Welcome everyone. I'm not staying here all night. Love you. Tom, would you like to take attendance? Sure. I sure would. Okay. Yeah. Otherwise, she'll hit you. I know. That's why I said yes, ma'am. Miss Bose.
Mr. Clark here. Miss Evans here. Miss Kroger here. Miss Kelly here. Dr. King here. Miss Martinez here. Miss Pascouli here. Mr. Vanise here. You have a quorum.
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 interest is discussed or acted upon. As required under law, adequate notice of
this meeting has been provided via email and/or fax 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 open public meetings act. The
board reserves the right to limit public public discussion, personnel items, and other matters as defined in the law. Have the flag salute to the flag of the United States of America to the republic for it stands.
One nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Okay. Student recognitions and acknowledgements. We've got Bonnie here from LTE.
Hello. Good evening. Oh my god, that's loud. Uh, my name is Bonnie Gigglio. I'm the executive director of the Lawrence Township Education Foundation. Uh, the LTE is honored and excited to present the board of education with a check for
32,1 $140 in support of steam education in the Lawrence Township Public Schools thanks to a grant from our amazing community partner Bristol Meyer Swift. Every year, the LTE works with supervisors from the from the district to assess the needs of the district in
the area of steam education and applies for grant funding from BMS. Steam education is critical in schools because it equips students with the skills needed for the future workforce, fostering innovation and problem solving abilities. Despite its pivotal role, SEAM education has historically been
underfunded nationwide, limiting access and opportunities for many students. Addressing this disparity is essential to ensure all learners can thrive in our increasingly technologydriven world. Thanks to BMF, BMS, the LTE is able to do just that with this grant and will
greatly enhance steam education on all grade levels in Lawrence Township Public Schools. BMS has funded a grant entitled expanding access to authentic steam experiences with ZSpace immersive learning stations. This grant will fund
five ZSpace learning stations with a one-year warranty and configuration as well as associated licenses for various educational programs, an onboard training session, and an on-site professional learning day. Zpace combines elements of AR and VR to create
lielike experiences that are immersive and interactive. Each Zpace computer is a streamlined hardware software that allows students to manipulate virtual 3D objects ranging from helicopters to learn concepts. Unlike other ARVR
solutions that can be isolating, such as the headmounted displays, the ZSpace encourages interaction and group collaboration. The ZSACE experience will enhance learning across multiple content areas, offering students an opportunity to explore science, math, engineering, and
technology through immersive interactive simulations that would be impossible in a traditional classroom. LCPS plans to integrate the ZSpace immersive learning stations and they will combine the 3D modeling, simulation, and augmented virtual reality experiences in the
technology and steam focus classes to empower students through active learning. curiosity and discovery. The LTF is so proud to be able to bring this funding to the district and we can't wait to see this action, this grant in action. Thank you so much. Thank you.
Where do you want it? Can I have a motion to adopt the executive session and regular session minutes from the July 9th, 2025 meeting and regular session minutes from the July 14th, 2025 meeting? So moved. Second.
With a motion and a second, Tom. Mr. Clark, yes. Miss Evans, yes. Miss Groer, yes. Miss Kelly, yes. Dr. King, yes. Miss Martinez, yes. Miss Pasculi, yes. Mr. Vanheis, yes.
Motion carried. Uh, one correction. I need to abstain. I was not at the last meeting. Okay, we're changing your vote to abstain. Yes, that's Dr. King for the recording. Motion still carried. Superintendence report.
