001Now, we were in ethics training. And so, we're going to pick up the uh agenda at section five, routine business. We have the board secretaries report for November of 2025, the receipts and appropriation adjustments for November of 25, the treasures report for November of 25, the monthly transfer report for November of 25, the high school activities report for December of 25, the food service management cost performance statement for December of 25, the certified bill list as of January 20th of 2026, approval of minutes, we December uh 16th, 2025 executive session, the December 16th regular meeting, and January 6th uh regular session reorganization meeting. Mr. Kenny, can I have a motion to approve section five, routine business items A through H. >> So moved. >> Second. >> Thank you, Mr. Trump. Comments or questions from the
002board? >> Hearing none, we'll take a vote. Mr. McGuff. I >> I I >> I motion approved. And moving on to section six, routine matters. We have the enrollment report uh as of January 16th, the health report for December of 25, fire alarm report for December of 25, the crisis drill report for December of 25, superintendent monthly report. Mr. Capello. >> Thank you, Mrs. Fitzwwater. Uh thank you everybody for coming out tonight. This is a a nice crowd for a very cold night in January. I want to start my remarks uh by recognizing and thanking the nine members of the board of education. Uh I don't know if everybody has this circled on their calendars, but January is board of education appreciation month. Uh so I think it's really important to recognize the individuals who
003uh serve our community. There's an interesting thing that happens in November every year when we have a board meeting with the middle schoolers and want to they come to Memorial School and learn about school district operations and learn about being on a board and learn about um district governance. And one of my favorite questions askked is how much money do you think board of education members make? And it ranges anywhere from 10,000 to like 300,000. And then we finally get to the punchline of uh they don't make anything. Um they are volunteers from the community. And then we talk about why it is uh that members choose to serve. And I can't think of a greater group of individuals to be able to serve alongside of and uh on behalf of all of the 3,000
004plus students in our community. Thank you for your service. Everybody, I'm sure you join me with a hand for our board of education. [applause] All right, that said, a couple things to plug. Um thank you to Mr. Tindle and our buildings and ground staff. We came in today to very safe sidewalks and streets and they are gearing up. Um right, everybody, all the kids out there, no snow Saturday into Sunday. We want to be in school bright and early Monday morning, right? I'm not getting a ton of agreement out there. Also, uh thank you to Heather Vater and all of our uh bus drivers and transportation staff uh for coming in early and making sure that our buses were safe for uh traversing the streets this morning. Uh second grade students participated in law enforcement
005appreciation day this past Friday, January 16th. They got a special visit from officers from both Cinnamonson and Willingboro. And the officers demonstrated their service dog training for the students and uh it was very popular for the kids. And thank you to the Cinnamon and Willingboro Police uh for loaning their officers for that program for us. And hot off the press this afternoon, a representative from Toys for Tots came to present two classes at the Rush School with special treats for bringing in the most toys for our Toys for Tots Rush uh toy drive. Mr. Santino, Mr. Ziggy's class each collected 36 toys, and they were presented with cupcakes and cookies as a special treat to thank them for their service. And I think it was also worth noting that classes were um welcomed and introduced
006by two members of the United States Marine who talked Marines who talked about the Marines and talked about service. And I think it's a really important message for the students to hear about service uh from service members themselves. Uh you'll probably hear about it in our student reports in just a little bit. But this past Friday, we had a couple of really great ELA uh centric events in the district. A great job at the middle school uh in the annual spelling bee and the poetry out loud competition at the high school, which again I'm sure we'll hear a little bit more about in our reports. Uh something to put on the calendar. The super suff supper was uh has been scheduled for fetched cinnamon and seniors should contact the middle school to RSVP and information
007has been mailed home to people that are on our mailing list and you can check out the website for more details. And uh I'm going to keep it uh unusually brief because we have a lot of members of the audience. Uh so with that, that is the superintendent report. >> Thank you, Mr. Capella. Mr. Trump, can I have a motion to approve section six routine matters items A through E? >> Senate. Second. >> Second. >> Thank you, Mr. Maker. Comments or questions from the board. >> Hearing none, we'll take a vote. Miss Tadley. >> I I >> I motion approved. Uh moving on to section seven, the student representative reports. We will hear first from the high school student rep, Carly Trump. >> Good evening. The Golden Apple Award for November goes to Mr. Kalan.
