent with the open public meetings act and that advanced notice required therein has been provided this is a meeting of the Board of Education of Branchburg at which formal action may be taken the public will have an opportunity to be heard as shown on the agenda uh what next sorry uh we're going to start with an appointment the appointment of our new board member I'm going to turn this over to our business administrator M Dolan thank you say your name Ken Hollenbeck hi Ken Hollenbeck do solidly swear that I will support the Constitution of the United States and Constitution of the state of New Jersey do solemnly swear that I will support the Constitution of the United States and the constitution of the state of New Jersey and that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same and to the governments established in the United States the state under the authority of the people and that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same and to the governments established in the United States and this state under the authority of the people I can Holland back to solemnly swear that I possess the qualifications of this the law for the office of member of a board of education do solemnly swear that I possess the qualifications prescribed by the law for the office of member of a board of education I'm not disqualified as a boulder to R 19.1 am not disqualified as a voter pursuant to rs1 1941 that I will partially andly all of that office to and that I will faithfully impartially and justly perform all duties of that office according to the best of my abilities thank thank you congratulations thank you very much all right uh now we're going to turn the spotlight back on the superintendent and we like to have a superintendent report please great um I have a few items tonight first thank you to everyone who came out on this uh rainy day I see we have a lot of families in the room um so thank you for your time the first item on my agenda is that I am thrilled and delighted to ackowledge a group of Educators who are here tonight because they have been the recipient of the governor's year uh Governor educator of the Year award uh you are undoubtedly a leader amongst your peers and you are exemplifying the characteristics that all great educator should do so we are going to recognize you by having your building principal come up and say few words about you and provide you with this beautiful plaque uh first we're going to start with Miss Scher you're going to kick it off this evening so Mr Moore is our teacher of the year he is very personable as you can see and is so deserving to receive this recognition he's a dedicated educator who has consistently demonstrated outstanding commit passion and Effectiveness in the classroom making a profound impact on students lives he's described by his peers as having remarkable teaching skills and a genuine care for his students he excels in his ability to create an inclusive and engaging learning environment where students are not only educated but also inspired to reach their full potential and I see that every day I come into the classroom he has an excellent rapport with parents he goes above and beyond to ensure that they are engaged in informed of their child's educational needs and achievements he has a strong commitment to collaboration within the school Community he regularly serves as team leader making sure to disseminate permanent information in a respectful and timely manner Mr Moore is always willing to share and collaborate on instructional activities with grade level colleagues he's always sharing digital resources he works closely with the instructional support teachers and support service professionals he ensures that each student receives re services and accommodations necessary for their success furthermore Mr Moore is deeply committed to the overall development of his students he invests his time and energy in extracurricular activities such as safety patrol the third grade garden and Title One tutoring his ability to connect with students on a personal level providing guidance support and encouragement has made him a respected and beloved figure within the school Community he is an exceptional educator who has remarkable teaching skills a strong commitment to collaboration and is deeply committed to the overall development of his students we are very happy to celebrate Mr Mo as our teacher of the year congratulations Miss Lily you're up next so Miss Lily is deserving to receive this recognition for our Educational Services professional of the year as a dedicated educator Miss Lily is always working to provide the students that she teaches and those on her case load along with the respective staff and families the best of her each and every day she has a true passion for education and her love of working with students comes through in everything that she does there are not enough good things to say about Miss Lily described by her peers on a personal level she has been a mentee to her colleagues and a sounding board for staff she is kind compassionate empathetic and everything you would want in a friend and a colleague on a professional level she speaks with Grace when she is in meeting with parents and builds rapport with every students she interacts with she supports every teacher in our building actually in two buildings and has wonderful ideas on how to best support our students she leads workshops is involved in committees continues to further her education to stay up toate on the newest and best teaching practices and overall goes above and beyond in all that she does which is a lot one nominator shared I could go on and on singing Miss's Praises but I will wrap it up with this if every educator in the world was as passionate for their job as Miss Lily is I truly believe that school would be a better place for all it is an honor to work with her and see her greatness in action this is why we're happy to honor and celebrate Mrs Lily congratulations Mrs Koke if you could join me at the front please so Stony Brook's Educational Service professional of the year was described in many ways and this is just a few of them as