##VIDEO ID:Ps8QTJNqnN4## e e I'd like to call the meeting to order in accordance with the provision of the New Jersey open public meeting Act of 1975 the oton Board of Education transmitted notice of the meeting scheduled at 6:30 pm in the audabon junior senior high school media center to the retrospect newspaper and the burough Clerk and by postings on the aabon public school district website and at the main and the Pine Street entrances of the Junior Senior High School roll call please Mrs ronas here wson Sarah Cen Alison lipsky here Mark Gaddy Bill Wilson absent Danielle D Franchesco Allison Cox here Andrea Robinson here Jonathan Maxon here thank you whereas well the senator Byron and Bear open public meetings act requires all meetings of the oton Board of Education to be held in public njsa 10 4-12 B sets forth nine types of matters that may lawfully be discussed in executive session IE without the public being permitted to attend and whereas the Autobon board of education has deemed it necessary to go into closed session to discuss certain matters as are noted on the agenda may I have a motion to go into executive session all in favor any opposed okay we will be approximately 30 minutes 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 a motion to reconvene the Board of Education meeting motion second all in favor any opposed all right I would like to once again call our meeting to order and welcome everyone please stand for the flag salute plge Al to the flag of the United States of America to the for it stands Nation indivisible with liy and justice for [Music] all all right before we go any further I just want to recognize that we have um a new face at the table joining us as you know we had elections for Board of Education members in November so uh Miss D Franchesco was elected to the board we were most happy to welcome her last Wednesday she was sworn in at our reorganization meeting so we're happy to have you with us [Applause] congratulations and uh Miss coin was um elected for another year she's filling uh a vacancy so we're happy to have Miss coin back at the table with us congratulations and then both Miss Robinson and Miss Cox were elected to three-year terms so they were sworn in uh last week as well so [Applause] congratulations yes oh thank you Mr Wilson and once again we have our Mount evam Board of Education representative Mr Maxon is joining us for another year so we're very pleased with okay moving on um we and just as a point of note um every year presidents and vice presidents are reselected by the Board of Education I didn't want you to just think that that was de facto that it fell to myself and to Mrs Cox um and we were um very humbly happy to accept the nominations for president and vice president again for this this year um thanks okay so next we have our student representatives to the board for their report um there's not too much to report on right now people came back from winter break it was a really nice transition from an extra long break this year compared to past years's um winter sports are in full swing as you could tell by the lack of parking spots outside um there is a wrestling match tonight girls basketball's doing really well boys basketball as well winter track wrestling our Junior High Sports are going very well um midterms are coming up not next week but the following week so that'll be starting to come to students attention during class most likely next week um and a lot of our Juniors and seniors are beginning to get into the feeling of seniors for senior trip and prom and graduation everybody's just starting to feel that second half of the Year nice feeling yeah and um for midterms too a lot of teachers are giving their students uh prep now and like study guides now so they're all preparing and it's a lot better than it was before and yeah students are doing better thank you very much next we're going to move on to arguably one of the uh most Pleasant moments of our meeting we have our student and um staff recognition our spotlights so we're going to start off with our pre kindergarten student of the month and we're going to have uh Miss lipsky Rec recognize that individual Hannah Hoffman we are thrilled to recognize Hannah Hoffman as a preschool student of the month for December Hannah is an exceptional student who consistently demonstrates what it means to be kind hardworking and respectful she is smart shy and above all incredibly sweet Hannah's thoughtful nature and her ability to work together with others make her a role model for her classmates this shows how she has adopted the PBIS program of preschool swarm safe working together achievement respect and mindfulness Hannah approaches every task with a quiet determination always focused on achieving her goals while maintaining a calm and positive demeanor she shows great mindfulness in her action and words ensuring that everyone around her feels respected and valued not only is Hannah a dedicated student but she's also the kindest friend to all her classmates her compassion and willingness to help others create a welcoming and supportive environment for every for everyone additionally Hannah contributes to keeping our classroom safe by being a role model and encouraging her classmates and teachers to practice safety and respect by always listening carefully and following directions we are all so proud to have Hannah as part of our classroom way to go now I do have one question for this next person her name is Angelie Mains and apparently she goes by either Eva or Eva Eva thank you my daughter has a best friend named evera so I did not want to mispronounce that so evangelene Mains is our kindergarten student of the month come on up at your family and be proud okaya is a kind and caring friend to all of her classmates she is very respectful to her teachers and peers and always follows our classroom and school rules Eva is responsible hardworking student and loves to learn she is also a talented little artist she puts forth effort into everything she does she is very polite and a good role model to her classmates by always being safe in our school Eva has a little giggle that will always put a smile on your face we really enjoy having Evangeline as part of our school family congratulations thank you okay if we can move on to first grade can we have Robert Wolf come up here Robert wolf I'm going to read all about Robert Robert wolf is being nominated for student of the month for first grade he has been doing a fantastic job in first grade he is always putting forth his best effort participates asks questions when needed and is respectful to his peers and teachers not only has Robert been working hard in all subject areas he is a wonderful friend to his classmates he is a great role model and a leader showing ways to be safe and responsible