I'd like to call this meeting of the Board of Education to order. Public notice of this meeting pursuant to the Open Public Meetings Act has been given by the Board Secretary on October 7th and 8th, 2025, in the following manner. posted notice on the school bulletin board at the administration building, transmitted to the Courier-Post, Philadelphia Inquirer, and the Clerk of Cherry Hill Township. Please rise and join me for the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag. the United States of America. and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, under God. Indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Mr. Schimp, can you please call the roll?
Actually, I want to do the oath. Is that okay, Ms. Gilfillon? Ms. Gilfillon and I went through 3 different ways to do this tonight, which whichever way she says to do it is the way we're gonna do it. So instead of calling the roll. We're going to have our new… board members sworn in, I guess then we'll call the roll all together, which would be super fabulous. So, Ms. Manzano? Congratulations. Thank you. You're going to repeat the oath of office after me.
Aye, Melissa Manzana, do solemnly swear, do you solemnly swear. that I will support the Constitution of the United States, that I will support the Constitution of the United States, and the Constitution of the State of New Jersey, and the Constitution of the State of New Jersey. New Jersey, and that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same. And I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same. And to the governments established in the United States. And to the government's established in the United States. And in this state, and in this state, under the authority of the people, under the authority of the people, so help me God, so help me.
Hi, state your name. I, Melissa Manzano, who sell and wastewear. Do you solemnly swear that I possess the qualifications. prescribed by law that I've possessed the qualifications prescribed by law. for the Office of Member of the Cherry Hill Board of Education for the Office of Member of Cherry Hill Board of Education. I'm not disqualified as a voter, and not disqualified as a voter. Distribuant to RS19 colon 4-1. Pursuant to… RS19 colon 4-1.
And that disqualified due to a conviction of the crime, and not disqualified due to the. eviction of a crime or offense listed, or offense listed in NJSA 18A. colon 12-1. In NJSA18A colon 12-1. faithfully and partially, and justly, and I will faithfully, impartially, and justly. Just… Jessly? Jessly. Perform all the duties of that office, perform all the duties of that office. According to the best of my ability, according to the best of my ability.
God, so help me, God. Sano, please join us at the board table. Mommy did it.
We are delighted you are here. And now there's 9 of us again. Mr. Schimpf, can you please call the role of the new board? Dr. Braddock. Here. Mr. Fain. Here. Dr. Dreisen. Here. Mr. Greenbaum? Here. Ms. Manzano? Here. Mr. Mayor? Here. Ms. Palmer? Here. Ms. Stern? Here. Ms. Winters? Here, thank you very much. We have no board recognition this evening. But we do have a presentation.
And it's on understanding chronic absenteeism. This presentation was given to the CNI committee, but now it is being given to the full board and the public as well. Take it away, Dr. Morton. All right, I'm going to turn this presentation over to Ms. Staffin. Uh, who is going to… get it queued up for us, and ready to go. Uh, chronic absenteeism. is of national focus, to be, uh, quite frank with you.
Um, as we, um… Continue to recover from COVID, and we analyze, um, student achievement trends, and we look at, um. how well students are doing is definitely correlations with, uh, chronic absenteeism. Uh, so we thought it appropriate to introduce the topic, um. It is a concerted focus throughout the state as well, and it's a necessary conservative focus for us in moving forward in Cherry Hill Public Schools as well.
Mustafan?
I'm gonna get us started, so thanks, Dr. Morton and Ms. Winters. We appreciate you guys kicking it over to us. Uh, we are here to present tonight. As Dr. Morton mentioned. Uh, we are backed by popular demand. We were, uh. Most recently seen at CNI last week. And we are approaching, uh, we are presenting, uh, through a team approach. Uh, so I want to introduce the team before I… before I kick it off. Of course, we have Ms. Staffan, our director. of curriculum and instruction. Mr. Guy, our Director of Elementary Ed.
We have Ms. Mallory, who is appearing. We believe virtually. She'll be presenting remotely. our Director of Special Education, and my name is Neil Birdie, and I am the Director of Secondary Ed. And indeed, we are here to talk about. chronic absenteeism, and the real purpose of the presentation is to. create a deeper understanding of chronic absenteeism. At its core, it seems relatively straightforward. Uh, but certainly it has a direct impact on the wellness of schools and students, on student achievement, and on long-term success.
Um, and we believe, uh, the way we're attacking the presentation as a team. is the same way we need to work together to solve the actual problem of chronic absenteeism. Uh, as a team, and really through the homeschool Partnership. Um, so tonight, we're hoping to give everyone a better understanding of the issue. talk a little bit about why it demands our attention. how it affects individual students and the school community. And then foreshadow some evidence-based strategies. Equally important. Uh, we will discuss how we plan to use data.
and progress monitor in real time. Uh, to identify trends and to inform our practice. So why is it important? And why do we need to pay close attention to chronic absenteeism? Uh, our education system is based here in New Jersey on a 180-day. calendar year. When we think about Marzano's work around guaranteed and viable curriculum, we… we… recall that, uh, that work is based on the assumption that kids come to school all day, every day.
And what happens when there's an illness or an extraordinary event. or when there are assemblies or pep rallies, or when students are not in school. is we start to chip away at that valuable, instruction time. that we sometimes wrongfully assume. is guaranteed. Uh, chronic absenteeism can wreck long-term havoc. And a lot of times, before it's even identified or recognized, especially where we see. spiraling content, like in our math courses, uh, so when we talk about spiraling content, we talk about the notion that.
In classes like mathematics, content builds on previous content. So, missing a day, or a week. or a greater amount of time. Again, it chips away at that guaranteed instruction, and it precludes children from mastering concepts that are further along in the curriculum. Uh, because they don't have the foundational skills they need to succeed. Um, even if something as simple as. fact fluency. Slide.
So what does our New Jersey state law require? Uh, the state law under compulsory education. requires that children between the age of 6 and 16 attend school every day. And there are different, uh, there are different, uh, sort of terms that are… regretfully, uh, often used synonymously. Uh, and those are chronic absenteeism. and truancy. Um, chronic absenteeism. is vastly different. It doesn't take into account the nature. of the absence just, uh, when a child is out of school.
Uh, when we talk about truancy, we're really talking about unexcused consecutive absences, and I think the next slide will show that a little bit more. Clearly. Uh, so again, chronic absenteeism is when you miss 10% or more. of the school year, 10% of the total amount of days for any reason. Uh, so that could be orthodontia, it could be surgery, it could be… a family trip to Disney, it can be suspension, it can be… absence due to illness, or a litany of other things. But chronic absenteeism doesn't, uh.
differentiate based on the reason. It just… it just asks, was the child present or… or not in school for the day? Uh, conversely, truancy, uh, really talks about unexcused absences and consecutive absences. And that's where we start to see some of our. legal interventions occur around truancy, and I think the next slide. is a little bit of a better representation, sort of a visual representation. But really, uh, discusses the same, uh, the same content, just an easier format to look at.
Again, chronic absenteeism occurs when children are absent for more than 10% of the year, and that's exactly on the next slide, how that rate is calculated. Uh, so the state of New Jersey looks at total number of school days. Uh, and they… they look at total number of days present, so… Um, if, for instance, you were absent 18 times during a 180. day school year, uh, the state of New Jersey would consider that chronically absent under its definition, because that would be 10%.
of the entirety of days. that you could potentially be in school. And that's one of the two ways which the state calculates absenteeism, or chronic absenteeism. They calculate a. A student rate, and they also calculate a rate for. individual schools. So, individual schools. Uh, when the state of New Jersey looks at chronic absenteeism, it takes the number of children you have. total in your population, and it looks at how many of those children.
were chronically absent during a given school year. So, for instance. If you've got a thousand kids in your school. Excuse me? If you've got a thousand kids in your school, and 100 of those. children are chronically absent, then you've got a school rate of 10%. And I think Ms. Staffin is going to pick up here. She does like to talk a little bit about excused versus unexcused, and then she's going to move into impact. Good evening. Thank you, Dr. Birdie. So, one of the things I did want to bring your attention to is, yes, we have a required 180-day calendar for students.
However, that fluctuates based on what the state will allow as an excused absence. For instance, religious observance. Take your child to work day. college visits. When that happens, those days come out of that 180-day total. And a child's chronic absentee rate is then calculated based on the total number of days they were expected to be in school. So if 10 of those days happen in a school year, a child's chronic absentee rate goes from 180 days. to 170 days, making the 17th day, that 10% mark.
Rather than the 18th day. So, there are definite opportunities for students to experience life outside of the academic classroom. However, that does then, as their excuse, come out of their total allocation of school days. Additionally, when we talk about chronic absenteeism. for a school, and when it's calculated, it does not get calculated until the end of a school year. So the state waits, we do all of our state reporting after the school year ends, so right now we're in that reporting period for the 24-25 school year.
One of the other things to take a look at, though, is the impact and what research is saying. about chronic absenteeism. And chronic absenteeism is actually one of our early warning signals. So, we look at various factors. for a child's overall academic profile. And one of the early warning signals that a child is going to, or potentially will struggle. Academically, is going to be absenteeism. It leads to potentially low achievement, dropouts, and eventually… and possibly delinquency.
Additionally, what research is telling us, though, is when we have a systemic approach with multi-tiered opportunities for students to find success. We can rebuild that. at times, a child who is chronically absent. is building their own achievement gaps. Right? So it may not necessarily be that there's a learning difficulty there, but when you miss seat time. You then start creating your own achievement gaps. We have a multi-tiered system that will allow us to help students regain that time and help close those gaps if they're being created.
Additionally, one thing to, um, to consider is this is national. It is not a Cherry Hill issue. It is a national issue, and post-pandemic. Statistically, schools are seeing an almost double number of students. falling into the chronic absentee, um. bucket than prior to the pandemic. So when we take a look at it, there are certain things that research is telling us by level and early grades. Students that are chronically absent in the early grades, kindergarten, first grade, are going to see.
some difficulty in academics as they're moving up, and we know that a child. Statistically, who is on track in third grade will remain on track. Once those gaps start to happen in the lower grades, it becomes more and more difficult for them to catch up as they get older. Additionally, we see… oh wait, I probably want to do… um, when we talk about chronically absent middle schoolers. they say research is telling us that they are less likely to pass those core academic subjects.
Like math and English, and by 6th grade, chronic absenteeism becomes a very strong early warning sign for dropping out of school. Additionally, when we're talking about predicting success. We need to recognize and reinforce that missing school matters. You know, a lot of times we hear, oh, it's only. kindergarten. It's only first grade. But if we continue to send that message, we're sending some other messages to our students as we start to look at the higher grades and. what they would want for themselves as they. continue on through, um, the K-12 continuum.
Chronic absenteeism in kindergarten is associated with lower academic performance in first grade. And when you're talking about families of low socioeconomic status. It's even more prevalent for, um, what could happen to them academically. when we start looking at, um, the relationships between attendance and the percentage of students graduating. from high school on time, who fall into that low socioeconomic status. Additionally, as we've talked about. Chronic absenteeism will increase those achievement gaps.
And one of the best ways to counter that is to come to school. Um, it's as simple as that. Just coming to school will help us close those gaps, more seat time. means, um, we can do more for a student if they're sitting in front of us. than if they are absent. Um, so this alone will help us improve achievement, graduation rates. and college attainment rates. So, when you think about it, when we talk about missing more than 15 days of class time. It definitely has a negative impact on students' academic achievement.
Where it hurts grades, it increases dropout rates. And it can lead to juvenile delinquency. And with that, I'm going to turn it over to Mr. Guy. Thank you, Ms. Staffer. So, we'll talk a little bit about the Cherry Hill data. We'll dive into 24-25 data, and then we'll talk a little bit about 25-26 data. Next slide, please. All right, so if you go into our data dashboard, and for those in the audience who do not know the data dashboard, you go to our main website, you go to academics.
Um, on the left-hand side, you'll see the data dashboard. You open up the data dashboard on the left-hand side, you'll see a nice calendar, about 4th. way down, and you'll be able to click that, and you'll see our. 25, 26 yearly attendance. So right now, this was taken on September 30th by our own, uh, Mark Plavinsky, um, and we're at 96.3% overall. Um, you'll see, if you look at areas of chronic absenteeism.
We seem to be doing relatively well by this metric in terms of 66.2. 2% of our students are at low risk, 14.1% are at high risk, and then some medium risk between. 5 and 9%. Next slide. Now. Mr. Plavinsky also provided us information from the 24-25 data dashboard. Uh, and right around the same time, we were, um, almost at the same space, except… Little bit less with regards to 94%.
attendance rates at this time, and 14.8? Uh, I believe was our chronically absent rate that we were looking at. So. not that much of a difference, but I'm gonna turn things over to Dr. Morton to dig a little bit deeper in an effort for radical transparency. Thank you very much for that handoff, uh, Mr. Guy. So, uh, the data dashboard also has an internal feature that our administrative team is able to utilize.
