##VIDEO ID:deRo9hfiL2A## e e e e e e e e in accordance with the provisions of this act the State Board of Education has caused notice of this meeting to be published by having the date time and place thereof posted in the Department of Education Secretary of State's office and notice has been given to the State House Press cors the governor's office and the state board agenda subscribers and as a Corum is present this meeting will come to order may I please have a motion thank you thank you very much board member Bennett may I please have a second thank you very much board member Barry all those in favor please say I I thank you motion carries and now I'd like to read the statement to adjourn to Executive session whereas in order to protect the personal privacy and to avoid situations wherein the public interest might be deserved the open public meetings act permits public bodies to exclude the public from that portion of a meeting at which certain matters are discussed now therefore be it resolved that consistent with the provisions of njsa 10 colum 4-12 B the State Board of Education will now adjourn to Executive session to discuss personnel and legal matters may I please have a motion thank you may I please have a second thank you very much all those in favor please say I I hi all this opposed motion carries and we will be back by 10:00 a.m. for all of those online thank you e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e she she all right okay good morning everyone thank you all for coming wonderful to see each of you um I'd like to please call this meeting to order and um reconvene please to resume the public meeting portion of our meeting from executive session whereas consistent with the provision of njsa 10 col for -2b the state board will now adjourn from executive session and resume our Open Session portion of our meeting May I please have a motion motion thank you very much I appreciate it board member Pena may I please have a second thank you very much board member Barry all those in favor please say I I thank you and if we could please stand and board member Barry will lead us with the Pledge of Allegiance iedge alance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Nations God indivisible withy and justice for all as the state board meetings are now accessible for public for the public for viewing on the YouTube channel number one um I would like to advise that YouTube is ready and has language translation possibilities available for all if you press the option with subtitles Auto translations and close captioning in multiple languages I'd like to ask please the board members to um for an approval of the minute dated September 4th 2024 may I please have a motion thank you board member Bennett may I please have a second thank you very much board member Keenan all of those in favor please say I I any opposed please say nay motion carries uh we have the pleasure now of Anna paskowitz to as our student representative of the board um she's a senior at palmara high school and that's in Burlington County and her advisors are Miss Kim Martina Kim Martino if You' please stand and let us recognize you thank you thank you and is um Miss Kelly Jones here no not today okay but thank you so much if you'd please be so kind come to the podium and let us hear your wonderful report thank you for coming thank you president Goldenberg and good morning everyone September came and went and so did the beginning of the school year for students around the state of New Jersey the school year always starts off busy meeting new teachers starting new classes as well as returning to sports bands clubs and other extracurriculars with all the bustle also comes a lot to look forward to and one of those things is homecoming nearly every school across the state has a homecoming football game and dance in the fall and many schools also have a Spirit Week leading up to those events to build school spirit and create excitement for the coming festivities what differs from school to school are the unique traditions and specific events each School holds near to their hearts at my school Palmyra High School in Burlington County we have some of our own traditions we have a fun Spirit Week leading up to the event where each grade decorates a hallway based on a schoolwide theme voted on by the student council for example this year theme is biomes and the hallways can be decorated as jungle ocean Tundra and desert environments there are dressed days throughout the week based on different themes showing unity and invoking school spirit on Friday during the last two periods of the day all classes go to the stadium for Spirit games where different grades compete against each other for bragging rights and the possession of the giant Panther stuffed animal for the next year some of the games include musical chairs tug OFW and more the grades also to compete during the week to raise money for AA voice the njac state charity by competing in Penny Wars where pennies and bills add to a grades jar total jar value and nickels dimes and quarters deposited in your rival grades jar result in deductions from their total whereas most schools have the homecoming football game on a Friday night and the dance the following night we hold those events in reverse order our dance is on Friday night during which time the homecoming queen and king are crowned even though the dancing lasts for hours everyone is up bright and early the next morning to cheer on our Panther football team other schools have their own longtime Traditions as well for example at Holy Cross Preparatory Academy in Burlington County each grade decorates their own float made out of papier-mâché flowers and then perform skits in front of them during halftime at the football game adding some competitive spirit for the student body the floats are a way to improve to involve students who may be more artistically inclined in it's it's a great way to incorporate teamwork into the homecoming events at Neptune High School in Mammoth County there is a community tailgate before their football game at the tailgate multiple townwide awards are given out to local figures to recognize them for their commitment to the community in various ways this tradition brings together the entire town and gives students role models to look up to a school that has an extremely unique tradition is the Burlington County Institute of Technology at the West Hampton campus since BCIT does not have a football team their homecoming festivities take place during the W during the winter basketball season students at BCIT may wait longer than most for homecoming but they enjoy just as many events as other schools including the competitive school spirit aspect it gives them something to look forward to later in the school year no matter how or when they are celebrated homecomings are a large part of school cult culture bringing joy and school spirit to schools across the state they also serve a purpose implicit in the term homecoming welcoming alumni back to their Alma moders while many colleges in the US claim to have originated the homecoming tradition one thing is clear the festivity serve as a great celebration of school spirit and