WEBVTT

METADATA
Video-Count: 1
Video-1: youtube.com/watch?v=XkcrQz4hqMg

NOTE
MEETING SECTIONS:

Part 1 (Video ID: XkcrQz4hqMg):
- 00:00:00: Meeting Opening: Roll Call, Moment of Silence, Pledge
- 00:06:46: Pledge of Ethics, Student Representative Introduction
- 00:11:18: Public Comment Guidelines and the First Speaker
- 00:12:39: Bianca Gambetta: Student Stress and Final Exams
- 00:15:18: Maria Lorenzo: Interpreter Access, IEPs, and Accountability
- 00:18:14: Autism Acceptance Month: Honoring ECPAC and Special Services
- 00:22:21: Autism Acceptance Month: Parent Success Stories Video
- 00:29:53: Gratitude to Special Services and Student Perspective
- 00:34:36: Agenda Review Begins: Minutes and Personnel Report
- 00:37:37: Review: Tuitions Report and Superintendent's Report
- 00:39:29: Review: Authorizations, Finance and Accounting Reports
- 00:40:27: Contract Approvals: Kane, Schoolcraft, Brookdale, Buses
- 00:42:45: Student Representative Report: Bowwage Academy Updates
- 00:48:21: Committee Reports: Education Management and Legal
- 00:51:45: Photos and Claims List, Bilingual Multicultural Resolution
- 00:57:44: Resolutions, Tax Requisition, Building Rental Agreements
- 01:00:28: Closing Private Session Vote and Public Announcements
- 01:15:32: Announcements: Panorama Survey, Financial Aid, Graduation
- 03:28:26: Anti-Bullying Self Assessment Presentation: Eight Core Elements
- 03:35:12: HIB Investigation Report and Meeting Adjournment


Part: 1

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of this meeting was sent to the Star Ledger and Cable Vision of Elizabeth on April 17, 2026. In addition, this notice is posted on the bulletin board in the lobby of 500 North Broad Street. And pursuant to this act, a copy has been

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filed with the city clerk of Elizabeth, New Jersey. We want to welcome everyone present here at school 51 and to our television viewers to this April 23rd, 2026 meeting of the board of education. We are here

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to govern, provide management oversight, and make policy for the district. The superintendent manages the district. This is a meeting of the board and public, not a meeting of the public. This meeting is being recorded and will become part of the Elizabeth Board of

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Education permanent record so that the recording will adequately reflect the proceedings. Please refrain from talking while others are speaking. We ask that you silence the sound on your electronic devices since it is legally mandated that these proceedings be accurately

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recorded. We may have to ask for order periodically should noise begin to interfere with our recording capabilities. There will be a public portion for citizens to address the board. Participants for the public portion must personally sign in prior to the start of

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the public participation portion so that they may have the opportunity to speak. The sign-in sheets state the name, the address, telephone number, and reason that the person wants to comment. Whether it is an agenda item or a

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general education comment, we are pleased that you are have taken time this evening to join us here for our board of education meeting. Thank you for your interest in the Elizabeth Public Schools. Mr. Kennedy, roll call, please. >> Barbosa,

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>> here. >> Baffilus Chevres clairvoyant Noel >> here. Jacobs Marina Ortega Kavas Pastana

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>> present >> Rivera >> present >> Carvalo >> present Mr. Kennedy can you try Commissioner Chevris please >> yeah I think I heard Mr. Chevous, are you there? At this time, I ask that everyone please

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stand for a moment of silence. For Francisco R. Emma, retired truck driver, utility person from our warehouse, plant and property. Toita Muhammad, former security guard at Admiral William F. Pauly Junior Health

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and Public Safety Academy. Thank you. Please remain standing for the presentation of colors by our Admiral William F. Hollyy Junior Health and Public Safety Academy, JOTC. 3.4. Board member Diane Barbosa, please lead

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us in the pledge of allegiance. I pledge allegiance 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.

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>> Please remain standing for the Star Spangle Banner by Francis Scott Key. By the dawn early so proud we held at the twilight last

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stripes and bright stars through the fight or the ramparts we watched were so streaming

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and the rockets redare the bombs bursting in gave proof through the night that our flag Does that star spangled

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yet for the land of the free and the home of the brave? Round of applause for our JOTC from Holly. Great job.

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At this time, I ask board member Pistana to please lead us in the pledge of ethics. to treat people as they wish to be treated. To do that, I pledge to understand that school community is a special place. Listen respectfully when someone else is speaking by paying close

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attention and not interrupting. Speak in a calm voice and use proper language. Dress appropriately for teaching and learning. Inspire the best. Acts of kindness. Be a lifelong learner by taking every opportunity. learn from others.

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>> Thank you everyone. Please be seated. I will now have the superintendent of schools introduce the student representative for this month. Thank you, Madam President. Edward Cax Medida is currently a senior at JC

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Christian Bulwage Finance Academy. He serves as president of both the National Honor Society and the Debate Club, secretary of the community service club, a member of the future business leaders club, and one of the eight student representatives for the Elizabeth Board

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of Education. Through these roles, Edward strives to help his peers develop valuable life skills related to public speaking, research, and debate. He also works to ensure his school is well represented, whether by volunteering

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within the community or advocating for student perspectives so that every student's voice is heard. Beyond his academic responsibilities, Edward is actively engaged in a wide range of extracurricular and service activities. Throughout his high school career, he

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has committed his weekends to volunteering at his local church, Kum Kumida Missiona Bethl, where he teaches children ages 7 to 13 and assist the multimedia team to ensure services run smoothly. Through these experiences, he

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has developed strong leadership and mentorship skills. Edward has accumulated over 200 community service hours. Those hours include, but are not limited to, participating in the City of Elizabeth Earth Day cleanup in 2025 and

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2026, as well as walking in the Portugal Day parade in 2025. In addition, Edward is the debate club founder and president. Plus, he is actively involved in the speech and debate team at the Jay

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Christian Bulwage Finance Academy, where he attends weekly meetings and participates in Saturday congressional style debates, which further strengthen his time management and quick thinking abilities. Edward remains committed to serving his community and representing

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JC Christian Bulwage Finance Academy and his peers with pride and dedication. It is my pleasure to introduce Edward C Medida. Congratulations. Welcome. All settled in, Edward. Okay, he's got

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Diane down there. Mr. Kennedy, can you please include our student representative in the roll call to have the record reflect Edward Cox Merida attendances this evening? >> Duly noted. Thank you.