an open resource for all teachers knows her content extremely well provides guidance in all areas of the school is a supportive and friendly colleague and brings levity to various situations Mrs Koke serves as a constant support to the staff in her role as a literally literary literacy coach I'm so sorry in our district she demonstrates a deep understanding of best practices in terms of instruction Mrs Koke takes an active role in supporting new staff members to ensure that they get what they need to be successful in their roles she works to c-plan with teachers as they learn the curriculum provide demonstration lessons and suggestions for how we can meet student needs each year she works hard to select our one school one book based on important Concepts we want to make sure our students learn such as friendship and perseverance additionally she works to create create read Across America week filled with fun activities that bring our school Community together Mrs Koke is always looking for new resources to help our students access the curriculum and assist our teachers in their work toward that goal Mrs Cano's dedication to her work supports both students and staff alike and she is so deserving of this award congratulations all right Miss manger I just wanted to share some of the uh the ways that Miss manger was described during the nomination process as well positive kind and generous demeanor goes above and beyond for her students on a regular basis always willing to help when needed helps everyone see the good and work through whatever it is they need gives back to the larger community in a number of ways collaborates in nature supporting not only students but the staff in our building and everything that this person does is done with a smile it's very true Nina manger demonstrates what it means to be an extraordinary educator she begins each day with a smile that carries through with her all day long that smile never waivers as she demonstrates to all members of the school Community her consistently positive attitude Miss mang's kindness in all situations and generous demeanor are ever present this care for her students and her community is always at the Forefront of her mind Miss manger goes above and beyond for her students regularly she can be found spending time at nights on weekends seeking out additional resources to meet the needs of her students Miss manger offers assistance to all students and staff alike she serves as a leader for her colleagues and supports teachers new to the profession as a mentor and also as a buddy for those who are new to our school she is collaborative in nature and works to ensure her entire team works together to provide a consistent learning experience across the grade level Miss manger also leads the school-based sunshine committee bringing support to staff members who need it additionally she plans multiple events throughout the year that give back to our community whether it be a food drive or the Memorial Day Comm commemoration that helps support this year will be supporting homeless veterans Miss mangar's impact goes far beyond the classroom in the many ways she works to support all members of the school Community congratulations Mar [Applause] m first we'd like to congratulate all recipients uh for that are receiving Awards tonight you represent the very best that our profession has to offer bcms also has an amazing educator so Mr Miracle you want to come up and join us first yep right here Mr Miracle has been at bcms for the past eight years during that time he demonstrates a dedication to helping our most vulnerable students be successful he successfully differentiates instruction in his classroom to ensure each of his students maximizes their full potential he been an Ela and a math tutor for our Title One tutoring programs for many years strengthening academic skills for our atrisk student population he supports students after school in guided study helping students learn study skills to become more independent Learners Mr Miracle is committed to Growing the professional learning community in Branchburg he has led many professional development workshops for his colleagues at the district Ed camps and learning disability trainings sharing his knowledge that learned in his own professional learning and excessive exp extensive experience in the classroom while all of these accomplishments are truly remarkable what makes Mr miracle stand out is his most unwavering kindness compassion and positivity evident in his daily interactions with students colleagues and parents in the hallways at bcms Mr Miracle greets everyone with a smile and knows how to brighten even the most difficult of days these traits allow Mr Mir to foster a classroom environment where all of his students feel safe welcome and valued we are honored to have Mr Miracle represent bcms as the educator of the Year well there's obviously amazing things happening in Mr Miracle's classroom because now we're going to celebrate the par professional that he works with Miss Kathy alal front and center there you go for over 10 years Kathy has met the diverse needs of students she's always ready to accommodate and help she demonstrates dedication in supporting the most vulnerable students she builds a relationship with students that lasts Beyond Middle School and High School Mrs alau is caring and kind she treats all students with dignity and respect she encourages our students to Branch out meet new friends and she subtly encourages students to include each other providing students Pathways to connect socially and emotionally with their peers which as we know in middle school is a challenge Mrs alal goes above and beyond building relationships with students learning the student style of learning to best support them it speaks to the importance of connections that Mrs alau makes with students Mrs alau is always a team player proactively offering her support which has made such a positive impact on our school building we are so fortunate to be able to work with Kathy [Applause] alar we'd love to have a photograph of the recipients of this Ward and the principles up front we'll take