Dover Public Schools BOE Meeting - 12-16-2025

001Good evening. I'd like to call this meeting to order. Uh for those who wish to provide public comment remotely, a Google form was posted on the district website at 6:30 p.m. Those remote comments will be addressed in the second public comment section. This meeting, which is hereby called to order at 6:32 p.m., is in compliance with the notice requirements of the law. Public notice was posted in the office of the board of education and communicated to the municipal clerk and the daily record on January 15, 2025. Can we please stand and uh do the flag salute? I pledge algiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. >> Mr. McCort, will you please read our

002mission statement? Working together as a community, our mission is to welcome all and provide opportunities for our students in a safe and accepting learning environment to become creative, empathetic, resilient, and who choose to make an impact. Thank you. Can we please have a roll call? Mr. Suedo, >> present. >> Miss Downs, >> present. >> Mr. Mor present. Miss Phillips >> here. >> Miss Penellis >> here. >> Dr. Center >> present. Miss Shower >> here. Miss Son >> here. Mr. Miller >> here. Okay, Mr. Haimey, we have some presentations. >> We do have presentations this evening. Uh, at this time, I'd like to call Mr. Shan Bulock up to the podium. [clears throat] Okay, good evening everyone. Um, first I want to start off uh with a thank you to Mr. Miller, our board president, and

003the rest of the uh Dover Board of Education along with our superintendent, Mr. behind me um for the opportunity to acknowledge our student athletes uh here from our fall sports tonight. Uh we have three presentations that I'd like to make. Our first presentation um is for Dover Middle School boys cross country runner Dylan Alvarado. Dylan, come on up, please. [applause] Dylan was the individual divisional champ at the Greater Morris County Middle School Championships uh this fall. Um he won the entire race. Uh uh we have approximately 30 schools in that Greater Mars County League. He had a phenomenal season and uh you know to be the individual winner in that race is phenomenal. So um I'm glad we had an opportunity to recognize him. I also want to pay uh tribute and thank you to

004coach Billos and coach Gross who are also here this evening um in their time and efforts and preparing and training Dylan this year uh to help him guide to help guide him towards these accomplishments. So, congratulations to Dylan Alvarado. [applause] >> All together once. >> Our [snorts] second presentation um and recognition is to our do boys soccer team. Uh we do have two young men here uh this evening. Um Isil Aa Ales, please come on up. And Jason Maya Mendoza [applause] along with Coach Hoy. If Coach Hoy could please come on up as well. So, I'm just going to read through uh the remaining uh members of this year's fall 2025 boys soccer squad. Caesar Aguilar Vargas, Daniel Arginal, Joshua Berentos Rodriguez, Brian Cabrera, Castro, Luis Canales Viea, Christopher Dante, Jaden Diaz, Matias Gonzalez, Sebastian

005Molina, Luro Monttero, Christopher Morales, Mesa, Andreas Achoa, Lopez, Armando Palifox, Yanz, Anderson Pana, Gabriel Rivera, Lar Rosa, Gabriel Rodriguez, Alexander Roman, Steven Rugal, Fabio Sanchez, Gonzalez, Brian Valdez, Eric Romero, Kevin Vidz, Francisco Vieiraa Oola, and Andrew Yumosza. So, our boys soccer team uh this season, the team demonstrated tremendous grit and determination, and they went toe-to-toe uh on several occasions with the top teams in the state of New Jersey. Um, losing a heartbreaker to the number 10 team uh ranked team in the state uh in our our uh second round state match um that was decided in the last minute. Um so, once again, they had a phenomenal season. They were the divisional champions again. Uh this is backto back for them. Uh so we wanted to congratulate and recognize them for the tremendous season that

006they did have here for Dover High School. Congratulations to our boys soccer team. [applause] Our third our third group is our boys cross country team. Uh, if I could have uh our head coach uh Coach Madison and assistant coach uh Coach Schmidt please come up. [applause] So, we're recognizing um our boys cross country team. They were the Colonial Division champions for the NJAC conference this fall. Um, and I think this is worth noting. Uh, this 2025 dual meet season, this team was undefeated and had an amazing 13-0 record in dual meets this year. Very, very balanced team. Um, and uh, very obviously very tough to beat in the dual meet cross country event. Um, I want to thank our head coach, uh, Madison and and coach Schmidt for their time and efforts in training, preparing

007the team as well. Um, this is also a young team, so we're bringing back quite a bit for next year, and hopefully uh Dylan's going to find himself uh into that into that lineup as well coming up from the the middle school. So, at this time, I'd like to acknowledge the varsity members of our boys cross country team. Jose Castalanos Delgado, please come up, [applause] GMO Flores. >> [applause] >> I've seen it. Believe me, they run faster than they walk. [laughter] Uh, Nicholas Lombardi, [applause] Christian Okendo [applause] Jim Torres, [applause] Juan Torres, [applause] And we have two other members who were unable to join us this evening. Esuardo Calderon Alvarez and John Fuentes. So congratulations [applause] to our boys cross country team on a phenomenal season. [applause] if we could have this group stay and

008then if we could have our our boys soccer uh players please come up and join us along with Dylan for a photo with our board president and superintendent. Coach Gillos and Coach Rose if you could join us as well. Everybody pretend they like each other. Thank you. >> Make it at [clears throat] At this time, I'd like to open this portion of the meeting for the first public comment. Uh the board recognizes the value of public comment on educational issues and the importance of allowing members of the public to express themselves on school matters. To ensure fair and orderly expression of such comment, each statement shall be held to a time period of three minutes. Public comments limited to items on this agenda shall be entertained for approximately 30 minutes upon the discretion of the

009presiding officer. Please understand that public comment portions of our agenda are not structured as question and answer sessions, but rather they are offered as opportunities to share your thoughts with the board. The board may or may not respond to public comments. However, all comments are considered and will be investigated and addressed as appropriate. Please be courteous and mindful of the rights of others when providing comments. Comments may not be abusive, obscene, threatening, or irrelevant. Please understand that students and employees have specific legal and privacy protections. The board is not pres per permitted to respond to public comments about students or employees. Please be advised that you are commenting at your own risk. Any public comments that are directed at a particular individual or individuals could subject you to legal liability for defamation. Is there anyone

010in the public that wishes to speak on agenda items only? Not seeing everyone. I'm going to close this portion of the meeting. And can I have a motion to approve the minutes and the executive session minutes from November 18th? >> I'll make a motion. >> Second. Any comments or questions about the minutes? >> Okay. Can we have a roll call, please? MO >> I've seen to both regular and executive session. MS. >> Yes. >> Mr. Mako, >> abstain to both. >> Miss Phillips, >> yes. >> Miss Panes, >> yes. >> Dr. Ser, >> yes. >> Miss Shower, >> yes. >> Miss Son, >> yes. >> Mr. Miller, >> yes. >> I am not aware of any whole board communications. >> You don't? >> Okay. >> And we have a replacement for tonight as our school

011board representative, Mr. Lee, can you uh give us your report? >> Good evening, members of the board. I'm here to fill in today for Sophia Garcia since she is unfortunately out sick. Uh I would like to update you on some of the events and initiatives going on at the high school since our since the last board of ed meeting. So, first off, we are proud to announce that over 250 parents and family members attended our new PBIS first marking period awards ceremony on the morning of November 26th. Over 300 students who earned high honoral or regular andund over 100 students were nominated for catch a tiger awards for being rare, received certificates, and were honored during assembly here in the high school auditorium. We look forward to celebrating the success of our students going forward

012throughout the year. And speaking of awards, we also had Do High School's educator of the year award. This was given out to Miss Hannah Almo and also Mr. Kirby Hollingsworth who has a unique ability to make students, staff, and parents feel heard and valued. And also to our dance teacher, Miss Homer. Our first round of academic assistance sessions took place this Wednesday. Took place on Wednesday evening and Saturday mornings in November. Students who had academic or attendance challenges during the first learning period were invited to attend one or more three-hour sessions where they worked through online courses designed to provide them with instruction and practice with the skills that they need to meet success moving forward. The good news is that 35% of the students who attended academic assistance successfully completed at least one course