008received um he was nominated by Owen Casten era Ryan Scaraki and Shawn Rogerio and other members of the cross country and winter track teams. The golden apple award for December was given to Miss Wiler. She received the golden apple award and was nominated by Pete and Parson and Reed Hopson. The December students of the month go to senior Dominic Delgo, junior Gorkam Cara, uh sophomore Avana Bordon, and freshman Lucas Golo. The W the winter sports are continuing their seasons. The boys basketball team is working hard and looking forward to having a great January. The boys defeated Riverside 3837 to pick up their first swim. Henry Stewart is leading the team with 14 points per game. They'll have a senior night on Thursday, January 22nd versus Peton, honoring Michael Jasmine, Shawn Mson, Henry Stewart, and Gabe
009Waters. The girls basketball team has gone off to a good start with a 70-0 record. There are some big games coming up, including the first round of the South Jersey Invitational. The team's service learning game will be Monday, February 9th, and the senior night is Wednesday, February 11th. The varsity girls cheerleading team has been working hard to learn new routines with new stunt groups. The girls are excited to continue with old and new traditions. We welcome seven brand new cheerleaders to our to our JV team who have been enthusiastic about cheerleading at CHS. They're excited to celebrate our seniors on senior night, Thursday, January 22nd. The winter track team has had a nice start to the season competing in two meets hosted by the SJTCA. The team has a number of exciting meets coming up
010in January highlighted by the state relays on January 16th. The boys bowling team is at the midpoint of the season and their record is 7-2 and second place in the Patriot division of the BCSO. With eight seniors, the team is competitive not only with opponents but also amongst themselves. Ian Jungla holds the top honors for high game 240, high series 650, and top average with 192. Matias Corona reached the milestone of 10,000 career points on varsity, while Jonathan Defilippo reached the 20,000 pin mark. The girls bowling team is also at the midpoint of their season with an 8-1 record and first place in the Patriot Division of BCSO. Abby Gordon holds high game honors with 221 while Alana Miller Elena Miller takes high series 577 and top average with 170. On December 15th verse tech,
011Nina Jakette, Michaela Zmit, Elelliana Malave, and Elena Miller, and Abby Gordon combined for a single game score of 817, putting them on the CHS record for third highest single game score in school history. Abby Gordon reached the career milestone of 10,000 pins on varsity with Elelliana Mave hitting 15,000 and Alana Miller reaching 20,000. Senior night for both the boys and girls bowling team will be on Monday, February 2nd. The swim team is currently 34 overall. The rec the regular season will conclude by the end of January and the team is already looking forward to playoffs. The swim team has faced a tough schedule this year as each win has been by a slim margin. As the meet verse Paul V 6, Eda McN broke their school record in the 100yard backstroke with a time of
012197. We will celebrate our two seniors, Bert Hes and Sophia Rocks at the meet vers Sterling on January 21st at 5:30 p.m. at Camden County Technical School in Sickerville. The boys wrestling team is currently 1 as a team had a very good run of tournaments to begin their season. Dominic Marino is 8-0 with three tournament first place finishes. David Komez is 8-1 and Ryan Marino is also 8-1. Jake Barbick and Levi Jander have also secured tournament victories. Senior night will be on Wednesday, February 18th versus Burlington Township. The girls wrestling team is off to a historic and high energy start this season. The program reached a major milestone recently by hosting its first ever home quad meet, showcasing the growing strength and talent of our athletes. The team currently holds a solid 3-2 record fueled
013by standout individual performances like that of Emily Dilva who dominated the match over winter break to help bring home the gold medal of the Overbrook Open tournament. Senior night will be on Friday, January 30th. The drum [snorts] line and color guard rehe rehearsals for the 2026 indoor drum line and color guard have already begun. Our first competition is Saturday, February 21st at Milville High School. Both units have more student participation than ever before. The unified basketball season just began in mid January and we're excited to get our players and partners back on the court together. Practices have started during the week of January 5th and it's shaping up to be a fun and inclusive season with teamwork, competition, and school spirit. Our senior night will be on January 13th. Please come out and support the
014Play Unified Pirates. During January's student during January's month of service, student council will spons will sponsor CHS's third annual Super Bowl of caring. Students will bring in cans of soup to their second period teacher from January 20th to February 6th. The second period that collects the most cans will win a bagel breakfast hosted by student council the week of February 9th. All soups will be donated to the food bank of South Jersey. Our goal this year is 1,000 cans. 44 students attended the DECA regional competition on January 5th. Emily Runoff placed first in the automotive marketing service competition and Tabitha Brigley placed third in the retail merchandising services competition. Both students will now move on to the state competition in Atlantic City. National Honor Society will be hosting their annual blood drive on February 6th