a picture for a few minutes [Music] right okay um lastly tonight we have a motion on the agenda to appoint Dr Christia Greenberg to the role of bcms principal effective July 1st as I previously mentioned to the board and the community uh we conducted a thorough interview process which began with screening interviews with missa yard and me and then we moved forward we brought those top candidates to a committee interview which was um a series of questions to really delve into each candidate's understanding of teaching learning adolescent development and the importance of um good effective teaching uh in after that process uh the candidate who Rose to the top which is Dr Greenberg met with Miss Anderson and myself where we also conducted a series of interview questions and I could tell you that in all cases Dr Greenberg presented with exceptional professionalism and a skill set that I believe will be of Great Value not only to bcms but also to our district uh Dr Greenberg comes to the district with a wealth of experience having most recently served as assistant principal at Bridgewater Ron high school for those of you not familiar with that District it's very large and Dr Greenberg specifically is working with the nth graders this year um and there's a population of 2700 students at that high school um in her role she has supported the transition of eighth graders to ninth graders which uh will be instrumental in the work that we're doing with transitions between grades she also developed a tiered systems of support for all students and is uh getting ready if she has not yet already done so to present both locally at the state level and also at the national level Dr Greenberg brings a strong background in student well-being having served as a school counselor at both the high school and the intermediate grades and she also brings with her a wealth of knowledge of effective teaching having served also as an elementary teacher so there is a span and a strong understanding of the Continuum of learning and it is without hesitation any hesitation that I recommend her for approval in the Personnel section of the board agenda this evening so that is my report um for all of those who are here today I recognize we've got some children in there and it's coming up on 8:00 and I know you're all supposed to be in bed by this time so um don't don't feel obligated to stay for the meeting if you want to take a break and we can have those people who need to go home and get ready for tomorrow exit thank [Music] you um up next we have public comment this time we have public comment on agenda items only it's really loud isn't it maybe we can ask everyone if they can is the door closed tone can you they having party next all right the board of agenda recognizes the value of public comment on educational issues and school matters of community interest in support of this position the law establishes a period of public comment at every board meeting individuals wishing to speak must State their name and place of residence comments are limited to 3 minutes per person for a total of 30 minutes an individual may speak a second time after all others who wish to speak on the topic have been heard please understand that our public forms are not structured as question and answer sessions but offered as opportunities to share your thoughts with the board all statements shall be directed to the presiding officer and no participant May address or question board members individually all speakers are requested to express themselves in a civil manner with due respect for the dignity and privacy rights of others whose legal rights may be affected please note while it is not the board's intention to stifle comment on matters of legitimate concern to the school Community the public should be aware that if their statements violate the rights of others under the law governing defamation or invasion of privacy they may face personal liability to the injured party if speakers are uncertain of the legal ramifications of their comments the board urges them to seek guidance beforehand from their own legal adviser at this time we welcome anybody who has comments on any items on the agenda come on hi Chris stepner um nine clar Court Bridgewood New Jersey I just want to say is having been part of the um process to select your principal you had some great candidates um which doesn't always happen and I think that's a testament to your reputation as a district um to your administrative team that people want to come and work with the individuals that you have here um uh the full disclosure I worked with chrisa at Bridgewater and I can tell you that you have gotten the cream of the crop so I'm excited for for Branchburg I think you are going to just continue to move forward so and I just want to thank you for the privilege of having been put the your faith in me to allow me to work uh with your children and with your school district it's really truly been a pleasure thank you right anyone else seeing no movement we'll close public comment and move on to governance I do not have a report from Mr Carpenter so we will go to our voting items our items tonight are number one approval am I tell me if I'm doing this wrong uh approval of minutes number two approval of harassment intimidation or bullying investigative report item number three approval of harassment intimidation or bullying findings report number four approval of harassment intimidation or bullying parental appeal number five approval of 202 4 2025 School District calendar number six approval of 2024 2025 holiday calendar for 12- month staff number seven approval of Summer calendar for all district offices number eight approval of job description uh can I have a motion to move these items I really haven't done this in a long time motion second my second and M noo are there any questions or comments on any of just just a quick question Karen I'm looking at the district calendar for next year yes on the top it says draft should I just disregard that just disregard it we've been working on this calendar um many iterations of it so okay so we have some questions sure absolutely I'm