[Music] I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Okay, we have a couple celebrations
tonight. First up, um Mr. Dilio will give us an overview of Kalin Davy's presentation, Eagle Scout Project, um at Orchard Valley Middle School. Mr. Dillio, [Applause]
hello members of the board and the community. I'm proud to introduce uh somebody that I've known for quite some time since he was a real little guy. U but currently he is a senior at Gloucester County Institute of Technology. His name is Kayn Davies and
um he's going to talk about something that he's been working with Mr. Zakowski and Fraberry Quattowski regarding his um Eagle Scout project, Meow Meow Leween Eagle Scout project. So, I'm going to introduce Kayn.
[Applause] We should have sat closer. All right. Hello everyone. And can you guys hear me? >> All right. Hello everyone. >> That good? >> Yeah.
>> All right. Hello everyone and thank you for allowing me to present this evening. My name is Kayn Davies and I am currently a senior at GCIT enrolled in the engineering program. I am also a life scout working on attaining my eagle rank which is the highest honor available in Boy Scouts. One of the
requirements for Eagle is to complete a project that benefits my community and that is what I will be presenting tonight. My plan is to host a trunk or treat event at my former middle school, Orchard Valley, which will allow me to collect donations for an organization that is very important to me, Perfect
Angel's Cat Rescue. As long as a longtime lover of cats, I knew that I wanted to pack an Eagle Scout project that would help these amazing creatures. After researching different animal rescues, I came across Perfect Angels Cat Rescue and knew right
away that it was the perfect beneficiary for my project. Perfect Angels is an all volunteer, no killed cat rescue based in Gloucester County, New Jersey that's dedicated to improving the lives of homeless cats. This nonprofit organization provides shelter and care
for orphaned and unwanted cats and works to find them loving forever homes. Perfect Angels relies on donations and sponsorships to fund their efforts to ensure that these wonderful animals get the proper care that they deserve. And my EOS project will provide donations
for this worthy cause. I decided to host Am I decided to host a trunk or treat event because my family and I love Halloween. We attend many Halloween events every year and some of my favorites that I've attended have been trunk or treats. I
especially like these events because they offer a safe alternative for children in the community to trickor treat. As a former student at Orchard Valley Middle School, I also wanted to host this event at that location because I knew it would be a great way to bring the school and local community together.
[Applause] All attend attendees and volunteers will be asked to register in advance of the event so I can make all necessary preparations for parking and supplies. Volunteers will be asked to bring their own vehicles and decorations as well as
a reasonable amount of candy or treats to hand out to participants. I will also purchase extra candy and treats and will have volunteers on hand to deliver extra supplies to the vehicles as needed. Entry to the event will require a donation to Perfect Angels and the most
requested items will be listed on the event advertisements including food, treats, cat litter, and other similar items. I will have volunteers on site who will be selling cat food and other small items for anyone who forgot to bring a donation to make sure that
everyone who wants to participate will be able to. In addition to the trunk or treating, I will also arrange to have a DJ who will be playing fun spooky music throughout the event. And I will have a costume parade for the kids in attendance, as well as a haunted walkthrough that's
hosted by volunteer scale actors. To advertise for this event, I will prepare a video in which I request donations from volunteers. This video will be posted on my parents' Facebook accounts and will also be sent to friends, family, and troop members through email. Files like the one you
see here will be posted online at Orchard Valley Middle School detailing the event and providing information on how to register or volunteer or attend. Sorry. Um it won't show right now because this
is a new one, but we did add um QR codes so they will be able to just scan it. My goal is to drive as much public interest as possible and raise money to host this event while still having enough leftover to buy some big ticket items that will further help the
beneficiary. Here is a copy of the registration form which is included on the flyer. All attendees and volunteers will be asked to complete this form in advance of the event. And this will help me to track all attendees and make it easier to organize the event so I can make sure I
have enough supplies to host a fun and successful trunk or treat. I plan this event to benefit not only Perfect Dangers Cat Rescue, but also because I feel it will help bring together a community that I care very much about. As a local resident of
Washington Township and a former student of Orchard Valley Middle School, I am excited that my Eagle Scout project offers an opportunity for parents to take their children to a safe and fun Halloween event. I am hoping that this event will help to
jumpst start community collaboration and maybe even pave the way for f for larger and more communitydriven public events in the future. Thank you so much for all your time today. I hope you will approve my Eagle Scout project and support my effort to make our community a little stronger one
step at a time. >> Kaylin, sorry. You did a great job. Can you come back up here? We have something for you. >> That's okay. So, we're very proud of you for donating back to your alma mater. Um, and so we have a certificate for you and it says,
"In honor of your outstanding leadership, dedication, and community spirit as you organize and host the Meow Halloween trunk or treat event to benefit Perfect Angels Cat Rescue. Your commitment to service reflects the highest ideals of scouting and
exemplifies the values of compassion, initiative, and civic responsibility. Your efforts not only brought joy to the community, but it is going to make a meaningful impact to the lives of the animals in need. Thank you for your exemplary service. The board of education and the community appreciate
your efforts. Presented the 23rd day of September, 2025, signed by Dr. Hibbs and Miss Kazmple. Congratulations. I I think we probably want to get a picture with him outside. Okay. Yep. Thank you.
We're just waiting for Mr. Distillio to come back in the room and do another presentation. Okay, Mrs. Lar Rubio, are you in the audience? Okay, if Mrs. Larubio, if you want to come up to the um podium with Mr. Dillio, we're now going to celebrate
our county teacher of the year, >> Mrs. Fitzpatrick. So, uh, first of all, I'd like to introduce Mrs. Larubio, who's going to talk about Miss Fitzpat, Miss Fitzpatrick, our county teacher of the
year. So, congratulations, >> Sandy. I would like you to come up and I would like all of our Birch's staff to come up here, please, because this is a school award more than anything. We couldn't There's not one of us, it's all of us. Please. Why am I
>> to the members of the Washington Township Board of Education, Dr. Hibbs, Mrs. Gerber, Mrs. Miller, Mr. Distillio, and our entire administrative team and township community. I am Julie Laru, the proud principal of our 202526
Gloucester County Teacher of the Year, Mrs. Fitzpatrick. Bear with me. I had a lot to say. Mrs. Fitzpatrick's tireless dedication and profound impact on the students and community of Washington Township are a testament to her outstanding character
and professional excellence. Her recognition as teacher of the year in Gloucester County is not merely an accolade for her, but a celebration of the values and commitment that define our district. Much like the opening words of Shell Silstein's classic, The Giving Tree, Once there was a tree and
she loved a little boy. Mrs. Fitzpatrick's story is one of unconditional and selfless love for her students. Sandy's currently a beloved member of the Burch's elementary faculty along with some of our closest friends here began her journey of significant
contributions at the Grenlock School. There her collaborative spirit was instrumental in achieving the school's future ready certification. Just as the tree offered shade and companionship, Mrs. Fitzpatrick offers her time and energy, consistently demonstrating a
deep commitment to schoolwide initiatives through her active participation on numerous committees, including school safety, multi-tered systems of support, and the kindergarten transition team. Her work on the innovative designs for education committee showcases her forwardinking
approach to pedigogy along always looking for ways to provide a better education experience. Much like the tree provides apples, branches, and a trunk for the boy. Beyond her formal roles, Mrs. Fitzpatrick is a passionate innovator and an enthusiastic lifelong
learner. As a Google certified educator and a Seesaw ambassador, she expertly leverages technology to create a classroom that is both engaging engaging and deeply connected. Her initiatives have extended beyond her own classroom walls. She has successfully secured
grants to fund cross-grade partnerships focused on self-regulation and collaborative writing. These projects not only foster important developmental skills, but also cultivated a sense of community among students of different ages. This act of giving extends beyond
her own classroom, echoing the theme that true happiness is found in selflessly giving to others. At the heart of Mrs. Fitzpatrick's teaching philosophy is a commitment to joyful developmentally appropriate learning. She's been a driving force in shaping
the kindergarten curriculum in writing, ELA, and health, ensuring that the foundational years of our students education are built on the framework of care and compassion. Her approach echoes the simple yet profound lessons we all learned in kindergarten to share, be
kind, and to clean up our own messes. Her dedication, like the giving tree, is a journey of giving until there is little left to give. Yet the act of giving itself brings happiness. At the end of the story, when both the boy and the tree retired, the author states, "And the boy loved the tree, and the
tree was happy." This beautiful sentiment perfectly captures the reciprocal love and fulfillment Mrs. Fitz Fitzpatrick finds in her work, proving that even in the most demanding moments, the joy in giving and the love received in return
make it all worthwhile. In conclusion, Mrs. Sandy Fitzpatrick's recognition as the Gloucester County Teacher of the Year is a well-deserved honor that reflects her unwavering commitment to our students and her extraordinary ability to inspire those around her. She's an outstanding educator. It is
with the highest recommendation that I commend Mrs. Fitzpatrick to the Washington Township Board of Education. [Applause]
My name is SJ Cora. I am a third grader at Burch's Elementary School. Miss Fitzpatrick was my kindergarten teacher and is my Birch's bestie. Miss Fitzpatrick taught us letters and numbers, but most importantly, how to be
kind to everyone, and she always kept us safe. She was happy every single day and never got mad at us if if we made mistakes or if I didn't stop talking. She is so funny and always made us
laugh. She gives the best hugs and is the best Benny even though she still thinks I don't know it's it is her. Thank you, Miss Fitzpatrick, for being the best teacher ever and for making my
first year of school so great. I love school because of you. Congratulations on being teacher of the year. I'm so proud of you. Thank you, SJ. And now a thank you to Kevin behind the camera and Mrs.