in and outside of the classroom we are proud of all of his hard work and his efforts congratulations Robert how about Gavin Kingler okay all right we would like to nominate Gavin Kingler for student of the month for second grade for the month of December Gavin is a kind hardworking student who is a role model for the class Gavin consistently makes safe and responsible decisions each and every day Gavin is one of the kindest and most considerate students I have ever had the pleasure of teaching he is always respectful not only to adults but his classmates as well I am so happy to have Gavin in my class this year keep up the great work [Applause] Gavin okay our grade three student of the month is Avery reader it's Avery here notes I'm so sorry all right I apologize it's Avery writer okay Avery is nominated as the third grade student of the month and Avery is a kind and caring student and shows up each day ready to work and ready to lead by example she shows respect to her teachers and her classmates each day by her willingness to help others in any situation Avery shows ownership over her work by always completing her assignments and by being prepared for tests as a high achieving student Avery sets goals for herself and works diligently to achieve them she is responsible each day by keeping her belongings organized and bringing her Chromebook fully charged that's important Avery is an asset to our classroom community and we are so proud of her and all she has accomplished so far congratulations on being student of the month well [Applause] done our fourth grade student of the month is Heather Downham your teacher writes I am proud to nominate Heather D for the Bo of Education student of the month Heather has exemplified Roar expectations in the classroom she shows respect by always lending a helping hand to classmates in Need by offering Assistance or repeating directions for a given assignment she takes ownership for her learning by participating in class discussions as well as staying focused and engaged during lessons in addition she is not afraid to seek help ask a question or learn from her mistakes she chose achievement by giving 110% into all of her assignments by presenting her work neatly and making sure she uses all of the strategies she has learned finally she shows responsibility by always turning in her assignments on time and being prepared and ready to learn each day Heather comes to school every day with a smile on her face and is becoming more confident in herself and her abilities she's an absolute pleasure to have in class and is truly deserving of the award congratulations hether [Applause] all right fifth grade student of the month Rosemary Rosie pitti I am proud to nominate Rosie POI pozy pozy for Board of Education student of the month Rosie has consistently exhibited Roar expectations she's always respectful of her classmates and teachers she shows respect each and every day towards her teachers and classmates mates Rosie takes ownership by sharing her thoughtful answers with the class her achievement can be seen in her consistent effort in all she does Rosie always gives her work her very best effort she wants to succeed and improve her work is always of high quality that is thoughtful and thorough Rosie shows responsibility through the completion of her classwork and homework she always hands her work in on time but her work is never rushed she seeks out help when she needs it which shows her true dedic ation to learning I am proud of all that Rosie has accomplished thus far this year she has clearly earned the title of student of the month congratulations [Applause] Rosie we're very excited to recognize Maximus Garvin as our sixth grade student of the month just stand right there and face that way and smile Max is an active participant in class discussions helping students connect to Topics by sharing his own knowledge and personal experiences he continues to show outstanding academic performance in all areas we're especially proud of how thorough he is when completing written assignments his attention to detail and elaboration on topics set him apart from his peers and often serves as a role model for them this fall Max was selected to be a helper in one of our third grade classrooms during dismissal and has been a great asset to The Home Room teacher a perfect model of all Roar behaviors among his peers and teachers Max demonstrates respect self-discipline and the leadership qualities of a mountain lion we're proud of Max's accomplishments and are excited to see what his future holds for seventh grade we have Jaden row Jaden row has been an out has had an outstanding start to his first year at oton Junior Senior High School earning him the well-deserved title of seventh grade student of the month Jaden Jaden's diligence honesty and positive attitude in class set a wonderful example for his peers and he consistently approaches every task with his best effort his willingness to learn and determination to succeed reflect his admirable character and make him a joy to have in the classroom outside of his academic achievements Jaden is a well-rounded and active student who enjoys playing basketball soccer and go-karting he is also a talented member of both the band and choir showcasing his creative and musical abilities Jaden's enthusiasm hard work and well-rounded interests make him a standout student and a valued member of AHS Community his blend of academic Excellence creativity and determination makes him a truly deserving student of the month congratulations Jaden on this remarkable achievement keep up the great work our eighth grade student of the month is Madison [Applause] Philippi Madison philippy has been recognized as the eighth grade student of the month for her remarkable achievements dedication and character as an excellent student in junior high choir Madison consistently demonstrates creativity kindness and humor while being a helpful and supportive presence in the classroom her hard work and determination have led to significant growth in her singing and her efforts do not go unnoticed she stands out as the most helpful student in the class admire earning admiration from her teachers and her peers in addition to excelling academically with an impressive of 98 overall GPA for marking period 1 Madison skillfully balances her rigorous studies with a variety of extracurricular activities she participates in field hockey basketball softball and track while actively contributing to interact Club student council and the National Junior Honor Society Madison's ability to juggle academics Sports and Leadership roles with Grace and enthusiasm speaks to her incredible work ethic and commitment to success congratulations Madison on this well-deserved recognition Mia garula has been selected as a ninth grade student