sorry my computer is acting hope I'll start with I know we all collectively had some questions so so did we sorry my computer isn't behaving well did we um just given we had so many closures with the snow and the flood did we build in closures so that so we worked on very very different um versions of this we actually tried to do that this year um if you look at the winter holiday it falls midweek so that prevented us in many cases because what that would do is if we were to build in the four extra days for inclement weather that would push us into the last week in June but were there I understood that were there days then you know April or May just just because I know it it caused some frustration on parents behalf to try to figure out how to accommodate for that so I don't know if there were days like April 21 or you know May 23rd like are there certain days or just trying to build in a few that you know we could give back if we don't hopefully needed we we had lengthy conversations with the admin team we also um Miss Childers and I also spoke and that would if we were to put something if we were to move the 21st and we were move the 23rd that would have given us two days um we talked about that but we felt that there was benefit because if we a lot of people travel on the 20th um and so having the 21st there would allow them time to do that and the same thing for the Memorial Day Weekend okay so I'm confused only because like if we look at an emergency Clos on the 23rd like why not take the 22nd right that's a half day why not take it like on May let's just say one of the closings that you see closing 23rd would be taken away why not the 22nd the single session so the 22nd it students are in session that day no I I but like let so this is saying if there's emergency closing they would take the 23rd instead of like the 22nd in May I'm just looking at for instance well 22nd they still have half day half day yeah theid 23rd's already Clos 23rd's closed but would the 23rd be given back again let's say if there was an emergency Clos yes if the 23rd if we had to give back if we had to um take away the 22nd we would amend that single session to the 23rd but couldn't you just again just to play Devil's Advocate because I I to I totally get it that parents plan and and all of that I think the worst case scenario though is they plan for those days off or you book a vacation or whatever and then we had to close schools prior and now you know there's a situation is it better to just take those days and have kids in school and if we don't need the closings we can give it back because again I'm just heard everything on social media and all the frustrations which are very well warranted because we didn't expect to have snow days flooding days we've never had to deal with before either so I anticipate we'll continue to have those challenges moving forward so I'm just trying to think of is there a happy medium where at least we accommodate and put in some school closures I think Somerville some other schools do as well I don't know how this matches with Somerville I think it's really very semantics like like May 23rd and June 19th if on this calendar they were just marked as days off um already I mean sorry as days of as as days yeah as days off like built in days the May 23rd and June 19th were built in they're on the calendar and then we didn't use any snow days and we gave it back to them that feels better like viscerally than having them as days off and taking them away right so I always think we should be looking to like it it's it's the same concept you're still going to school the same amount it's just the way you're phrasing it to the public that I think would make a big impact on them you know be oh now we have the day off instead of now we have to go to now we have to figure out what to do there kids out there can I can I ask a clarifying sure question maybe um it would be helpful if you discussed the process that you use to develop the calendar and what some of the constraints are and what some of the uses of this calendar are because I understand one use is that parents look at it to try to plan their time but I know it has other uses within the district as well yes so um thanks so we obviously we look at this calendar and our primary objective is to make sure that we are providing the best education for students as POS possible so we want to um consider that and one of the things that we strongly take into consideration is the state testing you know we ungrad students who are in grades 3 through eight um have to participate in the New Jersey student learning assessment so we want to make sure that our break when we're putting that in place isn't um too far ahead of that which is going to prevent instruction for that assessment we also have some um requirements that we have to adhere to as part of the BTA uh contract we need to ensure that there are single session days before the winter and the Thanksgiving holiday and also that the last four days of the school year are single sessions as well we need to put in um time for school conferences uh so that is why we have single sessions there we wanted to um we moved our staff development day also historically it's been in February the full day uh Miss Anderson and her team strongly recommended that we move that earlier to frontload information to staff but also what putting that against the rashash Shana holiday allows those families and students who are celebrating that holiday to have the next day off um we also have to make sure that we provide time for our staff to have professional development the New Jersey Department of Education requires all staff members to acrew 20 hours of professional learning over the year most of our staff acquire that through the single session days so that's why we have those in there um we're also working with the federal holiday now uh juneth is now a holiday um in in Most states observe that on June 19th in New Jersey uh Governor Murphy has given permission for New Jersey folks to celebrate that on June 20th so we consider that as well uh we we consider our staff um and our our fam's travel needs which is