Babielowski who made this video short. I'm Sandy Fitzpatrick. I'm a kindergarten teacher at Burches Elementary School. I'm going into my eighth year here at Burches. I was born with a teaching bug. Um, but I from a very very young age, I've always wanted
to be a teacher. Um, when I was young, I mean, as early as four or five years old, 5 years old, I remember just like running off the school bus, zooming down the basement where we had I had a little classroom set up and I did that for many years, probably longer than than most
kids would play school, because I enjoyed it so much. I always was the teacher and um just had my my little students were stuffed animals and they were you know in small groups and learning all kinds of things that I was learning at school in school at the time. Um it's definitely something
within me. Um but always wanted to be a teacher. There was never ever anything else I wanted to be. I um went to school at Rowan University was where I got my degree. I got an elementary education. And I was also fascinated with sociology. Um, and I have a degree in sociology as well. I got them at the
same time. Um, I have a teacher of reading certification because reading is so important to me. I remember it being hard to learn how to read. Um, and I really wanted to make sure that I give kids the best experience and really understand um, the science of reading
and and the best ways to teach kids how to read so it's easy for them and engaging. Early childhood is definitely just the age I I always gravitated towards. I love the excitement, the enthusiasm, and the energy always matched mine. Um, and I just knew from
from a young age, not all kids learn the same. I learned a little different. I wasn't one to just sit still in a chair and listen to someone lecture at me. I love to just be up and moving and doing hands-on things. And I recognized that at a very young age that at the time, a
long time ago, when I was uh in kindergarten, that's not the way we were learning. Um, and I always knew I wanted to be the teacher that that everybody needed. I definitely think I bring the enthusiasm, the energy, the patience.
Um, I love differentiating my instruction to meet the needs of all my learners. Um, I love collaborating with everyone around me. I love communicating with the parents and getting to know the families. I live here in Washington Township with my family and I love um
just getting to know everybody and just feeling this tight being part of this tight-knit community is amazing to me. Every single morning I come in and hug my students and I come in with enthusiasm and energy um and just an excitement for learning which I think is
contagious for the students. Um I'm always looking to see what they love. I really know every single one of my students and I know what what makes them tick and what makes them excited and I try my best to incorporate that into my learning. I I dive deep into their
learning styles to see what works best for them. I have flexible seating. Um just different I teach them different ways to work together. Um and just just try to make learning super duper exciting for them and which I think I do do a really good job of. um that they
just come in just they just can't wait to see what's next. We sing, we dance, and incorporate so much movement in into what we're doing. Um huge on making learning fun through play because that's developmentally appropriate for our
students. Um, as for the parents, I know that um, in our families, they know their kids are coming home super excited to tell them about their day and um, and that makes them really, you know, really happy that that I'm their teacher, like to say. Um, also I communicate weekly
through well, communicate daily, but weekly I send out a s'more newsletter which is just filled with pictures um, of all the fun activities we do every week. And I know the parents have I get wonderful feedback. The kids the parents love that and the kids like to see the
things they did and all their friends and um I think that's really important. The biggest attribute for Sandy is building those connections. You know, every single day um those kids leave here feeling like they did it. Whatever
it is, um they feel it and they want to come back to it because they feel such love. She was always trying to do fun things with us and she always got everybody involved and she was loving, sweet and caring. >> She is special because she makes me
laugh and she does the best crafts. I like when she says class and we say yes yes. >> She's special because she would have a may do and must do work. When we finish,
we play cool math games and she is the best. >> I want to talk about goodness. She took good care of me. She She played Uno card with me and she's the best teacher ever.
She is nice because she lets us read books when we're sad and she reads books in a funny voice. I like when she picks me a student of the day.
I I like her hair. She gives me 100. She helps us in math. She helps us count to 100. I give her 100 hearts. >> We will. >> Thank you for having us.
>> So beautiful. Hey, Sandy, stay for one more sec. So, what you will probably not know, um, if you spend 30 seconds in Sy's classroom, she mentioned enthusiasm, energy, contagious energy. That is just it's it's really not even enough to say it.
Um, and Mrs. Lario Lubio spoke of connections. And when you're the county teacher of the year, you have the ability of putting in to be the state teacher of the year. And if you you may not know about this, but if you're if you win that, it's a huge honor, but you have to leave the classroom. And I think
it took Sandy about 14 seconds or milliseconds probably for her to say, I don't want to my connections are just that important. And you know, we had the honor of going to the the countywide teacher of the year, you know, during the summertime. I think it was August,
right? August. What an amazing day. And it was so incredible to see her with such a group of peers, which to be honest with you, I I think she would have won. I really do. You were amazing. So, big round of applause for Sandy and all of Burches. Thank you for
coming. Sandy, I have the honor of presenting the certificate of recognition to you. Um Sandy Fitzpatrick, Gloucester County Teacher of the Year 2526. The Washington Township Board of Education proudly honors your outstanding dedication, excellence in
teaching, and exceptional contributions to student success. Your unwavering commitment to education, innovation in the classroom, and leadership in the community have made a lasting impact. You exemplify the highest standards of the teaching profession and serve as an inspiration to students, colleagues, and
the community. signed Eric Hibbs and Julie >> Kazmp would not press this I think we should be the only [Music] here first. Hold on one second. We miss anybody else.
Okay. Look in here. Look here. >> One, two, three. One more, two, three. Right. Okay, just a reminder um or maybe this is new information if you've never been here before. If you're interested in addressing the board, there are cards in the corner um yellow cards. You can fill
one out and pass it to Mrs. Chilla. I'm going to ask that you write your full name and email address. Um, when you address the board, it's kind of like a public hearing to tell us information, make comments, but if you have questions, we can email you the answers or Dr. Hibs can email you the answers.
So, the cards are in the corner. Um, so moving on to the agenda. Are there any items for discussion? No items for discussion. Okay. U Mr. Dillio, you're you're you're up again. Thank you, Mr. Kazmpo. I have I have a
few announcements um specifically um some that came out today um for the benefit of the community as well. Um important reminder, uh we need your help in completing a mandatory Windows 11 upgrade for the district issued devices
by 10:14. So, I sent a parent square today on behalf of Mr. Gfredo, the head of instructional technology. Um we're asking um parents to assist us with having their students um complete the process that Mr. Gfredo outlines in the
parent square so that we can make sure all our devices are up and ready to go u by the 14th. So please uh for those watching and for those here if you have children in the district please make sure we do that um annual upgrade that would be very helpful for the tech
department. I also sent out um Miss Sullivan and I sent out today important information about uh state testing. Um annually on October on around October 1st, the school district has to send out
information about the state tests that are coming about. We sent that letter out today. Um just to recap, uh uh the the PSATs are um October 30th. Um,
moreover, any senior who didn't pass a test of record um, has been asked mandatory mandatory by the state to sit for the NJGPA which is going to be run by our old company in the state Pearson.
