001In accordance with the Open Public Meeting Act of New Jersey, adequate notification of this meeting has been provided by advertising in the record. Please rise for the flag salute. I aliance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for it stands one nation under God indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Please remain s standing for a moment of silence for those who are affected in the Middle East. Thank you. Roll call, please. Dr. Porroek, present. Mr. Taylor, present. Mr. Otto, present. Present. Mrs. Ean, present. Mr. Ramos, present. Mr. Keelles, present. Mr. Mr. Gaba present. Mrs. Petiri present. Mr. Focino present. And then student board representatives Mr. Shalong and M. Martinez. Present. Present. Can I have a motion to approve 3.1 3.2 the minutes of the past two meetings? Motion.
002Mr. Quillis Mr. Gara second second Mr. Otto second roll call please Dr. Porchek I Mr. Taylor I Mr. Otto I Mrs. Ean I Mr. Ramos I Mr. Keles Hi Mr. Gaba I Mrs. Peter I Mr. Focarino I Dr. Tomco superintendent report please. Yes. Thank you Mr. President. Uh good evening everyone. Uh welcome to our final meeting of the 2024 2025 school year. Uh we have a few things tonight to celebrate. Uh we have uh an incredible crowd of our teachers, students. Uh we have student athletes here. We have our support staff. Everyone, I just want to take a moment to uh to thank the board for an incredible year. Um, I want to uh tell you this is uh I know you know this already, but it's an incredible place. Uh the kids are fantastic.
003I tried to get to everything I possibly could this year eventwise, try to try to basically just observe everything um so I can take in the greatness of this city. And I have to tell you, um our kids are second to none. Um, and I'm not just saying some of the academic accolades or the sports accolades. I'm talking about everything. Um, from the programs that uh they are themselves putting together to for community support, community service. One of the most incredible things in my entire career that I've ever been involved with was Thanksgiving morning um when we when we uh we helped uh feed all these uh individuals. So, uh there are a lot of incredible things going on. Before I turn this over to um all these accolades, I just wanted to talk briefly
004about under my district program update, what I did there was I put uh I asked our principles for some assistance too and some of our directors um all the things this year 2425 that are new to the district. So that's all listed here. And I want to thank uh the board this year, all the board members, new and previous um for supporting all these things. Um, some of the stuff, some of the highlights are the amount of $80,000 in community scholarships, $2 million in grants and scholarships overall for our students um to go on are sealed by lit by literacy, 28 students in four or five different languages. And and I have to tell you, tonight we're going to see it, but the early college graduates um what an incredible program. Um I I don't
005see this all over, so this is something really unique here. And I know um people are going to be stealing uh how we do it, but to have these students um come come to get their um associates degrees, meaning that they've completed two years of college already before they even graduate is is a remarkable thing. So that's just a few things. Um junior ROC, girls lacrosse, um sportsmanship banners, uh easier ride, which we'll talk about in a little bit. um themies formulated for next year, all these things that we've listed here, chess wizards, the the book vending machines, all these things that we brought together as a community. So, I appreciate all of you. I want to thank you again. I want to thank the the support of the board, uh the administration putting all
006this together. Uh July 1st is a new year up and running. Um we are uh we already talking about um you know, making sure that these programs uh are sustainable and also new programs come in. If you have any ideas, let us know. We're also talking more about holding people uh accountable uh not for anything other than we have the the most uh important job um and important commodity that we're creating here and that's the leadership of the future here of the city and the country. So, so again, I want to uh thank everyone for all that commitment and uh the commitment that you made to our district and uh for welcoming me uh to this place and it is an incredible place. I'm very happy to be here uh and I'm excited for what's
007to come. So, thank you very much. All right. Uh student of the month Okay, good evening everyone. I'm Mr. Bailey. I'm an English teacher at the high school. Um, and as the person in charge of the GHS student of the month proceedings, I uh I have a very unique perspective on the nomination process. I get to see the whole thing from beginning to end. Um, what kind of students get nominated, things like that. Um, and each year I try to nominate a student who's worthy of student of the month honors, but they seem to fly below the radar for whatever reason. So, um, tonight, um, I have nominated and he, uh, is going to receive the award, uh, a student that I've gotten to know pretty well over the last few years. Um Dan um
008was a student in my journalism class and he was one of the few students who basically volunteered to take over. We put our school newspaper out on a sway page and he was one of the few students that volunteered to take on putting the sway page together. Just uh you know phenomenal job uh a lot involved with it but he was always there uh did everything and anything I asked him. So he was just fantastic. Uh and I also uh this year I had him in the success 101 class which is a class that um prepares students uh for what they might encounter in college the first day. Um basically building up their self-esteem, building up their you know character, things like that. So and he was just an absolutely fantastic student there as well.
