##VIDEO ID:dtBEMcebxnY## e e for e spe s for for spe spe spe I'm Le those TI two ch e hi welcome for bi [Music] yeah I can see that gonna say you you and Jon are playing musical chairs here I know Winnie is I was distracting her she just randomly puts him down for new studs we thank you the board met tonight in executive session we're now ready to start the public portion of our meeting uh we last met on August 20th and we have not had any Public Communication since that time um the president's report there are a couple of items first of all um we are all very cognizant of the shooting school shooting in Winder Georgia um I would like before we start anything else to have a moment of silence um to remember those who were killed and injured and also the traumatized community thank you um I want to remind you uh first welcome back to everybody welcome back to the new school year it's uh not been that long but um so much has happened it seems like a long time um we will be having a meet and greet reception with our new superintendent Mr Arlington on September 24th it will so save the date uh I know that the notice went out today it will be at the women's club uh from 7:00 to 9: on the 24th um uh responses is encouraged but if you forget us come anyway uh it will be a nice chance for the people in the community to um get to know Mr Arlington a little bit better um I want to also remind you um on behalf of our friends on the library board that the library is about to go through a strategic planning process and they're going to be conducting an online survey uh to gather public opinion about you know the the future of the library the services uh where the community wants to see the library going that will go live on um the 19th of September through the 30th of October uh so if you go to the uh homepage for the library it's not up yet but when when the 19th rolls around if you go to the library website uh www.g glenrich library.org uh SL strategic plan you can get to that survey there will be broad publicity of it but our friends at the library are hoping to gather as many opinions as they can uh on the future of the library um we had a successful board retreat on August 20th we are in the process of working on our uh 2425 goals um it's a little different this year because we've had a transition to a new superintendent so we are looking at the goal process and the goals themselves with fresh eyes with fresh perspective but we should be able to um publicize our goals before very long so we're looking forward to that uh I think that that's all uh yes um so uh I will turn it over to you thank you good evening everybody and just like that we're back uh the energy in the Halls the excitement in the classrooms it's the magic of the new school year this time of fresh Beginnings lots of possibilities and promise reminds us of the important work of teaching and learning in head I'm thrilled to see our schools buzzing with enthusiasm and hope for what's to come from the seventh grade scavenger hunt to class meetings across grade levels in schools I've been in every building and several classroom have been classrooms and have been energized by our teachers focus on building community and routines it's been really fun to watch students engage even if I've gotten more than a few blank stairs when teachers introduce me as the superintendent it's clear I might need to do a little more work explaining my role to the young people I serve speaking of energy and excitement our new faculty and staff see great our new faculty and staff have played a key role in creating the vibrant atmosphere we're seeing in our classrooms it was a pleasure to work with them during new teacher orientation and I'm eager to see all that they will accomplish with our students I see two of them here today thank you welcome at this time I'd like to introduce our new faculty and staff and I hope you'll please join me in giving them a warm welcome they are Denise Canal Sarah grossfield Anastasia rova Gina duri Grace the Palama Christina J lumik Amy cinia Sydney Quinn Justin Romano Margie Cummings Marissa love Heather Park Dina lascari Lauren Nolan Caryl Rivera Gretchen deidan Stuart gold Laura Clark carollyn Weiss and Heather O'Brien as we begin this new year let's remember that nothing happens until it happens to the student at the heart of every Student Success is the work of our teachers resources matter programs matter and learning environments matter but in the end it's teachers who matter most in students School lives I'm confident that this dedicated team will make a lasting impact on our students and our school Community good luck uh while we celebrate the positive start to the school year and the contributions of our new teachers it's also a good time to highlight the district and board goals we're actively working on in the coming weeks the board will hold a series of many retreats to finalize these goals and will present action plans at a future Boe meeting this fall uh I'm committed to ensuring these goals are more than just ideals on paper they'll serve as our North Stars guiding what we do as part of our commitment to transparency and accountability we'll also share with the community how we plan to measure progress and provide regular updates on the status of these goals throughout the year uh before I contined I'd like to offer follow uh following suit from Miss Ginsburg our deepest condolences to the families affected by the recent school shootings in Georgia these tragic events remind us of the critical importance of maintaining the Safety and Security of our students and staff as's followup to the district-wide correspondence I sent last week I want to assure the community that we are continuously focused on refining and strengthening our safety protocols we enjoy a strong collaborative relationship with the Glen Ridge Police Department