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>> Thank you. At this time, the microphones are open for public comment to those who have signed in prior to the session. Each statement made by a participant shall be limited to three minutes in duration. The total time of public comment shall

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be limited to 60 minutes. No individual is able to yield their time to another individual. All statements shall be directed to the presiding officer. No participants may address or question board members individually. Each speaker

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shall comply in all respects with board policy 9322. Copies were provided next to the signin sheet. The following rules shall apply. Time limits will be strictly enforced. No personal attacks or on individuals or

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naming of individuals. No vulgar or indecent language. A person may address the board no more than once during a single meeting. Comments will not be debated. Any person in violation of the policy will be

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warned and their comments terminated if needed. As a reminder, this is a meeting of the board and public, not a meeting of the public. At this at this time I call Bianca Gambetta.

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Have you ever been stressed in your junior year? Did you ever have a AP class or AP classes? Have you ever been in stress for more than three months back to back? And last one, have you ever been on top on your top 10 ranking

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and wanted to maintain that ranking? Well, if you ever agreed with any of these, then you're just like me and most of my friends and classmates. Well, you want to know something? We're all mentally and physically exhausted. For the past three months, we have done nothing but testing and study and test

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some more. March, we're eight GPA. April were benchmarks and SATs and the benchmarks were given out of the blue. Uh that's a lot of testing. Policy 9271 says I will make decisions in terms of

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the education welfare of children. Do you know what educational welfare is? Well, it's focused on students legally. Basically, make sure that students attendance is good. How do you expect students to go to school if school is stressful? Helping stress levels go down

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in high school is to your advantage because it might make you look good. Changing the final exam policies will allow our stress levels to go down. That's why I'm here again to represent more than 320 students. There is currently a bill that stands to

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remove the test the state testings as a graduation requirement. I know I'm here talking about final exams, but nevertheless, there is no way or even fair to the students in this district that no one is making an effort to reduce high stakes tests like final

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exams. They recognize that grades and performance record and even GPA speak for themselves when it comes to graduation. Part of your campaign promise when you run for board of education member is to support students. As of today, that

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promise has not been fulfilled. >> Thank you, >> Maria Lorenzo. >> Friends, I don't eat. >> Good evening. At the last board meeting, we saw how we had a Spanish-sp speakaking parent come

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here to express her concerns. I want to understand why this board does not have proper interpreters on hand for Spanish- speaking parents that may want to come out and express their concerns. >> That is a fault on all of you that sit

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there and pretend to care about this community. That is a major fail. You put someone here who half interpreted very badly for that parent. You didn't get to hear all of the concerns. So, in my opinion, the

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last board meeting was not fairly recorded so that everyone can understand what that parent came here to say. Shame on all of you. In the signing sheet, there used to be a column for a person to be able to indicate whether they needed an

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interpreter. And if that's happening here at these board meetings, I can only only imagine what parents are going through when they go to their IEP meetings and they don't speak the language and they don't have access. Equity is not access.

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It's not. In addition to that, since we're coming here to celebrate Autism Awareness Month, I want to also I'm sorry, access is not equity is what I meant to say. I also wanted to talk about the child that

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took his life because an IEP wasn't followed. An IEP is not a suggestion. It is not a guideline. It is a mandatory legal document that continues to be violated in this district time and time again. Now in the channel 2 news it said

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not specifically addressing the allegations. I can only imagine Mr. Pat Polalitano your your campaign provorer for most of you said the loss of even one child is one too many since this matter is under criminal investigation

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for actions unrelated to the district. The district cannot comment further. What a way to pivot and divert from your responsibility. What a way to shove that responsibility on somebody else when the anticident the

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trigger was you not following an IEP. And I've been a victim of that because three times I took this district to a state complaint board. The first time you had my son running gym drills and he has a heart condition. The second

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time an evaluator fed him food and didn't look at his IHP and the several allergies that he had. And the third was when you didn't give him his FM system for about a good three months. Those are the violations I'm talking

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about. And those is just one too many. Thank you. At this time, I close the public comment portion of this meeting. As board president, it is my continued vision to develop our children into confident, intelligent, skilled, and

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caring adults who will be ready to show the world the greatness that comes from Elizabeth while witnessing and celebrating their successes along the way. During the month of April, we recognize Autism Acceptance Month by celebrating the

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students and teachers from our district's autism program and recognize the efforts of our social service department and the ECPAC who both work to support our students with special needs and their families. The amazing

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talents and personalities shown by our students with special needs inspire us to think and view the world with from unique perspectives and to go beyond conventional boundaries recognizing the beauty of being

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different. I am pleased to honor and celebrate neurodeiversity with the rest of our learning community and to introduce one of my board colleagues who shows great passion and dedication towards supporting special education.

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During the many years that I have had the privilege of serving on the board besides her, she has routinely participated in events and activities in the Elizabeth public schools and throughout the greater community to support young people with special needs

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and their families, especially during autism acceptance month. Please welcome board member Diane Barbosa. >> President. Thank you, Madame President, and welcome to April, everyone. April's a special one. Thank you, Madame

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President, and good evening to everyone here this evening as we take a moment to recognize and celebrate autism acceptance month, our students with special needs and their families, our special services team members, and the cabinet members of the Elizabeth Special

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Education Parent Advisory Committee. It was important to me that we take this month to recognize these groups of people in different ways. First, we would like to recognize our ECPAC cabinet members for their service to our school community in support of our

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children with special needs throughout the district. The success of our special education programs and the services provided by our special services department team members is aided by the vital feedback that is provided by our ECP ECPAC members. They also provide

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unique support through their own experiences to help ensure that that families feel welcome, informed, and empowered to get the best educational, social, and developmental outcomes possible for their children with special needs. Please join me in honoring these outstanding members of our school

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community. And I think they might have not made it yet, but I will um name them. It's uh our president of ECPAC this year is Emily Galves. Oh, uh, Gilda Rodriguez is our vice president of ECPAC

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and Denise Olivera, secretary of ECPAC. Let's give them a big round of applause. Thank you again for providing and being uh a strong force in um working with our special services and creating and carrying the group and making yourself

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available to our um our district parents that need a little bit of support. Thank you, Madame President. In addition uh of recognizing our ECPAC members, I would like to introduce a video that shows some of the activities that have taken place this month during

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autism acceptance month. a couple of success stories shared by parents of children who are in our special needs programs, which I know are just a couple of many, and highlights the monthly newsletter that we have been posting every month with

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different um elements of what happens in our district and information that has been issued by our district special services department. The contents of this video really illustrates the extraordinary work that is done by all of our team members in the special services department both in our schools

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and in our administrative offices. So, let's take a look at the video. Good morning. My name is Kishha Henry. I'm a mother of four kids that has been in the special ed program. My oldest um Nigel Henry 27 year old he has um

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started special ed program from the age that he transferred here in Elizabeth to high school to an adulthood and that has helped progress and help him to graduate to be an independent adult in this society. My second oldest, Kvan Howard,

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went through special ed program that he graduated high school and developing in adulthood due to the special ed program. My 16-year-old, she's doing great advance. She wants to get a part-time job and she wants to get out there and

