I call a meeting to order. Today is Wednesday, April 30, 2025. It's 6:40 6:30 p.m. We are in the auditor center in Paris Park. This is works um this is regular uh business
meeting in April 2025. Everyone please stand up for To the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God,
indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Please such Mr. William Kim Mr. Anthony Kim Miss Rebecca Lee of course
Young Park Bo Young here Mr. Aaron Mr. Jun here Sergio Kay here Dr. Bush here
Thank you. In comprehension acts, I hereby state that notice of this regular meeting has been provided to the public by a routine notice dated March 7, 2025. The meeting
notice has been emailed to all step members at the district three school locations communicated to the record and fired with the board of pis park. Now um we are opening to the 2025 2026 budget
hearing. We have a motion to open the budget hearing session. So All right. So, um the budget hearing will be presented by our business administrator, Mr.
Alexander is here the budget hearings. There's three people All right, see how this goes. Good evening everyone. I'm here to present uh the budget for the 2526 school year school
district. We're here to adopt the final budget for the 2526 school district. On March 18th, the tenative budget was approved by the board of education. On April 2nd, it was approved by the executive county superintendent of schools in Burton County. And the
budget was advertised in the record, some challenges in budget. Districts across New Jersey have seen a rise in health benefit costs over the past few years. With the help of our health benefit consultants, Brown, we project an 18%
increase from the 2324 school year. We have a maximum 2% tax levy. District is bound to a 2% tax levy with some exceptions. Those being the healthare adjustment and employment adjustment district took advantage
of a little later. salary increases ongoing contract associations everyone here last year contracts expired to the PPA administrators and the supervisors
um since the salaries make up about 50% of the budget it was difficult to budget for something that's unknown we also have high systemic inflation 2.9% that was consumer price index the the year
2024 because when services go up, our budget shrinks. Curriculum revisions for the upcoming adoption of the new standards in ELA and math. ELA is English, language, arts. As new standards are underway for ELA and math, the district
has changed programs to align to these new standards. We are piloting programs in our schools and hoping to do a full launch school year. continued high cost of special ed and out of district student uh district
placements. So as we have our preschool program can identify the students that need special services earlier which increases our out of district placements as well as we have transfer from other surrounding districts that come in to
use our specialized programs. Advancements of bilingual programs to address our community needs. Our is ever changing. Um, we have a large multilingual population from South American countries. So, we're using a
program called CKLA, which is a new curriculum and also pushing out phonics in order to accommodate these students. maintain improving our facilities, doors, locks, placements. Um, especially
at the high school, we want to change the locks maybe this summer instead of the traditional key fob to more of electronic badge lock. This will increase our security 2526 budget tax levy. Our
general budget is 27 million. That's 85% of our total budget, the 37.9 million. The general budget consists mainly of the local tax levy of 27.2 that you see on the right. Also, state is in that $32
million number, which is actually decreased with the new formula from the New Jersey Department of Education. It went down by our state aid has decreased by 3%. 26 school year for the general uh for the local
tax levy the 27.2 million we increased it from last year by 3.2%. Reason being is uh we took advantage of the healthcare adjustment $227,000 as well as an enrollment adjustment of $88,000 which gives us a total of an
extra 315,000 that we can include in our budget. Here you'll see tenative budget revenues. The large amount is 71.7% is made up of our local tax levy 27 million. The second largest will be the
special revenue fund. Special revenue consists of our federal grants, title grants, IDA and also preschool education aid. And the third largest is our
state which as I mentioned decreased by% regarding our general fund expenditures 55% goes to salaries and stipens 72.7% of the total general budget is salaries and
benefits. The rest are split pretty evenly. We have occupational physical therapy related services for out of district students and in district also our special ed and regular tuition and our transportation for
those. Here's a calculation of how the taxes will increase. So the general fund tax levy for current year 2425 26.3
million our increase of 3.2% 27.2 2 million total assessed valuations which I took from the tax assessor from the municipality went from 3.9 billion to 4.1 billion you do a calculation there
you get 67% for the current year and 66% for next year if your house is assessed at $761,000 in the current paid your portion of tax that goes to
the schools was $5,137. So I also received this from the tax assessor. The average resessed is $86,000 for the school year, which you'll see the general fund
tax is now $5,342. difference being $25 increase in your tax for to fund the school district. It's not your total tax. It's just a portion on the district. This is directly from the
Jersey Department of Education. Um just they do a calculation on their end showing the adequacy budget what should be That's bottom right number
43, 355,000. So we're under by some questions. Yep. Were there any causes given for an 18% increase on insurance claims and things like that? That's a pretty large
increase in school probably 10%. Yeah. So both districts work with Brown and based on their calculation and projections they told us it's safe to budget 18%. It might be a little lower.
Okay. So you're not positiveizable increase. 14%. If your home is assessed at $86 is assessed at $86,000 and last year it was assessed at that 761,000,000. If you're
The tax where where can we find this information? Are you going to post it on the website? Not in minutes in the website. On the website. Excuse me. Just to be clear, this is the public hearing on the budget uh that portion of the meeting. So if anyone has
questions or comments about the budget. This is what we do now. Thank you. Thank you Mr. Kowski for the budget presentation but here in presentation now the board will go to work session to
review and discuss all the agendas the door is locked that door they should leave it open to Okay, start I just start to read the board minutes.
Um, I have some comments repeat. Is there any other board members who want like to request any corrections or discussions for the minute of March 18, 2025? That was regular meeting. There's
two minutes. That's one regular session minutes and then one executive meeting minutes. If not, I have comments on the meeting minutes, the regular minutes for the public participation part of myself. So that part I think I can go over and
review with Mr. Alski. Um it's not a big issue. It's just so little bit different from what I said. You can just make a correction based upon the recording and for the executive session minutes I like
to suggest that we go we discuss in close session we have other agendas in close session at the end of the meeting or we can add that two points um there are some a few things that we have to review
don't worry again the board members who participated in our March meeting is there just questions. Hello. I'm sorry. I couldn't understand what you were saying. Were you asking if there was any questions on the March meeting? She was asking the board
members. Board members. Okay. For the public, we give we have a public participating session at later, not now. My problem is that we don't this room is not for the public meeting. So
we don't have microphone here. So if anyone in the back cannot hear us, you can ask us to raise your voice. We'll try our best to reach out to you. If you don't have any question for the meeting minutes, let's our next
division will be building and grounds. We have many requests. Mr. this one. Yeah, we were table but um during regular session right in the regular session. Thank you.
Okay, chairperson, Mr. Arba, can you address could you read the agendas and resolutions in breeding and ground? Okay, so number one, so we have seven items on this. So the first one is the
ask school rental by the Presbyterian church. be resolved that the thousand park board of education upon the recommendation of the superintendent includes the use of the park high school by the Presbyterian Church of New Jersey
at school from July 7th to August 8th, 2025 from 8:00 a.m. to 3 p.m. Fe of $20,000. Okay. So, second item on the list is the Junior Police Academy, the PP GD,
right? Uh, Garden State Kendo, uh, New Jersey Korean Basketball Association, Traditional Art Society of Korea, Cultural Competition, Public Health event health screening
fair. That sounds like what's up. Uh shredding events park recycling department. Any questions? I do. Mr. Could you ask your school? I think we having
this for every summer. But do you recall this is the same as last year and it's from Monday to Friday? I'm trying to pull up my Was it $20,000?
I believe it was Monday to Friday. So last year I think we had Monday off. Uh I'm actually having a question right now. Okay. So I'm seeing over here that
uh there are some entities that are actually paying but some are not paying. So what's going on with that one? Like why is police officer over there if he wants to pay?
Would you like? No. No. Please. This is administrators and then um okay so similar to that Mr. condoms. Do we the border has a standard standard guidelines for one day rental fee for
school activities? Well, we like to accommodate the community. That's why recycling department, the police department. It's up to the board if they want to charge them. Yeah, I don't think we would never charge the police
department at the recreations. But what about the private entity? I believe so. I'm not sure which one. I think Garden State Kendo number three. I think we collected $500 for rent last year. It's on there. But this says
deposit is does that mean the rental fee? Yes. That's not not the deposit is not dep That's not refundable. It's not refundable. And the $250 for security poly is just
for it applies to all the vendors here all the year. I'm not sure separate from this. I'm not sure we're using this $250. That's our policy. So the same and this number four also
that deposit $500 is open. Yes, please. We have more questions. We would just ask that the irrelevant parties be properly insured. So did you did you collect all the
insurance letters and applications? Number five did not provide any paperwork. So members, what do you think? Do we if there's um enough time to approve next months, would you like
any organization that hasn't submitted any required documents or I think we can approve pending pending pending any other opinions discussions If not, let's move on to next.
come to school board and alterate sister Anthony is not here today and there's no agenda. education. We have two resolutions to be approved today. First, calendar 2025 to
2026. Okay. So the calendar is at the end of our resolution and agenda. So must have reviewed it. Do you have any questions and discussion? Then next finest chairperson
is number one. Number two financial reports resolve district and treasures. 2024 financial report. The board secretary certifies
that No line item incumbences and expend to exceed the line item. Be it further resolved to NJ23-214 school district of education certifies that as March 202
Treasury each month 23-21 for proof 32512 resolve board of education recommendation 96,684 approval of the bill list April resolve
board list in the amount of 1,914716 Number six, transfers whose transfers in the month of March 2025. Number seven, student activities accounting March 31st, 2025
office of the superintend. Number nine, system 3000 software license agreement renewal beh26. at a cost of $27,360. System 3000 is a provider of integrated accounting and personnel software for New Jersey. Excuse
me. Jewish services agreement. Yeah, please don't disone. I I don't know what you're saying over there and I would like to participate in this. So if the way I'm shouting if you guys
can try to do the same for the duration of this meeting I think everyone in this room would really appreciate it. Thank you. And I promise you, thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Number 10, Jewish Family Services Agreement. Number 11, Bloodborne
Pathogens Compliance Program, BCDHS agreement. Number 12 sports medicine agreement 2025 to 2026. Number 13, final budget resolution. Number 14, travel and
related expense reimbursement. Thank you, Miss for the members. Do you have any questions? Any agendas to discuss? Um since our agenda resolution has shared with board members in very
last minute. So the finance committee we didn't we had a meeting committee meeting but we I don't think even during the bill. So, I have some questions on Mr. Do you have some questions?
All right. Okay. But how I can improve? Do you have any questions? Other discussions? Next negotiations chairperson. Thank
you. It's just a brief statement. The board is working diligently to reach a fair and timely settlement across all open contracts. We currently have four negotiations underway with two in advanced stages. Our goal is to finalize
agreements as soon as possible while supporting our team members and students and upholding fiscal responsibility to test. Thank you. Thank you Mr. Next Mr.
He's out of country now who will join us next month. So next next personel Mr. Jun. Yep. So there are seven agendas. One, middle school dance coach. He resolved
that Kelsey Park Board of Education recommends Rachel Morgis as middle school dance coach. Number two, request for leave. Staff number 4154 and 4596 be resolved that upon the request recommendation of
superintendent approves the following home instruction teachers be resolved that Elizabeth Park boards Cal States Park Board of Education upon the recommendation of the superintendent approves Elizabeth Porino and Sierra Rosa and
Michelle Reniko resignate number four resignation of staff be resolved the Palace Park Board of Education Upon recommendation with regret the following resignation kindergarten teacher Gi Yun Chong and preK teacher Theodore
Mazina number five salary adjustment Brandon Carlock resolved that Palace Park upon the recommendation of superintendent approves the adjustments number six non-renewal of staff be resolved that Paly Park board
of Upon the recommendation of the superintendent approves the non-renewal of the following personnel Leslie and Kenny number seven appointment of staff be resolved the Palace Park Board of Ed approves appointment of the following personnel
for 24 25 school year. Jonathan Simon Lee Wellington Malero questions if not next is policy Thank you. Do you have any questions questions? Do we have currently a middle school
dance coach on the track? Sorry, you're asking question. Okay. What's the question? Is there a middle school is currently
on. Did you answer the question? Believe it's Rachel. I'm asking if it's on the guide. I have to check. It is. I'm sure someone knows here. Do you have any um questions in policy?