013and we will be reviewing the program and ensuring success goes on throughout the year. On the topic of academics, DHS administration recognized that academics and attendance go hand in hand. And in an effort that students get the most instructional time possible, we started a new attendance policy here at the high school where if a student does not get to classroom on time before the bell rings, the student must report to the main office and receive a blue pass and scan in late through Genesis. This has helped a lot of administrators, teachers, and counselors keep track of tardy issues and also make students more aware of getting to class since you see a lot of kids hustling in the hallways now instead of just um hanging around in the hallways after the bell rings. And to

014be honest, I was not a big fan of this policy with a bunch of other students since I share a common issue of going from all the way from the gym to the far side of the building. But a lot of students I've seen now are starting to hustle. So now it's getting easier. But it was something that will improve and we'll keep going forward. And another big change came as a result of students and teachers expressing concern over the loss of traditional home room periods. Miss Ross has worked with students, teachers, and administrative team to come up with a designated time for announcements to increase communication between the students, staff, admin without cutting into class instructional time. And also, the DHS staff has been celebrating 12 days of holiday cheer courtesy of the DHS

015admin team [snorts] where each staff member participates in activities and competitions, gets to enjoy treats like hot chocolate or popcorn. And leading up to next week's winter pep rally, students will join in the in spirit week, which will include things like ugly sweater day um as one of the examples. And Miss Ross and the student government are working hard to increase school spirit and change the narrative. And upcoming at the high school, we have our DHS winter concert, which will be held on December 22nd at 700 p.m. in the high school auditorium. Please come and support our arts. Be sure to also follow our DHS Instagram account where we'll be posting content about things going on at the high school like the dance challenge that is currently going on between staff and students which will

016be very fun to watch. And last, be sure to come and support our winter sports teams, the boys wrestling team, our first ever girls wrestling team, the boys and girls basketball teams along with our first ever unified basketball team, winter track, cheerleading and bowling. Thank you. That is all. >> Thank you, Mr. Le. Your report's better than mine. Thank you. [laughter] Does anyone have any questions? Very important. Thank you very much. And you know the drill. If you need to leave, you know, you can just go. We don't want you to be late tomorrow. >> Thank you. >> Okay. Uh good evening everyone. Uh since our last board meeting, I attended the Mars County School Boards Association meeting where the primary focus was artificial intelligence, specifically how AI can enhance student learning and strengthen community

017engagement. There was an excellent panel discussion on the practical uses of AI in schools as well as the importance of establishing strong policies to guide ethical use. Our district does have policies in place including acceptable use of generative artificial intelligence and academic integrity which hold our students to high ethical standards and using AI responsibly. These policies reflect our commitment to innovation and integrity, ensuring that new technology supports learning rather than replaces it. I also had the joy of attending the breakfast with Santa event at Easttover Elementary. It was truly festive. Families, children, and staff coming together to create a wonderful to create wonderful memories. Santa was terrific. Uh the photos were magical and the sense of community was on full display. I want to thank our teachers, staff, and administrators for volunteering their time to

018make this event so special. Uh a special thank you to the Riverside Shop in Rockaway for donating trays of scrambled eggs, uh pancakes, and bacon. The food was fantastic and very much appreciated. Another highlight this month was the groundbreaking ceremony for the no do the new Dover Bridge Academy. It was an honor to speak at this milestone moment and I'm going to repeat a little my speech just because not everybody was there in the you know frozen weather that we had. Uh I brought with me a golden shovel that was first used 25 years ago for the twotory edition at North Dover. At that ceremony, my son, then just four years old, joined other North Dover students to help turn the soil for a future they could barely imagine. That memory reminded me that every

019improvement we make in this district is an investment in children that we may not even know yet. As someone who attended North Dover as a sixth grader, I still remember how intimidating it felt to think about moving up to middle school. The Dover Bridge Academy will provide our sixth graders with a dedicated space, a supportive transition, and programs designed to help them grow academically, socially, and emotionally. This isn't just a building. It is a thoughtful approach to preparing students for the challenges and opportunities of seventh and eighth grade. Over the last month, I also attended the curriculum, policy, and the Mars County ESC meetings. Uh, additionally, I had the pleasure of meeting Helina Skates, who will be joining us as our newest board member. Uh, we reviewed onboarding uh, materials to ensure that she will

020be ready to hit the ground running when she is sworn in at our reorganization meeting. Uh, as we approach the holiday season, I'd like to wish everyone a happy Hanukkah, merry Christmas, happy Quanza, and a happy new year. We look forward to seeing you all on January 5th at 6:30 for our board reorganization meeting right here in the cafeteria. Okay. Administrative reports. Mr. Haimey. >> Why don't you just I'll grab this one. >> Good evening everyone. Was no. Um, [clears throat] so just to echo a little bit of what Mr. Lelay had mentioned, I again want to congratulate all of our governor educators of the year as well as our governor educator personnel of the year. Uh, we will be honoring them at our board meeting in January. So again, I want to say big

021thank you to all of them and for the recognition. Again, uh, as I mentioned, you know, this is an opportunity for us to recognize all the hard work that our teachers and our personnel do here, uh, in our district. Um, and it's a small recognition, but the work that they do every day is important for our community. Again, I want to thank them for that opportunity. I know myself, Miss Gibbs, as well as Mr. Chewy and Mr. Carl went around to all the buildings, took pictures and opportunities, surprised some of the teachers, maybe gave them a little scare or two, but it was all in good intent, and it was very wellreceived. the kids were excited because they were able to also celebrate that moment with their teachers uh you know or the staff. So

022it was really a wonderful moment for all of us to be able to share and create some memories with our students. Um, I want to uh also speak on uh last board meeting. There was a uh comments and concerns regarding our edu staff as well as our sub uh situation here in district. And I wanted to just report back with some of the data and information that I was able to gather uh regarding um the comments that were made. And I just want to share with everyone that you know with edg staff this year one of the main things that I want to point out is that the reason we made a change from swing to edge staff is due to the fact that with swing there were concerns of safety and security and therefore

023uh we wanted to move away from the the swing organization. Uh again when it comes to our safety security of our students to me that is number one. Uh and we have to make some decisions and move forward with another organization which brought us to edu staff. Um and from September to October uh we ran our comparisons to last year on which one filled in more positions uh compared to swing and edg staff has definitely filled a much higher rate between September and October of this year which is very good news meaning that they are slowly but surely getting there. You know we're making some improvements. I also wanted to share that they have had now 23 active edge staff substitutes uh currently in the pool. you know that represent a 45% increase in the

024pool within the last three months. Uh four permanent subsue positions have already been filled throughout educ staff and place in buildings and the recruiting is still on the way for additional subs. I also want to mention that in the information that was also shared from the last board meeting. It was particular to one building. That building did start with a two position three positions that weren't filled. Therefore, it absorbed some of the permanent subs in there. And I know that Dr. uh Carlton as well as Mr. organo were also uh participating in coverages and assisting RNRs throughout the building. So, this was a total team effort within that building to making sure that those coverages were being taken care of and also the RNRs were being done for our teachers, uh which I think is

025very important. Um I also want to report in regards to our PDS, one of the things that I consciously wanted to do last year as a first-time superintendent, I really wanted to look at how many PDs we're having now throughout the year, right? It's important for us to be mindful of how many times we're pulling our staff out of the classroom, which takes away instructional time from our students as well. And compared to last year, uh between September and November, as a comparison, last year of 2024, we had 411 PD days um which meant you would we would have needed a total of 485 total subs. This year, we cut the number down from 411 to 252 PD days uh between September and Octo and October. Um, and we're still looking to continue make improvements.