Thank you. Um, first I'd like to thank uh, Miss Gigglio. Thank you. and we are so thrilled to be awarded this significant grant to advance steam in our district. We recently have had the joy of welcoming our incoming kindergarteners and fourth grade students to their respective schools for
jumpstart. The hallways were filled with smiling faces, curious questions, and excitement for the year ahead. And it's always a wonderful reminder of why we do what we do. While many think that summer is quiet at time in schools, behind the scenes is actually it's one of our
busiest seasons. Our facilities and technology departments have been hard at work preparing classrooms, upgrading spaces, and refreshing equipment, ensuring that we're ready to hit the ground on day one. A huge shout out to these teams for their countless hours
that they've dedicated to making sure that everything is ready for our students and staff. Our leadership team has also been busy between planning curriculum, organizing professional development, and setting the stage for an engaging and meaningful school year. We also would like to highlight our
summer programs. Our extended school year program, Connect, and Camp Eagles were were all a huge success. It was wonderful to see our students here this summer, learning, exploring, and growing together. In short, this summer has been one of preparation, connection, and
excitement. We're ready for a fantastic school year ahead. As a reminder, our first day of school for staff is September 2nd, and for students is September 4th. Now, I'd like to invite up to the podium the Office of Instruction team to present the NJGPA
access and AP test results. Thank you. Okay, so today we're starting with the NJGPA results. And the NJGPA is the graduation proficiency assessment required by the NJ DOE for all of our students to sit
for. It serves as the first pathway for the class of 2025 to meet that state assessment requirement for graduation. We have multiple pathways for students in order to be successful. This year our results for English were 86% of our
students testing at the cut score of 725 for graduation ready. In math we had 57% of students at the cut score for graduation ready. In math the assessment covers both algebra and geometry concepts and some of those concepts
students haven't seen for multiple years. So it's a comprehensive assessment. As you can see, these are the other pathways for graduation. So, if our students are not successful in meeting that cut score on that state standardized assessment, they have
multiple other assessments in both ELA and math such as the PSAT and SAT. If students do not meet the cut scores on those tests, they also have a third pathway for graduation where the district provides remediation and makes sure that students are able to meet the
requirements in the NJ DOE portfolio appeals with tasks in both math and ELA. When we break down the mathematics scores by domain that students are assessed on, we have our scores at the top there in green for major and
supporting content as well as reasoning and modeling. So the major and supporting content are those standardsbased concepts that students are required to demonstrate mastery and proficiency on. You can see that um we are above the state in those domains and
we're showing more improvement in reasoning. We're just about at the same in modeling. So students are really beginning to think more abstractly and applying their learning. If they're seeing a set um standards that they're not familiar with or they haven't seen in multiple years, they're still able to
use those critical thinking skills to begin to approach or attempt those problems and it's showing up in the way that they're reasoning through an assessment. Thanks. Okay, now that we're done talking about math, I'm excited to talk about the English scores. So, the
district average this year was 772. Um, beating the state average of 768. As you can see, in all of the domains that we're tested at, we are above the state. Our lowest is vocabulary. We're just narrowly over the state there, but that is one of our focuses at grades 7
through 12 that we're working on academic vocabulary and developing our students in there. We've significantly improved over the years in the writing, expression, and conventions, and we have outperformed the state in that as well. Now, I'm going to turn it over to Miss
Musi to talk about the access test. Good evening. So, this year, um, we had 217 students from kindergarten through 12th grade take the access for English proficiency. And 7% of those students C um scored a
4.5 or above. And um just to give you, you know, we we've been looking at these scores a lot. Just to kind of give you some idea, if you arrive in our district even two weeks before the testing window and you're from another country, you're
arriving brand new, you take the access test and it has components in speaking, listening, reading, and writing. and our new arrivals. It's it's, you know, it it's a lot. So, our kids did really well. Some good news is while some of
our students are not scoring, you know, the 4.5 of proficiency yet, um, we've seen much growth from our students who have taken it over the course of several years from, you know, moving from that number two to three. Um the scale yeah
sorry the scale on the top we're moving quickly from beginning to developing so we're heading in the right direction and even the access folks WEDA um they really do consider that like first year that the kids take the test as such a
baseline that over the course of two or three years you really start to see that growth. Um when you look at our multilingual learners um who took SLA this year um sorry uh just student learning. Yeah. Okay. Um the SLA uh you
can see we definitely saw good growth in third grade. Um in the fourth, fifth, and sixth grade our highest scores were in um number three. So we're not four four or five yet, but we're making it. Um and as um Dr. Dr. Panco just said,
you know, our 11th graders scored very strongly in GPA and that was even true for our multi-ingual learners. Um, and one more thing we've been talking a lot about, you know, we have 217 students who are receiving ESL services, but in
our district, we actually have 1,148 students who are living in a non-English-speaking home. So all of those students don't receive services, but it's certainly an area that we need to focus on as a district. Jean, can I Yes.