015in the Honor Gym from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Students and community members will be able to donate. Schedules and information to sign up are posted to CHS's high school Instagram, Facebook, and X platforms. The Interact [snorts] Club provided community service by volunteering at Winterfest and Breakfast with Santa. In February, they will host our our annual casino night and volunteer at the Trenton Soup Kitchen. The students of Adventure Fitness Club spent a winter evening at Winterfest skating Winterfest ice skating at Cooper River. They're scheduled for a ski trip towards the end of January. On Wednesday, December 17th, 12 students from CHS's World Affair Council [snorts] um participated in the World Affairs Council of Philadelphia's Model Senate Science and Technology Committee meeting technology committee meeting stimulation at Temple University's Fox School of Business. The students engaged
016with nearly 300 students from 30 schools across the Philadelphia region discussing solutions to issues regarding cyber security, AI, and medical in innovation. Students were assigned to research a specific person's views on a topic and then roleplay that person during the Senate subcommittee hearing. Quinnland Barnes portrayed Senator Martin Henrik and served as co-chair of a global critical mineral supply chain subcommittee as well as Mayor Moore portray portraying Senator John Baraso brought an engaging discussion to the subcommittee room discussing high energy production in the energy economy. This was the World Affairs Con Council's largest turnout they have ever had and the students representing Cinnamonson did an outstanding job representing their school and community. Lastly, Abigail Grugan from grade 11 won the 16th annual poetry out loud competition and she will represent CHS at Ruckers University in February
017where she will compete against students from local counties. Congrat Congratulations Abigail and to all the contestants who made it who made this year so memorable. Thank you, Carly. Now, we'll hear from the middle school student representative, Matthew Kenny. >> Happy New Year and good evening to all of you. It seems like it's been a while since our last year. I hope everybody enjoyed a relaxing and healthy break and strong beginning of 2026. Our student of the month for December were sixth grader Isabella Diverly, seventh grader Anna Yo, and eighth grader Barrett Braum. Our January focus at CMS is empathy. The ability to understand and care about the feelings of others. The start of a new year is a great time to reflect on how our actions impact those around us and how small acts of
018kindness can make a big difference. Winter sports have started. The wrestling team currently has a record of three and five and is working towards the postseason towards continuing a tradition of pride in CMS wrestling. The girls basketball team teams are off to a flying start. The A team is currently six and one and both teams have continued to improve and grow towards working together on the court. The boys basketball teams have developed and improved. Although the records do not actively reflect the growth, the coaches are proud that the team have received positive feedback from the opposing coaches officials about their spirit and hustle. Last week, CMS hosted its second annual spelling be with 16 students participating. After a whopping 36 rounds, sixth grader Dwayne Foresman earned first place. Sixth grader Addison Chade played second and
019seventh grader Jackson Melwood took third. Dwayne will advance to regional spelling be at WH YY television studios on March 7th. We we have many events planned for February. Rain didn't stop the holiday cheer. Our unity club hosted a wonderful holiday breakfast for the senior citizens of Cinnamonson serving a delicious meal catered by Bagel Cafe. Our jazz band, CSS, and dance team provided festival entertainment, making a perfect way to kick off the holiday season and end 2025. On a high note, yearbooks are now on sale. They are $35. Eighth graders have the option to purchase a name stamp for the additional $5. Any questions, please email Miss Mescue. CMS Student Council is organizing a winter snowball dance for sixth and seventh graders on Friday, February 20th. Students should wear casual attire. We are also planning after
020school bowling trip for the eighth grade students March 5th from 3 to 5:00 at Penners. Our annual super supper dinner is scheduled for Wednesday, February 11th. The CMS Unity Club and middle school staff will be hosting this year's event in the caf in the CMS cafeteria at 5:00 p.m. For those interested in donating their time, their crockpots, or their favorite recipes, please contact Miss Lanzone or Miss Halier for details and information. We hope the board of education and the community of Cinnamonson will continue to support this wonderful tradition and event. There will be some bumping, some digging, and definitely some spiking at the Valley for Heart this February. The CMS physical education department will be hosting its annual fundraiser on Thursday, February 5th. Our eighth graders are invited to sign up and donate some money
021and their talent to compete against the CMS faculty and staff in a night of fun support for a worthwhile cause. All proceeds will benefit the American Heart Association. Please come out and support with this worthwhile event. Thank you and have a great night. >> Thank you, Mat Matthew. We're going to move on to section 8 presentations. Capello. Awesome. Uh, principles, if you don't mind joining me up here. >> Uh, a few years back, the board made a decision that instead of recognizing students at the end of the year in June, just minutes before the last day of school and graduation, we try to, uh, connect and recognize students closer to real time. uh all of our students are very busy and it's a cold evening and tough to get people out. So, thank you to
