like to call sorry I'd like to call this meeting to order Will the secretary please call the role anna Braun here Timothy Cummings here Jamie Falco here Lewis Figureroa here Lee Wu Hong here I'm sorry Lorie Herrick here Passed right over you by mistake Sorry about
that Lorie Lax Wilbur Pan here Heather Guas here We have a quorum Please rise to salute the flag 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 Hi good evening I would like to thank the board for being so flexible on such short notice and making the plans to be here Uh the New Jersey open public
meeting Wait are we starting with that okay The New Jersey open public meeting laws was enacted to ensure the right of the public to have advanced notice of and to attend the meeting of public bodies at which any business affecting their interest is discussed and acted upon In accordance with the
provisions of this act the East Brunswick Board of Education has caused notice of this meeting to be published by having the date time and place thereof posted The Board of Education office written notice was also provided to the Sentinel the New York Star Ledger the Home News Tribune and the Alternative Press of East Brunswick and
Municipal Clerk of East Brunswick All board of education meetings with the exception of executive session are videotaped for later broadcast It is the policy of the board of education that videotaped meetings are not edited for any purpose Individuals who speak at
the board's public meetings should be aware of those videotaping rules All right And we begin this evening with the finance committee of the whole Yes Okay Um can you distribute these worksheets you can have
one Here you go Okay [Applause] So we're going to go through um this worksheet I'm going to go through each of the items uh as part of the recommendations Um and then following um
my going through this uh we're going to have a brief PowerPoint um and then uh open it up for discussion discussion Thank you Okay So um looking uh on page one row four is
the uh restoration of the co-eing model for band and orchestra at Churchill Row five is the restoration of the co-eing model for band and orchestra at Hammershold Row six is the restoration of the Hammershel school schedule to be
as it currently is Row seven is reinstatement of one fine arts teaching position This is a shared position between Hammershold and Church uh Hammershold and the high school Row eight reinstating uh the
transportation to high school graduation and eliminating the employee mileage reimbursement that was associated with um not providing the transportation um and that is um providing equity across uh the student
participants Uh now the next several items relate to late bus services Row 10 is the reinstatement of Churchill late bus service one day per week
Row 11 is reducing the high school late bus service from three days to one day per week Row 12 is reinstating the Hammershold late bus service one day per week Now a little bit of information
regarding those three items So we had um had the transportation department monitor um the usage of each of the routes and there are four zones within the town Uh so that's I'm sorry six zones within the
town So that's six buses from each school servicing various aspects of the town So here's some of the details for the high school of the six buses The low usage was four students for the period
of time assessed The high was 18 The average was between 6 and 14 students per bus At Churchill the low was one student on a bus The high was 28 The average was
between three and 20 students per bus At Hammershold the low was no students on the bus The high was 13 students on the bus The average was between four and eight So based on those
numbers um it seems that reducing uh to one day a week is certainly feasible and would continue to provide students the opportunity to participate in clubs and activities Um uh benefit from the use of
the uh late bus service and uh it provides a certain amount of equilibrium across the board Next on page two transportation Um this is the restoration of full-time uh bus drivers
back to 8 hours per day Uh this is an item that would have to be negotiated So uh that has to come off the table Uh item four uh row 14 Um this is a reduction in two teaching staff members at Hammershold Um
this is strictly due to enrollment It does not impact program The next series of rows from row 15 through row
27 on page three are all reductions in summer staff development So this is a reduction in summer staff development for practical arts uh artificial intelligence flex the arts
ILA for K6 English for grades 7 to 12 world languages and ELELLL science 7 to 12 science K to 6 math 7 to 12 math K to6 social studies and health and PE
this is not eliminating ating all staff development the necessary aspects of staff development will be retained So these um these can be reduced Row 28 the abolishment of two full-time bus
driver positions These are vacant positions not currently occupied and the and the um transportation department um assessed and uh determined that um they can continue to provide services with the existing staffing These two
positions can be reduced but they did request as is shown on row 29 that one of the two positions be converted to a part-time position That's 5.7 hours daily The next several items uh pertain to
athletics Um so the first one on row 30 it's the abolishment of a coaching stipen for freshman fall cheer This is and these are all due to low participation So for example on this first one for freshman fall cheer there are only five
participants on row 31 for freshman baseball in fiscal 2024 there were 10 participants in the current year there are 10 participants and in each of these instances uh the students have the
opportunity to join uh there's ample room on the teams uh to join the uh JV uh or even varsity if they made it up at the high school and there is transportation up to the high school Uh row 32 abolishing this uh
stipen for freshman softball again low participation Last year there were 10 participants This year there are nine On row 33 freshman girls soccer um there are nine participants this year
And then row 34 for varsity gymnastics there are eight participants So the recommendation is reducing from two coaches to one coach Moving on
row 35 36 and 37 Uh we have received um transportation contract renewal commitments from several of our largest contracted services and they have uh
