Thanks to the flag of the United States of America. >> The New Jersey open public meetings law was enacted to ensure the right of the public to have advanced notice and to attend the meetings of public bodies at which any business affecting their interests is discussed or acted upon. In
accordance with provisions of the act before the board of education has caused notice of this meeting to be published on October 17, 2025 and posted on the district website at www.fle.com published in the board's designated online media outlet newspapers the
record links to our ledger files of the clerk of the bure of Fort Lee and mailed to all persons of any who have requested said notice. Please be advised this meeting is being recorded and may be broadcasted on both TV and online at a future date. The open public meeting act allows for remote participation at board
meetings and defines meeting as any gathering whether corporeal or by means of communication equipment which is attended by or open to all of the members of a public body held with the intent on the part of the members of the body present to discuss or act as a unit upon the specific public business of that body. Roll call please.
>> Mrs. Buyers Kent Miss Colbath >> here. >> Mrs. Curry >> here. >> Mr. Knight >> here. >> Mrs. Coten >> here. >> Here >> Mrs. Rick >> here.
>> The board will be convening to executive session to discuss legal personnel and other confidential matters. The board will reconvene into public session at approximately 7:30 p.m. We have a lot of things on the executive session agenda and it is packed. So approximately 7:30
p.m. May I have a motion to go into executive session? >> Motion second. >> Motion morale. Second verbino. All in favor? Any opposed? To the flag of the United States of America, indivisible, liberty, and justice for
all. >> The New Jersey open public meetings law was enacted to ensure the right of the public to have advanced notice and to attend the meetings of public bodies at which any business affecting their interests is discussed or acted upon. In accordance with the provisions of the act, the Fort Board of Education has caused notice of this meeting to be
published on October 17th, 2025 and posted on the district website at www.fle.com, published in the board's designated online media outlet newspaper, the record from the Star Ledger, filed with the clerk of the bureau of Fort Lee and mailed to all persons, if any, who have
requested said notice. Please be advised, this meeting is being recorded and may be broadcasted on local TV and online at a future date. The open public meeting act allows for remote participation at board meetings and defines a meeting as any gathering whether caporeal or by means of communication equipment which is amended
by or open to attended by or open to all of the members of a public body held with the intent on the part of the members of the body present to discuss or act as a unit upon a specific public business of that body. Roll call, please. >> Mrs. Buyers K.
>> Oh, here >> Mrs. Curry >> here. >> Mr. L here. >> Mrs. Coten >> here. >> Mr. Lopez >> here. >> Miss Moral >> here. >> Here. >> Mr. Greg >> here. The board convene executive
session at 6:30 p.m. to discuss legal personnel and other confidential matters. Miss Claus, will we begin by sharing the superintendent's report? >> Yes. Thank you, President Recctor. Um, thank you everybody for being here in person and on Zoom. Um unfortunately due
to our start time our high school representatives did leave um early well not early but they had to go and take care of other things that they had to do. So on behalf of the high school I just felt that it was fair for me to read the report that was prepared. Um so
thank you to Nasha Chidima and Kyra Varos for attempting to join us tonight. On October 17th and 18th, the Fortly Model United Nations Club attended the Dwight Englewood Model United Nations Conference where six out of 15 delegates earn individual awards within their
committees. The awards are as follows. Outstanding delegate Kareem El Mala and Steven Chan. Honorable mention Chich Lee and Arnav Cherry. Verbal commenation Rebecca Freedelland and Immano Garcia.
The Mali UN club is proud of our delegates accomplishments for Arnath Chari Rebecca Freedelland and Emanuel Garcia. This was their very first conference. So congratulations. Mabel Leon captured the freshman Bergen County championship title at the Bergen
meet of champions this past Saturday. She is now the fastest 3K runner among freshman in Bergen County. Senior John Walsh and junior Daniel Balgo sprinted through the finish line together at the varsity Bergen meet of
champions to break the Fort Le school record in the 5k race. They placed in the top 20 in Bergen County's best runners respectively. The football team beat North Bergen last week in the semifinal round with the Ivy
League championship. Their historic run continues as they face Richfield Park for the Ivy League title at the championship game this Wednesday at 6 PM at the James J. Bradock North Hudson Park in North Bergen. Fort High School football has an undefeated season for
the first time since 1932. Anytime we get loud, that's what happened. >> Microphones like that last one. Congratulations to the boys varsity soccer team for clinching the American League Big North Division title. The boys soccer team will be heading into
the state playoffs, currently ranked sixth in the state of New Jersey. Congratulations to the volleyball team for clinching the American League Big North Division title. Congratulations to the boys and girls cross country teams for clinching the American Big League
the American League Big North Division title. Congratulations to the girls tennis team for clinching the American League Big North Division title. Orchestra/horus performed at the Fort Le Senior Center
last Thursday. On Friday, October 24th, 100 international students from Doct Global High School in South Korea participated in a cultural exchange day. Fort High School students hosted an amazing event which included tours of the school, classroom visits, cultural
performances, and team building activities. It was a me a memorable day filled with friendship, learning, and connection that all students and staff will remember for years to come. And thank you to the Fort Le High School staff and the administration and Christine Dato um for their work in
putting that day together. I was there and it was a really wonderful experience. Heat club current projects knitting project 20 knitted items, blankets, gloves, etc. to donate to youth homelessness. A food drive that collected 75 items. Sock drive that
collected 50 pairs of new socks. Starting new elementary school tutoring program by the end of November for the debate club. The Fort Le High School varsity debate continues its winning streak with Henry De Jesus and Jaden Chang winning first place in both
tournaments and going 8 and0. Additionally, in the most recent tournament, Henry was placed second best speaker and Jaden Chang third best. Elelliana Kim was also recognized as a first place judge. And finally, on October 3rd, 40 Fort Lee High School
students participated in the Bergen County Board of Election Commissioners High School pole worker program. Through this program, students receive training to serve as poll workers during the upcoming elections. It was truly a rewarding and exciting opportunity for all those involved. So, a lot of good
stuff coming out of Portland High School. And now, President Rick, I'd like to transition to the assessment results presentation. So, I'm just going to head over there. Okay. block the screen. The screen