Uh, that is a mandatory thing that seniors need to do. They've been informed um for those seniors who need to take that. Um also, um we have information about the NJSLA field test. Um this is a field test that all
students are asked to take in the grades that I'm going to explain in a minute. Grades four and five will take the NJSLA adaptive math and ELA. U ELA comprises of reading and writing November 5th and November 10th. Grades six, seven, and
eight will take the the adaptive test for their grade level on October 28th and October 29th. The NJ NJSLA adaptive will be also given to grades 9 and 10 on November 3rd and
November 5th. And the NJGPA adaptive field test for grade 11 will be given on November 3rd and November 5th as well. So, there is a lot of testing that's uh coming and as we get more information, we'll be sure to pass it along based on when the state provides that
information. I have some um really great announcements of things that are coming up on the horizon. Specifically, tomorrow is a big day to eat if you are interested. Uh the marching band is having a dine and donate at Friendly's in Glboro from 5 to 8 tomorrow. Um and
then after that, you have your choice to go. You probably shouldn't get ice cream at friendlies because we have two ice cream places that are benefiting our students. You can either go from 6:00 to 9:00 to Brewers to support the Wedgewood PTO or you can go to Rita's and support
the township choir from 6:00 to close. So all of that is happening tomorrow on October 7th. We have stuff the bus with school supplies sponsored by the WTSSPA. They're also, in addition to school
supplies, they're also asking for Amazon gift cards, which are welcome as well. And that is going to be from 1:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. at the Ganttown 910 lot. And then, um, lastly, about state
testing, um, individual score reports were mailed to us and they are going to be, uh, mailed to the parents as well. So, this is for the 2024 25 state test. They just came in and we will be mailing those shortly. So, thank you everyone.
That's my report, Miss Kazmple. >> Thank you so much, Mr. Dasilio. Next up, can I have a motion to approve the item of correspondence under correspondence? >> Motion. >> Second. >> All in favor? I
>> I >> passed. Um motion to approve the minutes from July 29th and August 19th as well as August 26th. >> Motion second. >> All in favor? >> I
>> I'm a nay on that. >> Okay. Items of old business. >> Go ahead. >> Okay. Uh just to just to close some loops, uh for those of you in the public, you might have seen we actually took our uh we had to have once a year
we have to grade our district on HIV grades. We just inadvertently uploaded the wrong copy. So we pulled it all down because we don't want to confuse people. So that'll be on next month. It was just simply uh just an upload error. Uh I want to shout out um I want to shout out
Annette, Gretchen, Mike, Jen, and Janine. There's so many people to thank in our district at all times. But I just I want to recognize because you may not know this that you know Annette had to pull double duty being a superintendent and assistant superintendent. Gretchen right now is functioning as both the as
both the director of elementary ed and the assistant superintendent. Mike had to take over state testing. Jen Jen's job got fused as the director of counseling and and also the director of special education. And Janine right now doesn't have an assistant BA. So, I just I want to just acknowledge the hard work
of of the people that I see most every day and just thank you very much. Please give them a hand. Mr. Srano, this one's for you. Uh, Wedgwood's Playground. So, thanks to the ingenuity of both Jeff and Jerry, uh, should be up and running within the
week. And uh they really thought outside the box with some safe epoxy and some and some diamond uh you know the metal the metal uh casing that we can use to just make that a safe place. So uh it's a $100,000 savings because you know as opposed to replacing we're uh they did a
lot of hard work in there. So I want to make sure that I I gave a a nice shout out to Jeff and Jerry and all of our maintenance crew for that. Um some of you may see on the agenda and have questions about um physicals. Uh I I addressed this one question to Linda who had a great question. We still have uh
middle school inter mural sports clubs. Each each middle school has uh four to five different clubs. For in for instance, Bunker has flag football, soccer, basketball, kickball, volleyball. They all have some variation and we just need to have just physicals done for those just in case there was
any questions. um full board. Uh we're going to put in IIA the concept of our homeschooling policy because there's been some questions raised as to whether or not our district should consider allowing students who are homeschooled to participate in athletics. So I think
the best way for us to do that is through committees and that way you can have your discussions because it is a policy which definitely falls under your purview. Also too, uh you received an email in the recent past about Whitman's uh about a gate at Whitman because we're sometimes having uh some dirt bikes or
electric bikes that are going through and they're really kind of wrecking some havoc in our in our in our rubber mulch. So that gate will be uh will be installed. Also, I want to I this is this is a great one, too. For those of you that may or may not know, Birches and TJ
sometimes have reception issues. They're two of the worst buildings that we have for reception. Uh, so I want to thank George Hilbert, our uh, our chief of security because he reached out to Verizon and they donated the towers that can be installed that will increase
reception. And we we we really used that as kind of a jumping off point and we're reaching out to all the other major providers. It was meant to be today. We had a cabinet meeting from, you know, from 9 to whenever and when it was done, I reached out personally to T-Mobile and just so happened got a township
graduate. uh which was just an amazing reach and T-Mobile is going to donate uh them as well. So our last our last work is going to be AT&T which we're going to work really hard on but that should dramatically increase increase the cell reception at both of those buildings and
we have a plan for where they're going to go but there I'm told that uh the Verizon one is already up at Burchches and they're seeing a difference immediately. Mr. Dilio talked about the Windows update uh so I don't have to hit on that one. Um you you may recall
um well you may not recall we um we have uh we're going we're going to be doing uh an infusion of eighth grade Chromebooks which will allow our eighth grade uh Windows devices to be placed into loaners which will be redistributed. That was one of the things that came up at our liaison
meeting our district liaison meeting. So we're going to work with the entire team to decide upon how we uh how we deploy those. Just want you to keep in the loop too. Uh we're dealing with a situation at Bridg's gym. Uh we had uh we have boards coming up which we are going to
deal with because it's it's not safe. And the last one or the second to last one uh is from Mrs. Chilla. You asked the question about could we create the district fundraising tab? So um who who started that and ran with it? Gretchen, of course. Thank you Gretchen. Uh
Gretchen took that and just ran with it. So, we're going to do a uh it's going to be part it's going to be uploaded onto the site now. I think you did a calendar, right, Gretchen? >> Thank you very much. Um and then Mike, we'll take that hand off and make sure that goes. So, rather than wait for the new website, we're going to put it up
now as soon as we get it all populated. >> Thank you. And just real quick, u Mr. Dilio, thank you for the parent squares this week with announcing everything. I did notice it, so I mean it is helpful. My family's eating out a lot over the past few days. So, there you go. But thank you for that. And thank you. Thanks for watching. And the last one,
and I I want to say it in a very positive way. We uh we of course can stand up and you know, sometimes we have opinions and thoughts that we share at board meetings. I just would ask everyone to consider if we could just not mention children. I I think that we
should really leave kids all the way out of this conversation. It's happened since in the two years or two years plus since I've been here and I think we should just really leave, you know, leave the kids out and let's celebrate the good and and speak your mind. That's just my opinion, of course. Thank you.
>> Thank you. Other items of old business. >> I just wanted to mention the um the cell phone committee. I had sent an email out about that. Linda volunteered to be on the ad hoc committee, Elaine and Pat. Um so just to bring that up again, I mean I would like for that committee to get
together for you guys to figure out when you would be able to meet. Um I think all three of you um are on one of the meetings that are on Yeah. on IIA. So maybe you could do it after that if you would like for me to come. Um you know, you can include me. I'd love to be on
that committee. I don't think kids should have cell phones in their in their school. Um >> Julie, can we can we invite some admin and some other staff that >> Well, I that's up to you. Whoever you I was just about to get to that. Whoever you think >> should be on there, >> you could add it to IA. We talked about
doing an ad hoc committee, but that's fine to just I think do I just want to move it along so that we, you know, have something before we're we're we're v we're told to do something. Any other items of old business? Okay, moving on. Can I get a motion to
open to the public? >> So moved. >> Second. >> All in favor? I >> um Mary Williams, thank you for putting your email address and phone number on there. All right. Hello. Um, welcome back, Dr.
