present. President. President here. Okay. Yeah. I have a motion for remote access for a board member. Tanya Leman. Second. All in
favor? I. Thank you. Uh Mr. Ray, Mr. Piro, Dr. Piro. joined us. We did. Yep. All right. Can I have a motion to enter executive session for it?
So moved. Second. All in favor? Any other attentions? Thank you. Thank you. All right. Okay. Can I have a motion to resume public session?
Second. Thank you. Please stand for the pledge of allegiance. Allegiance United States of America to the stand. Can I have a motion to approve the
minutes from the July board uh sorry goal setting retreat and regular meeting? Moved. Second. All in favor? Iensions board president report. Good evening everyone and welcome to tonight's meeting. Thank you to all of
our guests uh who are joining us in person and on live stream. As we gather here in late August, it's hard to believe that summer is already coming to a close. Over the past few months, our schools have been busy with preparations for the school year ahead. I know it's hard to believe we we leave and the
schools are still going to get ready get ready for us to come back. The massive HBAC projects at Sharon and Pond are drawing to a close on time as well as the numerous other facilities projects. Classrooms have been refreshed and our teachers and staff are gearing up to welcome students back with energy and
enthusiasm as we're all used to. I want to take a special moment to uh thank our custodial and maintenance teams led by Brian Murphy for uh you know our supervisor of buildings and grounds. The teams have worked tirelessly throughout the summer to prepare our buildings. Their efforts
often go unseen, but the care and dedication they put into making sure our schools are clean, safe, and ready for learning is truly appreciated. Next week, the first day of school, marks a fresh start for all of us. A time filled with excitement, new opportunities, and the promise of
another successful school year. Whether it's our youngest learners entering the prek for the very first time or or our RHS seniors stepping into their final year or everyone in between, we look forward to seeing our hallways, classrooms, and fields filled with bus with a bustle of activity again.
As we enjoy these last days of summer, I'd like to take a moment to wish everyone a happy and safe Labor Day weekend. Maybe a chance to rest, recharge, and spend time with family and friends before the busy school year officially begins. Finally, on behalf of the board of education, I want to wish all of our students, teachers, and staff
the very best as we begin the 2025 2026 school year good luck and may this year be filled with growth success and memorable experiences. Thank you again for being here tonight and for your continued support of our schools. Together, we are ready to make 2025 2526 another great year here in
Robinsville. Thank you. Superintendent report. I'm going to step over to the Okay, we have the microphone up. All right. Okay. Uh, today we wish a special member of our team well on his next endeavor.
Our loss is a great gain for Miltown schools where Dr. Steven Wisnuski will serve as a next superintendent beginning September 1st. We com commend Dr. Wiznooki on his service to our students, his leadership, and his friendship. Personally, I extend my thanks and
gratitude for your willingness to take on any task during our time working together. No challenge was too large or too small. Your contributions are greatly appreciated and acknowledged. Good luck moving forward and always remember your friends and colleagues in
Robinsville. Dr. Wiznooki, if you could please come up and I'll turn over the microphone to you for a couple of words. [Applause] Well, um, first, you know, this is more than I ever needed. Uh, it was a a
pleasure to come here every day and and and be a part of the Robinsville community. Um, I want to thank Pat for his leadership, um, in coming here. Um, you know, you get to reflect on the fact that you spent four years of your life
here and you kind of become family. you think about the people um that you spend a lot of time with in that hallway. Um you know, you you don't know what it's like having an office next to Nick. It's crazy. There's a lot of stories. Um but you know that whole
extension I mean having people like John and Murf and um you know the whole the whole board office team and then when you talk about like all the admin team and the people that the relationships that you get to to be with the people that you hired and um you know you just
hope that you left Robinsville a little bit better than you found it. And um um you know the thing I'm so proud of is that I know that 18 classrooms of preschoolers are going to be stepping into school next week. And that wouldn't
have existed without the power of that woman and her drive to kick me in the butt to get moving in the right way. And uh Christa, I want you to know that you were like the best partner that anybody could have ever had in this role. And I thank you for what you taught me um
during my time here. I I I can't appreciate it enough. And I hope that I'm able to go to to Miltown and and bring a little bit of joy and learn from my lessons of success and failure here in Robinsville and that you know uh we'll be some some at some point