026We are already having discussions for the following year and potentially creating some teachermies that would allow us to continue to do PD inhouse with our own staff, excuse me, our own staff as well. Um, with that reduction, what I want to share is that uh there was a decrease of 500 159 days, right, in PDS, but there was also the substitute demand decreased by 158. uh instructional school days increased by 35 which once again keeping our staff in the classrooms once again providing that instructional is so important for our students and the the last piece that I would want to share on this topic is that the the real challenge is not really the the the PDS or edge staff but the challenge is really our absences and once again as I mentioned in my

027focus Friday video you know I'm not here to tell anyone who they when or they can or cannot use their absences but I think we have to be mindful that when we have 70 80 or 130 abs absences in one day uh it does become a challenge and it puts a strain on not only our staff our teachers or the administration in order to cover these classes. So that is very important uh to be mindful of right because if at 130 days 130 absences in one day that brings us close to about 70 subs. There's no district in the state of New Jersey that be able to provide 70 subs to be able to cover one building. Um and myself and and the team will continue to um collect data. We'll continue to look at

028absences and see if there's any trends and and continue to see how we can better support our district and moving forward. U so we'll continue to keep looking at that information and see how we can continue on. But uh one of the notable things that I will mention is that some of the highest rates were on Fridays and many absences occurred with little to no notice. Uh there was about a 31% of our staff was calling out uh prior to an hour before school started. And one of the things that I want to be mindful, I didn't mention this in my Friday focus video, is that listen, if you have an absent, absolutely, if you put ahead of time, that will give us more opportunity to be able to get um our our our subs

029in place. Um but these are just facts and things that we want wanted to share at this meeting because it's important for us to have the whole picture as we continue to provide support for our teachers and continue to look at other programs or other ways of improving um our subservice here in Dober. Um I want to highlight and Mr. Mr. Lee kind of took the thunder from me. Uh the PBIS and honoral DHS again as Mr. Lelay had mentioned over 300 families. All right. I think the only concern I had that day was really the parking situation, but uh Mr. Wrench and I and M. Ross will have discussions about that for next year. But it was really an emotional day to really see our families being able to celebrate our students to see

030their achievements and what they've been able to accomplish. And that truly once again is an incredible moment for us to share together. And I know yes, high school students are, you know, they're older, but us as parents always want to have an opportunity to celebrate them in any moment. And that was a beautiful representation of the entire community coming together and celebrating them. But there also was something different done in that uh Miss Ross also celebrated the council department, CST, custodians, security guards, uh administration, you know, again, staff coming up there and celebrating them on on on the stage, right? because we wouldn't have these achievements with our students if not for the hardworking staff that we have here at at Dober public schools. Uh so that was a really beautiful moment of us all

031of us coming together. Uh Mr. Le had mentioned about the wrestling and I wanted to mention that as well as that is a new sport for our high school the girls wrestling. Um the first ever girls wrestling match at Dober High School took place on December 8th marking a historic milestone for athletic program. Although the team fell short 40 to 24, our athletes delivered an outstanding performance marked by by determination, skill and heart. Uh the energy in the gym was electric. Uh Mr. Bullock did share video with me and it was fantastic to really hear that energy of our students, family and staff came out to cheer the Tigers, celebrate the launch of a new program and our wrestlers demonstrated incredible grit in their matches and excitement throughout the event. So we're looking forward to

032uh more history being made by our girls wrestling team. Uh the groundbreaking ceremony as uh Mr. Miller had mentioned again uh great great morning. Uh it was a little bit cold uh but it really was an a great morning to really be together and really estab uh talk about the f future as we are making a historical monument historical moment here for do as we're looking to expand our uh facilities create more opportunities and programming for our students and one of the things that I want to share is that um in just recent conversation with uh community members as well as parents we are going to originally have planned a parent orientation or parent forum in March March, but I believe the sooner the better. So, we're going to be planning something for the end

033of January to really have a discussion. Uh, you know, show a layout of what the school is going to look like, also answer questions on scheduling. Uh, and with that said, I also we will also be introducing the new principal who is here tonight with us, uh, Miss Lanni Lucas, uh, the principal of Dover Bridge Academy. Congratulations. [applause] uh to our community. Uh we have a coat drive coming up this Friday starting at 9:00 am to 3 pm at uh 302 East McFarland which is our Door Middle School gymnasium. The uh district liaison are going to be working uh with the community giving out coats. I believe we've collected over 300 plus coats that we're going to be giving out to our community. So this is exciting. So once again it's December 19th this upcoming

034Friday from uh 9:00 a.m. to 3 p.m. So once again please if you have an opportunity come by. we're going to be giving out to our community. Um, congratulations to I'm thrilled to congratulate one of our high schoolers, uh, Mus Musam Sheir, sorry, one of our outstanding Dover High School seniors who has accepted the University of Southern California, where he will pursue an aerospace engineering, one of the most competitive and prestigious fields of study. Uh, even more impressive is that he also was awarded a highly distinguished QuestBridge match scholarship. The Quest Bridge Scholarship is a high achieving uh high achieving for students selected through a national college match program to receive a full 4-year scholarship covering tuition, room and board expenses with no loans. This is an honor uh reserved for the most uh academically

035accomplished and resilient students in our nation. So again, congratulations to him. [applause] Right. Um there was a steam day at North do where the students evolated in the steam day back in November 14th engaging all students in hand on activities sparked curiosity creativity problem solving across all grades from kindergarten design challenges of turkey traps engineering tasks like robots hands-on mazes and a save the Fred challenge students applied critical thinking collaboration and meaningful upper grades explore concepts such as stability motion and through the balloon rockets ramp uh experiments and tower building challenges that they highlighted the school's commitment to integrating science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics to engaging student centered learning experience. Um, also in the month of November, we didn't get a chance to to uh give them an opportunity uh the murder mystery uh

036play that we had here at the high school. I was here uh with several community members as well as board members, students, staff. An amazing evening. Uh, everyone that I kept hearing was raving about how great the program was that evening. It was amazing to see our kids perform. Kudos to them as well to Miss Gainer for putting this performance together and rehearsing and all the work that was put in. To all the staff involved. Again, our kids did an amazing job performing and never broke character, not once. Even when we tried talking to them, they stayed right in character. So, again, a fantastic job and I look forward to uh more performances in the future. um for a science continue to celebrate science at DM at DMS. Eighth grade science uh students recently attended

037the student to science facility at Whippony. Um and this is again an opportunity to work in in laboratory students opportunity to explore variety of STEM career path gaining insights on fields such as biotechnology, chemistry, engineering and environmental science. So a great again giving our kids our students that exposure and then the last piece I want to share on is our breakfast. Again as Mr. Miller had mentioned what a great n demonstration that was of our community uh coming together enjoying some laughs, enjoying some good food. Uh I actually found out the uh place who gave the um the food catered the food I'm sorry the name was >> Riverside Shop. >> Riverside shop. So the funny thing is uh Miss Carmelo Pox who went to pick up the food came to me and said, "Oh,

038Mr. the owner is was your son's former kindergarten teacher. And I was like, "Oh my god, that was so now I told my son, we're going to have to go for breakfast and and see her." Uh she was fantastic with him. Um but it was a great day and this was sponsored by the DEA uh PEP grant. So again, thank you. Um and everybody coming together again, it's just a great representation of our community really coming together and celebrating. And just the last were fantastic. So again, I look forward to um to everyone coming together and again a big thank you to our teachers for putting this together as well. So thank is all I have for tonight. >> Thank you. Wonderful report. Any questions for Mr. Himing? >> Okay, Mr. Sabahulu, our business administrator's

039report. Good evening all. Uh I'll be talking about the finance facilities uh section of the agenda items. Item four, the 202425 audit has been completed and submitted to the state's website on time. There was only one finding which was one time error and is already been corrected. Last year we had five findings, all of which have been addressed. Reducing from five findings to one demonstrate significant progress for the district. Item five, the auditor management report and corrective action plan for 2425 audit are uh presented for approval. Item six. Last year we passed a resolution for our door bridge academy requesting debt service aid. Since this project is being completed without debt service, the state has requested that new resolution to reflect that. Item seven, this item concerns uh the joint agreement for mine students to

040utilize our Wtech and CCM buses. Item eight. I am pleased that this agreement is up for April today. It it will enhance uh our transportation department by improving security, accountability, and communication. The new camera and GPS systems included in this agreement will allow us to track each bus in real time and enable two-way communication with drivers throughout the day. Item nine, the agreement up for April authoriz authorize uh NASC to audit our utility accounts for potential credits or refunds. This will this service will be provided at no cost to the district. Item 10. The projector in the high school auditorium is nearing the end of its life. To avoid disruption, we are proposing to replace it with a new projector and this proposal is up for April tonight. Items 11, 12, and 13. These items