Hibbs. I haven't been here in a little bit, but I've been paying attention online. Um, I'm just going to talk a little bit about the, um, I feel like I'm beating a dead horse, and I know it's not going to get anywhere, but the whole middle school sports cut program this year. Um,
I have three children in the district, one in high school with special needs, one in middle school and one in elementary school at TJ. Um, I am just incredibly upset at the um, budget cuts and the fact that my middle school uh, son at Orchard Valley will not get to
wrestle this year for the middle school program because there is no middle school wrestling program. Um, he's wrestled since he was seven years old. He is in his last year of middle school and is now losing that opportunity. Um, as the biggest school district in Gloucester County, um, I just think it's
a joke. I think it's a joke that we can't provide our children with more programs. I know there's intram mural clubs after school. I get that. But it's just not not the same. Other school districts provide so many more sports programs than we we even ever provided.
Other other districts have cross country teams at the middle school level. They have uh field hockey teams. We have never been able to do that. And now they are taking away all of those sports from our children. Um, basketball included. Um,
this school district represented by you. Um, our school board has wasted so much of our money, our tax dollars for complete nonsense. Um, the lawsuits, the attorney fees that have racked up, the paying of multiple staff members to cover for Dr. Hibbs while he was out. It's really a joke. and it the money
should come out of your pockets to pay for our children to have sports programs because it's it's a joke. You've wasted our money. You've wasted so much of our money for our kids. Um now our children suffer. Um that's really all I have to say. I'm going to keep this short. There's a lot of other things I could complain about,
but I just wanted to talk about that tonight. Um I just um I think it's a disgrace for our kids. I think um they should have a lot more opportunities at the middle school level than intramural clubs and activities and and I'm sad for
my son and I'm sad for all the other children that are involved in the programs. Thank you. >> Thank you, Mrs. Williams. I don't have any other cards. Am I about to get a card? April Renzetti.
>> Uh, good evening. April Renetti, vice president of the WTA. I'm here tonight again with major issues that are occurring in our district, my district, the district my family, my children, and I all graduated from. If you know me, you know how passionate I
am about my family and friends and this district. I will continue to stand up when there is wrongdoing for the very people who make this place work when they are not treated with respect or fairness. I am here tonight to ask you, Dr. Hibbs, to take ownership for the
state that we are in. But we know that you won't do that. Let me give you a list of some of the problems. And it's not even October 1st yet. You cut 50 assistants 15 minutes to not
pay health benefits. We have 19 six period stipens just in the special ed department. 19. For those that are not aware of what that means, that means there are 19 sections of special ed classes that are
without a teacher. 19. I'm not even getting into math, history, science, or social studies. Teachers were pulled to teach six period stipens. Some are not happy about it. Some are teaching a content that maybe they're
not familiar with or they haven't been in in such a long time. Yes, they're going to get paid. There's a six period honorarium. Absolutely. It's pennies to the time that they're going to put in for the additional grading, planning, parent contact, IEP writing, and IEP
meetings. Additionally, it's a safety issue. Where do you think all of those people were pulled from? The duties. cafeteria duty, lab duty, hall duty, the worst places in a high school setting because those are the
places that kids tend to make the worst choices. So now those teachers are pulled, duties are now left unattended because we have no subs, we have no assistance, and now those teachers have to teach other classes because of the shortage that we have.
We have a major problem at the high school, Dr. Hibs, I don't know if you're aware or not, and I don't know if you're aware of the idea that we're sitting on a time bomb really because high school kids just don't make the right and the best decisions.
We had a retired teacher last year who decided to come back to the district and offer his assistance. He was a phenomenal special ed teacher, excellent science teacher. He would absolutely come back. I'm assuming the reason he's not coming back is because he's not going to be compensated fairly and he's
going to maybe get way less than what he left making last year or possibly even sub pay. As a 30-year veteran special ed teacher, that would be um a slap in his face. But I'm assuming if we're this short, money shouldn't be a problem.
When I looked up the agenda and pulled the non-unit raises and saw that we have no problem giving those kind of raises out, but where the classroom is in need of people, that's not taken into consideration, there is a priority problem and the classroom isn't it and
it's evident. Why are we not worried about retaining the best and most qualified for the classroom? We are here to educate and prepare these students for their futures. Yet the educators are the very last people on the pri excuse me on the priority list.
Finally, last meeting we were told that we got paid on the 15th per our contract. And you're right, we got paid on the 15th. Absolutely. However, not one apology of inconvenience to the staff, not one I'm sorry, not one
sympathetic. If there was any inconvenience that we can help you with, let us know. emails went unanswered. Multiple emails came in with who is incur who is paying for the fees that were incurred to me because my money wasn't put into my account until 10, 11,
12, 2, 3, 4, or even midnight. Mr. Tarashi, the WTA president, myself, and other members of the executive committee called 12 banks. 12. Not one bank had a release or a deposit coming
in from Washington Township. It wasn't a banking error. It was a district error. No one's owning it. No one's apologizing for it. And no one is explaining it to the staff and even being sympathetic to the inconvenience it caused to our families.
I've been here a long time, 29 years. We've had many superintendent, some good, some not so good. have not sat through the level of disrespect, ugliness, and lack of ownership like we are now.
I'll save the rest for uh my next time up. >> Thank you for your comments. I'll just apologize on behalf of whomever and the board and the district for any inconvenience that the staff experienced um because of that. I I
understand on a personal standpoint when that happens how upsetting it can be. So, I apologize. >> Janine, do you want to start by addressing that piece? >> Yeah. Um, I'll just start by addressing that. So, there was explanation that went out and it went out very in the
morning after our bank confirmed that all of our funds were released, all of our data was correct, and they could see the all of the payments going out. Now, that's not blaming anyone else. I don't know what the other banks are saying.
I'm more than happy to listen what the other banks are saying and put our banks in touch. But the communications that were sent out very early confirmed all funds in the words of the person,
all funds have been released. I see the payments going out. Okay. And that's not, you know, we I I apologize. I don't know what else to say. We did everything exactly the way we normally do on our end. As far as emails, I received two
emails. They were both responded to. I checked in with Mr. Trashy. He didn't hear of anybody else. If there's anyone else out there, please email us. If you have information from other banks or contact people, we'll be more than happy to contact, but there's not one person
that I did not communicate with. >> Thank you. >> I got it. Um, hi April. So, first I I just want to remind everybody that on March 18th, I was placed on a leave. So, from that moment on until the beginning of August, I wasn't here. So, for anyone
to blame me for anything that occurred during that time is just I mean, even despite feelings, you can't even think that that's acceptable. So, and I have no problems taking accountability. None. Uh, I think that's really super important super important to do. So, I
I'm happy to to take ownership for anything that I would do that's a mistake. The reality is, and I've said this numerous times, and I've I've I've told the board this numerous times, my recommendations aren't taken a lot of times, and I laid out a pathway for success that was not taken. And now, we
are going to be in the situation that we're in. That's it. And you know, you know, Mr. B M Bosero spoke very eloquently when he talked about the fact that I I think it was roughly $und00 million that we just kept using in excess surplus. You know, that money just eventually isn't there. And that's
that's where we are. And you know, for anyone who wants to say that, you know, you want to blame me for the financial uh issues that we're we're we're having and are going to have, it's just it's preposterous. This is it's it's quantifiably proven that that's just not
accurate. Um, I'm happy to go back to Mr. Anderson and talk about what you're calling is a safety issue. Uh, I spoke to Mr. Anderson today. He didn't mention anything about that at all. We even discussed this very issue. I think time
bomb. I I don't that Mr. Anderson will agree to that, but I I'll definitely have him touch base with you to have that conversation. Um, the staff member that you're speaking about, and I won't go into specifics, I had nothing to do with that decision. it was made very clear to me that that that was not going
to pass. So that that is the reason why that staff member isn't on there. Um I do not think that educators are the last people on the priority list. I I don't think that at all. I think they should be on the top of the priority list. I think that we have a tireless job. I
think we have an amazing job and I think that everybody in this district works really hard. So that's just not accurate. And you know again Janine mentioned about things that were unanswered. That's just not accurate. If you could bring that to us and show us those emails, we'd we'd love to respond.
