Good morning. Welcome to our meeting, calling it to order. This is a special meeting. With an executive session. We will. Bear with me everybody. You're with me. Thought we were ready but Okay. So, I'm, something where. No need. Oh, now take the roll call. Mr. Fain. Ms. Gallagher. Mr. Greenbaum. Mr. Mayor, Dr. Rood. Sally, Mrs. Tong. Mrs. Winters? Okay, and this turn obviously here. And we have. Ms. Cohen. And. Public notice of this meeting pursuant to the Open Public Meeting Acts. Meetings Act has been given by the Board Secretary on December, the 20 s, 2,023 in the following manner. Posted on the school bulletin board at the administration building transmitted to the Courier Post. Philadelphia Enquirer and the clerk of Cherry Hill Township. Please join me for the Pledge of Allegiance. There Okay. And now it is time for our public comment. Public common is the opportunity for members of the community to comment on matters relevant to the operations of Terry Hill Public School District or within the authority of the Terry Hill Board of Education. The board welcomes diverse opinions and relevant matters. Under established federal law governing reasonable restrictions on speech and public forums, statements which demean individual community members or groups or which are a relevant to the operations of the school district or are repetitious will not be permitted. Community members who would like to present information not relevant to the school district are always welcome to communicate directly to the superintendent, board president, and all board members via email or other alternative means. If you would like to speak now, please approach the podium. You will have 3 min to speak. Please state your name and your municipality. We will alternate between those who are in the room and those who are online. If you are online and you are a student and you would like to speak. Please put an S after your name. And we will be getting the room. If anyone would like to speak, please approach the podium now. Oh, you're not. Good morning, Rick Short, Cherry Hill. Since we don't know who is the superintendent, being picked, I would suggest there's 3 that I would not choose in America. Number one would be our New York superintendent. The reason why we wouldn't choose our new working superintendent. Is because This man operates a hundred, this man operates a 1 billion dollar operation. He's just concerned about the. Hiest achieving students. Doesn't care about the lowest achieving students. There's about 400 students that come out successful from the New York school district. And the rest are failing. I wouldn't choose the Philadelphia. Superintendent. Reason why I wouldn't choose a Philadelphia superintendent because he didn't rank as an excellent superintendent. So why would you bring in a guy from North Carolina ranked at like, 200 and something? And expect him to run the entire school district of Philadelphia. And the next person I wouldn't pick in America is our intern superintendent, Dr. Morton. And I'm going to quote from Dr. Lori Pentagrass and I am a fan club. I'm sorry if I said your last name wrong. I'm a fan club member, Miss Pendigris, Dr. Pinegress. We're in a culture war. Ladies and gentlemen. Education just not based around ideologies. Education shouldn't be based around ideologies. One of the biggest ideologies that just doesn't work is DEI. And I challenge anyone in America to come up to any public mic in America. And tell me 10 successful school districts in America that have used DEI for 12 years. You will not find one person that can stand up in America and tell you that there is a successful school that's used for 12 years. So why do we do it? Why do we do it? Because it's an ideology. It's a belief. That we're all gonna be saved. Moving on to other beliefs, we have climate change. In July. And this is not, I am not criticizing Dr. Rood. I, I like Dr. Rood's opinions. Dr. Rood stood. And spoke about the climate change program. The district spent 7 months and ended up. With 6 words in the mission statement. 6 words in 7 months. When everything for climate change could be taken from the New York. City Climate Change School Report. But you choose not to use it. Nope, you have to reinvent the wheel. Have 15 different subcommittees waste hours and hours of work. That is not intelligence. Ladies and gentlemen. And I'll be back with more reasons not to pick. Dr. Morton, who is? And the next person is online with a hand up is the phone number that ends in 7 8 8. Please state your full name and your municipality. My name is Jeffrey Pottowitz and I live in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. For the open school board seat I stated at a school board meeting i would have preferred someone who had already served on the school board or the very very next highest vote getter in the election. My emphasis was that on that former school board member because they were experienced and the school board will be choosing a new superintendent. Regardless, and that's