009Um beyond that he's also heavily involved in the school's music and drama programs. He was actually Planthony in our school play, the voice of the plant. So, uh, you know, just a very, very, uh, you know, well-rounded student. So, um, in short, Dan's a driven young man and a pleasure to have in class. Um, I present to you the June 2025 student of the month, Dan Garcowski. [Applause] Okay. Thank you, Mr. Bailey, for this award and thank you every every teacher, all the principles, all the administrators uh for amazing four years. Thank you. All right, excellent job. Uh, student government representatives, we'll turn it over to you all. What an incredible year for the first year as liaison. So maybe you can also give us an update on the process moving forward for next year
010if you have that in there. Yeah, we will speak to that um when we present our presentation. Yeah. Good evening everyone. I'm Darla Martinez, the current and former student government president at Garfield High School. And in honor of this being our last board of education meeting for the this academic year, here's a recap of the 2024 to 2025 student government in action. So, for our accomplishments, in March 2025, my co-president and I met with Dr. Tomco and the former president, Mr. Ramos, to discuss three of our proposals. By the end of this meeting, we accomplished three out of three of our proposals. Number one being dress code reform, which mainly included allowing students from only being allowed to wear their Garfield polos to also being allowed to wear their athletic and club t-shirts. Second is
011our leaving for lunch proposal which opened the lunch period allowing students to eat outside and supporting local businesses and that will be that will be happening next fall. And third is our water access which did one of three things. One number one being um fixing the fixing the water fountains in the hallways that were that weren't working for a while. Second is um Mashio's providing water bottles with the um school lunch. And third being the um the filters being fixed in our water bottle refillable stations. So thank you Dr. Tomco and Mr. Ramos for helping us build a stronger connection between the administration and the student body. Second, second, in September, the beginning of our school year, we had a freshman orientation for the class of 2025. And it for this we compiled a list
012of academic programs, honor societies, athletics for fall, winter, and spring and extracurriculars for the class of 2028 to get involved in. Second, we had our first spirit week of the year. It was a great turnout. We had both um we had participation from the students and the administration. Second, we had our big homecoming dance which Garfield High School hadn't had in many years. So, our student government was the first to bring a homecoming dance back to GHS. And I'd like to say that this is more than just a dance. This is us bringing students together and raising the spirits of Garfield High School. Second, we had our first pep rally of the year for our fall sports. um which included various games and activities that brought the teams together. Third, to wrap up September, we
013had our ribbon cutting ceremony in which I and my co-president Frank Shalong were invited to recite the pledge of allegiance. Thank you. That is all for the beginning of the school year. I will now be passing it over to our secretary, Isabelle Conform. [Applause] Hello, I'm Isabelle, the secretary of student government. Um, I'm going to talk about December and February. So, the during December, we partnered with the National Honor Society to run a coat drive collecting warm clothing for those in need during the coldest months. It was a simple way to give back and a chance for members of both student government and NHS to earn volunteering hours while supporting their community. That same month, we also hosted our second spirit week. Um, keeping the school spirit alive during a time that can be stressful
014for many students. Each day had a fun theme, but two of their favorites were teachers student swap and twin day. It was a great to see everyone participating and students got creative. Teachers had lots of laughs and it was really uh bringing people together right before winter break. During February 12th, we hosted the career night which was honestly one of my favorite events. Uh we invited GHS alumni and professionals from different career fields to come talk to students, share their journeys, and offer advice. It was really meaningful to see graduates of our own school come back and show that what's possible after graduating Garfield High School. They shared the knowledge and some tips and advice that only graduates from NHS can give. That month, we also had our third spirit week. And just like always,
