as the board president is not in attendance at the meeting as the vice president I will be assuming the duties of the president at this meeting the regular notice requirement of the New Jersey open public meetings act has been complied with in the adequate advance notice of this meeting was given at least 48 hours in advance on January 31st 2024 notice was mailed to The Courier Post Philadelphia inquire and posted on the district's website at this time can we stand for the Pledge of Allegiance I pledge Al to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God indivisible with liberty and justice for all at this time I would like to turn it over to our board secretary for a roll call Janette Alvarez NAA [Music] Gillespie Cameron Hudson present Danielle Jackson present Karen Merck pres wasain Muhammed Namy Nelson pres okay five presid seven called have AUM good evening everyone I'd like to take this opportunity to welcome everyone uh who was here to the public this public uh special meeting convened for the purposes of interviewing candidates for the two vacant board position so um we are this is a very important meeting and we thank you for being here um to uh witness and to participate if you like through the open public comments portion in this um session there are eight candidates to be interviewed this evening by the board members the order of the candidates was selected based upon when the board received their application all candidates will have 15 minutes to respond to the questions presented the candidates have been sequestered in a separate room while they are not being interviewed to ensure Equity uh in the entire process once all candidates have been interviewed we will open up the meeting for public comment upon the conclusion of public comment the board will go into executive session to deliberate the candidates before reconvening in public session for a vote each vacancy Position will undergo a separate nomination and voting process the successful candidates will need to complete a criminal history background check prior to being sworn in as public officials it is anticipated that the candidates will be sworn in at the March board meeting both successful candidates will serve until the January 2025 reorganization meeting the positions will go on the ballot at the November 2024 election for the unexpired terms the board vice president board members will now undertake interviewing the candidates so our first candidate is Kevin Ruiz Lise [Applause] beroa good afternoon everybody good afternoon so just so you know we will each uh ask questions um that you can answer one by one and I'll start off with the first question please state your name and address how long you have been a resident of the city of Camden my name is Kevin Ruiz broa and I reside at 9:32 North 31st Street Camden New Jersey and I've been a resident of Camden for just over 20 years by a couple days thank you Mr baroa why do you want to be a board member besides wanting the board to reflect the community it serves my commitment to Camden and its future has driven me to seek a seat on the board of education since 2010 when I sat on the board as a student rep for brim Medical Arts High School our city much like a well o well-oiled engine requires diligent care and commitment to continuous Improvement our community deserves educational governance that not only listens but acts upon the needs of its constituents meetings should be accessible held at times that encourage wider Community participation engagement with our community should be proactive and not merely a response to procedural necessity thank you what specific skills will you bring to the board well my journey has equipped me with a unique set of skills particularly in fostering effective Community engagement leadership and navigating administrative intricacies my work from youth coaching at Puerto Rican Unity for progress ress on Broadway and Pine back in 2014 to spearheading the community garden initiative back in 2010 when Camden's Children's Garden was spreading Community Gardens throughout the city those initiatives underscore a track record of not just envisioning change but enacting it these experiences have instilled in me the importance of clear communication comprehensive reporting and proactive engagement of all Community stakeholders thank you good evening Mr Ruiz baroa um could you please give specific examples of your ability in interpersonal relationships and teamwork absolutely Miss Jackson in my various roles I have exemplified teamwork and interpersonal relationships by creating environments where open dialogue flourishes whether mentoring our youth or collaborating on community projects my Approach has always been inclusive ensuring that every voices heard and valued leading Community gardening efforts founding brims CH Hound house I work closely with various stakeholders to achieve shared goals my role as a youth coach at prop and Rucker future Scholars require building trust and fostering open communication with adolescents and their parents enhancing Team Dynamics and community relations okay and as a follow-up question what do you see as a role of a school board member the role of a school board member as I Envision it transcends mere oversight it embodies the active advocacy of our children's future demanding transparency accountability and a steadfast commitment to the community's welfare this means not only fulfilling statutory obligations but going Beyond to foster a trustful and engaged Community relationship through my previous community and nonprofit experiences I have not only engaged with but actively listened to our community identif sorry I lost myself I'm not only engaged with but I actively listen to our community identifying and addressing its needs through tangible initiatives these roles have prepared me to tackle the challenges facing our educational system with both empathy and efficiency thank you so much Mr barrero um I'd like to ask you um please describe your previous Community or nonprofit nonprofit experiences sure thing Miss Merck my community involvement includes youth mentorship at PR establishing Community Gardens in collaboration with Camp the Children's Garden and contributing to the Rucker future Scholars programs these roles have allowed me to impact positively on our communities educational and social landscape okay awesome okay um what areas would you like um to strengthen in the district I aim to enhance the district's accountability and transparency particularly in compiling and submitting required reports to the New Jersey Commissioner of Education additionally I plan to improve communication between the district and the community ensuring that constituents voices are heard and addressed efficiently taking back control of our district will require patience and time however if we don't do the bare minimum all the time and patience in the world won't matter thank you good evening Mr baroa thank you for taking the time uh with us this evening just have the last two questions uh are you aware of the time commitments for serving on the board that's the first question thank you Mr Hudson I appreciate it and I have nothing better to do this is the most important thing all month for me absolutely and yes I am fully prepared and committed to dedicating the necessary time to serve efficiently on the board understanding the importance of this role and shaping the future of Camden's education and are you aware of the training commitments ethics law disclosures and criminal history background check required for Schoolboard membership yes I am aware of and ready to fulfill all requirements including training commitments ethics law disclosures and criminal history background checks to serve on the school board and in closing my promise to you our children and to every resident of Camden is to be a board member who listens more than speaks who acts with purpose and who never forgets that at the heart of our efforts are the hopes and dreams of our community together we can forge a path towards an educational system that stands as a beacon of what's possible when a community unites for its children I must Express with all humility that I would be profoundly surprised if I were be if I were to be selected as one of the two candidates to fill one of the two vacant seats my vision deeply rooted in transparency accountability and active Community engagement might not align with the current trajectory favored by the powers of that be however it is precisely because of this potential misalignment that I feel compelled to step forward our city our schools and most importantly our children deserve an approach that challenges the status quo and seeks to Bridge divid and prioritize the well-being and future of every student over the interest of any prevailing structure should I not be chosen it will not de my commitment nor diminish my involvement I stand ready to support our schools our board and our community in whatever capacity I can thank you thank you Mr Barella thank you for our next candidate is Shan Brown good evening Sean one two and if I can you hear me okay if I talk like this use it okay good evening Sean Brown so we have nine questions I'll start off by asking the first please state your name and AD address and how long you have been a resident of the city of Camden my name is Shan Matthew Brown 412 North 40th Street Camden New Jersey 08110 and I've lived in Camden since I was well I lived in cam from 20 till now I'm 41 and from 0 to 8 good evening Mr Brown I'm going to ask the following