Can you just pop back that first slide? Um do we have state averages on the way that um sort of we can look at how we're doing across the state in terms of I'm sure I'm sure we do. Um I can
definitely Yeah. pull those for sure. Um and I think also um I I know last time I think we spoke um Dr. King, we were also talking about that uh preschool piece. Yes. Because remember now is the this currently we have our
first group of preks in our kindergarten class. Next year we'll have 125 kindergarteners. In two years we'll have 250 kindergarteners. So like we are trying to track those a little bit better. But I can find out some
and sorry I mean I was at the CIA so I could have asked you there. Um the next question if I recall from years back is it isn't it typical that we don't anticipate that kids who come in to the
the English language learning program the first year that they're going to pass that we absolutely I mean our newcomers for one you know and another real trend in the last few years our newcomers have been older students we used to see our newcomers arriving
has K's and ones. We had a tremendous amount of older children who were arriving. In fact, the the high school has a level of number one for several of their students, you know. So, maybe we're not required to track that, but um it would be good for us to know like when do we
reach sort of a level of 60% at 4.5? If that is three years into the program, well, then we kind of know what to do with this piece of data knowing what else. And the other interesting thing is our numbers are going down and that I we'll see in the
next couple of years if that's just the result of um world events that we aren't seeing the numbers of people coming into the program not efficiency. No, no, no, no, no. Not how many families are arriving. Yes. Yes. I got you. That that definitely is, you know, going
down. Okay. I have a question about it. So wondering if and I think we've talked about this in the past. So looking at year-to-year growth, so you were talking about the population of our preschool and kindergarten. I would really love to see
when we have students in our programs for five years, that trajectory because that's also the metric that we're looking at, right? It's growth from year to year, not even correct. And so just I don't remember this. The the 4.5 means you're qualifying to be out of the you're
exited out of the program. So we wouldn't expect it to be that much higher in kindergarten at all at all. Right? So thinking about that, but I think there are a lot of wins. But I'm wondering if we could start looking at fiveyear trajectories and see if we have
students who are not um not graduates leaving the program and thinking about comparing our elementary programs and where we have bright spots. And I think our goal has always been um making sure our students are exiting once they're
leaving the elementary programs. The kids who are still in, you know, that's when we start to look really, really closely. So, and the test itself gets more and more rigorous as the, you know, year goes on. You know, I was saying, you know, we're all smart people. you
know, plunk any of us into China and have us take a written, reading, speaking, listening test upon two weeks of arrival, I don't think any of us would score on proficient. So, um, but I think it is something to look at over time for sure.
Thank you. Did I There we go. AP AP exams. Sorry. So, it's back to to Sarah and myself for the AP exams. So I'm going to first talk about the um areas in which I supervise and some of those areas are English, history and
world languages. Also included is um a course taught by our librarian um here in the library which is the seminar in the research class. This particular slide is a tracking of the different cohorts of students and how they've performed uh the percentage of students
who have earned 3% or higher. So, our English language and composition, English literature and composition, and our US history courses are all graduation requirement equivalents. And as you can see, the numbers in those classes or the percentages in those
classes have been consistently high and this year they are phenomenally high. I'm really proud of all of the students in English lang and in US history. There were about 50 students in each of those classes who took that exam and performed really, really well on it. So I'm proud
of my teaching staff and more importantly I'm proud of the students who attempted a very very challenging class and in in most cases more than one challenging class. The rest of the department scored extraordinarily well this year as as well. Um micro and
macroeconomics has grown significantly over the past few years. So I'm very pleased with that programming as well. Um this year for the first time our Spanish language and culture class has performed phenomenally and if you
compare where we are to our cohort so the class of 2025 to the state of New Jersey and to the global scores you can see that all of these courses significantly outpace our colleagues across the state and globally. So, lots
of of pride here from um the office of instructional services for all eight of my departments. So, I have a question about that. Could we which is this is very exciting, but do we have enrollment numbers on those? And are we seeing steady enrollments when we see these percentages going up? Yes. Increase.
