[Music] good evening everyone we're ready to get started welcome to the February 2024 Hoboken Board of Education meeting um we appreciate all of you for being here for those of you who may want to speak this evening on agenda or non-agenda items we ask that you indicate your name and address and your desire to speak in the chat and also whether or not you will be speaking on agenda items or non-agenda items uh Miss Lopez can you please read the statement of compl liance yes this meeting is being held in Conformity to the open public meetings Act njsa 10 4-6 at SEC proper public notice of the meeting was published in the local papers on January 5th 2024 if any member if any board member or member of the public in attendance believes that the meeting is in violation of the open public meetings act the Hoboken Board of Education requests that they make a statement at this time the board wishes to make those in attendance aware that this meeting is being recorded on video and will be broadcast by the board at a later date on catv channel 77 and FiOS channel 46 the full meeting recording will also be made available on board docks which can be accessed through the district homepage the Hoboken board of education is committed to preserving the decorum of the public process and is mindful that we live in the electronic age of computers cell phones and other other electronic communications devices nevertheless we respectfully request that all meeting participants kindly silence their electronic devices during the course of the meeting and if use of the device is necessary we ask that you please leave the meeting room if you need to conduct personal business okay and now everyone could please stand at home for the Pledge of Allegiance I pledge allegiance CL the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God indivisible with liberty and justice for all I'm getting a marker and someone in my house needs a marker Miss Lopez can we please take the roll call yes Miss Angley here miss katori here Missa Mr delor here Mr Gana here miss cona here Mr kful I'm here miss Norwood here and miss here thank you very much Miss Lopez and as I said the 2020 flashbacks keep continuing um the next portion of our meeting is students recognitions and it's going to be for the month of December and January which assistant superintendent Miss Rodriguez Gomez will facilitate so Miss Rodriguez Gomez I turn the meeting over to you excellent thank you hello all and welcome to the student recognition portion of our meeting we're excited to honor these Scholars tonight and learn about their accomplishments and those that they will aim for in the very near future I extend a heartfelt welcome to the members of of our Board of Education superintendent Dr Johnson administrators faculty community and of course our students and their special guests their families it's always such a joy to stand in front of you or be in front of you on a device and introduce our amazing principles as they come or as they appear on the screen to share detailed information and anecdotes about the students being honored here today for the months of both December and January all of us realize that it is quite an accomplishment to be honored by your school and District community and if you're one of the students being honored here tonight obviously you are please don't ever forget this moment and let it Inspire many more winning moments you are role models and peer mentors to the students in your classrooms and certainly to all of those that you pass in the hallways daily thank you for inspiring others and do continue to thrive in school and Beyond we're also very proud of each of you and cannot wait to hear about your academic Journeys as has been our process we will begin with the Joseph F brand school and its principal Mr Bartlett he will then introduce the Connor's principal Miss Addie and she will follow the same pattern introducing our following presenters principal Shannon principles Shannon sorine and Pika Petra of Wallace Hoboken middle school and Hoboken High School respectively each will celebrate both of their school's selection and we would ask that tomorrow there be a picture opportunity during the school day again thank you for being with us this evening and with that I would ask principal Bartlett to take the screen thank you very much Mrs rod Ruez Gomez for that uh wonderful introduction good evening everyone superintendent Dr Johnson Board of Education community members fellow principles and students I would like to begin by honoring our December student of the month Lyla Perry congratulations to lla Perry the Joseph F Branch student of the month for December Lyla was nominated by her fifth grade teacher Mrs Salo Mrs Salo said Lyla takes pride in her work and tries hard to complete each task to the best of her ability she is a great peer mentor offering assistance to classmates who need extra help with their work or classroom routines she also said Lyla is a kind compassionate girl who has a bright future ahead just stay true to yourself and believe in yourself and you will accomplish great things I've known lla and she Wass in kindergarten at Brand school and her story is one that makes me truly reflect on relationships growth and Trust I remember as a kindergartener sometimes it was tough for Lyla to come into school and I remember getting to know her mom Renee and her father Marcus in those moments and they would hand me a sometimes upset yla at the front entrance and I would always remind lla mom and dad that everything would be okay and soon enough she began to flourish and develop the love for school to see the growth lla has exhibited since those days where she is now in front of the board as the student of the month is absolutely one of the best narratives of any student in our entire District words really can't encapsulate how proud We Are to have Lyla represent brand here tonight Lyla is kind and accepting and makes others feel good about themselves she pays attention during class and is able to complete her work independently or with her Cooperative group she helps her peers who need extra guidance lla achieved honor rooll for the first marking period and is also a member of the fifth grade peer mentor program this year she skipped a belt in Taekwondo and moved up to the next level in gymnastics lyla's favorite hobbies are baking teaching her little sister math and ta kond do her favorite subject is math she does especially well in her rotating math centers her favorite artist is Taylor Swift and favorite band is Coldplay she wants to go to a concert one day she has no clue about college yet but has a plan for when she is finished with school she wants to be a dog walker and babysitter then work at a cafe in Paris and figure the rest out along the way sounds like a fantastic plan lla lla thought of this quote from Taylor Swift when she told she would receive this honor no matter what happens in life be good to people being good to people is a wonderful Legacy to leave behind lla thought of it because it means that when you're nice to people people will be nice back when that happens you'll feel good about yourself and we'll always carry that with you you want people to remember you as a nice kind person we look forward to seeing how lla expands on her Legacy of kindness at Brandt with us in the next months before she moves on to sixth grade please join me in a round of applause for lla Perry our Joseph F brand Elementary school student of the month for December congratulations again Lyla and with that if you could also join me in congratulating our January student of the month Quenton Spurlock congratulations to Quenton Spurlock the Joseph F Brandt student of the month for January 2024 Quenton was nominated by Mrs brunt his first grade teacher she said Quenton always comes to school with a smile and a great attitude he actively participates in all classroom discussions and shows an enthusiasm for learning he works hard daily and is always willing to help the teacher or his classmates he exhibits a growth mindset and