##VIDEO ID:8TvQaVRQtU8## e e e e e e e e um the board is in executive session so can I have a motion to leave leave executive and open back up to the uh public meeting motion can I get a second second all in favor I okay this meeting is being videotaped anyone not wishing to be seen on television may be excused please rise for the Pledge of Allegiance where's the flag i al flag United States of America to Republic it stands na God indiv liy and justice for all I'm going to talk toss it over to Dr hibs to begin the presentations of the 2024 2025 teachers of the year and educational surface Professionals of the Year let's hear it we have a that's awesome I who's got the cowbell by the way hit there we go very nice we got got OB representing with the cow bell all right good stuff uh we have a lot to be thankful for right we have some incredible staff that we're celebrating we have a an incredible visit to the Super Bowl coming up in the next few weeks uh we have a Giants fan sitting here let them hear it so it is with immense pride and gratitude that we celebrate our outstanding teachers of the year and the educational Services Professionals of the Year give them a hand these incredible individuals exemplify excellence and education going above and beyond to inspire support and Empower our students each and every day and we all know how important that is every day to inspire our kids your dedication creativity and unwavering commitment to fostering a love of learning and growth within our schools reflect the very best of what education should be you are the heart and soul of our mission working Tire tirelessly to ensure that every child feels valued supported and capable of achieving their dreams this recognition is more than just an acknowledgement of your accomplishments it's a celebration of the collective effort that defines our great District together with pride we build the found foundation for a brighter future one student one classroom and one meaningful connection at a time thank you for all that you do board members why don't you go down and take your seats and I'm going to uh I'm going to introduce the incredible principal of grenlock Terrace so I'd like to introduce I'd like to introduce uh Mrs Christina Cox uh who is going to introduce our first incredible teacher of the year uh we are going to uh recognize Megan fenm uh let's let's give a [Applause] hands good evening everyone it is my honor to present preschool's teacher of the year Miss Megan fizer better known to all of us as teacher Meg Meg has been a dedicated special education teacher in Washington Township for the past 10 years she currently teaches the preschool students with disabilities program at grenlock one of the common threads shared by parents of students in Meg's class is how she treats each child like family and is always in close communication with them many of her students are only just turning three and are still learning to communicate as you can imagine parents are often nervous about sending their little ones to school without language skills yet but with teacher Meg those fears disappear parents know their child is not only safe but also loved and cared for Meg truly goes all in when it comes to her students she doesn't just teach she creates magic in the classroom whether it's by dressing in elaborate costumes her theme days or planning creative activities to make learning a fun memorable experience beyond the classroom Meg has also established herself as a leader at grenlock this year in collaboration with another teacher she worked with a company to create a sensory room for stud students and she even LED an inservice for the staff on how to use this space effectively she is also a valuable member of the school-based leadership team where she helps develop goals each year to increase inclusive opportunities for students with disabilities at grundlock as many of you know preschool has expanded to multiple locations including Kindle School Meg has become the bridge between these locations ensuring that every staff member feels included and connected no matter where they are she has an incredible ability to unite everyone making the expansion as seamless experience for all of us in addition to her many responsibilities Meg co-founded the funtivities for the whole preschool staff each month she takes charge of our preschool Tik Tok videos always bringing fresh ideas to help spread positivity and Foster a VI inclusive School culture Meg your infectious positivity and unwavering dedication has created a warm welcoming atmosphere that makes everyone feel valued your ability to unite us with your humor energy and heart is truly unmatched congratulations teacher mag you are more deserving than anyone of this thank you 10 years ago remember and now I'd like to introduce the dynamic principal of Bell School Dr sha [Applause] Gerson good evening everyone at Bell's Elementary we're privileged to work with extraordinary educators who bring their passion dedication and creativity to our classrooms every day today tonight we celebrate Mrs Melissa herley as you can see she is a fan favorite of staff students and families she is one of those exceptional teachers who embodies all the qualities we hold dear in our school community she approaches everything with unmatched style and grace bringing positivity and energy to every interaction whether supporting a colleague guiding her students or stepping up to lend a helping hand her impact resonates not only with her students but with their families and colleagues a parent shared she inspires our children and she even inspires me as a teacher I constantly quiz my daughter about how things are done in her classroom trying to get ideas to use with my students a colleague beautifully captured her spirit saying she is like no other she is one of the most dedicated and caring human beings I've had the pleasure of knowing she goes above and beyond for our students to make sure they are getting the education they not only need but deserve she is a great coworker but an even better human being her mindfulness in initiatives have provided a calming presence and social emotional learning tools that have both been relaxing and uplifting for staff she has a common presence to her students colleagues even me Mrs herley has a special way about her something Indescribable in the English language one may characterize it as she has an Aur about her that brings a sense of calmness to whomever she has the pleasure of of talking to with deep gratitude for her contributions to our school and Community we are thrilled to announce Mrs Melissa herley as Bell's 2024 teacher of the year congratulations Mrs herley on a welld deserved honor [Applause] and now I get the privilege of introducing my friend and colleague Mrs Julie larubbio going I don't go with you [Applause] do I'll you first Birch's teach of the Year Mrs Sandy [Applause] Fitzpatrick I've heard many times that everything we need to know in life we learn in kindergarten today was I was in Mrs Fitzpatrick's kindergarten class and was tasked with dismissing them oh my gosh I asked them on the carpet what they've learned so far in garden and the first thing they said was she doesn't do it like this but then they played along be kind help others kiss our brains we learn to read here we write numbers sometimes she keeps us safe she gives us snacks when we forget and we cheer for each other I'd say it's all we need to know these days with eight years of dedicated teaching in Washington Township and as a proud resident of our community wife a mom of three boys Mrs Fitzpatrick has her hands full and still finds the time to make her students lifelong Learners the love she has for her students bleeds out of every single pore in her body Sandy and her BFF Mrs ambino were the first teachers I met at Birches when I was hired they came in on a hot July day bearing gifts and smiles and comfort at a time that was scary for me being such a uh new to such a huge district and I am immediately realized that this is how they must make their students feel safe comfortable and happy I knew at this moment that I was in the right place Sandy told me that she decided to be a kindergarten teacher because as a child she had teachers who didn't have a handle on behaviors and didn't understand that kids learn differently she herself struggled to listen and learn when she was little so she leads with love and patience especially for those students who who learn by doing and watching she shared that putting every effort into her craft and her students heals her 5-year-old self and I felt that she advocates for kindergarten she makes me a better principal she makes Mrs Ryan a better building supervisor she helps us make our school a really good place for kids she's not afraid to say what she feels even if it's unpopular and she will always work to get what she feels the kids deserve Sandy mentors writes curriculum is on all the Committees writes lots of Grants and stays way too late on Friday nights preparing for next week but with all of this under her belt the thing that stuck out to me most recently is that all of the votes that she received were from her co-workers that's very telling her peers at Birches respect her two teachers even stated on their ballot that they want to be Mrs Fitzpatrick when they grow up I came across this Japanese proverb that by the way anybody who read this before tonight made fun of me about but I'm going to read it anyway better than a thousand days of diligent study is one day with a great teacher this profound truth highlights the immense influence a great teacher can have and Mrs Fitzpatrick truly embodies this as I walked out of her classroom this afternoon with the last of the bus students physically exhausted I read a plaque on her wall that said it's not I can it's I can keep trying probably the only lesson we all need these days thanks for being great for kids help me celebrate burch's 2024 Teacher of the Year Sandy Fitzpatrick right here and go that way and then pictures next up is our director of special education Christina Bano she is introducing our a number one ESP and I will tell you before I say his name that Christina Cox and I really wanted to do his speech but we somebody dropped rank on us Mr Jeff bav let's get I had to go first before yeah [Music] good e good evening on behalf of burches grenlock Terrace and the special services department it was with great pride that we officially recognize Jeff bevans as an educational services professional of the year Jeff's dedication and invaluable contributions to our programs have profoundly impacted our students our families and our staff as a testament to his compassion and genuine care we are delighted to honor Jeff with a special poetic tribute knowing his deep appreciation for poetry and rap music I invite you to join us in celebrating this well-deserved recognition with a heartfelt poem an Ode to Jeff I was going to WP it I I did want to try to wrap it but but tell me if you pick up what I'm saying here this little story is all about how a very special person became a wow we'd like to take a minute so sit right there and we'll tell you how Jeff bevon became Educational Services professional of the [Applause] year in Washington Township is where he stays burches and grenlock spending most of his days showing up early tracking data in schools giving our teachers and parents great tools when a student struggles Jeff knows the way discreet trial ABA as part of his day with IEP meetings a voice strong and clear ensuring each child's needs are always held dear calm and collected with prompts for mans guiding students across the lands no matter the challenge he finds a way making learning brighter every single day now he is the best this is quite true educational service provider of the Year Jeff it is you oh wow a night was a late night got a lot of balance here thank you that was awesome it was for you you got to introduce the next person okay hold on and next herfel School sorry about that a little delay I'm Erica Hulk o new principal of heril it is my genuine honor to present you the 20242 heri Elementary educator of the Year Mrs Caitlyn droi Caitlyn began her career at her pH in September 2008 and has been an essential part of our community ever since before I share the words of our colleagues and students I'd like to take a moment to highlight what I personally admire most about Caitlyn I deeply respect her leadership she's a true leader um her honesty open communication her humility which is going to be mentioned a few times um her team mentality and her intelligence um I'm continuously impressed by her dedication to creating the best possible programs environment climate culture and systems for everyone at her Phill on top of all of this she also has an awesome sense of humor um it is a true privilege to work alongside her every single day today during art I stopped into her classroom to ask her students