And actually for next year, my English literature and composition class has um quadrupled in size. I'm going to I'm going to have a significant increase in that. Spanish language and culture has doubled in size. We have never had as many students take the test as took the
test this year. Um, and the class has increased in enrollment for next year. We have two sections of it instead of one. So, I'm I'm really delighted that course is also that was the first time we ran a dual enrollment program. of the students who signed up through RCBC
received credit for uh Spanish 101, Spanish 102, Spanish 2011, and Spanish 202. So, they walk away with a really wonderful AP score plus 12 college credits. So, I'm I'm really delighted with that. And we provide do we provide financial
assistance for students for these tests? Um, if they qualify for it, yes, they they do get financial assistance and qualify would be free and reduced lunch through free and reduced lunch. And that's handled through the guidance office. And but there's no gradient. It's you get it or you don't. That again is handled through the
guidance office. Okay. Yeah. I'll just add on a personal level that kind of goes along with that. My daughter having graduated last year, she carried I think 19 credits in for the kids who don't know. That becomes important because at Penn State your
ability to schedule your next semester's classes depending on how many credits you go in. So you go in you, she entered school as a second semester freshman which sets her up for you know actually second semester to get the classes but
the AP classes she found she aced the her stat class and her economics classes finding that what we did here so prepared her I don't think she worked a day in either class um because of all of the material that we covered was far
advanced than what she experienced in the classes. So, I had mentioned that to Robin before, so if it hadn't made its way to you. No, thank you. That's something to be proud of. Yes. Thank you. And I'll share that with with our our faculty as well. I really appreciate hearing that. Rounding out this presentation in the
world of AP results for steam here in that final right hand column is this year's three per uh three or higher for the steam classes from math, science, and the arts. In many of these courses, enrollment has increased and the test
scores have also either stayed consistent or increased. For instance, that 2D art and design course went from very few students. The previous year we had about 20 students enrolled in the course, 17 sitting for the test, students at 100% three or higher, many
even receiving fives on that portfolio, which really is a great indication of the teacher. um our physics, electricity, and magnetism course. You'll see it dotted out. We did not offer that this year. Usually, we offer it every other year, so you'll see it returning, you know, next August when we
present these scores. When we compare these scores to the state and global averages, um again, we're doing very well in most of our courses. some of our more entry level AP courses such as AP environmental science, um, AP statistics, and AP computer science
principles. Either we're outpacing our state and global peers. If we're not, we're really trying to balance access and opportunity for our students to have exposure to these entry-level STEM courses that are very rigorous, especially in something like statistics
where there may not be a prerequisite course, but we would like students to have the opportunity for exposure to that content if they're not qualifying for other courses such as the calculus courses where they really need that good foundational understanding of algebra and pre-calc. Um we're always trying to
increase those um foundational supports for students so that when they're entering those classes they can enter a little bit stronger and that's it for us. Hey you very much. Okay board secretaries report.
So there's a number of things on the agenda tonight but I thought I'd give you a brief update on the financial aspects of the referendum. The uh the bond sale was completed. We had budgeted for a 4.25% uh purchase or excuse me sale of bonds
to advertise over 30 years. Uh our actual interest rate was 4.16. So we did better than we projected. So that means our tax impact that we expressed during the referendum uh process is right on target um if not a little better than we expected. The um auditorium is the first
thing that we said we were going to bid in phase one and so that is out to bid. Uh we had our uh pre- bid meeting last week. Uh I was not available to attend that, but I know Robin did. And we did get interest from general contractors, so that's a huge plus for us. We'll open
bids on that on 8:27, so this month. And we expect that if all goes well, we'll be awarding in September and we'll see some movement in January. The contract, excuse me, the construction manager contract will open up. that is we'll receive the proposals and read them
aloud for the public on the 15th that is next that is this Friday. Um and then we anticipate awarding that on the 10th of uh September as well. some things that we're doing. We continue to meet regularly with our architects,
engineers, u their direct reports, our administration. Um in addition to our administration, our administration of course consulted with different staff members uh for their respective areas whether it be OTPT spaces or nurses offices or auditorium spaces and that
continues on. The design of the main building and the renovations that happen outside of what we've just talked about for the auditorium is still underway. Most of what we call the geotechnical surveying um for the site work is done.
Um so that's when we're looking at water retention uh basins um or perhaps we're looking at storm water runoff which is uh coordinated with those basins. or perhaps we're also looking at traffic
patterns or environmental impacts um associated and unassociated with those things that we've mentioned. So all of that is still moving forward. Uh we are right on target in terms of our schedule soon. What we'll be doing is we'll have a board that you'll see here uh for each
board meeting. We'll have that uh ready for you to look at if you'd like to. Um and of course anyone can comment on that. Uh in addition to that, um the regular communications that we have in terms of our notes from the architects meetings are still being posted to the
Google doc that I sent out to all of you. So if you'd like to see those things, um what happens today, I take that, I send it out to everyone. Then we cut and paste that up into that Google doc, which is essentially a a a running record of what's been happening, posted
by date, who's in attendance, what were the major topics that were discussed. um some things that we'd like to see, what the deliverables were after that meeting. Um and that keeps us uh all fresh and kind of ingrains it in our minds as to what's that's what's happening. Our architects have been uh
extremely diligent um coming back to us, not just waiting for meetings, but catching us whenever they can to clarify so that we're completely ready when we we walk into that meeting. I mention that to you because the architect was uh a contract that of course you've already
awarded along the line of this project and they're doing an exceptional job for us. Um they always uh come for us. I understand that they'll be seeing you soon. Um and that's being arranged separately from the finance aspects. Um and so they're looking forward to it.
