Good evening everyone. The time is now 7:06. Welcome to tonight's meeting. Please rise to salute the flag. Thank you everybody. Uh, Miss Ikeo, can you please read the statements of compliance, please? Notice of this meeting has been provided
in accordance with the open public meetings act NJSA 104-6 by the board secretary. A written notice was posted in the office of the board of education, filed with the township clerk, and sent to the designated official newspapers at least 48 hours in advance of this meeting. The notice stated the date,
time, and location of this meeting, and to the extent known, the agenda to be discussed. The New Jersey open public meeting law was enacted to ensure the right of the public to have advanced notice of and to attend meetings of this board except where specifically exempted by law at which any business affecting
your interest is discussed or acted upon. In accordance with the provisions of this act, the board of education has caused notice of this meeting to be published by having seam advertised in the ledger NJ advance and the record. Also, notice of this meeting has been mailed to the members of the board, the
burough clerk, all elementary schools, the middle school, the high school, Hornblower Early Childhood Center, and posted on the district website. Also, this meeting is being televised via district's YouTube and Facebook pages. >> Thank you. Miss, can you please take the role?
>> Trusty Gar >> here. >> Trusty Gillis >> here. Trusty Mos >> here. >> Trusty Pacheco >> here. Trusty Santana is absent. Vice President Dr. Misagia >> here. And President Leon >> here. >> We have a quorum.
>> Thank you. Can we Can I please have a motion to for the approval of minutes for our May 20th meeting, 2026? >> So moved. >> Can I have a second, please? >> Second. >> All in favor? >> All right. Thank you. Uh moving along, we will now have our high school
representative, Miss Jasine Sepoa, with her uh student government report. Good evening everyone. For the past year, I have had the honor of serving as a student board representative. Unfortunately, tonight is the last board meeting in which I will present a
report. I am incredibly grateful for this opportunity that has allowed me to learn and grow in many ways. I have seen for myself the importance of advocacy and the beauty of being part of a community that truly cares. Thank you to my fellow students for entrusting me with this role and allowing me to be
their voice. I would also like to thank my student government organization adviser, Mrs. Chalet, who has been an amazing guide throughout this journey. Lastly, I would like to thank each board of education member for their kindness and assistance in helping me understand the intricacies of our education system.
As I move on to the next chapter of my life, I will always remember the important lessons I learned in this role. Now I would like like to pass on the role to Max Bel Villerin who will give the student report for tonight. Good evening everyone. My name is Maxwell Villerin and I am the student
board representative for the 2026 2027 school year. I am honored to be chosen for this role and look forward to representing Belleville students. Before I begin my report, I would like to congratulate all students and staff who are receiving recognition for their outstanding accomplishments tonight.
In old news, congratulations to Shaun Walsh and Roslin Almadovar who have been selected as Belleville High School's athletes of the year. Shawn Walsh plays varsity bowling and varsity baseball. He is the record leader for the most strikeouts in Belleville High School history. Roslin Almadovvar plays varsity
soccer, varsity bowling, and varsity flag football for Belleville High School. She is also the record holder for most soccer goals in Belleville High School history. Both athletes are incredibly hardworking and deserve of the role of athlete of the year. On June 3rd, Belleville High School held its
annual scholarship award ceremony. Local organizations awarded thousands of dollars in scholarships to well-deserving Belleville High School seniors. Congratulations to all scholarship recipients, and thank you to all the generous donors. In new news, Belleville Middle School's eighth grade
graduation will be held on June 24th at Belleville High School Municipal Stadium. Congratulations to all graduating eighth graders. Belleville High School is excited to welcome you next school year. Belleville High School's graduation will be held on June 25th at the Belleville High School
Municipal Stadium. Congratulations to the class of 2026. Good luck on this next chapter of your life. Check out Belleville High School's website to access the monthly newsletters with school news, information, updates, and events for students, staff, and
teachers. Thank you. Thank you for that report. Um before we continue, the board will take a moment to recognize our 2025 2026 student representative, Miss Ikeo. >> President Leon, can you join me?
And uh Jasine, would you come down? I've had the unique opportunity to work with uh Jasine all year and it's been an absolute pleasure. Um she's an or I can't say enough good things, but she's so organized and dedicated and articulate. Um she's just been an amazing representation of the the
Belleville students and um welcome to Max as well. So um we do have something to give to Jasine. Uh but first um lots of students are honored in different ways, but we really wanted to do something really special for Jasine. Uh so resolution 9.20,
we actually we have a proclamation for her. So what I'm going to read tonight is memorialized forever for Jasine and will be part of our minutes from tonight, June 10th, 2026. Whereas Jasine Sebua has served with the distinction as student representative to the Belleville
Board of Education and whereas through her leadership and participation, the Belleville Board of Education has benefited from valuable insight into student concerns, priorities, and perspectives. And whereas Jasine Sepuetta has served as an important liaison between the student body and the
board of education, providing meaningful feedback and fostering communication between students, district administrators, and the board. And whereas Jasine Sepoa has demonstrated the professionalism, respect, dedication, and sincere commitment to students of Belleville public schools
throughout her service as student representative. Whereas her contributions have helped strengthen the board's understanding of the student experience and have enhanced the board's ability to make informed decisions in support of all students. Now therefore, be it resolved that the Belleville Board
of Education hereby recognizes and commends Jasine Sebua for her dedication, leadership, and commitment to advancing educational opportunity and open communication with the Belleville public schools. And be it further resolved that the members of the Belleville Board of Education extend their sincere appreciation to Jasine
Seova for her un outstanding service as a student representative to the board of education. And be it further resolved that the Belleville Board of Education extends its best wishes to Jasine Seuetta for her continued success in all future academic, professional, and personal endeavors. Congratulations.
Is Jasine's family here? Can we get a photo? Hey, what Tell me. Thank you again, Jasmine, for another uh for your service this past school year. Thank you so much. Uh moving along, items to presented by administration. We are moving along to our superintendence
report by Dr. Eric Alphonso. Good evening everyone. So quite a few things to highlight today and the crowd definitely shows it. So, as we approach the conclusion of the 2526 school year, we want we pride ourselves in highlighting the accomplishments and achievements of our students in our
district. Tonight, we proudly recognize several outstanding student accomplishments and achievements. These recognitions reflect the hard work of our students, our staff, and absolutely our families who are a critical part of this process. Some of the uh students that are being
awarded today are our gift and talented students, SS County poster contest winners, 2026 spring sports super assets conference, all conference recipients, participants in the Union College bridge building engineering competition under the leadership of Miss Pascali and the
members of the class of 2026 who have earned the New Jersey seal by literacy and academy distinctions. On behalf of the Bevel Board of Education Administration, congratulations to you all in advance as you come to receive your awards in a little bit. And we again celebrations
continue in a few weeks. As our new student representative mentioned, we have our middle school uh ceremony coming up June 24th at 9:00 a.m. So, for my families who've been here for a few years, usually our ceremonies are at 10:00 a.m. So, please know it's going to be 9:00 a.m. This
year, trying to avoid a little bit of heat, uh with a little bit of an earlier start time, and the high school is going to be on the 25th, the following day, also at 9:00 a.m. So, we look forward to having you all there and some beautiful skies as well. We also have a district calendar update that's on the agenda today. On May 29th,
a survey was sent out to the community to get feedback on the additional date we need to make up. I received a call from the governor's office and they weren't able to wipe the day. So, we had to make it up somewhere. So, the options were June 19th, June 26, or there was a
write in option as well. And we received a little over 1,700 responses. 7,720 responses to be exact. And approximately 80.1% of the respondents chose June 19th as the date to be made up. So that is the
recommendation on the agenda today. It'll be a half day single session on June 19th. As mentioned in the letter, it is very important. We have to have at least 50% attendance districtwide. If we don't have 50%, we have to make up the
day. A day doesn't count. So it takes all of us together to collectively make up this day. We know it's rough coming in a day that wasn't scheduled, but you know, some of these emergencies sometimes happen. As far as our staffing update, we made a promise last meeting that we're going to
continue to look at every possible venue and segue and how to continue to bring some of our staff members back that were affected by our reduction in force. You will see that there's a special meeting next Tuesday. That special meeting next Tuesday is dedicated to giving us more
time to again see resignations, to see retirements, to see potential allocations of funding where we could continue to bring staff members back. So, we are very hopeful to be bringing a few more back. And that is what primarily the special board meeting is going to be dedicated towards.
