i'd like to call the meeting to order please everyone have a seat roll call mr merrell michaela Giuliani mr bono will be late mr fio here
mr harris here mr holmes here mrs perez here mr rivera here mr silva mr sabbrano present mrs katispati present in compliance with the New Jersey open public meeting law commonly referred to as the sunshine law the
Violent Board of Education has caused notice and posting of this meeting to be sent to the following announcing time place agenda etc the Daily Journal SNJ Today the Press of Atlantic City Vista Bueno the clerk for the city of Vinland and the administrative office public
bulletin board would everyone rise for the flag salute wherever up here is fine just be careful jack Jack turn to the flag of the United States of
America and to the stands one nation under God indivisible with liberty and justice for all [Applause] mr musterell do we have resolution for
executive session we do now therefore be it resolved that the board of education of the city of Island School District will convene an executive session for the following reasons outlined in NJSA 104-12 discussion is about pending
litigation contract negotiation employment matters and any matters falling within the attorney clown privilege to the extent that confidentiality is required in order for the attorney to exercise his ethical duties as a lawyer
do I have a motion so moved second second roll call mr bono yes mr fokei yes mr harris yes mr holmes yes Mr mrs perez yes Mr rivera
yes Mr silva mr sabbrana yes Mrs kottis body yes motion carries mr yanner do we have any special presentations this evening yes we do we will be celebrating and honoring support staff members of the year please give us
a moment to get over to the podium we We are pleased to announce the 2024 2025 support staff of the year uh this evening when we call your name we would love for you to come on up and uh be celebrated and recognized by our board of education our cabinet and our
community that's here this evening so to begin I'm going to read the name i want to hear you guys make some noise and the first school support staff member of the year
is Mr robert Deacon from the tech department mr deacon is the unsung hero of our team always going above and beyond to ensure that all technology runs smoothly he consistently takes on extra tasks often working late into the
evening and during his days off to resolve issues and keep everything functioning his dedication and commitment to making sure everything works seamlessly even outside regular hours makes him an invaluable asset to the team let's hear from Mr deacon our next member is Cindy Dominic Domo
cindy is an Cindy is an incredibly thoughtful and considerate person who constantly puts others first she genuinely values and appreciates her co-workers always offering support and encouragement as a hardworking individual she approaches every task with dedication and focus
never complaining no matter the challenge cindy consistently goes the extra mile to help others doing so with kindness integrity and positive attitude her willingness to assist in any situation coupled with her strong work ethic makes her an indispensable member
of the team congratulations next Linda Carpolarich transportation linda is a district bus driver and an important part of our school community she knows each student and their families creating a safe and welcoming environment on her bus her kindness
reliability and personal connection with students make her a key part of their daily school experience linda is also actively involved in the Winslow community always ready to help and support the school her dedication makes a real difference in the lives of our
students and families linda Carpoolich fernando Muscat maintenance there are many reasons why Fernando or Mr fernando as we know him at Barcy should be recognized he always checks our rooms before the school year starts ensuring everything is set mr fernando
is quick to answer any call for help whether it's something as small as changing a battery in my clock or setting up the risers and chairs for our fifth grade moving up ceremony he always has everything ready on time and exactly how we need it mr fernando goes above and beyond for
everyone at Dane Varscy despite being pulled in many direction he remained calm and focused he always He's always working ready to respond to any emergency from spills to safety situations his positivity and dedication deserve to be recognized congratulations next from East Liz
Torres who works with ESS as one of our aids liz is incredibly reliable and consistently demonstrates a deep dedication to her job always punctual and dependable she can be trusted to handle any task no matter how big or small with efficiency and care her
commitment to her work goes beyond just fulfilling her responsibilities she takes the initiative to ensure everything is done to the highest standard often going above and beyond what is expected her strong work ethic and unwavering dedication make her an essential part of the team and her
consistency is something we everyone can count on congratulations [Applause] West Stephanie Dy ESSA stephanie is a dedicated and
exceptional educator as a classroom teaching assistant Stephanie excels at understanding each student's unique learning needs and consistently supports their success stephanie's passion for learning and genuine care for her students are evident in everything she does she uses positive behavior
reinforcement effectively and builds meaningful relationships with each child her creativity and approach to making learning relatable whether through singing a student's favorite song or engaging with them in imaginative play make her an invaluable asset to our team
congratulations from Depalto School alexa Martier Rodriguez ESS aid alexa is a hard worker always going above and beyond in everything she does she's dependable kind and a wonderful addition to the school staff alexa works
patiently with students offering them the support they need to succeed her dedication to their growth and well-being is evident in all of her interactions and she consistently makes a positive impact on everyone around her congratulations Duran Janet Rep
secretary janet is one of those essential team members who has served as a principal secretary for many years she is the definition of quiet dedication janet handles every task with care and efficiency from managing schedules to keeping the office organized she anticipates needs before they arise and
solves problems before they're noticed her calm professional demeanor and unwavering dedication make her an irreplaceable asset to the school janet's kindness and commitment leave a lasting impact and though we would ne although she would never ask for it she truly deserves recognition
congratulations [Applause] Next from Jstone Middle School James Jennins from maintenance james is the backbone of our