They want to meet and answer questions and they're eager to do that. And so, um, that's also something that's refreshing. Outside of the architectural projects, uh, excuse me, the projects of the referendum, we have any number of other projects happening here. There was
sensitivity that some people felt that perhaps we weren't paying attention to other schools. We've demonstrated that that is absolutely not true. Um, I can't wait for you to see the absolutely beautiful wood gym floor at Slackwood. Um, I was there today. So, there's a
brand new floor. It is down right now. It looks completely blonde. It's not stained or anything yet, but they're putting the markings on there uh with the mascot and uh things of that nature for kids to get direction of where they sit and things that are used by PE teachers and I guess others for
coordination. I said PE, not Jen. Did you hear me? I was very impressed. I know. I know. Um and of course we we're still continuing on at Eldridge Park. The modular building roof is a metal roof. It'll be akin to that which is at um LES
and of course what we did at Slackwood and the administration building. And you're certainly making an investment in the longevity of those buildings and taking the extra step to put the metal roofs on them with 50-year warranties, not 20-year warranties. So, the board of education because I understand this is
your meeting and I'm reporting to you, but I also understand that other people may be listening. Those are the investments that you've made. Uh, and so those are all coming true. Well, let's hope we're all here to in 50 years to make sure it comes true. Oh, absolutely. You will be
about that one, Pepper. So, the um EPS Maz building roof is not the only thing happening at EPS. We've replaced any number of ceilings on the third floor. Matter of fact, we replaced all the ceilings on the third floor. Um, not only the drop ceilings were replaced and then all the stairwells, if you
understand that it's an old building, it's a labyrinth of stairwells. And so, we've done all those se these stairwells as well, which is a big lift. Uh, we've painted all the stairwells. We've installed LED lighting in all of those areas. So, Elders Park by no means
nor Slackwood is being ignored. Some other things if we project forward is we've been looking at how to get accessibility to Slackwood. Um and so that's still very much much underway. We have an idea of how we want to proceed with that and I don't know if that's
going to be under anyone else's report tonight. Is it? And I'll just stop there if it is. Okay. So, we're looking at ADA accessibility for the back of Slackwood where we would bring a ramp so that if your grandmother or your son or daughter or yourself with any issues with
mobility, you'll be able to get to the main floors of Slackwood and participate more fully in the community at that building. As we know, we have elevators at we have an elevator at one area of Ben Franklin um and other places in the
district. And we have um but we don't have an elevator at Slackwood. And so this will this is in my opinion better than an elevator because it's not mechanical. It's a static solution. It will bring bring people in to be right on that fantastic gym floor that I just told you about. PE
and I the room. I I knew I would slip. I heard you laugh, Connelly. So So he's out there making fun of me. Um so we're not done there. LIS. Um during the referendum process, we had a group
of stakeholders meet. There were parents and other interested persons, schoolboard members, also parents. Uh at LIS, people talked about being having more accessible laboratories there. So, we've engaged our architect in that aspect as well. From there, I'm going to segue into the next, which is our
sustainability into the future. We talked at the reorganization meeting. uh finance committee authorized the deposits into capital reserve and maintenance reserve. On the agenda tonight is my request that you uh allow us to go beyond the $500,000 deposit
into maintenance reserve. U because we plan on putting $600,000 in the maintenance reserve, another 400,000 into capital reserve as we close out the year. The 400,000 in the capital reserve is not quite the ticket on this lavatory idea at LIS, but it takes us most of the
way home. in terms of realizing now this is a fantastic thing for us because as students come back to our district. We have to have a place to receive them in in a place that's appropriate. These things help us do that. And so that's all happening right now in support of
the educational program and the community involvement in the schools. Uh I'm sure there's a bunch of other things that are happening out there. pea right now. So, we closed the contract with Lawrence Day School and there's so much more to report on that in terms of program at Lawrence Day School. Uh
Neil's office is completely engaged. Ignita's office is engaged. We're all engaged. Jill uh from my office and I were there today seeing the orders come in to Ben Franklin where they come in and they fill that room with boxes because preschool is a fantastic place. It's
rich with the tactile materials and the different areas that the kids play and learn in. And so that's all happening right now. Um tomorrow, uh we'll issue the first payment to Lawrence Day School. Uh there's 11 payments that happen during the year. Uh so you'll