041include two terminations and one tuition contract for which we are receiving district. Item 14. These are the required bus education drills we do twice a year. Additionally, our assistant business administrator Marenburg and I visited the Mandom Township School District on December 9 to discuss the transfer additional transportation routes from ESC to their district. This initiative is intended to generate fur further cost savings for our district's transportation budget in the upcoming year. Once agreements are agreements on specific routes are finalized, they will be presented on the board agenda for approval. As you remember, we approved one route this year and it's going great and we we save like almost $40,000. We are trying to get this up to five or seven. So, it will be a lot of savings. That concludes my report. Thank you. Thank

042you. >> Any questions for Mr. Sabahulu? Okay, we will move on to board of ed [bell] county educational services commission um held meeting last week uh but there's really nothing uh to report to this body legislative report. Dr. Ser, >> thank you Mr. Miller. Um I'm going to keep my comments to a minimum. There is much more information on um in the report if any of the board members want to look in the folder. Um the full assembly held a voting session on Monday, December 8th and pass the following legislation. The elimination of graduation proficiency test A41-21 would eliminate the high school graduation proficiency test which is required under current law to be taken in the 11th grade. Um, the NJSBA supports this bill, which was previously approved by the Assembly Education Committee on Thursday,

043December 4th. It has not yet moved in the Senate. The concussion management teams ACR 165 would urge school districts to establish concussion management teams. Basically, a group of school-based professionals that would ensure that students can return to school safely following um the classroom and sports related activities after a brain injury. The Senate Education Committee met on Thursday, December 4th um and approved uh some bills. The first one is only informational. The district consolidation without voter approval S4861 was heard by discussion only by the committee and therefore did not receive a vote. Um, as introduced, the bill would require the executive county superintendent of schools in each county to establish and submit the to the commissioner of education, the commissioner of education a consolidation plan to combine all school districts in the county other than county

044special services school districts or county vocational school districts. The plan would also recommend the consolidation of any school district which has a resident enrollment of less than 500 students and either the establishment or enlargement of an all-purpose regional school district in the county or the establishment and enlargement of limited purpose regional school districts in the county. The SFR reform S4885 would modify certain provisions of the state school funding law, including requiring the commissioner of education to take certain action concerning preliminary state school aid notices and school district budgets and would create the New Jersey education funding portal. The bill would require that the commissioner annually, no later than the end of the first week of December, provide each district with a preliminary state aid notice that details the minimum amount of state aid payable to

045the district in the succeeding school year. um and SFR reform. A different bill A5310S3917 would add certain requirements for the issuance of the educational adequacy report um in in the areas of um vocational stabilization aid and it also requires uh the the um establishment of a task forum to review special education funding. As I said, there's much more that happened. I picked the most relevant to our district. Um, but there are more details in my report. With that, I conclude my report. >> Thank you very much. Any [clears throat] questions for Dr. Sainer? Okay, we'll move on to the Mars County, New Jersey School Boards Association report. Miss DS, >> good evening. The Morris County School Boards Association meeting was held virtually on Tuesday, December 2nd. Due to the weather, they were able to successfully

046transition to a virtual format and had active participation. Members attending from our district were Mr. Miller, Mr. McCquort, Dr. Hicks, and myself. Incoming board members from across Morris County were recognized, including Dover's Miss Helena Skates. Good luck to Miss Skates as she becomes a member of the Dover Board of Education. Retiring members were also recognized. Incoming uh Okay. The program topic was empowering education, community voices for enhanced AI learning. As Mr. Miller had discussed before. Um the Irene Lefb Excellence in Boardmanship Award is um established in 2022 recognize recognizes a current school board member in Morris County who demonstrates exceptional leadership, a strong commitment to responsible and effective school governance, and dedicated service to the children of their community. This award is named in tribute to Irene Lefb, former president of the of both the

047Morris County School Boards Association and the New Jersey School Boards Association. The nomination process for the 2026 award has begun and the deadline is April 1st, 2026. Please check the NJSBA website for nomination criteria and the application link. I believe we have a few board members that fit this criteria. Um, mark your calendars. The next MCTSBA meeting is a virtual meeting. It's on Wednesday, February 4th, 2026. Um, and the topic is creating a positive school culture. Please register through the NJSBA website. This concludes my report. Thank you. >> Thank you very much. Any questions for Miss DS? Okay, we are moving on to administrative approval. Um could I have a motion to approve the uh HIV cases um with the correction for table A asse number six uh changed from unconfirmed to confirmed? >> So

048moved. >> Do we have a second? >> Second. >> Any discussion? Okay, we please have a roll call. Mr. Seo? >> Yes. >> Miss St? >> Yes. >> Mr. Mor? >> Yes. >> Miss Phillips? >> Yes. Yes. Miss Penellis, >> yes. >> Dr. Center, >> yes. >> Miss Shower, >> yes. >> Miss Son, >> yes. >> Mr. Miller, >> yes. >> Okay. Personnel, Miss Selenus. >> Good evening, everyone. I would like to make a motion upon the recommendation of the superintendent and the board to approve personal items 1 through 12, including the addendum. >> Do we have a second? >> Second. >> Any discussion? I would I would just like to say it is quite refreshing to have already got the principle for the annex in place. Um I know that'll be a huge help

049in the transition process and was probably the point of having them uh selected so quickly and I think even better um that it was someone chosen from within the district. So uh I just want to thank the administration for being so diligent in that and getting it taken care of so early. >> Uh thank you. Thank you. And our our objective again is we we know this is going to be a huge undertaking and um you know to have a familiar face already attached to our building as it's coming. It'll give our families, our students, our community to have someone already associated and uh designated to the building and again appreciate it though. Continue with the work. >> Building the bridge early. >> Yes, bridging. Lots of bridging. >> Any other comments? >> Roll call,

050please. >> Mr. >> Yes. >> Miss Downs. >> Yes. >> Mr. Mort? >> Yes. >> Miss Phillips? Yes, >> Miss Penellis. >> Yes, >> Dr. Center. >> Yes, >> Miss Shower. >> Yes, >> Miss Son. Yes, >> Mr. Miller. >> Yes. >> Negotiations. Miss Solitus. >> There's no negotiation report at this time. >> Thank you. >> All right. Thank you. Uh, governance, Miss DS. >> I'm actually going to do that report because Miss DS was not at the last meeting. >> Thank you, Miss Phillips. >> You're welcome. Um, so the governor's committee met on November 25th at 6:30 p.m. In attendance was myself, Miss Selenus, and Mr. McCort. Um, we reviewed the committee chair description, which basically spells out the expectations of what a committee chairperson should be doing. Um, during our discussion, we made

051a few modifications which I have to actually put into the document and then that will be ready to share with the full board at our January meeting. We also talked about implementing um endofear summaries from all chairpersons. So basically each chairperson would provide a b a brief end ofear summary which the incoming chair for the following year can utilize um for guidance. Obviously they can review the minutes but a brief summary would make for a smoother transition. So um we will provide some more guidance on what that will look like in our January meeting as well. And that concludes our report. >> Great. Thank you very much. >> So there's the >> the bylaw second reading. >> Oh, is there? >> Um >> Oh, there sure is. >> Yeah, I was going to say >>

052we need a motion. >> It's okay. >> Work together. [laughter] >> All right. Wait, hold on. I got to catch. >> There was like a mic drop after the report. [laughter] >> Wait. So, >> page 18. >> May I? >> You can do that. Okay. So, we have um bylaw PO173, duties of public school accountant. PO 174, legal services, and PO 177 professional services. Up for a second reading. I make a motion. >> Second. >> Okay. Any discussion? >> Thank you. >> Okay. Roll call, please. >> Mr. Suedo, >> yes. >> Miss DS, >> yes. >> Mr. Mccor, >> yes. >> Miss Phillips, yes. >> Miss Penellis, >> yes. Dr. S. Yes. >> Miss Shower, yes. Miss Son, yes. Mr. Miller, >> yes. >> Student achievement and curriculum. Dr. Ser. >> Thank you, Mr. Miller.