I know that Janine even wrote reached out to Mr. Tarashi today and you mentioned that he responded that he didn't have anything extra. Correct. Um I'm I'm not disrespectful to people. Um and I'm I'm happy to own any mistakes I
make in life. Uh you know, that's that's where we are. Thank you, >> Patty Sucalis. Good evening, Patti Sucallis for the WTA. Um, I wanted to talk about agenda item M38, which would be the non-unit
raises that are occurring uh are being put up for vote tonight. What I'm asking you as the board to do is to table that for now because as at this moment you have three out of your four bargaining units that have not been ratified um through a board vote. So to give you
raises to the non-unit salaries when you have some of those pending I think um is a little premature for this. They had raises in November of last year. So it hasn't even been a full year yet since that occurred. Um, I'd also like you to do a little exploration as far as what
certifications are needed for certain jobs because what I'm noticing is that because I've spoken about this before when we have a salary guide and our salary guide part of it's a New Jersey court case and this happens in all of education. When our salary guides are in
there, anyone that moves from step one to step two, step two to step three, that raise gets taken out of the settlement before any money is added to the guide. And I actually spoke about this I believe about a about a year ago about the non-unit raises um that they don't have those equal they don't have
those increment costs. So where somebody had made a comment about well the raises are a certain percentage I said yes but last year the um top of the scale for the teachers raise was 1.59%. Because we have to pay our um you know
our steps out of that settlement. So, just consider that when you're looking at the percentages cuz, you know, this percentages are I did, you know, and I've been tracking this for several years and the raises are 3% 3% 3%. Um, 2.88, which, you know, isn't a lot, but when you're making a higher salary, it's
a lot. Um but I just implore you know u ask you to look at the certifications necessary because as I'm noticing these getting you know growing and growing and growing there are multiple non-unit salaries that I believe are non-certificate uh non-certified staff
that are making more than a top of the scale teacher and that's where I feel like when you know we mention our pay and our disrespect is that you know we have college education we are certified professionals and to see people on here
that are making more than I do and I'm a certified teacher with a master's plus 30. Um, and I've been here for 26 years. So, when I look at some of these salaries and and I'm not talking about people that have degrees that are higher than mine. I'm talking about people that
um that don't have that. You know, I just kind of question is it is that, you know, is their position worth the amount of money that they're being paid? Um, and then on a completely separate note as far as communication, um, I also brought an
issue that was not answered, and I don't know if you can answer it tonight. One of the things that was on the July board agenda was tuition reimbursement, um, for the WTA. And typically, and I know by contract, we have to be paid out by
October 1st. So, this is by no means a um, violation of the contract. However, we were given a letter in the beginning of the year that stated that we would be given a check on September 17th and if we didn't want to have it mailed, we could go to the board office and have it
picked up on the morning of the 17th. I actually happen to have was coming over here for superintendent leaison. So, I emailed someone and said, um, you know, just want to let you know, please don't put mine in the mail. I will be here to pick it up for superintendent leaison. At that moment on September 17th, I was
told, "Oh, you're not getting your check today." And I was completely caught off guard. And I said, "How come?" And they said, "Well, because the board switched the board dates and they weren't able to approve it on the bid list." Which I get it. I understand procedure. I understand
how the bid list works. How, not bid list. Um, the bill list, it was a bill list, excuse me, how the bill list works. It has to get approved. Excuse me. Um, I haven't got an answer as to I I sent an email um I believe to Mrs.
Wctor last week and I said I just want to know who was supposed to inform us because not one person was told that we weren't getting the money until the 25th. So I do recognize it was prior to the contracted date. I understand that. But it's just a lack of communication.
So here again and when I was going back and forth with different people from central it was this person's pos you know is this person's job to inform you and the other person's telling me no it's not my job to inform you just wondering again you know here we go with communication it wasn't you know wasn't expressed to
us and when I questioned who should have informed the staff I got no response. >> Thank you. I can address real quick. Um I'm I'm sorry that that miscommunication happened, Patty. What we'll do next time is that and I think it's because the board meetings were shifted. Um and because of that shift, it just shifted
the regular meeting where we pay bills. So we'll just make a note next time to make sure that if that happens, we'll just communicate that out. Um I'm sorry that that caused an inconvenience for you. Of course, >> Jerry Tarashi. >> Jerry Tarashi, WTEA President. And I'm
glad to see that we're getting some apologies this evening uh that were not forthcoming over the past several months. As I contemplated what message I should deliver to all of you this evening, as well as the message to those
watching, I came to the conclusion that the best message I could send is basically why. Why? And then finally, one more time, why? Why is everyone ignoring the
deterioration of this district? Why do people get up here each meeting and refuse to acknowledge the disaster that this administration has created? Why is everyone refusing to recognize
the hurt that has befallen our support staff? Why do I hear people running for the school board or with other political interests in mind heap praise after praise upon this administration,
rewarding them with increases in pay for allegedly great progress when we see not progress but decline? Why have we seen administrators who not long ago were hired here leave? Has
anyone noticed? Has anyone answered that question? Why? Why do I hear speakers ask certain board members why they don't support the superintendent? Can anyone answer why the board members
who favor the superintendent aren't supporting the support staff, aren't supporting the teachers? I think we'd all like to hear that answer. Why can't we hear from those members of
the board why they wouldn't support over 1,200 union members who know best about the ongoing issues in this district? Why do we allow the social media warriors, some of whom were totally
exposed at our last meeting, to continue to spread the lies about certain members of the board and ignore the truth about others? Why do people evoke my name and others who have done nothing but try to make this district return to what it once
was, namely a familyoriented district filled with people willing to help each other instead of bashing each other? Why don't we stand up for what is right and realize that these 1,200 plus
members can't all be wrong? Why all the support and loyalty for this current administration and ignore the voices of all many who work with your children every day? The choice seems simple to those who are
listening. Regarding the information that I saw today and the increases to certain members of the non-unit and administrative staff, I have no problem with them getting raises. I will
support them getting raises, but why is it we're giving them raises when so much was cut and so many people are getting hurt? Support staff, aids who cannot fill the requirements in classrooms with special needs kids. That
is wrong. I guess we may never know the answers to those questions. So instead of criticizing those board members who question and challenge this administration, how about questioning those who support them and ask them why?
Why do you support this administration? As as you see on the back of our t-shirts, and I quote, "What we stand for isn't worthwhile unless we're all willing to stand up.
How about standing up for what is right and fair? Thank you. [Applause] Thank you for your comments, Heather Witcraft. >> Hi, Heather Witcraft. Um, I'll say this slowly in case some of you need to grab
a pen and paper. It's whi T like Tom. C as in cat. R A F like Frank. T again like Tom. I'm here tonight to remind everyone about the meet the candidates round table on October 22nd at the Washington Township Senior Center from 5:30 to 8:30
p.m. Now, let's be clear. This is not a civics class, a mock debate, or a forum where questions are pre-screened and neatly tucked away. It's a real, direct, transparent conversation with real candidates and actual citizens for a real election. It's been over 35 years since I sat in
kindergarten, but it hasn't been nearly that long since participate in education since participate in education began hosting meet the candidates events right here in the central administration building. Over time though, this event has simply outgrown the space. for that.
