e notice is here by given of the regular meeting of the Board of Education of the town of Westfield in the county of Union New Jersey at 6: pm. on the evening of Tuesday June 25th 2024 in cafeteria B of Westfield High School 550 Dorian Road Westfield New Jersey the board will move immediately into private session to discuss matters rendered confidential by state and federal law including Personnel matters the public portion of the meeting will resume at 7:00 p.m. the purpose of the meeting is to transact the regular business of the board and to transact any other business to come properly before the board this is to advise the general public and to instruct that it be recorded in the minutes that in compliance with chapter 231 of the public laws of 1975 entitled the open public meetings act the Westfield school board on Thursday June 20th 2024 calls to be posted at the office of the Board of Education located at 302 Elm Street Westfield New Jersey and delivered to the West Westfield leader The Star Ledger the Westfield Library Town Clerk of Westfield tap into Westfield and patch.com a meeting notice setting forth the time date and location of the meeting Patty may we have the rooll please rob bachio here Kent diamonds Brendan gallagan here Charles jinus here Leila melli here sonel Patel here Kristen Sonic schmeltz Julie Steinberg here Mary wickins here um Mary would you mind leing us in the flag salute please uh I ask the board to approve the following resolution be it resolved that the Board of Education move into private session for the purpose of discussing matters rendered confidential by state and federal law including the superintendent's evaluation review and Personnel matters and be it further resolved that any discussion held by the board which need not remain confidential and the results of the discussion will be made public as soon as practical do I have a second second I'll take Ken um all in favor any opposed any extensions all right we're in private session 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 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 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 all right the board is back from executive session that was an echo um there uh move next to announcements and recognitions no announcements today uh so we will move right into the report by District administration Dr Gonzalez one second as I pull up so I am thrilled um that we made it to the finish line of the 24 25 23 24 school year um last week we had the opportunity to celebrate the uh promotional exercises of our intermediate schools the clap outs of our elementary schools and the graduation of our high school and um with each celebration just to see the joy um on our students faces as well as the um the emotion on our family's faces uh I think you know really speaks to the amount of emotion and energy that goes into educating our students and when we get to this point in the school year I think the big sigh of relief uh is welcome by all so I do want to um just simply begin today by congratulating again the class ofor class of um 2024 who are about to Take On The World and wish them all the best of luck as they move into the next phase of their lives and I look forward to seeing and hearing what they what's in store for them in addition uh this evening I just want to highlight two um things for my report uh beginning with the bond referendum we continue to make progress towards the development of our large scale large scale facilities Bond referendum that's scheduled for next April the referendum Community advisory committee met for a second time on June 17th with members again breaking into smaller groups to discuss what should be included in the referendum and at what cost there is a fairly clear there is fairly clear agreement on what should be included lots of specific facility upgrades versus excluded Fields playgrounds and non-essential products projects there is no consensus however regarding the upper Li upper limit dollar amount that the community might be willing to support which speaks to the complexity of The Proposal that we are uh engaging in participants did agree that the narrative around the benefits at different price points will be key in gaining taxpayer support additionally as you may have noted in the June issue of the newsletter we shared an executive summary of the results of our community thought exchange with which asks the question what are some things you would most like to see in if facilities referendum in order to to support the success of our students we had a robust uh response with 993 participants 648 thoughts shared and more than 24,000 of those thoughts being rated by participants the majority of the participants were parents with about 697 of them and 210 staff members but we did hear from a number of other community members about about 51 uh of them as well as eight students top thoughts included the need for upgraded classrooms bathrooms HVAC systems and not surprising full day kindergarten this community feedback is an essential part of the process as we prepare a final Bond referendum proposal over the summer the community advisory committee will review the final proposal at its third and final meeting on September 9th and the board will riew the Board review is expected um to occur occur soon thereafter as a matter of fact we are anticipating that the September agenda will be the agenda when the um the board approval uh will be discussed and voted on um so that conversations and information will be uh ongoing uh throughout the summer so a lot of work that has taken place up to this point and a lot more on the horizon uh but I am grateful for the input of our community as well as our community advisory committee who