what they loved most about you and in perfect kid fashion there's some good ones um the first one she's like really funny all the kids agreed um I asked another student he said um she's been teaching since like 2006 or 2007 so he really likes that about you they also said some sweet things like she reminds me when I forget things she is kind she's fun she's generous and helpful she teaches us cool things and comes up with fun ways for us to remember our math she helps us a lot the student said that even if you have one group that you purposely go to all the other groups to check in on them as well even though you're teaching one group um she always wants to help everyone and my personal favorite again I asked what they love about her once said she really is afraid of squirrels and then the rest of them started screaming and rodents and all the rodents so that's their favorite thing one of their favorite things about you as well um some H highlights from her colleagues she has a dedication to her students she puts in 100% effort into helping all students not just her own students um she's humble and she is a hard worker she a lot of people don't know the amazing things that she does in our building because she is very humble and she kind of flies beneath the radar she's a support she's supportive in leadership she's the first to sign up volunteer donate offer onetoone help or guidance for another colleague in our grade level so this is from your grade level she is the real leader and she just doesn't know it um she has commitment Beyond expectations when she was working part-time in the beginning Caitlyn often stayed the full day just to help out um she was a part-time teacher but for the first two years together she was there almost full-time she also has a calm and compassionate approach um she's calm and she has a warm relationship with all of her students and she strives every single day to make sure that they are set up for success and finally um she's wonderful at balancing work and family she not only fights for her students and her colleagues but she also does this by while raising two adorable young boys which are over there of her own at home um genuinely thank you for all that you do congratulations again and her Phil and everybody let's hear it for Caitlyn duie and now I present to you the one and only Trisha holes from TJ so pretty good evening congratulations to all of the esteemed honores tonight thank you for all that you do for our children it is with great joy that we are here tonight to recognize Thomas Jefferson's teacher of the year Mrs Casey Bish Casey has joined here tonight by her husband Jeremy her son jack her parents her very special colleague Matthew and her TJ family Casey spreads positivity energy and warmth not only in her classroom but throughout the school from the moment you meet her you will feel the joy and enthusiasm she brings her love of teaching and students are evident in all that she does Casey sees each student as an individual understanding their strengths and challenges and is always finding ways to support and encourage their growth Miss Bish commitment is not limited to the classroom she can be seen on the sidelines of sporting events for her students she possess possesses the gift of being able to connect with students to make them feel valued and to ensure that they felt heard she continually models what it means to have a growth mindset for her Learners she volunteers for curriculum committees and other initiatives that make our school stronger Casey is always willing to go above and beyond for her students and the school Community whether it's volunteering events to be our DJ the Bingo caller or even coming dressed as a Christmas tree including presents as her shoes she offers her time to support other teachers she mentors staff and as future act Club advisor she teaches others the importance of giving back where she models for her students the importance of donating items for our soldiers raising money for Chop and collecting food for local families quite simply she is there for anyone who needs her her selflessness and generosity make her one in a million above all Casey makes learning and school fun she has an incredible talent for turning any lesson into something memorable and exciting her creativity and enthusiasm make every student eager to learn and grow after reading the book balloons Over Broadway with her students M Miss Bish started making Balloons with her class this has now grown into a schoolwide balloon parade for all of our first and second graders it's no wonder that her classroom is often filled with laughter and smiles Casey Your Love energy and dedication do not go unnoticed you've made a difference in the life of students and all of those who are privileged to know you we are grateful for the incredible impact you've had your passion for teaching is an inspiration for all of us and we are Beyond lucky to have you as part of our family please join me in congratulating and celebrating Miss Casey Bish thank you it is my honor and dubious privilege to introduce my friend and colleague the incomparable Miss Jenny Greer good evening everyone Alisa plazi and I are very proud to introduce wedgewood's teacher of the year Mrs Kim aent I've already promised not to embarrass her so I'll try to do my best Kim is a third grade in-class support teacher and what we do know about special ed teachers as they often go unnoticed they're the ones that are the backbone of the classroom supporting the students honoring IEPs modifying work and they impact every student in the room but somehow or another they seem to get overlooked a lot Kim comes in quietly does a phenomenal job teaching supporting her students and quietly leaves at the end of the day no Fanfare no excitement no look what I've done the proof is shown in the students so I talked to many of our students from the previous years they had some in things to say and from their perspective what they think Kim does all day is teach them work with them help them and one student said she saved me that's incredible to think about she saved me and I said what do you mean when I'm struggling she helps me she's there she's kind to me even when I make huge mistakes and she actually said I made some pretty big ones she forgave me every time she loved me again that's a huge impact and if you think about 20 years here how many lives did she save how many children can honestly say this is the teacher that saved them it's pretty impressive absolutely impressive now her colleagues have all kinds of stories to share but one thing they all say is she's there when we need her she mentors she coaches she supports she'll go in and help a teacher who's struggling with a lesson she'll answer questions any time day or night she was certainly there for us when we first started at Wedgewood over the years right you could ask her anything what about this idea do you think this will work and the best part is she's honest and I think the kids feel that the most but if I say to her I think we should try this she'll think about it and then she'll tell me what she thinks you're wrong Jen it's not going to work and you know what I can easily take that from her because this is somebody who knows how to make a difference just ask her students so Wedgewood is incredibly proud and honored to recognize Kim a men as our teacher of the year amazing next I'd like to introduce the amazing and talented Mrs Julie hop Whitman's teacher um principal I knew I'd make one mistake absolutely yeah come on over good evening everyone the biggest compliment I could ever get is to be a called a teacher so I love that um I am so happy to be here tonight celebrating all of these amazing teachers um at Washington Township At Whitman we are honoring Miss Jennifer Campbell our fifth grade ELA [Applause] teacher Miss Campbell is a bright light in our school for many reasons first and foremost are her smile and contagious laugh which can be seen and heard at almost all school and Whitman community events she is always there she is our future acts Club advisor she's also our PTO uh teacher representative um she also goes to many of her students events outside of school this forms incredible bonds with uh the families and students another thing that makes Miss Campbell so special is that she makes learning fun for students she has fun uh funky flexible seating in her in her room think Tiki umbrellas um so kids love to be there and they enjoy uh learning I never know when I go there what I'm going to come across uh what kind of learning activity when the students in fifth grade were preparing for their scarecrow contest at Duff Fields I walked in and the room had transformed into a total maker space think bedazzler and a cricket machine and the kids were so busy and working like Santa's Workshop every single one of them engaged that's the kind of room that Miss uh Campbell has and and that's why kids love it I'm going to end with some words that have been used to describe her passion creativity excitement inspiring willingness to share going above and beyond an amazing asset to our school congratulations to Miss Campbell as our teacher of the year thank you thank you you [Applause] announ I'm going to announce our next uh we're moving into our middle schools and um I have the pleasure of announcing Mrs Allison [Applause] egy okay it is my privilege to recognize Bunker Hills 2024 2025 Teacher of the Year Mr Nick [Applause] guerreri um Nick has dedicated over 13 years to Bunker Hill and his impact is known inside and outside of the classroom I've been fortunate enough to take advantage of his impact during my own Journey at Bunker Hill I started at Bunker Bunker Hill only a short time ago in October 2023 as a new administrator I learned in my education that is important to find and build relation ships with not only veteran staff but the keepers of the culture of any institution it wasn't hard for me to identify those individuals Nick was welcoming encouraging helpful and a go-to person for any questions I may have to understand my new home there's something very special about the community at Bunker Hill they are full of Pride to be a bulldog um there is an allegiance there that has been cultivated over time by supportive leaders but most importantly the dedicated staff Nick is a prime example of this he is first and foremost dedicated to the students it would be easy to label Nick as the cool social studies teacher that does fun lessons this is like the second time I've seen him wear wear a tie so never what you um don't automatically see is that these fun and engaging lessons are solid educationally they require the students to challenge their thinking reach deeper levels of understanding and imply their knowledge additionally they take into consideration the unique um individual needs of students in his class he's able to transform a subject that can easily be students least favorite and make every student want to learn and participate the students know what the expectations are and are eager to achieve them the respect the students have for Nick is evident in any interaction you may observe they are excited and motivated by him this is because of the relationships he builds with them he's he knows his students individually and models what respects looks like reading what students nominated about him um is a testament to this here's some of their thoughts I I think he is such a kind teacher and he knows to how to help and control his students without getting too mad or aggravated he's such he has such a good personality and he loves all of his students no matter how difficult they are to teach he's always there to help us when we need it and he keeps class enjoyable although he is nice and fair he doesn't put up with our any craziness or excuses we might give him that and that helps us to learn responsibility grow and learn the consequences of our actions overall he's just nice kind teacher and the best I ever had I feel like he deserves recognition for it I chose Mr grer because he makes learning so much fun and actually makes me look forward to coming to school every day he always thinks about his students and makes us feel like we have a voice he always teaches us with passion and makes us laugh all the time he has made my Humanities class 10 times better and I have I'm not kidding when I say it's my favorite class so secondly he is a dedicated uh he's dedicated to his team in school Community he's always willing uh to lend a helping hand to staff or office needs he has a positive at attitude even in the the hardest of times he participates in activities that contribute to making Bunker Hill a better place and where everyone wants to be he's so so loved that he gets his own artwork thank you this pen was purchased by our PTO and painted by our last year's teacher of the year Mr marrow um that is a Tiaro you're wearing not a crown just don't get it twisted uh here's