two questions why do you want to be a board member so as everyone knows I was served on this board from 2010 to 2013 um and I served at a time that there was a lot of transition where we went from a board of education to Advisory Board uh we went from into State operation uh my term ended right before uh paymon started and right now I also think they we're over at a critical time in the district and since there is an opportunity to interview um I think I have something to contribute and I would love to work with the group of people on the issues that we're about to discuss thank you what specific skills would you bring to the board so um I think everyone all of us have a lot of skills that we bring collectively what I specialize in I would say though is understanding public policy which I have my master's degree in and specifically bureaucracy so as an Advisory Board you're kind of sandwiched between the internal layers and external layers the internal layers are um the super the superintendent the assistant superintendent the business administrator uh the central office the principles obviously the students and the support staff and the in the external you have the Department of Education you have Federal layers political layers the mayor uh renissance schools and understanding how do we solve the issues that we have and strategically place our as advisory members to work within those layers and figure out how we position ourselves collectively to be able to have the biggest impact that we can despite our advisory status so my specialty is understanding public policy and being able to work with groups and partners to figure out how we solve these issues thank you good evening Mr Brown um could you please give specific examples of your ability in inter personal relationships and teamwork sure so um I'm a I'm trained in leadership and one of the things that we learned through training and through just through life experience is that we have to have difficult conversations with people we have to have sometimes there has to be discomfort in order for there to be changed for every organization where I've been on staff and every group I've been a board I've been able to work with the people that I work with whether they're on staff on board in order to get things done that includes having difficult conversations but it also includes us figuring out what are our shared values what do we agree on um what do we all support and then how do we work within that to get whatever camaraderie needs to be built in order for it to happen so if I get to be on this board you'll get used to me calling you or texting you emailing you and sharing information having very quick strategy sessions to make sure we're on the same page if there's disagreement to see if there's a way can talker through and figure it out um I want to support what you're doing so if there's something I can support you doing in your life I'll let you know what's going on in my life so that we can have a built Mutual trust now I have and this is known I'll say it anyway I'm not shy to say when I disagree with some somebody on something I think is important but often that's in order to get to a point of where there can be mutual understanding in order to solve the problem also though in this environment it's really important that we have have um private conversations about these disagreements and then we are able to publicly share how we move forward as a group in order to get things done and getting buyin from the community the public and from the internal education system thank you and this is my final question what do you see um as the role of a school board member so it's a challenging question because you have the technical answer for what a school board member does in New Jersey but of course this his Advisory board so um and a type two at that so the the the technical answer is our job is to make sure that we support the superintendent and making sure the schools are run well there's a constitutional Duty that all of us have of doing that but the reality is in this environment where The Advisory Board we have to be a little bit more creative in how we get that done that means we have to work real well together as a group that means we have to understand what the law says that means we have to know what qac requires of us to get the highest score in government where we're aiming for a score of 100 in the governance section that means we understand the roles and responsibilities of superintendent momes and her staff versus us as board members um make sure that we um even though we're advisory that we are open and talking directly to the public and to hear from us our concerns our issues our priorities um it me it means we work together however we can on those priority areas which I think I'm about to talk about can I get a time check thank you oh okay nine minutes I'll stretch it out hello good evening Mr Brown welcome thank you okay I'd like to ask you um please describe your previous community and nonprofit experiences sure so I started actually as a as a youth minister designed Baptist Church on Broadway in Atlantic and from there when I was 18 years old I started at cam County College I still lived in pensan a lot of people don't know this but I'll tell the story right now so when I was 18 um I realized that I could just walk right down the street and go to a city council meeting and there I was um in the City Council meetings I went to at the time mil Milan's his federal trial which is down the street at the federal courthouse and when um in when I was 23 years old Stan white who worked for the district at time invited me to career day at wood Wilson when I worked at cam connect talking about data and maps and things and um when I was at wer Wilson that day I saw some things that really concerned me about the school I saw students that were listening that were engaged but I also saw some things that I found problematic I wrote a letter to the superintendent who was in that Knox at the time um she gave a a short response so I started going to Schoolboard meetings so now as a 23-year-old here I am at City Council meetings and school board meetings and volunteering or certain boards throughout the city and ever since then I've been completely committed to doing whatever I can to lift our people our community out of poverty um making sure they get the best education to access as they can and I've done that as a grant writer I've done that as a board member I've done that as serving on nonprofit boards as a consultant um and and as a as a mentor in every way possible of me trying to figure out what can we do to make this work what can we do to bring these together and that is really how I met many of you that are in this room um in that advocacy and that work that I've done in the past and that's something that will continue oh and and then I don't know I didn't mention this and then I'm a parent so I think I was able to really culminate those skills and Advocate even for my own children and I think that's a big part of it too okay awesome okay what areas would you like to strengthen in our district all right so um number one is uh before I can look at anything else in the district I need to make sure I'm a good board member and I understand what my role is and responsib ility is and I'm able to work with uh vice president Nelson and the rest of the board members in order to get things done second is uh the safety and wellness of our students and the safety and wellness comes in the form of protect making sure that I understand what the policies are and the actions of the board and the superintendent are taking to make protect our students students from bullying protecting them from sexual assault and protecting them from violence in our schools I want to understand what the policies and procedures are what we can do about it what's the data what are the Hib reports and then take it from there understanding what we learn from our trainings and the guidance that we get what you guys have already done to enhance those things after that the next priority is qack it's a boring Topic in many ways but as you all know it's crucial for us to get uh to get our control back but also qac is a great tool of self assessment right it gives us a platform to do self assessment to see what our strengths and what our weaknesses and then what can we do as a board in working with the superintendent the state and other partners to address those issues I think once we get a grip on that and once I'm up to date on that the work on the other issues like teacher Recruitment and and treny and other things will will uh come to a solution that we can Galvanize around thank you good good evening Mr Brown thank you uh thank you for your time tonight and also to your uh prior service on the board to the district I think it's important to acknowledge that uh the last two questions are you aware of the time commitments for serving on the board yes so I'll so you know you have a work session and you have a regular meeting there's also training commitments we're required to get a certain amount of training uh some of the work you do is virtual some is in person um I don't know if she can hear me but I'm sure Tanya Bean will be more than happy to bring me up to speed on the schedule uh because of the type of work I do I have a somewhat flexible schedule so you really when I was on the board you know if I do the math it's uh 72 but special meeetings there was probably 80 meetings in total in my three years I didn't miss one and are you aware of the training commitments ethics law disclosures and criminal history background check required for school board membership yes and I've gone through all that before with finger printing I know I'm I'm an eligible member and I have no problem committing to that all right back to you acting Vice uh president thank you Mr Brown for your [Applause] time our next candidate will be Maria Perez welcome our first question please state your name and address and how long you have been a resident of the city of Camden can you just make sure it's on it should be pushed up I got it I'm sorry my name is Maria Perez and I live at 700 New Street in Camden New Jersey and I actually came to school in Camden I went to Landing Square Davis and Wilson I left in 1976 and I went to newk and was part of the revitalization of nork and then returned home in 1991 and I've been here ever since good evening Miss perz why do you want to be a board member I'm going to make this short because I can think of a million reasons but the real reason is I want to be part of education is the foundation of our children we already have that we have a great board I don't want to make the board better than what it already is I want to be part part of it I want to be part in making and and empowering our children to continue having a great education um but not only that I also want to be part of making sure that that that our educators are provided with the tools they need so they can do that for our children provide the education that they that they need not just focus on the children but also focus on the Educators as well thank you what specific skills would you bring to the board I've been in customer service my entire life I worked at Cooper for 28 years as the supervisor for patient relations I am very much aware of the disparities and the needs um that face our city here in Camden um I also worked at the Ronald McDonald House and saw how children who um are label handicap or whatever other um illnesses they might have the difficulties they have and having programs that are available to them I also taught relig religion for over 10 years um I see and now that I work at the Croc center didn't have time to go change I'm sorry I get to see how we need programs for our children how no matter what we have right now it's just not enough and I want to be part of that change I want to be there with you helping make those changes thank you good evening Miss Perez um could you please give specific examples of your abilities in interpersonal relationships and teamwork absolutely the majority of my my work life well and even as a child I I grew up with my parents having their own store here on Weston Becket and then the majority of my life I've worked um in managerial positions but coming here and living in Camden and when I came back home and when I say home I mean to the Berkeley um Cooper area I wanted to be part of that change so I immediately joined Ventures with the um Cooper Landing Square Association so that I know I was part of getting Landing Square back um and I'm also part of the IRB board um I'm on the Corel IRB board um wish um does a lot of um studies I have to be careful for what I say um that I don't get out of context um with them but they do a lot of studies with um with especially the problems that we're facing with our children right now with drugs and alcohol and things like that and I'm part of that board where they're actually doing human studies on their brains and things like that so it's really interesting I'm very much aware of what's going on and um and again just working at the Ro and just living where I live near all the schools I I I'm near the medical school I'm near all the school so I get to see I I get to see what the children's need especially after school okay and what do you see as a role of a board member well I'm hoping that the one thing that I can bring or or or make better is that we live in a in in a community where over 50% of our population doesn't speak English so I'm hoping that my lingual my bilingual skills can help all of us communicate with the students and the parents a little better good evening Miss Perez I would like to ask you um please describe your previous um community or nonprofit experiences oh I love to talk about that I'm make it short and sweet so after I left my home here in Camden in 1976 at the rip age of 18 I joined Ventures with um nor um District leader um became a a a a North District War leader with Louis canana um shortly thereafter I was part of it's it was called St Cola neighborhood club that found homes for jobs um uh found jobs and homes for people and clothing um uh we had shelters we had all kinds of of any anything that people needed we found a solution for them it was also part I don't know if some people know the Rosevelt Coalition that was started in north New Jersey a long long long time ago and then I also worked for Focus which was field orientation center for the under privileg Spanish speaking which again was was based on helping people whatever they needed and then I came back home in 1991 and um I was part of St Joseph Carpenter society and the Hispanic Family Center I was president of their board for a little while and then I was lend to the Ronald McDonald House by Cooper because they couldn't find a bilingual house manager so I served there as a year and I learned quite quite the things we take for granted that how much I learned there and then of course I'm very very much involved with the Cooper Landing Square Association very much involved with them okay what areas would you like um to strengthen in our district I've seen as I said earlier I was part of the revitalization of Nork and then I came here and I've seen our ENT our school system grow right before my eyes I think that something that I would like to focus on is again and I think I said this before is ensure that our educators are getting the training and supplies they need to properly properly and effectively teach our children I it's it's it's a must it's a must hi Miss perz thank you so much for being with us tonight are the last two questions nervous last two questions are you aware of the time commitments for serving on the board I believe that the time commitment is on one time a month meeting but I know for meeting from being in previous sports that the time you spend here does not mean that that's the only time you commit there's a lot going on outside um I can tell you that um I'm willing to do whatever it takes I'm um I'm a quick learner and I ask a lot of questions and you need me I'll be there okay thank you and are you aware the training commitments ethics law disclosures and criminal history background check required for Schoolboard membership absolutely they're the same for the hospital they're the same for the Croc center anywhere that there's children this is a must and and I support that 101% thank you thank [Applause] you thank you Miss perz I at this time we'll take a a quick two-minute break uh [Applause] for thank you Mr Cooper if you give us two minutes we'll get started okay thank you for for for e next Cat hello hello thank you our next candidate is Aaron Cooper welcome our first question is please state your name and address and how long you have been a resident of the city of Camden my name is Aaron Cooper my address is 1160 Mechanic Street I've been a resident of the city of cada for 46 years good evening Mr Cooper okay there you go my apologies good evening Mr Cooper I'll be asking the two next questions um why do you want to be a board member uh as a parent a Community member a stakeholder within our community I feel as though it's my job and my duty to be actively involved in our community and being part of the school board will give me a opportunity to help set the pace for what goes on within our community for our young people I worked in foster care I work with adjudicated young people I'm a 19-year member of the Kanas City Fire Department and also a college professor at KY County College so I definitely see the need for me to be actively involved in what goes on within our community thank you what skills what specific skills would you bring to the board um I have experien working again I have experien working with adjudicated youth through uh juvenile detention centers I worked in foster care I worked as a volunteer Youth Development coordinator um my experience working within the fire department allows me the opportunity to work in stressful situations and then with the community actively on a social level not just fighting fires but meeting the needs of our people directly where they're at and I believe that my skills and experience as an educator as a parent most certainly of a young person that's growing up in today's system give me a idea of what our young people need and allows me the opportunity to actively see what goes on with the young people today thank you good evening Mr Cooper could you please give specific examples of your ability in interpersonal relationships and teamwork um first again as a member of the Canada City Fire Department we have to work together as a team whereas what one person does affects how somebody else does their job and that definitely goes hand in hand with what goes on here teamwork is definitely a big part of what our school district needs and definitely a big part of what I understand individuals to do also working in the Cy County College as a social studies and science teacher um our curriculum is set through the department and I have to do my best to make sure that I meet the needs