As a divorced and widowed single mother, I'm grateful for the PEP grants secured by the GCEA and the WTSSPA, possibly the WTEA has as well, which have helped me continue this tradition for at a larger venue. At a time when reading comprehension,
transparency, integrity merit of more than anything, I want to thank the candidates who have taken the time to respond to the survey, something we've been running for nearly a decade. Extra appreciation goes to those responding this round since I hear some of the questions are proving quite difficult
for some. Just a reminder, surveys are due back by September 30th. Though, please reach out if you need any clarification or more time. Um, I'm also here tonight to express concern over the superintendent's merit
payment request again being submitted through finance instead of personnel on the agenda. Even more concerning, this coming year's merit goals, whatever they may be, also seem to be listed in finance. At the very least, these are performance-based measures directly tied
to evaluation and belong under personnel. And finally, I cannot stay silent about this anymore while my own reputation is being attacked due to their fear-mongering. It is troubling to see our superintendent openly,
hold on, openly hugging and fratinizing after board meetings with an individual who until her warrant was settled last week has been a fugitive for justice for the last decade and carries a significant criminal record. More disturbing still, this person's partner, according to public records, apparently
holds two guilty convictions for endangering abuse/ neglect/sexual acts of involving a child. I do not believe the top leader of our school district should maintain such close associations and cannot imagine I'm alone in these feelings. Thank you
and blessed be for a spirit of Halloween. Thank you. >> Thank you, Mrs. Witcraft. Tom Baldesaro because I I hear a lot of questions tonight and you know why why why the answer is easy. It's been historic lack
of planning. Um I personally haven't seen anybody like over the top supporting anybody like the administration. I will tell you, I know I haven't. I have no clue whether this administration can do the job. I have none. I will tell you, having worked in
an administrative role, if if boards and administration don't work together, nobody succeeds. So, in my mind, we've got failure across the board. We got failure at the board level and we have failure at the administration level because there's a lack of working
together. Think about all the decisions that have been made that are hurting next year. We already know. We've heard it. Mr. Liberty talked about it. When you act on, you know, the the contracts
that we've done and and again, I don't begrudge anybody a raise either. Everybody deserves a raise. Everybody deserves to not have jobs cut, hours cut. I I agree 100% with that. And that was my job to provide stability. But when decisions and processes are
followed that don't follow best practice, we're failing. And that's what happened. The whole board wasn't involved in the first contract that was done. Administration was excluded. We're doing it again. I sent the board a lot of
detail on best practice from the school boards association. I hope you guys had discussion and we'll talk about it. Did we follow those practices? It talks about the marriage of board and leadership working together. We don't do that. We don't we don't even come close
to doing that. So the the problem is all of the lack of planning and understand it's going to get worse if and I'm just going to use your word unprecedented. I'm going to I'm going to say unprecedented is going to be above budget. That that would be be my my
guess. So we're going to have more cuts this year. for everybody everybody needs to understand more hours are probably going to be cut jobs are going to be lost that's going to happen and when I hear and I agree with what Miss Renetti talked about about you know when when students probably behave worse you know
at lunch so there's going to have to be discussions on we only have so much money everyone where's it going to go if we want to add resource over there something else has to go away all I hear are complaints that we don't have enough
and and we don't, but we don't have more money and we're just going to give away more and we're going to commit for 5 years. And you know, the the time bomb that's ticking is the district as a whole because no one's going to want to come
work here when we keep cutting year after year after year without planning what we're going to do. I wouldn't want to come work here. I don't know who's going to want to. And until we stop and you know Dr. Hibbs
mentioned what for the past 10 years we've used reserve to cover the budget that means nobody was willing to make the difficult decisions. No one. And that's a failure because the tick and time bomb is going to be capital ultimately. We used to invest $5 million
a year in capital. We we've done about a million total the last two years. Man, if something bad goes wrong, you're gonna cut to fix the roof. You're going to cut to replace the air conditioner because we don't have any money in reserve.
The responsible thing to do is to make sure when we do budgets, we have reserve. That's like having your own personal savings at home if your car breaks down and you got to get to work. You know, we don't have a credit card here. So, the problem again,
lack of planning. So, somebody talked about not giving the non-unit raises. Maybe not a bad idea to to plan, but I'll also say make sure all of you are aware if we're doing another contract, all you have to have your say.
You got to know how does it impact this year? What's getting cut? What's getting cut next year if we make this decision now? What do we look like in five years? How can how can the decisions we make today hurt or help where we're headed? Because I too, Mr. Terashi, I lived in
this district my whole life. I love this district. Coached in it, cared about kids, came in every chance I got to work with kids. And we're failing them right now, guys. We're failing. And just plugging fingers in the hole. We add resources to to whatever. Again,
it's going to take away somewhere else. and let's make sure we're working together and communicating cuz again if we fix a problem you know you're causing one somewhere else and it it it's just got to stop. The lack of planning, the lack of board working on their own has
to stop. >> Thank you. Motion to close to the public. >> All in favor? >> I can I have a motion to approve the report of the superintendent? There's only one item and it's set. There's only one item.
>> Motion. >> Can I get a second? >> Second. >> Discussion. >> Seeing none. Roll call. >> Miss Haron. Abstain. >> Mr. Liberty. >> Yes. >> Mr. Serrano
>> abstain. >> Mr. Ross >> absent absent Miss Chillo. >> Yes. >> Miss Kazmpo abstain. Motion fails.
Motion to approve the field trip destination list under instructional affairs. So move second >> discussion. >> I just have one. >> Yes, the list is very long and if you
sit down and read it, which last week I had some time on my hands not feeling well, so that's what I did. There are so many destinations that are closed, no longer functioning. I'm just wondering why they're on the list still
if they're not open. >> Sure. >> I think the the honest answer is is that we probably added a few on and didn't go back to look at the ones that honestly that that would have needed to be taken off because >> we just didn't have time to do that. >> So, can we reook at it for next year?
So, um, actually, I was going to ask if we can relook at it now. If we can table this for right now until someone's able to relook at it and do the due diligence of looking at the list and taking out what's not available and what we're not going to be using and then vote on it
again, >> if possible. I >> Yeah. Yeah. I sure we we can do that, but then, you know, I'm not sure. Yes, we >> we could do that. It It's honestly been done this way since I've been in this position. They just keep adding.
>> Yes. >> Since I've been up here the past 12 years. Uh that's what I've always seen done and prior to that. But we can always go back and and remove those. But really what we do is we just continue to add new. Obviously we can't go to places that are not open.
>> Right. Linda, if you want to table it, you can just say motion to table. Motion to table. Okay. >> Second. >> All in favor? All in favor? Right. >> Is there a roll discussion? >> Do you have a discussion?
>> Yeah, I have a discussion. >> With tableabling it, is it going to impact any funding? >> She's saying yes. >> It is going to impact. >> Yes. So, we have elementary schools setting up field trips to the zoo, to the aquarium, to the So, anything that's
on here, we're happy to go back and fix anything that's not working. But >> if it's not open, we're not going. So, to table it, we can definitely make the correction again and have it approved at another reading for another time. But I do know that schools are setting up
field trips that they want to get into the fall. >> Okay. I really don't think it harms anything to approve it tonight. I mean, I think we should just go ahead and keep it. Yeah, if it's going to keep you from being able to schedule, but I would like to see it clean cleaned up. >> We'll clean it up. >> I think you have to wish.
>> So the motion to table Megan is saying has to fail. >> It's it's on the >> So we have to Okay. >> Okay. So let's >> or you can resend or you can resend. >> I'll resend it. >> Okay, I'll resend it. >> So then the motion that's rescended. The motion on the floor is to approve, which
is a roll call, >> please. Mr. Li Liberty >> Mr. >> Yes. >> Mr. Ross. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Chilla. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Hartung.
>> Yes. >> Miss Kazmp. >> Yes. Motion carries. Under policy. Can I have a motion to approve items 1 through six? >> Motion. >> Second. >> They're all up for a second reading. So, this will be the final approval. Any
discussion? >> Seeing none, roll call, please. >> Mr. Serrano? >> Yes. >> Mr. Ross? >> Yes. >> Miss Chilla? >> Yes.
>> Mrs. Hartong? >> Yes. >> Mr. Liberty? >> Yes. Miss Kazmp. >> Yes. Motion carries. Moving on to student activities and communications. And I have a motion to approve items one, two, and three.
>> Motion. >> Second. >> Any discussion? Roll call. Mr. Ross. >> Miss Chilla. >> Yes. >> Eric. >> Mrs. Hardong. >> Yes.
>> Mr. Liberty. Yes, >> Mr. Serrano. >> Okay, so it's >> Yes, >> Miss Kazmpo. >> Yes. Motion carries. Okay, moving on to human resources. Um, I'd like to make a motion here. I
guess it's a motion I have to make to table number 38 for the reasons um well because we're missing three people and also the reasons Mrs. Sucall. >> Second. >> Oh, okay. Any discussion? Bless you.
>> Roll call. So that's a motion to just to table one item. >> Mhm. >> Mrs. Chilla. >> No. >> Mrs. Harong. >> Yes.
>> Mr. Li Liberty. >> Yes. >> Mr. Serrano. Yes, >> Mr. Ross. >> Yes, >> Miss Kazmpo. >> Yes. Motion carries. So then it's motion
to approve items 1 through 37 and 39 through 44 under human resources. Can I have that motion? >> Motion. >> Second. Any discussion?
Seeing none, roll call, please. Mrs. Hartong. >> Yeah. Yes. I'm sorry. >> Mr. Li Liberty. >> Yes. >> Mr. Serrano. >> Yes. >> Mr. Ross.