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test out the new world we're in right now to become independent. My littlest one, Marcelis, he came a long way between changing school, different schools while he's developing, trying to find the program for him. They have found him school number seven, and he

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has been in school number seven, I think, since the second grade. So now he's in the fifth grade. And with the special ed program, it has been a great help. he had a a little bit of bump in the road and still again they gave me

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assistance um advice um educational on different things that I need to know that has been very helpful and very advanced in help getting him to express himself not to keep his anger and because he might throw a temper tantrum if he's upset

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they get him to express himself speak on what's going on and be more open to students teachers anyone that he needs to speak to all of the teachers that he has had in his lifetime has been very helpful in helping him develop to where

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he's at. Child study team, the board of head, everyone has put in their fair share as far as participating and helping us parents help our students to, you know, advance and get better in their career and in life cuz I have at

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least two kids that graduated high school through that program. So that is actually great. special ed program have done wonderful for my kids and I thank the board of ed the child study team all the teachers that have helped my kids to become an adult to get out there in the

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world and be an adult um they have really impact and empowered my kids and students in their Hi, my name is Sylvia Cabrera. Um, I am a parent of two Messiah Cabera who attends school 6 here in Elizabeth, New

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Jersey. Messiah is a wonderful 7-year-old boy who has so much joy and love in him and so much creativity, but he has a lot of special needs. And here at school 6, I feel like Messiah has

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flourished and grown. He's become conversational where just two years ago at the start of the program, he wasn't speaking. Um, now he speaks in sentences. Not consistently, but you know, we're working on it. Every day is

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something new, a new challenge, a new reward. Um, since Messiah's start of his school career, he started off at school 52. Immediately, we knew that there was a need, a special need, and school 52 and the board of education really helped

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me get the resources. This is during the height of the pandemic. They got my son evaluated. He was evaluated. He was put in the right appropriate classroom settings. At school 6, the child study team has provided him speech therapy, occupational therapy. He gets

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peer-to-peer therapy and these interactions have helped him develop socially at home and at school. I can tell the love that they pour into my child because my child comes home saying the things that I hear his teacher say, which is a reflection of what's being

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poured into him. My son responds to love and care. His team has done a tremendous job just making sure that he is accepted. He is included. He is given the appropriate resources when he's

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having a difficult time. He suffered a lot with emotional regulation and they've helped him, you know, develop the words to describe it. Now Messiah comes home and he's like, "Messiah is sad. It's the cutest thing you'll ever hear." But he's expressing his emotions.

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He's telling us what's going on. For the future, you know, I can see us continuing to have a beautiful relationship. Come September, Messiah will be in a new in a new building with a with a program for his uh grade, which is third grade. We don't know where he

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will end up. We really do have hope and faith that he will end up anywhere loved and cared for and really catered to as far as like his emotional needs, his academic needs. Messiah does great academically, so we don't really worry

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too much there. But his social development, that's very important to us. And we just look forward to seeing what else the future holds for us. I would like to thank honestly the board of education, the child study team, and especially Miss Nicole, his teacher. She has worked phenomenally

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with my boy. She has poured in her blood, sweat, and tears cuz I know it's hard day in and day out. So, I'm just very grateful to you all. And again, just look forward to what the future holds. That was Wonderful. We feel the love. And I hope Miss Nicole is listening

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because she got a shout out from school six. >> Yeah. >> Now, from the bottom of my heart, I just want to express my appreciation and gratitude to all the members of special services department, our ECPAC members, our community of families with students

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with special needs. that mom and dad at home. It's a hard days and then they come to school and they trust in our district and they trust the par profofessional that's sitting next to their child and they trust their teacher. So, thank you for trusting us

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um day in and day out. We try to do our best to implement on our part to implement services to implement policies that will help all the way to that child sitting in that class. That's that's what we're sitting up here for. So,

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thank you to everybody, the whole team, because it's all about the team, the people that do it all for our students with special needs. You, our students, continue to inspire us and amaze us. The team inspires us. These students inspire us every day with their growth,

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creativity, and talents and their differences. I look forward to continually watching your growth into successful young men and women who make their mark on life. Today I got the opportunity to see that heart live um at school 12. I know a lot of district, a

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lot of schools have been doing different things and you know, you walk in as a board member, as a um a teacher um and you're sitting there and you're seeing the children doing their their best and today we had a show to celebrate the differences and the children were using

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their AC devices to introduce themselves. That makes me happy. That carries us. I bring that back to these board members and I bring that back home and that makes me happy and that makes me proud of every little step and I just

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want to end because it's not about us and it's not about it's about them and getting them through into this into this world of ours. Um there's on page five of our newsletter that comes out every month, there's a perspective of a

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student and again it's not from me but it's in their mind. So just please for a minute let's walk into the brain of one of our dear dear sensory students, dear stakeholders,

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when I walk into my classroom everything hits me at once. The lights are too bright. I can hear other kids talking. Cheers are shears are scraping. Papers are moving and someone in the hallway at the all at the same time. I might even

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notice smells that people don't seem bothered by. It all comes together and it feels like I can't turn anything off. It's not that I'm trying to be distracted or not pay attention. My brain just takes in a lot of information

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at once and sometimes it becomes too much to sort through. When that happens, my body reacts. Before I can really think about it, I might feel like I need to move, escape, cover my ears, shut down. Sometimes I can't find words.

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Sometimes I feel overwhelmed or upset and I don't know how to explain it. From the outside it might look like I'm following not following directions or that I'm making a choice not to participate but inside feel it inside it

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feels more like everything is too loud too fast or too much at once. What helps me is when the classroom is set up in ways that make things more manageable for me. things like quieter spaces, breaks when I need them, being able to

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use tools that help me focus, or having a calmer place to go for a few minutes can make such a big difference. Sensory accommodations don't make things easier because I'm not trying because I'm trying so hard. They make things

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possible because they help my brain feel safe enough to learn. When I have that support, I can focus more, participate more, and show what I actually know. Sincerely, one of our students, and this is why

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we're here. Thank you to everyone, and happy April Autism Awareness Month. Do any of the board members have any comments? I know. I know that we celebrate this month, but

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um you all truly deserve to be celebrated all year for all of the hard work and your dedication that you put into helping our children. Um you come to work and you are the mothers and the fathers and the teachers and the

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caregivers for our students while they're away from home. So, I thank you all for all of your hard work and dedication. At this time, we are going to move into the agenda and then we're going to come

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back. Okay. All right. Board members, this time we will now start to review the agenda. Tab 1A, official and private minutes from February 19th, 2026.

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Tab 1B, Treasurer Secretaries Report, February 28th, 2026. Are there any questions from the board? Hearing none, Mr. Kennedy, please add tab 1A and 1B to the agenda.

