We're good. Okay. Hi. Welcome everybody. >> Hey Kev. Okay. Hey. Okay. All right. I think Tom, roll call, please.
>> Miss Bose >> here. >> Mr. Clark, >> Mr. Caparata >> here. >> Miss Evans >> here. >> Miss Kroger. Miss Kelly, Miss Martinez >> here, >> Miss Pasculi >> here, >> Mr. Vanheis >> here. >> You have a quorum.
>> Great. Thank you. Um, good evening everybody. Um we will be going into executive session. Um the open public meeting act authorizes the board of ed to meet in executive session under certain circumstances. The open public meeting act requires the board to adopt a resolution at a public meeting to go
into private session. Um the Lawrence Township Board of Education uh will meet in executive session this evening to discuss certain items including um matters involving the real tactic and tech techniques utilized in
pro protecting the safety and the property of the public and specifically school security protocols. Uh formal action will not be taken and executive session is expected to last approximately 30 minutes. And I have a motion to move into exact session.
>> All in favor? >> I come. >> Thank you. heart prints. Okay, that one here. This one's mine. >> Great. Thank you. Hello. >> Hi. Good evening. >> Good evening.
>> Good evening, friends. My name is Damen Barrya and I am the supervisor of mathematics, science, and arts for the uh elementary grades here in Lawrence Township Public Schools. We are proud to spotlight our young artists and musicians from Eldridge Park School at this month's board meeting. On the display boards by the entrance, we have
art from our EPS kindergarteners and third graders. And in case you did not get a chance to read the accompanying descriptions, I'd like to highlight some excerpts that I feel exemplify just some of the reasons why the arts are so important to our school community. Students in Miss Fricker's kindergarten class created their own wish kites,
which are used in Guatemalan culture to honor loved ones who have passed. The project was inspired by the book Wish by Roseanne Thong, which explores different traditions from around the world. These diverse customs show that although very different, they all share the universal desire of a wish. These traditions
remind us of our unity. Students from all third grade classes at Eldridge Park created art depicting our Lawrence community. They say, "We believe Lawrenceville is a place where we can experience love, acceptance, and a sense of belonging. We show love and
concern for one another, and we can change the world with acts of kindness." The document also includes a quote from Kretta Scott King. The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members.
On the music side of things, Miss Lingal is here with our friends from Eldridge Park second grade to share two songs with us from their winter concert. And there may be a surprise in between songs. Eldidge Park friends, take it away. Cold outside
my nose is getting runny. I know my seizing I just to R E that's frozen. my counters. I'm not
sure that I would still have I want a marshmallow or two. I want a hot chocolate hot to toe. Make it in a mour in a cup. Serve it on
a sausowing. I wonder if it ever was soft. There's only one thing that will warm my frozen up
will turn up my heat. I want a half co. Hot warm me up from head to toe. Make it in the mir. YEAH. THANK YOU SO MUCH. Thank you so much for
having us. We feel very honored to be able to be here in January to present to you because we know that it's also board recognition month. And so we wanted to make sure that bea on behalf of our students and our staff and our families, we want to express our sincere gratitude
for your dedicated service to the Lawrence Township community at EPS. This month's character trait is perseverance, and it could not be more fitting for all of you. Your work as a board requires steadfast commitment, thoughtful decision-making, and the perseverance to
remain focused on what matters most, our students. Even when challenges arise, your willingness to serve, often behind the scenes, ensures that our schools remain places where every child has the opportunity to grow, learn, and succeed.
We also reflect on the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. We are reminded that service to others is one of the highest callings. Dr. King believed that everyone can be great because everyone can serve. Each one of you exemplifies that belief
through your selfless dedication, your advocacy for equity, and your unwavering support of public education, not just in the month of January, but all school year long. As a token of our appreciation, Resa, Will, and Ava will now share a few words
of appreciation with you. And our students will share a gift with each of you. Through thoughtful guidance, care and time, you help our schools and students shine. Grateful hearts, we thank you. So,
take a break with a cup of hot cocoa. A small token for thanks from us today for all you give in every way.
>> Thank you. Thank you. >> Wonderful. Wonderful. Thanks, guys. Beautiful singing. >> Thank you very much. Appreciate it. Thank you. >> Thank you so much.
>> Thank you. You guys did a great job. >> Thank you for your time, your leadership, and your perseverance in service to our schools and our community. We're truly grateful for all you do. As a momentum of this occasion, the students of EPS have collaboratively
made these art boards for you. And as we show them to you, I'd like Kai to come forward. Sure. If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more, and become
more, then you are a leader. Thank you for shaping the future of education and creating opportunities for our students and community members. We appreciate you.
>> Oh my god. All right, we have one more song of appreciation to share with you. If you know it, you can sing along. Dink. We love you.
Skinn, we love you. We love you in the morning and in the afternoon. We love you in the evening and underneath the roof. in the rain.
We love youinkink. We love you. Skimmerink. We love you. We love you in the morning and in the afternoon. We love you in the evening
and underneath the moon. Skimmerink. We love you. Well, thank you so much to Eldridge Park. That was an incredible performance and I love the artwork. Uh it's really beautiful and you know having the kids
here and singing and doing all the things that they've getting out of our education is so rewarding for us and the arts are super important. So we appreciate everything that we get back from our students. So thank you guys. That was really wonderful.
>> Thank you. >> Okay. Okay. Now we must start our meeting. Uh the New Jersey open public meeting law was enacted to ensure the right of the public to have advanced notice of and to attend meetings of public bodies at which any business affecting their
interests is discussed or acted upon as required under law. Adequate notice of this meeting has been provided via email and are faxed to the times, the Lawrence Ledger, the Trentonian, the public library, and has been filed with the municipal clerk. This notice was provided prior to the 48 hours required
by the Oakland Public Meetings Act. The board reserves the right to limit public discussion of personnel items and other matters as defined in the law. We'll do our flag salute. To the flag of the United States of America and to the
stands one nation, indivisibley and justice for all. Okay. Uh, student peer leaders, are you here? Come on down. You're up first.