022anybody who is able to come tonight uh for their recognition. I'm going to pass the program over to the principles in just a second. Um but with that, I just want to say overall on behalf of all of the administration and the board of education. Congratulations on a job well done. You represent some very significant and fine accomplishments this evening. We're really proud to be able to celebrate you. With that, I'm going to bring up Mrs. Jones, principal of the new Albony School. >> [applause] >> Thank you, Mr. Capello. Good evening, everyone. I would like to invite a special first grader, Miss Violet Miller, up to join me. [applause] So each year, Senator Singleton hosts a jump into reading challenge which runs for about a month in every school. And Violet was our top reader
023with having read 282 books within the month. and she helped us uh secure another reading proclamation from the senator having read 2,971 books overall at New Albany. So, I'd like to congratulate Violet as well as her parents for promoting reading and the love of school. Congratulations, Violet. [applause] Now, I'd like to welcome up Miss Mey from the Eleanor Rush School. >> [applause] >> Good evening everyone. Mackenzie, if you would join me over here at the podium that would be wonderful. So, as Mrs. Jones explained, Rush School also participates in the jump into reading challenge annually. This year, it is the 10th annual uh participation in this competition and it is a K to4 program. So, Miss McKenzie Solder was the Eleanor Rush School first place reader in third grade, having read how many it was
02460some, right? 60some books. But I will note that they are chapter books at her level. So, it is quite a feat to accomplish all of that in one short month. So, congratulations to you, McKenzie. [applause] >> [applause] >> All right. At this time, I'd like to welcome up Carrie D. Simone, principal of Cinnamonson Middle School. [applause] >> Good evening. Um, first I would like to recognize our students who were nominated and uh were recognized for the 2026 All South Jersey Junior High Honors Choir. Chibukim Okali, who does not appear to be with us tonight, but let's give him a round of applause for [applause] his hard work. And Aiden Arcano. Come on up, Aiden. [applause] Congratulations. Here you go, friend. [laughter] Okay. Okay. [applause] >> We had the very distinct honor of uh hearing Aiden
025do a solo at our winter concert. Just beautiful voice. And our next student who was nominated to and uh recognized in the 2026 All South Jersey Honors Orchestra for the cello, Landon Voya. [applause] Oh, yes. Sorry, there were slides. Here we go. There's Aiden and Tim. [laughter] And [clears throat] here we go. Landon. Congratulations. Congratulations. [applause] >> Indeed, evidence that practice makes progress. All right. And up we have Mr. Gorman, our high school principal. [applause] Part of the trick about recognizing the kids of the high school is most of them are for athletics and they're right now competing in the winter sport. Uh so many of us couldn't be here tonight, but I'm excited to recognize them uh for their accomplishments in the fall. Uh we'll start off with our uh musicians, all state chorus,
026Leila Hoba. [applause] Our all South Jersey choir members are Sam Bobin, Sarah Casey, Gabriella Chosk, Vincent Ayanuzi, Jared Lorenzo, Aram Madison, Cat Smith, and Ryan White. [applause] [cough] [laughter] >> Oh, if we could come on up. Get take your picture. >> [laughter] >> I go [applause] are all South Jersey City orchestra members. Nissa Kabuk, Veronica Chiosk, Luke Feelely, Olivia Gola, who by the way plays the viola. And I had to say that on the TV program for this week. Olivia Gola on the viola. [laughter] Not as easy as it seems. Uh Kira Marcado, Ronan Seagris, and Annabella Simone. [applause] >> Nice work. [snorts] They get an extra prize for percent attendance. >> Yeah. >> All right. [laughter] [snorts] >> Come on in, guys. Let's your thing. >> Oh, yeah. Thank you. There we go. Nice
027job, guys. [applause] We have one more shot, [applause] our All South Jersey Symphonic Band and All South Jersey Percussant Ensemble member, Benjamin Jacob. [applause] Uh Jacob W Jacob Wickersam had an incredible season this year. Uh he was named to the all all county first team all South Jersey all state. He was also the sectional champion and the BCSL cross country athlete of the year. Jacob, are you here today? I don't think so. [applause] Uh, Edu Edward Abu Ads was named to the Burlington County all county first team for cross country. >> Abu Addis. I'm sorry. [applause] [applause] >> Congratulations. Well done. country runners. [applause] >> Uh, boys soccer. We have two members named to all South Jersey and all state. Uh, Jason Pacetti and Dylan Plene Neki. [applause] Uh, also named to All State were
028Connor Hughes and Luke Parson. [applause] Nora Quinn also had an incredible season this year. She was named to the All South Jersey girls soccer team, the Allstate girls soccer team, the all region girls soccer team. She was named a girls soccer all-American and the South Jersey soccer player of the year. [applause] and she's playing basketball. She just finished playing basketball. Uh Shiloh also had an incredible season named to the All South Jersey team, the all state team, and the all region team. Shiloh Moore. [applause] Uh named to the All State team, Taran Himensen. >> [applause] >> and our all South Jersey soccer players, Emily Craney and Audrey Dwiki. [applause] For football, we have three gentlemen named to the first team all county. Dominic Delgo, Jackson Mcado, and Jason Stro. [applause] Spoiler alert. >> Spoiler alert.