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Moving on to tab 2A, personnel report. Mr. Qua >> Mr. Qua. >> Thank you. So before you for consideration, ladies and gentlemen of the board, um you have

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uh 10 retirements, you have one resignation, you want one teacher appointment, you have six transfers, and the part that I like the best, you have um eight changes of salaries due to the fact that

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uh these individuals um either completed a masters or completed 32 credits. uh beyond the masters and in one or two cases the doctorate and you also have a promotion food service worker six hour to cook manager. Thank you.

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>> Thank you Mr. Qua. I'd like to highlight that our retirements are in people who came to our district and were here for a year or two. Gerald Dean Sandy and Dino worked for us for 27 years. George Chicka

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Gilakis, I apologize, George, worked with us for 26 years at school 4. Linda Hurf, teacher at school number six, worked with us for almost 29 years. And Ellen Corin worked with us at school 4

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for 26 years. So, thank you for your service to our to our district. Any questions or concerns on tab 2A from the board? Hearing none, Mr. Kennedy, please add tab 2A to the agenda.

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Moving on to the tuitions report, questions, concerns I believe some were already answered. Any questions? Hearing none, Mr. Kennedy, please add the tuition's report to the agenda.

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Tab 4 through 4D superintendence report. Madame superintendent, Madame President, I would like to highlight the commitment to continuous learning. um under considerations we have our social workers both from the

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division of bilingual and ESL education as well as our school social workers together with uh their supervisor Mr. Vosler attending the New Jersey Association of School Social Workers Spring Conference um as well as the conference um offered by the New Jersey

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Association of School Social Workers. Expand your knowledge and elevate your practice. also would like to recognize um the continuous um uh commitment on the part of our college and career coordinator as well as our guidance counselors that will be attending the

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New Jersey Association for College Admission Counseling and as well as our early childhood um administrators as well and also um master teachers that will be attending the highscope international conference.

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>> Thank you. Any any questions from the board hearing? None. Mr. Kennedy, please add four to through 4D to the the agenda. Tab five, authorizations report.

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Are there any questions from the board? all our lovely field trips and all the PTO and PTA approvals. Thank you, assistant superintendent. >> We get all those phone calls. Any

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questions? Hearing none. They're all in there, guys. Mr. Kennedy, please add it. Tab six, 6A, finance and accounting. Any questions from the board? Hearing none,

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Mr. Kennedy, please add to the agenda. Tab seven, award of contracts, anybody certainly can, Madam President, I can certainly comment on a few of the contracts that are included um under tab

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7. So we have in our report uh beginning on uh page uh two the annual contract with Kane University uh providing fieldwork for our school psychologists. Uh we also have a contract for

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excuse me with school craft uh studios. Um our schools of course end of the year opportunity to provide our students with those critical memories, those graduation pictures, promotion pictures. We um also have um contracts uh that

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have been included for our schools um to provide children with valuable experiences provided through uh the traveling farms uh as well as a lot of endofear activities to say the least that we have included

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eighth grade students. >> I love the diversity of all the different kinds of foods that our children are going to be eating >> from an exciting uh time of the year to say the least. We also have a contract uh to include uh registered behavior

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technicians to work with our BCBAS as well as a contract for uh critical services heating and air conditioning uh that Mr. Milan has recommended for unit ventilators. And uh lastly, we also have included uh

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contract uh for uh with uh Brookdale um community college. And this is really an important uh partnership that is being established because it will assist us with being able to secure um additional alternate route candidates um in our district. So this is a wonderful

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opportunity where the district will receive a reimbursement for certain costs and the candidates themselves will also be reimbursed for um in a certain amount of money for uh their commitment to working in our district. >> I'd also like to highlight that um the

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charging stations for our buses are on there which is very important. >> We've been waiting for that. >> Any other any questions from the board comments? Hearing none, Mr. Kennedy, please add that to the agenda. >> All right, we have reached

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our student representative Absolutely. >> So, we're going to ask now Mr. Medida, our student representative, to read his report to the board. >> Good evening, board members, Superintendent Dr. Dr. Hugel Meyer, and

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members of the community. It is truly an honor to serve as the student representative for JC Christian Bowwitch Finance Academy at today's meeting. As a bow student, I take great pride in representing our close-knit school of over 400 students, and I do not take

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this responsibility lightly. This role has allowed me to see my school through a wider lens, celebrating our accomplishments while also gaining a deeper understanding of the experiences that shape our student body.

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J. Christian Boitch Finance Academy is proud to celebrate and recognize the achievement of being home to the 2026 to 2027 Union County Teacher of the Year, Dr. Alice Dowski.

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This honor reflects the dedication, excellence, and commitment to student success that defines our school community. We congratulate Dr. Dowski on this well-deserved recognition and thank her for her continued impact on our

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students as well as our school. While we are proud of our accomplishments, we are also focused on continuing to grow. One of the unique strengths of Bowwage is our size. Our smaller environment fosters strong relationships, a sense of belonging, and

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a family-like culture that many students value deeply. At the same time, this environment presents opportunities for us to think creatively about how we can expand access and experience for all students.

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At JC Christian Boage Finance Academy, we are proud of a culture grounded in dedication, opportunity, and support. Our teachers consistently go above and beyond to help students reach their full potential. Because of that commitment,

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we continue to see incredible outcomes. For example, student athlete Jovanna Echavaria earned a full scholarship to Temple University valued approximately $56,000

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annually. In addition, our class of 2026 validictorian Emily Serrano was awarded the Elizabeth Ward scholarship. Our students are also demonstrating their learning in meaningful ways through a

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collaborative finance fair involving the future business leaders club and our freshman principles of finance classes. Over 400 students participated in sharing and applying financial knowledge. This event not only highlighted their understanding but also

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their ability to lead, communicate, and teach others. We are equally proud of the leadership and opportunities created beyond the classroom. Mr. Salce, one of our history teachers, has guided impactful initiatives through the community

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service club, which include reading to younger students at school 7, participating in the Earth Day cleanup, and representing our school in the Portugal parade. Our partnership with Deote has also opened doors for students to engage with

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professionals, explore career pathways, and connect classroom learning to the real world. In addition, our college visit program included trips to Princeton University, Rucker University, Fairly Dickinson

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University, and the College of New Jersey, helping students envision their future with greater clarity and confidence. As a result, many students have shared that these experiences have made college feel more accessible and attainable.

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Furthermore, Bowage is home to one of the largest high school autism programs in the district. This is something our entire school community embraces with pride. Our general education and special education populations learn, grow, and

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support one another in ways that truly reflect what it means to be a unified school community. As we continue to move forward, we remain committed to ensuring that every student has the space, resources, and opportunities needed to fully thrive.