of the month Mia has been selected as a ninth grade student of the month for her outstanding academics and exemplary character me as a focused and dedicated student who consistently works hard for her grades always striving for progress in the classroom her positive attitude respect for her teachers and kindness toward her peers set her apart as a truly exceptional individual Mia's consistent participation and Good Conduct make her a role model for others creating a welcoming and encouraging environment for everyone around her she truly embodies what it means to be a model student and brings sunshine to the classroom every day beyond her academic achievements Mia enjoys playing basketball and spending time with her pets further showcasing her ability to balance school and her personal interests her acts of kindness and positive demeanor Inspire those around her to follow her example Mia's growth as both a leader and a person is truly inspiring making her a deserving role model and a shining example of what it means to represent aabon Mia's dedication to her studies combined with her character and contributions to the school Community make her a well-deserving recipient of this recognition congratulations Mia on this well- earned [Applause] honor for the sophomore class we have William Billy gled all [Applause] right Billy has been recognized as 10th grade student of the month for his genuine kindness diligence and commitment to self-improvement Billy consistently strives to better himself both academically and personally demonstrating resilience and willingness to embrace challenges his preparedness for classroom activities and dedication to completing all assignments and homework are a testament to his strong work ethic over time Billy has shown remarkable progress in his studies reflecting his determination to work to his full potential and his thoughtful approach to learning outside the classroom Billy enjoys playing basketball a past time that showcases his teamwork and drive at home he shares a close bond with his sister and their two cats further reflecting his warm and caring nature Billy's consistent effort positive attitude and dedication to grow make him a role model for his peers and an inspiration for those around him Billy's nominating teacher feels privileged to have witnessed his growth in achievements and his enthusiasm and hard work promis an exciting future ahead congratulations Billy [Applause] all for our junior class we have Jonah Jordan well we hope that he is doing well um so I'm still going to read uh his teacher rights um he's been selected as the 11th grade student of the month for his outstanding dedication respectfulness and determination both inside and outside of the classroom case in point wrestling uh Jonah's polite and respectful demeanor sets the tone for a positive and Collaborative Learning environment where he consistently engages with lessons and actively contributes to class discussions he is always willing to assist peers demonstrating leadership and a team oriented attitude Jonah is diligent in keeping up with his assignments and is consistantly constantly looking for ways to grow and improve embodying the qualities of a true student athlete importantly Jonah always does the right thing even when no one is looking which speaks to his integrity and strong character in addition to his academic achievements Jonah excels in athletics where he is an out where he is a standout in wrestling football and track his hard work discipline and perseverance on and off the field exemplify his commitment to Excellence Jonah's strong start in his junior year reflects his dedication to success and his teachers and coaches alike recognize his incredible potential he is a role model for his peers and a deserving recipient of this honor congratulations Jonah on this well-earned [Applause] recognition and our 12th grade student of the month is key Curran who I don't think is here this evening KY has been selected as a 12th grade student of the month for her outstanding academic achievements unwavering kindness and commitment to Excellence as one of the kindest students in her class key is known for her ability to collaborate with anyone maintain a positive attitude and approach each day with attentiveness and effort what sets key apart is her genuine passion for learning she prioritizes understanding the material over simply earning a grade demonstrating intellectual curiosity and a growth mindset with an impressive overall GPA of 98.8 Ky exemplifies academic diligence and a love of learning beyond the classroom key is a well-rounded and dedicated individual she is a member of the color guard has contributed her talents to the school newspaper and is an active and engaged student leader at home key shares a close bond with her sister and her amazing Carolina dog who no doubt keeps her busy looking ahead key is leaning toward attending Cedar Crest College to pursue a degree in elementary education where she hopes to inspire the Next Generation with her compassion and determination ky's dedication positivity and drive make her a true role model for her peers congratulations key on this well-deserved [Applause] recognition all right at this time not only have we been recognizing our students for their achievements but we are Al going to recognize our staff members for the month so I think our first staff member is Mrs ablon is she here this evening there she is so as luck would have it I found parking on the other side of the White Horse Pike not really and then the gift bag is in the car so I'll see you in the morning so um The havland Avenue and ottomon preschool educator for the month for December is Miss Elana ablon Elana abon provides speech services for students at otton preschool and havland Avenue School her classroom is a warm and inviting space where students are eager to visit even when they don't have speech scheduled for that day in addition to providing personalized instruction Miss Elana is a staple in the classroom joining her students in their learning activities and helping them apply their skills across all areas of their curriculum and their school day Alana is a resource for teachers when seeking new ways to meet student needs and can always be counted on to lend a hand she greets everyone with a warm smile and when speaking with her you feel that she's truly listening her kind and gentle nature make her a special educator as well as a special colleague and friend some people have the gift to make you feel special just to be around them and Miss Elana is one of those people we are fortunate to have her as part of our preschool and havin family and I am very proud to honor her as our educator of the month miss salana you are the [Applause] cooking and for the Mansion Avenue School we have Mrs Kain [Applause] I'm