Not school safety and security committee secretary is not present. I'm here. Next on finish the business, I just want to announce our notice notify you that just employees contracts are on our website as we approved the board
approved a few months ago. Some are not but that will be updated. So if you're interested in the current contract, it's on the website and hopefully new contracts will be replacing soon. And may I have a motion to close session
and move on to regular session? All in favor? Objection. So in regular session, we will start with the present to report. And I'm going to read a very short
statement. This statement is to resolve any misunderstandings between the board and the education association. The statement I read on April 11 was to refute force media reports and
information spread by the PPA leadership about the board of education in the belief that the public deserves and has the rights to truthful and accurate information especially if it's about the governing body that constitute public
education. The board acknowledges and value the important work our teachers do daily work to educate and support our students. Thank you. Next, did you bring any reports for us
today? Yes. Thank you. Good evening everyone. So I just wanted to briefly discuss some events in the Py Park Junior Senior High School. Last month we had a Korean class one and two field trip to Korean Cultural Center in New
York and it was a good experience for students and teachers to learn more about the Korean culture. Uh, we also had some fundraisers too, including the National Honor Society dessert buffet, class of 2027 tie-dye
party, and AP psychology bake sale. We also had a marking period 3 principal's breakfast honoring students who received straight A's. We also had bring your child to work day and it was good seeing the teachers
being involved with um the teachers kids being involved with other P park students. Today we also had an AP student presentation in the auditorium where the vice pres vice principal Miss Bayz and the principal Mr. Garcia
informed the students about the AP exams. And coming up um next month, we have the NJSLA science for 8th and 11th graders and honor society's induction ceremony tomorrow. Um May 4th through 16 is
filled with AP exams for students. May 19th through 22 is NGSLA ELA testing and math for seven seventh, 8th, and 9th graders. And the 29th of May is
spring concert. That's it. Unfortunately, Dr. Zero is not present here. He has some medical issue. We hope he feel better soon. But Mr. would
you please address some um message from Dr. Cro today. I think I can play superintendent. Um graduation dates for the Pal Park High School are June 18th, 2025. It'll be at 700 p.m. at the county
field. Rain date is June 19th. Lindberg Elementary School graduation will be at 5:00 pm two hours prior. Same thing at the county field. And for the ECC It'll be on June 17th, 9:00 a.m., 10:30 a.m.,
12:00 p.m., and 1:30 p.m. All at the ECC. Fortunately, I don't believe we're doing teacher of the year or chronic absenteeism at this point. What was the three hours of three times?
Yep. 9:00 a.m. 10:30 a.m. 12 12:00 p.m. and 1:30 p.m. That is directly from the boss himself. That concludes my report. Thank you.
Mr. Adam, do you have any reports today? Nothing. We about to um approve the board meeting minutes for March 18, but I like to suggest that we bring it to the closeation first and then we can vote for all together with our large at the
end of That's okay. Any objection here? So building and grounds we have a seven consent agenda but as previously we just proceed to work we are approving the
seven agenda based upon pend pending upon the subing requested document from all the requesters of rent of our school facilities. May I have a motion to approve?
Are you motion? It'll be pending upon submitting the rental fee. You said um the requested documents. Thank you. Anyone second? I'll second.
All in favor? I any objection abstension seven items are approved. Next educations we have two consent agenda. One is three. Second one is calendar for school year 2025 2026.
We have a motion to approve to approve two agendas resolutions. Sorry, who's first? Second. Thank you. All in favor? No question. So finance.
So Mr. Kandowski, if I like to number five bill, it might affect some of your work greatly affect my work. Yes. Okay. Then maybe it's again it's a contingency with
based upon our you make and things that would clear them or just approve all together here. So there are specific um just a few things that
um just some of them probably would impact his work a lot more than others. Okay. some some large beers because I have one, two, three, four, five, six, seven questions, but just a big two.
Um, so this consolidated environment company 17,000 and the waterproofing technology 15,600 those are for the roof things at the board office and weatherproofing technology. roof repairs
and various so for the same venue like it's for the board of education weatherproofing technologies was not what is for other repairs at the high school that we had lease
but then consolidated environment um in bill will be sent to the borrow for reimbursement correct everything All the bills that we received for the board office will be sent to the municipality. Okay. Thank
you. The um just one more question. Do you know what is I think I've raising one question in the other months but I'm sorry I don't recall what it was. What was the renaissance for the 43,1 Renaissance? Renaissance.
Renaissance. I believe that's one of our programs. I'm sure someone uses Renaissance here. So it's a all year program. So we are paying for $43,000 for using the program whole year. I I just have page number page 15.
Is it from this list? Yeah. See if I have it. But I'm pretty sure that comes out of a title account. Honestly, title one. So that comes out of federal That was that
was so today the agendas were updated. So are you are you talking about the lock 12thletic on that. Yeah, we are going to do and I have a
question on one of the items on the bill. Uh it's angled on the palace. It's chartered tition. April transportation 5,964 that's on the bill that's transportation for our charter school
students the high school or the I'm not sure which but isn't the transportation fee that reimbured to the parents because we no longer provide the service at different that's
different school of choice is the aid and l that we sent to the parents this is a charter school thank you welcome questions in finance If not, Mr. Deputy worker. I don't know
if anyone did a motion. Oh, we have a 14 finance agenda for approval. Motion second. Yes, upon our email transception with my
questions regard. Yes, Rebecca Lee. I would like more information on number 12 as well mentioned school medicine. Is there a need for
you're abstaining for number 12? Yes. Jun. Yes. Young from 12. Young Park. Yes. William Tim. Yes. Aaron Pack. Yes. Thank you.
Thank you. Next, we'll just jump into the committee that has agenda as a resolution to approve and so person we have seven items for
approval. I have a motion. Such yes. Sergio Kay, yes. Rebecca Lee, yes. Jun Yim, yes. Bo Young, yes. Suk Young
Park, yes. William Kim, yes. Aaron P. Motion passes. Thank you. Next. We have one agenda for approval. All in favor or do you want to
roll please? I need a motion. I didn't need a second motion to approve number one. Sure. Yes. Sergio Cay. Yes. Rebecca Lee. No.
Juny. Yes. O. Young. No. Not as written. Sukyouong Park. Yes. William Kim. Yes. Aaron passes. Thank you. There's next um before we move on to close
session. Now may I have a motion to open our meeting to audience? Um motion to open audience. a second. All in favor? And uh everyone, because we anticipate that there's quite a few of you who'd
like to be heard tonight and we want to make sure everyone has a chance to be heard and say what they want to say, we're going to ask everyone to please keep the comments three minutes each uh per person. And we're going to the board members are going to reserve their responses if any until after the public
comment session is concluded. Thank you. Thank you, Gentle. Yes. My name is Paul Alden. I've been a resident of this town all my life, 76
years. I was not at the last meeting, but I saw a video of it. And I am not here to discuss what was said. I am here to discuss what wasn't said. I worked in a private school in New York for 24 years. I was an
administrator. My daughter-in-law is a teacher in another district. And I did not hear one person say what the teacher does after they leave here at 3:00. Not one person. If a teacher
teaches five classes and has 15 kids in each class, that's 75 kids a day and 75 parents they have to deal with. So if you give a test that day, that's 75 papers you're taking home, not to count the day before when you wrote the 75
tests. I didn't hear that from anybody. I got the impression that people were saying they come in at 7, 8, 9, whatever, and they leave at three. When I my kids went through this school district, there was a teacher I had to
meet with for one of for my son at one time. We couldn't come up with the schedule because of my work schedule. That teacher met with me at 7:00 in the morning. That's all part of a teacher's job. Their job does not end when they
leave here at 3:00 and their job does not start when they come in here at 8:00. And I think that should be taken into consideration. And one other thing, when I was growing up, one of the safest jobs you could have was working in a
school. A teacher, a janitor. Pick one. That isn't the life anymore. Schools are locked. Police are in there to protect the students and the teachers. Who ever thought in 2025 that's what we would see this job need to be?
They just don't go to work every day like certain people do and come home. They have the responsibility of everybody's kid that they're teaching. If my kid gets hurt in school playing gym, I might blame the gym teacher. And they have to put up with
people like me. I told you 76 years old. I'm bottling everything up for 76 years and you're going to hear it. But anyway, when I was here, my son was very active in sports, and we had um he
played football, he wrestled, and we had uh parents do a snack bar to raise money. Do you know how many times when a parent couldn't show up, a teacher got behind that snack bar and helped us? When the games were played, there were more teachers there sometimes than parents supporting these kids that they
taught to show them how feel. Win or lose, win or lose, they supported those kids. That's a very important part of all this. You just can't look at Leona pays this, Richfield pays that.
What does a teacher do? Their job is much longer than eight hours a day. And when you're considering all this stuff, you cons should consider all that because as board members, you should know what a teacher's job is. And
it does not end with educating the kids. I'm done. My name is Natalie Connorante. I work at the high school as a science teacher, Palies Park of Education, community members, and fellow stakeholders. Not only a proud member of the Palace Park
education association, but also a dedicated educator. 17 years has committed years to nurturing the minds and hearts of our students. I'd like to take a moment to respond to the board of education statement from their Friday night meeting on April 11th on
allegations of misconduct. The claim that PPEA leadership has engaged in bullying tactics and bad faith negotiations is a serious accusation. Throughout the negotiation process, our leadership has maintained professionalism and a focus on
constructive dialogue. It's important to note that disagreements in negotiations are not uncommon, but they should be addressed through continued discussion and mutual respect. On student performance, the board references state testing scores and suggests a disconnect
between teacher compensation and student outcomes. However, student performance is influenced by a multitude of factors, including class sizes. I have almost 30 students per class, five classes, resources, and support services. For
example, concerns have been raised about swelling class sizes due to increased housing developments in the area, which can impact teaching effectiveness and student learning. Investing in our educators is an investment in our students success. on financial
priorities. The board mentions financial constraints and the need to balance the budget. While we understand the importance of a fiscal responsibility, it's critical to prioritize spending that directly impacts student learning. For instance, the board's expenditure on
legal fees during negotiations has been a point of contention with some community members, suggesting that the funds could be a better allocated to educational resources. Moving forward, our shared goal is to provide the best possible education for our students.
Achieving this requires collaboration, transparency, and mutual respect. Remain committed to working with the board to reach an agreement that honors the dedication of our educators and meets the needs of our students. Thank you.
So public participation is one person one speaker to three minutes. So start the time since we are anticipating any public participation here. Mr. Thank you. Frank Don, you 44 years in
education in Palis Hark, including the last 14 as administrator. And uh you spoke before about uh you want facts. So I'm going to do this a little bit scientifically. I was in the trenches with these teachers the last 14 years because I was at both Lindberg for nine
and then at the high school for five and also substituted some days here at ECC. I can tell you these teachers and secretaries are outstanding. They are phenomenal. Now, am I just saying that because that's my opinion? No. I would go into the classrooms with formal
evaluations, informal evaluations. They didn't know I was coming. I would just come in spur of the moment and I would see them on display. And they were interesting teachers, great lessons. They had to meet the needs of various levels of learning and it was very difficult, but they were able to do it.