community in high schools across New Jersey and the country thank you thank [Applause] you would anyone like to I I will start by just saying homecoming was so great I remember it from my years I remember it through our children's years and I can only imagine how exciting a time it is so I who doesn't love this time of year the weather is changing you've got homecoming the REM like how can you listen to that and not start thinking back to your own homecoming um there's pumpkin flavored coffee for those inclined so it's a wonderful time of year so um I love it I also this idea of tug of war is something that we're going to implement around here so we're definitely thank a great team build yes it is wonderful thank you so much and we wish you the happiest of months ahead thank you thank you okay um board member Bob RV let's continue please and have an opportunity to hear your report about the policy committee um the administrative policy committee um met on September 23rd 2024 the state board members in attendance via Microsoft teams were myself Kathy Goldenberg ex officio Mary Beth Berry Joseph Ricker Mary Bennett and Janette Pena uh Department staff and attendance via teleconference were Kevin damer Laura console Jesse Young Chris Huber Taylor secular Dave Corso Alan dpre Diane Shona and Stephanie Russo the um the uh chapter we were dealing with was chapter 23 a fiscal accountability efficiency and budgeting Pro procedures uh the policy as I said the policy committee met on the 23rd of September to discuss the read-option with Amendments of chapter 23A fiscal accountability efficiency and but budgeting procedures since this chapter is on today's agenda at adoption level I will forego my report so that you will hear it from the members of the department thank you very much for your time thank you very much appreciate it um and then now I'd like to ask Mary Bennett board member Bennett to discuss a meeting that was held September [Applause] 26 good morning last Thursday I joined president golden Berg on a call with uh state board members from Washington DC Connecticut Maine Vermont Massachusetts and Delaware the meeting went on for about an hour and I found it very informative uh you know what you do in your state but as you listen to how other people in similar positions function and their processes and practices you can pat yourself on the back in some instances and say New Jersey is doing a good job and in other instances you go hm that might be something we should consider it was very informative um we're thankful here for our Office of the State Board of Ed and the staff there uh because not every state has that kind of support in some instances they are truly managing all of the business of the work and doing the work by themselves so we're thankful to Diane and the team who work with us and facilitate our work it was also interesting to hear how the various states are working on their standards and updating them and in particular uh they talked about mental health standards given all of the things that we're hearing about the research and how young people and all people some are still adversely affected by the pandemic and the lockdown um some states are saying okay we need to take a look at not just our content standards but those affective interactions and how can we support the students and the staff and actually putting it into uh effect looking across the spectrum of the states that were on the call and this was just primarily Northeastern as I said DC Connecticut Maine Vermont Massachusetts and Delaware were primarily uh the districts represented represented or the states represented they talked about the learning loss and how they're trying to tackle what supports they can provide for their districts to be able to help the students get over the hump because we know there are young people who are still struggling uh there was some conversation about uh how long people serve in their terms in different states on the State Board of Education there was conversation about Ru making and how that process moves from the legislation across to the department to the state board and then down to the districts so the conversation lasted about 55 minutes um the National Association representatives were on it and appreciated the participation and as I said I was happy to be with my president and to be a part of listening and hearing and sharing those things that we think we do well and hearing what other states and systems are working on as well thank you thank you very much um I found it also quite intriguing and um not just they also mentioned I believe budgetary problems and needing more money to either fix facilities within their own state but also to have the um the backing financially to go ahead and help students get to the next level and all of them had experienced learning loss but how to remediate for that so it was very interesting and I really appreciate we were a tag team we kept going back and forth with our thoughts it was wonderful so that was a good meeting um okay and now we're I'd like to bring up two petitions that were submitted one of them for rule making was from calab mcil mcgilvery um it was regarding employment screening the State Board of Ed received a petition for ruem on August 6 2024 from Mr mcelver requesting the State Board adopt new rules to require applicants for positions involving work with children to undergo thermal imaging to enhance the safety and well-being of children in educational and child care settings a notice acknowledging receipt of the petition was published in September 3rd 20124 through the New Jersey register the state board and the department take Serious ly the safety and wellness of all students however the petitioner's request is not aligned to state law which already prescribes a comprehensive remedy for screening potential applicants through the process of fingerprinting and background checks and provide school districts with the autonomy and authority to establish their own hiring practices provided they comply with a forementioned state mandates the request also raises ethical and procedural concerns and lacked clear evidence how it would significantly enhance the existing screening procedures processes the petition for rule making partially Falls outside the agency's authority as neither the State Board of Education nor the commissioner has the authority to change background check requirements for child care center employees as requested by the petitioner lastly the request fa to include all components of a petition for Ru making required by njac one colon 30- 4.1b and 6A colon 6-41 B for the reasons mentioned and after due consideration pursuant to law the petitioners request has been denied we also received a petition for Ru making from the same gentleman Mr mcgilvery with the relationship skills curriculum the State Board received another petition for rule making from this gentleman on August 6 2024 requesting the State Board adopt new rules to implement a mandatory curriculum that focuses on developing relationship skills and positive reinforcement techniques for students in Middle School through grade 12 the petitioner sought to require the curriculum to equip students