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Expanding how we support both populations comfortably will allow us to build on the strong foundation we already have and elevate the experience for all students. Thank you for your time, your support, and your continued investment in our

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school community. Thank you. That was really beautiful and very fitting to today. Boage Academy um is Boage Academy because of students like you and we thank you. Okay.

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Okay. Okay. So, at this time, I'm going to ask the chair of the Educational Management Committee to roll out uh this month's report. >> Thank you, Madam President. The Educational Management Committee met on April 6th at 4 p.m.

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The committee meeting focused on reviewing district performance data for the second marking period. The committee reviewed comprehensive data on attendance, suspensions, academic performance across all grade levels, and demographics. The meeting focused on discussing attendance rates across schools. The district attendance was

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reported at 92% with most schools performing well above 90% except for a few specific schools. The data indicates that for the second marking period, 56.6% of students attended 95% of the possible school days with 18.4 being

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chronically absent. The data showed improvements in chronic absenteeism across multiple grade levels. Improvements in suspension rates were reported overall, particularly at the high school level, and reported increases in both English language arts and mathematics performance, attributing

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the math improvements to a focus on small groupoup instruction. Academic performance data shows steady improvements across multiple metrics. Student performance on benchmark assessments increased from 69.2 to 70.5 with notable gains in passing rates for

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black and Hispanic students. The district's high school students maintain an average GPA of 3.07 with most schools approaching or exceeding the target 50% rate of students earning a 3.0 or better GPA. Advanced placement enrollment has

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increased from 33.1 to 35.7 districtwide with notable improvements across various student populations including black, Hispanic, and academically disadvantaged students. The district has seen a significant increase in AP enrollment with a 10% point a 10% point increase in

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students earning scores of three or better between 2022 through 2023 and previous years. That concluded our meeting. >> Thank you. And a long meeting it was. >> Yes, it was. >> But thank you lots of data >> and to all the board members who took

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the time to sit in on the meeting. Uh at this time I ask the legal committee chair >> Isaiah Rivera. >> Thank you. So the legal committee we met on April 9th. Miss Basma Raha, special counsel briefed the legal committee on a due process petition. The committee

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agreed to place the matter on the April board agenda. The committee was provided with an update policies currently in draft form that include policy 614211, the use of artificial intelligence. The committee was also briefed on internet enabled devices as a result of

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the state mandate require starting in the 2026 2027 school year requiring school district to adopt a belltobell policy prohibiting student use of personal internet enabled devices during the school day. That was it.

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>> Thank you and thank you to the committee. I know that you're working on a few policies. Uh it has been a long policy year. So thank you. At this time, I would like the student representative to uh take a picture with

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us with the board members and then after that, we'd like to welcome our EC pack because everyone's here and um and the entire team and we'd like to take a picture with you if that would be okay. Thank you. And now we continue with the vice

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president, Gilda. Gilda Rodriguez. And then D, our secretary, Denise Oliva. And then we're going to ask our members committee to come up, please. Thank you. That was great. Thank you. Thank you.

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Thank you. Thank you. Mr. Kennedy, we are on number nine. Correct. >> That's correct. Number nine. >> Please add the claims list. >> Board members, we're going to keep moving.

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because we have a lot of work to do tonight. At this time, we are going to move on to 10-10s, resolution bilingual multicultural education month. Uh 10A, school bus

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evacuation drills. 10B, AsianPacific American Heritage Month. 10 C, Better Speech and Hearing Month. 10 D, Kindness Awareness Month. Love that. 10E, National School Nurse

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Day. 10F, National Teacher Appreciation Week. 10G, Special Education Week. 10H, Memorandum of of agreement between the Elizabeth Board of Education and Elizabeth Non-certified Administrator

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Association. 10 I is the policy 6171.3 10J application to New Jersey Department of Education for adjustments to long range facility plan 10K approval of the

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correction action plan for the 2024-2025 SEMI reimbursement revenue 10 L requisition for taxes. 10M S ex Essex Regional Educational Service Commission Home Instruction

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Services for 26 and 2027 school year. 10N Transfer of Capital Revenue Funds. 10 O Transfer of Maintenance Reserve Funds. 10P Revised Agreement for the rental of properties between the Elizabeth Board

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of Education and Our Lady of Most Holy Rosary St. Michael's Church. 10 Q Revised agreement for the rental of properties between the Elizabeth Board of Education and Parish of St. Cathine's of Sienna. 10R authorization

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competitive contracting for substitute staff services. 10 Sapp appointing a Vanner Electric, Inc. to provide design built services for electrical vehicle charging stations. That was a lot. Any questions? Those are

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all the resolutions and I'm sure Mr. Kennedy is going to want us to read a few of them later on, but for now, please add them to the agenda. >> Mr. Kennedy, is there a tab 11? >> Nope. >> No. Okay. Because I have improvement

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academic achievement. Okay, that's it. We went through the entire the agenda at this time. Where are we? The president requests a motion to go into private session to consider matters exempt under the open

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public meeting act specifically for discussion of personnel matters specifically interviews investigative results and terminations. legal matters specifically workman's comp MF BC

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settlement agreements LA and PD O N DW the board will reconvene in public and may take formal action may I have a motion and a second has been properly been motioned and

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seconded Mr. Kennedy, roll call, please. >> Barbosa, >> yes. >> Bathus, >> yes. >> Chevresz, >> yes. >> Clairvoyant Noel, >> yes. >> Marina Ortega, >> yes. >> And Cavas Pastan,

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>> yes. >> Rivera, >> yes. >> Carvalo, >> yes. Thank you everyone. Thank you to our CPAC that came out tonight. It was great seeing you all here. Thank you for all the work that you do in supporting our team. Um, we could not do the work

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that we do without your support and your insight. So, thank you for coming tonight. Good evening to our community. We are presenting this uh the announcements for this month. I'd like to begin by sharing the Panorama family survey. Hey, the

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Elizabeth Public Schools through its partnership with Panorama is offering family feedback and climate surveys to capture the voice of families that will help guide strategic improvement, planning, and decision-making both at the school and at the district level.

