001to justice for all. Right. Thank you so much. Um, we have a wonderful agenda this evening to celebrate. Um, so I am going to pass it over to Dr. Mucci. Well, thank you very much for being here this evening and we're very pleased to put our wonderful educators who are retiring this year as our first item of business this evening. And our first speaker is Dr. Gordono. Oh, there you are. I'm like I'm speaking. Welcome Dr. Gordono. Hi everyone. Thank you so much. Let me begin by acknowledging the privilege it is for me to be here to honor the two extraordinary women um that have uh been a member of my life for eight and um almost 10 years. So I could speak on their behalfs for quite some time. But in the interest of
002fairness to everyone else who's being celebrated tonight and what I imagine is a very robust board agenda, I will keep my comments brief yet sincerely heartfelt. And if I look a little strange looking at you ladies, it's because I have to do this over my glasses. Karen Karen Wolf, it is both a joy and an honor to stand here today as we celebrate the retirement of you, someone who has truly made a lasting impact on Morristown High School, our exceptional, exceptional counselor, Mrs. Wolf. Almost eight years ago, I had the great pleasure of hiring Karen. And from the very beginning, it was clear that we had brought on someone truly special. Karen's talents are far-reaching. She has worn many hats and handled every challenge with insight, compassion, and professionalism. But if there's one area where
003she has set herself apart, it's in college and career postsecary planning. Her knowledge, dedication, and passion in helping students and their families prepare for life beyond high school has guided countless individuals towards bright, purposeful futures. Karen doesn't just support students, she empowers them. She has helped them find clarity in uncertainty, possibility in confusion, and confidence in their next steps. Families trust her, colleagues respect her, and students adore her. Tonight, as we bid farewell to Karen as a colleague, we also celebrate the legacy she leaves behind. One of wisdom, care, and the kind of impact that can't be measured on paper, but is certainly felt in the hearts of those you've helped along the way. Karen, thank you for your incredible service, your generous spirit, and the many ways you've enriched our school community, not to
004number my professional and personal life. We wish you all the best in your next chapter. May it be filled with joy, rest, adventure, and all the things that make you happiest. Congratulations on your well-deserved retirement. So behind every successful team is an exceptional secretary who keeps everything and everyone on track. For the past 14 years, Maryanne Noll has been the quiet force and steady hand behind Morristown High School's counseling department. She has been more than a secretary. She has been our anchor, our historian, our problem solver, and often our compass. She has been the person we turn to when things feel uncertain, and the one who celebrates every small and large victory alongside us. Maryanne has a gift, not just for organization and logistics, but for people. She remembers birthdays. She checks in on staff
005and students alike. She notices when someone is having a tough day and offers exactly what's needed. Whether it's a listening ear, a kind word, or a well-timed cup of coffee or tea, her empathy is effortless, and her presence has brought comfort to so many over the 14 years she's been with us. Whether juggling last minute schedule changes, fielding non-stop phone calls, navigating tough conversations, or simply making sure that the right papers are in the right place at the right time. Maryanne has done it all with grace, humor, and unshakable sense of purpose. Your loyalty and commitment have not only made our work possible, they've made our workplace feel like a second home. We've leaned on you more times than we can count, and you've never let us down. As you step into retirement, do so
006with joy and anticipation for more time with your beloved husband, Mike, and the opportunity to travel and visit your two wonderful children, Vivian and Tommy, who both live and work in Florida. How convenient. Knowing Maryanne, her days will be soon be filled with sunshine, laughter, new adventures, and quality time with the family she so very much treasures. While we will deeply miss your warmth, wisdom, and daily presence, we know that your legacy will continue to shape the culture and heart of our department long after you leave. Mayor, thank you for your years of service, your unwavering support, and the countless ways you've made us better. You have made a difference for all of us, and we are forever grateful to you. We love you. And now I'd like to invite Dr. Pinto Gomez to the
007mic. Good evening everyone. It is my pleasure to stand here today and say a few words about Paula Menddees, also known as nurse Mendes to all of us who has been a school nurse for 15 years at Alfred Vale and also the district nurse coordinator for the past 11 years. I could not have done my position as overseeing nursing without Paula Menddees. So for that I am grateful to you. Over the past years, Nurse Mendes has cared for our students, whether patching up scraped knees, calming nerves, checking temperatures, or just offering a reassuring smile that you're going to be okay. She brought that same steady presence to her role as nurse coordinator, guiding our nursing staff through COVID and all its uncertainty. One of her many accomplishments has been helping to build a partnership with
008Zufold Health, which we still have today, ensuring that students who needed medical care could get it regardless of their circumstances. Nurse Bendes Menddees has also worked with Fairley Dickinson and Satan Hall University to bring nursing students into our schools. Thanks to her persistence, our future nurses got a front row seat to real world experience with our students in all of our schools. this is still going on today. So once again, we thank you. We're going to miss your knowledge, her calm energy, and most of all, her kindness. But we're happy and hopeful that she'll now have time to enjoy a slower pace, a few more coffee breaks, a few long bike rides, her grandchildren, and the shore house, and all the adventures that she awaits her in her retirement. Please join me in wishing nurse
009Mendes all of the best. I have the pleasure of introducing Mr. Miller, principal of Normandy Park. Sorry, Chris. All right, thank you very much. I hope everybody's doing uh well this evening. I have the great privilege of honoring three uh amazing women who have contributed uh immensely to Normandy Park School and the Morris School District. Uh so what what's what's good what's good for you is you're get you're going to have to listen to me three times in a row uh celebrate uh the accomplishments as each one is uniquely individual and uniquely uh impactful for our school and district. Uh first we're going to start with Mrs. Gillson. Mrs. Wendy Gillson as our librarian and media specialist with decades of experience over 25 years. Miss Gillson is more than just our librarian. She's been the