have really engaged in in some deep and thoughtful conversations around this important Endeavor now moving on uh to the Strategic plan this Mark this year marked the successful first year of our strategic plan its positive impact is already evident and uh when we look at our district-wide focus on teaching and learning through the curriculum Revival to enhance student engagement through our mtss framework we have set the stage for even more meaningful and impactful learning experiences and that's just goal one we've created a 7-minute video that showcases the significant progress we've made on all five goals and objectives and the video is content heavy which is a good thing as it indicates how much work took place this year but I encourage everyone as you listen and watch the video um to use your pause and Rewind buttons to go back and and relisten and rewatch if you think you missed something um this end of year wrapup for year one is posted on the Strategic plan portal and on the district's YouTube channel both of which you'll find on the district's website so at this time I'd like to ask uh Mary and McAn to play the video and invite the board to take a peek our strategic plan serves as a 5-year blueprint that clearly defines our priorities and our vision for ensuring the success of all students it's not a static document in other words actions taken in year three for example will depend on what was achieved in years 1 and two each year we will provide an update on specific activities and progress monitoring indicators for each goal and objective please visit visit our strategic plan portal on the district's website and enjoy this video snapshot that showcases the significant progress made in year one goal one emphasizes the critical need to enhance educational depth and quality for all students ensuring they're well equipped for future challenges and opportunities this goal recognizes the importance of providing diverse and engaging educational experiences that go beyond traditional methods by fostering critical thinking creative problem solving and adaptability ultimately goal one seeks to create Learners who are thoughtful engaged and well prepared to navigate and contribute to their communities and a global Society [Music] for [Music] [Music] [Music] goal 2 recognizes the crucial length between student wellness and academic success by prioritizing Wellness in school culture programs and practices the district aims to support the physical and emotional health of both students and staff which can lead to improved attendance engagement and overall academic performance by continuing to integrate Wellness into our school district's core values we prepare our students to develop lifelong healthy habits and coping strategies while also creating a more positive and supportive work environment for our Educators and staff [Music] the westfi public school district is committed to providing a just and representative educational environment that benefits all students and staff ensuring that every student has equal access to Opportunities and feels valued and respected within the school Community is not exclusive to go three it is an integral theme woven throughout our strategic plan as we strive to expose our students to diverse perspectives close achievement gaps and Foster a sense of belonging for students of all backgrounds [Music] [Music] goal four is all about meaningful connections by strengthening our relationships within the district and with the broader Westfield Community the school district can tap into additional resources and support to enhance educational opportunities for our students strong Community connections and open communication can lead to increased paral involvement expanded learning experiences and greater overall support for district initiatives we greatly value our Community Partners and we look forward to continued collaboration to enhance Student Success [Music] [Music] a solid Financial Foundation is essential for a achieving all other objectives in our strategic plan goal five focuses on ensuring that financial resources and physical infrastructures are effectively managed and aligned with District priorities by strategically planning for funding and facility needs including a large scale facilities Bond referendum in April 2025 the district can support educational programs maintain safe and modern learning environment and address future growth [Music] [Music] [Music] [Applause] one comment I got to make nope okay the just opposition between the black and white and the color of you guys speaking had me like completely engaged I couldn't take my eyes off it well I I definitely want to uh thank Maryann McAn and members of the uh cabinet who who all contributed to this mariann's eye and production expertise certainly uh can can um take the credit for all of that but truly the the work that you see embodied in that video I think represents um work that we are all proud of we hope you and the community are proud of uh because it certainly has made a difference already in the year that's taken place uh this this past really eight months since since we really enacted it um moving into next year what you see is the foundation that we're going to launch from so over the summer we're going going to revisit our strategic plans and action plans to see what um we need to identify as work that we did not accomplish and needs to move into this coming year or based upon the the research and the review that took place this year what uh follow-up action plans need to take place and as I mentioned when when we built this plan um it is a five-year Endeavor but each action each Year's worth of action will be dependent on what takes place the year before so as uh I think the easiest example