and work closely with with them to ensure our schools remain safe while our safety plans are confidential I can share that the district has a dedicated safety team and we conduct regular behavioral threat assessments to address concerns proactively additionally we're exploring new preventative measures to further enhance our efforts our Focus remains on being vigilant and proactive and protecting our school Community cell phones uh turning now to a topic that's been at the Forefront of many discussions cell phones in schools it's a hot topic both here in Glen Ridge and across the country as many districts and even States consider stricter regulations or outright bans due to concerns about student mental health harassment and classroom distractions as a district we take these concerns seriously our commitment is to put our students well-being first which is why we've implemented a strict away for the day policy for students in grades 3 through eight for high school students phones are not to be used or visible during instructional time these guidelines have been communicated clearly to students and parents and will continue to monitor their effectiveness throughout the year looking ahead we'll be engaging our community in discussions around cell phone use starting with parent information sessions uh that we're organizing currently we'll present a comprehensive engagement plan at our October Boe meeting outlining opportunities for collaboration with parents teachers students and community members I've already begun organizing some conversations with several interested parents and I appreciate their willingness to contribute to the conversation these conversations are essential to ensure that our approach to cell phone use is both effective and responsive to the needs of our students and families it's important to clarify that the current measures are regulations developed by the administration to enforce policies that the board will need to help establish moving forward I'm hopeful the board will play a crucial role in shaping policies that align with our District's values and goals and we'll continue to evaluate how we can best serve students while navigating this complex issue I'm excited to help facilitate this dialogue it's a great opportunity for us to come together use data to drive decisions and engage in communal conversation I want to thank the parents who have already reached out to discuss this issue as I said to them I'll say to you my door is always open and I will continue to engage with those who reach out however I'm also eager to establish a more structured and sustainable way to keep this conversation going to the community at large please know that I share your ethic of care and I'm honored to lead a district where we can listen respectfully and engage thoughtfully in difficult but meaningful conversations as we continue fostering open dialogue and collaboration with our community it's equally important to ensure that our students have a voice in these conversations with that in mind I'm excited to introduce our student representatives to the Board of Education this year these students play a crucial role in ensuring that the voices and perspectives of our student body are heard in this public forum I recently met with Maggie and Julia to talk about their experiences in Glenn Ridge and cell phone and their roles as student representatives and I'm confident they will bring valuable insights into what's happening in our schools I believe their contributions will greatly enrich our discussions and help keep us closely connected to the student experience as we work with Julia and Maggie this year I hope we can further defined and strengthened the roles and responsibilities of our student representatives to ensure their voices are truly heard perhaps through I was thanking the board's communication committee that work will be ongoing but for tonight I'm happy to welcome them to the days and introduce each of them briefly Maggie Dent has been a student in the Glen Ridge school since attending kindergarten at Lyon Avenue school and has been a member of the student council since freshman year impressively serving as class president freshman sophomore and Junior years as well as being the executive secretary her junior year and now the student body president she's a member of the girls soccer and basketball teams and co-president of the Spanish club she also teaches CCD to first graders that's very impressive I have a first grader uh so school's hard but CCD is even harder uh she's extremely excited and honored to serve as the student representative On The Board of Ed and is looking forward to a great year welcome Maggie Julia Kennedy is the vice president of student council executive board at Glen Rich high school she's been an active member of the student council for the past three years serving as class vice president for the last two years and now holds a position on the executive board in in addition to her involvement in student government Julia plays across she's the captain of the field hockey team and serves as president of two High School clubs sharing the Arts and girls learn International Julie is lived in Glenridge since fourth grade attending both Ridgewood Avenue and of course now the high school she excited to be serving as the alternate student body representative for the Board of Ed this year and looks forward to contributing to the school Community Julia Maggie on behalf of the Boe welcome and and we look forward in a few minutes to your inaugural report yes great okay uh looking ahead uh the Glenridge Boe will hold two regularly scheduled meetings next month while we're still finalizing the presentations I can confirm that our first October meeting we'll share the results from the spring 2024 administration of the New Jersey student learning assessment the state standardized