And in closing, as we approach the final weeks of the school year, I would like to thank our students, staff, families, administrators, the board of education, and everyone for our continued partnership. It has been a a a ride this year from floods to fires to, you know,
several things that have been happening throughout the district. As we reflect back on the year, it's been a year that we've been tested, we've been stretched, but ultimately we come together and we're here standing together as one. So, I'd like to thank everyone. I'd like to congratulate our students again for
their awards and their amazing achievements. And last note, I recently suffered a Achilles rupture, so I'm going to boot. So, please pardon me not going down to give the awards. Dr. Deia is going to be filling in for me today as he announces the awards coming up. And u that is it
for my report. Thank you. Thank you for that report, Dr. Alphonso. Moving along, we are now going to uh recognize our gifted and talented students uh by Dr. Tom Deo. >> Big list
and I >> Good evening everybody. Uh we're going to bring up Dr. Shanklin and Dr. Shanklin has a uh pretty thick folder of accomplishments that she's holding for our gifted and talented program. Our students uh throughout the year are competing in different programs
externally and internally and we had the privilege of actually hosting a few events this year. Um so Dr. Shanklin. >> Okay. So our elementary and middle school gifted and talented students as Dr. Julia said have had a busy and successful few months. Tonight, I have
the pleasure of recognizing some of their outstanding accomplishments at both the local and county levels. In fact, several students are being honored for two or even three um events this evening. Before we begin, I would like to thank our gifted and talented teachers for their dedication and hard
work this year. These competitions would not be possible without your efforts. I know we have a few in the audience. So, if there's any of our gifted and talented teachers here, as well as building principles or vice principles, if you'd like to come help me give out the awards.
We have three competitions being recognized tonight. Our first recognition is for the Belleville Chess Competition. Students in grades 3 to six competed against peers from across the district in this annual event led by school number five gifted and talented teachers Miss Jackie Palmino and Miss
Daniela Grow. This year we expanded the competition to include third grade students resulting in our highest participation rate yet. Tonight we are recognizing the students who placed in the top three at each grade level across the district. Because we have a lot of people here
tonight, I'm going to ask that when you come up, you grab your certificate and you wait in the front until we get all of the students for each competition and then we'll take a group photo. Okay. From school number 10, grade three, first place, Kyrie Lundano
from school number four. Second place, Landon Aosta from school number three, third place, Ethan Adon. And now for our grade four winners in from school number five. First place
Austin Auna Siniki. School number nine. Second place, Watoo Sakagami. And school number seven, Samuel Munar Morales, third place. Now for our grade five winners, school
number eight, Jethro Velo Romero, first place. School number seven, Lucas Pagato, second place. And school number eight, Pablo Pto, third place. Finally, grade six, school number 10,
first place, Elia Vepick. Second place, school number four, Emanuel Rivera. And third place, school number four, Caleb Johnson. All right, and these are our Belleville Chess Tournament winners.
Congratulations, All right. All right, I do know that we do have some repeat winners. So, if you're one of our repeat winners, stay close. Our second recognition is for Academically Speaking, an Essex County academic competition held this year at West Essex
Middle School. In this fast-paced team-based quiz tournament, students compete in both buzzer and discussion rounds, earning points while demonstrating their knowledge across a wide range of academic subjects. Think Jeopardy. The students being honored tonight were selected to represent Belleville at the county level based on
both their interest in the competition and their performance in our local qualifying events. This evening, we are proud to recognize our junior varsity team members in grades five and six, as well as our varsity team members in grades seven and eight for their outstanding achievement and dedication. Once again, I'll read the names. If you
hear your name, come down and at the end, we'll take a photo from school number three, Sophia Grande. from school number four. Caleb Johnson again from school number seven. Daniel Villa Fuerte
from school number eight. Emily San Martin from school number nine. Aleric Cukovic from school number 10. Tore Chu. And the following students I'm going to read are all from Belleville Middle School. Roscel Valencia,
Tala Tala Sabo, Angela Larsza, Joy Ibraim, Natalie Guamman, and Jazzel Calo. And these are academically speaking participants being recognized.
That's right. All right, and last but certainly not least, our final recognition is for the challenge 24 competition. This is a particularly fun event and one that can easily be played at home for anyone who enjoys a good challenge. In this
math-based card game, players are given four numbers and must use mathematical operations to create an expression that equals exactly 24. It does sound simple, but I can assure you if you haven't played it, it is more difficult than it sounds. Um, before advancing to the county competition, students first
competed in a local Belleville qualifying event. Mr. David Arian did an outstanding job organizing and facilitating the junior varsity competition, as he does with so many of our gifted and talented events throughout the year. The students we are recognizing tonight successfully qualified for and represented Belleville
at the county level in Milbour this year. We are proud of their hard work, perseverance, and mathematical problem solving skills. So, we will begin with uh challenge 24, school number four, Caleb Johnson. Again, I know he's not
here, but he qualified in all three events. He also came in fourth place overall at the local event. Also from school number four, Khloe Maldonado. We have a lot from school number seven,
Brianna Cali. She also placed in first place in our local competition. Andrea Hart Gapo and she placed third in our local competition. Savannah Rivera and Kiana Katadria
from school. Number eight, Jaden Camilis. And I don't believe he's here, but uh Jethro Vasalo Romero, he plays second in our competition. School number 10, Elia Veprech,
and all of the following students. This was our varsity middle school team. Dylan Casses Logan El Mctor Willoughby Admi Abdur Ramen El Bcassi and Michael Vez. All right, congratulations to our
challenge 24 winners. Heat. Heat. I am officially done. However, I do know there's a lot of people here and parking was challenging. So, I do know at least one or two came in. So, if you didn't get your certificate, but you are here,
make sure you see me before you leave. I'll be in the back. Okay. Congratulations. Up next, each year the Essex County Clerk's Office uh issues a contest where students from around Essex County are asked to submit, and you may see some of
these floating around in the schools ideas for calendars. Thousands of kids submit, thousands of kids submit throughout the county. We have four in Belleville that were selected as first place winners. So, is Miss Nicodemi here
to present the awards? No. If not, I'm going to call up the uh lefty. Come on, Dr. Lash. Present. Good evening everyone. Thank you for being here. Um, I want to call up the four contestants first before I start
speaking. Noah Jacquz, Sebastian Federico, Jaden Gulper, and Samuel Morales. Come over here.
You guys get to stand up for me. Come stand up here. No, no speech. No speech. The speech. One of my scholars asked me if they were doing a speech. Another one said he didn't want to. Um, turn around. Look at the crowd.
I want to celebrate this with my my scholars. They work so hard. This is the reason that we're here is to celebrate these students. I am so proud of them. They represent our county and our school and I'm so proud of them as a school in the district. Everybody give him a hand
and good luck. Come on, take a picture. Once the posters are printed, you'll see them proudly displayed in each of our elementary schools. Actually, all the schools. Please take a moment if you are visiting the schools to appreciate the hard work and dedication of these
students. Up next, I'm going to call up Dr. Mara. Yeah. >> Hello everyone. I I just want to say for the record uh I gave up my Nicks tickets tonight to be here. No, I I don't I can't afford them. I'm
just kidding. But I first we're going to start with uh boys volleyball. Coach Petina, the boys volleyball team was state ranked for five weeks in the NJ top 20 uh starting at 20 getting all
the way to number nine. So first we have first team all-American division Peter Garcia. First team, Khalib Lacano. Second team, Sha Sharp. Second team, Miles Ramada.
Honorable mention, Jose Rubio, and honorable mention, Khal Love. A nobody. Yeah. Next we have softball. I saw coach McCann
softball were the 2026 Essex County Invitational champions. So, congratulations to them. Second team all conference Emily and a Scavage. Second team,
Zoe Aroyab. An honorable mention, Annayia Thompson. Yeah. Sorry. Heat. Heat. Next we have baseball first team all conference
we have Shawn Walsh. Shawn Oh, I'm sorry, Coach Source. I apologize. Sean had 202 career strikeouts. He gave me the actual ball for his 200s and I have it. We are going to put uh his records on there. It's
going to go in the trophy case. First team, Chris Deleó. Second team, Marcos Atotua and honorable mention Nate Diaz. No, no, no.