with an action item that speaks to a referendum being presented to the community this April obviously the results of that referendum will determine what happens in years three four and five uh in in many ways so I uh again uh just thank everyone for their support and their uh participation in making the Strategic plan for Westfield public schools a true road map that is guiding our work and unifying our school community and allowing us to see the progress that you saw indicated so uh as mentioned uh in my report but I uh also want to point out that in addition to um the the board portal on our YouTube channel I'm sorry the um the Strategic plan portal the YouTube channel uh We've also added we'll be adding a link to the presentation on our board agenda page so that not only will you see our agenda but you'll also um see the presentations for each of those meetings Whenever there is a presentation so the link will be there so I think we'll have covered as many of the uh the places as possible to get the folks but we'll keep pushing it out and that concludes my report this evening any comments or questions for Dr Gonzalez earlier comments duly noted that so I I'd like to take an opportunity just in response to to thank Dr Gonzalez the cabinet members and the members of the district and and faculty who were deeply involved adding on top of just the multiple daily responsibilities that they have to add to that already full pot work on on the Strategic plan um in looking at this from the outside you look at some of these things and they are truly f ational I think that's the that's the right word and in some cases there are things being done to fill in some of the things that maybe we haven't had that may perhaps should have in the past so you know you'd like to think of a strategic plan as building for the ground up well sometimes we had to go from the foundation up um and I think that was very clear from the plan and I want to you know thank all of you for the for the vision there um as a as a very quick sort of year in rview thing for the board I want to thank the board members for for a great year as well I especially want to thank our past president for doing a lot of that work for the board um we certainly had things that we needed to do to get our house in order and get ourselves prepared to function well and and operate so that our Focus can be on the future and not on on the things that you know go on behind the scenes or at the table um so I I never want to miss an opportunity to say thank you for that um and we would not be the board wouldn't be in the position to do this if not for for great members and and great leadership so I I want to say thank you for that um and finally to our students um you know and teachers you know certainly best wishes on behalf of the board for the summer um I I hope you take every time and enjoy every bit of it um I unfortunately I found out in some rather Stark and and sudden fashion last week that we our our moments in life are limited um and how important it is to make the most of those um so I hope you all do for the summer um and I hope you all leave you know as as um as a friend of mine did um I hope you all leave everything in the world in a in a in a better place than you found it I think we put our students in a great position to do that summer provides an Excell an excellent opportunity to do that you know outside the confines of the school to to take what you learned not necessarily the the a abs and C's but just how you learn to interact with each other and work with each other and just just be good to each other over the summer as well and and come back with stronger and renewed friendships so so thank you all uh with that we will move to a board committee reports uh first is curricul instruction and assessment uh normally that would be Kristen uh but she is making the most of her moments today with with with her kids um so I'll give that report um so as discussed at our last board meeting the curriculum committee met on June 17th for a presentation on revised curriculum for the following subjects and this is a lot uh the K12 mathematics K8 English and language arts 8th grade social studies all computer science and science and technology for grade 6 7 and eight these are stem programs uh approval of these new curricula all of them is on tonight's agenda as curriculum item a uh at the board's last meeting we discussed this new curriculum format for the district which you'll see uh these uh these particular courses uh in uh among other positives this new format addresses requests made by parents for more readable and understandable curriculum documents um The District's response on this regard and in and in uh in revising the curriculum was thorough and very comprehensive as you'll see uh curriculum documents that often exceeded 70 pages in length and still left some readers unsure of content have been replaced with six and seven page documents that set clear descriptions of the lessons being taught and the timeline on which they are being taught uh we the board would like to thank the assistant superintendent of curriculum Matt Bolton department heads Liz delandro Tom Patterson Liz Riley and Andrea Brennan and the multiple faculty members who spent significant time not just rewriting the curriculum but developing the new format for the curriculum going forward note that much preparation and writing time was done over the summer this is going to be a trend for curriculum writing in the years to come in the past teachers often had to sacrifice classroom time to be part of the writing process but now that process itself has been redefined to occur during the summer months providing drafters with greater time to focus on the task without sacrificing