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The surveys are less than five minutes long and are available in multiple languages. We encourage our families to take this opportunity today to be an active participant in their children's education. Even if you have not done so already, parents, please do not wait to

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provide your feedback as the survey will be closing tomorrow, Friday, April 24th. So once again, we encourage our families to complete the family survey. It is available in multiple languages. Please uh complete this before tomorrow, April

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24th. Thank you. And as we continue on, I'd like to introduce our district financial aid nights. As we continue over the past few months, the US public schools department of student services has hosted scholarship and FAFSA completion nights. School counselors are

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available to assist students with completing the FAFSA and applications for upcoming scholarships, as well as show students where they may be able to find additional scholarship opportunities. We have one more financial aid night this school year,

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and it will be held on Tuesday, May 12th from 5:00 p. a.m. to 700 p.m. Those attending to complete the FAFSA forms should create a federal student aid or an FSA ID prior to attending and must

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bring a laptop and their tax documents. Students, if you have any questions, I encourage you to reach out to your guidance counselors for assistance in completing the FSA ID prior to attending financial aid night. So once again, our last financial aid night will be held on

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May 12th from 5:00 p.m. to 700 p.m. and the sessions are available in both English and in Spanish. The sessions uh will be held at the Johnny Dwire Technology Academy on May 12th. And now I'd like to turn to our high

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school registration. Friday, April 24th is the final day of the high school selection registration. Registration is completed by logging into P school and we ask that you please consult the high school selection guide for more

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information about our schools including eligibility requirements and special components of the registration process for certain schools. If you have not already done so, please register today. All current eighth grade students attending the Elizabeth public schools

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and Elizabeth residents not attending the Elizabeth public schools who wish to transfer to one of our high schools should register. So once again, our registration process is open through tomorrow, Friday, April 24th.

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Also, as a reminder to our families, our eighth grade promotion ceremonies for the 25 26 school year will be taking place on Wednesday, June 24th and Thursday, June 25th at 9:00 a.m. All 8th grade students are required to attend

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school through Thursday, June 25th. This will be the official last day of our school year. Diplomas will be issued on the last day. And I'd like to share with you the schedule for the promotion ceremonies. So, as you can see on the slide before

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you, we have the following schools that are scheduled for June 24th at 9:00 am. Uh, George Washington Academy School number one, Nicholas Lort Peterstown School number three, Joseph Battton school number four, Elmora school number 12, Benjamin Franklin school number 13,

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Abraham Lincoln school number 14, Madison Monroe school number 16. As we continue on with June 24th, uh, beginning at 9:00 am, we have Robert Morris, school number 18, Woodro Wilson, school number 19, John Marshall, school

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number 20, William F. Howerin, school 22, Sonia Sotomayor, school number 25, and Dr. Albert Einstein Academy, school number 29. Once again, uh, taking place on June 24th at 900 a.m. And as we continue on, our eighth grade promotion

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ceremonies that will be scheduled for June 25th beginning at 9:00 a.m. are as follows. Williams Winfield Scott school number two, Mabel G. Home School number five, Tusant Lovatur Marisa Lafayette, school number six, Terrence C. Riley school number seven, I Prep Academy

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School number eight, Jerome Dun Academy School number nine, Christopher Columbus school number 15, and we continue on with the eighth grade promotion ceremonies on June 25th beginning at 9:00 a.m. Victor Moravlac school number 21. Nicholas Murray Butler, school

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number 23, Dr. Orlando Academy, school number 26, Dr. Antonio Pantoa school number 27, Juan Pablo Darte, Jose Julia Marti, school 28, and Chesse Dentley Roberts Academy school number 30. Again, these are the eighth grade promotion

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ceremonies that are uh scheduled for June 25th at 9:00 a.m. And now, as we turn our attention to the high school graduation and class awards ceremonies, our high school uh graduation and class awards will be taking place on Wednesday, June 24th, and Thursday, June

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25th. Um, all 12th grade students are required to attend school through Thursday, June 25th. As you can see on the slide before you, we have outlined uh the dates and times for our high school graduations. The

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graduations will uh take place at the Thomas G. Dunn Sports Center. So, parents, I point your attention to your respective high school and the date. As you can see, we have Johnny Dwire Technology Academy, Thomas Jefferson Arts Academy, and our Katherine Johnson,

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Darthy Vaughn, Mary Jackson, JBJ STEM Academy, as well as Alexander Hamilton Preparatory Academy. They're all scheduled for June 24th, but I point your attention to the times of the graduation. Um Johnny Dwire Technology

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Academy as an example is scheduled uh to start at 8:30 in the morning, but all uh seniors that are graduating must arrive at 7:30 in the morning. So we have created a schedule that we ask our families to please follow for the

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arrival time and the time of the ceremony. Families can come into the Thomas G. done sports center just prior to the start of the graduation, but the seniors must arrive 2 hours prior and they will have the opportunity to line

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up and be able to have a practice before their actual graduation. We now turn our attention to student assessment updates and I'd like to share with you the remaining assessments on our spring 2026 assessment calendar.

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So as you can see on the slide before you, we have the administration of the dynamic learning maps. Uh that began on April 7th and will conclude on May 22nd and that is for our students in grades 3 to 8 and grade 11. And this is in place

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of the NJSLA. We have our advanced placement AP exams May 4th through May 15th. And that is for our high school students enrolled in AP courses. And we have the New Jersey Student Learning Assessment, the NJSLA,

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uh for English language arts, math, and science. That will begin on Monday, April 27th, and run through May 22nd. And that is for our students in grades 3 to 8, and high school. Specific uh dates per grade level um have been listed on

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the district website, and our principles have communicated the information. And we now turn to Inside EPS, our news from Central. And we begin with the exciting visit from the newly appointed New Jersey

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Department of Education Commissioner Dr. Lily Locks, who visited our school district. Uh we welcomed her on Friday, April 17th, beginning with her arrival at the James P. Mitchell building. She was greeted by Senator Joseph Cryan,

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Assemblywoman Kihano, the Union County Interim Executive County Superintendent Daryl Palm Mary, uh myself, and our Elizabeth Board of Education Vice Presidents Stephanie Best Pastana, and our board members Diane Barbosa and

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Jerry Jacobs. Also in attendance were all three of our assistant superintendent, Dr. Jennifer Sedeno, U. Rafael Cortez, and Judy Finch Johnson, as well as our school business administrator board secretary Harold

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Kennedy Jr. following a conversation about some of the district's recent accomplishments and initiatives, we traveled to Elizabeth High School, Frank J. Cicarell, where we were greeted by the school's administration and students. We had the opportunity to

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experience the wonderful performance by the EHS Advanced Jazz Band. And in attendance was our 2026 2027 Union County Teacher of the Year, Dr. Alice

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Dabowski, and our 2026 Counselor of the County, Dana Ferrer. So, we had the opportunity to then um make a final stop at Alexander Hamilton Preparatory Academy

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and I will share the news with regard to our Hamilton Academy shortly. I turn our attention now to the New Jersey School Development Authority along with the Elizabeth public schools and the city of Elizabeth officials uh

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held a groundbreaking ceremony for the new Joseph Batten School number four. This new school facility on the site of the former school is designed to educate up to 1,68

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students in grades preK through 8th grade. Incredibly excited uh to and honored to have the school development authority uh construct this state-ofthe-art

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uh building for us. It will include vocal music rooms, instrumental lesson rooms, an art room with a kiln, three science labs, a media center, a cafeteria, multi-purpose room, um a gymnasium,

