meeting. Um, we're going to do some opening activities to order and >> of the United States of America for it stands under God with liberty and justice for all.
The New Jersey Open Public Meeting Act was advanced and to attend the meetings of public at which myself has caused of this meeting including date, time, location to be South Brunswick Public Library, the
board office and home home news tribune and the Star Ledger. Call a vote. >> Miss Laura Hernandez >> here. Miss DeArth >> here. >> Miss Alicia Khan >> here. >> Miss Roger Krishna.
>> Yes. >> Mr. Mike Mitchell >> present. >> Mr. Barry Nathansson >> here. >> Dr. Smith Raj >> here. >> Mr. Refest Sony. >> Can I get an approval of tonight? A motion for the approval of tonight's agenda. Dr. Raj
>> second. >> Second. Miss Khan. >> All in favor? >> I got a motion to approve. No, we don't have any minutes yet. Announcement of our board election results. Just so everybody in the
public's aware, the South Brunswick uh summary results report for the 2025 general election. Miss Alicia Khan received 7,578 votes. Kuna Arthia uh 3,282
votes. Um Anakasha Vora 3,917 votes. Abai Sabanjastra uh 4,285 votes. Laura Hernandez 7,521 votes. Devin Patel 5,668
votes. Miriam Pal 1,691 votes. and there were a total of 127 writeins. Uh we also had an unexpired term. Mr. Magesh Kamala Hanahan received 5,549 votes and Mr. Barry Nathansson received
7,352 votes. At this point in time, I'd like to administer the oath of office to our new newly elected board members. Uh if you could meet me over by the podium, Miss Alicia Khan, uh Laura Hernandez,
Mr. De Mattel, and Mr. Barry Nathansson. This is a very simple process. We're not going to do this indiv we're going to do this individually one at a time. Uh I know have the the public's here for all of us support from family and friends. So if we could start Mr. Barry Nathansson if you want to uh begin.
There's a required oath for school board members. Mhm. >> I Barry Nathansson dome uh affirm that I will support the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of New
Jersey and that I will hear truth, faith, and allegiance to the same and to the governments established in the United States and the states state under the authority of the people. So help me
God. I, Barry Nathansson, do you solemnly affirm that I possess the qualifications prescribed by law for the office of the member of the board of education, that I
will faithfully, impartially, and justly perform all the duties of that office according to the best of my ability. So help me God. I affirm and declare that I
am not disqualified as a voter pursuant to RS19 uh colon 4-1. >> Congratulations, sir. >> Again. >> Again. >> Again.
>> You can take this back to your seat. >> Okay. All right. Thank you. Okay, Mr. Deon Patel. >> Welcome back, sir. >> Thank you, sir. All right.
I Devan Patel dolamy affirm that I will support the constitution of the United State and constitution of state of New Jersey and that I will bear the true faith and allegiance to the same and to the government established in the United States and this this state under the
authority of the people. So help me God. Ian Empatil do solemnly affirm that I possess the qualification prescribed by the law for the offices of members of board of education and that I will faithfully implify and justifi I perform
all the duties of the office according to the best of my ability so help me God I affirm and declare that I am not disqualified as a voter professor to RS94-1 >> thank you sir Have a seat at the base. >> Yep. Got you. Thank
>> Miss Laura Hernandez. I, Laura Hernandez, do solemnly affirm that I will support the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of New Jersey, and that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same and to the governments established in the United States and
this state under the authority of the people. So help me God. I, Laura Hernandez, do solemnly affirm that I possess the qualifications prescribed by law for the office of member of a board of education and that I will faithfully,
impartially, and justly perform all the duties of that office according to the best of my ability. So help me God. I affirm and declare that I am not disqualified as a voter pursuant to RS194-1. >> Congratulations. Thank you.
