okay I would like to call this meeting to order will the secretary please call the role Mrs Becker here Mr Cummings here miss gu here Mrs herck here Mr Hong here Mrs ree here president LAX here we have a quum please rise to salute the flag I pledge algi to the flag of the United States of America America and to theic for which it stands one nation under God indivisible with liberty and justice for all the New Jersey open public meeting law was enacted to ensure the rights of the public to have advance notice of and to attend the meetings of public bodies at which any business affecting their interests is discussed and acted upon in accordance with provisions of this act the East Brunswick board of education has caused notice of this meeting to be published by having the date time and place thereof posted the East Brunswick Board of Education offices written notice was also provided to The Sentinel the New York Star Ledger the home News Tribune the alternative press of East Brunswick and the municipal clerk of East Brunswick all Board of Education meetings with the exception of executive session discussions are video vide tape for later broadcast is is the policy of the Board of Education that videotape meetings are not edited for any purpose individuals who speak at the board's public meeting should be aware of these videotaping rules good evening as we are in habit of doing we're going to go right into our Clos session whereas the Board of Education must discuss matters which are not appropriate for discussion in a public meeting and these subjects are within the exceptions to the open public meetings act and are permitted to be discussed in closed session the Board of Education intends to discuss matters as follows those items list on tonight's agenda the length of the Clos session is estimated to be 1 hour after which the public meeting of the board shall reconvene and action will be taken now therefore be it resolved that the East brunic Board of Education recess into close session for only the afret subjects and be it further resolved that the East brunic Board of Education hereby declares that its discussion of the afret subjects will be made public at a time when the Public's disclosure interest is in disclosure is greater than any privacy or governmental Interest being protected from disclosure in accordance with the open public meetings Act moved by Mrs Becker second second by Mrs gu is there any discussion all in favor I opposed motion carries thank you so much we will see you in an hour Chris oh good Chris is here all right Chris you made it at the buzzer all right welcome back everybody I'm I'm going to start this evening with Dr veski superintendent report please thank you president LAX um I want to start off with u an explanation about why we're here tonight uh East brunic police department is actually utilizing the JM pack tonight so it's an example of the relationship we have with the township and sharing services with them so that's why we're all here I also want to apologize that the the projector uh in this facility broke this afternoon so what you would typically see is video that would accompany my superintendent report uh will not be uh played tonight the artwork on display in the boardroom back at the administration building was created by students from East Brunswick High School and if you have the opportunity I encourage you to stop by it's it's great the art teachers of these talented students are Megan Buckley Lisa gambas Matilda Meo Jeffrey Novak Rachel Roman Jonathan Shala and Glenn Peno is the interim principal Irwin Elementary School was this year's Tree City USA recipient from the East Bruns Recreation Department celebrate the event a special program was held Outdoors at the schools gazebo on Friday April 26th students sang songs and read poetry for many guests and dignitaries who attended most students participated in a poster con contest where they drew pictures depicting the importance of trees and Conservancy in our world each student was provided a tree sapling donated by Stop and Shop to take home and plant to com commemorate the event nearly 100 Churchill Junior High School students were recognized for their hard work kindness and generosity at an annual celebration for the butterfly effect kindness project which took place on Monday April 29th this project was started by English teachers Edith Weinstein and Kathy Merton during the 2021-2022 school year and has continued to grow and reach other schools in the district such as Hughes where 71 kindness projects were completed this year thanks to a partnership Grant with the East Brunswick Education Foundation students write a proposal for a kindness project and carry out their kindness initiative throughout the school year students have engaged in these projects that have helped the school and Community as well as local animal shelters homeless shelters and senior citizen homes to name a few in addition to the ebef which has helped to fund grants for student projects The Churchill PTA and East Brunswick Education Association have partnered to help recognize the efforts of our students to spread kindness and assistance to those that are in need during the month of March our school district took part in the middle sex County replenished food drive we had 100% participation from all 11 schools including our administration building East Brunswick Public Schools ranked among the top 12 schools across the country and be will be recognized by the board of County Commissioners the East Brunswick schools outdoor Spring Walk at the Township municipal complex begins tomorrow Friday May 10th this year uh there was a decision to incorporate an opening evening where all families have been invited uh to join anytime from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. and again that's tomorrow night Friday May 10th many of the visual art staff will be in attendance and student music compositions will be streaming live through the speakers on the grounds the outdoor Spring Walk will be on display from Friday May 10th through Friday June 7th and now if you allow me I'm going to make a few comments regarding some things that have been going on over the past two weeks in my tenure as leader of East brons Public Schools I have remained steadfast in my commitment to fostering a positive and enriching learning environment for all students and while social media can be a powerful tool for communication it unfortunately has the potential to spread misinformation and miscon deceptions it's important to recognize that misinformation on social media can sometimes arise from misunderstandings or complete misinformation in such instances I've always been open to engaging members of the community to provide Clarity and address any concerns they may have I take great care in making decisions that prioritize the well-being and success of our students faculty and staff every decision is made with a careful consideration and major decisions are made in consultation with any number of board committees and then the entire board the decisions I make and the recommendations I make to the Board of Education are always up for debate my responsibility and Authority Under the laws of New Jersey is to make those difficult decisions what we can no longer debate is the impact of the full application of the New Jersey public school funding formula on our school district so individuals have shared posts from social media with me and I imagine they were precipitated by our budget Forum followed by our budget hearing there's a saying if you want to run with a big dogs you need to get off the porch and I guess it's easier to pound away weight a keyboard at home than it is to pick up the phone or have a face-to-face conversation the true facts from every single thing that was posted that I have been shared with me are available to the public you have to look hard enough they never make it to the public forum because it simply negates the intentional creation of chaos and since the theme on most of the Facebook posts saw were let's throw everything at the wall and see what sticks I'll provide some factual Clarity but I must tell you I'm completely disappointed to have to do this regarding security the director of security reports to me it's on an organizational chart that is part of a board policy and it's available for view on our district website regarding Bon bonuses I do not receive bonuses Mr Juliana does not receive bonuses Mr crotchfelt doeses not receive bonuses no one in our support operations receives bonuses regarding Mr Juliana's title the district is permitted to title the business administ Ator as an assistant superintendent Mr Juliana's title came with no pay increase it was the board's unanimous acknowledgement of his many contributions to the district regarding Consulting I'm stating from my contract to devote the superintendent's full-time skills labor and attention to his employment during the term of this contract and further agrees not to undertake consultative work speaking engagement writing lecturing or other professional duties for compensation without written permission from the board I do not do Contracting and I do not consult I do Main in an active limited liability Corporation for what will be a future Endeavor for me regarding statements that I work virtually a lot my contract also States the board recognizes that the demands of the superintendent's position require him to be in attendance many irregular hours and occasionally may require that he attend District business outside of the district I'm not asking for sympathy I knew what I was getting into when I took this job my work days are consistently between 12 and 14 hours that doesn't include weekends and I've had plenty of occasions over the last decade where I've taken a personal day a sick day day a vacation day and had to engage in work because of a situation in the district so if you want to accuse me of working virtually when I log in when I've actually taken time off guilty is charged regarding that I misrepresented myself and I'm not a veteran I am United States Air Force 1977 and 1981 so regarding all of our Rel reltionship I'm not resigning my current contract expires June 30th 2027 ultimately I stand in my Integrity I know who I am I'm really proud of the progress that we've made over the last 10 years and I remain fully dedicated to serving the best interest of the entire East bronswick Community I know as superintendent accountability ends with me and my words tonight are not to change anyone's mind it's to get on the public record and I'm always available to intelligently discuss any issues I simply ask the East Brunswick Community to judge me on the totality of the decade of service I've already given to you not on baseless accusations or assaults on my character these social media Marauders only have a voice if the Greater Community gives it to them if a tree falls in the woods and there's no one there to hear it does it really make a sound another school year is about to end with so many student successes we need to get back to celebrating them thank you thank you Dr veski and yesterday was one of those such days that you are too humble to say that you did have a day off um and came in um I'm looking at you speaking of student successes because I do like to stay on the positive side here I'm going to ask my friend Chris give us some give us some good news my friend from your building we're in your home home court advantage my love yes sure all right good afternoon everyone first and foremost I would like to take moment to thank all the teachers in The District in honor of teacher appreciation week if any students are listening or in the audience please make sure to give your teachers a compliment or thank you for the hard work throughout the entire year and while we're on that topic I'd like to personally thank my chemistry teacher Mr Pike for going above and beyond to prepare his class for the AP exam and for Mr Carney for agreeing to be our graduation speaker this year which is no no little task and other than that AP exams are well underway at the high school starting on Monday and continuing through next week and after AP exams clubs and activities will begin to pick up their Pace once again with the East Bruns choir having their spring concert on the 16th and the band having their concert on the 22nd East Brunswick High East Brunswick High School's International Club will also be hosting their biggest event of the Year Collision on May 17th where students will dance and compete to claim the title of the best performing group and East brunic High School student council will be hosting their outdoor movie night on the 31st so there's a lot that lies Beyond the Horizon for our high schoolers following exams and alumni can come to movie night correct yeah okay just making sure thank you so much I'm going to miss these reports I'm really glad to hear that and I have to tell you you are such a wonderful young man and I have in all my years I don't think we've had a student rep I don't know if anyone else can remember that thought to thank the teachers for sta appreciation teacher and staff appreciation week so I give you a lot of credit great job we can invite him back he's going to be nearby that's true Princeton's not far yeah yeah yeah yeah okay Run for the board you can run for the board Chris there you go all right so it is now the time for the good of the cause for the public the Board of Education recognizes the value of public comment on educational issues and the importance of allowing members of the public to express themselves on school matters of community interest to protect the privacy of all students and staff concerns regarding individual students and staff members should generally be addressed by first meeting with the appropriate administrative staff in order to permit the fair and orderly expression of such comment the board shall provide a period for public comment at every meeting the participant will be limited to three minutes duration a lapse time will be determined through the use of a timing device operated by the board secretary um and I do always remind people this is not a rule of the board this is um the way that board of educations run their meetings where we give you a public time to talk to the board you have up to three minutes you may say the microphone will be yours it's right down here when you come up if you could please state your name and address for the record um and if there is something that does need followup I don't see my friends in the audience because I have no glasses ah they're waving um please do um leave your contact information because we do take it very seriously and and would like to get back to anyone does need a reply so that being said who would like to be the first contestant this evening okay sir come on almost down and uh state your name and address for the record please I I came down a little bit a little bit just a little bit thank you uh my name is Butch salzer I live at 590 Route 18 um first of all before I get started and I know I only have three minutes doc I I like you I don't have a problem with you I don't think it was necessary for you to say what you did um from what I've seen and this is personal only you've always been nice to me so I just uh I just wanted to say that um so I think one of the reasons or the main reason that people are here tonight are to speak uh about Lu Figaroa and uh and what he's done and what he means to the community um he was referred to in or his position was referred to uh in a presentation two weeks ago as um actually I I don't even remember what he was referred to as but to me he's L Figaroa so I'm going to refer to him as Lou figeroa uh Lou has a contract he's supposed to do stuff which he does uh there are some things that he did above and beyond that I'd like to speak about uh and I I have to read this because it's the notes I was taking and by the way just so you all know if anybody of you saw me hanging out in front of the Board of Education building every day from Monday through Friday last week that was me and I was there from 8 a.m. until 6: p.m. um Lou worked with a staff member and her husband to help them get out of some outside re to get some outside resources for their son who happens to also be an East Brunswick student who uh desperately needed that help Lou ran the Safety Committee for the district which included the East Brunswick Police Police Department the East brunic fire department the office of emergency management from town and principles and staff from the district Lou attended eight different security drills in several different schools within the time of about seven business days he spent seven evenings coaching baseball two teams not one two teams um with our Township boys yesterday after the little Kur fuffle here at school uh he met with the students involved in the altercation here at the high school worked with building administrators the director of security the police department and the director of OEM to handle the problem and reestablish a safe environment might I ask how much time I have left 12 seconds bottom line folks what I'd like you to do Lori is I would like you to postpone the vote tonight speak to the