agreed to a 2% increase rather than the CPI and the CPI that uh under the state uh regulations uh was I believe 3.51% So as a result of those contracts coming
in at less we're able to make reductions in those areas Uh those uh total approximately $110,000 Row 38 a reduction in contractual professional memberships This is associated with positions that the board
gave consensus to reducing uh previously and they are reflected in the tenative budget on page five row 39 Uh this is a reduction in contracted
uh interpreter services Um and this is a result of efficiency We've been able to assess uh over the last year how that utilization has been the extent to which utilization is needed and so we're able to make a reduction
here in um translate document translation services The same thing applies We're able to um make some reductions in that area as a result of our experience over the last year The row 41 is a reduction in educ
program Uh the vendor has updated his quote and given us a new number and so this is an additional savings Row 42 it's a small amount but it's summer uh the summer academy uh celebration And then the last item on
row 43 is uh grape seed prek program This is for uh the uh bilingual ESL program and that would be an acquisition that would be deferred Karen So one two three four five
[Applause] Okay so now let's go through some additional data What does all of that mean we're going to begin with uh tax levy incentive uh aid data Now this is information received directly
from the department of education uh during uh the presentation on the tenative budget at the last meeting This is something that um I mentioned uh the state had not provided any information on this as yet and we literally just
received this uh last week So uh it's taken us um a little bit of time to go through and analyze the information Uh all school districts uh are not entitled to uh utilizing this Um there are
approximately 340 school districts in the state that have been determined um to qualify for uh this program Now this first screen has uh some data and as I said this all comes from the state What
the state tells us is that East Brunswick is spending below adequacy Adequacy components um include uh tax levy and several components of state
aid And given the current state aid and tax levies the state is determining we are below adequacy State is also telling us and this was reflected in our tenative budget documents We have available bank cap of
$292,000 and the maximum additional expenditure that could be requested is under $2.8 million So what does all of that mean what that means is that the total expenditure request as I
said may not exceed the 2.8 almost $2.8 million The tax levy portion of that is 2.6 million The tax levy incentive portion is $132,000 or 5% of the uh
$2.78 million based on the data that we just reviewed on the worksheets with the uh adbacks and the reductions If you look in the gray area what is
proposed is total expenditure request of 1,132 of which one thou 1,79,000 is related to the tax levy and
53 almost 54,000 is related to the state's uh aid portion Now that additional amount is about.74% um of an increase So one of the questions I think that folks have is well what does that mean in terms of
dollars you know how does that affect us individually so this is just based on a property tax bill of $10,000 So one would have to extrapolate to uh have that have this convert over to um what
this means for an individual's uh tax bill The school tax portion of a tax bill makes up about 65% So of that $10,000 about $6,500 would pertain to school taxes And
that's based off of the the current situation the tenative budget um which was already approved um reflected a 2.83% uh increase um in the general fund and
the debt service fund You recall the debt service fund because of the way the mortgage payments they uh eb and flow So sometimes they go a little bit up sometimes they go a little bit down but basically that's included in there So the ten tenative budget increase was
2.83% 83% or about $184 per year The cost of the net budget restorations so that list that we just went through the reductions and the adbacks don't net out So the cost of those net
budget restorations is less than 1% 74% or comes out to approximately $48 per year So the combined of the two brings
the levy increase to approximately 3.57% or $232 per year All right Are we going to go you want me to take everyone through line by line um
whatever your pleasure is All right Um I think for the purpose of the board we're going to go through line by line and seek consensus on just each line of this Um and then we can have discussion after that overall discussion Is that okay
sure Okay I do want to remind the board that everything that we just saw is based on all of this So if we don't have consensus on any one then that would change the number for the levy and all right for calculation sakes All right
For line four to reinstate the co-eing model of the band and orchestra positions Uh do I have consensus here in favor all right we have consensus there Uh to restore the co-eing model for
fifth and sixth grade band and orchestra Yes Yes Yes we have that To restore Hammershel School to its current status Yes Yes Okay we have that Uh to reinstate Line Seven the one fine arts
teacher Yeah On this side Tim Okay Over here Yes Okay Uh number eight graduation transportation over here Yes Okay we're good for eight
Uh number nine is an elimination of the employee mileage right that's tied to number eight That's tied to eight All right So those two just go together Let's just confirm consensus All right We're good for both eight and nine together You and here we are
good Uh number 11 is 10 Sorry 10 Thank you Is to reinstate the Church Hill bus one day a week The late bus Lea yes I have a quick question How is that what day is that how is that determined how does that all work out we
haven't We'll look at each of the days but um it's likely that uh each day would be a separate day We're going to take a look at what works best and work with the schools We'll coordinate around schedules for for clubs and activities after school I got you
So that's going from five days now down to three excuse me Three So just as a reminder Churchill was eliminated for late buses So we're putting back one day Okay Hammershold was also eliminated for late uh had late buses eliminated They'll be going based on this
recommendation the board's consensus would go back for one day a week One day and the high school would be reduced from 3 to one days Gotcha Thank you Is it possible to have that one day rotate just to kind of spread the pain around yes Yeah Okay Do we have consensus on