testing program at our second October meeting we'll present the structure that I just kind of mentioned we're developing to facilitate ongoing discussions about cell phones in schools ending on a sort of selfish note here about some opportunities uh for me to meet and greet you and vice versa I look forward to connecting with many of you at several upcoming events if you'll be attending back to school nights for the middle school high school on September 12th or for the elementary schools on September 19th please stop by and introduce yourself if we don't get the chance to meet there I hope you'll join me at the superintendent's welcome reception hosted by the HSA the Women's Club on Tuesday September 24th from 7: to 9 uh details as Miss Ginsburg mentioned were released today in addition to these events I'm excited to present at the first Grace meeting of the year on October 16th I'll be sharing my philosophical beliefs about special ed And discussing my thoughts on special services in Glen Ridge as well as key focuses for the year lastly and speaking of the HSA don't forget to mark your calendars for the Glen Ridge kitchen Tour on October 20th proceeds will benefit 21st century teaching learning and environments in the Glen Rich schools and I'll have more communication to the community about that in the coming weeks tickets are already on sale I'm looking forward to experiencing my first kitchen tour and my inaugural Glen Ridge Jitney ride here's two hoping for great weather and fantastic kitchens that concludes my report okay um we've now reached the public comment portion of the meeting for questions or comments on agenda items uh the protocols for those of you who've been with us before are unchanged but for those who have not um please if you have a comment or question come up to the lecturn sign in let us know your name confirm your Glenridge affiliation if you're representing some group uh let us know that as well uh everybody gets two minutes to uh give us their thoughts uh my friend Kristen usually does the timing will you do the timing great uh and if you have a series of questions for us please sort of ask them all at the beginning of your comments so that we can take them hopefully in the order in which they've been posed so does anyone have any questions or comments okay uh there is a second public comment period at the end of the meeting for questions or comments on agenda items or other items pertaining to the running of the school so if you think of something in the middle of the meeting there will still be a chance uh now board members moving on uh it is the first meeting of the month so it is time for committee and liaison reports for those who have met with committies or leaz on assignments uh but we'll start with our student Representatives I don't know if both of you have a report or uh Maggie you're going to do the report okay welcome Maggie for your inaugural report Anthony will hand you the microphone so we can all or or Winnie will hand you the microphone so we can all hear you okay we've had a great first week back at the high school last week each grade had their class meeting to open up the year where the administration presented topics including attendance lunch privileges for upper classman cell phone use security academic Integrity vaping and other substance AB use the ways the school can reach us like classroom or Instagram and many other topics last week seniors had their yearbook portraits and the rest of the school will have theirs next month the guidance department is facilitating college visits throughout the fall where students can meet with admiss admission representatives from schools that they're interested in the student council's first event of the year is going to be the fall Rider day pep rally next Friday where teams will show their spirit for the upcoming athletic season which has just kicked off and our teams are experiencing a lot of success so far and we're looking forward to a great season we're also planning for the Club Fair on September 25th which is a student L event where officers have an opportunity to advertise their clubs or activities and encourage other students to join thank you thank you board members any questions congratulations on your soccer win today okay uh starting with the uh committee and lead on reports Anthony anything no report no Heather sure the curriculum committee met in August we heard the results of last year's AP testing results uh 74% of our students scored to three or higher um there was a total of 323 students who took exams and they took 9910 exams in the spring um we also heard about ideas to prove student outcomes when the class average was lower than the state average for that topic um we were updated on the Junior your class um they have a New Jersey graduation State proficiency test to take um and 86% have already met Proficiency in math 98% in uh English Arts those who have not met it yet have another opportunity to take that assessment as well as an alternative profile uh portfolio to meet the requirements uh we are reviewing language arts and PE Health this year and um Mr arlingon also mentioned his plans for the new staff orientation program okay Dar sure thing so centrals home and school will be having their first meeting this Thursday September 12th at 7:30 pm through Zoom um and just quickly a few things to highlight the home and school they hosted a coffee bar for um the drop off last Friday um um uh the Central School's back to school pizza party um um was scheduled for this Friday September 13th at 5:00 pm the first book fair for the year um will be scheduled from September 24th to 26th um the home and school was looking for volunteers for um class parents along with chairs for for the various committees including teacher appreciation Garden Club Discovery social book fair and community service and finally