WEBVTT

METADATA
Video-Count: 1
Video-1: youtube.com/watch?v=U-y1XRDn3_U

NOTE
MEETING SECTIONS:

Part 1 (Video ID: U-y1XRDn3_U):
- 00:09:58: Pre-Meeting Discussion: US Audio Issue and Preparation
- 00:44:21: Reconvene Public Session and Open Budget Hearing
- 00:44:55: Budget Presentation: Revenue, Appropriations, and Adjustments
- 00:49:59: Restoring Field Hockey and Gymnastics: Students First
- 00:52:39: Public Comment Guidelines and Introduction
- 00:54:52: Public Comment 1: Medemerge Drug Testing Cost Concerns
- 00:58:37: Public Comment 2: Gymnastics Program and Thank You
- 00:59:55: Public Comment 3: Thank You for Listening, Continued Sports
- 01:02:03: Motion to Close Public Hearing Session
- 01:02:22: Final Adoption: 2026-2027 School District Budget
- 01:03:28: President's Report: Thank You to Students and Community
- 01:06:18: Superintendent's Report: Student Achievement Celebrations
- 01:10:04: NAACP Partnership and High School Achievements
- 01:12:26: Music Program Accolades and Financial Excellence
- 01:15:14: Preparing Students: Future Workforce and AI Changes
- 01:20:54: Personnel and Labor Relations Recognition
- 01:22:00: Introduction New Principal, Committee Reports Begin
- 01:23:31: Fiscal Planning and Operations Committee Report
- 01:32:26: Policy and Legislative Committee Updates
- 01:34:49: Curriculum Committee: Woodworking, Arts, and Cursive
- 01:36:08: Approval of Minutes: Business and Executive Sessions
- 01:37:33: Introduction Public Comments From the Floor
- 01:39:15: Public Comment 1: Highland Avenue Development Concerns
- 01:42:51: Public Comment 2: Traffic and Safety Near Schools
- 01:45:16: Public Comment 3: Safety, Traffic Macedonia Property Development
- 01:49:10: Public Comment 4: Traffic Concerns Macedonia Development
- 01:50:52: Public Comment 5: Overcrowding and Safety Development
- 01:52:24: Comments Acknowledged: Board to Consider Concerns
- 01:53:08: Public Comment 6: Drug Use and Bathroom Policies
- 01:57:56: Public Comment 7: Community Arts Outreach Thank You
- 02:00:27: Public Comment 8: Thank You, Sports program athletes
- 02:01:07: Public Comment 9: Schedule Accessibility of Athletics
- 02:02:00: Public Comment 10: Commits Education Global Citizenship Thank You
- 02:05:55: Public Comment 11: Uncomfortable Truth Drug Testing Thank You
- 02:10:17: Motion to Close Public Comments Floor
- 02:10:35: Fiscal Planning & Operations Vote on Motions A-H
- 02:11:27: Vote Curriculum: Be it resolved the motions A-B
- 02:11:59: Motion Pupil Services A & B Approved
- 02:12:31: Vote Admin and Auxiliary Motions, Community Engagement
- 02:14:09: Vote Admin and Auxiliary Item G Motion approved
- 02:14:41: Old Business: Master Board, Anthony Wing, Community Choir
- 02:15:47: Beetlejuice Play, and Public School Forum
- 02:18:43: President and Dr Gray Community Services Recogition
- 02:20:00: Piscataway Soccer Donation, and Grant Acknowledgement
- 02:22:13: Grant Acceptance: Inclusive Playground Eisenhower Elementary
- 02:24:05: Development Issue Concerning Girl's Softball Team
- 02:24:54: Adjournment Motion Approval


Part: 1

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Mhm. >> There you go. So, what were you going to Same thing. It wasn't told to go to the US audio. Make sure you stop the video on that, too. >> Mhm. >> Mhm. >> So, um

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public session. Be it resolved Be it resolved that the board reconvene public session. Motion to reconvene? Motion. Second. Okay. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Um seeing as there are no student presentations, there are no student

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representatives for tonight, um we will go directly to the public hearing on the 2026-2027 school district budget. Motion to open. Motion. Second. Okay.

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All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Presentation of the budget, 2026-2027. Good evening, everyone. First of all, I want to thank you for coming out and supporting our great district and all the work that we do. Budget season across the state of New Jersey for the last several years has been one of those points of contention

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for many townships. Many districts have had to make some very serious decisions around how they're going to continue their educational programs, create well-rounded social emotional supports, those extracurricular activities that truly make school and the learning environment fun. Here in Piscataway, we

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take it very serious because not only do we know we have a great district, the goal is to have an excellent one, one that's exemplary, where every student can feel that they're part of something. This year's budget was one of those budgets that has been very very taxing on us because we understand that

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this budget is heavily rely heavily influenced by our insurance, our medical insurance. And our medical insurance as folks are feeling across the state in many sectors has had an impact on how we've had to look at our programs.

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We've already done three budget presentations. We've convened town halls. We've shared on our website where our budget is. We've also in our last um board meeting presented a board a budget that was presented to the Department of Education

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for preliminary approval. Tonight we are here to approve the 2026-2027 budget. Documents have been left out for the public to receive. Those who are watching live, these

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documents will also be available for you tomorrow after this meeting. I just want to bring to your attention some statistics so that you're aware of where we are at. 2026-2027 general fund budget revenue

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will total 173 million 458 dollars and 458 and 90s 926 dollars. That's our revenue. The appropriations are as follows: salaries, benefits,

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our paraprofessionals, substitutes, our aids, tuition, maintenance, transportation, supplies, and other. 51% of our budget is is made up of just the salaries.

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Another 25 approximately 25% 24 and 6/10% are benefits. Similar to any other district, roughly 76% of our budget is dedicated towards salaries. Not much wiggle room in changing that. We're responsible for paying our teachers, our educators, and those who

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work for our district and being inclusive of making sure we take care of their health benefits. And if you look at the information that's been presented, you'll see that historically we have been around the same space, but this year you seen an uptick again due to the health care costs.

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We're relatively the same in the other areas. Part of those other areas is what makes our township our school district the good district that we want our students to be a part of. When you think about our appropriations, we've created a balanced budget, so

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therefore that it's a zero base budget. We we spend as much as we bring in. We don't have excess just sitting out there. Throughout the course of the budgeting process, we've had to make some tough decisions and we've communicated that there will be some adjustments in our

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FTEs, our full-time employees. There's been some reduction in in the cost savings and other areas. We've been able to negotiate some good deals in our health care costs, even though it's still not where we would like it to be, it still give us a little savings, and we've been able to use other fiscal resources that we're allowed statutorily

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to use. Part of that conversation has been that began July, August of 2025, continued on up until recently as yesterday, has been about what are the program areas, what

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are the human resource areas where we know we need to make adjustments. Those were presented and many of you are aware of them. As of today, the board and I, along with my team, are prepared to present the budget as has been previous previously presented

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with two adjustments. Two adjustments that we have prepared to make are in the area of extracurricular activities and sports. It has been proposed previously that we would be making an adjustment in the number of sports

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offerings for our high school student athletes. Tonight, the board and I are in agreement that the sport of field hockey, high school field hockey, and high school gymnastics will be restored.

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THOSE >> [applause] >> THE BOARD IS ALSO RECOGNIZING THAT WHEN we have to make the decisions to make adjustments to balance the budget, there are many other areas that we want to be very mindful of the impact that it will have on human beings.

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So, trust me, the decisions that we've had to make this year were taken with a lot of painstaking a lot of painstaking tugs at our heartstrings. But, one thing that I've said since I've arrived and I continue to say and the board members will reiterate, it's

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students first. And whatever we can do to make sure our students are successful. And I want to take this opportunity just to say I want to give a shout-out to our students for their advocacy

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and for also FOR THEIR PRESENTATION. >> [applause] [applause] >> OUR STUDENT ATHLETES HAVE presented to not just myself, but to also members of the high school. And what I will share with you publicly

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as I shared with them, I love debate. I love to have constructive feedback. As I said to the student athletes, I can't make promises that this is something that's going to be sustainable because my job as I sit in this chair is

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to make decisions that are sustainable. But, as a [snorts] father, it you know, pulls at your heartstrings when you have to make decisions that impact children. And directly, I knew the pain that the young student athletes were sharing with

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me and we all felt it. I will say that it makes me equally sad to know that there are other spaces where I had to make some adjustments and we had support to make some adjustments that will impact. But, I believe in creativity and I believe that the reason I sit in this chair is to make sure that we still not

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just maintain, but we elevate the options for our students so that by the time they hit the post-secondary space, they're well-prepared and they can enjoy, say they enjoyed their their time in Piscataway Township School District. So, Madam President and the rest of board

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members, we are prepared to present to you as a district the budget for 2026-27 with the adjustments that were just made for field hockey and gymnastics. And that concludes my report.