that to this side over here yes we do All right 11 to reduce the high school late bus from three days to one day over here I have a question on that Yes Uh we originally had wanted to h keep that in so it would
be more equitable for students in terms of getting to clubs and activities that they needed for college Um so I'm not sure how we're going to do that if we're reducing the amount of days for students to have transportation
on the late bus Well when to go through the data again the high school late buses in terms of student use the low now there are six buses So out on six buses the low was a usage of four
students The high was 18 So the average throughout the period was between six and 14 students per bus So there'll be opportunity for students to be able to utilize the buses and still uh participate in clubs and activities if their club and activity is on the day of
a bus Well they'll have that'll be part of the the management and the scheduling That's something you're going to have to Yeah we'll have to All right Again consensus to this side be okay with alignment Yes Over here Yes All right to reinstate the Hughes
late bus service one day per week Tim Okay over here All right we are good there All right number 13 We are restoring the full-time bus driver schedules from eight hours to seven hours
From 7 to 8 Oh sorry 7 to eight I'm backwards Okay Do I have consensus over here for that yes Yes Okay over here Yep we've got it Uh number 14 that's a reduction in teaching
staff due to decreases in enrollment consensus over here Can uh can we get more details as to which teaching staffers at a close session it's indicated on the chart I mean somewhat Yeah Um more detail than
what's on the chart If not that's fine I just want I I with what I have right now I don't have the specifics for that Okay We can get it for you though Yep Over here Questions consensus yeah Kind of just to know what it's about So would
I All right Uh number can I just lop together the summer staff ones summer staff would be 15 15 through through 27 All right that's the summer staff
development That's not all of it It's just what's listed there 15 through 27 Do I have consensus over here for that yes Lou Okay Okay Can you can we elaborate on that a little bit more too i just don't fully understand what what
happened there Uh we met with each of the supervisors and department heads and um brainstormed with them on what was really pertinent relevant timely uh work that has to be done this summer and what could be deferred throughout the school year and
at department meetings and so forth So this is a reduction It's not eliminating all of summer PD and everything required would remain That's what is reflected here So consensus to this side Yes
than we had over here Okay we are on 28 and 29 28 and 29 which are the bus driver positions consensus over here leu Yes
over here we are good there All right Uh 30 I'm going to put together the athletics So if we want to discuss we can discuss It' be 30 31 32 33 34 Do I have consensus over here there we
go Discussion Go ahead Lou Sorry Um can I I don't know much about the uh freshman fall cheer Uh what would be an optimum amount of students to participate anybody i mean I don't I don't know if anyone has that answer because five seems low but I can't say
for sure because I don't know the answer to that Between 12 Okay It's a big difference between 12 and 18 Joe could you please if you don't mind yeah you might want to come up here I have a couple other questions
Joe you might be a good one to answer this one too That's nice All right So treat you as a student right so five five seems to be a low amount is what you're saying Okay So let's look then at uh the next one would be freshman
baseball Uh now I'm is I see two years I see 24 and then 25 years 10 What would be an optimum amount of baseball players on a team where everybody gets a chance to play about roughly i want your Well you're a baseball guy
so I'm asking you So 10 to last the whole season is very difficult So you would want between 15 and 18 Uh the JV um and varsity teams both have about 15 players Um we
provided both uh numbers because at the time tryyouts were still taking place now the the season started So the the other challenge that we have with some of these freshman teams is finding teams to play There there's uh especially like in girls soccer freshman softball
baseball there there's a lot of games that get cancelceled because other schools can't field teams or freshman's the last or the first team or game to get cancelceled when there's not enough umps I know one of the recommendations was to reduce the schedule but keep the program Right So when I look at 10 and I
may disagree with you I think 18 kids is a lot on a on a baseball team It's not a fastmoving game It's a slower moving game If you want kids to really play and get experience and be part of a team I agree with anywhere from 12 to 15 would
probably would do that And I'm sorry I don't mean to interrupt Okay I'm just going off of experience from when my son went as was in high school and typically there were 20 22 kids on the the varsity team I don't know what JB was Not the he didn't play JB I'm sorry Right Because
he was a good player so he wouldn't have to worry about that Um another question regarding that Do you have any idea how many kids eighth graders are presently playing baseball since we're on baseball right now i do not have that number in front of me I believe it's 15 eighth
graders and I do believe there were cuts between the whole team So that does show that there would probably be quite a number of students that would be looking forward to doing that next year I don't have the exact number for the freshman or for the softball but I will say nine
10 players I just feel like we're cutting programs that are right on the cusp just to save a few thousand dollars when I I think these kids and these these families have been playing for a long time And I would rather say let's go recruit more kids especially when I
know for a fact middle school baseball how to make cuts So when I look at it that way I'm saying to myself you have a good problem We're making cuts at the lower levels but now because we had to make cuts because there were too many kids on the team now we're going to reduce the program as we go forward I I
