##VIDEO ID:NlPHzHeg-fY## e e e e order at 6:30 PM meeting notice statement adequate notice of this meeting of the Berkeley Heights Board of Education was given as required by the open public meetings act as follows notice of this special Board of Education meeting was sent to the Star Ledger and The Courier news on October 25th 2024 and was provided to all schools PTO presidents the bhea president and posted at the administration building a copy was also provided to the public library and filed with the municipal clerk please rise for the flag salute I pledge aliance to the flag of the United States of America and to the repic for which it stands one nation God indivisible with liberty and justice for all thank you Mr secretary can we have a world call Mr here mrman here here M Conor here Stanley adjourn to Executive session whereas the Berkeley Heights Board of Education seeks to adjourn to Executive session in full compliance with the open public meetings Act njsa 10 colon 4-6 and whereas the open public meetings act provides that a public body May exclude the public from that portion of the meeting at which it discusses matters related to those identified below matters rendered confidential by federal law state law or Court rule individual privacy collective bargaining agreements purchase or lease of real property if public interest could be adversely affected investment to public funds if public interest could be adversely affected tactics or techniques utilized in protecting Public Safety and property pending or anticipated litigation attorney client privilege Personnel employment matters affecting specific prospective or current employees be it resolved that the Berkeley Heights Board of Education adjourns to Executive session to discuss matters related to personnel and be it further resolved that the minutes of the discussion of any of these items will be disclosed to the public when the matters have been determined and confidentially confidentiality is no longer applicable may I have a motion to enter into executive session okay okay Dr forer and Mrs cona seconded thank you a Voice vote I the time is 6:32 we will return to public session in about an hour e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e uh may I have a motion to return to public session thank you Dr forger a second thank you Mrs Stanley and the time is 7:25 oh Voice vote sorry thank you 7:25 p.m. okay our agenda is simple tonight we have a personnel and we have one resolution for all board members to put forward may I have a motion to put forward resolution a all board members thank you Mrs Jolly thank you Mrs cona okay may we have any discussion on the board okay I have an introduction okay so we are very pleased to be here tonight and thank you all for coming we have an introduction for Dr Kim feltre Dr phry brings a wealth of experience and Leadership to the Berkeley High Public Schools Dr phry holds a doctorate in educational leadership from Rowan University a master of science and pharmacology from UMDNJ ruter University and a Bachelor of Arts in biology from Drew University Dr felt's professional career has spanned various roles during her 24 years in education including teacher science supervisor assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction acting super attendant and purchasing agent these experiences have provided her with a comprehensive understanding of the educational landscape and the complexities of District leadership for the past 18 years she has been a dedicated member of Hillsboro Township Public Schools serving in a various roles with increasing responsibility currently the assistant superintendent for curriculum instruction Dr vry recently served as Acting Superintendent demonstrating a strong ability to navigate complex challenges and lead the district through a period of transition Dr FY has a proven record track record of success as the assistant super of curriculum and instruction Dr feltri oversees all district instructional programs ensures alignment with state standards and fosters a culture of continuous Improvement she coordinated coordinates sustained professional learning and has successfully overseen the procurements of multiple competitive grants to support a budget negatively impacted by S2 funding Cuts prior to be being the assistant superintendent Dr feltri served as the K2 District science supervisor where she played a pivotal role in developing and implementing Innovative science curricula including those aligned with the Next Generation science standards Dr felt has a commitment to professional growth she actively participates in numerous professional organizations and has Pres presented at various conferences sharing best practices with Educators across the state and Nation throughout her career Dr felt has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to empowering Student Success she believes in creating a learning environment that Fosters critical thinking collaboration and a love for lifelong learning Dr FY is a strong advocate for all students and she is dedicated to ensuring that each student has the opportunity to reach their full potential we are confident that Dr felt's leadership vision and collaborative spirit will Propel Berkeley Heights Public Schools to even greater Heights please join us in welcoming Dr Kim felt as our superintendent to be okay all right any other discussion yes Mrs jolly there we go there we go sorry uh not so much discussion but I would also just like to say you know we're so pleased that Dr feltre is uh joining us um I think we you know as we got to know her through the interview process and through um the references that we had spoken to and I kind of prepared um some of the you know um quotes that we've heard that she's um dedicated well prepared thoughtful um so I think we um found a really good superintendent very pleased to have you here thank you Mrs Jolly Mrs Conor I just want to Echo what Natasha said um we're all very excited uh and very pleased to have you join us tonight and really looking forward to January 2025 uh when you will be here fulltime so congratulations again Mrs Ziri so welcome to Berkeley Heights and uh we're very pleased to have you here or is when I when we started the superintendent search I wasn't sure if we were going to make it and um it was a lot of long night long hours and um we're very pleased to have you here and listening from all the reference checks that we got uh hearing how detail oriented you are and how you like to get into the trenes to get to understand the situation we would really we're really looking forward to having you here come January welcome okay I will read the resolution resolution a appointing superintendent whereas the board desires to appoint Dr Kim feltri as superintendent of schools of the Berkeley height school district for the period of July 1st 2025 to June 30th 2028 January sorry January 1st 2025 to June 30th June 30th 2028 pursuant to the terms and conditions of a contract entered into between the board and Dr felt and whereas the contract between the board and Dr phry has been approved by the executive County Superintendent for Union County and now therefore be it resolved that Dr fter is hereby appointed as superintendent of schools beginning on January 1st 2025 and subject to the terms and conditions of an employment contract and state law be it further resolved that the board approves the employment contract previously approved by the executive county superintendent of schools for Union County with Dr phry Mr secretary do we need a vote on this resolution okay may we have a roll call vote please uh Mrs J Mrs Conor yes Dr yesel yes Mr hman yes Mr Stanley yes Mrs Bradford yes pass thank you Dr phry