of the students as well as the needs of our directors thank you and what do you see as the role of a school board member in a Traditional School System the role of a school board would be to oversee the budget and oversee the guidance and the direction of pretty much the curriculum and to vote in and out the superintendent with our current school system the direction is more of a advocacy rule to where as the individuals represent the community and are supposed to submit reports to the state about the conditions of our school system and what observed needs exist thank you good evening Mr Cooper um I'd like to ask you please describe your previous community and nonprofit experiences um a 19-year service within the cada City Fire Department um currently a teacher of social studies and so in science within the cace uh cada County College I worked as a Youth Development coordinator I worked in foster care I work with adjudicated young people I worked in juvenile detention center um I also served as the secretary and State Delegate for the Kanas City Fire Department local 788 firefighters Union um born and raised in the city and I'm an active parent every time anybody in the community sees me they sees me with my son yes okay um what areas would you like to strengthen in our district within our district I would definitely say we need to strengthen our community engagement where I say community engagement I'm not knocking nothing nobody does but Subaru for example I'm going use D for example they have a Apprentice program that not too many young people from the city of camada are actively involved in there has been individuals that talked about um creating some type of agreement with the organizations or companies within the city as Subaru already has a program in place there should be ways to connect our young people to those programs as well as strengthening the after school activities like Camden is a big sports city but at the same time not every young person plays Sports me as a parent I should had to take my child outside the district to go do activities and programs where we got plenty of talent Within YK City that can do programs and activities but those programs and activities are offered outside of schools within our district thank you thank you for being here with us tonight Mr Cooper uh the last two questions um are are you aware of the time commitments for serving on the board yes I'm very aware at the time commitment um outside of the regular monthly meetings there will be also meetings within the school system like going to different programs the different activities as well as different trainers that school school board members are required to attend all right and the last question is are you aware of the training commitments ethics law disclosures and criminal history background check required for school board membership yes I'm well aware of it um I myself have active actually filed a ethics complaint dealing with the campas city school district so know the process of reaching out to those individuals as well as the trainings that individuals on the Schoolboard are supposed to attend and part of the training is because the city of Camp is still under State control the state does mandate a certain amount of hours for individuals on the Schoolboard to attend so yes thank you thank you Mr Cooper you're welcome [Applause] at this time I'd like to call Miss Joanna Tavarez huh tarez if I pronounced it wrong [Music] apologize [Music] [Music] yeah [Music] we're ahe of the [Music] game for welcome Miss [Music] tarez so I will start with the first question please state your name and address and how long you've been a resident of the city of Camden [Music] hello hello good night hanana Tavarez and 1048 Princess Avenue in cand New Jersey Park Boulevard the park site can I can I grab the questions on my phone she did and I've been a resident of gandon for the last five years good evening Miss tarez hi I'm GNA ask you the next two questions I'm sorry can you just repeat the address please we missed that part 1048 princess Avenue thank you why do you want to be a board member I am a parent and I do have two kids and one of them um has disability and finding the right place for him in the school district is is been a ride and it's we've been jumping from one school to another cuz finding the right fit for him is is not easy [Music] um so I I join many groups in the city and it's not just me we are a very big Community with different um challenges and I want to help the parents to have their voice heard and I want to help the kids to have a place or places that they can meet and they can feel that they belong and that they can they can learn on their pace and their terms cuz not every kid learns the same way so that's why thank you what specific skills would you bring to the board um I'm Hispanic I speak Spanish and I do believe that the the Spanish Community doesn't have doesn't feel that support and I want them to feel identified that they have somebody that can listen and that can translate for them their needs and also I I love the city and I want to be part of the change so I want to put my little Stone my little piece of whatever I can come up with in the process thank you good evening hi could you please give specific examples of your ability in interpersonal relationships and teamwork um I do work for count County Police Department and I do work on a very challenging uh Department within the department [Music] um I'm very self oriented and very organized and they tend to use me a lot when when they need to organize things um and on group work um very good uh giving that hand um I can be useful for anything I don't say no I'm always willing to learn and willing to cooperate and I think that that's one of my biggest um my strongest thank yep please describe your previous community and nonprofit experiences [Music] um I'm sorry I only asked one we skipped a question oh sorry my apologies I'm back it's okay I am pretty nervous just that you know so um my last question for you where uh what do you see as the role of a board member I do see hope um I believe that being a member gives hope to whoever feel identified with the person thank you okay and my previous question was please describe your previous Community or nonprofit experiences um I used to work for puer Puerto Rican Unity for Progress um and over there I was a youth coach and we used to do a lot of food uh drive we used to do um a lot of work with the kids since z uh zero age to 17 and we used to do donations like diapers clothes first Necessities um for the kids we used to run a program uh during the pandemic um with the you okay and what areas would you like to strengthen in our district arts and disability I do believe that the kids that feel that they are more artistic doesn't have that that much opportunities everywhere they go it's not just about one school or the other it's just that this it's not being taken in consideration as much as the kids needs to and also for the disabilities part the disabilities are so many and it is so wide um that I think that we need more more help into that we need more more people willing to work with kids with disability thank you good evening Mr tarez I'll be asking the thank you for your time tonight I'll be asking a final two questions the first one is are you aware of the time commitments for serving on the board I do believe that for this period will be until January if I'm not mistaken if whoever gets considered will be until January and after that it has to be elected and it will serve for well it's more so the could I clarify or no I think she was asking um so it's more so uh the meetings the amount of meetings that you know we have a month and the amount of time you'll be spending if you were uh selected to be on the board um for that I do believe we had two meetings out of the month I do believe it'll be well yes I'm I know about the commitment okay so okay uh and the last question is are you aware of the training commitments ethics law disclosures and criminal history background check required for Schoolboard membership yes all right thank you so much be it that concludes it thank you thank you you're welcome thank you for giving me the [Applause] opportunity for next candidate is Miss Wanda Garcia e for e e for e put welcome Miss Garcia how are you sorry I'm all right we will start with our first question please state your name and address and how long you have been resident of the city of Camden first of all to push the button just push the button up okay we first of all good evening everyone thank you for giving me the opportunity to be here tonight hope everyone's doing well tonight thank you my name is Wanda Garcia I live at 48 hry Street came to New Jersey I've been a resident of city of camon all my [Music] life good evening Miss Garcia good evening I'm going to ask you the next two questions why do you want to be a board member my skills as president of parasan Bautista in which I'm also a board member of El Central daycare which is a childhood development center with early childhood development and as president of the par Bautista we also do scholarships for our children of the city of Camden every year the parasa Bautista has been existed in the city of Camden since 1957 and as of today I'm the president of the parasan Bautista and my parents were Trail beers of the organization known as the par sa Bautista and we I followed in their footsteps as of today it's been a successful or nonprofit organization I also sit on the parish council at my church