school the unsung hero who keeps everything running smoothly as the sole maintenance staff during the day he is always there when needed tirelessly ensuring that every task is completed to perfection no matter the challenge he handles it with remark remarkable skill dedication and a positive attitude his
hard work and commitment to the school are unmatched there's no one more deservant kind or devoted to their job than Mr james he is truly an outstanding worker and his contributions make a lasting impact on our entire school community
memorial Heather Spigglemire Secretary heather is a dedicated worker with a strong work ethic that has been a positive impact at Veterans Memorial School she consistently goes above and beyond her job to ensure everything runs smoothly and creates a supportive environment for both staff and students
her attention to detail reliability and problem solving skills have been invaluable her ability to anticipate needs and act without acting without pro promp prompting makes her an essential part of our team she also fosters a welcoming and inclusive atmosphere building strong relationships with
colleagues and promoting collaboration her kindness and professionalisms make everyone feel valued and heard congratulations next from many school Felicia Brown playgroom aid felicia is an invaluable part of our
school showing dedication leadership and genuine care for the students her positive attitude and ability to connect with the children make her stand out creating a space where every child feels safe respected and valued felicia is a true mentor and
role model and the respect she earns from both students and staff reflects her positive impact we are lucky to have her on our team and she makes our school a better place every [Applause]
day from Petway School Bernardet Rodriguez food service bernardet is a deeply dedicated and passionate about food service she ensures that students receive hot healthy and delicious meals while
creating a fun and welcoming atmosphere in the lunch line bernardet goes above and beyond by designing holiday themed lunches and snacks and always finding something for even the pickiest eaters she does all of this with a smile and kindness making every student feel
valued and cared for pill Marne Hendershot Secretary Marne is always ready to help with any need no matter how big or small at a moment's notice her dedication and hard work are evident in everything she does consistently going above and beyond
to ensure that everything runs smoothly whether it's stepping in to assist with tasks or offering support to anyone in need Marne's commitment and reliability make her an invaluable part of the team her willingness to pitch in without hesitation showcases showcases her strong work ethic and genuine care for
those around her [Applause] congratulations i'm sorry okay next from Rossi Elementary School Jana Duket
Secretary Jana is incredibly talented at designing flyers invitations and programs for our school always ensuring they look polished and professional she pays great attention to detail she takes the initiative to make upgrades as needed always striving for excellence
her positive energy and sense of humor light up our office bringing a smile and a laugh to everyone who walks in jana is a team player and we are very fortunate to have her as part of our team from Sabotair Elementary School
rosa neves vidette sec security Rosa consistently goes above and beyond for students her for staff for visitors she is always positive helpful and proactive in handling her duties and ensuring safety throughout the school students love her because she
shows genuine care especially when they are having a tough time she has earned the respect of her colleagues by being a great listener and always offered help when needed she participates in school events with enthusiasm rosa shows her
commitment to the school every day it's truly a pleasure working with her vinland High School North Kimberly Gross Secretary Kimberly truly deserves this recognition for always going above and beyond to help others no matter the situation she approaches every task with
dedication and finishes it with a smile kimberly makes everyone feel welcome and supported her kindness reliability and positive attitude leave a lasting impression on everyone she meets kimberly is truly an asset to our building and a wonderful person to work with
from Violent High School South Alfredo Laboy security freddy is always friendly with both students and staff going above and beyond to make sure students feel heard and stay safe he's excellent at handling situations
before they escalate and the VHS staff feel lucky to work with him because they know he's dedicated to keeping the school a safe place for everyone freddy works tirelessly to ensure the safety of the VHS Southa building his incredible work ethic and dedication make him an
inval invaluable part of the team wallace Deandon secretary Deianne is the epitome of dedication trustworthiness and dependability these qualities are the backbone of our child study team office allowing it to run smoothly and efficiently beyond managing critical
administrative tasks and ensuring organization deianne goes above goes the extra mile to genuinely connect with our students and their families her ability to understand each student's unique needs and programming is an invaluable asset especially when making decisions or planning for future changes deian
consistently goes above and beyond in her role making a significant contribution to our team success without hesitation congratulations from Winsel Elementary School justin Vasquez ESS substitute justin is loved by everyone
at Winsow School for his positive attitude and dedication he's always ready to help in any area and treats both students and staff with respect his professionalism and caring nature make him a great role model and leader justin supports all students with patience and
kindness and his impact goes beyond the classroom justin's warmth and dedication make a lasting difference winsow School is truly fortunate to have him let's hear it for all of our recipients today and Justin Thank you so much and I hope you have a
wonderful evening thank you good okay we're good yeah lovely [Music] oh thank you [Applause] that worked out nice right it's cute
right yeah [Applause] we're going to continue with our presentations there's a lot of excitement in the air so thank you for being here tonight our next special presentation i know for some reason I can hear Dr
speakman over everyone okay so I'm going to invite Miss Dena Redo supervisor of student services who will give an overview of the middle school peer group connection program miss Dena Ralpho I'm
going to just have do my spiel a couple of the kids are going to be speaking and then um and then I'll call them all up one time is that okay do you have them in order how do we give you the search i have them in the order that that they that's
the order that I have yeah it looks like they're pretty close so okay i hope hello everybody my name is Dina Ralfalo i am the supervisor of school counseling here in the district i just wanted to give an