what his staff members have to say Mr G has been an absolute asset to our community and is one of our strongest and most engaging teachers as well as a leader willing to step into new roles and keep Bunker Hill culture as strong as it always should be he offers a safe and respectful space for our kids and ensures they're having fun and enjoying themselves it's pretty impossible to miss his presence or not hear his voice in the classroom hallways at or at school events he's been an inspiration to myself and my teaching strategies and a staple to our Bunker Hill environment and is a huge reason why we have such a strong imp impactful and proud culture of learning at Bunker Hill lastly I personally want to thank Nick I started this year as assistant P principal for a week then I became the principal then I was left without an assistant principal shortly after that I no longer had a supervisor visor of special education which is a big thing in our big part of our school so it was a lot um thankfully Nick became an interim assistant principal he took to the role like a fish in water I don't know if that's a saying but we're just going to go with it it is for now he was Hands-On proactive and needed little guidance he was 100% on board when I said let's be middle school slang for Halloween he was Ohio I was the rizzler ask your kids um on Long uh days spent working hard hand inand with our guidance counselors he say to chat just like one of the girls we have all girl counselors on days where I couldn't see the Finish Line he was there with a banner of encouragement Nick you have an incredible work ethic initiative drive and and desire to see all succeed all balanced with a sense of humor and a love of life unfortunately I couldn't keep him long uh in the main office because his biggest honor is being a dedicated father though I not worked with you long as I said before your impact is wide and noticeable by all I couldn't think of a better person to represent Bunker Hill teacher of the year congratulations um next I'd like to introduce my friend and colleague Teresa py from has not [Music] rich so much beer [Applause] [Music] [Applause] ladies and Gentlemen please cheer for the chestna Ridge Middle School teacher of the year Mrs Laura [Applause] Coniglio it is with great enthusiasm that we celebrate Laura tonight a truly outstanding educator at Chestnut Ridge Middle School Laura's dedication Innovation and unwavering commitment to her students and her colleagues make her an outstanding choice for Teacher of the Year this year Mrs Coniglio has devoted Over 28 years to teaching First beginning go ahead applaud and cheer truly outstanding First beginning her career at Washington Township High School and then finding her forever home at Chesnut Ridge Middle School during this time she has proven to be an invaluable asset to our school Community continuing to demonstrate a passion for education and a willingness to go above and beyond for her students and her fellow staff members the following paragraphs are written in honor of you by your colleagues first what stands out most about Lara is her collaborative spirit and problemsolving abilities problems solving is a very important word to Mrs Coniglio she is the person everyone turns to for guidance and support whether it's brainstorming strategies to support struggling students researching effective Solutions or simply lending a listening ear Laura's eagerness to assist others without hesitation is a Hallmark of her character second Laura's impact extends far beyond her classroom she was instrumental in the creation and implementation of our hustle program which has become a Cornerstone of our culture thanks to her creativity and hard work the program the program continues to thrive benefiting countless students and let's not forget all the adults it's benefited and third her commitment to helping others is not limited to school hours Laura can be seen driving around Washington Township delivering gift cards clothing and food to families in need she genuinely cares about every member of The ches Ridge Community and Washington Township County State and Country and so on many times we can go into Laura's rimo and talk about worldly activities to save the world too she genuinely cares about her students learning and her selflessness is an inspiration to all who know her in the classroom Mrs Coniglio shines as an exceptional Ela and special education teacher inspiring her students to hustle problem solve and Excel in both reading and writing through her efforts students develop essential executive functioning skills and gain the confidence to become independent Learners year after year her students show remarkable growth under her guidance and it's a testament to her skill dedication and genuine care for her success when I announced Mrs Coniglio as teacher of the year we do a a speech over the loudspeaker and we don't reveal the name of the teacher until the end and then I ran down to the classroom only to find her students saying we knew it was Mrs Coniglio as soon as you said Problem Solver Mrs Coniglio advocates for her students every single day with the world just needs more and more of you Mrs kigo you are a fantastic educator and just like you cheer on all of your students each and every day we would like to cheer on you as our ches Ridge Middle School teacher of the year so beautiful it's only because of your support and dedication it really is it really is she made me cry and now I'd like to introduce my Fring colleague from Orchard Valley Middle School fra [Applause] [Music] Berry you guys can do better Panther pride is real okay you do whatever you want sir you're being honored so we'll just follow your lead congratulations to everybody who's been honored here tonight but it is with immense Panther Pride that I have the opportunity to not honor one Orchard Valley staff member this evening but two so the first staff member I would like to start with is Orchard Valley's teacher of the year Mrs Amanda horwood now that's what I'm talking about all right all right I knew they could I knew they could do it are are we done [Applause] now sorry Mrs horwood has been an integral part of the OV team for 16 years Mrs horwood is not only a math teacher at ovms she's a co-advisor for the OV yearbook and is an active part of every school event and our sixth grade class Council she is the heart of our school Community you'll find her at every single School event sheering the dance volunteering at fundraisers taking the yearbook photos or just being a friendly face in the crowd her presence is a constant reminder of how much she cares about our students our staff and the spirit of our school she also plays a vital role in shaping the culture and climate of our building Mrs horeswood doesn't just show up she leaves but quietly her warmth kindness and genuine care for everyone she meets creates a ripple effect of positivity that impacts every corner of our school Community but what sets Mrs horwood apart most of all is the way she connects with people she doesn't just teach students she believes in them she listens encourages and she makes every individual feel seen and valued she reminds us all through her actions that education is about so much more than academics it's about nurturing hearts and Minds Mrs horeswood is a prime example of Excellence in our building and was recently selected by our principal's cabinet to embody the pillar of excellence in Panther Pride our school motto a student who nominated Mrs horwood said she's very kind and will always help me when I need it she's also really good at explaining things additionally a colleague said she might be the sweetest person that works at ovms she is caring and kind to everyone she meets Mrs horeswood makes sure every student and adult in her class feels loved and cared for every day on behalf of Orchard Valley we thank you for your tireless dedication your unwavering kindness in your ability to make our school a better place every day you are a bright star at OV that brings out the shine in everything you do let's give one more round of applause to ob's teacher of the year Mrs Amanda hor I told them to show out sorry [Music] they can't help it now sorry all right additionally I have the privilege of honoring the Middle School level Educational Services professional of the Year OV sixth grade school counselor Mr jedwabne [Applause] you guys are making this a lot of fun Mr jwy started his career in Washington Township as an art teacher and has even been honored as a teacher of the year during that time in his role now Mr Jed wne has been a school counselor for the past 14 years and co- advises our eighth grade class and coaches our girls basketball team Mr J truly embodies positivity the first pillar in Panther Pride through his service to the school Community with heart compassion and dedication as a school counselor Mr J serves as a Cornerstone of support for our students and staff alike whether helping a student navigate personal challenges guiding them through academic decisions or simply being a listening ear on a tough day he has a way of making everyone students and Staff feel valued and understood he reminds us daily of the power of kindness and the importance of connection in our work Mr Jay also has a unique ability to create a safe space for every individual he is he encounters and is well known around our building for his permanent smile which he doesn't have right now because I'm talking about him and hallway greetings I was like come on dude his warmth and sincerity are immediately apparent to anyone who crosses his path he doesn't just listen he guides and empowers helping students and staff to overcome challenges a student who nominated him said Mr Jay was the nicest and most helpful person through seventh grade and I couldn't ask for a nicer counselor for our school he is caring no matter the problem and he found a way to resolve every problem I had even now that he's not my school counselor this year I still go to him to talk no matter the problem Mr Jay on behalf of Orchard Valley we thank you we honor your tireless efforts your boundless compassion and your ability to make a profound difference in the lives of all around you you are a shining example of what it means to be a servant leader someone who leads not by words but by actions and who inspires us all to be better Kinder and more presence for our students and for each other congratulations on this well-deserved recognition and honor let's hear it one more time for the orchard valy Educational Services professional Mr Jay congratulations [Applause] [Music] sir and now the one and only the high school principal har Ray [Applause] Anderson good evening Township and welcome to wths I see the beautiful signs out there you are here in our playhouse this evening it's a very special night as we recognize some professionals who have had a profound impact on the lives of many in our community as executive principal here at wths joined by executive assistant principal Mr Sav supervisor of social studies business education gifted and talented Mr Jeff Snider and amazing assistant principles Mrs Angela Costello Mr Dan seya Dr Greg melli we're very proud to have everyone here tonight to recognize some outstanding professionals I would like to ask them to join me up front at this time Mrs sherion Miss Shannon Malloy and nurse Kathleen LTZ come on down you guys have very big fan club here this [Applause] evening so very excited I do want to give a quick shout out to Whitman Elementary to Miss Campbell congratulations it's good to see you here and many of your students here too that was very cool to see some of the wild cats so I am going to begin our presentation tonight with our teacher of the year Mrs sherah Yan teacher of [Music] English Mrs Yan is currently in her 17th year of teaching English her seventh at wths and she is an alumni of this grade High School Mrs Yan is joined tonight by her husband Nick her son Lucas who is a proud fifth grader at Thomas Jefferson Elementary and her mom Tony sylvestri who is a secretary here at wths Mrs Johan when you say the word involved is very involved and and very busy here all of these ladies are but Mrs Yan especially she's the co-advisor of one of our largest organizations the interact club which is it's a lot of wow and they're here they are nice to see you thank you for coming and supporting your teacher um co-advisor it's an organization that runs many activities for the betterment of our community including monzo manness which raises funds for ALS various pay Setters dances Festival of friends for our special education students and Community among many other beneficial programs for our students you can also find Mrs Yan together with her co-advisor Mr Mack and the interact students at every single football game they are out in that cold and That Snack Bar cheering on our Minutemen and supporting our community as well Mrs Yan