honored to recognize Sher Kane as a true Cornerstone of Manion Avenue School Sherry exemplifies the heart and soul of our school Community whether it's supporting staff guiding students or assisting families she consistently goes above and beyond in every aspect of her role her unwavering dedication and tireless efforts are fueled by deep love for the school and its people and she always does so with genuine smile and a warm compassion Spirit sher's contributions extend far beyond her job description she creates an environment where everyone feels valued and supported fostering a sense of belonging that makes Mansion Avenue School not just a place for learning but a thriving Community her positive impact is felt by all and she plays a pivotal role in the success and happiness of our school thank you Sherry for everything you do you truly make Mansion Avenue School a special place and we are so grateful to have you as part of the team [Applause] and for the aabon Junior Senior High School we have Miss Medio I don't think she's here is she here this evening I'm going to read her I don't think she was able to make it it is with great pleasure that we recognized Mrs Christine deido as oton High School staff member of the month Christin joined our school counseling team this September and in a short time has made an incredible impact from the very beginning she jumped in head first establishing strong meaningful connections with students and staff alike whether she's meeting with students during scheduled appointments having spontaneous conversations in the halls or connecting during lunch Christine's approach is grounded in empathy and support fostering an environment where students feel heard and valued in addition to her role as counselor Mrs deido serves as the seventh grade adviser and co-advisor for the National Junior Honor Society in both of these capacities she consistently seeks in inovative ways to enhance the student experience bringing fresh ideas and energy to every initiative she leads her dedication to her students well-being and the success is truly remarkable and she consistently goes above and beyond to ensure that every student feels supported in their academic and personal growth we are grateful for CH Christine's contributions and thrilled to have her as a member of the otton family please join me and congratulating Christine deedo on this well-deserved recognition all right the last thing that we would like to do is we would like to take a picture of all of our students and staff of the month so if you could go over right uh to the glass doors over there make sure you bring your certificates and your smiles and we'll get a picture of all of our students and our staff members stay outside of the gym just stay stay inside in the hallway okay outside of the gym all right if I could make just one more quick announce an M of course you're welcome to stay for our meeting but I I know that bed times and homework need to be attended to but please know that we have our first Community forum for our strategic plan next Wednesday which is the 22nd 7 P.M here in the library we hope to have your input thank you take care have a good night than girl all right I think we're going to move on to the next item on our agenda we uh we don't have any presentations scheduled for this evening so we are going to go to our uh superintendent report Alan good evening thank you um just to reiterate a little bit of what Miss Davis was just talking about we have Community our our strategic plan is moving right along we did our um surveys with the community the parents the staff the students we got a good number of response and results from that we're very excited to review the data Dr Oswald is going through that um for our next stages the next up is our community forums uh this is when we would like to have families community staff and administrators come and participate here at the media center at 7 pm there's three different dates with three different targets of information January 22nd is our first one it's called points of Pride this is a time where we reflect on and share all the positives that we feel are present already in the otton school district February 12th is the vision for the future this is a time where we will get together and talk about what would we like to see the directions we want to move in stuff that we know happens other places that we'd like to see implemented here February 26 is the mission mission and vision statement this is when we prioritize our ideas and start to come to up with our mission and vision for our next Five-Year Plan uh if you're interested in coming please watch your email and social media we are asking for pre-registration for these events that doesn't mean you can't show up if you didn't register but we'd like to have an idea how many people are going to be in the room when we have it so you can check social media our website and your email it will start tomorrow you'll be getting flooded with things uh asking you to pre-register and to come out and join us for the community forums again we're looking for all different perspectives Community parents uh if your children already graduated that's fine you still have a lot to add to our conversations employees uh administrators everybody even if you can't come to all three dates you come to any one date there's no such thing as not enough input we can use anything you have to help us build this future our wave of the future thank you very much Miss Allen um before we go ahead with the approval of the board minutes I just wanted to make uh a correction to the agenda if you turn to page 10 number three the employee number listed there is incorrect it should be 448 so it should be employee number 448 and then just as a matter of business we are going to be removing item number 20 on page 13 from the agenda this evening okay moving forward may I have a motion to approve the minutes from December 18th executive session and public session roll call please Eric coin Allison lipsky Jonathan Maxon Andrea Robinson yes Bill Wilson Steven Wilson yes Alison Cox yes Danielle D de Francesco yes Mark Gaddy well oh actually okay it's the learning card I noted noted that and Amy Davis yes motions passed thank you all right we're gonna move forward with our public participation session this is the first one uh and it pertains to agenda items only so if there's anyone from the public that wishes to make a comment on agenda items only we ask you to come forward uh and let us know your name and address and any uh organization that you may represent anyone wishing to comment on agenda items all right seeing that there are none I will close that participation session of our meeting I'm going to move on I'd like to recognize Miss lipsky for governance you Miss Davis um we have our