010keeper of stories, the guide to new worlds, and the spark that ignited the love for reading and so many students. Also really taking grasp of technology and introducing our youngest learners the to coding and different uh robotics as they've been introduced at the elementary level. And really her passion for embracing the new technology that comes so that our students can be uh ahead of the curve is is is is beyond uh respectful as she put in her own time and her own energy and her own effort. Uh she has a knack for finding just the right book to captivate a child's imagination, opening their minds to new ideas and possibilities. even the the learners that would come who would be resilient and reluctant to reading, she'd partner and pair with the teachers to ensure that
011they could find something that was just right for them that they were interested in. And she also inspired our older students to help. So students that sometimes were not the mo that that that did not make the most responsible decisions in her library, she she leveraged them to be role models for our younger students and empowered them and always made a point to celebrate them. The library under Mrs. Gillson was always a haven, a place of quiet discovery, guided by her calm and always steady presence. Her passion for literacy and for empowering students with information was evident in everything she did, leaving a an incredible mark on our school and community. Thank you, Mrs. Gillson, for everything that you've done. I would like to next honor uh Miss Lehon Hong. Uh Miss Hong has been
012a second third grade teacher at Normandy Park School uh for 20 20 years. uh I had the privilege of working with her as an in-class uh support special education teacher and working in her classroom and can tell you honestly that I learned a lot from her uh and not just to teach students at the general education population but her ability to connect uh learners that need differentiation uh extra care and extra love uh was something that when I came to Normandy Park School as a young teacher uh tr truly learned from from Lehan. So I I thank you for that. Her belief in the potential of every single student in her class was unwavering. She set high expectations not because it was easy but because she knew they could achieve it. She was a true
013inspiration not just to her students but to all myself included. Her dedication set a standard for excellence. She was a mentor to many new teachers, myself and many after. When you went into Miss Hong's classroom, it was accompanied a lot by acoustic or classical music and it was a very uh relaxing relaxing place. And you know, every student was was working but also getting what they needed. She truly believed that every student could raise to rise to new heights and she worked tirelessly to provide them with the tools and encouragement to do so. She met students on their level but also empowered other students in her classroom to foster an environment where everyone could ascend, where everyone could feel accepted, where everyone was included. again time after time, year after year, we had students that
014would go through the chew out year experience with with Miss Hog and come out with social emotional uh capabilities and skills that they did not answer with and a passion and a dedication for learning that was only possible because of her belief in them. Thank you, Miss Hong, for your uh impact to the North Park School community. Your everlasting effect will live within the halls for years to come. Thank you very much. We appreciate it. All right. So, last but Certainly not least, we are honoring Mrs. Nikki Richardson. Uh Mrs. Richardson has been with Normandy Park School since since the beginning. She has uh she has helped build the culture and planet, a community that attracted so many students and families and so many teachers. because because of her even after she retired earlier in
015the year, her presence and the the contributions that she b g did give are still living in the pen. Uh and not only through the the teachers, but through the students that she had, through the systems that she helped create and the approach and mindset that she helped foster in all of our teachers that again we have to teach to uh to the kids. We are teaching and responding to how they are coming to us, how they present. We are not teaching a curriculum. we are teaching a child and she would instill that in everyone that she worked with through intervention through her table classroom through the INRS team. She always had a belief in the ability for us to meet the social, emotional and academic needs of every child. She has a special gift
016for nurturing the youngest learners. Her classroom was always filled with warmth, laughter, and a genuine love for each and every child. Mrs. Richardson led with the belief that every child, no matter how they came, had the ability to contribute to her classroom. She had the remarkable ability to make child feel seen, valued, and loved. Her caring approach created a strong foundation for their future learning, but also setting the example for all of her all the other teachers in the unit and the school. Her background in intervention provided her with a unique understanding of individual student needs, allowing her to support and guide children with exceptional impair expertise. Also, Mrs. Richardson was always looking for uh to improve herself and the program at Nor. So, it's always researching and putting effort into what else can we
017do to help our community? What else can we do to help our teachers? She was always the first to go into a new curricular resource, do the research, be the person out there going door to door with teachers to to lend a helping hand. Her passion for teaching and her passion for children shown through in everything she did. She's made a real difference in the lives of so many children. Setting them on a path for success, but also again setting the Normandy Park School, the more school district up for a path for success where we recognize the individuality of each and every child. Thank you very much. All right. And now I'm going to introduce Christina. Good evening. It is my absolute honor and pleasure to be here to honor nurse Karen Gil, whose 25
