the New Jersey open public meetings law was enacted to ensure the right of the public to have advanced notice of and to attend the meeting of public bodies at which any business affecting their interest is discussed or acted upon in accordance with the provisions of this act the Cedar Grove board of education has cause notice of this meeting to be advertised by having the date time and place thereof posted on bulton board in the district published Andor transmitted to the Verona Cedar Grove times and star lger newspapers tap into online news filed with the Township Clerk and posted on the district website could I have a roll call please Mr Grandy here Mr marzulo here Mr Pala here Mrs Keegan here M Dora here good evening everybody so nice to have such a nice crowd of students parents family friends coaches administrators uh welcome okay so we do have a a busy night tonight we have a ton of uh presentations so I'm excited to get to that um before we do get to that I am just going to open public comment for agenda items only and I don't have anyone that signed up for agenda items only so can I have a motion to close that portion of the section move okay so we are going to move on to uh let's go go right into the presentations let's get them started and then we will Circle back um all right so we have a couple trip presentations so we'll start with the high school football team overnight trip sure we could absolutely do it in any order you'd like how about we change the order and do the sports teams first wherever you want it's your show Absolutely close yeah CL good evening um just here to pres uh present our spring sports athletic Team Championships it's always um a special night for me to kind of do this and I'm getting yelled that already um and to to honor I feel like I just did this for the winter and now I'm back for the spring season here um it's definitely a large group how old um um and and I just want to congratulate all of our spring athletic teams coaches athletes on just a wonderful um smooth um successful spring athletic season um we do have three um teams that kind of went a little bit above and beyond the rest winning some championship teams this spring so I'm going to start with our uh girls track and field team and it's kind of a little bit of a dynasty here with this program um their numbers are up they're um for the third year in a row they the super ethic conference Independence division Champions um they had a dual meet record of 6-0 they capped off by um that those dual meets by winning the SEC Championship meet at North School Stadium um and like I said it's kind of a team to beat right now because for the third year in a row all right that they are the 2024 SEC Independence division Champions so I want to congratulate them [Applause] and I know a few of them are up here so we're going to call you up and line up here up front Amanda [Applause] Eustace Sienna [Applause] gardano Alexa wolf Sophia babaski [Applause] Sienna [Applause] Bernie Jasmine [Applause] judyth and our coaching staff head coaches Colleen merklin [Applause] Vincent [Applause] leoo and then our assistant coach kand coach Rabino and Coach AEL come on [Applause] up get [Applause] next up is our baseball team um super 's conference Colonial division Champions all right first time um since 2014 um that our baseball team has won a conference Championship so so so just a huge accomplishment um season record of 19-7 they were 10 And1 in the SEC Colonial division um coach cordasco and his staff are doing a fantastic job um really lifting up the program um they've they've back-to-back years um had had great records lost last year in the sectional Final in a very close game lost this year in the sectional semifinal 4-3 um they're very very close and it and and it just shows how far this program has come you know from from 2000 from 2014 to now you you know winning um first first Conference Championship since then so so so guys just just just an incredible job super Ence conference Colonial division [Applause] Champions Xavier andar Marcus Quon Leo marzulo Jak kica Nick tester John slavakis Matthew kulan Matthew Norman Nick Russo Ronnie Sheridan Matt Cal Mike fion lucus Ros Nick dro [Applause] Anthony Johnson Evan [Applause] Perry and head coach Vin cordasco [Applause] [Applause] last but now least is our softball team um talk about a little bit of a dynasty njsiaa group one state champions um for the back-to-back second year in a row um just awesome awesome amazing job girls um overall record of 23 and8 all right um I know um the the expectations are so high they play the best schedule in the state um ran through a little bit they they thought a little bit of a rough patch right um lost a few games in a row um I kind of stepped in I talked to him a little bit because I felt like they were walking around the school what was it saying that someone stole their puppy all right and um you you know I I think you know I think that made them better I think they kind of hit adversity um coach valard and her staff just gets them you know you know keeps their mindset straight and kind of keeps them going um they are fun to watch um on the way to winning the njsi north one group one sectional Championship they beat Bergen Charter New Milford horor and Wallington by a score of 57 to nothing all right um domination there [Applause] um coach fardi I think I said this last year she came in kind of my second year as athletic director and we kind of hit the ground running with the program um continues to do a fabulous job with her staff um she texted me last night emailed me last night about winter workouts already all right um um um that's that's where she's at but just awesome back to back girls group one state [Applause] champions meline [Applause] Carter Rihanna [Applause] Clark Gian [Applause] croll Alissa [Applause] D'Angelo Kayla DEA there's a few of them in Juliana [Applause] Rano Kate slavakis [Applause] Lena Willis Ava bko Nina [Applause] Caputo Ariana Leon Kate lus Caitlyn o Conor Isabella stoles Marina Bryant Danny D'Angelo Gia Fernandez Gabby Flores [Applause] Casey [Applause] kavit Eva o Leo [Applause] Weinstein and our seniors Adriana ceris Isabella cutalo [Applause] and head coach Nikki [Applause] vardi yeah push yeah push in a little bit thank you guys for having us congratulations Dr back group Wednesday champion [Applause] than [Applause] that's a hard act to follow good evening