committees because we are a board of committee and that essentially for the public means although we all get the information and we can all have input and talk about it a lot of the information is divied up into the governance operations education and human resources and then those four members will discuss get all the information and then they come back and let us know what what their take is on it if it's something that they think is there's a lot of conflict or concern or um needs to have more discussion then they leave it becomes something that's open to the board to go and get that information but so then when you hear us talking about the Committees that's what it is because the bulk of our work is done in committee and we do it in separate committee meetings and then come here and vote on it and so we are once again um the chairpersons of governance is myself of operations is Miss Cox of education is Miss Robinson and of Human Resources is Miss Davis and so that is the bulk of what governance is about but that is a big part of our governance so um that's about it any comments questions on non-agenda items under governance Sal do you have anything to add okay all right then have may I have a motion please for item number one under governance second any questions comments or discussion on item number one all right roll call please nson lipsky yes Jonathan Maxon yes Andrea Robinson yes Bill Wilson Stephen Wilson yes Cox yes yes daddy yes Davis yes thank you next I'd like to recognize Mrs Cox for operations thank you Mrs Davis uh we did not have a meeting the month of January our next scheduled meeting is February 4th um on the agenda you will see the board secretary's report for November the reconciliations the cash transfers the listed the drills in each of the schools as listed and the bills lists for uh December and January a statement of insurance and a settlement agreement okay Miss Alan anything to add to that no all right any questions comments or discussion on any non-agenda items under operations okay then can I have a motion please for items one through 10 under operations any questions comments or discussion for items one through 10 under operations right seeing none did you have question um May I roll call please Jonathan Maxon yes Andrea Robinson yes Bill Wilson Steven Wilson yes Alison Cox yes Danielle G Francesco yes Mark Gaddy yes Sarah kulan Alison lipsky yes Amy Davis yes motions pass thank you for Education I'd like to recognize Miss Robinson um on the agenda are the hi report the student statistics um field trips the revised curriculum with tech standards being added in is uh here for approval um um and some practical experiences from students from Rowan and Camden County College the revised calendar with a snow makeup day and that is all Miss Alan do you have anything to add just with the calendar wasn't I'm sorry there was snow bake up day which was taken care of we also um indicated the midterms I hadn't put it denoted it it was colored but it wasn't denoted in the center so that was added and then uh njsla testing will be a delayed opening at the high school just for those that are not not testing so that was stipulated on the cend far more information will come out in May when we get closer to that time those are the only changes you'll see from one to the other okay great thank you any questions comments or discussion non-agenda items for Education all right can I get a motion on item number one please uh roll call please on motion um on item number one excuse me Andrea Robinson yes Bill Wilson yes okay Steven Wilson yes Allison Cox yes Danielle D Francesco number one Mark Addy yes Sarah Coan Alison lipsky yes Jonathan Maxon was but you don't need to if you still want to have your okay yes okay so I'm changing you to a yes thank you okay okay Amy Davis yes [Music] both times motion passed okay can I have a motion then on items two through 10 under education any questions comments or discussion on items Happ two through 10 under education yes Miss Robinson um I just wanted to speak to the curriculum and acknowledge that it is not fully updated um and current but we do anticipate it all of that happening by the end of the school year understood any other questions or comments all right can I have roll call please Bill Wilson yes Steven Wilson yes Alison Cox yes Danielle D Franchesco Mark Gaddy Sarah kulin Alison lipsky yes Jonathan Maxon yes Andrea Robinson yes Amy Davis yes motion passed thank you all right moving on to Human Resources the committee met last night um just a quick update on negotiations we're working to establish the next meeting date uh you can take a look at the agenda we reviewed Staffing concerns and we also reviewed the superintendent action items for the year and all is current and progressing that's excellent news um on the agenda tonight we have a motion to approve long-term substitutes um there are FMLA requests there's a motion to approve an unpaid leave of absence a motion to approve a salary adjustment due to continuing education motion to approve paid and volunteer positions for the musical there's a motion to resend an extracurricular appointment and also to approve an extracurricular appointment there's motion to approve an overload m to approve an adviser for a new volunteer extracurricular Club at the high school and motion to approve senior trip chaperons and Alternate chaperons do alen do you have anything to add to that alternates is a new thing that haven't been approved in the past but just in case anything happens to anybody in the 11th hour we wanted to make sure we had extra people already board approved so we didn't run into any issues so if that was a question if anybody had why are we doing that as something new last year something happened and trying to negotiate at the very end we're trying to be preemptive that doesn't mean they're all going it just means we have flexibility thank you um any questions comments or discussion on non-agenda items under Human Resources all right then can I have a motion for items one through 19 motion all right any questions or comments or discussion on items one through 19 on the agenda Miss Robinson um I have a question about 18 with the Sher for the senior trip I asked about this but now I'm not sure that my that I understood the answer before um so there's nine chaperon who are initially listed and then there's two alternates are the nine if available definitely going or is it maybe only of them will go total as of right now those are going the the administrator is not considered a chaperon that's an extra person Nur the nurse is not considered a chaperon that's a separate like they're not taking a group of kids and whatever um and then we have one person that's a one to one so he doesn't get a group of 10 so it ends up being I think we