029[laughter] >> There was supposed to be a blank spot there. Okay. Well, I am uh very excited to first introduce Mrs. Jennifer McGonicle, our secondary exemplary educator of the year here at CMS. Come on up, Jen. And I'd also like to [applause] Jen is a seventh grade science teacher here at CMS. I'd like to introduce our director of science, Mr. Matthew Pericupka, who is going to tell us a little bit about why [applause] Jen, Mrs. McGonagal, deserves all of the praise. >> Thank you. Good evening, everybody. It is my distinct honor to do to announce that Mrs. Jennifer McGonagal has been selected as a New Jersey state exemplary educator. Each year, the Department of Education selects teachers from across the state who demonstrate excellence in education. [laughter] Mrs. McGangel has been a valued member of
030our science department at the middle school for 20 plus years and embodies all the characteristics of a model teacher. I want everybody to take a few moments and think of the first words that come to mind when you think of a great teacher. This is actually perfect because there's a lot of students in the audience right now. So, think about your favorite teacher. Adults, think about when you were younger, your favorite or most impactful teacher. Um, or if you have children of your own, what characteristics or traits you would like them to possess? Give you a moment. I've done this exercise numerous times and the most common answers are kind, compassionate, empathetic, patient, inspiring, motivational. These are all words I would use to describe Mrs. McGonagle. The easy path is not the path you should
031take to be successful in education. It relies heavily on what's comfortable and what's worked for you in the past. Sorry. Um but the world is constantly changing as we know. Um the methods and strategies that constitute effective instruction are changing faster than ever thanks to AI. So the best teachers, the elite teachers are able to reinvent themselves through a commitment to being lifelong learners. In the summer of 2024, I believe, uh Mrs. McGungle decided to throw out the entire playbook, start from scratch. Nobody told her to do it. She's been an effective, highly established educator, but she knew it was time for a change for the benefit of their students and their well-being. She attended over the summer um professional development on building a modern classroom. The modern classroom approach puts students at the center
032of learning. Um, it's self-guided, allows students to take ownership of the learning at their own pace, and acquire valuable 21st century skills along the way. It also provides Mrs. McGonagal with valuable time to work one-on-one with each of her students and provide them assistance based off their individual needs. Mrs. McGonagal decided not to take the easy route. It takes a tremendous amount of time, passion, and dedication to completely start over and reinvent yourself after 20 plus years in the classroom. and that speaks volumes about her commitment to being a lifelong learner and willingness to try new things. She has visited 48 out of 50 states in our nation. And she's bring back bits bits of pieces and experiences and embedded them into her lessons. Last month, her students were analyzing fossils that Mrs. McGonagle dug
033up while she was in Montana. For all these reasons and more, I think Mrs. McGonagle is truly deserving of this prestigious honor. Please join me in congratulating Mrs. McGonagal as a New Jersey State exemplary educator. [applause] >> Want to thank anybody? >> Introduce your family. Thank you to the district for your support >> and let's let's give a round of applause for her her very uh supportive family who takes her goes along with her to her [applause] states. We appreciate it. Okay. At this time, Mrs. Fitzart, I would ask if we could possibly take a two-minute break. Um while everybody is welcome and encouraged uh to stay for the balance of the meeting, I know we have some young ones here who may have some homework to get to. So, with your permission, we'll take
034a quick two-minute break if anybody wants to come up and grab a quick picture in front of the step and repeat before we get going. The next part will be a presentation from our auditor, Mr. Robin Verso. Stick around if you can, [laughter] kids. You'll learn a lot. Um, you >> All right. And we're back in business, Mr. Emberso. >> Okay. Thank you. >> Good evening. If I could direct your attention to uh financial summary. Hopefully, everybody has one. I'll go over the financial results of last year. If I could direct your attention to the lefth hand column, we took in this year in tax levy 37,117352 tuition revenue 780,240 transportation revenue 1,68208 miscellaneous revenue 531965 federal aid 33,493 state aid 22,4 403885 total revenue 62,548,943 we expended in the same period 62,258070 resulting in
035a gain of operations of 290,873. We started the year with a fund balance of 21,114615. We're ending the year with a fund balance of 21,45488. That number is further defined right below. Analysis of fund balance, excuse me. Reserve for incumbrances 178368. Capital reserve 4,519089. Maintenance reserve 2,50573. Excess surplus, an important number, 5,993230. That's the amount that must be used in the 2627 budget at a minimum. Unemployment compensation 500,429 designated for subsequent years expenditures 5,993 927. That's the amount that we put in the 202526 budget. and unreserved and undesated 1,714872 totaling 21,45488. The calculation for the 1,714872 is down below the surplus calculation. And what that is is the expenditures 62,258070* 2% plus extraordinary aid over the amount budgeted and non-public aid over the amount budgeted. And that totals the 1,714872. Comparison of budget to actual
036above. Our budget was 67,630876. We expended 62,436438 or 92.32%. Which is a little higher than last year. Last year was 90.82%. Um, and that's where we stand. There any questions on the financials? >> [snorts] >> So we came through it very well. >> Uh yes. Um uh the thing about our budget is we were using a lot of surplus. We're using 5,993 927 and 2526. We're using that again. It puts a lot of pressure on us to return that surplus. So we have a shortfall. If we expend too much money, we may be short. So that's a lot of surplus to be using and it's difficult. And the way we're returning the surplus is by not spending all our budget. The major the majority of our revenue is district tax and state aid. We don't