overview of the peerroup connection middle school program that we just implemented um this past school year so the program is a school-based program designed to support and ease the transition into middle school by using our older eighth grade students to
foster a nurturing welcoming environment for the newcomers um this is also meant to teach our um build some leadership skills in our eighth grade students as well how it works our eighth grade students that are selected to uh they attend a peer leadership class every day
once a week the peer leaders experience an outreach that is facilitated by our peer adviserss these outreaches are on topics such as connectedness self-awareness self-management and decision-making skills these peer leaders then practice and prepare then
they will eventually that week go into the classrooms of the eighth grade sixth grade students and deliver this lesson to the sixth grade students um during their outreaches so essentially it's building that connection between the eighth graders and the sixth graders and
helping them um in middle school to ease that transition the next steps for the program due to the restrictions of the grant that we had this year um we could not provide these outreaches to all sixth grade students next year we will
no longer have those restrictions so we anticipate and we plan to expand the program to all sixth grade students so that they will all get the peer leadership outreaches so before I have a few of the students I have many of the students here a few of the students wish to speak
a little bit about the program um but before I do that um I want to introduce our peer advisors so um I just want to express my gratitude this program it was not easy it was there were so many
restrictions and so many demands and they just rolled they they really rolled with it um we had 11 days of training we had to go stay away off site for three days um we have people coming in all the time to review it was just there were a lot of a lot of hoops to jump through
and they did it so I just want to introduce them um from Pill I have Lauren Addly and Kelly Stypes where are they [Applause]
from thank you from Wallace Jamie Ekret and Sharon [Applause] Shioone from Jstone Brook Smith and Val
Carbonara thank you excellent and then from Memorial Grace Gagan and Maria Cohensky [Applause]
so the first Oh oh sure okay so first up we have an eighth grade student from Pill Janasia floyd are you out there where are you Jan there you are all right um my name is Janasia Floyd
and I'm a peer leader at Pillow Middle School and I've really enjoyed peer group connection because it is a break from regular school work and I'm doing really well in it um and I made really a lot of friends with people I didn't expect to
and I really enjoy the outreaches that we do with the sixth graders because it could be really good for them and even though my group is really challenging I'm doing amazing at it cuz I'm wonderful and thank you and when I was in sixth grade I was
like not the best so I'm glad that I could help them like be better and I'm glad that they gave me a chance to do this and they saw my growth thank you from Memorial sorry I can't see um Dena Margolan good evening members of the
board of education thank you for allowing me to speak with you today my name is Dina Margolan and I'm proud to represent our school's peer group connection mentoring program a program where eighth graders are matched with sixth grade students to provide guidance encouragement and support as they transition into middle school i want to share just how powerful this program has
been for our school community motivating both our mentors and mentees starting middle school can be overwhelming for sixth graders it's not just about new classes it's about finding their way making new friends and adjusting to a whole new environment that's where we the eighth grade peer mentors come in
we're not just there to answer questions we're there to listen help them feel seen and show them that they belong what's amazing is how quickly the relationships build sixth graders start the year unsure and a little nervous but within weeks you can see their confidence grow they ask more questions
they raise their hands in class and become more inquisitive they start greeting you in the hallways because they know someone is in their corner and has their back but the impact isn't one-sided as mentors we've learned responsibility patience and how to be role models we've had to think about our behavior and the example we're setting
it's taught us leadership and empathy skills we'll take far beyond middle school because of peer group we are not just helping our students but this program created a culture of kindness and connection at our school it's helping younger students succeed in shaping us eighth graders into strong compassionate leaders it is also shaping
sixth graders to become confident and self- assured so that they can proceed further into their middle school years without worrying about how complex intermediate grades seem to them in elementary school with the help of their mentees we're grateful for the support you've given to make this possible and we hope you'll continue to support and expand this program so it can keep
making a difference from Johnstone [Applause] ariana good evening everyone my name is
Ariana and I'm honored to stand here as one of your eighth grade peer leaders from Johnstone Middle School being a peer leader means a lot to me at first I thought it would be hard to teach the sixth graders but they completely surprised me they were kind respectful and eager to learn in sixth grade I was
quiet and hesitant to ask questions it took time for me to realize that it's okay to speak up and I'm grateful for the teachers who created a supportive environment that helped me grow middle school is a time of change we're all figuring out who we are and how to handle challenges some days are fun but
others are tough as a peer leader I have learned that simply being there and listening can make a big difference leadership I found starts with kindness we work hard to plan lessons that help sixth graders grow not just in school but as people before I
end I'd like to thank my parents for always encouraging me to step out of my comfort zone and Miss Smith our JSON STEM and PGC teacher for juggling so much and still inspiring us every day it's been an amazing experience and I'm truly grateful thank you for listening
and our last speaker we've heard from our eighth grade peer leaders um now we have one of our sixth grade students that would like to speak about her experience and that is [Applause]
Leah hi my name is Leah Daniels i'm a sixth grader from Johnstone i feel that PGC is an amazing place where you can speak and share your feelings about yourself or a certain topic the PGC leaders there are interested in what we like and what we want to do the people
there care about what you have to say or what we feel i love that you can do all of these amazing things and that you are able to be yourself without any judgment in any way i also like that people there don't talk when you are when you are and