have 74 students and I think we've worked out there were seven chaperons and the the standard is one for 10 so the seven would definitely go in the nursing industry then I just wanted to express my concern concern about the ones who are listed because I'm not entirely sure exactly what subjects they teach correct but I do know that they many of them teach nth and tth grade and that means that those students are without a teacher for a week and I don't think that there are any senior teachers listed like teachers who exclusively teach 12th grade and so now we have 12th grade teachers with nothing to do for a week and Ninth and tth grade teachers core subjects that are tested subjects a month before the state test who are now without a teacher for a week understood but remember this is a voluntary thing we can't force a senior teacher to go on the senior trip so this is historically who's volunteered been interested in going things of that nature some people just don't want to do a uh volunteer to chaperon seniors in Disney it's not always the easiest thing to do is it possible to use par as chaperons not advisable I in all the districts I've been in we frown upon that as much as possible you definitely don't want it opens up too many liabilities too many concerns too many issues um and is the senior trip I understand that it's definitely going to happen this year but is it something that is required like it's not required I've had I have concerns as well I've had discussion with the principal and the um senior class adviser about my concerns one of my biggest concerns is the low number of people going we want to see what we can do to get more people going I had said personally that if half the class is not going it's hard for me to justify five days out of school when only half the class is going uh I would like to see so we're talking about some different things to try to encourage the number of students that are going if the majority or 100 of the 120 140 kids were going that would I would feel a little differently about it um the cost is very prohibitive so we're talking about more fundraising we've had a little chat about that in one of our maybe here um we have some ideas about different ways to do some different fundraising we want to start at freshman year we also talked about having an account so the parents can start putting money away freshman year and not having to get hit with that in senior year with prom and senior trip and whatever there's so many expenses at the end so we are very much talking about different ideas on how to improve it for next year we definitely see room for growth in what's going on um there any discussion of just eliminating it uh We've not talked about eliminating it we've talked about I've talked about because in other districts they've moved it to Spring break if you didn't have the majority going then it wasn't going to be something that was going to be uh that in and of itself presents problems because again getting chaperon people want to be on spring break with their families and whatever and don't necessarily want to do it but if you don't have at least half the class going I don't know that that's warranted we're working more towards how to get more kids involved as opposed to um not having it and and what is the educational goal of the trip it's not the education it's the write a passage it's a it's the it's the I don't know the thing you look forward to like just like a prom it's a senior right of privilege kind of a thing it's just a experience okayi given toor teachers try to not disrupt yes we don't go around volun telling people that they have to be it but we are again looking at how much impact that really makes and things like that what we can do differently in the future um but the senior teacher volunteer would say yes that yes yes we definitely try to disrupt education is little as possible um we also have some ideas we're working on some ideas Jeff and I have been doing a lot of brainstorming about what to do with the seniors that don't go on the trip to have very worthwhile things here in the district for them to be here I would like to see them do service things go into the other buildings go read at the preschool things like that so we're looking at some value-rich things to do then it's hard for them to come in and do classwork because your classmates are missing um but if you have the majority going if we have 100 120 of the kids going then there's only 20 to 25 left it's easier to find some service Community oriented type things to get them involved in and doing we never be able to get 100% just because some kidss aren't able to go because of discipline and things of that nature discipline and or grades so there's always going to be a few that aren't eligible but we're really trying to work to right now what I'm being told is one of the biggest problems is the cost and I just wanted to create pressure students to go and for many isue because well that's why I want to do fundraising I don't want to get more to go to make them pay more out of their pocket I want more to go with they being fundraising from freshman year to go into their bank so that it defrays the cost and makes it something that's more attainable for more students like The cost is $2,000 but if you had been doing enough fundraising I I just threw that I threw that number out there right now it's not because only 7 year going right well that's ex that's why I feel like that if we started fundraising in your freshman year and you were able to bank you know be able to defer $1,000 or $1,500 of that cost that would make it a lot more attainable for people so that's what we we want to start and we even talk we originally were talking about freshman year but some people even said back at seventh and eighth grade we could start with because they are in one building if you were doing your fundraising for six years using the $2,000 even as a that's a lot easier to reach in a six year time than it is in one year but that point ofis FIS in and of itself has become I've been involved and they're all the same it's not right we we talked about that too now we we're talking about diversity of them and and limiting things and making sure the snap raise isn't used by every club and every whatever that's all being discussed also depending on what ones you do like I want to do movie nights or trivia nights things like that that aren't going to be cost prohibitive but they do raise a lot of money and a lot of not snap and the whatever but that's again I my first year couldn't address everything but these are things that we are in the conversation they are definitely on the radar and they're things that we've already had a lot of conversation I can confirm that fundraising is definitely being more talked about now in senior Council um