everybody such a nice turnout here tonight I want to say congratulations once again to all our sports teams it's been a really fun spring Season watching the girls the boys the track everybody um and Lacrosse it's just been wonderful so thank you for all the hard work and dedication to your Athletics um we are going to give our our last couple of character awards for the night and then I would like to also recognize on two of our distinguished um graduates this evening so first we're going to start with our last three student of the month recipients um as you all know student of the month they're they're chosen by teachers and this is an award based on you know character and um you know it goes with our seven mindsets so the First theme was 100% accountable we asked our teachers to identify students who were 100% accountable for their actions they look to recognize students who focus on breaking down barriers taking responsibility for their own actions and being accountable all the time allowing themselves to free their minds and focus on energy uh Focus their energy on working towards their goals for the future I'd like to say congratulations to Eric Silverman please come on up [Applause] [Applause] um our last theme was the time is now and it was such a great theme that we actually had two recipients of this um award we asked our staff to identify students who embraced every moment we look for students who seize opportunity every day and showcase happy happiness fulfillment and meaning by making each day purposeful by their actions we are so excited to congratulate Alexander and Alexander [Applause] haros and John Luc Atara who cannot be here with us tonight [Music] [Applause] [Applause] so at this time I would like to recognize the Victorian and the sorian of the class of 2024 so first with the second highest GPA in the class this student has earned the respect of her peers as well as her teachers due to her perseverance and work ethic she has developed both academically and personally into a mature individual she is a renowned gymnast who competes in state Regional and National competitions she will be attending North Carolina State University as a division one scholarship athlete congratulations to the 2024 our salutatorian Miss Ava [Applause] [Music] [Applause] Meyers and with the highest GPA in the class of 2024 this student is a true leader in our school she is the captain of the girls cross country and lacrosse teams and the co-president of the all school council as well as a peer leader in addition to our outstanding academic and extracurricular performance she is a committed volunteer in our community she will be attending the University of Notre Dame in the fall congratulations to the 2024 valedictorian Ava jablonsky [Applause] [Applause] I can't hear you oh yes okay well first I want before we dismiss the students I just want to congratulate everybody who is here tonight um for all the academic accolades our athletic accolades and I want to thank the parents who took time today to come all your support that you continue to provide to your children and to your children's friends and the community is really um it it's it's really appreciated and it's it's really is what we're all here for so I want to thank everybody for coming tonight um congratulations Summer's always almost here so hang in there a couple more days so feel free to stay if you'd like if not you are more than um happy to go at this point we will not be offended thank you do you have do you have a report like you can go right now if you'd like before you go it's your call you want to go don't worry about it I don't want to tell you if you want to you absolutely can that you got it going I know everybody's listening to it it's okay get home hi at home take care senior Sunset oh okay then well you'll be barbecuing congratulations we'll see you on the field Thursday she's so cute my goodness okay it's nice to see we still have some students here CU I know the trip and then we'll and then you guys will be free to go um all right so I know we have a couple more presentations so we'll move right into our trip presentation I think the first one is football thank you to yeah to dim the light good good evening I'm going to be pretty quick I want to just run through this real qu uh uh quick um we are proposing that our football team um travels down to Egg Harbor Atlantic City New Jersey for the West Jersey football conference Association battle at the beach which will be our week zero game um this upcoming fall um just a little bit about the game um you know the past four or five years I've tried to you know book our opening game as some sort of a showcase game not only for the program but the players 2021 we traveled to Florida to play a game um 2022 We we played in this event last year we we played in the Super Football Conference showcase um and then this year we got invited back to the battle of the beach down south um I think it's a great opportunity to showcase not only our programing but the players um they get to play against great competition in in a pretty cool atmosphere um couple reasons why we're looking to stay overnight um 2021 we went down there and played a 1 pm game it was about a 2 hour 15 minute 2 hour and a half Drive um you know it was tough to like dictate when we should leave when we should arrive um this year we're scheduled to play August 30th which is Friday morning at 9:30 a.m. so it would be a tough um Trek to kind of go 500 a.m. and get there and play game um safety wise too um we are asking to go two nights you know to not make it just a business trip you know just to go down there and really play a football game we we want to make it you know more of like a college trip go Wednesday we're planning um a Wednesday night Ocean City Boardwalk type of team bonding night um and then Thursday night we have a kickoff dinner with the players parents scheduled for car mines um to kind of make it a little kickoff to our season night there um like I said the West Jersey football conference uh coaches association battle at the beach event is in Ocean City and a Harbor Township there's 14 games on Thursday Friday and Saturday that week um with top football programs in our state in the country FR uh Thursday night Bergen Catholic is playing IMG Academy from Florida it's televised on ESPN so those are the type of games going on at that event a little bit about our game