I Mentor Our Youth of the importance of Education it's very important to follow education and as well I also am a bilingual ambassador of I work at a funeral home been there for 15 years as well thank you what specific skills would you bring to the board the skills that I will bring is to importance because our youth our children are future and I feel that it's important for our children to further in their education to um assist the children parents as a bilingual which I am a bilingual it's very important communication to have the skills to be able to communicate with the parents and the students so that you can advise them as how the importance of Education it is today thank you thank you good evening could you please give specific examples of your abilities in interpersonal relationships and teamwork I'm sorry can I hear that specific examples of your abilities in interpersonal relationships and teamwork working with the government for many years I have the um experience constituents work well with the unions as well as president of St John the Baptist and a lot of board members throughout the city I mean I'm very activist in the community as City committee woman at large for the city for numerous years I've worked through all administrations and that feels like a bring very important skills to the parents and the teachers and the students as well in the city of Camden thank you and what do you see as the role of a school board member what was that again what do I see what do you see as a role of a school board member could here I'm sorry what's the role of a Schoolboard member the role of school member is to make sure the importance that the students are feeling their academic skills so that you know the students in the city of Camden so that they can progress in their academic skills like I am alumni of camman high school and a graduate of camman high school I would like for them to follow in the same footsteps as I am as the woman that I have become and a successful person thank you thank you good evening Miss Garcia good evening how are you okay so my question is please describe your previous community and nonprofit experiences as president again as I've been in existing as a nonprofit organization we we give out the scholarships and the youth pursuing further in their education with the Camas City students and we give out scholarships every year our nonprofit organization to make sure that the students want to follow their dreams and be successful as I was okay um what areas would you like to strengthen in our district improve better communication as being as a bilingual person for parents and teachers enhance social skills academically so our children have choices for the future thank you thank you good evening Miss Garcia than good evening thank you for your time tonight uh I'll be asking the last two questions the first one is are you aware of the time commitments for serving on the board yes I am aware of the time due to that I am involved very in the city of Camden with the youth as I also sit on the board of El Central childhood development center I know the importance and I am aware of the time constraint as president of my Organization for the nonprofit thank you and are you aware of the training commitments ethics law disclosures and criminal history background check required for school board membership yes working with local government I took ethics training and more happy to also get more training as well like I said education is important and you never never you could always pursue education until the end it's always never ending all right thank you so much thank you thank you Miss Garcia that concludes the questions thank you thankk you thank you thank you board for your opportunity so thank you everybody for your patience we we actually have one more candidate we are ahead of schedule at this time um so the candidate is not scheduled to go um for another 10 to 15 minutes um so we'll take a break until he return till he arrives and we'll conclude our uh candidate interviews so thank you for your [Music] patience sorry no one got up so he actually was able to arrive a little earlier so we will will at this time bring out guy [Music] still hello everyone welcome Mr stale thank you nice to see everybody I will start off with the first question please state your name and address and how long you have been a resident of the city of Camden uh guy Michael still um I've live on 5:30 Fifer Street parman I've lived there in East Camden for couple years now but I've been resident in Camden ever since probably for the last 17 years since I came back to town from college good evening Mr steel still good evening why do you want to be a board member uh two reasons uh to pass on a on a uh just a legacy of of servant leadership right my father was a law enforcement officer in the city of Camden for 42 years 38 at Ruckers 20 as the chief um I carry that Spirit on and not only do I carry his Spirit on but all the spirit of all those that have come before me in the city my aunt great aunt and godmother was a school teacher for I want to say 25 30 years um I just come from a lineage of just serving and I've seen all the work that you know the people have done throughout my life here in the city and I just want to like pass that on and then um I think the second just to be a voice um I want to be able to bridge the gap I'm a I'm a Black and Hispanic male that uh has been in education and Youth Development for some time now I would say 18 years um I I represent the few males that are currently kind of in the classroom but just um just that that that Minority male that um is able to be a voice on both sides um you'll hear more as we go along I'm sure thank you yep what specific skills would you bring to the board um I think for me um there's a patience right there's a patience in in um and a humility in the way that I handle myself I think the skill of I mean that's a skill in itself but I think that so many things have come um I'll say quickly but um have come when I've wanted them too and I think at this time um just at this age in this stage of my life just bringing a patience allows the um it to be more about relationship and more about community and more more about getting to know versus the the rule you know the book I won't say the rule book but the book and the rules and things like that I think those things are important but I think I'm a relationship type of guy and those things come first to me thank you you're welcome good evening Mr still good evening could you please give some specific examples of your ability in interpersonal relationships and teamwork yes absolutely uh so I the Boys and Girls Club of Camden County for 6 years in East Camden um working with people working with adults working with kids I served at over a um a nonprofit organization that uh I believe I want to say about 25 people worked for me right and uh I want say 15 adults 10 youth because we had a youth development program you hire them right out of high school and what I did is I organized a uh like a mirroring like a mentorship uh atmosphere at the job so the adults would run the educational physical and academic physical and Social Development programming and then there was a youth that was underneath of them right um I think I'm into structure um I I come with when it comes to you know to teamwork I'm very structured but I am um I had an open door policy so I'm not just about speaking giving orders but I'm also about listening there you know everybody's different you know I deal with youth all the time I deal with adults all the time every personality is different every youth is different every adult is different and I'm different in every way so you know just Comm open Communication open door policy those types of things when it comes down to to teamwork and interpersonal skills thank you and what do you see as the role of a board member just being a a representative of the the paradigm shift that's going on in the city I can't I can't even explain for the last 20 years what I've seen and the the Leaps and Bounds that we've made right I can speak for now in saying that over the years there's been a shift in the Paradigm not only do people believe in us but we believe in ourselves and the change and the things that we can do here in the city it's not just about youth it's about uh uh language barriers it's about diversity equity and inclusion it's about those things are so much uh a a spotlight on them and so much more important to to um the board now and the things that they you know things that you guys have done um like I said just I think the role is to be a representative of that right I only win if we win together right and so that representing representing one is like really representing all I'm not representing myself I'm just representing um um whole bunch of different ideals that come together to you know make a better City not just better school system but better city thank you yep good evening Mr Hill good evening my question to you is please describe your previous community and nonprofit experiences okay so um current so I already uh describ boys and girls club Camy County uh I was over a million dollar budget uh uh we ran academic social and and um academic social and physical development programs for ages 2 to 18 but honestly we listen I was in the gym the other day and I had a 29 year old kid come up to me and go hey Mr still I was like hey how you doing how old are you now he said 29 so you you know you kind of like when you're talking youth development nonprofit