I would like to welcome you to our Tuesday, November 12th, 2025 board of education meeting. We are calling the meeting to order at 7:04 p.m. And if everyone could please rise for the pledge of allegiance. A reading of the meeting notice. The New Jersey open public meetings law was
enacted to ensure the right of the public to have advanced notice of and to attend the meetings of the public bodies at which any business affecting their interest is discussed or acted upon. In the in accordance with the provision of
the act, the Verona Board of Education has caused notice of this meeting to be published in the STAR ledger posted in the Township of Verona and the Verona Education Association. Postings of this meeting setting forth the time, location, and agenda were posted at the Verona Board of Education
office and on the Verona Public Schools District website. Copies of tonight's agenda and resolutions have been made available to the public via the Board of Education website. Mr. Mr. Robinson, if you could please call attendance. >> Mr. Waka, >> pres. >> Mrs. Herrera.
>> Mrs. Prrisco >> here. >> Mr. Boon, >> here. >> Thank you. Moving on to um so I would like to report out our unofficial Verona School Board of
election results with Serena Koik receiving 3,953 votes and Matthew Pera 3,8007 votes. Um I look forward to welcoming them on our in January. So congratulations to them.
Now on to routine matters. I need a motion to approve our minutes from the meeting of October 28th, 2025. So motion by Mrs. Ferrara, seconded by Mr. Waka. Are there any discussions?
Mr. Robinson, if you could please call roll. >> Mr. Waka. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Ferrer. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Prrisco. >> Yes. >> Mr. Boone. >> Yes. >> Thank you. Moving on to our superintendence report by Miss Diane DJeppy.
Evening. So, keeping it brief because it seems like we were just here. We were and we you and it's been and and we've uh we've had some time off as well. So, just a staffing update. We have three finalists for the AT um the assistant principal
for athletics and student activities because Laura um uh we're I'm interviewing them tomorrow. Um so I should have a candidate hopefully have a candidate for the board to approve at the next meeting. There are three candidates uh
scheduled to be interviewed for business administrator next Tuesday. And um we currently have seven applicants for the position of director of facilities. Um that application period closes next Friday. So uh we'll begin to schedule round one um the
following week round one interviews the professional development um >> real quick. >> Sure. >> Director of facilities when we posted that did we get like an appropriate salary range and or did we just kind of
leave it open? uh salary commensurate with with experience. >> Okay, that's all. Yeah. >> Yeah. And I realize we probably are supposed to arrange now. >> We are. >> Why is that? >> No, no, I know. But when you said it, I thought arrange, but we are supposed to
put a range. Um so the professional development that we held on November 4th, while there were small small uh different opportunities for our counselors and our CST, uh we did have a guest speaker from uh educate uh elevate education for our par professionals and
for our teaching staff across the district. uh they uh worked the elementary teachers worked with Julia Peter on um HMH's uh inter reading and we had using the Marzano focused teacher evaluation model as a planning tool
using success criteria to clarify learning targets and applying the strategy of using question sequences to plan effective lessons. So this is along the line of our reinforcing teacher understanding and administrator understanding of um the instructional model that we have we adopted when we
adopted the focus teacher evaluation model. Um next week uh we'll I'm sorry this week the 14th where we conclude the NJGPA and NJSLA adaptive field tests. Uh still no word on what's coming in
spring. Um we uh our 2526 school safety and security plans have all been submitted and are being reviewed. Um uh you'll see on the agenda tonight we are approving the statement of assurance and that will be submitted after they're reviewed and any revisions are made uh
but before the November 30th due date. Uh, and uh, I'm attending the district. The district's a member of Garden State Coalition of Schools. And the no November meeting is scheduled for next Wednesday is going to feature George
Scott who is a licensed um, therapist. He is also the statewide coordinator for the Traumatic Loss Coalition. Um, and he, uh, was a training and consultant specialist for the New Jersey Youth Suicide Prevention Project. He is uh which is managed by Ruckers University
behavioral health. He is going to be speaking on managing on managing the heavy psychological loads that school districts face on a daily basis and that should be a very interesting presentation. Um Mr. Robinson and Dr. Miller and Mrs.