The classes were fantastic. stimulate. I learned a lot from going into all of their classes. Uh and then okay, even a cafeteria, you know, they were down in the cafeteria supervising and in those infrequent days when we had something go wrong, if a student had a meltdown,
those teachers were right by my side to help me through some difficult moments. And I really really appreciate the their basic basic attitude towards the students was concern. They were deeply concerned about them that the students uh got a good education and that they
were content and that they were safe. And uh this every day they brought this to uh the school and um uh I want to just say too that uh you know since I retired of course I keep in touch my wife and I with many of the alumni and all I ever do is talk about the schools
and the coaches and the teachers and it's all positive. It's the greatest memories of their lives. And I when I was up at the high school, I used to say to teachers, just remember even if you're having a bad day, you had a a fight with your spouse at home. Don't bring it into the classroom because you have to remember that this is going to
reflect on the students every day. And so, um, I really believe, look, I was a chief negotiator many years ago. I was involved in like five negotiation sessions and I remember the first time I went in, Vince from NJA said, "Frank, just go in and present the statistics."
And that's what I did. The teachers have always been underpaid. And I'm not blaming anyone here, but we always found a way through negotiations back and forth, quit proquo, we found a way to come up with a a good contract for the teachers, the secretaries, and then all
of the other groups that you'll be negotiating with in the future. So, I really hope you can reach a fair set with the teachers and secretaries because they deeply deeply deserve it. Thank you for listening. I see some students here. just more pre
students to speak for us. I'd like to raise a point of contention for the hiring of three new substitute athletic like physical trainers. What's your name? Young Choy.
I'm a senior at the Western High School. Um so I don't see why we really should hired these three new people because Cody has like Cody has been with
us for quite a while now. Um he's been excellent at his job. I'm an athlete. I've seen him work. He's done every time my coach or some other coach calls him. He's usually on there like two to three minutes. Um he's very responsive. And furthermore, with
coaches being able to perform on injured athletes on the scene before before any physical trainer arrives. I don't see really the need for why we should hire these sub substitute trainers. It just seems like that you're
trying to outsource his job and students. My name is Clara Yel. I'm a member and the captain of the dance team at Pal Park High School. We all came here today to represent the athletes of our school and stress the importance of having a full-time trainer during games
and practices. All of us showed up today on our own valition because we feel really strongly about this topic of conversation. The wording in today's agenda to hire a trainer as needed particularly stuck out to me as something that could cause problems in the future because it's impossible to
predict when an injury will occur and waiting for some sort of catastrophic event where an ambulance could be required which possibly wouldn't even arrive in a timely manner to take action puts the health and risk puts the health and safety of our students at extreme risk. We are able to perform to the best
of our ability because of the feeling of security that having a consistent trainer at all times provides. Having the same trainer and somebody with knowledge on our path injuries, means we're able to get routine followup checkups and has allowed us to build a close and trusting relationship with Cody, which is crucial when you're being
medically cared for. While the focus of our piece remains the need for a personal trainer in general, we want to acknowledge the dedication and passion Cody has shown to his student athletes and to his job by showing up consistently, not only physically, but also mentally almost every day for the
past eight years. In my last 5 years participating in a sport at this school, I've come to realize the importance of having a full-time trainer. And I've personally had an injury while practicing a trick. I remember the amount of pain I was in made me extremely scared that I wouldn't be able to participate for the rest of the
season, which as the captain made me so scared that I wouldn't be able to be there for my teammates. Without Cody's comfort and guidance, there's a very high chance my condition would have gotten worse. This risk after injury goes for any member of any team at the school without a
full-time trainer and frightens me for the future of our team and all the other teams at high school. My name is Isabella and I'm a senior at Palies Park Junior Senior High School. As a dedicated athlete at PPHS, I just wanted to speak upon a few things dealing with the recent termination of
our athletic trainer. This decision directly endangers not only the physical but also the mental health of all our student athletes here at PPHS. As a member of the dance team, I serve as the base for every stunt and trick in our dance routine. This includes throwing flips, having people stand on my back,
and even catching a member free falling from the air. Watching us perform a dance routine may be entertaining and seem very lively with our great stage presence and big facial expressions. But in truth, we are all facing a lot of physical and mental pain that we would not be able to push through without the support and guidance of our athletic
trainer. Without the presence of an athletic trainer and not being able to have the comfort knowing someone is there for us at all times, it makes the routine and stunts much more frightening to do. With the absence of our athletic trainer, every sports team is left without proper guidance or emergency
care, which can increase the risk of greater injury. Half of the performances and competitions we have participated in and one would not have been would not have been able to be accomplished without our athletic trainer. He has personally helped me with a countless amount of injuries I suffered throughout
my two years on this team. Even beyond the physical aspect of this situation, our athletic trainer has been there to encourage us and make us believe that we are able to perform safely, which greatly affects the the team morale. I really hope you are able to take into consideration the message we are trying to send of the importance of having an
athletic trainer be there for us and guide us through these sports seasons that are filled with blood, sweat, and many tears. Thank you. My name is Aurela Diaz. I'm also a senior at Palis Park High School. And I wanted to start off by saying how important every single one of our
teachers and staff are. Um, they work just as hard with or without a contract. we wouldn't be anywhere from Miss Connesenti teaching me something that I would need in Mr. Acha's class from 7th to 11th grade. All of these things are so so so important. And like the
gentleman earlier said, we live in a world where going to school isn't safe anymore. We have to be careful. There's cops in our school for in case, god forbid, something were to happen. And they do all of this work 7 to 3 or 8 to
4 and then they go home. continue to do it all to do it for what? Five days a week continuously. And that's not counting their own personal lives that they have to take home with them in and out of the classroom. And they choose to do all of these things because they love
us. They love us students. They literally have seen us since I'm saying my kindergarten teachers here. They've seen us grow. So, and I like too for our high school, we don't even have a full-time nurse. So, we're relying on we're relying on god forbid nothing were
to happen. And even if you do call 911, the ambulance, mostly Englewood, won't come in time. And I say this as an EMT that unless we're in the area, we won't make it in time. And we can only do so much when so little time. So, it's not
fair to us students and moving on to us student athletes. Cody has been there with my numerous head injuries. Cody has been there for all of my ankle and my groin problems because I do not stretch properly. He has been my rock. He helped
me pitch. Taught me how to pitch. And why am I crying? Sorry. I wouldn't be here without him. I wouldn't be here without any of you. Most importantly, a lot of the students who come here come from other countries
evacuating and they don't have the education that we're able to grow up with. So, because our test scores are not perfect and we had to go through a worldwide pandemic, it is not fair that everyone else has to suffer because of
us. And it's not fair. And we work twice as hard and the teachers work even more harder than all of us. So please take it into consideration. Christina Gingerelli. Um, I'm speaking on behalf of Amy Padron, who is the
ECC's teacher of the year for this year. She wrote, "Educ educators are indispensable to the strength and success of any community. Their commitment to excellence shapes the lives of our students and secures the future we all share. It is time to honor that service with the respect and
recognition we have earned and to demonstrate through action that our community stands firmly behind those who invest daily in our children's future. She wrote, "We work tirelessly to educate, inspire, and support our students every day. Settling our
contract fairly is not just the right thing to do. It is a recognition of our dedication, professionalism, and the essential role role we play in shaping students futures. We deserve a contract that honors that commitment and respects our invaluable contributions to our
community. We are the foundation of our students academic attainment, dedicating time, energy, and expertise to the success of every single one. Reaching a fair and timely contract settlement is a reflection of our community's respect and gratitude for our invaluable
service. It is both a moral obligation and necessary investment in the strength and well-being of our schools and the generations we serve. Thank you. My name is president. Some of you know me, some of
you don't. I can introduce myself. I'm a stable in this community. I coaching. That's why I'm filthy. I got some kids from ECC, some of the kids from Lindberg. I know some of the board members. I know some of the teachers. And I wanted to bring everything back to center for my operations. I got to see
some videos. And I have done negotiations. I'm an engineer. I'm a manager. I run a lot of things. is worse by the numbers by logic. I'm pragmatic. I try to take emotions out of every decision. I want to say something that may be a little polarizing because I
want everyone to hear me. I know the I know a few of these board members and I can tell you they're beautiful people. They don't do this because they're going to become rich. Some of them are probably doing it for their next step. But whatever the case may be, but people that I do know and I have met, they're beautiful people. Board members, I want
to let you know that some of these teachers are also beautiful people. And we have a point of contention and that brings up animosity, right? No one wants teachers and no one wants the board members going home feeling defeated
because their hands are tied. There is something in the middle that's not allowing this to happen. And it doesn't start with animosity to get to the middle ground, right? It starts with finding the middle ground and being pragmatic and logical, laying it on the
table and being transparent. It's tough to see this. My kids are here and they go to these schools, right? I don't want to have to pull my kids out of this school system and put them in private schools because things are breaking down because fundamentally the seats here are
disconnected from people in the community. I'm not a teacher, but I am a voter. And that's my vote having voices. I voted for a few. You guys didn't vote for a few. But that's the way democracy works, right? Be in touch with what's required.
Teachers, you guys have a performance indicator, right? Like you guys are they push you against the wall of test scores and kids doing what they're supposed to. Board members, you need to disclose your performance indicator. What is it that you promise to do? How can we rate you
against your performance? If you're not doing it, be altruistic. Step down, you are in over your head. Teachers, if you're in over your head, same thing. You take the righteous thing. I've been on the field baseball. I see out there. I see some
other teachers. They're in there with these kids. I've seen some of these board members. They're in there, too. But we're not animals. We're not enemies. We're actually a community. And I want to remind people that as hostile as At the end of the day, we're all
family members or brothers or sisters or uncles or children. Let's treat each other with some dignity and get to get the point of zero. You go to that negotiating room, it's going to be one cover against another. No one's going to peek over. And the best way to do this
is to find middle ground and go by the numbers. What is the limit? You know, talk to the mayor. Maybe they can expand the budget. I don't know. If I were to you guys would be rich, but with the board members. So I just want to say please just hear what I have to
say. Work together so that my kids can remain in the school system and community grow. We don't want Sorry. Thank you very much. Yes. Oh, sorry. Good evening members of the board, um,
families, staff members. Before I say anything else, I want to share that seeing all the members of our community, including our students, advocate for our staff members, gives me more strength to continue to fight for this district. Yeah, my name is Sabrina Fernandez, and
I've had the privilege of serving the as the district behaviorist for Palisades Park. I want to take a moment to share factual information regarding the impact of eliminating this position and how will affect it will affect the current level of supports in our school. In the school in this school current school
year alone, I have personally responded to 111 crisis which makes up 40% 48% of the nearly 230 total crisis recorded at Lindberg Elementary.