053Uh, the student achievement and curriculum uh committee met early at 5:15 on December 9th with Mr. Haime, Mr. Carl, and Mr. Chewy in attendance. Um, despite starting 15 minutes early, we ran late. Um, thank you, Mr. Haime, for taking some of the items on this list. We talked extensively about um substitute teacher staffing concerns. Um the results of which uh Mr. Hem has already shared with you. We discussed the fall murder mystery dinner theater experience. Again, a huge shout out to the cast, the crew, and the staff that made that special night possible. We discussed um a grant support letter um in conjunction with Ruters for the RU AI Ready grant which would um allow us to uh integrate the RU AI ready program um which integrates AI instruction with authentic assessment and we're already

054doing part of this with our DMS computer science class. We learned about new and revised course plans happening um at DHS for 2026 2027. Um we are going to be having a course called Rhyme and Reason, the literature of hiphop culture, the making of Latin America 1492 to 1900, Latin American storytelling, music in film and on stage, Broadway show choir, and three more AP courses, AP Human Geography, AP Studio Art, and AP Music Theory. Um we discussed the planning um that is going on um in conjunction with the sixth grade um bridge academy um and looking at the schedule and how we'll be organizing those sixth grade students. We talked about uh teachers uh working together to plan in their PLC's in the elementary schools to plan their marking period to benchmarks. Um teachers have

055already met and assessment has been shared. teachers in that grade level met in their PLC's to provide feedback on the proposed assessment. Changes will be made and the assessment will be then be given to um ESL special ed and uh their special teachers to make their modifications to support students prior to giving it to students and kudos to um the staff for working so hard on that. um elementary administrators and the bilingual ESL world language teams from across the district visited classrooms at Academy Street schools to see how balanced literacy is executed in those classrooms. Um focused on what teachers were doing well as well as feedback to help teachers grow. Um we're looking to standardize expectations. Um and then we have future plans to go into dual lingual dual language and bilingual classes as

056well as special education inclusion and self-contained classrooms. Uh we mentioned the district honor role assemblies and the eighth grade students who attended the students to science facilities. And then we discussed the um updated and improved process for supervisors to be involved in the budget planning for the 2025 2026 school year um with the idea to include supervisors as much as possible and streamline the ordering and the budget process. Um and then we started to look at some data uh looking at student failures to look at trends and what uh the district can do to support those students. Um that concludes my report. I move that we ex Sorry, my computer's slow. I move that we accept items 1 through five on the agenda. I'll make a second. >> We have a a motion and a

057second. Any questions, Miss DS? >> No, I'm sorry. I didn't. >> Oh, okay. I just want to mention that it it was very exciting to talk about the bridge academy and how it's going to work for the students where they will have several different classes that they will go to. Um I know typically in elementary school they may be switching maybe one class or two. Um but there'll be a little more to kind of get them used to what it's going to be like going to middle school and high school. But there's also a lot of opportunity with um being able to um take advantage of some programs at the high school because of the proximity and then of course being able to do some things at the middle school level too. So the sixth

058graders will be pretty busy and I think it's going to be a special place that really is going to set them up for success, you know, going forward. So really really happy about that. Um, if there are no other comments, uh, roll call, please. >> Mr. Sme, >> yes. >> Miss DS, >> yes. >> Mr. Mor, >> yes. >> Miss Phillips, >> yes. >> Miss Penellis, >> yes. >> Dr. Ser, >> yes. >> M Shower, >> yes. >> Messes, yes. >> Mr. Miller, >> yes. >> Community relations. Mr. McCory, >> the community relations committee met briefly um virtually on December 2nd. Uh all members were in attendance myself, Miss Selenas, Miss Panales, and Miss Phillips. Um the main topic of discussion was uh concerning vacancies on the citizens advisory committee, both current and future. Um

059um we also were provided a a brief update on the student forum um that is currently being planned for the end of January. Um as and uh that concludes my report. I would like to move uh agenda item one which seeks to um open the application process to fill a maximum of three positions on the citizens advisory committee as a result of current and future vacancies with an application deadline of January 31st of 2026. >> Is there a second? >> Second. >> Any questions? >> I just have one. How How are we advertising that? Where is it going to be advertised? My assumption was in the normal ways which is on the website and then there was historically there's been a post on social media and then of course any board members sharing it. Um

060>> Okay. >> I just want to make sure. >> Yeah. >> Mr. Miller, I have a quick question. So currently we have three positions open on the on the advisory board. >> So um there has been one vacancy since the beginning of the term. um we we were only able to fill nine of the 10 seats. Um since then um we had a member um um violate the attendance policy um which as a result of that resulted in their immediate you know they were deemed to have resigned. Um so that's the second vacancy. The third vacancy will be Miss Gates um who is currently a member and who will cease to be a member you know immediately on on her assumption to the board. So, um, the the discussion that we had as a committee

061was that, you know, we've got the we've got the one, then we got the second, we know we're going to have a third. So instead of waiting until the January meeting to open up the application process, then we can open it up now and then the next who whatever the next community relations committee is will have uh you know the last two weeks of January to receive applications and then review in ahead of appointing people at the February meeting. So sort of sort of move the process up a month. Um otherwise it would have been March before we'd appoint anybody. So, at this 122 meeting, did we have more board members at this meeting than community? >> Uh, the 122 meeting was a meeting of the community relations committee, not the citizens of >> Okay.

062Thank you. >> Okay. Well, thank you. That's a good idea. Might as well get it started. >> Uh, any other comments? >> Roll call, please. >> Mr. Suedo? >> Yes. >> Miss DS? Yes. >> Mr. Makor? Yes. >> Miss Phillips? Yes. >> Miss Penales? Yes. Dr. Sor? Yes. >> Miss Shower? Yes. Miss Ernes? Yes. Mr. Miller? Yes. Policy. Miss Panales. >> Good evening everyone. The policy committee met on December 9th. All of us were in attendance as Mr. Miller, Mrs. Shower, Mr. Mccor, and myself as well as Mr. Heinman. We only have four policies for second reading. Policy 5336 on therapy dogs. Policy 1631.1 on notification of promotion, new job and transfer opportunities. Policy 5339.1 on student sun protection. Policy 6471 on school district travel. And we had a discussion on policy 2535 on library

063material. We discussed how the board of education believes the freedom of to read is a human right constitutionally protected by the first amendment of the United States Constitution and individuals have the right to free inquiry and the right to form their own opinions. Our next policy committee meeting is to be determined. And with that, I would like to make a motion to approve policy item one. So moved. Second. >> Any comments, >> Mr. Miller? >> Uh, Dr. Singer. >> Um, I have a question about policy 6471. Um, I don't remember the exhibit, the business travel one. Um, section 4C4. Um, which states when two or more employees and/or board members are traveling to the same event in the Northeast Corridor, rail travel shall not be authorized. In those cases, the travelers must use a school

064district vehicle or if not available, a personallyowned vehicle must be used. And my two questions are, what legal liability does forcing staff members to drive opens us up to? And what if staff members cannot or are uncomfortable using their own transportation um for long-distance travel? Uh we so the district oop sorry so the district um what we do is we we cover and that's why we collect the staff's insurance and registration for the vehicles to make sure that they do have insurance and registration for any travels that they have to do for PD or professional development anything of that nature. >> So that protects us from legal li that's the answer to the first question right that protects us from legal liability. But what if you have a, you know, staff members that are just

065uncomfortable maybe driving from do to Philly or DC and or maybe they have an older car and they don't want to, right? They're uncomfortable. They don't feel that it's safe to drive for 4 hours. >> I would have to I would have to do a little more research on that to see what some of the old district potentially may be doing in regards to that. Um, and gather more information. Um, I know if a staff member says they're not comfortable and you know, obviously a PD is not is not obligated in a situation like that. So, if they're not comfortable driving, I mean, that's not they're not going to be penalized for that. >> Thank you. >> Any other questions? Roll call. >> Mr. >> Yes. >> Miss DS? >> Yes. >> Mr. Mccor? >>