eight principles and ask them what they would do without Dr Figaroa that's what I would like you to do that's what I would ask thank you Mr [Applause] s you'll state your name and address thank you good evening my name is Dominic scani I live at two Morgan Place East Brunswick I am truly speechless right now as everyone here sat through a 4-Hour Board of Ed meeting where a majority people talked about how great of a man Dr Figaroa is and you still arrived at the conclusion to cut him maybe it wasn't clear but that man has saved the lives of numerous kids in fact the fight at the high school yesterday he was there in 10 minutes and I'll let you guess who wasn't the fact that you have decided to cut the guy who truly cares about the well-being of the students says everything we need to know know the fact that you are keeping individuals who do not have teaching licenses or degrees over those who do says everything we need to know the fact that you are voting on this during Teacher Appreciation Week tells us everything we need to know you are prioritizing money over the students I don't know a single school in the state or the country who has an assistant superintendent of business operations especially one whose title was self-appointed I don't know a single school in the state where you can obtain a a college degree upon graduating and you can thank Jamie Canard for that board members here is a petition of over 800 signatures and counting to support Dr Lou Figaroa in two days so I encourage you please listen to the community and your constituents to vote no on this budget to not only save Dr Figaro's job but the lives of every single student that goes here thank you Mr stani [Applause] anyone else would like to speak to the board this evening State hi good evening my name is Dr Jamie Falco I live at 11 Taft place I'm a lifetime resident I went to bonro Elementary I graduated from the high school in 2001 what I remember in 2011 when my mother was laid off last time this budget crisis happened in this town we had symbolic gestures from leadership that meant a lot negotiations with the njaa and with the principal Association in the state it didn't make a big difference but it made a difference to us as people another thing I'm a little confused by because I can math is what what was Global economy's um inflation like 6.8% and we've estimated 3% growth of Health costs in an economy where health insurance costs more where people take more sick time I'm a little flustered because like I work in healthcare and I thought it was common knowledge that when you predict inflation you want to match that in every facet of your business I have a very successful business I grow 10% a year I grew through covid I paid my employees out of my own pocket because symbolic gestures matter and I just want to thank the board for my time thank you thank you Dr [Applause] F hi my name is Teresa Kitz I'm one of the nurses at hamers shold Upper Elementary School I've worked as a nurse in East Brunswick for just over 20 years I've been in RN for 36 years I love my job and I'm a proud public servant and thank you for your service Dr veski uh I've seen more than my fair share of budget crisis during my tenure as a school nurse serving the students staff and families of this great District um to my recollection newer positions are always the first ones eliminated uh in my 20 years this district has always had an assistant superintendent of student services when the former superintendent Joanne magistro said she was faced with making difficult decisions she said she would ask herself what is best for the students that answer made her decision a lot easier please consider my comments and rethink the move to eliminate the assistant superintendent of student services uh every child deserves a fair and appropriate education is the job of every Department Department that makes up student services to afford every student the chance to succeed as part of student services we do all we can to educate our most vulnerable most fragile diverse impaired students sometimes in assisting students and families we make unpopular difficult and expensive decisions money allocated to educate students who require an IEP a 504 plan ihp or emergency Health Plan is money invested in our children and our future eliminating the long-standing position of assistant superintendent of student services will negatively impact our students in devastating ways unpopular and difficult decisions need to be made and we rely on the assistant superintendent of student services to advocate for our departments uh when those decisions need to be made thank you Dr figuro and for coming to our department meetings and coming to Fairview and knowing what we do in student services every day thank you for that thank you Mrs kit hi my name is Tom scani I live at torgan place here in East Brunswick um I want I've been doing a lot of listening the last meeting I listened a lot and uh I spoke to a lot of people since then and just to one Lou I really want to thank you for the time you met with dom and myself that one time there uh it was amazing on what this guy did for my son and the other thing is I'm just talking to a lot of people and you'll see all the people who wrote on that petition this man's the heart and soul of East brunworth why would we want to let him go student services right now where mental health is right now you're about to let the let him go I've been teaching for 30 years I teach at Highland Park High School right now all right and I'm about to retire in June and I've seen a lot of things go on as you all have but I'm telling you this guy is the heart and soul of your school to let him go I think would be a big mistake all right I really think you should just try to re really reconsider what's going on and I know it's you know the budget I understand budgeting very well I own a business that I deal with with budgeting all the time all right this is the guy who is the heart and soul of your school thank you thank you Mr [Applause] scani uh Amy LaVine to windbeam court um Dr Dr veski I just want to thank you for coming to our chamber meetings um it means a lot to have someone from the school district support as we are a community Mr Giuliani uh I miss I rewatched the video um where you refer to handicapped students going to private schools um that is I am extremely offended by that as a parent of a young adult on the autism spectrum I find this offensive as well as you're I hope you're listening to me I see inferring that the out ofd District costs are bur them on the budget as mentioned before my son now 26 went out of District at 12 because East brond just didn't have the supports anymore did we want him to go no all internal options were a exhausted I think Dr Baldi if I'm not mistaken was the assistant principal at chick at the time it was a nightmare our go was to get him in residential setting at 21 fortunately there was an opening at bankr when he turned 17 yes Mr Giuliani that is a private school and yes Mr Giuliani the district paid for it and yes Mr Giuliani it helped us as a young adult for him to be in a group home to be in a community setting at the age of 26 we will be eternally grateful to the district for that friends and colleagues in Town ask me why I'm so passionate about being one of Dr Lou's cheerleaders Since I no longer have kids in the district many think that Dr Lou's responsibilities can be siphoned off to the directors think about that think about what Mr seler just said what happened the past couple of days what if there's an urgent matter with a special needs not handicapped Mr Giuliani not handicapped um our child's being bullied with special needs is a director going to go and take away from their responsibilities and go help that but what about everything else Dr Lou will be there in a heartbeat what kind of morale are all these directors going to have without their fearless leader being there for them who who who will they have to go to Dr veski you what do you know about special ed what do you know about bullying I can only imagine how many times you have gone through due process and other litigation relating to parents of special ed students disagreeing with their IEPs 504s Etc and I can only imagine that the number of cases will be greater without Dr Lou is that in your budget what about all these special ed kids I know people working in special ed now in the district and it breaks my freaking heart that they don't have the support they don't have the support they need time thank you Mrs line good evening Deborah means 18 Civic Center Drive I'm sorry could you repeat your last