don't I don't that doesn't jive with me I I think one of the things and again just based off of my experience the eighth grade team a lot of interest changed the nth grade and that maybe that's what we're seeing That's why we also provided two years of data that the numbers are low for
baseball and softball Um you know I I don't know how you you feel the team and and get through with nine players when it takes nine to play Um you know if somebody's sick injury it becomes very tough Okay Um so without belaboring it
because I understand you're not in position to really speak You're doing me a favor just trying to to hash this out But from my understanding there's plenty of kids who want to play But because there's only one coach that was hired you have one coach with 20 kids That's
what the eighth grade team did last year So they tried to make it equal Eighth grade seventh grade 10 kids each But with one coach it's almost impossible to make sure everyone's safe and learning and being watched at all times at the same time So instead of cutting the
program I would almost recommend that you would suggest possibly to add another coach at these levels so that you could have someone working with both groups Again the the strength of this district is what our offerings are I can get an AP class anywhere and not it's
not putting down AP classes but for for me when I look at what we offer kids above and beyond the classroom which would include the the band the orchestra and everything that's where I say we're we're we're looking we're we're falling short here So we're reducing it because
the numbers are low because we're telling coaches you can't have 25 kids on a team There's no way you can manage that One coach managing that many baseball players It wouldn't work So I mean I happen to know for a fact that right now there's I believe it's 14
or 15 eighth graders on the baseball team Those kids are looking to go next year to play freshman ball and there were cuts Now I don't know if eighth graders were cut I know seventh graders were cut So I think instead of saying let's reduce the program I think we
should be looking at how we can explore ways to possibly add to the program so that we again address the needs of more of our kids not less And I'm not blaming that That's not you I'm looking at you because we I feel you're looking at me Can I add in there just from my own
experience not with baseball but I know that when the students moved from 8th grade to 9th grade the eighth grade team was very large The nth grade team wasn't actually very large even though all the kids moved because some of the ninth graders went up and played JV So the eighth grade team had been like you said
the eighth grade team had a lot of interest and then the ninth grade team wasn't as large because some of the players immediately were pulled up to JV and won varsity interestingly But the question I was going to ask is are we encouraging the coaches to increase the size of the JV team or are we just Well
if we do that wouldn't we have to also increase the number of coaches that we have to right wouldn't that make sense if we're increasing to try to pull in 10 more kids or eight more kids I don't know Yeah the varsity team does have
several coaches at least two and typically there's a volunteer coach Um at the JV level off top of my head I I don't reme remember the the number Okay So can I ask a question that and I want to make sure that we all get the same information so what I'm hearing is that
we're going to reduce a coach not we're going to reduce the program or is the program gone if someone was to say I want to volunteer to coach freshman softball would that be an option because it's part of the program Varsity coach could say you know I have someone that I might want to coach that team Is that
something that is possible if we had the numbers of kids or are we saying because the coaching stipen is out programs closed dr Figuro I think that's an option because the the board would have to consider that person for approval on a board agenda as a volunteer coach So by
that acknowledgement the board would recognize that you want to run that that sport Um but I'm just looking at this If if you're looking at the cusp numbers then in terms of equity you'd
have to consider doing the exact same thing with girls soccer And well I might even get there yet Yeah I would agree I mean if I'm the if I'm the head coach in any of these sports and I want my program to continue to to to flourish I'm going to beat the bushes to try to
get more kids out That's true But in addition to that you know I'm I'm going to try to get someone to run that program So if we have it in the budget that we we have the transportation we have this the schedule we have uniforms whatever we need We just can't pay for a coach which I can't see that we couldn't
do that But if that's what I'm hearing then if I'm a head coach I'd like that option to be able to put someone in there that might say I' I'd like to volunteer coach the team So I'm I guess my question is do we have all the money is is is it just the
coaching stipen we're reducing or have we already said yeah no it's just the coaching st oh well I think that's an option that should be provided to the to the teams and uh and that that's and even for one year if they can get the numbers up I think
then the following year you know they should be paid again I would I don't even want I don't want to reduce it right now to be honest with you I think that's a mistake Aren't there excuse me aren't there additional fees that would also be um included in in this when you factor this in i mean if we eliminate the program there's there's supplemental
fees as well in terms of I mean we'd save on transportation We save on uh ref fees on all sorts of things that come out of that I mean this is this in total it's about 30k or less right so $27 Yeah It's not it's not that much money really for the five things I mean I hear what
you're saying Lou I I don't I don't have enough experience or knowledge to know whether or not you know the uh interest is there right i mean a field you know a girls soccer team of nine players doesn't even feel squad right right You need 11 So um are they even competing
right like I I I just don't know But I I agree with you in the sense of the comprehensive approach that this district needs to continue to instill maintain right um and so I am I am concerned about this as