018years of service to the Moore School District has left an unforgettable mark on every student, parent, and colleague she's touched. Karen has been more than just a nurse. She's been a nurturing presence, a comforting voice, and a tireless advocate for the health and well-being of our entire school community. Her deep commitment to her work and her students was evident every single day in both quiet acts of care and moments of calm leadership. From the little boo boos she bandaged up at the Lafayette Learning Center to calming the anxious hearts of students at TJ and even the principal at times, you've been there with a gentle care, a warm smile, and the kind of wisdom only experience can bring. Your office was always filled with so much sunshine and comfort that I often found myself coring
019the kids to go back to class. Though we are saddened to see you leave, we admire and respect your decision to step away and care for your beloved husband during a time of need. It's just another reflection of the same compassion and strength you have always shown us at TJ. Karen, your legacy is not only in the years you've served, but in the hearts you touched. You will always be part of our school family, and we are forever grateful. With love, respect, and deep appreciation for all your service. We love you. Thank you. and I introduce Mr. Mark Manning, principal of Morristown High School. Good evening, everyone. And uh first off, congratulations to all of our retirees. I think I tallied up we're well over a 100 plus years of uh dedicated service to education
020in general and Marstown I'm sorry the Mars school district. I want to thank Dr. Mucci and the board for allowing us this opportunity to recognize these committed professionals that gave so much for so long to our students and families. So thank you everyone. I have the privilege tonight of uh speaking about two special educators at Marstown High School whose collective absence will leave a vast uh a vast hole in in in the hearts and minds of so many of us. Um and it's an honor to speak about both of you this evening. Um, Kathy Hall, I don't even know where to start with with Kathy Hall other than to say Kathy, it has been an absolute blast uh working with you for the past 24 years. Uh, Kathy began her career, believe it or not,
021as a career counselor at It's It's 24 for me. Cat. We'll go with 25 cat. See what I mean? This is exactly what I'm talking about. So, a career counselor at Mendum High School. But after leaving Mendum, Kathy spent the next 12 years working in a couple of different alternative schools where I think she really honed her skills and her abilities that served us really well at Marstown High School for years. So it was it and it keeps giving. Um, and so it was in September of 2000 that Kathy came to Marstown High School as a special education English teacher and a keyboarding teacher. We actually had keyboarding teachers at one point, believe it or not. Um, as a classroom teacher, Kathy has the knack of working with our most challenging students. Remember Tyon? Oh,
022yeah. I know. And they're the students that most teachers can't seem to reach. and she gets them engaged in learning and on a path to graduation. I often found myself asking Kathy to meet with these students to see if she could make inroads and help turn them around. And in most cases, Kathy was able to reach these students when no one else could. In addition to her official role as a special educator, Kathy served in a couple of unofficial roles. Kathy is the mom of our math department, mentoring many of our new teachers, serving as their liaison with me when thorny issues arose, and simply providing the department with stability and wisdom. Surprisingly, Kathy also served as my court jester, always good for a laugh at staff meetings, a huge hit at staff parties, and
023someone who always pumped up staff morale that was so important to Kathy. Kathy, I can't begin to express my gratitude and appreciation for our friendship, for all that you've done for me as principal, and for all that you've done for our staff. You will be irreplaceable, Kathy. We wish Kathy and her family, Kim and Kelly and their husbands and her beautiful grandsons, years of happiness and good health. We love you, Kathy. Congratulations. Never give her a mic. Never give her a mic. That's it. Patty Herbert. I have worked with Patty for the past 16 years both at Freeling Heisen and Marstown High School. And without reservation, I can say that Patty is the most positive and upbeat person that I have ever had the privilege to know. Nothing gets her down ever. And that positivity
024is infectious and I thank you for that, Patty. Patty began her career in 1987 at Bailey Eller High School teaching basic skills and then spent four years teaching self-contained classes in Roxbury. Luckily for us, in 1993, Patty took a job at Freeling Heisen teaching in a resource room. And then in 2008, Patty became a member of Freeling Heisen's child study team as an LDTC. As the lead case manager at FMS, I relied heavily on Patty to ensure that each and every special education student was scheduled in classes where they would be most successful. And she was my go-to for all questions and concerns related to special education. And as a new principal, there were a lot. For the past seven years, Patty has served as our transitions coordinator, working with our most needy students. In
025this capacity, Patty has dedicated her time to helping prepare our Colonial Life students for life beyond Marstown High School. with basic life skills, prevocational training, job shadowing, and internships. All with the goal of helping these students become successful members of our community. Patty, I hope that you know this work has been lifechanging for these students and that your passion and your dedication in this role will be missed. We wish Patty and her husband Mike along with her three beautiful children Michael, Megan, and Patrick and her gorgeous granddaughter all the best as they start this new chapter. Patty, congratulations. And now it's my pleasure to introduce Miss Laura Clark. It is both an honor and bittersweet moment to stand here today as we celebrate the remarkable career of Miss Christina Fzano. After 28 dedicated years of
026service to the Mars School District, specifically to Thomas Jefferson School, Miss Fzano is beginning a well-earned new chapter in her life. Mrs. Mrs. Fzano began her journey in education in 1997 as a classroom teacher. After pursuing a master's in leadership, she was offered the opportunity to lead Thomas Jefferson School as the building principal in 2008. Ask anyone who visits Thomas Jefferson School and they will tell you that school runs itself. Of course, we all know that kind of seamless structure and calm order doesn't just happen. It's a reflection of Mrs. Fzano's steady leadership, tireless work ethic, and deep care for students and staff alike. She built a sound system with clear procedures, systems that endure because they are rooted in purpose and in respect. In 2020, Miss Rosano assisted with the Woodland School transition, acting