are happy to hear what you have to say and are interested in listening we learn how we are all different and the same i like how we all think about Yeah think about things and how we feel pgc is a great place and I'm happy
to be in it so now we're we're just going to call the the PGC people that are here to come up and we have a certificate for you okay so sorry sorry all right um we're going to
start with Pill we have Janasia Floyd come on up just do a group right yeah laya Bermudez not here gian Payton chanty Krooks no ayanna
Milbourne no lucas Dunales yay [Applause] and just wait up hang out up front um Lori Shaw was a maybe is she here no and
then Emma Hurst no that's it for Come on up your name's not on here but we'll we'll get you a certificate what's your name i don't know what's your name okay we'll get you a certificate from Memorial Dena Margolan
i know James couldn't make it so James is not here stephen Cohansky Lara Dennis Allison Witie I know I probably said that wrong from Wallace Aaliyah Rodriguez Jalia
Moore and from Jstone Ariana Sonelia Rihanna Zapata [Applause] Leah
Daniels and Abigail Adams [Applause] we're going to have to go [Applause]
you playing baseball yeah this offense do we have any questions or comments on the HIP report seeing none do we have any questions or comments on the minutes do I have a motion so move
second roll call please mr bono yes mr fokei yes mr harris yes mr holmes yes mrs perez yes mr rivera yes mr sabrana yes mrs scottispati yes
motion carries committee reports mr pio yes good evening finance committee met on uh April 1st at 8 a.m via Google Meet in attendance was Mr musterel Mr yano Miss Carrie Mrs perez Mr silva Mr rivera and myself following topics were
discussed uh reviewed the financials book and bank balance for budgetary and food service accounts uh SDA grant uh was amended to include Duran roof only uh renewing contracts for 2526 professional services uh board solicitor
labor council alternate council primary physician alternate school position architect of record auditor insurance broker of record uh non-professional contracts renewing concrete masonary services HVAC plumbing and electrical painting roofing middle
school math reading intervention online education services before and after care uh new contracts allied universal security services Uh and RFP for data analysis was awarded to Lincoln thank you
curriculum instruction later on March 31st at 4:30 p.m present was uh Mrs deari Miss Galooi myself and Mr sabrina we discussed the summer reading summer reading for our students entering 6th to 12th grade is required information
regarding summer reading will be shared with students in May summer reading will also be posted on our district website we also discussed the following topics upcoming professional development for both staff and administration Verizon Innovative Learning Schools Partnership
the summer curriculum work 9th grade academy and special education updates were given program locations for the 2526 school year were discussed on Tuesday April 1st the transportation committee met via Google
Meet president was uh Mr bermudez Mr musterell Miss Mason Mr rivera Mr harris and myself we have 143 drivers budgeted 140 route packages 133 field positions two drivers
on leave 16 substitute drivers and four drivers in training the average absences in the morning of March was 18 average absences in the afternoon was 20 for the month of March we discussed the current number of open registration and number
of registration completed in March we also talked about the Genesis registration training for the team we reviewed the current joints on co-op with our uh other districts we reviewed the number of accidents in March which were five only one injury was
reported we also discussed damage to a bus window while on the road the Violent Police Department assisted with this incident uh there were no new transportation registration personnel items and lastly we discussed plans to address concerns
with gates to the busy yard thank you any further reports do we have a public meeting report by our board solicitor uh no update tonight thank you miss Giuliani good evening my name is Michaela Giuliani and I'm the senior
class president at Vinland High School um please forgive me for using my phone i had a really busy day and my computer died um it's quite tragic um but this meeting is perfectly timed at is it is assistant principles week in
honor of it I'd like to recognize and extend a special thanks from the student body to our VHSLA assistant principles Mr newton Mr pannis and interim assistant principal Dr cornish at and VHS Tanner's assistant principles Mrs
craig Mr lapsley and Mr hall last month the senior class trip was incredibly successful a group of students from the senior class flew down to Florida in the early hours on Sunday March 16th my alarm much to my chagrin was set for 2:30 in the morning we went
to Magic Kingdom Epcot and Hollywood Studios in Walt Disney World as well as Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios in Universal Studios Orlando i personally rolled my rode my first roller coaster followed by a log flume with an 85 ft drop which I did not know
about when I got on the ride but I had a blast at the end of the week the Model Congress Club and AP Government Politics class attended the New Jersey Model Congress conference at Ryder University where Adrien Condi Molina Cortez Paulina Tomlin and Eva Ta all successfully
passed their legislation in the full Senate or full house which required them to first pass it within their um respective committees since the start of April VHS has had a career fair with over 10,000 students in attendance completed the third marking period and
prepared for our spring musical You're a Good Man Charlie Brown the shows will be 700 p.m this Thursday Friday and Saturday as well as a 2 p.m matinea show on Saturday bps Elementary students were welcomed to VHS to watch the show this
week and I have to say it is amazing and I can't wait for the community to see it this Thursday Vinand will also welcome back some of our alumni athletes to be inducted into our athletic hall of fame this Saturday at on April 12th VHS
and Raft will co-host a spring craft show from 10 to 2:00 p.m on Monday our senior class will be attending the Philly Senior Night for the class of 2025 bhs sold the most tickets out of all of the attending schools next week
also marks the start of spring break and the end of April may 1st our senior class will be participating in the National Commitment Day where each student will announce their future plans as well as um if they're planning on going to a four-year institution they have to place their um
down payment for that may 2nd will mark the third annual run for Ramirez an inschool event filled with outdoor activities to honor and fundra for the legacy of our former JOTC Master Sergeant Joseph Ramirez with everything going on the time is flying