That allows us to disaggregate and unpack the data. Um, as Ms. Staffin pulls that up, I'll just speak just in general terms. As we look at these numbers. Uh, 94 attendance rate. On paper, sounds good, or 96% attendance rate sounds good, but if you notice that red category, there were approximately 14%. of our students at any given time, and that chronic absenteeism. uh, category. Essentially, um. Okay, she has this up. So, as we look at this, uh, this is for… 2425, Ms. Staffa?
Okay, current. Uh, this is for our current school year, but as we look at this, we pretty much see. our indicators in blue, uh. Average daily attendance is 90… 6%, uh, we're hovering at that mark. If you look at September. We're at about 96% at 95%. in October. Uh, this individual breakdowns that exist. Uh, for each of our individual schools and each individual grade levels. for the most part, wearing blue. That looks… Uh, pretty good. But let's begin to unpack, and let's look a little closer.
when we begin to look at specific students or specific demographic groups in this case. Uh, the picture changes just a bit. Um, if you look at… the different racial categories in this first. chart. We'll see… the numbers, uh, here in red. Now, with this identifies is it identifies students who are on target. to be chronically absent. Chronically absent is Dr. Birdie. Defined means that student misses 10% or more of the school year.
10% of the school year is 18 days of school. Say it again. Let that sink in a bit. That means a student will miss 18 days or more. of school. These students that are represented by the red. are on target to miss. 18 days or more of school. And those represented by the yellow indications. are at risk of missing 18 days or more of school.
Verstappen, if you can just scroll down, if you look at it by gender, you see the same… risk by special education category, IEP versus no IEP. We see similar concerns. MLL status, multilingual learner status, as well. Uh, irrespective of whatever demographic feature and how you look at it, you'll see this… this, uh, similar. distribution. So let me bring it home and give you real numbers. So for Cherry Hill Public Schools, you saw that number 14.
0.1%. Last year, that meant we had 1,545 students miss more than 18 days of school. 1,545 students missed more than 18 days of school. What our data tells us. is we hit a certain threshold of days missed. And when students begin to cross that threshold. all of the achievement. indicators begin to trend downward. That indicator is 12 days of school.
At the high school level, we know that. for a student to be in, uh. credit… credit denial for a particular class student. accumulates 12 unexcused absences. And technically, they're in a credit-denied state and need to have that credit restored. to them. Uh, so 12 is a threshold for us. I gave you a number of 1,545. that have missed 18 of more. So the question becomes, how many students do we have between.
17 absences and 12 absences. Well, that's another 2002 students. Last year, that missed between 17 and 12 absences. That's significant. That is significant. Add it all up. We're looking at 33% of our population. with 12 or more absences. And last school year. And as you saw, the trend numbers, you see, we're trending. And that same general… general direction this year. We're at 14.1%.
Again, um… The problems… the challenges prevalent across the board. um, preschool, for instance. Our preschool students last year. we're at a chronic absenteeism rate of 25%. So, 25% of our preschool population. missed more than, uh, 18 days. of school last year. So it's significant, and it's pervasive. And as we begin to unpack the data, and I've been personally beginning to look at this. and apply it to, uh, our students in our district. We recognize it's a… It's definitely a huge challenge for us.
It will be a comprehensive effort for us, uh, to tackle this. and school. So, I'll turn it back over to… Ms. Stafford. Mr. Guy, I'm sorry. Thank you, Dr. Morton and Ms. Staffin. So, can we go to the next slide? Thank you, we're in priority three, which is our strategic, uh, plan, and we'll talk about our annual goals so that we can talk about how we're going to tackle this. So we know that in Priority 3, we're trying to align student supports to mirror student needs. Next slide, please.
And we know that the work around multi-tiered systems of support. is going to get us… to decrease that number of chronic absenteeism. On the next slide, we take a look at… the Tier 1, Tier 2, Tier 3 supports. as it relates to attendance, and this can be found with Attendance Works, which is a nonprofit organization. that we have done some work on with chronic absenteeism and a number of other school districts.
through the state and around the country have. But first, I want to talk about what those foundational supports. are even before we get to, like, Tier 1 preventive measures. We need for students. to feel physically and emotionally. healthy and safe to deter chronic absenteeism. We need for a certain sense of belonging, connectedness, and support. We need academic challenge. and engagement. We need adult.
and student social-emotional competence. As we look at those foundational areas, and if we go through the tiers, we want to make sure that in Tier 1, those universal preventions for all four of those areas. are in place within all of our classrooms. As we move into Tier 2, which is. 10% to 15% of our population. We are addressing all four of those areas. much more critically with our multi-tiered systems of support teams, our home and school partnerships.
when we go into Tier 3, we may be moving outside of the school. and involving, um, the school. home, and some of our nonprofit organizations that can support. students with regards to any one of these things, and families with regards to any one of these things. So I think it's important that we talk a little bit. about those things, and then… I use the term intervention. We want to be able to define interventionalists. So, an academic interventionalist in our multi-tiered systems of support space.
is one who delivers targeted research-based instruction to students. When we flip that over to chronic absenteeism. Those intervention lists could be inside and outside of the school, but they are doing. targeted, research-based supports, communications. building, um, safety networks and opportunities for belonging. Believe it or not, at our middle and high school levels, when we talk about belonging and connectedness. We've done research on. when students are staying after school with us and are involved with extracurricular activities in one way or another.
that sent… that sense of belongingness and connectedness. seems to chip away at chronic absenteeism. So those are opportunities that we have with our interventionalists. And our goals are always to close those gaps as it relates to chronic absenteeism. But now, to talk a little bit about… more about the home and school partnership is working with families with Ms. Mallory, so I'm gonna pass it off.
Thank you, Mr. Guy. Uh, good evening. Hopefully everyone can hear me. Um, so thinking about working with our families and what we can do to kind of provide the support from the school district level. Um, while we understand that preschool and kindergarten in the state of New Jersey are non-compulsory. We do have expectations and, um, attendance guidelines, um, because when a parent chooses to enroll their child into the public school district. Um, they are committing to the attendance policy as well. It does look a little bit differently because we recognize that some of these students have been in school for the first time, and, you know, their immune systems are building, so it's a little bit… it's a little bit different as to the punitive measures. We're not talking about credit recovery or anything like that, but we definitely.
work with families at all the levels. So, in preschool and elementary. We understand that too many absences can cause students to fall behind. Um, two days a month are missing 10% can make it harder for students to learn to read. There's research that represents that data. Um, and just missing a few days can set students behind weeks, um. being late to school can lead to poor attendance, and it can affect the whole classroom. So if a teacher has to slow down the lesson, um, or repeat instruction to help children catch up, it can affect more than just the student who is.
absent or late. Um, and the biggest piece is attending school regularly does help students and children feel better about school and themselves. They feel more connected to their classmates and their teachers. Um, and it's overall a more positive experience for them. Um, slide. Um, so what are some things families can do? We work with families, we advise, uh, counselors have met with families, administration. Um, set a regular bedtime and morning routine. Lay out your… lay out student clothes and prep the night before. That also kind of instills.
the understanding of importance for attending school. Um, try to, uh, keep your child healthy, required immunizations for school. Um, introduction, we have open houses, we have back-to-school nights, um, introduce your children to their teachers and classmates before school starts. Um, try to develop a plan if you have the resources to call upon a family member or neighbor or another parent if necessary. In case something comes up, um, schedule non-urgent medical appointments outside of.
school time as much as possible, and extended trips when school isn't in session. Um, we do have a lot of different days off for various holidays, so we encourage parents to schedule things during those times. Um, if possible, assuming they're not celebrating. If they seem anxious, if your child seems anxious, or they're reluctant to go to school. Don't be proactive in reaching out to the school counselor or the building administration. Um, just for some advice, and putting it on their radar so that they know what to look for with your child as well, and kind of help bridge that gap.
work with your healthcare provider if you… if you see repetitive illness, um, and obviously, if your child must stay home for illness, reach out to the teacher, ask for resources or ideas so that they don't fall too far behind. Um, at the secondary level, um, students should miss no more than 9 days of school to stay engaged, successful, and on track to graduate. We start to see as early as middle school. Um, that frequent absences can be a sign that students are losing interest, or they're struggling. Maybe the work is too hard, and they're using it as.
Um, absenteeism, and they're reluctant to go to school, and they're avoiding school. Or maybe they're dealing with bullying, or they're facing some other difficulty. Again, communication is the key to kind of put that on the school's radar if there's anything that. There's a concern about at home. Um, some interesting facts by 6th grade absenteeism is one of three signs that a student may drop out. Sixth grade. Um, so that is fairly early, um, but there is definitely correlation between absenteeism, students that drop out of high school.
And then by 9th grade, um, attendance is a much better predictor of graduation rates than the 8th grade test scores are. Um, and then as we stated, missing 10% or 2 days a month over the course of the year can affect. the students' academic success. Um, so at the secondary level, again, talking about the importance of going to school every day, um, what it means for your child, that that is their job, as many parents go to work, they talk about their children. Um, and their students, um, attending school as part of their role, and help them maintain routines, finish homework, make sure they get a good night's sleep.
Um, try not to schedule appointments, um, during school hours and non-urgent related appointments during the school day. And do your best to maintain a healthy diet, and if you're concerned about illness, again. contact your school or healthcare provider. Um, and if they have to stay home because they're sick, which we do know happens, um, we have the ability, uh, now with Google Classroom that students can log in and they can keep up with their assignments, and they can communicate with their teachers. Um, and make sure that, you know, they're reaching out to teachers for resources or materials.
So that they can stay on track as well. Um, and this is a list of our resources for the presentation, and we will, um… Ask now if anybody has any questions. Thank you so much, Ms. Mallory. for bringing this presentation to the full board, we did see it in CNI, and I just wanted to kick off the conversation by saying a few things that were discussed in that committee. So, first of all, ever since. I got on the board, and I think back before I was on the board, the board has been asking when we come to academic success about root cause analysis and what can we do to help students who are struggling.
And I think this may be the first time that we've seen an analysis. on this level of depth, about something that's tangible and something that we, as the school district and we as the board. can help to get kids on track. who are struggling, so I want to thank you for the information and the database analysis. It was really good to see. Um, I was especially interested in the impact on math scores, because that's something that, not just in Cherry Hill, but nationally since the pandemic, math scores. have been a challenge across the board. So, to see that impact on math scores is really interesting.
And I just wanted to call out that for board members who are going to be attending the workshop coming up. The two major topics at workshop that there are a lot of sections are AI, which we're working on AI policy, and chronic absenteeism. So we are not the only district that is struggling with it. We're not doing this in a vacuum. This is something that's happening. a lot of different places, so I encourage board members. to sign up for sessions on this topic as we begin to focus on it in Cherry Hill, and how we can help support students.
So with that, I'm going to open it up to board members for board member questions and comments on the presentation. Dr. Braddock. Uh, thank you again for all the data. You know, I love the data on this sort of thing. Um, pretty simple question, I guess it would be for, I guess, anybody that presented. Uh, you mentioned that the interventions are often targeted. Can you talk about how they're targeted? What kind of things would you do for one student versus another, and how are they. They specialize to the student who's having problems. Thank you, Dr. Braddock. I can always expect a data-driven question from you, so I appreciate that, and I know we appreciate that as a.
presentation group. Uh, let's talk about Tier 3 interventions. So, McKinney-Vento, or unhoused, uh, students. who are experiencing chronic absenteeism. That's the school counselor, that's the supervisor of special services. That is the building principal, uh, working with outside agencies to be able to provide… that's our transportation department. Um, and outside agencies, nonprofit outside agencies, to be able to provide and support where.
Uh, housing may be limited, opportunities for access and belonging and connectedness to extracurricular activities, if we're talking about someone from. 6 to 12. So those are targeted… Tier 3 interventions for one person who may be unhoused. Not only them, but their family that tries to get them reconnected back into. One of those five areas with belonging and connectedness, so that we can reduce the amount of chronic absenteeism.
for that particular student, and be able to support that family as well. And those are the evaluations for the student needs are done on mostly, like, a case-by-case basis, so if an unhoused student might need a certain kind of help, another student might need. a different kind of help in those sorts of evaluations are done and applied. That's correct. As they go through the tiers, we're looking at the specificity of the particular concern, and we're adjusting the intervention based on that. But that is a… unfortunately, that's becoming more common.
Not only in Cherry Hill Public Schools, but in the state and around the country. So that is a targeted Tier 3, very specific intervention that we would work on with a student. Thank you very much. Thank you, Dr. Braddock. Other board member questions? Mr. Fain? Um, so this is not so much a question as just… I'm assuming this is the space to talk about CNI and what we discussed. around this, are you doing a report? Yeah, we can do that here. Um, so, a couple things that I wanted to bring up that we discussed in CNI, and before I do that.