it's August 30th Friday 9:30 a.m. um we're going to be playing Arthur P shot high school it's a group one school down south they were 11 in one last year returning a very solid team um again the game is going to be played at a Harbor Township High School um we would like a tonight accommodation stay at Resorts Hotel in Atlantic City it's Labor Day weekend so you you know staying in Ocean City you know very tough there um at Atlantic City gives us a better choice um with it still being 15 minutes from the field other costs which I'll go through um will include Transportation meals for the two day uh for the 3 days and then some extras just a quick itinerary Wednesday we would depart after practice around noon um check in like I said Wednesday night we have some team bonding stuff planned for the Ocean City boardwalk and dinner um Thursday we'll have a breakfast we're actually going to practice down at a Harbor Township 10:00 a.m. for two hours we'll do our walkr um lunch we'll hold some team meetings and then like I said that Thursday night we have a team parent player um kickoff dinner planned um down there um early night on Thursday because we're going to be up at around 5:30 6: a.m. trying to prepare um and get ready for the game we'll depart a um Resorts Hotel and head to a harbor probably around 7:30 a.m. with kickoff scheduled for 9:30 right after the game we will travel back from EG Harbor um High School back to Cedar Grove little bit about the cost it's a two night St Resorts Hotel it's costing about $135 per person for for the two nights um we are scheduling Academy coach bus for the entire trip so it'll be with us you know from the time we leave Cedar Grove High School to the time we get back also around about $125 per person we have two team breakfast buffets planned at Resorts two two plier dinners already planned um and then one lunch and a you know snack um kind kind of planned with pizza after the game on Friday before we head back um and then just some miscellaneous cost um you know staff some team gear and things like that we kind of always kind of do throughout the year we have began our fundraising um through our CED Grove touchdown Club um between a calendar sponsor snap Rays we're running a 7 on seven tournament with the help of uh Cedar Grove Recreation on on July 10th we have about 14 to 16 teams in that so we're using that as as a fundraiser for the trip as well um estimated players are about 50 um the chaperons would be our seven board approved um coaches um our trainer was invited she's going to stick back we do have some scrimmages she she's going to come down the morning of the game um ra rather to do that um and then I think that's really it any questions thank you I appreciate your time hi everyone um tonight we're looking to approve yet again our trip to sleepweight camp in Pennsylvania um last year we went as a team and we found it to be quite a success for our program you know in terms of sideline we brought home a lot of components that went into our sideline routine uh things we got to Showcase to the fans of the football games and for the competition aspect we learned a lot of new skills which I find uh to be really essential in uh being successful throughout That season as well um but rather than me talking I'm going to hand it over to my four seniors um and they're going to go over the logistics of our camp so here's an overview for our our team our goal for going to UCA sleep away camp is seeking approval from you guys so we can attend UCA Pine Forest chair camp at Trails End in Beach Lake Pennsylvania this is going to be our second year going we went last year team um the dates are Thursday August 15th through Sunday August 18th we're leaving Thursday morning coming home Sunday afternoon there's a total of 23 of us and we have two Board of Ed approved coaches nicholette McCarthy and Julia Jovi so what is UCA Cheer Camp Cheer Camp provides the high school teams like us the opportunity to learn new cheerleading techniques and curriculum that can be incorporated into both our sideline routines and our competition routines year we took a lot home from that and we learned things such as cheerleading safety new stunts game day skills new pyramids sideline dances and sideline shears so here are some images from when we attended Camp from last year so in the top left corner that's the opening that um the UCA staff do so every single team that attends the camp gathers around and it's like a fun way to kick off Camp for what's to come so if you look in the middle on the picture in the middle to the right that's us learning new stunts that we ended up taking home and using in our routine so it's really beneficial to learn from very qualified um staff members at UCA camp for new stunts that we could take home and overall you can see in the bottom right corner that's us on Magic night which was a fun talent show that we plan to do this year with new themes happening every year so it's a fun experience and Team B moment for everyone so this is the camp itinerary for camp and um we leave Cedar Grove High School and go to Trails End and we drop off our luggage with some staffers and then we head to our cabins so we immediately go to this really big area kind of that has like a mat laid out and the UCA staff show us their skills and their routines that they created and it's just a fun way there's music and all the teams gather around the mat together to really kick off Camp um then we go to our afternoon classes which can differ depending on what your schedules are then we have a dinner and then we go back and learn some new things in the night classes so the next day we basically do the same thing we get breakfast we go to morning classes lunch afternoon classes dinner and then night classes now our third day is basically the same but a little twist um there are the All-American team tryy out which is basically anyone from any of the teams learns the dance Che and showcases a jump and they try out to become an All-American cheerleader then on the fourth and final day we have breakfast and then we get a chance to show off the routines that we learned at camp and we also get to show the game day routines then there's the squad credentialing presentation which is you get awarded certain awards for the different squads and then the senior recognition ceremony and then finally they announced who had made it into the All-American team and