and a moment of silence I pledge algiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands one nation under God indivisible with liberty and justice for all
Thank you Uh roll call please Mr Shahada Miss Bassford here Mr Brunette here Mr Kenova here Dr Danny here Mr Mahia Mr Ciano here M Suarez here Vice President Santiago here President Paris here We
have the mission of the Clifton School District in an open and reciprocal community partnership is to provide all students with a quality education to develop the skills necessary to become literate lifelong learners who are responsible and productive citizens
contributing to a democratic society in an everchanging world The New Jersey Open Public Meetings Law was enacted to ensure the right to the public to have advanced notice of and to attend the meetings of the public bodies at which any business affecting their
interests is discussed or acted upon In accordance with the provisions of this act the Clifton Board of Education has caused notice of this meeting to be publicized by having the date time and place thereof posted at the City Clerk's Office Clifton Public Library Administration Building Senior Citizen
Nutrition Center on Cable TV and the local press on the district's website and mailed to presidents of parent teacher organizations This meeting will be tape recorded in accordance with policy 0168 So what we'll be doing this evening
we'll be starting out uh Dr Robert Toy will be giving us a presentation on the budget We'll then move to uh a round of the commissioners asking additional questions We'll go around the deis
Everyone will have an opportunity to ask Dr Robert Totoy um whatever questions concerning the budget might be on their mind We'll then open it up for public recognition Um and then after public recognition if the board so chooses
we'll have another round um of questioning um that you may want to partake in So that's the basic organizational game plan for this evening So Dr Artosi I will leave it up to you money you're the man
Good evening Mr Paris members of the Clifton Board of Education faculty and staff who are here in abundance tonight which is so nice to see members of the community students and all watching our live
stream Tonight I'm going to give uh what I think is a really important presentation about the state of the district and the state of the budget But I want to preface it by addressing the last meeting we had here
on March 13th where we were administration was voting on administration was recommending a preliminary budget to go to the county with an increase of 2%
And I visibly expressed frustration with the way that night turned out which is very unlike me And I was frustrated um upon reflection I was frustrated for two reasons One I felt that um I didn't do
my job well enough to make sure that we were all on the same page in regards to what that meant And the second thing and the thing that bothers me the most is that I felt a lack of trust on this day and that has
not happened to me in six years So that's why I was frustrated I want to be very clear The board of education is the
stewards of the public money I am not upset if you vote 0% or if you vote 10% My job as a superintendent is to give you the facts to give you a recommendation on
what's best for our students what's best for our staff Ultimately though I know that decision is up to you And if you make that decision with a good conscience and for good reasons that you
have I would never be upset with you for making that decision What I was upset about was I felt there was a lack of trust and we'll regain that back That was a blip on the radar and now we're back So as a history teacher cuz I'm a
history teacher in my heart I think it's important to know how we got to where we are today So please excuse me but I got to go back in time a little bit and explain a
history of budget funding in New Jersey and particularly in Clifton so that everyone knows why we are where we are today First thing you should know is that we are a pretty large operation close to 11,000
students 1,800 staff members the 11th or 12th largest school district in the state of New Jersey depending on what list you look at So we're a big operation And the issues that we're dealing with
today many have nothing to do with anything that was ever done here in Clifton We are dealing with systemic issues coming from the state funding formula which stems from the New Jersey
Constitution Now a little quick history lesson ladies and gentlemen Have you all heard of the US Constitution you know that document The word education not mentioned in the whole document Not mentioned So
therefore my favorite amendment the little unknown 10th amendment comes into play And the 10th amendment for lack of a better word basically says if there's anything not in this document if there's anything not in this
constitution then we leave that decision up to the states And so that is why since the founding of our country education has been a local function It has been a state function And in New Jersey schools historically have been
funded through property taxes And that was the predominant way that schools were funded until 1972 a famous New Jersey Supreme Court case Robinson vers Cahill which basically the New Jersey Supreme Court said "Hey guys the way you're funding schools right now is
not fair It is not uh equitable because the way you're funding schools solely based on property taxes makes it unequal depending on where a student lives meaning a wealthy
town has the ability to raise a lot more in taxes than a town with very little tax base and low wealth And so the state supreme court said "You have to change it." Said to the legislature "You have to change that." And so in
1975 New Jersey passed the School Education Act And the New Jersey School Education Act for the first time provided state aid to school districts And that state aid was predominantly funded through everybody's
favorite income tax There was no income tax in New Jersey prior to 1976 And the income tax was created primarily to fund schools In fact 40% of the state's budget today comes um uh excuse me goes towards funding schools
through state aid But that wasn't good enough either because if you've been in education long you may have heard of Abbott districts and Abbott districts came from another New Jersey Supreme Court case or should I say a series of Supreme Court cases
from 1981 to 2011 that basically said that law you passed in 1975 was unconstitutional because it still caused significant disparities between poor urban and wealthy suburban districts
And so they identified 31 of the poorest districts and those became Abbott districts And the state poured millions and millions and millions of dollars into those wealthy districts uh excuse me into those poor urban districts didn't end there
because there were still fighting over funding decades of fighting which ultimately re resulted in 2008 in what became known as the school funding reform act the current formula
that we use today in New Jersey And whereas previous to 2008 the state wanted every district to be treated equal wanted every kid to be treated equal in 2008 that whole philosophy changed and said we don't want equal We
want adequacy And adequacy is not what you might think when you hear the word It doesn't mean you're provided an adequate education Adequacy means that you're provided with enough to meet your needs My needs at dinner may be more than your
needs because I'm a large mammal So funding then was changed to a weighted formula for each district based on the number of students in that
district and the characteristics of those students And what do I mean by characteristics meaning we know it costs more money to educate a child with a disability Okay we we we know that takes
more resources takes more resources to educate a child who's an MLL which is a multilanguage learner So the state created a weighted system and the weighted system is based on a base amount and that base amount is
what the state says it costs to educate an elementary student in New Jersey And that number has gone up over the years but this year the base number for every elementary student in our district to be provided with an adequate education or
to meet adequacy is $14,972 That's the baseline To get the weighted formula you take that number and a middle school student you multiply that by 1.2 And a high school student is I think 1.4 And a special ed student is weighted more And
an MLL student is weighted more And so there's a very important day that happens each year in my world and that's October 15th And that's the date of the ASSA That's the application for state student aid October 15th is the
day we count the children in our district If you're on our roles October 15th you count as our student and we get state aid or at least our adequacy budget is made up of the number of
students on our roles by category on that date October 15th Now it's a little complicated here but stick with me It's actually pretty simple The state says that every district should have an adequacy budget
Meaning there's a certain amount of money it costs to educate a child That number for an elementary student is 14972 So applying the funding formula says you take the 11,000
students in Clifton you take a regular elementary education student you multiply it by that number You take the rest of the student and you multiply it by their weighted number that total
number minus what the local township contributes via property taxes or excuse me or I'm sorry that total number is your adequacy budget The
money you get in state aid is the difference between that total number and what your local district raises in taxes So let's make the math easy Okay you have a th000 students and they're all elementary 1,000* 14972 is
how much where are my math people i hear a lot of mumbling I don't hear my math people 1,00 * 14972 Let's move the move it over three zeros Okay 14 million
Okay Good 14,972,000 Okay If our district was 1,000 elementary students the state says our adequacy budget should be $14,972 You with me good
The state also has another number and that other number is how much can a the district afford right i own a house I pay property taxes How many people pay property taxes yeah we know
most of your property taxes go to the school district The majority and a bigger percentage in different towns but that's another story So the state calculates the percentage that the district pays based on the
wealth of that district and based on the property value in that district Okay and the difference between those two numbers the adequacy budget and how much the local district can be afford can afford is how much money the state gives you in state
aid So back to our initial example our budget's $14,972,000 The state says the city of um Reading Alabama can come up with $10,000 That means the states I'm sorry $10 million That means the state's going
to give you how much in state aid $4,972,000 Everybody's with me man This is a good class Sorry I forgot I'm not teaching Good class though you know it doesn't always work out like that right so that was what the law said
in 2008 But in 2008 if they implemented that law as they were going to 180 of the 600 districts in our state would have lost money That would have been political
suicide for the governor for the legislature at that time So they said "Well we're going to we're going to fund this formula but not yet." So for the 180 districts that would lose money under the new formula
we're going to give you something called adjustment aid or what we're going to call hold harmless aid which means we're going to make sure you don't lose any money That was supposed to be a year two years maybe three years four
years That went on until 2018 which meant for almost 10 years districts that were overfunded based on the formula got additional money each year after year after year
after year And a city like Clifton under the funding formula was underfunded all those years All those years All those years That changed in 2018 with a new
law called S2 that said "Uh-uh we're funding the formula and to all you districts that have been overfunded over the next six years we're going to take some of that overfunding away and we're going to distribute it to the districts that have been underfunded." And here's what that
looked like in a uh district that was overfunded This green money and this is only going back to 2013 this green money this is a district a little bigger than ours I'm not going to throw anybody under the bus but they're in every newspaper complaining about how their aid get how their aid got cut and they
got to lay people off But since 2009 they've been getting an additional $12 million a year They're warned every year this is going to stop It's going to stop It's going to stop It's going to stop It's going to stop It never
stops Then 2018 comes along All right we're finally going to do it now Even though you've gotten $12 million a year every year for the past 10 years now we're really going to do it So they must have planned for that right no they didn't plan for that
So now they've lost state aid over the last 5 years and they're saying they cannot fund their budget and pay their people Now I feel bad for the kids But here's who I really feel bad for This
was Clifton And this is only 2013 We could go back to 2008 The maroon is the state aid we got That's the allegedly the difference between the adequacy budget and the local fair
share This number is the number that we were shortch changed every year starting only going back to 2013 64 million 63 million 64 million If you added all that up it's a half a billion
dollars 2018 comes along S2 comes S2 says "We're going to take money from those overfunded districts and we're going to give it to the people who should have had it." So you'll see it starts to happen We start to get more state aid more state aid more state aid more state
aid more state aid And as of last year we are fully funded under the state aid formula Good right go back to this fake news Anybody see
this article this weekend fake news Go look at the districts Not all of them I'm not throwing anybody under the bus But how many of them got extra money all those years we didn't My kids didn't Clifton kids
didn't Clifton teachers didn't And we're supposed to stop everything and give loans to districts and give more aid to districts And I'm not getting any additional aid for my kids You know what we could have done with a half a billion dollars guys i explained this but this is the
technical term It's adjustment aid That's that extra money those districts got It was called adjustment aid because it was supposed to be temporary And it's just an example a district it was also called hold harmless because you didn't want to
punish the districts in the beginning So we gave them millions of dollars for the next 10 years And that's the example I don't need to go over that So now Clifton this year this is our state aid Although last year they said we were
fully funded our state aid increased You want to know why our state aid increased because our number of special education students has increased a lot Our multilanguage learner students