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I'll just note for the public, apology, it was put out after some of you were seated. There's just a two-page flyer that's on the back table if you're interested. It references the the numbers that the superintendent just mentioned. Okay, so that is available for any of you to take should you wish. It's on the back table there.

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Thank you, Madam President. Thank you. Um now we move on to public comments on the 2026-2027 school district budget. The Board of Education recognizes the value of public comment on the school district's budget.

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In support of this position, the law establishes a period of public comment at public hearing on the 2026-2027 school district budget. Individuals wishing to speak must state their name and municipality and address.

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Comments are limited to 3 minutes duration, but an individual may speak a second time after all others who wish to speak on the topic have been heard. The board may require that individuals register to speak prior to the beginning of the meeting. Participants may submit

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written materials in support of their position. All statements and or questions shall be directed to the presiding officer and no participant may address or question board members individually. All speakers are requested to express

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themselves in a civil manner with due respect for the dignity and privacy rights of others whose legal rights may be affected. Please note, while it is not the board's intention to stifle comment on matters of legitimate concern to the school

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community, the public should be aware of their statements violating the rights of others under the law governing defamation or invasion of privacy, they may face personal liability to the injured party. If speakers are uncertain of their legal ramifications of their

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comments, the board urges them to seek guidance beforehand from their own legal adviser. So, at this moment, if there's anyone who wishes to make any public comments on the budget, This is exclusively for the budget. If you have public comments on any other issue, there will be

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another session later in the meeting for that. You can just come right up to the um podium. Hello. Hi. Hi, my name is Courtney Gaynor. I am from 63 Nova Drive in Piscataway. Um what other information did you need? >> that was it. That's it. Okay. Could you

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just spell your last name? I'm sorry. G A Y N like Nancy O R. Thank you. Okay. So, my question is related to Medemerge. Medemerge is a clinic >> Is it about the budget? Yes. Okay, good.

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Okay. So, Medemerge is a clinic that it appears they have some sort of contractual agreement with Piscataway Township. I'm not really sure on the relationship, so I'm not really going to speak towards

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that. Um but, my understanding is that when drug testing needs to happen, the um children are directed to a very specific Medemerge clinic uh in Green Brook, I believe it is, and

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only that one. And I was curious about what sort of um budgetary um cap is there? Is there like an allotment or an agreed-upon amount that is

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assigned to Medemerge um for the testing of our children? Um because from what I understand, I was told that there really isn't um there really aren't any other

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alternatives for parents that need to have their kids testing, I guess, for you know, sports or what have you, for whatever reason. Um so, I was just curious because I find that to be like possibly

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um an extra burden on the budget. We could probably save some money um if our kids were allowed to go to our primary care doctors.

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Uh me personally, I don't care for how it smells in there. It does smell like pee. So, I would prefer to take my daughter to a, you know, different, you know, facility, something that I feel more comfortable with. I would prefer freedom of choice

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for our children. And if we can actually bill it to our insurance, which I have to pay for anyway, that will be a less of a burden on the township. So, if there's any information, anything written, I would love to receive that.

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Um regarding how much we are spending. Um ex- specifically per exam. The township does a five uh I believe it's like they call it a five panel where they test for like

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you know, um I think like cocaine, benzos, marijuana, um methamphetamines, things like that. There's other things. So, um I'm just curious as to how much all of that is costing a taxpayer. Um

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because all of that could potentially be free if we were to go through our private insurance. That's all. Thank you for your comments. >> Thank you. Anyone else wishing to speak um on the budget for 2026-27,

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please step forward. Okay. Um seeing as I don't see anyone coming up to the podium, or is someone coming up to the podium? Maybe, perhaps, I don't know. I don't want to close the session without giving you the opportunity.

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Hi, my name is Rebecca Antunes. I live at 162 Dunellen Ave in Piscataway. Um I came here How do you spell your last name? Antunes. A N T U N E S. You're welcome. Um I came here to originally plead with you one more time to keep the gymnastics

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program as my daughter is a senior and it's her last year to experience it next year. And I am so thankful that you're keeping it and I appreciate you for doing that. And then that leads my seventh grader, who's going to be an eighth grader next year, for more possibilities of her future in the high

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school as well. So, I really appreciate that and I I thank you guys. Thank you for your comments, Ms. Antunes. Thank you. All right. One more. Oh, one more. Betsy Allmac, 3 Lake Park Drive, Piscataway. Do you mind just spelling your last name for him? >> Sure. I'll spell it again. >> [laughter]

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>> I don't know if I should be worried about that. Um I also just wanted to say thank you very much. Um I spoke a fair amount at the town hall, so I'm not going to obviously revisit that here, but thank you so much for listening.

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Um and I appreciate the willingness of the board to figure this out. So, thank you very much. Thank you. Ms. Allmac. Hi, my name is Jade Antunes. I live at 162 Dunellen Ave. And Piscataway. Your

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full name, I'm sorry. Antunes. It's Antunes. Yes. My mom. Um I just want to thank >> N E S. Um I just want to thank you guys for keeping these sports. Um it really does mean a lot to us. I I have a lot of friends over on the field hockey team, and I know how much

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this means to them as well. And the gymnastics program has changed my life in so many ways and brought me so many opportunities and >> [snorts] >> even though I might not get into college for it or get a scholarship or anything like that, but it has been a big part of my life for so

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long now, and it's it just really does mean a lot. I thank you guys so much. >> [snorts] >> Thank you, Ms. Antunes. >> [snorts] >> Um my name is Angelica Fernandez, 43 Palm Mount Place. My name is Saloni Patel, 59 Rachel Terrace.

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Um once again, like Angelica stated, we thank you so much for taking our experiences into um your decision. We had a meeting with you. I'm so thankful that you took the time to hear our voices, and thank you so much for this. Yeah, we're very grateful that we were

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able to make a change and be able to keep our sport at the high school. Thank you. Thank you so much. Thank you, ladies. Thank you for your comments. All right. Any other

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um people on the budget for 2026-2027? Okay. With that, I'll ask for a motion to close um this particular um public hearing session. Motion. Second. Okay. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed?

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All right. Moving on. Now, moving on to the final adoption of the 2026-27 school district district budget, um Dr. Connors. Yes, this is the final adoption of the 2026-27 school district budget. So, be it

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resolved that the following motion, identified as item A, be approved as presented. If you have the uh agenda, it's the only item, [snorts] item A, and uh Okay. Motion.

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Second. Second. Um that was Dr. Gail Nelson with the second. Um Would you please take the roll? Dr. Connors? Yes. Mrs. Hawk? Yes. Mr. King? Yes. Dr. Nelson? Yes. Mr. Patel?

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Yes. Ms. Rivers? Yes. Ms. Stafford? Yes. Ms. Cherry? Yes. Mrs. Sagado-Cowan? Absolutely, yes. Motion carries. >> [snorts] >> Okay. President's report. So, um at this time, I would just like to speak from the heart. I don't have

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anything specifically written down. As we know, budget season is a very difficult season in which, you know, as a board, we had to tackle quite a few challenges. What I will say is a huge

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thank you to our team, our um my fellow board members, um to our administration, to our superintendent, to the um cabinet, and particularly, I just want to really, really

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say how much I was moved and appreciate the way the students were able to express themselves so eloquently at the town hall. I know this was the first time that we had such a meeting, a budget town hall. I think that is a

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great new institution that we will be following in the future. With our new superintendent and myself, we felt that it was um vitally necessary to have that time when people can come out and really express themselves. The students were

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not only organized, heartfelt, and inspiring, honestly. Our you know, our mission here, and and when you see Piscataway schools, you should feel inspired. So, I want to thank all of the

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parents that are at home championing their um young students and athletes. I want to thank all of the young uh athletes that came out. They brought their coaches, they brought their all their people, and that is exactly what

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you want. When you have a student that will be graduating from um this high school of Piscataway, my goal is that every single one of those students will be able to organize, advocate, articulate, and understand that their voice matters.