Next we have boys tennis. I saw coach Kaskki here. Boys tennis. We have honorable mention all conference Zamir Monk. Heat. Heat. So, I'd be remiss if I forgot to say uh
Peter Garcia for volleyball. Where are you? Is he here? Peter, you have uh 1467 career assists. You'll be going up on the banner as well this summer. Sorry bud. Coach speed and I were
counting today. Next we have girls flag football. First team all conference Rosalovar. Coach Garfagnos here. I'm sorry. Second team all conference offense. Khisa Thomas.
Second team off offense, Kissia Perez. Honorable mention, Mia Tortoello. And honorable mention, Nicole Mendoza. First team defense, Diana Perez. second team defense, Michaela McFarland. Second team defense, Narellis Depa. And honorable mention, we have Deja and
Isabelle Compos. Isabella Compost. In their second year of existence, they made the state tournament for two years in a row. Congratulations. Next, we have something very close uh to my heart. Some of the athletic directors and I and the executive committee
created the uh all academic team like colleges do. If you have a 3.5 GPA during the season, you get that 3.5 very difficult to get. We have uh from the softball team, Emily Aniscavage
and Zoe Aarbe. And from volleyball, Sha Shark. Stay there. You're You're an academic. So last but not least, I like some teams do not have all conference teams like our golf team went 13-1 in the
independence division. I have a meeting the 17th where hopefully uh you know we take home the Independence League division championship. Uh but crew is one of those sports. It's not an edge of ice sport, but big in the culture of Belleville and this area, especially cuz
we live next to the Pac River. Uh we created a certificate because two of our girls, let me read this right because first place in the lightweight Garden State Scholastic Championships. So that's a twoperson shell, right? Shell,
right? There you go. All right. Oh, coach, come up here. I didn't see you. I'm sorry. Coach Salei, we have Amanda Buri and Camila Sotomayor. Thank you. Thank you all. Congratulations all the student athletes
and thank you everyone for all the support. We had a great year and we hopefully continue to do it next year as well. Uh I mean, I'm going to say go Nick. You know that, right? But listen, I hope everyone has a great night. Thank you so much. Next up, I'm going to ask uh Miss Emily
Pascali to come up, and I have to read this one cuz it's a bit of a tongue twister. Tonight's award is the Union College Brid Bridge building engineering competition participants. So, Miss Pascali, come on up here and please help us out with the announcing the
recipients. Do you need this? >> Hi. Hello. Thank you guys. I also have Dr. Alfano and Miss Kennedy joining me up here um who have really been the driving forces behind not only this competition um but the engineering program this year and it's been a real
pleasure to work with them. Uh we're going to announce um the students that participated in this competition. Uh they worked very hard. uh they adapted uh time and time again through new rules and new regulations and they are students who are quite involved in our
school. So this was not something that they took on lightly uh but they made the time and they made it work and we're super proud of them. So I'll hand it over to Dr. Alfano. Um, thank you to the board of education, Dr. Alfonso, our administrators, faculty, staff, parents for allowing me
to recognize all of our students who participated in this year's bridge building competition. Engineering is more than about final results. It is about creativity, problem solving, teamwork, perseverance, and learning from both success and setbacks. Every
student took part in this competition, embraced the engineering design process, researching ideas, and developing plans, constructing prototypes, testing designs, and making improvements along the way. The bridges we saw reflected countless hours of planning, collaboration, and hard work. Each
participating demonstrated and the dedication and determination required to take the idea from concept to reality while working on the constraints faced by uh real engineers. Miss Kennedy Full Dream, please come up.
>> Someone's super excited. All right, we have Kimberly Sully, >> Luis Gomez, Addison Pan, Jocelyn Sepita, Uriah Vgera Amanda Bersi,
Kenisha Lantigua, Alexander Novakovich, Stefan Valka, Hayden Lami, is he here? And Leandro Palanco. I know.
Last but not final, Matias Mendes. Come on. Look at that. Yeah. Um, we would like to recognize the students who have demonstrated dedication, enthusiasm, and commitment to our New Jersey Hothnod Fishing Club
team. Uh, throughout the years, these students have participated in fishing out outings, learned the aquatic ecosystems and conservation, developed outdoor skills, and embraced the values of responsibility, stewardship, and healthy recreation.
As a symbol of their hard work and continued involvement in the sport of fishing, each of the students will receive their own fishing rod and tackle. We hope this equipment serves not only as a reward for their accomplishments, but also as an invitation to continue exploring,
learning, and enjoying New Jerseys natural resources for years to come. Okay. All right. So, I will call the names. Please come up um and see Dr. Alfano for your special gifts. All right. Orian, Maya Cresbow,
Urellis Gonzalez, Isabella Brainy, Payton Linfante, Nick Pomo, Angelica Palanco, Mave Rojo, Rocco Rosamano, and Matthew Vega.
Congratulations I always Thank you. a lot to celebrate. We're going to continue on. Uh, Miss Pascali, please join me up here with Dr. Leipo as we begin our honors part of the ceremony. I
hand it over to Dr. Leo. Good evening everyone. Um, so so this is night number three um of celebrating the class of 2026. Uh, last Monday night we got to celebrate the athletes of the class of 2026 at um the chandelier. Last
Wednesday night, we were in here celebrating the the scholarship, um the local scholarships, the the students. Tonight is all about garb. Tonight is all about what they're going to wear at graduation. Um so it's all about cords, it's all about stole, it's all about medals, uh it's all about the danglies
that they're going to wear at graduation. So the the parents that are here, when you come to graduation on the 23rd in the program, it will outline all of the cords that you see all these wonderful people holding. It'll tell you what um club, what organization, what accomplishment that that your son,
daughter, or classmate has accomplished. Um and so to start this off, we're going to start with the junior ROC. >> Good evening everyone. First and foremost, congratulations to all the awardies for tonight. Okay, you guys deserve it.
for superior leadership, unwavering integrity, and contributions to the unit success throughout the school year. Your commitment to duty and spirit decor reflects the highest ideals of serving in the Junior Reserve Officers Training
Corps from September 2022 to June 2026. Our Samuel Donaire Catherine Estraa, Nicholas Peromo, and I have one Edberto Serrano who is not present right now.
Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Hi everyone. I'm Miss Constantino and this is Mrs. Burns. We just want to congratulate our cosmetology seniors on all their hard work throughout their three years in cosmetology. We wish you all the best
and success in the future and we are so so proud of you. Sabrina Alejandro, Julie Alamano, Honesty Bur, Leila Carabalo, Melissa Castro, Caitlyn Sy,
Lissa Prad, Shila Dickerson, Mia Duchain, Emma Ashrada, thank you Leilani Loy, Kayn Martinez,
Briana Perez, Josiah Rios, Amberllin Rosario, Chanel Sanchez, Nidia Sabara, Emily Vasquez, Hillary Aosta, Camila Boss,
Santiago Cardona, Mia Chavez, Destiny Mancino, Amy Martinez, Jaylen Perez, Ailen Ailen Quizada, Romeiel Rever,
Janelle Sanchez, Gabriella Sierra, Annayia Thompson, Ayana TZ, and Janelle Anne Victoria. Okay.
I love you. Yeah. >> Yes. Heat. Heat. Up next, we are going to honor our seniors who are part of the psychology club. Uh, Miss Patel could not be with us here tonight. So, we have three seniors. We have Israelabi.
We have Dominic Turzani and and we have the and and last but not least, we have the founder of the club, Raven Low. Congratulations, guys.
Good evening. My name is Petro Raldi. I'm the advisor of the science club. In the science club we have six teams who compete at state level uh for a competition called New Jersey Science League. More than 100
school participate to this competition and at the end we have the top students and the top teams we participate with teams. So and uh the teams are bio 1, bio2, chem 2, environmental science, AP
physics and anatomy and physiology. So we are going to reward 11 students. The president is on Patel can be here. Vice President in the Addison Bank, Vice President Whisper Toss,
Vice President Sean Sudra, Antoana Atanazo, the golden boy, Kevin Lopez, Daniel Chry. D Samana Mark Alberto. We have a special recognition for
Whisper Tadros who plays third place by two team in all New Jersey. Heat. Heat. Hey everyone, I'm Gerard Fabiano and I'm the adviser for the FBLA is the Future Business Leaders of America. And this
year we had two senior officers. I'm very proud of both of them. Last year when they came to me, they said that they wanted to be officers. I knew how involved they both were in the school. Uh whether it was soccer, tennis, uh Mr. Belleville, so I knew they had a lot going on, but I said, "Hey, as long as
you're there every meeting," they said, "No problem, Mr. Fabiano. We'll be there." And they both kept their words. So I'm very proud of them. First one is Uriah Vagara. and uh our second officer, Zamir Monk. >> Thank you to both of them. Heat. Heat.