>> And finally, oh, we're moving over. >> Finally, Alicia, welcome. >> Thank you. >> Back. I, Alicia Khan, do solemnly affirm that I will support the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of New Jersey and that I will
bear true faith and allegiance to the same and to the governments established in the United States and this state under the authority of the people. So help me God. I, Alicia Khan, do solemnly affirm that I possess the qualifications prescribed by law for the office of
member of a board of education and that I will faithfully, impartially, and justify perform all the duties of that office according to the best of my ability. So help me God. I affirm and declare that I am not disqualified as a
voter pursuant to R- uh R, S.19, column 4-1. >> Congratulations. Thank you. Uh for our newly elected board members, there uh in your packet there are two copies of your oath. if you could sign
them both, please return one back to me before the end of the meeting. And for Barry and Devon, I believe there's a Strauss estimate document that you need to sign um and return to me as well. Uh inside the packet, there's a certificate from the Middle Sex County Board of
Elections um with regards to your newly held position. All right. Our next motion, our next uh item on our agenda is the election of a president. For election of president, I'll call for nominations. Uh we can take a number of nominations. What we'll
do is after we close the nomination, we will um then go through the process of a roll call vote uh on each or until the first nominee uh is u has the appropriate number of votes to attain
office. So, at this point in time, I'm going to off I'm going to ask for nominations for the seat of president of the South Brunswick Township Board of Education. Do I have a nomination? >> Yes. >> Who? >> Lauren Hernandez. I'm going to say some
words. Uh, ladies and gentlemen, it it's my honor to nominate Laura Hernandez for reelection as president of South Brunic Board of Education. Mora has
demonstrated unwavering dedication to our school's tireless advocate uh advocating for every student's success. Under her leadership, we've seen
improved programs, increased community engagement, and a commitment to inclusivity. uh that fosters a positive learning
environment for all. Laura listens, collaborates, and inspires, making her the perfect choice to lead us forward. Let's continue building on the progress we made. I wholeheartedly support Laura
Hernandez for president of the South Brunic Board of Education. Thank you. >> Can I get a second for that motion? Second, >> Mr. Mike Mitchell. >> Do I have any other nominations for the seat of President South Brunswick
Township Board of Education? Hearing none at this time. I need a motion to close nominations. >> I move that we close nomination. >> Second. >> Roger. >> All in favor?
I opposed. >> Do you, Miss Laura Hernandez, consent to having your name offered as board president? >> I do. >> At this time, I'm going to call for a roll call vote for Miss Laura Hernandez to uh attain seat of board president.
Miss Laura Hernandez. >> Yes. >> Miss D. McCarthy. >> Before I vote, I'd like to explain my vote, please. It's >> this is no. Yeah, it's not a there's no explanation. It's a vote. Yes, no, or abstain. But >> before I vote, I'd like to provide a
comment. >> This is Mrs. Hanatus' third bid for a leadership. >> At this point, at this Deepa, at this time, it's a it's a yes no vote or abstension. Just asking for a vote. >> But I would like to explain my vote >> at at another time during the meeting. There's opportunity. We're in the middle
of a vote. >> Then I would like to have this opportunity at this meeting itself. Well, we we can make that happen if there's open conversation later at the at a later time during this meeting. >> My vote is no.
>> Miss Alicia Khan, >> yes. >> Mr. Raja Krishna, >> yes. >> Mr. Mike Mitchell, >> yes. >> Mr. Barry Nathansson, >> yes. >> Mr. Devin Patel, >> yes. >> Dr. Smith Raj, >> no. >> Mr. Rajes Sony, >> yes.
>> Yes. Has it? Welcome again, Miss Lauren, for the seat of president. >> At this time, I'm going to ask for nominations for the seat of vice president for the South Brunswick Township Board of Education. Do I have a nominee? >> Yes.
Uh Mike Mitchell. He has been on the board for six years and has been in this position before, so I nominate him. Do I have a second? >> Yes. Second. >> Alicia Khan.
>> Do I have any other nominations for the seat of vice president? >> Seeing none at this time, I need a motion to close the nominations for vice president. >> Close. >> Mr. Nathansson. Second. >> Second. >> Mr. Krishna.
>> All in favor? I >> I >> opposed. >> Do you, Mr. Mike Mitchell, consent to having your name offered as board pre or excuse me, as as vice president? >> Yes, I do. >> At this time, I'll do a roll call vote for the seat of vice president for Mr.
