e e e oh hi hello how are you feeling I like that little Buffet e e here yeah all right we'll get started um M gorio can we get a roll call Board member Elizabeth Callahan here board member Nubia dval Wilson board member Regina eert here board member Bill gford board member will Meyer here board member Shaina saki Gable here board president Coe tford here board member R VOD lamman and board member Caitlyn Whit letter here you please stand for the Pledge of Allegiance please take notice that adequate notice of this meeting has been provided in the following manner that written notice was sent from the office of the SEC Secretary of the board at 2:30 on January 5th 2024 that said notice was sent by email to Maplewood and South South Orange Township clerks and the editors of the news record Star Ledger tapa tooma and the Village Green whereas while the senator Byron and be open public meetings Act njsa 10 4-6 requires all meetings of the South orang Maplewood Board of Education to be held in public njsa 10 4-12 sets forth nine types of matters that may lawfully be discussed in executive session without the public being permitted to attend and whereas the board has determined that one issue is permitted by njsa 10 4-12 to be discussed without the public in attendance and shall be discussed during the executive session to be held on Thursday June 27 that should be July 25th 2024 at 6:30 p.m. and we are the nine exceptions to open public meetings outlined in njsa 10 col 2-4 are listed below and next to each exception is a box which will be marked when the issue to be privately discussed fall within that exception and after each exception is a space where additional information that will disclose as much information about the discussion as possible without undermining the purpose of the exception shall be written any matter which by express provision of federal law state statute or rule of Court shall be rendered confidential or excluded from public discussion the nature of the matter described as specifically as possible without undermining the need for confidentiality is attorney client privilege hip reporting and litigation status report and any pending or anticipated litigation or contract negotiations in which the public body is or may become a party any matters falling within the attorney client privilege to the extent that confidentiality is required in order for the attorney to exercise his ethical duties as a lawyer the party to and docket members of each item of litigation and door parties to each Contra contract discussed are are the are and the nature of the discussion described as specifically as possible without undermining the need for confidentiality or whereas the length of the executive session is estimated to be 60 minutes after which the public meeting of the board will select will reconvene and proceed with business where formal action will be taken now therefore be it resolved that the South l m board of education will go into executive session for the above stated reasons only and be a further resolve that the board hereby declares that its discussion of the aforementioned subjects will be made public at a time when the Public's interest in disclosure is greater than any privacy or governmental Interest being protected from disclosure with that i' like to make a motion to go on Executive session get a second thank you board M cahan all in favor all right that's unanimous we're going into executive session now e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e all right we'll start again first like to make a motion I make a motion to approve of the board minutes from the special meeting on June 6 2024 in the executive session in and regular meeting minutes on June 27th 2024 have a second thank you board all of you all in favor all right vote is unanimous all right next we'll have the superintendent's update so I did want to shout out some folks before I give a quick overview of my 100 day plan uh first and foremost uh director of communications Paul Brew Baker his last day was last Friday um uh he will be missed uh we we um my short time with him um was really good he was the person I saw the most every morning would come by just to talk about what's going on in the district so uh I know he's moved on and and he's happy but I could tell you he's uh he will miss South Orange Maplewood School District I do also want to shout out suzan uh Ellis who's been stepping in the shoes of Sue uh and really doing a Yan's task uh and a lot of work uh just spent the last three days uh with Kevin and that crew so I do want to shout out Sue just I want to shout out that whole department they' they've been working their tails off uh and also uh Tom G as I noted to everybody we had a couple issues with flooding uh and 1:30 in the morning and 2: a.m. in the morning and he and his guys were there and both times I went there you wouldn't even know something happened so just a big shout out to Thomas in regards to that it's just a hot mic so don't speak too loud gotcha uh so one of the requests was first 100 day plan um this will be posted on our website as we as we move forward uh so we just wanted to go over it quickly with the public we'll be getting more in depth uh over the next few months and I do ask for input on this plan we kind enough to had uh board members give me some good review and input on it I'm asking the same of the public if you see an organization or you see a group uh or an individual that you feel I should be meeting with in my first few months here please shoot me an email let me know uh if you think we should be meeting in a certain location to hit more people please let me know and we can do that as well um this is a living document go ahead sir uh you can keep going oh keep going please uh you know four values we did take the mission uh integrity Excellence uh teamwork and Equity um as we move forward uh and working with Dr Fergus working with our equity and access uh Department working with our parents community board members uh again this will be a living document and it will grow to reflect our work um and as we start moving through our Equity work especially from the governor side of the house which uh is our Board of Education um I I think one of our goals is really to land on some non-negotiables in regards to equity that will really Drive our work so Equity is an ancillary issue that we're just throwing on to things we're doing but Equity will become a driving force of everything that we're doing so as you can see uh we have a wide variety of topics and objectives um for us I did narrow it down to about I believe it was 10 major areas those areas being uh first and foremost key relationships and developing those key relationships you will see some highlighted portions on this uh which really exemplify what our work has been my first few weeks here um obviously the triple I plan um our special services correction action plans um our longrange facility plan uh Dr fergus's recommendations and as the board and I have discussed and as our SLT has discussed um we have the blueprints for what needs to be done it's it's now walking through those Blueprints and really taking action steps and spelling out those action steps sharing them uh with community members uh and putting them in action and making sure we have a good accountability system that we're meeting uh the expectations so obviously key relationships uh was an important first step and again that goes back to meeting different groups I've been sending the board updates of who I've been meeting with whether it's the mayors of both towns police police Chiefs uh seen Hall University president Essex County Community College president our booster clubs uh pretty long list of internal and external we'll continue those meetings over the next 3 four months um next week I believe we have scheduled uh some of our local uh politicos um that we'll be