then we had back to C gr so the cost and fundraising that we've done so far the cost of the trip is $335 for us to go and fundraising efforts we've done we just had a popcorn sale which raised almost $4,000 which is great and we have F trip fundraising coming up throughout the summer okay so for the summary of the trip the dates are going to be Thursday 15th and then coming home on Sunday August sorry 15th to Sunday August 18th in trail Zen Campground in Beach Lake Pennsylvania the total number of people going is 23 cheerleaders along with two Board of Ed approved coaches and the cost is 335 per athlete that was before the pop sale we hading thank [Applause] hi everybody again um I just want to take a few minutes because cedv high school was the recipient of a few donations this spring and I want to recognize the families and the community members who donated um amazing pieces to our school um you know a few months ago cghs was given I said received an email from the um aradan family and Mr aradan works for New York Life and he made a very generous donation which his company matched um he did send me an email and he asked if we can allot the funds towards the stem Labs or the curriculum well that's not hard to do Mr Coster and Mr Tesco were all over that they were like o they have so many great ideas so we um we met as a team and um the stem Department decided to purchase what is the um prity CR scan feret Pro I got that right um it's a little tricky this equipment allows our students to 3D print and with much more detail and record time um if you can see the first picture is it scans so it does full body scans of people or heads um the first body what it projects to the screen um that's the resin printer and then on the right is actually the detailed model that was printed in record time um and if you see the model in person U masimo was our uh model um aapan and you can see his hair his his shirt it's it's really really impressive and I'm so excited that our students can um benefit from this donation which allowed us to purchase this outstanding equipment um if you look here again the scan on the left and the picture on the right uh Mr Coster welcomes everybody to the lab to come see um this new technology that we now have at Cedar Grove High School um okay so um I work very closely with the AP and I'm really grateful to the AP I've had you know Mrs Dillo uh Mrs laforgia Mrs Willis and M O Conor as um the a council or you know president and um board this year and I have asked them for a lot of things I went in and I said I really want to do something to the front of the school and they said tell us what you want to do so um we discussed wrapping and Banners put up from the school now this W wrapping was put up about two weeks ago I'm so excited because it serves two purposes first it Brands our school and it's very welcoming but more importantly is actually a safety feature so when you're in the vestibule behind there you can see out but people cannot see in and it's very impressive Tey um we also and let me just show you so this is what it looks like up close if you drive in front of the high school you can see it from right in the parking lot um it's a our first step to beautifying and updating the front of the building we really want to work on this and I I'm so excited for the AP and they said go you know we support you we will help you um and I'm very thankful for that generous donation we also did the front doors again so the main entrance as you walk in we can't we can see you coming up but you can't see in so you have stud in the best of waiting to go home if they're sick if parents are in there there's a meeting that they're coming to her from we can really monitor what our outside visitors say so very exciting with that um in addition to the brand to wrapping we also they also helped purchase our banners unfortunately the banners were um delayed in production they just arrived on campus about three days ago so we won't have them up in time for graduation but I do want to acknowledge the Caputo Brothers Tree service so sometimes I I get an idea and I don't think things through I didn't know we didn't have a bucket truck so I just assumed everybody has a bucket truck I don't know why but um I reached out to caputa brothers and they graciously volunteered to hang um the banners for us this summer so they are in the building and hopefully they will be up in the next couple of weeks and we are so excited for them and then um last but not least um I was in work the other day and the doorbell rang and it was uh Miss pel and she came you know about a week ago or two weeks ago I said to my secretary I said you know our P flag is ripping we need to order a new one and it was like Miss Patel's ears were ringing because she showed up within within about 12 hours of making that statement with two brand new flags for the school a US flag and a p flag and we are so excited to put them up and tonight we're just accepting the donation of those flags and we we thank her for that very generous donation to CED gr High School [Applause] so um again we just want to thank all our community members all the people who contributed to these wonderful events every donation goes towards our students and we're just so thankful for the partnership we have with the parents in the community so thank you [Applause] ladies feel free you do not have to stay yes here here's your exit thank you thank you very much people here tonight all right who wants to do work after that do that all night long you can make quick work of this what's that Mr B you can make quick work of it yes we can okay so we're going to uh move right into um committee report so we're g to Go Right Down the Line Mrs Keegan you are up okay um so we didn't have a lot of committee meetings but I recently attended the rec Advisory board meeting and heard that the Memorial Day ceremony at Community Park went very well unfortunately I couldn't make it um but the summer will be busy with fireworks scheduled for Monday July 1st at Panther Park there is movie Nights throughout July the 18th and the 11th and 18th at Morgan's farm and July 25th at the community pool which will also coincide with the residence day info can be found on that on the re socials and website yesterday Miss Dora and I attended the pride flag raising ceremony at Panther Park during the ceremony Mr Reggie bledo who's part of the Essex County