class time uh presuming this curriculum is approved the documents will be posted on the district's website in in their new format as a district revises other curricul um you maybe modern languages Etc they'll be placed in the new format as well so you won't see everything in the same format they'll be placed in that format as we as they are revised within their departments a new curriculum interface is expected to be up and running in January 25 February 25 we'll call it first quarter just to give a little wiggle room uh but parents can access the new curriculum documents through the current portal till then so whatever is revised you'll see in the new format uh finally note that this is the first of three steps in revising our curriculum steps two and three involve our writing teams reevaluating assessments and resources that will be used to implement the new curriculum students next year however will receive instruction using these new standards uh assessments and resources will be adjusted as necessary to complement those structures uh there are far too many curricula for approval to review each class I would not do that uh instead just a brief summary of the changes in standards and modernization of the curriculum for the board and the members so the Mathematics curriculum uh the revised standards which follow the state standards emphasize data literacy starting from elementary school to build a strong foundation for future coursework in statistics probability and data analysis key changes earlier exposure to monetary units an increased focus on foundational mathematical Concepts and intermediate grades and clustering Advanced High School standards into specific courses the new Elementary English and language arts curriculum is designed to build foundational literacy and critical thinking skills for the students from kindergarten through fifth grade the curriculum emphasizes competencies and foundational skills Reading Writing speaking listening and language specifically and particularly in grades kindergarten through first turning to writing that develops from composing simple sentences in the early grades to more complex narratives in the intermediate grades the curriculum adds transitional units analytical writing and interdisciplinary studies which help prepare students for the high school as well and uh performance-based assessments and interdisciplinary studies they'll see there uh eighth grade social studies curriculum that was revised to reflect department of education requirements for civics education in middle school and the interdisciplinary minute unit on the uh mini unit excuse me on the Holocaust um the Holocaust mini unit in particular as as important it is from a substance perspective also provide students a way to to experience interdisciplinary learning before they make course selections for n9th grade so both a uh both a content and a and a practice positive there um and that unit will culminate in eighth grade assembly computer science standards uh during grade 6 to 12 this was a complete redesign of grade 6 and seven courses with modernization of the High School courses covering everything from Computing systems data and Analysis programming um intermediate and high school teachers uh created transfer statements to align with state issued science pract computer science practices the idea of all this being to equip students with real world applicable knowledge uh and High School courses are now going to be uh re reformatted to focus on more formal programming details some ethics and a lot of uh data security which obviously is a is a significant Career Point uh finally the technology education the uh the Intermediate School uh stem courses that in grade 6 to8 uh they build student Proficiency in in in stem by deepening their understanding of engineering and design principles each year um the sixth and seventh grade quarterly courses help students build those skills that's that leads into an eighth grade semester long course where students will refine skills and apply more components to learn about things like automation um they also talk about things like sustainability ethics and environmental considerations and design uh and all of their projects are generally centered on a common theme so that you basically grow with the theme throughout your your time in the in the in the stem courses so basically have familiarity as you progress through the courses that gives you a strong foundation and stem and sets you up for the uh the high school versions of these courses which will be coming um curriculum committee has two other items for Action tonight one the approv approval of a district field trip and the second is the approval of a statutorily required language instruction education program for the district for 2024 to 27 this is a plan that must be submitted by the state by all local educational entities that's us describing their Staffing for a number of students served curriculum and review process for a students entry and exit into bilingual education so we were busy any questions thank you all right with that I'll move on on to report from finance and Facilities Brandon finance and Facilities committee met Friday on the the 14th uh we reviewed the end of the 23 24 budget uh looks like we'll be putting approximately 1.3 million into cap Reserve at the end of the year um always nice when we come in under budget for the year uh it means our health benefits uh will will come in under budget we're always watching those it's we're self-insured so it's it's not a uh predictable number for us like a premium payment so they had been trending higher and then that Trend reversed so that's always a good thing uh We've begun ordering uh various things for the 2425 school year