always persists on challenging assignments he works well independently and with others Quenton has made tremendous improve with his overall approach to listening and following directions over the course of the school year Mrs Brent went on to say Quenton is kind funny and determined I'm proud of his persistence to strive to be the best he can be every day as a principal there are a few moments every year that stand out above others and I have to thank Quenton for one of those this year Mrs brunt's Journal question one day uh a few weeks ago was would you rather have lunch with the president or the principal quon's answer was I would rather have lunch with the principal because me and Mr Bartlett are good friends I was really proud of Quenton for writing so well and for using some great inventive spelling on the big words but I was even more proud of him for taking the time to say something that made me feel good about myself previously at the marking period one academic pep rally Quenton received the proud of you award along with a fancy new brag tag to display proudly on his backpack Quenton loves learning and is very creative he loves to draw and color especially pictures of Jaws outside of school quenon loves skiing traveling Jaws art class ice hockey his family playing on his iPad fishing and writing stories when told he would receive this award Quenton said I'm very proud to receive this award and it makes me feel pretty good about myself well you should feel pretty good and proud about yourself Quenton because we are proud of you please join me in a round of Applause for Quenton Spurlock the branch school student of the month for January and with that I would like to turn the microphone over to Mrs Juliana Addie the principal of the Thomas G Connors elementary school thank you so much Mr Bartlett uh good evening everybody um at this time we would like to recognize Harper Appel who is the uh Connor student of the month for December congratulations to Harper Appel the Conor student of the month Harper is a fifth grader in Miss Ortiz's class Miss Ortiz shared that Harper is an absolute pleasure to have in class she excels academically and is a diligent student she's a natural learner and observes new information like a sponge her exemplary work is a reflection of her admirable attitude a meritable effort she is dedicated to her assignments and ensures that she is always putting her best foot forward she is an attentive listener and shows outstanding participation in class she sets ambitious goals and is always eager to commence with her work if she does not understand something she uses her growth mindset and her natural grit to push forward and improve she is not shy about requesting assistance when needed she shows compassion and respect to her peers teachers and School administration although she prefers Independence when working she is an excellent pure resource for her classmates and always has a positive attitude her cheerful mindset is infectious and she brightens up Connors every day with her constant smiling outside of school Harper loves to play socer is in gymnastics and performs with the Hoboken Children's Theater she has previous participated in five theater shows frozen James and the Giant Peach Flat Stanley dear edwinna and Wily Wonka her dedication to performing and rehearsing is impressive her favorite subjects are Ela math and music she plays the clarinet ukulele as an end is in the chorus with Mr Ardo Harper is always a thoughtful and caring friend she is an excellent listener she always tries to include everyone in everything that they are playing one of her close friends Abby shared that Harper is a good friend because she is kind and takes interest in everything we share with her even if it's something that's not that interesting her other friend Charlotte stated that Harper is a good friend because she's always there for me no matter what it's hard for me to believe that Harper is a fifth grader at Connor's and that she will be moving on to Hoboken Middle School next here it makes me so proud to see the wonderful young lady lady that Harper has become while she has been at Connor's she exemplifies every character trait of a Connor's koala and we could not be more proud of her as she is so deserving of this award and everyone please join me and a round of applause for Harper Appel we're so proud of you Harper um so we're going to be honoring our January student in a month at the March board meeting so at this time I would like to introduce Mr Martin Shannon the principal of Wallace Elementary School thank you principal Addie okay good evening everyone we are here tonight to celebrate John McHugh our wall school student of the month for December 2023 John is a first grade student in Miss wet's and Mrs Keeper's class at Wallace he has made so much growth since the start of the school year JN is always polite kind to others hardworking and compassionate JN transitions well from tasks to task takes redirection and focusing seriously and because of this he has shown a lot of academic and personal growth he jumps up to help others in need and always uses his manners as John's principal I appreciate his hard work caring nature and willingness to connect with peers and adults alike his combination of empathy and and diligence is the perfect compliment to our school I am proud to be his principal John has many interests one being skiing he also loves to play with friends and read fiction when asked about what John loves about being a wild cat he said I love my teachers I love my friends and I love learning it is my pleasure to present to you John McHugh for the December student of the month for the Wallace Elementary School let's hear it for John great job John next we are going to celebrate Maya mckendra Maya mckendra is a fifth grade student at Wallace Elementary School she was nominated by Mrs Martinez for excelling in all subject areas and for impressively contributing to the learning culture of the classroom Community during her academic career to date Maya has earned a place on the honor rooll and has been enrolled in the John Hopkins Center for talented youth math program for two years not only is Mayan an outstanding student academically she also contributes to the class and school Community as well last year she was part of the kindness group who were responsible for making sure younger students who were tardy would be escorted to their classrooms this year Maya was nominated by her classmates to be the class representative and a pure leader class representatives and peer leaders are students who are engaged with service incentives in our Wallace Community to make the school a better environment for all students one incentive that Maya was instrumental in is the snacks for all program in which healthy snacks are provided for students who did not come to school with a snack her hobbies are singing art reading graphic novels playing with her sister and Friends piano basketball and she is a Girl Scout Maya's favorite subjects are math and art Maya would like to attend a university close to home like Princeton Stevens Institute or or NYU and wants to do one uh and one day or wants to become one or even many of the following an engineer an artist dancer singer mathematician or the first female president of the United States to sum up her Outlook I would like to share a quote that Maya firmly believes and follows do your best forget the rest let's hear it from Maya a January student of the month great job John great job Maya next I would like to welcome principal sorin to the screen thank you Mr Shannon and good evening everyone at this time I'd like to recognize Ivan queros hobok Middle School student of the month for December Ivan a sixth grade student has quickly become a role model for his fellow Tigers since joining us just a few short months ago he was nominated by Miss Moore and Mr Wanga for his outstanding work ethic perseverance effort and kindness Miss Moore Ivan laa teacher commends his hard work this school year particularly noting his reading capabilities