027as lead principal, not just for one, but for two schools, both Thomas Jefferson and Woodland School. In recent years, Miss Rosano also extended her leadership even further, taking on the additional role of coordinator, supporting the assistant superintendent in programs designed to uplift our multilingual learners. Once again, she brought her experience, her heart, and insight to the table, helping ensure all students had opportunities to succeed. Over more than two decades, Miss Rosano has touched the lives of thousands of students and their families. Her commitment and dedication to excellence do not go unnoticed and will be the baton that will assist with Thomas Jefferson's continued success. On behalf of the board of education and our superintendent, Dr. Annucci, we wish you the best in your future endeavors. And I just want to say it's it's it's kind
028of awkward, but she just told us on the weekend that she was doing this. So, we will have a gift for her soon. It'll come in a minute. We also have one quick uh we would love to have a recess to visit with you and to congratulate everybody in person and ask your indulgence for just a a very early retiree. We have uh one of our high school students here tonight, Isabella, and this is her last board meeting. She comes to each meeting. Uh we have a little gift from the board thanking her for giving up her Monday nights. We're in the middle of AP testing. So, I know that Isabella has a lot on her plate this week. So, she has her biggest audience yet to hear the update from the high school. And
029directly after Isabella's update of all the great things that are going on in Morristown High School, we'll have a brief reception so that the members of the board um can speak to and congratulate our honores from this evening. So Isabella, take it away. Thank you guys so much. So um as she said, I'm Isabella and I'm the senior uh board of education representative for SGO and um Garrett couldn't come today. So today I'm going to be giving both the SGO update and the student update. Um, so for the SGO update, SGO has been doing a lot for teacher appreciation week, which was last week. And um, SJO distributed magnets to the senior class and then they cost I think a dollar for underassmen to pay for and they could give these magnets to teachers to
030show their appreciation for all that our teachers do for us. And um, SGO has also been working on distributing thank you notes to teachers. So students can um, fill out a form to write a thank you note and SGO will go and uh, deliver these notes to the teachers. Um, SGO has also been planning our first club 5K, which is a 5K that we're using to raise money for the different um, clubs at Morrison High School. And um, all the different clubs at Morrison High School can sponsor a 5K team. And half the money will go towards funding for the club and the other half will be going towards a charity that the winning um, club team can choose. We've also been working hard planning for the spring pep rally and spirit week, which is
031coming up pretty soon. And lastly, SGO just finished off our pickle ball tournament which was extremely successful and we had lots of participation. So for the student update, lots of spring sports are preparing for their state tournaments which is really big. And um as you guys also said, we have AP testing and new NJSLA testing going on right now. And yeah, I know a lot of um worship high school students have been like at hard work studying for all the AP tests coming up, which has been uh this week and last week. And um the AP Collab app has also been very successful. I know it's like over now, but um I think it was very helpful in helping a lot of students prepare for AP testing and just like kind of do work for
032their AP classes. And um for also for kind of the senior class, we just had our senior decision day which is on May 1st and that was very successful where all of the seniors got to wear their um merchandise for the schools that they're attending or wherever they're going after um high school which I think was very successful but overall boosted the morale of the senior class. As I know many of the seniors are excited for lots of fun end of the year activities such as graduation and prom. Thank you very much. Okay. Thank you so much. We'll pause for a brief re uh refreshment break and then we'll come back for business. Um, I don't And now they handful everybody. All right. Thank you so much. Um we will continue with the superintendent report.
033Thank you very much. It was uh the words that came up again. Dedication, the scores of students who were impacted uh by these teachers and the lasting memories that they have created. It was a pleasure honoring a remarkable group of educators and staff members who are retiring from the district. Their years of service, unwavering dedication, and lasting impact on the lives of our students and families cannot be overstated. Each retiree has contributed in a meaningful and unique way to the success of our schools and we're sincerely grateful for their commitment. So once again, for the record, on behalf of the board of education and the entire school community, we thank all of our retirees and wish them health, happiness, and joyful fulfillment in the years ahead. Among the retirements this evening was Miss uh Christina
034Fzano, the principal of Thomas Jefferson School. Miss Ferzano began her career in the district as a classroom teacher and has grown into a highly respected school leader. her warmth, wisdom, and devotion to Thomas Jefferson community will be deeply missed. Uh again, sincere congratulations to Miss Ferzano on her retirement, and we extend heartfelt appreciation to her for her many years of service. In addition, on the agenda this evening, we are sharing with the public that Miss Kina Telmac, principal of Woodland School, will be resigning at the end of this school year to pursue new career opportunities. We deeply thank Miss Telmac for her leadership and contributions and we wish her continued success in her future endeavors. It's that time of the year. Excitement milestones and and changes within our school district. I want the public to
035be aware that the district will engage in an aggressive search for new leadership at both Thomas Jefferson and Woodland schools. Mr. Matthew Kryley, director of elementary education, will begin leading both of these searches with a focus on identifying strong student centered candidates who reflect the values and needs of each of the school communities. We will also be inviting parents and guardians from both schools to serve on the respective search committee. Interested families can fill out a brief interest form via Google survey. So, please be on the lookout tomorrow if you're a Woodland or TJ parent or family member who is interested in offering your expertise and knowledge of our community to the principal searches because Mr. uh I'll be sending out a link from Mr. Kryley um that will allow you to express your interest