well I mean for the sake of 27K I'm concerned about it That's I guess that's my point That's why if you told me that you had taken out all of expenses related to that program you have more of a significant savings but again at what cost so if
we're talking about $27,000 you know I I think we're looking at we're we're approaching this the wrong way I think we should be looking to add a coach so that now those kids who were cut could possibly go out on a team a freshman girls and I don't know that the freshman softball team was cut
I know uh I'm sorry girls um middle school softball I don't know if they were cut but I know the boys baseball was cut there were cuts So kids who wanted to play cannot play because there were too many kids on the team And
now what we're going to tell them is next year when you're freshman for those eighth graders you won't have a team So there's there's a double hit I didn't make it when I was in eighth grade let's say or whatever seventh grade and now I won't make I won't have an opportunity Now I
have to look at maybe playing JV or varsity when I I didn't even have an opportunity to play middle school So I I just think we're looking at it you know in in the wrong wrong way Do we have the number for 2022 2023 for both uh softball uh baseball and
softball teams no we don't Not at our fingertips Okay We can get that information now [Music] All right Anyone else sorry I just want to make sure I'm clear
So if a if a an athlete tries out for if this were to go into an into effect and an athlete tried out for the JB team because the freshman team was no longer an option there is the possibility that that athlete could not make that team whereby they would no longer have sports
for that period of time Correct Correct Okay that's correct So I have one more question about the gymnastic coach So this gymnastic is very high risky sports So one coach is enough to make sure every athlete are
safe That's for line 34 if you don't mind So um not too long ago we only had one coach for gymnastics and there was an ad due to uh the numbers popularity and the numbers are down to eight So just
reviewing everything that we could review and trying to come back and close this budget gap That that was part of the recommendations you know two coaches to eight athletes is a very high ratio with the understanding you know the the bars and the the horse thing I'm sorry
I'm not a gymnastics person Um you know is a little bit more technical and dangerous So um but it it can be done with one coach So when was the second coach added do you have any idea it's a
good question It's I want to say within the last 10 years Yeah Um I I I can't give you an exact year but I I do know the second coach was added Um so is that possible in future if more
student get involved we can add a second absolutely I mean the board could certainly make those changes right or look to add a volunteer coach you know that that's always an option Um and and a lot of programs do use volunteer coaches So Okay Thank you Yeah A lot of
our programs now have some volunteer coaches and some stipended for the large teams Yes Like Lou was saying how do you manage that many kids with one stipended coach we have some very I mean track and field is enormous but we have stipended coaches and then volunteers as
well All right for ninth grade Do we have consensus is the question Well this was as a as a group As a group you're doing do we want to break it down and do
one at a time well I just have a question at large because we're proposing cuts to um the stipen for four freshman sports Mhm Um that's $21,757 for 34 students as an average spend of about $640 a student But how do
you put a price tag on an experience and I hear what Lou is saying So I I wonder if there's a way to modify the stipend based on participation if there's any option for negotiation or is it just based on contractual obligations contractual Gotcha So it's volunteer or
stipen Yes Okay Thank you All right I need to know where the board is at with this I'd like to explore other opportunities to solve this Yeah I have a question too and this is a legal question
Uh because freshman sports are on their own We're talking about can a volunteer do that Would there be any issue with a volunteer running and being alone with the kids um without any other coaches around now that I assuming the person
passed all the other you know uh the background check background check and everything else It could even be a staff member right but I just want to make sure there's nothing legally that would prevent us from having a volunteer coach be alone and running a team by themselves because that's not like
that's not normally what happens No you'd have normally at the at the higher levels you have your volunteers as Heather was saying Yeah you'd want a certificated individual You'd want somebody who's experienced who's demonstrated sufficient experience Of course the criminal background check and all that
would have to be vetted and and and the person would have to pass but you'd also if it was only a volunteer you'd want to be sure that they had sufficient skill and experience to assuming the team right so assuming that we had that I just want to make sure there's nothing that prevents us from having a volunteer
coach running a whole team by themselves not someone who gets paid I I just don't know I don't think I don't recall ever seeing that anywhere So that's why I'm asking Well you just would want to make sure they had the requisite credentials and experience from a liability perspective to and and
from a efficacy perspective to actually fulfill that duty But s subject to all that experiential and uh background checking coming through there's nothing that would prevent it
Correct All right Thank you All right So we are looking at 30 31 32 33 34 and just remind you you know what we
don't have consensus for here then has to be found elsewhere right to this side I'm sorry 34 I'm sorry I'm so sorry is the one of two stars correct so you're lumping that one in with the
if you would like me to unlump that one Could we please sure So through 33 Do we have consensus or no i need heads to shake in some No consensus here No Okay We do not have consensus on 30 31
32 and 33 33 All right As to number 34 reducing gymnastics from two coaches to one So I'm going to ask again So that in this case if you do have a paid coach
that program could for one year get an a volunteer coach Correct So then that way if the they were able to get the numbers up the following year we could reconsider that Correct Okay So I feel better about that one At least you have someone getting paid to do the job All