Good evening, Superintendent Alfonso, members of the board of education, district administrators, faculty, staff, families, and students. My name is Wendy Delvecio and I am the adviser for the Breakfast Club here at Beville High School. The mission of the
Breakfast Club is to promote acceptance, diversity, inclusion, and respect throughout the halls of our school as well as our town. Whether the breakfast club students are creating positive bulletin board displays to brighten our hallways, crafting wintergrams during the holiday
season to spread cheer to all, or working on personal goals such as practicing gratitude and creating vision boards to prepare for a successful and positive future. They are a collaborative, dedicated group of students that I am grateful to work with every school year.
It is my pleasure this evening to recognize our two senior members, Jason Dong and Mary Dan. When I think of both Jason and Mary, I think of the famous quote, "Be the change you want to see in the world." Jason and Mary are both steadfast in
their dedication to instilling positive change, not just in our school, but in our local community through constant participation. It has been a pleasure to watch them grow into the confident and capable young adults that they are today. We
will miss you and the Breakfast Club, but we are so happy that this exciting new chapter of life is about to start for you. I know that the future is going to be a wonderful place because of your contributions. Congratulations. Here you go. You're good. You are good.
>> Good evening everyone. My name is Donna Canel and I am the advisor for the culture club and the UNICEF club and I'm going to begin by calling the students. I was going to give an overall but I'm not going to get into
everything. Good evening to all the board members and our superintendent. Um so the first um member that was part of all of the students I'm calling were part of both clubs. Julie Alamirano Next member, Kimberly E. Selli.
These students have been a member of the club for three years now, and I think it's helped them build leadership skills. Here you go. Thank you, >> Dominic Torsani.
And for the following people that um students that I will be calling um it's a little bit uh special because they're part of my um my classroom, my life skills classroom. I have something a little bit extra for them. So if their
parents need to assist them, please do. Thomas Alvarez, Thomas Alvarez. Sorry. Thank you. Here's your certificate. Yes, thank you. Um, the next student is
also part of the life skills class. His name is Joelle Ria. All right, Jojo. Last but not least is the president of the club and her name, she has been with
me three years. Her name is Daryl Ro. But I would like I have something a little extra special for her because someone that she loved dearly is not here. But I thought why not carry her around your neck. Heat. Heat.
Heat. Heat. Good evening. I am Miss Ali. I want to first say a congratulations to my 2026 babies. I love all of you and you are like my own. My certificates is for HOSA which is for
health occupation students of America. The first student is Daniela Torres. Congratulations for having an outstanding 2025 2026 HOSA achievement year. The next student is Emma Estrada.
Congratulations for showing your leadership for the past two years. And you get your core. Daddy, help. Next up is a big congratulations for this student. She did not want to compete this year, but not only did she
make it to regionals in first place, she made it to states in first place, and she also made it to nationals in first place. Let's give it up for Dior Gasama. Congratulations. Congratulations ladies. I know you will
do good on your next future health leadership in your next career goals. Good evening everyone. I have the distinct privilege of honoring the seniors who have successfully completed building men and uplift mentorship
programs. While other districts and agencies have tried to replicate and create programs for atrisisk youth, here at Belleville, we decided to identify and celebrate students with untapped potential.
Their success tonight is a reminder that mental health matters, representation matters, they matter. I also would like to give a quick applause for the mentors standing here
today. While not all of them are here, if you would please raise your hand. Mentors to give a moment of gratitude for people who have donated countless hours to give to your children and our community. It will be a debt that we can
never pay. Thank you. Building men Jordan Armstrong, Zamir Bell Monk, Sergio Boza, Derek Kaplan,
Santiago Cardono, Samad Conway, John Edwards, Kyrie Lloyd, Keith Gley, Vtor Higa, Danielle Leonardo, Khalib Love,
Nathaniel Lugo, Jaden McDaniel, Josiah Morton, Daniel Ortiz, Juan Balasios, Josiah Rios, Sincere Rivera, Jayen Sharp, Joel Takuri,
Dimmitri Dmitri URI Devin Westfield Jaden Westfield Joshua Workman Marcos Aeortua Christian Grito So
last but not least, Xavier Moesada. I will let building men have their picture, but I would love to remind everyone that there are several building men students among you tonight, not just the seniors who completed it. And it takes sometimes just a moment to see
someone in their potential for greatness. Congratulations. Oh yeah. It's not on the list. >> Is he here? >> And I'm so sorry. There's one additional person that we forgot. Victor Adams.
I'm so sorry, Victor. I'm going to blame it on Mr. Duran. Go, guys. And for the first time throughout the district, we were able to implement the sister program to building men, which was uplift mentorship program, which ran
across the middle school and the high school. And I'd like to honor the senior women who uplifted each other and our community. Jelli Aras, Honesty Berry, Leila Caravo, Ariana Castillo,
my fierce Lily Castro, Lissa Pradock, Ruby Garcia IA, Lara Laafa, Raven Low, Nicole Mendoza, Anastasia Monzone, and last but not least in any shape or
form, Daryl row. Now you're up. Heat. Heat. Good evening everyone. My name is Lane Chevrolet and I along with Mr. Ross are uh the teachers of the
law program and academy of law and legal studies um which was actually founded by Mr. Ross over 20 years ago. So tonight is tonight is not only special for just our seniors that we are acknowledging um those that are in the academy of law and
legal studies as well as our mock trial seniors. Uh but it is also a kind of final chapter for Mr. Ross as well because he is retiring. So, it is a very exciting time for all. And with that, will Lily Castro please
come up? >> Daffhne Cruz, Maryanne Nunees, Ashley Rodriguez. Okay. >> Oh, yeah. I know. I know. >> I didn't even eat cuz like I was like cook at half and I was like I'm going to
starve if I don't. Whisper Todros, Michelle Veno, >> Sha Subra, Joshua Midas, Lara Laafa and Gabriel Zakarius. Oh my god.
Heat up here. Good evening again. I'm Dr. Alano. Uh, as we recognize our medical and engineering academy graduates with their graduation cords, we need to thank our board of education, Dr. Alfonso, Dr.
Angelia, Mr. Rhodess, Dr. Leipo, uh, and Miss Pascali, along with the wonderful staff at HMH, Claramas Campus, and, uh, Robert Wood Johnson Medical Center, uh, Union County and Pay County Community
Colleges along with countless other staff members that have worked so incredibly hard to make this program what it is today. We first recognize those in the medical academy. These cords represent much more than participation in a program. They
represent commitment, hard work, compassion, leadership, and a dedication to learning about the medical field. Throughout their time in the medical academy, these students have taken on challenging coursework, participated in hands-on experiences such as disaster
preparedness drills, attended field trips, watched live surgeries, attended med medical presentations, and explored numerous careers and healthc care, demonstrating professionalism as future medical professionals. The
cord they receive today is a symbol of their growth, perseverance, and accomplishments. It also represents the responsibility that comes with entering a field built on service, care, and dedication to others. I am incredibly proud of each of the medical academy
graduates. It has been my honor and privilege to assist you in your journey this year. Congratulations on all that you have accomplished and I wish you continued success as you move forward into college careers and
the next chapter of your lives. As Miss Piscali reads your names, please come to receive your courts. Matt Alberto, Rosley Almotivar, >> Princess Ang, Samira, Eldana, Naomi Garc IA
Raven Low, Alana Padilla, Janime Pagio, Justin Sanchez Kaylee Suraki and Dominic Tzani. Congratulations, guys. I'm so proud of you.