Simmons submitted both the uh uh elementary and 2025 elementary and secondary education act consolidated expenditure and the IDA also the 2025 IDEIDA expenditure reports. Uh the ESA uh consolidated expenditure report was
approved by the department of ed. I think we're waiting on um some required revisions for the idea report. Along those same lines, the IDA grant has been approved 426 2026 and the ESA grant is pending revisions. So, um, more to come
on that. It was a weird year for, um, we have a new platform, a grants management platform. It was, it was tricky. Yeah. And that's my report. So, thank you. >> Thank you. Does anyone have any
questions or comments? Moving on to our student report. Uh Mr. Ryan Goo. >> Good evening everyone. Uh so tomorrow the VHS fall play is opening in the auditorium of the high school and this year's spotlight players production is
the minutes which is a fast-paced comedy set uh in a town council meeting of the fictional town of Big Cherry which satiricizes small town American culture, history and politics. And I actually I actually am part of the production and I do think it is such a hilarious show and
I think it's so interesting. I think I I just do stuff behind the scenes. So you know that's >> you guys what? >> Yeah. >> So you don't have to change yourself from >> It's all right. But um I think that every single person sitting here should
attend because I think it's I don't know board of ed council meeting similar. It's pretty similar. And a little spoiler, but the title is a playoff on like meeting minutes. So, I thought it was fun. But, um, uh, the show dates are as follows. Uh,
this Thursday, Friday, Saturday at 7:00 p.m. And there's also an additional 2 p.m. Manet performance Saturday afternoon. And I don't want to Yes, you can. You can pay. You can order online and you can pay in person with cash. And
I don't want to overshadow Miss Palmer's presentation. So I just briefly mentioned some stuff about athletics. Uh so recently the girls soccer team progressed to the NJSIAA sectional semi-finals and the semi-finals are happening right now today against Mountain Lakes. And next Saturday is the
NJSIAA cross country meetup champions. Uh the boys soccer team is off to the sectional finals after scoring victories against Dayton High in the quarterfinals and Wallington in the semi-finals as of yesterday. And today, November 12th, was BHS's first senior athletics signing
day. Congratulations, of course, to our senior student athletes on their commitments and their continuous continuence um to pursue their athletic careers at the collegiate level. and the VHS chamber choir gave a performance during a Veterans Day uh during the
township's Veterans Day ceremony at the town hall yesterday and under the direction of Mr. Fud, the choir performed the national anthem, America the Beautiful, to honor our veterans and the October issue of the high school newspaper, The Fairviewer has been
released. You can um find a QR code or a PDF online. And in addition to this, the fair viewer will be starting a new initiative this year and it's an alumni magazine which will share the accomplishments of graduates and build a strong line of
connectivity and support with the past people who have went to VHS. And two weeks ago um the VHS DECA club uh headed by Mr. Orur ventured to Keen University to participate in the chapter officer leadership training to learn more about leading and organizing their own club
from other chapters in New Jersey. And this past Sunday, the Model United Nations Club competed at the Horseman School in the Bronx. Additionally, the Avon Guard Club will be hosting an open mic night on November 20th from 6 to
8:00 p.m. in the Learning Commons. And you can join them for a fun, relaxing, and eventful uh range of performances from instrumental, vocal, poetry, standup among many more. And that is all I have for tonight. Thank you.
I I actually do have one question for Ryan. Um I I'm intrigued by the Alumni Magazine. Um how and this is probably not a fair question to ask because you might not know, but do you do you know how they plan to uh keep in touch with alumni? Is there any type of process
that they're able to do? >> I think right now they're just um getting out on like the press because it's there's something on my Verona and Mr. Cogdale and Miss Anzalone have a Google format and I think mainly it's going to be through word of mouth and we
have pretty small goals this year and it's just to push out one issue for the end of the year. >> Yeah. No, it's interesting. Thank you >> Ryan. I think you have two alumni sitting in this room, myself and Mr. Pera. So, we might be able to help you out there.