meeting with and also some local colleges including Kane University uh in the area so I'm excited and again that list is ever growing I think the more Partnerships we have the better for our kids uh second was also uh financial review was a big part of this uh as well as organizational review which really includes uh things like uh RTI plans or multi-tiered system of support which will be a really key factor in our restructuring of our special services Department uh which we have spent a lot of time on Dr Gilbert has spent a lot of time on uh we have been listening to phone calls listening to our emails from our parents our community members our CPAC which has been a wonderful working partner with us in regards to how to restructure that that department and we continue to move forward on those initiatives and we're excited to share those uh with the community in the very near future we just shared I think some exciting stuff at the committee level uh which we'll be uh sharing publicly in the very near future um some observations obviously uh meeting with custodial staff I've had the pleasure of working with Tom G uh a lot because of the capital project O next slide uh due to the capital project and I've had the privilege of seeing all the wonderful construction going on that is really transforming this District um one of our key documents as we move forward which is on top of the Fergus report uh our special services audits uh will be that long range facility plan um we are taking a huge step with the amount of construction going on in the district we have some more steps to go uh in our buildings um some simple fa lists whether that's new flooring whether that's painting looking to refresh buildings um I'm more than happy I know the board is very proud of the infrastructure changes that are going now especially in regards to clean air uh and HVAC uh which will make a huge difference and also adding the extra space in our buildings as well as we start the grow so I we're excited about that and I can tell you we've been sitting in on all the progress meetings and uh we are on time and on task uh with everything uh we will be having a ribbon cutting for our High School uh first one will be the new student lounge which I had the privilege of going through again yesterday which will blow some Minds trust me it is really unbelievable uh what they did with that former pool area and then second the library which again is will be a magnificent space uh for our students so I'm excited about those two ribbon cuttings when we'll get your dates moving into the future uh once we have them goe we've also been working with the curriculum team cni an En Zola who have again been wonderful thought Partners um they are in the midst of work last year obviously and got pulled out uh to do some work at the high school so that a lot of that work had to just be delayed they are now back up and running and introducing some really Innovative curriculums uh whether it's Eureka Math or magnetic reading um I'm extremely happy not only for our students but for our parents in regards to those two series uh Eureka Math is a Hands-On manipulus series um which uh has proven results uh in regards to uh improving critical thinking and strategic thinking in our students um our magnetic reading which is part of I ready um is instant data which is District never had and also a mul sensory approach to reading so uh those two items alone will make a huge difference uh in our Learners so we're excited about that in addition to that we'll be launching as I said a new response to intervention model uh for SE September something we've been lacking which will give our kids a nice tier one tier two and tier three interventions uh to support what we what we have in place so we're excited about that and obviously I've been sharing with the board a lot um that we don't have to use Excel sheets anymore that we're that CN I have uh purchased some data platforms where we'll easily access data manipulate data so we'll be able to track what we're doing and and have a lot more accountability in regards to our goals so I'm very excited uh about that this is why I wear glasses um transport Transportation Transportation usually I will hit my heels together when I say that um obviously a lot of my calls a lot of uh emails have been around transportation and I can honestly say and I've said this to the board that our transportation depart has been very Nimble uh they're just going into their second year um we had some issues with extended school year which uh working with uh CPAC and our parents uh was fixed um and that was just a miscommunication from the school year uh we're going to put in place uh some stop gaps so that will not happen again um on my desk right now is a Continuum of and timeline for transportation through September which will be posted on our website uh next week so parents can simply click on the website uh and look at that Continuum so they know what's coming up in the future um I hate to ruin any steal anybody's Thunder especially Jerry's uh but we will be launching the app that we all have been talking about that will allow parents to get the time of arrival uh for their students bus and a few other functions that that we will afford to our parents so that should be launched in late August we're excited about that uh but that Continuum in Timeline will posted on our website next week uh on our agenda you will see some new hires one of those hires is a new director of communications um which we did get the blessing of Mr Paul breaker who knew our candidate very well uh and our candidate uh also has redone and revised many websites so uh I think he knows his first task when he comes into the district we will put him in that web master closet I mean office and he will redo that website uh to make it a lot more user friendly uh also as we move forward I talking especially to cni uh there are some opportunities in this District um we have wonderful staff and you'll see it on the website soon because we're breaking on the data for our staff the amount of Masters that our teachers have in this District uh there is no doubt in my mind blow away any other District in County I I was amazed by our numbers um which is something we should be proud of and shouting out on our website um but that also provides us opportunities uh for creating different Pathways in the district uh what we have been talking about obviously is reinvigorating Career and Technical education uh and really starting a Continuum around that especially at the early grade starting at grade 3 through 8 and then obviously working through the high school wherein they already have programs going on they're just not getting the Perkins funding as of yet and as I've said to many people who have shied away when I've mentioned the word Perkins because the grant is overwhelming uh I'll be more than happy to take on that Grant having done it too many times uh but it will bring more funds into the district funding programs that we currently have um and then also opening the doors uh for other programs uh which can tie into some of our stronger programs like the Arts we literally just had a discussion around around a pathway around entertainment technology which would train kids in lighting behind the stage everything that happens behind the stage uh on a film or in in on Broadway uh would be part of that pathway which would tie nicely into our arts program so again not Reinventing the wheel but really work expanding on what we have and making sure we're giving more opportunities for our students um so in the coming months I've been doing a lot of listening um and I've been lucky enough to meet some wonderful people um as everybody starts coming back from school uh from Summer into school uh we'll be doing various initiatives including riding the buses I've already talked to Jerry about getting on the buses the