Mike Mitchell. >> Miss Laura Hernandez, >> yes. >> Miss D. McCarthik, >> no. >> Miss Alicia Khan, >> yes. >> Mr. Raja Krishna, >> yes. >> Mr. Mike Mitchell. >> Yes. >> Mr. Barry Nathansson, >> yes. >> Mr. Deon Patel, >> yes. >> Dr. Smith Raj,
>> no. >> Mr. Rees Sony, >> no. >> Yes. Habit. Congratulations, Mr. Mitchell. Vice President Election. At this time, I'm going to ask that Mr. Mitchell uh switch seats with Miss Deeparthik
and assume the position of vice president. I'll also pass this down to Miss Hernandez. At this point in time, I'm going to uh ask for a motion to close the reorganization meeting. >> Mr. Nath.
>> All in favor? >> I >> opposed. At this time, I'm turn the mo uh the meeting over to our board president, Mr. L. Hernandez. Uh you'll do a motion to move into a regular meeting. >> Can I have a motion to move into regular
meeting? >> Mr. Sony >> and Mr. Deon Patel. >> Sorry. Sorry. >> Okay. So, and I can go right David. Okay. Uh now, next up we have our student report.
Good evening everyone. Happy new year. I hope you all had a great winter break and are ready to start 2026 off strong. Starting off with some school news. Our winter spirit week is coming up from January 20th to January 23rd. We'll kick things off with
a blanket day on Tuesday, followed by anything but a backpack day on Wednesday, quarterzip versus nike techch day on Thursday, and class color day on Friday. Spirit week wraps up with our winter pep rally on January 23rd. This year's theme is battle of the classes,
giving each grade the chance to show off their school spirit, celebrate our winter sports teams, and compete for the spirit cup. We will be hosting daily lunch activities for points for the spirit cup. Earlier today, student council and class council
members attended the NJASC 100th annual winter convention at TCJ. Candidates for state student council campaign today and the results of the 2026 election were announced at the end of the day. We are very proud of our current SBHS student council member
Samira Tawadia for serving her year-long term as the 2025 state student council vice president. Our student council led three student workshops on the topics of Mr. SBHS, powderpuff, and how to run a successful student senate and VA. We're
also proud to share that our student council was recognized as an NJC honor school for the 19th time and received top 10 project award for the support of the troops collection for Mr. Estroski and his unit. Our clubs have also been
pretty busy. Tomorrow, DECA members are traveling to Keen University for their regional competition. The SBHS Perendella players are preparing for their opening performance of the winter play and the Amnesty Club is getting ready for their rights for rights campaign. Moving on to athletics,
freshman Joseph Brienza had an impressive start to his wrestling season, winning his first six matches by pin and placing first at the Brunswick Bear Invitational at 120 pounds. Joseph and his brother, junior John Banza, also
each earned three pins at the BR cheerleader. Captain Amy Flores was selected by athletics department as the national girls and women in sports nominee for Mr. for SBHS. She will be recognized during halftime at the University of Rucker women's basketball
game against Minnesota. That wraps up today's updates. Thank you all for listening and enjoy the rest of your evening. >> Thank you. Thanks so much. Next up, the report of the superintendent. >> Thank you, Mr. Hernandez. I I'll save the bulk of my report for the next
meeting in January. I just wanted to wish everyone a happy new year, and I want to go on the record as congratulating our newly appointed board members. Look forward to working with all of you u and the rest of the board for the next number of years. So, congratulations. And that's it.
>> Thank you. You're sweet. Awesome. Um, next up I guess would be the presentation. Yep, we have the presentation. Yeah, >> hello everyone. Can everyone hear me? Never a problem with me, I assume. Uh,
so thank you very much for inviting me back again to do your ethics training. Uh, similar to previous years, I'm going to do some background. See if I can click this right. Uh, so we'll talk about the school ethics act very quickly, the code of ethics, and then for those who've been in the past, this is mostly a hypo presentation. So, a lot
of class participation since this is a school district as we know. Uh, I will read them since I know you're awkwardly have to turn back and forth looking at me in the screen. So, um, school ethics act. So, this applies both to school officials, so board members and administrators. Um, traditionally the
way we look at this, I'm going to go through I'm not going to go through all of them, but very quickly is um, don't be corrupt is the easiest way to say that. So, uh, I I'm shocked you have to I have to come here to say this, but don't take bribes. That's a bad idea. Don't benefit yourself financially. So, that is basically the school ethics act.