is also the co-advisor of the People's Choice Awards which is ceremony each spring in which staff members choose students to be recognized for their contributions to the school community in various ways Mrs Yan has also served as the honors coordinator at wths putting together our annual honors banquet and Senior Awards night which are two extremely large complicated very beautiful undertakings in addition to her work as a teacher and adviser Mrs Yan has also delved into the world of curriculum and instruction as she has authored the curricula for two courses of study namely contemporary literature and enrichment 12 from the words of those who nominated Mrs Yan Mrs Yan has a strong rapport with her students in which she challenges them holds them accountable makes learning meaningful and loves them Mrs Yan instills in us a love of community service and Leadership she cares about the students academic success as well as their personal growth and well-being and as a colleague this is another quote I can see how hard Mrs Yan works for the betterment of her students and of our School Mrs Yan ensures that her 9th through 12th grade students in class and in her organizations are prepared for their next phase of life which is one of the most important things we do is prepare our students for the future this is very such an important crucial aspect of what we as Educators do so I ask you to please join me in saluting congratulations and congratulating Mrs Yan our wths teacher of the year come [Music] [Applause] so I'm going to be up here for a little bit because we have we have a few more people to recognize I would now like to congratulate and salute our teacher of the year Miss Shannon Malloy teacher of business education I think that's your face on those signs there as a matter of fact Miss Malloy is currently in her 17th year teaching at wths after working in retail management at Sears for 13 years prior Miss Malloy is also an alumni of our fantastic High School M Malloy is joined tonight by her parents Mr Mrs Jim and Tina Malloy her brother Michael her sister Pam and her twin sister Mrs Trish Pinder who was a teacher of math here at wths Miss baloy is deeply involved with our students both in the classroom and in their extracurricular activities again another person who was always involved and always around for the students much like Mrs Yan as well miss Maloy is currently the co-advisor of the student council here at wths and the business adviser for the plays and musicals for our theater Department you have probably received many an email from Shannon as she advertises for our Stellar Productions including Shrek which is coming up in the spring I hope you'll join us here we'll be over in the big very beautiful RB Pac as well um little plug for the theater department and help you get the ticket sales going a little bit Miss baloy and her St Co co-advisor Miss Mason are behind the scenes in Myriad activities including our annual homecoming dance which is an undertaking where we have over 15600 students attend right here at school the crowning of our homecoming queen each year and also Mr Washington Township which is coming up in the in the next few months with her background in the business World students are able to move from Theory to practice as they engage in activities such as running the school store and competing in Deca and fpla each year Miss mooy can be found at our dances Proms and and other activities and is always willing to assist our students supervisor of social studies business Ed and gifted and talented education Mr Jeff Snyder shared within the classroom M Malloy has a tireless commitment to fostering a collaborative and engaging learning environment for her students she continues to make connections between the content knowledge and real world scen world scenarios in order to enhance the instruction in the classroom outside the classroom Miss Malloy looks to immerse herself within the school and overall Community as a member of student council a student says I can say that Miss Malloy has been such a great mentor to me showing me the strength to be my own woman with my own voice business management class it's worthy of Applause absolutely business management class this year has been amazing class is creative fun and real world I feel like I could work in a business and do a good job as a colleague another teacher says I can say that she never stops steady consistent Force ready to serve she is also generous with her time and a respected educator on our staff so again join me in congratulating M Malloy as our wths teacher of the [Applause] year we're coming down now so it is also my distinct pleasure to introduce you to our school nurse extraordinaire our 2024-25 Education Service professional of the Year nurse Kathleen lowitz nurse luckwitz began her career in nursing spending 22 years at Our Lady of Lord's hospital and at Jefferson University Hospital she then transitioned into the illustrious world of school nursing and worked at Orchard Valley Middle School right up front here I'm sure you remember nurse luckwitz as well and now here at wths in the 1112 building nurse luckwitz is joined tonight by her husband Ed and her son Eddie actually all three of nurse litz's children are graduates of wths and um so she's always had a very positive connection with our community and of course with our school nurse luckwitz is also a lover of horses and actually owns a horse named Bailey and I found out at our faculty meeting and and we were talking about your interest in horses which I think is great you can find nurse lt's always happily helping a student or staff member in need whether it is helping someone who is sick doing screenings or answering students questions or just giving them advice because students need advice and they go to her and they ask questions she's always happy to help nurse luckwitz is so professional she's so caring and very thorough I have observed her in action many on many occasions right here at school but also on last year's senior trip because if you remember correctly you and I had a student who was very very on the senior trip last year and we drove all over Florida it's very difficult to get urgent care in Florida I don't know if you know that but we had a very hard time but we and they're closed and they don't take this insurance it it was it was quite a night I think we were involved for like seven eight hours trying to find something but my point in sharing that is the whole time she was right by that student keeping him calm helping us to you know helping me to drive I I was driving she was giving me a little bit of directions but helping us to get there you know get where we needed to go it's an interesting right and we were finally able to help the student and her caring and kind ways got us through that um from the words of those who nominate in Nur luckwitz the many responsibilities she faces daily would be overwhelming for some but Kathleen Smiles through it all never making anyone feel as though they are bugging her with any question or concern that they have the job of a school nurse has greatly changed in the past years Kathleen Works through all of the changes with humor and with professionalism Kathleen manages her responsibilities with diligence ensuring that all health records medications and sensitive information is handled with the utmost care and respect nurse luckwitz always knows what to say to make these are the nominations always knows what to say to make me feel better or less stressed although you've helped me before when I've been a little stressed too so that's a that's a good thing principles work so closely with School nurses for those of you who who don't work in education necessarily every day we're in communication and talking about student cases uh things that are happening in the school school health you know to ensure that everyone is safe and as healthy as we can so the relationship between principal and nurse is is a very special one and we do you know work together quite frequently so she's a calming person professional loves the students please join me and another round of applause for nurse luckwitz thank [Applause] thanks guys hello everyone if we could just give all of our teachers of the year and our education service Professionals of the Year another round of applause so so absolutely proud of everybody um who was honored tonight they they are so deserving of this honor and in many cases it's long overdue this is like a Lifetime Achievement Award for many of the the staff members here so again another um great night um one of the things that I want to let everybody know is that um I'd like to take a group picture of all the recipients today and then there's going to be um some extra like snacks and refreshments and I think a cake we often have a sheet cake I don't know if it's there but um it's in the cafeteria out to my left so um once this final picture is taken we'll have everybody come up um all the recipients take their picture and then if you can join us for about 20 to 30 minutes um just saying hi to everybody and then we'll reconvene thank you everybody [Applause] hour a e e e e teachers of the Year service professional of the year if you can come to the front we'll take your [Applause] picture thank you so much congratulations what you want to say all e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e we're in public so I don't have to do that right yes okay hello thank thank you for all for staying isn't that nice lovely event that we have okay um discussion items any discussion items I have one yes this is her time I don't know if it's a discussion item or I have to wait till it comes up on the agenda if it's an item on the agenda should wait until we have the discussion about it talk about is this what we talked about right before the meeting yes it is yeah let's do it at the there'll be discussion after every we make a motion then we second it then we have discussion I think that's under Finance I think I'll tell you I'll tell you when we get there okay um anything else any other General discussion I just have one yes thanks um Mr La Liberty thank you I just wanted to apologize to everybody that I wasn't here for the uh the celebration of awards um my family had a tragedy today so I I'd gone home to check on them and I'm pretty I'm pretty upset myself and they're all pretty upset so I didn't want my uh solemn mood to cast a cloud of uh black cloud over the joyous celebration of the teachers here but I didn't want to just congratulate everybody and say you know all the teachers congratulations and people like them are really what makes this District run so congratulations everybody um if I if I could as well so again not to piggyback off what Scott just said that I obviously wasn't here I was watching it virtually um I had a family matter that I had to attend to with with no choice so um congratulations to all the teachers of the year it was very cool at least I had a chance to watch it virtually on the way over here so um that's the reason why I wasn't here so my apologies thank you um I think we have a report from Mr diso is he here oh there you are sorry Mike um do you want to give your report out now sure um couple things um Dr hibs thank you for doing that um H chat on the night uh we cled the uh the birth to the Super Bowl since uh that aired Dr hibs um we sold a lot more hogies and a lot more hogy trays so um I appreciate that help um just want to give another shout out I also went to Town Council they've been very helpful in trying to promote the hogi sale um we're trying to make our Mark of 3,000 hogies um hogi sales we relies really heavily on the pre orders which are due the sixth February to be picked up at the Gant entrance 910 building 1:00 in the afternoon it's very importanta not just that allps um additionally um mdle school idol middle scho ID that is actually being reloc location this Friday at you're going he 26 Young Voices you're hear last year's hopefully can um in a couple weeks as well um today I'm very pleased to announce that um we sent par squares and updates to families registra so that is alive well we've already andot is going to take on February 20 at 6:30. and it's going to be live by my office and then also get our sptify only YouTube can listen to it on Spotify this week on the fourth is going to be released Hill students at this time that's all i' have to present for thank you thank you very much Dr Hibbs did you want to make a statement about yeah thank you Madame President uh just want to just say publicly we we've done a few things recently to advocate for changes to the funding formula uh of note yesterday uh Pitman organized I want to give a a very special thanks to the Pitman School District for organizing um uh anyone from Gloucester County that wanted to come and talk about the funding formula and the reform and and really what came out of that is uh is is really trying to