036and then Mr. Kryley will follow up with those selected to participate in the process. Uh thank you again to all of our retirees and thank you to the school community for your continued trust and partnership as we move forward. And uh to our tireless board of education, the agendas are long, the committee meetings that we spend so much time on. I want to thank you for your dedication this school year and also for always affording us the opportunity to add on to a long business meeting with which is uh at the core of what we do celebrating teachers and students. So thank you for providing the platform for this this evening and it's greatly appreciated. Thank you. Thank you. Um, I would also just echo the congratulations and I find it interesting that retirements are
037on the same night as we say farewell to our senior representative and just very proud of the the work of all of these educators shows up in our seniors as they are preparing to move on and there's just some extraordinary um talent going out into the world and so I just thank all of the educators that are putting into that and also you know reminders there's probably a concert just about every week until the end of the year. Um, and uh, teachers, parents, and everybody are putting in a lot of time and energy for what do they call it, Mayber. So, thanks to everybody for all of the excitement. Um, and with that, um, we will move into committee reports. Um, and we already got the student update, which is great. Um, Susan, could you
038give us a curriculum update? Sure. The curriculum committee met on April 30th and we approved the following items. The April 9th meeting minutes, various 9th through 12th grade field trips which can be found under educational matters lotion number three. Four additional courses at Marstown High School were approved. They include advanced ceramics, advanced painting, advanced drawing, and holocaust and genocide studies, which is a dual enrollment program. More information on these courses can be found under educational matters motions 2, four, five, and six. The bilingual summer outreach team was also approved to work throughout the summer preparing for new registrations and assisting in welcoming new families into the district along with event planning for the new school year. This will be locally funded and is educational matters motion number seven. Summer Rita model testing proctors were also
039approved. ESL and bilingual teachers will admin administer the WEDA model test to multilingual students upon registration. Plus, a bilingual coordinator will oversee bilingual and ELELLL programs as well as the WEDA testing when school is not in session. This will also be locally funded and is educational matters motion number eight. Our last approval is for the summer nursing services project. This is locally funded and it's educational matters motion number nine. Dr. Mucci shared highlights showcasing key strategies from the resilience and deescalation experiential learning workshop attended by all district administrators. We also explored a timeline and calendar to guide the sharing and discussing of assessment data including midyear data for next school year. Lastly, Dr. Mucci shared the list of retirees we honored this evening. And once again, my heartfelt congratulations to each of them. Our next
040meeting is this is on Wednesday, May 28th, not this Wednesday. That's it. Excellent. Thank you. Um and the next two battle for uh a number of motions. Uh um Linda, could you give us an update for FIN? Sure. We had our finance committee meeting on May 5th. Um we talked about a administrative cost overview. This is for the entire district. And uh interesting to note that there are a number of cost items that are applicable districtwide, but we hold them in administrative cost bucket. Uh even with that, we came in at 7.9% of the overall school budget for the coming school year, which is well below the authorized uh upper limit that's uh provided by the county and the state. So, uh, congratulations to, um, everyone who helped put those, uh, budget numbers together and
041for keeping our administrative costs, um, under control. Uh, we also looked at, uh, the tuition rates for 2526, which are on the agenda, motion six, business matters for approval this evening. This will be particularly interesting to my friend Tina, who's sitting next to me. Um the um the lowest for preschool in the $16,000 range and the highest surprisingly enough is middle school at 21,000. The rest are in the $19,000 range for regular classes. Then we have broken out as well special classes and special uh ESY classes, which is a 22-day program. Um those rates are um for special classes are uh higher because of the special requirements associated with children with special needs and um and the others because it's a 22-day program. The numbers reflect the fact that it's it's a shorter program. Um
042we uh looked at approval for our preschool provider list. These contracts uh will be 42526 as motion seven business matters. And these agreements help us provide high-quality preschool services in accordance with the preschool expansion education aid which is a grant program. It pays about I think about 70% of our preschool costs. The rest is locally funded. And there's a a list of those uh re contact renewals that are available in the business office. I'm not going to go through them um in the interest of time here. Uh we also looked at the EA that's uh for those who are not familiar with acronyms that's the elementary Secondary Education Act grant. Uh motion 11, educational matters, is an amendment application for fiscal year 2425 in the amount of $1,900 and change. And this is just an
043allocation of monies between different line items, which we have to do to meet the grant requirements. Um we also looked at pursuing a potential grant. There's one called trees for schools. Uh who doesn't love that, right? We like a green canopy everywhere. This awards competitive grants ranging from 10,0002 $250,000. Um that covers tree plantings um associated planning, site preparation, tree purchases, planting, watering, monitoring, and maintenance for three years. So we're going to go after some money with that. And uh I'll leave it to Dan to figure out how much we want to ask for. There's the writer behind us. So Matt will determine how much we're going to ask for. Um we have some bid renewals. These are motions 8 9 10 11 and 12 under business matters. These include security system maintenance and monitoring,
044mobile internet devices for student use, nursing services, plumbing services and repair and environmental inspection and consultant services. Um, I think that uh a couple of these are uh at 0% increase for the 2526 school year, which is excellent and a couple of the others are in the 2.5% increase range. So again, good contract negotiations going on uh for these needed services. Uh motions 13 uh 14 and 15 are our annual renewals for next school year including with the uh municipal utilities authority for recycling our food services agreement for Pmptonian um and uh the food service that we provide to Shepherd School. We provide uh lunches for their summer program and also for the regular school. Um back to Ponian for a moment. Some things I'd like to report is there will be a small meal