Executive Office and the Essex County chapter of the NJ SBA shared a very positive message of support for the community of Cedar Grove in his brief speech he highlighted the symbolic significance of raising the pride flag some of the colors and their meanings of things like life healing and Harmony and the moments seem to resonate through the people in attendance Miss Dora and I also attended a facilities meeting last week and want to share some important upgrades coming along for the district this is exciting Voiceover IP equipment will be installed in five buildings the clocks are going to be upgraded at all four schools the interc commmon paging system will be upgraded at the middle school spe specific dates for the above are still being determined but definitely over the summer um and these upgrades are all going to enhance Communications and security for the district over July and early August you're going to see Paving Pro projects at the high school north end and South End South End is also going to see the basketball court resurfaced and new basketball hoops installed the high school gym is being repainted the floors are being redone in the gym the back entrance is also getting a facelift um we saw all the great upgrades on the the front of the school and North End gym floor is also going to be redone um Northend and South End are going to be seeing the last of some office and storage room floors needing some repairs addressed and this was part of a long-term plan so it's really coming um to the end in their Final Phase Sr funds are what are being used for the above projects the rod Grant project for the hbac and electrical upgrades at North End and South End was revised in scope to be Consolidated to one summer instead of two hopefully the bids are going to come in much lower on that um to help save on cost and that's looking to be we're hoping to get that done next summer so a lot of good stuff that's lots of good things thank you Mr marzulo do you have anything tonight I do not have anything to report tonight Mr pic yes very briefly um the curriculum instruction committee has not met as a result of um some of the issues in communication and so forth as we move forward we're waiting um Dr Teran to to move forward with this couple of our projects um secondly Personnel is as going to be moved on the agenda again most of the Personnel adjustments were made prior to uh the May 15th deadline and therefore we're done it our May meeting and April meeting and I will say that uh the attended the FSA meeting in North End um I've been with them for two and a half years now and an outstanding group that has great representation also does its meeting through Zoom so not only do we get the 15 or 20 than 10 there's another 20 or so that zoom and so the information is very CLE clean it's very transparent and I often get many questions from them which is I think a very good thing in in understanding what is happening in the district and finally M stor and I we scheduled an a meeting for our new superintendent Dr Kain to meet all of the FSA officers and uh that was part of our transition plan which occurred um last week and it it was uh good timing because it it included the outgoing officers as well as the incoming officer so he's able to reach out to more parents and speak to them about some of his goals and ideas and thoughts as he's going to move forward in the next year and um with the help of the parents and I I thank them immensely for what they do and the work that they do in in moving our our individual buildings and helping our students with the things that are needed and in those buildings but I'm sure as we move forward through July and and August we're going to that there are going to be um great deal more in the area in the arena of curriculum as we start to move forward thank you Mr Po Mr gr you I don't have anything new to add most of it was from a finance committee perspective was duplicative okay great thanks and I just want to piggyback on what Mr pic said about the meeting that uh occurred with Dr tanian and the FSA um yes that was part of our leadership transition plan and then the next step would be to incorporate uh opportunities for the community um Dr tanian will be joining us officially on uh July 2nd so I look forward to that and we will uh try to be as diligent as we can to get that notification that communication out to the families because I think it's important that um the community you know takes advantage of that I know it's summer and it's challenging um but we'll try to accommodate as many as we can and offer some different avenues for the community to have an opportunity to meet with him I thought the FSA meeting was fantastic it was uh really well attended and um lots of positive feedback so I am looking forward to the next stages so all right so that kind of ties up our committee reports um we're g to move right on Mr Dita do you have anything to add as under superintendent or anything tonight no okay just check I wanted to check that before we moved on all right so we're going to move right into our U moving some resolutions here I'm on page five so everybody's with me here under the business business business administrators report I would like a motion for G1 through G25 I am administratively removing under G7 the iMac Insurance Agency which is included in the in the list of contract approvals so it's G1 through G25 administratively removing iMac agency under G7 right halfway down can I have a motion so move second any discussion roll call please Mr grandi yes Mr marzulo yes Mr pallet yes Mrs Keegan yes M Dora yes all right moving on to page 21 you're with me here under a superintendent report can I have a motion for H1 and H2 so move second discussion roll call Mr grandi yes Mr marzulo yes Mr Pac yes Mrs Keegan yes Miss Dora yes under Human Resources I one can I have a motion for i1 to I 10 and the addition of addendums A1 and A2 please so move second discussion I do want to take a moment uh under addendum A2 and I want to um tonight we are accepting the resignation of Mr Dita our business administrator and board secretary and that will be effective um August 16th Mr Dita I just want to take an opportunity to uh tell you how much we appreciate all your hard work and um what you have given to this district and specifically over the last couple of months um it's been challenging and the board as a whole really do appreciate uh