>> Hello. We are the peer leaders. I'm Josh Creel and I'm a senior. My topic is winter sports. So, the winter sports season is already underway with basketball, swimming, winter track, hockey, and wrestling all starting matches and games. The boys basketball
and girls basketball team are off to very hot starts with the boys basketball team being 10 and five and the girls basketball team being 10 and six. >> Can I just interject that Marvin McNeel just was out there and scored a thousandth point here for Lawrence
Township and I was there to see it. >> Hello, I am Rowan Denro. I am a junior and I am a historian for our very own LHS theater company. Um, as a historian, it is my job to organize company information and records and I am pleased to announce that we just wrapped up our
fall play which was Pride and Prejudice where I was lucky enough to be able to play Mr. Collins, which was a very fun experience and it was a very successful show. And now we are starting off with our spring musical, which is the Adams family. And we are currently in rehearsal for that. And I am playing Uncle Fester, which again is very fun
and I'm very grateful for the opportunity. Um, if you would like to come support us and see the spring musical, the dates are March 12th, 13th, and 14th. So, please come and see it if you'd like. >> THANK YOU.
GOOD EVENING. My name is Evangelene Borsuk. I am a junior and I'm a part of our school's tangents club which is a literary magazine where we take any submissions of art like poems or short stories or even drawings. Recently we had a holiday fundraiser which did
excellent. We raised lots of money and we have upcoming submissions in about April for our end of the year magazine. Thank you. Hi everyone, I'm Ana Kowala. I'm a junior and a captain of the LHS Science Olympiad team. This past Thursday, 15
competitors competed in 12 different events at the Camden Regional Tournament. It was a very tough competition as all science olympiad teams from South and Central Jersey competed in this regional. In addition, in science olympiad tournaments, the entire team needs to succeed in order for the team to be able to advance to
states. But I have good news. The LHS team did well and we will be progressing to the state finals tournament in March. Thank you. >> Great. Thank you so much. Uh peer leaders, you can go if you want or feel free to stay. Um recognition and
acknowledgement. Dr. Clim. >> Okay. We do have several recognitions and acknowledgements tonight. January is board member appreciation month and on behalf of the entire district I want to express my gratitude for your selfless service and dedication to the board of education students and families of
Lawrence Township. I want to thank Miss Lingol, Dr. Barrya and Mrs. Amit for our pre-board meeting performance. Our singers were amazing and also Miss Paglei for your beautiful Eldridge Park art display as you walked in tonight. I'm sure you may have may have caught a
glance. Now, I'd like to call up Slackwood Elementary principal, uh, Miss Vladimir, to present the board of education with a token of appreciation or explain these beautiful displays they have in front of them made by our wonderful students.
Good evening on this very cold what's happening Wednesday and sensational things are happening at Slackwood. So each one of you should see in front of you a piece of crop art which is art that represent that is made from seeds.
So under the leadership and direction of the art teacher at slackwood we would like to express our gratitude to you in the way you make slackwood shine which is sewing hope in nature in every season. That's our projectbased
initiative for our go garden that's being supported by the LTE grant. Earlier, you may have received some herbs that the children planted in the garden last year that were dried and then picked when they came into the um
fall season when they first arrived back at school. So, you got some slackwood seasonings. Hope you used them. Probably tasted great. So, we want to expand that and just express our gratitude to you all for all you do and your support for
Slackwood and all the students in the district. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Miss Vladimir. We have one more surprise. I'd like to invite our Lawrence Middle School principal, Dr. Malowski, up to the podium to continue the spirit and
appreciation. I'm gonna have um Mr. Huitt because he also did some recognition. So >> Oh, absolutely. Mr. Huitt, come on up. I apologize. >> Oh, it's a surprise. I didn't even know. >> No, it is a surprise. And we thank you
so much. The Ben Franklin students and staff just wanted to say thank you for all that you do every day. You'll see in front of you uh small jars. They're positive affirmations inside. So, whenever you need a pickme up or something or just want to look at a kind thought from a student at Ben Franklin, we appreciate um the second and third
and first graders who created these positive affirmation jars for you. So, enjoy and thank you. >> Thank you, Mr. Hewitt. >> Now, my turn. So, I um we were fighting over you guys um clearly this month and so the middle
school is here and we are really excited to recognize you as a board and thank you for all that you do. So, we're going to start with our fantastic cheerleaders and it's probably the first come on it's probably the first time that they've ever been to a board meeting.
So, so first and second row just you might need to squish a little bit. Um because they're gonna perform. >> Oh yeah. Any parent who wants to come up and take a picture, feel free to come up here >> or not.
>> I know. Only the littles. >> Sure. LAD WHITE BREAD. HEY FANS, HERE WE GO AGAIN. LTPS LTPS.
Red LTPS. LET'S hear it for the best. LTPS. Let's hear it for the best. LTPS.
Let's hear it for the best. LTPS. Let's hear it for the best. LTPS. LS nation cardinal TAKE FLIGHT YELL OUR COLORS RED
AND WHITE RED yelling for LMS nation LMS nation Y nation. >> Boy, that was fantastic. >> We have to reconfigure. We need the podium back. Sorry.
>> Were they wonderful? >> Yes. >> FANTASTIC. >> And this is only half of them. They can be even louder. Well done. >> So, next up, I'm going to introduce our student council is going to come on up.
Good evening, Superintendent Clim, members of the board of education, administrators, teachers, families, and guests. I am Reagan Wesley, an eighth grader and the vice president of student council at Lawrence Middle School. I am Ael Fleming, an eighth grader and
two-year member of Lawrence Middle School student council. Tonight, it is an honor to represent Lawrence Middle School as we recognize the members of our board of education for your leadership, vision, and commitment to our school community. Thank you. >> You so much.
>> Thank you. Going to find the name. Thank you, sweetheart. >> Did everybody get a red? No. Okay. >> Thank you. >> I think somebody else needs a red. >> Who do you need, honey?