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And so, I greatly appreciate every single one of you, and I know that these students will work hard to make sure that they increase um support. Um if they can get benefactors from outside, that would also be helpful, you know. Uh

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so, I just want to again thank the the families, the community, those who signed uh petitions, those who wrote um PowerPoints, those who sat with our superintendent as well as our um

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principal at the high school. You guys did a very, very good job, and I'm just so proud to say you are PWAY. Thank you. Superintendent's report. Once again, good evening, everyone, and I

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for those who are in the audience, you don't get a chance to see out into the audience, and the reason why we talk about the importance of the work that we do as leaders is because the emotions of our young people, our parents as well,

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but our young people are the reason why all of those in this room who are educators, who have been doing this for a long time, get up. And the most painstaking, as a parent, you don't sometimes you say no, and I'm sure there are times when you walk away and you really want to say yes, but you

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have to kind of put your foot down. When you say yes to our young people, that does bring a warm feeling in your in your spirit, because you also know you're saying yes to more than just a short-term emotion. You're saying yes to something that's

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going to have a lasting impression. Bigger than the sport that anybody plays is the connections, is the collaboration, but it's also the advocacy. And what I've learned about the young student athletes that I had a chance to meet in the last 2 weeks is that

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whatever career choice they go into, they're going to fight for their their position in whatever role they have. >> That's right. So, I say, and I begin my report by saying I sit out here and I have the best job at looking in the faces of young people who make us proud on a regular basis in what they do

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day-to-day, but bigger than that, they're going to make this township even better, and that's why I get up every morning and do what I do. So, thank you for putting a smile on our face, and sometimes we as adults need to be reminded this is why we do the work. The dollar and cents do matter, but this

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is why we do the work. Tonight, I want to take my my report, and I want to celebrate for all those who have been watching, we're connecting our work to our strategic goal. Strategic goal number one is student achievement. And student achievement is not just about the academic achievement

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of our students. It's about the well-roundedness of our students, right? And I'm about to list the names of some young people who are PWAY, making PWAY proud, but they sometimes didn't even know they were going to be recognized. They did it from the heart, and that's what makes

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accolades even better. About 2 months ago, maybe a little about 2 and 1/2 months ago, the US Circuit the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey sends out this competition for students to write essays.

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This year, I'm a believer in writing, I'm a believer in reading, but I'm a believer in in participating, because you never know, you might win, right? >> Right. Over 500 of our students submitted essays just from our township alone. That's great. All right. So, then you imagine from the whole state of New

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Jersey, all the submissions that took place. I'm proud to say on Monday, two of our students will be recognized. The two students out of all the entries are the 2026 Circuit United States District Court for the District of New

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Jersey Circuit Essay winners for the Trenton Vicinage. First place, Amari Xavier Brilliant from Quibbletown Middle School, and second place, Leila Vargas from Conackamack Middle School. We took first and second place

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out of ALL THE SCHOOLS. >> [applause] [applause] >> NOW, I WANTED TO RECOGNIZE THEM TONIGHT, BUT I knew due to our budget didn't know how long ago, but they will be recognized in the month of May. So, they will be going to the courthouse

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in Trenton on Monday morning along with their classmates to celebrate them. And I will be joining them because I think that's an important honor. On top of that, the judge was so impressed with Piscataway that the judge is doing something special for just our students.

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And we were invited to do a tour of the courthouse and all that. So, P-Way proud once again. Not done recognizing. This one is equally just as exciting. I was fortunate enough to receive a message from the NAACP Metuchen Edison

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Piscataway branch. And one of our students has been selected out of a highly competitive Rutgers Youth Enjoy Science Program at Rutgers University. Over 150 applicants from across the country participated

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and and applied, excuse me, to a program that would give them the opportunity to do advanced cancer research alongside leading scientists and practicing physicians. 150 applicants for five positions.

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I am happy to announce that Kai Harrell, grade 11, at our high school will be one of those five who will be working alongside scientists and physicians as an advanced cancer research THIS

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SUMMER. >> [applause] >> I COULD BE UP ALL NIGHT FOR THE ACCOLADES. I'MMA be mindful. Congratulations to our two high school stage productions which have been honored with the whole a host of awards. Our production of the musical Urinetown

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has been nominated for 11 Central New Jersey Marquis Awards and three honorable mentions. The Marquis Awards are the annual Tony Award style ceremony celebrating excellence in high school musical theaters across Middlesex, Somerset, and Mercer counties.

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And P- Piscataway High School received the most nominations of any school THIS YEAR. >> [applause] >> AND OUR PLAY SHE KILLS MONSTERS earned eight FOXY Award nominations which are sponsored by the Montclair State University and celebrate the best in

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high school theater from around New Jersey. Congratulations to our high SCHOOL >> [applause] >> I DID SAY I WASN'T DONE, RIGHT? Nine years in a row and running. We're very proud that Piscataway Township Schools has been named among the best communities for music education in

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America. Not New Jersey, America. For the ninth year IN A ROW. >> [applause] >> PISCATAWAY IS ONE OF JUST 1,008 districts across the country to be chosen for the prestigious honor for 2026 and one of just 69 districts in New

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Jersey and five in Middlesex County to be selected. This is the 20th Now in its 27th year, Best Communities for Music Education highlights outstanding outstanding efforts by teachers, administrators, parents, students, and community leaders who work together to ensure access to

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music learning for all students as part of the school curriculum. Congratulations. And I'mma tell you this is probably one of the hardest working supervisors All of our educators do a great job working hard, but if you're watching, we salute you, we applaud you, we thank you. We know you

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just came back from Orlando Orlando along with our board president supporting our students as they performed in Orlando. This is why our music program and our music educators are the best in the state. Congratulations to YOU AS WELL. >> [applause] >> OH, I'M NOT DONE. ALL RIGHT, I

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APOLOGIZE. CERTIFICATE of Excellence in Financial Reporting. Now, this you have to recognize that in order to do all the things that we just mentioned and we're connecting this to student achievement, right? In order to do all this, we do have to be fiscally sound. And there's people that watch and audit

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and make sure we're on point. We are very proud to announce our district has been awarded the prestigious Certificate of Excellence in Financial Reporting for the ninth year in a row from the Association of School Business Officials International. Congratulations

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>> [applause] >> to our business administrator, David Oliver. David's been with the district for over a decade, you know, the 11 years going on 12. And to say nine out of those 11 years, I'm

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first sure the first two years they were good, but you were just you know, you were just warming them up, showing them what you were really about, right? >> [laughter] >> Nine Yeah, straightening things up. Nine years in a row. That's a testament to why we can do the things that we just mentioned. So, we salute you and we know

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10 is on the wall, so we might as well just clear the wall space because you know it will be 10 years in a row because you take our budgeting process very seriously. Again, folks, I could go on all night just giving accolades. I'm being very meticulous in saying this. I hope you understand that the

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reason why we do the work we do as a board, as a as a leadership group, and this budget season is so painstaking for us and others across the state is because every time we have to cut something, we know it has an impact on what's happening out there. Trust me.

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As a former athlete, and I also did drama in high school, the reason I did it wasn't necessarily because I was good at it. I had ulterior motives. >> [laughter] >> But it was the cool spot to be. Those who know me understand that. That was my connection.

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I understand when you talk about making decisions around human beings being removed from your organization and programs. In fact, this how bold we are. We're adding more programs. Sunsetting some, but adding.

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Because I understand that in the year 2030, and you keep hearing me say it, in the year 2030, our students have to be prepared for what the global economy is is expecting of them. And some of our practices from the past will not allow them to be successful in the in before.

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I had a conversation yesterday with a um very famous CEO from the company He's the retired CEO from Tesla. And I'm sharing the story that he has said his daughter graduated in 2022 with a computer science degree.

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She no longer can use that degree. And in fact, there are many higher ed educations places that are institution, [snorts] excuse me, that are getting rid of computer science as a major. Because artificial intelligence is changing the way

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corporate and businesses are doing work. Well, you're about to see our educational institution here go through some light speed changes to make sure we're keeping up as well. So, it's essential that it's the budget conversation, but you're going to see some some shifting around of some things in order

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to make sure our students are competitive and prepared. You can't change the human interaction that that's necessary in in competitive sports. You can't change it in some of our hands-on trades and activities. However, there are some other spaces that we're going to become very efficient. And

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we're going to become very wise at how we prepare our students so that their creative genius can truly shine. And I want all of our students to be able to shine and showcase their creative genius. We have probably two or three more pages of information we could talk about. Look

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forward to coming out in Parent Square. Please be prepared to see it in the Superintendent Report. We're working on something very special that's going to be released June, hopefully before graduation. I want people across the country to know

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about us. And we're going to publicize it in any way we can, not just on paper, not in print, it's going to also be done in perhaps documentaries and movies. Because we have a story here to tell and everybody deserves to hear it.