first few days of school uh you know it will enable us to see how the transportation routes are working and also meet some parents and stakeholders doing that um I know the board is also interested in starting planning for a strategic plan so this year would be really the planning of what that strategic plan would look like so we could start engaging in that work uh next year um but one of the big discussions we've had and it really piggybacks oh really now uh what one of the things that piggybacks on is uh a lot of Dr fergus's work uh in regards to making Equity really the center of what we we do uh and making that the center and I'm speaking from a board perspective making that the center and driving forth between our practices policies and expectations uh because that's what we can do here and I think that's going to make a huge difference as we move forward uh with this plan um I'm excited to enact this plan I think we have a lot of support uh I think Dr Fergus noted last night that we've made some good progress we still have work to do and I'm excited in sharing that work with the public um we will be doing something that I believe is unique to South Orange Maplewood uh we'll be putting some of our board members in the spotlight uh moving them around to some Quest q&as um the most popular one being why the heck did you decide to become a board member um but uh we're going to have open sessions with community members uh with board members simple conversation with board members uh we'll probably schedule about four or five of those over the next four or five months just so we can get better know the community um and as I noted to the board um and I've talked to Andrea about this as well you know we start budget budgeting for the uh 25 26 school year very soon so you'll be seeing some surveys in in the near future in regards to what things you want to prioritize in regards to budget uh for 2526 so that'll be coming out sometime in September October so we'll make sure everybody has proper notification of that and again I think one of the more important things we're doing to help our communication is not only getting out uh in the communities but also improving our our website and commun and uh improving our communication utilizing social media utilizing our all call ability uh and making sure parents and stakeholders are all aware of the work that we're doing and being extremely transparent so we're excited about that uh uh one of the big things we are looking forward to is the retreat in August for the board where we'll do a lot of this heavy lifting uh and look forward to sharing it with the public thank you all anyone have any questions or comments or all right M acur uh no questions um and just for the public to know we've seen this before and so if we're not asking questions necessarily to follow up it's because we've already went through it all but um just want to I guess officially welcome this is your first board meeting thank you for for for going through that and um you know one thing that I kept smiling for those when you kept mentioning website website website and I I love that it's it's a priority you know we we we talk so much about communication and I think in today's world you know a a a ve a well-functioning website is um is really key to getting a lot of that information so look forward to the new comms person that is starting soon um and love that he has whatever certific to be a Web Master very big shout out to uh lyanna and Keith who've been holding down the website for quite some time and all the new postings I think you just saw the new Transportation posting that was up there they've been doing that so just a big thanks to them um and also I see Dr Gilbert here so I just want to give him a big thanks for being my partner in crime over the last few weeks uh and really getting down into the work so I don't think I could ask for any better so big thanks Dr Gilbert all right next we have the business administrator update okay okay this uh this is a construction update for the schools that are uh having their summer disrupted so to speak so in Marshall um they've completed sunsh sunshade installation and they're continuing with um um curtain wall glass installation uh at the Courtyard area uh they're continuing with uh the HVAC control wiring and they're continuing with the second floor electrical panel wire running and classroom lighting um they've begun the electrical feeder PL poles to the new classroom editions um they're continuing with the exterior lighting installations at the canopy ceiling uh they've completed exterior metal panel installation as well as the ramp concrete placement um they're continuing uh I think it's spackling uh the classroom second floor ceilings and the ceiling grid they're continuing and the sopit framing they began painting uh first and second floor classrooms and corridors they've begin to install classroom and C or marker and Tack boards um they're going to start with the bathroom tile installation and the exterior door installation is ongoing at the ramp and the southeast side door and um it looks like they already did the boiler shut down and uh for that building uh for Montrose the majority of the work is scheduled to be happening right now in the summer and the looks like the boiler demolition is going to be happening in the in May and not a Columbia High School so um they've been doing a lot of vat abatement um in the d-wing along and they're installing the new flooring and uh they've completed the VCT Floor installations on the second and third floors uh let's see what we've done um they've set vuvs and the piping that's ongoing uh they've done abatement in the ceilings in various rooms in the bwing um in the media center they've done uh the required Demolition and they're working on the new HVAC uh they're working in the science rooms in the bwing they're working on the nurses area you know various sheet R and spackle and things like that um they're working on the common area uh they're working on the new guidance area wall framing electrical things like that they're working on the two gyms a17 and a13 um they've been working on uh the slate roof replacement in the front of the school and patching in other areas that they've come up to uh uh mechanical curbs this I don't know what that means mechanical curbs are loaded and being installed they're working on the a-wing abatement in various rooms um they're doing Dewing hbac work um they're working on painting uh common areas uh they're working on the fire alarm and the new guidance Suite uh they're working in the d-wing for uh HVAC pump piping and duct work uh are are ongo on first second and third floors uh they've been working on the uh terracotta ceiling and I believe it's the ceiling in the gym 1 A113 and they're doing the inspections as needed uh Maplewood Middle and uh the next project rather is Maplewood Middle and the South Orange uh middle electrical service uh they've been uh submitting and purchasing the equipment they the installation of the electrical service at SS is ongoing um um the fire alarm and PA system at uh Maplewood Middle is ongoing uh the new boil room construction is underway they're installing uh uh material for the the new VVS uh the rooftop units are on site and they're working on the new roof in area B and they've uh abated the floor and they're prepping for new flooring there and then for the South Orange middle project they we've awarded the contract to Paul Auto Builders I believe that was last month and they've had the we had the kickoff meeting uh yesterday for that project and that's my update for construction any questions all right next we have the president's update I actually don't have any any prepared statement this month but I do want to say that over the next month the board will be working on a self-evaluation and also the district will be working on District goals in