>> Everybody got a red. >> And then did everybody get a card? Okay. We have some members not with us. We'll make sure they get their gifts >> and their cards. >> All right. So, we're going to have >> They might not be here
and >> thank you very much. >> Okay. Um, so as a small token of our appreciation for the work that you do, um, this gift that's in front of you, you can unwrap it. Go ahead and unwrap
it. >> Oh, little keychain there. Yeah, there's key chains on there. Well, I'll get to the keychain in a second. We're going to go to the inside. And so what you have in front of you is a calendar that we created and you're going to see
the front if you turn it over to the 2026 guide is from some pictures that we have found in our archives. Mr. Eldridge almost spoiled my surprise for you the other day at our architect meeting. Um and I have some more things
that I want to share with you. But on the outside of that is some pictures and the um front and the back. Um but in the center you'll find yourselves right as this has been a tremendous year as we have passed the referendum and to celebrate that you also are going to
find the new calendar in there that you're going to talk about tonight. But most importantly you're going to see beautiful artwork that is display um is our student artwork that is in this calendar. So each month as you look through it, you'll see our beautiful student artwork and then on the front
and the back um it will remind you of the history of this district. And so in the also you received a um from our 3D printer maker or printer um a little token a keychain for you as well. But this is the other thing that I wanted to
share with you tonight. As I was saying, we've been going through the archives and one of the things that um our previous, you know, middle schoolers did was they kept scrapbooks. And so this scrapbook that I have in
front of me, this is from 1951. And when I opened it, to my lovely surprise, um I was able to find the original publications of when the middle school was first
built. So it was started in um 1951 for $1 million. And then in 1956, it actually outgrew itself already. and they went out again for another referendum for I think it was 8 uh 819 uh 800,000
um which is amazing right to for a referendum considering what we're spending um but it's amazing what they did and I want to just share because we have now started to create a new scrapbook and that scrapbook includes the old clippings that we have and then
it also is including your memories and the things that you have done as a board for this district. So, I'll pass this around and at your leisure you can look at it. I I'm going to save our old scrapbooks and then I've also just made a copy because one of the things in this
picture on the bottom is the auditorium picture >> and it almost it's amazing what it looks like um in 1952. This says August 18th um 1952 um and what it looks like now as they
are doing the construction. It looks the same >> cuz it is totally um not renovated yet in this picture. So you the front and the back. You'll see the gym on that picture in the back and you'll see the back of the building and the difference
of of how it grew. So um you know again we're just very thankful as a school for all of the things that you've done for us. And I'm going to let um the girls finish up with their thank you. Is this yours? It's your
>> As we look ahead, we are excited to share that in September 2026, Lawrence Middle School will celebrate its 75th anniversary. This calendar represents that moment, celebrating our past while looking forward to an exciting and
promising future. On behalf of the students of Lawrence Middle School and all students in the Lawrence Township School District, we say thank you for your vision, dedication, and belief in us. Your work is making a lasting impact on our schools and our community.
Thank you for your time and everything you do for Lawrence Township Schools. And then just inside your a note from student council to all of you so you can read it at a later time and then I'll leave this with you but we're going to keep adding to it because all the greatness that you're doing. So thank
you >> ladies. >> Thank you LMS. >> Fantastic cheerleaders. Yeah. Mindy, thank you so much. This is really extraordinary and you know, we as a board have worked so hard on on this
um referendum and and getting the middle school somewhere and it really is um so important that we honor our history and our past and um we're very lucky to have you in our district for a little bit of time. Um but um you know
you have made an impact on so many students and you know the board is very appreciative of what you have done at the middle school and we look forward to an amazing future. Thank you and thank you to the middle school and all the work they did tonight. We really
appreciate it. That was very special. Thank you Dr. Wasu Lebanon and Dr. Molasi. All right. So, we have uh one final thing. I'm going to welcome up um our supervisor, Miss Moren Hayes, who's presenting the Sharing the Stories of City Landmark
Awards. She's going to tell you a little bit about that. >> And they're all here. So, Good evening. As part of our district's ongoing partnership with IP Perk and Schools in China, Lawrence Intermediate School was invited to participate in a cultural exchange with students in
Beijing during the spring of 2025. The theme of this collaboration was sharing the stories of city landmarks and LIS partnered with Shija Primary School and Shija Experimental Primary School, which happened to be two of the schools that we visited with our delegation. In
December of 2024, Miss Musei and I worked closely with LIS administration and their social studies teacher, Mrs. Terasov, to recruit students interested in participating in this project. They were tasked with creating blogs that showcase local landmarks in our community. As part of their project
requirements, they selected an aspect of their chosen landmark that interested them the most and presented it from a uni unique perspective. Um although the timeline to complete the project by May by the May due date was tight, two groups of students voluntarily stepped forward to participate. They worked
collaboratively to select their landmarks and then began researching, scripting, and producing their blogs. Throughout the process, students met weekly during their al time at LIS to share updates and receive feedback from Mrs. Muse and me. Once completed, the vlogs were submitted electronically to
our partners at IIP Park. Earlier this fall, we were thrilled to receive word from IPARK that both student groups participating in this project were recognized with the excellent cultural communication ambassador award. And in addition, Lawrence Intermediate School received the outstanding organization award in recognition of its
participation in this international exchange. The students being honored here tonight are here to accept their awards and I would like to commend them for taking on this voluntary project and seeing it through to completion. We are incredibly proud of their dedication, collaboration, and global-mindedness.
Uh so we have certificates for you and I will I can um translate them for you later because they are in Mandarin. And we also have um some keychains to just remind yourself of your global partnership of this experience. So the first presentation was done on Princeton
University and sorry I flip up you guys. Um and Camila Aaron Kelsey Battle >> Chloe Cresco out. And then we had another group that did their presentation on Central Park in Florenceville. And those students are
Lucas Austo and Logan Armstrong. Congratulations. We are also excited to share that students from the Shija Primary School will be visiting us this May. and we look forward to continuing and strengthening this meaningful global cultural connection. Thank you. >> Wow. >> Thank you, Miss.