Okay. Um, good evening everyone. Um, it's my pleasure now to present the spring 2025 assessment results for the Fort Le public schools. This present this presentation will provide an overview of student performance across
multiple assessments including advanced placement AP, international baloran IB, SAT, ACT, dynamic learning maps or DLM and the New Jersey student learning assessments or NJSLA from the spring
2025 administrations. These results reflect both our students strong academic ability and the collective effort of our teachers, administrators, and families. And tonight we have our Fort Lee administration joining us. So, thank you for your patience um in
waiting. It's nice to have you here. Next slide, please, Jason. As we begin, it's important to remember that each assessment provides one snapshot of student learning at a single point in time. These results are not the
sole measure of success, but they are valuable tools for reflection and continuous improvement. True student achievement is reflected in daily learning through lessons, discussions, and projects that make learning for our students relevant and meaningful. So,
our goal is to use these results to always inform instruction, align our curriculum, and ensure that we are doing our best um to make sure student have access to high quality learning opportunities. And now I'd like to introduce Miss Kate
um Drumle, our school director of school counseling services. She is going to go through the next. >> Good evening. Next slide please Jason. So the data portion of the presentation will start with this slide which represents the 4year graduation rate for
the 2025 cohort at Fortley High School. To earn a diploma, students must successfully earn a minimum of 120 credits, including required credits in specific content areas. In addition, students must meet the state graduation assessment requirement, which can be
done one via one of three approved pathways. It is important to note that students must participate in the first pathway which is the NJGPA in order to access the second or third pathway. Students graduating in the class of
2025, 2026, and 2027 must also complete the FASA or the New Jersey alternative financial aid application. That's a New Jersey state requirement. This slide provides an overview of the pathways students in the class of 2025
use to fulfill the graduation assessment requirement. As previously mentioned, the second pathway includes competency tests such as the PSAT, the SAT, the ACT, and the ACUPPLACER. Next slide, please.
This slide presents three years of advanced placement data in our math, science, and business courses. Across these subjects, Fort Lee High School students continue to perform well with several courses, computer science, a
statistics, chemistry, physics, macroeconomics, and microeconomics showing increases in performance between the spring of 2024 and 2025. Fort High School students outperform the state averages in calculus AB, Calculus
BC, Computer Science, A, Statistics, Chemistry, Environmental Science, and Microeconomics. Next slide, please. In the AP humanities, we continue to see growth in a number of courses to include
English language and composition, English literature and composition, US history, world history, US government and politics, Japanese language and culture, 2D art and design, and all show an increase in the performance again
since the last administration in the spring of 2024. Our students outperform the state averages in English literature and composition, US history, world history, US government and politics, Japanese language and culture, and 3D
art and design. Next slide, please. This slide displays a three-year comparison of IB score data. The highest possible score on an IE exam is seven. A score of four or higher is considered
proficient. Fortly High School students have once again performed above proficiency in nearly all content areas. Score improvements are seen in English HL, history, math SL, and film HL. In the graduating
class of 2025, 15 IB diploma were earned. There are currently five diploma candidates in the senior class and 73 students enrolled in the preIB program. Next slide, please. This slide presents a three-year
comparison of SAT scores by cohort. In overall trend is that the scores have been gradually increasing from 2023 to 2025. Evidence-based reading and writing rose each year while math stayed roughly stable. The mean increase showing a
slight overall improvement. Orley High School will again participate in the SAT school day program in the spring of 2026. Therefore, all juniors will take the SAT on April 15th. Next slide, please. This slide shows a
three-year comparison of ACT scores. For each section, uh the score is on a scale from 1 to 36. Next slide, please. And at this time, I'll turn the presentation back over to Miss Kaza. Thank you, Miss Jungle. Now I will
present the results from our dynamic learning maps or DLMs from the spring 2025 administration. Next slide please. The dynamic learning maps or DMs are alternate assessments designed for students with IEPs in need of significant learning support. These
computer-based assessments allow students to demonstrate knowledge and skills in more interactive and accessible ways. Through the DLM, we're able to measure progress in English language arts, math, and science across select grade levels. The results provide
valuable information that will help teachers indiv individualize instruction for these students. Next slide. These are the four performance levels for the DM assessments. Emerging, approaching the target, at target, and
advanced. Each level represents a different degree of understanding and application of essential academic skills. And these categories will allow us to see where students are demonstrating mastery and where we can provide additional support. Next slide.
This slide summarizes our district's DLM results for spring of 2025. As you can see, participation rates exceeded 90% in ELA and math with 100% participation in science. Most students performed in the emerging or at target ranges reflecting
both individualized instruction and some progress towards their learning goals. Um, and if you take a look at science, you will see the M the N's there. And in order to protect student privacy, um, that N signifies that we are not permitted to publicly report on the DM science results because this tested
group consisted of less than 10 students. Next slide, please. Students who are administered the DM benefit from highly individualized programming and supports that are indicated in their IEPs. Their IEPs are
designed to target meaningful specific academic growth. And the ultimate goal of these assessments is to foster independence and confidence but also prepare our students for beyond um their education in our K12 district. Next slide, please. And so now we'll move
into reporting on our students performance on the spring 2025 administration of the New Jersey Student Learning Assessments or the NJSLA. The NJSLA is a computer-based assessment that measures how well students are mastering the New Jersey Student
Learning Standards at specific grade levels in three content areas. For English language arts, we test in grades 3 through nine. For mathematics, we test for grades um 3 through 8 as well as in our algebra 1, geometry, and algebra 2 courses. And science, we test in grades
5, 8, and 11. Student results on the ELA and math and JSLA are reported across five performance levels. Level one, not meeting expectations. Level two, partially meeting expectations. Level three, approaching expectations, level
four, meeting expectations, and level five, exceeding expectations. However, for science, there are four performance levels. Level one, below proficient, level two, near profoficient, level three proficient, and level four advanced proficient.