Don't have an interest in audience. Secure unwarranted privilege of employment for yourself or others. No direct or indirect financial involvement. So, these are the really the serious ones you think of when you think of government corruption. Uh we do not see a lot of action. You typically know not to take bribes or gifts or
favors or the like. Um so we don't see a lot of action honestly under the school ethics act because again if you commit one of these your issue is not with the school ethics commission. You're looking at much more serious charges. Where we see the bulk of our action is something called the code of ethics. So years ago
it was just the school ethics act and then what happened was there was an indemnification provision passed by the legislature and as part of that they said we should also tighten up on what we think is and is not ethical of board members. Uh the New Jersey School Boards Association had quote a code of ethics
that they insisted board members and boards pass and that was adopted as legislation. So most of the ethics charges we see before the school ethics commission really fall under these. Uh, I'm going to spend a bulk of my time with hypos, but I'll just point out a couple. So, I will confine my board action to policym, planning, and
appraisal. So, your job as a board member, you sit at the very top, but you do not run the day-to-day operations of the district. You do things like policym, planning, and appraisal. Uh, you do not in that vein administer the schools. That is why you have an administration to again run that
day-to-day operation. Um, again, that authority rests with you, not as individuals. Your authority rests with the board. So, we'll see hypo on that. And you're not supposed to make any personal promises, and this is the big one, nor take quote private action that may compromise the board. So, you as a
board operate as an entity, and you can't do anything privately or personally as an individual that could compromise the board. Uh, confidence, I think most board members understand, but you get lots of confidential information via negotiations about students in executive session. You have an obligation to
maintain that uh confidence and the like. uh you must support and protect school personnel which is one that comes up from time to time. We'll see an example of that. And this is a little tricky one because you as board members are also many times members of the community. You know a lot of people in
the community. I just saw heard your uh board secretary Mr. read about the number of votes you got from people in the community. So people will come up to you from time to time with an issue. Um and you will want to solve that issue because you are all good people who are volunteering your time here today. But
under the School Ethics Act, your job is to refer that to the superintendent and then just get get out of the way because if you don't, you could run into issues under the School Ethics Act. So again, these are kind of the generalities. Uh just some updated regulations I always like to bring forth. Uh an issue came up
um a few years ago where a board member um won the election, did something that violated the act, but hadn't been sworn in yet. So they clarified that you are not officially a board member to violate the act until you're sworn in. So, all the four board members today, uh, your slate was clean up until right now and
now, anything you do, don't violate the act. Um, training is always a big one. Please complete your training. I've handled those cases. If you don't complete your training, the school ethics commission will file what we call an order to show cause. Uh, and they will publicly make this board read a
message that says you didn't complete it and violate it. And if you still don't do that, then they can kick you off the board. So, please complete your training. Uh, those cases are much more serious than you would think. And if anyone has any questions about something they may do in the future, whether it is or is not a violation, you could submit something called an advisory opinion.
Um, and they've made clear that the board attorney can submit that on behalf of you as a board member. Okay, let's get into the fun part, the hypos. I'm sure everyone has been looking forward since last year to do more school ethics commission hypotheticals. Um, so this is always the confusing part. So thumbs up
is no and thumbs down is yes. So if you think the board member did nothing wrong right in the hypo, thumbs up. If you think the board member did something wrong by violating school ethics act, thumbs down. Everyone got that? Thumbs up good. Thumbs down bad. Okay, let's talk about conflict prevention and personal gain. The board has announced
plans to upgrade its parental notification system. A communication vendor contacts a board member and offers to take him out for coffee to discuss the company's platform features. The board member declines the invitation. Good for that board member. and instead responds by telling the vendor he envisions the system. Sorry,
telling the vendor how he envisions the system we use in the schools. What do we think? Violation, no violation. So, thumbs up. Good job, board member. Thumbs down. Bad job, board member. Okay, getting a little Okay, getting some thumbs down. Some board members who
are a little little hesitant to respond. So, this is a thumbs down. So, everything good. Good job board member rejecting the invitation. That was a great job. You can't go get coffee with a potential vendor. Buy they buy you things. That's a gift. Big no no. Where did the board member go wrong? They shared information with the vendor. That
is taking a private action that may compromise the board because the vendor then may take that inside information and modified their proposal to the board and the like. That's a big no no. Again, you're taking private action. Good job, everyone. What's yours is mine. Good title. A school recently completed a
facilities cleanup. A board member noticed a number of old classroom supplies, including folders and notebooks, he believed were going to be discarded. Believing he could find use for them, the board member takes a few of them home. What do we think? Okay, so getting some mix and I've
gotten actually a lot of questions on this hypo before. So the answer is you you as a board member should not just go and take school supplies. Now the question has come up well what if we it's offered to the entire community that is a different situation if you
have the same rights as any member of the public you can put in again would I recommend it probably not because it's rife with issues but in this case the board member just saw supplies and made the personal decision and therefore he again used the school for personal gain which you should not do.