your commitment and your dedication to the district um you will be missed we wish you the best of luck I'm sure we'll see you around um but we do wish you the best of luck uh on your future endeavors and thank you again thank you you very much thank you okay can I have a motion can I do that already do that R call please Mr Grandy yes Mr marzulo yes Mr Pac yes Mrs keigan yes Mrs Dora yes all right and now we're moving to page 28 can I have a motion under curriculum and instruction J1 so second discussion roll call Mr Grandy yes Mr marzulo yes Mr pelic yes Mrs Kean yes Miss Dora yes under special services can I have a motion for K1 to K3 move second discussion roll call Mr Grandy yes Mr marzulo yes Mr Pac yes Mrs Keegan yes M Dora yes all right at this time I will open this portion of the meeting to public comment on any school related items the Board of Education recognizes the value of the of the public comment on educational issues and the importance of allowing members of the public to express themselves on school matters of community interest public participation shall be governed by the following rules please preface your comments by stating your name address Municipality of residents and group affiliation please be mindful of your statement length and keep each statement to a three minute limit participants may not speak more than once on the same topic until all others who wish to speak on the topic have been heard please direct all your statements questions or inquiries to the presiding officer the presiding officer May interrupt warn or terminate a participant statement question or inquiry if it is too lengthy abusive obscene or maybe def flammatory these rules may be waved if necessary to protect privacy or to maintain an orderly operation of the board meeting all right on that note we do have some of our community members who have signed up today Mr Martinelli not please don't be sorry thank you um Julia shto I apologize if I did not oh no no we're not going to make you stand behind us um I just wanted to speak about uh some of the rumors about excuse just sayate your name and Julia tenos Harris C Ro you got it got okay uh I just wanted to speak about uh some of the rumors about the flags being taken down at the schools um I have a little of speech uh I went to school here in Cedar Grove K through 12 um and I know nothing I say will change any opinions um but I just wanted to uh I just hope that what I say will make you think about some things um I just want to say that pride is a celebration of how far we have come uh pride is also a reminder of the blood that has been spilled to get here and there has been a lot of Bloodshed pride is a reminder that the reason lgbtq plus folks are allowed to exist in public wear what they want and attend legal establishment is because of the life that has been lost to pave the way you're on this board to ensure that the students of this town have access to the best education and have a safe and enriching environment to learn this responsibility you have taken on is for all of the students not just the straight ones not just the cisgender ones not just the white ones not just the Christian ones all students your job as an educator board member and parent is about doing what is best for all of the kids in this town and some of them are gay and trust me none of the kids in this town want to be gay in this town the only reason I'm up here is because I know from experience how terrifying it is to be gay in this town if you do not at the bare minimum support and care about every one of these kids you have signed up to take responsibility for they will end up dead that uh that the fact of the matter is that a lot of gay kids still think they are better off dead they think that ending their own lives is a better choice than growing up in small towns just like this one with homophobic and transphobic jerks who make them feel worthless I know that sounds dramatic but lgbtq plus Young Folks are more than four times as likely to attempt suicide than their peers the Trevor Project which is an organization uh estimates that more than 1.8 million lgbtq plus young people seriously consider suicide each year in the US with at least one attempt every 45 seconds I timed this speech while I was writing it uh this paragraph marks Three Kids attempting suicide since I have started talking so flying the pry flag for a mere four weeks out of the Year Saves a Life or even just makes a queer kid feel a little more at home in their own town isn't it worth it nobody is forcing gayness down anyone's throats we just exist that's all and I know this hurts uh the little cookie cutter idea of life but grow up life is complicated the world is complicated but safe and enriching educational environment should not be these kids have and will continue to face so much stuff in life do not be another bump in the road for them do not be the reason they become a [Music] statistic thank you I appreciate you um taking the courage to get up and stand I have several people that are going to speak on this cont on this subject matter so I'm going to defer any type of response until everybody um you know has an opportunity to speak tonight okay um Jessica Horton please state your name and address please hi um Jessica Horton 91 Winding Way um so so I actually I know it's a little bit late but I have a question regarding the budget so um in April's meeting the board said they're eliminating the position of director of School counseling but they would not be eliminating any programs and Services I wanted to ask about the status of the seeds program because um my daughter's been on a wait list since January and I was told that next year the program was either going to be drastically cut or going away so after saying that mental health was not going to be reduced in the school um it seems like that it might be and I know that there's a rising need in mental health services in the schools after the pandemic so I just wanted to ask about that do you know if the seeds program is still going on yes the seeds program is not being cut it is going on uh there is a redistribution of House services I don't have the specifics because I'm not in the buildings okay um but the conversation is about redistributing how how we deliver services so for example um and I've had this conversation with several of the members here in the community tonight um last year we hired an