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Madam President, I want to also make sure everybody is aware that the month of May is Mental Health Awareness Month. So, you'll see us We have several events going on. I won't read them all, but I'm excited about May 13th. So, spread the word. We're going to

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paint P- paint P-Way green. So, everybody's wearing green on May 13th. You can wear it all month long. And then when so many people are going through so many things, this is just another way of showing it. We're leaving out of Autism Awareness Month, so we're walking into May is Mental Health

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Awareness, so wear green. Any shade of green is cool. I have a couple little outfits I've already I'm ready to rock and roll with. Some new bow ties are coming into the place, but wear green, showcase. It's okay for the month. I know we're black and gold, but green is cool too to wear just for

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the month of May. And then June. June will be here before we know it. Graduation season, prom season, all those celebratory pomp and circumstance. We should be ready for the month of June. Close out the school year, get ready for summer vacation. Travel. Some of our students are going to be working in in the district. It's This is the

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exciting time because you can see the end. But please, I say this to everyone, support our students. Keep them first. This board will continue to do that work on our side, and parents, I'm asking you do that on our on your side. We're not perfect, but we're striving to be the

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best. I don't like being anything less than number one. So, my as when I interviewed, I shared with the board, my goal is to make sure that we're in the top 10 in the state. If we get to the top 10 in the state across all these categories, I promise you, there will be people running and trying

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to move into our neighborhood. So, your property values will skyrocket even more. But, don't sell your homes. I love your kids staying here. Madam President and the board, that's my report for this evening. Thank you very much, Superintendent Glover. He reminded me I'm wearing Mickey ears and I didn't

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explain myself. So, I love Disney and I brought back the magic. So, uh our our arts department, uh orchestra, and choir had an amazing trip to Disney um just last weekend and they

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performed brilliantly. And I will be putting up some videos. I've been very busy working after I came back from vacation. So, I've been able to post, but you'll see uh lots of videos that are going to be out there about how great our students did. And I'm not just

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wearing Mickey ears cuz I love Mickey, but because I did see Mickey and I brought back the magic. Second thing that I forgot to talk about is we're all in blue tonight. You will see that. Um uh the majority of us have blue on in order to just

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uh recognize that this month in April is Autism Awareness Month. So, we will be having themes. I think green is next on the docket, I hear. So, um just look out for that. Thank you very much and I close my President

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Report part two. All right. Um personnel and labor relations, um Ms. Shantel Cherry. Be it resolved that the following motions identified as items A through D be approved as [snorts] presented.

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Second. Second. All right. Um will you take the roll? Yes. Dr. Conners? Yes. Ms. Glover? Yes. Mr. King? Yes. Dr. Nelson? Yes. Mr. Patel? Yes. Ms. Rivers? Uh yes, abstain B4.

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Which one? B4. B4? Yes, thank you. Ms. Stafford? Yes. Ms. Cherry? Abstain B4, yes to the rest. Ms. Salgado-Cowan? Yes. Motions carried. Okay. We are moving forward with our um committee reports. >> [snorts] >> Okay. Okay.

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Oh, yes, personnel. We are going to recognize um some of our new employees or a new employee that's coming to our district. Madam President, at this time, it brings great pleasure to recognize a new member

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of our family who will be joining us as the new principal of Randolphville Elementary School. I would like to present to you and to the community Ms. Stacey George-Mingo, who will be new principal effective JULY 1ST, 2026. >> [applause]

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>> THERE WE GO. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. Board President, you're we're all present. Welcome. All right. Sorry I forgot about that. That's a new thing we're doing here in the district is recognizing our new employees um by having them come up and be

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welcomed. So, thank you very much and um now we'll we'll move on to committee reports. Fiscal Planning and Operations, Dr. Tom Conners. At the Fiscal Plans and Operations

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Committee, uh we met on Wednesday, April 15th to discuss our 2025 and 2026 budgets, facility capital projects, and bunch of other stuff. [snorts] On the budget, you know, we just voted on it tonight, but the Mr. Olivera updated the committee that

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the health benefit claims cost through March continue to be over budget. And uh minimal to no funds will be available for capital reserve and maintenance reserve. And I'm just going to inject something is that um I also get involved at a higher level uh

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with school boards and there is an organization of of a bunch of associations um besides the New uh New Jersey School Boards um such as the New Jersey Association of School Business Officials, etc. And we just cast a letter to Governor

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Mikey Sherrill uh about this issue. And so, this is coming from many associations called the New Jersey Leadership for Educational Excellence. And the rising health cost premiums are consuming an ever larger portion of already constrained school districts'

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budgets, forcing difficult decisions, as you just saw. So, there is an organization that is uh putting it right in front of the governor to to deal with it. Uh the 2026-2027 budget, county approved our

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tentative budget. It was advertised and being submitted to the newspaper and uh uh the budget book was released right after we put out a budget book. So, the details are in here. And then also uh once it goes to the county, it will be on our website in a

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uh friendly edition. Use user-friendly book. And in the budget book. Yeah, right on the on our website tomorrow. Uh facility capital projects, uh we're uh a district that actually um is

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debt-free of um uh so, we don't pay any debt service cuz we don't have any bonded debt. So, what we do is we uh work on a lot of very specific facility capital projects with the money that we do have. And uh latest one was the Piscataway High School

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interior alterations. You may have seen it on the social media. The official grand opening of the media center was held April 21st. Uh we also invest in our um intercom and PA and clock system up

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there as well. Uh test group of administrators and office staff have been using phones. Teaching staffs are reviewing training documentation this week and the phones will go live on Monday, April 20th. Um school administration and police department received training on the security drill features.

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Quibbletown uh solar panel decommissioning, uh our permits have been approved and work is expected to be completed by the end of May. Roof work is expected to begin June 2019. Fellowship Farms, which is this uh building, preschool alterations. Uh

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asbestos abatement was completed ahead of schedule. The general contract director has uh resumed work and purchase orders uh were issued on the uh for the playground vendors. Canackamack roof and solar decommissioning, solar panel decommissioning bid specification will

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be issued on April 16th. The bid opening is scheduled for May 7th and the work will be completed this summer. Uh painting, we invest a lot of money in doing painting services as well as Promethean board installations. Painting bids will be issued on April 16th. The bid opening is scheduled for May 6th and the work will

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be completed this summer. The district is awaiting final Promethean board. If you get a chance and you're out in your schools, just admire I you know, everybody likes a freshly painted um environment and we um have a dedicated team that that does that. Piscataway High School Quibbletown solar

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panel installation, district administration met with the roof manufacturer Garland for the existing roof at Piscataway High School Anthony Building. There's some problem areas up there uh that need repair and have been identified. The district is negotiating [clears throat] the repair work with the roof manufacturer with the roof warranty for

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the new solar panel installation. A portion of the patent roof also is covered by the Garland warranty and will repair at no cost this summer. The solar panel installation details needed some adjustments in the panels used in the uh associated racking. Work will begin when

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the roof repairs replacements are complete. So, we you know, invest our money in doing so solar panels. Transportation of update, several routes have been identified for possible cons- uh consolidation into other routes for all of K through 12 schools and

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preschool for 2026-2027. Uh Mr. Olivera opened discussions with Laidlaw Transportation about the possible contract renewal for several options and that are being considered. Uh the New Jersey School Business Legislative Update, like I said that I I hold an office in New Jersey School Boards

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Association and um so, and David is New Jersey Association of School Business Officials. So, what we do is we look at legislation that be coming down that could affect our school district. And the first one bill that um that I brought brought up was uh a current

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2026-2027 legislative session. It includes bills relating to sharing what's known as payment in lieu of taxes uh uh money uh where the town collects the money um as payments in lieu of taxes and there's a a bill out there that um

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if if school if children go into the school system that are affected, that the bill is going to be asking that this Board of Education have a seat at the table in the negotiations when a developer comes into the town. And so, that's another source of revenue that we

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do we do not get at this particular moment in time. But, this is just in South Orange. It's a statewide issue. That's why it's a statewide legislative bill. It's also known as PILOT. Yeah, under PILOTs. Um it's Senate 1807

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uh right now. Uh Capital project funding, we talked about artificial intelligence surveillance systems we talked about. Also discussed was the DEOE school funding report that reviews possible changes to the formula. Besides the property tax levy, as you saw, the other

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majority of our revenue comes from what's known as the state aid to the state school funding formula, and that's always seems to be a hot topic of discussion at the state level. Um Mr. Olivera noted the ongoing budget hearings in the legislature, including

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an assembly budget hearing with the Department of Education, and the New Jersey Association of School Business Officials intends to attend that Senate budget hearing in May and possibly even testify about um cuz they like to hear what's happening at the local level, how you're being

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affected by the state funding. Business office update [snorts] uh Um our business administrator, we uh we have through policy of of put him in charge of an investment account, so the committee takes certain portion of some of our budgets that we're allowed to

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invest in. And um then we can use that money to offset some of the capital uh facility projects. And uh we reviewed our current balance. It's called New Jersey Asset and Reinvestment Management uh system, and we reviewed that statement. Um

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and I think since we've been doing it, we've we've gotten over almost a million dollars in the last few year few years from uh for that. Well above that. Yeah, well above that. So, that's that's a good thing to do. So, our money just isn't sitting over here. We're allowed by law to invest some of it and get that money to offset

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our capital uh budget projects. Um and again, as was was said, the Certificate of Excellence in Financial Reporting, the district was awarded that um that award uh for the ninth year in a row. And um that's just kudos to how

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well of an audit system we do have um you know, going on for like the last nine nine years. [snorts] Uh school lead filter program, the district was awarded $10,876.93 for the reimbursement [snorts] of filtered bottle