I think in, um… In spirit of some of the discussion that we had last night when we were talking about board goals and all of these things and being more proactive with a lot of the things that we're doing. I think that we as a board, should be looking at this the same way that we're looking at student achievement, because without. students actually coming to school, you will not have student achievement. So, this, in my opinion, this directly is related to every section of our strategic plan, and in… Again, in the spirit of being more proactive with a lot of the discussions that we have, this should probably be the center of a lot of what we're doing.
Um, specifically, I think, um, as we've heard tonight, this is not unique. to Cherry Hill, but I think that it's worthwhile to understand this… the uniqueness behind why we have an issue with attendance in Cherry Hill. Um, from what it sounds like, it's… it could be… a slew of different things, and some of the discussion that we had in CNI. was that, as of now, for the most part, the building administration have a general understanding of their own demographic. of what they're seeing and why they're seeing. Um, certain students not attending school more regularly than others, or the one-offs.
And one of the discussions that we had was, why? Why are students not coming to school? And, um, I just wanted to make sure that we had this discussion at the board as some of the other things that we were looking at, because I think this… goes a lot deeper than even some of the things that we've talked about now. Um, one of the things that I thought was very important was the idea behind preschool. So I'm looking at our data right now. And I'm looking at the significant difference, and I think it… I do need to draw attention to the fact that our population of preschool is significantly smaller than every other section of this, so we are looking at a few hundred students compared to.
elementary being significantly more, and middle school, high school, etc. But if you look at the data, right now, only 61.8% of. the preschool students are not. whatever the yellow is, the terminology, uh, like, at risk. So they're not at risk. That's 61%. You go to elementary, it's 76.9% are not at risk. If you want to look at. I think it's important to look at those as well, because you're looking at the students that actually attend school, and that are attending.
Or should… I should say not attending less than 12 times, correct? That's the at-risk. So, um, preschool is only 61.8%. It jumps up to 76.9% in middle. 77.5%, um… I'm sorry, 76.9% in elementary, 77.5% in middle. 77.1% in high school. So it seems like our biggest issue is those younger grades, and those smaller kids. So one of the things that we discussed in CNI is, um, and this was coming from my own personal.
perspective, and, um, point of view, was the idea that when we rolled out preschool, we rolled it out as free preschool. And so one of the topics that I brought up in that space is that I think that that kind of. did us a disservice, because a lot of people, I'm not sure, took. preschool with the seriousness of why we are including it. The purpose of including preschool or making it universal as a state. Um, initiative, and specifically in this district, is to prepare students for school. It's not to just have free. childcare. That's not the point of this. It's to better prepare, especially the students that might not have been.
recognizes needing additional supports that wouldn't have been recognized until. at the very earliest kindergarten, maybe not even later. Um, I think that that kind of was something that we… we need to look at in the terminology and the way that we can. convey different initiatives in the district. Another thing that we discussed was the calendar, and I thought this was really important. I think, Ms. Stern, I think you might have brought this up. Um, I think that that was… that's a really important thing that we can proactively do to address potential absences that we're… we're trying to do our best at accommodating all.
you know, demographics, community members with the way that we set up the calendar. Um, but one of the examples that… or there was two significant ones. One was the full half-day week in December for conferences. That's one of the things that we discussed, because I think that a lot of parents. might look at that as, oh, it's only a half day, it's not important, but that's still considered a school day. The other thing was, in January, and specific for this year. And I believe it happened last year, too, um, is the Three Kings Day. So you have two, almost two weeks off, then we come back for a day, and then we're off a day.
So a lot of people are looking at that as, why come back for a day? That's… let's just go on a lavish vacation or whatever, and not come back until that Wednesday. So that's something that we discussed. Um, communication with family, and I think Ms. Mallory did a really good job of explaining the way that, you know, some of the initiatives that they're doing to target that. And then the last thing was the sick policy that we just, um, that we discussed, too, in CNI. And that was around, um… Specifically, what are we… I'm trying to put… like, for lack of a better way of putting it, what are we expecting people to keep their kids home for? And is it really…
a medically necess… like, medical necessity to keep those kids home. So, the example that I gave was an ear infection. If you have to have… be fever-free for 24 hours. You have an ear infection, you're not contagious, but you might have that fever for two, maybe even three days, depending on how bad it is. Um, so that was just something that we discussed, that maybe looking at is the policies that we have in district that are. almost encouraging some of these absences. So just to give some… because I thought this discussion was really impactful in CNI, and I just wanted to make sure that we.
brought it here, so everybody knew what we discussed. Thank you. Good summary now, I don't have to do it. I appreciate it. Dr. Braddock? Very quickly, I'm glad you brought those up, because it seems to me that's something, and I'll raise this with Ms. Palmer, is. is this might be something for the communication subcommittee to talk about, because a lot of the facts that we were just presented, thanks to the stats we have there, is. I had no idea that… it was more predictive than math scores, so that might be… an issue, something that we can communicate to the community to say that absenteeism.
is more than just, you know, I mean, my time, I was staying at home and watching SportsCenter, but it's missed a certain amount of days. you're at serious risk for… downstream effects, and that might be almost like a campaign that we could put together. Thank you. Yeah, and I will just add on… I will just add on that I've started that conversation, asked the question this week, so… stay tuned on that. I think… I think there's definitely… some level of awareness campaign, education campaign there.
Other board members. Ms. Stern. Um, you know, I think that it's really a mindset shift. Right? Like, it's, you know, this is, you know, we are the first, probably, non-educator group. In the district… I don't know, I'm assuming we might be the first to kind of. receive this presentation, this information, and now it's got, you know, it's really about. getting the word out district-wide, um, you know, to our families, to… the students, so… You know, and I think about the PTA. The PTA has a great role to play with that. You know, the principals have a great role to play, just about.
Um, you know, an example I have brought up over the years is. When the HIV laws were passed, the first back-to-school night that we had. Um, after they were passed. In elementary school, I was… it was very… made very clear by the teachers. Let me explain, if you use the word bullying, what that will trigger. If you assay someone has bullied your child, this is what will happen, blah blah blah blah blah. And it was made really clear to our, like, oh, okay, so we have to understand.
you know, where that leads to. I mean, you know, I say a lot, like, the back-to-school nights. It's challenging, because some of them are very, very, very early in the year, and parents are inundated, but. Whether it's back-to-school nights, you know, which is often, like, a high-reach time, or, um, other. high-reach avenues. We want to get that message across, no matter what grades they are, right? No matter what, you know, ages they are. Um, and I have to say, like. My kids actually went to private preschool, and private half-day kindergarten, because back in the day, we only had to take kindergarten, but.
you know, I certainly did not… wasn't as concerned with my kids' attendance, even though it was also coming out of my pocket, but even though it was… it was not the same… significance to me as it was when they got to middle school and high school. Um, so I think shifting that mindset's really big. Um, I also brought up the question, and I was… trying to play around with the dashboard. I was not successful with it, but… In looking at, let's say, last year, having just come off of having two seniors last year. I'd love to see what the attendance rates are in May and June for seniors in high school.
Because my guess is they're pretty low. Um, and maybe that's even throwing our kids the data off a little bit. at least in that group. Um, and I'm wondering, how do we… How do we attack that? You know, how do we… you know, I mean. At that age, a lot of kids, they just want to be with their friends and do fun things, or the kid, you know, they want to enjoy the last moments. And oftentimes, those kids are the kids in their school. But how do you get them engaged to one of their, you know, kids? What are… with their friends or their activities? So… Um, you know, that's something. And the last thing that, you know, and I think, um, you know, Mr. Fain, you did a great job of.
Thank you for summarizing so much of it. There was another piece that was also raised, um, and… and… transparently, it was my topic, but it was, you know, about the idea of. Um. really… another intervention that we really use to help keep kids in school is. Um, using, you know, restorative practices, right? Rather than just saying, you know, rather than, you know, there's conflict. There's, you know… experiences of… and I'm using the little word B.
Little word bee bullying, or… Big word be, um, big letter B, bullying, but, you know. there are reasons that kids don't want to be around other kids, or don't want to be in school sometimes, and there's. things that go on, if we can intervene. And keep them to work through things while in school and help decrease some of that stuff. in school, rather than just saying, well. you know, you need to be out of school, or we're not going to bother dealing with that, then we're gonna have a better job of… doing a better job of keeping kids in school, so…
I guess for me, it's an argument for why we have to keep doing those things, why, you know, we do a lot of things that. Sometimes people say, well, why are… you're a school, why aren't you just teaching reading, writing, and math? And, you know. This is why, because this all matters, it all impacts kids' interest in being. being in the building, so… anyway. Thank you. Any other board member? comments on this? Very impactful presentation. Ms. Palmer.
I'm just curious, um, what level of data do we currently collect? I'm thinking for future conversations about some of those root causes. I mean, how deep an understanding do we have of. maybe a student has a health issue, maybe there are mental health issues, issues with parents. You mentioned McKinney-Vento. Do we have that data now, or are we starting to collect it? Thanks, Mrs. Palmer. It's a great question. So, I had the pleasure of working with two of our teams this week. Uh, one middle school and one high school. And both are proactively looking at data, but with a little bit of a different lens. They're looking at children who are historically chronically absent.
They wanted to make sure that when they started the school year, we already have identified these children who are at risk and vulnerable, so they're not waiting for. those 10% to start to show up in terms of. absenteeism rates, they're really working to get kids in quickly and put. even small interventions in place. For example, I know someone asked about a concrete intervention. I was told about a teacher who was meeting kids at the car line. Just to do a check-in with them as they were arriving and getting off buses and out of the cars at a drop-off line.
Um, in terms of… root cause analysis, that is where we're diving in this year. So, we're looking at four major. buckets of root causes, so you have barriers, which look at things like chronic or acute absenteeism, uh, chronic or acute illness. I apologize. Um, trauma, transportation, food or housing insecurity. Uh, we're looking at a version, so are they struggling academically, behaviorally? Is there either a small B or a big B?
bullying going on. Uh, we're looking at, uh, disengagement. Uh, so is there lack of challenging instruction? Are they bored? Do they not feel like it's meaningful? Or are there misconceptions? Because there certainly are some misconceptions about attendance not being that big of an issue. Um, and then the last thing I want to say, and this goes to Dr. Braddock's point, I feel like the Sunday. Now, Friday, Schmoor Principal Newsletters. frequently talk about, uh, communication around. absenteeism, the importance of being at school on time and ready to learn.
So I just pulled one quickly just to see, and I pulled… shout out to Dr. Burns over at High School West. I happened to pull his first. Um, and right on the front page of his newsletter, he talks about. um, excused and unexcused absences through the state lens. What does it mean to be chronically absent? And he even goes as far as to start to identify some of the impact that it has on standardized testing for freshmen. So that's literally right on the first page of the first newsletter I pulled. Thank you. Thank you. Any other board member questions on this?
Topic? Well, thank you guys so much for a robust discussion. I look forward to continuing the conversation going forward. And now, next on our agenda, we have a project update from Mr. Schimpf on some of our bond work. Okay, thank you. Um, so tonight… I'm just gonna focus on projects that are currently, obviously, under construction or in construction.
And then we're gonna get into just some of the future project planning that we've been. discussing at the committee level. Um. Sorry if I control this. So, I'm just gonna get in quickly and just show some pictures and provide some updates on our, um, Malberg and Kilmer Preschool classroom additions and renovations, which are obviously still ongoing. Uh, we'll talk about the ROSA interior… interior renovations. Karusi Phase 2 that's currently under, uh, construction, as well as our future project planning.
So right now, as most of you know, this, uh, the Malberg and Kilmer editions and renovations were actually part of a preschool expansion ROD grant, as well as some of the. the referendum funding this project actually began back in the fall of 2024. Uh, both of these, uh, additions and renovations were awarded to D'Andrea Construction. base bid amount on these projects was about $9.2 million. There were some change orders that were added. Um, after the fact, when preschool expansion funds became available for the playgrounds.
at each, which I'll get into as well. So right now, the substantial completion. date for the additions at both of the buildings is December 10th. Um, so we're on schedule as of, um. As of last week's meeting. Um, I communicated that date, uh, with Dr. Mahan, and Dr. Mahan actually has furniture delivery scheduled for. December 15th. So, um… If everything continues progressing the way it has, teachers should be able to get into.
and get their classroom set up, and classes begin as soon as we return from winter break in January. So, all good so far with that. Just… just so everybody knows, sitting here. Uh, the project work did include 8 classroom additions at both Kilmer and Malberg. The only difference at Malberg is they also did 13 bathrooms in the existing building, which were completed, obviously, over the summer. And are currently in use over at that building. Malberg's playground was completed. Um, I believe I have a picture of that as well.
In a moment, um, and Kilmer, I'll get into a status of their playground as well. Um, so I won't read through everything, but the additions at both buildings are… Uh, very far along, obviously, uh, you can see here the roof downspouts and splash blocks are complete… complete. Grading has been finalized, windows and doors are in, they're currently hanging interior doors, and I was over at. Kilimer earlier, they're actually doing the flooring in the hallway. Uh, lighting is in, the fire alarm system is working and up and running.