066Yes. >> Miss Phillips? Yes. >> Miss Penales? >> Yes. >> Dr. Center? >> Yes. >> Miss Shower? >> Yes. >> Misses? Yes. >> Mr. Miller? >> Yes. Finance and Facilities. Mr. Shower. >> Thank you, Mr. Miller. Um, so the Finance and Facilities meeting took place on December 8th. Uh, we sat from 5:30 to 6:30 at the 21 Belmont Avenue administration office, which was all decked out in holiday decor and looks just adorable. So, I thank all of the staff for that. Um, attendance board members were Dr. Ser, Miss Asavdo, myself. Absent was Mr. Miller. Administration in attendance was Mr. Haime, Mr. Sabahulu, and our facilities maintenance director, Mr. Toth. Number one discussion, uh, the long awaited approval. Good news for all of us, hooray, is that the state has approved the purchase and renovation of

067the former Dober Sport building, 242 Route 46 in Dover. and our closing um I understand Mr. Saragulu believes that it should be within some sort of 30-day time period. We're do we have a closing date yet? >> Uh we don't have a closing date yet. >> Okay. Um and he we will be updated with that, but this is excellent news to start with. Um the Do High School generator project is still on target for the delivery of the actual generator on the 9th of January. Mr. Toad tells us hopefully his fingers crossed we get it a little bit earlier. He's pushing them for that and the project still remains under budget. Even though there's been so many long delays, it is still under budget. The HVAC upgrades at the Dober Middle School, North do and

068East do ROD project. The project majority is majority completed. The contractor is doing a punch list. Mr. Toe is also doing his own punch list with himself and our staff and they will compare that punch list to make sure that we are both on the same page. Um the sixth grade annex additional work to the original contract. The bathroom stall will changes from the specified stainless steel to a more applicable solid surface material which will stand up better to cleaning and to rust under regular use. uh of $6,500 has been accepted. The bathroom fixture upgrade of 66,500 has unfortunately been declined. Uh Mr. Toth will not give up though and he will seek fixtures um at a lower cost that are still appropriate and the adding of a modular kitchen warming unit for $217,000 to

069the um to the building has been accepted. So, that's a good um and very very useful uh extra that's added. These extra change orders will be part of the following year's budget. The groundbreaking ceremony did take place on December 8th. I have to mention that because it was a wonderful experience even though it was quite frigid. Everyone was very upbeat and happy to be part of it. Uh myself included. Uh it did not dim the cold certainly did not diminish the excitement and pride in this quick ceremony and I thank the board of ed my fellow board of ed members who attended and the town officials and the district staff that were there uh the repurposing of the HVAC closet spaces that were left empty after the um upgrade of the ROD project. Mr. to

070had discussed various uses for those spaces and actually um since I was in the building, the Easttover building um at the the breakfast with Santa on the 6th of December, he took me on a quick tour of one of the classrooms from the middle school section of the building that had been completed as a prototype and it came out excellent. It's a nice little cubby um that can be used as a book nook or shelving. There will be no door put on it, so it can't just be someplace to shove things. Um, it's going to be very well utilized and the our in-house staff did a great job with it. So, we're looking forward to more of those and so is Mr. Tote. He's very excited about it. Um the ongoing door replacement at East

071Dober Academy Street and North Dober is continuing as um as he has the time and the uh the building is available. The work will continue. Renovation and rehab work. Uh another little extra of uh Mr. To who seems to always have to keep very busy. He likes to keep very busy. Do high school boiler room. He found additional storage by organizing shelf units um for boxes and supplies so that things are not just uh scattered all about. He showed us some photos at the finance and facilities meeting and they did a great job. They really cleaned it up and it looks great. The do high school courtyard enclosure discussion ensued um for and it's right out here where the picnic tables are. Um Mr. Toth will investigate various options and discuss at our next finance

072and facilities meeting on some sort of barrier between the actual courtyard area and the uh drive through road. Uh there was discussion of fencing and I know that board members had more of an idea of some sort of decorative type of barrier that still keeps people safe and still presents a barrier between the courtyard itself and the road. So that's great. Uh Mr. Toth shared with us that the field groomer equipment and uh maintenance pickup truck, he has done some wonderful things with switching some of our vehicles around so that instead of using their personal vehicles, some of our groundskeeper crew and painters painting crew have now a one of our used vehicles switched around since we did purchase one uh I guess it was considered used pickup truck although at a very good price.

073Um the field grooming equipment will be used here at the uh high school for the baseball field but can also be used at Kingfield. Um so we'll be sharing those services with the town of Dover because we do use Kingfield. Also an action item is that Mr. to will investigate some sort of fencing/barrier option for the do high school cafeteria courtyard and report back to us with a um less enclosed feeling um option. Old business was that the 242 route 46 building has been purchased after long awaiting and we are very pleased with that. Uh new under new business, Dr. Sena reported a concern that the geese have returned to the Hamilton field track area and Mr. to verified that yes, in fact, the geese were back. Um, and he advised that the ongoing treatment

074it did work of the geese deterrent and that he was contacting the contractor to make sure that we uh treat again when the weather uh allows us to. Under finance, Mr. Sabagulu did um report to us the 2425 annual audit was completed successfully with only one finding. That's awesome news. Um there were some minor uh uh suggestions for changes and those were already in the works. So that's awesome. Also, Mr. Sabagulu reported that under the 2425 budget, there was a surplus, but this actual surplus is um payment items that are one-time special payments that go in and out of the account again. So, it's it's actually not a longstanding surplus. Um we are awaiting some of the payments that have to go back out and in the Dober High School auditorium projector replacement project that

075he just reported on. Um, again the the projector has been hanging on by a thread and uh the original quote I think was antiquated. It was a little old the original quote. So Mr. To was looking for a new quote and we'll report to the committee once that is done. Mr. Sabagulu did present to the to the committee the school bus camera and GPS system transfinder that he spoke of this evening. It sounds like an excellent option. >> Transportant. >> Yes. >> Oh, I'm sorry. I don't know where I got transfinder. >> Transfinder is so fair use for the routes. >> Oh, okay. Sorry about that. Um, so, uh, at a cost of $70,000, which includes a discount if we do sign on and agree on it tonight. So, that's very good if we can

076get it in under the line. Um, the new enhanced system will have options which include live realtime viewing of our buses as they are parked. So, that's also very good. Um our new next meeting the date will be of course determined after board reorganization and we concluded at about 6:30 and that is the end of my report and I would like to make a motion to move forward with items number 1 through 15 on the agenda. >> Second. >> Okay. Uh we have a a motion and a second. Is there any are there any questions Dr. Sam? Um my question is really just a comment. Um I read through the bus evacuation reports and I think our bus drivers play a vital and critical and really to parents making sure that their kids get to

077school in a safe manner is is really really important. And maybe it's my PTSD from my elementary days when I had to jump out of the back of the school bus, but the reports um some of them leave much to be desired. Um we have two different forms. I I know that the bus drivers also have two-way radios, but they don't have a cell phone with them to maybe call the police um or 911 if they needed to. Um, we're reporting evacuations at times when students aren't on the bus. So, I I understand that this is a state requirement, but I would respectfully request that we give great care to these reports because they may keep our children more safe if we do that. And, um, I've addressed more specific concerns with administration. >> If

078I may, I just make a little comment. uh as uh stated a cell phone is not required but right now we're going to have like a two-way communication with the new system anyways and it's going to be pretty quick. That's the first thing and the second thing is state only requires like a five six items on the form. We have like almost like a 10 items to get also like a repairs and everything done. We just using that form like something else too also but we just had a actually a meeting with the transportation coordinator to today and we we would like to you know standardize the forms. So this may I said we can keep that separate any in internal form we're going to keep it separate. So you're going to be seeing like

079better forms from now on and if anything not completed it's going to be reviewed again and make sure everything's going to be in much better order. >> Thank you Mr. Savahol. I really appreciate it. Thank you. Any other questions? Roll call. Oh, Mr. McCort. >> Um I I didn't originally had this question and then um Miss Shower's uh report brought it to mind. Um it appears that the that the um proposal on the agenda for the projector is updated. >> It is the final one. Yeah, we just got it. You can see the date on it. I think it's December 10th or something like that. And no, it seems no change in the price or >> No, I think it got lowered a little bit. I was very surprised with that. So, >> okay. Okay.