why we provided uh for example on December the winter break uh we gave the 23rd off when um we could have made that a single session day but we recognize that a lot of amilies are going to be traveling and a lot of our staff members are so we made that a day off as well so there's a lot that goes into the development of this calendar and those are just some of the things that we had talked about uh so does anybody have any other thoughts on the building in the days I have a just a sure a question about the in the third day on the emergency closing is the first day of spring break yes why would we choose that day over the 21st which is the cuz the amilies that are traveling are generally going away for that full week and returning for that Monday wouldn't it be easier to have that you know have a full week off and have that next Monday be the be the day that we have to go back to school I believe that was the Easter holiday on the 20th yeah the on the 20 on the 20th so there was some thought that families would be traveling that day as well kids would be getting home late having school the next day if we had to pull away would be difficult for some of the families that's why we've pulled from the front end of it just think most like families that are going on big trips are going to go away the week the the full week and return on return for Easter that's generally it's it's really difficult um some families are going to be celebrating the Easter holiday with families so they're traveling beforehand and they're staying for the the Easter holiday so that was a thought that was taken into consideration too and also on any days that we anticipate that there is going to be heightened absence by staff we our staff members are very sensitive to that they're not assigning any not teaching any new content or assigning anything that would be punitive to those students who had to take off for that day for travel plans or holiday celebrations and and then in regards to all to the single session days I understand that everybody has to do pro professional development yes I mean at some point wouldn't it be easier to I mean I know the parents most of the parents agree with this have one have another full day off instead of all of these half days because it's such an inconvenience all the parents I mean I have text messages today my my my wife was talking and everybody the half days are killing people they are you know and and in all honesty as I told you earlier today I went on every every District in the County's website we have double what most people have so there's and and everybody has the same requirements so obviously we're doing something somewhere different well yeah so the 20 hours is just one example we also at times have new mathematics programs and we have to provide professional development training for our teachers sometimes we have our teachers working on other programs so it's not just used to meet that requirement it's also to make sure that as Branchburg programs continue to evolve and remain um state-of-the-art Cutting Edge we also have to provide some PD for staff in those areas too of course what our kids are getting you know over a district like I think it was bassing Ridge Bernard Bernards that has seven days you know they're basically having two more full days of educational time for the students over the course of the year which you know figuring out how to balance that out I'm not familiar with their Collective bargaining agreements I don't have them on me but remember we have 14 days six of those are um stipulated in the teachers contract also I just a point of notion this calendar actually has two less days than in previous years so when I came into the district there were actually more single session days than there were last year we took away the spring conferences for our primary and elementary school because they weren't very well attended and we believed our just the open communication we have we believe that there could be touch points for our parents to call teachers directly um so it actually has less than previous years I just want so any way any work that we can continue to do over time to bring that down we can certainly explore those Avenues um but those are just some of the things that we've been we have to have six of those 14 days have to be off by collective bargaining two of them are for counseling we moved the another single session day I didn't say this previously if you look at February 17th we know that a lot of Staff um a lot of parents may be home because it's President's Day and they observe that holiday so we moved a staff development day single session to that day so we're really trying to make as many concessions as possible recognizing that we're not going to be able to accommodate everybody's travel schedule or every absence um Nuance all right any other questions or comments no I think we're ready oh we don't do we do a roll call ready for a roll call yes abstain we're going to abstain on one 2 3 4 and yes on five six 7 8 yes yes yes yes did you get you missed one okay okay all right next item get to it um up is policy so is do we have a report for policy tonight that would be oh on me um yeah there's nothing on the agenda we did meet on the 9th so there's a few policies that'll be coming up for first hearing on the next board event meeting on the 24th okay great so I still don't know where I am here governance it jumped right jumped right to curriculum and instruction okay okay that's next right tell me I'm in the right spot um curriculum instruction uh Mr Mater do you have a report no report this evening okay under curriculum and instruction this evening we have voting items uh number one conferences and travel number two approval of student teacher number three approval of field trips can I have a motion to move these items motion second Miss sha and Miss notto um any questions or comments on these items okay seeing none we are ready for a roll call no no oh yes terator yes but I still don't see it here there there we go Miss yes M chy yes M yes yes yes this just aoll call this be I meant to hit yes I don't know what would happen Okay