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filling stations and faucet. The district expects to install three bottle filling stations with this funding and will save installation cost using in-house maintenance staff. And the last thing is um this program known as Papercut, and we're very conscious about, you know, using paper, you know,

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paper and paper. Is that uh So, through through March, the district has reduced its paper usage by 21% during 2025-26 with a dollar value of $8,000. So, Madam President, that is the uh report of the Fiscal Planning and Operations

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Committee. Thank you, Dr. Tom Connors. We're moving on to Policy and Legislative, um Ms. Loretta Rivers. Uh yes, the Policy Legislative Committee met on Monday, April 20th, to discuss sexual harassment policy, school board

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voting, and legislative matters. The committee full discussion of the policy and regulation 1552, which was sexual harassment by staff. Um Mr. Ruben did explain that this latest version was intended by

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Strauss Esmay to include references to the federal law that were missing from the board's current policy and regulations. Concerns that the draft is potentially misleading because it emphasizes federal law over New Jersey anti-discrimination

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law, which provides greater protection, led the committee to defer action. The committee discussed a suggestion by the board president that school board elections convert to rank choice voting. This issue is slated from consideration

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by New Jersey School Board Association Delegate Assembly. >> [snorts] >> Mr. Ruben gave a general explanation of how rank choice voting works and some of the pros and cons. The committee [snorts] will continue to discuss um discussion at this next meeting after

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Mr. Ruben provides more background information. Also, Mr. Ruben reported that the Senate bill 1807 addressing the PILOT program is still at the committee stage. He will continue to track its process progress and keep the committee informed.

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Myself inquired things with Ruben inquired about the the district implementation of the recent legislation regarding internet-enabled devices. Mr. Ruben did report that the Department of Education has issued guidelines, and Strauss Esmay

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is expected to circulate a proposed policy shortly. Mr. Glover shared that the district approach should emphasize responsibility over punishment. Is this the bell-to-bell cell phone one that's that with this legislation?

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Is it inclusive of >> [clears throat] >> Okay. Moving on to Curriculum, um Ms. Shantel Cherry. Curriculum Committee met on April Monday, April 13th, to discuss a possible woodworking program, Arts in

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Our Schools Month, and more. Woodworking program was presented by Michael Shulock. Mr. Glover introduced Michael Shulock from Maplewood Shop as part of an ongoing conversation about building a woodworking program for elementary and middle school students. Maplewood Shop

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has about 60 programs across the state and provides training for teachers, supplies, and curriculum. Students would be part of the middle school feeder program, then have a chance at an apprenticeship and dual enrollment program at the high school. Rutgers Math Circle was discussed by

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Rebecca Dayton. High school, middle school, and gifted and talented students in grades 4 through 5 attended Rutgers Math Circle. Instructional coaches and supervisors attended a session to experience math and applications. VPA updates were done

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by Rebecca Stellaki. Rebecca Stellaki shared highlights from the past month in the Visual and Performing Arts Department with a sliding show of experience, honors, and events from Arts in Our Schools Our Schools Month. NJ cursive handwriting was discussed by

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Dr. Baskerville. A state mandate signed in January will require handwriting in schools with a target range of grades 3 through 5. Administrators will plan how this will be implemented, being intentional about what it looks like in teaching and learning. And I think this

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is my report. Thank you very much. So, we will um move on to Approval of the Minutes, Ms. Habiba Haque. Be it resolved that the following minutes be approved as submitted. Business Meeting, March 12th, 2026. Executive Session,

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March 12th, 2026. Second. Um all those in favor. Aye. Any opposed? Okay. Business Meeting, March 25th, 2026. Executive Session, March 25th, 2026.

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Second. That was Patel. All those in favor. Aye. Uh any against? Okay. Special Meeting, April 16th, 2026. Second. All right, whichever one you heard, I

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don't know. Gail, I guess. Dr. Nelson. And all those in favor. Aye. Any with the special meeting. Yes. Yes. So, you're a nay. Nay. Okay. I'm abstaining. She's abstaining. Oh, okay.

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Cuz she was not there. Okay, but Same for David. I'm abstaining. Shantel and Loretta are abstaining from special meeting minutes from April 16th, 2026. All right. Um this is our second public comments

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from the floor. The Board of Education recognizes the value of public comment on educational issues and school matters in the community um community interest. In support of this position, the law establishes a period of public comment at every board meeting. Individuals wishing to speak must state their name

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and address. Comments are limited to 3 minutes' duration, but an individual may speak a second time after all others who wish to speak on the topic have been heard. The board may require that individuals register to speak prior to being the beginning of the meeting. Participants may submit written

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materials in support of their position. All statements and or questions shall be directed to the presiding officer, and no participant may address or question board members individually. All speakers are requested to express themselves in a civil manner with due respect for the

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dignity and privacy of others whose legal rights may be affected. Please note, while it's not the board's intention to stifle comment on matters of legitimate concern to the school community, the public should be aware that if their statements violate the rights of others under the law governing

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defamation or invasion of privacy, they may face personal liability to the injured party. If speakers are uncertain of their legal ramifications of their comments, the board urges them to seek guidance beforehand from their own legal advisor.

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Anyone wishing to speak? >> [snorts] >> Thank you. Uh good evening members of the Board of Education and superintendent. My name is Sayed Ahmed. I'm a resident at 399 Highland Avenue. I'm here regarding the proposed 83 unit development on Macedonia property

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located within Ludlow Street, Deborah Drive, Highland Avenue, and Roosevelt Avenue. Um just a few hundred feet away from our schools. This project risks creating serious safety and traffic challenges that will directly impact Conackamack Middle School and MLK Intermediate

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School. Today, drop-off and pick-up are already at a breaking point. Parents routinely park along Witherspoon Street, Ludlow Street, and nearby roads to safely walk their children. Adding more vehicles into these narrow streets

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will create an even more unsafe environment for uh student walkers. The situation worsens uh during school events such as back-to-school nights, winter and spring concerts, and promotion ceremonies. Parents often circle about 15 to 20

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minutes and park um blocks away uh because existing parking cannot meet demand. Adding an 83-unit high-density development bringing an estimated of 120 to 160 additional vehicles will turn

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this into a permanent safety concern. Number one, permanent permanent loss of overflow parking. The residential street parents rely on for school events will now be occupied by the 83 new households forcing families to park farther away

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and creating unsafe walking condition through congested areas. Number two, increased gridlock. More resident vehicles will mean more idling car on Highland and Roosevelt precisely when buses and parents are trying to navigate the

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morning rush. This congestion creates blind spots and increases the risk of accidents. Number three, emergency access concerns. During school events the combined density of visitors and new residents could block the access necessary for

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emergency responders putting students at risk. And importantly, increased enrollment pressure. Even modest number of additional students from 83 unit can strain staffing, class sizes, and specialized [clears throat] services. Our schools

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are already balancing enrollment challenges. An unexpected increase may force redistricting at portable classrooms or reduce program quality. Uh this isn't just about cars or parking. It's about the daily experience of our children.

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Their walks to school, their safety during events, their classroom, their future. I'm asking the board to please step in and urge the Township Council to conduct a comprehensive parking, traffic, school impact study before

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allowing this project to move forward. Our children deserve to attend schools that are safe, accessible, and prepared not overwhelmed by preventable risks. Thank you for listening and as always putting our students first. Thank you

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for your comments. Just 1 second. Um I think that um Mr. Clinton No, let me get it. Okay. Um he'll be getting back to you. Can you just spell your name again, your last name? Uh A H M E D. And

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Sayed, S Y E D first name. Okay. And you've gone to the Township Council about this as well? We haven't. I haven't gone to yet, but I was bringing it to your attention uh seeing the way the tra school streets are right now. Okay, thank you.

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Hello. Hi. My name's Elizabeth Pivinski and I live at 423 Rivercrest Drive. Um and I am also here to express concerns about this 83-unit um complex that is being built that close to Conackamack and um Martin

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Luther. Um I live on the corner of Rivercrest and Witherspoon. Um so I have seen firsthand how morning drop-off goes with the current traffic that we have. Um and I have had a car in my front lawn during morning drop-off. Um that is

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where they ended up trying to avoid a collision at that intersection. And it just makes me really nervous to add a minimum of a hundred more cars, up to 160 of just residents. Um I was very thankful that there was no student in

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the sidewalk at the time that that car ended up in my front lawn. Um I have witnessed cars um roll through the stop sign, ignore the crossing guard, and they never go 25 miles an hour down Witherspoon, which is in between the two schools. Right.