015students showed up with amazing outfits and a ton of energy. It made the building feel alive and during the middle of the winter, which was um really nice. Some students uh favorites were generations day and perfect pair. seniors fully committed to the grandpa look and um they walked around with canes and cardigans and while others coordinated their office with their best friends. Thank you. [Applause] So my name is Frank Shalong. I'm the former student government uh co-president and I will introduce you to March um which we started doing our Instagram page uh that been a big success. I think this this is the most efficient way to reach our fellow students and on our story we post polls and we ask them hey what would you like to see in in the in the next
016period week what would you like to see change in our school and uh sometimes our students uh even message us on Instagram and ask us like hey is it an a day or a bday and it's always a pleasure to reply to their questions then in April we had another spear week I think this was my personal favorite. Um I I love spirit weeks and this year we had the most spirit weeks our school had in a very long time and it's it's an absolute absolute pleasure organizing those spirit weeks and like seeing our Gorefield students participating in them and just kind of spreading the Gorefield school spirit. Then in April we had another pep rally. This one was even better than the first one. Uh, it was fun. I think a lot of shins
017loved it. I loved it. And I hope to see more papalis next year. More pictures. And then then and then I would like to introduce you to Mr. Burns, our adviser. [Applause] Uh so all of the uh students that are eligible to run again uh thankfully decided to run again. Uh and we had our elections just this last week uh for next year's student government. We had over 539 uh voters amongst the student body. The only ineligible students to vote were the seniors just because it's not their building anymore. It's junior's building next year. Uh and so we had 33 different candidates applying for a bunch of different positions or running for a bunch of different positions. Not a single position went uncontested, which is an incredible growth point. This is my this will be
018my third year uh as the adviser to student government and I started with six students and now we got a 33 running. So it's fantastic growth that I owe to the hard work uh done by the students behind me here. um official results. We were able to fill out a full team of three grade level representatives per grade level. Uh and once the freshman get here uh in September at freshman orientation, we're going to try to hold solicitations for freshman level reps. Um with a majority of 80% of the votes, uh Darla is returning again as president for next year. Congratulations. similar percentages. Uh Sarah Balanos is going to be returning as vice president. Uh and we have some new blood to the group as far as officers are concerned. Uh Manny Miranda, I don't
019think he's here. Is he there? Manny Miranda, he's going to be our treasurer. Uh and then our secretary historian is Hillary Peralta. Not here. Not here yet. Uh so just fantastic opportunity to get to work with this team again and they're very eager and excited to uh get started on next year. Thank you. Uh and then to close us out our vice president Sarah. Hello I'm Sarah the current vice president of student government. Firstly I would like to begin by giving a thank you to our superintendent Dr. Tonko and the entire board of education from your unwavering support throughout this school year which has allowed us to ensure that the students voices have a seat at the table. And to Miss Yiko, our current principal and the GHS entire administration, thank you for your belief
020in us, the student body, and what student government can accomplish. Thank you for allowing to bring our ideas to life. Thank you for allowing us to bring our ideas to life and truly letting it become a reality that we have a more united community between the student body, administration, and students. We would like to say most of all, thank you for to our fellow students. Your trust, engagement, and participation is what allowed us to keep running student government. And we hope that it will be even better next year with again Darlennies and I as your president and co-president. Your trust and engagement again has given us purpose to everything that we have done. We have taken your ideas. We have heard your voices. And thank you to the support of the board of education. It
021has been a true honor to represent you. And we're excited to see what we grow and what we can form next year and to build a bigger foundation for the students that are to come after us for your kids and every student that will become part of GHS. Lastly, we would like to thank Mr. Burns. A huge thank you to Mr. Burns, our adviser, for his guidance, encouragement, and his fellow trust in us, your student body, and your student representatives. Thank you so much. Thank you again. Excellent job all year. I was very proud um of all the things that we accomplished together and I'm looking forward to the next school year just to continue that uh and much more. So great job Congress. Okay. uh easy ride uh donation presentation. So, uh, those you