have doubled in five years That's not that's not an exaggeration Our MLS have doubled in five years So we have extra students You get more money for those students So we did get an increase in aid Wasn't a gift It was what the
formula says we should have received But the reality is even with an additional 5 million almost 6 million in state aid there are increases in the fixed costs that we
have and I just want to point out two of them We negotiated collective bargaining agreements in good faith with our with our unions and we still have a couple more that have to be done We have $5 million in salary
increases next year Our staff deserve more than that But that's not a number we can change We owe that much And here's something that is completely out of any of our control The cost of health
benefits will increase next year $7.5 million Just those two things wipes out the additional state aid we got We do have some one-time credits you'll see there You see our number of PCTI students has gone down each
year If you're going to PCTI for a vocational education I wish you all the best and thank God you'll make more money than we'll ever make Go But there's they're taking less of our most academically um motivated students because our
students are starting to see our families are starting to see the value of an education at Clifton High School So we got a that's a one-time credit I I can't count on that million dollars next year Transportation went down I can't count on that Okay
So on to the present On May 3rd excuse me March 13th guys we sat here with a preliminary budget We don't pass our budget till May 1st On March 13th we sat here We gave
you a budget that said we recommend that we raise the tax levy 2% because we are legally allowed to do that without any additional vote The board can do that That's the law We're allowed to do that each year In fact the
state funding formula makes the assumption that you go to 2% every year That's part of their calculation Nevertheless when we and this is the part I take responsibility for We made it clear that night that we
needed 2% to just maintain what we have to keep what we currently have But I don't think I know that I didn't fully explain all the things that we have to
say no to in order to just maintain what we have Meaning I think people were under the mistaken idea that maintaining current operations means we didn't look for other ways to save money
We did Not only that this process starts in October and November Mr Shiada and his team meet with every principal and we start planning our budget for the new year And as part of
that budget process we ask "What are the needs what do you need what do you have to have?" And then in the event we get that half a billion dollars what's your wish list knowing they're probably never getting their wish list
So that 2% wasn't just to maintain operations That was also a no on every need that came from our staff member every request that came from our staff member saying "We need this." And it was also a no to any possible wish list
item Let me read to you some of the needs These are needs that come from the day-to-day challenges that my team experiences that my staff experience This is what we said no to Additional
paraprofessionals three ABA autism teachers Not because we just want three ABA autism teachers because we need three ABA autism teachers two middle school inclusion teachers speech language specialists a BCBA a new child study team that's
bilingual to address the growing number of MLS who come to this country maybe not speaking English and we don't know if they're not learning because they have an English uh lack of proficiency or they have a disability Secretary Schools don't run with those without
those District doesn't run without those Two preschool preschool disabled teachers Three inclusion elementary teachers Two instructional coaches a an ESL teacher at the high school an ESL teacher at the middle school basic
skills math a new instrumental music teacher two media technology specialists one at the middle school one at the elementary We said no to two reading specialists We said no to um an assistant principal We said no to interns We said no to additional
maintenance staff So when we came here and said it's my fault We came here and said we need 2% to maintain current operations But we didn't tell you that we also need all these other things we said no to because we wanted to give you something that you could say yes to Give
you something that will allow us to keep making the progress that we're making while also while also keeping the taxpayers in mind And then remember I got frustrated last month because I said "Guys it's
March 13th We don't know what's going to happen between now and May 1st We don't know So you vote tonight You're just voting to give us permission to send this budget to the county We could raise it 10% or we could
reduce it 10% when May 1st comes It was a vote that gave us the authority to submit it to the county for compliance purposes And then guess what two major things changed Two major things
changed On Friday the 28th we received a broadcast from the New Jersey Department of Education telling us that we're eligible to apply for additional money Get there in a second That we're eligible to apply for additional money
above the 2% The following Monday it was Eid I was off and my phone started blowing up because Governor Murphy released a press release about the federal government
rescending ESSER funds ESSER funds that we were promised and that have already been spent on major capital projects going on in our district right now So let's start with the first one Here it
is I don't need you to read it but let me explain to you very simply what it says It told us Clifton is eligible to raise taxes above the 2% As much as you need to bring your
budget up to your local fair share And when I show you what that number means you will be word I used last month flabbergasted State says we are one of the cities where according to New Jersey not
Danny Roberts according to the DOE says Clifton does not pay enough in its local fair share So this year and this year only you can raise taxes above 2% till you get to your fair share I'll show you that number shortly That was number
one Actually no Here it is Go back to the beginning lesson folks Adequacy budget 11,000 students times the base times the weight of the types of students gives you is is one
half of the equation The other half is what your district can afford the difference you get in state aid State of New Jersey says that based on the property wealth of our district and
the wealth of the town that our adequacy budget we should be raising $197 million in taxes which means we are 44 million789,000 under what's known as local fair share Basically guys the
state is saying "You're asking us for money but you aren't doing enough locally to raise taxes in your town." Now I'm not going to tell that to a homeowner in Clifton who's working three jobs to pay their property taxes Believe me I know I pay taxes but under the state formula
Clifton is $44 million under the local fair share And here's why And this is not blame It's because the state expects you to go to 2% each year And every year you don't
go to 2% that money that you didn't raise compounds and eventually reach $44 million But I know I was here in 1920 I know what the conversations were The conversations were "Hey we're finally get the money
that the state told us we were going to get We're finally get the money that we deserve Let's give the taxpayers a break That was and that made a ton of sense and then we did it again Then we did it
again And those three years it's not just three years of zero guys It's three years where the price of everything goes up Collective bargaining agreements go up And not only do we lose that percentage of the tax levy but we lose the compounding of it
We did make up for it It's 4% because we utilized uh last two years we utilized bank cap which helped But once you fall behind you can't ever catch up You can't ever catch up because of the mathematical principle of
compounding So that's one major change I am not advocating that we raise taxes Let me be clear that we raise taxes almost 40% to get that $44 million I'm not I'm just
saying it's my job to tell you that you you could go above two without a vote I have to let you know that That's my job to give you the facts And here's the second thing that changed And this one came out of nowhere
This was on the on Monday 3:31 This was Eid School was closed and my phone starts blowing up Danny why is Clifton on this list why is Clifton on this list and I said "Oh that says Clifton Township That's not us is it?" I thought maybe it was Clinton and I thought maybe it was a
mistake But Governor Mur Murphy releases a statement that says the Trump administration federal government doesn't matter who the president is the federal government is trying to take back $85 million in federal funding that we were already
promised Of that $85 million ladies and gentlemen 11 million of it is ours Here are the facts Don't just read the headlines read the facts The facts are we have replaced windows in almost every school in the
district And these were the last five schools to get done We had an architect do drawings two years ago to get these projects done We were finally able to bid these projects in 2024 In June of 2024 we got approval
from the state of New Jersey for what is known as late liquidation Meaning there was a deadline but every state got more time to spend the money Because very simple reason there's only so many
things you could have going on at one time There's only so much money you can spend There's only so many window vendors There's only so many things you could do So we got an extra year in writing from the state Why does it matter that it's from the state because the the the funding process the federal government gives the state money We
apply to the state to be reimbursed This is June 2024 The projects started that summer High school You like your windows where's my high nobody Nobody from the high school here Nice windows
right almost done 12 is done Nine is done 15 would have been done but we found as best all taken care of No worries Right So the point is the
projects are 70% complete We've already spent $4 million expecting to be reimbursed We reached out to the state in the fall They said "We don't have a process yet for reimbursement Await further instructions." And that was not
because they were anticipating anything There wasn't even uh it was there was no election yet There was no change in federal government There was just no process yet And then this comes out on Monday the 31st We
didn't get a notification from the federal government We didn't get a broadcast from the DOE I found out like everybody else did a press release from the governor And that press release says that we could be on the hook and
probably will be on the hook for $11 million For sure For sure 4 million we've already paid So those two major things changed since March 13th What does that mean i don't know yet We're going to talk about it tonight But
I will tell you this If we have to come $11 million out of pocket there won't be any other capital projects done in this district for the next several years It will deplete um our our our capital reserves for projects we have planned
Um and it will put a significant debt uh significant dent in our budget And then finally for my part and I'm going to turn it over to Mr Shahada for some of the technical stuff All right he just gave me a dirty look I'll take I'll do
it I want to share with you some fun facts Somebody said to me "You got to trim the fat." And I took offense to that because I thought they were calling me fat They're like "No the budget You got to trim the fat." Because you know I'm a large
mammal So everybody thinks there's fat I don't know There might be fat Maybe maybe Mr Rose is hoarding boxes of pencils up in her office I don't know But here's why I will tell you there's no fat to trim And here's just a
few things And please fact check me Anybody can Google the New Jersey taxpayer taxpayer guide to education spending And how they do this is they separate districts They compare districts by their size And so we are in
a cohort of 96 districts with a population of 3,500 students or more And in that cohort our administrative costs in this district rank the 19th lowest out of 96 districts That's the lowest 20% That
means we don't spend as much on administration as 80% of the other districts that are size 3500 students or more Our operations and maintenance cost
look at this ranks 14th out of 96 districts That's all the things to maintain our buildings our 100-year-old buildings 14th Our per pupil costs are in the bottom third 33rd out
of 96 That means we spend less per money than twothirds of the other districts Our classroom instruction costs direct costs for classroom instruction are in the bottom third of the 96 districts 31st By the way that
per pupil cost uh last year or it might have been two years ago I think we were 15 It was because of the we we raised taxes the last two years we went up We were 15th two years ago Our extracurricular costs something I
know has the ability to change kids lives Speaking from the heart speaking personally 34th out of 96 districts Again we're in the we're in the the bottom third compared to other districts
What does that mean to me that means we have been good stewards of the public's money And if I said we were in the 50th percentile I think people would say that's good We're below that We're much below that in some significant categories
So I'm really going to turn it over to Amed now But before I do that will you speak from there yeah Come on up Come on up and join me I'll stand by you I'll hold your hand I want to say something very clear And I want everybody to hear me When we get to the slide that says
0% You're going to see that if we do 0% it has the potential to impact staffing Okay i just want you to know it is absolutely the last possible thing I will cut in this
district are people People make a school district not supplies Relationships with kids make a school district not supplies So even if we do a zero which is not going to be my
recommendation I will do everything in my power to make sure this does not impact staff And there are there are couple ways to do that One of them is just simply through attrition And that means not rehiring people who retired or
leave Now that's a problem right but if we are at zero I will do everything I can to not impact our current staff Thank you Good evening guys Uh it's pretty hard to follow Dr Roberty He's definitely a
showsman Uh but I'm just going to go over some of the the math parts So I just want to explain to the public and the board uh the difference between a one and a 2% So if the board decides to increase taxes 2% this year we can maintain all programs and services As Dr
Roberts stated earlier with a 1% increase we would have to cut about $1.5 million which could come from programs staff and anything else that the board they were given a list and you guys will see it uh shortly Opting for a 0% tax increase we would be trying to find $3