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And we are talking about younger children as well, which I feel is really important um cuz you can't always see them Right. based on their size. So, it makes me very concerned um living on that corner. Um and we've seen an increase in traffic

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since the Y has opened, so I can't imagine what apartment complex of 83 units would do to this area cuz it is such a high traffic area for the children. Um and I also want us to think about after-school activities because there's

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no crossing guards at that time. There are only crossing guards in morning drop-off and afternoon when they go home, but not necessarily after they're done with an after-school activity. I do know Martin Luther King hosts um baseball and softball games and the

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parents park along Witherspoon. So, I'm just very concerned how this would impact the students and their safety and their ability to enjoy the community. Um and also on top of that, we also need to think about increased traffic in

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terms of DoorDash, Amazon deliveries, FedEx, UPS throughout the day. It's just going to I think add too much congestion and I just am very concerned about student safety based on the experiences that I've had in my home.

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Thank you. Thank you for your comments. Hello everyone. Hi, how are you? Hello. Good. Good. Andrew Morris, 410 Highland Avenue, Scotch Plains. First of all, let me say I'm impressed with all of you. Uh I don't come to board meetings too often, but you guys

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really really really do put students first and student safety and achievement. So, I'm sitting here smiling because it's all good news. Um I know there's some a lot of work to do, but there's a lot of good news and I'm impressed with how how much you care

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about the uh safety and progress of students. So, my kids went to school here also. They all went through college and the whole nine yards. But, I'm here today to inform you of a great potential hazard that would impact the

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school system, particularly King School and Conackamack. Uh Macedonia Roosevelt Church LLC wants to offer their property between Highland Avenue, Roosevelt Avenue, and

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Ludlow Street to the state of New Jersey to build 83-unit affordable housing apartment building. The complex is proposed to be three stories tall plus a roof and a basement and come with

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parking for over a hundred cars. Jus- all just one half block from King School and one block from Conackamack. So, it would be huge. So, please don't get it wrong. This is not an issue about affordable housing.

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This issue is about this housing project being too large for its location. It is too close to schools, only a half a block away. It's right on the other corner. The inherent danger of a hundred

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additional cars on the street every day in front of King and Conackamack School would be a traffic and safety nightmare. Additionally, God forbid an emergency, if emergency services are needed,

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police, fire, or ambulance, their services would be greatly blocked or delayed. It becomes a true community crisis. We are asking that the school board voice their concern regarding the safety

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of children and family and the impact of traffic and congestion on the normal flow schedule of education for teaching and learning. Late staff, late students.

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Uh Can I show this to someone? Yes, definitely. So, look. It's a pretty good picture. Oh, yeah. It's a picture of a normal school day at

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King School. Now, imagine a hundred cars. Right. At that same site, a hundred more cars right there. So, it'd just be outrageous. So, in closing, Oh, well, yes, there was a plan to build

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uh another type of housing there and we're all for that. It would be eight houses and yes, some of them could be affordable, but that's not the issue. It's just that it's 83 houses there. So, in closing, children are our most precious commodity,

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but this housing complex complex with 83 apartments and over a hundred cars is in the wrong location for the project and it endangers all children, families, and community. So, please voice your

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concern. It's too close to the school. All right. Thank you all. >> Thank you. Thank you. Okay. >> Hi, my name is Tammy Jackson, 347 Park Ave. I've been a resident of Park Ave in Piscataway for over 50 years. The

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traffic and excessive speed have always been an issue, but it's increased over the past few years. Most days, it takes me several minutes just to get out of my driveway. Are you aware of this three-story 83-unit building being considered to

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invade our suburban neighborhood? We don't live in an urban area, and a building of this magnitude just does not fit. Can you imagine the number of cars this building will produce? Well, if you have

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83 units and two cars, that's 166 cars. Where are they going to park? How will the fire trucks get by or an ambulance in an emergency? This will also produce massive

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pandemonium for parents and buses daily. This will be a nightmare for our children walking to and from school, and the traffic will be out of control to say the least. I attended Martin Luther King and Conackamack, and so did both of my

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children. Living close to the school and walking with your friends is something all children should be able to enjoy. But the building of this size and this magnitude will add an abundance of cars and become a safety hazard for our school system.

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Please investigate this. We do not need to lose one of our kids to overcrowding in our suburban neighborhood. Thank you. >> Thank you. Hi, my name is Carol Saunders. I live at 5257 Ludlow Street. In fact, I am the

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only resident besides that lives near King School. It's only my house and King School that has a Ludlow address. So, I see it all. I get parking in front of my house. I get passed by school buses trying to get in my yard. It's ridiculous. And the the thing the Excuse

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me. The main thing is the children. I talked to the crossing guard regularly, and we watch the people just flying through the neighborhood. The township is aware of it, but and as everybody knows, they're speeding all around town. But sometimes some cars can't stop

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coming down from Rivercrest to get to um to get to Park Avenue. Sometimes they have to go down to Kroger Field to turn around. That's how fast this is. And then you're going to add in additional units, and it's just more traffic for our kids to try to compete and walk across the

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street. It's crazy. So, we're just asking to get a little more support, and we have been and you know, we've expressed our concerns to with the township as well, but we're trying to gather enough support from the residents um in the neighborhood that are going to

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be greatly impacted by this development. Thank you. Thank you. Okay. All right. So, um we do hear you, and um as you know, we are a board that does listen to our community. Um we'll take that into consideration, and at

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sometime, not tonight, but we may be able to have a formal uh statement. Thank you. Oh, are the comments over or No, um public comments from the floor are still open. I don't know if there's a line. I don't

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know if there's anybody. Do I have to repeat my name and all of that? Okay, Courtney Gaynor, uh 63 Nova Drive. Okay. Um so, I just had a statement um that I wanted to make about the uncomfortable truth of drug use in

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Piscataway school bathrooms. Um this specific situation is Piscataway High School, but it's really not the only one by far. Um it's an open secret known to students and parents that many of our children avoid using

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restrooms at school at all, instead preferring to hold their bodily functions um due to what I believe are aggressive policies um meant to curtail drug use um which I believe, you know, cuz I

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think our kids are great. Um few bad apples. Um the good apples are greatly impacted because of this. So, why do our kids avoid using the bathroom?

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Well, what I'm starting to learn is that the policies, many of which that are not really written anywhere, you know, I'm just kind of falling into this information. Um that the school has taken

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um that children just would rather, you know, go home uh to pee or whatever. Uh involves having both male and female staff enter the restroom if there's any suspicion of

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drug use. So, a male staff member can open a female uh restroom, open the door, announce that they are entering. Um being detained by staff in the restroom for indefinite periods while

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waiting in line for inspection. >> [snorts] >> Missing out on class or extracurriculars uh for no uh no fault of their own. Uh feeling confusion and fear because just like these, you know, policies are not written anywhere for parents, they're not really communicated to the

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kids. You know, it's uncomfortable. They don't know what to expect. You know, it might be strange if you're lined up, you know, which if you're a black person like myself, you know, feeling guilt

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um or awkwardness or shame um when you know you've done nothing wrong. Um being waved by a metal detector, having their possessions removed from their bags and searched through by uh staff,

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being marched to the main office under supervision of staff, being detained in the main office until a guardian who may not be in close proximity arrives. You know, a lot of us work very hard. And if you are a truck driver, you cannot just spin that Lays truck around

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and come to the school um on a dime. So, there's also the question of what happens if, you know, the parent cannot come back to school before approved staff members

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leave. Well, from what I understand, the police department comes. The police department comes and will take custody of your child. These are not things that are really communicated in a way that I think a lot of parents are aware of. And I can only imagine the fear that

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will strike our, you know, children's hearts at seeing a police car pull up just because, you know, in my child's case, you know, she likes to drink tea at school and visited two bathrooms be-

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until she really just couldn't wet herself. So, went, used the bathroom, got caught in what basically amounts to a sting. Um so then, you're mar- uh you're detained again in the main office

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until Yeah, so the guardian comes, and then the children are told not to use their phones, even if it's after school, except to call parents. Seems punitive. I'm not really sure why that rule exists. Um I just want to remind you you're over 3

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minutes. Uh so were other people, but thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you for your comments. Thank you. Anyone else wishing to speak? Hi, Celeste Fiore. I live in Piscataway. Um I just I actually wanted to to to thank

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the school board for their uh community arts outreach. Um I was able to attend the uh community choir, which was I think, I don't know, it might have been last week. Um and I was not only surprised by how good, and I hate to say

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it, maybe I'm just projecting my terrible singing onto others, but I was surprised at how good the community was, but also how many people turned out. Um the the choir itself is somewhere between 40 and 50. They also did an intergenerational sing, and I've lived

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in a number of towns in New Jersey, some of which pride themselves on being much more inclusive, diverse, and wealthy, and they do not do community programs like that, nor do they have community members come out and support and be involved. Uh and so I know that that

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funding comes from the school district, and I know that uh they this uh school board of this district lent uh Rebecca, um who is an amazing choir director, who put on an incredible performance. And I've also sat through my my fair share of um

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uh young people choirs, and I can only imagine how amazing she is she is when she when she's working with adults and what she can is able to do with young people. So, I wanted to say thank you and as a community member like those types of programs are really