with essential life skills that promote healthy interpersonal relationships emotional intelligence and positive behavior reinforcement the request sought to require the curriculum to utilize four specific books and to be integrated in existing health or social study courses in all middle school and high schools throughout our state a notice acknowledging receipt of our of this petition was published September 3rd 2024 in the New Jersey register the petitioner's request would conflict with existing state law and regulations District Boards of education and school districts generally have the authority to determine which books and materials are to be aligned with the New Jersey God bless with the New Jersey student learning standards njsls Le and are to be included in their curricular and libraries the topics the petitioner requested also are explicitly addressed across our entire K through 12 C Continuum Continuum excuse me across the significant number of njsls Comprehensive Health and physical education performance expectations regarding the defined concepts of emotional health and social health the petitioner's second request failed to include all components of a petition for rule making required by njac 1 colon 30- 4.1b and 6A colon 6- 4.1b for the reasons mentioned and after due consideration pursuant to law the petitioner's request has been denied more details from both petitions from calb mcgilvery and the reasons for denial can be found on the Department's petitions for Ru making website at https colon nj.gov education SL code SLP petitions slf final sl202 and now we will go ahead and please continue with our commissioner's report report thank you Madame President I know we have a very exciting agenda item coming up but uh much like eating your vegetables with one more piece of business to uh attend to so um on July 18th 2024 uh I received a petition of rule making from Oscar Fu uh requesting amendments to chapter four regarding appeals to include another group of appellants to the State Board of examiners decisions njac 684 - 2.1a States in part that any party agreed by a state board of examiners decision suspending or evoking a certificate May appeal to the commissioner in accordance with njac 684 NJ njac 64- 2.1 A1 states that any part party grieved by State Board of examiners decision denying issuance of a certificate shall proceed in accordance with njac 6 a colon 3 controversies and disputes the remainder of njac 6A 4- 2.1a applies to actions by the school ethics commission the petitioner requested to amend the regulations and add new a new paragraph that would allow a revoked certificate holder who later receives an order of expungement pursuant to njsa 2C 52-2 to file an appeal as an agre grieved party to have the language in the docket referred to as a decision changed to remove any reference to the revoked certificate holders criminal record specifically the petitioner explained that this new class of grieved parties would include only revoke certificate holders who committed a crime in their personal life unconnected from the certificate holders position the law establishing Authority for chapter 4 states that quote any appeal of determination of the State Board of examiners shall be to the commissioner of Education end quote the rules in chapter 4 state that the purpose of the chapter is to establish standards and procedures for the filing briefing and adjudication of appeals the requested amendments at njac 684 are not related to procedures for the filing of an appeal of a determination of the State Board of examiners to revoke teacher certificates and therefore would extend beyond the chapter's statutory Authority therefore the request is denied for more details on the petition from Oscar Fu and the results from the denial can be found on the Department's petitions and Ru making website and with that I I'm going to move on to the most ex exciting agenda item that we have and that is the New Jersey state teacher of the year for 20242 this year marks the 55th year that the New Jersey Department of Education has selected a New Jersey state teacher of the year I'm pleased to continue this tradition of honoring and celebrating our state's extraordinary Educators this award falls under the governor's educator of the Year program which provides a well-deserved platform to amplify teacher voice and celebrate our many states our many great Educators in the state excuse me before recognizing our newest State teacher of the year I'd like to take a moment to acknowledge our outc going State Teacher of the Year Joe nappy who is n named a 2024 national teacher of the year finalist during Joe's six-month sabatical at the department he served as a positive and uplifting representative that's an understatement for our teaching profession making public appearances Statewide speaking to a variety of groups and finding every possible moment to celebrate our state's passion and dedic dedication to educators he's also had the opportunity to visit Google headquarters in California meet the president of the United States attend the first ever teachers of the Year State dinner at the White House he went to space camp at the United States Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville Alabama and spent time collaborating with other State teachers of you throughout the Country Joe participated in National events and conferences to learn and share best practices and strategies and as I mentioned earlier was a national teacher of the year finalist Joe's done an amazing job and anybody who's heard him speak feels it to their bones uh Joe thank you for all your hard work and dedication so I want to invite you up to the podium to share your thank you commissioner damer uh thank you to the Board of Education I really appreciate your service thank you to assistant commissioner shiff to Pete mazotti to Nancy bassant for putting up with me through the the six months that I was here on the sabatical uh thank you to so many of you here at the department who opened your doors to me uh were willing to listen and speak and give me an opportunity to share my experiences with you uh it was a deeply meaningful moment in my life uh it really was a trip from Booker to Booker right I went from uh the department of Ed to the US capital had a chance to meet and be heard by people I never thought I would have the chance to speak with um and that meant a lot to me and over the course of this time I got to travel to 30 schools uh across the state uh and to see the amazing work that teachers are doing every single day um incredible things are happening in New Jersey schools and there are challenges as well but no matter where we go and no matter what I saw day after day I saw teachers with the audacity to believe that the problems of today do not have to be the problems of tomorrow and that's what this work is uh it's every single day a grind sacrifice service in that belief of a brighter tomorrow I really appreciate all the support that I got from the stoy family over this journey uh no matter what I went through or where I was I always knew I could call on you to thank you especially Teresa M and Katherine Basset who served as my mentors over