Heat. Heat. Good evening. I'm Miss Kennedy and with Dr. Alfano, we run the engineering academy. On behalf of the engineering academy students, I would like to thank our families, teachers, administrators,
community partners, and honored guests for joining us tonight. This evening we celebrate the hard work, creativity and leadership and dedication of students who have challenged themselves to think critically, solve real problems and develop skills of future engineers and
innovators. Throughout the year, we have learned that engineering is not just about designing a building. It is about perseverance, teamwork, and finding solutions that make a positive impact. We're grateful for the support and encouragement we have received along the
way and we're honored to share this celebration of achievement with all of you. The students we're honoring tonight are Kimberly C. Sili, Luis Gomez, Addison Pan,
Jasine Sepita and Uriah Vgara. To our graduating seniors, thank you for the leadership, dedication, and example you have set for those who follow in your footsteps. Your the hard work, creativity, and perseverance have helped
shape our engineering academy, and your impact will be felt long after you leave these halls. As you begin the next chapter of your journey, we wish you success, happiness, and confidence to pursue your dreams. Congratulations, class of 2026. We are proud of you, and
we will always be part of our engineering academy family. Right. Let's see. Can I do this again? >> All right. So, so before I hand this one over to Miss Perez, this is just a
little bit of logistics. There there are 71 of you right now that are about to get this cord. Miss Pascal and I are going to stand in the center of the stage. Be smart so that we can take a photo with all 71 of you in it. So, we're going to try to like space you out so
that you're in between each other so we can see your faces. Good evening, Dr. Alonso, board members, faculty, parents, and students. It is my honor to recognize our students who have earned the seal of biliteracy. This award reflects their hard work,
dedication, and ability to communicate in more than one language. Knowing multiple languages help us connect with others, understand different cultures, and open doors to future opportunities. I am very proud of all that you have achieved. Congratulations on earning
this meaningful honor and on this outstanding accomplishment. Buenas notes, Dr. Seal by literacy. welcome Natalia Arcelon Chicato something.
Ashley, heat. Oh my god. I think cuz nothing's coming from the speakers. >> There's nothing coming from it. Doesn't matter.
There's no volume. Yes, baby. I love you, daddy. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat.
Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. He said all that we're going for
Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. Oh, heat, heat. Heat. Heat. Try to reset it up here again.
Our we'll go back and and do it again then during the school day. Um so the first two students that are on the list automatically know that they're in the honor group. Um and that is Rya Chowu because he is the valadictorian for the class of 2026 and and Whisper Todd who is the
saludiatoran for the class of 202. Now for the remainder students in the honor group, it is by alphabet not by GPA. Okay? It is by alphabet. All right. Matt Alberto Rosalyn Aador,
>> Kimberly Alano. >> Kimberly, don't sit down. Kimberly Sully Evelyn Sherz, >> Valerie Chanimo Emma, >> Ava Malot, I win. Addison Pan Patel
Naomi Daryl Ro, >> Kiara Solless, >> uh, Jasine Sepha, John Stora, Kaye Serotaki, Alan Celita, Dominicani and Yuria Vara. Go.
Most of the top 5% of the the class, >> guys. I promise we'll do this again with all of you. Since there's no audio guys, >> they won't know. Thank you guys. >> Congratulations.
Hi, we're going to be continuing our meeting now uh regarding our report from our business administrator for secretary. Uh hi evening. Um couple things to report here. Uh you noted on tonight's agenda that we have reading on our new
electric vehicle charging station policy. This is going to be policy number 742. In developing this policy, we worked closely with our energy consultants, risk management professionals, and insurance representatives to establish fair market usage rates while also ensuring the district is appropriately protected from
liability damage and operational concerns. Um, so the electric vehicle chargers, there's 20 of them. There's two per station at 10 different stations. Um, they're located at school three, four, five, seven, 8, 9, 10, middle school, high school, and tech.
Um, they'll be open for public use starting on Friday on weekdays between 400 p.m. and 10 p.m. and then weekends from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. Um, so we're really excited to finally open that up to the public. Just a food
service update. Uh, the food services department reminds families that meal accompanies will continue to be accepted through the summer months. Families are encouraged to review their accounts in satisfying outstanding balances, particularly those who graduated seniors, and unpaid balances remain responsibility in the family. In
addition, the 2627 free and reduced meal application will be available on the district website in late August. I'll send out a tax email blast letting you know that it's up. Our summer EBT cards, both of eligible, have already been mailed and parents are encouraged to monitor their mail and follow the
instructions provided with the card to access the benefits. And that concludes my report. Thank you. >> Thank you, Mr. Ikeo. Moving along, we are going on to remarks by citizens on agenda items only. And please have a motion to open up.
>> So move. >> Second, please. >> Second. >> All in favor? >> I. >> All right. We are now open for remarks by citizens on agenda items only. If you please uh state what agenda item you're referring to so we can find it on our end, it' be greatly appreciated. All right. Thank you so much. Uh, Miss Daryl
Ro, >> I signed up with the community. >> Okay, just it was the first one, but we'll move you to the second one. >> Uh, Mr. Michael Sheldon. >> Good evening everyone. Michael Sheldon, 47 Floyd Street. Um, I apologize I
wasn't here at the start of the evening. Yeah, there was no parking to be had. Uh, plus I was on standby in case Mr. Brun they needed me to substitute for Mr. Brunson at the next game. So, >> it's not working. >> It's not working right now. >> Hello. >> I'm working over here. You go, Mr. Sheldon.
>> Let's see. Is this working? 1 2 3. >> Is it working now? >> Yes. >> All right. Should I continue? All right. >> Can I reclaim my time here? Okay. Thank Thank you. All right. Uh, >> I'll speak louder as possible so everyone can hear me. Uh I was late for
the meeting tonight uh because of the you know lack of parking. So uh when I got here it was a little up 3:00. I wanted to ask uh I understand that there is going to be um a special meeting next week on the 16th. Uh what can you tell me what is the purpose of that meeting?
Oh u you can you don't have to I guess wait uh wait till the end after I finish. All right. I just would like to know ahead of time continue your your comments or something. >> All right. All right. Thank you. Uh All right, I'll try to speak as loudly as I
can. 9:22, agenda item 922. Uh, you have a bunch of policies for uh second reading. I just wanted to ask, do you have to have a public hearing for when you have second readings or policies? You don't have it, right? I just wanted to confirm that Jonathan would know, but
I I I did want to comment on two of the policies. uh 26 24 you're uh changing the grading system and actually I approve of what you're doing. It seems that you're going back to the traditional grade levels so that 90 to
100 is an A, 80 to 89 is a B. The previous system seemed didn't didn't seem to make much sense where you had I think 93 to 100 was an A and it just it was weird a weird cutoff system. But I'm glad you're going back to the traditional one. Uh the other policy
that I wanted to mention 55 uh16 this is the uh use of commun electronic communication devices. Last year Governor Murphy signed into law uh new policy. Your policy statement seems to be very tur with details. Um I and I
wanted to make sure is the district's ban going to be bellto as the state law requires. It doesn't indicate any any of the details when when are cell phones not to be used during the school day. It
just makes these gross solutions to were going to be consistent with other policies but without giving any details. So, if you could um u comment on that, I would appreciate it. Lastly, uh 910 uh you're appointing a d uh a safety specialist.
Uh, I've gotten too many emails, phone calls, and direct messages about this matter because of the individual involved. I know you can't discuss personnel matters, but the person who is going to have this position, um, you know, the last year there's been six lawsuits filed against the district, and
almost all of them, he appears as a defendant, and I think at least five of the six lawsuits. So, I mean, are are any of you kind of behind the scenes talking about whether this is the the right person for this job? Considering the amount of litigation that's being
generated largely as a result of this person being in a district safety position, I don't think it makes a lot of sense maybe to uh continue with the status quo. You may need to change course in regard to this position and this person uh going forward. So, uh
those are my questions regarding agenda items. I'll be back in a few minutes. Thank you. >> I don't have a gym voice, so I'm going to try my hardest. Uh, but the answer to we can't discuss personnel. Mr. Sheldon, as you know, unfortunately, I can't get
any more light on that. Um, with respect to board policies, there are Oh, there we go. With respect to board policies, the the board does not have a a hearing with respect to the specific policies for second reading like a uh
town or municipality would with respect to ordinances. However, the house and certain legislation as to what their interpretations are and the DOE. So we were advised as districts to be conservative when establishing it and then when further guidelines and
fabrications given then we made the revisions as needed based on the guidance that they're given. There's some discourse as to what one house read as compared to the other one. So we are following through on having it and as we receive further information then we will make the revisions.
>> Thank you. Uh, next speaker, Miss Gloria Fish Fisherman. >> It's on agenda. >> Agenda. Yes. No. >> On the next one. >> Sorry. >> No problem. Uh, that's all. Does anyone else like to speak on agenda items only?