>> Yes. Good job. Thank you, Brian. Uh, moving on to our agenda, I would like to introduce um Miss Laura Pomezi for our director of athletics to do a fall athletics recap. Good evening, everyone.
All right, so thank you, Ryan, for doing the recap of our um athletic programs and also for highlighting all of our student body. I love listening to you. and Ryan 10 minutes ago was outside in the hallway painting and then now he's in a suit here presenting at the board
meeting. So very impressive Ryan. Um we're going to start off um with our girls tennis program. The varsity had a record of four and 14 this season. They made it to the quarterfinal round of the team state tournament. Evelyn Kogan qualified for the second year in a row
for the 2025 individual state championships and made it to the second round. Our JV squad won some big matches against Caldwell, Mount St. Dominic, Cedar Grove, and West Essex. The team had eight firsttime players on the team this year. VHS varsity and JV cheer had
a great fall season that started at Pine Forest Cheer Camp, earning overall camp champions and a leadership award for the second year in a row. Off the field, 30 of our cheerleaders volunteered as junior coaches with the Verona Eagles and performed at back- tochool nights
opening ceremonies. A meaningful moment this season was our team performing an emotional routine dedicated to Daria at the Foley Field Cheer for a Cure where we received the most spirited award in her honor. At our own cheer for a cure event, the team raised $5,000 for
Manette's Angels and $1,000 for Daria. Verona volleyball had another great season ending last night um with the 25 and4 record. The team started their season winning the Clifton tournament and going undefeated in our yearly Caldwell quad. The team were the
American Division Champions giving them the number one seed going into counties. We were the number two seed entering the states where our season ended last night after four sets against Caucus. Some standout milestones throughout the season were senior Samantha Heiml
earning her 500th assist and sophomore Brin Mack had quite the year with 412 kills in one single season putting her kill total in only two years to 768. JV also had a great season ending with a
record of 151 and1. This year JV also went to their first JB Invitational tournament where they finished in third. Boys soccer had 64 boys participating across three levels this year. The freshman class of 20 was the largest
class in many years. The varsity team has a record of 14-4, won the Colonial Division of the SEC, and is currently preparing for its second consecutive NJSIAA North two group 1 sectional final to be played on Friday at Brookdale Park
versus Glenidge at 3:00 p.m. Girls soccer, which is outside right now. It's halftime, it's 1-1 against Mountain Lake, so I'll get you guys out fast enough if you go watch the second half. Um, girls soccer has a current record of 15-4. They made it to the
county semifinals. They, as I said, they're currently in the state sectional semi-finals where we are the number one seed. Molly Dags reached 300 saves. Emerson Garrett 100 points and the team had seven defensive shutouts this year.