037return any money from there. It's a one-on-one uh drawback. The way any school district returns money is by watching what they spend. And we've done a pretty good job of that. Increased a little bit from the previous year, but pretty good. Uh overall the board office records were in very good shape. There's no comments or recommendation. So you did a very good job. I was pleased with the records. >> Right. Any other questions? >> Thank you. >> All right. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> And [applause] >> and thank you, Mrs. Wilkkey. >> Applause. Is that's a first after an audit report. Applause. [laughter] >> All right. We are moving on to uh number nine, correspondence to the board. I know we've uh received a few emails uh this month uh all of which are
038being handled. Uh anyone have any particular correspondence to share? Okay, moving on to section 10, committee reports. [snorts] Uh we had two committee meetings this month. the policy uh committee and the curriculum committee both met. Uh Mr. Kenny will give us a the minutes for the um policy committee. >> Thank you. The policy and legislation committee met on January 15th via Google Meeting. Uh the committee met to review the latest policy alert from Strauss Esme and as part of the alert, the board considered several policies and approved the changes that will be reflected on the board of education regular meeting agenda. um including a policy on nepotism uh the employment of the chief school administrator and a few sexual harassment policies. The board earmarked the following policies for consideration at the next policy committee meeting
039and committed to watching the stress assessment online meeting about the following policies. Resource materials, library materials, public complaints. Mr. Capello shared a brief overview of the freedom to read act and the intent behind the affforementioned recommended policies. Uh we approved recommended language for another policy and discussed the new New Jersey schools cell phone ban for the 2627 school year and we will evaluate policy recommendations for discussion when model policies become available. Uh Mr. Capella then asked the committee to consider his request for the full board to support the passing of a resolution in support of virtual emergency school days. We did. Mr. Mr. Capello shared his frustration. The several bills allowing this have stalled in the legislature. Uh [snorts] we agreed to review second portion of our 10,00 series of policies as a part of
040the board goal to review district policies and we decided to review policies 1510 through 1648 and our next meeting will be February 10th. That's it. Thank you. >> Thank you Mr. Kenny. And for the curriculum meeting uh the chair uh Mrs. Trump. >> Thank [snorts] you. Uh the curriculum and student activities committee met virtually on January 15th. The committee heard an overview of the upcoming schedule adjustment at Rush School. The committee reviewed proposals for two new courses for the 26 27 year AP computer science principles and aviation and aerospace. An instructional materials adoption request was also reviewed for a middle school reading novel. The committee reviewed the CHS course selection offerings for the 26 27th school year. A proposal to pilot a new club at CMS was also discussed and approved by the committee. Lastly,
041the committee reviewed professional development and field trip requests for the upcoming months. Thank you. >> Thank you, Mr. Trump. Miss Iek, can I have a motion to approve section 10 committee reports item A? >> So moved. >> Second. >> Thank you, Mr. Maker. Comments or questions from the board? >> Hearing none, we'll take a vote. Mr. McGuff. I >> I I >> I I >> I motion approved. Uh moving on to section 11. Public comments on agenda items. Members of the public are reminded that comments should be limited to items appearing on this meeting's agenda. There will be another opportunity during this meeting to comment on non-aggenda items. All members of the public wishing to speak on agenda items only should raise their hand to indicate their wish to speak. When called upon, particip participants
042should state their first and last name and address clearly for the record. In accordance with Cinnamonson board of education policy, comments will be limited to a maximum of four minutes per person. The comment period will be limited to 30 minutes in duration. With that said, anyone wish to speak on agenda items. Okay, we will move to section 12 personnel. Mr. Capello. Thank you again, Mrs. Fitzwwater. Under section 12, personnel letter A, seeking the board to approve two items under certificated staff and the items listed in the agenda under number two, non-certificated staff, letters A through H. Under resignations and retirement, seeking the board to approve items 1 through five, they are listed in the agenda. Under leaves of absence, there are two items for the board's consideration. They are listed in the agenda under employee
043number. Skipping down to extra duty appointments, seeking the board to approve items one through nine as listed in the agenda. Under letter F transfers, there are five items for the board's consideration on this evening's agenda. Under advancements on the salary guide, seeking the board's approval for the items listed under section G, uh, listed in the agenda. Skipping down to letter I, student teachers, there are three items for the board's consideration listed in the agenda. And under letter J, seeking the board's approval for items 1 through five as listed in the agenda. And finally, under letter K, seeking the board to approve item 1 A through I as listed in the agenda for district tutors. >> Thank you, Mr. Capello. Mr. Bramhol, can I have a motion to approve section 12, personnel certified non-certified items A