>> Thank you. >> Great. >> Okay. Okay. Uh adoption of the minutes. Can I have a motion to adopt the executive session and regular session minutes from the 1210 and 17 meeting? So move.
>> Second. and Tom with a motion and second from MOA. >> Mr. Caparata, >> yes. >> Mr. Clark, >> yes. >> Miss Evans, >> yes. >> M. Martinez, >> yes. >> Miss Pasculi, >> yes. >> Mr. Vanheis,
>> I'll miss Bose. >> Yes. >> Motion carries. >> Thank you. Reports to the board. Superintendent report. >> Okay. Good evening. First, I want to thank our neighbors, family members, and community members who chose to be here on this chilly night. Your presence
speaks volumes and says everything about who we are as a community. Lawrence Township is a community rooted in respect, kindness, and integrity. We don't just talk about values, we live them. We show up for our students. We stand with our families. And we take the
high road even when it's hard. That is who we are. And that is who we will continue to do. That is who we will continue to be as this district moves forward. For the past 25 years, I've been a child advocate. Protecting children is not just my job. It's my life's work. I've served as a social
worker in inner cities, fought for children through nonprofit organizations, served on child study teams, and now as your superintendent of schools, I bring that same fire and compassion and commitment to this role every single day. I will always fight for what's right. I will always put
children first. and I will never waver when it comes to keeping them safe. Now, I'd like to bring up LTE Executive Director Bonnie Gigglio with an exciting grant announcement. >> Evening. I have to follow all of that. Oh my goodness. Uh my name is Bonnie
Gigglio. the executive director of the LTEF. I'm here tonight to present the um board of education with a check for $9,535 to the Lawrence Township Public Schools thanks to a grant from Church and Dwight Employee Giving Fund. The LTEF is proud
and excited to be able to provide this grant funding from a wonderful community partner that we have a long-standing relationship with. The Church and Dwight Employee Giving Fund holds an extra special place in our hearts as it's direct funding from its employees and we couldn't be more thrilled in the project
that they've chosen to invest in. The grant is entitled Fostering Physical Literacy at Lawrence High School and was awarded to Mike Underwood, a PE teacher at the high school. This grant will provide funding for the critical renovation of the aerobics room in order
to create a more inclusive and accessible um environment for all students, including those who may have sensory processing difficulties while integrating modern technology to enhance instruction. This grant will help transform the aerobics room into a truly
accessible and inclusive learning environment that caters to the diverse needs of the student population. This renovation will specifically address the identified barriers. One, shock absorbing non-slip slip flooring. Two, accessible and adaptive equipment. And
three, create dedicated spaces for diverse activities. Beyond the physical renovation, the aim is to strategically integrate technology to enhance the instructional practice and empower students to take ownership of their phys physical literacy journey. Exploring
wearable devices will allow students to set personalized goals, monitor their progress, increase engagement, and help provide datadriven instruction. Renovating the XO aerobics room at Lawrence High School is a critical investment in the physical literacy and overall well-being of all of the
students. By creating an accessible and technologically integrated space, we can break down existing barriers, foster inclusivity, and empower students. Thank you so much for allowing me to speak. I don't have to do the picture because I already have it on there. Already took it. We already took it.
>> It's already done. So, thanks. >> Thank you so much. >> All right. And finally, I'm excited to introduce Miss Maryanne Freriedman. She is from New Jersey School Board. She is our wonderful field service representative. She's going to be
addressing the board tonight to introduce our very exciting strategic planning process. It's an important milestone in our district as we get ready to embark on and we need you. We need your input. So, conveniently located by the agendas this evening is a
list of the dates that are coming up. We encourage you to scan the QR code and list your availability. We would love for you to be a part of this process. So, the field the floor is yours, Miss Freriedman. Thank you. >> Thank you. It's great to see everybody. When I walk into this building or when I
walk into this district, I always feel so welcome. You are You have the kindest people in on the planet, I think, working around you. No, I'm serious. There there's kind and then there's really really kind and making people feel welcome and that's what happens when I come here. So, thank you.
Thank you. I'm here to talk about >> and I'm very excit I'm very excited to be part of your new um strategic planning process and we're going to go through this and talk about it a little bit. So, welcome and introductions. What is strategic planning? What are the advantages? How to be a part of the
process for all of you and um wrap up in questions. So strategic planning really will create a vi a vision a mission dri a district-wide mission and vision for the district that will help to bring people together to work toward the common good of all students.
And the advantages of strategic planning are it allows the board to be more proactive. For the past 10 years or so we've seen that boards have become had to become very reactive because of the changes at the state level and everything that's happening. So this because this plan will go for three to
five years. It allows the board to plan out. It allows you to build resources for things you would like to do. Unfortunately, everything can't happen in year one, which is what everybody wants because you're going to come up with great things and your community members and parents and staff and students um will come up with really
great things. But it will allow you to be more proactive. It also allows your community, your whole educational community to be creative and innovative. And that's really important because sometimes we get bogged down with what we absolutely need to do. And there are
sometimes creative and innovative ways to do that. It is a process that's flexible. So, it does allow for things to be moved around. Sometimes you may have to move things around depending on what's happening in the district. Um but everything is going everything that
comes out of the strategic plan will be a part of the final strategic plan and then you'll have a yearly update on the state of the strategic plan. It does provide a forum for more complete participation from your community members, your parents, your staff, and
your students. And it also creates an ongoing cycle of planning that you'll be able to follow along with. And I have some exciting news about a dashboard that you're going to be able to have. and you'll be one of the first ones to have that dashboard. It also optimizes your limited resources. We know that
school districts have very limited resources these days. So, you're really going to be able to plan ahead for those things and be able to build up resources to be able to accomplish some of the goals that will come out of the strategic plan. And then it increases communication because everybody's a part
of it and there'll be updates on a constant level and people will be able to follow along just by watching the website. So it also allows you to have a clear focus on your decision making. It's going to highlight the importance of good decision making. It's also going
to create that division districtwide vision and mission that will help to motivate people to work towards the common good as I said before. So, why do districts engage in a strategic plan? If their school enrollment is changing, if the makeup of the school population is
changing, are there more people in your community that don't have children coming to the schools? We know that's true across the country, that there are fewer people that have um students coming into the schools than what your community actually consists of. And then
what would you benefit from this strategic planning and having a roadmap for your future? because it literally will guide the board and the district over the next 3 to 5 years. So again, changes in your family structure, changes in your demographic, um educational levels of your community,
competition for the public schools, or limited funding impacting your programs and services. All those are reasons why you would want to participate in the strategic plan. So we have a waterfall effect of the strategic plan because once the strategic plan is in place it will be
the top of the waterfall and everything else will flow down into that in from the waterfall. So it will impact your district goals, your board goals, your administrators goals, your building goals, department goals, teacher and classroom goals and student goals all which ultimately flow into the pool at
the bottom which is student achievement. And we have seen I've been doing this now for 16 years and I can tell you that the transformation of school districts has been amazing through a strategic plan because you're inviting people to come in and talk to you about what they would like to see happen here and then
you're listening to what they have to say and that's the most important part. So for our three R strategic planning process, it's a three meetings over three nights. Oh no, three meetings over three months. I'm sorry.