pick that up on the next bill's list. Um and um transportation routes uh are being approved on today's or tonight or they're brought before you for tonight's agenda to approve those for pea students. And so on those routes that
are being awarded, you've got a typical route that's tiered with another run after it because of the timings of the school times. But on those routes, you have two aids on each route and not just one. Um, and that was the forethought and my compliments to Andrea Nesmouth
who's our our transportation supervisor, an absolutely wonderful, thoughtful lady. Um, who when and just so that you know, we have strategic planning sessions around pea. We meet on Wednesdays. So Neil, Ignita, Andrea
comes in, Jill's there, I'm there, and whoever else needs to be there. And we meet and we discuss all topics from enrollment and however we can support one another. I bring that to you because it's a it's a welloiled
uh collaborative machine and um all those people are absolutely fantastic and you see them in all aspects jumping in wherever they can and it's been a real pleasure. Um, and so thank you um for uh for hearing me tonight and uh I
don't have any concerns in that area. Um these folks are the consmate professionals and whatever it takes to get it done, they do it. That's what I have for you. Thank you, Tom. I'm thrilled to be sitting in for President Michelle Bose this evening.
I'm incredibly proud of the district's hard work over the summer. I want to echo Vanessa's heartfelt kudos to all our dedicated staff who work tirelessly behind the scenes to prepare for the new school year. Over these summer months, I've seen firsthand the commitment and
effort that goes into every decision and initiative. We also had an outstanding board retreat with district leadership where we dove deep into curriculum, personnel, district finances, and the timeline for our upcoming reconfiguration and construction. It was
such a meaningful session. We went in long into the evening strategizing and planning for the year ahead, ensuring all board members were informed, engaged, and ready to serve our community. I want to thank Dr. Clim and the district leadership for organizing such an informative and productive work
session. It set the tone for what I know will be a successful school year, and we're so excited to welcome our staff and students back in a few weeks. uh liaison um Lawrence Township Education Foundation.
Okay. Um we are two fun events planned LTE and uh the first of which is a fun run. Um Saturday, September 6th. It'll be a family fun run and a walk if you desire to walk instead of a jog or run.
LTF is suggesting that we begin the school year with a morning of fun, fitness, and LTPS staff um spirit at a fantastic event for all ages and abilities. The location will be Village Park. Start finish line will be on
Jagger Drive at the pavilion that's right near there. It'll be a two-mile loop and then there'll be an afterparty featuring foot races and games with some very special guests, LTPS staff, and friendly school competitions will also
be had. Um, rain date will be September 7th. Start time 10:00 a.m. Bib Bib pickup is at 8:30. Whether you're a seasoned runner or just looking to enjoy a casual walk with your family, this event is a perfect way to get outside,
get active, get back moving, and all proceeds from this event will go towards LTE. The mission helping us support vital programs and resources for our students. Registration's now open. You can go to their website. I also have
some save the date cards for both that event and I'll talk about the next one. Um, do it. It's a fun time to get out there with your family. Um, the second event, just to mark your calendar, handbag bingo will be Friday, November 14th, and I believe that's back in the
UIN firehouse, which is always a fun time. So, register or put that rather on your calendar. I'll move on if you like to NJSBA report. Okay. I attended two webinars this month. Um the cool thing is you can put
them on. They can't see you. You just hear them, see them, so you can make dinner and eat dinner while you're sitting in the webinars. Um it's always fun to just get your mind back in gear thinking about the upcoming year. So there are a few more future webinars. So
go to the website to check for that. Mercer County School Board um county meetings. Um you probably received that with your publications from New Jersey school boards. Um the first one coming up September 18th here actually in this
room um six o'clock. It's also a hybrid so if you can't get here you can log on. The topic will be AI and we're going to do it with a panel discussion um implementation guidelines perspectives from teachers and administrators. So
mark your calendars. Also I have a handout if you want to look at the uh other four events that will be coming after that one. And that's my report. Thanks Joan. You betcha. Student services. Student services did not hold an
official meeting this month, but did note a couple of updates. Uh updates include both the ESY and connect programs has had a successful completion to their summer sessions. We wish all those who participate a joyful rest to the remaining summer vacation and look
forward to seeing you again in the upcoming school year. Pre-planning discussions have begun with CPAC, the Special Education Parent Advisory Council, about ideas for the upcoming school year. That's the report.