This slide highlights our district's participation rates for the spring 2025 NJSLA administration across all tested grades and subjects. Fort Lee achieved participation rates about 96% with many grade levels at or near 100%.
Next slide, please. So, let's begin with English language arts. The following slides will review our district's performance on the ELA NJSLA, including overall achievement and areas for continued focus. Next slide.
So, I thought this year we'd start a little differently with our notable achievements and findings. So, we're happy to report that overall 73.3% of Fortly students met or exceeded expectations on the spring 2025 ELA and just NJSLA.
This represents a steady upward trend over the past 3 years from 71.7% in 2023 to 72.2% in 2024 and now 73.3% in 2025. Our students in grades 3
through nine outperform the state average by 17 to 24 percentage points. And notably, third grade students increased their levels four and five scores by 4 and a half percentage points. Also based on our as as you could see 79% of students in grade six met or
exceeded expectations. So showing growth from last year's administration in the spring of 2024. Level four and five scores for grade seven students increased by 4.8 8 percentage points for the spring of 2024. Eighth grade students increased level four and five
scores by 4.1 percentage points from seventh grade. And when we reviewed the district's evidence statement analysis, we found that further support is needed in um figurative language, word meetings, author's purpose, and central ideas and themes.
This bar graph displays distribution of student performance in English language arts by grade level. You can see how the majority of our students fall within the meeting and exceeding expectations uh categories. We also want to celebrate that in grades four, seven, and eight,
the percentage of students exceeding expectations is greater than the num than the percentage of students meeting expectations. So this does demonstrate the strength of our overall instructional program. um and the readiness for our students to
um receive higher level activities and literacy. Next slide. Here we're comparing Fort Lee's English language arts results to the state averages. And as I reported in our notable findings, across every grade level, Fort students continue to
outperform their state peers. Next slide, please. This slide represents presents three years of comparative data by grade and performance level. If you look to the far right, um you will that those last
two columns, you'll notice a general decline in the percentage of students in levels one and two and a stable or increasing percentages in levels four and five at most grade levels. Most notably, we see an increase of 11.4 4
percentage points in advanced proficiency in grade three over three years. And another notable achievement to point out is that when you track the fifth grade cohort in 2023 to their seventh grade year in the spring of 2025, this cohort of students actually
increased advanced proficiency by 23.4 percentage points over three years from fifth to seventh grade. Next slide, please. This chart isolates the percentage of students in levels four and five over the last three NJSLA ELA
administrations. You can see that in grades three, six, and seven, proficiency rates so increases over 2 to three years. And while we do see a decline in overall performance in grade four, we are continuing to see consistent growth between grades three
and four year overyear. Next slide, please. This slide presents performance levels by subgroup. While performance varies among the groups, the overall performance data shows that the majority of students in each subgroup achieve
proficiency on the ELA and JSLA. Next slide, please. This chart highlights the comparison of achievement in ELA within the same sub subgroups from the previous slide. Over the past three years, Fort Lee has seen either stable performance or upward
movement across most groups um demonstrating that we are trending in the right direction for most of our subgroups. On this slide, next slide, please. This slide provides another lens on subgroup performance on the NJSLA for
ELA. It's important to note that on this particular slide, in these subgroups, students may be included in more than one group. the majority of our um economically disadvantaged and students students and students with 504s are achieving proficiency. However, there is
still work ahead regarding monitoring the growth and responding to student needs in all subgroups, particularly our students with IEPs and our multilingual learners with regards to English language arts. Next slide, please. This chart again highlights the comparison of achievement
in ELA within each subgroup over the past three years. And we can see that performance in each subgroup is holding steady um across the three the last three years of administration. So this is a new data point that we're
adding this year in the presentation. This slide focuses specifically on the performance of students who have been enrolled in the Fort Le public schools continuously since kindergarten. And so when we actually compare these
results to the overall grade level data um on the earlier slide, we are able to um confirm that students who have received their entire education in Fort Lee achieved higher performance levels of proficiency in English language arts by an overall average of a little over
than six percentage points. So this trend highlights the strength of our K12 instructional continuum and it's also really encouraging that sustained exposure to our instructional programs in our school district do produce strong academic achievement over time. Next
slide please. Oh, thank you. Um and so now moving on to strategies and interventions. To maintain and build on this progress, the district has implemented and will continue to implement several targeted strategies and interventions. We are using ongoing
progress monitoring through our STAR 360 benchmarks and curriculum based measures. And while I do say that every year, each year we add a new training component to assist our teachers and administrators and our staff becoming more and more proficient at analyzing our district benchmark data. CBM or
curriculum based measures were implemented this year to provide more specific um data points for our K through three students. Um and we've done major curriculum revisions including the adoption of HMH into
reading which is grounded in the science of reading for grades K through 5. We've also adopted Reach ESL for grades K through four to provide more of a crosscurricular experience for our multilingual learners. Um, professional
development will also continue to focus on aligning instruction to standards, building foundational literacy skills, and like I said before, continue to use data to drive targeted instruction. Next slide. In addition to those strategies, we also
continue to expand our academic support programs. Um, with regards to English language arts, um, this includes the WIN initiative, which we are expanding to additional grade levels in our elementary schools. This year, we continue to offer basic skills at grade levels 1 through six, smart readers for
grades K through two, our essentials programs at the middle school, as well as our strategies programs at the high school, um, and including our multilingual supports for kindergarten through grade 12. We've also invested in supplemental literacy resources such as Wilson Foundations, Orton, Gillingham
Training, uh, Molo, Freckle, Nearpod, Dit, Nuzella, and Lexia. All of these supplemental resources are used to support our students. And finally, as an additional support, we will offer afterchool tutoring um to students who meet eligibility criteria.