connect on Concepts such as uh capping the local fair share growth uh really discussing a an appeal process for enrollment and weighted populations uh for instance no school district receives the special end funding that we need and transportation need has been held flat for just numerous years uh we talked about really advocating to fully fund the formula uh and and really just to streamline the concept of knowing and predicting what we can get from year-to year school districts across the state can never predict what they're supposed to get year to year and it's really problematic as state aid is released very late in the process and then we are all left with very little time to to finalize a budget so we are we are hoping that the state hears us on the fact that so many things have changed since about 2008 when the funding formula was instituted and you know our world is not the same we didn't have smartphones the way we did in 2008 right think back to what that actually meant I had been an administrator for I think three years at that point and I'm in my you know well well well above that now I don't want to actually even say the number anymore so we need we need support and I think they are hearing that but we need some action so uh thanks to Pitman and thanks to the board members who went to all of the the funding uh formulas with us uh and the meetings thank you thank you Dr hibs um in that same vein I did hear back from legislative district 4 and this Friday they would like to meet with us at 23 2:30 or 3:00 p.m. so if you're interested in if you're a board member and you're interested in attending that you can just let me know after the meeting and Dr hibs andine obviously they were interested in meeting with you as well and that would be with our two um legislative district for our two assemblymen and Senator Mor Ary we generally do this um I just heard back from John Sab I'm checking the email right now um generally we've done this to Advocate on behalf of our students with our legislators because they do have some influence over some influence they have influence over the state budget and also they've been very influential in helping us in the past so we hope hope um to have that again and also to hear them out on some of the changes so that would be really good Madam President we what time was that again sorry 2:30 or 3:00 they said either 2:30 or 3:00 is it in District or at their offices which are on Johnson Road okay you got it uh we spent time with the assemblymen uh last night he was very supportive so I think that'll hopefully be a great conversation um just an update is there an update on the moving the school uh meetings to the schools for February I was kind of looking forward to February and wanted to see if we had any movement on that I I had sent everyone the updated proposal we talked about there might be a cost if there's overtime of about $1,300 this is so important to me that I'd be willing to personally pay that $1,300 um if we wanted to do it oh I can't do that never mind I can't do that but I think it's it's well worth it to like I said bring government to the people and I'd like to see if we could just move forward for the regular session meetings um in February and just maybe do them in alphabetical order you know Bells Birches so on and so forth kind of like we did tonight and if they need to move things around they move things around so I wanted to see if there's any more information on that or questions about that we'll be ready for you okay gotcha okay does anyone have any issues that you see with that if you do you can let me know but I appreciate the I really want to thank the administration for um working on that for us I'm hoping that maybe we can U Mike you can can work to promote that through the school somehow or I'm not directing you to do that but um Dr hibs maybe the district can work on um promoting that with the elementary schools to try and get as many people out as we can that would be wonderful yeah not a problem thank you yep um the other news starting in February is kalista Phoenix next to me tar Borelli kalista Phoenix Reed Alex Alexandria T barelli she's the best name ever um she is going to start reporting out again at our regular session meetings in February she's going to make an appointment with u Mr Anderson I know he's here somewhere and um she has an intention to she shared with me feel free to to say this if you would like but she shared with me that she really wants to report out on some of the unsung heroes and kids that you don't necessarily hear about at an honors event or things of that nature so she's going to work together with the principal and the administration to bring us some great news from the high school and questions and have a good symbiotic relationship with them sound good and I'm on a group text with her and her mom because I don't want to be like texting her directly and it's called Boe with C which I think is a great podcast name for C to have a podcast called Boe with C no one thought that was funny except for us okay anyway um what else I think that was it and so moving forward can I oh can I have a motion jie someone saying my name yes sorry it's hard to get attention it's okay it's so hard to see so just holler yeah um since we're in discussion I thought I just give my thoughts on the moving of the board meetings you know to the schools I I think it's a good idea Mike I have two concerns and I don't know how the other board members feel about it concern one is the cost I know it's nominal cost but it is a cost and you know costs are tight and budgets are tight right now and then second is you know creating work for the district Personnel I think it does create more work for our folks to have to set up and take down and stuff like that so those are my two concerns um I would because of that I would prefer to just continue to have them at the central Administration but I don't know how everybody else feels about it noted anyone else wantan Julie um yeah I mean the same as Scott I just I don't know if we could even just do a quick survey if there's a way that we could do that even through parents squ I'm not really sure just to see if the community would attend we would have more I guess participation from the community I don't think it's a bad idea but to Scott's point right now every dollar does matter so if we don't have to spend the 1300 I prefer not to um but in theory I don't think it's a bad idea I just I don't know if it would increase participation or not I guess we won't know until we do it but that's just my general concern thank you anyone else okay I made a note about those two comments can I have a motion to approve items of Correspondence for the month of December there are two emails and discipline reports I need a motion motion can I have a second second right yes was there a second I couldn't hear okay and that's not a roll call so all favor correct yeah all in favor I I I can I can okay okay Ari saying to me um that the easiest thing to do with moving the meetings is to make a motion to revise the document that we um approved at the reorganization which was for the dates of the meetings here's the schedule previously approved if you if the board wants to change the locations of the meetings obviously we need to read advertise so we need we would need a motion to approve a change to those locations and then Janine obviously you'd have to send out a re advertisement for all those meetings sure okay so I make a motion that we vote to amend the 2025 meeting dates and document to in include a change of location um for the regular session meetings in February March April sorry February March April May June and July to be held at the elementary schools in alphabetical order for lack of a better idea um can I get a second I can make that motion yeah can I have a second that um are we G have a discussion yes okay but we need a second first second okay um yes just any discussion yeah my only discussion would be the summer months of of June and July might be a little bit more difficult to get people um to come to board meetings at the schools because of all the different activities that are um at especially the elementary schools high school um that parents are involved in so it's just a quick comment I have no problem with very March April and May I'm just looking at June and July that's a fantastic point my computer just turned off um so we could what if we just jumped the summer and we did hold on let me get my computer back on pick it back up yeah yes and pick it back up yeah you know um you know the other fall process too you know Summers we have so many supplies that come in so they there's boxes literally everywhere it's not really it's a great point it's not really a good time right so we can just tack it right on and start in September in October if it pleases the board okay thank you elain for that so then let me amend the motion I guess so that it would be February March April May and and then September October of next school year any other discussion seeing none roll call wait wait wait one more discussion so if you're going to do it at each school um is that going to cover each school should we go into November um well I was just suggesting the elementary schools because those are kind of like the have more reach any kid obviously that goes to one of our elementary schools then goes to the related Middle School if you guys want to do it at the middle schools as well no that's fine I just wasn't sure if it was just the elementary schools that was my suggestion I think if if it works out we could move it but I just think having it at the home school that was that was the original okay thank you thank you any other discussion roll call please thanks I my goodness that was Far Away Mrs Baker yes M Clancy yes Miss Chilla no Miss song yes Mr liberty no Mr Serrano yes Mr Ross yes Miss kmle yes motion carries thank you and we can work out some of the details um I'm sure the administration will handle some of the details thank you everyone okay okay can I have a motion to approve the minutes of the December 10th and 17th executive and public meetings for meetings total I I have a question um I asked for a motion and then we need a second and then we can discuss Connie you want to make a motion to approve yes okay can I get a second second any discussion go ahead con Mrs Baker yeah I have a question um I have a question on the minutes sorry December 10th action it item number 12 um I have to ask the solicitor of this there was a list of names okay on this action item and I noticed there's an additional name that wasn't On It originally and I just I don't how how do you how do we go about that I don't know if when I was looking at the agenda something got added later after it came out Connie I'm gonna need more clarification I'm not sure what you're referring to I don't know you have uh there was a list there was a listed there was a list of teachers okay uh under this action item and I noticed a name of a teacher that I did not see because I had asked questions about it for the we're talking about the minutes the minutes right the minutes the minutes the minutes reflects a teacher's name that was not on the minutes that I saw not on the agenda that I saw you can make a motion to amend the minutes if you don't believe they're accurate or you can simply vote no um I you know I don't have any other am I allowed to say the the teacher's name uh no we should reframe from the well if you're voting um if you're making a motion just use the initials of the teacher just give the initials of the teacher if you're going to go that route yes okay okay so and I just want to get clarification I want to I want to make sure that I'm accurate I know I was interested in that particular um uh what do you call action item in restorative justice in the schools and it listed teachers names and I saw a teacher's name that wasn't there when I first looked at it I see it now okay okay um the minutes aren't opening for me suddenly the the attachment I would say um trying to get this open but um it's action item number 12 under December mine's not open there's no attachment on mine are you guys able to see an attachment action number 12 December 10th the work session no I'm not I thought that was the public it was public what item number 12 action it 12 under instructional Affairs just right here see this this person's name right here that person's name wasn't there when I was talking about was I yeah so again I obviously didn't prepare the minutes I I don't know um you know when or how that name got on there but again you can make a motion to amend you could simply vote no um I I don't have any other information to it with regard to how that name got there obviously Connie is your motion to amend to remove a name or add a name remove the name because I I don't recall seeing it when when I was talking about it that that day my notes on restorative