which I would like the board to have a more proactive approach on this this year um one of the things that I would like to emphasize is that we often hear about the board and we think of it as Government but we aren't government we are governance and so one of my goals this year is you know we have a lot of changes and adjustments here and I think that I'd also like for the board itself to you know as we go through our training start to put in more I guess training um understanding into how we can be better at governance um and part of that will be how do we monitor um progress in the school district um because uh I think that's one of the major areas that where I think our board can see Improvement um but that's all I have to say for now so stay tuned we're going to be um we have a retreat coming up on August 21st and there we will be working on our district goals and board goals so you will see thanks now we have statement uh the school board meeting is a business meeting in public and not a meeting with the public often times it may appear to members of our audience that the Board of Education takes action with very little comment and in many cases a unanimous vote before a matter is placed on the agenda at a public meeting the Administration has thoroughly reviewed the matter with with the superintendent if the superintendent is satisfied with that the matter is ready to be presented to the Board of Education it is then referred to the appropriate board committee members of the board committee work with the administration and the superintendent to ensure that members that have that the members fully understand the matter after the committee discusses the matter it is then shared with the other board members for consider ation only then is it placed on the agenda for public for board discussion and action at a public meeting now we'll have our hearing of individuals and delegations thank you for coming in person and dialing in by phone this evening the South L map Board of Education certainly respects that you've taken the time out of your busy day to address the board at tonight's meeting we value public involvement in our school district and we are eager to hear what you have to say the board does have time limits by policy and it will be enforcing those to enable as many people to speak as possible this evening each individual will be given 3 minutes to speak please do your best to stay within the time afforded to you the first public comment period is usually limited to 1 hour and the second public comment period may be limited to 30 minutes all input shared with the board of education is taken very seriously and will inform future deliberations and work by our Board of Education and his committees and we have first Vicky Johnson my name is Vicky Johnson I've been living in South Orange for over 30 years I attended three board meetings to express my disgust and horrible neglect by the South Orange Maplewood School District concerning the lack of educational services for my granddaughter as a minority IEP student Mr Taylor stated at one of these meetings that my granddaughter would be given educational and psychological needs evaluated by the school district of course that was not done now to summarize the events during 2022 school year she was given marijuana brownish by several students while at Colombia and taken to St bimus Hospital Upon returning back to school several students contined to physically and psychologically harass her at school no action was taken by Mr Taylor or Mr Sanchez no psychological counseling and they continue to fail my granddaughter by not meeting her basic Bas needs for Safety and Security we as her parents recommended to the district that she received instruction home instruction she was taken out of Colombia because of the Hostile unsafe unhealthy environment and given limited home instruction again a complete failure by the district the home instructor never received any communication about mandated core subjects from the IEP superintendent or the Columbia uh teachers she was supposed to be transferred to an out ofd District school but the IEP Department never completed the process and now she's been out of school for over a year and a half yes I'm repeating it over a year and a half we requested several meetings with the IEP Department superintendent and supervisor without any resolution and we therefore we reached out to Mr Davis for advice Mr Davis recommended in implemented an action plan that included number one enrollment for my granddaughter in the accredited summer school program based on academic and emotional support secondly enrollment uh in their accredited school for the fall and she received individual therapy sessions for several months I am recommending the special education department implement new IEP protocols by becoming more proactive and preventing these incidents from occurring again for all our students thank you any questions and I would like to have some answers and I also would like to become a member of the special education department as a member of this community I think your best Avenue uh I'm going to connect you with CPAC our our special education parent advoc advocacy uh group um so I'm going to give you my number you call me and I'm going to connect you with CPAC um and then we'll work on this is and excuse me when are you going to give me your number I'll give it to you right now very good thank you all right that concludes our public speaks all right next we'll have our committee reports great good evening I'm going to start us off with our special services ad hoc committee we met on July 23rd 2024 we began at 6 p.m. and adjourned exactly at 8:00 in spite of the additional minute which I will neglect because we were just having a little bit of fun um it was myself board members Myer woodlet superintendent Bing Dr Gilbert our assistant superintendent of access and Equity who's currently the point person for our Special Education team and supervisor of special services Miss Sue Ellis we're all in attendance before I begin the readout I want to Echo what super tendent being said earlier and thank Dr Gilbert for once again taking on additional responsibilities by this time providing interm oversight for our special education department and also in a department that has seen so much turn turnover I would also like to thank Miss Sue Ellis for her consistent presence her institutional knowledge and for taking on additional responsibilities as well during these periods of transition such that as the one we're currently in um we're really grateful for your continued support and commitment to our students and families and to formally welcome superintendent Bing it was wonderful to have you in committee and benefiting from your special education knowledge as well so we started with a par professional audit update from Dr Gilbert Mr Mullen conducted an internal audit on power professionals this past Schooler and he's currently socializing and discussing those findings with principles to compare with their experience and observations in their schools this internal audit highlighted growth areas that were consistent with the results of our federal monitoring and private audit results including uding the need to improve our paraprofessional determination usage and fading processes to address this we discussed a multi-pronged plan that the district will be implementing that includes student Centric strategies such as ones that do or Mr Bing uh mentioned earlier including enhancing our inrs systems increasing teacher training and instructional and social emotional strategies and then introducing those multi- sensory curriculums we're also the district is also working over the summer towards improving guidelines and approval processes for determining EMP professional support along with implementing ongoing monitoring professional developments are planned for the 