additional staff member for the child study team to um alleviate some of the case load for the mental health staff of the child study team so they would be picking up some of the um mental health services so it's we're not cutting services okay I am not and this board is not aware of cutting any services to students um we are looking at being more fiscally responsible in the how we deliver Services okay I just wanted to make sure that new transition of of leadership with Mr tanian Dr Tan when he comes in it is one of the topics of on our conversations okay okay so I encourage you if you have any further conversations you know after July 2nd please bring them forward okay and then the second thing I also wanted to address um the flag um because i' had heard the pride flag might not be flown next year um I know my daughter is very young but she's so excited to see it every year um since coming to the school and I love seeing it every year um right now we're seeing a lot of backlash against the rights of lgbtq plus Community um everything was so hard fought for to be able to exist in public to be able to marry who you want and I see a lot of that being talked about taken away in other areas and I really want students who seedar Grove to be able to look and see that pride flag and feel safe in this town and feel that pride and that safety um so if society's practice of Tolerance is inclusive of the intolerant intolerance will ultimately dominate eliminating the tolerant and the practice of Tolerance with them so I'm here to say I don't want to int tolerate intolerance and I think that that flag needs to continue flying every June thank you thank you um and next we have Nathan chering um first of all I want to thank all the M if you could just state your name corre Nathan chering 37 Franklin Street got thank you I want to thank all the board members for what you your contributions towards the quality of the education in the town um thank you I personally have a pride flag hanging in my front window which is easily seen from the street um it's been there at least a year I hung it not because I identify with any of those groups um I hung it to demonstrate that I am an ally um I'm not welcoming these groups to our community because they are already part of the community um there are people who identify as gay lesbian transgender or other nonis or hetero within every Community I want anyone who identifies with any of the populations represented by the flag to feel that it's safe to express who they are in this community I support the hanging of the pride flag anywhere in the district I hope the Board of Ed can join me in showing your support support um to those members of the cedar growth Community thank you thank you okay so I just have a few comments that I want to share with the community um we have received Lots multiple emails over the last couple of days um some supporting some not supporting as I'm sure nobody is surprised about that um but I do want to clarify some misinformation that is circulating among the community and I know that's misinformation because the emails that we've received as a board are indicating and they're all saying the same message and these are we're receiving them from people who are in support and the message is being delivered that the board was passing a resolution tonight to take the flags down and I encouraged several of my responses to community members was to read the agenda open it up there is no resolution we are we have had no discussion tonight about taking down a flag so it frustrates me personally for lots of reasons anybody who knows me knows that I am a firm supporter of the lgbtq uh Community it frustrates us as a board because because there is a narrative being shared that we are doing an undoing I think is better uh things that have practices and traditions and resolutions that have already been passed I want to make it very clear to the community and to especially the people sitting here today because it was important enough for you to be here and I want to say to Julia I'm sorry I took a note on this what you say does have an right you said in your tonight that what you say might not impact what you say does have an impact everybody has an opportunity to have an impact so I encourage you to keep speaking out for what you believe in okay I wanted to make sure that I said that but um I want to clarify that there is no resolution to take down the pride flag and the narrative and I'm asking whoever is sharing that narrative to please stop because it is adding to divisiveness in our community and we're working really hard to try to draw the community back together and it's going to take time and it's going to take effort but information is critical if you have a question just ask don't assume we received several emails they're identical emails with just different names accusing us in accusatory fashion and flyers about hate hate with pride flag on the same flyer is upsetting and then further that it has board members names on that all right that's impactful to our community and our children and that's what this is all about we sit up here for our children all children so I just ask that we please let's sh if we want to share information but let's share accurate information and together as a community we will go through whatever hurdles lie ahead of us we will do it together some will be upset some will be happy there's times that I'm upset there's times that we don't agree but that's what makes that's what makes Cedar Grove what it is okay so I please I I'm I want to clarify that there is no resolution to take down the pride flag and we attended the ceremony and it was wonderful to see the community members there so um that's my you know when I if anybody wants to add anything to that I just felt it was important to clarify the truth and you did a great job doing thank all right at this point I close that portion of public meeting oh you have to come up please John Martinelli 30 Hillside Avenue I just want to reiterate what dawn said and I don't like the fact personally there's a lot of people that are in my shoes that it doesn't matter what sexual preference you desire CED Grove is really starting to get a bad name and we're getting tired of it of us being called jerks stuff like that I happen to be a straight man okay never argued about gay rights or anything like that everybody's on the same page but there's some