Next slide, please. And now we will turn to mathematics. Next slide. Again to start off with our notable achievements and findings, overall math proficiency increased um grew by 5.5
percentage points um over the last three years. So it's we had 60.4 proficiency in 2023, 63.5 uh% proficiency in 2024 and 65.9% proficiency in 2025, showing sustained
improvement over the last three years. Overall performance in grades three through six remained strong with grade three showing 5.6 percentage point gains in levels four and five. Grade 7 achieved an increase of 6.1 percentage points in levels four and five marking
two consecutive years of upward growth. Grade 8 had a 5.4 percentage point gain in proficiency. Um middle school geometry had a 100% passing rate again for this year. Algebra one at the high school improved by 5.7 percentage points
in levels four and five. Geometry at the high school demonstrated an 8.6 percentage point increase in levels four and five. And algebra 2 at the high school achieved dramatic growth posting a 19.4 percentage point increase in proficiency. Fort Lee continues to
outperform the state average in grades 3 through 7. And when we looked at the evidence statement analysis, we noticed that our students need some continuous support with mathematical reasoning, modeling, and multi-step problem solving. Next slide, please. This chart shows how
students in Fort Le performed across grade levels and courses. Over 60% over 60% of our students are meeting or exceeding expectations in most courses and we see consistent vertical strength in grades three through six. Next slide
please. When compared to state averages, Fort Le students outperform their peers in nearly every grade and course with the exception of grade 8 math as well as algebra 1 and geometry at the high school level. But as I stated in the
previous slide, we do see improvement in those courses. Next slide, please. This three-year comparison comparison shows continued improvement across grades. Um, when you take a look at this in more detail, we can see an increase in the percentage of students in roles
four and five in most grades. And if you focus on the percentage of students that are exceeding expectations, you will see an 8.8 increase in this performance level between grades 3 through 5 over the course of the three years and a 19.2 percentage point increase in this
performance level between grades four through six over the course of the three years. So, we're happy to see such great movement from proficiency to advanced proficiency over this three-year period. Next slide, please. Switch. Yes, you did. Sorry. At the middle and high school levels, results
show steady improvement. Algebra 1 and geometry at the high school both rose sharply, while algebra 2 made significant gains in proficiency. So this growth reflects the success of our vertical articulation that we've actually been focusing on for the last
several years. Next slide, please. This slide shows a three-year comparison of proficiency in grades three through six. Students in these grades continue to perform at high levels, maintaining strong proficiency rates um and over 70%
that have remained steady over the last three years. At the middle and high school levels, results show steady improvement over the last three years. We see notable gains in grade seven math, as I stated earlier, in algebra 1 at the high
school, in high school geometry, um, and in algebra 2 between the spring of 24 and 25. Um, we also want to celebrate the proficiency in geometry at the middle school. And we do notice a dip in the seventh grade math and we are
taking a closer look at that. But we are happy to see that our focus on math achievement is showing year-over-year increases in proficiency. Next slide, please. This slide shows subgroup performance across all grades. We're able to see that the majority of our students are achieving proficiency
in math across all subgroups while we still have to focus on um on proficiency in other in other levels. This chart shows a comparison of performance in each subgroup across the last three years. We're happy to see
steady growth across each group year-over-year with considerable growth in our students that are identified as being um more than of one race or ethnicity. Next slide. This slide shows performance in
different subgroups across all reads. We see that over 50% of our multilingual learners and students with 504s are achieving proficiency on the math and GSLA. While overall we do have to continue to take a look closer look at our students with disabilities and our
economically disadvantaged students. Next slide. Looking at the three-year trend in performance with these same subgroups, it gives us a different perspective. Um we see notable growth in performance for our economically disadvantaged students and our multilingual learners. And we
see slight growth with our students with IEPs. This chart tracks the cohort of students again who have been in Fort Le since kindergarten for grades 3 through six math. As you could see, their performance exceeds overall grade level averages, reinforcing that consistent
exposure to our instructional program leads to long-term achievement in math. Next slide, please. This slide again focuses on our middle school and high school cohorts. Student who have been in Fort Le since kindergarten. As with our elementary cohort, students in most of these
courses outperform the overall group. Again, reinforcing the strength of our um overall uh K12 instructional program. So, in math, in response to this data, our um our focus is going to continue to
make sure that we teach, assess, and expect from students, um that they all line up clearly from one grade level to the next. Teachers are working together in cohorts to break down the standards so that lessons really target what students need to know. And we are also
expanding win time in grades one through three um to provide additional support in math. We will continue to use the STAR 360 benchmark assessment to track progress and we are going to be supporting teachers through ongoing professional development. Um for middle
school math, high school, we want to continue to see that upward trend and we will be offers off offering um families um some family math nights to strengthen the homeschool partnership. Next slide, please. Our K12 academic support
programs for math include basic skills in grades 1 through six, essentials at the middle school, strategies courses at the high school. They all offer additional support in small instructional groups when needed. It's important to note that these courses are not replacements to student to a
student's core math course. They are additional academic support. Um so in addition to our support courses, we also use different types of supplemental resources that are listed on this slide. um to offer um support to our core instructional resources and then outside
of the school day just like ELA we will continue to offer tutoring to students who meet eligibility criter u criteria and now we will take a look at our science NJSLA results in grade five um we saw a 3.9 percentage
point gain in proficiency and advanced proficiency this continues to demonstrate a three-year upward um growth pattern. Students scored over 25 percentage points higher than the state average in proficient and advanced proficient levels. Um and growth was
most notable in analyzing and interpreting data and critiquing practices. In grade eight, we maintained cons consistency with stable performance and a 5.4 percentage point increase in level four scores over the two years. Um and again in grade eight for these
students continue to outperform their state peers. In grade 11, we posted a 4.9 percentage point increase in advanced proficient scores from 23 to 20 to 2023 to 2025. And overall proficiency at this grade level
increased by 5.9 percentage points. And again, this grade level scored substantially higher than the state average. Next slide. This chart shows how our students performed in grades 5, 8, and 11 in the spring of
2025. And in grade 5, we have over 50% of our students scoring at the proficient or advanced proficient levels. Next slide. When compared to the state average, again, for these students continue to outperform their peers by a significant
margin. This three-year comparison shows steady gains particularly in grades five and 11. Grade five proficiency increased by nearly four percentage points and grade 11 advanced performance grew by almost six points. And overall proficiency in
all three grades has increased by three points over the course of the last three administrations. This slide shows a three-year comparison combining the percentage of students who earn a proficient and advanced proficient score. The bar graphs are a
bit of an easier visual than the chart on the previous slide. And again, we see steady gains in grades five and 11 and stable performance at grade 8. This slide shows science results by subgroup across performance levels. the
largest portion of students in most group falls in level two ranging from the mid-30s to nearly 50%. However, level one run level one ranges um more widely but while while levels three and four together make up roughly onethird of the students in most subgroups. So
our goal over time is to shift more of our students from level two into the proficient and advanced proficient um categories. This slide compares three years of science results by subgroup showing the percentage of students who achieved proficiency or advanced proficiency.