said it pass okay that brings us to Personnel Mr Tuma do you have a report for us no report Personnel committee will meet next Wednesday okay of course we have voting items under Personnel we have item one approval of substitutes item two approval of personnel item three approval of revision of person Personnel item four approval of leave item five approval of revision of leave item six approval of retirements item seven approval of non-athletic stiens item eight approval of black seal stiens item nine approval of new parent orientation extra duty hours number 10 approval of spring teacher Academy extra duty hours item 11 approval of revision of stiens item 12 approval of job title change item 13 approval of revision of 2023 2024 clubs and item 14 approval of transfer can I have a motion to move these items motion second M sha and miss notto any questions or comments on the Curious what's black seal sens it sounds exciting like baby seals but not it's not that exciting unfortunately so um this is a stien that's been negotiated through the collective bargaining agreement uh it any custodian who I believe they have to take a test to Pro um demonstrate proficiency and being able to operate a boiler and anytime we have a boiler in operation our custodian has to have a black seal ex it's exciting like a movie no okay just a quick comment I'd like to welcome Miss Greenberg we're excited to have you welcome to the family actually Dr Greenberg um after the vote did we votee yet no we didn't no we didn't okay after the vote off after the vote which we'll do right now we'll have Dr Greenberg say a few words any other questions or comments I'm still looking through the agenda for we're off because of the eclipse by the way and the earthquake and the earthquake we're little sh and the after that are coming lusts welcome any other questions comments I will just uh note our retirements on the agenda this evening we have several um uh folks that have been in our district for many years and will be very much missed um we very much appreciate everything that folks have done for us and I know we'll be celebrating all our retirees at some point right so I look forward to raising a glass of water with you all all right and with that we'll have a roll call yes yes CH yes yes Mr T yes yes Dr Greenberg if you would kindly say a few words since we've talked about you so much tonight uh thank you I mean the the education service providers of of the year and the teachers are not here any longer but congratulations to them they are on the front lines and do the wonderful things for our students um thank you uh I'm super excited for this opportunity um I'm grateful that you've given me the opportunity I'm grateful to be able to work with young adults in this school you know I'm grateful to have the support of my family I have my daughter with me tonight um it's just a super opportunity I wake up every morning excited to create conditions for young adults uh my family makes fun of me sometimes because when I put my lanyard on they say are you're going out to save the world and and I truly believe that you know and I think you need to believe in something so Grand in order to get good work done every day you know and the reality is is you are saving the world if you're helping just one um and so I'm really just excited I I excited to create relationships I can't wa to to meet the individuals at school um and it it's a slow process right it's getting to know know people it's getting allowing them to get to know me building that trust um and that doesn't come overnight but that's it I I really am just excited to get started and I'm grateful and I thank you and I look forward to getting to know all of you a little bit more and to and to sort of share to take all the the experience I have 26 years in education and to bring it here and create conditions for our young adults to be successful for whatever that means for every single one of them so thank you thank you yeah thank so um Dr Green will be visiting the district on April 18th I believe it is uh and we've already somewhat begun a transition and uh Miss stepner will be working closely with Dr Greenberg so we can seamlessly transfer leadership so that our staff and our students feel ready for the new year thank you thank you congratulations all right our next item is is we up to we're up to the finance and Facilities um I have a short report I got find that out um the finance and Facilities committee met last week was just last week right um we discussed I think most of the items on the agenda um check the notes here um we discussed uh an update to the rod Gra um we went uh we had a Dr Chase just uh shared with us that she will be uh meeting with Mr Bonin from the township to discuss uh the hunting on the Harland school property to learn more about how the township manages their process to see whether it's something that our district um might allow uh we discussed the grants that are on the agenda this evening um I think that was it we talked about the earthquake and the eclipse and that was before the eclipse so um and there are uh there were some issues with leaking pipes at the middle school that were fixed and we will be getting uh the gym the large gym floor uh refinished both gym floors both gym floors refinished at the end of the school year in the Middle School I hope I covered everything um so that's my report we have voting items tonight under Finance of facilities we have item number one the bill list item number two the secretary's report item number three the treasur report item number four line item transfers item number five the monthly transfer report item number six approval to accept local food for schools Grant item number seven approval of amendment to to acceptance of section 15 Grant state of New Jersey schools Development Authority SDA those are the rod grants right approve number eight approval of amendment to to acceptance of section 15 Grant item number nine approval of amendment to acceptance of section 15 Grant item number 10 special education Medicaid initiative participation item number 11 approval of submission of the safety Grant