the last year I deeply appreciate uh you listening to me and taking all those phone calls and hearing from me at all hours of the night uh with advice that I need I really appreciated that um and I know as I go forward that that same family is going to be here for you Stephanie so today is about you and when we think about that that audacity to believe that the problems of today do not have to be the problems of tomorrow I couldn't think of someone better to step into that role than you the work you're doing is incredible and I can't wait for the people of the state to get to hear more about you and more about the work you do with your students so congratulations Stephany and thank you so much for this honor it was uh truly one of the most impactful moments of my life thank [Applause] you [Applause] welcome thank you Joe I think you can all see see what I mean um and I I just one final thank you for your time here at the department during your sabatical it's been enormously helpful we've had a conversation about some ideas you brought to the table and I'm cons I'm excited to continue that conversation going forward I mentioned to him earlier keep in touch and I I sure hope that we stay in close contact uh over the coming years so thank you uh I now have the pleasure to turn things over to Dr Jordan Schiff to talk about our new state teacher year thank you acting commissioner damer the newest State uh the newest New Jersey state teacher of the year re join a family of other outstanding New Jersey Educators who continue to continue to strive to make a difference in education on a State national and international level I would like to take a moment to acknowledge the veteran State teachers of the year um members who are here in the audience today I also would like to recognize that each of them continue to be an inspiration to current and future educators throughout our state we thank you for all that you have done and all that you will do to continue to promote our profession and improve the lives of the students in New Jersey I'm H as I call H State teacher of the year please stand so that we may recognize you first the 20034 New Jersey state teacher of the year Diane cumins [Applause] the 20052 2006 New Jersey state teacher of the year Robert Goodman the 201122 New Jersey state teacher of the year Jeanie Del culi the 2013 2014 New Jersey state teacher of the year Kathy SC the 2015 2016 New Jersey state Teacher of the Year Chelsea Collins the 2021 2022 New Jersey state teacher of the year Teresa M the 20 2223 New Jersey state teacher of the year Christine geran and of course the 2023 24 New Jersey state Teacher of the Year Joe napping I would also like to acknowledge the state level panel members for committing their time energy and expertise to selecting the the New Jersey state teacher of the year if a panel members in attendance please stand and remain standing to be recognized I kindly ask that you please hold your applause until I introduce everyone first Kathy asini co-chair of the New Jersey County teacher of the year Network Susan Barry English language arts standard coordinator at the New Jersey Department of Education Steve Bey vice president of the New Jersey Education Association Diane cumins member of the New Jersey Council of State teachers of the Year Vincent DeLucia educ ational specialist at the New Jersey school boards Association Vicky Duff coordinator of professional learning at the New Jersey principls and supervisors Association Mark Jacobus School business administrator at the Elwood Board of Education who is representing the New Jersey Association of school business officials Joe nappy outgoing New Jersey state Teacher of the Year Sharon Roseboro president of the New Jersey parent and teacher Association and finally Kathleen Taylor former district superintendent of Ocean City School District who is representing the New Jersey Association of school administrators please recogn thank you to the entire panel for your contributions to this program today I am absolutely thrilled to recognize the 20242 New Jersey state Teacher of the Year Stephanie lockau Stephanie is a Civics and mindfulness teacher at the Montgomery Upper Middle School in in the Montgomery Township School District president Goldenberg and acting commissioner damer had the honor of surprising Stephanie at a back to school assembly on September 23rd with news of her selection as the New Jersey state teacher of the year in the presence of her students her colleagues dignitaries and state Partners I'd like to play a video for you Now featuring some testimonials from those who work most closely with Stephanie as well as some thoughts from some of her students about the impact that she has had on them we're also including some photos from the September 23rd um activity so I'm going to pause Miss locken hour's caling impact on everyone in addition to her exceptional teaching skills makes her the best candidate to be the state teacher of the year just I'm so proud of her I think she's amazing and there's no one more deserving she lights up a room it's just a natural perfect transition to see her in this role and how she kind of goes beyond the content and really personalizes the learning um she plans every lesson with her students first in mind she thinks about what challenges might my students have in this class and then Works to make sure there are resources available she also measures their social emotional health and does a wellness check every time she starts class and at the middle school level That's essential to ensuring that they are ready to learn and ready to absorb all the great information she's going to share but for me teaching is it's more than just the academics right it's more than the things that we're learning it's more than that content teaching is really all about relationships it's about relationship building it's about making connections it's about learning about ourselves and how we operate in the world and then how we can connect with and work with each other and it's about bringing the things that we want out into the world those issues that we care about how do we create change right here we live and then also thinking globally I think that they gave me a different perspective and view on the world and not just the student I think they uh teach me how to be a better uh Global leader and like a global citizen do better in the world I that make me feel happy [Music] [Music] you [Music] [Music] it's now time to hear from our Honore it is my distinct honor and pleasure to introduce to all of you the 2024 2025 New Jersey state Teacher of the Year Stephanie lanow [Applause] thank you thank you for that thank you Dr so good morning morning good morning so I'd like to begin by thanking commissioner Kevin damer and um president Kathy um Goldberg thank you so much for having me thank you to the state board for having me here for for welcoming me and for supporting me in this new role I am so grateful to have the following here celebrating with me so when I say your name if you could please stand Somerset executive County Superintendent Roger Jinx County Education specialist Susan broer Montgomery Township School District superintendent