It's important to note that while we're comparing performance in the same grades over three years, these group these groups consist of different students and across most subgroups we see upward movement. This slide shows science performance by
subgroup. Economically disadvantaged students are fairly even distributed. um somewhat evenly distributed while students with 504 plans perform um it looks like performs um the strongest. So, and we still have work to do with our multilingual learners and our
students with IEPs. Um and these patterns also reinforce the need for the sustained improvement over time as we continue to help support our students in science. This slide shows three years of subgroup performance in science. Each bar within
the same um subgroups as the previous slide. Each bar again combines the proficient and advanced proficient groups. This slide shows science performance for students who have been in Fortly since kindergarten. So once again, we're looking at the cohort of students that
have been in our district um continuously since kindergarten. And as you could see in grade five, 64% of students scored in the proficient or advanced proficient range. Um by grade 8 results we see are are better than the overall performance of the district. And
grade 11 shows a similar pattern with 55% proficient advanced proficient. So overall, again, these results show that students with long-term exposure to our science curriculum um have a stronger performance.
Next slide, please. So, this slide outlines the steps we're taking to continue improving student performance in science. Over the last three years, we have done um professional development. We've also um worked with our staff to take a look at their assessments and ensure that their
questions are more aligned not just with the NJS lab but with standards and we've acquired additional resources to help improve performance. And this is the last slide. Um I choose to end this way because we look
at a lot of numbers and colors and words. Um, but these are just some of the faces behind those numbers. Oh, Jason, go back to that slide. Thank you. Um, so you could see they're engaged in
science activities, math, language arts. Um, and it really it's it's a tribute to our teachers, to our administrators, to our families, also to our board for their support. But I always think it's important to put faces to numbers um to show what we do each and every day.
Okay. So, thank you. Next slide. And there's the last Thank you slide. So, thank you to everybody. Thank you for our administration for coming out. I know you've been here late, but I appreciate the support and the support the work that you do with our kids and our staff every day. So, thank you.
>> And President Richtor, that concludes my superintendent report. >> Thank you. And administrators, you're free to vote. Unless you want to stay, >> thank you so much,
All right, let's move it along. Do we have any committee reports? I know Vice President Moral thinks we should forego the committee reports so we can get this meeting going. Um any that could be brief >> very briefly um the NJ um school board
conference was this past um this past week um it is four days um where we offer classes, meet with vendors, meet with other board members from across the state of New Jersey. This is my second
year attending and it just it it is such a rich and enriching experience. Um I hope that um I take a lot of my learning. One thing I would like to bring to the curriculum committee going
forward and I suggested to um Miss Palaso um that we would bring vendors who are who we don't know much about their service but they're critical for example proximity what what exactly
is their virtual product like to pres invite them to our curriculum committee and and and use those meetings for us to learn. Thank you. Thank you. Any other committee reports? Okay. Board members have questions or
comments on the agenda or any other item? Well, thank you Diane for that to 12 or students who have been in our district since K is so telling. It's very telling that our students the
students who started in our district from K the disparity between those who aren't who aren't with us from day one. And I hope that um I hope there's a lot for us to learn and and and and meet the needs of those students who may not have
started with us from day one. So, thank you for doing that work. >> You're welcome. After I do this presentation, that's often a question that I get. So, just thought we would include it this year. I just want to make a comment on resolution 6B. Um,
having Mike Render Connect join our team here in the district feels like to me like we won the lottery. And so Diane, thank you for reaching out to him. I mean, um, he's so well known and and seasoned and I'm looking forward to
working with him and having him in the business office. >> Any other comments? Okay. Nope. >> All right. Before we open the floor to the public, we have several walk-in resolutions that I'm going to read. We have 10B and it read, "Therefore, be it resolved that the Portland Board of
Education hereby affirms HIV investigation number 295680 LFC 09112025. Findings for the following student ID number ending in 1 1984.
11B reads, "Therefore, be it resolved that the Fort Board of Education hereby disenrolls the following non-resident student from the Fort Le public schools ID number 9343. 12B reads, "Therefore be resolved that
the Fortly Board of Education hereby disenrolls the following non-resident student from Forly Public Schools, ID ending in 0380 13B. Therefore, be it resolved, Fort Board of Education hereby disenrolls the following non-resident student from Fort
Public Schools, ID ending in 0120 and 14B. Therefore, be it resolved the Fortly Board of Education hereby permits the following non-resident student to continue enrollment at the Fortlely public schools for the remainder of the 2526 school year at the advertised
prorated tuition rate and that is ID ending in 97. So, the walk-ins 11 uh 10B through 14. I have a motion to open the floor to the public. >> Motion. >> Motion morale. Second night. All in
favor? I. >> Any opposed or abstensions? We will hear first from members of the public physically located here tonight. Then we will take questions and comments from those participating remotely. Participants are all limited to three minutes and wish to make their statement. For remote participants, please select the raised hand button.
District tech coordinator Mr. Roger will will recognize you in the order of raised hands by lowering your hand. Please unmute your microphone. Everyone is reminded to state your name and home address for the record. Please limit all comments to three minutes. Do we have anyone in the public who wishes to speak
this evening? Come on up to the microphone, please. Please just speak into the microphone so people at home can hear you. Thank you. Your name and address for the record. >> That's okay.