million somewhere in the budget just to try to maintain and not disrupt the children So you guys are going to see two lists One is can't touch These are legally obligated contractual agreements that we have a duty and essential to provide
under the state of New Jerseyy's constitution And then there's ancillary support programs They're not legally required but they are crucial to our student success So here you will see the district's budget is $300 million These are all of the things we have a legal
obligation to pay salary benefits tuitions charter school grants repayment of debt transportation special ed legal services an auditor postage is not legally required but is 100% necessary record storage
that's mandated by law and insurance So out of that $300 million here 294 million of it we can't touch The budget continues These are the ancillary support programs These are things that are crucial to student success but are not 100%
necessary It continues So ancillary support is about $5 million Out of the total of the can't touch and the ancillary support it comes out to just under $300 million which means our discretionary spending is 04% of our
budget Now as Dr Roberts stated earlier this is the list that was asked of us by the board on March 13th So with a 1% a 1.5% increase what would we have to cut i'm just going to let you guys just take
a look at this for a moment for a a for a non-teer that's excellent use of wait time Mr Shahada I picked up some from Janina What would a one 1% increase what would we have to cut with that just going to
let you guys just take a look at that as well And what would we have to cut with the 0% tax increase everything combined on list one and two but we are adding an additional amount to about $1.8 million
Thank you guys Yes Mr Paris I I said it but I need to repeat it staff I'm not I'm not worried about reducing staff because of the budget Yes based on those numbers we're going to cut a whole bunch of things if
necessary Staff is last And it's absolut my word Barring any new surprises right that come from on high staff will be the last
thing that we ever cut And I won't speak for the board because they speak very well for themselves but I I'm very confident that they agree with that sentiment So thank you Mr Paris Okay Thank you Dr Robert Toesy Um so before we go to
public recognition let's do a round of questions Anyone like to start commissioner Basser Yes Um I don't know who's going to answer this question for through you to administration Um I heard through my colleagues in the state that a district can actually go
past the 2% Correct um so say we wanted to go 5% 6% I know in Paramis they're contemplating 4% increase I was just on the phone last night with one of my colleagues from West Milford they're contemplating 4.7 Jersey City's 20% but that's just that's another story for
another day Um what is the reasoning behind that what is the rule that they're allowed to do that because I always thought it was 2% that we could go up to and nothing more than that Yeah So this year seems to be an anomaly uh in public education Everything that I'm hearing from Trenton
is that districts are districts all across the state are facing uh serious budget issues and they are noticing that a large portion of that contribution missing is from the local fair share So yes this is a one-time thing that came out to us I believe Dr repository said
on like March 15th or something like that that the districts can go above the 2% to recoup any missing monies of their local fair share So ours would be about 38.34% I have one other question Can I do that okay Thank you Um last year we raised it
4% because of um our our lack of information in previous years on the value of raising the budget and raising the um the percentage If we didn't do that last year and looking at all these
tax cuts the cuts in title one title two title um four all the tax cuts that are looming over us What is your like can you give us like a a ballpark synopsis of what this district would look like if we
don't increase to 2% and with everything looming down on your neck right now What are we going to look at um so that's roughly $5 million of last year's money If we didn't go to 4% we went to zero Um it would likely mirror that list that was on the thing It would be a
combination of programs and god forbid staff But that's where you make unfortunately staff is the largest contributor to our budget So that and programming a combination of the two Obviously the recommendation would come
from Dr Robertsi to the board and we would do everything we possibly could to safeguard the staff Um so that's where that combination would come from of $5 million Thank you President Dr Danny Um yes Little bit
something different about the um the 11 million that we might be on the hook for Um I don't like that No Um but is it possible that maybe we can you know in legislative committee maybe there could be something set up with the you know
state I know it's with federal but maybe they could you know speak to people there and you know what I mean because this is money obviously that we were expecting and I understand what they're trying to say you know maybe they might say well the local fair share and all
that I I understand but just to try because in the past you know you you've tried and was pretty successful and so you know maybe we can speak to the legislators maybe they could do something maybe you know just you know again since they did do something where
for 10 years they funded so maybe in light of the econom economy and everything Maybe you know they can actually Dr Danny you're actually you're actually a step ahead because um last week after this came out I was um reached out to by both of our assembly
um people And I also saw our assembly woman at the Boys and Girls Club uh gala Yeah Um last last week uh she said her office is going to be contacting me to meet and I could just very simply make that a legislative committee meeting What we expect to happen although New
Jersey legislature doesn't have anything to do with this what we do expect to happen is that the New Jersey attorney general is going to bring suit on behalf of the districts affected by this along And it's not just New Jersey it's every state Every state our number is 85
million Some states are a lot more some states are less But what's happened um on some other issues that states have gotten together to sue the federal government and let a court decide Basically what the court has to decide is is a promise made by the federal
government valid a year later when they change their mind I mean to me that seems pretty simple but uh we don't know how a court will rule and we don't know if that could be a year from now or five years from now I think we have to plan
as if we're never seeing that money which is sad but yes we'll set up a legislative committee meeting Commissioner Brun Thank you Mr President I I'm looking at this article from the Asbury Park Press They're they're saying that the education secretary would
consider extensions on an individual project basis This was a week ago So Governor Murphy made a statement last week Has there any been any public press release since last week has he reached out to the Department of Education or
anything yet the issue is here is that even in our audited financial statements there are also statements within it that say yes there are certainties that occur within any given fiscal year So these these projects have
already been encumbered which means we already committed to them So it's around it's going to be approximately 7 mil We don't even know if the four million is reimbursed It can be reimbursible yet But that a press release was made last week
has a second one ever been issued since that initial one that basically essentially Governor Murphy said um Washington is failing the next generation Mr Mr Bronzac the only thing
we've received officially from Trenton besides seeing that press release was we received an email from the county office as did other superintendent in other counties that I'm aware of simply of those districts simply asking how does
this affect you um you know what projects were you utilizing for this are the projects underway and asking those types of questions So I think they're in the gathering information stage now Although they should have that stuff because they approved it in June but they're asking about like how how far
along the projects are I don't know if they asked anything else but those are basically and the and the amount of money which they know the amount but they don't know how much we've already how much we've already spent because obviously they didn't refund us It's just mindboggling to me how long it takes just to get a response So if the
if if the education secretary US Department of Education uh Miss McMahon whatever her name is if she she said she were to already review it on an individual basis what you know can you at least tell us you reached out to her to see
how it would affect these respective districts on here they they can't even get our city correctly They call Clifton a township So Mr Bronziac I don't I wouldn't try to make too much sense of it because you'll drive yourself crazy Uh we're dealing with a government
bureaucracy and it's unfortunate but these decisions impact ultimately kids in our district but you're you're right Um I did see that that that statement came out from the US DOE but nothing yet from the Department
of Education Thank you Anyone else commissioner Kenova Um what do we currently have in our cap reserve budget in this i'll I'll defer to a med Mr Kova to be to be clear are you asking
capital reserve Uh about $12 million And and of that what do la let's say let's take last uh fiscal year Do what do we spend in that cap reserve like what are we generally spending 20 It varies It really depends on what the what the needs of the
district are at that time I know um as of June 30th so last budget we pulled out 7.92 million off the top of my head uh to be used for this year's projects which are the stadium renovation the u locker room renovation and at a few
others So all said and done all projects are near completion But but also Mr Cha just to just to clarify some of those projects are planned but capital reserve is also for those things God forbid the roof uh flies off in a tornado and we
have to replace a roof So that's our kind of emergency money too in addition to our long-term facility plans Now I remember you sent out an audit and it said you know if we lost x amount of funding that was obviously prior to any any of all these happenings Um so I have
a couple questions around that one is um for the federal level and and uh Miss Bassford spoke to it a little bit What does that mean for us i know we have a lot of title one funded schools So what is the amount of money that we would be in a deficit for so if you guys look at that list that I put in the folders for
you this maroon and gray one of the federal grants and the state grants which aren't in question Um so for the projected 420 2526 projected we are with title one title 2 title three title 4 IDA Perkins and 21st century we are
slated to get $7.6 million Um this is not including the late liquidation of $1 million that is already in limbo Um so let me just throw in the state grants as well that totals about 15 million So between those two
the state and the federal we received $23 million Obviously things happen overnight in the federal government and in the blink of an eye all that money can be gone So in my mind we're planning worst case scenario We're thinking that $7.6 million is gone Uh because we can
wake up tomorrow and be having this conversation and the $1 million I'm already wiping that off is gone until the the DOE tells me otherwise So right now there is I'm game planning for a $20 million deficit Don't know how I'm going to make it happen but that's that's our
reality right now Mr Shad I I don't feel like I explained it well enough Um and if you could please explain for me I had I had some heard some people commenting on this on
the money being taken away and and the the the people who were um you know pro you know cut cut the waste out of federal government and that's a very good thing We should cut waste But the proponents of taking this $85 million
away their main argument was well this was CO money CO was over several years ago I don't think I I don't think I did as good a job explaining why um we had an extension to use that money So just to diffuse that argument that this was
about COVID and it should have been spent you know two years ago three years ago can you do maybe explain better than I did yeah So um if you guys look at the other sheet that I gave you uh let me just pull it up here for you
uh of the one that starts off with I want to clarify if you look at that sheet on the back the Excel that I printed out for you we got three grants in the span of 2 years let's say totaling $37 million That money went to air purifiers Chromebooks windows in
every building except 16 in Woodro cuz those had been done previously out of just local monies Um learning loss teaching programs teacher salaries counselor salaries and special education common corner um requirements $37 million we had to spend
in two years A good problem Excuse me A good problem to have right that federal money came in handy at a time when we all needed it So you know not be smurching the fact that we got $37 million That was a good problem to have We covered all grants
Um $37 million in two years It's an impossible thing to do in nonpandemic related situations Now we're dealing with everybody buying everything on this list that we are that I just listed off on top of worldwide supply chain issues
on top of a workforce shortage The government realized the DOE lobby the federal New Jersey DOE lobby the federal government and said we have too much money that our people can't spend because there aren't enough products out there for us to purchase understanding
that these products are essential and to deal with the learning loss and to deal with the the ventilation systems So we were given until March of 2026 to spend this money Granted we had all of this already mapped out pertaining to the windows specifically
It's encumbered Mr Shahada That's why Correct So we are done We were just waiting on windows to be manufactured which they all are Uh the projects as Dr Robert said are 70% complete So we're in a tight spot right now And it's not as
simple as well you know stop the project and don't pay these people because then you know we're we're on the hook for it Then then we're going to get sued and you know Yeah I mean we could I mean that that's an option guys That's
but you know then we're going to be in a lawsuit and we're going to spend money to defend a lawsuit for a problem that we didn't create for doing something that we were allowed to do under the rules at the time on a project that is falls clearly under the guidelines of