2024 2025 school year to ensure that staff understand these processes additionally there will be a clear communication plan implemented to ensure that school teams and families understand the objectives and the overall emphasis is student centered and one that promotes Independence next we moved on to discussing the board commissioned audit as we discussed last month the board was in receipt of the results of the first portion of a private a that was commissioned by the board in 2023 to date those results have been socialized by having it shared with the full board we reviewed and discussed it with our former assistant superintendent of special services within the special education committee we hosted office hours for additional discussion and the author of the report attended a portion of our executive session uh last month on the 27th in committee we then discussed how we would like to disseminate and present this audit to the public in this preliminary discussion uh we made a decision to host a special education Committee of the whole during which the audit results will be presented and discussed and then this will be followed by Community forums to share with the community where the department is intended to head with this correction action plan from federal monitoring and those audit results information on that will be forthcoming and we are looking forward to it we also received from Miss Ellis an IC update um she provided some context regarding those classrooms the relocation of the SMS section and establishment of a section at Dila balen um we talked through budgetary constraints uh Staffing challenges and shared the ultimate plan to ensure that we do have IC classrooms across all elementary schools um which is continuing uh to progress we then had a pretty robust update on extended school year by Miss Ellis as well um we talked about the program offerings the district is currently running inclusion classrooms pull out resource and self-contained program along with related services and evidence-based reading um esy is being hosted for middle and high school students at South Mountain big school um and they're implementing split program to accommodate IC and address skill gaps and then our prek and Elementary School students programming has been hosted at Clinton school together which has been positively received and there are plans to continue that practice both programs have uh been working on balancing learning with some summer fund so they're addressing those skill gaps while also enjoying activities like water play and an upcoming Olympic theme Field Day for both programs uh cek is also coordinating a book drive for extended school year students and we will ensure that that information is also available for those who would like to donate we talked through Transportation improvements uh superintendent Bing noted earlier that at the beginning of the summer there was uh a little bit of struggle around uh busing and transportation for our extended school year students um but we have worked to address that um and moving forward improving coordination um and transportation services for our families um so that includes some upfront planning around fall Transportation undergoing an improvement plan so that we better communicate and meet those trans Transportation needs with internal processes uh between our transportation and special services being refined um ensuring that students with one toone pairs receive appropriate Transportation support and also examining preschool bus Aid requirements in addition we talked about extended school year registration um there was noted room for improvement and some of those steps will include better communication more clear and concise that will be emphasized to ensure that families understand the registration process such that the clarification really is that even extended school year is mentioned in a student's IEP there is still registration required and making sure that that is understood and that opportunities are provided for that communication um CPAC has um offered to assist in that communication as well um and also ensuring that our dates for extended school year communicated earlier to families and overall these initiatives aim to enhance our extended school year experience for students with special needs and improve the administrative process uh regarding registration and transportation next we talk through recommendations that were Made To Us by CPAC we would like to thank the CPAC board for sharing those thoughts on our areas of growth for the district uh with us ahead of the committee meeting for a discussion so we talked through some concerns over the staff turnover that the special services department has experienced and recommendations for restructuring we talked about ensuring that within our board meetings that time is reserved for readouts during all meetings and that committees even if we're ad hoc committees all of our readouts are publicly posted so that all community members have access to them um and also the idea to move the special education ad hoc committee to a standing committee discussion had previously been had on these topics but we still continue to appreciate and the support that CPAC provides on that we also then moved into their last discussion point was Improvement around family engagement related to District goals um and we appreciate this push and would like to assure CAC and the community at large that increasing engagement and communication with student and families is top of mind um as referenced earlier for the board and the district finally we discussed the goals of this committee ahead of our board retreat we talked about goals to support student outcomes family engagement compliance and inclusion and look forward to finalizing those in closing I would like to thank our committee for the robust discussion that we had um and again the department who amidst the turbulence has continued to work tiously with uh to Advocate with care and professionalism um I'd also like to thank CPAC again for being unwavering Advocates and thoughtful partners and I look forward to continuing our work collectively as we move forward forward towards these shared goals and establish some stability um and continuously improve our special education services for students and families any questions yeah and I did uh share this with CPAC um we're going to make them part of our committee meetings they they'll join us at the start uh open open dialogue open communication the Personnel committee met on Monday July 22nd at 6:40 p.m. Dr telesford and I were present as well as Mr edid doyan and Mr Bing his first Personnel committee meeting we kicked off reviewing the Personnel resolution and Mr adido provided more details around the following um Marshall building Administration coverage for the 2425 school year I it's my understanding that Marshall families have received communication on this earlier this week as we went through some of the resignations we discussed exit interviews and some of the challenges in getting them completed uh the biggest one being that it's voluntary this then led into a discussion on retention a topic that was prioritized at many personnel meetings last year while exit interviews can yield value valuable information it's too late at that point we need to be engaging with employees while they are here on a regular basis I the committee is very excited to hear that there will be a big focus on engaging with these employees via stay interviews it's part of the Workforce Development plan as well as Mr Bing's 100 day plan very encouraging uh a couple of highlights from the resolution specific to appointments there are two employees that were affected by the Riff that we the district was is able to bring them back into different positions and Mr Bing already highlighted that the communication specialist starting in August we reviewed data presented