These incidents range from severe student aggression and alopement to self-injurous behaviors requiring immediate deescalation and safety planning. Beyond crisis response, I have completed six full functional behavior assessments and intervention plans and
I've developed numeral behavioral support plans for students in general education and special education settings. These plans were not generic. They were individualized, data-driven, and designed in collaboration with teachers, case managers, families, and
outside providers. My role has also extended well beyond the technical behavioral work that I do. I've assisted families with translation, connected them to outside services, collaborated with medical professionals, and provided direct coaching and training to staff
and family across all schools. I've shared materials, modeled strategies, and provided consistent follow-up to ensure interventions were being implemented effectively. Removing the district behaviorist position does not just eliminate a job. It eliminates a system of support that has been foundational
for maintaining safety and inclusion. Our district has has a significantly high need population. Without a district behaviors, our students, our teachers, and our families will face greater cho challenges, fewer
prevent preventative supports, and a higher risk of crisis escalation. And this is not about one person. It's about protecting a support system that has made a measurable measurable difference for our students. I urge you to reconsider this decision and to prioritize the behavioral health and
safety of our schools. I am proud to have served Palisades Park School District as a as um a behaviorist. It has been an honor to support the students, the staff, and the families. I advocate and will continue to advocate for continued behavioral support because
I deeply believe in the role that it plays in student success. If it's okay with the board, I would like to present some letters written by fellow staff members who are also in support of maintaining this position. And I have the folder here if you were willing to
accept it. Yes, I'm Hi, good evening everyone. My name is Amy and I'm a resident of Park over 22 years. I'm a daily mom um 80 years old
boy who is almost non bubble and on the autism spectrum. After homeschooling him for a while I recently endorsed him at no school the district team and his teachers have been incredibly supportive and he's now working hard with a mislead
his 101 Korean par professional. However, I'm here today because I'm deeply concerned about the removal of our school board of certified behavior and our PCV to do budget C. This has
played a critical role in my son's success at school. She's not only help design and adjust the behavior intervention plan but also provides guidance support and training to his product professional. You out of CAD
students like my son who rely on constant data with behavioral support will face major setbacks. As a parent of a child with autism, I know firsthand how essential professional behavioral support is not just for academics but
for emotional regulation, social development and long-term independence. So eliminating the PCB is not just just a loss of member. It is a loss of safety and progress and hope for many of our
most special students. Please our do not cut the CV from our school. Our children deserve the support they need to drive. Thank you for listening. Hi. Good evening. the first order um for Glen Avenue. Um as
all of you I know I've been here um I would say every meeting except for last one that unfortunately they do it on a Friday before spring break and I already have planned like everybody else and I miss but I watch it over um online that
it was um doing it as a parent I see here what I don't want to see and I know what's coming two teacher already resigned. So by saying that we're losing two
people right now and we could lose more and this is what we need. We need to take care of this. We need to finish what we need to do because by losing future we
losing the key to get educated. We losing a lot of benefit. So if we lose good teacher as we have and we trying to hire a new teacher, they going to come here. They're going to ask for more money. So
what are we going to do? We're not going to have enough teacher. I see that you guys trying to put a substitute for of the um No. How you guys decide that? I been witness
that person and my daughter game seven eight and the ninth taking care of my daughter putting ice in her and it's already seven in the night we need that instead of putting thing on we taking off what are we doing
board member if this is not look at the student we our student is getting affected emotionally and every aspect As a parent, I'm getting worried. I'm getting worried what we're doing. We are taking
thing away that we need it. We are treating the teacher not with the deserve treatment that they need. This is reflecting our student. This is reflecting our life. every single meeting I'm glad to see all
these people here but also I I'm worried that every single meeting we have to have all these teacher and now adding a student if this is not moving us to do something what is going to move us to do what is going on I want the board member
if you guys can give me an answer as a parent as a resident I deserve an answer this is worry me we cannot take to a who really there with a teach with a student when they need it. We cannot lose
teacher. We already I see it in this paper and I was shaking. We losing two teacher. That's me. They going because they don't want to deal with this. They don't want to deal. It's a lot of opposition open for teacher to go but they don't want to leave. They've
been here the whole life. A lot of the my time is over. It's a lot to say like come on let's do something. Can somebody respond to me? This is worrying me. I'm worried right now. There are so many. No, no,
no. They here. They should participate. They should participate. No, they should participate. They don't publicate. They have the right to say. No. No. Why they not going to put the teach the students at home because you don't want to hear that?
Everyone. Everybody should find usually we try to give the students priority in the hope that if they had something to say, they would be able to stay quickly and go home if they wanted to. But given the number of students and the wide variety of views, we're that we
decided to try to give equal preference to everyone. It's not a question of not allowing anyone to go. Everyone's going to go as long as we're have comments. It's just a question. We tried to give the preference at first, but we didn't want to get be seen as, you know, ignoring the teachers. So try to get
give everyone an equal opportunity to be heard. Yeah. um the lady in the back there first. Hi, good evening. My name is Dr. Sarah Better and I'm the school psychologist at Lindberg Elementary School and I'm speaking tonight um with a sense of urgency and concern regarding
the recent decision to remove the district behaviorist position. Um a decision that will have profound consequences for our students, families, and staff. This year alone, the Lindberg child study team has responded to over 230 crisis situations. That's an average
of 1.6 6 crisis situations per day. And our district behaviorist, Miss Fernandez, has personally responded to 111 or 48% of those crisis situations at Lindberg Elementary School. Miss Fernandez supports the behavioral needs of students across the district while being a committed member of the child
study team who prioritizes the safety and well-being of students above all else. Beyond her efforts to maintain safety throughout the school district, Miss Fernandez provides training to teachers, par profofessionals, and support staff to ensure that the behavioral needs of our students are met. She creates individualized
interventions for our students with and without disabilities, and she always ensures that families are fully informed members of the IEP process, translating information and materials for them frequently. Her work as the district behaviorist is student centered, culturally responsive, and deeply rooted
in advocacy for the most vulnerable learners of this district. The removal of Miss Fernandez's position will have serious repercussions. Students with high behavioral needs will lose a trusted advocate. Families will lose a critical support. Teachers will lose a collaborative partner. And the child
study team will face an unsustainable increase in responsibilities. Miss Fernandez is an irreplaceable advocate for our students and a vital source of stability in our schools. and the loss of her position will directly jeopardize the mental and behavioral health of our students. I respectfully ask the board
of education to reconsider this decision. Although you may feel that you can no longer afford to keep Miss Fernandez's position in this district, it's the students and families of this district that cannot afford to lose her. Thank you. Hello everybody. My name is Jamie Lee
and I was one of this year's captains of the dance team. I want to reinstate that all of us who are present came completely out of our own will because we care and we want what's best for all of our sports teams and students. Being a member of a sports team for 40 years and witnessing and experiencing all the hard and hard work and dedication that
has put into our performance, I frankly can't help but feel offended that of all things, the safety of our student athletes was decided to be compromised for the sake of cutting costs. I don't mean to sound too abrasive, but this notion that's being suggested with this decision that money is more important than our safety is disturbing and deeply
upsetting to all of us. Any personal bias aside, having an athletic trainer present at every practice and game at all times is in the best interest of every student athlete and coach. I don't think anyone here would disagree that sports are intense and injuries are unpredictable. Therefore, since there is
no way to always be sure, we should always we should at least always have the proper measures in place to be as safe as possible. How can we be expected to push ourselves to our limits and make a name for Palace Park if the possibility of injury without immediate attention is constantly weighing on the
back of our minds? Through all of our testimonies, we've tried our best to remain as objective and student centered as possible. But it's definitely worth noting that how much respect and adoration we have for Cody himself. Every time Cody walks into the cafeteria for a practice, we all turn in
turn our necks and go Cody. He has gone beyond an immediate caretaker and has went out of his way to build a trustworthy relationship with all of the students. His position requires him to deal with us at our physical lowest and vulnerable. And we are cooperative because to his care because there's a level of trust and
mutual understanding that is strongly established. And as much as we love and trust Miss Maressie, if the whatever third party service, if they can't come in time, I don't want her to be the one in charge of my We as students of Cal States Park have always been given the impression that we
are the priority, that our best interest comes first. In my humble opinion, I believe that this decision to remove the athletic trainer position does not reflect these sentiments. Thank you. Awesome. Hi, I'm Kayla Kimenez. I'm a senior at the high school and the current vice president of the Italian
National Honor Society. I have two members here who have some things they like to share with you. Good evening members of the board. We are here again on the behalf of the Italian National Honor Society to ask that the Italian forces be fully brought back to our school. This is our third time making this request. Our president
couldn't be here tonight, but we're here to continue this effort. We're disappointed that the board has hasn't been cleared about why the program was removed. We also want to support our teachers who are still waiting answers for their jobs. Even with all these challenges, students
Italian is so strong this year. 31 students took the natural Italian exam and many did very well. This shows students still care about learning Italian. We are asking for the full Italian programs to come back starting Italian 1 in the year 2025 2026 school year. Thank you for your time and we
hope you will support us. Good evening. My name is Gomez and I've been a proud member of the Italian National and I have received awards recognizing my achievement in the language. Italian has played a meaningful role in my academic building,
but it signs me up that the future students may not get the same chance. My my younger sister who is currently here with me um is a ninth grader. She wanted to take it her freshman year to have the same opportunities as me and as the
other members of the honor society. She couldn't do it because Dian wasn't in the 20 245 school year. We're asking the board to fully restore the time program starting with one 2025 2026 school year
so students like her and many others can explore the language and cultures that have impacted so many of us. right now she is currently taking Spanish. She is a native speaker Spanish. She wanted to take Italian because she wanted to learn a new a new
language but she is not able to do that and not just her but like many other kids who signed the petitions that we have given you the past three meetings. Thank you. I'm not speak English. Most time I have
Korean about my work. My friend is most teacher because I always go to the school and call me and try to call me because my son
has sometimes but he um he he's little smart he's okay but he behavior problem and And I always forget she
know they do the hard work like they have a sweet heart and love then they have love maybe send out maybe but they have love they want to keep the medicine and
this they try their best teaching medicine better the behavior and teaching around the AB that's better than teaching the a how to get
better the teachers really I know them I want to say um it's not take away all the teachers because they have lots of older kids we maybe try to find the I want to
help them keep them because they have a love piece because why they have a gift when the board take a new teacher maybe doesn't they don't have the same memory for them that is a hard time again I don't want to do this I want to keep
them and I understand for the two try to follow the teaching and help the students help the teacher this pion is really good teacher helper Everybody knows
everybody, not the take away. Thank you. Thank you. I'm not respond to you, but I just want to the same opinion that I used to talk to Dr. I love his ti too. I'll go quick because I know there's a
lot of other people. I'm sorry. Okay, I'll go quick because I know a lot of other people want to uh talk. I had a lot of time to think about what I else I want to say after the last meeting. A lot of you made the point that I want to make today. Teaching isn't just education. It's about caring. It's about
loving the students that come into the classroom. We need to make students trust us. We do that by showing them that there is something to trust within us. When a teacher leaves to find another opportunity someplace else, it's heartbreaking not just for the teacher
that has to leave that district, but for the students. Many of you uh who have talked for a long time might remember Mr. Rashika. I love Mr. Rashika. He got me into playing musical instruments. I played the trumpet. Unfortunately, one year he decided that he needed to leave
for another opportunity someplace else. And it broke my heart enough that I stopped playing. I never picked it up again. And to this day, I don't play the trumpet. Who knows what would have happened had he continued to teach. I
personally needed to leave at a certain point in my career to find better advancement opportunities. And I know it broke my students hearts to see me leave because I cared for them. I showed them that there was something in me that they can come to me regardless of if it was a
history class or any other question that they might have had and I didn't want to leave the district, but I felt that I needed to. I implore you all to understand that teaching is far different than any other career that you can have.
I'm in property management now and I could leave my building and go someplace else. And sure, maybe a few of the residents might be sad that I left, but they will not have cared as much as the students cared when I left this district. They will not. And your take
it or leave it attitude, which is what it really feels like when it comes to negotiations, is incredibly misguided because they should not feel that they need to leave in order to make a living. It will hurt the district and it will hurt the
students. That's my statement that I that I have to make. I do have one question as I wrap up. I would like to know how it was recorded when you guys lost quorum at the special meeting when Sukyouong left the meeting in the middle
of it. So at that point, you didn't even have enough people to close anything or even adjourn the meeting. So you had quorum and then you did it. So, I'd like to know how that was recorded and how that is handled afterwards. Thank you. Let me start by asking a question to the
board since we're all about the facts. Who on the board is a medical professional or has any kind of medical? What do you have? DC. Yeah. Can you explain to me when needed is for an athletic trainer? How would the board determine when
athletic trainer is needed for a sporting event? We're going to the board's going to reserve the responses to the It's pretty important. And you're a lawyer, you should know. I'm asking because of liability. You have a com otherwise we'll move to the next person. Excellent. Thank you. So,
I've been here for eight years. Um, I was here in Donny who and Robo And it was community. It was a family. And I felt that every day. And what I learned from Donahghue and Robo is to give everything you can to Palad Park. I had many opportunities. I've worked in Major
League Soccer. I've worked in New York Giants. Worked for many different facilities. A lot of people have offered me more money. I stayed here because I love this community. Reminded me where I went in Park Ridge. But I love these people so so much. So I worked my butt off. Didn't
take many vacation days. Didn't take many sick days. past year my wife got cancer in January. I didn't miss a single day. I was here every single day at work. Every day for these kids. You know why? It's not about the money. It's
not about any of that. We work here for the kids. And if we're not working here for the kids, why are we working here period? We're in the wrong profession. When I saw this when needed, that is a slap in the face. us not
having a full-time athletic trainer. I made a difference here. We didn't have anybody before full time. And since we are fact base, I read Journal of American Medicine, which I hope all of you did, too. A catastrophic injury can occur in
practice just as likely as in a game. So, when you're saying when needed, I assume that means games. They can get just as injured in practice. Who's there for them? Games only get up so fast. So, we are putting these kids lives at risk for money. I don't think that's a
good trade-off. And waiting for something catastrophic to happen to get a full-time athlete trainer again is not a solution. It's opening up liability for you and the rest of PAL Park and most importantly, the safety of our kids. Whether I'm here or not is fine.