Central cheetah Spirit where pre-sales are going on right now Central thank you David the uh finance and Facilities committee met on August 20th um as we us usually do in the first meeting of the fall or the new school year um we went over mostly facilities and not Finance issues updates on the physical plant summer projects repairs uh the high school uh weightlifting room for example some AC upgrades Wi-Fi upgrades and the like um and Barbara uh the business administrator um notified us that she intends to kick off the finance process and cycle and we'll keep you updated on that leading up to the budget that we uh talk about in April and May of next year um but uh she foresees no major issues at this time thank you my words so many microphones you can have both right well I I'll be doing three updates so I'll try to be brief um the personnel and policy committee met on the 27th of August so just last week and we were happy to to hear the Personnel updates that we are fully staffed as a district um which is very exciting we went over a bunch of policy regulations um that are more or less basic updates to the regulations coming from the state just in terms of how we Implement them um you can read them on our website if you're interested and we spent some time talking about the need for both a district policy on artificial intelligence and how the district and the administration are going to be working on sort of developing what this will look like in the upcoming year um we also spoke about class size regulations particularly at the prek through second grade level and what those might be as well as the development of a cell phone policy to kind of guide The District in that um next update just to reemphasize what uh Mr Arlington shared is there's a Grace meeting happening on October 16th and please mark your calendars because as Mr Arlington mentioned he is going to be sharing his um vision for special education throughout the district and an update on the special ed audit and sort of ongoing operations so I think it will be a good opportunity for any parent who's interested in learning about this to attend that meeting and will be maybe potentially a smaller um group to meet with than uh some of the back to school nights that are happening in this month my third update is for the Ridgewood Avenue Home in school um which happened the first Friday September 6 6 immediately after back to school night on the 5th Ridgewood is up and running and on all fronts um some key things they're currently looking for class parents and if you are interested you have until tomorrow to express that interest um Dr Donovan in his principal report welcomed all of the new staff at Ridgewood and um talked about the return to a preco lineup practice so instead of the students just arriving on the campus and Milling around um starting at 8:10 they're going to be met at the doors by their classroom teachers at 8:20 and and coming into the school so that there'll be sort of more um controlled movement of students throughout the building and and getting them settled in their classrooms for an 8:30 start time um he also went over the cell phone away for the day policy and and how this benefits students and and how teachers appreciate this as a practice um and talked about the family meetings he's been having with each grade at the school school he also mentioned that the school's looking for a piano so if anyone in Glen Ridge has a piano potentially an upright piano that they are trying to find a new home for this is an opportunity to find that home and benefit many hundreds of students um the next R home and school meeting will be November 15th okay uh the diversity Association uh has not uh had a meeting yet this year I will be reaching out to see um uh they had gone to an every other month um scenario so I will be reaching out to see when their next meeting is moving right along um Kristen so I have a few updates um first from Gas Lamp um their summer sessions were extremely successful and they asked me to pass along their thanks for their use of Ridgewood Avenue School and the auditorium space there they're very grateful um that we are able to um work with the gas lamp um and using that space their fall sessions have started with Singing in the Rain junr for fifth to 8th grades Lion King kids for first through fourth grades and they've just announced that their um their fall show will be Foles U and that is for adults and teens for adults and teens auditions will be happening on September 23rd anyone who is interested in trying out should visit Gaslamp players.org for more more information and a registration link to sign up to audition um their programs continue to be really really popular both in the community and Beyond um a lot of their registration um opens within minutes of opening so they're just very grateful that um we um that the community supports them and that the community is as involved as um as we like to be um and they also asked me to pass along a special shout out to to the janitorial crew at Bridgewood who apparently is really really patient and apparently a pleasure to work with um and finally they do have um they're also running a musical theater class at the train station which I believe starts next week there are still just a few spots left so um if anyone is interested in that that's happening after school and you should visit the same website glass Gaslamp players.org for more information on that um from the Glenridge Visual Arts Association this past spring the um grva awarded three Merit Scholarships to high school students pursuing careers in the visual arts and as they begin this new school year they are seeking parent volunteers to join their group please um if anyone is interested reach out to grv visual arts.com and finally um the Lyndon hman school has not actually met yet their first meeting of the