022may remember or may recall a few meetings ago, we created the Easy Ride for Life, uh, club. Um, and, uh, this club in in in conjunction with all of our other groups here, Interact Student Government, um, our our student athletes, uh, put on an incredible fundraiser, the first one, which hopefully is going to take off now for next year into more Bergen County towns, more Bergen County school districts. Um, Easy Bride is a nonprofit organization that does a lot does a lot of programs with um, uh, municipalities and cities uh, in order to, you know, bring safety and different things with travel etc. um, to those individuals who need it. Uh, the ride for life program does do that here actually in Garfield and right now we have uh, 66 I think are a little
023bit more uh, individuals that utilize that program. uh multiple times a week. Uh and uh this fundraisers like this will help offset uh the costs for Easy Ride to provide those um those rides to those individuals whether it's through uh doctor's appointments or shopping etc. Uh so I'm really proud of what our students and our our faculty members accomplished this year for this organization. Uh and uh I think there's a uh a slight uh a small presentation tonight for um the donation. So, thank you, Dr. Tonko. I'd like to call up uh two of our sophomores, Alejandra Masias Haz and Miranda Pierre Louu. I know they were here. Here they come. So, uh just to go back to what Dr. Tom was saying back in November, the Interact Club um does every Thanksgiving a fabulous
024uh Thanksgiving food drive and then preparation. So within that organization, Interact um does different things dur throughout the school year. So this initiative came to us and these two young ladies um spearheaded the idea of putting together a fundraiser um to help assist the Easy Ride for Life program. Um this was the first time that anyone did it. Um so kudos to them and to interact Miss Calderio who's our advisor. Um unfortunately she wasn't here this evening. And also I need to acknowledge Mr. Burns and student government. Um, one thing that student government has done this entire year has been there to support anything that the entire school does. So this was truly a schoolwide event. Um, and on a rainy well not really rainy, it was raining really hard Saturday early morning and then
025it cleared up. We got drizzled on but it didn't dampen the spirits. Um, student athletes came out, coaches came out, community members came out, and uh, together because of these young ladies and 50 uh, plus student volunteers and teachers, we were able to raise $1,750 for Easy Ride. As a first year, I think that is very nice. So with that, we look forward to many more events uh that will bring the community together to support wonderful um programs that exist for our for our students. So again, um because of them, they will present the check to Dr. Johnson. I want to thank all Garfield citizens who showed up for the event. I appreciate it. I know the weather was a bit grim, but I appreciate everyone who stayed despite that. And I think it really
026shows how Garfield comes together as a community and as a town. I want to thank Dr. Tomgo for letting us put this event together and I want to thank student government for helping us with it. Thank you. [Applause] Thank you very much. Excellent job everyone. And I want to thank all the parents and again teachers, faculty, coaches who came out to support that and our some of our board members there as well. Um, and now what we just talked about before, the uh early college graduates, just an incredible program here. So, Mrs. Botton, Miss Botton will come up and discuss that. Good evening. Tonight, we proudly celebrate a group of students who represent the very best of Garfield High School. are 16 early college graduates from the class of 2025. These students have not only
027completed requirements to earn their high school diplomas, but also their associate of science and professional studies from Bergen Community College. What makes this achievement even more impressive is what these students are juggling outside of the classroom. Many are involved in athletics, working part-time jobs, and some are even studying to earn licenses in things such as real estate. They truly do it all and they do it with purpose, resilience, and drive. This program started with just six students in 2020 and since then 60 students have completed the program and 48 underclassmen are currently on track to follow in their footsteps. To our early college graduates, your determination and discipline have set a powerful example. We are proud of what you have accomplished and even more excited about where you're headed next. At this time, I'm proud