and courage to read in front of others she describes Ivan as diligent and completing all of his work on time taking pride in everything he does and giving 100% effort every day Mr waranga adds that Ivan is respectful of all paays teachers and administration and participates actively in math CL math class every day Miss Reyes gavlin who teaches preap dance and physical education Praises Ivan as responsible prepared and eager to learn in both courses she highlights his positive demeanor noting that he motivates his classmates by always being inclusive and kind in his interactions Miss barov shares those sentiments and adds that Ivan is always willing to help his teachers and Friends making him a valuable friend to have Ivan's friend Moses describes him as a good friend and one of the smartest people he knows another classmate mentions that Ivan is a nice person always attentive and teachers and and is overall amazing outside of school Ivan enjoys art and consistently impresses his teachers and friends with his credible artwork and vast knowledge of the subject miss whan our preap visual arts teacher describes Ivan as curious and well-mannered a well-mannered young man who contributes positively in class discussions and activities when asked about being recognized as St of the month Ivan expressed feeling proud of himself for his hard work and appreciates the recognition Ivan we are proud to recognize you here tonight for your hard work please join me in celebrating Ivan queros as Hoboken Middle School's student of the month for December Round of Applause great job Ian and next for I'd like to welcome Elias Gavin as Hoboken Middle School student of the month for January Eli a seventh grade student was nominated by Mr englas for his outstanding qualities as a positive role model for his peers he consistently uses his time in class to support other students who need extra help demonstrating both kindness and dedication to his academic responsibilities Miss painter commended Eli for his leadership skills during a recent mock trial in ela where he played a pivotal role in his group's success by effectively presenting evidence and guiding his paays in math class Eli's curiosity for learning is evident and his active participation in Rich's classroom discussions benefiting the entire Learning Community he approaches every assignment with pride and a desire to grow setting a high standard for his classmates to follow Eli's classmates also admire his work ethic and his character Alec fennel describes him as diligent and efficient never rushing through his work and always putting out a great finished product Nora BL Praises Eli's determination and dedication to doing the right thing even when faced with challenges you can always count on Eli for help beyond beyond academics Eli enjoys playing tennis and reading and when asked about this honor Eli shared his thoughts on education this a quote from Eli education is not about finding success it's about powering you with the resources to achieve the opportunity of a lifetime well said well said Eli in recognition of his exemplary qualities and contributions to our school Community Eli Gavin is a deserving recipient of the student of the month award his embodiment of Tiger Pride is a testament to his character and sets a positive example for his peers please join me in celebrating Eli Gavin as our January student of the month great job to Ivan and Eli we look forward to taking that picture tomorrow and without further Ado I'd like to welcome Miss Robin pip Petra the principal of Hoboken High School good evening everyone um vice principal Williams here I'll be uh presenting our December student of the month um join me in congratulating uh Julia critz class of uh 2024 she's our December student of the month where does one begin when speaking about Julia she's a true gem in all areas from academics to co-curricular activities she graduates in June but she has not stopped pushing herself and pursuing learning she has taken AP coursework from freshman year and will finish her senior year with over 11 AP courses taken she has earned High honoral distinction in every quarterly marking period since she had uh since she has begun High School Miss Gleason shared that she has come to know Julia to be a bubbly and outgoing person who is passionate in her learning and in her extracurricular activities Julia came to us from a very small local charter school and jumped right into her new environment with enthusiasm she strives for high achievement and also sets clear goals for herself she's energetic and committed and her involvement in both School rated and outside activities are a testament to her eclectic personality and interests Julia has been involved in a number of diverse extracurricular activities some of her extracurricular activities to name a few are literary magazine uh where she's the editor-in chief National Honor Society student government and chorus Julie has spent uh a great deal of time working with our competitive debate groups which include Harvard model Congress Model United Nations and Mack trial with Mach trial the team won a county Championship multiple years from uh among the Harvard model Congress students Julia was selected to go to Spain where the group would debate with teams from around the world which is happening uh March 20 uh in March uh last summer Julia particip ated in the University of Maryland Young Scholars Program uh in addition to the program she also took an international relations course and received an a I have absolutely no doubt this girl will change the world for the better Julet is a bright promising and young talented uh person who tirelessly pursues her goals and passions she is outspoken energetic and expressive Julie is an asset to every classroom and activity in which she is involved um once again please join me congratulating Julia Chris for December student of the month for our January student of the month I'm going to pass it over to vice principal uh Pon good evening uh today we are here to celebrate Gabriel bro he is a sophomore un at Hoboken High School and he is a January student of month uh Gabriel came to us in September from the Franklin school and we are sure glad he did he is an imp impressive student with a GPA of 4.4 and a full schedule of AP and preap coursework Mr Muno shared that he is a student athlete and a leader on and off the field he is a Redwing soccer player and a great student he is diligent punctual and always engag in instruction Miss Stevens Gabriel's preap English teacher said Gabe is kind funny and persistent he always participates in class adding to discussion and enhancing analysis he is consistent with his work and demonstrates effort he also adds that classroom environment by chatting being friendly to all and putting people at ease he is willing to help out answer questions for classmates and he is a well-rounded student who is an asset in the classroom Mr twitz his AP History teacher said Gabe is hardworking intelligent and a kind young man he has always prepared to class and supportive for his classmates he has a positive attitude and is committed to learning lastly Mr leag said he is a modeled AP Bio teacher uh student he is one of the most frequent participants in class he always completes his work with high level of detail excels an exam and is always prepared for class I couldn't be prouder of his work and dedication for my course I am sure it will all pay off when he takes the AP Bio exam later this year Gabriel is also in Mr Fernandez Innovative science class as he has been working very hard on different ideas they could Market overall we are so happy that Gabriel chose Hoboken High School he is a valuable asset to our climate and culture and he is a true definition of a weding I am confident that we will be hearing more great things from Gabriel in the future congratulations Gabriel and I would like to give us a round of applause for Gabriel our student of the mon for SE for January congratulations to all of the students of the month we are all very very proud