045charge uh increase for next school year, but it won't be it won't be I think it's in the 5 cent to 10 cent range. Um but the good news is our cafeteria revenues overall are up 26%. When compared to the previous year, our cash sales are up 17%. Middle school and elementary school sales are up 25% and the reimbursement revenues are up 24%. So uh this is uh as you know we just hired Palmonian to be our new food services provider recently and uh I think this impressive performance is a result of the increase of variety in the food that they're offering to our children and the improved quality program overall. So we're very uh proud of the fact that we can offer numerous healthy meal options that have been added as well as some
046popular promotions that that literally are popup promotions from time to time to get the kids interest. So that's all good news. Um, also on the good news front, we um uh been looking at upgrading some technology. Um, the uh phone system, interestingly enough, is old and outdated and it was actually costing us a tremendous amount of money uh for maintenance. We're going to be able to upgrade and replace that system for um I think about a third of what we were previously spending. It'll be new equipment for the next 60 months. the cost of which includes equipment installation and full support for a full five-year term. And after this period, we'll actually own the equipment and only be responsible for ongoing phone services support. So, we're going to have about $27,000 in significant long-term savings
047just associated with getting a better phone system. So, that's good news. Um uh and we we discounted the update of an updated phone system because who wants who wants the reasonable, right? Um we're doing a firewall replacement and upgrade. That's going to be an estimated savings of 25,000 annually. Uh replacing our uh current uh firewalls with a more cost effective model. And uh we're also going to be installing a smaller firewall at the middle firewall middle school to support our secondary internet circuits. It allows more internet traffic to go um automatically route back and forth improving redundancy, performance and reliability. And then uh there's a budget neutral upgrade for endpoint protection which is a a modern comprehensive endpoint solution that replaces our expiring and less capable security software. So, I want to congratulate our finance
048group, Dan Borggo. Thank you for so much for digging through the weeds to finding these savings for us. It's uh a little bit adds up when we have a lot of little bits. So, uh thank you. Um we also uh have a resolution for lease purchasing replacing copers and computers. It's motion 16, business matters. And uh I want to do a shout out for our transportation department. I gave one last time we met as well. Um, our transportation uh group has been featured in the main issue of school transportation news magazine. Um, and it has to do with us put providing illuminated uh signs on our buses to increase visibility with motorists on the road. Uh, we're one of the few school districts in New Jersey who are actually using this and so we appreciate
049that publicity and we appreciate the extra safety that it adds to our bus drivers and our students. Um we um took a look at our individual and district school counts and our K5 section counts as well. Those are looked at both in ter in finance and in curriculum. So we look at that and policy excuse me. So we do it across multiple um committees so that everybody understands where the student uh body sits. And our next finance committee meeting is June 5th. Thank you. Um Melissa, can you give us an update on HR? Sure. So the HR committee met on May 6th and you know, as you can see, there's a lot of motions, a lot of the typical things that you would see. There's just a couple of things that I wanted to point
050out. Um, in the section where we eliminate positions, um, something I wanted to highlight, uh, Laura and her team wanted to be creative last year. So, we were we were testing out positions where either bus aids or bus drivers had kind of like an additional work stream where they were either a lunch aid or a playground aid and it hasn't really worked out the way that they hoped it would. So, we're eliminating those positions and just going back to the positions that we used to have. And then if somebody wants to do that those extra jobs, they'll just um add a time sheet so it'll just be a little bit cleaner. Um so I think that was a it's good to try things but sometimes they don't work out and that's okay. Um and then
051some appointments that I really wanted to highlight. Um, we have three nurses that we're appointing, which is fantastic, and a second home teacher, which I don't know if we had we've had a second home teacher in a really long time, which but it's needed because it's a it's a very important part of our um high school curriculum. So, it's really exciting that we were able to find one because this time last year or was it a year and a half ago, we were struggling struggling? Yeah. So that's uh very very exciting and I wanted to just echo uh congratulations to all of our retirees and our next meeting is on June 3rd. Thank you. Um Beth, can you please give us a policy update? Surely. So the policy committee last met on May 2nd. Um
052first we once again revisited policy 3212 class size. Um we have spent a great deal of time and care on this policy um in consultation with and guidance from our attorneys. You will now see the where we have come to um and you'll see the updated revisions in red. I just wanted to note that in where there is a change in number um in the primary grades and intermediate grades the numeral has been changed but we um missed the actual written word. So that will be updated um shortly. I just wanted to point that out to you. Thank you Susan for catching that for us. Um so that is at a place now where uh we are comfortable. It's been reviewed and approved for first read this evening. Um then we get to another um
053ongoing discussion with regard to board members attending meetings virtually. The committee has agreed that this um discussion should be amongst the full board and we've moved it to retreat in August. Um, next we continue to work on um policy 0145 board member resignation and removal removal. Uh, we continue to work on it as a board and in committee and in consultation with legal counsel. Uh, so hopefully we will have a an updated final version of that for first read uh, in the near future. Then we moved on in our continued effort to review all district policies. Uh we spent some time on 16 policies in the um realm of teaching staff members. There were little to no adjustment on those uh 16 policies which were reviewed and approved for first read this evening. Um, as