HVAC systems have been placed on the roofs and have been started. Um, and really, they're just getting into the, uh. Bathrooms, actually, in both editions are also complete accessories, have been installed there, so… Uh, starting to look like preschool classrooms, uh, if you get over there. So, substantial progress, everything is on time. I just love this picture. This was provided to us by our, uh. engineering firm, so this is the Malberg Playground from a drone shot. Uh, that was taken, I believe, a week or so ago.
As you can see there, so… quite the playground. Over at Malburg. Uh, getting into Kilmer, you can see these are actually pictures from earlier today. This is inside one of the. One of the near-complete classrooms, you can see the door is hung. And protected bathrooms are, uh, as well, the, the… The floors have been installed, you can see there's just protective paper over those. Uh, and just… just about all the fixtures are… are in there as well. So, Kilmer and Malberg, uh, very similar as far as progress.
Uh, both… both within, um. 60 days or less of completion. This is just, again, a drone shot in the top here of the playground install at Kilmer. You can kind of see the curbing laid out. As well as the split rail fence that was installed around the stormwater basin. Uh, which is complete there in the background. You can see some additional site work as far as the sidewalks leading to the new addition. Uh, as well, and then again, another shot of the split rail fence. Uh, the student assembly area paving's complete, including the stairs ramp.
and handrails to the area as well. Uh, jumping into Rosa… So, again, this project was bid back in December of 2024, awarded to Newport Construction about $16.2 million on the base bid. Uh, we are in, uh, Phase 2 of the ROSA additions. Uh, B-wing renovations were completed over the summer. substantial completion of the total project is scheduled for August of 2026.
Right here, you can see on the pictures, this is the main entrance about… a couple weeks ago now, about 2 weeks ago, uh, more progress has been made there, and you can see the roofing at the time was going in. Uh, at the new Rosa entrance as well. Uh, this is the… so work continues on the cafeteria edition. Up top, you can see the block still being laid, the… main office renovations are ongoing. You can see a picture there at the bottom.
Uh, the main office renovation is scheduled to be complete by November 28th. So we should be able to take occupancy shortly thereafter. uh, cafeteria addition, I'll just mention two, substantial completion is scheduled for that on. July 1st, 2026. So, getting into Phase 2 over at ROSA, um… This will be the upcoming work at Phase 2 next summer, beginning in June, so we'll be starting the A-Wing and C wing renovations. You can see there with the highlight.
Uh, that work is scheduled to commence June 18th, like I said, complete by August 21st. Uh, right now, about 50% of the contract. has been complete, or the work completed valued, is about 50% of the contract, and we still have. Uh, roughly $70,000 left on a… allowance we had with that contract. Um, additionally, like, for next summer, once we get into that, once the new cafeteria comes online, the existing cafeteria is actually going to be reconfigured.
Uh, to create an instrumental music room, two additional… instrument storage rooms, a new general classroom, and also student toilet rooms. As well. So, uh… Yeah, so Rosa's commencing, as you can see, I mean, the areas outside, especially with the cafeteria. are still ongoing and substantial progress is being made there. So the next… next phase, you know, you won't see jumping in until next summer. Uh, jumping into Karusi, you can see here the main entrance coming to life.
This project was actually bid back in the spring of 2024 and awarded to Newport Construction. This is one of our larger ones. This was about $27.5 million. base contract bid, uh, substantial renovations, ongoing interior at Carusi, including asbestos abatement. full roof replacement, new HVAC throughout, ceilings, flooring, lighting. fire sprinkler, emergency generator. toilet room renos and locker room and gymnasium renovations.
Um, so right now, with Carusi, Carusi's actually our longest project, four phases. Phase 1. of Karusi has been complete. We are, uh, currently in Phase 2. accuracy, so you can see here the, uh, abatement and renovation of the B-wing in the blue area. along with C-Wing, uh… That's the yellow area up top there between the cafeteria and the gym. completion of that is scheduled for May 2026. Uh, we'll swiftly move into Phase 3.
Which includes abatement and renovation of a portion of the D-Wing music suite. cafeteria and the remaining, uh, C-wing spaces, that'll be complete June 26th. Uh, and move through May of 2027, as you all know, as well, we have temporary classrooms. Uh, over at Kurusi, which is allowing us to continue interior work while school is in session. Uh, and then Phase 4. We'll finish out the remainder of the building, and that work will take place between June of 2027 and run through.
Spring of 2028. So, just a couple pictures over here at Karusi. Uh, you can see new doors being hung. Uh, unit ventilators in a classroom, which have been updated above-ceiling HVAC and piping. Uh, being complete to work in the B-wing, uh, continues right now. Uh, roofers are continuing working with the other trades. Installing our HVAC and electrical equipment. on the B-wing roof, uh, and work has started on the trim metal for the B-wing as well.
Um, also on the main… the main entrance area, which I showed earlier, the metal wall panels and coping at the main entrance are also near completion. This is just a… a highlight of Phase 3 over at Karusi. Those are the areas that. will be undertaken, uh, June 2026, when the kids let out. And will be completed in May of 2027. Uh, similar to ROSA, we are progressing nicely as far as our allowance. Uh, we still have about 38% of our allowance remaining. We're $152,000.
And of that, uh, it's good to compare, so 60% of the actual contract works. is completed. So, on time and on budget, uh, so far. So, future planning, um… I do have one small, minor complication to report, so this evening, we are hoping to award. The Beck Interior Renovation, general contracting. contract for the Beck interior renovations, which were scheduled.
Uh, to begin in June of 2026. Unfortunately, we had a bidder, the low bidder, uh, withdrawal of their bid yesterday afternoon due to a mathematical error. Um, on their part, which… Um, we certainly reviewed with legal and certainly within their rights, they demonstrated. a seven-figure, uh, issue with their bid. submission. So, unfortunately, that project… That project had a… an, um… a budget of approximately $10 million, that low bidder came in at $10,800,000.
So we weren't going to be able to award the two alternates, but we were comfortable with that number for several reasons. Um, which I can get into. Uh, but unfortunately, the second lowest bid was another $800 on top of that, so… Uh, we're working with the architect, uh. Chances are, again, I removed it from the agenda this evening, but we're probably going to have to re-scope the project a little bit to get it, uh. to bring the cost down a little bit, and then go back out to bid. Good news is we were out very early, so this shouldn't impact, hopefully, awarding.
Um… the earliest at our late November meeting, or, um… you know, at worst, hopefully December, and it should still be okay for a June start date. a bit unfortunate, so we'll see… we'll see what we have to tweak in that scope of work. Um, the other exciting piece, though, is we have finalized the East and West Auditorium renovations and the critical HVAC upgrades to their main gymnasiums. at each of those buildings. that project is currently out to bid with a bid submission date of November 20th.
Um, I think I stated last meeting, we're gonna start with the east. high school, uh, auditorium renovations, as well as the gymnasium upgrades. So we're looking to begin that project in April of 2026. And those two areas will be offline through December of 2026. Uh, then we will begin the West. auditorium and gymnasium, uh, HVAC upgrades in April 2027. That'll take us through December of 2027 over at West.
We are also in the process of finalizing, um, an additional four. schools that we're looking to install, uh, security vestibules within. Um, we've… we're almost to the point where we can announce publicly what those four are, but we are still doing a little bit of work, or our professionals are doing a little bit of work behind the scenes. Um, just to make sure, really, we're looking at the geography of where the buildings are located, as well as the related asbestos work that might have to be done in each of those.
Some of the buildings will require substantial asbestos abatement. And unfortunately, those, um… It's difficult to complete those projects over the summer. I think Beck was… Beck was kind of our test. project, and fortunately, we had a very good contractor, and that went seamlessly, and we were able to open this summer, but there was limited abatement, so… We're looking to just finalize those four, and I hope to announce those. Uh, to the board here shortly, or communicate those to the board shortly. Um, so more to come on that. In addition to… the Beck Auditorium and Gymnasiums and the security vestibules were also going to be taking on significant site improvement work.
Uh, this summer, again, that's… this work is being finalized by our civil engineer. Uh, site improvements. Again, we'll include parking lots, parking lot upgrades, new asphalt. uh, sidewalks, stormwater, drainage. accessibility improvements, obviously. And we're looking to do, or take on those sites, or the following sites, Johnson, Kilmer. night, man, and we're looking to do the East Administrative Lot.
Um, over at the High School East. Uh, we're looking at and really diving into, um. the site over there to try to make the, um… ingress and egress a little more, um… palatable or efficient, um, so our civil engineer is still working on plans for that. There is some talk of. potentially taking over the grass area that separates that admin lot and the existing. parking lots on the side there. One of the challenges we have, obviously, is the… I believe it's the F-Wing, if I have that correct?
Alright, the F-wing at east that is slated for complete demo and rebuild is just located in an area where we're gonna have. Um, some lay down and some heavy equipment, so we're not going to be able to take on. the main parking lot asphalt, as it would most likely, uh. experienced some… some damage during that project, so… Uh, again, finalizing the plans on that, we hope to have something. finalized from our engineer in December. And then have those site improvement projects out to bid in January.
So we can take those on, uh, in June. In addition to those site improvements, we're also looking at playground enhancements. Right now, at Mann and Stockton. So, man, um, many of you know, so we had a… when the APR. was… was built, we had to demolish… an existing playground at Mann, so that a playground to replace that was built last summer. There's still another existing playground in the rear of Man. That is also scheduled to be, uh, enhanced. Um, this summer as well, so we're taking a peek at the budget just to see how much, uh, site work funding we have left to see how much we can do to that existing playground.
So that's what we have, uh, coming up. And hopefully within… or by our next meeting, I'll be able to come back to you with some definitive info on what we're doing with the Beck. interior renovations, but other than that, we are progressing. Um, very well, and next major thing, I guess, would be the ROSA office coming online, main office area. Um, and the, uh… both of our preschool editions coming online in January, so… Thank you so much for that report.
I love to hear on time and on budget. Those are wonderful things, and thank you so much for jumping right in with all of this. I know that it is an astronomical amount of work, and we do appreciate everything that you're doing. Wonderful news. Any board members have any questions on… the bond project, and preschool updates. You were very thorough, there are no questions. Thank you so much. Moving on to correspondence. I am going to start on this side of the table tonight. If there is any board member correspondence to report.
Uh, yes, I had the pleasure and privilege of attending the CHF, um, golf tournament dinner. Last Wednesday. Um, so thank you to that entire foundation. I think I was quoted… I think they said they raised over $80,000. last week, which is incredible, or maybe it was closer to 90, um, for… that goes directly back to our students, so I thought that was incredible. I also won a raffle prize, which was exciting, because I win nothing. Um, so that… it was a very good experience, met a lot of people, and, um, just the robotics Club was also there. I got to hear a lot about the competitions they win, and where they go.
Um, and all that stuff, so it was a great night. Thank you, and thanks for attending and jumping in for that. Quick point of clarification. I think you won a medal at the run. As well. Oh, yeah, so I was not recognized for that at that dinner, but that's okay, it wasn't about me that night, but yes, that was the same foundation that hosted that as well. Methano, I'll skip you for this evening. Mr. Mayor, any correspondence? You could just get me, too. No correspondence. I got to go to the… football game between High School East and High School West. Ms. Palmer was there with me. It was fantastic.
all around, um… The football teams, the marching bands, the cheerleaders. The full stands, the effort, the energy, the excitement, it was just a really fun, fun night all around. So kudos to everybody who came and participated. It was a lovely night for all. Mr. Greenbaum, a new correspondence. Nothing tonight, thank you. Dr. Dreisen. Thank you. On October 3rd, I attended Crimson theater at High School East. Um, for those who don't know, Crimson Theater is a series of smaller acts that pertain to a singular theme.
And this year, the theme was fast food. What was really notable to me was just great turnout of a lot of students really supporting their fellow classmates on the stage, which I thought was great. And then on October 6th, in response to an invitation to all board members, I attended the Heat Ends Now. cattle car exhibit at the Catch JCC. which was a mobile, immersive exhibit designed to educate visitors about the Holocaust. The exhibit intends to reinforce history's lessons about hatred and anti-Semitism. and motivate all of us in getting involved in preventing hate crimes and maintaining a sense of unity with each other.
As I reflected on the visit, one theme I have been thinking about is how anti-Semitism. And really all forms of bigotry may not be unique to any one place. But what can differentiate communities, including places of learning, is how they respond. As a Dartmouth alum, I am particularly proud of Dartmouth's president, who, in response to two recent public acts of anti-Semitism on campus. issued public statements to the community. Within 24 hours of each incident. Condemning anti-Semitism, and noting, and I quote, acts of bigotry in all forms of hate. are deeply hurtful and stand in direct opposition to what each of us is working so hard to create.