It's Wednesday, right? >> Yes. >> I'm very conf I get very confused when we have a day off at the beginning of the week because nothing flows right in my head. Um so at the the commitment, this is our strategic planning um pyramid. At the bottom is the commitment of the board of education and going up
across the top the side is the commitment of the board. In the first meeting, we'll have information which will be the state of the schools or the state of the district report by Dr. Clim and then we'll break up into small groups that and we'll have a strengths and challenges exercise that we'll do
and Dr. Clim will talk about a lot of different aspects of the school district but she'll also talk about strengths and challenges that she sees and that the administrative team sees but then we're going to ask all of you to identify strengths and challenges that you feel are happening in the district. So that
will be meeting one and that's the reflection period. The second meeting will be to reimagine and we'll ask you to think that you've uh moved away from Lawrence Township for a couple of years and you come back, you stop in Wawa or Quick Check or whatever you have where
you can get gas and go in for coffee. Okay? I don't know if that exists. I think it does. And you go in for coffee and you see Time magazine, which miraculously five years from now is still in print. I don't even know if it's in print now, but it will be in
print five years from now. And you see on the cover, schools that succeed, and there will be pictures of the Lawrence Township Schools on there. So, we're going to give you all the outcomes from the first meeting. And by the way, they'll be posted on the website right away after that meeting. And so that
anybody who couldn't come to meeting one, but wants to come to meeting two, will be able to see how everything flowed in that first meeting. So, they'll be able to come in and hit the ground running. And then we'll ask them to take a look at those outcomes. Think about the strengths. Think about the
challenges. And what if the challenges, what if the challenges were now strengths? What if they had been resolved and they had been overcome? What would those look like? Those will become initiatives. And then each small group will identifi
with an overarching vision statement for their group. They'll report out to the larger group. the strengths and challenges folks the small groups will do that as well and then we'll come up with common themes for strengths and challenges in meeting one and vision and initiatives in meeting two then we'll
also come up with very broad goal areas three to five goal areas that will be the strategic planning goal areas the third meeting will be the reccalibration of the of the goals and we'll take a look at those taking a look at everything from meeting one and meeting
two each group will work on a goal area that they want to work on. We're going to separate you out at the beginning on the first two. Don't hate me, but it gives you the ability to get to meet other people who may not think the same way you do, but it enables you to see
your community and who's in who's in your community. That last meeting, you'll go to the goal area that you want to work on and you'll be able to come up with objectives and then an overarching goal statement. Report out on those. We'll get consensus on those. If there's any tweaks that need to be done, we'll
take care of that. And then everything goes to the superintendent and the administrative team for action plans because everything else is what you want to see happen. And the superintendent and the administrative team will determine how they're going to get you
there over the next three to five years. So, as I said, we have this great new feature. It's a district strategic planning dashboard and it will show you the success of the strategic planning goals as you go through them. Superintendent will either take care of this herself or she'll designate
somebody to take care of it. There'll be a username for the district and then I'm sorry you can't really see that um but there will be go the goals will be stated there and then you'll be able to see the advancement and the achievement of each of those goals and what the progress has been. The final plan will
also be delivered to the board at a board meeting. And once that final plan has been adopted, we'll give you that'll be paper final plan and then we'll give that to you in an electronic version that you can post on the website which will include every part of the strategic
plan, an executive summary, all of the attendees, um all of the the different um outcomes from meetings one, meeting two, and meeting three. It will include the state of the district report and all the slides from that. and then all the action plans. And so this is a a really
great process to be able to go through. So who can participate? Really, everyone can participate. All of you can participate. Every single one of you, um board members, past, present, and future parents, staff and administrators, students, present and past.
>> Okay? So as students graduate from the district, if they're going to local schools or they're around for those meetings, they can come. We want to hear from students. Student voice is very important in this process. Any community members and town council members and community businesses can participate.
They're all a piece of the puzzle. And student voice is really already here. We just honor it by listening to it. And that's where the important part comes for this. So again, how can you participate? You can attend and actively participate in the three meetings. There
will be one per month starting in April, May, and June. become involved in the schools to the extent that you're able. You're all here once a month, at least once a month, so you're participating as well. And attend board meeting updates on the progress towards the achievement of the district planning goals. Okay.
What questions might you have? >> Okay. >> You did a thorough job, Marian. That's why there's no questions. >> It's okay. I like that. I do like questions. >> Yeah. Thank you for all that you do for your students, staff, and community. Thank you. As everybody has said, happy
National Board Appreciation Week, uh month rather, and thank you for everything that you do. I'm really looking forward to working with you all on this. >> Thank you so much. And we know that, you know, you're going to guide us through this and really the most important thing is getting the community to turn out. Um
we always are talking about the school. We want to hear from new voices and you know people who are in the school right now or you know people with kids who are coming into our schools. Absolutely. So the most important thing is to get people to join. >> Absolutely. >> Thank you so much Maryanne.