we've been talking about how to make that more attainable for the younger grades and then also to comment on um how the lower level teachers that may be going on the trip I remember being a lower level student and having teachers who may have been chaperon on the trip and we were still doing work we had like Scholastic stuff we were reading articles we were doing questions we you were doing math you know like you have it for everything like you're still doing work it's like when your teacher's out for a day and you still get sub work um and you know the cost is a lot and I think that that is why we do need to work on fundraising a lot more for this but I don't think eliminating the trip is the answer because I mean I know people in my grade who are going on the trip who have been looking forward to going on the trip since their freshman year since their older siblings went on the trip since their parents talked about oh yeah I went to Disney my senior year I mean I know my parents talked about it when I was talking about oh I'm not sure if I want to go or not and you know I think that it's just something that I don't think eliminating it is the answer I think we should still give people that option and whether that be going to Disney or trying to find a newer place that maybe is more attainable for some people um I don't think eliminating a senior trip is the greatest idea just because it is such like a reward you know you made it through all four years of high school like you and something so fun that you get to do with some of your closest friends like it's a really great thing and it's a really good bonding activity for the senior class like I know last year a lot of the seniors went and they had new friends based off of who was in their checking group with their chaperon like it's it's just such a good experience and I don't think eliminating it is the answer and I just had something to say about the fundraising too um not just for like a administrator level but like the students are also trying to fundraise and create new ideas I'm on the junior class board and we helped like prevent the oh my gosh not prevent what's the word introduce the idea of the movie night the Grinch movie night and it was pretty successful and a lot of us are involved students and especially people when they're on the board for things like sophomore class board junior class board and then Senior Council you have a bunch of involved students who want to help and fundraise and get the great reward of a trip your senior year so we made a profit from that and there's plenty of students who want to provide creative ideas to help their other students out and themselves and put money in their account for a senior year so in addition to the points that were already raised um we're in the business of providing academics but also social emotional learning and I feel like a trip like this gives an opportunity for kids to be away from home a group of cohorts their age which a lot of them will be experiencing in college those who go away to school and this might be the first real opportunity for them to see what it's like to be yes there are chaperon but more so with their peers and kind of working through some of those um social opportunities and things like that those relationships I can speak for myself that there were students in my graduating class that I didn't know well at all until the senior trip and we were able to form a connection because we were in different classes during the different years of school but we were able to connect on the senior trip so right before graduation we had an opportunity like oh I didn't know you liked that or like you know kind of learning new things about new people um we did our senior trip on spring break and it worked out really well because a lot of the issues that you're bringing up didn't apply yes there's still the equity issue the the financial aspect of it but didn't matter what teachers were going because there were no classes happening at that time it didn't matter how many students were going because there wasn't you know people left behind here that had to do something with their time so if that is possible I do think that solves quite a few of the problems that were raised I'm a big fan of goals so can we ask the administration and Mr Leb to set a goal for next year if it's 50% of the students this year maybe 75% next year just so we have something to aim towards so we can see that there's Improvement here over year thank you I do know that there was some talk last year about a PTA in the Junior Senior High School possibly at the Junior High um because we do see that the PTA in the lower elementary schools actually are very helpful and do bring that added enrichment um that we just don't see as much of in the Junior Senior High School uh so if maybe that is something that we can kind of on the horizon as something to look at and strive towards because I think that I have heard from people that go to the ptas for the havlin and mansion that there has been discussion as their kids are aging up that they might like to see that and that in the past there has been a PTA at the Junior Senior High School I understand there's good and there's bad but I know that I think everything that I have heard I think that we are Le more towards the PTA and the lower you know the elementary the lower upper and lower elementaries um are a very good thing for the majority of things so this might be something that could add some benefit to the Junior Senior High School Steven Wilson Allison Cox Danielle D Francesco Mark Gaddy Sarah kulin Alison lipsky Jonathan Maxon yes Andrea Robinson yes Bill Wilson Amy Davis yes motion's passed all right um under our reports you can see our Hib district report for January uary it's lovely love all those it's the only time I want to see zeros in our scores um okay moving on to our special program Representatives um we have some new chair people for our committees uh so Mr uh Stephen Wilson anything for ed services I have nothing to report we did not have a meeting this month okay uh Mr Maxon anything for school boards fantastic thank you uh Mr Steven Wilson again for Ed Foundation Ed Foundation I do not I was just asked this week to be the representative and I accepted this week um there I understand there was a meeting though that somebody attended you attended right thank you Miss I did attend the Ed Foundation meeting last night um they did very well with the uh night of the races fundraiser have a good amount of money in their fund four grants were brought forward three were voted on uh one they're asking for some revisions on so they will be um contacting those that that applied for and and were granted their um respective grants they were also again talking about fundraising ideas and how hard it is because