Thanks. Thank you for your correspondence. Ms. Stern. So, um, I… Uh, also attended the, um, Dr. Dreisen attended, um, The Hate Ends Now. Um, and it was, um, Dr. Morton and I were both there together. Um, around the same time we overlapped, I missed Dr. Dreisen. Um, but, um, yeah, it was a really, uh, powerful… Um, you know, as Dr. Dresden referenced, uh, experience, uh, to be inside the cattle car that was used.
that was a replica of what was used to transport, and it's just a reminder of why, um. I guess, reminded me, being there on behalf of, um. The district, along with Dr. Morton and Dr. Dreis, and the three of us making that time really… Um, I don't know, it just felt really… glad that we do those things, that we participate in those things, that we have the relationship we have. Um, with all of these community, um, organizations. That represent our families throughout our district from many different cultures and backgrounds and religions and communities who are standing up against hate, which is really.
really important. It's one of the ways… the very important ways in which we, um. you know, protect our students and look out for their best interests. Um, so, you know. Um, I also attended the KinderCare Back to School Night, which is on a totally different topic. Um, that was, uh, they're one of our preschools. Um, it was… Super convenient, because it literally, uh, they literally are my next-door neighbor to my work office. He just walked over there, um, and which is a good thing, because it is a small parking lot. Um… So I got a chance to meet… we have… two classrooms, so it's a small… one of our smaller community partner programs, but nonetheless.
Really good one. It was a throwback for me, because. My oldest, um, his first preschool was a KinderCare, not that one, but was a KinderCare. Um, and, um… the, uh, I got to meet the… one of the social workers. Of course, we had a little bit of, you know. work chatter together, um… being in the same profession, and then, um, also the, um. the director and one of the classroom teachers. It was really great, and of course, the parents who were there, and some of us got to see some of the kids.
Um, anyway, always great, totally different vibe from some of the other preschools, and it's… which I love. I love to see the different preschools, so… Um, you know, great to see the excitement. definitely one of the topics was communication. I think things have gotten better, you know, we're a year through… Your three? You're your three? So many, so many new things in the past few years, right? Bond, kindergarten… I'm sorry, preschool. Um, but, um, but, you know, still working on this, so a work in progress, but definitely very, um… you know, happy families, excited families.
Um, then I got to go to, um, see… Again, which is always amazing. Latinos at West. On the 9th, as part of their Spanish Heritage Tour, and I saw them at Payne, which is… Um, so it was a revisit for me, was there a few years ago, um… Always fun, always excited, the kids… I mean, I forget what it's like to be in a… an APR full of, um, screaming elementary kids. It was loud, um, and fun, and excited, exciting, and it was really cool. I was, um, I got to see.
a lot of different age groups, kids, including, um, I know one of the special classrooms. Um, some of the kids, they were seated right in front of me, and they were dancing and participating, and… Um, one of the kids was writing on his, or… on his board, it just… it was… it was really cool to see the, um. Excitement, and also some of the kids from that school who are in special classrooms didn't attend because it wasn't a good environment for them. So. how we really individuate for them. Um, it was… it was… It was really exciting. It was great.
Um, and of course, the high school students. Always fun to see them out of their elements. Um, and then last but not least, um. Uh, we were requested by the Special Ed Parent Advisory Group if they could. meet with the Special Education Committee. So we did that yesterday. Um, the leaders of their group with, um, with our committee. Um, and Ms. Mallory, um, and we had some really great discussions. They just wanted to understand a little bit about what special education.
committee is working on, um, how they can partner with us, and vice versa. We talked about, um, their interest this year of. surveying families to, um, make sure that they're on track for what they're working on, their goals. Um, making sure that they're expanding to a really diverse, um, parent population, um, even looking at. potentially expanding to, um, to, um. families of students with 504s, because that's… that comes under the purview of CPAC.
Um, and that's… that's part of one of, um, one of the… their responsibilities. Um, we also talked… they also talked… this is really long, I'm sorry, but just adding it all in, um… uh… they, um… we talked about the importance of, um. As we… as redistricting comes, um, forward, or, you know, reimagining our schools at elementary schools, that's gonna be… a really important, um. you know, they're gonna be a really important part of the… they as in the community that they represent, the entire special education community is a very important part of that conversation.
And how, um, you know, we really talked about how things have shifted so much in the past few years. Um, you know, how, um. much… how much special education is now infused in all aspects of. Um, you know, in a much bigger, more intentional way throughout the district, throughout the board. Um, in policy, in budget, in, you know, curriculum, in classroom placement, all that stuff. So just… kind of, like, talking about how important that is, and how important it is to really.
start to make sure that that is understood community-wide. Um, and they talked about putting out a newsletter. Um, and also, um, helping parents understand how. Um, some of the new curriculum, like CKLA. um, is, um, being able to be used. Um, to, um, differentiate for our students with special needs, so… Great meeting, lots of stuff. That's it. Thank you. That was a lot. I forgot I went to Latinos at West, too. It was such a blur of a week.
And I danced, and next time I'm gonna bring Ms. Surefane with me, because one of my goals for Ms. Cherfain. Was that before she answered him on the board, that I'm going to get her? up and dancing. You keep saying that, but it's… A bit of an official correspondence, but with the birth of a newborn, I've been kind of taking over. the care of my one-and-a-half-year-old, and that we've taken to… Kind of like how some people tour every professional baseball park in the country, we're trying to tour every playground to every school. Yeah, we've done 3 so far. And so far, we've done Johnson, we've done heart, and I forget what the other ones we did, but so far, uh, unanimous approval.
from our target demographic as to whether or not the playgrounds are worth it. So, um, unofficial, but, like, in all seriousness, I am trying to tour the outsides of every one of the schools that we have in the district. Um, hopefully before the end of the year, so I'll keep everybody updated on it. This is a really fun thing to do. I do the same thing with my 8-year-old. hit a different playground every weekend. She learned… she just learned how to… not just learn, but she figured out how to walk now, so now it's trying to keep her from going too far up. She just wants to go up, up, up, up, up. Good luck with that one. Ms. Palmer, correspondence.
Okay, so you touched on the East versus West football game that we both attended last Thursday, which is always, always a favorite. Um, go west, although I hope both teams have fun every year. Um, but I also want to call everyone's attention to the fact that now that we are a full month plus into the school year, the fair funding for Cherry Hill Committee. is reconvening its monthly meetings, uh, with the first one being scheduled for next Thursday. October 23rd at 7pm. those meetings are online only, but it goes without saying that, especially this year with a.
new administration coming in in Trenton. all of the uncertainty around things like federal funding, you know, it's going to be more important than ever that we, as a community, make our voices heard. Uh, and, and, you know, our parents, our families, our community members are a huge part of that advocacy. So, anyone who's able to attend, I highly encourage. This will be a planning meeting for the year. Um, all of the information about that meeting, including. how to log into the Zoom are on the Fair Funding for Cherry Hill Public Schools Facebook page and Instagram.
Um, as well as the, uh. the email address that you can use to sign up for those email alerts to stay up to date. So, I hope as many of you as can possibly attend that 7 o'clock meeting next Thursday. We'll do so. Thank you, and thank you for being the board's liaison to that committee. We really appreciate you attending all those meetings and bringing back the information. It's great. All right. We've made it to first public comment. So there will be two opportunities for public comment this evening. And the first public comment session is for board action items only.
If you wish to speak on any topic other than what appears on the agenda, you may speak during the second public comment, and speakers must provide their name and municipality. Students, if there are any students, you make comments on any topic during first public comment by identifying yourself as a student. If you're online, please put an S after your name so I know that you're a student and I know to call on you first. We will alternate between speakers in the room and those wishing to comment online. Each speaker has 3 minutes to speak, and the timer on the screen will indicate. The amount of time remaining. All statements, questions, and comments should be addressed to the Chair.
And your inquiry may or may or may not be addressed by administration at the close of the session. So by custom and practice, we start in the room first. Is there anybody in the room who would like to make first public comment tonight? That's action items 18 through 21. Is there anyone in the room who has a first public comment? seeing no one, I am looking online to see if there's anybody who has first public comment. I do see a commenter with a hand up. It's Brandy DeVoe.
Ms. Devo, it is your turn. If you can unmute, give us your name, municipality, and the action item that you're speaking on. Good evening, everyone. My name is Brandi DeVoe. I am a constituent of Cherry Hill and stakeholder. Um, I'm speaking to… Attendance, um… Ms. Devoe, this is for action items only that the Board is voting on tonight. Wow. Oh, I see. No, thank you. Don't step on there. So if you have… if you have a comment.
Yeah, I will stay on, and I will speak at that time. Thank you. You can call back during second public comment. All right, thank you so much for calling in. Is there anyone else in the room who has a first public comment? Seeing none, is there anybody online who has first public comment this evening? seeing nobody in the room and nobody online, I'm going to close first public comment. And switch back, thank you for your patience with me, because we are now going into our board work session, and CNI is first.
I'm going to report out on the CNI meeting from October 6th. Um, most of what we discussed in the meeting was already summarized beautifully by Mr. Fain. So I won't… I'm glad you did it. So I will not go through the chronic absenteeism presentation, but the other things that we discussed is. The Spring Musical at Karusi, which will be Matilda Jr. Everybody mark your calendars. It's a good one. Um, we also discussed. the universal math screener pilot that we had talked about earlier, and we decided… the district decided not to use it.
For a variety of reasons, um, that's under old business in our committee report. And under new business, we discussed the mentoring plan. Which, um, is actually on the agenda to be voted on by the board. It was presented to the CNI committee, and in the committee report, you can see the goals in that plan. And we discussed the. mentoring plan. Um, it says 20 additional staff members were trained. As mentors should be added to our list. Did I summarize it effectively, Ms. Staffin?
Yeah, so it was the professional development plan for the district. And the mentoring plan. Thank you. You're welcome. Any questions on CNI? The vast majority, meaning the bulk of the meeting, was the, um… the chronic absenteeism. That's what we mostly talked about. Are there any other questions or concerns about CNI? And what was presented? Okay, seeing none, I will move on to the BNF agenda, and… Mr. Greenbaum. Thank you. Uh, this will be a little longer report out than usual. We just went through a lot of stuff.
Uh, and just some very interesting things to report out. Uh, so we first, uh, discussed the budget development calendar. This is a discussion of the timeline for budget development for the 26-27 budget. For those of you that have been around for a while, you might notice we're starting a little sooner this year. We're hoping to be a little bit better prepared and excited to work with Mr. Schimf to get a head start. Um, we'll have a discussion on board priorities starting next month, November, in BNF Committee, and then we'll continue that in our full public meeting in Committee of the Whole in December.
Uh, public discussion of proposed budget starting in January. Uh, as many of you know, state aid numbers are expected at the end of February, and that's when we need to have our initial budget submission in March, and finally our public hearing and adoption of the final budget in April before the statutory deadline. Something I wanted to elaborate a little bit more on is board priorities. As I mentioned, this is something the board will get into a little bit more in… November in BNF Committee, in December as a full board.
Um, hopefully these should be aligned with the goals that are in our five-year strategic plan. Um, in addition to things like prioritizing academic achievement, student and staff wellness, which are things that always need to be the highest priority. Uh, an issue that is important to me, and several board members have already brought this up. Um, is ensuring support for our special education programs. As many of you have likely seen, there have been recent cuts to the federal DOE special education staff. Uh, absolutely decimating that department. We have strong protections for special education services at the state level, but we're also looking at a new governor in January, so that may be up in the air as well.
And there, of course, is uncertainty around federal funding. Um, it totals about $5 million, half of which is specific to special education placements. Um, Mr. Schimpf confirmed that Title I and IDEA grant funding for this year. was sent to states and school districts on October 1st, so the uncertainty we're talking about starts next year. Um, but next year is anyone's guess, and that's something we definitely need to keep an eye on. Uh, so it's… it may be premature to make any assumptions before the state has provided guidance on this matter. It's definitely something we need to be aware of.
And make sure we prioritize. And we will continue discussions of board priorities starting next month in BNF. And again, in Committee of the Whole and full public meeting, and… All board members will absolutely be solicited for their input. As we… as we move forward with that. Um, a little bit of a rehash of Mr. Schimp's, uh, report out on. construction projects coming up next summer. Uh, we talked about a lot of what's going on in the district, some of the highlights are playground enhancements, uh, that are occurring at Mann in Stockton Elementary schools.
Uh, and security vestibules and main office renovations at four elementary schools. There's still a little bit of discussion which ones those will be, uh, just understanding what remediation might need to be done. Uh, so hopefully by next month, we have a little more specific info. Um, the Beck Security Vestibule and main office that took place last summer were a great trial run, an indicator of the scope of work that could be completed in this time frame. Um, obviously, we can't run over what has to be completed in time for schools to open.