>> Thank you. It was great being here. Take care. >> Miss Baldesari is is holding up the convenient QR code if you'd like to sign up. Again, if your schedule doesn't allow for all three sessions, we'll take you for one or two. We're looking forward to input and there's so many of you here tonight, so it's very timely.
Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Thanks, Miss Freriedman. >> Great. Uh Tom, board secretary report. >> Mini Mowski did a wonderful job with the calendar. If you do take a look at that calendar, what's unique about that is when the auditorium was being built, now
that we're doing demolition, we in many ways stripped the auditorium back down to what it looks like as it was being framed out. >> And so, um this is a wonderful calendar. And I almost gave it away at a construction meeting because I'd seen the 1950s photo of the auditorium and I
went, "Wow, that looks like today." And she was looking at me going, "Yeah, it looks like today." Um because it's all stripped out. If any board members are interested in taking a walk uh uh to the construction site and taking a peek in, we won't walk around the entire auditorium, but we could probably get
you on the uh >> the stage >> um as a group. Um, if we we we were to do that, we would talk with the the contractor, give us some time so they can clear out and stop what they're doing and take a pause. But individually, I think we can manage it. If you wanted to do it individually, we
could do that. We get you a hard hat. Um, move you in there. Um, where are we with that project? We are on time with that project. We continually meet uh we meet every Thursday with the architects for either the main body of the project work or the auditorium, alternating uh
Thursdays. We will meet tomorrow morning. Um and so we meet at the the shop building. We call it the shop. It's the old maintenance building which will soon be gone. Um so it'll be the next version terming the next contract that
we award the main body project the big project uh will tear down that shed maintenance building and that will be gone as we expand our footprint. >> Some other things that are out there just some housekeeping. Jill has sent you the ethics forms. Um, if you don't
have them yet, please reach out to Jill. Um, these are very difficult. Please don't get upset if um, yours gets turned back to you. I have to say there's probably only about a 50% success rate. >> Um, so for some folks, what I started doing and if you're okay with this, I'll
go in and complete them for you >> and say to you, does this look like what you wanted? And then you can submit it from there. Or if you tell me via email, it looks good, then I have the ability to submit it on your behalf. Um, so there are so many things that will your form would be rejected from the school
ethics commission for. Nothing nefarious or anything like that. Perhaps you wrote LTBOE instead of Lawrence County Board of Education. Or perhaps you didn't, but the address just said Lawrence, New Jersey. These are all minor things, but if I can speed that up for you, I will.
And we'll get that done. Okay. The um some things that are happening that are unique. The state of New Jersey is moving along soon. In fact, we're already doing this. We have a link on our website. Upper right hand corner on the main web page says public notices. If you click that public notice uh
hyperlink, you're going to see all of our legal notices are now there. Um so we're moving away from the paper age into the digital age. And soon the entire state of New Jersey, I'm sure that the uh other school boards are already underway. Um, and I imagine the
townships are too that our legal advertisements will appear on our website. There will be a hyperlink over to the state of New Jerseyy's website and that's how we'll ultimately advertise our public notices and that means our meeting notices >> um or whether we're going out to bid our
notice biders >> um or perhaps if we're selling surplus all things will be up there. But for right now, you can see that what we're doing is we're piloting that by putting all of our notices up there. And just so our vendors have a chance to acclimate
themselves to not looking in legal sections of newspapers, we will take out as required by the law an ad twice a month that says, "Look at our website >> and here is the link." >> Um, but we're going to go a little further. We're still going to advertise
in print until such time as the the March timeline has passed. So, we're going to use belts and suspenders, but that's where you can see. So, if you're interested in anything we're doing and you don't want to go to the newspaper, you can go to our website and click public notices and you'll see all of our
notice to biders that'll be up there for transportation routes. You'll see all the board of education's meeting dates that they adopted. They're posted there as well. And you'll also see right now we're out for custodial services. So you'll see that notice of biders there and we'll keep adding to it and those
notices will stay up for a whole year. Um at which point we'll move them into an archive file which will be at that same hyperlink so you can look back. Okay. Um if there's anything I can answer for you, I'd be happy to do that. It's budget season. Uh we just got an
email that said that the new software from the state of New Jersey is released. Um and so we'll take a look at that tomorrow and and see if we can navigate that. Um, and then I might be calling you all for help. So, um, again, if there's anything and
you're interested, if you are interested in that tour, we'd be happy to do that. You don't have to wait for Thursday meeting for our architects meeting. Um, anytime is okay with us, even if you call on a weekend and say you want to take a look. Um, it'll be unobtrusive. We'll just stay away from it. But look,
right now, um, it is amazing uh, what the contractors are doing. They've actually taken the entire body of the auditorium and they've placed scaffolding up the entire uh filled up the whole if you will cavity of the auditorium. >> It the scaffolding reaches probably
about oh 8 ft from the ceiling at which point they have built what they call a dance floor 8 ft from the ceiling so that they can use movable scaffolds and do demolition of the existing ceiling. And so this is happening all through the
auditorium right now. Um there is any uh number of stacks probably about eight stacks of uh block. So they're blocking up the existing uh windows where those windows once were. And where we have the ADA ramp that runs up the auditorium, the
side of the auditorium, the footings are now poured for that. >> And so you can actually see it start to take shape. >> So I encourage you to give a call. Um, you don't need an appointment. Just give a call and on the fly we'll go if that's what you want. >> Okay,
>> great. Thank you so much, Tom. Um, board president's report. Um, I just want to begin by echoing what Robin shared about her dedication to our students and to this district. That commitment is not just words. It is reflected in the values and actions of
Robin every day and by this board. First and foremost, we prioritize the safety and well-being of our students. Every decision we make is grounded in what is best for kids. That principle guides our work and informs all of our choices. We chose Dr. Clim to lead this district
because of her proven history of doing exactly that, putting students first. We entrusted her with the responsibility to lead with courage, care, and integrity. And she has consistently upheld that trust. Her decisions reflect a deep commitment to our students, our staff,
and our community. I would like to be very clear. This board stands 100% behind Dr. Clim's leadership and her decisions. We support her. We trust her judgment, and we remain united in our shared mission to do what is best for our students always in Lawrence Township