reaching the academic success that we're enjoying here. Um, but I I you are a a great school district and great people and I want to thank you all for your your friendship and your u collegiality and uh you know I'll take it with me
forever. So, thank you. [Applause] I'd like to ask the uh the board to please come up so maybe we could take a photo or a couple of photos. Tanya, I was about to say
I'm a little offet. [Applause] You're special. Okay, now if I could transition onto our superintendent report. First, I have a quick update on the
issue of the proposed crematorium in our community. Uh I'm in regular communication with our town leaders and can report that they are diligently representing the interests of our community. Negotiations to find an accept acceptable alternative are ongoing. Want to thank our town leaders
for their outstanding leadership in this issue and many others. Uh we're in good hands. So um I'm optimistic going forward in regards to a resolution being found. So hopefully we'll have some more news to share as we go forward. Uh now on to our business. Um, our team is
excited to soon welcome back our our students for the 202526 school year. I'm greatly looking forward to my first full year as superintendent of the of Robinsville Public Schools, leading our school district to meet the needs of all students. Anything is possible if we
collectively set uh chart a path to a uh sustainable future together. Every year, more than three million students graduate from high schools across the country. And I guarantee a majority of them have at least one teacher who opened their eyes to something new, appointed them in an
exciting direction that changed everything. Multiple learning opportunities can illuminate a child's path and we need to support this diversity of opportunity in our programmatic offerings. That is why as we move forward to charter path for Robinsville uh for Robbinsville schools,
teachers will always be a crucial part of our planning. Teachers are central to helping us meet the expectations set by the board of education as guided by our engaged community. Each year, we set ambitious goals for the district designed to help foster a stronger
academic culture in Robbinsville where clearly articulated curricular expectations and attitudes motivate students to achieve academic success beyond their dreams. As we open our doors for another school year, our focus areas are world language expansion,
student and staff support systems, facilities and financial innovation, rigor innovation, and student pathways. Together, we establish these focused areas, but ultimately is our teachers who create the real opportunities for a better tomorrow. Teachers are able to
help us meet students where they are as these professionals have unmatched academic insight into the pupils they see and interact with every day. In Robinsville, we are dedicated to ensuring teachers are heard and supported as they continue to do
exceptional work in our district collectively raising our standard of excellence to even greater heights. Together, we can set the standards for all schools in Mercer County. I believe we will. Just as I'm meeting with community
members from around town to learn ways to improve our school district, my conversation will continue with our outstanding teachers. As we address all focus areas, it is essential we give our teachers tools and the resources required to meet our students goals. Programs must be added
to address the career pathways of our young scholars and enrich their academic experience. On behalf of the Robbinsville administrative team, I'd like to thank our entire team for their wonderful work they do every day for our students. Let's make 202526
another great school year together. But most of all, welcome back to our students. Thank you. Thank you, Dr. Po. Uh board secretary, this is administrator's report. Um, just a couple things. The September
23rd meeting is being moved to September 30th. The October meeting is being moved from October 14th to October 28th. And all future board meetings will now take place in the media center here at Robinville High School.
Thank you. Um, board committee reports at policy Does someone have the report for M or are you able to do it? Perfect. Okay. people. I don't
Thank you, M. Any questions or comments for Met Policy? Not seeing any personnel. Mr. We met on August 19th in the office of the superintendent. It was myself, Barb Ghoul, Tanya and Dr. Pizzos, Dr.
Bnesneski, Nick McCree, Georgin Johnson, Lisa Tremor to discuss several topics related to personnel. The topics included the uh monthly personnel recommendations by the superintendent BCBA supports by instructional aids, the reorganization of central office,
approval of the evaluation rubrics for non-certified staff members, and a facilities event coordinator and assistant superintendent job descriptions for review. Um, items to be acted upon at this board meeting include the personnel recommendations by the superintendent outlined in the monthly
personnel report, approval of the job descriptions, the approval of the evaluation rubrics and appointments of personnel to assume responsibilities previously covered by the role of the super assistant superintendent. Our full report is included in the minutes for further details.