>> I don't know how we do that. >> She doesn't want to show on camera. The camera's on. So, everyone else is going to be seen on camera. >> Okay. So, I'm actually here tonight to >> just name and address. Thank you.
>> My name is Nish. Uh my address is 2400. >> Ariel. Address 2400 Hudson Tris. >> Thank you. I'm here tonight to address a few of my concerns with um one of the public
schools in Fort Le. Um so my first concern is the whole the school system. Um, what are we doing about teachers that are continuously getting
suspended for the same situations over and over and for some strange reason being pulled back into school to work and teach? Um, I had an incident recently where I felt as though no one in the school helped me and I felt very helpless,
especially my four-year-old special needs son where um this incident was actually swept under the rug for over a year and the way I was able to find out was through glasses through the school. Secondly, um the way they went about it,
um the school never called me. They never emailed me, send any note at home with my son. And I'm really worried because he's still attending that same school. And I'm not sure if the teacher is still in the building, but it's
worrying at this point. So, I want to know that when I drop off my son every day at school, I I feel as though he should be safe, especially because he's special needs and he does not talk. So, who is there to protect him if I'm not there?
It's kind of tough to know that, you know, my son is being abused by a teacher and it's not being handled the right way. And not only is it my child, but I'm hearing many different stories from other parents where they're actually concerned about their child being abused as well. So, I'm just here for some
answers. You know, I I feel like I've been waiting a week or two to hear back from hear back from someone with, you know, some compassion or some sympathy where my child, my nonverbal child can't speak
for itself. his mother's speak for him and I don't find the situation funny either. >> I don't think anybody's >> Yeah. No, I'm just saying. >> Are you finished with your comment? >> Yeah, I am. >> So, uh, the board is not going to be
able to respond to your comments in public right now. >> I'm I'm I let you speak. I didn't interrupt you. I don't interrupt me. The board is not going to be able to comment on any confidential student matters or any pending investigations. So, I I understand you're here. You're looking
for answers. If you'd like to reach out to the superintendent, I would suggest you do that. She can respond to you to with whatever information she can respond to you with in in a in a private confidential form, >> right? >> But those responses aren't going to be coming. >> I'm not asking for anyone to respond.
Neither am I trying to ask anybody to laugh at my situation either because I didn't come here for that. But you have your Is there anyone else in the public who wishes to speak? >> Do you want to step up to the microphone
or what? >> No. Unfortunately, we can't address confidential matters to the public. Anyone else in the public wish to speak? >> Uh, good evening. Andrew, 326 Bruce Cross North here in Fort Le. Um, two
things. Um, I know we've been talking a lot about the bus tracking and I know last month he said it was being tested. >> So, my question is, was the status of that? And you know we're going to see some any update on that you know coming
soon. Yeah. You know you know also I noticed on the agenda I think sorry made reference to it. It's 6B at the um board critter. Um this year this calendaring year we've gone through I think it's a
five in BAS now and they were hiring another interim. I was wondering why you know the intern someone for x amount of units you know it seems like involving the door basically like a bas
you know >> that's it you want to talk about bus >> sure so the bus packing I will have an update um for you for the next uh board meeting I know that Mr. Safosan was working on that. I do have my weekly meeting with him um this week and I will
provide an update at the next board meeting. Um as far as the business administrator situation, we are doing our best to make sure that we have the the most qualified best individuals in the right positions and that is what we
will continue to do moving forward. Anyone else in person wish to speak? I live on road. Um uh I'm here over the
position that I created for uh transpoint USA not to um be at our high school. I'd like to reiterate that I'm with an unaffiliated young Republican club or an unaffiliated Christian club high school which is not USA. Um we
already have a problem with bullying school. Many of you uh many of us are aware of stopping last year because some uh kid decided that's another one outside the school grounds. Um and uh I want to say that do we really
need any more division um and gas into the fire without TV USA at our uh multicultural TV USA's founder Charlie K is asking a very glorifying destructive question um serving Christian cisgender heterosexual
whiteness but down anything or anyone that didn't line up with his ideas and a child of the 90s a geriatric millennial if you I know the rhetoric, but because it's the same rhetoric I grew up with in my conservative woman, it's the same rhetoric I continue to fight against as
an adult in that same church as a bisexual woman who only publicly came out four years ago because it was an emotionally saved my younger self to date women. If I chose to date a woman, I was evil and sinning when scientists confirmed otherwise. The rhetoric of men
telling me that my only fun in life is to be an uh accessory to a man to make and raise kids is what will make me the most if I'm not completely happy doing solely that something is wrong with me. Having Charlie Kirk talking about the
people grooming children to be gay uh like it's something bad learn or can rub off on other people is a force. In a similar vein, his rhetoric of women going to college for an MRS degree is just as familiar and painful to have to
fight against. College has value. It's not just a place to find a husband or have a backup just in case your husband dies or something else and you have to support yourself. I was hard. It was hard to be a weird female kid in the Mormon church in the
90s where queerness was still looked down on everywhere I went in anti-feminism ring supreme within our church. I had hope for Gen Z and my kids in Gen Alpha that things were getting better and turning corner with more acceptance towards queer people and that
a greater awareness of women's struggles were also turning corner with feminist men in our own generation and beyond. I thought I only had to still deal with this type of stuff with select people within the confines of my church. Having teach at the high school is going to be
a big step backwards for our kids. It brings the struggles I have within my church to their everyday lives forces my kids and others to face the scrutiny and bullying I face as a kid and I thought we had overcome as a society. The people for the training point USA club in our
high school would have me believe. I'm gonna ask you your last sentence. I'm sorry. >> Okay. Uh that the organization doesn't uh that the organization itself doesn't m I can't uh continue on with that. >> Yes.