by our seniors have even started counting the down the days we have 43 school days left to be exact within the few more months we have a long list of plans as always I can't wait for the experience to come and to share them with you next month thank you so
[Applause] much public comment on agenda items only do we have any yellow sheets Mr musterel we do not is there anybody from the public that would like to speak seeing none
Mr yano do you have resolutions absolutely uh requesting discussion and approval regarding personal item 1.1 questions or comments do I have a motion
so moved second second roll call please mr mr bono yes mr fio yes mr harris yes mr holmes yes mrs perez yes mr rivera yes mr sabbrano yes mrs katispati yes
motion carries requesting discussion and approval regarding procedures and operations items 2.1 through 2.5 questions or comments do I have a motion comment second comments i have one question as
well isn't 2.2 something we wanted to discuss um as part of the executive session no no okay yeah I do have a comment um there was a trip that was brought to my attention i brought it up
to uh contacted um Mr bermudez today or yesterday and was wondering if there was any discussion about it with the superintendent um it was just a community s concern with a lot of violent public school
students that are attending a trip in Florida and I'm just wondering you know where it sits um presently um they're asking for board approval um so I just don't know what process
needs to you know what what was was there many missing parts um just want to get back to the community members I didn't really have much time to bring it up to I'm sorry I had a busy day at work uh yesterday and today I did have a chance to reach out to Ish um but I just wanted to bring it
up to your attention because there's a lot of concern there's a lot of students that are attending this trip um and since it's funded by Vinyl Public Schools I I think that we should maybe have a vote whether this it's either tonight or uh at our next meeting in April because the trip is it's kind of
timesensitive that's why I wanted to bring it up it's uh May 1st I believe until the 5th of May and it's under Vamp okay so I just wanted to bring that to your attention to see if we could have a discussion tonight i know we were meeting in executive session so maybe we
could discuss it amongst the board to uh have a vote on it tonight if possible okay yesterday I sent an update to all board members regarding that specific topic so there's a lot of detail in there as to
uh why we were unable to um approve it as a field trip so I would just ask that maybe if you look at the email and the clarification that's provided in there because we did consider we we've been working with um Mr hedley who is the director from Vamp
about um approving a trip the district provides stipen payment for the director for the performance the trip is is a is an extension it's a it's an extra activity that I believe if there are 60 students
20 students who uh do not belong to Bond public schools the other 40 do you know so it's not a district sponsored activity the trip the actual performance the play the use of memorial that's approved through our facilities use uh
team as well so the trip when we reviewed would it qualify as a field trip for the school district it would not and we are unable to excuse absences for students on the trip because there are
very specific criteria of which events would allow us to excuse an absence a a school sponsored field trip for school district students led by a school district employee absolutely we could
do the the trip is led by a non-district employee there's kids from across the community not necessarily Vond public schools if we approved it our liability for all students would be exposed where
20 of them do not even belong to the school district i get it they belong to the community so this trip was last taken I believe in like a 2018 if I recall so that's the reason why it was not put on as the big concern for the parents is the excuse absence you know
these children these students are taking you know the time to be a part of an organization within V public schools extracurricular activity um that's that's the big concern and traveling what happens if something happens and there are our students you know are we
liable if something happens in Florida without board approval again these are all questions that that I have i And you said you sent an email out um but again I with busy with work I I didn't get a chance to look uh review that email my apologies um so if we could have a
discussion tonight about prior I' I'd like to uh to have a discussion so that maybe we can amend a policy or or possibly vote on it this evening with all that being said um so maybe we can just get a little bit
of background here uh what is No I'll ask what's the what's Yeah can you just give me background on that i'm going to ask Mr bermudas to give me a hand with some of the background i'll I'll I'll fill in but come over to the
podium just in case I miss something do you have so vamp is vin all middle school production correct is that is that the correct that is correct yes can you provide just a quick background of vamp
yeah sure so vamp is violent all middle school production um it's an opportunity for any of the middle school students who are part of violent public schools but it is extended to other students within the community to participate in one um one production uh is currently um
hosted at Memorial uh Mr hedley is the director of of the Vamp uh production as well is Mr hedley a Ryland Public Schools employee he is not he does have a sibling who works in district though mr mr mr jared Hedley is
an employee so is his mother Miss Janet he he is employee of the city of Iowa correct correct i'm not certain i believe possibly i don't know if I I believe so okay so can I ask a question see that's why I had a little confusion too because I know Mr hedley was a principal of VHS Tannerville yeah so
that's his brother I believe right correct correct uh Jared Hedley is a supervisor special education secondary he used to be at the high school as an AP but now he works directly with Miss Galooi here in our special ed office okay so uh I would say as I'm hearing it
that we don't have as the superintendent has outlined a teacher or district employee that is going to be chaperoning or running it um and we don't know right now what the consent forms look like what a type of agreement would look like i just think at this point there's some
unknowns um there is the possibility of amending or adding this trip at a later time i know you you said May 1st so I don't know if there'll be time for this year but at this point it doesn't sound like it would meet the criteria of a field trip so I can't recommend adding
it at this point is that correct there's no Violent Public Schools employees that are going to be a chaperon or any parents that have children there's over 40 students I believe right so is there is no Violent Public Schools chaperons just out of curiosity i I don't know the