Mary mlin Montgomery Upper Middle School principal rockel Rivera Montgomery Education Association president Mike rosoli and my wonderful parents Donald and Heidi [Applause] lockau and my partner and incredible educator as well David Edward Garcia [Applause] so this program in this moment wouldn't be possible without the generous contributions of our teacher of the year program sponsor is etss and njaa so thank you for all that you do for this thank you for elevating and uplifting the amazing work of the education in New Jersey they say it takes a village to raise a child but it also takes a village to raise the bar in education and I'd like to recognize some leaders in this New Jersey Village and for me that is my wonderful mentors for the state teacher of the year program so Joan nappy 2024 Kimberly Hughes 2020 and Kathy asini 2014 thank you for all you've done already one aspect I'm really excited about looking forward to in this role is connecting with Incredible Educators across the state of New Jersey I consider myself fortunate to work closely with our County teacher of the year cohort the collective wisdom of these skilled and passionate educators will energize and transform our New Jersey communities together we're going to achieve great things I'd also like to honor our 2024 and 2025 New Jersey state teacher finalists Mary hoteling Sarah mazone Alejandra Mahia karolina Mills Vanessa pooli and any one of them would be deserving of this award and their own right through their dedication and service to all they've done for their schools and New Jersey so GR growing up I loved school I loved it but somewhere around the age of I don't know 10 or 11 things got a little tougher me it became a little bit more overwhelming the social things the expectations in the classroom and all of that stress really made it a little bit unpleasant like many students I struggled to see my value and my worth beyond my report card adults would often tell me oh it'll get better it's just a phase well it it didn't and then I got to college and while grades came pretty easy to me I was a pretty good student my first year at Rucker University I failed a class my first and last right not thank you I called my mom I was devastated and I told her to return all of my Christmas presents I did I was very adamant about this even though I have a very supportive family my parents are not hard on me at all they're super loving and supportive just like other students have I somehow internalize that those presents were only deserving for people who were successful and that included being academically successful today looking back I think about that as being super extreme like that's just wild that I would even think that but that moment inspired the kind of teacher that I wanted to be I want my students to have a different experience I wanted my students to know that they are more than their grades I wanted my students to know that they are worthy just because I have dedicated my career to supporting students to love themselves for who they are and empowering them to be who they're meant to be in the world I've been fortunate to work in a school district and a Township that has supported me and knows that students cannot learn if they don't feel emotionally safe they cannot grow if they can't self-regulate and they cannot Thrive if they are not empowered we Empower we provide safety we accept and honor every student who walks through our doors and I've had the privilege to expand my education and certifications to support the well-being of our students and staff by bringing in mindfulness into our curriculum designing new courses creating after school clubs and programming supporting my district as we develop trauma informed professional development and self-care days for our schools together we are elevating education for years I've met with fellow Educators numerous administrators Township leaders local businesses nonprofits about the importance of mental health empowering Our Youth and supporting our students with skills for successful living these Community Partnerships enable the programming and curriculum changes that support our students as New Jersey state teacher of the year I look forward to continuing to Foster these connections and partnering with together to create change throughout all schools in New Jersey we know that if we want healthy and well students that we need teachers who are healthy and well we know that we cannot do this work alone we need each other in order to have self-care we need Community Care we what we do matters relationship [Applause] how about another round of applause for such inspiring words Stephanie along with the title of New Jersey state teacher of the year comes some extra fund perks now let's hear from our program Partners first partner is from the educational testing services his name is jert abua the associate vice president of global philanthropy jert please come up and share a few words [Applause] thank you Dr Schiff good morning everyone I am the new vice president associate vice president for Global philanthropy at ETS on behalf of our CEO Amit svak and all ETS employees out of the Princeton New Jersey headquarters and around the world it is my honor to be here as we celebrate Stephanie lanau of Montgomery upper middle school as the 2024 202 2 New Jersey state teacher of the year I am happy to have been part of the surprise announcement last week at your school's gymnasium and to experience the enthusiasm and energy of all involved EDS ETS has had a longstanding commitment to education and the teaching profession and we are proud of our affiliation with the New Jersey state teacher of the year program supporting a six- months statical to cover the winner salary and benefits as well as other incidentals enabling them to perform their teacher the year duties sharing their Knowledge and Skills with other dedicated teacher professionals throughout the state and Beyond I am pleased to be meeting past New Jersey State teachers of the Year present here as well and I look forward to hearing about your experiences as recipients of the award Miss lire you are a true inspiration to your fellow staff and the entire New Jersey education Community I wish you the very best as you perform your New Jersey state teacher of the year duties and continue to make a lasting impact on your students lives thank you I now return to program to Dr ship thank you Jer for being with us today we appreciate that ETS continues to generously participate in this program by fully funding the New Jersey state teacher of the year salary and benefits during her six-month sabatical this will give Stephanie the Peace of Mind knowing that her students learning will not be continuously disrupted during her term by the numerous speaking engagements and conferences that she will be attending at the state and National levels thank you ATS for your generous support our other program partner is from the New Jersey educ Association Steve Bey is their current Vice President Steve would you mind coming up and saying a few [Applause] words thank you Jordan thank you good morning everyone state board members of course and everyone in attendance and congratulations