Public Schools. Um, we had a big night. We had a lot of different people here showing their appreciation for this board. Um, I want to say thank you to the board as well. We've done a lot of great things over the past few years and we have a lot more left to do and I feel
100% confident in Robin and our leadership team to take us there. Um I never worry that we're not doing the best for our community and our students in Lawrence Township. So, thank you to the board and Dr. Clim and all of our
team here in Lawrence Township. And now, one of our favorite times of the evening, our student board member report, Redeema Pandy. Um, okay. Good evening all. I hope you've had an amazing new year so far. So student feedback has highlighted several strengths within the Lawrence
High School community and the Lawrence community as a whole as well as opportunities for continued growth. So so far Lawrence High School has been having a great year. Um, the student council has been trying to push something called class wars, which is similar to the Lawrence Middle School
House system in order to increase school spirit, kind of get every single class more together and collect points in order to have a competitive edge. And in general, students expressed a strong interest in increased communication and
visibility regarding the school events and initiatives. While social media is extremely helpful in these ways, students noted the importance of promoting activities more broadly throughout the school building and the school community so that all students and their families are aware of all of
the possible opportunities to participate within the school. Some students also recommended incorporating more mandatory and fun events in order to encourage involvement from the entire school and help break down any barriers that stop people from feeling more close
to each other. During January, elementary school communities focused on reinforcing positive behavior and social emotional growth across all classrooms. Students participated in goal setting activities for 2026 which encouraged reflection and
personal responsibility. The PTO of all of the elementary schools were also of note as they supplemented school culture through several community building events such as a family movie night and more fundraising. Additionally, students at Eldrich Park Elementary participated
in service learning through a schoolwide project that supported those in need. Overall, initiatives throughout the district indicate a strong start to the new year and a shared dedication to creating supportive environments for all students. Thank you. And that's all for January.
>> Great. Thank you. >> Lawrence Township Education Fund Foundation. Sorry. The LTBS, LTEF is excited to announce that auditions are now open for the third annual Lawrence Falon show, which will
be held on April 17th at the Lawrence High School. Auditions will be held February 19th and 21st at the Lawrence High School auditorium. They are open to all ages and open to anyone who lives, works, receives
talent, training, or who attends, has attend school in Lawrence Township. There will be 3,000 in $3,000 in cash prices. More information on the website ltefj.org. Thank you. Great. Thank you so much,
Olga. Um, New Jersey school boards. Joanne's not here. I don't think we have anybody reporting her absence. Student services >> student services has not yet met this month. We will resume again next month. >> Great. Thank you. Um reconfiguration ad
hoc has not met. Correct. Yep. Okay. Um any communications? No communications. Um public input. This is our opportunity for uh first public comment. >> Okay. Um Can I jump?
>> Yeah. I'm just going to make a little announce. You can come up to the podium. That's fine. Um I'm just we're going to just do a little um >> preamble to public comments from now on in the future. Uh the board of education recognized the value of public comment on educational issues and school matters
of community interest. In support of this position, the law establish establishes a period of public comment at every board meeting. Individuals wishing to speak must state their name and address. Comments are limited to three minutes in duration, but an individual may speak a second time after
all others who wish to speak on the topic have been heard. The board may require the individual register to speak prior to the beginning of the meeting. Participants may submit written material in support of their position. All statements and questions shall be directed to the presiding officer and no
participant may address or question board members individually. All speakers are are requested to express themselves in a civil manner with due respect for the dignity and privacy of others whose legal rights may be affected. Please note that while it's not the board's
intention to stifle comment on matters of legitimate concern to the school community, the public should be aware that if their statements violate the rights of others under the law governing defamation or invasion of privacy, they may face personal liability to the injured party. If speakers are uncertain
of legal ramifications of their comments, the board urges them to seek guidance beforehand from their own legal advisor. >> And there's a should be a paper up there to just sign your name and your address. >> Hi. >> Hello. >> Martha Friend, 976 Lawrence Road. I'm
just going to turn around quickly here and because I didn't get a chance to see everybody, those folks who are here in support of our wonderful superintendent and this board, could you just raise your hand? I just needed to step up and make clear we are always here for all of you and
the work that you do. This was love filled this room. As an educator, it is astounding and none of it is random. Decisions you make, they're so purposeful and they're absolutely about the students. So, as
just a resident without kids here, but as an educator, thank you. We are here for you. Um, any other public comment? Okay, wonderful. Um, board discussion and work session. We have none this
evening. Um board discussion and action items. Personnel committee. Uh personnel committee has not yet met this year. Um but as you can see on the agenda we have a couple of uh leaves of absences uh certifications for staff
um leave replacements um salary grade step uh corrections appointments as well as uh substitute teachers and some uh retirement was announced from
Mr. Robert Ratis and a motion uh to correct some new business items from the 1210 agenda and the 1112 agenda as well as athletic uh duty positions. Um and with that, can I
have a motion? >> Yes. >> I'd like to just make a comment on um the retirement of Rob Ratis. I think it was the year 2001. I dropped my daughter off at Safety Town and Rob Ratis was the person who organized Safety Town and had
the kids in their little houses and apartment there all around Safety Town. It was nobody's surprise that my daughter picked the mayor's office. But um I looked at this big man on the floor wrestling with kids having complete
control over these little guys. I mean, they're four years old and someone said, you know, he's the football coach. >> I said, what kind of football do they play in Lawrence? He's the football coach. He's playing with these kids. I couldn't get my head around it. And then, of course, years later, I see there's Rob Ratis working his the same
magic that he did with the little ones on the big guys. And it was just it was wonderful to see. So, if you didn't get a chance to watch Rob Ratis in action, either with little ones or big ones, you you missed out on something. And I think we will miss Rob Reddis in football and
in the classroom. So, thank you. >> Um, and I'd like to move P1 through P 24. >> Second, >> Tom with a motion and a second. >> Mr. Caparata, >> yes. >> Mr. Clark, >> yes. >> Miss Evans, >> yes.