>> Yes. >> Mrs. Chillow. >> Yes. >> Miss Kazmpo. >> Yes. Motion carries. Under finance and facilities, can I please have a motion to approve items >> Julie? Can I stop you for one second? Yes, >> there's a retirement on here that I
think really needs to be recognized. Mrs. Stockle is retiring from the high school. >> If you have ever met Sandy, she is an amazing person. I mean, if it wasn't, and I'm just going to put this out here
on a personal note, if it wasn't for Sandy Stockle, I don't think my niece would have made it through the high school. She's an amazing human. We are losing a great counselor, a great coach,
just a a great person. And I wish her she's a great teacher. Yes, she is. And I wish her all the luck in the world. And I wish she was staying because my daughter has benefited from having her at the high school as well. So, >> good luck, but I wish you were you were
staying. Congratulations, Sandy. I don't see her here, but yes, I agree. She's a great person. >> She'd be crying. >> Yeah. I'm sure there'll be a retirement party for Sandy. 37 years. She work for the district. Okay. Um motion to approve
items 1 through 27 under finance. >> So moved. >> Second >> discussion. >> Just got one. Uh I appreciate you getting back to me on uh Dr. Hibson and Jadine on
>> and 10. Just to be clear, that that uh contract's being paid with title two grant money, right? >> Uh title is it? >> Yes, it's correct. And and title two is just for professional development, Scott.
>> Okay. Thank you. >> Okay. >> Okay. Any other discussion? Roll call, please. Mr. Liberty. >> Yes, >> Mr. Serrano.
>> Yes. For 1 through 22. No. For 23 to 26 and abstain on number 27. Mr. Ross.
Yes. To 1 to 22. Abstain. 23 24 25 26 or 27. >> Mrs. Chilla. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Hartung. >> Uh, yes. For 1 through 22 and then 23 to
27. I'm abstaining cuz I'm conflicted. 23 through 27. >> Yeah. >> Miss Kazimple. >> Yes. 1 through 22. Abstaining my own initials. I'm conflicted on 23 to 27.
Gosh. Extension. Extension. No extension. You got one, two, three. Three extensions for 23 through 27. Right.
Yeah. Yeah, numbers 20 um 3 to 27 failed. Everything else passed. Megan u made the point that that should really be under human resources if it goes on again. Um motion to approve items one through nine
under special education. >> Motion. >> Second. Second. >> Uh discussion. Roll call. Mr. Ross, >> yes.
>> Mrs. Chilla, >> yes. >> Mrs. Harton, >> yes. >> Mr. Liberty, >> yes. >> Mr. Serrano, >> yes. >> Miss Kazmple, >> yes. Motion carries. Nothing under negotiations. Does anyone have any items
of new business? >> I do. >> Scott, uh, oh, go ahead. >> Okay, it's go. No, no, no. Go ahead. >> You want me? >> I just happened to be looking at him, so you fight it out. >> After doing some of my own research and
looking up again, I had a lot of time on my hands last week because I was not feeling well. Um, I would like to put it back on the table to give Bush Law Firm their 30-day notice and to seek new legal counsel.
>> Right. That was a motion, right? I I did it right. this time. >> Is that right? >> Yeah. >> Yes. Yes, I am. >> That's my first big girl motion. >> Is there a second? >> I'll second. >> Okay. Discussion.
>> Now would be when you like say. >> Oh, now me. I would say why now? Um because we have gotten >> before we discuss that is there any reason we shouldn't have an open discussion about >> can we should it be an executive level
discussion given it's a contract for a professional or is it an appropriate public discussion? >> No, you can have it in public anything that is refuted. >> Okay. All right. >> And nothing against Megan. I really do love Megan. But um we've been given some
faulty legal advice over the last since I've been here since January. Um and there's a lot of things that we're now paying for a lot of money because our attorney didn't step in and make
things right. And that's my opinion. That's my TED talk. >> Um just a point of clarification. Is your motion >> for both solicitor solicitor and negotiator or just solicitor? >> The whole B the whole Bush law firm.
>> The whole Bush law. Okay. Um, so I would I think we need to think through the ramifications that I I also have some concerns. Um, especially for ongoing negotiations that could have a big impact if we're to
make a change right now in the middle of negotiations. >> Well, if we give them their 30 days, then they we're they're here for 30 days. >> Yeah. while we look at RFPs. >> I think last time we made a change,
there was a provision where the outgoing law firm worked continued working on any cases that they had. It was new cases that got >> Yeah. >> sent to them. >> Something ponder. >> Am I is that I did it right. Right.
>> Well, there's a motion. So, if there's no other discussion, then it's a roll call. Go ahead. I want to reiterate your clarification. The motion is to get rid of Bush Law Firm, right? >> Yes. >> Okay. >> Okay. Roll call. >> Mr. Serrano.
>> No. >> Mr. Ross. No. >> Absolutely. >> Miss Chilla. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Hardong. >> Yes.
Mr. Li Liberty. >> I want to say no, but I'd like to propose we discuss it in business committee just because it could be catastrophic if we remove that quickly. But if there's concerns, I think we should discuss them. I'm not in business committee. So, if you can keep us
updated on what you discuss if that's what we decide to do. >> Miss Kazmpo. >> No, I agree with Scott and I'm putting it on the uh the spreadsheet. Yeah. >> That failed. Failed. Okay. Motion
failed. Any other items of new business? Yeah, add a couple. >> Yes. >> Um, all right. We non-unit being tabled that just like to suggest we have that added to the next executive discussion that we have next
one coming up. >> Mhm. Um, with the CSA goals failing both merit and non-merit think we need to have a discussion on that and executive as well so we can
bring that to some type of resolution. Um, >> I don't think that CSA goals were really even allowed to fail, but I think Megan should probably look into that for the board. >> Yeah, >> I put it on personnel committee. >> Okay. All right. And then exact personel committee and then exact. Okay. The next
one I wanted to discuss for new business just is um >> with board members and graduation. I know uh it's always been like a long-standing tradition that board members, current and former had
the uh opportunity to attend graduation and present their child or grandchild with their diploma. Um, my understanding is that isn't actually in a policy anywhere and I think that that didn't actually happen this year
with a former board member this past year. I would propose that we put it into policy. I know that, you know, it's not going to affect me. I'll still be a board member, but I think there are former board members that are no longer board members that have children coming up to graduates uh soon. So I would
propose we put that in the policy maybe under uh sack. >> Yeah. >> And I think it might go into 2280 which is ceremonies policy but I'll leave it up the committee to determine where it should go.
>> Question. Could you add that to sach for us? Thank you. >> Thank you so much. Gretchian. >> Okay that's all I got. >> Thank you. Thank you. Anything else? Okay. Uh, sorry, I got back here. Can I have a motion to open to the public
again? >> So moved. >> Second. >> All in favor? >> I >> I >> Ron Lucarini. interesting that the statement was made that the Bush law firm
uh gave faulty advice or whatever. No one objected to that as being you know uh arguing against it saying no they gave great advice but yet we not only keep them on for uh these meetings we
keep them on as negotiators as well. That's brilliant. Um, I have a plumber. He messed up my downstairs bathroom, but instead of firing him, I'm letting him do the upstairs as well. That's the kind of reasoning that we see here month
after month after month. I just ran into Mrs. Murphy upon leaving. I wish he was still here because she could testify that it just doesn't go during the comple era of uh questionable ethics. It
goes all the way back to Mrs. Murphy, Eileen Abbott, Barbara Wallace. That's how far back I go. where nonsensical reasoning is uh accepted readily by the board of
education superintendent of the you know today and of the past and uh our teachers association which is supposed to represent education and critical thinking reasoning getting at
the truth right uh I was saying to someone earlier that uh who's interested of running for the board that uh we used to run presidential debates within our middle
school and the kids you know we put out information about the candidates where they stood etc etc and then we did a mock debate usually uh Mr. Greger or Mr. Rosenello from the high school would
represent the Republican candidate and Mr. Oberhozer would represent the Democrat candidate. Did about three or four of them over a course of like 16 years, 20 years, whatever. And then afterwards, we'd come back in, have a discussion
about the candidates and what they said. and students couldn't just get up and say, "Well, I'm voting for uh they most of them lean towards Oberhozer because he had that kind of uh he was younger at that point and the kids were more attracted to his personality, let's just
say, but they weren't allowed to say that in the classroom discussion. They had to point to something that was said in the debate that made them uh choose the counter or you know uh endorse the candidate that they were going to
endorse. They had to wait until the debate was over. They had to cite something from what the candidate said. Now maybe they were making up something and really they were just leaning towards the candidate that their parents told them to vote for. But in order to
keep it credible as teachers to uphold the tenants of education, that's the way we did it. We didn't endorse candidates and have the students vote before the debate and then go to, you know, the
debate on Monday and let them vote on Friday before the the election. It was the other way around. And our kids were smart enough that had we done it the other way, Mrs. simple, they would have turned around and said, "What are you doing? Why are we going to this debate?