Thank you, Mr. Any questions or comments for personnel? Seeing any uh business, Dr. Pierro, thank you. Business committee met on August 14th. I was joined by board members Mr. Alberg and Mr. Nandon. Um
also present were Dr. Piso, Mr. McCree, U Miss Carrera, transportation supervisor Mrs. Arnine, and RT director John Legair. We reviewed a number of summer facility projects at the high school. Auditorium lighting and projector upgrades are underway. Stage
curtains are installed and folding door replacements are expected to be finished by the end of September. Districtwide exterior LED lighting upgrades are continuing. Sharon school received a new bottle uh filler fountains and playground work at pond
at the pond and the preschool were completed. Several routine improvements such as paving, painting, and security enhancements are also finished before the start of school. On the finance side, we discussed upcoming feasibility study for a possible 2028 bond referendum and some changes to board meeting dates this fall with all
meetings moving to the high school media center. We also reviewed a potential health center partnership which is in the early stages of expiration. In food service, preschool families will now order meals through a new online system and there will be a 25cent increase to school lunches beginning in the 2627
school year. Transportation matters included subscription busing, which serves 16 families this year, and planning for a waiver form that will help district better allocate bus seats in the future. We also reviewed grants and security upgrades. The district received more than $150,000 in capital
and emerging grants and we are piloting panic buttons, panic button phones across the schools. On the technology side, new pre Prometheian boards are being installed at Sharon and Pond, and the district saved over $100,000 by repurposing parts from damaged Chromebooks. Action items coming forward
include approval of update of food pricing, a preschool bathroom project, and formally approving Mr. McCree as our school safety specialist. Our next meeting will be held on September 25th at 5 p.m. Thank you, Dr. Pier. Any questions, comments for business?
Last but not least, community relations, Mr. Nan. Thank you. Community relations committee met on August 14th. Um, in attendance where Superintendent Dr. Pizu joined by board members, that's me, Nadia, Pendukta, Miss Amanda Hild, Angela, and
Mr. Anthony Ray. Mr. Gizopon High Pond Middle School principal also attended the meeting. The topics covered included a review of Pawn Middle School dropoff plan developed in partnership with our Robinsville Police Department, Mr. Gizu and Dr. Pizu detailed the plan changes
and shared the public notifications provided including colorcoded maps and a drone video with directional marking courtesy of Sergeant Hall. Our principles have been working with central administration for a smooth opening to our new school year, including an update on the development of protocols to effectively implement at
the school level our existing board policies for student success was shared in the area of use of technology. Thank you Miss Avery, Mr. Gizo and Dr. Dr. Piso shared updates on August edition of the superintendent's corner and a focus on a vision for our future
in partnership with all district stakeholders. District administration is happy to accommodate any and all groups for meeting and presentations on our path to a better tomorrow. Uh we have an important event scheduled for September 8th at 5:30 p.m. when we will celebrate
our 20th anniversary of the opening of Robinsville High School. Please join our celebration. Another potential partnership with our police department regarding mental health and safety was introduced. This initiative is being coordinated by director of guidance Lori
Tando. Our sincere thanks to Chief Swanhot for his dedication to our students and all members of our community. During our meeting, all board members offered referrals of multiple stakeholder groups for Dr. Pizo to contact. It is the goal of Dr. Pizo to
meet with as many members of a community as possible. As always, please do not hesitate to contact Dr. Pizzer regarding your concerns. All wise matter. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. N. Any questions or comments for community relations? Um, I just want to jump in and and
repeat that. So, Dr. Piso and the administration have been doing a really wonderful job of meeting with as many stakeholders in the community as possible, and he has a running list of everyone he could possibly think of. But one of the ways that the community can
get involved is to reach back out. So if he has reached out to you, reach back out and and say your piece, say your voice. You have you have an important part of this community and um I really want people to follow through and and uh get in contact with Dr. Viso because he
wants to hear from you. Thank you, Amanda. Any other questions or comments? Okay. On boards, there are none, but there will be some in September. Okay. Um, public comment, and I'll read
this for both public comment sections. Um, can I have a motion to Oh, wait. Time will be allocated for public comment at this meeting. Members of the public uh wishing to address the board of education on agenda items must state their name, municipality, and group, if any, they represent. A member of the
public shall not be permitted to speak until he or she is recognized by the presiding officer. In accordance with district policy 0167, each comment shall be limited to three minutes. No participant may speak more than once. No dialogue between a speaker and the board andor superintendent shall extend the
three-minut time limit uh provided herein. Time streaming, I'm sorry, live streaming of the meetings shall be for viewing only. The public will not have the ability to participate in public session. comments unless they are physically present at the meeting. Although the board encourages public
comment, the presiding officer can interrupt, warn, and or terminate a participant statement, question, or inquiry when it is too lengthy and may also interrupt and warn a participant when the statement, question or or inquiry is abusive, obscene, or may be defamatory. Moreover, the presiding
officer can request any person to leave the meeting when the person does not observe reasonable decorum. In adherence to protocol established by the New Jersey School Boards Association, the board will use this public comment period as an opportunity to listen to resident concerns, but not to debate
issues or to enter into a question and answer session. Issues raised by members of the public may require review and investigation and may or may not be responded to by the board or superintendent during the meeting. All comments will be considered and a response will be forthcoming in and when
if and when appropriate. I have a motion to open public comment for 15 minutes. All in favor these are not seeing any public comment. Have a
motion to close public comment. Second. All in favor? Any obstensions? Okay. Um, can I have a motion to approve the monthly resolution consent items?