individuals that had to go take a step and get the news network to come down here by saying everybody here you know is homophobic stuff like that we're getting tired of it we're tired of being targeted okay I teach my kids my kids are biracial I teach my kids to be good and treat every body we respect and not only gay people the ones sometimes being harassed at school okay my son was biracial and he was harassed and guess what the quote unquote that you's always used it's not always a white person the kid that was bullying him was actually a minority okay my son settled it and now they're friends so I just don't want I want people to realize it happens to everybody anybody could be a victim it just doesn't have to always be that quote unquote straight white male or straight white woman you know cuz I'm tired that narrative that we constantly hear tired of it and we're always being demonized at every turn everybody wants to get along I just wanted to bring that out for myself I apologize but wanted to ask do you have a question yeah my me personally that FL ex stands for everybody doesn't matter what denomination what culture we all came here together and we should all get along my uncle died on Normandy fighting for this country those are the real heroes remember that we're all part of that flag some individuals or some people may not think that but guess what you are and you are welcomed we need to take a step back like dor said in the rest of this board we need to get along and what's happening here which I notice it's only one or two individuals not going to mention names but stirring the pot and making and everybody divided nobody's condoning or nobody's like putting other people we just want to live in peace in this town and we all want to get along and I'm sure the board could attest to this all right so what I'm trying to say is let's just all get along and the people that are stirring the pot we all know who it is Mr Mar let's please keep it positive okay I do want to keep it positive that's the flag for everybody thank you thank you [Applause] and let's just put it on record and clarify because somebody in the community is saying that you're not allowed to talk unless you sign up so clearly that's not accurate either hi my name is Eric Brown 16 Katherine Court Mr Martinelli I had a conversation with you on Facebook where you were expressing how you do not want the flag to fly okay Gentlemen please no but no but I I'm not trying to start a fight no no no that's not what I was going to say but I want to say but I want to say you I'm going to give you an opportunity to speak I'm going to give you an opportunity oh no no but I do want to say that the notion wait I'm going to I promise you I'm going to give you a chance thank you I promise you I'm not shutting you down I appreciate that but the the two of you that this is not the place for that no fight no fight just please correct your your com this way but but but I do want to correct the record that the no that there aren't people in this town that would prefer that flag to not fly they exist and they're expressing themselves freely so the people that are concerned are concerned with reason and they're concerned with reason because there are children that suffer every day and they suffer more they are more likely to attempt suicide they're more likely to be bullied is it only LGBT did you understand what I just said they are more likely to attempt suicide we this listen I'm gonna you're forcing me to have to shut this down and I don't yeah do I just shut yeah and none of them should be right I have to adjourn the meeting none of them should be right but by lifting up by lifting up our weakest we lift up everyone we lift up everyone excuse me oh I'm just talking to everybody here excuse me this is not the appropriate form for that you can address your comment and questions to the board directly yeah just putting it out there Ashley have just putting it out there you have to interject okay we're gonna have to end your public thank you I appreciate it all right that's a jar yeah let's go all right shut it shut it one more one more speaker let's make sure you get what you got can we have the attention back up here please Mr Brown you're interrupting you're interrupting we we have not closed the meeting you just called your you were the last one to speak up here she did not speak up here you did excuse me we're going to close the meeting you're going to give us your time and attention so we can end this thank you my name is Jackie Lebowitz 35 Lopez Road I'm also over hire in the school I am the director of the Fall play and assistant director on the musical so I am heavily evolved in this community as well as having been an Alum of this school and a big part of this town all of this I think a lot of it is because we have just gone through so much in the last few years there has been a lot with our musical having issues having to go forward and coming back with books in our library a lot of us feel very tired having to go through this over and over to get the things that we have already fought for having the pride flag flying in this town is a symbol of Hope for a lot of people it's a symbol of joy getting to watch 25,000 people show up at Monclair Pride right next door meant so much and then to come back and still have these fights going in town was very hard having the pride flag flying is a good thing for this town because it doesn't have to symbolize everyone but for the people that do need it it's their symbol that shows that they are welcome here and it's a symbol of Grace I will quote one of my favorite authors Abby Jimenez who said Grace costs you nothing and that's all we're asking for is a little Grace letting some people celebrate no one is asking for it to mean anything derogatory for anyone else just to celebrate everyone and be inclusive it's all everyone wants Grace costs you nothing it's all I want to make sure that people understand thank you thank we're going to end on that note I'm going to close public portion um announcement of future meetings our next meeting is uh July 30th it will be held at the high school auditorium and Then followed by August 27th at Northend um Media Center yes I'm Miss I know but I've closed public portion all right so I'm sorry I apologize but we're we're moving on at this point so um can I have a motion to adjourn so move so move all in favor all all thank you