again to you and your family all our distinguished guests and past recipients of the state teacher of the year as I always say this is the greatest day for me be amongst you it's the closest I ever get to winning the prize of my s so be amongst all you is great uh so again my name is Steve Bey and I am the vice president of the njaa also a high school social studies teacher in the Bridgewood AR Regional School District in Somerset County a Somerset well represented today and it's uh I love that one of the things I had a choice today I could get on a 4-Hour budget Zoom meeting or be here so it's Nob brainer to be here this is one of the wonderful parts of my job to get to be on the committee and you were introduced some of my colleagues and I thank them for their service it really is a fun group and n to thank you bringing it all together it is truly a labor of love to work with these colleagues and uh get to know the County teachers of the Year through these I would say pretty arduous application process to get to this point so you know that we are getting really the creme de La Creme uh and all the cohorts have been so great in the work that goes forward and it's a special day as we get to celebrate here together and know that we have ambassadors in this and njaa is uh proud to be a partner in this work because we know that work is collaborative working with the Department of Education working with etss to make sure that we are giving this its proper due as we celebrate our Educators and we know we Face a problem here in New Jersey right of an educator shortage and the fact that we lift up the profession in this way and celebrate celebrate each other and show what is possible what we can be when we all work together is truly a piece of how we unlock making sure that our next generation of Educators sees in themselves all and a little bit of each and every one of us and I know as an educator myself firsthand how important that is and I have every confidence that the newest State teacher of the year will showcase the level of Excellence that New Jersey teachers possess and represent our profession with Grace class and style and I'm excited to see because I know how important theal work that you have invested yourself is and uh I often joke now to the lofty Heights that I have attained my high school experience was uh a mixed of bag my own children love to find my old report cards and pull them out say Dad how did you get to see how did you get to your teacher said you need to pay attention more lucky for me that finally in college I found someone that was able to Mentor me I turned it around look at me now my mom says she was a little worried so in off in in efforts to support your work as you've heard the support we are offering more than just our moral support and Ja will provide the teacher of the year with a rental car as you saw outside very nice yes equipped with an easy pass as you travel all around the state as you've heard from your colleagues and mentors what this will entail we'll also provide you with access to all of our workshops and training opportunities a $1,500 clothing allowance media training I know R's a good and Communications support as well as fund your trip to Washington DC to me with the other State teachers of the year because that's what it's about making sure that you are resourced to go out there and spread the word that you now have as a state teacher of the year so I want to thank of course Nancy and everyone of the department event for the work and on behalf of my fellow officer Sean Spiller ped Robertson and all of your colleagues and members of our 200,000 strong union congratulations wish you nothing but level success and our support along your way congratulations [Applause] Steve n ja's continued support of the program is also very much appreciated your generosity in providing a car all travel expenses and other benefits for the year starting today is truly impressive thank you and the members of the njaa for your generous support Stephanie please come up to the front at this time to join our acting commissioner damer and State award president Goldenberg who will present you with your 2024 2025 New Jersey state teacher of the year award that's [Applause] Stephanie congratulations on your well-deserved award it's now my pleasure to turn the program back over to acting commissioner Damon thank you Dr uh so at this time I want to open it up to any board members to make any comments I I'd like to begin if I may please um so in getting to meet our teacher of the year along with uh board member Bennett I was so excited to hear about the work not just in your district and in your community and your school but actually this individual has gone internationally and been involved in Europe with discussing student needs and how to do things and I don't know if you want to touch on that but I thought that was extremely impressive and look forward to hearing more about that in future visits but it was remarkable so congratulations we're thrilled thank you congratulations uh it was an honor to be at the ceremony last week and I have to tell you the thrill for me were your students I've never seen 1100 7th and eighth graders enter an exit a room so quietly and I watched the teachers interacting with them no one had to be ushered out there was one child who was a special needs child that the students are well aware of and as that child demonstrated the behaviors that go with his condition there was no laughing there was no poking it was a very respectful very uplifting environment and to principle Rivera I love how you handle the Applause piece you reminded them there will be a time f listen there'll be a time for you to applaud and to demonstrate the spirit of the school which foot stomping accompanies Applause and they did it so well congratulations best wishes for all the good things you're going to share and it was an honor to be with you last [Applause] week anybody thank you so much thank you again and congratulations uh and I I Echo the same sentiment you could feel the atmosphere in the school and it's I think you have a big play a big role in that uh you yourself and um I it's one of those things that you can't quite put your finger on but you felt it in in sitting in that Auditorium and so congratulations to you I apologize to your superintendent and principal we are going to steal her for six months um but she's got the opportunity to do some fantastic work with the rest of us I look forward to working with you learning from you and collaborating with you this year and going forward so congratulations again thank you and now I'm going to turn it we're going to I'm going to ask the president to take just a brief recess so we can do some fun photos and transition and we'll get back to work of the board in just a little bit thank you and I'd like to please invite the board members to be in these photos to congratulate as well so if you'd please accompany us for Quick photos that would be amazing thank you what do we yes thank you and I'd like to ask for a second thank you very much uh motion approved we will resume in five minutes thank you e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e