uh we got our Field Report from FKA Architects uh FKA in collaboration with ruter uh sampled soil at all of our fields and gave us a plan to improve the health of our grass field Fields uh certain things are simple like behind Edison one section is overly used uh you can see it from Google Maps that's how bad it is uh their suggestion is move practice somewhere else on that field uh they they really weren't complex uh suggestions uh then they gave us a detailed maintenance and Improvement plan uh the same group also did the town Fields so the town has the same information for their fields that we have for our uh Fields whether they're town or School Fields should be improving in the next couple in the next couple years uh phase one at Roosevelt is 95% complete with some roof capping and or some roof repairs uh being the last remaining items phase one uh the scaffolding has been moved to the phase two side um various other issues have been addressed with the contractor and uh that's all I'm going to say there and uh replacement of the phase one roof is is supposed to begin this week uh more Roofing uh Edison toist the recapping is complete solar panels are still off the buildings and we're monitoring to make sure there are no leaks before we reinstall the solar panels uh tamaka had a leak that required some mediation in Room 205 that is done air quality testing uh was repeated and has passed uh we regularly perform air quality tests at the request of District staff or when there's a concern uh the committee also reviewed RFP for Bond Council as we are going out for a bond in this next school year we wanted to make sure the uh Bond Council which is not something we use all that often uh we wanted to make sure we're using the best Council available at the best rates uh we are recommending that we reappoint McMan in Scotland uh as there our current Bond Council uh they came in with uh very close to the best rates and the experience we have with them doesn't warrant to change uh we did also uh earlier this with the past budget vote we did approve the creation of an assistant grounds supervisor uh tonight on the agenda we're going to be appointing that person uh Armando Armando coret thank you hopefully I said the last name right yes uh so excited that he'll be joining us uh next week uh lastly uh there's a bid opening for work being done at Roosevelt including an IDF and Tech closet and redoing the uh or creating the the Fab Lab uh sorry that's the contractor um py can you explain what's going on at Roosevelt it is they they we're calling at the Fab Lab okay so it's the the um old wood shop space that's being redone so we think it's going to be fabulous at the end so we've kind of coined at the Fab Lab that and then the other Tech closets were two separate bids that are on the agenda for tonight thank you and that was our last meeting for the year so M report in September okay uh next uh report by policies personnel and governance Lea or Mary I'm going to go he said my name first uh there's no report tonight we we didn't have a meeting we're going to meet in September okay Mary will be in charge next year fair enough well well well well shared division of labor there then um with the committee reports um completed uh we'll move to recognizing the public on agenda action items only during this portion of the meeting District residents and staff are invited to address the board of education on agenda action items only as a courtesy allow current students and staff of westfi public schools to speak first the board requests that individuals sign in and state their name Municipality of residents and group affiliation if applicable for the record the specific action items they're commenting on and ask that all remarks be directed to the board president or design not to individual members or staff the board asks that members of the public be courteous and mindful of the rights of other individuals when speaking specifically comments regarding Personnel matters are discouraged and cannot be responded to by the board students and employees have specific legal rights afforded by the laws of New Jersey the board Bears no responsibility nor will it be liable for any comments made by members of the public if a matter concerning a District staff member is of Interest or concern to a resident the matter should be referred to the responsible building principal superintendent of schools or the Board of Education either by telephone letter or email although the board may not respond to items raised during the public forum all public comments will be considered please note that if any member of the public becomes disruptive during the meeting the board president May terminate the participant statement continued disruptions may result in removal from the meeting or adjournment of the meeting each speaker statement will be limited to 3 minutes in duration see no no one for public comment I will uh I will close the first public comment session um and move to agenda action item I'll begin by asking the board for a motion to approve the June 11th 2024 regular board meeting minutes and the minutes for two executive sessions on June 11th 2024 second okay can I have a second we'll take Leila with the second uh all in favor we can do just by uh by Voice vote hi any opposed any extensions um sonel would you move the governance items on the agenda please sure I'd like to move item a under the governance section of tonight's agenda is there a second thank you Mary any any discussion you can rob bonio yes Kent diamonds yes Brendan gallagan yes Charles jinus abstain Leila melli yes sonal Patel yes Kristen Sonic schmeltz Julie Steinberg abstain Mary wickens yes okay that carries Mary will you to move the Personnel items on the