Uh, these four schools that were selected had a similar scope of work. And we'll ensure continued availability of other buildings for summer programs. And pending lessons learned from those, there will be the remaining schools to be addressed in the following summer. And lastly, I'm going to reiterate, um. Ms. Palmer's comments, uh, Fair Funding Committee is having its first meeting. Next week, uh, on Thursday, October 23rd at 7pm via Zoom. Uh, as she, uh, as she already mentioned, you can find the Fair Funding Committee on Facebook for more information.
And please join the fight for school funding, now is more important than ever. That is true, and I feel like budget season is all seasons now, too. Also true. Amazing. Um, looking at HR, but HR Committee has not met yet. It will meet. Soon, so then we'll have an HR report. two weeks? Yes, HR committee's on the calendar, so that will be soon. coming soon, and then moving on to P&L. Mr. Mayor? Sure, thank you. So, this will be relatively brief.
Thank you, uh, to Dr. Mahan for detailed. embedded readout in the agenda. 81, we discussed a number of items, but we focused most of our attention. I'm really on, um… 2365, which is the acceptable use of. AI policy, a coming policy. Um, which, um, will be ready for. this board, um, hopefully to adopt and to consider before the end of the year, um, in consultation with Dr. Morton and administration.
we have heard, no, not surprisingly, the need for the policy we do have. a draft template, and thankfully, um, next week there are. Um, as has been mentioned a number of times, many, many opportunities. for each of us, um, to sit in on various presentations, different angles, different perspectives. Um, how other districts are either beginning to adopt what their experiences have been. learn from professionals of what best practices have already been adopted.
Uh, and what sorts of things we should be looking at. I intend to hit as many of those as I possibly can. It'd be great if we could, those of us who are attending workshop also. collaborate with one another as to who, you know, who is attending what, so that we can… We can try and learn from as many of the experts and those that are in the field as possible. And again, so we'll have our policy up and running by the end of the year. We spent some time also discussing 8110 and 5111. Not the meat of those, of those policies, but the importance.
Um, of not moving too quickly and putting the cart before the horse, as we are beginning. Um, to get much more involved in, uh, redistricting and rebalancing. Um, it will be time. during those meetings, also to have 8110 and 511 in mind. And then come back to P&L. Um, to make whatever enhancements and discussions are necessary. With regard to 4283, the only… discussion that we had there was the importance of allowing our staff to have.
When necessary, brief communications with students if they are experiencing difficulties. Um, with, um, with the, um… some of the technology in order to allow them to do that, and do it in a way that's just not. does not, um… violate the policy. That was really the bulk of what we discussed in P&L. It was a really good meeting. Thank you to Mrs. Palmer. Uh, for jumping in, uh, and also not just to observe, but also add. Um, some great, uh, input and, uh, and perspective in some of the discussions.
Any questions? Miss Sherpain. Um, so I… I don't know if this is really a question, it's more… I don't know, but I'm just gonna put it out there. Recently, um, it was… brought to my attention that we've, in the state of New Jersey, we've passed legislation. Um, I don't want to misspeak, so I'm going to look at an article. Um, that Governor Murphy signed into legislation to require classroom instruction on Latino and Hispanic history. my, I guess, kind of question is, the policy that we have for… regulations in the curriculum. Will this need to eventually be… changed again. So I guess that remains to be seen, depending upon what the nature of the.
the final status of that law is, and if so, certainly, we'd bring it back and we would look at that. Okay. Dr. Dreis. Thank you. We had these conversations offline, but just for the benefit of the board and the community, just a couple clarifications on Policy 2422. Just a reminder for… to confirm, the changes requested in this policy are all mandated by the state. They are absolutely mandate, not… not just mandated by the state, but… and again, not just Cherry Hill-specific, mandated across districts in the state of New Jersey. And then just from a process perspective, since we're changing the name of this policy to Statutory Curricular requirements.
Can you just clarify why this isn't going through CNI? For review. Well, it's not at… it's not specifically curricular. These… these really are… And not to minimize the importance of changes. But they are technical changes, and as technical changes, even though. one of the technical changes is to insert the word curricular. doesn't actually affect the way any particular course is taught. If that were the case, of course, it would go back to CNI.
So, I think it's a little… it's understandable that you would have the question, it makes a lot of sense. But unfortunately, the nature of the insertion of the word curricular. is almost misleading, in that it makes… it lends one to believe that maybe. It is a much more global, impactful. more practical changes than it actually is. They're still important, they have to be done. But it's not… they aren't actual curricular changes that would go to CNI. Thank you. And just point of clarification, would you like to discuss the policy now, or during the action agenda?
Probably, well, makes more sense to do it during the accident agenda. Sure. Yeah, however you want to do it. Sure. Is there any other questions for P&L? All right. There's nothing for governance this evening. So moving on to the action agenda. I'll go first with CNI. The superintendent recommends, and I move the following, 17.1, approval of attendance at conference and workshops for the 25-26 school year.
17.2, approval of review… Review of District Professional Developmental Plan and District Mentoring. staff and I will get it right eventually. That was as presented to the CNI committee at our meeting. And 17.3, resolution approving settlement agreement. Do I have a second on the CNI agenda? Ms. Palmer, are there any questions on the CNI agenda this evening? Seeing no questions, Mr. Schimp, can you please open the voting? Building's open.
Motion carries with an abstention from Ms. Manzano. Thank you, and moving on to the BNF agenda, Mr. Greenbaum, can you please move the BNF agenda? Thank you. The superintendent recommends, and I move the following. 18.1, approval of bill lists. 18.2, resolution for the award of bids. 18.3, approval of Cherry Hill, McKinney-Vento, DCPMP students going out of district for the 25-26 school year. 18.4, resolution authorizing and approving certain purchases in excess of the bid threshold through New Jersey state contracts and or purchasing system cooperatives.
18.5, resolution authorizing the Cherry Hill Public Schools to enter into cooperative. pricing agreement. 18.6, resolution authorizing and approving certain purchases in excess of the bid threshold through. New Jersey state contracts. and or purchasing system cooperatives. 18.7, acceptance of donations, and this week we have a very generous donation from Adam Doyle and Cherry Hill Soccer Club for an A-frame shed. at High School West. Thank you very much for that.
And… That is it? Do I have a second? Ms. Chiffane, are there any questions? Seeing none, Mr. Schimp, please open the voting. Voting's open. Mr. Schimp, I just have to recuse myself from 18.1, the third bill list, to avoid a conflict of interest with Beata. Thank you. Mr. Shrimp, similarly, on 18.1, I have to accuse myself from invoice to ASS.
a conflict. So, noted, motion carries. Ms. Manzano abstaining? Thank you. Moving on to the HR agenda. Mr. Payne, can you please move the HR agenda this evening? Sure. The superintendent recommends, and I move the following, 19.1, termination of employment certificated. 19.2, termination of employment non-certificated, 19.3, appointment certificated. 19.4 appointments non-certificated, 19.5 assignment salary change, non-certificated.
19.6 other compensation certificated, 19.7 Affiliation agreement. Um, do I have a second? Dr. Braddock, any questions or comments? Seeing none, Mr. Schimp, can you please open voting? Voting's open.
Motion carries with Ms. Ms. Manzano abstaining. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Can you please move the P&L agenda? A brief one this evening. Happily, the superintendent recommends that I move the following item, 20.1 approval. harassment, intimidation, and bullying investigation. decisions, those would be the ones that the board heard on September. 30th. Do I have a second? Are there any questions?
Dr. Dryden. Just a comment related to second reading of Policy 2422. It's just that, putting it on the record, since these are mandated state changes, I'm supportive. I just personally, as we're talking about… Dr. Dreisen, that policy is not up for a vote this evening. But I asked you previously where you wanted me to talk about it, and it's just because it is second read. That's why I was… board work session. Right now, we're on the action items. Right, and I… I asked. It'll be voted on next time. It'll be voted on next time.
I'm just saying, I specifically asked where you wanted me to talk about it tonight. Oh, I think you meant next time when it's up for a conversation. I'm sorry. Yeah, that's… We have a second. Are there any other questions? Seeing none, Mr. Schremp, would you open the voting? voting is open.
Motion carries with Ms. Manzano abstaining. Thank you. No items for governance tonight, but stay tuned. Our new board goals are coming. We were working on them last night. Moving on to new business, are there any board members who have new business this evening? I see no new business. Any board members with old business? Mr. Fain? Um, I would like to just reiterate, uh, what I had mentioned last meeting about the.
Rebalancing or redistricting committee and our rebalancing. meetings that are coming up. Um, just as a reminder, the community, we are taking on the big path. big task of… what we've traditionally called redistricting, and I also would like to address some of the community concerns about. the language of what we're describing as rebalancing. Um, specifically, and as you'll see in an upcoming video, stay tuned. Um, the reason why we are calling it rebalancing is because, um, when we look at the priorities on how we are allocating students to each elementary school.
Um, the… I guess, probably the biggest priority that we have, um, as a board is making sure all of our schools are balanced, and our elementary schools are balanced to the best of our ability. Um, so that's why the words rebalancing were used for that. There's other factors that go into this decision, but that is potentially, um, or arguably the largest, um, task that we're faced with. Um, that being said, we are meeting again in two weeks, the same day I realized, same day as HR. Um, we'll be meeting again as a committee, um, to discuss the initiatives that are coming next month.
Um, as I had mentioned, there's a video coming down the pike, stay tuned for that, and look, um, look out for. that dissemination, um, coming next month, a video that's going to explain a little bit of the background of that, so everybody can come to these meetings and the town halls that we're having in November. more prepared to understand the conversation that we'll be having. Um, the… and the purpose of those meetings in November is for us as a committee to hear from the community what their input is and their priorities or their perspectives when it comes to making.
this large decision that will affect generations here in Cherry Hill. Um, just for clarity, we will not have any proposed. plan or decision for that, those days. This is strictly just an opportunity for. us as a, um, as specifically a committee, um, but representing the board. Um, in a non-space like this, that we can hear from the community members and better engage in conversation and discussion, which, obviously, we cannot do. in a public meeting. So it's really an opportunity. We have 3 different opportunities we will be hosting.
one of those town halls on November 13th at 7pm at Cherry Hill East, November 18th at 7pm at Cherry Hill West, and a virtual option if neither of those dates work for you. Um, 7pm on November 20th. Um, you can attend all three if you'd like, you can attend one, whatever one works for you. They will be identical in nature. Um, obviously with the exception of the virtual one being virtual, the others are in person. Um, and again, this is an opportunity for the community to voice their opinions, concerns, perspectives, what have you.
Um, to the committee that's tasked with this. Um, the tentative plan for this is to gather this data. Um, not only that data, but there will also be correspondence via surveying, um, if you would also choose… if you cannot attend any of those three, there will be other opportunities to provide your feedback in a formal nature. Um, for us to gather the data and compile that, so that in December, we can look at that raw data. Um, with the tentative plan of having a proposal to the board, um, and a recommendation on our plan for rebalancing, redistricting, whatever you want to call it.
In January. Um, so stay tuned. Please attend those meetings. Um, this is a very huge task for the nine of us, and. Um, the more input we have from the community, the better. Thank you, and thank you for taking leadership. on this very big task. I really appreciate you noting in your comment that. the three meetings will be. three identical meetings. It's not that if you live on one side of town or the other, you have to go to that.
meeting. It's three meetings being held. for the community, which whichever one works for your schedule, you are welcome to attend it. Same show three times, and really, it's for us to listen to. community, and hear what they have to say before we make any decisions. Um, Eastern? No? I have… I also have new business. I want to part out on the preschool committee. Which met on October 6th. Thank you to Mr. Mayor for joining me. For the preschool committee. Um, there were a couple topics that were discussed. One was preschool expansion for 2026-27, which will be here before we know it.
Um, and the district is looking to partner. with a bunch of new locations, so stay tuned as we continue to expand our preschool program. We talked about this year's enrollment and waitlist. As of the day of the meeting, 100 kids had already been moved off the waitlist, so the waitlist progresses. So if you are waiting at home. If you're not, there are more children coming off the waitlist as people decline their spot, as people's circumstances change, people are being moved into those spots that are available. Uh, back-to-school nights are now complete with KinderCare, which Ms. Throne attended for us, and Cadence being the last two that were held.
Um, as far as preschool community, Mahlberg hosted a book fair night, but that was for all Cherry Hill Preschool students as we seek to build. community and connection between all of our preschoolers in the district. And the ECAC, which is, um… An advisory council will meet on October 31st, coming up. I think those are the highlights. There's a full report out from the committee in the Preschool confidential folder, if any board members are interested. In further details, or you can always give me or Joel a call. We're happy to chat preschool. Any questions about preschool committee? All right, does anybody else have new business this evening?
old business. Not old business. Thank you, Ms. Dern. Anybody have any old business? New business? We're good. All right, then we are moving on. to second public comment. We are now at the second public comment section, where you comment on any matter directly relevant to the school district. Again. You must state your name and municipality clearly for the record and direct your comments to the chair.