and the experiences that I've had I've raised raised kids I've raised people from the city and I've had relationships with adults throughout um not only overseeing development and and uh funding but also building relationship right and networking networking is for me communic uh uh relationships has it's like a three-prong type of thing right there's initiation cultivation and there's maintenance right and it happens that's life that's not just nonprofit but I I I take life into into those types of atmosphere is with me right so you can shake somebody's hand one time and meet them and get to know one time or you can then cultivate that with more than one meeting hey how you doing H phone call hey how's everything going or we can even move on to the to the uh maintenance of it right and so I've had relationships over years over years and still am close with people from the nonprofit sector um you know businesses and different things like that that have kind of help in my relationship building and networking skills so I think that that's a big deal in addition to uh n my nonprofit experience right I have dealt with youth and families in the um the volunteering and the the coaching that I've done here in the city I've been a uh assistant football coach for three years I am a head baseball coach for one year this year will be my second year of course if um if I'm granted the opportunity or the you know the blessing to be a school board member that'll you know come to you know I'll put push that aside but it won't stop my volunteering to raise the kids right um like I said the relationships that I've built over the years in coaching in and loving on the kids and and just being there for him I think my volunteerism I mean leaps and bounce I've I've done coat drives I've done food drives I didn't just want to give you those basic things that everybody does but specific to me uh worked in the city in urban Rev ization projects for the again last 17 years so all right um what areas would you like to strengthen in our district um I would personally say the um Bridging the Gap between um more Bridging the Gap more between um those youth and families that um that come from from the island of Dominican Republic in Puerto Rico and come here and don't speak any English right and the reason I say that is this right so I am working on two initiatives myself one of them more importantly being uh it's called Bridging the Gap right and I experienced this in in coaching football uh I had I had the the great pleasure of coaching more Black and Hispanic players and the Hispanic players more assimilated to the culture already here to then coaching in baseball right and while coaching baseball now I am coaching youth I would say 99% of them don't speak any English we were working out together and as we as we ran past the track team which was comprised of football players they were kind yelling out some things trying to push trying to encourage but they weren't too um un they didn't really understand cultural sensitivity right and it was important for me to stand in the Gap and say hey we're a Brotherhood we're a program and we're trying to move together right so what I did was um I tried to bring all the teams together and try to help them understand how important each of us are despite you know not being able to speak English yes translating for the baseball team but then we go to an awards banquet and there were two buses right and I'm standing there and I'm trying to push the baseball team on with the football team always trying to bring everybody together that's how I've always been um and it's crazy because the baseball team stood to the side and said no coach in Spanish they said no coach they're going to get on their bus we going to get on ours and it's like instead of what we used to go through back in the day where we were told hey you can't go there you can't go there you have to go here you have to go there now we were kind of we're kind of doing it to ourselves from the foundation of it all right not us as adults but the kids not really understanding and so me again standing in the Gap trying to bridge that Gap and say no we are it's been you know it's been difficult but that's something I put my my my work and time into not only with them but with their with their parents and with their families as well so I think just trying to bring that to the board again a little more because I'm sure that's something that you guys have done but um just bring that you know that voice that that additional voice and that person that they they see on a regular basis you know somebody they're comfortable with thank you so much yes ma'am good evening Mr still good evening uh thank you for your time tonight I'll be asking the final two questions the first one is are you aware of the time commitments for serving on the board yes sir I think that um you know making this a priority like something that is bigger than yourself making that a priority is something that's real important to me so yes all right and the final question is are you aware of the training commitments ethics law disclosures and criminal history background check required for Schoolboard membership yeah so um after doing my own research I've applied for the position so after doing my research I um found the the the trainings and the different things that I had to do I may not be perfect on everything but there I know there's some things that I still might need to learn so I'm sure that that's something that I'll be doing all right thank you so much for your time appreciate you thank you Mr still that concludes the questions for this interview okay thank you yes thank you very much appreciate [Music] it that concludes our interviews for this evening um at this time I will turn it over to our [Music] superintendent thank you so much um at this time I'll turn it right over to our general counsel to guide us through the public comment [Music] portion thank you superintendent the Camden City School District welcomes the attendance and comments from all members of the public at its meetings this public comment period is your time to present your comments to the board and the superintendent each person who signed up to comment will have five minutes excuse me three minutes um going back to our normal time as this has been uh you will be notified when your 3 minutes are up and you cannot yield your time to another person when it is your turn to speak please come to the podium and address all of your comments to the superintendent or general counsel please be courteous to your fellow community members and keep your kind keep your comments within the time frame allotted so that everyone has the opportunity to speak at the end of the 3 minutes the microphone will be cut off and we will end your comment time we also request that you please conduct yourself in a respectful manner the first amendment is not absolute and the board can prohibit language that is inappropriate or vulcar for anyone whose comments or actions harass intimidate or threaten the safety of any person we will provide you with a warning or immediately end your comment time we will not interrupt you during your 3 minutes of comment unless we deem it necessary if a member of the public speaks negatively about a staff member Interruption may be necessary to caution the speakers of the dangers of slander after the public comment period is closed the superintendent or her design will address your questions to the extent provided by law I will Begin by calling the names of individuals wishing to provide in-person comments before reading written comments um as a quick reminder all written public comments had allowed during the board meeting are the views of the person submitting public comment and are not the views of the superintendent The Advisory board or the Camden City school district thank [Music] you uh the first person signed up for comment is mongala Davis Tes I don't believe we have a three minute timer clock so oh miss Perry is going to help us out with that thank you Miss Perry I think the U have some good candidates uh to consider but as I sat here and looked at the board I've come here a long time I remember when when it was uh a time when board members wore suits and ties not sneaks and slippers you know we're getting away from the decor of professionalism so I like those ones that wore suits you know to represent you know some sort of uh intelligent um I wasn't going to say I was going to leave but it was one more question that was on my mind um H I guess it's not important at this point but uh I had a question about what I raised last time I was here regarding the building falling down did uh anybody follow up on that to get some kind of answer how that's going to be handled the school on Wildwood Avenue that's falling down on the sidewalks in the neighborhood where kids and people walk through that's a health and safety issue and somebody should be on that real quick oh the other thing that I remember directors came to the school board meetings so what done happen and and will that change when you take it over back to Le uh local control to make a requirement of the directors be at the school board meeting so there can be answers to the questions that people may have and you are still working on the TV station right so we can get more parents to find out what's going on and somebody up there should take the initiative to push that question before I go over to Comcast and try to find out who took the money why we don't have that that's a good assment for yall right