044through K? >> So moved. >> Second. >> Thank you, Mr. Trump. Comments or questions from the board? [clears throat] >> Hearing none, we'll take a vote. Mr. Hadley. >> I I >> I motion approved. >> Have someone here. >> Mhm. >> Uh Mrs. Fitzwwater, members of the board, I wanted to reintroduce uh an old friend to the district who is going to be helping us out during this acute need as we discussed as a district. This is a pilot program for proof of concept for a dean of students. I can't quite see you, Mr. Bellski, if you don't mind taking standing up and saying hello. I promise you didn't need to say anything, but uh Brian Bellski will be serving in this role. We look forward to reporting back to the board in a couple
045months on the progress in this position. We wish you the very best of luck. Look forward to you joining the team again. Congratulations. [applause] Welcome back. Moving on to section 14, special education. Dr. Goldberg. Oh, I'm sorry. [laughter] >> I know you meant >> Whoa. Section 13, curriculum and instruction. Getting ahead of myself. Dr. Goldberg. >> Thank you very much. 13, letter A, uh, requesting approval of the monthly professional development requests. Under letter B, uh, approval of the monthly field trip requests. Under letter C, we have a novel adoption for Cinnamonson Middle School. Under letter D, two new course requests, um, one for Cmenson High School, one for Cmenson Middle School for the 2627 school year. Under letter E, requesting approval of the monthly HIP report. under letter F, the monthly suspension report, and under
046letter G, uh, requesting approval of a pilot of a new club at Cinnamonson Middle School, uh, with no stipend in the first year. And those are the items for this month. >> Thank you, Dr. Goldburn. [snorts] Mr. Mer, can I have a motion to approve section 13, curriculum and instruction items A through G? >> So moved. >> Second. >> Thank you, Miss Akone. Comments or questions from the board? [clears throat] hearing. None. We'll take a vote. Mr. McGuff. >> I'd like to abstain from 13A1 line three. I to everything else. >> I I >> I abstain from uh item 13A1, line two, uh approve everything else. Motion approved. Moving on to section 14, special education. Mrs. Llewellyn. >> Thank you, Miss Fiswer. Under letter A, contracts seeking the board to approve uh two contracts with
047uh Burlington County Educational Services Unit and First Children's Services to provide one-to-one teacher assistance for three students and also seeking the board to approve an agreement with care options for kids provide nursing services for one of our students for remainder of the school year. Under letter B, student placement, seeking the board to approve a tuition contract agreement with Archway programs created creative achievement academy for one student for remainder of the school year. And letter, excuse me, letter C, consultant agreement. There is none this evening. Thank you. >> Thank you, Miss Llewellyn. Miss Falconero, can I have a motion to approve special education items A through C? >> So moved. >> Second. >> Thank you, Mr. Kenny. Comments or questions from the board? Hearing? None. We'll take a vote. Miss Tadley. >> I motion approved. Moving
048on to section 15 policy. Mr. Capella. >> Thank you, Mrs. Fitzwwater. Uh under section one for policy, letter A, uh seeking the board to approve four policies uh that are either new or revised. And then under number two is seeking the board to abolish four policies uh that were previously um on our policy guide and have been uh modified and um consolidated into a different policy. [snorts] >> Thank you, Mr. Capello. Mr. McGuff, can I have a motion to approve section 15 policy item A? >> So moved. >> Second. >> Thank you, Mr. Trump. Any comments or questions from the board? >> Hearing none, we'll take a vote. Mr. Dadley >> I I >> I motion approved. >> Okay. >> Uh moving on to section 16 business and finance and Mrs. Wilkkey. >> Thank you
049Mrs. Fitzwwater. Under section A grants that the board approves item number one the revised funding statement for services under chapter 1921 193. Item number two that the board approves the carryover amounts for IDA from 2425 to the 2526 school year. Item number three that the board approves the ESA carryover amounts from 2425 to the 2526 school year. And item number four that the board accepts the New Jersey farm to school grant allocations for the middle school and the high school under section B finance that the board item number one that the board approves the staff mileage reimbursements as listed. Item number two, that the board approves and accepts the annual comprehensive financial report for the school year ending June 30th, 2025 with no recommendations. And item number three, that the board approves the removal of
050the Pam Creps dedicated volunteer scholarship due to a $0 balance and a discontinuation of funding. Under [snorts] section C operations, item number one, that the board approves the revised list of board meeting dates for the remainder of the 2526 school year and the upcoming 2627 school year. Item number two, that the board approves the memorandum of understanding between Rowan College at Burlington County and the Cinnamonson Township Board of Education for the 2526 academic school year. And item number three, that the board approves the discarding of the 170 Chromebooks for a surplus sale via GOV deals, which are obsolete. Under section D contracts, that the board approves the lease purchase agreement between the Cinnammenson Township Board of Education and Cogent Bank for the purchase of three school buses at a cost of 497,750. And item number
051two, that the board approves the revised 2526 receiving tuition contracts. Thank you, Mrs. Mrs. Fitzwater. >> Thank you, Mrs. Wilkkey. Mrs. Tadley, can I have a motion to approve section 16, Business and Finance, items A through D? >> So moved. >> Second. >> Thank you, Mr. Maker. Comments or questions from the board? >> Hearing none, we'll take a vote. Mr. McGuff. >> I motion approved. Moving on to We don't have any other business right now. Moving on to public comment. During the public comment section of the meeting, the uh the board will seek public comment on any item. Members of the public are reminded that if they wish to speak when called upon, participants should state their first and last name and address clearly for the record. In accordance with sentiments and board of education