name means m e a ANS I've lived in East Brunswick since the early 1960s I attended the schools K through 12 graduated from the high school as did my daughter the teachers coaches and guidance counselor I had have athletic fields and buildings name for them Dr Figaroa is of that same caliber but he is being let go Dr Figaroa has never met me but I know so much about him and the impact he has had for our Township and our children board members you have been entrusted with the legacy of East Brunswick schools we elect you to make the best decisions for our children and I feel you have failed I cried as I listen to the testimonials in Dr Figaro's support did any of you listen you are tasked with representing the residents who elected you those same residents students parents alumni family members all accounted for the lives he has improved and the lives he has saved is that not good enough for you I too am a registered nurse and I know that saving someone's life is priceless these are the lives of our children and our future Dr Figaroa demonstrates Integrity selflessness and humble service to our children and our community he represents East Brunswick the real East Brunswick that I know for more than 60 years you say this is a painful difficult decision in reality it's a senseless decision you're compromising the Legacy entrusted to you Dr V uh Dr veski I also listened as you screamed at one of our residents last um at the community Forum a veteran at that and I'm referring to the community Forum um Community budget Forum of April 24th at recorded time 57 minutes and 25 seconds you yelled I am in public service not a public servant how can you say that East Bruns residents are all proud public servants we watch out for our children our most vulnerable our seniors and each other we all work together to keep East Bruns with the safe well-respected community that it is that veteran never questioned or even mentioned your military service he talked of your job as a public servant you owe him an apology Dr Figaroa I thank you for everything that you've done I wish the best for you and your family and thank you to all the others that are being let go as well thank you for your service thank you Mrs is there yes com down Adam Alman Adam Alman 3 inton Lane so the address on social media statements have just been made some people have made some disparaging remarks and I don't think it's appropriate and I agree however facts have just been put out there and they're meant to be there so we as members of the community know your job as board members is often thankless and you are sacrificing your own time friends and family we ask yourself though are you really looking at the budget objectively looking for great options for Grants redundancy are you being inquisitive about large scho items have you recently looked at the fact that we paid 28 2.8 million to branch and Banking Trust Company maybe completely necessary but who are they have you asked who are they have you asked why are we paying them what are we getting from them we also pay about $100,000 which could be a teacher salary to a company called Univest which seems to be just another Financial Consultant firm again could be completely appropriate but are we asking as board members who are they what are we paying them for we also took out of the budget we put a $1 million for snow removal right could we have done that inhouse and kept employees on staff instead and did we really get a million dollars worth of snow remov in the last year or so as we stated by the administration every dollar counts I ask that you vote Yes for the budget only after you really ask the hard questions after you know the true numbers a district similar to East Brunswick's size and demographics has a budget of 170 million compared to our budget of 197 million that is a 27 million difference to add fuel to the fire which I know is not what we want to do the district has better State numbers has higher rankings in Niche which I know some do not believe in has higher ranking in US news reports ask yourself why are our costs so high they may be legitimate but you need to ask yourself as board members are they legitimate the community wants to believe you and trust you but unfortunately there's a veil of secrecy that seems to be among us due the due to the lack of a transparency if you want the naysayers to go away open up the veil of seccy stop being so internalizing it and be more transparent is all we ask of you thank you and I appreciate your time thank you Mr Altman is there anyone else that would like to speak to the board this evening yes Aaron Jenkins West AER Street ma'am can you move closer to the microphone I'm 411 I'm close that's pretty much it thank you Aaron Jenkins West dher Street I'm going to start with Dr leis fig Figaroa he has everything that East Brunswick Public School should be not only is he Hands-On admin he is also a parent unlike others that do not have children in the district he has skin in the game his actions are always the in the best interest of our district the gross Injustice of eliminating him is beyond my comprehension he is our assistant superintendent 247 Dr veski and Mr Juliana I see according to linked and you both have along with former other admin thriving private businesses I'm pretty sure you would not be able to say that you have never had to address these businesses while on the clock for our district I made the same statement with Dr vanilla about double dipping during school time no one wants to answer that question either when I came to the board meeting regarding my daughter's HIV I was visibly upset at the end Dr vesy you walked over to me while I was talking to Lou you had no idea who I was or who she was Lou did he knew everything because that's who he is he represents us last meeting I said I felt my children were safe with Lou out of that position what's next are you going to come after the heads of security who try to keep this District safe yesterday at ebhs was a prime example of how much we need security I saw the multiple videos they responded very quickly I commend them with the leadership of Lou Paul and Kevin you have some very good men who go out of their way to establish relationships with children students so they can come to them they often get pushed back from other staff in doing so but they still want those kids to know they can trust them my children trust the security we are not known as a violent or suicidal District statistically and thank God for that I fear that will change as a result of these changes you say it's not your fault but it is your fault it's your fault the budget has come to this you depended on money that was not guaranteed it's a gift it's just as dumb as depending on a Christmas bonus years of wasted money have brought us here things you're trying like shortening fair viiew or graduation at ebhs could have been done years ago to save money as well as I'm sure multiple other things you say it's a business yes it is a business one that has been run very poorly this is your fault removing glue will change that and all he handles I hope we do not become a more violent District I hope parents never have to bury a child I am extremely glad my children will no longer be in this District if Lou is not here unfortunately this is the reality of our kids worlds as yesterday demonstrated when things go downhill please know that blood is on your hands it is your fault thank you Dr Figaro for everything you have done thank you Mrs Jenkins uh good evening members of the Board of Education I'm sorry I'm late I was busy running my wrestling practice I own the gym no just if you could start with your name and address Sor I am right now thank you my name is Nicholas Cabrera I am a resident of East Brunswick living on uh living at 205 fresh ponds Road my family and I moved here three year three years ago drawn by the positive interactions we observe with school staff and administration many of my friends and family have actually lived in this town and I grew up in middlex County over in Edison I'm very familiar with East Brunswick and the quality of the education here and I've been an educator for a decade impressed by the commitment to the Quality programming I left a 10e position to join Churchill as a special education teacher in January working with some of the most challenging students in the district the dedication of the Churchill staff despite the constraints of educational bureaucracy is nothing short of remarkable however I stand before you today deeply troubled by certain practices that have come to light since I became a resident of this town suspected