Girls cross country had a record of 9-1. They were second place at SEC Liberty Conference Championships. They were first placed overall with 12th grade race at the Essex County Invitational. Individual accolades, Sienna Griffin was first team all Essex County, won the
Liberty Conference race and the Essex County Coaches Invitational, and she was se second place at state sectional championships and qualified for group championships. Football hosted this for their second year their successful seven and seven tournament this July. The team had a
record of two and seven this fall. They continued to work hard all season. Bodi Mazano was the recipient of the Steve Deg Gregorio Youngman of the Year Award. The 2025 field hockey season wrapped up on Monday with the team finishing 13-8,
4-1 in the Essex Union Conference White Division and 1-4 in the tough SEC American Division. The team played a tough game schedule playing higher division teams like Oak Null, West Essex, and Kent Place. The field hockey team made it to the state semifinals, a
first for the program, losing a tough game to Newton despite maintaining possession for most of the game and out cornering them six to one. Verona should be incredibly proud of how far our field hockey program has come, especially in the last 5 years. Boys cross country
placed third in three of the highly competitive SEC American Division matches. Sam Zalooki, a freshman, was the freshman champion at the Nutley meet. the Essex County Track Coaches Invitational and at SEC Championships. Sam's freshman PR for my track and field
people is 1722 as a freshman, which is very, very impressive. Um, he led the team and both Logan Horton and Aiden Epil Epilo were impactful runners this season as well. They placed seventh at Essex County Championships and they were
group qualifiers um placing fourth at state sectionals. And we still have boys and girls soccer still competing this fall. And I wish our winter student athletes and our coaches a great winter season. Thank you. >> You Thank you, Laura. Does anyone have
any questions or comments? Thanks, Laura. >> Thank you for reporting on your last report. We will miss you, Laura. Moving on to committee reports. There are none. So now I'm going to open it up
to public comments on agenda action items. If there's anyone from the public that would like to speak on anything that we're voting on, please come to the podium and state your name. Seeing none. Moving on to discussion items. New
business or old business. Anyone have anything to report out on? Nothing here. Uh correspondence. >> No correspondence. >> Thank you. Moving on to our agenda.
I need a motion for personnel to approve A1 through A7. Motion by Mr. Waka, seconded by >> I'll second Mrs. Fara. Are there any discussions? Seeing none, Mr. Robinson, if you could
call roll. >> Mr. Waka, >> yes. >> Mrs. Ferrer, >> yes. >> Mrs. Brisco, >> yes. >> Mr. Boom. >> Yes. >> Thank you. Moving on to our education. I need a motion, please, to approve motion um resolutions B1 through B3.
Motion by Mr. Waka, seconded by Mr. Boone. Are there any discussions? >> None. Mr. Robinson. >> Mr. Rocket. >> Yes. >> Mr. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Prrisc. >> Yes. >> Mr. Yes. >> Thank you. Moving on to athletics. I
need a motion to approve resolutions C1 through C3. Motion by Mr. Waka. Seconded by >> Second. >> Mrs. Ferrar. Are there any discussions? Mr. Robinson, if you could call a roll.
>> Mr. Walka. >> Yes. >> Ferrari. >> Yes. >> Mr. Mrs. Prrisk. >> Yes. >> Mr. Moon. >> Yes. >> Thank you. There's nothing for facilities. Moving on to our finance. Motion, please, to approve resolutions E1 through E3.
>> Motion by Mr. Boon, seconded by >> Mr. Waka. Are there any discussions? Seeing none, Mr. Robinson. >> Mr. Walker. Mr. Ferrar. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Frisco. >> Yes. >> Mr. Boom. >> Yes.
>> Thank you. Moving on to governance and policy. I need a motion to approve resolutions F1 through F2. >> So moved. >> Motion by Mrs. Ferrara, second by >> Mr. Boon. Are there any discussions?
>> I just want to clarify. I updated uh the report to reflect this and I will email it to you. Um this is out of compliance. It appears to be out of compliance because of the timeline. It was not. This investigation was held up by the um uh local law enforcement and the requirements
>> uh under the memorandum of agreement between school boards and law enforcement. >> Is there anything special we have to do if it's off the timeline? >> Thank you. Mr. Robinson, if you could call roll. >> Mr. Rocket. >> Yes. >> Yes. >> Mr.
>> Yes. >> Yes. Yes. >> Thank you. Moving on to public comments. If anyone from the public would like to get to the come to the podium, please state your name on anything. Seeing none, head. Thank you.
We don't have confidential next time. Um, our next scheduled public meeting will be held on December 9th, 2025, beginning with confidential session at 6:00 p.m. and public session at 7 p.m. in the Rona High School Learning Commons. I need a motion to
adjourn our meeting. >> Motion by Mr. Boon, seconded by I'll second Mrs. Perr. All in favor? I. Meeting is adjourned and it is 7:26