Public comment is an opportunity for members of the community to provide input to the Board of Education on educational issues. Board welcomes diverse opinions on relevant matters. However, statements that are abusive, obscene, or which demean or defamatory to any individual or group of individuals will not be tolerated. Such comments are disruptive to the orderly operation of this meeting. Speakers who are wishing to provide the board with information. with information which is not relevant to the district's operations, may communicate directly with the superintendent, and the board president via email or other alternative means. We start as we always do, in the room.
Is there anyone who would like to make… technical difficulties, I'm being told to stop talking. I can do that. One second, do we need to get the timer up, Mr. Schimp? Is that what we're waiting for? Please give us one minute. We want to make sure everybody can hear your comment online.
And I am not technical at all, so if you're looking to me to solve it, it's not gonna happen. Thank you for your patience.
Is it just the timer Marcus that we're waiting for? Or is… We're not online. carry into the community. the same issue we had last night.
Okay. Is it okay if Mr. Schimp times you? He'll wave at you or something. We'll see how I did. Alright. Okay. Good evening, my name is Jen Nadio. A literary note, and I'm here tonight as the president of the Cherry Hill. special education CPA. Many have seen in the past week. Changes have been made in the federal Department of. Those changes were made without an act of Congress. Moving the funds to Health and Human Services.
hear you online. I thought it was just the timer missed Natio, I apologize for that. You don't need me to do it again, do you? for Julia. I'll do it again. Let's see if we can make sure that we're… we're online now. Ms. Natio, if you… it's up to you. If you want to do it again so that the people at home can hear from the stands is very important information. We have a lot of families that are, woo, here we go! There we are. I'm sorry, I do apologize. I thought it was just the timer and not that they couldn't hear me. I have a very loud voice anyway. So I may have to pull this up so it's not so loud.
My phone was blowing up, I knew something was happening. I just didn't know what it was. Okay, are we ready? Yes, we're listening. Thank you. You're welcome. Good evening, my name is Jen Natio. I live in Cherry Hill, and I'm here tonight as the president of the Cherry Hill Special Education PTA. As many have seen in the past week, changes have been made in the Federal Department of Education, and specifically the Department of. special education, and those changes are made without an act of Congress. Moving the funds.
to Health and Human Services, which was originally stated as the move forward, to SEPTA members want to know, how will the Cherry Hill Board of Education and Cherry Hill Districts speak up and prepare if there is no federal funding coming to support our students. staff and teachers. We've also heard there may be deductions to Medicaid. Families whose children have IEPs are encouraged to sign a Medicaid form. Every year, from the Cherry Hill Special Education Department, what is that form? Which students receive aid with that form, and what will the district and BOE do if they can't use these funds either? Also, I visited several APRs, it was shared, no one can wear heels on the flooring, so what happens for wheelchairs or walkers?
Is this flooring ADA compliant? If it tears, who pays for fixing? Dyslexia Awareness Week was October 6th to the 12th. On behalf of our Chusepta members. We are advocating for our students throughout this district who have dyslexia and reading disabilities. To be honest, this is not the first time we've advocated for our students with dyslexia in the last 12 years. Recently, a very large group of families from 10 schools in our large Cherry Hill School District.
have reached out to Chiscepta to express their all struggling and need more assistance from the district. Difficulty getting effective reading interventions in Cherry Hill Public Schools for their dyslexic child. Families are still paying privately for tutors. after school hours in order to teach their children to read. They're not learning in school. Concerns about the lack of quality reading interventions in Cherry Hill Public Schools. And the emotional effect it has on their children. Based on the number of schools and families all having the same struggles, Chiscepta feels this is a systemic issue in Cherry Hill Public Schools, and we feel this needs to be addressed immediately.
To our families who have children with dyslexia and reading disabilities, we're so proud of your hard work to not only help your child, but to reach out to help all children. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you for your impactful comments. Going back to the line, the first person with the hand raised, it just says iPhone. Please unmute and give us your name and municipality. You have 3 minutes. Lori Neary, Cherry Hill. Um, I echo the sentiments of Mrs. Natio, and I appreciate the statements made during the meeting by Mr. Greenbaum regarding the budget. I know our budget planning cycle starts now, so I'd like to understand.
Um, how the district is preparing, should we not receive. funding needed to support special education. Um, it was noted that it is. you know, a priority. I would like to see the board make its commitment heard to the community. that it is an utmost priority for our special education students. We have historically received cuts when funding is tight. Um, and we've been doing this now, I don't know, two, three different administrations. So I'd like to understand.
And hear from the board its commitment to ensure that our students continue to receive the supports and services. they need to succeed. I am concerned when I hear from parents with students with dyslexia, my oldest is one of them, although no longer a student of Cherry Hill Public Schools, when they speak about. dyslexia, and then I hear about funding concerns and services such as Cooper Learning Center. I hear that. is no longer retained for our students. Things like that are what alarm our families so. So I'm really looking forward to hearing the board's.
uh, commitment, and this being its utmost priority. for the next funding cycle. And also regarding redistricting, um, I appreciate there's going to be a series of town halls, and there was also a lot of work done. Last spring and summer. which community members did participate in, and I did as well, and I'm hoping and understanding that this is in conjunction and in support of that. So I'd like to understand and have that confirmed, because folks did give their time.
to attend meetings, discussions, and put forth. their time, not as a board member, not as anything other than a committee member, so I want to ensure. that this is in conjunction with that, and that work is not lost. Thank you for your comment. Going back to the room, it's your turn for second public comment. Just give us your name and municipality.
Okay, all right, we're good now. Alright, good evening, members of the board and community. My name is Michael Nussbaum. I'm a teacher, um, in the Camden City School District. doctoral student in educational leadership, and most importantly, a father of a child receiving special education services here in Cherry Hill. I spoke via Zoom at the last meeting, and I'm physically here tonight. And will continue to show up until meaningful change is made within this district's special education services. Because, as your vision states, there's a commitment to guide every student to reach their full potential, yet.
For many families, especially those with. children in special education, that promise is not being kept. For too long, we've been burdened by a lack of competence. coordination, understanding, and real partnership, particularly at the leadership level. The district has a plethora of resources and capable staff with certifications, but what we see from home therapists. Private professionals and parents is a repeated failure. To truly understand and meet each children's unique needs.
This is a betrayal of Cherry Hill Public Schools' vision, Priority 3, ensuring every child receives the academic, behavioral, and social-emotional support uniquely suited for their success. Over months and years, I connected with dozens of parents across Cherry Hill. those attended different schools, and those with various diagnoses, each telling versions of the same story. Long waits. Denials. fragmented services in constant threat of litigation to get what the IEP already entitles them to.
This systemic failure is not just individual errors. It's a pattern of neglect. In fact, nearly every major dispute in special education here seems to end in court. That is a far cry from Priority 4, which promises that all students, staff. And families need to feel a sense of belonging, empowerment, and support. Right now, too many families feel powerless and disenfranchised. What's more, the district spends hundreds of thousands of dollars on legal fees. Um, for mediation or defense, as well as an overly extensive special ed.
top-heavy leadership team without capable boots on the ground. That very money could and should be invested instead in professional development. Inclusion training and support for teachers. That aligns directly with Priority 2, Responsible and efficient fiscal stewardship, and Priority 5. Recruiting, supporting, and retaining highly qualified staff. It's not about cutting corners. It's about shifting the focus from defending the status quo to proactively responding to students' needs.
I'm here not just for my son. But for every child whose parent doesn't have the time, knowledge. or resources. to fight the system. As both an educator and a long-time resident of Cherry Hill. I know what public schools should be. Places where every student is supported. heard and given room to grow, not gatekept, or marginalized. Thank you for your… Our children are just… One second. Our children are given one chance at education.
You're… I'm sorry, you can send us the rest of your… Sir… Alright, thank you very much for your time. Thank you. You can send us the full text of your comment if there was more that you wanted to get to. Sorry about that. I try to keep it fair for everybody, or everybody gets cranky with me. Going back to the line, uh, the next commenter is Candy Cummings. Candy Cummings, it's your turn, please unmute. Good evening, Candy Cummings, Cherry Hill. Great presentation tonight on absenteeism.
Test scores and achievement absolutely go hand in hand. Uh, to turn this around, we need to understand why students aren't in school, and that. That solution starts with meeting families where they are, listening, identifying barriers, and providing support rather than punishment. Then we must focus on belonging and safety. At the preschool and elementary levels, students need to feel welcome. safe and supported every day. In middle and high school, we must.
help students see themselves as active participants in their education, with ownership over their learning and their future. When students understand that their effort and attendance directly shape their goals and opportunities. They're more motivated to show up and engage. Empowering them to set goals, reflect on progress, and see results builds confidence and accountability, all qualities that drive consistent attendance and higher achievement. But lasting change won't come from enforcing attendance as a rule.
It comes from building it as a standard. When we move from compliance. to culture, we've redefined success. We're not just following rules, we're living our standards, and when students believe, this is who we are. Attendance follows naturally. That's why improving tendance isn't just a school responsibility, it is a community one. We need outreach, communication, and partnership at every level. When families feel supported and know their children are safe and valued, they're more likely to send them to school.
And when students are connected to their peers, their teachers, and their purpose, they want to be there. Consistent attendance drives stronger test scores, but lasting success comes from the relationships and shared standards. That keeps students walking through our doors every day, ready to learn and thrive. Because when we show up for ourselves, for each other, and for all our community, we all rise together. Attendance isn't just about being present in class, it's about being present in purpose. And when every student embraces that as a standard of showing up.
engaging and striving for greatness, achievement will follow. So be great, get out there and live your standards, and show up for success. Thank you for your comment. Going back to the room? Please approach the microphone, give us your name. You have 3 minutes, you know the drill. I got it. Uh, Kim Frydel, Cherry Hill. Um, so a couple of things I want to touch on. So, great, uh, presentation on chronic absenteeism. Um, as you are talking about. Rebalancing, please consider.
the unintended consequences. That might affect chronic absenteeism. Um, moving children who have transportation. I mean, the district gives transportation. But I want you to think about it. If I'm a parent and I don't have a car. And I get redistrict to another place. you'll get my child to and from school, but when I get a call from the school nurse that says my child is sick, and you have an hour to pick. my child up, and I have no way to get my child. Um, so unintended consequence, just to keep in mind.
Number two, I could never speak in 3 minutes, because I can't believe that. Over a decade ago, I stood before Cherry Hill Public Schools. with a student, a child with dyslexia. And 10 years, 10 plus years later. These families are still in the same spot. And it is a struggle. I can't even tell you how much money I spent out of my pocket at Cooper Learning Center. to get my child this… the… the… support so that she could read, because it didn't happen in Cherry Hill Public Schools.
Um, it's a problem, so I really do hope that. Uh, it will be listened to. My last thing that I'm going to leave with, and I'm going to be really quick, is an observation. So, we talked several times about parents, uh, homeschool connection. public comment, listening to parents. Just an observation. Several people around this table got up and left during first public comment. Thank you for your comment. Going back online, the next person is Corinne Driscoll.
Ms. Driscoll, you can unmute, give us your… Name a municipality, you'll have 3 minutes. We can, thank you. Hi, can you hear me? Okay, perfect. Um, Corinne Driscoll, Cherry Hill, New Jersey. Um, so I heard earlier this evening, um. that the… that TPAC had been meeting. Um, as a member of CPAC, I haven't received an invitation since April 6th. And I'm concerned that many parents and community members may be unaware that meetings have been taking place.
Um, CPAC was created to increase parent and community involvement, and to provide a structured opportunity for families to actively participate. in shaping their child's education, and the district special education policies. That mission can only be achieved when communication is open, transparent, and inclusive. I checked to see if I had Google Classroom regularly, yet there have been no recent updates or posts. It would be great to know when members can expect to receive communication and invocations to participate, and how CPAC is currently sharing information with parents and the broader community.
Transparency, collaboration, and genuine inclusion are at the heart of CPAC's purpose, so I urge the district to take meaningful steps to ensure that all members, parents, caregivers. Community partners are informed, engaged, and given the opportunity to contribute to this important work moving forward. Thank you for your comment. Going back to the room, is there anyone else who would like to make second public comment this evening? Seeing no one, going back to the line, the next person is Carolina Beved. Ms. Bevet, it's your turn. Please unmute, you have 3 minutes.
Ms. Bedford, we can't hear you. Ms. Bavid, we… oh, there you are, we found you! Go ahead, we'll reset the timer for 3 minutes. Hello? Okay. Thank you. My name is Carolina Bevitt from Cherry Hill, New Jersey. I'm calling to strongly, strongly urge you, as I have for the past many years, to please add some sort of typing curriculum to our schools. The fact that most students have been using computers since kindergarten in our district, but have never been required to learn how to type correctly, is a travesty.