around vacancies and discussed the status of some specific positions we are currently in the interview process for the ba uh CHS assistant principal athletic director supervisor of special services at CHS and we are currently wrapping up interviews for the assistance soup of special services at this point the district may consider hosting a job fair in August but nothing is decided just yet during new business we brainstormed about District goals for the 2425 school year in preparation for the August Retreat the biggest theme that came up was creating a sense of belonging and fostering relationships for staff members which of course is directly connected to students having a trusted adult uh they can go to in the schools so we're going to take that August Retreat I think I believe it was August 2 and start to you know hear what Dr um what Mr Bing has to say in terms of District goals and see how we can align with that and moving forward we will be posting public friendly Personnel committee meeting minutes on the website alongside other committees as much as much of personnel is confidential it will be paired down but I believe this is a good initial step to being as transparent as possible as it relates to Personnel thank you for those who have emailed and um you know provided the recommendation that we do so this month's minutes are now posted alongside other committee minutes and I'll work with u Mr Adan on going back to the 23 24 school year meeting adjourned at 740 p.m. and our next meeting is Monday August 26th any questions the fft committee met on July 17th 2024 board members um Callahan uh board member Meyer and myself were there joined by Mr Bing acting business administrator Delio uh Mr bonds and Mr jilo and also uh representatives from um spel um the first thing we discussed was the lrfp update um they've begun the process of beginning our next um fiveyear Outlook so they have they're now in the process of reaching out to principles and looking at what going through the schools to see what is needed um and they hope to have something draft in about 3 to four weeks so hopefully by our next meeting we'll be able to review that um the next thing we looked at were change orders um we had change orders for MMS most of those dealt with abatement um and that'll be taken out of the general allowance for a CHS we also had some construction related to abatement most in the bwing and we'll be taking that out of the there'll be some funds taken out of um emerging funds from the capital projects so that we can I guess not re I guess exhaust our um our what is it our our bond money um the next is South South South Mountain in which there will be an inst installation of a water pump to help increase the pressure in the building um the pressure in the area is not at adequate pressure to reach our new additions so they'll be installing two pumps to increase pressure so that we can get um improve pressure through the entire through all the building buildings and that will be taken out of our capital projects fund um we also spoke about um deia balen in which they're they're having some issues with um voltage drops um in the summer so right now they are looking at ways to monitor that to see if that is a uh an issue with the infrastructure in the school or that's infrastructure in the area um next we looked at Seth boen um the the Boiler Room flooding is continuing to be an issue they have closed down the lower gym they have two gyms so they're still the main gym that's open but right now the lower gym is currently closed and they're having an architect looking at um ways to solve this process or this issue and looking at next steps and that will be funding will come from capit products fund um the next thing we looked at was the CHS Auditorium in which the administration met with parents groups to discuss lighting and rigging um right now they're trying to find the way to have the auditorium up in the earliest it can be but um at this stage it looks as though the what we can do first is deal with rigging possibly and then use old lighting and then the actual funding for that will be we're still in discussion about that um but as of now there's a batement going on in the auditorium so there was there was some scheduled painting that was supposed to occur there but that will not be occurring with the abatement at this moment um and then the next thing we looked at was um we had a we had MOA with um South Orange Middle School where will be using the be Center as an evacuation um evacuation point for the middle school and also um working with our Police Department so that they can conduct drills in our schools when students are not present um we looked at uh actually one one policy which was 7610 on vandalism which is up for first read and that's all we have so far yes and I think that's it um yes I'm sorry in new business we did discuss transportation in which uh Mr did talk about uh an app being made available to parents so they can know when their the the bus will arrive um Mr Bing is also in discussion with YMCA to see if there is more a availability for after care uh we will we also had a discussion on policy on 5124 um there was a discussion about which committee is the appropriate committee to discuss that policy um and and then we also discussed um booster club um I guess fundraising and how can the district approach that um when they when when outside groups raise funds for things in the schools and how do we go about I guess addressing those projects if we can um and then the next was looking at cell phone reception in schools and looking at alternate inter internet options um that's all for now um are there any questions yes I don't know if this is for you or for Mr Bing but related to transportation and that app so will there be any like test runs being done just to ensure that they app's working you know kind of all that there's obviously going to be new routes and all that yes so um we're working with the tech department we're working with our security department uh myself and Jerry and Andrea will be running some tests with the apps um Keith uh actually has a lot of past experience with these sort of apps tracking apps um so I think we're in some pretty good hands in regards to that and then um you Qua we brought up discussion on policy 5124 um is there any more detail you can share on that or other than just that it's being kicked around to different committees or is this the regulation for this the regulation so regulation got it okay thank you okay the policy committee met on July 8th we had an attendance by self board members ER sacket Gable and Whit letter uh along with superintendent Bing uh we are putting forward one second read policy tonight and three first read policies um three out of these four are sort of housekeeping measures policy 8330 concerning Student Records is being updated uh to conform to the most recent uh statutes uh that was passed for first read last month uh and and uh we decided to move it forward uh tonight for adoption policy 7610 on vandalism has been updated uh in line with the recommendations from our uh policy vendor stra Esme to incorporate updates of the statute regarding uh additional remedies available uh for uh individuals who vandalize school property uh so that's being noted in here policy 2260 regarding equity in school and classroom practices this is also being updated uh as per recommendations from our policy vendor but with substantial uh edits to make sure that we are uh conforming the policy to uh our stance on uh gender inclusion within uh academic programs and bathroom use among other things uh and uh adequately uh representing all of the different uh uh protected groups including uh ethnicities as well as groups such as persons with disabilities for whom there are mandated uh curricular requirements and noting that we uh do have a policy of working to uh present