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and we are anticipating being able to open our doors in 2028, just two years away. And I now turn to the Hamilton Preparatory Academy uh that was named the Abbott National Demonstration

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School. Uh as I shared with you, our newly appointed New Jersey Commissioner of Education, Dr. Locks, had the opportunity to visit Elizabeth High School. And then we um continued on to our Alexander Hamilton Preparatory

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Academy that has been selected as an advancement via individual determination national demonstration school. And this announcement was made during a validation event at the school. AVID is a nonprofit educational organization

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with the mission to close the opportunity gap by preparing all students for college and career readiness and success in a global society. AVID supports our educators in the instructional process that helps students develop essential skills for a

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successful future including critical thinking, collaboration, organiz organization, reading, writing, and relationship building. Hamilton Preparatory Academy becomes Elizabeth Public School's third AVID National

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Demonstration School, joining Elmora School number 12 and Johnny Dwire Technology Academy and the sixth high school to achieve the distinction in the state of New Jersey. Among those in attendance for the announcement was a

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new uh again our commissioner and we also had the distinguished guests um our senator Cryan, Assemblywoman Khano, our board president Maria Carvalo, and several board members that joined in

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this incredible celebration together with Mayor Bowage. Also this month, we uh received a wonderful announcement regarding two of our schools that were named national schools of character by character.org.

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The Donald Stewart Center for Early Childhood School number 51 and Katherine Johnson Darthy von Mary Jackson STEM Academy JBJ Academy were among 103 schools and districts from around the

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world as 2026 state and national schools of character. This year's honores represent 94 schools across the United States and a record-breaking nine international schools that have demonstrated a deep commitment to developing a strong culture, ethical

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leadership, and character growth in students. Both designations recognize schools that exemplify the values and practices outlined in character.org's 11 principles framework for schools.

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We're incredibly proud of both the Donald Stewart Center for Early Childhood School number 51 um as it is the second Elis Public Schools school to receive the National School of Character designation three times and the JBJ STEM

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Academy is receiving the award for the very first time. Special congratulations. I know there's a great deal of planning and work involved in uh being considered as a national school of character. So I thank the administration

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and the staff at both of our schools for your hard work and commitment. And another opportunity that we had to recognize um our one of our very own special education inclass support

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teacher Dr. Alice Dowski from the Jay Christian Bulage Finance Academy at honored as a 2627 Union County teacher of the year in a surprise ceremony at the school. Union County Interim Executive County Superintendent Daryl

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Palary and Union County Education Specialist Maria Mendes were there to make the announcement to the school community. Dr. Dowski is the first Elizabeth Public Schools high school teacher to ever be named county teacher

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of the year and the first district teacher to receive the honor since the 2011 2012 school year. My sincere congratulations to Dr. Dowski on her hard work and commitment to our

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children. U incredible honor to have our district be able to celebrate our very own Union County Teacher of the Year. Another exciting opportunity that we had this past month was to celebrate Thomas

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Edison Career and Technical Academy School Counselor Dana Ferrer, who was honored by the New Jersey School Counselor Association as the 2026 Counselor of the County at the 40th annual NJSCA

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professional recognition awards program at the College of New Jersey. The NJSCA honored school counselors from each New Jerseys 21 counties who are nominated by their colleagues and selected by their

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own county school counselor associations for this award. The award honors the professionals who devote their careers to serving as advocates and often lifesavers for our students. Our Thomas Edison Career and Technical Academy

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counselor was recognized by the Governor's Educator of the Year program this year as her school's educational services professional of the year. My sincere congratulations to Dana Ferrer on this uh tremendous

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honor to serve as the county counselor of the year. And we now turn to our very own Elizabeth High School advanced jazz band that had an outstanding performance at the state preliminaries at Bridgewater

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Raridan High School in March where they finished in first place against top competitors JP Stevens High School and Scotch Plains High School. Among the honors they earned were the outstanding soloist award by sophomore Wilson

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Genanoa on the trumpet, outstanding soloist award, rhythm section trio, Kesha Castayanos, Melanie Torres, and Ryan Palasio. And the best rhythm section award and best saxophone section

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award. The jazz band had the opportunity to rehearse for their upcoming state competition playing All the Things You Are by Jerome Kern, arranged by Stephen Fifa, and Lifelong Friends by Chris Berg

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to a special audience that included our New Jersey Department of Education Commissioner Dr. Lily Locks, New Jersey Senator Joseph Cryan, New Jersey Assemblywoman Ankihano, and our

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city of Elizabeth Mayor J. Christian Bulwidge, our Union County Executive County Superintendent, Dal Pomeary, also had the opportunity to be available to join us uh together with our board of education president, Maria Carvalo, and

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uh members of our administration. Uh amazing performance. The level of skill that our students displayed was just remarkable. remarkable. My sincere congratulations

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on earning first place in the state preliminaries. And we end our announcements with the Elizabeth Public uh school student services hosting a college and career fair on April 16th that featured over

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110 institutions including colleges and universities, military branches, trade schools, government agencies, and representatives from a wide range of industries. providing students the opportunity to explore and gain valuable

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insight into their future pathways. We had more than 1,500 juniors from all of our high schoolmies that attended engaging directly with the representatives uh inquiring

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about the various um institutions and uh envisioning their postsecondary plans. Utilizing Strive Scan, students were able to efficiently connect with institutions, helping to streamline communication and support future

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outreach opportunities. Under the leadership of culinary arts instructors Thomas Milo and Joshua Merl, Thomas Edison Career and Technical Academy students prepared and served a delicious lunch for all attending representatives

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showcasing their talents. wonderful opportunity for our students to be able to explore uh their future opportunities in the uh pathway that they choose uh once they

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graduate from the public schools. Wonderful opportunity. And with that, we close with our announcements for this month. Thank you very much. Thank you. >> The anti-bullying the anti-bullying bill of rights requires all New Jersey

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schools to evaluate their performance annually. The state developed rubric includes eight core elements and 26 indicators, each scored from 0 to three. This framework promotes continuous improvement and supports the development of safer and more inclusive schools.

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Before we review the eight core elements, this slide outlines the steps required to complete the self- assessment process. The process begins with completing the assessment and entering the information onto the NJDOE website. The results must be then presented to the public, which we did in

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October and are doing again right now, followed by obtaining approval from the board of education and assurances from the superintendent. Finally, the completed self- assessments are submitted to the the New Jersey Department of Education. Now to review all eight core elements.

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The first core element, programs, approaches, initiatives, looks at the specific programs and initiative schools use to prevent and respond to harassment, intimidation, and bullying. Our goal is to foster a proactive and positive school climate through structured programming.