054Linda mentioned, we then reviewed as normal our district and individual school counts report as of April 30th, 2025, as well as our K5 section counts. And our next meeting is on May 30th. Thank you. Um, Meredith, anything for next? Yes. Uh, we met a couple weeks back. Um we did our usual uh going through um upcoming presentations and recognitions on our board agendas. Something we like to do um in our um board goal efforts to um to have better engagement with the community. So that was a smashing success tonight. So again uh congratulations to all the retirees. Um in our efforts to define uh our committee functions and duties, we reviewed the finance calendar and each uh committee chair will be bringing calendars back to committee to review and then it'll come back to governance
055and I think the final step is going to be at the retreat potentially to to to finalize all of the calendars. Um, we also uh had an update on board goals, which I'll be sending out to the whole board shortly. And lastly, we went over our credits towards certification. And we have a master board certification status that we achieved four years ago and we will be um continuing our training and professional development um to uh get reertified in the next year and a half. Um that was basically it. We meet again on the 28th of May. Um, and I think actually, uh, I just want to remind committee members to check your email. There's a couple date changes. So, I'll circle back with you all um, on committee uh, meeting dates and additions and remind
056everybody on the board that our retreat is going to be August 12th. So, we finally got that nailed down. That's right. Thanks, Tina. Can you update us on Morris Planes, please? Sure. Uh, we last met April 29th. It was our, uh, final budget presentation as well as the administrative team came in and gave a state of the district presentation, uh, just overall. Uh, we recently completed a parking lot expansion project at our Mountain Way School. Um, it added 19 spots and we previously had staff parking on the road, so they now all have spots, which is nice. We also launched our uh update of our five-year strategy plan. Uh we did so with uh emailing out a survey largely to the public. So looking to get a large response with an electronic survey and we
057recognized three students who had entered the NJSBA steam tank challenge and have made it to the final round. Awesome. Congratulations. Thank you. Yeah, that's it. Um and just a quick update, you'll see um motion 10 that um the MEF is already working on grants for the next school year. So um cultural arts um artist and residents um a couple of uh speakers and some film support for the high school. So those are motion 10 under educational matters. Um, and with that we will go to public comment. Before we open the meeting to public comment, we wish to remind you that our meeting is now video recorded and publicly aired. While the board welcomes and encourages public comment, we ask that you be respectful, including in any comments you might make about staff. The board does
058not endorse any comments made by a speaker, nor will the board be held liable for any comments made by members of the public. The law prevents the board from speaking about specific students and about personnel matters. For this reason, the board will not answer any questions on these subjects. Finally, the board's policy limits each speaker to 3 minutes. We ask that you respect this policy in the time of your fellow community members by concluding your comments once you reach 3 minutes. Public comment is open for an hour or until public comments are complete, whichever comes first. At this point, I would like to invite any members of the public to come forward and to provide your full name and address right here, please. Uh, good evening everyone. Uh my name is Yasan Shiao and um
059I'm currently an exchange student from Germany enrolled at Morrison High School as a junior. Uh I'm here today to present you the US Department of State's uh certificate of appreciation for Morrison High School. So um as I said I'm an exchange student from Germany and I'm here with the CBYX program which is the Congress Bundesak youth exchange. Uh it's an exchange that has been going on for over 40 years where US students has been have been sent to the Germany and then German students as myself have been sent to uh the United States. Um I remember last year uh it was around that time in May I got uh my placement finally which meant my host family. Uh I'm here today with my host dad and then my liaison from AFS which is the organization
060and I got my placement and of course I saw Morrison High School. So I looked it up and when I went on the website I saw all the amazing opportunities that I'm going to have. Um that means for me uh for during this school year I have been on uh means playing on three different sports teams um being part of the orchestra or taking um like uh classes that wouldn't be available in Germany which I'm very thankful for. So uh I'm just here today to present the United States Department of uh certificiation for more high school. Hello the the USA school for awesome. Good evening everyone. Um, my name is Michael Wargo and um, I have the honor of being the host parent of Yawson. I'm an exchange student who has spent the past academic
061year here at Morristown High School through the AFS program. Um, I want to start off by extending my deepest gratitude to everyone, the administration, the teachers, the students, and the families. Thank you for welcoming Yasen and our family and to the school community. Your support and kindness have helped make his year here truly transformative. Not just for him, but for all of us who have the pleasure of knowing him. As his host dad, I've had a front row seat to watch his journey unfold. Yasen came here as a representative of his country and culture, and he quickly became an integral part of our home and our local community. I've seen him navigate new experiences, grow through challenges, and build friendships. He's brought curiosity, compassion, and a global perspective into our daily lives. Things that have
062enriched my family in ways I never anticipated. We've really bonded this year, and now he's officially part of our family. Tonight, as explained, the US Department of State, which sponsor which sponsors exchange programs like Yes, Flex, and CBYX, has recognized Morristown High School as an Adallion member school. This recognition is given to schools that go above and beyond in embracing international exchange students and f fostering cultural understanding. This medallion isn't just a symbol. It represents a commitment by this school to provide opportunities for global citizenship, academic excellence, and public public diplomacy. By hosting students like Yasen, Morristown High School is shaping not just great scholars, but great global citizens. And for that, we say thank you. Thank you for helping make this such a memorable and meaningful year. You've made a lasting impression on a