school year is this Thursday at 700 p.m. and they do have their calendar ready which I think they'll be putting up on their website shortly but they did ask me to pass along a few notes they hit the ground running in August and they're off to a great start they hosted a successful a series of successful back to school play dates and app parent coffee um um last Friday after drop off both of which were well attend all of which were well attended they're looking to get a last few um positions committee positions filled but they have most covered with over 30 parents who have volunteered to act as officers or chairs with the home and school uh looking forward they have um the back to school pizza party this Friday evening they also have a book fair um happening next week and then a movie night at the end of the month their fundraising priority for the year is their playground and to that end um they are launching two of their biggest fundraisers uh lunch and Discovery enrichement those signups are coming next week and um they're looking forward to working with their parent and student population as well as Dr Caravella on that project okay Drea thanks the middle school high school HSA meetings first meeting of the year is Friday September 27th 8:45 a.m. at the train station so um put it on your calendar wers and hope to see you guys there thank you jaal okay I have a few it'll be short um the communications committee will be meeting this Thursday and as we often discuss how important Communications is we will have a very substantial agenda I'm sure um the um Educational Foundation will meet later this month and I just wanted to remind everyone that um the call for family sponsors for the Ashen felter 8K race have gone out we always need our families to to step up with a uh sponsorship and also the announcement for the race itself if you're interested in running and registering for the race that's available now too um I believe it's Ashen it's a8. org I believe is the um uh URL uh thirdly the Forest Avenue Home in school will meet tomorrow night will be its first meeting and uh the big news was over the summer they installed a new patio in The Learning Garden that is beautiful it's designed by um a parent uh Brian Hughes who has two children in the district one at Forest and one at Ridgewood um the uh the patio has been installed with these really substantial benches so it will serve as a Outdoor Classroom that will really last there were wooden benches before that have deteriorated over the last 10 years and these look like they will last forever um and coming up in the next few weeks they'll start put installing the plant material so new trees and bushes and things like that at Forest Avenue so if you have a moment is if you're walking by Forest Avenue School please have a look they're very very excited about it and that's all I have for right now thank you okay thank you board members you have in your packets or had in your packets uh minutes from the meeting of August 20th executive session and regular session uh does anyone have any changes to those minutes no changes all right um Jocelyn would you move the minutes I move M1 okay may I have a second second second from David uh since there are no changes Barbara would you call the role Miss aen wandi I Mr Bonnet hi Mr Campbell I Mr Denard yes Miss gotle yes Miss Graham yes Miss O'Neal yes Dr yaros Ramos hi Miss Ginsburg hi motion carries okay moving to the administrative items um David would you move the administrative item I move A1 all right may I have a second second from Jocelyn um board members any questions on these policies this is the first reading so we will of course have a second reading no questions all right Barbara would you call the rooll M Aken wandi I Mr Bonnet I Mr Campbell yes Mr donad yes Miss gotle hi M Graham I miss O'Neal yes Dr yarus Ramos hi Miss Ginsburg yes motion carries okay moving to Personnel uh David would you move the Personnel items and a agendum items I mooved P1 through p15 okay um may I have a second second thanks Anthony uh in keeping with our rules uh personel matters are discussed in executive session um so Barbara would you call the role Miss aen wandi I Mr Bonnet yes Mr Campbell yes Mr Denard yes Miss gotle hi Miss Graham hi Miss O'Neal yes Dr yarus Ramos hi Miss Ginsburg I motion carries Heather would you move the curriculum item sure I move the field trips list prescy one okay may I have a second second okay uh any questions or comments before we move on the curriculum items I notice one field trip has no Transportation needed at all uh since they're going through the library since there are no questions or comments uh Barbara would you call the role Miss ainw I Mr Bonnet yes Mr Campbell yes Mr Denard yes Miss gotle yes Miss Graham yes Miss O'Neal yes Dr Yos Ramos hi Miss Ginsburg I motion carries okay we have come to business uh David would you move the business items I move B1 through B8 okay I may have a second second second was that Heather thank you heather uh any questions or comments from the board on the business items okay that being the case Barbara would you call the RO Miss zakin wandi I Mr Bonnet I Mr Campbell yes Mr Denard yes Miss gotle yes abstaining from item B6 Miss Graham yes uh also abstaining um B7 Miss O'Neal yes Dr yarus Ramos hi Miss Ginsburg yes abstaining from your Workshop oh yes I I'm sorry I'll abstain from my workshop yes got it B B5 B5 yes abstain from B5 I on everything else thank you motion carries all right we've come to the second public comment period for questions or comments on on agenda items or any item relating to the pertaining pertaining to the running of the schools uh the protocols are the same does anyone have a question or comment last chance all right that being the case may have a motion to adjourn motion moved by David may have a second second second from Anthony