It's a job. It's business. I get that. But these kids deserve better. and if you care about the health and safety of them, you wouldn't be doing this. So, this says everything right here. Thank you. Hi, my name is Maggie. My son just
started his first year school. Prior to this, he attended PCC. PK4 in kindergart where we had an amazing experience thanks to an incredible teacher. My son has ADHD and Mero played a critical role
in helping us get him on IEP and plans. She ensured that he had a great experience at PCC and cared that cared for him as if he were her own. In kindergarten, he had Melroy and Ronando
who were both wonderful and nurturing. They took the time to hold meetings and send messages to ensure my son was succeeding in class. Teachers are vital to our children's futures as they protect and educate them. Often
dedicated their lives to this mission. When we started at Lindberg, my son met the most amazing and kind-hearted teachers, Miss Park and Miss Vier. He was really nervous about starting at such a big school, but they made him
feel loved and safe. Miss Vier and I have kept in touch the most. She would message me about my son's days and how his education was progressing. During parents night, she spoke highly of my son and her commitment to his education.
She explained she understands his condition and allows him to roll on the carpet to release his energy. She also offered us advice on how to encourage his reading at home. In November, we received a heartbreaking news that both our teachers would be leaving less than
three days and it was late at night. I remember it was 9 When we found out Miss Ver privately messaged me to explain her departure was which was due to policy changes regarding health insurance and pay. It was especially difficult for our
children who had trust and love both part and to make matters worse our class photo did not even include them as they had never been there at all. We went through two more teachers before finally getting two permanent teachers. We will
worry about them leaving as well because they have been so amazing and caring. Our teachers need better policies and better pay. The same goes for our aids. The schools the schools are becoming overcrowded and we need to ask where is our budget going. Teachers deserve to be
treated better. Thank you for your attention. Hi, my name is Castro and I am fresh and I am a freshman at the South Park Junior Senior High School. It has come to my attention that our athletic trainer Kobe Gro is being let go of the athletic
trainer position. But why is that? What about our safety? What about our health? What is happening to our health? Who will we go to when we are in pain? Who will we go to when something in our body is in pain, isn't hurt, is something
bothering us? What is going on? I am frustrated. I am mad. I think every single athlete here is here at this meeting because of Cody Granki, because we want him in this school. He deserves to be here and he should be here. And he
works, excuse my language, he works his ass off every day. And every single person here now knows his wife has cancer. His contract is I'm sorry. Sorry. I'm so I'm like
I'm so sorry. I'm like it's really frustrating because someone let go of this school. His wife has cancer and you guys just simply don't care. You have no empathy. You have no
sympathy. You are letting him go, knowing what he is going through at home, knowing his personal problems in his life. And it is not just Cody. It is every single person here in this room. Every single faculty member, every single staff member, every single
teacher in this room who works their butts off every day for us, for the students. They want to put smiles on our faces. They want us to succeed. They want us to show the world that we can be something important, that we can be
something great. But it seems to you, the board of education, just wants to shut them down. just wants to lower their confidence. I've seen I've heard I've articles and articles I've read and read all night last night how you just
talked straight up had a whole conversation like those teachers weren't in front of you talking about how bad they are at their job. How they you were bullying them. These people work for us. Well, I'm sorry, but these people work
because they want us to be happy. They want us to show what we can do. Every single teacher here needs to be acknowledged and is not something that is talked about enough in every single meeting. I have grown up with mostly all
of these teachers. For example, Mr. Hutchinson, I have known him since I was a little girl, since I moved here. I have been with him since cross country. I have been with him for basketball. and I will be with him for the rest of my
time in this high school. He has taught me so many things. He has taught me how to grown up. He has taught me how to be better. He has taught me how to become a much more impressive athlete. And I appreciate him and I acknowledge that half of these teachers here have taught
me something that I have never learned in my whole entire life. And I never realized how impactful and how beneficial that could be in my life. Thank you. I'm good evening uh members of the colleagues and the community. My name is
Sheila Estasi and I am a proud teacher at Lindberg School. For the past 20 years, I've had the honor of serving as both a special education teacher and an ELA teacher. What makes this even more meaningful to me is that I grew up right here in
Pal. I have walked the same hallways as my students and I have always taken great pride in giving back to the community that shaped who I am. Over the years, much has changed about our town. But what remains constant and what keeps
so many of us here is our students. They are the heart of this community, as we can tell tonight. And they deserve nothing but our best. Unfortunately, the reality we're facing now is one that no teacher wants
to be in. We are being forced to make difficult choices. Choices that will ultimately affect the very students we're all here to support. The teachers you see here tonight are not only tired, they are frustrated. We have shown up every day.
We have gone above and beyond and we have waited patiently. But our patience is wearing thin. We are ready to do whatever it takes to make sure that our voices are finally heard and to make sure that and just contract is finally put into place
for our teachers and ultimately for our students. What does that look like? As teachers, we are often asked and expected to attend events well beyond our contracted work hours, family nights, school dances, after school
tutoring, town w townwide parades, talent shows, concerts, and many, many more things. At Lindberg School, we've proudly taken student we've At Lindberg School, we've proudly taken students to the Poconos's
Environmental Center for over 50 years. It is a three-day trip where teachers sleep in cabins. Yes, we do. And guide students through outdoor learning. But guess what? We didn't go this year. And I don't even know if anybody cares or
knew. We didn't go. And we do all of this because we do care. We care deeply about our students and our school communities, but that care cannot continue to be taken for granted. Our time, our energy, and our expertise
expertise must be recognized and respected. A fair contract means just that, fairness. It means appropriate compensation for our time. This is not just about what's fair for teachers. It's about what's right for our students as well. It means restoring dignity to
our profession and valuing the essential role that educators play in shaping the future. We are not asking for luxuries. We are demanding the basic conditions necessary to teach effectively and live substantially. This is not just a fight
for teachers. It's a fight for quality education, for equity, and for your respect. Thank you. Um, my name is Harrison. I graduated from the school district 10 years ago. It pains me to be here. Um, it seems a
little more formal today, but a lot of you may come and go one or two years down the road and but these teachers have been with us for 10 plus years, 20 plus years. And it seems like a lot of the decisions that are made are uneducated. I'm sorry, but the board doesn't know what's best for us. Um, where we come from students,
it's actually the teachers that continue to be here throughout the years. I watched the last like three videos. I'm glad for YouTube. Rather than trying to act in good faith, the board was really portraying as a defense mechanism where you were
defending yourselves rather than doing what's in the best interest of the committee as you keep emphasizing with the public statement that you made last Friday. I read it a couple times pretty stupid in my opinion. Um you say you act in good faith. uh you
want to act morally. What does that mean? Um you use all these key words, but it doesn't mean anything. Um you gaslight the staffs here and this you keep saying that
really resonated with me because if that was the case, you would face your fears and speak up this try to come up with a reasonable solution. adding the sky is blue, argument is red, that's nonsense. Um, you're trying to
appeal to the public, uh, plastering numbers onto a piece of paper online that you probably write off.com. Um, unless you actually dive into those numbers yourself, um, it's very stupid to just post numbers thinking the public's going to come here and say,
"Oh, the board's great." I urge you stop trying to defend yourselves, defend your actions. Having a lawyer here is cool, but it doesn't really change the fact that it's going to just go back and forth until you guys are really truly wanting to come up with a reasonable solution. I urge you, please, I've lived
here since third grade and this has never happened. This has never become a problem. Why is it happening now? Is it because you guys are coming and going one, two years down the road? Please, I hope you all take my consideration something serious. Thank
you. I'm an alumni from the school from 2013. My name is Jennifer Al and um I have a few things I wanted to say. First thing I know in the last meeting there was a big thing about the test scores and how the test scores here measure up but
something that you have to take into consideration as was presented in the budget there's a huge bilingual population here and on top of that not only do you have these kids coming in without knowing English they also are all education levels you have kids
coming that maybe only know basic math but yet now they're in high school and have to learn geometry and algebra never even understanding them. I know as a junior I got one of the ESL students placed in my algebra 2 class and I am
bilingual in Spanish. So I sat there to try. This kid never learned more than how to add and here he is trying to take algebra 2 in a language that he doesn't even understand. So when you take all that into account and understand the
demographics of the district, it doesn't make sense and it shouldn't reflect on the teachers the lower test scores because you have to understand the student body is different than Leonia vial Harbridge whatever other areas around here.
The other thing um that I would like to say thinking on just numbers if you guys have considered by trying to eliminate an athletic trainer how that's going to increase the accident insurance because now these students if
they get injured in the sport that's going to be a claim against the insurance that might have been prevented if they had a athletic trainer that could have wrapped their ankle. I suffered from weak ankles. I always had to have mine after I play basketball. So, that's something that could be
prevented and thus a claim not against the accident insurance, which means your premium won't go up on that. And also to the point of getting rid of the behavioralist position, have you considered how many students she is helping to keep in the district so you
don't have to pay now a tuition out of district? really just sitting down. I know a lot of people are giving emotional um testimonies and I'm just going to give it straight from the numbers. Um Miss Chung, you were very worried about
250 for deposit, $250 for deposit. Maybe you should sit down and look at how much money is being saved by having the two positions that you guys are planning on eliminating. Good evening. My name is Skyler Kim and I am one of the co- captains of the Palis Park dance team this year. We've
been here before to celebrate our national champions title. Then you all acknowledged our efforts and the hard work needed to earn this accomplishment. However, the hard work done was not ours alone. During every practice, Cody was there watching behind the mirrors, looking out for any injuries that may
occur. His presence and role as a medical trainer provided us with the comfort of knowing that if anything were to happen, a licensed professional will be there. His presence is a crucial aspect of playing a sport at the high school. And with this position being removed, I feel that the safety of current and future athletes are being
being put at risk. Throughout the season, I was lucky enough to not have gotten hurt, but a few of my team members were not afforded the same luck. In those instances, Cody was always there to relieve them of any pain that they were feeling. Without his work as a medical trainer, many of our dancers would not have been able to stand on the
competition floors. Our practice room was not designed to accommodate dancers and the tricks that we performed. We dance in the student cafeteria where the floors are made of tile. The slippery floors increase the likelihood of an injury and the absence of a medical trainer cannot be afforded by our team.
Additionally, the dance team will not be the only sports team to suffer upon the removal of the position of a medical trainer. Substituting this position for a trainer who will only be here when needed is unacceptable. Athletes perform the most during practices where they spend their time honing their skills for
games. As our student body is full of passion and determination, it is to be sure that an injury would occur during a practice session. A medical trainer who can supervise not just at games but during practices is essential. On behalf of the athletes of our school, I implore you to reconsider the removal of our
medical trainer. He is an indispensable part of the athletic department and the absence of necessary licensed professional. The health of the students should not be a risk that you should be willing to take in order to satisfy budget cuts. Thank you for your time. in the back.