right To this side consensus on gymnastics On that one to this side All right We have Yes On gymnastics All right taking us to uh number
35 I'll just do one at a time Number 35 Oh no That's the 35 36 and 37 That was the companies being willing to reduce Oh let us say yes to that Yes Yeah that's that's good We we are in favor of that
All right Number 38 is our uh professional memberships consensus over here Yes over here we are good there All right moving ahead to uh 39 and 40 Those are both on the
translators right yes Consensus over here I'm sorry I keep changing which side I go to I Okay Can we can we get a bit more detail on that and how that's currently being used number 39 or 40 Both Well 39 39 first Yeah 39
Do you mind no go ahead So in the current year we switched over to an interpretation service that uh we call into like a hotline and and based off of um year-to- date numbers and projecting out uh that amount has can be greatly
reduced uh when we were using in-person translation of course that's very expensive So trying to be as efficient as possible uh we switched over not knowing exactly how much that service was going to cost because it's based off of use It's similar to like 911 if
somebody calls and needs a translation Right So uh based off of going through teachers conferences and all that we're able to reduce it So so so just just so we're clear that so that means there really is not going to be any um there's
no reduction in service A reduction in service right there's still money for the service but we a different way that it's in both of these There's no reduction in services We were just able to once we had the experience under our belt to know how much have we been
utilizing the services and what that cost has been able to reduce the budget But we're not eliminating the budget Okay Thank you Thank you Joe All right Consensus for that That's uh lines 39 and 40 We're good Over here All right We are
good for 39 and 40 Uh number 41 The edge of climber Yes Over here And over here I have no idea what that is I'm sorry Dr Bully It's our data visualization tool Oh We're not
eliminating it It's the contra the um the company came back with a lower cost Okay For renewal and that's what this is reflecting Are we okay with them reducing our cost yes Yes Please say yes Please say yes
Okay Um number 42 Sorry I lost my place for a second I feel sad about that But can I ask about that yeah I because I I understand this ESL summer academy celebration I'm sure this means a lot to that group of people just could we just
discuss what that would mean esl is eliminated for the summer Oh so completely this past summer So there's no need uh going back through and line by line through the budget 400 bucks So it's not kids aren't going to need they're not missing out on anything Okay Thank you That's all they need to know
All right Consensus over here Yes And over here Okay Good Um and the deferred acquisition of Grape Seed number 43 over here and over here What does deferment look like it looks like
looking to potentially fund it in the next budget cycle Okay Any grants or opportunities uh or I don't we can talk about the whole other Yeah academics will will continue to look for those but you know if they come
up then great Uh but that's a that's a renewable uh program so it would have to be sustained All right Okay We have consensus on those two Yes All right Anything else with us
no All right That brings us to the good of the cause for the public The board of education recognizes the value of public comment on educational issues and the importance of allowing members of the public to express themselves on school matters of community interest In order
to permit the fair and orderly expression of such comment the board shall provide a period for public comment at every meeting of the board of board of education Residents are welcome to speak for up to three minutes The timing will be kept by the board secretary I would just request when you step up to speak that you give your name
and address unless you are a student If you're a student if you could just state your name and your school Bless you Um is there anyone wishing to address the board this evening come on up one second Oh and just give us one
second We're doing a quick switch of seats Are we keeping these or are we turning back in joe will collect those So the spreadsheets will come back This has to come back Thank you Okay Thank you for your patience Uh Tim
O'Neal 15 Carter Road One second One sec Okay Sorry Okay thank you Uh Tim O'Neal 15 Carter Road Um a lot of what I prepared actually Mr Figureroa addressed some of it so it's going to throw me off a little bit as I go through my notes Um I
just came from the JV baseball game where the boys played in wind that made it feel like it was well below freezing today and they all jogged off the fields with smiles on their faces Uh for many of our games the freshman and JV teams are combined leaving approximately 20 players on the varsity team and about 20
players on the JV team For the record that is way too many 18 is too many although I disagree with that number Um you have more players on the bench than in the game with our current configuration With only nine players on the field at a time this simply means
that some of these young athletes will rarely if ever get a chance to play in a game at all um we should be encouraging involvement in these programs instead of making participation more difficult One of the reasons the enrollment is even being discussed is because we've recently had
a rash of players leaving East Brunswick to go play in private schools and even even moving to neighboring towns because they find the programs there more enticing And since athletics is one of our three keys that's especially disturbing to me Uh maybe if we actually
showed we valued these programs that would not be the case Um um as Mr Figureroa highlighted uh picking and choosing to eliminate these few will save very little money while drastically impacting students for for
whom these sports are their major passion Also cutting high school programs for next year based on this year's numbers is shortsighted As Mr Figuroa pointed out using middle school or youth enrollment numbers would make a lot more sense Uh it in the the fact
that people in the big chairs at the front of the room here um came to this meeting planning on cutting these programs without considering the fact that you're looking at the wrong numbers is especially disturbing to me and unfortunately emblematic of what I've