Okay. Uh some parental concerns. A middle school parent, frustrated that the son did not play more during the recent basketball game. Shocker, approaches a schoolboard member to complain about the coach. Also shocker. The coach and the board member are friends since the children are in the same soccer league. The board member mentioned the parent the parents
complaint to the coach. Getting some thumbs down. I'm getting some awesome back music, which I love. Uh so again, just a reminder, you're going to get these complaints. They happen. Now, where do they go? It's natural friends with the coach. Just bring it to the coach. No. Again, you
are seen as a board member. Now, why is this important? Because you may think I'm friends with this coach. They're seeing me as me, private citizen friend. Now, again, things are never a problem until they're a problem. The coach, when an issue comes up, is going to say, I felt pressure because that person's my
boss, the board member. That's why, again, when you bring things to staff, you may think you're friends with them. You would think they're doing a favor. They're going to see you as board member who every year is responsible for approving their paycheck, for negotiating their collective bargaining agreement, who uh has the ear of the
superintendent who maybe can say, "Give them a bad evaluation. They didn't listen to me." Things like that. So, they'll see you as your hat as a board member even think you as the hat as their friends. Okay. Uh this is my favorite hypo because this is the one that drives board members absolutely bonkers.
Misinformation in the community. Here, two students get into a fight at school. The teacher who tried to break up the fight was hit by one of the students. The fight is talked about throughout the school community. Again, these things happen, right? Everyone in the community knows about this. Someone's posting online about it. It spreads like
wildfire. At the next board meeting, a resolution for a long-term suspension was approved, but again, students, so we're using the student ID number. While in the grocery store, a board member hears two parents discussing the fight. One of the parents incorrectly says the school didn't discipline either students. The board member corrects the
parent. What do we think? Yeah, this one's such an easy no. No. Uh I will hold all confidential matter. So it is incredibly frustrating. I can't tell you how frustrating it is that I get all these complaints from board members. Well, they don't understand
that we did X, Y, and Z. If they only knew what we did, it would really, you know, calm the waters. And there are some statements that we work with superintendents to release the community, but for the most part, that is confidential information. There's a reason we use student ID numbers. Everyone in the community may know about
it, but even so, when the board acknowledges it, that's releasing of confidential student information. Just so just keep that in mind. Here again, message, emails, calls. So, here a board member receives an email from a high school parent claiming a teacher made inappropriate comments during her daughter's class and ask for the board
member's help. The board member forwards the email to the superintendent. The board member also forwards the email to the school principal. What do you think? So again, a lot of these hypos I will call good intention board members that
were a little overzealous. So why is this a problem? It's because again they did a great job forwarding to the superintendent, but they also then forward to the super principal. And I get why they did that, right? Here's a heads up. I want to let you know I'm not, you know, trying to go around you and go above you. Uh why is this a
violation? So what the school ethics commission said and I should mention all these are based on real cases is you board member may think you're helping out but the superintendent may decide I want the director of HR to uh investigate this or the principal has a conflict here for a certain reason for
some reason someone else may look into it and then you're resulting in two different investigations and what if those two investigations resulted in two different results or conflicting information right it just leads to chaos and the like and so the school ethics commission was clear. Again, well-intentioned board member, didn't
mean to do anything wrong, but still violated the act. Again, you get a complaint, your job is to refer to the superintendent and get out of the way. Um, the school ethics commission, I guess, is has been crystal clear on that point. Here we have during executive session, the board discussed potentially
buying property to build pickleball courts. I'm told they're all the craze. I have my paddle in my car if anyone wants to play later. Uh, a board member reached out to a close friend who was a real estate agent to discuss the value of the land and whether it'd be a good purchase by the board. Yeah. So here again that the purchase at
the time not publicly discussed revealing confidential information. If you see the board during executive session was considering it not public yet and by reaching out to that real estate agent again disclosing private information. Again, well-intentioned board member trying to get up in speed,
get good information, but that's not for the board member's role, right? You know, that could be for a committee to authorize to the superintendent to contact a real estate agent or the business administrator, but not for an individual board member to take that private action. Here, uh, again, another real case.