justice wow which minutes are you talking about the 10th or the 17th the 10th executive or regular no it's under the work session action number action item 12 I don't see is this under HR no under under IIA it's halfway down Julie if you literally just just tell me what page um it's 11 of 21 thank you Dr hibs is this is this I think it's the last name of the list okay so Connie you're saying this employee was not on the agenda when you voted that's that's what I I have from my notes because I was talking about this issue particular issue that night and I knew what the names were on there you saw the agenda I'm just going to pull up the agenda just to double check and see from the 10th he's there it's on there wasn't there that night I know the person I would say just vote no that I mean it's on the agenda from the prior meeting okay and I'll talk to you after as well okay thank you okay any other discussion seeing none roll call no no roll call excuse me now um Mrs Hartong Mrs Clancy and I are we should abstain because we weren't at those meetings I'm abstaining have to oh I don't oh so when we do all in favor how I get it recorded I'm voting that okay for the minutes we can how you want to vote Yes okay sorry Linda and Elaine we can vote okay okay all in favor I I I okay I want to vote no Connie is a no any Nays initials D she's no initial Dr and everyone else so yes okay can I have a motion to open to the public thank you can I have a motion open in the public move can I get a second second second all in favor I Randy Ford Randy you are hello uh just two things real quick um on the bring government to the people initiative that just got voted on um one thing that wouldn't cost any money is parent Square notifications about the meetings that doesn't happen today at least I'm not on a list I'm on herfi Elementary and bus N9 and you know other things but we don't we advertise it on the YouTube video or YouTube channel Facebook the website but parent Square push notifications are not currently being used and I don't think that that would be an additional cost uh the other thing is in terms of the initiative and the cost to the district I don't know if in the $1,300 Sunshine notices or the additional publication was also considered in that 1300 because if we're required to advertise with the carrier post or the Gloucester County Times there is a cost there as well um the other thing is you'll have to go back and again you know I don't think the motion to amend from Miss kmle was ever seconded um during when you all just voted so there was a a motion to make the mo or a motion to put on the floor a second then there was discussion Miss uh clany talked through with the uh summer months but I don't know that I actually heard a motion do um a second so just kind of curious of of who made that motion and how that would be recorded and then just the the last thing I know at last meeting they talked about I think it was Mr Sano made a comment about bringing government to the people or maybe it was the reorg sitting down not at a deis right like sitting with the people the only thing I would sort of remind the board I think it's it sounds great except you have folks if you came down here and this wasn't raised and everybody was below or at the same level people in the back you want to get more public participation they're not going to see the front right they're not going to see who's talking they're not going to see who's actually saying things so while GRE and concept I think you have to think about those folks um in connection with that initiative and the last thing I would just say too is think or be mindful of where you're going to have your executive sessions I sat in the lobby at elae Abbot at last meeting's executive session there was visible screams yells from the board it sounded like two each other so just if we're going to have meetings in other schools where we're necessarily going to have um sports activities going on other community events just be mindful that you pick somewhere that's maybe a little more soundproof so the kids and other people that hear or attend aren't picking up on that so thank you thank you Mr Ford um uh Lori Mrs Reese said that Steve Serrano seconded that motion she records everything and she'll kind of let me know if there's a second it is difficult to hear and here though it really is and um thank you for noting those other things I think in general we're looking to improve the decorum in in our meetings so um on any otherone else from the public wishing to speak seeing none can I get a motion to close to the public motion thank you Mrs Haron can I have a second second thank you Mrs Clancy okay on to the um superintendent report the administration is seeking approval of the monthly enrollment report security drills and suspension reports also seeking approval for one senior privilege request and two resolutions one to establish February 3rd to the 7th at National School counseling week for the Washington Township Public Schools and want to recognize our board members for the month of January which is Schoolboard recognition month I wanted to read to you all um I brought this to Dr Hibbs attention and he um made it happen that um we're going to honor all of you it January School Board appreciation month so you're all going to get a certificate that says presented to your name of the Washington Township Board of Education in recognition of their dedicated service to the students of our community presented during Schoolboard recognition month for January 2025 can I have a motion to approve items 1 through five under the report of the superintendent motion thank you second second any discussion seeing none roll call Miss Clancy am I on yes Miss Chilla yes M Haron yes Mr Li Liberty yes Mr Serrano yes Mr Ross yes Miss Baker yes Miss kmle yes motion carries pass those down please thank you everyone and thank you uh and also thank you to our guidance counselors we appreciate you I always say we need more of you uh next up we have instructional Affairs the district is seeking approval of the qac waiver mentioned by Dr Nathan last week to remind you this was so we could use the new standards for cusac to achieve an even higher score than our already passing score thank you to her and her team for that also seeking approval of the high school program of study for 2025 2026 which is essentially what you need to do to graduate as well as field trip destinations for 2024 2025 school year including coals for our 18 to 2-y old special education students who are in the work program as well as the family career and Community leaders of America Field Trip locations to Cornerstone monu and Pitman guidepost monu in Laurel Oaks naane Monas Academy in Vorhees can I have a motion to approve items one through three under instructional Affairs anybody can make a little old motion motion thank you you know what Mrs Harton why don't you just make all the can I have a second thank you I think that was el el elain yes um any discussion seeing n roll call Miss chill yes Miss Haron yes Mr Li Liberty yes Mr Serrano yes Mr Ross Yes Mrs Baker yes Mrs Clancy yes Miss kazmo yes motion carries thank you on to policy this is a second reading of these policies from last week all policies are brought to the board for a first reading which moves it forward to a second reading with or without changes and then a final vote excuse me I just lost my place so this is the second reading um which is the first sorry which is the second pass on the um policies for harassment intimidation and bullying student smoking electronic surveillance and school buildings and school grounds school security program spectator code of conduct cooperation with law enforcement and bylaw for the board call adjournment and cancellation of a meeting can I have a motion to approve items 1 through 7 under policy so moved second thank you any discussion yeah um yes I had submitted some comments on K4 the school security program one uh I believe Dr hibs you were going to talk to the attorney on it I don't know if you've had a chance to talk through those but if you haven't would it be advisable to maybe table that y yeah absolutely okay so you want me to make a motion to table that y okay um which which one Scott K4 it's it's on the school security program I don't want to go into too much detail because it's about security but oh yeah it gets very you you I think yes I saw your email yeah so it gets pretty specific on some certain things that I'd rather point to a standard rather than usby specific in them so that's what I'd like the attorney to weigh in on so um until we can get that feedback I would suggest we table it so I'm going to make a motion that we table K4 okay um actually I think I actually misread because I had in my notes that I made before the meeting items one through seven but there are actually only oh there are seven things listed okay so Ari um I can I amend the motion to remove um to remove number uh I know I'm sorry to remove number six four it's four I apologize number four four is the policy that be correct yes yes so you're going to amend the motion Scott I mean Scott Scott ALS also Scott I think you made a really good point with your comments I don't know if you want to say them publicly but I I mean I agreed with you completely do you want to tell the should we tell the public a little bit what about what we're look I don't think it presents any risk oh okay sorry okay yeah I because it's security okay we need a second for Scott's motion to amend can I have a second to for Scott's motion to amend basically removing number four thank you El okay so we're voting on items 1 through three and 5 through S do that right y yes I think so okay any other discussion roll call please this is the motion to table four and approve the rest right and approve the rest can't here down this end I made a motion speak up and he amended it so he he made a motion to table four um the motion's on the four so I why can't I just resend my motion and make it one through three removing four and so now you either have to amend Scott made a motion second just vot on that table okay I already motioned for the all seven do I have second before you motion right I'm pretty sure I have to resend it Scott okay I resend my initial motion and we're voting on Scott's motion to amend by removing item four what are we voting on now we're voting to remove not vote on item four under policy I got you table right tbling it tbling it okay Mr Liberty yes Mr Serrano yes Mr Ross Yes Mrs Baker yes Miss Clancy yes Miss chillo yes Mrs Hartong yes Miss kmle yes okay that motion carries so now I'd like to I'm making a motion to approve items one through three and 5 through S under policy can I get a motion for that so moved second second was a second any other discussion roll call Mrs Haron yes Mr Li Liberty yes Mr Sano yes Mr Ross Yes Mrs Baker yes Miss Clancy yes Miss Chilla yes Miss kazmo yes motion carries thank you m Madam president um can we um so should I just obviously put this right back on work session we'll clarify gather the information we need bring it back for discussion that yeah that's what I think he's suggesting perfect okay thank you Sean okay motion to approve items one and two under Student Activities and communication Mrs Hardon motion can I get a second second any discussion seeing n roll call Mr Li Liberty yes Mr Serrano yes Mr Ross Yes Mrs Baker yes Miss she's absent Miss Clancy yes Miss Chilla yes Miss ton yes Miss kazmo yes motion carries thank you onto Human Resources district is seeking approval for student teaching placements in our district one co-curricular for boys Golf five job descriptions one transfer from a 10-month to an 11-month guidance counsel at the high school extra time for several teachers to cover the health office at Birches and to assist a student with an after school activity um mentorship of a staff member by another staff member at no cost three salary adjustments resignation of two more specialized assistance and eight leaves of absence can I have a motion to approve items 1 through 23 under Human Resources so moved thank you can I have a second second um actually I have items one through 23 on my notes but there's only 22 items here was something removed 23 all right so really this is to approve items 1 through 22 I had 23 when I this last night I had 23 as well what I had 23 as well you have 23 mhm have 222 you logged in3 Dr H you have 22 I have 22 22 so was something removed if some of us had 23 and now it's 22 okay no I mean I did this last night so there was 23 on there then I think there was an email that went out there 20 23 as of yesterday was there a leave of absence leave of absence removed resignation was removed oh okay well regardless we're voting on items 1 through 22 so I guess we'll figure out what was taken off there um we have a motion in a second right Lor okay any discussion I actually had a couple I had something to say