PTA does so many things and there's a little corner on the market on some things and they have some creative ideas about some things that they might want to try next year for an additional fundraiser but there is still money available for Grants to be applied for in this whole year all right moving on uh for community outreach Miss coin um so most likely we'll be attempting to go to um some of the similar events from last year um with the caveat that third Fridays are a little bit in flux at the moment um because the uh business that was taking primary role in um running those is going to be ceasing business at least an oton um coming up soon and so it's there's kind of a question about whether third Fridays are going to continue if so what would that format be who's going to be running it so I'll just kind of um keep on the poll to that and if they continue I'm sure we'll try to participate in those as well um but if they do not continue I'll probably look for some other opportunities for us to be in public facing um events and things like that so that we can continue to interact with people he feedback and things like that terrific thank you and there is uh a time for us to discuss that at our Retreat on the 29th so if we have any new ideas or anything else that you know we want to want to bring we can definitely discuss it then too thank you okay uh Mr Gaddy for ad hoc committee okay and Miss lipsky for uh board member orientation I have a question okay so the members of our board member orientation committee because we now have members yes um is Miss Cox Miss Davis and Mr Gaddy so yay um we want to start the mentorship program and I kind of feel like by you saying you want to be members of our new member orientation committee you have now nominated yourself as mentors is that a correct assumption on my part um I'm I'm trying to recall on everybody's response on their Google form I don't I don't I wasn't gonna out you Mr Gaddy but I don't think that um but uh yes I mean definitely okay the other thing is I see the new members as being Miss Coolin and I just know your name is Danielle and I apologize Miss Danielle wonderful and I apologize um so if but honestly if there's anyone else on the board that feels like they want to have a mentor or need would just like to have that little space to kind of ask questions where there's no stupid questions you know only stupid faces no there's no stupid questions at all I don't believe in that I believe curiosity is awesome um so if there's anything like that just reach out to me you know even some of you old heads if you want to you know to get with the hip new crew just say it just say it wow listen I'm an old head you know how it work I know we're all in the same decade so I'm just saying it's old head as time on the bo time on the board then we are old okay I'm sorry I was using the street lingo and that's that's another topic that we can talk about too at our Retreat have some ideas and some visions and some some thoughts for that too so so wonderful so just be looking out them I'm going to be sending out specifically to Sarah and Danielle to kind of put out some dates um so that we can do a Meetup um obviously we'll make sure that there's no more than five board members because we do not want a quorum because I feel like Amy Garren will haunt me in my sleep that night so did you say things about the board and I just so I would never want to all right thank you I appreciate that sounds good that sounds good all right um and as m lii noted there are additional names underneath our special program Representatives I thought it might be good this time to have there were many people that said things like I I don't necessarily want to be the representative but I would play a supporting role um so that's why um we thought it would be a good idea to maybe list some alternates so we all know how many meetings we have a month to to um attend therefore if one of our Representatives can't make a meeting you've got some alternates to reach out to and ad hoc committee has always been a committee of of several people at least four and uh and we thought it would be a good idea for orientation committee to have some some extra folks too okay great moving on board member comments anyone uh have anything to say I alerted Miss Davis and Miss Cox I will not be at the next two board meetings I have a work obligation so if you see an empty sad seat here in between Miss cool and Miss Robinson I will miss you all but I will be away for work so just letting you know I just want to say I'm very excited about the Strategic plan I'm very excited about the community Forum so we have some Community here yay and so I really hope that you engage and are a part of everything because this is really where your voice is heard and so if you felt frustrated in the past or felt like you didn't know where to you could your voice could be heard or your input could be received in the best possible way this is it you have it it won't happen again for many years so please participate that's a good point that's a that's an interesting advertising strategy I had thought about that act now or hold your piece for five years okay anybody else all right make sure that you um take a look at the retreat agenda for the 29th just you know review it comment I think everybody has commenting rights on it so add any notes or anything um that you think needs to uh to be reviewed and again if you attended the New Jersey school boards Association conference in October and you're interesting on you know a little TurnKey training a a short brief presentation on any of the workshops that you attended just let me know so that I can add your name to to the agenda for that okay yes oh our ice cream fantastic thank you for facilitating that okay anybody else comments all right I'm gonna open up um our second public participation session uh the same uh rules apply from the first one except that this can be on anything it doesn't have to be an agenda item is there anybody that would like to make a non-agenda item comment um is that yeah I think you can either speak to Miss Allen or myself afterwards for that sure anyone else okay all right seeing none I will close that session uh we do not have a need to go into another executive session so our um next meeting will actually be our Retreat which is scheduled for January 29th it will be here uh we are starting at 5:30 of course the community forum is on the 22nd and our next meeting it says January but it's not January it's February it's our next regular board meeting is February 19th is February 19th there we go so we need to make that adjustment to the agenda all right um may I have a motion to adjourn the meeting so excited for that yeah we're gonna be yep um all in favor any opposed all right thank you good night e