>> Sorry. >> Thank you. Anyone else in the public wish to speak? No. Okay. Mr. Roger. >> Angelique, you've been promoted to panelist. Please unmute your microphone
and feel free to share your video. Please state your name and address for the record. You have three minutes. Angelique. >> Yes, I'm here. How are you? Um I don't have more uh so much of a Oh, actually I do have a question. My name is Angelique Lynen. Um I live at 127515th Street. I
just have more of a comment in regards to the first woman who stood up and spoke. Um based off of her questions and based off of the response from legal and the committee or the board, forgive me. what why wasn't their direction given to
that parent on how the proper protocol should be cuz I felt like that was a very dismissive interaction and I have a little concern with how that was handled and I understand there was some private matters that needed to that were addressed but I don't I didn't think that the board or the legal representation that was there gave her
the proper next steps that she could have taken to kind of solve her own problem. So, what is the board's role and or the legal's role when a person comes up before the board to discuss a matter that is of concern? Cuz she seemed like she had a couple of concerns. What is the proper protocol?
How does this all work? >> Are those all of your questions? >> Yeah, that's pretty much. I'm just yeah I just want to get a better understanding and I think that other parents who are watching or may be present when they have concerns at the school level and they bring it to the board meeting what is the proper process.
>> Okay. >> So I I'll allow the superintendent to speak more toward the process as to comments in public here. The board cannot respond to questions and comments regarding a number of
different uh topics. One which is anything that has to do with students which is confidential, anything that has to do with personnel, anything has to do with uh legal uh negotiations, things of that matter. The board cannot respond to those types of comments. um as to how to
address concerns of a private nature uh to administration I'll allow the superintendent to uh answer that portion question. >> So when a parent has concerns depending on the concern if it's grade or an assignment something that's happening in
the classroom it should address the teacher um first that's what we encourage parents to do because often they can get an answer right there. If a parent is not satisfied, they are certainly welcome with that response. They're certainly welcome to reach out
to the assistant principal or principal, even a curriculum supervisor. And if a parent is still not satisfied with the response, then their concern would get escalated to either the assistant superintendent or the superintendent's office. And then depending on the
concern, we would respond accordingly. Mike Oso, you've been promoted to panelist. Please unmute your microphone and feel free to share your video. Please state your name and address for the record. You have three minutes. >> Can you hear me?
>> Mike Oo Mike Oso 230 Warren Avenue Fort Le. Um, I just want to come on and say welcome first um, Michael Rigginger Connect um, to our district. If you're anything like your dad, this district is in very good hands. Um, the next thing I
want to clear up is that this Club America is not a hate speech. It's not a phobic group. It's nothing. These are insecure people that think this. And
understand one thing. These students that are starting this and my son is the founder of this. They're they're not spewing hate. No one should be in fear in of them.
Yeah, >> he he froze on us. >> We lost him. Let me see if he comes back. >> He comes back. We should let him finish, right? >> Yeah. If he comes back, let him finish. Wait, sorry. >> Oh, >> I'm sorry.
>> You froze up. >> So, I'm sorry. This fallacy that this is a hate group is nonsense. I would never ever teach my son to hate. and none of his friends. And many of you on this board
know my son and his friends. Are they hate speech people? Are they transphobics, homophobics? No. They're not racists. They're conservatives. So all this nonsense spewing the only
people that are preaching hate is the people, these adults that are preaching against this club. They have an advisor. Do you really think the the advisor is going to be teaching hate speech and racism?
No. So, they're all welcome to go and speak at the podium, but don't you ever think that one second anything that pertains to my son and his friends that want to start a conservative group are going to
be quiet because it won't happen. And that's it. That's it. That's all I have to say. But anyway, again, great job hiring uh Mr. Renda Connect. And uh let's keep it going. Peace, everybody.
Oh, by the way, the Blue Jays up 42. Peace. >> M. You've been promoted to panelist. Please unmute your microphone and feel free to share your video. Please state your name and address for the record. You have three minutes. >> Yeah.
>> Uh, hi Mi Konesco to 54 Town Hunter Road. So, got a couple of questions. Uh, first of all, I haven't seen in a long while like a treasury report and um I'm kind of curious how things look up
for the district. Last time we stopped, it seems like we were kind of short on receiving funds and nothing from there. Therefore, I'm kind of looking forward to see a new report reports showing that we are actually getting more money.
Um, and another thing I agree with my con the TPUSA point. I do think that kids should be allowed to start uh clubs. I don't see how this would cause
any hate or inflate spirits. So far during the past few weeks, we only have seen attacks from only one side of the aisle in regards to this. And it looks to me like somebody's trying to take away rights on
people to just express their free speech and freedom to associate with ideas. So, I'm fully supporting Mike and uh the formation of this club and I think uh the board should consider letting the
club uh get established. So, that's my topics. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Christos, you've been promoted to panelist. Please unmute your microphone and feel free to share your video. Please state your name and address for
the record. You have three minutes. You're muted. >> Hold on. >> Hold on. >> You good? You're good. >> Can you hear me? >> Yes. >> Okay. >> You want your v video or not? >> No, I don't care. Christos Kottoanes, 281 Tom Hunter Road, Fort Le, New
Jersey. So you all need to ignore the hysterical noise from this out of touch petition regarding Club America. This is not a debate. This is about free speech and if any extracurricular club is permitted in our schools, then Club
America must be permitted. No exceptions, no delays, no pandering to wildly insane petitions. I actually can't believe we're sitting here entertaining a petition to ban a student club. This is madness. I'd like to
remind all of you that these are the same people who push drag shows for little kids, demand mixed sex bathrooms where boys and girls share space, and cheer when men dominate women's sports. But the moment a conservative club may someday, god forbid, have a discussion
on the importance of family, the sanctity of marriage, the role conservatives play in our republic, or the fact that men are men and women are women, they rally to preemptively petition to stop it. What twisted world do we live in when the same people who
preach tolerance can't tolerate science, history, or free thought that isn't preapproved by the grandmaster of political correctness? Here's a message to those petition signers. You can't wipe the slate clean of reality and create a school of robotic conformists.
That's not education. That's indoctrination. Our schools are supposed to teach civics that people can disagree, express ideas, and still coexist in one community. So, make no mistake, this club will form because free expression isn't
negotiable. So board, lead with courage and show our students what a truly free society looks like. Anything less is a betrayal. Thank you. Jeff Katos, you've been promoted to panelist. Please unmute your microphone and feel free to share your video.