curriculum for each of those um notably for those who are reviewing that policy there is a substantial amount that is being removed at the end regarding discussion of an affirmative action officer that's actually a piece that within our our uh policy vendor had been removed from this policy a while ago and moved over to policy 1140 which it uh we we have that information in 1140 so we're just for housekeeping purposes removing it here to reflect it there uh lastly for first read we have policy 131 which is the policy regarding policies uh we are inserting this is a local insertion and we may be among the first in the state to be looking at this to actually put in a specific time frame for the the adoption of a regulation when a policy that we adopt requires one uh we unfortunately have a um a number of policies right now that are missing required regulations the district is working through and trying to catch up on those but just to put a framework in place to make sure that we don't have this happen on an ongoing basis we are now requiring the district once a policy is adopted that has a regulation expected of it that within 120 days that is developed and adopted uh so uh We've run it through legal council we're uh we think we're in a good place for it and it'll help us to uh make sure that we're keeping our policy and regulation book uh up to speed uh within the policy meeting the uh among the other pieces that are of course all noted in our minutes which are available on the website uh we discussed policy 86001 which is our list of hazardous routes for Transportation uh to ensure that that list is accurate WR up to date for the upcoming school year uh the district confirmed after uh conferring with Mr vales and Mr Ford and uh our discussions with Municipal partners that that list is in fact up to date uh no changes were needed uh and we also discussed goals for the policy committee for the upcoming school year uh among the goals that we identified were looking at expanding the scope of the committee to also have uh a specific uh look at uh actual governance and looking at best uh procedures for our board uh which is uh a a trend right now that other boards are taking on uh so looking at at doing that for our committee uh also uh looking at uh having a formal Cadence for reviewing our entire policy manual not just items that have come up for review from Strauss Esme to make sure that we are keeping our policies fresh looking at updated language and such that we have uh a policy manual that is reflecting where the district is right now any questions great okay well on to cni uh the curriculum and instruction committee met on July 18th at 6:30 p.m. and included from the district Miss Bodner Miss wble Dr Gilbert Dr kareah superintendent Bing joined us for the first time and from the board side we had uh board members Callahan first VP Duval Wilson and myself we started out with a presentation on the this past School Year's past fail and no Credit Data Miss Bodner and Dr karea shared data which I've shared with the full board and it showed that the district saw a 20% decrease in the number of classes failed and that's that's classes not students who didn't pass classes but the actual tally of the classes um and so that was a 20% decrease while the state looks for districts to have about a 10% decrease um at this when they're at this point so we're moving in the right direction the district also provided notes on what they did differently this year and that's been shared with the board as well notably the admin team used data every two weeks to drill down the top six reasons students weren't passing classes and from there a team of staff had touch points frequent touch points with students to address the causes um that seemed to be pretty effective from their point of view we discussed Trends in the past fail data related to specific courses and while the linkit software will support the admin's ability to look deeper into Trends the math data really stood out um to admin when they took a look specifically the failure rate for nth graders enrolled in Algebra 2 which is technically a 10th grade level class then on the no credit side of things there was a significant drop in the number of no credits received this past school year for comparison about 3,300 students had issues with no credit receiving no credit um in the 2223 school year while this year year there were about 730 325 of which were cleared and there were several things done differently to achieve this drop just for example there are more efficient systems put into place for coding absences um and admin didn't wait until the end of the school year to address any student needs for students who received no credits for courses Ingenuity was software that was used to help backfill content they missed in their classes Saturday sessions were offered mid year as well as time during exam days of course all the updates to this process were run um by legal council and the unions um and this process will continue to be reviewed and tweaked for the upcoming year we spent a significant portion of time discussing ideas for the committee's mission and goal uh mission statement and goals we talked about developing a goal that can be driven by student outcomes there was a lot of positive energy around um centering a goal around mtss providing strong tiered support could hit many aspects of our district such as K5 math Freshman Academy social emotional learning supports and even lowering uh the failing rates and more there is a book adoption in tonight's resolutions for World languages grades 89 and 10 as far as the budget is concerned Miss Bodner continues to work with departments to significantly spend ARP money before tapping into the 2425 budget ensuring that all departments have necessary money to use towards supplies that was a big concern going into the school year but so far she has approved all Supply orders from supervisors as they've come in um and the district will also give us the costs and information on PD that teachers are getting so the board and Community are aware in New business we talked about the anti-bullying Bill of Rights Act There's an opportunity to receive state and federal funding to support our District's anti-bullying efforts through a resolution the money would be spent on PD and Community Building uh board member first VP Nal Wilson will work with Shannon cuddle a former board member and bullying task force chairperson on the resolution template based on best practices from other districts and we'll share with the full board as far as technology ISL has officially replaced star Renaissance with a cost savings and linkit is now finalized we discussed title the title one status of schools Clinton qualifies for Title One status again this is the last year for Maplewood Middle School to re to have the title one designation and the district is determining how best to use resources to provide support to students given these circumstances and as board member Meyer mentioned policy 2260 is up for first read tonight and we had some discussion on that as well can you just provide a little more clarity as far as that 20% pass fail number uh regarding classes not students um what specifically does that mean right so um for example you William Meyer could have taken uh five classes and let's say you know you received um failing grades for five of them all five all five versus Shaya sack Gable who may have received one so that would be a total of six that would count as six not two people but there um there it is itemized on the in the slide deck that I shared and it uh there's a slide for the data based on based on students individual students and there's a slide that shows the data based on the count the number of of classes got it thanks all right we'll now move on to the action portion of the meeting at this time I'd like to make a motion to move resolutions 4637 