agenda please hope I don't say XYZ I'd like to move items a to BB under the Personnel section of tonight's agenda is there a second so Sono very fast any discuss Dr Gonzalez anything tonight okay no retirement okay thank you Patty Rob bonio yes Kent diamonds yes Brendan gallagan yes Charles jinus yes Leila melli yes son Patel yes Kristen Sonic schmeltz Julie Steinberg yes Mary wickens yes that carries Kent would you move financing facilities please absolutely I'd like to move items uh a through U and the find of the finance section of tonight's agenda before I do I'd like to highlight some donations we have a few uh first one from tamak PTO for $1,529 187 to purchase a Volta inclusive spinner for the tamacas playground second from the tamacas PTO for $2,225 38 cents to purchase new outdoor benches that will replace old ones in front of the tooc school and lastly the third donation from the Rotary Club of Westfield and the amount of $500 for the Jefferson Garden so thank you to the tamacas PTO and the Rotary Club and that brings our year- to-day total of drum roll please $104,900 4,999 and with that may have a second Brendan thank you I have a comment before you vote is just that when we're doing the playgrounds just you know like there's a donation I am looking in terms of our plans for referendum and making sure we we're placing things Rob bonio yes Kent Diamond yes Brendan gallagan yes Charles jinus yes Leila melli yes sonol Patel yes Kristen Sonic schmeltz Julie Steinberg abstain from you yes to all others Mary wickens yes that carries uh Lela would you move the policy items please sure I'd like to move item a under the policy section of tonight's agenda do I have a second second Kent not no discussion you can move Rob bonio yes Kent diamonds yes Brendan gallagan yes Charles J yes Leila melli yes son Patel yes Kristen Sonic schmeltz Julie Steinberg yes Mary wickins yes uh I'll move the uh curriculum instruction assessment items a b and c do I have a second Mary uh any discussion yes um regarding the curriculum um I just want say that one I'm extremely impressed with the changes that have been made to the curriculum and to the curriculum process and to the curriculum team and I think that um both as a board member as well as a parent I just wanted to take a moment to acknowledge that um there are some things that I would like to see improved and I do intend to vote Yes but that being said there are two specific things that I just want to raise one is uh as we step through this is step one of three in the process I'd like to see for younger ages uh our goals and our approach to pheic awareness more clearly laid out um as we step through and the second relates to the Holocaust curriculum um as you know the Holocaust curriculum Westfield's Holocaust curriculum that is cuts across as to the state standards all grades K to 12 all disciplines uh language art social studies physical education art music it really depends on the year what grade it is and so as you look at each one I would like to ask that for each curriculum where there is an expectation whether it's any of those areas that a link to the Holocaust Education uh curriculum that we have here in Westfield is placed within these documents so it's easy for teachers for parents for administrators for anybody to understand when they're in this document how the two overlay and interplay with each other and ensure um consistency and common understanding um again many thanks particularly Dr Bolton to you and your team for excellent work and I wish you all the best this summer as we move to phase two thank you rob bachio yes Kent diamonds yes Brendan gallagan yes Charles jinus yes Leila melli yes sonel Patel yes Kristen Sonic schmeltz Julie Steinberg yes Mary wickins yes that carries I want to call the board's attention to the notes for the record um any unfinished business any new business liaz on reports okay um we'll now move to recognizing the public for General comments during this portion of the meeting members of the public are invited to address the board of education on any topic as a courtesy allow current students and staff of the Westfield public schools to speak first the board requests that individuals sign in and state their name Municipality of residents and group affiliation if applicable for the record and ask that all remarks be directed to the board president or design not to individual board members or staff the board asks that members of the public be courteous and mindful of the rights of other individuals speaking specifically comments regarding Personnel matters are discouraged and cannot be responded to by the board students and employees have specific legal rights afforded by the laws of New Jersey the board Bears no responsibility nor will it be liable for any comments made by members of the public if a matter concerning a District staff member is of Interest or concern to a resident the matter should be referred to the responsible building principal superintendent of schools or the Board of Education either by telephone letter or email although the board may not respond to items raised during the public forum all public public comments will be considered please note that if any member of the public becomes disruptive during the meeting the board president May terminate the participant statement continue disruptions may result in removal from the meeting or adjournment of the meeting each speaker statement will be limited to 3 minutes in duration seeing no members of the public for comment I will close public comment and I will make a motion to uh unless there's any other comments I'll make a motion to adjourn may have a second I'll take Brendan for that one all in favor hi any opposed any extensions we are adjourned