you don't think so huh okay I you find laders right I won't be around for that but you can tell me next year next [Music] one thank you Mr Davis we have 16 more seconds good job okay the next individual signed up uh for comment is Damien [Music] [Music] izari hello my name is Damian arari I'm a junior at BM Medical Arts High School and I just want to come and speak on Kevin Ruiz and why he is a good candidate to be on the Camden City school district Advisory board he is for the children and for the people not just in cam Camden but for everywhere my personal experience with Karen Ruiz was when I was choosing my high school um career and he was one of the people that convinced me to stay in the Camas City school district for my high school years and if it wasn't truly for him I will be down the highway attending another High School in another district and I will continuously thank him and be appreciative because I have gained amazing experiences and numerous titles and Leadership Roose while being here at Camden City school district and he still continues to this day to be my mentor and guides me on my journey throughout high school and will continue to Mentor me during my journey for the rest of my life him being on the board will allow him to be a great resource for the children here in Camden City school district thank you thank you Mr arari the next person sign up to comment is Kiara baroa hi good evening my name is Kier Maroa um I'm a alumni uh this would be Kevin's second time running for the uh Board of Education um so this is my speech on Kevin's behalf so as you embark on this journey to serve our community I want to take the moment to express my unaringa you have demonstrated a remarkable commitment to our shared values and a deep understanding to challenges of the challenges we face I'm sorry Kevin you possess the qualities of the true leader Integrity empathy and tireless dedication to making a difference your vision for our community is both inspiring and inclusive offering hope for a better future for all I have firstand your passion for the addressing and pursuing issues that affect all of us from economic inequalities and environmental sustainability your willingness to listen to learn and to take action sets you apart as a candidate who truly cares about the well-being of every member of our community thank you thank you thank you Miss Pera the next person signed up to comment is Miss by a nail good evening superintendent board members um what I see today is candidate number one on his heart is in the right place a former student um Sean Brown he's been on the board before but uh when I first met Shan Brown it was he was uh in a camp a educational camp out to Whitman Park and I was the park attendant and I had never met him before boy was he a piece of work I have seen Sean grow in this educational system and he has matured so much and I would like to see him get on um everybody I like so far is a man unfortunately tonight and coming from me that's a hard pill to swallow um Aaron Cooper He's a single father and he's you know dedicated to the community he's ran a couple times now why the Garcia me and Wanda used to work together in City Hall um my concern with Miss Garcia is that she has too many jobs in in too many organizations this is a time consum consuming position that you have to dedicate that's why at last board meeting I talked in reference to uh retirees used to be on the school board and what said about the core and how you present yourself that is important that's why I refer to this board is the Ling hip hop boy because you wear sneakers you wear t-shirts you wear jeans have more respect for the people and get us pull a suit out your closet put a dress on put a skirt on you don't see the superintendent look like that you know it it goes to say to who you are a level of maturity you know and um who else did I want to speak on over here you know it's important to me another thing I I didn't like when I heard tonight was diversity you know everybody is saying what they want to do for the Latino Community but Camden is a Melting Pot I don't know whether you guys knew this but Camden was a portal for immigration when you came into South Jersey you came into Camden school district and as far as people who could not read or speak English we had classes for that and we have to get back to that if we have a lot of people here that are not American uh English speaking then we have to offer uh adult classes at night to educate them cuz English first and my thing is when you start advocating for one racial group uh will that be the only child that you help my thing is I have children call me late night and say Miss V I'm hungry I don't say what color you are it's important that me to have inclusion and diversity thank you Miss deal thank you next person signed up for comment is Theo [Music] Spencer thank hey uh afternoon evening um when I saw this on the counter I thought that um the the public will get the opportunity to ask some questions of the uh candidates uh that doesn't seem to be the case so uh with that being said and I I've seen a lot of folks get up here and say who they would like to see on the board I would like to say my man Aaron Cooper uh I think it'd be a great addition to the school board I've known Aaron 30 plus years now uh we ran track at cam the high together we went here together uh he's definitely somebody that I've seen uh work in the community and he's tried a few times to get on the board I think this was definitely um opportunity that shouldn't pass him by uh and I've also uh worked and talked with Kevin a few times as well so if I had to uh make endorsements I so to speak it'd be those two uh gentlemen uh because I know um I've talked to them you know quite a bit over the years and I I know where they're committ commitment lies um and and so that's that's that's who I would support thank you thank you Mr Spencer we had one more person signed up for public comment I don't believe she is back Miss Dickerson okay I have uh one written comment so I will read that and then perhaps if Miss Dickerson arrives we can uh go back [Music] we have one written submission from Jose Delgado um this was in the form of an email to myself so I'm going to read it as submitted good morning Miss price thank you for your prompt reply to my concerns your response to my letter February 10th 2024 Begins by asserting that you are expressing the district's position the ccs s d operates under full State intervention so I am assuming that you are articulating the NJ Doe's position please send me any D NJ doe documentation that you use to formulate your response you begin by asserting that the ccab is responsible for appointing board vacancy positions because the board is an elected body there is no statutory or Administrative Code language nor judicial decision which supports this opinion the ccab is defined as an advisory Body by 18 a 7 a47 the Board of Education shall have only those rights powers and privileges of an Advisory Board you then suggest without any evidence that the ccab retains some functions of a public body you ignore the legal definition of what constitutes a public body njsa 10 col 48 the ccab does not meet any of the elements of this definition it is like proposing that one can be a little bit pregnant failing to site any statutory or Administrative Code support for your opinions you refer to one the school ethics act two the open public meetings act three a reference to self-governance and for the famous they did at first defense the requirement that Advisory board members adhere to a set of ethical standards does not modify in any way the rights powers and privileges conferred to an Advisory board by the enabling legislation the opma explains how public bodies are to conduct their meetings it does not alter The Advisory nature of the CCA as defined by 18a 7847 in our case the opma is triggered when the superintendent not the ccab calls a meeting with the ccab the state appointed superintendent not the ccab sets the date time location and agenda so your incorrect assertion only serves to underscore the ccb's purely advisory role then you assert that because the ccab has governance over itself it acquires some functions of a public body again you cannot point to any Source legal or otherwise that supports this statement all national state and local Advisory Board committees employ rules and procedures to conduct their deliberations to my knowledge this customary practice does not alter the rights powers and privileges of an advisory body in addition and more relevant to the issue at hand I have never heard that a legisl legislatively created advisory body can appoint its members an advisory body that does not have the initial authority to appoint members does not magically gain that Authority due to any reason finally you mentioned that almost four decades ago two school districts Jersey City and Patterson that were under full State intervention had elected boards use the process you are defending you provide no further evidence that shows how those events applied to 2024 the legislation 18a 12-15 that authorized the NJ Doe's takeover of the Camden City public school district was approved in 2014 you again fail to cite any evidence that shows how those 40-year-old events modify I believe I hear the 3 Minute Timer um I'm going to stop reading at that point Thank you thank you for your comment Mr dado and I don't see um the last person signed up for public comments so I will turn it back over to you superintendent for um any