Hearing none. Seeing none, please have a motion to close uh remarks by citizen citizens on agenda items only. >> So move. >> Second, please. >> Second. >> All in favor? >> I. >> Thank you. On to resolutions on personnel
agenda items. Agenda items approved by Dr. Alonso. Item 71 through 718. Is there any discussion by any board member? >> Nope. Okay. M. Please call the role. >> Trustee Gar. >> Yes.
>> Trusty Gillis. >> Yes. >> Trusty Moses. >> Yes. Trusty. >> Yes. >> Vice President Dr. Mace. >> Yes. >> President Leon. >> Yes. Uh we have nothing on curriculum instruction. On to board action and policy. Uh governance. Uh we had a
governance meeting held on 68. Uh we are now looking to approve items 91 through 922. Can I please have a motion? >> So move. >> A second. >> Second. >> Misso, please call. >> Trusty Gar. >> Yes. >> Trusty Gillis.
>> Yes. >> Trusty Mos. >> Yes. >> Trusty PCO. >> Yes. >> Vice President Dr. Savio. >> Yes. President. >> Yes. Thank you. On to resolutions purchasing administrators as as uh recommended by Dr. Alonso. Agenda items
101 through 1019. Can I please have a motion? >> So move. >> A second please. >> Second, please call the role. >> Trusty Garrett. >> Yes. >> Trusty Gillis. >> Yes. >> Trusty Mos. >> Yes. Trusty Page. >> Yes. >> Vice President Jonathan.
>> Yes. And President Leo. >> Yes. On two resolution and finance agenda items 111 through 116 as approved by Dr. Do we have any discussion by any board member hearing none see Miss Ao will you
please call the role? >> Trusty Gar >> yes >> trusty Gillis. >> Yes. >> Trusty Moses. >> Yes. >> Trusty. >> Yes. >> Vice President Dr. >> Yes. President Leo. >> Yes. Can I please have a motion to open up
remark citizens on any issue? >> So move. >> Second, please. >> Second. >> All in favor? >> I. >> We are now open for remarks by citizens on any issue. Please have first. Uh Chanel Durant. This is the round. You have 5 minutes.
Time is not starting yet though, right? >> No, no, no. Once you start. Thank you, sir. No problem. >> All right. So, good evening board members and Dr. Alonso and everyone that is here and everyone that is listening. Before I begin, I want to take a moment to just acknowledge every student who was recognized here tonight. The the
accomplishments we celebrate are not simply chords and awards. They represent years of hard work, commitment, sacrifice, resilience, discipline, and perseverance. Students, this moment belongs to you. Embrace it. Own it. Celebrate it. Give flowers to yourselves
and to the people who never stop believing in you during the ups and downs. What you have accomplished today is only a fraction of what you are capable of achieving in your lives. I also want to recognize the young men and young women and the community members
who have stood at this podium over the last month and organized meetings with the superintendent and engaged in peaceful advocacy to share their stories. Speaking your truth takes courage. It requires vulnerability and confidence. Every time you choose to use your voice
in the moment despite fears and not being fully ready, you create movement in your life and in the lives of others. When I think about the power sees in a moment I think about Rosa Parks. Her decision to remain seated on the bus was one moment in time yet it sparked the movement that changed our nation which
was the civil rights movement. Change often begins with someone decides their voice matters. As a result of your voices, everyone and standing up for your truth, I am thankful that the board of education and the superintendent are now scheduling another meeting next week. >> Oh yeah.
>> 3 years ago, Building Men was introduced in our middle school as a pilot program. The first the fir the first students who participated are now the 10th graders. For the past three years, first in the middle school and then two year here at the high school, we have witnessed the
impact that this program has had on our students. Before building me, we recognized that the culture and the climate of our beautiful village needed additional support and investment. Our students needed safe spaces where they could talk openly about their wins, their struggles, their fears and
aspirations. They needed opportunities to learn healthy habits, positive values, accountability, leadership, discipline, curiosity, and what it means to become a responsible young man. Through programs such as the Eminem project, our middle school students last
year mentored prek students, creating meaningful connections with our youngest learners, building men along with dedicated administrators and leaders, including Caleb, Charlie, Michael Vargas, Dr. Pastor, Dr. Leapo helped create opportunities for these young men
to experience support, mentorship, and belonging in ways many had never experienced before. As you sit here tonight, I encourage you to look around this auditorium. The artwork displayed throughout this space was created by these young men. Through the support of
their mentors, their counselors, and our child study team, their voices and talents were showcased in an art gallery and celebrated who they are and who they are becoming. This year, the sister program to building men uplift was launched at the high school. Together,
these programs have created spaces where students can grow now, not not only academically, but personally and emotionally. We have watched students build stronger relationships with teachers, take accountability for their actions, earn scholarships, step into leadership roles, obtain employment,
excel as student athletes, and advocate for the resource and the support they need to be successful. Building men and uplift have never been photo ops. They have been programs that have been transformational experiences that have changed lives for students and
staff. To tonight I speak not only as a mental health clinician but also as a parent in this district. I am concerned I am concerned about the future of these programs and the future of the supports available to our students. I want to highlight that the wellness department
under the leadership of Dr. Pastor who is also bilingual was recently recognized as we were recognized as one of the four model districts in the nation by the school of superintendent association which is the AASA. Representatives from the AASA visited
our district, interview students and staff at both the middle and the high schools and were deeply impressed by the comprehensive mental health and mentoring services being provided to our students and our families. It is extremely difficult to understand how a
department that has received national recognition for its effectiveness and competency is now facing reduction and downsize at both the middle and the high school level. It is concerning and confusing to imagine those same national
leaders returning a and seeing a system that has been downsized. I have personally struggled with the reality that despite invitations extended throughout the school year, there was never an opportunity taken to visit the building man program or the wellness
center to witness firsthand the extraordinary work our students and the staff have accomplished together. As a member of this community, it is especially difficult, shocking, and a bit enraging to see reductions affecting bilingual mental health services and ESL
supports, ML supports in a district where approximately 70% of our students are Hispanic. We celebrate having the district's first Latino superintendent. Yet, many of the reductions appear to impact the many, very communities that have historically needed benefit from
these services the most. I'm almost done. Can I please finish? >> 5 minutes to be prepared to everybody else has 5 minutes. I'm asking you to please wrap it up right now. >> Mr. Mo, you know it's 5 minutes from Mr. Durant. Thank you. 5 minutes for Mr.
Durant. I appreciate it. >> As the licensed mental health clinician who has worked in the field for over 13 years, I am genuinely curious about the district's vision moving forward. >> Mr. Michael Sheldon. Thank you.
Mr. Mr. Okay. You can't just have my mic. >> It doesn't work. >> It doesn't work. >> No, >> it works. >> No, it's only coming through your speaker. >> Okay, got >> Okay. Just
>> Oh, sure. Thank you. >> Good evening everyone. Michael Sheldon again, 47 Floyd Street. Um, couple of questions. >> Yeah, you're good. >> Okay. Are you okay? >> Yep. >> All right. Um, last month at the May
20th meeting, uh, you, um, did a reorganization of the administrative ranks and and in particular, um, you tapped, um, someone to become the new director of counseling from grades K through 12. There's been a lot of
concern about this, uh, appointment. uh because it appears that the individual you have slated to become the looks like it's out again the director of counseling may not have the requisite certification to serve in that capacity.