Moved. Second. Thank you, Nadia. Thank you, Jeff. Uh, any discussion, comments? Any roll call, please? Yes. Yes. Yes.
Yes. A quick question for a point of order for um personel. Item nine. Now I'm member of NJSA. Do I I should abstain from that. Then yes.
Yes. Okay, thank you. All right. Any old business? Seeing any any new business? I have something. So, well, I'm going to run real quick. Sorry. Um, so I didn't want
to, you know, take up the superintendent report, but I do I do want to wish Dr. Wnooki well as he transitions to his new role. So, I just want to appreciate all you've done here for the students of Robinsville. you know, I think you are leaving it in a better place than when you came. So, we want to thank you for that and all you've done here for the
students. So, thank you. That was Mike. Yes, Steve. We're going to miss you. He's um I I think that we're very lucky that we get to see the behind the scenes. Steve um funny and motivated and
always thinking of new ideas and uh Milstone is so lucky to have you and we'll be watching in the newspapers to see like what's going on. Um reach out anytime. My second thing though was I have seen there's a lot of people you the camera is like pointing this way but
there's all of these administrators and amazing people behind. They have been up since probably like 700 am getting the schools ready. I went with two very excited middle schoolers to the middle school today. Thank you so much to the
teachers and administrators who put so much time into the clubs my kids signed up for. We joined all the Google classrooms um to uh making the school look beautiful, welcoming us and there were teachers there who do not need to be
there at all and they were there with big smiles and open arms. The counseling department um was so welcoming and walked these very nervous uh children through everything they needed. Uh the computer specialists were there giving
out laptops and making fun name tags. Uh like every detail I'm telling you as a parent, as a teacher, as a former administrator, it matters and I thank you so much. And then I had the opportunity to go to Sharon and smell the fresh, clean, brand new, ready
school. I know. I know what it looks like a week beforehand. You're doing great. Um, and I walked I bumped into my kids teacher who was there since 8 a.m. getting her classroom ready because she is so excited. And that's what makes
Robin Zill so beautiful. And I know you guys hear it from parents, but like thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. As a parent, it just means so much and we put so much trust and love into you and we just can't thank you enough. Agreed. Thank you for everything you've done over the summer and what you
continue to do. So, thank you. [Applause] For those that didn't go to Sharon or haven't seen Sharon from the beginning, middle, and end, it looked like a scene of Stranger Things, totally blown out when they were doing the HBAC work at the beginning of the summer. I was I
took my son to go take a look, you know, he he just moved up from Sharon to Pond and he goes, "Dad, what happened to my school?" I go, "It'll be okay. I trust me." So I he goes then I went back in the middle just to see the progress and
he goes I'm not ready to go back yet. I want to see it when it's done. Like fine. So I went back and I was surprised just weeks later of what happened there. Um but by the end it's amaz the the contractors that have been hired have done a great job. It's it they cleaned up after themselves. The floors are polished. It's totally amazing to see
what Sharon looks like now and what it feels like because I remember walking in there it was warm stuffy. Right now it's a cool breeze. So, it was remarkable. But I have not been back. I was at pawn today. I didn't go into the cafeterium to see the the uh the improvements in
there. But, you know, everything's looking great. Any any other new business? I was supposed to be third, but I can't. This is why I have to go before you because I just all echoing all of your thoughts. Truly, congratulations to you, Steve. I mean, we're going to miss you. I think you're left you said for four
years it does become family. So, I'm sure um you left your mark and people will miss you a lot. Um and then truly behind the scenes like yes, I wish I wish the camera could just go for you guys all show up to so many of the meetings and I appreciate you guys um
and so much of the magic happens um as a parent behind the scenes. So, just thank you for all your dedication and major FOMO because I miss the PRMS thing for my kids, but I will follow up with whatever I need to do as a parent, but thank you. Thanks for I know it takes a lot of efforts.