details of who is who who the uh who was going to attend as a chaperone but Mr hedley as the adviser he would be the individual who'd be coordinating the event I would imagine what about if we looked into it and possibly if we do find somebody we talk to the solicitor and maybe put it on for
the 28th i mean they're still going to go no matter what but this would whether it be excused or not excused i mean they're going anyway correct yeah may 1st to the 5th again it's it's more about having um the insurance god forbid
one of the students gets hurt you know this is the concerns from the parents um students absenteeism um which is a problem we just saw this week in in B public schools you know so those that those things being said those two are major in
my in my opinion yeah um you know again these kids are taking time out of their their school year to have a positive impact for Vamp right which is a funded you know organization through Memorial School I believe right correct there's a
paid to the Is there a way we can find out who the other chaperoons are going to be if we have a district employee that's chaperoning or if they have if there is any kind of insurance the part that I just want to clarify vamp the performance is the district sponsored event right the performance
the the the stipen that comes out of Memorial School's budget is for the director to for the performance not where all the payments went from the parents right the trip is completely fundraised and uh donors
I'm sorry performing i believe they are performing while they're down in Disney uh but we are we've been going through this since September uh looking at you know does this qualify as a field trip you know we looked at the liability piece
of you know ensuring or or approving and placing the board um liable for what happens on a trip that's we internally do not see it as a district sponsored field trip that that was the sticking point because of the makeup of the organization it's voluntary it's it's
not a mandatory event it's not a curriculum event it's not like um some of the marching band events that go overnight to New York City to perform that's under our umbrella of of programs and performances chaperon by our director let's say that's covered
internally and our insurance covers us so that's why we looked at the situation said that this not something we'd be able to prove also because there are students who do not belong to our public school district who are on that trip but they would be excluded right there's other students that aren't part of the
district i believe the original request was that it was the complete group that and that was the feedback we provided as well that So yeah so if you don't mind me asking who who dropped the ball here was it Mr headley the department head of this organ this organization like
where's the missing piece here i I don't think anyone dropped the ball mr hedley did a great job awesome amazing incredible performance the trip is is an add-on it's it's an extra activity that he is orchestrating with the support of
the families of that after school activity uh the we looked at what is a field trip what allows what are the allowable excused absences we looked at the state definition of
excused versus non-excused and they're very specific about what you can excuse when the student goes on a trip if it's a field trip that's of an educational value linked to the curriculum it's it's it's pretty straightforward performing arts isn't part of that i mean you could
we send our kids to Florida for baseball you know sporting activities other things so I just having a hard time with why why we wouldn't back this trip for 40 of our students if I can jump in for two points here one I don't think it agree it doesn't meet the definition of
field trip i'm pretty sure you need someone from the school to chaperone it it sounds more and I don't know anything about you said it tell me about it sounds more like a community event that involves people that live in the city but not necessarily specific to just the
school uh second I would would highly recommend before agreeing to anything to looking at what their requirements are for their contracts agreements insurance requirements before anything there as the madam chair said there is an April 28th meeting this could be brought up
and discussed at that one but I think more information is needed before any way yes or no perfect that's what we're looking for could go thank you i don't I don't decide that i'm just saying that's I I'm thanks for saying I mean that's all I want is some discussion on
it to see if we can um you know maybe at least present it to the entire board so that everybody can have a vote on it because again 40 of our students are attending this trip um they parents did make payments to Memorial School so
there are some connections here okay thank you thank you for your time guys okay do I have a motion and second so move second roll call please mrs perez you seconded it thank you mr
bono yes mr fio yes mr harris yes mr holmes yes mrs perez yes mr rivera yes mr silva Mr s uh Mr sabrina yes
mrs scottisbat yes motion carries requesting discussion and approval regarding finance items 4.1 through 4.13 questions or comments roll call i mean sorry do I have a motion so moved
second who seconded that donna thank you roll call mr bono yes mr fio i need to recuse on 4.6 4.7
4.8 yes for the remaining items thank you Mr harris i need to recuse from 4.3 and yes to the remaining Mr holmes yes mrs perez yes mr rivera
yes mr silva mr sabrana you'll get it right eventually i will yes mrs katispati yes motion carries at this time I would like to ask Mr bermudas uh to take uh the poem just for
a quick announcement and celebration all right thank you Board of Education thank you Mr yano members of the cabinet for giving me the opportunity to chair just a bit of an update on some of the initiatives we had regarding safety and security throughout Violent Public Schools um just like to extend my gratitude to everyone for the ongoing
support and commitment to making safety a top priority for our students teachers and families over the past year we've made some significant strides to strengthening the safety infrastructure of our schools and we're continuing to build on that momentum some key highlights include the expansion and improvement of surveillance c of
surveillance systems across the district to ensure more comprehensive monitoring and quicker response times the addition of Mr wolf as director of security for Violent Public Schools bringing a focus and experienced leadership presence to to this critical area we are also
expanding the use of raptor technology services which include our visitor safe management which is active in all of our schools to effectively screen and track visitors and we are looking to expand into the emergency emergency management system and that's designed to help us