what the money was allowed to be used for I mean new windows It's not like we're we're spending the money on something that is not valuable right i mean so it it's frustrating Ultimately I'm hoping that what Linda McMahon said
is accurate that there will be an opportunity to appeal to say "Hey we've already encumbered this money We've already got 70% of the project done and then we get you know the stay." And that's happened We've seen we've seen federal policies come one day and the next day change We've seen that um that
just recently happened with the health department stuff If you were paying attention at this at the city level they uh changed their mind on some some health funding So we're hoping that happens because we're hoping that people see that that these projects weren't for
uh for wasteful things They were for good things ultimately for teachers and kids So if you can walk me through the situation of this $1 million So we have these projects already 70% completed They come back and they say this this
money we don't have for you anymore It's gone Do we then not pay the vendors and then we're just taking it to court in federal level are we paying the vendors and then somehow figuring things out in the meantime like what would be the process of that that would be something that we'd have to discuss in executive
session for just legal purposes It could Mr Shout I was just going to say that Mr Kov I think it's a discussion worthy of having I think it might need to be a discussion in executive for legal advice Mark if in case and we might want to get the advice of our attorney and
then when we get that advice if if our attorney advises us that it should be for public discussion I think we should do that but in the event we're going to do anything that might cause us litigation I would suggest we discuss that in executive session and then my other question was around so we were talking about this this shortfall here
shortfall here like you said around $20 million that's already assuming We go to a 2% budget that already has wish lists cussed out of it Wish wish list cut out of it The wish list was never in the budget Yeah that was so so this 20
million is assuming we take a 2% increase This 2 20 million down Yep So the budget that you guys approved for preliminary purposes on March 13th assumed a 2% tax increase bringing the
budget to 300 some odd million dollars Um all of this are guesstimates that we have to make according to the feds and to the state comes out to about a little under $20 million for the 11 that were on the hook for these windows and the 7.6 that
could possibly go away in the blink of an eye So Mr Kenov is asking does this include that 2% So in short it does So% So if we do not go to 2% 23 million it's 23 million Correct Thank
you Okay As as you know I'd like to get to public recognition by 8:00 PM if the board is willing to Let's cut to public recognition We can get back to this after we have a lot of people here this evening So um we are going to hold you to the time limits very strictly this
evening This portion of the meeting is open to the citizens of Clifton for the purpose of addressing any subject matter pertinent to andor directly related to the operation of the Clifton Public School District Residents are requested to sign the register provided for this purpose and to state their names
addresses and subject matter Comments are limited to five minutes per person Issues raised by members of the public may or may not be responded to by the board All comments will be considered and a response will be forthcoming if and when appropriate The board asked that members of the public be courteous and mindful the rights of other
individuals when speaking Specifically comments regarding students and employees of the board are discouraged and will not be responded to by the board Students and employees have specific legal rights afforded by the laws of New Jersey The board bears no responsibility nor will it be liable for any comments made by members of the
public Members of the public should consider their comments in light of the legal rights of those affected are identified in their comments and be aware that they are legally responsible and liable for their comments No one in virtual Okay No one virtual So
motion to close Uh motion motion to close virtual by Commissioner Brunack seconded by Commissioner uh Bassford Um anyone wishes to speak i guess you want them at the table today right that's what the mic is So please come up
and have a seat and uh let's get started I need my glasses Blind in old age I'll be less than five minutes I promise I have to pick up a kid Good evening K Commissioners administration I'm Dr
Valerie Cropen I'm the K8 ELA supervisor here in Clifton As a supervisor of the K8 English language arts department I want to express my deepest gratitude for fully funding our district budget Your continued support has allowed us to build and sustain programs that directly
impact student growth teacher development and long-term academic success Thanks to a fully funded budget we've been able to maintain and expand highquality programming that meets the diverse needs of our learners We've added vital positions such as reading specialists basic skills instructors who
work closely with our students to close learning gaps and provide individual support We've also been able to deliver highquality embedded coaching to our teachers ensuring that they are equipped with the tools strategies and professional learning needed to strengthen instruction and maximize student
outcomes This funding has also allowed us to invest in up-to-date inclusive instructional materials classroom libraries that reflect and engage our student population We are giving students access to meaningful texts and the foundational literacy skills that we will serve them
through throughout their academic journeys As someone who has proudly served this district for 16 years and as a Clipsson resident homeowner and a parent of a first grader at school 9 and a fifth grader at school 5 This support holds steep personal meaning And as a
proud graduate of Clifton High School Clifton Public Schools class of 1992 I know firsthand the power of a strong public education and the lifelong impact it can have The investment you have made through a fully funded budget is not
just financial It is a powerful vote of confidence in our mission our educators and most importantly our students Thank you again for your partnership and your continued commitment to literacy equity and excellent in Clifton Public Schools
Thank you for your time Thank you Good evening administrators commissioners Before I begin I'd like to thank you all for the time and effort you dedicate to leading our district I respect the balance you're trying to strike between
fiscal responsibility and educational quality The decisions that you make are never easy ones I'm not here to repeat what others will likely and rightly say Excuse me One moment I'm sorry Could you please tell us who you are oh I'm so sorry I'm Lisa Post I'm the district
English language arts coach Thank you I'm not here to repeat what others will likely and rightly say about class sizes staffing or the excellence of our programs Instead I'd like to offer a simple truth A 0% increase sounds
reasonable on paper but in reality it quietly dismantles what we've spent years building Great schools don't erode all at once They chip away in pieces And when we start chipping away at the people and programs that make a
difference a clear message is sent not just to our dedicated staff but to students and their families that we're willing to settle for less I offer to you all a cleareyed perspective on the real cost of a 0% increase with rising costs in areas
beyond our control such as contracted salaries health benefits transportation special education services and out of district placement typically increasing between 3 to 6% annually A flat budget isn't maintaining the status quo It's
cutting into it On our $300 million budget a 2% increase equals about $6 million That is not a cushion That is the bare minimum needed to preserve the programs support staff and essential services our students rely on every day
It is the difference between retaining programs that support mental health academic intervention and enrichment and cutting them to make up the shortfall 0% may feel safe today but it's like taking the roof off of your house
because you're trying to save on heating It may feel more affordable at the moment but we all know how the story will ultimately end I urge you all not to make a short-term decision that will undoubtedly have long-term consequences
A minimum 2% investment isn't excess It's simply what's required to preserve the value we've already created here in Clifton Thank you so much And Commissioner Brunak if you would please tell say hi to Melanie and Frank and tell them I miss them very
much Have a good night Good evening everyone board members My name is Gary Reid I am a head custodian at school 17 and I am also the president for the union for custodian maintenance Um I've been employee in the district
about 18 years now at school 17 On behalf of the members I'm here and we all are here to express that we are proud to work in Clifton Public Schools We all take pride in our work skills and performance dayto day week after week
year after year With that being said we all work very hard and a lot of members and employees are struggling to make ends meet We all know grocery bills increase rent mortgage utilities everything The list can go
on We signed a one-year deal to extend our contract hoping for better wages and and a better salary guide in the future As of now it's that time again and we're still here trying to negotiate a decent and fair increment for all employees The
maintenance and custodian team haven't had a salary guide step increase for over four years We are currently in a time of economic uncertainty as evidenced by the recent decision from Washington that eliminated the remaining ESSR funds our
district was still utilizing We are all asking you board members can you provide some type of stable footing for the upcoming school year by allocating a budget which meets the needs for our district We recognize the board responsibility to manage taxpayers
money wisely and invest in our schools is the is the proper way to do that A 2% cap will help our salary guide and give members and employees better wages We encourage the board to look into any additional funds you can receive through
our newly introduced New Jersey tax incentive aid This aid is only available to selected districts who spend less than what the state determines adequate amount to provide through a through a decent and effective education
The Clifton and custodian maintenance teams work hard every day to make Clifton a wonderful school district and we only can continue to do this with appropriate funding from the board of education I thank you all for your time Have a good evening Well good evening My name is Lori Lama
and I'm the president of the Clifton Education Association There is a growing concern that without a minimum of 4% increase in our school board budget for the 2526 school year Clifton may not be able to
meet the basic demands of operating effectively the cost of running our schools including the new middle school utilities transportation insurance instructional supplies and paying towards charter schools as well as PCTI
have all continued to rise during due to inflation If our budget does not keep pace our school district may be forced to make difficult decisions which will impact our students directly such as cutting programs increasing class sizes
or reducing support staff There are out there are outcomes Clifton does not want to face especially when the goal is to provide our students with the best possible education The situation is further complicated by the state's continued implementation of
the school funding reform act which is designed to bring fairness and adequacy to public school funding as what Dr Roberts has discussed While the state is increasing its share to school districts it is expected that the local
boards will also do their part to support educational growth A budget increase of at least 4% is not only prudent it is necessary to match the state's investment and meet the needs of all students especially those requiring
additional academic or emotional support Falling short could risk undermining the progress districts have made under this guidance Our concern is even more imminent as our district prepares to open a new middle school The initiative
brings with with it a host of financial responsibilities from hiring teachers and staff to outfitting classrooms maintaining the facility and providing transportation These are not optional expenses They are critical to ensuring
that this new school is safe functional and ready to serve students from day one Without an increase in budget the district may struggle to launch this new school successfully without negatively impacting our existing buildings and
programs In Clifton property taxes are the primary source of our school funding which makes local real estate values a key driver of Clifton's financial health When property values are high Clifton receives more revenue enabling it to
provide better resources support and opportunities for our students and staff The decision that you will make whether it's investing in our new facilities enhancing academic programs or ensuring our students health and safety can build
Clifton community's trust which in turn influence and boost real estate demand At the same time our school budget plays a powerful role in shaping Clifton's property values Families often choose where to live based on the strength and
reputation of our school district This not only attracts families to Clifton but also helps increase housing demand and sustain property values Simply put investing in Clifton Public Schools is an investment in the long-term success
and stability of the entire Clifton community Ultimately this is about protecting the quality and consistency of education for all students present and future in Clifton We cannot afford to shortch change our children here in Clifton
again by underfunding our schools A minimum 4% increase in our budget is not an overreach It is realistic responsible to the economic logistical and educational needs we face Clifton
depends on strong well-funded schools And now more than ever we must ensure that our students have the resources they need to strive Thank you very much Hi good evening Uh my name is Shahie
Morola I'm a proud Clifton art teacher at Wooder Wilson Middle School an artist a mimi to a very intelligent grandson a district collaborative facilitator and the incoming president of the Clifton Education Association I'm here tonight
not only to thank the members of the CEA for using their voices but also to say how excited I am to continue the important work of those who have come before me especially the amazing Lori La Lama The teachers I walk al work alongside every day are truly incredible creative
compassionate and constantly giving of both their time and their own re resources And that brings me to my concern I'm deeply afraid of seeing vital programs and essential staff being cut What's happening in Wayne is unsettling Our Clifton team is worried