I I've done the research and Mr. Bush can correct me if I'm wrong about any of this, but uh according to state law, it says while a standard New Jersey principal endorsement broadens an individual's administrative authority to serve as a principal, vice principal, or general district director, it does not
automatically legally qualify them to serve specifically as a director of school counseling services. Under New Jersey Administrative Code Title 6, I'll give the full uh reference 9B-14.7, the state dictates a precise and
separate pathway for this particular role. Uh the in order to serve as a director of counseling services, you have to have a director of school counseling services standard certificate. That's an absolute. There's no wiggle
room there. In addition to that, there are four other baseline criteria. One of which is you have to have a minimum of three years of experience serving as a counselor in some capacity. And I don't think this person has satisfied any of
these conditions. So, you know, you all need to make sure that the person you have tapped to serve as your director of counseling is legally qualified to serve in this position. I don't think he is. I'm willing to share my notes, my finding with you if you the board would
like it. I'll send it to you tonight, but I don't think this person at this point in time can serve in this capacity. Uh, next matter. It's been uh brought to my attention that in the last year uh the district has purchased three Chevys to be used by staff members
within the district. But the concern here, and again, you can correct me if I'm wrong about this, but I was just given some some information. I have my my moles, if you will, working inside the board of ed, but apparently these three Chevys were purchased. They cost
the district uh upwards of $150,000, but they were purchased without being budgeted in the first place, and they weren't approved by the board, but somehow the district acquired three three high-end vehicles. So, I'd like you to confirm or deny that or if I have
to, you know, submit an Oprah to get to the bottom of it. The last thing I want to mention here is that uh the day after last month's meeting on May 21st, the DOE released the uh annual New Jersey school performance reports. And as I've
been doing over the years while a board member and afterwards um every year when the data is released, I summarize it in a little graph. So I'll just stick it here so everyone watching at home can
see see it more clearly. But for those of you who may not be able to see this, I'll send it to you if you wish. It's on my Facebook page. The uh the bottom line on this graph, surprise, surprise, which district is reflected by that bottom
line, it's ours. Since 2021, the average SAT score for our district has plummeted by 200 points. And yes, you know, there was some initial consequence due to COVID and
remote learning. But if you look at and I have this this chart shows the SAT scores for our sister communities, Bloomfield, Nutley, and even Garfield where our former superintendent is. All the other communities have rebounded, but for the last four years, our average
SAT score has remained mired at about 870. We're we we are depriving our students, our children of the thorough and efficient education that the state const constitution mandates they receive. So,
you know, instead of patting yourselves on the back all the time, giving each other their awards every other month, why don't you address what you're really here for? And it's the academic performance, the the lack of academic performance
exhibited by our district these last four years in particular. Interestingly, when I was on the board, the SAT scores showed a dramatic improvement. But ever since I left and the better Belleville BOE group has been in control of this board, look at what has happened to our
SAT scores. So, when are you going to address this matter? >> Thank you, Mr. >> Right. instead of pizza ovens and the like, you know, you're letting down the community. You're doing a disservice to our kids. >> Um, Mr. Sheldon, I only one of those um
questions sort of or concerns was in the finance uh realm. Um if if it's perhaps that when you were maybe searching on board obviously if you type Chevy if you type Chevrolet it does come up. It was approved on September 30th 2025 and that
is resolution 10.1 >> vehicles. >> I'm sorry. Yes. >> Yes. >> Thank you. >> Thank you next roll. Good evening, members of this board,
staff, students, and fellow community members. My name is Darra and I'm here tonight to raise concerns about the decisions that will affect our next school year. At the last board meeting, the board voted on several budget cuts that impacted many teachers and staff members, including our principal, Mr.
Rhodess. Mr. Rhodess has been the principal at Bubba High School for as long as I have attended. During my four years here, I have seen firsthand the positive impact he has had on our school community. As student government organization president, I have had the
opportunity to work closely with Mr. Rhodess. He has always supported students ideas and initiatives. Whenever SGO wanted to organize an event or bring new ideas to the school, he listened and he helped us make it happen. He was never he never made students feel like
their ideas were too small or unimportant. Like he even participated in our pie teacher event. There were so many times where he volunteered to participate in our activities because he genuinely cared about student involvement and school spirit. Having a principal who is present and engaged makes a difference.
What I do not understand is how moving Mr. Roads help address the district's budget cuts concerns if at all. It seems practical to keep an experienced principal in this current position rather than move him and place someone else in charge. From a student's perspective, this decision does not
appear to create stability during a time when our school is already facing many changes. What concerns me the most is the impact this will have on all our students. Mr. Rose already knows the staff, the students, and the culture at Belva High School. He understands the changes, the challenges our school
faces, and has built relationships with the people in this building over many years. Those relationships cannot be replaced overnight. At a time when students and teachers are already adjusting to budget cuts and uncertainty, leadership and consistency are more important than ever. With
budget cuts already affecting our school and many changes expected next year, I believe Belleva High School needs a principal who is already who already knows the community and is prepared to guide it through these challenges. Strong leadership is especially important during difficult times and Mr. Rose has consist consistently prove
provided that leadership in our school. I respectfully urge the board to reconsider this decision and remember that students who will be affected by it. Behind every vote are students whose experiences are shaped by the choices made in this room. I ask that you consider not only the financial impact
of this decision but also the impact it will have on students, staff, and community at Ela High School. Thank you for your time and consideration. We have up next, Miss Florio, please. Thank you. Appcate. >> Good evening, everybody.
>> Just one second. We're going to make a at the 4:30 mark, you're going to start being live. Just to give the speaker a heads up that your time is that you have 30 seconds left. All right, just to give the heads up. >> I don't think I'll take 5 minutes. I want to go watch the game. >> So anyway, hi, I'm Gloria Fman. You guys
already know me. I just have a couple of quick things to say. First of all, I want to make a shout out to Miss Irene Sbatics and Suzanne Leewendowski, my grandson's math and English teachers. His recent math and reading assessments were off the charts. I mean 97s to
mostly 100s. And this is in directly from what these women do. They're miracle workers as well as the wellness center. Dr. Pastor has been a big part of Jordan's success and he's struggled for years. Total props. The school is doing great
by my grandson. Thank you very much. Next, I have because I'm a loudmouth. I've been getting a lot of uh emails from people that I don't know, a lot of staff from Belville High School, either retired or present, and they all
want to share their concerns with me about what's happening between wellness and uh guidance. And I can tell you this, it's like they're there I'm getting two completely conflicting uh stories. And and I don't really I'm not the one to take care of this issue. I'm
not I I don't I I I don't know enough about it. But the underlying theme here is they don't feel comfortable addressing their concerns with Dr. Alfonso. So my question is number one is why? So I I know for myself in my job
it's important that I have that open communication with the chair of my department and I don't feel intimidated by her and I I know I can come to her and speak to her. But these people feel that if they are honest and open, they will have they will face repercussions
because of that. And I I I don't know why. I'm just telling you um the stories that I'm hearing. I know a lot of these people have been here for years, some decades. And I think it's important that they were part of this discussion. Uh I think that's just, you know, you don't
know what you don't know is a big deal. So it it it's important for people to come in and uh and give their expertise to make a a sound decision. I don't know where these decisions are coming from. So my main thing and you all know as a scientist and a science physiology
professor uh I I did a little bit of research. So Belle High School currently performs at the bottom 50% of all New Jersey high schools in combined math and reading. Uh and this is a direct direct lack of STEM education. are you still planning on putting Mr. Royale as
director of STEM? And he doesn't have the qualifications for that. We all know it. So STEM is critical in preparing students to navigate what's next. And we have a complex uh future ahead of us. A lot of technologydriven. Uh there's a high demand in the workforce for STEM, high earning
potential. It builds critical thinking. Uh fosters creativity and adaptability. college professors and I can vouch for this as a college professor are sounding the alarm over the lack of education that we see students come in now I've seen a lot of people after after the um
co and it's insane what now some of my students can't read I'm a college professor they can't read but STEM and science is is sorely lacking across the board and we need this this is an important part of what we should do for our students I feel I reached out and
spoke to a few different people I I have the executive director for teaching and excellence in science and mathematics, professor of earth and environmental science, former chair of that department, director of prehealth programs, who was my teaching assistant and now directs it at at uh NJIT,
director of the TRIO and upwardbound program, director of USDA HSI, which is Hispanic Serving Institute, recognized STEM mentor from the New Jersey STEM Pathways uh network, as well as two current chairpersons from the departments of biology ology in Montlair
State, which you know I I've been there for 36 years and Bergen. I can say without a question they were not thrilled with the choice of director of STEM looking up the credentials for this person who I know and I know is a
wonderful man. He's a f I I he was my grandson's uh middle school principal. He's a very nice man, but he is not equipped for this job. Um, I have a few quick questions here. Number one, what qualifications and experience are required to become director of STEM in
your opinion? Was there a search process which included a job description? Were other qualified candidates from your math, science, and technology departments even considered? What was this position even posted? Whose decision was it to give the position to Mr. Roy Allen? On what basis? How will
the district evaluate if this change is benefiting our students? In what direction does the director plan to take the STEM program? More hands-on learning, new projects, incorporating ideas. I'm concerned about the impact of this to the future of our students. So, I'm I I'm asking those questions. I was
actually going to call to see if I can get a meeting with you. I've emailed you twice. I never got a response. Um, you spoke to which email did you? >> I can't hear out of that ear. >> Well, can we speak up? Let me >> Absolutely. Okay. I I really don't mean to be a pain in
your >> and I'm sorry about your weight. >> Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Thank you, Mr. >> Uh, next speaker. Can I keep that up? Mr. Mike Young. Good evening. Mike Mon, Del Education Association President. All right. So,
since the beginning of this year, it's been very difficult, but I've been trying to figure out whether this superintendent and his management team is disingenuous, dishonest, or just lacks experience. And I haven't been able to figure it out.