Okay. Uh reconfigurations. Diana, thank you. We are just going to have a short update. Tom went over some updates. Um and we wanted to remind folks about uh the website that the district has been doing a great job of. So, the pre-bid meeting that Tom
mentioned is actually captured on there. Um, we're always we want the public to know that we're always looking for uh ideas for what you need to know on that website. But also before you ask to add something on the website, check it out. Uh, Jen's been doing a really great job.
So uh and to move back, we did the reconfiguration committee met on Monday, uh morning with it was Joanne and Olga and myself meeting with Jen and uh Rob, Superintendent Robin Clim, and we briefly talked about what was going on
over the summer and also looking forward to our first uh community meeting in October. So uh that there'll be more to come. We're excited to talk a little bit more about some updates at this board meeting in September. Uh and we just wanted to update the board that right
now the way we're configuring these committee meetings um as it called ad hoc. It's been very ad hoc uh for the last few months. So we we would meet at different times and with different people. And so we're going to tone down the ad hoc nature a little bit but keep
it in one way. So uh we're going to try to get out to all of you the calendar. We, as you could see, are only three people, which means we'll always have a spot. Uh, and like any committee, we can rotate, but we're actually maintaining a rotating spot. So, at a minimum, anyone
can join if you want to hear about it. So, the next um the next meeting um will be in September and I can send that out and the tenative agenda and if you're interested, you can let us know. And if you're interested and there's still not space, um, we can also follow up with
other one-on-one updates. So, all of those discussions will of course be shared here, but we just wanted the board to know about it. Got the opportunity as it's a little different. Thank you, Diane. Review of communications. There are none.
This is our first opportunity for public input. Don't all come up at once. Seeing none. Uh board discussion and work session. We have none. Board discussion and action items. We have personnel committee report and personnel
action item. All right. Personnel met August 6, Wednesday morning, 8:15 a.m. In attendance was Dr. Robin Clim, Sean Fry, Olga Martinez, Arendelle Clark, McKenzie Kelly stepped in. Thank you so much for
coming. And Joanne Groger. Um, we were recommending candidates for special education at LEES, English at LHS, guidance at LIS. We're still working to hire SPE special education teacher,
preschool teacher, and a special shout out to Sean Fry because I just read that and we got new business. He already filled the position. So, um, whoever's reporting out on new business, we can again applaud Shawn and his department. They are that quick. We reviewed
certification status for new hires. We discussed aspiring administrator cohort and the support from our administrative team to support this endeavor. We reviewed the revised changes to the director of communication job
description and a huge shout out to Jen Bulaceri because of her phenomenal job that she does. it reflected that we needed to revisit the job description and she's that awesome. So, thank you, Jen, for being who you are and the
awesome talents you have. Bravo. We love you. Um, we also reviewed policies 311.3, 4211.3. We recommended these for the first reading. On tonight's agenda, you'll see adjustments for dates, account numbers,
adjustments for salaries, corrections for account numbers, approval for transfers, salary adjustments, EDPs, subteers, volunteers, leave replacements, mentors for 20. Was that my time up? Kevin's watching this.
Mentors for 25 26 year, subbus aids, student technicians for our district media center. Hooray for those kids. Sub nurses, all school nurses for 2526 school year. Certified staff for extra duties. Home instruction after school
and before school programming. Um appointments for staff members, leave replacements, pending background checks, staff for jumpstart program, substitute assistance, substitute secretaries, building and ground substitutes and security monitors. confirmation for
appointed staff doing due to the background clearances, rescending of an appointment and a few resignations. With all of that, I'd now like to move P1 through P48, please. Second.
All in favor? Be a roll call. Roll call. Would you like me to call the role? Yeah. Okay. Mr. Clark, yes. Miss Evans? Yes. Miss Groger? Yes. Miss Kelly? Yes, Dr. King. Yes, Miss Martinez.
Yes, Miss Pasculi. Yes, Mr. Vanheis. Yes. Motion carry. Uh, CIAPD. The CIAPD met on August 5th at 8 a.m. in the board office. In attendance were Dr.