Uh, my name is Christopher. I've been here all my life. I grew up here. I still see many old faces from the teachers I had from when I was younger. And I think it's kind of rude to consider that you guys really have no consideration of how lucky you are, of how many faces tend to return here every
year or even have new faces. Like I've never even seen some of these people here and for recent terminations, which there's really no reason why. We're cutting cost, but for what? Like uh we had a match today and my opponent was
facing some severe brace injury and he was asking for a trainer and what was I supposed to tell him? Oh, we don't got one. And we asked why. is like, oh, I mean, our board just don't make good decisions. Uh, not only are you putting a risk on us as students, but to our opponents,
because our opponents, anytime our opponents tend to face an injury, Cody was always there to help them. He was always there to tend to their injuries. And I just asked you to tend I mean, you could pretend to write notes, but like reality like
take into consideration that Cody has been there for us. I mean, when I started here, he was the first face I saw when I started playing sports. And who's going to take to us now? I mean, there's really no one else. Um, that's really all I got to say. I mean, you guys should be a little more grateful
that you have you still have a bunch of faces here. Uh, because one day you these teachers never leave satisfied. They just leave scratching their heads. And every time I'm in class, the only thing I hear is like teachers planning like what they're going to present at the board next meeting or like what
they're gonna talk about. And yeah, it's really all I got to say. I mean, just take into consideration and that what I found out today is that this is the second lowest paid school in the county and you guys are severely lucky to still
have these faces. I mean here today many teachers were presented with great opportunities and some teachers took those opportunities and we lost a lot of favorite faces like uh Mr. Deico, Mr. Coochar they were presented with great opportunities and for their own satisfaction they took them but at the same time we we lost a teacher and a
friend. So uh pass Hi, I'm live in this my whole life. I was a school here. My sister, my children, um I praise the teachers as they are
protectors of the children in the classroom, especially in this day and age. Um want to be a teacher. Um, it's a it's a lot of work. It's a lot of work that they put in there all day going home
having to deal with their own personal lives and still having to deal with school work. Um, I was in charge of the time capsule burial and I read probably about 600 essays from the kids in all
three schools. Um, I copied a couple of them. I just a few words about how these children feel about the school system. Being a student at Lindberg School, I have learned so many new things and continued to grow over the years. The kindness of all the teachers,
administrators, and staff have made this school a dream. The teacher at the M school have made learning so much fun and engaging. I have learned a lot from my teachers. My ELA teacher has opened my eyes to see the world from different perspectives through writing and
reading. My science teacher help me and my classmates discover new things each day. My social studies teacher has taught us about history and it's very enlightening. I got out of ESL when I was in fifth grade and for all the
future kids and people reading this, I just wish you the best to keep going and never give up on your dreams. Don't say that your dreams are just dreams. No, I believe it. And ever and for whoever is reading this, it could be me or someone
else. Mrs. Pani Coyote is the best teacher I have ever had in second grade. This is the best school I have ever gone to. One time I was struggling with math. My kindergarten teacher coached me and
helped me. She had so much patience and this year my teacher is helping me a lot for NJSLA. There are great teachers because they help me learn even though I could take a little bit of time. I also teach they also teach in fun ways. They help
us learn in fun ways by doing math games. I also learn more things in gyms. We play sports and art. We are creative and in music we play instruments. took trips in my school there in good education, teamwork and technology. A
second grader wrote, "My teacher helps everyone in the class." And the last one I'm going to read is a third grader. I am a student at Lindberg School. Being a student now is fantastic because we learn something new every single day.
We also play with our friends and have a lot of good teachers that teach me how to write, read, and do math. Again, I praise the teachers. Um, I grew up here. Some of the teachers remain that I had, some of the teachers
remain that my children have had. Thank you all so much. Again, growing up in districts, being in a small community, the kids They feel safe at school. They feel safe with their teachers. They're making
memories. They're creating a future. And if you ever come to the Hall of Fame dinners, you will see the impact that these adults that are my age and older than me that the teachers and coaches in this district have made for them for
their whole they shaped their whole lives in their future endeavors and jobs, school. and I praise both teachers. Thank you. I'm a parent. Um, and I'm very grateful to
each one of the teachers that they're here tonight. Then I remember the faces. My children are in this school. Um very grateful for the study team that helps evaluate my
son and adjust the school schedules and everything for him to be able to be a college today. Without the study team, he wasn't wouldn't be able to be in the school district of poly park and graduate from high school from the high
school two years ago. And that was very much because of the help of the evaluations for every single teacher that he has that touch his life. Every time that I have a surgery that he was falling behind, the teacher was there to
help him and my daughter also. Every time that she has an injury famous, Cody was there for her. And every time that she was crying because she was having frustrating problems at home because all my injuries that I have and all my
surgeries, the teacher was there. They're not there just to because they are another kids in the classroom. No, they're also mentors that they're there to help our children to guide our teacher to to guide our children like
the sign says behind you to make a difference in our community. You want a poly spark to be the poly spark that it is today to be a better poly spark. You cannot take off the resources
that they have now and put them in pulse because that's what you're doing. Removing the resources that they have because when they need to cry, they're not going to come to you to cry because they don't know you. They're going to come to the teacher that they know that
they have confidence for them to pride on the teacher. They not social worker, but they're they are their therapist too when they need to because they have been my therapy when I needed it too and I'm not part of the students.
But when I need them, when they're behind and I'm in bed in my house with surgery and on my spine, they send me an email and says, "Hey, your son or your daughter needs to submit this homework." And there is 7, 8, 10:00 at
night and I receive an email for a teacher where that teacher is is at home with their family thinking on my children. They don't have a contract. They don't have a good salary. and they're still thinking of my
children. Would you would like to have a teacher like that for your own children? Well, that is something that you have to go do today. Your children's in poly park district, they should be part of the poly park district because that's the kind of
teacher that we have and those are the kind of teachers that we want to keep in poly. Thank you. My name is and I'm a member of the Park High School dance team. I've been very lucky this season. I haven't had any
suffered any major injuries myself. However, I've seen firsthand just how essential it is to have a medical trainer present. Not just for dancers, but for every student athlete in school. What I didn't realize before joining the team was how often we rely
on a trainer. Not just for emergencies, but for prevention, recovery, and reassurance. When someone goes down during practice or competition, there's only one person we trust to act immediately. Immediately, and we know what to do. You truly don't understand
how vital that is until you witness it up close. Our dance team practices in the cafeteria, a room that is not designed for athletic movement. So, with that, we often dodge folded up tables and practice in hard, uneven floors. We do turns and lifts in an environment
that is not built for it. The risk of injury is always there, and without a trained professional president, that risk becomes extremely dangerous. As a senior heading off to college soon, this decision concerns me deeply, not just for myself, but but for my teammates I'm
leaving behind. They they deserve to be protected. They deserve to feel feel safe at every practice and at every performance. This isn't just about one person or one team. This is about prioritizing students safely and removing our medical trainer job our
safety that our well-being is less important than money. But how can we but how can the safety of our students ever become considered an acceptable compromise? My main message is to please don't wait until something catastrophic happens to realize the importance of
this role. Thank you. maybe I'm a junior at Park High School. I have a short message for Karen and although I know as much as multiple times, I to be hurt. I'm here tonight because I think it is wrong. Our trainer Cody is being let up. Not because he's done
anything wrong, but just because there's not enough money. This doesn't sit right with me and a lot of our other student athletes I show. I have been a part of the Poly Spark High School sport since my eighth grade year. I participated in cheer, volleyball, basketball, and softball. My friend Dowski has four
years. She was this year's volleyball captain. Our trainer is someone who shows up every day about and helps us recover when we're injured. Cody has helped so many of us keep playing sports we love and even more importantly keep us safe while doing it. Cutting that rule sends a message that
our health and safety doesn't matter and that's not fair to us and to Cody. As student athletes, we already deal with pressure, stress, and the risk of injury. Knowing we have someone who understands our bodies and actually cares makes a huge difference. Losing that support isn't just disappointing,
it's dangerous. A lot of us depend on our trainer to keep us safe and help us so we can keep playing the sports we show up to every single day. And on top of everything, as we all found out today, our trainer is going through something incredibly difficult at home. He's been balancing all of that while
still showing up for us. Yesterday, or the day before, at a 700 p.m. softball game, my game went on so late, and Cody was still there. Cody was giving ice to us till the very end of that game. Cody was there the same time I left, the same time I helped put all the equipment away, the same time I got off the field.
Cody was still there for all of us. dealing with all this stuff. It's not just unfair, it feels cold. He's a human being who's done nothing but support us, and he deserves the same support in return. I understand budgets are tough, but please think about what we're
losing. We as students, this isn't just about money. It's about the people who care about students and keep us going. We need that kind of support in our school. and my friend. Also, I just want to mention that this is mine and Georgia's first time at a
board meeting and possibly the first for a lot of other students, too. Um, that alone should show how much we care about Cody and how important he is to our community at the high school. Um, we're here because we believe that he deserves to be treated with respect and kept at
our school. Excuse me. Can I just ask one question, please? I'm sorry. Because of everything going on here, a lot of people may not understand. To the lawyer, is there a law to protect our children that says during sports they have to have someone
there with medical knowledge? We're gonna have everyone else. We're gonna have everyone else give their comments and then the board will respond to comments if they choose to. And just one person can speak one time.
Please respect our viewers. There are many people who are in the in public today. much bigger. My name is Michael. Before I address the board, I
first want to thank every single person in this room tonight. Um, every teacher and coach and administrative staff that is here. You are all incredible in ways
that are beyond words. So, thank you. Not to be adversarial, but it would have been nice if the board had applauded for that as well and knowing that the teachers are fully appreciated. Um, that would have been nice. That was
not test. I was just expecting it. But anyway, my clock is ticking. Um, I think it's become clear that there is a a disconnect between what the board is
seeing and what's actually going on in these classrooms under these roofs. I'm a former student. I graduated from this school a few years ago, graduated from Lindberg, from the high school. I graduated from Ruters and now I'm working as a parallegal at a law
firm where I hope to go to law school and become a lawyer. I don't know what kind, but hopefully a good one. But these teachers had to teach me science, history, math, English,
Italian in the most absurd conditions. I had to learn chemistry in a room where the ceiling was quite literally crumbling and falling down on us, where there was mold. were the uh the stalls to our bathroom. Sometimes they were there. If they weren't there,
they were very rusty. I'm sure all of you guys have seen that. Praying that I could get by. Not to mention the current climate of just the world just being the world right now. And the teachers still under those
conditions figure out how to teach us chemistry, physics, statistics, Italian history, the list goes on and on and on every single day to make that an environment that we can absorb and then
go out into the world to be decent and informed individuals. They work their ass off every single day. I owe the man I am today and the man I hope to be tomorrow
to every single person in this room. a student cried in this room. If that doesn't get the message across as to the impact that these teachers have on students, all I can say is for those if you continue to live in town when you
turn 18, don't forget this. Because eventually there will be another election and you can vote in people that you know will protect you guys, that will protect the people that are shaping our lives, our future.
Now you guys have a chance to fix that. They want this time to be like sitting here. teachers that I came to support. I also came to support the Italian program. As you know, my daughter spoke here. My daughter took Spanish, her native language. She wanted Italian. She took Italian. Now, it's
helping her in her law study. She's actually an attorney, and she's using those languages every single day. I had a whole speech here for Dr. Cerillo, but he's not here. He knows this drill. We went down this road eight years ago about getting rid of Italian school
system. I'm sorry. What's your name? Maria Alvarez. Thank you. We're a school system. School systems are meant to educate our children. Taking away Italian out of curriculum is not to educate. It's counterproductive. I don't understand that. Didn't understand that
eight years ago. As we put up the fight, we won the fight eight years ago. Hopefully this time around we can do the same thing because I think Italian like any other language, Spanish, Korean, French that we also got rid of years ago. That's important. Next thing, you teachers, you're the best. I came out
here after eight years of not stepping foot into a board meeting and I swore I was never going to come back. I'm here to support you guys. I owe you gratitude for my children for what they are today. You educated them from kindergarten all the way through high
school. And I do not understand this disconnect. I was on the board. I was on the negotiations committee. Yes, we had negotiations. That's what the word is. We had difference of opinions. We sat, we worked it out almost a year without a
contract and follow what I'm seeing is and I watch these meetings at home. I don't come to them but it's disrespect. We need to respect each other. Okay. Next thing is this surprise to me. What year did you come on?