prepare for respond to and recover for from emergency events with greater coordination and efficiency uh and the newest partnership I'd like to discuss is our partnership with Allied Universal which will provide armed security guards in each of our schools this is a major step forward in ensuring our schools
remain safe environments for learning and growth we deeply appreciate the support from the board of education in moving this initiative forward in particular I know Mr katis Mrs katispati and Mr fio have been uh committed to making this a reality during their time on the board um so we appreciate those
efforts of everyone to make this a reality at this time I'd like to invite Mr frank Spano who is the director of education security services from Allied Universal and before Mr spano President Katispati want to say a few words so please I would like to thank the entire
board um boards in the past who have worked with us for the armed guard services i'd like to thank central administration for working with us um I especially want to thank Mr fio for for being working as hard as he has with along with myself in getting this but I also need to thank um former board
members Tom Alrich and Scott English for having our having our backs supporting us and encouraging us until we've gotten this i know they're very excited and happy that our armed guards are going to be coming into effect very soon and we welcome you thank you thank you Madam
President members of the board Superintendent Yano i'd like to introduce my team with me today anthony Roby from our operations team Dan Roose from our government affairs and government services team and I think a gentleman that needs no introduction in Vinland Felix Martinez from our business
development side uh as Mr bermudez said I'm Frank Spano i'm Allied Universal's director of education security services and so my job I'm not a salesperson I'm not an operator it's to make sure that what we do as a company is correct within the academic environment right whether that be K12 or higher ed um as
you may be aware Allied Universal is honored to be the largest provider of education security services in North America that's the higher ed to K12 as well as the historically black college and universities and so what that provides us is an unmatched community of practice where we learn the good we learn the bad we learn what works we
learn what we could do better we bring that together with our team and the communities that we serve to make sure that we bring the right people with the right capabilities and the right mindset to support your school and so we've really enjoyed the opportunity to work with violent schools and look forward to continuing to do so i have to say as an
educator myself being here and seeing this today made me miss being back in the classroom and being back in school uh I'm very happy that what we do even in an armed security capacity is serving as an educator outside the classroom right to model that behavior to work
with the team and on that note I'd actually I'd love to thank the board in particular uh as well as Director Wolf uh for the vision and for the capability superintendent Yano Mr bermudez thank you for bringing us all together uh we very much look forward to advancing the
partnership working together on the training and making for a safer school i'm happy to take any questions or comments that you may have uh or any that you may wish to address from the floor thank you ma'am appreciate it [Applause]
regular agenda none proposed items for review or discussion or adoption by board members none um approval of bills any questions or comments do I have a motion so moved second
second roll call please mr bruno yes mr fio mr harris yes mr holmes yes mrs perez yes mr rivera yes i'm not going to stop now mr
silva mr sabbrana yes mrs katispati yes motion carries emergent items none old business none new business none board member comments
i'll start with Mr holmes nothing at this time mr bono uh just like to say uh last week we had an awesome time at the chili cookoff at Wallace School kudos and much respect to
Chef Profesh within V R V public schools he did a phenomenal job uh great event it's my second one and um myself President Kaspati Vice President Sabrana and Cedric were judges in the contest
and boy it was a hard one every kid brought their agame they had wellthoughtout recipes and they they cooked them right there tableside 45 minutes to prepare a dish with all these spectators it was an amazing event and I
just I just like to thank the administration for letting it happen and everyone that was involved uh great job um keep it going a little close to my heart and you know being in the culinary world and uh it was a very nice event thank you um and then I'd like to
congratulate all the violent public school support staff members of the year um the winners and every other staff member within our violent public schools district you know they a lot of them go for granted and
um and support staff uh members are a huge asset to our district in my opinion um because you never know who a child is going to get comfortable with and and open up to so every support staff member within those
walls of of those schools are important asset to our district and it's great it's great to see that uh we acknowledge them for their job well done so thank you Miss Perez thank you um first of foremost thank you to our Pway students for leading us in the flag salute it's
always one of my favorites to see them um second to our peer leaders staff and students thank you thank you thank you i am sure that through your efforts you made the transition for many sixth graders students a little easier and
less stressful great job it was great to see that and finally and last but not least to our support staff of the year and to all our support staff support means to lift up means to hold up it's a foundation and they are that to this school district we appreciate each and
every one of you you are an asset to our school district and represent the backbone of Vinland Public Schools so thank you very much Mr aa good evening everyone i'd like to thank the Petway students for leading us in
the flag suit as well um congratulations to all the support staff members the winners of the year um it's been said but without you guys um we couldn't do the work that we do here in Violent Public Schools so we thank you and congratulations uh to Mrs ralpho uh congratulations on
your team excellent work i'm looking forward to next year where we can expand that program and see what else what else we can do with that and I'm excited about that so congratulations um welcome Allied Health alli Allied Health close enough close enough allied Security um
welcome uh we look forward to our partnership and I look forward to working with you guys and just to have the the feeling of safety in all our in all our school buildings is going to be great for our students our parents and us as as administration and board members so thank you for coming on board
um to our eighth graders that are coming into 9th grade next year I just have one thing to tell you you make the school the school doesn't make you so for all you that perhaps got some bad news over the last couple weeks