Michelle King, Miss McKenzie Kelly, Dr. Robin Flynn, Dr. Allison Fischer, Dr. Mindy Malowski, Miss Sarah Foster, Miss Jean Musey, Mr. Neil Desai and myself, Miss Foster, Miss Musey, and Dr. Fischer shared uh NJGPA,
WIDA access testing, and AP exam scores, which you heard earlier this evening. In addition, a research study was pre presented by Sarah Foster, the district's 7 to2 steam supervisor and a doctoral student at the University of
South Carolina. proposed for this fall. The study focuses on math identity development in LMS math 8 students. As confidence and self-perception begin to solidify during early adolescence, 8th
grade becomes a pivotal year and math is no exception. District and statewide data often show a dip in state assessment scores from math 7 to math 8, a trend that may reflect not a decline in ability, but a decrease in students
seeing themselves as capable math learners. This research explores how identity affirming strategies can build confidence, promote a growth mindset, and strengthen self-efficacy so students rediscover their potential and thrive.
Communication and consent forms will be shared with math 8 families along with a brief overview video explaining the study. Miss Foster will also be available at Lawrence Middle School's back to school night to answer questions and provide additional information.
Also, the committee reviewed two district policies for first reading uh policy 5330 administering an opioid antidote and policy 0115 board committees. Um um on the agenda you'll see uh
you'll see um non-public uh funds, professional development, the LTE grant that happened earlier this evening. Um, also state aid and out of district. Um, some of the professional development,
uh, I got some questions after our CIAD meeting, so I thought I'd share what I've learned for anyone else who might have a question. I Ready is an online program used to assess and support student learning in reading and mathematics for grades K through eight.
It helps teachers personalize instruction, monitor student progress, and identify learning needs through diagnostic assessments and targeted lessons. Also, the there was a question about tools of the mind, which is a program necessary for all firstear
preschool teachers. All new teachers need this necessary training from their organization. The goal is to use teaching and classroom strategies to develop children's self-regulation and executive function skills to promote effective learning and achievement. It
serves preschool and kindergarten age children primarily at risk children and pre kindergarten and kindergarten curriculum teaching approach and professional development are provided for teachers. It trains teachers to use continuous dynamic assessment to
scaffold learning and individualized instruction. It happens in Head Start classrooms, public preschools, classrooms with a majority of non-English speakers, and inclusion and self-contained special education programs. So with that, I'd
like to move OSS 1 through 5 and OS1 through five. Second, Tom, you'll take it. I'm getting there. Sorry. Okay. Mr. Clark, yes.
Miss Evans, yes. Miss Kroger, yes. Miss Kelly, yes. Dr. King, yes. Miss Martinez, yes. Miss Pescoli, yes. Mr. Vanheis, yes. Motion carried. Finance Committee. Finance did not meet,
but as Tom referred to earlier, the administration has been uh exceedingly busy uh this summer getting everything um ready for the impending start of school in a couple of weeks. Um and on top of that, throw in uh all the work on
the referendum uh pea. Uh it's been a busy summer certainly for the administration and and we appreciate all of their efforts with that. uh finance will reconvene uh for our September meeting in advance of the next board meeting. Um, on tonight's agenda, we have the bills list and transfers as we
normally do, summer fire drills, uh, grant submissions, uh, a change order, setting tuition rates, disposition of surplus items and equipment, a couple of policies that have been referred to from the other committees, um, the limits uh, for the change in maintenance and
capital reserves that Tom referenced earlier. Uh, the award of bid submissions for the bus routes and transportation routes that Tom alluded to. And with that, I will move items SPM 1 through 19. Second, Tom.
Motion by Mr. Van High, seconded by Miss Groger. Mr. Clark, yes. Miss Evans, yes. Miss Groger, yes. Miss Kelly, yes. Dr. King, yes. Miss Martinez, yes. Miss Pascouli,
yes. Mr. Van Hus, yes. Motion carried. We now have our second opportunity for public input. Seeing none, we'll go into new business. The superintendent recommends the approval of the following items.
For new business, as you can see on your agenda, there's personal appointments, new hires, salary adjustments, state aid, and with that, I would like to move new business NB1 through 13.
Second with a motion and a second. Mr. Clark, yes. Miss Evans, yes. Miss Kroger, yes. Miss Kelly, yes. Dr. King, yes. Miss Martinez, yes. Miss Pascali,
yes. Mr. Vanheis, yes. Motion carried. Motion to adjurnn. All in favor? I. I. I. No, I don't want to go out in the rain. Go ahead.
7:53. I wanted to