We already voted." But here in Washington Township, according to the WTA, they do it another way. They endorse the candidates. One person proclaims, "These people support us." This guy sitting right here, uh,
they support us. We got to bullet vote these two because we can use them for our contract, which is a slap in the face to the other people who are running who he doesn't even know. Okay, how do you know they don't support teachers? How do you know they don't support
teachers? He picks out two people, one who's highly compromised in relation to rumors going around saying that she dropped the n-word in as numerous times. That's not going away. I'm still hot on the trail on that. And the sport of
education refuses to do anything about it. And the other one who's already been charged, quote unquote, found guilty. I I don't like to use that word over an ethics charge, but found guilty of an ethics charge and whose actions in a
contract for an insurance broker are highly questionable and might be under, you know, at some point a state investigation for criminal activity. That's who they endorse without ever having a debate. If I were the candidates running for the board of
education, the other candidates, I wouldn't even show up to give it any kind of validity. And maybe the inquir will do a story about that. >> Your time is over. >> Oh, thanks, Mrs. Comple. >> I appreciate the uh Raymond W, by the
way. I appreciate the opportunity to address the topic. I know you're going to walk out of the room and not listen to what I have to say, but I don't know if people know this, but I am a member of NJA. Like I that is my union. Stop stop talking. And so if it just kind of
rem like it's kind of like the ever since I've ever run, which is four times, five, four or five times, the union has always supported me. I am a union member. I am what they are. So, I
mean, I don't know why this is a big shock. That said, being a member of NJA, I can't even talk about their contract. I can't know anything about it. In fact, what's kind of creepy is Tom Bosaro seems to know more about it than I do because what he says at the microphone
is way more information than I have. I'm conflicted. So, I just want to make that clear because it's on social media and it's craziness. And that's why Raymond, I apologize that you just stand there for that. >> It's okay.
So, um, the reason why, um, I wrote my card for solutions is that, um, there's a lot of things that I care about. This community means a lot. I grew up here. I graduated from this district. I graduated from Birches. I graduated from Bunker Hill. I actually am a substitute there um, as a as a building sub. I love
it. I love seeing the kids every day. But I also graduated from our esteemed high school that I really think is the greatest of all time to be quite frank. But with things that we're seeing, I don't know. Well, we'll have to wait and see about that. But with solutions, what I mean solutions is that like I want to I am willing to volunteer my time, my
dedication, priorities or something like that. Have community members come out and support our community, but also our schools and finding ways to help with running certain programs or needing help with things. Cuz I guarantee you, you can find a lot of people who would give up their time to serve the community. like I would love to do that for any
purpose for any of the schools that I served in or been alumni matter for or things like that or events like we're there to help like we're here to give back and I'm I'm itching to do that regardless and I am willing to provide my time my service and dedication to do
change and make it better and support our students because if we're losing programs and stuff like that why not have community members and do that like I'm willing to go through fingerprinting again like I am willing to do those things to get to a point where we could help and we're not struggling through this and we can give volunteerism a
chance in our community because we do care about care about our community and we give back so much. Why not have it be physically in the school or after school hours or things like that to help programming in some way? I know you guys do that already, but for other things too because there's a lot of things that our school our school district offers
and sometimes we might run low and we need people and I'm willing to offer my time. So, I'm just giving that grace to you guys to let me be a lending hand in some way or another. So, thank you. >> Thank you. And we are looking at the volunteer policy in committee um for
that reason, especially if you're a certified sub. That would be a no-brainer. So, thank you so much for saying that. Speaking of a volunteer, Nicole Nudi. Um, I just had a question about um what Linda put on the table about the law
firm. Um, it was said previously by the board president that a lot of the things that happened were on account of being told by the law firm. There's been a lot of things that happened this year
that cost us a a lot of money and it's not over yet. as a resident and a taxpayer, parent aside, watching this is that's if that was the one thing that
caused all of this to to cost us so much money in a budget crisis, that would have been the first thing to go. If there was bad legal advice given, all of you should have got together the next day and said they got to go. I can understand that Scott has reservations
about it happening so fast because of teacher negotiations because that's really important and I could totally see how having somebody come in in the middle may disrupt that. I don't know the process of that but I I mean logistically I can understand how that
would be a problem. However, getting rid of them in the middle of this could it help? Could it Could it help them? Could it help you? Could it help all of you maybe to just move forward? Um, the answer could be no. I really don't know. But when it first happened,
apparently what has happened multiple times, you have gotten bad legal advice and it has putting you all in positions that put each of you in a bad position. Maybe for yourselves or with each other or you and the public or there's a lot of conspiracy theories and there's a lot
of miscommunication between the board, the public, teachers. Not I don't I don't know. But apparently it all stems from legal advice. And if it's bad legal advice, why are they still here? And why wasn't it ever a discussion in the
beginning? Could it have saved us a lot of money? Could it have saved us a lot of lawsuits? We have a lot of pending lawsuits. Is keeping them here while we have those going on going to help that or is it going to make that worse since
they're the ones that got us in this position? I really hope going forward that you guys really take a look at that because again as a taxpayer knowing that we're putting so much money into this school board and our taxes just went up
again. How much this attorney firm how much we pay them and how much money they cost us just doesn't sit right with me because it's taking away from our kids ultimately. So, I really hope you guys really discussed that and put some thought into
that. And I'm curious to know why those of you who just voted no, what's your purpose of keeping them here? Because it it got you all in a in a big show. Motion to close to the public.
>> Second. >> All in favor? um we can't talk about any of that legal stuff unfortunately. So that's why >> Julie I just want to make if I could a quick comment. Um and this is strictly
my opinion but with six board meetings left I'm not going to have many opportunities to have an opinion. So I'm going to state a little bit of it tonight. Um Nicole you brought up like why are people doing what we're doing right? And there's a lot of things that
we can't talk about in public, but I can make a general comment to say I can't give a reason why a lot of things have happened in the past year. I have no idea why children are sneered
at the podium and in the community. I can't imagine why we would want to attack a child under any circumstance. can't imagine why we would want to make up false rumors about me personally with absolutely no evidence. I live quite an exciting life
that I didn't realize I had. Um can't imagine why we would spend so much time on trying to get rid of administration when we could probably have better spent that time working together as a board. you know, years ago when I was on the board, um, we would
vote differently and then we would go out afterwards, right? So, Candi Sakowski, Jenny Murphy, Bob Abbott, um, may rest in peace, everyone. We would all get together. We would vote differently here. We would, and we would all go out and hang out. We did.
>> You can shake your head. No, >> those five went out, but go ahead. >> Okay, this is my time. Okay, so I'm saying it's a very different board. So, there was a lot of why tonight in the room, and
I can't wait to figure out why. I can't wait, honestly. So, this is one of my um the countdown. I feel like I'm at New Year's Eve. This is number six. Six more meetings. Um but I'm just really, you know, I'm I'm hopeful that it turns
around. Um I'll be in the audience once in a while, but I won't be up here. Um, but you know, I really do hope that we, as Dr. Hib said earlier, discontinue smearing kids at the podium. Whether they're currently here, whether they've
graduated, they're still township kids. And when that happens, they know and they're listening. So, um, thank you for the time and there'll be more comments as I depart.
Can I have a motion to adjurnn? Oh, wait. One more thing. Um, I wanted to end by congratulating the football team on being ranked number 10 in the state moving up from I think originally they were 15, right?
And Janine and Lori have kids on the team and Mr. Terashi is a coach on the team for the varsity team. So, I think that's pretty amazing in the whole state. So, congratulations and I hope they keep climbing. Um, [Applause]
motion to adjurnn. >> All in favor? Bye.