and rightfully so But you our board have the power to support one Clifton by voting for at least 4% if not more Please don't ever doubt the value and dedication of Clifton staff When you have a chance to give them more tools more support more room to shine please
take it Let them teach Let them thrive And in doing so let our students thrive Thank you Good evening My name is Christy Wilson I an American history and civics teacher at Woodro Wilson Middle School I also have strong ties to this community My grandparents met at Clifton High
School now known as Christopher My grandfather dedicated 38 years of his life to teaching math here as well My mom aunts and uncles all went through the Clifton school system My aunt started her teaching career as an art teacher at Woodro My uncle spent years as a PE teacher at school 13 the high
school Christopher and school 5 I started my schooling at school one and my entire 12-year teaching career is here Needless to say my family and I are invested in the Clifton Public Schools I'm here tonight because like many of my colleagues I'm deeply concerned about
the impact of potential budget cuts on our students Specifically reducing the levy from 2% to 0% could result in a loss of $3 million money for our students In addition Governor Murphy issued a recent statement about how the Clifton School District will be one of the 20
districts affected by the elimination of federal ESSER funding With both of these items weighing on my mind I felt compelled to speak here I attended the three strategic planning meetings We worked together to help develop goals for our district over the next five years We talked about the incredible
programs we have in place but we also acknowledged our concerns about staying competitive with the surrounding schools If our funding is cut I fear these goals will remain just that goals and not realities At the first district planning meeting in Dr Robertsy's state of the
district speech he reviewed the budget which included that our district is 21,272,923 under adequacy According to the Department of Education a 2% annual levy is what the Department of Education recommends and we spent years not taking advantage of that Clifton staff members
are already doing a lot with the little that we have The last two years the board of education recognized this need and provided resources which benefited the welfare of our students This is more than just reorganizing the allocation of funds We need sufficient resources to
support our school community While I understand the importance of wisely managing taxpayer money we also need to ask ourselves are we investing in our future when we short change our children's education our students are counting on us If we reduce
funding these students will be the ones who suffer They will lose access to the programs that help them become well-rounded individuals and responsible citizens We owe it to them to ensure they have the tools and opportunities they need to succeed I implore the board of education to consider at least a 4%
levy Thank you for your time and consideration I trust you will make a decision that reflects the best interests of our students our community and the future of Clifton Good evening uh board commissioners Dr Central Administration Thank you for having us here uh this evening I definitely will not need this alarm
clock Uh my my bedtime alarm is going to ring in about 3 minutes So um with that being said uh when I first arrived in September of 2022 and I was right here at this very podium thanking you Excuse me one moment Could you please I'm sorry I'm Steven Vienna My apologies Stephen
Vienna supervisor of health and phys Um so like I was saying when I first arrived in in September of uh September 1st of 2022 and I was given the fizzed schedule um one eyepopping stat came to mind and I saw it and uh we're going to
talk a lot this evening about dollars and cents but the first thing that I saw was relationships And uh Dr Robtos you took the the wind out of my sales with that when you when you spoke just now Um I noticed on that schedule that there
were 39 expected doubled classes in the health and phys department Uh that that to me is not the norm It's not the expectation It's not what I would want for our students because I know that puts our teachers in in a situation that uh doesn't allow them to build the relationships that they would we would
like to see within my first year I made that my my top priority Um with that being said uh with enrollment changes for year number two that number if we if we did the math ballooned up to 69 doubled classes for the 23 24 school
year With the support of this board of education and our central administration by the end of that summer my first summer doing that schedule that number came down to six doubled classes for the school year I want to thank you even further that I'm very proud to say that
with this support and obviously the tough decisions that you have to make Uh we are now currently at zero doubled classes across the district which is a tribute to the relationships that we've built to the work that you do up here Um it is a very difficult decision but we
support obviously we thank you for your support and we understand it's a difficult decision and um we obviously have been the fruit we have been receiving the fruits of your labor and I thank you for that Good evening commissioners Dr Robert Toy in central administration I'm Aaron
Jagger I'm the supervisor of math and business at Clifton High School Um I'm coming to speak to you today both as a supervisor and employee and also as a a Clipton graduate So as a Clipton employee I want to thank you all for all that you've done in the past and all that you continue to do for us I know
that it's a lot of time that you all spend here discussing this and worrying about our students and our staff and this community Um and that's something I wanted to come and say thank you for in our programs that we have here as well Thank you for helping Clipton to grow
It's something I've seen in my 16 years here working as a teacher and an instructional coach and now as a supervisor but it's something I've also seen as a resident and my mother has seen as a resident My husband my mother-in-law we're all Clifton graduates and we've seen our community and our schools grow and it's something I'm proud to say that I'm part of the
Clifton community and I always mention that because I'm so proud of that Um so I want you to take that into consideration Something I always tell my husband is you know follow your dreams And he did And I've seen so many of my friends do that as well And I don't want you to take that away from our students
and allow them to follow their dreams allow them to have those programs that they may need to support their mathematics instruction their ELA instruction the after-school programs our academic awards dinners field trips those opportunities that our students don't get and they get at our schools
which are such a a hub here in Clifton So please when you're making these tough decisions and I know that they are tough think of those students and their dreams and how are you helping them achieve them Thank you Good evening board Uh my name is Marie Rose Um I'm speaking as a teacher from
Clifton High School and as a parent of Clifton Um first as a teacher I do teach the MLL students the multilingual students uh algebra 1 which can be difficult at times but such a pleasure at the same time Um I know one of the
best parts of the day is the morning announcements the morning show which is created by the students That's a program by itself where they broadcast um all the different organizations extracurricular activities sports and that really gets my MLL students very
motivated um and try to get stay engaged in the community uh integrate and everything I'm also here to speak as a parent because I think that's even more important That's why I'm really here Um I have two children They both go to Christopher Columbus Middle School I'm
very proud of their accomplishments straight A students They're um involved in the band They're involved in sports Um and I would love for them to continue to be in these extracurricular activities that we do offer at Clifton So I do thank you guys for providing
those uh funds so that we are able to create it and I do ask that it continues Did you guys know that uh the robotics team just went in Philly the regionals and they're moving on to nationals so that's a wonderful accomplishment and
that's one of the things I noticed on Mr Shahada's list Um as well as the IC program which is the enrichment summer program my kids do every year Uh where they play band they do plays they do all sorts of stuff Speaking of plays at the high school have you guys seen what an
incredible job they do every time the Sweeney Todd show that just happened and the kids own it and we do not want to take away from those opportunities So I do ask as a member of this community as a staff member um and you know as a one
of the many staff members that are here to please uh approve this budget uh so that the kids may continue to enjoy these uh extracurricular activities Thank you of course my lights on on my phone Um good evening board commissioners My
name is Aaron Muda I'm the K through8 math supervisor here in Clifton School District I'm going to make this uh short Um I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for continuing to fund our curriculum and our programs here in Clifton Our students deserve the best
academic programs that um we can give them And I thank you guys for always funding uh our programs To be honest with you the current funding proposals that are less than what Mr Shahada and Dr Robert Totoy
are asking for um are unsettling at best Um while we have come a long way we have a lot farther to go Um so it is my sincere hope that you continue to vote for uh and fund our district at um the
recommendations of Dr Roberts and Mr Shahara So thank you very much Uh good evening ladies and gentlemen of the board My name is Jeene Carlos Gonzalez I'm a criminal justice teacher at Clifton High School Clifton is known as a city that
cares Today I urge you to live up to that promise not just in words but in action Just look around us In Wayne 40 district employees are being laid off On top of that 18 retired staff members won't be replaced next year They're
privatizing before and after school programs Students may now have to pay fees just to participate in sports and extracurriculars Even school security is being scaled back with police officers replaced by in-house personnel In our
neighboring town in Pake they're eliminating 51 positions due to financial strains These are not abstract numbers These are teachers mentors custodial staff that are being taken away from children The question is simple Is this the Clifton we want for
our kids we do not uh do we not see the warning signs from our neighboring towns do we not value our children's future more than a rigid 2% tax levy we have a choice now To invest in our students or to watch the slow erosion of
our quality and care we built over this generation Our students deserve more Our community can do more Let's be bold Let's be compassionate Let's be the Clifton the city that cares Thank you
Is there anyone else who wishes to speak this evening thank you Good evening I'm Donna Papowitch I do not work here I used to Okay Um I have no position So I guess I should disclaim that everything I say
is just for me Um first I'm just going to ask the people sitting up there You see how I'm sitting forward speaking into my mic That's what you all need to do I'm sitting in the room and I can't hear you Okay you and and I'm hearing
impaired So it's really not fair if you have a mic if you're not using it correctly So please do like I'm doing right into the mic Okay I had time to prepare something because I was teaching today and as
usual no one's listening to me Um um egg prices are going up Um everything I want to buy goes up We just had a floor collapse in my bathroom We had to redo everything I
mean man you're talking about economic uncertainty That's like in my own house It looks like we're heading for a recession And I know everything costs a lot But if we're only thinking
locally you know what that's selfish We have to think broadly globally about what is needed Now my research says and I'll phrase it
like that before everyone jumps on me that Gondi said a nation's greatness is measured by how it treats its weakest members Our weakest members or some of
our weakest members are our children and they are the future of our country There are present innocents and in the future they will
create a world based on their past and their past is our today And they didn't vote for an administration to cut all our aid or crash the stock market or ruin all our
retirements or raise prices They had no part of that whole thing Okay So why are they being punished you know there's a lot of ways people in this community can tighten your belts
I haven't seen one nail salon close Coffee shops are popping up all over I don't know about you guys I know I got a lot of years on many of you not all of you But to me coffee was I bought a
travel mug and I brought it from home I didn't go out every day and spend $10 at Starbucks or you know uh Paris Baguette or you know God even Duncan's like five bucks now Okay you brought something
from I brought my brown bag from home Um sometimes we're pennywise and pile is foolish and especially in government because we're worried about spending today but we're not looking towards the future If we don't educate these kids
today they and I hate to use the word drain but they're going to be a drain on society in the future They are not going to be able to make it They're not going to be able to hold jobs They're not going they're going to need our assistance And this isn't just special
need or or some category of student that we come up with This is all of them If we do not give them an education and give them the chance to get forward even if they get into college
they won't make it if they go to a trade you have to do the trade school at night to get certified They're not going to make it So um there's a big cause and effect and we see it throughout
history So let's not be part of it Let's make things better Um let's make things better for all of them because all our students need help And just before I run out of time one of
our other groups that is um shall we say uh innocent our seniors but they have a senior freeze If we're making over 150K they're not getting a tax raise And you know what if you're making over 150K God I wish I was
you And I could Mark I hope Chew's here because I think we could all use a little Chewy tonight Thank you Is there anyone else who would like to speak this evening good evening commissioners Uh my name is
Matt Ward Ven Sulav Um I've been watching your meetings very closely on television I had the pleasure of being at the strategic planning sessions I was probably one of the few community people that were there Okay Someone not working