seen in the district of late Uh my main concern really beyond sports is big picture decision- making such as the building of the temporary structure in Churchill Uh two years ago it was decided that our elementary schools were so overpopulated that we needed to build
the temporary structure and reorganize the entire district in order to accommodate all of our students But this year as soon as cuts were being discussed again one of the first things discussed was cutting Bow Monroe uh my students elementary school uh where
where they recently went It makes no logical sense that we went from bursting at the seams to the extent that we needed to add that temporary structure to having such low enrollment that we need to close buildings in the space of
two years That simply doesn't make sense As for looking for places to find the $21,000 that would save all freshman sports I would love to know the total cost of the raises for the administrators who got us in this financial predicament because that's where the cut should
start Allegra Sidler 12 South Woodland Avenue As you know since November parents have come here to speak about the elementary language arts curriculum While we have paused during this budget crisis this issue just really cannot fade into the background Ineffective
reading instruction is a budget issue We've shared examples on both ends of the spectrum where students are struggling with ineffective curricula bored and unchallenged or confused and denied interventions Yet there's been no public discussion of how we're evaluating our investment into a product
and methodology that is being removed from schools internationally Our latest school report card shows that nearly 30% of students districtwide still aren't reaching proficiency in language arts And even after our district proficiency target was lowered we still
didn't meet it At a time when we know that 95% of kids including those with special needs can learn to read what's the excuse we have great teachers involved parents and motivated students Families are already paying for private
testing and tutoring not to enhance the curriculum but to reverse it We keep hearing about costly out of district placements Some of those placements are actually related to structured literacy instruction including cases the district has litigated and lost In February
teachers were surveyed regarding the curriculum Where is that feedback also in February the state published recommendations from the student literacy working group which highlights the importance of highquality instructional materials for all students While the revised units of study which
is one thing that we use here has yet to be evaluated Historically both units of study and fontis and panel were given failing marks by ed reports one of the recommended material screening tools With this in mind and the new state literacy requirements set to take effect
later this year which require highquality instructional materials what is the plan to adapt there's a saying not to sound too cliche it's better to build a fence at the top of a cliff than park an ambulance at the bottom Ignoring this curriculum issue punting
interventions to higher grades increasing taxes to pay for short-sighted planning that's the ambulance and we deserve the fence Thank you Thank you Algra Good evening board Jeff Winston God shocked you You hear that jeff
Winston 44 Fresh Ponzi Brunswick So I was really hopeful in coming here tonight and uh I'm very happy to hear some of the board members really begin to address the issues here our product if we were to commoditize what we do here is our children and Dr
Falco I think had the line of the night when she said there's no you can't put a price tag on experience So when I hear as we dive back in again to the 71 line item list we're still talking about the same thing
to one to the point that one of the speakers made is reducing that experience for the children Arts academic and athletics I I can't help but pause I'm I came here hoping to hear the other A that now I guess we have to put up front
So now it's administration arts academics and athletics $27,000 If you can't find that in this building you've got to be kidding me A $27,000 cut somewhere in these four walls we have an oversized accounting
department using archaic software that ultimately resulted in a $3 million error four years ago because someone didn't put a line item a box number in an Excel spreadsheet You're talking about translation services where I have
on my kids computer at home translating all day and you're paying for that I have on my phone an a button I could hit if I'm around somebody in I think 300 languages And that's what we're talking about You shouldn't be cutting one coach
You shouldn't be cutting one program or anything in this district before something's done in this building President Guas you have one employee He's sitting to your right A board's job is to deliver an edict not to run the
district but to asssure it runs well How you do not turn to your right and say "Find us a million dollars in this building and run efficiently so our commoditized product our students to Dr Falco's point could have the best experience ever." That's what we're
talking about It's shameful I like the questions tonight Dr Figueroa thank you Dr Fafa thank you Dr Pan thank you Mr Cummings thank you You're looking at the right things Don't compromise what we do here Students
first Trim the fat in this building Uh Miss then you won't have any of these conversations Thank you Thank you Mr Winston Hi Neil Shaw one Jennifer Court So I've been hearing a lot about the cuts that we're making and things like that but
have we been thinking outside of the box um if you have a $6,000 stipen what about the parents i know there's a lot of parents out there that would be willing to do fundraisers I'm a part of an organization Fastreak and we have five amazing board members like you guys
that sit around and figure out how we can make the money right so if you have a baseball team and you need $6,000 or $30,000 for that year to run can we not fund raise can we not pay for the schools for example I work two days um
in the office and I I get to work three days at home Out of the two days Tuesday is required Are you guys looking at those requirements for the parents if you're only going to give me a bus uh service for my child one day a week is it going to be you know respectful for