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important and um, they allow community members to come in and see the facilities and also to interact with some of the teachers and also some of the young people. So, um, thank you for thank you for that program and I also want to

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say thank you for not cutting women's sports in a time when for some reason women's sports are under a spotlight but for all of the wrong reasons and I think that what the board has decided to do tonight is to put the focus back on women's sports and say we're actually going to

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encourage and fund those sports because those student athletes deserve a place to play. All of our student athletes regardless of sex, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, race, all of all of the things that make us

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who we are. We all deserve to play sports. We all deserve to participate in all activities. So, thank you. Thank you. Hello, my name is Jacinta Fernandez. I'm part of the Piedmont Voice Piscataway. I just want to say thank you on behalf

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of my daughter Angelica and both the sports program athletes gymnastics and field hockey and as a parent I want to thank you all board members for hearing them, listening to them and keeping the program. That's that's thank you from the bottom of my heart and God bless you

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all for hearing us and keeping that program. So, thank you. Thank you. Okay. Is there anyone else wishing to speak um, to the board? If not, we will give Miss Gainer. Gainer

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more time. You have three additional minutes. Anyone want to go? Um, yeah. Okay. Charles Sanders 5257 Leto Street. I just wanted to talk about the athletics. They these kids were great this year. I don't know if they I think

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I enjoyed seeing them more than But I was just going to ask is there a way to put it on the school square? Because I have a hard time trying to find the schedule on the main page. Okay. Well, we'll take that into consideration. Cuz I was digging today trying to find

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out when the softball and baseball play. There is an app. Huh? >> You can put on your phone. Okay. What which one is it? It's a scheduler. It's like that you can put on your phone and it'll go right to the schedule. Okay. All right, thank you. Thank you. Oh, one more.

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Uh, good evening. Lisa Burke B U R K E Piscataway. I actually just wanted to share also some recognition and acknowledgement. As a community member, I have really been observing over the past couple of months in terms of students out in the community in particular that Piscataway Township

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schools are committed to whole person education for global citizenship and there were really three recent experiences. One was at the libraries make it day where students from the robotics team had a whole series of

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exhibits and varying grade level interactive activities. What I really wanted to highlight was the manner in which the students presented themselves. They gave an informational presentation and they had such exceptional polish

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and I really want to highlight that because I think sometimes these things can seem incidental. It wasn't just their manner of speaking but it was their style of presenting. They had PowerPoint slides. They didn't read from them. They were conversant and they were engaging. They were broadly inclusive in

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their language using inclusive terminology, not binary gendered language when talking about their peers and their their diverse groups. So, that was one that stood out. The second and I may have the chronology of these not in the right order but the

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empty cups event at the high school where the very gifted ceramics students have this array of beautiful mugs that they make but they showcase them in the content in the context of service, right? Because it was a fundraiser to

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support the local community and people who are experiencing food insecurity. And I think to allow the students to take that kind of leadership and they had, you know, this whole fair where there were students with the the literary magazine and there were arts

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and crafts and all these other things. Again, this this whole person whole community experience comes across so authentically. And then the most recent one was actually an information table that the students and I'll apologize for not knowing the exact name of the club

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but if they were in promoting organ donor awareness through the New Jersey Sharing Network. They had an array of information but what struck me most was really the way in which the students relayed the the reason for them being there, the thinking behind it and they I

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will be honest that they so meaningfully explained in a non intense way the rationale and the process that I actually left the library contemplating updating my driver's license. And so lastly, I will just also add having been

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a member of the collective choral or the choral collective concert on the 21st how meaningful it was and also just echoing how [snorts] professional it was. I in all humility have had the experience of singing in choral groups

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at Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall. And this experience could match that any day and for me it had been 30 years since I had sung in a choral group on stage but exceptional is an accurate description and as has been noted

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Rebecca just has an exceptional way of relating and generating community and so I just thought especially at this time of year and with all of the administrative things that you you deal with that it's important to know how the community is experiencing the community

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nature of the school district. So, thank you. Thank you. Thank you for your comments. Uh, if there are no other individuals wishing to speak, we can have Miss Gainer. Yeah.

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Thank you for the time. Um, so I just wanted to kind of close out the, you know, steps that you know, I'm just learning about them [clears throat] myself. Um, and then your when you arrive, you have to take your

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child to a a very specific location where you are drug tested. Um, the five panel test that I spoke about during the budgetary portion. Um, and Medemerge is actually a middleman. They're not actually doing

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the testing. So, that information our children's DNA, our children's personal information specifically our children's school, you know, which can be easily searched up on the internet including hours

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of operation and very sensitive details like that are being sent to the actual clinic which is Quest Diagnostics. So, I feel like we need to pause a little bit here and really think about are there sufficient

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disclosures about this process? Um, when it comes to the privacy policy, I think you guys did a fantastic job. It's on a single page. It's very clear. It's concise. It's broken up in little pieces. It's not a 65 page document with a bunch of legalese or anything like

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that. Um, and I think the same needs to be true for drug test drug testing policies in this township. Um, our children and the parents know for a fact that if you just go to the bathroom

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there's a likelihood someone may have come before you or will come after you, do what they do and now you're going to be detained twice. In the bathroom you're going to be searched and then you're going to be detained in the

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office. This is an entire process that can be very traumatic and Miss Yusufzai I think is fantastic. Love her. She shared that these children are scared. We're terrorizing our children. Is this justified?

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We should really put our heads together and really think about creative ways that um, we could possibly look at the situation. I think it's worth it. I think we owe it to our kids because for the most part we can all agree that our children are

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amazing. Yeah. Our children are great. Um, kids have been talking in the bathroom since the beginning of time. It's life. It's true. You know what I mean? And um, is this over policing? Would this happen in wealthier school

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districts? I don't know. I'm not trying to judge anyone who's behind these policies but what I'm thinking is that the our world is moving faster than the laws

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that govern what happens. So, um the laws that we consider relevant are 20 years old. We've moved on. We've moved on. There's a lot of things that need to be considered. Um especially in the FCNA era, you know,

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let's be real about that. There's all sorts of things that our governments aren't acknowledging. Right? We just kind of like let it fly and we move on with our life. And when people can know where our children

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go to school and connect that to um private information, private information that we all have that is constantly being constantly being leaked, you know, through data breaches. There are so many data breaches in the

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state of New Jersey alone. I've researched it myself. Specifically, actually Quest Diagnostics. Okay. Which is where our DNA, our children's DNA is ending up. Our children's DNA shares identity. All right. Um you're now at 4 minutes again. So >> It's okay. I'll be back at the next

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meeting. Thank you, everybody. >> just I just gave you a little more time, but we got to move on. Um thank you for your comments. Um anyone else wishing to speak? Okay. Um motion to close public comments from

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the floor. Motion. Second. Okay. All those in favor of closing open uh public comments from the floor, say yay. I. >> I. Anyone opposed? Okay. Moving on. Uh fiscal planning and operations, Dr.

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Tom Conners. Be it resolved that following motions identified as items A through H be approved as presented. Okay. Um is this uh a roll call? Yes, will you take the roll call, please?

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Mrs. Hart? Yes. Mr. King? Yes. Dr. Nelson? Yes. Mr. Patel? Yes. Mrs. Rivers? Yes. Ms. Stafford? Yes. Dr. Conners? Uh Yes. Mr. Cherry? Yes. Mrs. Sagato Calon? Yes.

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Motion carried. Okay. Um there's nothing in policy. Um so, we're going to Right, Mrs. Rivers? No. Okay. So, we're going to move on to curriculum. >> do have policy. Yeah, but I don't think there's anything to be resolved though in policy. That's what I mean. So, um

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curriculum, Prashant Patel. Be it resolved that following motions identified as items A and B be approved as presented. Second. Um can you take the roll call, please? Dr. Nelson? Yes.

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Mr. Patel? Yes. Mrs. Rivers? Yes. Ms. Stafford? Yes. Dr. Conners? Yes. Mrs. Hart? Yes. Mr. King? Yes. Mr. Cherry? Yes. Mrs. Sagato Calon? Yes. Motion carried. Okay. Moving on to Dr. Nelson for pupil

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services. Be it resolved that the following motions identified as items A and B be approved as presented. Second. Okay. Um can we have a vote? Mr. Patel? Yes. Mrs. Rivers? Yes. Ms.

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Stafford? Yes. Dr. Conners? Yes. Mrs. Hart? Yes. Mr. King? Yes. Dr. Nelson? Yes. Mr. Cherry? Yes. Mrs. Sagato Calon? Yes. Motion carried. Uh administrative and auxiliary, Ms. Stafford. Be it resolved that the

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following motions identified as items A through F be approved as presented. Second. Okay. Can we have a roll call? Mrs. Rivers? Yes. Ms. Stafford? Yes. Dr. Conners? Yes. Mrs. Hart? Yes. Mr. King? Yes.