here does anyone I I had one yes Scott um I'm just so know I'm going to be uh abstaining on number nine just because that person is the Godmother of one of my children and I don't think it's a conflict but just to avoid the appearance I'm going to obain from that one okay right okay okay thank you Mr sweene it was the leave of absence that no longer exists thanks SE one question I had which I um I kind of mentioned an executive and then realized it was more of a budget question not a legal question is for the professional development sheets it would be really helpful in my opinion to see the cumulative number at the bottom how much we're paying in professional development every month and also what is mandatory and what is non-mandatory especially when we have a budget crisis coming up I think one of the things we're going to have to look at sadly is in my opinion um looking at non-mandatory professional development how much that costs and if we kind of have a moratorium on that for a year or two to get by so is that something that we can see going forward um from the district does anyone else have an interest in seeing that yes you said that see anybody else yes Linda thank you yeah okay bottom L you Lane yes yeah be to see what the cost factor is bottom line okay so four at least four board members are looking for that is so I guess going forward could we see that just do that calculation for us I mean obviously we could get a calculator out and do it it would just be easier to see that the the number um and that's something to look at when we do the budget the other thing I had a question about is um on so that was on the A5 guys okay the other thing I had a question about is the co-curricular position that's on here it made me remember when we interviewed for co-curricular positions at one point in time there was a big like Hub hubub about that did those interviews happen this year for these co-curricular positions was everyone interviewed okay so everyone who's recommended for a co-curricular position interviewed for it okay thank you and that's all I had anyone else have anything yeah Scott again I think I figured out the difference in the 22 23 the one that had 23 items was missing a number six it went from number five transfers to number seven additional time so there was no number six so there was only 22 items on both it was just a misn numbering on one thanks Scott Julie can you uh one more time so on the on the A5 you want us to total up the PD and what's and when we say mandatory versus not mandatory is that you mean contractually obligated versus not or what does mandatory mean I mean I Look to You to tell us what that is I know sometimes people want to do something I got NE versus having to do it and I know at my job that was cut many years ago sadly which I don't like as a teacher but it did have a a significant cost savings so I just kind of want to know the difference because people look at the PD and it's a lot um but a lot of that the teachers have to do yeah absolutely and we're going to need to keep obviously a lot of PD uh to drive forward but totally understand okay absolutely okay thank you of course uh roll call please Mr [Music] Sano give me one second for number four yes to the first three the athletic trainer security guard school counselor going to abstain from the two director job descriptions and then no to number five and abstain from number 11 yes to the rest thank you Steve can you do that one more time yes ma'am can we start over Lori please yes sorry I'm sorry no you're good yes for number four M4 yes to the first three the athletic trainer security guard school counselor abstain from the two excuse me the two director postings number five is a no number 11 is an [Music] obstain yes to the rest thank you you're welcome thank you Mr Ross not to number four not to number five and not to number 11 Mrs Baker oh sorry what about the rest Ralph sorry you have to say yes to the rest if that if those are the only knows say what are you yes to the rest yes to the rest thanks Miss Baker okay number four um no to school counselor director of data Tech registration and school community outreach no to the director of student School counseling services no is this me I'm sorry is that number five four number four okay the three job descriptions are no school counselor director of data Tech registration and school community outreach director of District School counseling services there are no not to number five transfer initials kec noted number 11 initials JW yes to the r Mrs Clancy yes to all of them M Chilla yes Mrs Haron yes Mr the Liberty abstain on number nine yes to the rest Miss kmle um abstain on four completely I did not have time you guys I'm sorry to look at the changes there uh no to five and yes to the rest M cmle yes could you tell us the uh the vote how this I'm waiting to hear from Lori I have four to five I didn't right I only have two so number four and five did not pass everything else did everything else did okay did you hear that Connie what was that again four and five did not pass the rest did uh what was the vote on number um 11 five yes five yes a quick question um so for number five it was four yes for no so it doesn't necessarily fail correct so it doesn't fail and it doesn't pass so what happens there unless I'm incorrect with my count it doesn't carry four four yes is four NOS it doesn't carry so whatever action was uh recomended will not uh take place okay thanks okay district oh sorry yeah four and five okay under finance and Facilities the administration is seeking why is I keep doing that sorry um approval of the monthly reports including the board secretary report the treasurer's report account transfers the bill list and the food service financial report as well as the monthly disposal of fixed assets State contract purchases and the monthly resolution to request taxes from the municipality there is also a contract for Professional Services um for a social history report as well sorry as um contracts with edere which we use for online course delivery and Ed assess for learning evaluation report also seeking approval for the Project Graduation location at the Busters and the senior prom at the Sheridan as well as the burches golf course for our golf team also asking permission to go out for naming rights of the Performing Arts Center a joint Transportation agreement with Center Regional and some miscellaneous income and a generous donation to The Thomas Jefferson Library can I have I know we have qu you have a question L can we have a motion to approve items 1 through 19 under Finance motion second second discussion yeah I have discussion this is what I would bring yeah this is where you would do that so my question is about agenda number 13 with Project Graduation while I have no problem with it being at Dave and Busters I guess the question that we ask every year is why do we have to go into filling for it when we have a Dave Busters that's 15 minutes from the school and why is the district giving them a $5,000 donation towards Project Graduation when they're completely self-funded I'm just this is just a question that I've been it's been mulling in my head I don't know how we do this if I can't I mean I know that we've I know that we've done the $5,000 that's been that's been a pattern here for a very long time right J yes it has it's a budgeted item I'm maybe you can signal me but I feel like the DAV Busters that's local is not large enough for our student population and a security issue okay so I guess my next question is just because we've always done it does that mean we have to continue to do it I mean I've done some stupid things as a young kid but now I don't do it anymore no there's there's personally there's a lot that you could stop if you wanted to stop right um it just seems like a it just seems like a lot of money and what would stop our middle schools from telling us or asking us for $5,000 for their eighth grade graduation party I think it's a slippery Sloop in my opinion totally hear you just my opinion anyone else want to weigh in I just want to mention that it was a budgeted item in 2425 so it is in the current budget okay thank okay any other discussion on that okay I'm seeing none roll call Mr Ross yes Miss Baker yes Miss Clancy yes yes Miss Chilla yes M Haron yes for everything but 13 Mr Li Liberty yes Mr Serrano yes Miss kmle yes motion carries Linda to your point though it was budgeted this year that doesn't mean it has to be budgeted next year I think that's what that was going to be my question okay that would at least give people time if it doesn't end up in the budget to plan right thank you okay next special education to tuition placements and for tuition recision recisions and a one18 for a student um who is going to Atlanta County Social Services District can I have a motion to approve items 1 through S under special ed motion second second any discussion okay seeing none roll call Mrs Baker yes Miss Clancy yes Miss Chilla yes Miss Haron yes Mr Li Liberty yes Mr Serrano yes Mr Ross yes Miss kazmo yes motion carries nothing under negotiations at this time oh I have M gemble oh I have something to say okay go ahead okay as far as negotiations uh the board committee has a scheduled session on uh January 12th with the principles February oh I'm sorry February 12 yeah febru February 12th with the principles and supervisors and on February 13th with the support staff February 13th with with who 14th okay thank you 13th 12th and 13th okay got it thank you any items for new business um I have something yes um not necessarily new but I would have said it under old I didn't know what direction we were going in the I just I want to go back to um let's see Human Resources um where we had item number four and five fail or not pass so um without going into executive level commentary I guess I just want to know are we going to give a different direction on how this is going to be handled there were concerns that were brought up in executive session about especially number five I just need to know just be careful about obviously disclosing what was brought up sorry I can't hear you down here I'm over here in Canada just be careful about bringing up what was discussed in exec I know you weren't gonna do that I'm Goa just be so I I guess my my concern is that job descriptions didn't pass and we have now a big gap by not passing number five so I just want to know are we going to go back into executive and talk about what that looks like because I think it was pretty clear the last executive session as to why that was on and represent a cost savings and other things so I just want to know are we going back into executive at some point because right now we're just leaving a big hole um I know that you had an emergency and couldn't be an executive tonight but I don't think anyone had any um plans to go back into executive it's 10 o'cl I have a child at home with a fever so I also have medical reasons why I want to get home um this has been discussed if it can it I don't really think it's something that we can resolve tonight I don't really think it's our purview I think the administration is going to have to come up with a new plan that's just my observation of the situation like we can't tell them what to do so it's kind of like not really something that we can think I think we do we need to go in executive four does anyone else have comments on that any other items of new business I'm not can we talk about the senior prom while I'm already probably labeled to B A guy for Project Graduation you go like a little bit closer to yeah we can hear you sure and I'm sure it's been asked time and time again and we've been told time and time again it's a size issue why are we still doing the senior prom in Atlantic City when um I think it's in J 98% sure that it could be somewhere local I don't know I think there's I there has to be others I mean I've been to weddings with 500 people that have been local I I can certainly huddle up with admin and the team and and tell you why our senior class is the same answer for for David Busters it's a size is a problem um the venue also allows for kids I think to go you know right down the and they're all right there um I mean could it be done differently sure but you know I've attended you know everyone since I've been here I think our staff do a great job I think that the kids really understand the rules um and they and they follow suit and then we really kind of have it hum inly Clockwork due to all of our incredible staff okay fair enough thank you any other items I have one Julie yes uh I don't know if need to go back into exec for this uh but there's a proposed meeting with conflict Council um my suggestion is just that we gather all the questions that we want to ask for them in advance prior to that meeting or do we need to go into exec to discuss that or is that a general statement like that okay St okay and we would