>> Miss Martinez, >> yes. >> Miss Pasculi, >> yes. >> Mr. Vanheis. >> Yes. >> Misspose. >> Yes. >> Okay. CIAD and student services. >> Anna, you want to do it? >> Sure. You can correct me when I messed
it up. Okay. Uh I I be before I actually move OIS1 through five, I believe. I'm just uh confirming uh with leadership my understanding of OIS4 which has been very clearly explained.
So these are federal funds and you'll see a carryover amount. Uh and as discussed and as I've learned and I think worth sharing is as you can see for title one which helps um our students in most need there's a very small portion um and throughout there's
a small portion of last year's aotment that's moved forward and this is allowable expected and something we do um for continuity of services a little cushion for when there's um a break in services over the or funding some funding streams in the summer um but
also some of the funding streams are very small. So, it's strategic to kind of combine them for next year. And I just also want to share with the board in both finance committee and other committees, we've had great conversations about continuing to make sure that this funding um despite
uncertainties from the federal government is really being used to serve our most um needed students. And so, I think the supervisors have been very dedicated to this and talking about data. So, just wanted to share those really positive conversations I've had as we move for this section. Um, okay.
So, with that, I make a motion to uh approve OIS1, which are uh there's some travel logs here through OIS5. The last one being uh the motion to accept the church and Dwight Grant discussed at the report. >> Second,
>> Tom with a motion and a second. >> Mr. Caparado. Yes, >> Mr. Clark. >> Yes, >> Miss Evans. >> Yes, >> Miss Martinez. >> Yes, >> Miss Pasculi. >> Yes, >> Mr. Vanheis. >> Yes, >> Miss Bose. >> Yes, >> Motion carried. >> Thank you. And then Diana, you just have
to move OSS1. >> Okay, so OS >> and two, sorry. >> OSS1 U and two, the motion to approve the following out of district placements and to approve the harassment, intimidation, and bullying reports. >> Second, Tom with a motion and a second.
>> Mr. Caparo. Yes, >> Mr. Clark. >> Yes, >> Miss Evans. >> Yes, >> Miss Martinez. >> Yes, >> Miss Pasculi. >> Yes, >> Mr. Vanheis. >> Yes, >> Miss Bos. >> Yes. >> Motion carried. >> Thank you. Um,
finance committee report and school business management action items. >> Um, so we're all in new positions this year, so we're still figuring out who's doing what. ities. We have not yet met. Uh but on your agenda, you'll see bills list,
um IDA, uh and other grant monies, uh change orders, um we've got transportation contract and a policy. With that, I'd like to
move SBM 1 through six. >> Second, >> Tom with a motion and a second. >> Mr. Caparata? >> Yes. >> Miss Clark. Mr. Clark. Yes. >> Sorry about that. >> That's okay. >> So, Miss Evans. >> Yes. >> Mr. M. I see I did that.
M. Martinez. >> Yes. >> Miss Pascoli. >> Yes. >> Yeah. >> Mr. Vanheis. >> Yes. >> Miss Bose. >> Yes. >> Motion carried. >> Thank you. Um, it's our next opportunity for public input. Mask
home Lawrence Middle School. Uh I didn't look at the agenda, but when you said Rob Ratis, I needed to come up to the podium and got my trusty guy next to me here, Dave Adam. Uh Rob Brad is also Lawrence grad
and um he has done a lot for this community as Pepper said you know not only doing um the little people but he's also done a lot for this building and the culture the climate um for the colleagues that he has he has here and I
we know we've gone through lots of milestones together over the years as you mentioned before I've been here a long time so I I didn't have Rob as a student he's older than me But I work very closely with him. So I just wanted to honor him. Um I think it's important when we have Lawrence
grads come back to this community and dedicate their life and that is what he has done. Um so I just want to thank him and I know his his family also as educators in this district as well. So just want to thank him publicly.
>> Thank you. >> And I'll just second the same thing from Dr. Mowski there that for those who may not know Rob is not only a great football coach but he's a great person and a friend, a great teacher. Um he was the high school teacher of the year last year. Excellent, outstanding individual,
a leader, a person that we will miss. Uh Rob Rice will miss in the school in this community for a long long time. So we wish him well. We're very excited about where he's going to his place in Florida with his family. Again, his wife Claire retired last year and they're going to spend some time together. So we're excited for him. But um he definitely will be missed and we just want to say
wish you well, Rob. Thank you. >> Thank you. Uh new business. Olga, do you new business? Oh, no. >> Yeah. Okay. >> We've got a motion for a salary adjustment, a change in the before school to destinations program. We've
got more travel log staff appointments pending that are pending clearance and uh substitute teachers. Uh the big news on this one I guess is the Slackwood school is going to have concrete steps
and ramps replacing the railings um which will make the building ADA compliant and the grandparents can now come in and see their kids perform on the stage. Um there's also a change of location for a
staff member. Uh another resignation and a couple of field trip locations. With that, I would like to move new business one through nine. >> Second. >> Tom of the motion and second. >> Mr. Kevata. >> Yes. >> Mr. Clark.
>> Yes. >> Miss Evans. >> Yes. >> Miss Martinez. >> Yes. >> Miss Pascal? >> Yes. >> Mr. Vanheis? >> Yes. >> Miss Bose? Yes. >> Motion carried. >> Thank you. Okay. And with that, our board meeting
is over. And I have a motion to adjourn. >> So move. >> And a second. >> Second. >> All in favor? >> I. >> Thank you everybody for coming. We appreciate your support. Have a great night.