of you and all of your efforts and we ask that you continue doing all of these things that have earned you this recognition and continue to contribute in a positive fashion to our school Community um we appreciate each and every one of you so um that concludes our student recognitions for the evenings and we'll be moving into our reports Dr Johnson do you have a superintendent report for this evening I do I have one item that I'd like to discuss great okay so good evening uh the one item that I would like to discuss is on the agenda this evening uh actually it has to do with two resolutions that are there um resolution 13.03 and 13.04 13.03 is for the approval to submit a long range facilities plan amend Amendment for the purpose of the wallish trailers um and 13.04 for the approval to submit a project application for the removal and replacement of the existing classroom trailers at Wallace Elementary School so I'd like to take uh a little bit of time and just provide some background and some additional relevant information the trailers that are currently at Wallace were placed there in the summer of 2004 and they uh will be uh 20 years old in the summer uh they are currently there are currently four classrooms that are on site um and as a result of proper maintenance of those units their useful life has been extended beyond what it was originally intended as a result um we are kind of at a point now where those four trailers do in fact need to be replaced uh with new modular classrooms we have priced out both uh one-story uh modular classrooms for just four of them but we have also priced out twostory modular unit to maximize the footprint on which they sit thereby giving us eight classrooms as opposed to four um in addition to the need to replace the Aging four trailers it would greatly help our growing prek and enrollment enrollment growth by adding the four additional classrooms on the ex existing site this would enable us to relocate for 3K classrooms out of what will most likely be brand Elementary School uh we did explore having a thre story modular classroom unit placed there um but the standard for modular units as uh the one that we are looking at is actually a two-story unit not a three-story uh Plus for preschool we cannot go higher than two stories anyway um and if we were actually constructing a building as opposed to bringing a modular unit um we could go higher potentially um and put some possibly kindergarten classrooms there but it would require a much longer period of time it would require us to bond for the project it would require a a referendum it would require a major traffic study in an area particularly an already congested um city block so for right now uh we believe that the most cost effective and most expeditious way to get four uh additional prek classrooms out of one of our elementary schools and to replace existing tra trailers that are um really in need of um a replacement is to have this uh modular unit project move forward the purchase of the modular unit that we're looking at with uh the eight classrooms um is estimated to cost approximately $3.6 million this $3.6 million includes $2.8 million for the purchase of the unit itself um and that includes an additional U or it includes $800,000 for the removal of the old trailers it also includes the soil testing that's needed and it includes all the relevant soft costs that are associated with the project um we would be purchasing the modular unit from uh modular genius they are a member of the Keystone purchasing Cooperative Network we would use subcontractors on the state contract uh list to do plumbing electric Tech Etc and this would ensure that the project moves as quickly as possible and that we meet all of the bidding and procurement laws um as soon as we found out that we were going to explore this option um our entire administrative team under the leadership of uh our business administrator and our assistant business administrator work diligently to achieve budgetary savings uh throughout this second portion of of the school year and um began to really tighten our belt um in order to bring the project forward to the board and to the taxpayers so one of the things that we plan to do is to deposit $3.6 million into capital Reserve from the 2023 2024 budget during the 2024 2025 budget process this will ensure that the project does not have a tax impact um it's important to note that these classrooms um will also in fact generate rental Revenue it will take um approximately four years um based on the rental income that we will take in from these uh trailers to pay for um the actual project and then anything beyond the four years will um just the rental Revenue after that so um but again there would be no um tax impact um as a result of this project at at all the money would be deposited into capital reserve and it would be taken out of capital reserve to cover the cost of the trailers themselves um they have to be replaced they they they just you know have hit their 20-year life span uh there's four classrooms out there and they would be replaced with eight classrooms the modular units will sit on the same exact footprint that are out there right now um like I said instead of four there will be eight classrooms um stacked on on top of each other there will be uh eight Clash CL rooms that are 950 Square fet meeting the preschool uh requirements each classroom will have a bathroom inside which also meets the requirements the modular unit will also include an internal full-size elevator and meet all ADA requirements the architect will submit an updated long range facilities plan to the New Jersey Department of Education and get approval for the project right after your approval um and our early our director of early childhood education and assistant superintendent will begin working with preschool licensing to ask the appropriate questions our facilities director will begin conversations with the city um once we have board approval geotechnical testing and surveying will then take place and physical work on the project will begin the day that school ends and will take place over the summer it is anticipated that the new modular units will be delivered over the summer months and installed an open and ready for the first day of school so that's the plans for the replacement of the existing trailers that are on the Wallace site so if anyone has any questions we'd certainly be happy to answer them for you thank you so much for your report Dr Johnson we greatly appreciate it we're going to move on to committee reports miss good do you have a business admin rator report for us this evening Miss good you're on mute um I will be presenting the preliminary budget to the finance committee at our next meeting which will take place a little earlier um in the month um than it usually does I will go over all the details of the budget um I will highlight um how much money we have in our Reserve accounts and like Dr Johnson said um the plan is to budget the new trailer project into the budget so it does not have a tax impact um on the taxpayers of Hoboken I will keep you updated and informed as we move forward with this project anything that um comes up um that is that may be unusual I will inform you and um we will not only inform you but we will let you know um the decisions we made so looking forward to to presenting the preliminary budget to you um probably in about two weeks any questions thank Youk thank you so much Miss good we appreciate it uh now we will move on to curriculum Mr Grana your turn good evening can you hear me yes we again fantastic so um uh the curriculum committee met we talked about um really two key actional items you'll find it in the agenda under 9.01 02304 and 05 um the request from the administration um this is not an approval this is just a administratively to proceed with the submission for uh six six different excuse me five different grants um that will range from expanding access to climate change uh International baloria course these are a number of of um I would call them business