application and item number 12 approval of donation from the Branchburg PTO can I have a motion to move those items sha and second any questions or comments on these items uh question on item number 10 Medicaid initiative grants and previous years I think we have opted out of that can you tell us what change to make us now have to enroll you're actually right we've uh the district has been able to have can apply for a waiver uh right now the this grant is determined on the number of students that you have in your district and we have met the enrollment threshold so we're now required to participate in the semi Grant uh just a word of note too that semi Grant comes with a lot of work uh Miss Anderson is actually working on that right now trying to um you know being new to this we have a lot to learn there so she's been attending some workshops and reaching out to those folks so that's going to put additional work on the district um basically essentially what happens is they take the money from our budget and then we have to prove out to them that we're doing these things um and then they will reimburse us the money back so it um it's a very complex interesting Grant I also just want to take a moment to thank the PTO I I forgot to thank them during my superintendent remarks uh they have been providing so generously a lot of things to the district most recently they donated picnic tables to the middle school which affords our middle schoolers the opportunity to go outside which if you they are just so excited to be outdoors um we could see our Middle School teachers back there nodding uh and Miss stepner has been sending me some really great pictures of the students outside at recess and also on the picnic tables they also donated water filling stations for whiten school which is also great because that leads to our conservation efforts and our students and our staff can go right to them and fill up the water bottles and at Stony Brook uh Stony Brook has a soft start in the morning so they generously donate ated some materials for our students there so I just wanted to publicly thank them for all of their work it's really making a difference for our students here any other questions comments right seeing none we are ready for a roll call Mr yes yes yes yes T yes yes Sor all right that brings us to our second public comment of the evening this is the time that you can come comment on anything you like hopefully something related to the schools but feel free to come on good evening uh Nicole Kepner 2311 Monica place in Scotch Plains New Jersey I'm a teacher here and I wanted to just update you on two things first um as student council adviser I wanted to share that um our uh committee for um fundraising just had a really successful school supply Drive um partnering with United Way of Northern New Jersey we were able to collect a really nice haul of school supplies that will be um picked up tomorrow and go to North planfield so I'm really proud of the students and the work that they did and tomorrow our two winning home rooms um Miss key and Miss Ferrari uh ferari will have their pizza parties to celebrate their hard work in collection as well so that was very exciting and I'm really proud of the kids of what they did there um they also um our officers presented to Mr drifing or our vice principal um the outcome of the virtual conference that this 30 of our students attended in March with their ideas of how to help improve bcms and one of the big overarching themes that they discover for themselves is that they really felt the need to address mental health for their peers so they came up up with three different proposals and I'm hoping in the next few weeks we'll get some ideas on where we can move forward for this year and what we can set up so that next year can kick off strong with the things that the students really desire to um attack and then I just wanted to um I'll send you an email as well just remind you that uh next Wednesday on the 17th our seventh graders will be presenting their oral history Fair here in the bcms uh auxiliary gym it'll be from 3:30 to 6:30 we'll have some light Refreshments some music and some really amazing oral history projects for you to see so hopefully we'll see some of you there thank you anyone else seeing no movement we will close public comment that brings us to board the ason reports should go pretty quick uh Somerville Miss fait is not here for her report uh Micha do you have a PTO I don't but just Echo huge thanks to PTO for everything I know my middle son my middle child Middle School loves being outside um so again I could imagine it does wonders for everyone as well as the hydration station that so thank you PTO all right uh Somerset County Ed Services Commission Mr Carpenter is not here same with New Jersey school boards uh Branchburg Township leison I do not have a report Mr side do you have a report on the bef I have a quick one for the bef um they just concluded the readathon so results will be communicated soon so great job kids um they also pocketo Bingo sales have started for the event on the 4th through the bef website and then one more thing the motivational assembly funded by bef took place yesterday at Stony Brook today at whiten and will be at bcms tomorrow so thank you to the Branchburg Education Foundation all right and Branchburg cpeg um I was not able to make the town hall meeting which was Tuesday night I don't know if anyone else here did and couldn't report but I will just remind everyone that um there will be a link to there was a meeting right you shifted sorry okay so for those at home who didn't hear that um just pay attention to your email because there will be more information coming out about how you can view those meetings rather than live you can view them as reportings online so I will look forward and that way I can watch them when I am available so that'll be great and I'll have a better report next time um that's all we have for the Aon reports we do not correct me need a second executive session no no okay so I will take a motion to during the meeting motion second all in favor I I right thank you and good night