08041 something. >> Yeah. Yeah. >> Um and then I was just going to make a comment. Um the I'm very excited to see the the camera and the GPS system. Um this is something that um I know other districts use. U maybe not this exact system, but a similar system. Um, I know that, uh, you know, this has been something, this is something I know our parents will greatly appreciate. Um, and and, you know, especially the fact that we're able to um to get a discount by doing it by the end of the year. Um, I I appreciate the due diligence in in that. Um, and I think this will be a very worthwhile expense. Um, especially for the peace of mind of our parents. >> Definitely agree. Yes. >> Any other comments? >> I'll

081just I'll just mention that uh during the committee meeting, Mr. Toad did say that the original quote was a little over $42,000. So, um >> he does do his due diligence. He likes he likes to save wherever he can. So, he did come in a little bit under that >> with the uh the new price, I believe. >> Okay. Any other comments? >> Roll call. >> Mrs. >> Yes. >> MS. Yes, >> Mr. Morur. >> Yes, >> Miss Phillips. >> Uh, yes. And recuse myself for payments to vendor 1950. >> Miss Penelis, >> yes. >> Dr. Ser, >> yes. Recusing myself for payments to employee 9009685, please. >> Miss Shaw, >> yes. >> Miss Sles, >> yes. >> Mr. Miller, >> yes. Okay. Up up upcoming board meetings. Uh January 5th reorganization meeting. Uh we

082had one facility request. Um the Dover Educational Foundation, right? Is that what it is? Not fun. >> Do Education Fund. >> It's It's called the Dover Educational Fund. Foundation. >> Foundation. Yeah. Okay. That's what I wanted to make sure. >> Uh using the Dover High School Auditorium for a talent show. Um, that should be uh exciting to see. Uh, do we have any old business? Um, not it's sort of old business because it's happened. Um, it's really just a comment. I just um I want to echo um the comments everybody has made about the um the play. Um it was I've been to a lot of high school plays in my life. Um and it was by far the most interesting um the most engaging. It was really nice also to see the coordination between

083the drama department and the dance team. Dance team was was part of the part of the show. Um as uh they were all the servers and then there was you know dance numbers in the midst in the middle of um the um the pauses. But um you know uh speaking speaking to um the drama teacher about the reasons why this this play came about. Um I really gave me some insight into into her um thought process about um these plays in general and and you know she wanted to make sure they had something and so she went with this idea and it worked. Um I I told her repeatedly. I said, "Please do this again. Um it was just it was a little it was a little different for the parents in the community. You

084know, you had to buy your tickets ahead of time. Um they were a little more expensive, but um it was really an an amazing experience and and I could tell all this all the all the participants enjoyed themselves. So um I just wanted to echo those those positive comments because it really was something special. Um uh and and I really do hope that they're able to do something like it um in the future. >> Any other comments for old business? >> Mr. Miller, I would be remiss if I did not add u Miss Asdo and I came as well. We were there on Friday night and this room was transformed into a moody, dark dinner uh nightclub type area uh and with including chandeliers and walls that appeared and disappeared. It was uh our staff

085did a tremendous job and and I appreciate all of that that they did this. The kids were as Mr. um Haime said, they never broke character. They we tried I tried really hard but they did not [clears throat] break character. They did a really good job and the food was very good too. Food was very nice too. So it it was lovely and it was very nice to sit with other parents because there was no assigned seating although the tickets were sold ahead of time. So it was very nice to be able to just sit randomly with other parents. Uh it was very enjoyable. I I really did enjoy it. >> Any other comments? >> May I? >> Oh okay. Um, I didn't, unfortunately, I didn't get to attend that dinner theater, but I did

086attend some, um, events at North Dover. Um, one of which was Mrs. Derk Cole's fth annual Thanksgiving parade, which was on Wednesday, November 19th. It was an exciting way to share in the Thanksgiving holiday with the students. Um, the second graders paraded around the playground showing off their creative creative balloons and floats as the rest of the grades looked on and cheered. Kudos to the students, teachers, and staff for assisting in the success of another parade. Um, Mr. Cole, thank you for inviting me. And from what I understand, the weather held out um again. So for the 5 years that they've been doing it, they've been able to do it on the playground. Um also, I attended the North Dover Elementary winter concert on December 11th. I had the pleasure of listening to selections from

087the band and chorus. My favorite selection from the band was Blizzard Blues and have a happy happy holiday from the chorus. Attending this concert truly helped me get into the holiday spirit. A big shout out to the band director, Miss Andrews, chorus director, Miss Cho, Mrs. Gainer Matanti, Dr. Carlton, Mr. Geneo, and all the teachers and staff who made this concert a success. >> Thank you. Anyone else? Uh, new business. >> Yes, Mr. Miller. I have some new business. Um, I would like to report on the New Jersey School Boards Association November 22nd delegate assembly that I was honored to to attend. Um, as you'll remember, I did uh convey my questions to the board on how they wanted me to vote as a representative of the board. Um things went a little different than

088what we anticipated. Out of the original five resolutions that were proposed to New Jersey school boards, only three made it to the convention. Um uh which was held at the Mercer County College, I should say. Uh the first resolution was from the Delran School Board. Very interesting. Uh let's see here. And my report also is on um our shared drive online. So resolution number one was from the Delron Board of Education from Burlington County and they proposed new policy language for adoption by the delegate assembly for the inclusion of New Jersey school board's manual of positions and policies in education. The proposed resolution requested that the New Jersey school board support a limitation on the period of time for which a board member and charter school trustee criminal record history could be reviewed and that

089its language support that um that in the they would consider the nature of the crime committed before a board member or charter school trustee could be permanently disqualified from service. The resolutions committee recommended approval of the following substitute language. Um, the New Jersey school board believes that board members and charter school trustees should have the opportunity to demonstrate affirmatively to the commissioner of education evidence of rehabilitation upon finding of a criminal offense that would disqualify them from membership. Consideration shall be given to the date of the offense. a delegate from the Delron Board of Education actually moved to the resolution and then asked to withdraw it. So, um after lively discussion back and forth and we had to stop for 25 minutes because the fire alarm had been had gone off. So, we had to

090leave the building. We came back in and there was a vote taken and the resolution was postponed indefinitely. So that was item number one. Item number two, uh the Bridgewater Raritin board of education proposed new policy language supporting the belief that science tech Oh, I'm sorry. That's number three. Number two was the uh universal free lunch which was let's see uh from the Clifton Board of Education Paya County. They proposed new policy language that supports the belief that universal free school meals should be available to all preK through 12 students in the state of New Jersey. The resolution committee recommended approval of the proposed resolution with the following substitute language language that would amend current policy language to be included in New Jersey school boards association manual of positions and policies. New Jersey school board

091believes that a free school meal program should be offered to all students at the expense of the state andor federal government. That would be the added language. When open to the floor for discussion, there was very spirited debate on the topic with members presenting arguments on both for and against the resolution. And I might add that there were actually protesters on site making sure that um their voices were heard in reference to this item. This resolution was the only one that was actually approved for the day. So this is something that we have uh to keep our eye on for the future. Some of the school districts, for example, Sparta, um advocated for their district because the um the borderline for income is believed to be very high or very low for them, but it's

092actually not because they pay such high taxes in that town. So between paying their mortgage, paying their taxes, raising their families, they do not have enough money to meet the median of um applying for. So they had I think they said they had a debt of about $56,000. I know ours was at one point about triple that. Um and it's gone down a little bit last year. I believe we were 124,000 as per our audit of outstanding lunch monies. So it is a it is a discussion that had many different sides. Some people were against it, some people were for it, but um I know that our board voiced its opinion and we are happy that the resolution was approved. Resolution number three, the Bridgewater or Rarit and Board of Education proposed new policy language