welcome would you like to make a statement to us thank you so good evening I'm deeply honored to accept the position of superintendent for the Berkeley Heights Public Schools it is a privilege to join a community with a long-standing tradition of academic excellence and a deep commitment to Student Success as I embark on this new role I want to reaffirm to the Board of Education my dedication to serving Berkeley Heights Public Schools through collaborative and transparent communication I believe that schools Thrive when we work together as a unified team with teachers staff students parents and community members all playing a vital role with a background in science I approach our relationship with a spirit of inquiry eager to listen and learn about the strengths challenges and insights of our community I intend to foster a culture of open dialogue and shared decisionmaking by actively listening to stakeholders we can identify pressing issues and exciting possibilities as well as Dev Vel innovative solutions that meet the needs of all of our students I'm committed to ensuring that our schools provide a safe supportive and inclusive learning environment for every child this means investing in our teachers staff students and facilities and promoting a positive School climate where everyone feels valued and respected I also believe that our schools should be Forefront should be at the Forefront of educational Innovation by embracing new tech Technologies and student centered pedagogical approaches we can prepare our students to be critical thinkers and problem solvings solvers ready to meet the challenges and opportunities of the future as your superintendent I want to channel your hopes dreams and challenges to create a community that continues to include Inspire and Empower every student in Berkeley Heights I want to express my sincere gratitude to the Board of Education for their trust and confidence I look forward to working with you to build a future where our students can Thrive thank you thank you Dr peltry at this time during our shorten oh yes Mrs Jolly thanks just one more thing before we move to on public comment I just also wanted to say as we welcome Dr phry I just also wanted to um say thank you to Mr Nixon for um a tremendous dis role that you know job that he has done coming into you know somewhat difficult situation with many headwinds is why I think he did an amazing job you know filling in this interim period and really you know kept the district together he was always very professional and you know really good to deal with so thank you Mr Nixon absolutely okay uh comments from the public on any topic during this portion of the meeting District residents and staff are invited to address the board of education on any topic the board requests that individuals State their name and town of residence or School of attendance for the record the specific action item they are commenting on and ask that all remarks be directed to the board president or design not to individual members or staff the board asks that the members of the public be courteous and mindful of the rights of other individuals when speaking specifically comments regarding Personnel manners are discouraged and cannot be respond responded to by the board students and employees have specific legal rights afforded by the laws of New Jersey the board Bears no responsibility nor will it be liable for any comments made by the members of the public if a matter concerning a District staff member is of Interest or concern to a resident that matter should be referred to the responsible building principal superintendent of schools or Board of Education either by telephone letter or email although the board may not respond to it raised during the public forum all public comments will be considered please note that if any member of the public becomes disruptive during the meeting the board president May terminate the participant statements continued disruptions may result in removal from the board or adjournment of the meeting each speaker's statement will be limited to three minutes in duration and because of our upgrades in our technology of audio and Technical we do not have remote participation tonight but we do have public in person so is there anyone from the public who would like to make a comment this evening okay I see no one from the public make a comment oh sorry may we have your name please please yes um my name is Bruce Cooper barley hikes and I wasn't planning on saying anything as was a grandfather of students in the berkly high school system but grandpas always have to say something and um uh uh I really found out about this meeting and and the doctor's becoming the new superintendent today so I really didn't have any opportunity to do any research I just know a little bit uh that you were part of the Hillsboro school system and you were an intimate interim superintendent there for a short period of time right so I I think as a grandpa who's trying to be informed and thinking about the future um uh I need to know more about the doctor and just her um her thoughts are um in a climate where someone's success is often not success in the eyes of another person um dialogue I think is very important and and uh and and I think that uh I'll give you just an example in my own experience in grammar school growing up I'm 73 years old in Grammar School school at North Allon High School uh we used to begin our day with prayer and uh following the prayer we used to have a reading from the Bible and then the salute of the flag and so forth and so you can see that as a grandpa we feel kind of like out of touch with a lot of the new new things that are coming upon us especially in the school systems so it's a great concern and we we're trying to be more informed we're trying to be more informed um success um I think uh can be helped by learning from parents and and I think in our climate many parents are are busy just trying to make a living they're overwhelmed with the living and as you can see you would think that the whole school system would be here to welcome a new superintendent we only have a handful of people so so that's an indication to me that there has to be more dialogue there has to be more open exchange between parents and administrators and so forth so that's my that's my hope and I think my three minutes are up but thank you very much thank you is there anyone else who'd like to speak very brief I would just like I'm sorry could you restate your name again sorry my name is aric Samson and just briefly I would like to commend the board of education for their thir um thoughtful approach in selecting our new superintendent the entire process was conducted trans apparently with genuine Community engagement and focus on Merit rather than favoritism Dr feltri brings an impressive resume and her leadership holds great promise I am hopeful she will listen to all voices in our community and make quality education our students deserve her top priority welcome Dr feltri we are thrilled to have you join our district thank you thank you any other comments from the public we have no remote comments tonight um yes Dr FY is very interested in meeting with the community so Mr Cooper we will be having uh certain uh opportunities for the community for the staff for different various uh stakeholders in our town to meet with Dr feltre and she will be joining us uh on January 1st and we will have another welcome there also and hopefully we'll have more participation then and thank you for your comments and we look forward else okay at this point we're going to move to adjournment may I have a motion to adjourn so moved thank you Mrs cona thank you Mrs Stanley Voice vote I I the time is 7:42