as usual activities and uh I would encourage all trustees to approve them as business as usual included in that will be our upcoming field trips um which we will provide some are funded by hpf so those are the actual items for trustees um we also had a interesting conversation about um progress uh this is not actual progress as a district uh we are seeing our steam Tank teams moving and advancing to Regionals we have 10 from Brandt eight from Connors eight from Wallace 36 from HMS and four from HHS we have 66 teams in total um this is It's really just kind of another of of of good news um and I would like to zero in and highlight on one which is a new study that has come out from Stanford University and this is something we spent a lot of time talking about which is the impact of covid on our students uh collectively and across the country um if you if you want to you know the public can see this you can see this by going to the New York Times and searching on Stanford University study of school districts but I think what's important about it is is that you know a lot of districts see Applause um in results during covid some high performing districts um were high performing they kind of Flatline during during covid and but they remained High performing and they're continue to be high performing um you would expect that for more perhaps more affluent districts or uh districts with resources what is so satisfying is that our district is continue to rise in performance um all the way from before the pandemic and into this year and we're continuing to arise and we are above performing above the US average and the New Jersey average so this is really good news for our district there is nothing actionable there but I thought that uh trustees and public might want um to take advantage of looking at that information in the times if they wish thanks thank you president thank you Mr GR am much appreciated we will now move on to facilities and Mr delator hi good evening everyone uh the facilities committee met on Wednesday February 7th in attendance were Dr Johnston Dr Johnson Mr cige Miss Angley and Miss Tara all agenda items were discussed and we recommend all for approval couple of notes uh one we're very happy to report that the Hoboken family Alliance will be holding their 13th Annual Bike camp in June at Hoboken High School uh congratulations on this great contribution to our community uh second we're also very happy to report that on Sunday July 21st at tary Stadium uh it will be the site of the Daniel Jones Youth Football Camp uh more details to come for both events and as stated earlier in Dr Johnson's report agenda item 13.03 is directly related to 13.04 the removal and replacement of classroom trailers at Wallace Elementary School thank you thank you Mr delator next we will move on to finance with Miss kanana good evening everyone the finance committee met on Thursday February 8th at 10:15 am in attendance were Mr were Dr Johnson Miss katam matori Miss Angley Mr Kell miss good and myself we reviewed and recommend mend all agenda items in sections 11 12 and 14 I'd like to thank Kate Jacobs for her donation of a portable platform stage for the Hoboken High School and then one last item I'd like to point out in the grants uh 14.06 we have an approval to accept $1 million through the SDA fiscal year 24 emergent Capital maintenance needs grant program the district is determining the best way to utilize these f funds for our facilities and that concludes my report thank you thank you Miss cona moving on to governance with Miss Kor thank you Mr mcer um good evening everyone the governance committee met on Wednesday February 7th 2024 in attendance were Dr Johnson Mr keld Miss Norwood Miss mcer and myself Miss K Maori as is typical the committee discussed all agenda items and recommends all for approval as is typical throughout the school year there are a number of appointments resignations leave requests schedule modifications and transfers uh of staff and faculty between the schools as well as a termin some equivalency increases and approval new substitutes on the agenda of note on tonight's agenda um 10.01 the resignation or retirement of uh Miss J Shri Amin who has been a chemistry teacher at the high school for 19 years as of the end of this school year she will be retiring we thank her for her service to our students and wish her must much rest and relaxation in her well-deserved retirement um 10.03 amongst the appointments we have two music teachers who have been appointed for this school year um Chris dragotti for brand as well as Joshua idio for Hoboken High School 10.04 covers three new teachers for the for next school year uh the 2425 school year for first grade dual language for a first grade dual language program which began this year and is doing very well uh 10.10 includes the approval of changes to certain staff members schedules I only mention this because it's to allow these individuals to attend college courses and I just like to say we wish these employees much luck in those Endeavors um as they continue their education 10.14 through 10.18 cover various appointments and stiens compensations for the current next school year in various areas and for various programs including passport to learning family curriculum night and the athletic department 10.19 covers the approval of volunteers to support our theater program and I just want to say very quickly we like to thank these unpaid mostly parent volunteers for their invaluable service when it comes to the theater program and all the wrangling and other work that they do um just for the pleasure of seeing their children and that is uh my report for tonight thank you thank you Miss katam Mator and I um have a brief president's report for this evening because we will be going into executive session um I did want to recognize all of the fabulous students who participated in the districtwide talent show on Friday there were 35 Acts including several of our staff members and I know that I speak on behalf of everyone who is in intendance that the talent on display from kindergart Garden right through 12th grade was really just amazing and to see so many very young students come out and share their talents on a big stage in front of a big room full of people is so encouraging but a very very special thank you to miss Miller and the fine and Performing Arts department for organizing um to Mr stacc for running the sound also to miss drum goul Miss art and Mr Munoz for judging um not something that I would have been able to do because was just so much talent but we appreciate them taking time out of their Friday to uh you know contribute to this wonderful thing for arts in our district in terms of a topic that has come up in the president's report um over the last couple of months is the situation with the pilot from 770 uh Jackson Street which we have been hoping for a resolution on we have had meetings with the administration city council and Charter School representatives and it is my hope that we are on the road to a resolution in the coming months so there will be more to come on that and then finally one note on the construction of the modular classrooms behind Wallace I think this is a really positive step for our district to be able to help relieve some of the crowding of preschool PL classrooms in our district buildings that are are really our elementary schools for our kto five students and also um being able to do this without a budgetary or tax impact is something that is is really wonderful so we're grateful to um everyone who's worked so hard to come up with this solution and who has uh everyone who's from Dr Johnson miss good Mr cagie who' worked very hard to make sure that this will be a solution that'll be ready for students in September um next then that concludes my report next we'll go into public comments on agenda Miss MC could you want a wellness report oh my God I'm so sorry it's okay yes my apologies that will conclude my president's report and we will move over to miss Norwood for wellness thank you very