Board member was a component of a plan to start the school year before Labor Day. Always a hot tub, a hot bun issue, community to community. As part of the plan, board member made a motion to change the calendar. The community was upset because the board member brought this um it wasn't on the agenda and the board member just simply brought it up as part of the meeting. Uh so then there
was a community meeting and the board member met with members of the public at that meeting to explain the rationale for the calendar change. Do we think that's okay? So again, you run into that same issue I always like to bring up. Um, again, you
as a board member are only one individual on the entire board. And so that's that private action we talk about. You as a board member at a public board meeting can explain your votes. That's okay, right? You know, we have that's why you have discussion before certain votes and you can explain
rationes and the like. Um, but what you can't do is during not a board meeting go to individual parents and try to persuade them or the like. That's for your administration, right? Your administration can release statements um or you as a board can authorize an individual to release a statement or you
can do so at a board meeting. But again, in private in public uh at a meeting that was considered going outside your duty, private action that can compromise the board. I just want to briefly talk about external communications because they come up from time to time. Uh so the school ethics uh school ethics
commission has basically said you have first amendment rights. Um but you do but you don't. So you have them but they can't violate the school ethics act which means you definitely have reduced rights of free speech when you are a public board member. So what they have said is if you are going to make a
statement related to the board and that's the key right if it's related to the board. So if you want to talk about something that's taking place in Washington that's fine but if you're going to comment on something that could come before the board you have to do four things. One you need to identify yourself as a board member. Two, you
have to indicate that the post is not authorized or written on behalf of the board. And then here's where it gets tricky. The information has to be accurate, which again, in today's day and age, what isn't accurate has been fought over time and time and time again. And then number four, ensure your action does not
compromise the board. And I will tell you that is where most of the litigation comes from because what does and doesn't compromise the board, even when you're doing the top three things, always becomes an issue. So again, I'm going to say you have every right to comment and do these things. It's number four that
as the board attorney always scares me when you're commenting on something related to the board because number four is so broad that one person's decision to compromise may be different than anothers. So this is the case that came out of it uh that came out of it. It's this Treson case from a few years ago.
So here the board member wrote an op-ed uh endorsing four candidates for the board and advocating against one candidate. You're not going to believe which of the five individuals decide to file a complaint against them. Obviously, the one that they didn't endorse. And the author wrote, the author is writing this endorses on his
own personal behalf. His opinions are his own. Was this good enough? I'll give you a hint since this case led to this. The answer is no. I think this is pretty crystal crystal clear. The author is writing on his own personal life. His opinions are his own. School ethics commission said no. This individual did
not do enough. Uh well they they have to note that their views are their own and that they're not those of the board and if you look at this they only say their personal beliefs are not their own but they do not say and again see you here that they are not written on behalf of the board. So it is a very very tricky
area. Uh the school ethics commission in a footnote said there is one case that we've ever done that we approve the disclaimer. It's this one. So, the school ethics commission has posted a disclaimer that if you're going to comment publicly on something related to the board, which again I'm going to
discourage against because again it's rife with issues, but if you're going to do it, here is an approved disclaimer. It's in your material, so take it down. Okay, so here we have got back to the hypo after I went on that nice little tangent. A board member shares an article on his personal Facebook page
regarding the appointment of a new commissioner of education. Above the article, the board member includes the thumbs down emoji. No other language is included. Did the school board member violate the school ethics act? What do we think? Good. Like board members okay, bad board members not okay? The answer
is so this is fine. As I mentioned, uh you can make fun of Trenton as much as you'd like. I've done it plenty in my career. Um you can make fun of Washington as much as you like. Those are all fine as long as they're not issues that could come before the board. Uh another one, this is one of my
favorites based on a real case. Uh board member posts on his personal Facebook page which includes the proper disclaimer. At tomorrow night's meeting, the superintendent will be proposing a change to the district curriculum. I think the superintendent's curriculum is dangerous and will harm our children. Please come to tomorrow's meeting and let the superintendent hear how we feel
about his disruptive curriculum. What do we think? Proper disclaimer. Getting some thumbs down. So here it comes again. Again, this is why I say these issu these things are rife with issues. So yes, proper disclaimer. It might even be accurate and truthful depending on
what you think. But are you quote supporting and protecting school personnel in that post? Clearly by saying you're the superintendent is dangerous and will harm our children is hard to say that is not that is supporting and protecting school personnel. So again could be accurate.