issues of internal corruption incompetence by upper management opaque backdoor dealings are alarming and unacceptable our educators security Personnel uh administrators at the building level and support staff strive to do their utmost with the resources available to them however these resources are mismanaged it was stated to me through a phone call made by the Board of Ed to the VFW that our superintendent is an Air Force veteran thank you for your service I actually mean that I would like to remind him that the Air Force core values Integrity first service before self and excellence in all we do should guide not only our personal lives but also our professional and Civic responsibilities even after even after service the seven Army values loyalty Duty respect selfless service honor integrity and person personal courage continue to be my Guiding Light and should be the Cornerstone of a District's leadership decision making process it's important to note that many of the teachers have remained silent on these issues at a fear reprisal as a fellow educator and a firm believer of free speech I feel it is both important and morally ethical to speak truth to power we must Foster an environment where our staff feels safe to express concerns without fear ensuring their voices can contribute to positive change current currently the district faces an $8 million deficit with forecast suggesting further fiscal deterioration as cited by the board in your last meeting time I'll be posting this online in complete and I'll also read it thank you for your time thank you Mr [Music] PR Marx SAR 100 fresh ponds Road there are six basic questions to ask when you're trying to solve a problem they are the five w an H we all remember that from school the who tonight is Dr Lou Figaroa the what is Dr Figaroa is being removed from a very important job the where unbelievably this is occurring in our district the when tonight unless the board does the right thing and votes no to this budget or at least votes no to removing Dr Figaroa the how Dr veski is doing a reduction in force we are losing people that are critical to our students not just Dr Lou we are missing the why and I'm sorry I didn't I didn't hear the why in the superintendent report tonight it didn't cover that it just covered the social media the why is not because state aid was reduced it's not about money the why is not that Dr figuro did anything wrong in fact he excels in every measure Lou moved his family here he volunteers here he's available 24/7 for the people here and he still found time to complete his doctorate degree to to be part of our family here the why is not that this doesn't have student impact it has significant negative student impact and safety issues for years to come if you remove Lou is the why that Dr veski has made it personal is it ego no one has answered the why and to the board of ed read the room Lou is part of the East frontal Community Victor veski is still an outsider it appears tonight sounds like a vote of no confidence in the super superintendent's decision to cut L if the board votes tonight to remove Dr Figaroa the who becomes seven board members up here on the deis the what is never forgetting what was done today by removing Lou the when will be during the election this November and other election days after that the wear it's going to be at our East bunduk voting locations and voicing our opinions at future board meetings the how hopefully we find new candidates that will do the right thing for our students and replace the current Board of Education why I'll answer the why because this board is not I repeat is not listening to our residents they are not representing the resident requests and is failing because the board is not ensuring the district is being run well for the sake of our students staff residents and visitors to our excellent School District I implore you to do the right thing keep Dr L Figaroa thank you thank you Mr ssar [Music] hi Michael delua 28 Parker Street I live in this District a long time 73 years almost um Dr vesy I don't really know you uh but I did listen to the entire board meeting last time and and and there there was a couple things that I heard okay one was the word redistricting pointed out to you and uh by some members of the board uh I also heard some things that you just said today that you do make recommendations to this board but there your your recommendation it's only one vote okay there are many members on this board so when they were constantly blaming you for all these problems okay they should have been blaming the entire board at the same time okay okay because you're only one person you make a recommendation okay I know your job is hard uh and and as far as always hearing this thing about special education and special needs okay that number never goes away and take it one from one who knows okay my daughter's 38 years old okay been uh at a district when she was in the school district as well okay I'm a very vocal person as well so uh I I I think some of the things that you you you cause your own problems okay your three minute rule I watched people come to this microphone and past board meetings uh and be students and be cut off okay you want to listen to people you got to do away with this three minute rule it's ridiculous okay it's never been around before okay and it and and when I read the board minutes I also saw that it's only been lately that it's uh been introduced okay so use your heads people are talking on multimedia for one reason because if they come up here you're not going to listen to them you only got three minutes and if you can't say your peace in three minutes that's it and I seen students argue and when I was going to come here I was going to say I wanted to come and play Beat the Clock because that's exactly what it sounds like okay you're a board of education you need to turn around and start representing the people as far as meetings I've sat here in this building okay when Dr mistro addressed uh members of the the different uh State uh uh legislature in the past okay and I've never seen meetings happen like that you're saying go back to the public and and and and voice your concerns well it's up to this board 10 seconds to to to bring people in in here and other legislators okay we're not Edison and we're not uh uh perthamboy or Woodbridge okay that's where all the legislators are not East Brunswick thank you [Applause] Mr hi good evening Jim Logan 30 Myrtle Road East Brunswick uh had the pleasure to speak to the board two weeks ago at the meeting and just want to very quickly start by saying to Dr veski anyone that's ever put on the uniform and serve the country should never feel that they have to be in a position to justify that so I think it's very unfortunate that you had to comment on that and thank you for your service uh to our country having said that I asked an open-ended question two weeks ago and I said are we potentially taking a bad situation that we all find ourselves in and making it significantly worse and as I reflect on all the different things and side conversations that have happened over the last two weeks I have to wonder what what has been the dialogue how how have we not found an ability in other areas of potential funding to cut to make this situation not graduate to a much worse situation and it certainly seems that that's the path we're going down whether it's a bake the decision already or not uh obviously it's unfortunate if it is and I don't think people are being gratuitous or embellishing when you hear the people that have stood here over the last several meetings and talked about the lives that that man has saved that is not passion or embellishment or people being gratuitous those are facts those are facts and we're talking about an individual that has saved students lives there's got to be other areas that we can find the money from in order to protect the position and the integrity and the quality that he brings to the children of this district and with the rest of my time as I said last time I'm a personal friend of Lou so I don't call him Dr figero I call him Lou because that's the kind of standup gentleman that he is and before I finish I'd like to also acknowledge what I said two weeks ago it's unfortunate that there are 29 other people losing their jobs those are families those are people those are incomes it's it's a very unfortunate situation I've been there myself in in the past so I can I can empathize but we all know that life is not fair and so with my last commentary I'll actually address your lovely family and just say be proud of that man and remember