don't take it as bad news because here at Violent Public Schools you are going to succeed you are going to have a great high school career and you're going to do amazing things for the rest of your life
as a violent high school graduate have a great night thank you Mr harris i want to take a moment and thank the children from Pway Elementary School for leading us in the flag salute uh want to thank uh say congratulations to the
sport staff support staff is very important sometime they go uh unrecognized but uh tell them congratulations and keep up the hard work allied security I want to say welcome i look forward to you guys uh
increasing the security in the school as a grandparent of a student i want to thank Miss Kispotti for pushing this uh it's a good thing i want the kids secure thank you
Mr sabrana thank you to the usual cast of thousands that we have at our means and bring them on more the better especially our great kids leading the flag salute then our support staff i saw a lot of smiles out there and a pat on the back and a little
a certificate always gives you a little bit of a boost for the people that work hard every day in regard to our security services um as Kim said a lot of people were involved pushing this along the way
great deal of frustration a lot of conversations about how do you put a price on a child's life or a staff member or a member of the general public for the 20 years before I sat in this chair I was the director of
communications and so of course it was near a near miracle that we never had any of the terrible things that happened in schools across our nation but we did have situations where we lost a student one way or the other and or there was some terrible thing
happened and I'm the guy that had to stand in front of all the TV cameras and I have to say it changed me in a way because I can I can recall every single one of those circumstances everything I saw
everything I said everything I heard and had difficult time sleeping especially when it happened some other place in the in the country no one can guarantee safety and I've heard it over and over again any
school any time any day but we're finally at last doing something about it and that gives me a great feeling of pride just to be associated with it i didn't do a whole lot other than to say you have to stand
in front of a bunch of cameras and people pointing a microphone in your face and asking you hard ball questions until you understand the magnitude of that of that experience and I don't want anyone especially no one that works at this school district to have to do that
so looking forward to working with you fellows however long I'm here i also want to say to our students at home especially the high school students this is always the time of the year somewhere in the country and oftentimes in the
state sometimes even nearby we lose a student because someone was being stupid and reckless and thinking that nothing bad could ever happen to them because they're 17 or 18 years old well guess what it can and it does and it it kills
a little part of the entire community when it happens so please students enjoy the activities that we have there many of them but make good decisions be safe and have the smiles on your face at the
end of the day that you did in the beginning thank you Mr yano thank you uh to our board members to our community who came out tonight want to say another big thank you to our support staff members who we were able to
recognize tonight what an awesome group of individuals just they make our district amazing our students who came out this evening again outstanding peerroup connection students what a cool program you know school-based eighth grade
students working advising connecting to our sixth graders incredible experiences we see it in action every day uh Dean and her team are doing a great job and our principles at the middle schools are also doing wonderful work uh we had a great eighth grade dialogue on March
26th in this building was an awesome event to recognize students uh whose character determination school spirit leadership and community service inspired their classmates teachers and their community it was a wonderful Cumberland Countywide event uh we are um
excited about you know what comes into our next future chef competition not sure what next year's challenge will be uh but I heard this year's winner Dallas Johnson from Rossi did a great job with his awesome and incredible very yummy favorite chili
recipe we had uh 12 students elementary and middle school who were honored on April 3rd as giraffe heroes uh for having big hearts and sticking their necks out to help others and for being persistent in pursuing their goals uh those students their teachers their administrators their families are
inspiration to our classmates and to our community uh this week Cap and Dagger uh performances start tomorrow night 700 p.m friday night 7 p.m 2 and 7 p.m on Saturday our third grade students got a sneak peek yesterday what a cool
experience to see our third grade students from across our district watch this performance it was very just inspiring you could see the third graders saying "Wow this is so cool i can't wait to be a part of this high school." They were excited and I
know our high school students loved seeing those faces staring at them and kind of interacting with them during some of the sets it it was an interesting to see as as our students learned what it is to be a good audience member uh tomorrow incredible event art
K5 Elementary show here Landis School uh come on out it's going to be a wonderful evening of art and celebration um our athletic hall uh of fame induction is also tomorrow tickets are closed but the ceremony will be available on YouTube so you can view it online and uh welcome
Allied to our team we'll be working very closely thank you i would just like to echo um everything that my fellow board members have said congratulations to all of our students congratulations to our support staff and all of our staff we can't do this
without you guys and you guys are doing an amazing job this year um I was able to be at the junior chef's competition it was actually my ninth year judging it is one of my favorite events and I can't wait to see what next year brings i was
at the eighth grade dialogue and those kids were amazing that came through the um came through that night some of the answers just surprised me and they were so grown up um I was able to meet with Allied and
with the superintendent and Mr wolf and Mr bermudez and I was very impressed and I have to tell you after 10 years working with Mr alrich and Mr english and Mr pioke and the boards over the years 10 years I felt at peace when I left that meeting and I'm so excited and
I'm so comfortable with what I heard with you guys so I welcome you and if you ever need anything from us the board is here thank you everyone god bless you all good night do I have a motion to adjurnn second all in favor i