much uh Madam president the wellness committee met on Wednesday February 7th in attendance were Dr Johnson miss mcer Mr deltor Miss darara and myself there are no Wellness items on the agenda for approval however the committee did discuss a number of District initiatives and other items the district is considering joining a newly expanded Middle School Athletic Conference for school year 2425 the Middle School Athletic Conference is being expanded to include Eastern Bergen County districts and Hudson County districts the conference will consist of three divisions set up to minimize student travel time to a away games and the sports the district will participate in are still being considered but will likely be sports for which the district already has high school teams Sports being considered include soccer basketball baseball softball cross country track volleyball cheerleading and bowling a meeting was held between Hoboken wehawken and sakas about the possibility of foreign ing a triop for ice hockey all three districts are in favor of this Arrangement it would need to be approved by the NJ iih HL and then by the NJ SI AA prior to it being approved by all three boards of Education this triup would allow practice time on the ice rink in salkus which would help reduce the program costs as part of the district's efforts to promote a culture of kindness than fostering positive caring respectful School environments students recently participated in the great kindness challenge earning district schools the designation of kindness certified schools the district has requested its food service provider Chartwells to conduct a food service survey of All Families as well as of middle school and high school students surveys such as this are done periodically to identify any areas for potential Improvement in student satis isfaction with the food quality and offerings chronic absenteeism has become an issue in all school districts across the state the district has become an uh begun an attendance initiative in all schools and wants to remind parents that it is important for students to attend school daily and be on time the state deems students truant after 10 unexcused absences per year uh project is under way to revise and expand the HMS personal growth period to engage the students in a comprehensive advisory program the plan is to integrate the current tiger talks with halfday sessions aligned with real-time issues assemblies and additional periods will be added for followup and reinforcement an interactive website is being developed by the special services team for the life skills and transition community-based instruction work experience program the website is intended to Aid parents in understanding the curriculum and programs available through the district and related County programs for qualifying students up to age 21 and finally based on its success at HMS and HHS the best buddies program which supports inclusion for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities is being expanded to the elementary schools if you have any additional questions um please let us know thank you very much that completes my report thank you so much Miss snowwood and again my apologies was a little bit different getting used to going back into using Zoom so now we are going to move to public comments on agenda items I believe we have a couple of speakers signed up but before we move forward with that a reminder before we open public comments over the years and more recently the board has been asked why it does not prohibit or stop comments about School District employees from individuals who speak during the public comment portion of our meeting the short answer is that the law prevents the board from censoring comments made about District Personnel the board does not condone nor is the board a party to comments as such however just because a speaker may have the right to say what he or she feels it does not absolve the speaker from liability for any comments that could be viewed as defamatory by an employee should speakers say something that subjects them to a civil suit the responsibility Falls squarely on the speaker and not on the board board policy requires that all speakers please state your name Municipality of residents and business affiliation if any speakers are allowed five minutes and uh I believe we're going to have a timer on the screen that will let people uh know how much time they have left and finally please address all comments to the chair that's me board policy states that the board welcomes comments on matters of interest to the board but this is not an opportunity for dialogue or debate between speakers and board members or the superintendent miss good or Miss Lopez who is our first Speaker yes we have two speakers signed up for the first public comment um I will open them up to turn on their microphone uh when I call their name the first speaker is Patricia waiters give me just one moment Miss waiters you should be able okay I can hear you could you hear me Miss Lopez yes yes we can hear you hi hi Patricia waiters good evening all I hope you guys are staying safe um I just learned minutes before the meeting that it was VA Zoom just uh in the near future when it's Implement weather like this I mean people didn't expect you guys to have a meeting at all so I'm not really prepared but what I am prepared for is um The Wellness committee um what's Miss Hana am I saying the the who's in charge of the wellness committee that just gave the speech hello Miss Norwood um the next time could you please like identify you gave abbreviations for those programs that you um spoke about and members of the public would definitely want to know what that mean I mean I haven't read it but you just gave only the abbreviations and um with the 3 something million dollarss for those trailers and back of wace did you guys um I hope that was an open and fair bid process and I will be meeting with you miss good if it's okay so I won't have dialogue going back and forth I have a lot of questions before you pronounce uh and introduce your preliminary budget a lot of questions and concerns and with respect tonight is a little different you said that the three point something million went in savings so I'm not going to use my five minutes on that but what I am going to use my five minutes on is I spoke briefly to you madam president when we was leaving the last meeting we met me and another parent and another young man we asked you and address the situation of the new coach coming into our district and you really couldn't talk to us about it you suggest that we go speak with Miss Johnson um I did reach out but you know I let everything play out so I don't know this new coach I don't know if he was on the agenda tonight and um I would definitely love to meet him and you know the other parents that had concerns and did you already appoint him and where we at with the coach situation and um that's basically it Oh and about the swimming program I'm sorry the swimming program is it private or can all our public school kids attend with the um swimming program on the weekends thank you I'll wait back for the public portion miss good just of note there are swim or miss good Miss waiters of note there are swim hours that are open to the public at Hoboken High School I don't have the schedule handy in front of me but I'd be more than happy to make sure that makes it to you that's open to anyone who lives in Hoboken what's on the agenda tonight is um special Olympic swimming run through Hoboken family Alliance I believe for special needs students um so I'm not exactly sure on who that is open to um Dr Johnson may be able to fill us in a little bit more and yes the football coach is on tonight's agenda for approval and there have been a couple of meetings with football parent th far so Dr Johnson um could you speak to the Hoboken family Alliance swim program because I'm not clear on all the details for that thank you madam president for your professionalism and your information thank you you're welcome so the swim program