And hopefully when I go through a couple points, maybe the people of Belleville will make that decision. Uh last month's meeting, I stood up here with a sheet of paper and I was discussing to the board how there were 45
nonrehired educators, pea members, that was educators and support staff that were on a list yet superintendent was saying there's only 29. So I made it a point to ask to request a
revised list of and I put it this way BEA members who were not being rehired for the 2026 2027 school year and I got that list and all of you were copied on it. So all of you got that list and that list
consisted of 42 educators and support staff. We're not talking about administrators. We're not talking about bus drivers, maintenance, secretary or any of those. We're talking about 42. So I have to ask, is this because we're being dishonest? Is this management team
being dishonest, disingenuous, or just lacks experience and doesn't know how many they really let go? Okay. So, um there is a rumor out there that there's going to be a lot of rehires next week. So, not rehires, there's going to be new
hires next week, right? So, again, inexperienced maybe. Um, if you have a teacher that was let go, that was non-tenure, that was on step three, I'm sorry, that was a three-year teacher because you need four to be tenure. So,
there was quite a few. And the reasoning was they cost too much money. We're trying to get less, you know, we're trying to get that money out because another fallacy, we are in a deficit, which we'll get on to that next. We are not in a deficit.
So if you are a threeyear teacher, you really should be on step three. But say you're on step nine. Okay, you're on step nine. So that's quite a bit of steps you got. So if you're on step 9 next year in the 26 27 school year, you
would be making $74,875. And if you're a new hireer, you would be making brand new first year, you would be making $65,534. So that's a matter of $9,000. $9,000 in a billion dollar budget.
$9,000 is only a fifth of what superintendent makes for America. What is it? What's $9,000? Is $9,000 worth not providing these students with the services that they deserve, with the educators that they deserve, with the expertise that they deserve? Again,
disingenuous, dishonest, or maybe just inexperienced. Lastly, let's talk about the budget. We were told that we're in a budget deficit. Okay? We had our NJA team look at the budget. That's not the case. We're not We weren't in a budget in a in a We weren't in a budget
deficit. We still are not in a budget deficit. What's happening is this management team is deciding not to um u um go after the money that is allocated to them that they're allowed to since the Christy administration, which is the
2% tax increase. Okay, they're deciding not to do that so that they don't provide these kids with the services that they deserve, okay, and that they should be getting. Um, and so that is a decision. That's not a deficit. A
deficit is when you go after that 2%. You get that 2%, but then yet you still don't have enough money to to pay off to pay these teachers and these services, right? So again, dishonest, disingenuous, or inexperienced? I I can't tell. I'm still having a tough
time with that. Okay. But I think we have to be transparent. Okay. Say what it is you're going to what's the truth and and be transparent to this public. But next meeting I will have some more facts on the budget for you. We will talk about that more in
depth. But again, like I said, I don't know. I mean either or. Whether it's dishonesty or it's being disingenuous or it's an experience, it's all unacceptable, right? It's all unacceptable. and it's not what leadership should be. Thank you.
>> I have the list. Is there anyone in the audience that would like to come speak up on any issue? >> Just please state your name and address, please. Thank you. Uh, good evening everybody. My name is Riley Fernandez, 91 Pav. I'm a student
here in Belleva High School. And before I begin, I would like to address those who were on a table unable to attend the previous board of education meeting. I encourage you to watch the recording for yourselves. It was a meeting centered around the budget crisis facing our district and the difficult decisions
that continue to affect our students, teachers, and staff. That night, many students stood before the board and sto and spoke from the heart. They spoke about the teachers who inspired them, the counselors who supported them, and the staff members who made a difference in their lives.
Some some students struggled to finish their remarks. Some fought back their tears, and others could not. But my peers were not asking for applause. They were only asking to be heard. And to the board's credit, when concerns were raised um about attentiveness, many of
you took those concerns seriously. During this meeting, I have seen members of the board make an effort to be present, to listen, and to engage with the people they serve. But there's still one matter that I cannot ignore. While students were speaking at the previous meeting, while emotions were still
running high and members of my community were sharing deeply personal experiences, the board attorney appeared more interested in his phone than in the people standing before him. Even at times, smiling at it. And this was during critical times. While students
were visibly emotional, he had remained focused elsewhere. Now, perhaps that was not his intention. Perhaps there was an explanation. But leadership is not judged solely by intentions. It is judged by actions and actions create
perceptions. The perception that night was that while students were pleading to be heard, one of the individuals representing this district was not listening. The people seated at this table may hold different titles, different responsibilities, and different positions. But to the public, you are
not separate individuals. You are one board. You are one leadership team. And when one representative fail falls short, it reflects on the institution as a whole. Because trust is not built by policies alone. Trust is built when people believe their voices matter. If
we expect students to be attentive in the cast classroom, if we expect teachers to be attentive to their students, then surely the community should be able to expect the same attentiveness from those entrusted with serving it. The strength of any inst institution is not measured by how it
performs when things are easy. It is measured by how it responds when people are hurting, when it's when difficult decisions must be made and when citizens come forward seeking to be heard. That is the standard this community deserves. Now before I conclude, I would like to
encourage me uh members of my community to stay informed and involved. A GoFundMe campaign has been created by community members regarding the ongoing lawsuit against the board of education. Whether you support it or not, I encourage everyone to review the information for themselves, do their own research, and remain engaged in the
issues affecting our schools and our town. Thank you. >> Thank you. If anybody else like to speak on any issue from the audience hearing none, can I please have the motion to close? Dr. testing that's just to clarify a
couple things as Mr. Bush said several times we can't speak on personnel but one thing I can say that anyone who's in a position is certified to be in that position the credentials are there we do fact check that so that is all I can say
about that um as far as ASA association superintendent coming here absolutely that's true the reason that we're here is cuz actually I applied for a mental health grant to have them come here. There was a little bit of miscommunication seems like as far as us being a role model
district. That's not the reason they were here. They were here because we were awarded a grant that they're going to use to further train our staff. So, just want to clarify that we have a fantastic staff, but let the record be sure they were here because we were awarded a grant that was applied for,
not because we were considered by them or labeled by them a role model district. And uh that's it. No. >> Can I please have a motion to close remarks by citizens? >> Second. >> All in favor, please.
>> I now close remarks by citizens. Uh we're going to move on to board member report remarks. Uh if anyone like to take time right now, the floor is yours. Any member would like to make any closing remarks? I just want to say congratulations to all of those who are honored and
recognized tonight. I truly hope that everyone takes time to appreciate all the special moments that we will have to head into graduation with ceremonies. These milestones are meaningful for our students, our families and staff. I am I
t for my ceremony. Anyone else? I'd like to congratulate all of the students who received uh recognition and awards this evening whether academic uh sports
um awards for multilingual awards for building men. Uh very very proud of all of you and and uh proud of your parents. We proud this is a group effort from all of us and I look forward
to seeing everybody and all of them very beautiful graded and and sessions at graduation in just a very short period of time and I hope to see all of you uh next
week at our next meeting. So um have a good evening. >> Thank you Dr. Mavia. Uh any other trustee? >> Uh I would just like to congratulate all the award winners uh and those who got recognized tonight. Thank you to the
parents, teachers, folks, administrators who guided our students and and all the recognition that they received this evening. Uh even though this is the last board meeting of this school year, we still have a couple more days left of school. Uh, so I hope that we finish strong. Um, once we get to the summer,
enjoy, relax, enjoy your break, seniors, congratulations. Oh, yeah. We have another big question. I'm going to get back to Can we hear me? >> Yeah. Much better. Um, so yes, we'll be back. I'll save that part for again. Congratulations to all the students and
uh those who were recognized tonight this evening. All right. Can I please have a motion to adjourn tonight's meeting? >> So move. >> Can I have a second? Second. >> All in favor? >> Thank you so much. Our next meeting is our special meeting is June 16th. Uh public session will start at 7:00 p.m.
Thank you so much everybody. Get home safe. Have a good night.