how many people love and respect him and no matter what happens here tonight no one can change that God bless you you low thank you Mr [Applause] Logan go ahead good evening Jeff Winston fresh ponds Road the words of the superintendent I think uh he needs to hear this these are quotes we did everything humanly possible to avoid cutting staff and impacting students we did things with insurance we did things with energy we did preschool we did everything humanly possible to avoid you've heard me and you and the superintendent said back in 2021 the presentation back then said this year we won't be able to do it this was forecasted we saw it coming the superintendent said we've been planning for this uh for for uh when we get to that year we'll be able to manage the budget with minimal impact as possible you went on to the superintendent went on to say the reality this is pain this is Staffing impact right now for the last two weeks what we've been doing you talked the superintendent talked about the miserable existence this has been a miserable existence I feel horrible quoted for the teachers and staff I feel horrible for uh administrators delivering the news the worst the superintendent said the superintendent went on to say uh that this is teacher and staff appreciation week no one is feeling appreciated right now no no one is walking around saying yay you can buy the donuts you can hear you can't hear the nice things but really what they're saying is don't fire my friend these are the words of the superintendent but not that one the one from South Brunswick this is the way the South Brunswick superintendent addresses people not standing up on the stage with your tears and saying how sad it is for you you spent the first couple of minutes doing it this week Miss LAX you did it last week let's go around the table Lou what's sad for you [Music] the rest of the board you sit here half of you aren't looking you're in outer space two weeks ago I listened to Dr Figaroa an honored member of this District I don't know what he did wrong I asked him I said whatat did you do wrong did I ask you that Lou what did you do wrong to deserve this I asked him to explain to me how the the highest quality assistant superintendent is kicked out while the lowest quality superintendent is rewarded explain it to me Lou you still haven't and I'll come back for that answer the rest of the board you sit there and you say nothing these two people next to me pour their hearts out and you sit on your hands and stare out into space as one of them is doing right there and do nothing you don't put your hands together for a standing ovation for for a family that's going through pain one of our own in the district that you paid for how many years Lou 12 10 seconds I don't need it thank you Mr [Applause] Winston is there anyone else that would like to speak to the board this evening [Music] Michael msto 27 col Colonial Drive can you please uh repeat your name Michael masto thank you a few weeks ago I along with others provided both a character reference as well as a rationale for why Dr L Figaroa should not be removed from the very important position he holds within this school system Sy what is unfortunate about this is that despite the outpouring support that this community gave his reinstatement is still not a topic of consideration by the board as representatives of the community some of which are elected by US citizens of the community it is expected that those who whom we elect serve in the interests of what the community wants I thought it was very clear very clear that Dr L Figaroa was needed by the community in the position that he currently holds so now I and many others might be very clear that if the community is not heard yet again and there is not a plan for the reinstatement of Dr Lou Figaroa the community might not forget when it's time again to cast their ballot in short responsibility also Bears accountability I'm confident that you will find a way to make a decision that truly serves our school Community Lou we appreciate appreciate all that you have done for our school our community and most of all our kids thank you thank you Mr msto Jack block 37 Hillel Road um I didn't plan on coming up and speak tonight uh a couple weeks back I addressed you all and a call for just transparency and saying look we know that when jobs get cut jobs need to be reallocated I feel the need at this point to talk about Dr Figaroa we've heard so much about the character of the man and the lives that he's touched we still don't have answers about the many hats that he wears and where those responsibilities are going to fall I just ask you to consider that you might find a way to divvy up those tasks and reassign those roles but are you going to find a way to replace the man that had those connections and built those relationships someone that could come into an emergency situation like we had here at eunsuk high school yesterday who is able to speak to the students allocate responsibilities take control of the situation all right as was said earlier we might take a director's position maybe another supervisor and say now this is your responsibility and you're going to take over that role but do they have the experience do they have the training do they have the required certifications to carry out the roles that he has done so amazingly well over the last 12 or so years it's easy to try and take away the responsibilities and reallocate them but can you actually replace the man and I think the answer has universally been we have serious concerns about that with the time that I have left I need to talk about someone else someone I've come to know and respect tremendously ly over the last couple years Jamie Canard has been one of our supervisors for special programs here at runuk high school on a personal level I can say that she has helped tremendously my daughter who is now a junior in high school who was on track to graduate with her associates degree when she graduates high school next June that would not have been possible without her direct one-on-one assistance that she's provided her in the guidance along the way am Canard works with some of our most high-risk students students who otherwise might not have a chance of graduating students who otherwise as has been mentioned might have to be sent out of district for special placement and special resources how much would that cost Jamie Canard thank you for all that you've done I know we've we've spoken so much about the great man up on stage Dr Figaroa I don't want you to be lost in the sauce thank you thank you Mr [Applause] [Music] bla Danielle Vio 23 Bradford Road um so in regards to social media I get it I run one of the parent groups and I understand it's a it's it can get overwhelming but we are confused we are at a loss and we don't know where to get information because we can't engage in a dialogue here and we email and we can't get emails we tag and we can't get responses because of laws and legality so we don't know what to do so we talk to each other so here's my message to you we know we aren't the only District struggling to find ways to keep jobs but over the past few weeks we've been flooded with questions leaving us feeling overwhelmed and at a loss for understanding as a society our teachers are struggling and as parents we grapple with the same challenges it's disheartening to witness the parent disconnect between our community's needs and the responses we receive it's evident that when we voice our concerns they aren't listened to so what recourse are we left with we recognize that in the past there may have been some sense of compliance within our community however times have changed there's a growing level of mistrust in the current leadership and rumors abound without Avenues to engage directly with the board members we're left to speculate and search for answers on our own we're awake and we want accountability we expect that the was appointed and elected to serve in leadership roles to do so with integrity and compassion we need reassurance that our concerns are heard and addressed and that decisions are made transparently and with the best interest of our children in mind so our call to action is to urge you to bridge the cap between the community and the board to Foster open dialogue to create avenues for Meaningful engagement and to remember why you ran for office thank you thank you Miss V [Applause] is there anyone else that would like to speak to the [Music] board my name is Karen Ellingson nesty 26 Maple Street uh I think this will be a little repetitive but I did want to add my voice um and I'm just