that we were having on Saturdays are are you referring to that I'm not sure whether she meant the one that we're hosting on Saturdays that's open CommunityWide or what's on tonight's agenda which is swim for Special Olympics for Hoboken family [Music] Alliance I can't I can't speak to the Hoboken family Alliance I'm go ahead go ahead Miss waiters we may have lost Miss waiters we can get the information over to her um not the family Alliance ma'am okay so the the Saturday um swim program that we have is open to all Hoboken residents um we made sure when we put the dates for that swim program up that we advertised it to um the entire city and I did make sure that I also sent it to um all of the um um Hoboken um Housing Authority Commissioners as well as to uh Danny and Mark Greco to distribute to the Housing Authority residents to ensure that you know everyone that lived in the Housing Authority knew that the program was open to all residents as well um so the the dates and the times um there's there's only one portion of that program and I think it's the first hour that's like a sensory safe uh swim program and it's for special needs children um and it's it's the first hour but then after that it's it's a open swim time um for for families and children thank you so much for clarifying Dr Johnson um now moving on to our next speaker Miss Lopez yes our next speaker is Manuel Rivera Sol man will you are you able to unmute I believe so can you hear me we can hear yes we can hear you thank you and good evening uh Madame President and um trustees um once again thank you for holding this meeting um even though it's adverse uh situation here um but we appreciate um as um my questions here because this is agenda I should have just stepped to one but um I just want to follow up on more questions I know it's not a question and answer but I just want to throw the question or the the the uh opinion out there um in regards to the modular that were mentioned um for the Wallace school the modulars will be purchased again uh um through a company or someone that we have purchased before or was that a bid secondly um the the ones that are there at current time would those be removed and discarded or would those be removed and auctioned or you know any any any information in regards to the old ones um also I would like to know since we're in the same theme I did not hear mention tonight being that there was a lot of conversation in regards to the infrastructure um in regards to the scaffolding again I ask um for the uh uh our beautiful building there that I think we've we're we're going on a year and uh if you if anyone could um again give a little update um either here or in the website uh again I never am able to find it but um if information can be given there on that as well as um again um when you say you are speaking on the pilots I don't know if it's in the agenda but somebody mentioned it I think it was you madam president um um for 770 house how how is it that um still to this date the administration is it are they um are they being uncooperative or are they just um giving us yes you're going to get some pilot within x amount of time because uh with the investment here and the modular um that is uh that is money that I'm sure we're going to need um back in the um funds and uh again uh these are my questions and uh oh as well as I'm sorry madam Madam president um if anybody wants to answer but I'll just keep rattling them off uh I know that I think you've mentioned it before when and congratulations to the retiree um when when we have retirees and um people who resign again I think you you or someone said it in another meeting it's one V one right somebody somebody retires or or or you know just doesn't you know want to work but we get another we hire someone else is that is that also correct if you could just let me know if I think it is but I I'm not so sure and then I'll just leave the rest um for a quick uh on the non agenda so um Madame President U with that I I yield back if uh if there's anything that could be could be given by the way I'm just just going by what was said today because I also couldn't my fault not yours uh couldn't print out the the agenda but that's that's okay uh uh thank you madam president I yield back and again thank you for holding the meeting thank you Mr Solair um in reference to the chemistry teacher I speaking as someone who was terrible at chemistry in high school I'm sure there are students who hope that she would not be replaced but yes they're going to need to hire a chemistry teacher for the high school because it's essential to make sure students have a foundation in um all areas of the Sciences so there will have to be someone replacing mamine teaching chemistry once she retires this June regarding the modular class rooms that are going to go uh at the site at Wallace those are being purchased through a cooperative and I'm going to actually hand it over to miss good if you could just give a brief few words on what that means when something is purchased through a Cooperative okay um this is not a bid process so it's there is no advertisement for the purchase Andor for this project we are purchasing or we are hiring the venders off of a state contract list through a co-op and we are um members of several co-ops so all the work done by any and all um parties related to the trailer project will be State contract vendors um if you have any questions about the state contract vendor that will be hired because they will be hired on the board agenda um to do the work um then their state contract number um will also be on the board agenda so um we are fully transparent um on this project if there's any questions you can certainly reach out to either Dr Johnson um Mr C and myself and we will answer all the questions to the best of ability you are breaking up Joyce I don't know if it's just me who's hearing that oh okay so can you hear me yes I I appreciate miss good no one is doubting the sincerity and the honesty of the board it was just a question okay okay and as well as uh as well as the the the on that are get retired that was just you know putting one and two together you know we we want to make sure that your questions are answered and in regards to your last question which is about scaffolding at Hoboken Middle School it was my understanding from the facilities director as well as from our Architects that it did need to stay up through Four Seasons we're obviously kind of at the end of that fourth season what is going to happen next is that a forensic engineer will have to come out and look at the building and determine um what can be restored and also looking into how all of this will get paid for so I'm sure we'll have a lot more to say about it um I know that you know seeing scaffolding around a building is something that no one really likes but the most important thing is that we keep everyone safe as they go in and out of Hoboken middle school so thank you so much for your questions um we are going to move into our consent agenda is there a motion motion motion second then I have a motion in a second can I do a roll call yes please miss good Miss Angley yes Miss katamori yes Miss deera yes Mr delator yes Mr Grana yes Miss Conor yes Mr kful yes Miss Norwood yes M mcer yes motion passes thank you Miss good we will now move into public comments on agenda and non-agenda items uh Miss Lopez Yes again we have two speakers the first will be uh Miss Waiters thank you again Patricia Wade is 129 Willow um the member of the public that just spoke I must respectfully disagree I mean your opinion is yours m is mine I do question the Integrity of the board on certain issues uh the scapel being one number two open and fair bidding miss good just emphasize that it's not a bid but I don't know if you guys familiar with what just took place with HUD in old7 people with the contracts with respect to a fair and open contract so if we do question that because we know you might not admit it guys but I want this place to on the record on the public portion that our town is