Eight years ago. I might have been dependent at that time and was all for it. Exactly. We put you on for a reason. As you heard the kids, I can't possibly talk what they're saying, but we brought you on to protect the children to keep them safe. I can't
believe what the students have been saying. So, I hope you guys listen to what students are saying. in the back. You're in the yellow shirt, white shirt. I think uh from what I can see is that the students respect and love their
teachers here and the fact probably pastor bedtime. Your name please. Uh my name is Philip Hod, but you could call me Phil. Uh my from what I could uh describe what I'm seeing right now in one word to
describe them is that uh the teachers here are very conscientious. I think it's a uh unique innate ability that's not most people are not born with. And uh that's lacking these days. But anyway, I'm
going to read off this speech that I wrote. Uh I was born, raised, and have been a lifelong resident of Pal State Park. I have lived in this town for over 45 years. So, I've seen this place
transform for from a quiet, sleepy town into a vibrant, populous, multithnic community. I know plenty of teachers in this town as well. a lot of them I grew up with them and we've been friends since uh I was six years
old. So so that means a lot. Uh not only are they my friends but they are people that I love, trust and care about. Uh they are good people that I could vouch for and I know they do a great job educating the kids in
policies. So like myself many students here are first generation American. Uh so receiving a good education in Palace Park is essential for them as their parents may not have had that before. Uh education gives them an
opportunity to succeed and live a better life here. Uh teachers are the ones who can help guide them and shape their path in the future. That being said, I don't know what it's like to be a teacher because I'm not a teacher myself, but I know it
takes a lot of work. more so for the educators and policies more than any other burning county. I only say this because we have the highest density of Koreans in the United States. Uh we have the second highest Croatian population in New
Jersey and we have a growing population of Guatemalan residents that's going to keep on growing. Uh so English is not their primary language, it's their second. Many of them from what I can tell they
don't even know how to speak. So extra resources are needed. Uh it I think it creates unduly burden and extreme stress on the teachers who already care about the
students. Uh so if there's budget cuts, I mean these teachers have to make a living as well. Uh they are superheroes in real life, but you need to eat. uh you know people are like that
uh very loyal uh dedicated to their jobs you got to take care of so I don't know uh from what I heard that uh I think you guys were disrespecting the
teachers which is not fair and there's no real basis for it. Uh there's a board of education for reason to listen and to try to negotiate in this case like you
said to make teachers lives better so that they they get motivated to work hard like if they don't work hard already so uh so I did a little research
So educate our right I'm just saying park teachers are the bottom 25% educator paid in the in the county. Um, just wanted to start by saying while we may not agree with a lot
of what was said at last month's board meeting, I believe we all agree on one thing that we are not here on a personal agenda against you even though you may think so. Um, although it is quite upsetting that most of the time you don't look up at us when we're speaking
right now. Um, with that being said, our teachers show up every single day with unwavering dedication. They sacrifice their personal often spend their own money and go far beyond what is required of them, not for recognition, but
because they care. And yet, instead of being applauded, they were chastised in a prolonged public reprimand for simply exercising their right to express a lack of confidence. As a parent, watching that unfold didn't build trust. It
shattered it. How can we have faith in a board that appears so fractured, so unwilling to stand together and support of those who support our Amen. Hi everyone. I have three children. watch videos and I say what I just
breaks my heart as a parent to stand here in a room where people are telling all these touching heartbreaking stories and some of you are sleeping like just flat out sleeping not you're hearing our voices or how I can trust you as a
member of this community. If you're sleeping while people are speaking, if you're on your phones multiple times, it's just so rude. That's just I'm sorry. Just sleeping here. She's sleeping. No, I
didn't. Excuse me. Can you Can you do a little louder? I cannot hear. Can you do a little louder? I cannot hear. speak when I'm done speaking because I wait for a long time raising my hand. I am a working mother. I work 12our shift three
to four times a week. I work all night. I trust these teachers with my children with my life. I drop off my children at school knowing that my children are well taken care of. Athletic trainer students. I don't
know if you know what a CT is. If you know what a cardiac event is, if one of these kids has an asthma attack, who is going to help these children have a fulltime school nurse? It's absolutely ridiculous. And I pray that nothing
happens to any of this children of of this town. I'm sorry. I'm just so enraged right now. I don't feel safe anymore. How can I send my children to a school where you don't even care? It shows that you don't
care. And these teachers, they are the pillar of this community. They're the backbone of my child's education. My children are beautiful, resilient children because of what teachers teach them. I used to get out of my shift at night and rush home, get my kids ready,
and Miss Preston would be waiting for my son every morning, two, three times a week at 8:05. And you owe her an apology for the way you spoke about our teachers in the BSI program at your last meeting. Miss Preston, thank you. Thank you.
difficult for a child with special needs to start a new routine to get used to a new trust. I'm sorry. All right. Hi Chris, negotiations chair. Thank you
everyone for being here. Kids, thank you. Broke my heart a little bit there. The board has highlighted that in the 2023 24 school year, Palis Park starting teacher salary um the
bachelor's BA step one ranked 17 out of 63 county districts. That's what the board posted. However, this figure is incomplete and potentially misleading. In reality, Bergen County is made up of
77 school districts, not 63, as stated by board president Such Chung. This discrepancy raises concerns about the accuracy of the information being presented to everyone. Moreover, while efforts have been made to improve starting salaries, the focus on
long-term compensation is lacking. Our BA maximum salary rank 50 out of 77 districts in the county, indicating significant drops of the starting salary rankings. The gap suggested that while we may initially attract new teachers,
retaining experienced educators remains a challenge due to less competitive long-term pay. The board's choice to include these figures highlights a pattern of selective data presentation presentation which can mislead stakeholders about the true state of
future compensation in our district. It is imperative that we address these issues transparently and work collaboratively toward solutions that value and support our educators through their careers. Now that being said, our salaries may seem starting off
competitive, but you could see here by 50 out of 77, we are lacking. But all of us have stayed. If you look at the path of teachers have stayed for 15 to 30 years and plus it's because we see this
place, we the educators, we the secretaries, we the custodians see this place as a home, as a community. I have heard people in this audience use that word community so many times tonight and I think that's the disconnect because I
don't believe they see this as a community. I believe personally that they are trying to see this as a business. How to cut costs, how to cut numbers, how to bring down the bottom line. That's not a school. That might be a company. Yeah, that might be Microsoft. That's not how schools are
run. We are run to care for the kids, to teach these kids, to be the person that they come to to be someone who could be there when someone gets hurt. I mean, Mrs. Alvarez, no, the younger one.
This might cause us more going long run with legal costs. I mean, the amount of stuff that goes into this stuff, I don't while short term it might seem like a great idea, I don't see the amount of things cut in the last year, the amount
of stuff taken away. And it's the same thing with these negotiations, the take, the take, the take, and there's no give. We are not, I've said this last time, do I feel we are not people. We are numbers. We They're disposable. Doesn't matter who we are, how long we've been
here, what we've given to this community. We just don't matter. That's right. To them. Yes. Hi, my name is Mrs. Loness. Um, I was on the I was on the PTSA for many years. I was the booster club president.
I think this is a disgrace. This whole board is a total disgrace to this community. We have the most hardest working teachers, secretaries. I raised my grandchildren. My grandson was a special needs child. They were here through thick and thin. They were here
through everything for my family. They never shut a door. Mrs. Valaris was my my grandson's second grade teacher. He my grandchildren graduated here to make a long story short. They played four sports for four years in high school. My grandson got three
concussions. His shoulder got dislocated. My granddaughter had an asthma attack. Do you know who was there for them? Cody and Mr. Hutchinson came to the hospital, stayed nights, stayed with me in the hospital till my granddaughter woke up. She we almost
lost her that night. He was there. He was there. He never So you want to take away somebody who cares about our kids and our community? You don't care. You want your paycheck, these teachers, this athletic dire, this athletic guy,
everybody needs to be recognized in this community. Shame on the board. Shame on every take away. You have one more. I'm following up on the question I asked that wasn't answered.
Little louder, please. I'm sorry. Understand how deeply My son has the privilege of meeting how I respect what other parts are depending on your answer. I may have some difficult decisions to make about
my son's future. Please know I don't want to leave this district. I love the work. I love the community tonight. Not just not just my but everyone see excuse me I know I spoke but I there's
one thing I have to say about having one minute 40 years ago in Lindberg sir A sevenyear-old girl dropped dead of a heart attack. Very few people remember that a
sevenyear-old girl in Lindberg school dropped dead of a heart attack. So don't think these things cannot happen. They have they have a personal hand. God forbid.
Parkland Avenue. I work at the high school. Number one, I'm really proud of all of you. We had the distinction of being the only town in Bergen County without an athletic trainer. And I guess that we'll have that distinction once more. The
only town. The last question. I think that's the best way to close this. I think all of us agree with this. We're going to give you standation. Thank you. Raise your hand. Raise your hand. Raise
your hand. Yeah. With a different change the mood. That's my job. I'm the music teacher. I spent many years at Lindber. I taught there for 12 years. Now, three years ago, I got transferred at a high school.
I'm the choir director, Mrs. Mini. And I would like you to I would like to invite all of you to our concert as you mentioned before is coming up is May 29th. Please, we invite you because um
it's not just math and you know social studies or English. We provide the students with all the opportunities. We want them to be round wellrounded people and they do a great job and they never had the honor to have one of you
standing there to clap and appreciate what they do. uh with the exception of M our great supporter and with the exception of Mus that the her kids were not in forest or in orchestra or any of their
ensembles but they were always working behind the scenes with technology helping me with microphones supporting me with the stage and everything. She was always there laughing and cheering a speech supporting us with the music
association. We had them all before. Now all of that is gone. So please come to our concert and enjoy a night like community night because that's what we do. You want to talk?