I want to just thank Steve for all this contribution. Steve Milstone is very lucky to have you and I'm very sure that you will actually scale a lot more heights and we will certainly follow you and certainly echo the thank you to all the administration, the teachers in the back of the scene. So, thank you very much. I'm proud parent here sitting
because my girl just graduated out of high school and went to a beautiful college and thanks to all of your effort, I think, and all all of your um mentoring and teaching and everything which actually really helped her land where she is today. So, I think it's a perfect example. So, thank you very much
for all that great work. Said that I have a question. So, um I was reading through um some of the agenda item and some of the contracts that we do uh for the out ofd district placement and I see that that particular stuff is like you know either
growing or it is becoming expensive it's almost like around 300k so my question is are there any strategies to reduce reliance on this particular costly out of district placement and if the student is placed externally how are we measuring um the outcome specifically
you know whether they're doing good or not so those are the two questions I I would like to get into a lot more detail than than we can here. So, if I could take your your question back and work with me, I can give you a complete answer. No worries at home. We'd love to give you complete answer on that.
One thing, um I don't want to say last but not least, but because I know Tony's still online, but Steve, thank you for all you've done. I will say as someone who's recently moved into Robinsville, seeing from where it started to where it is now and then as Amanda and Ni point out, seeing what goes on behind the scenes and your dedication has really
been breathtaking and seeing just how it's affected my little one school system. I know a lot of that is based upon the work you and your team have done. So, thank you so much for that transition from that to go to the experience today of going to Palm Middle School and special shout out to Principal Gizo who gave my daughter like
the best feeling in the world just walking in then seeing all the teachers there so super friendly and even being on the board not realizing there were so many clubs available to them and then seeing the amount of teachers who were there who were just there to help out and make the kids feel so welcome
especially in such a new day and you can see their eyes just so big. It's such a big experience for them. There's a little nervousness, but every teacher we came across was super friendly, made every child feel super welcome and you get to see them like in a span of minutes just settle in and like I belong
here and I'm comfortable and that just is kudos to the administration and the staff. So, thank you so much as a parent for what that means. Um, also I did get a chance to go to Sharon today with um Amanda and Nadia. I also went earlier a couple weeks ago with Pete. So, I would
say to any who goes there and sees anything that maybe is not to their standard, you have no idea what it looked like a couple weeks ago. And I promise you, the administration, the team, the workers have done a fantastic job. And like with anyone who's any done any kind of work in their home, there's
always going to be little punch list items. And so that's what you're seeing. But leaps and bounds, the school is way better than where it would started. And I think all the children are going to appreciate the new experience. But one more time, Steve, thank you again for all you've done.
Just a quick one. Sorry. Can we actually get a video done, you know, what was it before and what is it now so that we can actually start circulating that? I think it'll be good. Yeah, we we've been taking photos. We could Yeah, just echoing everybody else. Thank you, Steve, for everything you've done
for the district. Um, I know you're moving on and taking a lot of these lessons with you and you're going to do great at your next position just like you did here. Um, thank you for I think echoing the administrators and the teachers getting everything ready. I know I know it's uh it's quite a burden.
You know, I'm kind of going through it the same in my district making sure everything's getting ready, but it always works. So, it's like one of those things I've kind of years of experience when you see all the construction and everything like that, you're like, "No, somehow, you know, magically it all kind of comes together." Well, then the magic is of course the hard work of our uh
staff that does that. Um, and I just on a personal note, you know, I've kind of looked at um for the transitional thing, seeing my my girls are going to be starting the prek program um in the in the fall and seeing very similar to what you guys are talking about with the middle school, like how they've done a great job of kind of orienting. I think
there's been a lot of services for parents um who are coming in getting to see, you know, what it's going to be like. Um the I think the district does a really nice job of preparing kids for that next step. So kudos to everybody. Thanks everyone. Any
of course I first of all I want to message Also, Dr. I wanted to take a minute for your guidance district
and compassion, your professionalism, especially our definitely. Thank you again. Thank you, Tanya. Any other new business? Okay. Public comment on school related
matters. I won't read the statement again. Can I have a motion to open public comment for school matters? Move. Second. Thank you. Thank you, Amanda. All in favor? Any or absentions? Okay. Can I'm sorry for open it for 30 minutes. All
right, not seeing any. Have a motion to close public comment and adjourn the meeting. Thank you. Thank you, Anthony. All in favor? Thank you very much. Have a great evening, everybody.