It could have the proper disclaimer but is still rife with these issues. Uh just a few more here. At the board's next meeting, it'll be voting on the purchase of a new basketball hoop. Board member requests permission from the superintendent and enters the gymnas to examine the current baskets. He then takes a basketball and goes three for
four from the foul line. What do we think? Is this okay or not okay? This one it So this one is okay. So again I always like this one. I will confine my board action to policym plan appraisal. So we get lots of questions from board members. Well, what
information can I get? And the answer is what are you voting on at the upcoming meeting? If you are going to vote on something, you as a board member have a right to make an informed decision. If you are not going to be voting on something at a board meeting, you can't simply just get information. So the
example we always get is, well, I heard this staff member has been having some issues. Can I see their personnel file? Are you voting on them? We're not. I've just heard some things in the community. So the answer is no. You don't get access to that. But in this hypothetical, the board will be voting on the basketball hoops. So the board
member does have the right to examine them. The case that this came from was a board member examined lockers in a gymnasium because they were wondering are we going to be should we purchase new lockers and so they wanted to examine them. That was considered okay. So policymaking plan and appraisal the easiest way to look at that will you be
voting on it or not? Uh interaction with staff. So, while entering the building to examine the basketball hoops, the board member can't believe how easy it was for him just walk in the gym unattended. Believing this is a security risk security risk, he immediately emails the building principal to make sure the doors are locked and provide additional security to the gym. What do
we think? This one's an easy one. Uh, so you can't administer the schools. Um, right. So, again, I can't stress this enough. You can't be instructing staff what to do. Um, again, this always seems innocuous or you think, I'm just being
helpful at times, right? Uh, you know, go clean. I heard there was a spill. Go clean that up. Things like that. It innocuous. It could be something that any parent would say. But again, you may thinking I'm wearing my parent hat or my citizen hat. That custodian is going to
think that's a board member telling me what to do and if I don't do that, I can get fired. We know that you probably can't fire a custodian, but they don't know that. They just see you as someone who is above their boss. So, with that, uh, if anyone has any questions, I'm
here. If not, I really appreciate the time for letting me walk you through all of these things. And congratulations again on the elections and for your new board. >> Thank you. >> Okay, the next up is just on board committees and leazison reports. But we
we're just starting the year. So, um we'll be getting together new board committees and new le liaison to different schools and stuff. So, like we did last year, just send me your preference. I'll definitely try to get you what I I can do. Also, there's a
couple spots open. Um the mayor reached out to us, which was awesome. And uh he's got a couple positions where he wants board members as liaison. So, I'll be sending those out to you, get them back, and we'll go from there. >> Okay. So, um, today's what? Wednesday.
If I can have it within the week, that'd be great. Okay. All right. Awesome. Okay. Old business, none at this time. New business, none at this time. Consent agenda. This evening's uh consent agenda is
brief. We have a bills list. We're approving some HIV, harassment, intimidation, bullying reports and we have a small personnel file. It's the extent of our consent agenda walkthrough. >> Any questions
on consent agenda? Okay. >> Can I have a motion? >> I'll move it. >> Second. >> Nathansson. >> Second. >> Raj. No. >> Dr. Raj. >> Yeah. >> Miss Laura Hernandez. >> Yes. >> Miss Deepik. >> Yes. >> Miss Alicia Khan. Yes,
>> Dr. or excuse me, Mr. Raja Krishna. >> Yes, >> Mr. Mike Mitchell. >> Yes, >> Mr. Barry Nathansson. >> Yes, >> Mr. Devin Patel. >> Dr. Smith Raj. >> Yes, >> Mr. Rajes Sony. >> Yes. >> Motion carries. >> Okay. Um, approval of consent. Second.