all the parents that are working from home as well as that have to go into the office so these are thoughts I think that we need to be a little bit more transparent in that Like what are you guys doing to help bridge the gap not just make cuts not to come up here and
argue but to kind of just bring together the community and say "Hey these are ideas This is where we're at short Can we figure this out together we are East Brunswick right all of us All of us here are here on a Tuesday night because we care about East Brunswick You guys are
up here volunteers You guys care about East Brunswick Let's work together Thank you very much Thank you Neil Domani uh 6 Fair View Road I did move Um I think it it'll be beneficial to hear from a
former athlete Um Dr Figueroa Dr Falco and Mr Cummings hit it right on the head before You can't you can't take away from our experiences here In fact I played nth grade football I know for a fact I would
not have seen a moment on the field if I was just playing JV And in fact I know that because the ninth grader would the ninth graders would be on the uh on the sidelines with the JV during the game and we would maybe go in if it was a blowout
Um so I if if I was on the sideline for the whole season and I didn't get a one one snap one play I wouldn't want to continue playing That's demoralizing Demoralizing to me that's demoralizing the kids Um I I truly think
there's another way Um you know and as as for the volunteer coach thing like I I get you you want to have the best of the best but I mean parents volunteer their time with little league all the time What's the difference
um yeah I I I just don't think this was properly thought out Um great questions from the board members Um yeah I I really just really just think how this affects the students it When I was in high school I'm not
sure if it's still there but there was a big banner that said "We are EB we are one." So really think about that because it really doesn't feel like that anymore Thank you Thank you Dom Yan Bregman for Troy Court Um I'm sorry
Can you say that again i'm sorry Yan Bregman Fort Troy Court So just to understand the number one more time are you saying increase taxes 3.57% right and that will cover what it will cover 8 million budget shortcut or
uh and 1 million that we didn't have from state Uh can you maybe clarify one more time what it will cover i'm sorry sir The good of the cause is your opportunity to speak We don't engage in a back and forth But I think you need to clarify for everyone Okay
Thank you Dan Aani 43 Gates Avenue Good evening What's happening tonight is frankly disheartening The leadership vacuum on this board and the administrative mismanagement have brought us to a point where you're infected effectively insulting our intelligence by spitting
in our face and telling us it's raining The inability to manage a budget responsibly coupled with the complete lack of creativity in addressing deficits has once led us again to you guessed it raising taxes Let's be honest here Victor that burden doesn't affect
you or Bernie if he was here It falls squarely on the residents to residents you continue to underestimate and disregard Just two months ago you sat there presenting budget shortfall options near the bottom of the list was closing Bound Monroe That wasn't planning That was misdirection Because what you left under that line Adam is
what you did tonight which was raise taxes Bound Monroe was a distraction to keep the public looking elsewhere while you went back to raiding their wallets And I'll say it again what I said at the last meeting Victor and Bernie it's time to resign With the damage and disruption you've caused the district resignation
is honestly the least you could do But here's what's really sad It's the board's job to hold the administrator uh administration accountable Not the mayors not the town councils yours You campaigned for votes You stood before residents with plans and promises but
when it came time to lead and evaluate to oversee and protect the district you fell silent or worse were complicit Victor everyone knows you want a contract extension You also know the tides are turning especially after tonight You're a boat guy You understand when the prevailing winds are no longer
at your back So let me speak clearly now to the board and to the residents of the district Victor knows his time is running out And after the last election his control over the board has weakened His tactics of bullying and intimidating only worked on a shrinking few But the winds are changing Victor And the truth
is the town doesn't want you here anymore They definitely don't want your contract extended but you only need a majority of votes on the board A board you continue to manipulate pressure and now try to silence with the new document that was um Oprah requested that it uh
showed you attempted to prevent a board member from making an independent decision on your extension That's not leadership That's desperation Victor you don't care about this district anymore And it's obvious Your only goal is to secure that bag one more time Get that contract extension before November So
when you get fired you can walk away with nearly one and a half million of our money just so you can sail off quietly in your tiny little boat The board allowed this to happen They stood by spineless while integrity slipped through their hands and the public trust
evaporated It's frankly embarrassing to watch elected adults fold to a man who's given this district nothing but an increasing tax bill Resign Victor and Thank you Resign Victor and spare yourself the spectacle Thank you for your time and go Bears Thank
you All right If there's no one else I'm going to close the public portion All right We have a need for a closed session Uh whereas the board of education must discuss matters which are not appropriate for discussion in a public
meeting and whereas these subjects are within the exception to the open public meeting act and are permitted to be discussed in close session pursuant to NJSA 10 col4-12B and whereas the board of education intends to discuss matters as
follows all items listed on tonight's agenda Whereas the length of the closed session is estimated to be one hour after which the public meeting of the board shall reconvene and action will not be taken Can I have a motion please miss Pan and Jamie Right All in favor i
opposed abstensions All right We are enclosed Thank you Anybody wants