093supporting the belief that science, technology, engineering, and mathematics, STEM education should be integrated into aspects of preK through the 12 curricula for all New Jersey students. The resolution subcommittee recommended adoption of the proposal resolution with substitute language that would revise the language in pol in the policy. New Jersey school boards believes that local boards of education themselves should dedicate an equitable amount of instruction time to science education in the elementary middle schools relative to the amount of instructional time allocated in other subject areas. When the floor was open for discussion, there was passionate arguments from both sides of the argument and a motion to propose pone again indefinitely was recommended. So this resolution was postponed indefinitely. Um there was also the election of a new president for New Jersey school boards, Mr. Michael Jacobs from

094the Ridgefield Bergen County and for vice president uh Bernardet Delisandro from Netcon. And that ended a very busy day that um I I found it very interesting. I had not been there in a very long time and it was definitely pre-automation. Uh so I was happy not to have to go through the roll call for voting and we just voted with the um automated equipment. >> Well, thank you again for spending your Saturday uh doing that. >> Thank you. I do have two other things uh quickly to report that the uh Mars County School Boards Association Legislative Advocacy Committee that I sit on did not meet for December. >> Okay. >> And that's the end of >> Does anyone else have anything in new business? >> May I? >> Okay. As as I sit here

095tonight attending my last board of ed meeting, I'm deeply aware of how full circle this moment feels. Do's public schools shaped who I am just as they shaped my husband, my parents, my siblings, my grandparents, my in-laws, and now my children. Few people get to say that a single school community has carried their family across generations. I am profoundly grateful that mine has. Serving on the Dober Board of Education has been one of the greatest honors of my life. This role is not about recognition. It is about responsibility. Responsibility to students. we may never meet to families who trust us and to a community that believes education is worth protecting, strengthening, and improving. Every decision we make here matters. Some are celebrated, some are difficult, and some are quietly necessary. I have always tried to

096approach this role with respect, care, and a genuine desire to do what is right for Dover's children. I want to thank my fellow board members, past and present, administrators, teachers, staff, and families. Public education succeeds only when people with different perspectives sit at the same table and keep students at the center. I have learned from each of you and I am better for it. To the educators who show up every day, often unseen and underappreciated, please know that your work leaves a lasting imprint for far beyond the classroom. I would also like to thank my family for their constant support. From the moment I decided to run, you stood behind me 100%. Your patience, understanding, and encouragement throughout my time on the board meant the world to me. This district gave my family opportunity, belonging,

097and a deep sense of pride. I served as a substitute teacher here, as did my husband, who also coached wrestling. Even earlier, my paternal grandfather began as a substitute teacher in 1958, earning $13 a day. an opportunity that allowed a Hungarian refugee work widowerower with little more than the clothes on his back to support his five children before becoming a university professor of art. University professor of art. Being able to give something back, especially in this in a leadership role, has been both humbling and meaningful. I will always carry Dober with me. not just as a community but as a part of my identity. While this chapter ends tonight, my belief in Dover's public schools does not. I will always be an advocate, a supporter, and a proud graduate of this system. Thank you for

098your trust, for the trust you placed in me. Thank you for the privilege of serving and most of all, thank you for continuing the work that ensures future generations will have the same opportunity that my family and now my children have been given. When the community believes in its schools, its future is already in good hands. I wish you all a blessed and peaceful holiday season and the very best for your future. Thank you. >> [applause] [applause] >> I just want to say that it's been great working [clears throat] with you. I know how dedicated you are to your children at Dover and personally. I had a lot of fun working with you and we know there's a lot of meetings and a lot of time spent. So, you dedicated a lot of time for

099three years. So, thank you. And uh you never know, you might be back. >> Thank you. >> Okay, so now we are at our second public comment portion. >> Uh before we um if I may just a moment. >> Sure. Um, I just wanted to say, um, though our time together was brief, um, Miss DS has shown me something, um, and that is to, um, not believe what you hear about people. Um, I have to say that uh it has been a true pleasure to serve alongside you. Um, and though I welcome Miss Gates with open arms, um, you will be missed and thank you for your service. >> Thank you. >> And Dr. S. Yeah, Miss DS. Um, I had goosebumps. Um, both because of your family's connection, but your philosophy on the responsibility

100and the importance of the work that we do on the board of education should be at the front of some NJSBA manual because if we truly put the students at the forefront, then our work is half done and we'll find that compromise that you talked about. So, I have enjoyed the last three years. I wish you nothing but the best in the future and I hope your path finds you, you know, curving back around to the board of education at some point. Thank you for everything that you've done for our kids. >> Thank you. >> Never say never. >> No, never say never. That's right. Anyone else? Okay, at this time I'm going to open this uh second public portion. Uh the board recognizes the value of public comment on educational issues and the importance

101of allowing members of the public to express themselves on school matters. To ensure fair and orderly expression of such comment, each statement shall be held to a time period of three minutes. Public comments not restricted to items on this agenda shall be entertained for approximately 30 minutes upon the discretion of the presiding officer. For those who wish to provide public comment remotely, a Google form was posted on the district website at 6:30 p.m. Remote comments will be read by a member of the board of education. The board of education will alternate between in-person and online comments. Please understand that public comment portions of our agenda are not structured as question and answer sessions, but rather they are offered as opportunities to share your thoughts with the board. The board may or may not respond to

102public comments. However, all comments are considered and will be investigated and addressed as appropriate. Please be courteous and mindful of the rights of others when providing comments. Comments may not be abusive, obscene, threatening, or irrelevant. Please understand that students and employees have specific legal and privacy protections. The board is not permitted to respond in public to comments about students or employees. Please be advised that you are commenting at your own risk. Any public comments that are directed at a particular individual or individuals could subject you to to legal liability for defamation. Is there anyone from the public that wishes uh to be heard? Little bit of a premature start on the on the reset. >> We can start over. All right. Good evening. John Kiglio, 24 Taylor Town Road, Modville. I would like to thank

103the board members, community members, and Mr. Hime for volunteering their time to support the Breakfast with Santa event on December the 6th. I would also like to extend a special thank you to our staff member, Carmemella Fox, for her efforts in securing the grant that made the event possible. For the sake of clarity, I would like to note that earlier it was mentioned that the food for the event was donated. That is not accurate. The food and the goodie bags were purchased through a grant that was obtained by the Do Education Association from NJA totaling nearly $2,000. We also appreciate the Riverside Shop for working with the DEA to support the event. However, the food itself was not donated. Next, I would like to thank the board for approving dedicated teacher time at the beginning

104of the school year to allow staff the opportunity to properly prepare their classrooms and instruction. This time allowed teachers to set up classrooms, decorate bulletin boards, prepare lesson plans, review IEPs, collaborate with par professionals, create name tags for student desks, organize student supplies, print clever badges, analyze data from the previous school year, review notes and genesis for current students that they have, and complete the many other tasks required before students arrive for the beginning of the school year. As any educator knows, the beginning of the school year is one of the most stressful times of the year. Providing this time to staff is essential to starting the school year off on the right foot. This past year, many do staff members shared with me that they experienced significantly less stress as a result of this

105decision. Teachers were able to return to school feeling calm, prepared, and focused on their students rather than anxious and overwhelmed due to a lack of preparation time. We are very grateful that the district and the calendar committee implemented this plan as it clearly supports staff well-being and ultimately a positive student experience. Thank you for recognizing the importance of this time and for continuing to support our do educators and students. Thank you, >> Miss Phillips. Are there any uh comments? >> There is one uh from Victor Creolo, 29 Everdale Road in Randolph. Congratulations to the most recent Quest Bridge match from DHS. My brother Christopher and I applied to the QuestBridge National College match five years ago and matched to Washington University in St. Louis and Northwestern University respectively. I commend the Dover High School guidance

106team for promoting the program to this day and I hope that more Dover students will continue to apply to this wonderful program every year. Best of luck at USC. You will have an amazing time. >> Okay. Okay. Is there anyone else from the public that wishes to speak? >> Any other online comments? No. >> Okay. At this time, I'd like to close the executive session. Uh, do we have a motion to adjurnn? >> So, move. Closing the public. >> Okay. Sorry, it's late. >> All right. Do we have a motion to adjurnn? >> So moved. >> Second. >> All those in favor? >> I. >> Okay. I'm assuming there are no opposed. Have a good night everybody. See you next year. >> Thank you. Merry Christmas everyone.