063young ambassador and created connections that reach far beyond our borders. Thank you. Thank you so much. Hi, I'm Julia Hodm. I am a volunteer leazison with AFS intercultural programs. AFS is a volunteer program that partners with the US state department to place international high school exchange students around the country. I live in Morristown and I have two students at Woodland Elementary as well. And I was an exchange student with AFS from the US to Argentina almost 20 years ago. And since then I've been a a volunteer leazison for students like Gine. Our students come from all over the world. Places like Germany and China, Thailand, Tanzania, Jordan, Italy, Brazil, everywhere in between. My role as a volunteer is to help international students acclimate to American life and culture and help their host parents navigate parenting
064a brand new teenager in their home and all the things that go along with that. And participating in an exchange program makes the students more culturally aware. Um, so as we've shared with Yasine, just incredibly uh there's an incredible opportunity to both advance in their English skills, experience what it's like to be in an American high school, um, but also their emotional intelligence and their independence really grows during this year while they're home away from home in a new environment. And it sets them up for incredible careers, often global in nature. My exchange student friends who I studied abroad with have now gone on to have successful careers as diplomats, ambassadors, educators, and business leaders all over the world. There's also a huge benefit to the host families who range from two parent households to
065single parents, empty nesters, parents with or without kids, and multi-generational households of all identities, religions, and political affiliations who gain experience and exposure to a new culture and learn more about our own American culture by reflecting on why do we do all the things we do? And lastly, our exchange students have a profound impact on their schools and communities. We hear over and over from the parents of other students at Morristown and our other schools across New Jersey, their coaches and and their teachers on just how much the exchange students impact them by humanizing the global politics and current events, providing a different perspective on what our own kids are hearing on the news or seeing in social media and dispelling the many stereotypes of other countries, cultures, and religions. And at a time that's
066very polarizing in our society and with a lot of international news and politics feeling perhaps a bit overwhelming. This is a way that we can invest in the next generation by helping them build friendships, bridges, and compassion amongst each other. And we can only do these programs if we have school districts like ours who are supporting us, supporting our students, and willing to enroll these international students. We hear a lot of nos from schools and so it's really meaningful when we hear yes. So, thank you for that. And continuing to welcome exchange students like Yasine. We also need incredible host families like Michael and those around New Jersey. So, also thank you and we are always looking for more families as well. So, thank you for your ongoing partnership throughout the year and please do
067continue to partner with us. We really hope that we can continue to place students here in Morristown. So, thank you very much. Thank you so much for that insight into the experience, for coming so well prepared and for the wonderful gift. We wish you an enjoyable uh remaining uh piece of the semester here and we look forward to celebrating the end of the year activities with you and continuing this program. The one thing that I would add is when someone comes and does an outstanding job as an exchange student, it reinforces our commitment to the program. So, in addition to all that you've given us, you've also paved the way for other students like yourself. So, thank you very much. Thank you. Um, if there's no one else, we will close public comment and move
068on to business matters. As the appointed representative of the sending Morris Plain School District to the Morris School District Board of Education, I would like to clarify that my votes on tonight's business agenda items will will relate only to those items that are identified as applicable districtwide to grades preK through 12 or to high school grades 9 through 12. I am abstaining from voting on any agenda items pertaining solely to the elementary and middle schools grades preK to 8. Okay. Moving minutes, motions one and two. Second. Sorry, second. Um, any discussion? Oh, please call. Mr. Lloyd, yes. Mrs. Ms. Murphy, yes. Mrs. Pedalino, yes. Mrs. Perry, yes. Dr. Rodriguez. Mrs. Pota, yes. Mrs. Wall, yes. Mrs. Davidson, yes. Mrs. Cole, yes. Moving policy motions one and two. I'll second. Thank you. Any discussion? Okay. Please
069call the Mr. Lloyd. Yes. Miss Murphy, yes. Mrs. Pedalino, yes. Mrs. Perry, yes. Dr. Rodriguez, yes. Mrs. Spota, yes. Mrs. Wall, yes. Mrs. Davidson, yes. Mrs. Cole, yes. Moving educational matters motions 1 through 11. I'll second. Oh, thank you. Any discussion? Okay, please call the RO. Mr. Lloyd, yes. Miss Murphy, yes. Mrs. Pedalino, yes. Mrs. Perry, yes. Dr. Rodriguez, yes. Mrs. Spota, yes. Mrs. Wall, yes. Mrs. Davidson, yes. Mrs. Cole, abstain on number 10. And yes to all others. Moving pupil services motion number one. Second. Thank you. Any discussion? Okay. Please call the role. Mr. Lloyd, yes. Miss Murphy, yes. Mrs. Pedalino, yes. Mrs. Perry, yes. Dr. Rodriguez, yes. Mrs. Spielder, yes. Mrs. Wall, yes. Mrs. Davidson, yes. Mrs. Cole, moving human resources motions 1 through 33 with revised motions 5 and 30. I'll second.
070Thank you. Any discussion? Okay, please follow. Mr. Lloyd, yes. Miss Murphy, yes. Mrs. Pedalino, yes. Mrs. Perry, yes. Dr. Rodriguez, yes. Mrs. Spota, yes. Mrs. Wall, yes. Mrs. Davidson, yes. Mrs. Cole, yes. Moving business matters, motions 1 through 28 with new motion number 28. I second. Thank you. Any discussion? Okay, please call the RO. Mr. Lloyd, yes. Miss Murphy, yes. Miss Pedalino, yes. Mrs. Perry, yes. Dr. Rodriguez, yes. Mrs. FOD. Mrs. Yes. Sorry, Mrs. Wall. Yes, Mrs. Davidson. Yes, Mrs. Cole. Abstain on number five. And yes to all others. Okay. Any new business? Okay. Um I could I get a motion to enter into close session to discuss the superintendent's evaluation? No action will be taken. I'll move it. Thank you. Second, Melissa. All in favor? I. Thank you. Okay, perfect.