hi now I'd like to ask please for a motion to resume our public portion of the meeting motion who said it uh thank you very much board member paa may I have a second thank you very much pass presidental Ponte appreciate it all those in favor please say I I I thank you um we're going to continue now so commissioner um we have had such a wonderful meeting so far this is the happiest meeting every year it's so great inspirational so now we'll begin please with the items for consideration sir thank you so much so our first uh item item a uh is for appointments and today I present one candidate for appointment that is Mr Ambrose Ducket uh to the position of assistant commissioner for the division of fields support and services and he will report directly to me president Goldenberg turn it over to you for discussion thank you very much first may I have a motion to consider Dr jet thank you you made a motion make a motion to approve the appointment thank you sir vice president and I'd like to please ask for second second thank you and now for discussion um I Can Begin we had a a nice meeting in an executive session and discussed all of um the attributes that this candidate brings to the position and they are numerous so um would anyone else like to say anything at this time hearing nothing um may I please have a motion to uh approve those in favor please signify by saying I I thank you any opposed please signify by saying nay any abstentions at this time okay congratulations sir we are honored and look forward to all of your contributions to come in this new role thank you thank you congratulations Ambrose so uh we're ready to move on to our next agenda item which is certification of school districts and I'll invite our newly named assistant commissioner up along with Carla Spates uh since the September state board meeting the executive County superintendents have finalized 56 NJ qsac evaluations for districts I'm recommending 14 of those for certification um and uh as I as I mentioned uh Mr Ducket and Carlos Bates will be here to uh address any question questions that you may have uh actually let me run through the list that I'm recommending for approval excuse me uh wff Township uh public school districts in Bergen County Lawrence Township Public School District and Mercer Cranberry Township School District in Middle sex South planfield School District in Middle sex Boonton Town Public Schools uh in Morris bton Township School District and Morris uh kenalan school district of Morris Lincoln Park School District of Morris Morris Plains school district of moris Morris School District in Morris Mountain Lakes Public School District in Morris Randol Township School District also in Morris and New Providence School District in Union Rosel Public School District in Union I'll turn it over to the board for any questions or discussion thank you um I would just like to um make a comment first off Mr docket welcome um I'm thrilled um to see someone I was very impressed um when we had our discussion earlier today I I am concerned um because I'm looking we have 56 qac reviews um and 42 school districts scored below 80% um your work sir is cutting out for you yes um I had asked in executive session whether you would be working with the county superintendent can you tell me um do you have kind of a sense of how many folks are involved because they need to be writing District Improvement plans how big is the STA as we're seeing numbers that are relatively large for um school districts that are not at that 80% how big um how many people are going to be hitting the ground and working on these District Improvement plans and helping bring these districts along uh that's a very good question are you asking from the county level or from the school level so I'm and please correct me if I'm wrong the county superintendant I believe are charged with putting together the district Improvement plans no that's the school district okay that's the school district the county um executive superintendent and the Ed specialist will oversee and approve that District Improvement plan so depending upon the size of the school district you may have two or three or you may have 15 to 20 people working on um a district Improvement plan so are there enough staff overseeing making sure that we're bringing these districts along so just I just want to cut because we've discussed this at length I think several times and I think there's there's a change in this Dynamic that we have implemented it is not a a singular Standalone team that focuses only on this we tap into our resources department wide based on the needs of the school district so yes the executive county superintendent and their team are directly involved in working with the school districts but as it progresses from there the entirety of the department is open to them as resources and expertise are needed so it's not I I want to change change the dynamic of this conversation in looking at just a singular team that does this because that's not how we function we are collaborative we're cross divisional and we work together um as needed to lean on all the expertise within the department um to make sure that the school districts are getting what they need so it's it's a very broad team depending on on the needs of of the schools and and the leadership within that District to to Really execute on that plan and and Kevin I have to applaud you too on on your leader ship I think that is something I get the sense that you're really trying to do and bring all this together I just it's concerning to me that there are so many districts I think we're hopefully turning the the corner um and and moving things up but I just wanted to hear from you whether you're thinking there are enough people and thank you for your explanation Kevin that that there's really a team in place to make sure that moving forward these numbers are not looking like this it it's we certainly want to celebrate the districts that have um you know been able to achieve um 80% but we want to help all those other districts along so absolutely yes thank you good good luck to you I thank you thank you any other questions or comments or or concerns at this point um I believe um please board member paa and then you sir thank you thank you I I just again it's just a comment and I just want to draw attention to um what I feel is it's it's almost unfair um there's no other way micophone closer to oh sorry um I I feel like this is almost unfair it's a it's just a comment an observation where I'm looking at some districts under that instruction and program where they're at 81 and then we have other districts that are at 79 it's almost like we're missing that plus or minus uh gauge because really how far apart are they um so it's just I don't expect a a response it's just an observation and there's quite a few of them and it's just it's unfortunate just just a quick remember this is under the old um or the current uh uh rubric for qac which we've Advanced last last meeting to to make changes and we did make substantive changes to imp and I think addressing those that are just on the cusp and I think we've given them New Opportunities by focusing on growth to help them