Not knowing how to type is a huge detriment in life. My 7th grade son is currently, tonight, struggling with his vocabulary homework, not because. The work is difficult, but because it's taking him much, much longer than necessary because he's never learned how to type. He's a student who has taken a tech… some sort of technology course in Cherry Hill School since he was 5… 6 years old, 5 years old in kindergarten. This is just, like, absolutely unacceptable. Our kids need to be learning how to type. It's a life skill that they all need. Thank you.
Thank you for your comment. Going back to the room. I don't see anybody else who wants to make. Second public comment in the room? Okay, just double checking, going back online, the next person, it says Zoom user. Zoom user, it's your turn, please give us your name and municipality. Uh, Rick Short, Cherry Hill? Can you hear me? We can, thank you.
I'd like to start out to say, um. I've been with this district over 10 years. It's almost like a Groundhog Day. Constant, constant Groundhog Day. I'll never forget the time Ms. Stern came up as a… as a regular citizen. and gave this ultimate, passionate speech about special ed. And look where we are today. This is all part of the problem with hiring within.
The nepotism that continues to go on in this district. But, this is what we have. Now, on to some questions. We need to be a school of either truth. Or alive. And it just seems like we can never get an answer from our superintendent. on our cultural proficiency experts that have helped rid this. curriculum that causes division, and teaches division. So my first question is.
Does Dr. Morton agree? with Dr. Goldie. Muhammad's comments… that we have a problem with whiteness in America. Does Dr. Morton… agree with the statements of Dr. Bettina Love. Where she calls for… to dis… To destroy America. Superintendent agree on this? Are these good consultants?
Does Dr. Morton agree with… Dr. Ibram X. Kendi. Who's calling for… the destruction of capitalism. And in November. 2024 report from Rutgers University. He causes hostility. And he is one of the consultant books that you've promoted. Again, it's a simple question. Simple question.
questions that our super… Can't answer. So, keep asking the same questions. Thank you for your comment. There's no one else in the room, so continuing online, the next caller is Harvey Vasquez. Mr. Vazquez, it's your turn. Hello, can you hear me? Yes, um, Harvey Vasquez? We can now, thank you.
Cherry Hill Township, first of all, uh, good evening to all the distinguished members of the board. Um… First, I want to start out with thanking the president of the. Fairly Hills Special Education PTA for her comments. That's, uh… that's… that's… that's a thought that all of us share in the special education. community here. And also, I want to thank the Vice President. for announcing that, in fact, those funds. have been approved and are part of this school year. So I know there's a lot of changes going on, uh… And there's a lot of people who are worried within our school district. Are we gonna lose funding? Is this gonna happen?
But it is good to know that, at least for this school year, we are safe. I also want to interject about the parent who just spoke. And it, um… And it hurts me to see that this is still happening. to that parent, I hope he's still in the room. I stood where you stood at. two and a half years ago. And since nothing has changed, we're still living the same experiences. But this is a culture that has been established. And I asked, I urge from the Board of Education members.
Please take a hard look at your special education department. Okay? Coming from a person who had to fight this battle. for almost 3 years. Okay? Even the law firm you have to represent the school district is condescending, okay? When they talk to the… to the people. That they, uh, are supposed to represent. They're just as condescending as your special education department. Okay? And I can prove that. I got factual data that soon will come out public, okay? But I asked the Board of Education to take a hard look at your special education department.
Because that culture there is not gonna change, and unless you take that step. To improve that department. It's gonna continue on, you're gonna continue to have parents coming up before you with the same grievances over and over and over again. When is enough enough? Thank you for your comment. Our next comments are online. Is Brandi DeVoe. Ms. Devoe, it's your turn. Please unmute. You'll have 3 minutes.
Good evening, everyone. Um, as a Cherry Hill constituent and community stakeholder. I am deeply concerned about how. Our district is serving students in special education. I've had this concern for over two… to 3 years with my son, who was receiving special education services. Families across our community share similar stories. the late evaluations, consistent IEPs, inconsistent IEP supports. Limited communication, intimidation even, dismissiveness, and staffing shortages that impact both students and teachers.
These aren't isolated incidents, they reflect systemic challenges that deserve our attention. and accountability. Special education should not be a fight. It should be a partnership built on transparency, trust, and equity. And every child deserves access to the supports they legally are entitled to. And every family deserves to be heard, respected, and included in that process. We also can't separate attendance and belonging from special education. When students with disabilities filled.
Misunderstood, unsafe, unsupported, it affects their participation and engagement. I also want to thank, um. Candy Cummings, for her comment about attendance, I echo it. I want to also thank, uh, Mr. Harvey for his comment about special education and the law firm that is exceptionally rude. I also have evidence of that. I think we do need to take a very special, uh. look at, um, our special education department. It needs reform.
I also want to thank the parent, um, in the room who was speaking about their child. I've been there. It's a long, it's a hard fight, but we're continuing to do that. I also want to take… thank the Cherry Hill Special Education PTA for their comments as well. Thank you for your comments. Going back to the room, is there anyone in the room who would like to make second public comment at this time? Seeing no one, going back online, is there anyone else who would like to make second public comment?
Seeing no one, I'm gonna close second public comment for this evening. Ms. Jocelyn, I apologize. There you are. It's your turn. I am so sorry, I was clicked onto the wrong screen, I didn't see you. That was my fault. Go ahead. Sarah Jocelyn, Cherry Hill. I, uh, would like to thank, again, the presentation on chronic absenteeism. I think it's a very thorough presentation.
And I want to point out that it is posted on the district website. Uh, under presentations, I believe it was given, um. It's September 30th, so if anyone wants to look at it in more detail, it is currently available. I am very glad that the, uh, board is working towards their goals. And of course, uh, the schools will be working for their goals. All of them will be including, I'm sure, chronic absenteeism is one of the.
the aspects. I did want to ask… Whether, uh, Cherry Hill will be doing a special, um. focus on the American Revolution for our 250th next year. Um, certainly, the American Revolution is here, okay? Um, in the sense that we have historic activity that happened in our area. And it would be important to have our students be aware of that.
Uh, the… I did check on the school goals. Of course, they have not yet been posted for each school. And they're probably under development. I am not sure of the timeline, um. for when they will be available. I did also want to point out that the State Board of Education has adopted, with amendments. Assessment and standards, and this includes the student learning standards.
As well as the evaluation of districts. One question that was raised by a board member was on the. Failure to, uh, achieve passing. Not a problem in Cherry Hill. But we do need to continue working for our high standards. Thank you. Thank you, Ms. Jocelyn, for your comments. We have another caller, Jim Neary, it's your turn. Please unmute, and you'll have 3 minutes. Hello, my name is Jack Neary. Um, Cherry Hill?
As we all know, currently, the government is in shutdown, and a lot of services are not. going to be provided, and… Many members of the special education disability community have already spoke. But what I want to say is, what message can the Cherry Hill. not township school districts send to the students with special needs. I think that's more important than anything to reassure these students. that the best is being done to make sure their services are not being cut. What can be done and what steps are being taken to reassure the students themselves?
Because even though I am no longer within the district, and I am a first-year college student. knowing if this happened last year, I'd be worrying every single moment. every single day, just waiting for my phone, wondering what is happening next? What does this mean for any governmental aid that my family might receive? So, I want to know what message is the school district going to be sending. to the students themselves. Letting them know, or reassuring them, that things will be okay.
That is all. Thank you. Thank you so much for calling in and for your comment, we appreciate it. Going back to the room, still no takers. going back online, I don't see anyone else with their hand up. Going once, going twice. And now I will close second public comment. and go to Dr. Martin for superintendent comments. Excellent. Thank you very much, Ms. Winters, and thank everyone for their comments this evening. Uh, thank you to the CNI team for the presentation on chronic absenteeism. Uh, it absolutely is a concerted effort and focus for the district in moving forward.
Um, and some… and it will take, ultimately, a different way of thinking, a different way of approaching. The, uh, the challenge, as you were able to see, just in 2 years of data. Uh, the numbers were pretty much the same. Uh, year after year. The important understanding is that. Uh, absenteeism has a compounding effect, similar to interest. Uh, so… It's important that we interrupt that. And, um, we look forward to. Like, in our plan, which would be a comprehensive plan, and one that will look different than, you know, what we've done in the past.
Um, thank you for the comments around, uh, special education and special education funding. I can tell you with. 100% certainty that this Board of Education. And this administration fully supports. our students with disabilities, um, fully support our children, and we will fight tooth and nail to ensure that the services that they're entitled to. Um, they absolutely receive. As it relates to funding, our funding does not come directly from. the federal government in a manner in which. I feel like it's being, um, perceived. So, in other words.
Um, the federal government makes a decision today, and then tomorrow. the carpet's pulled out from under us, and we no longer have the funding. That isn't the way that it actually works. The funding is sent forward to the state, the state then provides that funding to the district. That's already occurred, so… as, uh, Mr. Greenbound mentioned. we're funded, uh, this year. Um, we'll see what… you know, subsequent years look like for us, but, you know, as was stated this evening. Uh, the board will go through a process of developing this budget, and we'll ensure.
I can guarantee, we'll ensure that all of the needs of our children are met. We will absolutely figure that out. Um, as it relates to the process with special education, there's approximately 2,200. students in this district that receive. special education services. Our Director of Special Education, Ms. Caitlin Mallory. Um, I have to defend her. She's done an outstanding job of coming in with a vision for our special education program.
She desires to individualize supports and, um, you know, listen to and work with families. Uh, to ensure that our kids are receiving. the services that they need and that they deserve. Um, we've seen… we've seen more kids come back to the district, we've seen, uh, more programs developed. Closer to homes, to the actual homes of our kids. And we've seen services expand in the time that she's been with us in the district. Um, again, it's a personalized approach, you know, she works directly with families. Many of the families that we heard speak this evening. I know for a fact Ms. Mallory has been in contact.
Uh, herself with those families. Um, when we reach impasse, there's a process that we… that we must go through. And, you know, we seek to identify a positive ending and positive outcome to every process. We absolutely want to support. Every child and every family here. We want our kids to be successful, and we look at them. your kids as our kids as well. Uh, in reference to the APR and the flooring, the concern just comes with sharp objects piercing the floors.
All right, so that's not a… there's no concern with. a wheelchair, uh, but sharp objects piercing the floor. So please. No razor blades, no, uh… nails or anything along those lines in those spaces. Um, our facilities team and our business office. takes care of any, um, maintenance needs that will… that will ensue, or that will arrive. And there will be some. Um, as we move forward. Uh, the district still does contract with Cooper Learning. Uh, there was a comment about that.
Just to let you know, the district does still work with. Cooper Learning. Um… comment this evening about cultural. consultants, I typically don't even respond to it, because it doesn't pertain to me, and I don't understand how it pertains to the district. Um, the individuals mentioned one of them has never worked with the district. Others, there are books that have been used 5, 6, 7 years ago. I'm not sure of the relevance today, and I'm not sure… Other than, um… An obvious, um, similarity between myself and the individuals mentioned. I don't know why I continually keep getting asked about the question.
of these individuals. Um, but they are not working currently with the district. Congratulations to the High School East Football Cougars for bringing the boot back home. to Crescent Road. It was… it was absolutely a great game. And that juggernaut of a football team continued to roll forward, so roll Cougars, roll. Congratulations to them. Um, high school West girls field hockey team did get revenge. on East. Great game, great game, but they did win 1-0, so, uh, that was a great week for athletics.
Uh, last week. Uh, I'm happy to report, uh. Um, last… at the last board meeting, we heard comments, um, from some families at Horace Mann about the use of a playground. Uh, thank you to Mr. Guy and Mr. Cohen, who's worked on the schedule. some additional staffing has been provided. I think today was the first day. that, uh, the students began. inclusively using that new playground? Absolutely, and that will continue as we move forward. So, I spoke before about. solving problems, and as information comes forward to us, we absolutely want our children to have great experiences.
And, um, you know, this is evidence of just that. uh… just… just two… actually, three additional notes. I just wanna… Just want to mention, last week, we were closed, obviously, for, um, Yom Kippur, just as we reflect on Yom Kippur. I hope it was, um, meaningful time for everyone who celebrated. self-reflection, forgiveness, um, and connection as well, for you and your families. Wish you must peace in moving forward. Uh, this Monday, the district, um, will be closed for students, will be open for.
staff, but closed for students, will be recognizing Diwali on that day. I wish all the joyous and peaceful. and prosperous Diwali, as well. My last note is just to say, uh, Red Ribbon Week. Um, it's coming up next week. It starts on the 23rd, Red Ribbon Week runs. from the 23rd of October to the 31st. It's an important week. Um, it's ultimately about drug prevention, and we know the devastating impacts that, um. you know, drugs can have, and, you know, we encourage all of our students, um, and community members to, uh.
Stay drug-free. With that, I'll say have a great evening, everyone. Thank you. I'd like to make a motion to adjourn. Do I have a second? Mr. Cherfain, all those in favor? unanimous, the meeting is adjourned.