responses thank you Council price um before I respond to the comments I want to say again thank you for everyone who had the opportunity to attend um I there was there are several different um meetings going on in the city this evening so again everything that occurred at this special meeting will be uh is being recorded and will be posted on our website so that um anyone in the community can uh take a look at the process um and have an understanding of um what we did today this is the first time um that we have been charged with the task in this District of being State operated as well as um having an elected board where we have had to fill seats in this manner so again I am grateful to the collaboration that occurred between the District staff as well as the board um under the leadership of um acting president uh nandi Nelson and the rest of the board to make sure and and our district team to make sure that the process was complete and thorough we did so in collaboration with the State Department of Education um so all of uh our processes were vetted through and we're just grateful to you for being here I am truly grateful and proud as a superintendent to see our students um who came to the mic to share and they're here they don't have to be here um but they're here and they want to participate in this process so again I thank all of you for being here but I'm most proud and happy and grateful today for our young people our students let's give them a round of applause for participating in this process thank you you did an excellent job and your voices matter and and we appreciate you uh and so I will address the public comments now first uh Mr Davis Mr Davis still here oh I can't see you I'm sorry I couldn't see you over there um hi Mr Davis good to see you again today we spent some time um together earlier planning and I'm looking forward to the fruits of those discussions but I want to take this opportunity to um address your questions first Parkside we're very much aware of the condition in the state of Parkside School the building is crumbling and falling apart we do have plans in place to address that um and and we will provide more information on that at the upcoming board meeting um but please know that there's a plan in place and we do have funds available to make sure that we take care of the pro of Parkside um in a way that's going to be effective for the community um the second piece update on Channel 19 that's something that um board members have been asking about So You Are Not Alone um the question came up with regard to when Channel 19 will be up and running um we know how important Channel 19 has always been for the district um I remember even as a child growing up Channel 19 that was that was just something was the pride of the community and I know my own mother um misses the Channel 19 um so that she can tune in and so um what we're going to do I'll give you a quick update uh when the campus was built the new Camden high campus we did not know that the school's Development Authority did not install the services um in order to have our Channel 19 to be broadcast from the um New Camden high school Comcast had to run fiber wires throughout the building in order to give us access for the connection now that Comcast Comcast has run the wire successfully we now hired a contractor to install the equipment needed to control Channel 19 they were actually in the building uh yesterday when I was over um working with um under the direction of Miss on that project um the installation has started so we are at least moving in the right direction it's taking a while to get here um but it has started the next step after installment is to train our communications director on how to use the program um and then with regard to where the money is coming from please note we are not paying for services that were not used so we're not going we're not going to be charged for any services that were not used and the Communications Department has done a great job ensuring everything that would be on Channel 19 is available on our CCSD YouTube Channel website and social media Platforms in the meantime so I know you know while we haven't had Channel 19 we do have our YouTube we do you know try to make sure we're visible and uh sharing the information with the community but we know the importance and the value of Channel 19 and we're hoping that by the spring late spring early summer the project will be complete so thank you for your advocacy there along with our board members and finally directors you had a question about directors showing up at meetings so this was a special meeting tonight Mr Davis um so typically at our board meetings um if you take a look in the upper right hand section all of our directors all of our team members from various departments are present they just were not present tonight because it was um the focus of this special meeting was on the election but at every single board meeting you are right as directors they are required to be here and they have been here and they will continue to be in their places um the other uh I already um acknowledged our wonderful young people and I thank you again we heard your advocacy and um your endorsements and we'll definitely take those into consideration I'm sure the board will when they deliberate um Miss Neil I want to thank you also for sharing your endorsements and um providing some perspective on unique perspective on the candidates um that were before us today um thank you for your uh discussions around inclusion and diversity um and keeping that in the Forefront of our minds Mr Spencer also I'll thank you for your um input and your endorsement of the candidates that you provided again all of this will be taken into consideration when we deliberate that's why we wanted to make sure there was a public comment portion after the interviews so that you could have the opportunity to give input and um that is as everything um with regard to the written comment from Mr Delgado again everything that we've done um with setting up this process for uh selecting the replacement uh board members has been done in collaboration with the New Jersey Department of Education and we've received guidance and counsel um legally procedurally so so we are within uh we are doing what's necessary and the board does have um The Authority even an advisory role um to select and to to uh run this process so thank you very much at this time I will turn it over to our board secretary who will lead us into the next portion of our meeting tonight okay thank you madam superintendent uh the board will now go into close session to discuss matters of the following nature deliberation of candidates for board vacancy positions I call for a motion to go in the close session motion okay motion was made by Mr Hudson and it was second by Miss Merck uh M who that was Miss Merck Meritt Miss Meritt okay uh roll call all in favor all so close session is now starting at 7:28 and is anticipated that uh the approximate duration will be 45 minutes like to get a motion to come out of close session motion motion made by uh Mr Hudson second second by uh Miss Alvarez all in favor [Music] I call for a motion to open the floor for nomination for candidates to fill the board vacancy created by Mr Gonzalez [Music] motion motion by um Mr Hudson second by m Merck floor is now open for nominations we good good uh I would like to nominate Maria perz Mr Hudson nominates Maria Perez and um Miss Merrick second the nomination motion to close the nominations motion to close made by Mr Hudson second second by Miss Alvarez [Music] president yeah you can read that sorry a motion to appoint Maria Perez to to fill the vacant seat created by Mr Gonzalez motion motion motion by Miss Jackson second by Mr Hudson roll call oh you know this is a voice vote Voice voice okay yeah like a voice V me like a yeah okay Miss Jackson yes Miss Alvarez yes Mr Hudson yes Miss Merck Mr Nelson yes motion carries and congratulations to miss Maria pzzz Perez excuse me uh Perez pardon [Music] me SBA call for a motion to open the floor for nomination for candidates to fill the board vegacy created by Mr liba Martinez motion to open the floor Den nominate cidate for V vacancy motion to open the floor motion made by Mr Hudson second by Miss Jackson floor is now open for nominations I would like to nominate Wanda Garcia motion made by not wand Garcia by Miss um Alvarez second second second by uh Mr Hudson SBA calls motion to close the four for nominations for the candidate to fill the board vacancy created by Mr Martinez you motion to close nomination who was that may by Mr Nelson motion second by Miss Jackson okay motion to appoint Wanda Garcia to fill the vacan seat created by Mr label Martinez motion motion made by Mr Hudson second and second by Miss Alvarez Miss Jackson yes Miss Alvarez yes Mr Hudson yes Miss Merck yes Mr Nelson yes congratulations Wanda Garcia is appointed to fill the vacany of Mr Lio [Music] Martinez I would like to say congratulations um one thank you for every uh candidate that took time to come interview today um we appreciate your time uh also we want to you know make sure anybody who has any interest or had any interest um remains involved um in any way we're able to support and also want to say congratulations to the two candidates uh Miss Maria Perez as as well as Wanda Garcia who was chosen for the two open seats we welcome you to the board and we look forward to continuing to move the district forward so thank you [Applause] right motion to adjourn the meeting motion all in favor