with the board but actually as a community person I know most of you very very well I'm a former board member and past president of the board as well as being a former councilman in the city I know what it can be like when budgets were
defeated and what that means to have to sit through that process I'm one of the very few people that's been on both sides of that discussion So I know what it's like Let me just say this There's two words in the state constitution One is the word thorough
and the other word is the word efficient So you must balance both of those and to take to heart what was said by the business administrator You have to assume worst case scenarios Now this is not the time to think otherwise
More importantly I would urge you and I know that there was in my time and there probably still is the municipal alliance where certain members of the board and certain members of the council the superintendent we have an interim city manager You folks need to make sure that
your case is being thoroughly understood by the people who are on both sides of Clifton Avenue and make sure they're aware of it I don't need to say what the needs of kids are there There is certainly there Anybody who's seen the district over the
years as I have my my middle brother Tom was in the first graduating class out of the Kofax building My brother Ed was in the last class that came out of school 10 which is now a parking lot So we've seen the progression but I will tell you
this you need to make sure you reach out to our legislators Make sure they're thoroughly aware of what's going on We have an important governor's race coming up It's time to get those candidates on record about where they stand for districts like Clifton We're not an
Abbott district This is not Park Ridge This is not upper Saddle River This is real 85% I could be off by a few percentage points is picked up by local property taxpayers So you really need to make sure you understand where the money's coming from I'm not going to
talk about 2% or 4% or go zero I'm not sufficiently up to speed to comment on that But I will tell you this there are ramifications There are people who won't be at this microphone that are citizens of the city and they have to pay for this increase whatever it is So I would
ask you to make sure that you get your message out as best as can be to any community groups that are available Talk to the municipal alliance See what is possible that can be done The county is looking at an increase In all probability the city will Down the pike
the city is looking at a revalve situation These are really tough issues on all sides of the of the can So what I was going to say to you tonight it is very difficult being where you're in the position you are The world changed as we know it as we walked into
2025 All the assumptions of the past can be gone I'm sorry to hear what those words are that you had to indicate about worst case scenario but they're true and they need to be taken seriously Um I would just ask you in
conclusion reach out and communicate to as many different people as possible I don't think anybody wants to see a kid go without the proper learning There's nobody I don't think that wants to see that happen There are needs today that people who went to school 30 years ago had no idea what's going on in the
schools today And you need to communicate that to them as much as possible It was a learning experience being at the strategic planning meetings and getting to understand what teachers are going through today Okay My time on the board seems dinosauric from when I
was on the board But I will tell you that some of the same needs are still here You have to communicate If you don't do this correctly what'll happen is we'll be in a situation where we'll be playing catchup and we can't have anybody be embittered that they weren't
listened to You know my father used to say this all the time He said "Matt never forget you're born with two ears and one mouth." So what I would say to each of you really simply start to divvy up and how to get out to community groups We don't have as many as we used to in Clifton because the internet
basically has become the community meeting ground but you need to make sure that you get your story out there I'm willing to help I had the pleasure of meeting many of you folks at the strategic meetings It was a good opportunity I congratulate the board for that But more importantly right now this
is really tough folks We just lost three senior people on the city side and the city right now is trying to get its act together on what it will do with its budget The county is going through its situation So you need to communicate as clearly as possible what's going to go on and what's taking place And I just
want to say to you I appreciate the time and the service that you do as a volunteer People have no idea the amount of time and active involvement that a commissioner does And I applaud central administration okay the people that are on the front lines These are our kids
This is our city So I want to say I wish you well on this but please think long and hard It's a thorough education but it has to also be an efficient one Thank you very much Good evening board commissioners people at everyone at home
Um I want to start off by saying that I wholeheartedly Excuse me Could you please know who you are but and I've been here enough to know that Elias Ragsdale Thank you Um I understand many in this room and those that spoke today advocated for a tax increase even up to 4% to ensure that our schools remain
well funded And while I wholeheartedly support this investment in education our students deserve the best That's undeniable I was a student uh in June right less than a year ago But at the same time it's important that we balance this investment with fiscal
responsibility Before we ask tax taxpayers for more we need to ensure that every dollar we currently have is being used as efficiently as possible We have to be creative in how we approach our budget looking for ways to eliminate waste and streamline services that don't directly benefit students or things that
we have provided to students that simply don't work Cuts if needed should come from top down focusing on administrative cost and areas where we can improve efficiency not from the classroom or for ser from services that directly support our students I know recently we created the
position of assistant superintendent of business for how long did we just have a business administrator and actually we still both we still have both of those positions and I'm yet to receive a difference in those job descriptions This is about prioritizing what truly matters in ensuring that every dollar
spent contributes to student success and and as Mr Ward said you guys have a very hard decision because you have a commitment to the student success as well as to the taxpayer And once again I was a student less than a year ago But I also understand the more
complex role that you take on So by making smart decisions strategic decisions investing in education while being responsible stewards of taxpayer money there is a way to find a balance that ensures our schools are well funded our students have the resources they need and we remain accountable to our
community And lastly I want to say that I've come to this mic advocating for tax increases as well We h we cannot keep the pattern of zeros but we also cannot keep the pattern of continuing to burden the taxpayer And that's where administration comes in and that's where the creativity of you all come in to
finding that equal balance Thank you Is there anyone else who wishes to speak this evening seeing none motion Seeing none motion to close Motion by Commissioner Batford seconded by Commissioner
Brunak Okay so let's open it up for a second round here Um Commissioner Suarez I know had a question before we broke to public recognition Thank you President Paris And just briefly thank you for everyone who spoke It was so heartwarming to see the community and
staff come out in in these numbers I wish we had those numbers on many other meetings so we can hear from the community But thank you to everyone Um but that was an aside Um my question thank you Dr Robertsi earlier for describing what we said no to I thought
that was extremely important to express Um I noticed I tried to jot down many of the things as you were um naming them and I noticed most of it was to support our special education students Um what number would we need to go up to in
order to and and to be quite honest I don't see this even as a wish list I see this as how can we best educate our students um wish lists to me are you know I would like to paint over all of our walls kind of a thing But um what number do and and Mr Shahada perhaps can
answer this as well What number do would we could we go up to to meet the needs of um what we said no to so I um Miss Morris thank you uh so much I do have that number in my papers here somewhere
So Matt if you find it before me um see that um you want to borrow it i don't mind you take I don't mind you answering the question So I think just to reiterate the question is of those things that I listed as needs that we
said no to what what's that total number and what would the budget have to be increased the tax have to be increased to get those things uh that's very uh tough just because special ed positions those were mainly special education
positions I would say 90% of them um they are coming at a premium nowadays just because they're a dime a dozen It's very hard to I think I use that phrase wrong They're very hard to come by Um I don't want to lie and guess but
comfortably I'm not advocating for this I'm just answering the question So you know people talking about trim the fat have a seat Uh I would say about 12% which come out to about 17 million because you have to include benefits as well
I did want to say Miss Suarez and I feel for our neighboring districts Wayne and and Pay and the districts that are cutting it may be a blessing in disguise for Clifton Um unfort I hate to say it like that but uh that they may lose some
good staff that that come down the street to to Clifton and join us because there is still a significant teacher shortage especially in the areas of special ed regardless if we hire additional just on our needs right now Anyone else
i have a question Yep Commissioner Kenova how how long do you mentioned how there's this one-year sort of like magical we could we could go up to a number How long do we have to decide on that if we pass a budget of 2% do we have until the end of the year is it the
fiscal year is it just in that time frame of of May may 1 whatever whatever time we do that vote that's that's the Mr Shone Wasn't I'm sorry I want to go back and clear Wasn't there an April 14th date we have to let the county know So you
have to apply but applying does not mean that you are okay going to do it So that's important It if it's something we're even going to consider before May 1st to go above 2% we have to apply which is not like a big thing It's not a
big deal Um so if and if we're going to continue to discuss this um then we probably should just apply And as Mr Mr Shah said applying doesn't mean you're doing anything Um but I I knew there was an April 14th date I just wanted to clarify
what that was You are correct So so here's my concern My concern is that we all agree on a budget whether it's 012 whatever it's going to be Um and then that $20 million shortfall becomes reality and then what do we do so if we
had time with that if we could have some sort of extension and say "We're passing a prelim preliminary budget now because you don't even have your act together to tell us you know about this money." Um and and I'm willing I'm willing you know to take the reigns on that and talk with other districts I see there's 20 other
districts there Let's get them all together and uh and get their representatives too and figure out you know what's going on I don't mind doing that So I'm I'm pretty sure Mr Tabicanin can clarify this but there is like a statutorial date where the budget has to
be passed by something by the governor and the legislature I'm assuming it has to do with tax purposes and getting everything ready for the July 1 uh payout So we get paid twice a month from the city on taxes and uh this and once a month I believe like on the fourth of
every month from the state for state aid So they have to know what they're doing to be able to get their ducks in a row So that's why the budget is due first or second week of May something like that I don't know the number off the top of my head The $20 million shortfall that you're talking about this evening is not a
creature of the New Jersey uh state government it's a creature of the federal government Um so while it may be that there's an appearance of um strength in numbers so to speak that you can get 20 other districts to go
petition the state of New Jersey to do something about it the um likelihood the political reality of that is deeply troubling Um and so to the extent that uh New Jersey will join very likely I
agree with you Dr Robotozi that there's very little likelihood that there's not going to be some level of litigation arising out of what's going on in Washington and percolating down Um the the scarcity of resources in the state
of New Jersey is acute and um the belief that the state is going to be able to ride in and and bail whether it's Clifton or any of the other 20 some odd districts um is um very very challenging
to believe that that's going to be a reality Uh I think the the prudent um conservative approach would be to believe that that $20 million is not going to be a reality for your community and that you should be planning
accordingly whatever that may mean to you all Um but the idea that Trenton is going to come in and and save the day on this one is is problematic The 20 communities on that list do not include
the double that number who have suffered reductions in state aid who are equally stressing um having financial distress as a result of of what's going on So it's it's I think you need to plan that
you're in this on your own for the foreseeable future And I don't want to be a Debbie Downer I'm not I'm not and I think we should do that I think we should go to an executive session and talk about some of those things we mentioned earlier But I was under the impression that by removing the board of
the education at a federal level that they're allowing states for control which I'm assuming would be then the state if we wanted to pick up these additional programs of title one etc would do that or for these special needs um laws that are enacted in the federal level that they would do that So that's
my position of where I'm coming from Yeah I I think Mr Kenova I think what we were expecting if the Department of Education was eliminated at the federal level that some of the functions that they finance would just be moved to different departments For example Title
One is the biggest one right the president was quoted as saying they were not going to touch Title One money And this was a couple months ago so things change So even if the Department of Education was eliminated maybe that was going to