very political and everything is politically stricken even though you said it's not the same thing with the new school issue so when we ask we don't ask to disrespect none of you board members what we ask is that you have integrity and be transparent and be honest with us because with that 770 project money I stood out there I was there and I was shocked to see uh the non for-profit which is the hoken Board of Education Foundation was there and it was very political that and it's so long and and it speaks for itself there's no way y'all couldn't have split that money by now and we already did the the pilot was already done months I mean years ago and it does question the Integrity of this city when they want to play politics every time there's an election because you see the same people in City Hall and the same games being played and members of the public like us is being impacted and the ones that have our school kids in this district and uh another thing that's very important those three trailers uh out in behind wace you since it wasn't a bid can we get access to the contractors that's going to do that through the facility director uh to to do Mr cagie I need to see a copy of that please and miss good I definitely want to ask you with respect so I don't want to put it on the record on the public portion could you please make time to meet with me before you introduce your preliminary budget I would really appreciate that okay so miss miss waiters um as far as meeting with you before I introduce my preliminary budget the answer to that is the preliminary budget must be presented to the finance committee um once Dr Johnson and I go over the budget and come to an agreement on what will be presented no one outside of the fin no one outside of the finance committee um will have any access to any of the budget information until the budget is presented in public okay thank you that's good that's good long as it's all right I'm satisfied thank you Miss good you're so I'll wait till next board Mee and next not this Tuesday next Tuesday okay am I right the next board meeting no it's in March on the it's it's in March there will be a resolution requesting permission for me to submit the the submit the budget to the county office for approval okay the budget is still not a public document until the county office approves it all right so okay so once it's approved by the county office then it becomes a public document thanks for the clarification and thank you madam president you all guys stay safe you too thank you Miss waiters Miss Lopez do we have another member of the public signed up to speak yes we do uh Mr Soler yes am I am muted again yes you are thank you very much Miss Lopez um Madame President uh once again good evening to everyone I'm not going to reiterate what I just said before but I just want to ask everyone how are you doing uh it's an important question uh everybody should every now and again Ask each other that question if you have the opportunity because sometimes we're going through difficult situations and and we try to uh keep it together but it's hard and it sometimes it's better when we speak to each other and this is also an example for the school dist School District children so they could also feel comfortable if um they sometimes don't feel okay to come out and speak so I just wanted to throw that into the conversation this evening um Madam president um I wanted to also before I I continue I wanted to um again uh thank uh all of the volunteers um that are in the theatrical um uh area for uh the children again it is a great number of people and that is uh that is wonderful to see and and want to thank each and every one of the volunteers as well as um uh the person who donated the I believe the stage I I I couldn't write the name fast enough but uh you know much much thanks to all of the people who volunteer and again all of you and and everyone so my um my concerns or or my opinions here this evening just just when again um when the question I asked was about the the scaffolding it was just because a a clarification of you know it has been there and again I'm not rushing a process that you know if it's safe to you first of course but um this is this is the reason to ask the question so maybe we can get an answer and again Madam president um I do appreciate the efforts um that you and the board are are doing to answer these questions and um in regards to the budget I I just can't wait to see it um I hope it um it uh it is an impressive one and uh again the pilots are very important I try to speak on it wherever I can especially in the council meetings to help out that process because um if we have more um more funds I would hope that more important things can be done for the district and and the children could benefit on on that regard so I know that you will all be um pushing for this and Madame President will um I'm sure it's something that that that you have um uh a lot of concern of over and and interest in resolving so with that again uh what was asked before I I have full faith yes some people do some uh wrong things but I believe in because of the the eyes that are upon uh the district and all of us I'm sure that things are are going to try to be as transparent as possible so I thank you for the time uh once again God bless you madam president God bless the board God Bless The Hope F school district and all of us and have a good evening and and I yield back thank you Mr one one one last thing Madam president if you're going on Executive session will will you will you um be um taking any action so that either we can leave or not you beat me to the punch um we will not be taking any action as a result of this executive session but we will be going into executive session now for the purpose of discussing matters covered by attorney client privilege um we will not be taking action so we will just be coming back to close the meeting I think we will be approximately 45 minutes to an hour um do I have a motion so moved motion all right board members please the Vicki put the zoom Link in the chat for the executive session so you will leave this Zoom go to the second zoom and uh then we'll come back to this original Zoom link to close out the meeting sounds good okay see you all in a few we [Music] don't we have to don't we have how about that oh yeah she was she get in we should yay technology all right let see we have three six it is uh 8:25 p.m. we are coming back into the meeting because I neglected to call for a roll call vote for us to go into executive session just waiting for everyone to get back on the zoom and if someone could make Sheila a panelist so she could vote that would be greatly appreciated Miss President we do have Quorum I don't know if I have someone to record the vote yet though Leslie because I'm not sure if Joyce and Vicky are on yet okay I'm in all right so we are okay so we could do all in favor or I could do a roll call let's do the roll call for the sake of transparency I'm I move that we move to Executive session second I have your I have Miss Norwood as motion and Miss Angley as a second yeah we don't need the motion again okay so roll call Miss Angley yes Miss katamori yes Miss Z yes Mr delator yes Mr Grana yes Miss cona yes Mr kful yes Miss Norwood yes M mcer yes it's 8:27 we're in executive session so we're gonna leave this and go back to the okay wait can you just put it on the chat Vicky again so we can just all log in there thank you wait why can't I get in [Music] sounds like there was a party going on in here all right I think we have everyone it is 9:42 p.m. and we are just returning from our executive session do I have a motion to resume the meeting so motion second miss good could you please call the role Miss Angley here no no to um to vote oh I'm sorry yes Miss katatori yes Miss Dela yes Mr delator yes Mr Grana yes Miss Conor yes Mr kle yes Miss Norwood yes Ms mcer yes okay motion passes and with no further business do I have a motion to close the meeting motion second all in favor say I I I thank you [Music] everybody oh