Uh, now we're up to public comments. >> Yes, >> we have no reg pre-registrations for public comments. >> Anybody in the audience? Come forward. Coming up, the public uh the board of education recognizes the value of public comment on the
educational issues and the importance of allowing members of the public to express themselves on school matters of community interest. Complete copies of policy 0167, which govern this portion of the meeting, are available to the public at the auditorium entrance,
online, or by contacting the board office. To permit the fair and orderly expression of comments, we ask that participants be recognized by the presiding officer and preface comments by announcing his or her name, place of residence, and group affiliation if
applicable, and by completing the sign-in sheet. Please print legibly or we will be unable to document your name for the permanent record. Each statement made by the participant shall be limited to three minutes. No participant may speak more than once on the same topic.
Mr. Pilowski will indicate when you have 15 seconds remaining. All statements shall be directed to the presiding officer. No participant may address or question board members. No discussion between a participant and respondent shall extend a threeminut time limit
with a total time limit of one hour. It is our plan to listen to each member of the public. Once all questions and comments from all members of the public are made, the board of education may respond or respond via email in the most timely and efficient manner available.
All questions and comments made will be noted. And there's nobody here. And >> hi. >> Hi. Um yeah u I'm on Boser. I'm a junior at SBHS. And um first thing I'd just like to say congrats to the uh winners
of the elections. Um, you know, we're glad to have you on on the board. But, uh, on the topic of elections, I actually I'd like to talk about the system of voting that we have and, you know, just the democracy, uh, the voting system that we have in South Brunswick
and in New Jersey. Um, so a few weeks ago, uh, the board of education of South Orange and Maplewood, I'm not sure if you've heard of this, but they passed a resolution explicitly in support of ranked choice voting. And this was uh
after both South Orange and Maplewood uh which are distinct townships voted uh in favor of passing a resolution that would uh call for the legalization of RCV voting in the state.
Uh South Brunswick uh itself has also uh voted in favor of this back in May of 2025 where uh our town council uh also uh joined I think nine other townships in uh being in support of this kind of
voting. uh to quote uh board of education member Jeff Bennett, maybe other boards of education will join us and support will build and in a few years New Jersey will legalize RCV and we can be proud to have helped our state become a little more democratic. So, uh,
I'm here actually to, uh, implore the board to look into RCV voting and potentially become the second board of education in the state of New Jersey to, uh, essentially, uh, pass a resolution in favor of this. Uh, just to explain
what rank choice voting is, it's different from plurality voting, which is the system where we usually have. Plurality voting is one vote for one person and that's it. Right? So there if there are say three candidates, one candidate wins 40% of the vote and the other two wins 30% of the vote, the
candidate with 40% of the vote would win, which means that you can win a election without winning a majority of the support from the populace, which doesn't necessarily make a lot of sense. Um, rank choice voting mitigates this
issue by making it so the biggest loser in an election, the people who voted for them, their votes are split uh among their second or third choices and things just keep going until there is ultimately one winner or however many winners are supposed to be in an
election. So, this could even be used for board elections later on. Um, and I really do think that this helps. uh in Maine and Alaska, they've already used RCV in their elections. And it should be noted that in places uh like
Maine and Alaska, a lot more people feel like their votes matter. Uh >> 15 seconds. >> I do think that this helps young people and makes politics less extreme and toxic and means a much larger portion of the population has to be in support of a
candidate in order for them to win. And I think it strengthens mandates of power. And I really would uh appreciate if the board would pass a resolution in favor of RCV voting. >> Thank you for your comment. >> Thank you. >> Thank you. Thank you. Any other comments?
>> Okay, no other comments. I close this portion of the meeting and that would be it. Please note that the next scheduled board of education meeting is set for Thursday, January 22nd, 2026. at 7 o'clock. >> Motion to adjurnn.
>> Motion to adjourn. So move >> Nathansson >> and and Dr. Raj. >> Dr. Raj. >> Okay. Good night, South Brunswick. We are ajourned.