go to Treasury or some other department that would distribute the money That was our expectation HHS Yeah H um was that human and health services Yeah I don't know that the state was actually going to just be given those funds
Okay One more question I just want to be clear on this so people from the community can hear We have how much money in cap reserve uh what is left in the bank is uh 12 a little over 12 million Okay And what is
the cuts that we're projecting that we're going to receive from uh or get cut from the federal government uh 20 million But I just want to make it clear that that 12 million is put into a special account for capital improvements raining day funds for fiscal I mean um
facilities issues Okay couldn't supplement the This is I'm I'm thinking like that's in a bank That's in an account God forbid we get the 20 million cut and they come out with a rule that you're allowed to use cap
reserve in this district How many buildings do we have 24 fish We have a freak storm We have a freak storm and three of our roofs bu blow off Ballpark estimate How much does three roofs cost oh depending on the
building Um I would say on average 3 million No I'm I'm trying to make I'm trying to There's a reason why I'm going here Anywhere between three to three and up So we have to save that money for rainy day Absolutely Period That's why we have So we can't touch that money for uh instruction extracurricular nothing
That is our rainy day fund for any kind of emergency If we do have a sunny year and we have a little extra we can do a project here or there Correct So we can't use that for salary And Miss Bazford you know there's something that happens every year I know because if
it's going to happen it's going to happen in Clifton June right we have a flood We have a a bad snow a rainstorm One of our schools suffer from those rainstorms all the time and it's always an issue there So that can't be touched Correct Yes ma'am So we're looking at a
deficit regardless of where we go right yes We started off last year in the right direction That's all I'm saying I got accused and former people being on this board got accused of not going in the right direction for years which was not really
our fault because we were advised that way We were told So I'm asking everyone on this board whoever sits on finance whoever is in in involved in those conversations for years Now is the time to speak up to tell us if we don't do
this how are we going to recover two years from now three years from now four years from now because now we're seeing those effects from all the years that we did not fund this district So I I guess you know where I'm going with my comments but or how I'm
going to vote but I took an oath on a Bible I was there to uphold the Constitution of the United States I'll keep it for my comments that thank you for answering those questions
Commissioner Suarez thank you President Paris Um and and I just wanted in reflection from what was mentioned before and I'm sorry I'm a bit of a processor so it took me a few minutes and thank you um Commissioner Basford for sharing your ideas Um in connection with
that if it would be I wouldn't say the word reasonable but we would have reason to go up to 12% if necessary in order to meet the needs that were mentioned on uh things we said no to Um and we are only asking for a 2% increase to maintain
what we already have And as many of the educators in the audience today requested a 4% I just wanted to it is my opinion that at this time after everything that has been shared tonight from Dr Robert Tozy's um excellent
presentation to what has been shared with the educators who are in front of our students every single day I happen to care deeply about education but they are on the front lines seeing the impact of our budget decisions I personally
thinks that it's actually irresponsible to stop at 2% I think there's reason to go higher I'm not saying that that is on the board but I think that it should be a discussion at some point um because of the everything that has been shared
potential decreases what's been needed and all the things that we additionally need in the district And I just wanted to share that Okay good good meeting everyone Thank you for all your input Thank you to the public for for your input as well Um
we're up to board member comments Well I can remember who I think we're up to Mr Kenova to start actually Is that okay Mr Master i try to do it so that everybody's in right queue there So I think we're up to him I mean most of my comments are really have been said here tonight Um I think everyone realizes
that I'm in favor of at least a 2% increase at this point Um you know when when I was looking at this I was looking at I went on the state website I had given the link Thank you for that Where it shows an Excel file of all the districts across the state and you could
filter it by county You could filter by state You could even say just show me cities that have the word city in them And in every single category we're at the bottom third sometimes the bottom quarter In the city category we're actually fifth Fifth not good Fifth the
bottom fifth from the bottom Meaning that we're not even we're not even average So I was on this board for the first two years I did Mr I'm sorry I know it's your comments but not in what in spending in Oh average spend per people Thank you Sorry Thank you I just
wanted Yeah So I was on the when I got on this board the f the first year as we were seeing state increases we said why would we go out to the taxpayer and bop them on the head they've been overfunding because of this right so we said as that moves forward we're going to we're going
to give them a little bit of leeway and that's where the 0% increases came from but then the third year I was here I said the same thing we were looking at 0% I even said not not this year we'll talk about it maybe next year until Dr Robert Toy brought up and said "You
realize that we're not even average right these are all things we didn't talk about necessarily in finance at that time." You know uh we talked about our class size at that point It came all came out in a meeting and you all watched the meeting Um and literally mid meeting I said we can't do this When we
say we're giving status quo we're not even giving status quo like the average status quo We're saying we're a poor district and we're going to continue that for next year That's literally what we're saying So we're not putting we're not putting anything behind our students when we talk about things that we want
to do We we just went through a strategic plan where they literally laid out a plethora of things we could do and we should do and none of them had a zero dollar amount attached I'm sorry It's just that's just the way it goes So if we are going to fund education which I
think we all swore to do we we all swore that you know we want to see this thing move forward I think we have to put we have to put something into it Um not sure what that is yet Again I do want to meet with an executive session I don't know if we could do that tonight to talk about some of those things We'll not be doing that tonight We can but that's up
to you We want to add it It's certainly up to you Mr Paris and the board We do have items Thursday night for executive session We could include it Thursday night We'll add it to Thursday Okay On Thursday right i am not You can Maggie will be here
Um I have confidence in you and Maggie So that's up to the board If if the board wants to go on executive tonight we can I we definitely have to go in Thursday So the only reason why I would say tonight is because this meeting is for tonight and we're specifically going to talk about that tonight if we do go
into executive tonight But um because it's so pressing that we only have a certain time frame to to do any of this stuff and to understand what it really means financially for us if we don't pay our certain things I'm not even going to say what that is Um I I think it's important that we do that now
I that would be my recommendation What the will of the board is yep Okay We will have it in executive session then So do you want to pause comments now or do you want a break for that or do you want to finish comments and then
make a motion for comments we can make Okay Someone make a motion for executive session to discuss You have to make a mo motion eventually You have to make a motion to go into executive session The question on the is whether you want to finish your comments first I just want to clarify we could add this to
Thursday's executive too Is that correct yes Yes Thank you I'm done with my comments Okay We'll we'll finish comments and then we'll take uh take motions if there are for executive session
Dr Danny Uh so I I'll just be brief Um I just want to say that um you know I don't think at you know going to a 0% you know is is is good or you know I I don't believe in that But when it comes to thinking about you know Clifton and
what you do um you know I have to say like you know Joe you were saying about you know like kind of giving a crappy you know um like not an and cost per is lower than
average Yeah Yeah But what you were it I don't know It seemed to me like you were saying what we offer or or something I don't It was just the way you said it it seemed like it was like like average or below average of what we're sort of giving But you know um I work in a
district and a lot of the things that we give our students here um our students don't get They have to pay They have to fund raise They're always having bake sales They're always doing things They don't you know project graduation is is not something that's
given It's like they have to fundraise they have to do senior fundraising junior fundraising you know So I see a difference in what is offered here and what is offered I mean we offer excellent electives here Um we offer
that in my district as well but there are a lot of electives here And you know um AP courses and and things that you know that when I look at it's like wow you know there's a lot And um this
district you know does help out a lot with students in terms of putting in the money there to make sure that the students have this great academic experience So you know I I have to say I
mean I I think that they do a great job And if you're you know if the administration is saying 2% I think that's fair I think going up higher and I mean we did we asked um you know again the taxpayers for a referendum and they
did it and in the past you know they they didn't do that and they they said yes to it and you know maybe that's because of all the zeros that we put there so maybe that's why they said you know what okay and you know we've went to 4% and I think that it would be
unwise to go I don't agree with you Miss Suarez and and that's all All right because we can have differing opinions but you know I think the the administration said the 2% I think it's fair and we offer a lot for our students
We pay for a lot Maybe in the future we won't be able to pay for those things Maybe we won't be able to And so again I think um you know somebody in the public said it was Elias and he said you know it's that that delicate balance And I
think Mr reward too That's kind of like that delicate balance Um just one second I I never go over um you know and I think it's that delicate balance of you know keeping in mind the taxpayer but yet you know thorough and efficient and you know this is what is needed and we
don't know I mean maybe next year you know we'll have to look at that But I mean I just think for for this year um we've just got to you know think outside the box look at things a little bit differently And as I said um I just see that Clifton offers a lot of wonderful
things for its students that my district has you know the parents paying for and the students um going and you know fundraising So I think we're doing a great job Thank you Thank you Dr
Danny Commissioner Mahia has arrived Yes Thank you everybody I was at work so just came here rushed over Um but I was listening to the whole thing about working and I know Commissioner Bassford mentioned something before talking about well before the passports weren't really
aware of all the repercussions that were going to happen because of voting consistently 0% 0% point I think it was 75 that they voted one time So they weren't really aware of all the things that were going to happen because of it you kind of like not to say we dug our own hole but you know the board kind of
dug their own hole and the past couple years has been slowly trying to climb out of that ladder and then boom we get hit with what recently happened the past couple months months So you think to yourself like well what's next we we're losing money Are we going to cut staff
are we going to cut faculty and that's honestly nothing no one wants to hear Imagine I can't imagine it because I know there's going to be students crying saying "Hey what happened to my favorite teacher who was here you know last year how come all of a sudden my class that
has you know 16 kids now we have like 27 28 kids?" Um hey does my teacher even remember my name um just looking around here I see some of my former teachers Shout out Mr G How you doing um so I remember it vividly for me You know you
look back at it Um I remember when I was serving as a graduate assistant in the school of education at the time when you're sitting in in that classroom you don't realize how much impact you know your teachers have on you It's not until 5 10 6 years later that you realize like
wow they had such an impact on me that because of that I'm now where I am today because of all the things that they've done Um and it is sad to see that unfortunately you know based off the climate we're living in today you know things like that might happen they might
not happen Um but to hear that we're going to lose almost $20 million is you know blows your mind because those are things that are you know believe it or not they're unpreventable because if the government says we're taking 20 20 mil away well guess what they're taking 20 mil away And if we don't have those
reimbursements in already well too bad so sad That comes out of our own pocket Um just want to leave it with that Um thank you and have a great night Thank you Commissioner Mahia Commissioner Ciano Thank you President Paris It was funny
because I was like "Hey we're going to have two meetings this week so we should make a motion to suspend comments tonight but there's so many speakers tonight I didn't think it was fair." And a lot of good things came up so I'm going to be as quick as possible because my handwriting is horrible I could hardly read it Uh so I appreciate all
the speakers that came out tonight Uh I want to address the issue Dr Roberts made with the lack of trust I just want you to know I have nothing but the utmost confidence in the administration and I myself personally just couldn't send the budget to the county that I didn't agree with That was my own