get there so I think this is going to start to evolve we've had conversations um with folks in the education field that are expressing uh great hope and excitement over these changes in qac and want them implemented much sooner than I think uh logistically we can do uh so those conversations I think are ongoing but I'm very optimistic about what the future holds including our recent changes to to your point uh board member opinion that these there are several that are right on that on that cusp and I I'm optimistic we're going to help them get get over that that line thank you and uh Vice President Johnson sir um my comments were going to or will Echo what uh was just said I was looking at that uh data also the ones that are just uh off the uh cut score uh for for being um approved and I was thinking the same thing about the modifications and changes how they'll help lift the tide and put more uh districts at the um proficient level so thank you for your hard work thank you so uh no further comments then um all those in favor of accepting the certification of the school districts that commissioner damer mentioned by name please say I I I I I any posos please say nay any extensions motion carries thank you very very much thank you we'll now move on to uh agenda item C which is uh the adoption of sub chapter 16 through 22 of chapter 23A which is regarding fiscal accountability efficiency and budgeting procedures this sub chapter provides fiscal accountability accounting recordkeeping tuition calculations for public schools and approved private schools for students with disabilities residency requirements and the financial operations of charter schools Dave Corso assistant commissioner for the division of finance and business services and Alan dpri are going to join uh join us up here and and provide a presentation and address any comments and questions you may have uh good morning acting commissioner good morning board members I guess this is the you had the exciting stuff this may be the boring stuff Finance is the exciting stuff as well kidding I'm Edwood um so uh thank you for uh allowing me to present today I'm going to give you an overview of njac 6 a-23 a um these are regulations uh that are up for adoption and um uh for the new board members I'll give you a an overview for the board members whove been here it's another overview as well uh so the fiscal accountable accountability rules for school districts Charter Schools Renaissance schools and approved private schools for students with disability ensure that public funds for Education are spent responsibly uh the chapter expires October 3rd 2024 which is tomorrow and is divided into two halves so there's sub chapters 1 to 15 which are commissioner regs they're not subject to your approval uh they require three public hearings prior to adoption today I'm asking you to we are asking you to adopt sub chapters 16 to 22 they are state board regulations uh they do not um include definitions for 23A 1- 1.2 uh the two halves will be adopted at the same time um so the overview is one we updated uh terminology titles and gendered language two we replaced or removed outdated references to statute and code to statute and code three we Implement implemented enacted legislation uh there were some small changes for clarification or technical Corrections and we had five substantive changes and I will list them on the next slide uh the five substantial changes uh that fall Within These sub chapters it's 16 and 17 uh one we specify that a board resolution is required to expand the chart of accounts beyond the minimum and the budget beyond the minim minimum and the budgetary and overex expenditure controls that must be followed um we require a school district to maintain the same level of insurance coverage when the position of state treasur is eliminated and the functions are delegated to another person essentially that means that they whoever the new Treasurer is or who's designated to be treasure has to be bonded uh provide commissioner discretion in addition to using objective criteria and determining when sub districts must submit Financial reports to the county office uh we clarified rules about the Student Activity funds including the definition required policies and timeline for the expenditures of such funds and the last is re IR ired that a district choosing to change a tuition clarification method for a subsequent year must provide written notice to the department by March first that would be the county office uh we found that three additional changes were needed um the department changed grants to Grant to make the sentence grammatically correct um the department added Renaissance school project Boards of Education uh to clarify that the rule applies to the Renaissance school project project Boards of Trustees in addition to Charter School boards of trustees and to be consistent with other changes Pro um proposed throughout the rul making uh we chose not to adopt a new rule proposed at njac C6 a-23 D 23A d16.1 G which would have set forth rules uh if the procedures that njac 6A colon 23A d16.1 16.10 B resulted in correction corrective action that is not sufficient to avoid a deficit on a budgetary basis or to correct an an an actual fund deficit on a budgetary basis so upon further legal review the department determined that that proposed new rule exceeded the Department's statutory Authority and uh those are the uh changes within 23A any questions concerns thank you I've had the privilege of being involved to most of the committee discussions that any board members would you like to make any comments at this time hearing none oh yes sir just just in terms of just in terms of the required Financial first of all thank you very much for your report you're welcome the requirement for financial reporting that get submitted to the county uh superintendent's office uh is the county office also expected to approve that review and approve it yes thank you you're welcome thank you very much um for that question any other questions hearing none all those in favor of of this going through please signify by saying I I I thank you we did the motion did we not do the motion we did the motion and we seconded it I thought we can do it again just to be safe thank you excuse me if I didn't but I all um may I please have a motion I move second thank you we have a motion from past president Ponte we have a second from uh Vice President Johnson okay no further disc discussion at this time all those in favor of accepting the motion to um go ahead with adoption level of chapter 23A please signify by saying I any any oppos please signify by saying nay are there any extensions at this time please indicate this hearing none the motion passes unanimously thank you thank you thank you sir thank you thank you uh and that concludes all of our agenda items I'll turn it back to you st one president thank you so here we go October everyone enjoy the fall thank you very much for your attendance are there any is there any new business to bring forward at this point hearing nothing um um may please have a motion to dismiss thank you second thank you all those in favor sayur bye thank you motion carries all right for