Please state your name and address for the record. You have three minutes. You're muted. St. >> Can you hear me? >> Yes. >> Okay. Um, Steph Cato Tom Hunter Road. Um, I'm very
concerned about the first person, the first woman that spoke. I'm sorry I didn't get her name, but uh as the mother of a child who was in special education for his whole existence in Fort Lee, I find it very
troubling what she was saying that she feels that her special needs child is in an unsafe um situation and I think this needs to be dealt with immediately. Also concerning is that there's people that
want to push sex education on these special needs children when we already have a mother right now speaking out um talking about that she doesn't feel her child is safe with the person that's in the classroom with her child. So this
is this is a major issue. Second, I'm actually in shock that um we have to hear about people's bisexuality at the board of ed meeting. It's utterly ridiculous. Um we just watched uh CA Mr.
Knight's posters be taken down all around town. Paula and Casey's posters, we've seen them shot up with these paint pellets. I don't know what's going on in this town, but I can tell you this.
There are thousands of parents who want to know what is going on in their children's classroom. Avoiding it is not going to get better. The parents need to be more involved, not less involved. The
high school parents need to be more involved, not less involved. Um, and I was a little bit concerned about the numbers. It seemed like the English as a second language students actually have higher math scores. So, I would like
someone to touch on that. Do they come into our country having a stronger foundation in mathematics? because it seems that their scores are higher. I could be wrong, but higher than the students that are just in our
district. Anyway, I am very troubled by what I heard tonight. I hope it's dealt with. um and cutting off a mother who's speaking and telling her nobody was laughing when she obviously felt like
someone was laughing that's sitting on that deis and I don't know who it was is not acceptable. Um that's it. >> There are no more raised hands. >> Thank you. May I have a motion to close the floor to the public?
>> Motion Ardino, second morel. All in favor? Any opposed or abstensions? >> Okay, moving on. May I have a motion to approve items 1B through 14B, including the walk
motion, second roll call, please. >> M. >> Yes, >> it's back. >> Yes. Everything but know it can be >> Mr. Curry. >> Yes, >> Mr. Knight.
>> Yes. Everything except for 10B. >> Is the wall. >> Yes. Yes. >> Guess everything. Guess everything. >> This is co everything.
Yes, Miss Morel. >> Yes to everything except 10B >> Mr. Rino. >> Yes, except 10 B. >> Mrs. Rick, >> yes. >> I have a motion to provide them one BNG.
Motion morale. Second roll call, please. The fire's t. >> Yes. >> Yes. Except no on the three uses listed in one that have already passed. The dates have already passed.
>> Yes. >> Good night. >> Yes. >> Coach. >> Yes. >> Mr. Lopez. Yes. Morell. >> Yes. Mr. >> Rabbino, >> yes. Director, >> yes. >> Have a motion to provide 1 S.
>> Motion. >> Second. >> Motion. Rabino. Second. Morell. Roll call, please. >> Mrs. Buyers Kang. >> Yes. >> M. >> Colback. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Curry. >> Yes. >> Mr. Knight. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Cotang. >> Yes. >> Mr. Lopez. >> Yes.
>> Miss. Morell? >> Yes. >> Mr. Rabino? >> Yes. >> Mrs. Rick? >> Yes. I have a motion to approve items 1 CUR through 3 CUR. >> Motion second. >> Motion morale. Second. Cotang. Roll
call, please. >> Mrs. Buyers Kang. >> Yes. >> Miss Colback. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Curry. >> Yes. >> Mr. Knight. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Cotang. >> Yes. >> Mr. Lopez. >> Yes. >> M. Morell. >> Yes. >> Mr. Rabino.
>> Yes. >> Mrs. Rtor. >> Yes. I have a motion to approve items 1 F through 9F. Motion second. >> Motion Curry. Second. We're being a roll call, please. >> Mrs. Byers Kang. >> Yes. >> Miss Colback. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Curry.
>> Yes. >> Mr. Knight. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Cotang. >> Yes. >> Mr. Lopez. >> Yes. >> M. Morell? >> Yes. >> Mr. Rabino? >> Yes. >> Mrs. Rick? >> Yes. May I have a motion to approve items 1 P through 20 P? >> Motion.
>> Second. Motion morel second. Cotang roll call please. >> Mrs. Byers K. >> Yes. Except 21 on 5P. I'm going to abstain from the first name. >> Mr. Kat. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Curry. >> Yes. >> Mr. Knight.
>> Yes. And on 13P. >> Mr. Kotang. >> Yes. >> Mr. Lopez. >> Yes. >> Miss. Morell. >> Yes. >> Mr. Rabino. Yes, >> Mrs. Rick. >> Yes. I have a motion to approve item one. P >> motion. Second.
>> Motion. Kobach. Second. Morell. Roll call, please. >> Mrs. Buyers Kang. >> Yes. >> M. Kobath. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Curry. >> Yes. >> Mr. Knight. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Cotang. >> Yes. >> Mr. Lopez. >> Yes. >> Miss. Morell. >> Yes.
>> Mr. Rubino. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Rick. >> Yes. Just before we move on to any old business or new business, I want to say thank you to Dr. Hayes. This is his last meeting with us. We appreciate your time. second.
>> And thank you for having me. It's been an honor to be here. >> Thank you very much. >> Is there any old business before we move on? Any new business? >> Um, I just want to invite everyone out to uh Friday Park on Wednesday 6 p.m.
Varsity football team. Let's go out there and support and cheer them on to victory. think about 6 >> 6 p.m. >> I just want to thank the three people that are
on I tonight's agenda that are retiring. Um Christine Romano dedicated 17 years, Peter Romano, five years, and Karen Low 12 years of service. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you for all the good work you did with our children.
Thank you. >> All right. May I have a motion to adjurnn? >> Second. >> Motion Kovac. Second. All in favor? >> Thank you. >> Thank you. We're so sorry for the long