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The second core element is training on the HIV policy. For schools to have met this requirement, all employees and students receive training on our district's HIV policy. This includes education on protected categories and instruction on how to prevent HIV

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related to distinguishing characteristics as mandated by law. The third element pertains to other staff instruction and training programs. We ensure that all staff receive ongoing professional

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development in suicide and HIV prevention. Additionally, our anti-bullying specialist, school safety team members, and school leaders receive specialized training to support safe and inclusive school environments. As a reminder, our statemandated five-year

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district-wide HIV training for staff occurred this school year in February. The fourth core element is curriculum instruction. This element evaluates how we integrate HIV related topics into our curriculum beginning during the week of

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respect in October of each school year as well as throughout the school year. Our social emotional learning curriculum equip students with the knowledge and skills needed to recognize, prevent, and respond to bullying and to support their peers.

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The fifth core element is HIV personnel. We evaluate the roles and effectiveness of the school-based HIV personnel, including our anti-bullying coordinator and specialists as well as each school safety team who are instrumental in prevention, investigation, and

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intervention efforts. The sixth core element is the incident school level reporting procedure. Each school follows a standardized procedure for reporting HIV incidents as per our HIV policy. This includes a system for reporting new information on previously

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submitted reports, ensuring no concerns go unnoticed or unressed. The seventh core element refers to the HIV investigation procedure. To meet the requirements, parents were notified in all investigations and were informed of

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the availability of counseling or other intervention services when appropriate. Schools affirm that all investigations were completed within 10 school days and that a written report was conducted for all investigations. Lastly, after the

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completion of each investigation, all investigations were reported to the superintendent within two school days of its completion. The eighth and final core element focuses on HIV reporting. Each school is required to have clear procedures in

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place to ensure that staff reports, whether verbal or written, contain all necessary details regarding the incident of violence, vandalism, or harassment, intimidation, and bullying. Additionally, in the interest of transparency and accountability, the

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district publishes all HIV assessment scores on each schools and the district web page. This ensures our community remains informed about our efforts and progress. So before we begin to review the scores, this slide's a reminder of the scoring

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rubric. Zero meaning did not meet requirements through three meaning it exceeds the requirements. Here we have our school by school HIV assessment grades. These scores reflect how each school is implementing the Anti-bullying Bill of Rights Act. And

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you can see the schools that are listed on the screen and their scores. We continue on with a listing of our schools and their respective scores. So the self assessment results show strong overall performance across the

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eight core elements. A score of 52 indicates that on average the indicators have been met. All 37 schools achieve scores of 65 or higher with individual school stores scores, excuse me, ranging

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from 65 to 76. The average score across all schools was 71, reflecting an improvement from the previous year's average of 70. These results suggest consistent progress and continued alignment with the established performance indicators.

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So, as we look ahead, our focus remains on strengthening school climate and safety across all of our schools. We will continue to engage our families, support staff training, and ensure effective social emotional learning programs that promote positive, inclusive, and safe learning

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environments for all of our children. The slide before you highlights some of the work that we are doing to promote positive climate and safe schools across our district. You can see a listing of all of the activities and programs occurring in our

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schools. So I'd like to thank everyone for their continued support in building positive experiences for all. And this concludes the HIV assessment presentation. Thank you. So that is part one. And I do have a separate report.

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>> Brief. >> I believe that is the word of the year. Correct. Brief. >> Wait till you see the budget presentation. >> Brief. So, pursuant to board policy 5131.1, harassment, intimidation, and bullying

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and the New Jersey statute 188 col37, the results of each investigation shall be reported to the board of education no later than the date of the next board meeting following completion of the investigation and include any services provided, training established, discipline imposed, or other action taken or recommended by the chief school

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administrator. Since our last board of education meeting on March 25th and through April 15th, our school counselors, schoolbased social workers have completed 34 HIV investigations. Of these investigations, 13 cases were founded for HIP a as per New Jersey law.

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There were 20 males, 17 females, 29 regular education students, and eight special education students that were the alleged victims. There were 48 males, 15 females, 50 regular education students, 11 special education students, and two

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um that were alleged offenders, sorry, unknown students that were alleged offenders. Of the 13 cases founded for HIV, one case was founded based on race, national origin, one case founded based on sexual orientation, one case founded based on mental, physical, or sensory

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disability. and 12 cases were founded based on other identifying characteristics of the services provided and actions taken. There were 13 skill development lessons, 27 counseling sessions, three behavior interventions, three referrals for outpatient mental

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health treatment, three changes of classroom, eight administrative counseling sessions, nine inschool detentions, 21 parent conferences, three referrals to agencies, 10 out of school suspensions, and four cases are continuing to be monitored. The HIV

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statute further requires that at the next regularly scheduled meeting after board members receive the initial report of HIV investigations that the board issue a decision in writing to affirm, reject, or modify the superintendent's decision pertaining to the 61 cases that were reported to you at the last board

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meeting on March 25th. In order for you to do so, the investigation summaries from those investigations which were reported to you at the last board meeting have been provided for your review prior to voting this evening. And this concludes our report for this evening. Thank you.

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>> Thank you, Madam Superintendent. Mr. Kennedy, are we going to be able to do the entire agenda? We still have >> No, we did. You did all the resolutions. I'm sorry. Yes, we can do the entire resolution. I mean, the entire agenda

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this evening, >> all right, board. May I have a motion and a second to approve the entire agenda and the additional items? >> Motion to approve the entire agenda and additional items.

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>> I second that motion >> has been proper the motion has been made and properly seconded. Are there any questions or comments from the board? All right, hearing none. Mr. Kennedy, roll call, please. Just reminder for the the list of

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abstensions. >> Barbosa. >> Yes. >> Bathus. >> Uh, yes. With abstension on tab 2A. >> Thank you, Chevro. I don't know. Clairvoyant Noel,

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I would like to abstain from tabs 2 A and 4B and yes to everything else. >> Marina Ortega, >> yes. >> Canavas Pastana, >> yes. Rivera.

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>> Yes. Carvalo. >> I'd like to abstain on tab 4B, Elizabeth Department of Recreation for the use of the two schools and yes to everything else

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>> and one more time for Chevress. >> Not there. With th those votes um the entire agenda has passed this evening. Congratulations. Congratulations. >> May I have a motion and a second to adjourn today's meeting?

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>> I second that motion. The >> motion has been made and properly seconded. Mr. Kennedy, roll call, please. >> Barbosa, >> yes. Congratulations. Good night. >> Bathless. >> Yes. Clairvoyant Noel. >> Yes. And congratulations guys.

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>> Marina Ortega. >> Yes. Congratulations. Welcome back. >> Gavas Pastistana. >> Yes. Congratulations you two. >> Rivera. >> Yes. Congratulations. >> Carvala. >> Yes. Good night everyone. And congratulations to our color guard

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>> and everyone else who's still at home. Good night.