052policy, comments will be limited to a maximum of four minutes per person. The comment period will not exceed 30 minutes. Pursuant to the Open Public Meetings Act, the board will not publicly discuss or comment on monor matters involving personnel litigation, negotiations, [snorts] or the attorney client privilege. The board may choose not to respond to comments made by members of the public during this portion of the meeting. However, all comments will be given appropriate consideration. Matters requiring follow-up will be referred to the superintendent for resolution. Please be aware that all board employees retain the right of privacy and shall retain all rights against defamation and slander according to the laws of New Jersey. The board shall not be held liable for comments made by members of the public. And with that said, is there anyone who
053wishes to speak? [snorts] [clears throat] What [snorts] Scott Nwiki 830 Hilltop Road. I want to speak tonight about transparency because when transparency disappears, trust follows right behind it. This fall, my son's IEP was changed to state that he spends roughly double the amount of time with general education peers than he actually does. That is not a judgment call. That is not a difference of opinion. That is a mathematical claim that does not match reality. When I noticed the discrepancy, I did what any reasonable parent would do. I asked for the details of the calculation. I asked how the district arrived at that number and I explained why it did not match my son's actual daily schedule. What followed was not clarity. It was deflection. The explan the explanation shifted from software issues to passing time
054assumptions to the suggestion that if the calculation was wrong, it must be wrong statewide. Responsibility moved constantly, but account accountability never appeared. The software itself performs a simple calculation based on inputs entered by district staff. Yet, no one took responsibility for the assumptions entered or for how those assumptions produced a placement description that overstated my son's inclusion by nearly double. Eventually, the district proposed amending the placement category, quietly acknowledging that the original representation did not reflect reality. But even then, critical questions went unanswered. There was no explanation of how the original number was derived for from my son's actual schedule. No minute-by-minute breakdown after multiple requests, no documentation, no ownership. This is not transparency. This is avoidance. And this is where I want every parent in the district to listen carefully, especially parents of children
055who do not have IEPs. Placement categories are not just paperwork. They are used for state reporting, compliance monitoring, and evaluating how inclusion how inclusive a district truly is. When time that is not actually inclusive is counted as inclusion, the picture presented to the state, to the public, and to parents is distorted. If my son's inclusion time can be overstated by double, then parents should reasonably ask, "How often does this happen?" How many families are relying on numbers that look reassuring on paper, but do not match what their children actually experience each day? I strongly encourage parents of children with IEPs to review their child's placement category and ask how it was calculated, especially for students who are segregated for most of the school day. These numbers should should reflect reality, not inaccurate assumptions and and
056parents should not have to fight for basic explanations. District administrators, including the case manager, the director of special services, and the superintendent, have known about these concerns for weeks. They were copied on communications. They tacidly acknowledged errors and still the underlying documentation has not been produced. That raises a serious question. What is the district trying to avoid showing? The board's responsibility is not satisfied by sending concerns back to the same administrators who created the problem and then declined to address those concerns honestly and transparently when they were raised. Oversight exists precisely precisely for situations like this. When explanations shift, documentation is withheld and confidence in the accuracy of district reporting begins to erode. I am asking this board to do three simple things. One, ensure placement descriptions reflect what students actually experience, not inflated assumptions.
057Two, require transparent, verifiable calculations that parents can review. And three, make clear that accountability for accuracy rests with district leadership, not software, not excuses, and not silence. This is not This is not just about my son. It is about whether families can trust what this district puts in writing. And trust once broken is very hard to restore. Thank you. >> Thank you, Mr. Noiki. Anyone else? Okay, we'll move on to uh comments from the board. Mr. Kenny. >> Thank you, Mrs. Fitzwwater. Congratulations to all of our fall and winter athletes. Go Pirates. Congratulations to the award winners tonight, especially Mrs. McGonagal. And a thank you to Mr. Inverso for the annual audit report that he makes sound so interesting and understanding. [laughter] Our next regularly scheduled meeting will be on Tuesday, February 17th, right here
058in the cafeterium. More information can be found on the district website. That's it. Good night. Thank you. >> Thank you, Mr. Kenny. Uh we will be convening until executive session. We will be um conducting a little bit of business after that executive session. Uh can I have uh Mr. Kenny, can I have a motion to uh move into executive session? >> So moved. >> Second. >> Thank all in favor. >> Opposed. All right, we're going into executive session. Good night, folks. I don't know. So moved. Second. Second. Thank you, Mr. Maker. [clears throat] >> Uh, all in favor? >> I posted. All right, we're back in public session. Uh, Mr. Capello, you're going to you for other business number two. >> Thank you, Mrs. Fitzwwater. Under other business number two, seeking the board to approve
059items one through three that are listed in the agenda. >> Thank you, Mr. Capello. Uh, Miss Iikone, can I have a motion to approve section or item 22, other business number two, letter A? >> So moved. >> Second. >> Thank you, Miss Trump. Uh, all in favor? >> I opposed. >> All right, that motion uh goes through. Um, Mr. Bramhole, can I have a motion to adjurnn? >> So moved. >> Second. Second. All in favor? Opposed? We are adjourned. Night.