the key, regardless of that I would agree with this person's policy. I truly believe that this would have been a wiser choice for the open seat. However, and since we learned that there were individuals who met those qualifications. And they weren't chosen. And, make your final 4. I have concerns of who you will choose for our superintendent. I really believe that that experienced person. Again, whether I agree with their policies or not should have been chosen. But they were not. And they were appear apparently available. Hopefully. When you choose this new superintendent, it won't be anyone from North. Jersey. No one from North Jersey. Someone available. And, I, would I want someone from Philadelphia? The answer would be or Philadelphia superintendent, not that you're choosing that person. The answer would be no. But again, I wouldn't want anyone from North Jersey. I actually would rather see Dr. Morton, not that I agree with his policies, because I don't. But we at least know. Who he is rather than that person for North Jersey. Not that I agree with his policies and let me emphasize it. But we know who he is. And there's not gonna be any surprises. We know who he is, whether we agree with his policies or not. I don't know who you're gonna choose. But, again, I, for one of those, for one of the, none of the, I think you had better choices for the 4. Finalists for the school board. And I'm wondering for these for the school board and again who I would have chosen one of these those other people. And for a superintendent I hope you make the right choice, whatever that is. And some, I'd rather have someone that I know than someone who. That's the way I feel. Anyway, thank you very much for listening. And, Take care. Okay, we go back to the room. If you'd like to speak, please approach the podium. And please state your full name and municipality. Hello again. Joe Jarislaw. Excuse me, Joseph Jaris Law. Cherry Hill. Actually, like to follow up on. Where I where I was talking last week and you know and I mentioned that my father Superintendent schools, 28 years. A lot of experience and a lot that I learned from him from it, but The last 2 speakers actually said things that that that rang true to me in this sense. First of all, being a little humorous for your last speaker, I just want to say that I'm from North Jersey, so therefore you are perfectly okay to pick someone from North Jersey if you feel that they would do well by the district. Again, I say that with humor. I'm not trying to antagonize the last speaker. Rick actually said something that in in the opening part of his statement that was that rang true to me in this sense. He talked about, I believe it was the Newark superintendent. And how he only focused on The top 10% of his district. And I think I mentioned this last week, but I want to elaborate a little more this time. My father was adamant. As a superintendent that a district that only focuses on the top students. One that thinks it is successful is not successful. And my strong encouragement to you. I don't think I elaborated this well last time to all of you. Person whomever you pick. How does that person feel about? Students who want to do vocational skills. How does that person feel about? Frankly, the bottom 10% just as much as the the top 10%. How does that person feel about the middle? Because my father's belief was you had to build from the bottom up. And a successful district is one where. It's impossible quote unquote for all students to succeed. But for as many of them to succeed. As will allow. In the sense that If a student isn't good grade-wise but good skill-wise or vice versa. But then turns into a successful and productive citizen, that is success. That is not failure. To look at something simply and say, well, your grades are this, therefore. Is wrong. And my father again, this is a man who had a PhD from Columbia. Extra straight A student his entire life. Felt very strongly about that. So I'm just asking all of you. As I stand here honoring my father's legacy and I admit this is cathartic and meaningful to me. To make sure that you are asking whoever you're gonna hire and you know that's why we have elected board representatives to trust you to hire the right person. To really drill down on how they feel about those things. Again, you're always going to focus on the top. Focus also on the rest. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Jarison. My father also has a Ph. D. From Columbia and he always instilled in me leave the world a better place to be found it so. There you go. Lessons from our families, right? Okay. Okay. I don't see any more hands online. If there's anybody else in the room who'd like to speak, please approach the podium. Nobody at the podium. And no more hands online. And I will close public comment. And now I will make a motion to convene our executive sex session. Do I have a second? This is Sheriffane, all in favor. Hi. A motion carries. We are. Adjourned into moving into second in our executive session.