Oh, one person here. Hi, good night. My name is Alex. Um, I've been a student at both school and at the high school. I've been in this town for over 20 years. I came here back when I was 7 years old. Back
when we were very small community. And let me tell you, it was a lot different back then. Back when there was not there was not many teachers that spoke Spanish. And I have to say these people, my teachers, they've all been amazing. It's thanks to them that I am very
fluent in English. I've also been able to progress through life because I have had a select few that have helped me throughout my path. And I it hurts me to see that they're being hurt in a way that it hurts me as well. I I want them
to live a happy family. I mean, have a half a half. Sorry. It's difficult because it hurts me. Like, and I want to say like I don't think any of them should be cut. They all do such amazing jobs at what they do both in their in
their school hours and outside of their school hours. I've had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Hutchinson, who is my teacher, who is my sister's coach in both sports. Miss Toro, who I've known since I was like 10 years old, Miss Botti, who was with me at my toughest
moments, and I want to thank you for that. I wish I could thank all of you. And I love all of you. And I wish that things were different. And much like you, I wish I understand financial financially things are tough. But just
because things are tough doesn't mean that we make have to make it harder for others. So, I want you to think about the decisions that you're making today and how it doesn't affect just now, but it affects us in the future. It affects my son. It affects students currently in
school. So, please before you do decide to make some serious cuts, think with your heart, not with your not with your wallet. Thank you. I know for our athletic trainer, but after being here tonight and just seeing
everybody speak up, it was really inspiring to me because I've been here in Pal Park since I was like four years old. So, I've been here through ECC, Lindberg, and the high school. And um you know, my life here hasn't been the
easiest in Lindberg. Uh my mother passed away when I was seven years old and I don't know if she's here, Miss Bazo, but she really helped me through a lot. And like it just it just amazes me how supportive these teachers are and all that they do for us. And especially in
the high school when my father passed away when I was a sophomore, Miss Luris, I did not take a second to hesitate coming to school the next day because I knew that she would be there for me every moment. Miss Delasio, my coach for
two years, she was there for me as well. and Miss Marie, my coach now. Like, I just it's so heartwarming to me that these teachers not only help us with our education, but like with our personal lives. Miss Toro, thank you for everything. And I'm not even just
speaking from a like emotional level, but even throughout my educational life, I maintained over a 4.0 GPA throughout school because of these as the president of the senior class, I just I felt like I had like to say this
because I really would not have done any of this without the teachers and I just I wanted to thank everybody for everything. We're having two more participation. So if you speak now that we have one
more participation and then we will first of all I like to when I think of the board of I think teachers deserve to respect for the teachers. I remember a lot of songs. They know how hard it is
to teach high school students and kids, especially since you know a lot of students are loud. really feel like you guys just don't get for example the course teacher uh a lot of
students in her classes don't actually pay attention as much but she still works hard too but they don't speak the language. She still works hard to uh help students, you know, find a passion for music. And there's so many different
classes students can take to further improve their, you know, education. Uh and like Italian, I I I just don't understand why you're trying to take that away and you know, strip that uh language from students hard. So
honestly, I really I think that the students deserve more than what you're gi like to be outside. Oh, wow. Nobody. My name is Valerie Ramirez. Um, I'm a junior currently at Pal Park and I'm also the
class pre the president for my class and I'll speak on behalf of Cody first. He's an amazing athletic trainer. Um, last year I was in during my cross country season I had to miss almost three races because of a strained hamstring and without his help I probably wouldn't
have been able to compete anymore in my season. So, and Besides all of that, he helps so many students, so many athletes. Without him, we aren't competing safe. He's there at every practice. He's there at almost every home game regardless of whatever team. If he has to go from the county to the
high school and back to county, he will. He just he um the way that he is, he's kind, respectful, he knows exactly what he's doing. And for you to cut him, it's it's disrespectful to not only him, but to all of us, especially all the athletes
that that so many of them that need him, that need all of our coaches. And to cut him is blatantly disrespectful to not only us, but to him as well. And for these teachers, the last time I was here, Dr. Cerillo said that there was a parent that was speaking who said that
it affects our ch it affects our children, and it does. And he's he responded with the teachers aren't changing anything. And damn right they aren't. Of course they aren't going to change anything because their salary of course it's important to them. But regardless of that they're still doing they still show up every day. They still
show up to be there for us to be there after school to be there even after 3:00. Our coaches are there every single day working with us regardless of their personal reasons. They're always there. So of course we're not going to change what they have to do regardless of their paycheck because that's exactly what they do. They care for us. They're
respectful to us. They're there when we need them. Even if it has nothing to do with whatever we're doing in class, they're there for us regardless. So, for you guys to just continue to talk and talk and talk and not give them what they're asking for when they do everything for us, they know exactly
what we need and they're there for us every single day. And for you guys to just pretend like it's nothing is absolutely disrespectful to them because they're there every single day. He's there for me as a coach. She's there for me as a coach and so is he and I have
her as a teacher. I have so many of them as teachers and for you to just blatantly disrespect them by not hearing them out and coming to their need for everything that they need. I have a parent here who's here at every single meeting for me, which is more than any
other student can say. He's here at every meeting fighting for me, fighting for them. And for you to to just blatantly disregard that is so disrespectful to them. They deserve more. We all deserve more. We all deserve more.
I also want to thank all the all the kids from my school that are here because they usually aren't here. So, I'm really happy that this community has come together and for Cody and for these teachers because that is exactly what they deserve. They deserve our support and their number one supporter should be
you guys. And for you guys to not be that be that for them, it's it's despicable. So, I think you guys should step up and get them what they need because they aren't going to change at all regardless of their paycheck. And that should give you every single reason to give them what they need.
I deserve a cookie. motion to close participation session. Make a motion to close. All in favor. Thank you everyone for making your trip to our board of education meeting tonight. Although there's a lot of
messages that I think I appreciate. I I think our board members that we appreciate you to come here and share your opinion. So um various different opinions were heard and we are
happy to see you students, community members, parents, teachers love each other, respect each other that that's beautiful and we are in the same page too. Excuse me. At the end of the meeting, we
get the answers. I'm just gonna have one response from myself. One of the audience members mentioned something about collecting a paycheck. I just want to let everyone know we're all volunteers here. So, I don't want anyone to think that there's some sort of, you
know, other benefit financially for us to be here. This is our volunteer time as well. I have a family. We understand your concerns. You know, I think budgeting is not always an easy task. There's a lot of moving pieces. We're doing the best
we can. Um to the two groups that are close that I mentioned in the statement before, let's get a contract done. We're almost there. To the two groups that I mentioned otherwise, I would proposals and counters are in process and you
should receive them soon. Thank you. Um um actually I I didn't finish but so you guys raised a very different aspect of opinion and different subjects. So I just categorize and do my best to simp
um simplify my answer as well. So many of your questions and opinion regarding Can I make a comment before you replied to their respons. Okay. So I will just address with the step first
and this is something that the Dr. would be able to answer because our board members we don't work on site but we are recommended by superintendent and then our administrators who are in response
responsible in finance. So based upon my corction and then previous conversation with Dr. Suro in finance committee meeting or negotiation meeting we've
heard that this position is to be eliminated in order to be some balance of our finance conrint it was months months ago and at the time I didn't know what
exactly what position it was but That's something that we board members and administrator will have to discuss more further. But I just want to let you know that this kind of step cut step cut
or any program didn't diminishes those we just really rely on 100% by the recommendation of superintendent and there are some concerns raised like today
we consider to speak and discuss with Dr. Saw Sunday. So we are human all human beings we always almost every time we don't want be aware you know cutting style is always
hard to break into be aware to your friends step members anyone just next to you just not seeing them anymore it's heartbreaking we understand we are human being to Also
I I'm a parent of special needs special needs as well and I'm still one of the English learners. I'm constantly learning all any kinds of even in Korean too. I read Korean every day too in
order not to be losing any skill. So I'm very much understanding how you concern about stake up of Italian curriculums that that's init that's a beginner classes not all right so in
my understanding it was about the budget as well and that there's not enough needs of students who are in interested in taking the classes if I remember um correct correctly
previous conversation with Dr. last year but again we will speak again with Dr. someday soon hopefully maybe next week so by next month we probably have some conclusion on those concerns that raises
today and the others um Mr. the left but the quum regarding the concern of a quorum in our April 11th meeting we had a quum is there any board members disagree
with it we had quum and also about the letter that I read on April 11 again You many of you has not been here in the board of education meeting for past one and a half
years just without knowledge of all those year long experience meeting experience. I understand that some misunderstand will be raised too but our statements on
effort 11 is sorry just to um to refute force media reports and misread information again spread by the PPA leadership about the board of education in the belief that the public
deserve and has a right to transport and accurate information especially if it's the governing body that constitutes public education. So it's not about to this degrading your contribution to our
education and support and teach our students. We appreciate for past years teachers you know that I raised the same I spoke the same statements over and over maybe some months I skip but I've
always we expressed our board express that our appreciation to your contribution to our school district I do and all of our board members Sorry that there's so many questions and to
the teach the music teach music teacher that was a concert in the land. I'm sorry I don't know. at the high school. Yes. Thank you for invitation.
I used to go to where me and other board member used to go to the spring concert and that's one reason and basis that why the boys try hard to put the AC conditioning in vendor school auditorium gym because of last year and
the past two years prior to what two years ago I really suffered the heat in the spring as well I see other students other student students and patterns ra it wasn't actually me. It was
presented by the parents their needs and we tried hard but again it's all about us too that's in our six month that I read in I'm
sorry I I heard something years ago students like sardines on music risers and couldn't contain them. So they were all lower in the auditorium. So I'm sorry if you were but they were probably melting 175 students in the
same I don't know how I did it. I don't have 14 students in a class all together 175 three years ago then I start speaking up because it's not for humans.
one one with one person only with 175 students something is is not functioning correctly that I my opinion is that there not enough teachers to cover the electives that's
why I had to teach 175 students then two years ago the number got a little shorter smaller a little more contained 152 this year I have 125 It's getting better.
I raise a concern that we need teachers. So we we have to cut a budget but we need we need more money to actually hire more people. So the students can have more opportunities. Yeah. I don't know if whether my speech
was misunderstood but my speech was to encourage you how also B is in same position as all the teachers and students and parents who had better environments and better condition when
students sing the song in spring concert. Every spring course concert I see parents complain and brought the safety issue of the postgazing their children because of the heat. That's how
we try hard this year to put it in our budget. for the AC condition. So um unfortunately it wasn't able to get it due to the finance
constraint but thank you for invitation. We we have one is in the winter the other is in the spring and you're always welcome to come so you can see how well they those students are are ex
Thank you. Question. You didn't answer my question. So, I'm just following up with you. Um, on number 12, I asked when I stood up. Um, to provide substitute athletic needed. Who determines that? There's no medical questions on board. Who determines that? Here are the questions.
The board members will answer if they want to answer. I just wanted to thank you all the teachers. Um my I'm sure many of you know who I am. I'm a parent of three kids. Two were nonverbal when they came to
Kelpart. Some of you teachers know that. And now they are high honors. They're awesome. you know, and I thank you. So, I hope negotiation and the teachers come to your agreement very quick because I don't want the stress for you guys or
the boat or or the parents or the kids, you know. So, I wish there's a agreement, you know, like very soon so everything will be resolved. And also for Mr. Cody, I've been on the football field, I've been on the basketball
court, I've been on board, wherever Cody's Oh, every concert. Cody's been at the school from 1:30 until God knows when the last student or the athlete leaves the
facility. And having that's why I said no earlier to number 12 because at as an athlete myself when I was a kid, we had a trainer at the
school at all times and that caused that actually prevented many injuries. And having Cody there from 1:00 or 1:30 on, even nonathletes go to him for help since we don't have a full-time
nurse. So, I think it's very important to reconsider number 12, you know, or revisit this as of now because he is a very key factor to
not just the athletes, even to the teachers, even to the administrators, even to the everybody. So maybe we can reconsider. I don't know what the procedure is
with this. So that's my comment. I just want to thank you all. We know the president with you but I think first of all we should speak with Dr.
and any other board member like to make a comments to the public. Okay something yes. Yeah. So, I've been sitting here for like just about a year and I've just been
listening and observing and uh yeah, I after being here and uh listening to some stories, I do have some considerations to make. So, I'm just
putting it out there. So, and and you know if I can make a comment you know I've been here for about three months and uh you know just listening to everything and u everybody says like no respect this and that and you know we're here because we respect you guys right we're not you know we're not you know we have a job I have a little baby too I
can go back to you know you know I'm sitting here 10:00 it's you know we respect you guys number one with all the hard job you guys are doing as well and as far as I'm I'm hearing is that you guys are very so close I mean you guys are like right there that's what I'm hearing right so I don't even talk about this but that's what I'm hearing and so
let's just get it on and let's focus the time on making the education better for the kids like if you guys want to come here like 10% of your time just come to the meeting and tell us what we can do to make the education better for the kids I think Trump just signed some like AI bill or something like that right where using AI or So, what is it? You
guys know what's out there. You guys are the troops that are out there. So, if you guys really want to help out, then make the community better. Let's do it together. We're in the same boat. That's my go. I have your attention please. The board
has to go on the closing session. You may or may may not stay here but after closing session we we might have a take we have to take a former action too. So it's going to be a decision mean after
uh there will be okay. So I decidi