reading reading an email that I had sent to all of you uh I'm speaking in support of Dr Louis Figo lisis Figaro in the hope that you will reconsider the elimination of his position knowing that um my time is limited I'll try and keep this brief as I tried in my email but didn't really succeed uh as an educator myself although not in East Brunswick and as a community member and parent I understand very well that you all have an extremely difficult job to do to balance the budget as well as maintain a high level of educational services to this community I have been very impressed with nearly every aspect of my children's education since my daughter started school in the district more than 10 years ago at Bal Monroe at every level school and at every level school and District staff work hard there is no doubt that that is true as a fellow parent and East Brunswick teacher who just spoke uh said at the April budget forum and I remembered what he said and wholeheartedly agree it's a hardworking District top to bottom with that being said I do not think it is fair to sacrificed the job of one of the hardest working and most valuable members of your team for the sake of a balanced budget to quote from another Community member who posted on social media sorry Dr figuroa has been an asset to the town to the school district and town for numerous years he ensures that all individuals are supported and the district is Equitable Dr Figaro has attended numerous District events and has shown his support and commitment to our children I have heard students staff and parents comment on their approval of his work ethic professionalism and positive demeanor I'm sure someone who's here tonight wrote that I'm just quoting her I wholeheartedly agree with these statements and have observed for myself the value that Dr figuro adds to the district as a high level employee and as a community member while I understand that employees of the district are not required to be East Brunswick residents it is extremely valuable to have at least one high-ranking employee on board who is invested in the community in the way that only a resident of the town can be I think this is a key factor to consider in this whole situation from what you indicated in uh at the budget Forum Dr veski the responsibilities that coincide with Dr Figaro's Position will be delegated throughout the district which no doubt means that demands on other administrators and staff will be overwhelming creating inconsistency and a lot of problems in the areas that the assistant superintendent is responsible for overseeing I don't see how this is a realistic solution and I worry that major problems will be created in these key areas as I stated previously I am truly understanding of the difficulties you are facing and deciding what to cut and also profoundly thankful that you were able to at least temporarily save the Elementary music program which both my children are part of uh let me skip down to the bottom here can I finish time okay thank you please uh reconsider reconsider what you're [Applause] thinking yes okay [Music] good evening Aram shock here 8 Lantern Lane East Brunswick I'd like to first start by expressing my gr gratitude towards all of you for your hard work and dedication to our district with that being said a critical part of your job as a board of education m is to listen to all the feedback from parents staff and students and use that feedback when you vote on such matters never before have I ever encountered such an overwhelming outpouring of heartfelt tributes towards an individual and I think you guys can all agree to that each and every testimonial has been deeply moving and I sincerely hope that these accounts have been deeply resonated with all of you it is evident that he has had a profound impact on lives of many folks have been pouring in and making a legit effort taking time out of their busy lives to advocate for that man and I'm astonished that his role is still being considered for elimination many of you on the board are familiar with Dr Lou and are aware of his exceptional qualities the fact that he has garnered support from so many individuals speak volume about his professionalism and kind nature it is a true Testament to his character it is also evident that we already have somebody who is successfully managing multiple critical roles such as security counseling Athletics and special education and cutting him would be wrong Reckless and a huge Injustice to our children especially mine your decision of eliminating his role would be a huge disservice to our community thank you thank you Mr hi good evening everyone my name is Maggie georgees I'm at 34 Garfield um thank you to all those uh thank you to all those who are losing their jobs I'm sincerely sorry that this is the current situation that we are in however my question is moving forward how do we prevent this this is a big problem because the state is set up in a way that it's meant to take from the Richer communities to provide to the poorer communities it's a democratic approach it's what we voted for in New Jersey and we might agree or disagree but it's what also makes Ed education great in the United States it's because everyone has an opportunity to a great quality education now realistically emails to the state won't do anything I really thought about this a lot I sent the email um advocating for funds but realistically the formula will not change the state knew exactly what they were doing when they changed the formula or when they fully implemented the formula so now why are emails not being sent to the township the township needs to bring up the money not needs to Fork up this money the state took away from townships like East Brunswick to provide to hen and Trenton and Newark because their towns their cities don't have money okay it makes sense realistically we can't ask for that money back because towns like Newark and Camden and Trenton they don't have their townships to back up it's lowincome East Brunswick has money why are we not getting money from the mayor where is the mayor in all of this where is Mayor Cohan this is an election year our schools are going down we don't want to increase taxes and we don't want to come next year where we have less money from the state okay where is Mayor Cohan why are emails not being organized to the township so I kindly ask if if what can we do with the township without raising our taxes currently Route 18 has all these lights that are being replaced I think that could be put on hold for a little bit and more money could come to the township where's the pilot money why is the pilot money not coming to the board our schools need to retain quality quity and as I'm so sorry Dr figero about your job but my heart also breaks for the other 28 people truly everyone's job is important and I hope next year we're not losing other jobs I'm really worried so how can we talk to the township what is the relationship between the board and the township about the money so I really appreciate your time and I wish you all the best during this this hardship thank you thank you m georgees is there anyone else that would like to speak to the board okay I just don't want to close the public portion without anyone getting to speak oh Jennifer Figaroa 101 Rus Lane I ask if you work virtually from home why did you ask Lou to be in charge of the district 119 times in the past two years yes I've been counting now let's address the hostile work environment you've created the way you speak to people especially women and now you have one of your cronies heading up HR doing your Dirty Work Lou and his team are the only ones that have that would stand up for what's right let's not hide behind your smoke and mirrors of numbers with only $1.3 million loss from the state you are you still are in crisis you think we're stupid so a struggling business chooses to remove the person who brings wealth and success that sounds like a poor business model to me me removing Lou is just another one of your Scare Tactics to keep people in fear of you but you may have gotten a little too greedy this time you may have misjudged the situation and the power of the people in this town I think you have started a Revolt will be coming after those who have allowed this to go on in November and then we'll be coming after your job it's time that you be held accountable for a slowly failing District you saw the numbers on the petition over 800 and growing and that's just in the last 48 hours and that was just from the people who don't fear you those who don't need to worry about your revenge and backlash but behind closed doors