to resolution 4645 can I have a second please second open for discussion right I think we're good no questions no okay guess we can go to vote okay so we are voting on resolutions oops 4637 to resolution 4645 okay board member Callahan yes okay she's not here board member eert yes not here board member Meyer yes board member sacka Gable yes board president tford yes board me oh he's not here board member Whit letter yes motion passes all right next we have our next hearing of individuals and delegations are there any new signups all right we have one online uh Michael juren H oh okay [Music] okay camera hello H can you hear we can hear you yeah yeah can you hear me yes again I'm sorry I should have I should have just come to the uh meeting today not that far away um I thank you Dr Gilbert for responding to my email and um welcome superintendent Bing I really appreciate the opportunity to give a quick uh quick statement um we sent an email um last week um regarding my son um who is a rising first grader at South Mountain Annex uh I also have a fourth grader at South Mountain as well or a rising fourth grader um so I'm just going to read the email that I that myone I wrote um just to get it in the record um so just to introduce myself my name is Michael juren my wife her name is Adrien bco um we are parents in s school district and are writing to express our profound concern about rumor changes to the inclusion classrooms at the South Mountain Annex um we're writing to seek confirmation and Clarity and in sure that we're setting we're setting not just our child up for setting um every child up for continued success in the coming year um we've recently heard that the intention is to not have a Kinder Garden inclusion class and that the planned second inclusion class for the first grade has been reduced from 2 to one meaning that the annex can now only support eight of the most vulnerable early Learners in the first grade um so in our opinion that just cannot be the intention of a school district that clearly it is clearly so rooted in an equitable an equitable approach for all children and families um our son last year benefited greatly from being a gened student in the kindergarten inclusion class um at South Mountain he was placed there either by luck or by intention when we entered the school district from Brooklyn um with an IEP last year um he was evaluated in the fall of 2023 and was provided with a 504 for OT and a St only I AP at the time he did not qualify for an inclusion class still he deeply benefited from the care and attention provided in the supportive setting the season teacher and a wonderful special ed teacher um as of last week U my son has been reclassified and provided with an IEP thanks to the careful reevaluation of the summer team um we're sincerely grateful for the support and pleased with the outcome of that review um however when we learn that due to the classes the southbound Annex our child is likely to be placed in other school in order to receive his legally mandated Services an inclusion class being among the most crucial we have a also have a daughter entering the fourth grade at South Mountain and are now faced with a frustrating and very frankly difficult decision move her older daughter who's thriving at the school and has an existing newly formed friendships from her first year um or navigate the complexities of children in two different schools different administrations start and end times Transportation needs before and after care ICS um my wife and I have already made um after school commitments for care and nonrefundable deposits have been paid on the assumption that both children will be at the same school worth still there's no indication um of when we will find out about the final determination of placement um making any adjustments to the plans very difficult um moving our son will be disruptive um it was suggested that he could go back into South B for the second grade after next year um meaning that he would have to start a new school year every year for 3 years um this is uh potentially harmful for a child who already struggles with making friends being flexible and needing routine and one that gets great comfort from taking the bus daily with his older sister um more broadly um this means that any child who's classified um as midyear in kindergarten of first grade at South Mountain would need would probably need to change schools in order to benefit from the full support they're legally entitled to um surely a school district that values um that you purport the that the that has the values that you purport would recognize that these children in these classrooms are the one who needs the most consistency of routine care and support as do the parents and the CH of these children who are already navigating additional complexities coating their day-to-day care um it strikes us as unsupportive and out of sync with the goals of providing inclusive environment to these children um and we uh to limit the available access to certain schools for children with the greatest needs it's also out of step with any forward-looking support for working forward looking support for working families within the district ask that you urgently reconsider these decisions for the annex and that you recognize the hardship this decision places on families and our most vulnerable children thank you thank you uh I don't think anything Mr uran said is uh something we have not discussed so I can promise that we are working on the work and working on restructuring that department uh every board member on this panel has very similar concerns uh and has made this issue a priority um of this Administration and we are currently working on those issues thank you all right we'll move on to new business any new business Mr Bing would like to say something yes so just very quickly um there was a resolution on uh tonight's uh board agenda uh that was uh pulled uh in regards to granting early tenure for our assistant superintendent of access and equity which I cannot say uh I cannot repeat myself or shout any louder I strongly supported as did the board um it was pulled due to restrictions placed upon the district by uh teach New Jersey regulations um so uh we'll be working on revisiting this issue uh in the very near future um but as been noted not only at the last board meeting but at this board meeting um we are in a deep gratitude to Dr Gilbert and uh commend the work that he has done uh over the past 6 to8 months uh and look forward to recognizing that work all right any other new business okay the Board of Education will meet in public session on Thursday August 29th 202 4 at 6:30 p.m. in the district meeting room at 5:25 Academy Street in mwood New Jersey immediately following the opening of public session the board will move to go into a closed session in the superintendent's office at 525 Academy Street in mwood New Jersey as well as using an online video conference platform to discuss Personnel M within the attorney client privilege legal negotiations and other matters that may arise and require discussion to be announced at a later date immediately following the closed session of the board of educ the Board of Education will meet in the public session estimated to be at 7:30 in the district meeting room at 5:20 Academy Street in map New Jersey in person utilizing an online video conference platform which will include hearing of individuals the community can view the meeting by following the steps which will be listed on the agenda if there are members of the community who would like to attend the meeting in person please note that masks and social distancing are optional in accordance with the guidance received from the local do and the CDC action will be taken with that i' like to make a motion to close meeting a second thank you board member Callahan all in favor I and I guess we are adjourned at 8:56 p.m.