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Dr. Nelson? Yes. Mr. Patel? Yes to all abstain. G. Uh we're not on G. This is A through F only. >> Okay. G is separate. G is a separate one. Okay. So, you're a yes to all? Yes to all. All. Mr. King?

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>> Yes. Mrs. Sagato Calon? Yes, I do want to make a comment here. Um you may hear us uh approving these items that are you know, being called off. Um be it resolved and so on and so forth. The each and every one of us are part of

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committees um that we attend and take minutes and discuss and go through at length. Some of our community members are here who are on those committees. So, when you hear us just approving, it's gone

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through a lengthy process before it's actually put on our agenda. So, there has been discussion and once it's on our agenda, that's when we're going to approve it. So, I just wanted to mention that. Okay. Um

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you got to do be it resolved for G. Oh, it's me? No, no, no. It's Gail. Gail. Or Anika? Mhm. I thought it was Anika. No, it wasn't. Oh, it was Anika. I'm sorry. Bottom of page 16. Bottom of page Thanks. Be it resolved that the following

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motions identified as G be approved as presented. Second. Okay. And um may we take the roll? Mrs. Rivers? Yes. Ms. Stafford? Yes. Dr. Conners? Yes. Mrs. Hart? Yes. Mr. King?

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Yes. Dr. Nelson? Yes. Mr. Patel? Abstain. Mr. Cherry? Yes. Mrs. Sagato Calon? Yes. Motion carries. Thank you. Um we're going to move on to old business. And um I actually have one piece of old business.

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Um it's a very good report to let the community know that we have completed all of our studies as a school board and we will be recognized as uh master

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certified school board uh come uh October, September, October. So, we completed our uh 10 additional credits. >> [applause] >> And I just want to thank every single member of this board as well as those who have served on the board in the last year or two cuz it's been a mission that

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we've been doing this over the last 2 years. If you're out there um and you've been part of this board, thank you. I also uh want to uh mention that in old business, we had the opening of our Anthony wing and our media center, which

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was absolutely stunning. And if you haven't gotten a chance to get over there um when we have another event in the community, please come out. Uh it's fabulous. Not only are the students going to be having books, they have a resource room. There is high-tech

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information all over. It's not just a gaming center. It is actually moving our students into 2030 in many different ways. It'll be used for curriculum, it'll be used for resources, it'll be reused for meetings, interviews, so on.

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Club events, etc. So, that was fabulous. And like um my two colleagues out in the audience mentioned, I just want to say thank you to Mr. Lackey who headed up the community choir. And as a participant,

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it really is the joy of my life to uh sing. So, thank you, Mr. Rebecca Sterlackey. And um is there anyone else for old business? Yes, Ms. Loretta Rivers. Yes, I just wanted to um not because I'm the school liaison for Coopertown, but I just want to commend them on their play for

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Beetlejuice Jr. And I mean, I just went out laughing. Like I just laughed out. They were so talented. And I feel as though um going from the um the middle school to the high school and we know we have a talented high school uh theater program

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that, you know, just like you know, I'm putting in place for the kids for keeping their programs together. We need to keep our consistency for our kids to go to the high school. So, I just uh wanted to say that. Also, um I had the

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opportunity to go to a program last week. And um not known to me that our student representative, Tyler uh Tyler West, was a orator there at his program. And he did such an awesome job with his um his

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speech. It was called Fall Forward. And when I tell you, we it was a uh nice setting, but the sentiments that he reflected, I wish we had the opportunity for him to even uh do his speech um next

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month maybe if there is time. But I just want to commend this young man. Even though he's an athlete, he is much more than an athlete. He just I mean, wait till you hear the speech. I I'm pretty sure you'll be amazed just as I was. And then also

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um board member Prashant and I went to the school public uh relations forum down in Trenton uh last this past Friday. And it was a lot of information that they shared about social media platforms, AI.

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Uh we're going to have a report next month, but definitely it was, you know, these meetings that we go to, they're just not just be going. They you know, they're pushing us, you know, to the next level. So, I I you know, I particularly care for the cuz they get the time to do with Prashant. And we had a good time. Yes.

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Absolutely. Thank you. Thank you, Mrs. Rivers. I know that uh Dr. Tom Conners, any old business? I have new business. Okay. We'll get to that in a moment. Yes, Mrs. Rivers. I must apologize.

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I must say uh to Dr. Gray, Mhm. Dr. Gray is very humble. And he was What are you going to do Prashant? Go now. Let me just wait and see who is going to do it because >> [laughter] >> I didn't want to do it because I knew that someone else might.

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Dr. Gray. Yes, Dr. Gray. You know, Dr. Gray has been in our district for so many years and you know, he flies under the radar and but he loves the children and he I don't know I didn't know you know so many people. >> [laughter]

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>> They acknowledge Dr. Gray at the Raritan Valley Links for their year community service event and it was a true honor to be there Dr. Gray to just to be there in your presence and to have someone from Piscataway representation. So, THANK YOU

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SO MUCH. YAY, [cheering] DR. GRAY. >> [applause] >> DID YOU WANT TO ADD ANYTHING SUPERINTENDENT? >> [laughter] >> YEAH, YEAH, the cake's been baked. All right, so I guess that's it for old

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business, right? One point of new business as we move on to new business, I just want to thank the Piscataway Soccer Club for donating to the Township this amount of money in order for us to be able to feed the Township's

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what is it soccer fields and what is that place called? Green Acres, thank you. I just didn't have the word. So, thank you very much to the Piscataway Soccer Club. We appreciate you partnering with us and doing that donation [clears throat] in

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this sensitive time of finances. We greatly appreciate it. Okay, anyone else? Yes, go ahead Dr. Gray. Uh well, I think it's like the last 9 years as a sense of community Memorial Day is Monday, May 25th and that's why we

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designed this years ago. We actually carry this in the Memorial Day parade and it's sponsored by the American Legion to know that you know, we care about the community as school board members and the thing is though, we don't give out candy. We give out Pencils.

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>> [laughter] >> Anyway, so everyone here, I'm the one that usually coordinates with the American Legion person. So, I will send out an email, please get to me. Nancy's kind enough this year will be getting t-shirts again and we'll go out

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and represent the Board of Education be announced at the their grandstand there and 25th. Yes. Be on the lookout pencils. >> [snorts] >> That's it Piscataway schools, of course.

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Madam President and board members, I I want to first of all thank you for accepting a grant but I also want to share just when we talk about being fiscally responsible and trying our best since my arrival, we have already applied for over a dozen grants and

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Madam President board just found out yesterday that we will be the recipient of another grant and we just recently found out that we just we have recently applied for a significant grant that will touch our students directly. When I said when I came here, I said we're going to try to be fiscally responsible. We're also going to be very

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aggressive in trying to find find grants. I'm very happy that the board approved the accepting of a grant that will have an impact at Eisenhower Elementary School as we build out a new inclusive playground for our students specifically

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who have special needs. I want to give a shout out to our principal Vinnie over there at Eisenhower. When I was making my rounds when I first initially arrived and you know, you ask that question, what do you need? What's some challenges? What's some strengths? And Vinnie was sharing principal Vinnie was sharing that he wanted to build a

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playground specifically for our students who had some physical and emotional needs and areas special education. I said that's great. I said how many years? He said probably about 5 years I want to do this. I said 5 years, that's a long time.

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Well, in about less than 5 months, we were able to secure a grant and we will hopefully fingers crossed be able to begin that that work so that sometime between in the 26-27 school year, there will be a new playground dedicated to

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our students in the area at Eisenhower. We're not done though. This is a grant that by accepting by receiving it once, it opens it up and we're also looking at another school through grant funding. So, as the community hears us saying this, this thing come out of our budget.

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This came out of grant funding. The next grant that hopefully gets approved in the month of May is grant funded. Those aren't sustainable but we're going to continue to be very aggressive in trying to support that but we will have a ribbon cutting ceremony. We'll celebrate it because this is another

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opportunity to show me that we are we are inclusive. We understand what equity means and to use the word that's all around our district, we are inspired by Piscataway Township schools. Yes, sir. Thank you.

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Anyone else for new business? I just want to say so I listened to what they had to say about the development that's going on and it's really concerning to me basically mostly because right across the street from Conant is a baseball diamond where the girls

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softball team practices and around 5:00, they just start running across the street. There's no lights or nothing there and we just had a little girl get hit by a car when it was going to get on the bus on the other side of Piscataway. So, it's very very serious to me. I think we need to bring this up Yeah. in

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the future and talk more about it. Absolutely. Thank you, Mr. King. >> [applause] >> Mr. King. Anyone else? New business? Okay. All right, we are looking for

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a motion for adjournment. Motion. Second. All those in favor of adjourning Aye. All those in not in favor say nay. All right, no nays. We're adjourned.