personal thing Uh raising taxes does not drive people to Clifton I just want everybody to know that Um people come to Clifton for its proximity to New York City and its transit Uh and there's a lack of inventory in New Jersey right now Uh I speak to homeowners every day
and they are begging for a break We've gone up 10% in three years That's not a small number I'm not saying that I'm going to vote on 0% 0% is unreasonable but 2% to me at this time might be two Uh our obligation to the taxpayer is non-existent at this point I said it
once I'll say it again People are drowning and I see it every day Uh I want the students and the staff to have the best experience in town but sometimes unfortunately cuts need to be made in Clifton 32% of the households just approximately have children under
18 60 80% of the people are screaming for help Please help me Uh county tax sewer tax city tax everything's going up Um you know eggs have come down a little bit but they're still really high Uh the tax uh assessment is coming and it's
been 30 years And I know people don't think that's a big idea but I have to promise you that it is Uh typical tax assessment a third go down a third stay the same a third go higher We've talked about this The higher is going to be an astronomical number this time no matter what they do to the tax rate and all
signs are pointing to a number much higher than a third Uh so everybody has to remember that the homeowners are very much hurting It's not only the homeowners it's the business owners it's the people that just own properties in this town that are screaming for help at this point And that's all I have for
tonight Thank you Commissioner S Commissioner Suarez Thank you President Paris Uh thank you Commissioner Siana That was really helpful information Um and you know I just I'll keep it short as well I am absolutely in support of 2% and I'm open to a discussion for a
higher increase You know when I think about comparing to other districts and what other and and Dr Danny thank you um for your input as well I think having different opinions allows me to be a better thinker and understanding how other people perceive a situation Um but
I came on in this position as a steadfast advocate for public education and I I I stand on that and and with that when I hear our vulnerable students needing more support that they're not getting um that's what gives me pause
when I hear that we're at the fifth percentile of uh cost per pupil That gives me pause and it makes me think where are we imagining the district to be i I don't want the strategic planning meetings that we've had to be for not to be just to show Um I think there were
excellent ideas shared during that time and I think we should start making moves to make to plan for that Um so thank you current commissioner Kenova for for making that clear that we had these grandiose ideas but with no financial plan to meet them So I think if we begin
this conversation now um I'm not here in this seat to plate to people and and a popularity contest and and that's no shade to anyone It's just my personal thing is about public education and I strongly believe in in supporting it and funding it in the best ways we can Thank
you everyone Thank you Commissioner Suarez Commissioner Bassford Yes Just so for public knowledge the per pupil spending for parameters is $26,625 a year I sit one office away from the Paramis board of education president and they're going up 4% Okay
I'd like to take this moment to speak about trust While some may feel that it is shaken I want to be clear that for me trust is not lost Danny I can only speak for myself but I believe that the integrity of our process and our shared commitment to doing what's best for the
students staff of Clifton is intact I think that uh we were all expecting a different level of of the budget meeting last time I myself I was a little disappointed that that level wasn't there I did speak to Mr Shahada about it and I think that the expectation going
into the last meeting was very clear to all of us that we expected certain things and it didn't happen I think that's what you saw was the outcome But trust is not lost on this board I think tonight um the transparency of this open discussion the the community weighing in uh and also the staff weighing in is
what we needed as board members Every one of us took an oath to uphold the New Jersey Constitution to support and advance public education not to diminish it That responsibility is not just symbolistic It is our duty And I take that duty seriously Being able to sleep
at night means knowing that I've made decisions that protect our students and support staff and respect our taxpayers I want to be clear that I have not aligned myself with any partisan group or made promises to any special in interest group to vote one way or the
other My vote is always based solely on what I believe is in the best interest of the district with the knowledge that I'm given and the community as well as a whole This reality uh is that we shortchanged the district for many years We shortch changed the district for many
years We asked our schools to do more with less And while our educators did their best the impact was felt Last year we finally took a step in the right direction with the budget that we acknowledged the real needs of our students and staff That progress cannot
stop now This the needs need to continue I will not support any budget that cuts essential services academic program or ex extracurricular extracurricular activities that help shape and inspire our students The Clifton Public School System is one of the uh city's largest
employers and with that comes a tremendous obligation to maintain fiscal stability while safeguarding educational ex excellence Last year we raised taxes to meet what we called our wish list a budget that included a 4% raise for most
bargaining units With the rising cost of health benefits inflation and other uncertainty of the looming federal co cuts it is imperative that we preserve the process and the progress that we have made to keep our district operating at its current level I cannot in good
conscience support anything less than a 2% increase I do not want this board to be remembered as the one that cut programs that truly impact the lives of our students Extracurricular activities are not luxuries They are the lifelines for many of our young people They offer
structure inspiration and opportunity They make a world of difference in the life of a child Can I continue and I will not support a budget that puts them at risk I stand by a recommendation that our superintendent has made and the budget that was submitted to the county
for approval The proposal is not about e uh excess It's about protecting the heart of our district and doing the right by the community we serve Thank you Thank you Commissioner B Commissioner Brenak Thank you Mr President
I want to give a shout out to everybody who came here personally to comment It's It's very concerning to me what I'm all over this city Um maybe not as much as Commissioner Ciano We didn't have one person call in via Zoom and one person
come in here physically to oppose a tax increase It's it's mindboggling to me You got a bunch of keyboard warriors out there They scream at the world then they post misinformation about our administration
about our colleagues on this board is absolutely unacceptable to the city of Clifton to my colleagues on this board to the to the residents of the city of Clifton to the staff that work for our district I'm asking you to be courageous and I'm
asking no matter what decision that this board comes to May 1st I want to let everybody know that this administration the top of this administration Dr Roberts Miss Cusvich Mr Mr
Jenaro Mr Shahada they have my fullthroatated endorsement and u no matter what we have to go through I believe we will survive it and we will get through it Um but it's it's got to stop Make sure you know what you're talking about before you start punching
those keys on the keyboard before you hit that post button I'm begging all of you to do that It it gets me a little upset especially when you're not posting information that's true at all This board has been very This board has
been very transparent about relationships that have that currently exist on our board and the administration We've done everything in our power to make sure that conflicts do not occur within this We don't that's
the last thing this board needs We want to have transparency We're showing you the numbers This is the second budget meeting we're having prior to the final vote on May 1st And I'm asking all of you to please act like human beings
Finally I want to give my deepest condolences to the Bow and Diesel and Daris family on the loss of Trish uh who tragically passed away Thursday Uh way too young
Um born you know she graduated Clifton High School class of 86 Wonderful family friend spent lots of Christmas parties with her in addition to other events other charity events Um she moved back to Clifton in 2017 to
take care of her dying uh mother-in-law and uh sadly she just lost her battle to cancer So uh to the to the Bentonistl and the Remis family who have strong lineage here in Clifton please accept my
deepest condolences Thank you everybody for your time and God bless America Have a good night everybody Thank you Commissioner Braki Vice President Santiago I did not forget you Thank you Thank you President Paris I almost did
Thank you to um Dr Roberts and Mr Shiada for providing the the information We're lucky to have them so that they can provide to the public transparency They explain it so that our our public is informed I want to thank the public for coming out There were several Clifton
Public School alumni who are living examples of our investment in our in our district Imagine if they didn't have the proper funding when they were students Um we had strategic planning sessions as mentioned earlier which were great Some of the themes of the challenges were
classroom space more prek more before and after care bus transportation for all of our students just to name a few So a lot has changed since our last meeting An executive order was signed to eliminate the Department of Education
It's not just talk uh at this point They're actively attacking our students Clifton children We talked about 11 million in COVID funds Uh but there's another roughly 8 million if I'm not mistaken in other federal department of
education grants including title funding that may be cut Title funds go to lower income students ELLL students and special needs or students with disabilities the most vulnerable students Um this is not wasteful
spending that's being cut um you know you've got to be some kind of evil to harm students especially these these students the most vulnerable Uh so as far as wasteful spending in our district we get accolades on our audits Um and
again the administration provides presentations information like like today If we lose 20 million in federal funds that would be devastating not just to these students to all of our students it would have ripple effects Um just a reminder that
our district as you know is 11,000 plus students We are not a Mayberry school district We were talking about Washington I do not trust anything that's coming out of Washington I don't trust them to do the right thing They're the ones attacking our schools We should
assume that money will be on us If if the state gets less funding overall then they're going to have to make adjustments for themselves We We can't rely on them We don't know what that's going to look like Last year we approved 4% Not all of us but the board approved
4% This year administration wants 2% to continue current obligations fixed costs and the current educational experience As Dr Roberts said they cut to get to the 2% already Again that was before
this attack on our kids and a possible loss of $20 million An argument can be made that the district should be asking for more than the 2% but they're not asking for more than the 2% I'll be honest with you it's hard to do more than two because the price of groceries
and everything else still has not changed But if they go through with eliminating Department of Education 2% is not going to be enough to make up for that deficit that deficit There will be harm to our students This is an unprecedented time a historic time We
need to fight for our students and their future Clifton's future We need to do what's right to protect our students because if we don't do it who will thank you Good night Thank you Vice President Santiago I I don't think there's much more that I
can add that what has been stated already other than I just read to you our second code of ethics for school board members It's the second one First one is to uphold laws regulations of the state board of education uh pertaining to
schools Number two is I will make decisions in terms of the educational welfare of children and will seek to develop and maintain public schools that meet the needs of in of all children regardless of their ability race creed sex or social
standing I'm sensitive to taxpayers I'm a taxpayer and my 95-year-old mother's a taxpayer My sister's a taxpayer in this town But our obligation as commissioners of the board of education are to our students or to our children That's our
primary obligation given all the numbers that we've heard this evening any metric you want to look at whether it be our state funding situation whether it be the formula formulary of our needs as local
taxpayers to do our fair share whether it be the inflation rate that we're experiencing to the real cost increases that are fixed in our system be they contractual health care benefits If you
look at any of those numbers and you look at 2% um I don't know I I never was good at very high mathematics but all these costs are more than 2% So I believe the presentation Dr
Robertsi gave us I believe that these cuts and the list is alarming Commissioner Suarez because the cuts the non-additions that we're making affect in a large part our most vulnerable
students And that's something that over the past several years we had the increases for We added special ed We added reading specialists We added counselors We we added resources to help our most vulnerable
students So if this administration recommends 2% to keep the lights on and keep the services going I'm certainly going to support that motion to adjourn to executive session I al excuse me before you make
the motion I have something to add to executive session It's very short Thank you Okay It's uh uh CL uh CL I can't think of the word Client privilege Sorry Thank you
Okay Motion to go to executive session Motion Second Motion by Commissioner Suarez Seconded by second Commissioner Kenova U we need action No action We need to action will not be
taken So we will take approximately how long do you think minutes I'm going to say 30 minutes and then we'll be five minute recess Mr President Yes Yes absolutely Thank you Motion to go real nice
Okay welcome welcome back to uh from executive session Um motion to adjourn the meeting Motion second Motion by commissioner here Seconded by Kosher Suarez Everybody have a lovely evening Thank you