direct those questions to Mr San Steve okay yes sir thanks Scott and and we are we're not there right you guys have this right you don't I don't think yep perfect yeah okay can I have a motion to open to the public motion second second all in favor all right okay I have Randy Ford um first I'll just say I have a four-year-old ho with it year infection it's never fun so hopefully I'll try and make it quick uh microphone usage is still a problem especially you know Miss gizle and Mr Snyder it's it's a public meeting you guys are like you can't hear what's going on uh one of my questions is at the end of you know this discussion about conflict Council I think someone said we're not there yet so I was or you know something along those lines I was curious what that meant um and then if someone could explain M4 and M5 or cuz I don't know what a job description means in the Board of Education world so like whether it's you're trying to create a job post a job there's already existing job and you're changing the description so I don't really follow that um and then what I also don't really understand is there were four yeses four Nos and then an exstension the abstention was because there wasn't time to review the descriptions ahead of the meeting to me that kind of seems like you guys know how to motion to table or say let's bring it up at the next meeting or somewhere else so to just abstain for that kind of seems like a punt and you know look it worked it failed because an exstension is not a vote so you didn't get five votes so it went down anyway but I'm kind of curious what that actually does what is M4 what was that designed to do what is not happening now um so those are my questions thank you and have a great night thank you I think I can answer the one about the punt it for me it was a punt we were given the job descriptions they they put them together very quickly for us which I'm thankful for that um but when I got mine this weekend um there were no I couldn't tell what changed they were they were all changed job descriptions and so I asked for like strikeouts or what was added what was changed because I don't know what it originally looked like and that's not our practice here so I was given the old job descriptions was that today or yesterday I think today and so I just didn't have time I taught all day today and I did not have time to look so you could call it a pun I mean I'm I'm happy to look at it later but I just didn't have enough time to look so that's why I abstained and I think the other items are for Dr hips prob I'll take that sure um so I was tasked with I in job descriptions which we did together very quickly in the matter of of days dropping what we were doing um so that's you know that's what we did there and secondly um we're not going to have the the knowledge to operate the schedule that we need um because I didn't get support on item number five so now we're totally going to have to scramble and there very well may be mistakes that are made to affect 2100 kids at the high school sorry I think it's I think there's a lot more to it I don't none of us would ever vote I mean I have a child going to the high school next year I don't none of us I can say would ever vote to do anything to hurt kids schedules there's a lot more to the situation involving the job descriptions with that and other things that you know we cannot talk about because they're Union related and Personnel related so I don't appreciate not being able to give my side our side of the story oh no I am let me be very clear I'm not saying that you can't give your side in any way shape or form you should always be free to give your opinion I I was asked a question um you know I received zero questions on job descriptions except for could you do the strikethroughs and I think that came yesterday did that come yesterday and in that moment I can't take a a document that didn't have strikethroughs um and and strike through it so I was given a task I did the task um and the question was what's the ramification I just simply answered it and I'm not I'm not offering judgment he asked what's the ramification the ramification is we don't have the support we need and now we have to Res scramble and devise a new plan just like Madam president said okay Patty sukes put that down a little all right good evening um I'm here tonight to express my concern regarding the decision to not run the green club and newspaper Club at our elementary schools this year as the chair of the co-curricular WTA and an advocate an advocate for the well-rounded education I believe this decision uh deprives our students of valuable opportunities to learn and grow beyond the classroom extracurricular activities like these clubs play an essential role in fostering creativity leadership teamwork and environmental awareness in our students the green Club encourages responsibility and sustainability while the newspaper Club enhances writing critical thinking and communication skills these experiences contribute significantly to the students personal development and prepare them for future success there are very few opportunities for our elementary students to be involved in school so losing two Social Clubs is a major loss for our students I can personally speak about the accomplishments of the Bells green Club as all three of my children were involved in 2017 at the start of the club they were the unless contest finalists for the um Philadelphia Zoo contest where they earned a water bottle water bottle filling station for bells where it was donated and um even the installation was covered in 2018 2019 they were the second place winner for their recycling center which has been run every year following this year until this one in 2021 2022 they were finalists honorable mentioned um they were honorably mentioned for again the unless Zoo contest and they were able to adopt Penguins for every elementary school and grenlock they have a wait list every year since the first year in 2017 they would take 40 fifth fourth and fifth graders um to work on the unless project for the Philadelphia Zoo and some years they actually did groups of two and that was one of the years that they won without receiving an additional stien the two um co-advisors then started a junior green Club at Bells where they all took they took all interested third graders to help them with projects around the building including running the recycling center last year they had 37 students in this junior gream club with no additional stien it was disheartening to learn that these positions that were by the way not cut from the budget um and were not posted in September it wasn't until December that we were actually informed with administ by Administration that they were pausing these clubs to ensure that there was not more productive use of the funds while I understand the need for fiscal responsibility I urge the district to prioritize opportunities that directly benefits the students learning and engagement to my knowledge these are the only clubs that were not cut from the budget that were not run this current year I respectfully request that the administration reconsider this decision and explore options to reinstate these clubs our children deserve access to a holistic education that includes extracurricular activities to inspire and challenge them thank you for your time and consideration I look forward to your response and hope we can work together to reinstate these valuable programs to our students thank you thanks Patty does anyone want to respond to her I don't know anything I just I have a question yeah just maybe clarification with the clubs uh I might not understand it aren't the clubs listed and aren't the clubs contractual that they should happen the the titles of the clubs are listed in the contract presumably whether or not they fill is the man project because my understanding is if you want at a club you had to you had to it had to be readjusted based on what another club would go out and another club would come in I thought that that was something that was worked out with management and labor um so so what you're saying just for purpose of clarification to me that although the contract lists the title they really don't have to have it it doesn't have to be filled I mean I obvious I don't know anything about you know whether or was filled or why it wasn't filled I'm just saying legally speaking it doesn't have to be filled even if it's uh noted in the contract okay so so if okay so if you're having some budget problems and you have 30 clubs then the administration could say we're just going to have 10 this year that's okay conceivably yes okay thank you okay so we're not having those clubs then this year it's not a delay they were budgeted for but not running them yeah we're not running them this year okay well can I just ask why what was the decision making process for that uh sure um I can't talk about all of it because some things I can't talk about in open um but we made the decision collaboratively that there was um there was a better use of funds for that that still benefited children um and then there was other concerns but I can't talk about them publicly when I have a question followup question kle um when when you mentioned that you you talked with people was that was that including uh labor and management or just management uh no we would have had a a conversation with the um with the Reps when we made a final call okay we we did convey it and I think I think Patty did mention that okay all right that didn't okay thank thank you okay um Terry Julie just Julie before we move on just a quick question yes sorry is it something we could add to like work session just to discuss like under Sack or instructional Affairs you can bring us up to speed on sure and we could discuss and exact the parts that you can sure explain problem okay you okay with that yeah I agree with that Scott I think I'd like to know a little bit more they sound like successful experiences for the kids so yeah we'll look into it more Mrs suis and okay sorry Mrs shre go ahead good evening everybody I'll be as brief as possible so hopefully we can all get home this evening my planned question was about prek Transportation I think it's essential for the district so I'd like to better understand the budgetary concerns and shortfalls around why we can't um provide uh for grenlock and Kindle transportation think it also would improve safety and efficiency um from what I hear from other parents about drop off procedures and parking in both those locations that can be really challenging so anything we can do to push that to the front for the next school year I was very excited about the lottery hopefully third times the charm for for the lottery for my family um I also uh to follow Mr Ford's questions don't really understand what's going on with those human resources job descriptions so recognizing that there are clearly some legal issues about not sharing certain things is that salary is that number of bodies is there any we're talking about engaging parents in the public more and it's just like mud so if if we can understand a little bit about why there's a delay in those decisions I think any more insight would be very helpful and I also would love to hear more about the green Club because I think I remember at the end of last year when they did a amazing presentation and it was was brought up like we did we weren't even recycling so hopefully we're now recycling but you know if our elementary kids are pointing that out to us I think it it might actually be an important uh budgetary item thanks thank you um as you as I I know a lot of people that are in this room know we can't talk about Personnel issues specifically specific employees but I'll say that the process should be that if you're making Chang es in someone's roles and responsibilities you would put forward the new job description the board would approve the new job description and then any jobs that are affected by that would also have to have new job descriptions so tangential to that um making a teacher or a guidance counselor an 11mon position I know person um all I'll say is teachers and guidance counselors shouldn't be doing administrative work so um it's sometimes they should but sometimes they shouldn't and so I guess that's all I can really say that there was concerns about that it's tough because it's Personnel so anyone else from the public wishing to speak sure Sean so we're constantly looking to job make they ctive what those position people in those positions do in terms of day-to-day work and there was obviously job scpt ever put together on this agenda that we felt reflected the current work thank you can I have a motion to close to the public motion second second all in favor I I can I have a motion to adjourn motion second second all in favor thank you and again congratulations to all our teachers and educational support staff members of the year for