anything can happen you know all about that don't you you want to hide behind the budget and use it as an excuse but we know the decision you made regarding Lou is personal let's make this personal then Lou is not being let go due to a bud to crisis he's being fired because he stands up for what he believes in and can't be paid off but I I don't know if anyone has thought about this the figuras just don't go away after this board votes we live in town we're part of this community and we will continue to speak up for what's right and for the kids of East [Applause] Brunswick when I think about all that the recent events and all the knowledge that has come to surface regarding many sitting up there tonight I think it's despicable maybe a Figaroa and Figaroa Board of Education ticket in November would be in order hey I may even convince to run for mayor some of you are asking does he have any experience in politics no he doesn't but Victor doesn't have any experience in education he's never stepped foot in a classroom as a teacher never stepped foot in a building as a principal even an assistant principal and yet the board has hired him as our assistant superintendent of schools and has continued to renew his contract his background is in business and finance business and finance maybe that's the person the assistant of superintend of business and operations that he should be getting rid of that that would have the least impact on students when the directors of the finance department have a problem they can filter up to Victor just like he said Dr Figaro's people would do he should be able to answer those questions those types of questions right but doesn't sound like he's been doing a good job at that either with your decision to not rehire Lou you're just trying to make a point flex your muscle and cover up your dark Financial secrets let's let your vote tonight represent the voice of the people thank you Mrs figarella [Applause] is there anyone else that would like to speak to the board this [Music] evening [Music] okay I'm not really sure that Daren sislak a chill Road could you repeat your name Daren Daren sislak thank you Dr fera and M and Mr nalich I want to acknowledge your prompt and Safe Handling of the situation at the high school being there shortly after incident started Dr fesi you responded almost 3 and a half hours in after the incident when I last spoke I discussed previously and curiously about our 247 crisis response plan I know there's a flowchart but what is our actual 247 plan particularly when Dr figur is no longer in the district I would appreciate if you could provide me more information about the vendors and the bids that East Brunswick has accepted it seems that these vendors are most selected without a competitive bidding process could you set some light on these times for me on April 25th how did we pass a 2.8 million expeditor on a new rtu system at the high school without an open discussion or floor vote why do we need a new R2 system and many vendors provide bids for the system how many Dr fesi you have stated numerous times that our school district is a business again that is your educational background and experience it's that it's business this is a home and a community Mr Jillian it was stated that you did not self-a appoint yourself as assistant superintendent of school schools however the public is still unclear how you receive this position you get a new title and suddenly there is no room for you Lou sorry hamers Educators had to take a salary decrease due to the renaming of a school from middle school to elementary school as a parent when I was asked to vote I thought it was just in fun did we know that our teachers took an $8,000 pay cut because we changed the name of the school as an educator I'm furious these highly qualified teachers are impacted by your lack of transparency this leads me to my next question what qualif qualifications do you make as an assistant superintendent with these qualifications in mind why Dr figeroa why the most honest committed transparent person the person that would speak up against questionable practices is there more going on that the district needs to be made aware of which we have been in the past few days my children and their friends are heartbroken about you what you are doing to our community Lou is their Savior and their role model yes they're aware of what is happening because they trust us therefore for we must be their protectors and be transparent in this as we expected from you I think that you should have school assemblies and tell these children yourselves that Lou is not coming back because when he doesn't show up at a school event sporting event or anywhere else who's going to tell them their teachers their parents because they will notice he is not here and somebody needs to be accountable and it's not me in 2 days you have raised over a thousand almost a thousand supporters for for L when I went back and I checked on elections some of you received just over 4,000 votes and that took you a lot of voting rights 10 seconds some of you received just about a thousand think about that Lou a th000 votes in two days so thank you thank you m is there anyone else that wants to speak to the board I don't want to shut it down unless everyone's got their chance no okay all right I'm going to close the public portion then move on to our Board of Education items I would like to ask for a nomination to appoint the board member to our first vacancy on the board can I have a oh I'm sorry sorry Mr Hong yes I I'd like to nominate Dr James has James for the one of the board of two vacancies okay do I have a second for that I'll second that okay second Mr her uh I'm do I ask for nominations is there any other nominations okay then I'm going to close the nominations for this vote and I'm going to ask the secretary please call the role for Miss Dr James this is a roll call vote for Dr Heather James Mrs Becker yes Mr Cummings yes Miss guas yes Mrs herck yes Mr Hong yes Mrs ree yes president LAX yes motion carries congratulations to Dr James um for this second board vacancy do I have a nomination for someone to fill the second Bo Mrs gu I'd like to nominate page gazami okay is there a second second second by Mrs Reese any discussion um public nominations are there any other nominations from the floor for the second seat okay seeing none I will close the nominations and ask the secretary to again please call the role for Mr pankaj gazami Mrs Becker yes Mr Cummings yes Miss gu yes Mrs herck yes Mr Hong yes Mrs ree yes president LAX yes motion carries congratulations to to Mr gazami um I am going to ask for a motion to combine this evening's items um on tonight's agenda with the exception of financial services item number three may I please have a motion move by Mrs Becker was it second second by Mrs G is there any discussion okay will the secretary please call the role Mrs Becker Mr Cummings yes Miss was yes Mrs herck yes Mr Hong yes Mrs ree yes president LAX yes motion carries I am now going to ask for a motion for financial services item number three is that Mrs Becker quiet I your mic's on Mrs Becker is there a second so I said so so yes I heard yes okay sorry I didn't hear move by Mrs Becker second by Mrs G um as far as discussion um I'm actually going to read a statement on behalf of the entire board as we embarked in the process of crafting our budget for the 2024 2025 fiscal year we were confronted with significant challenges that demand our careful attention and prudent decision-making working collaboratively with District administration our charge was to maintain the highest possible standards that our community expects and deserves to that end we carefully assessed every aspect of how we continue to deliver high quality and Rel rigorous education how we restructure our administrative functions how we economize our financial commitments and how we maintain our operational needs as we navigated these complex decisions we recognize that difficult choices had to be made we will continue to advocate for change at the legislative level and gather input to make informed decisions that prioritize the best interest of our staff and students and the long-term sustainability long-term sustainability of our district I'm going to ask the secretary to please call the role Mrs Becker yes Mr Cummings yes Miss gu yes Mrs herck yes Mr Hong yes Mrs ree yes president LAX yes motion carries I'm going to entertain a motion to adjourn so move move by Mrs Becker second by Mrs gross all in favor opposed abstentions motion carries thank you for everyone for coming out this evening have a good night you