028to recognize our 16 early college graduates. While some are unable to join us this evening due to prior commitments, we honor each of them for their exceptional achievement. For those who are present, please come forward when your name is called to receive your early college honor cord, which you will wear at our graduation next Tuesday. Nicole Baltva, Tabarda Bracea, Isabel Conformo, Raul Cotrial Kaia Francic, Elsen Gorika, Kerzina Kapulka, Hannah Luca, Patricia Okcona, Justin Rivas, Zaya Riveros, Eva Smani, [Applause] Alexandra Sakorski, Sophia Tibet, Emily Talik, [Applause] and Basora Tosska. All of these students will be attending um a 4-year university or college of their choice in various majors, biology, premed, journalism, there's a lot. Um we're looking forward to seeing where that their road takes them. Congratulations, [Applause] Once again, round of applause for the hard
029work of the early graduates to go into your college. um with uh two years two years under your belt already is pretty incredible. It's a savings. It's commitment. Thank you to the teachers that supported them through all this taught classes. Uh and our partnerships. I think the partnership with Bergen Community College specifically is on tonight. Uh we're hopefully to expand some other partnerships as well uh in the next school year. Um very excited about the next uh the next program uh initiative that's that's making waves throughout the state. It's our steam tank competition recognition. if we can have those uh individuals. Um I don't know if this way. Yeah, you guys want to come up just to So just so you're uh I don't want to steal their thunder, but um they're going to be
030uh competing well competing or recognized at least our school boards convention, which I'm I'm extremely excited to be part of that um when we go down to school boards this uh this year with the board. um to just see Garfield being represented by something here as academically challenging as this. So, uh just an incredible thing. So, congratulations. Uh good evening uh members of the board of education, Dr. Tomco, Miss Derich, Miss Bellinger, colleagues, uh and citizens of Garfield. My name is Jennifer Dwit, uh together with Miss Alexandra Talma. We've coached a competitive steam team here in Garfield for this school year. Um, it is my pleasure to be here this evening to celebrate our middle school team uh who have spent the last um the team spent the last eight months of this school year
031competing in the New Jersey School Board Association's state-run steam tank competition. Over 500 teams competed statewide. And it is with great pride that I announce that the Garfield Middle School has placed in the top three of the state. Uh, this means that they will compete against two other teams in Atlantic City this coming October for a $10,000 prize. Uh this prize money is generously uh sponsored by the Educational Leadership Foundation of New Jersey and is to be utilized by the district to support future steam programs. The team's success is due to the outstanding critical thinking, creativity, and employment of the engineering design process. Their prototype was functional, collapsible, and environmentally responsible portable sink that caught the attention of the team of professional judges at as the GMS students delivered an impressive presentation. And now I
032will turn it over to Miss Talma because besides uh placing in the top three, we received additional awards. The steam tank judges also recognized our team known as in sync. That was the name of our team because we had a portable collapsible sync prototype um for their specialization and exemplary performance in the following specific categories. arts, entrepreneurship, humanbuilt environment, collaboration with third-party experts, public health and safety, sustainability. Our students are ecstatic and we are incredibly proud of their efforts. This team has been driven, creative, and determined to achieve greatness. It is truly an incredible honor for the Garfield School District. We'll now present the team with certificates of achievement. And first, we would like to recognize Reffia Yokis, also known as Basa. [Applause] Amelia Sarni. [Applause] I'm not going to get this name right, but
033I'm going to do my best. Ernest Abraqua. Kida Orizage, Zappa Kayali and Victoria Batista. We'd also like to close by saying that this was an absolute privilege and extremely fulfilling for Mrs. Duet and I to work with this wonderful team of students. And thank you for all of your support. The board of education, Dr. Tomco, Miss Bellinger, Mrs. Regaloso, and so many others. Thank you very much. Have a great evening. [Applause] Thank you again. Excellent job. Can't wait to see you all in October. And uh finally, I had the honor of um going to the spring uh sports awards ceremony the other night. Uh just a tremendous showing for our athletes uh this entire year. Some of the incredible things. So uh I'd like to uh welcome up Mr. Alonso, the athletic director for the
034all league athletes recognition. Alphonso. Thank you Dr. Tomto. Good evening Dr. Tomco, Miss Darage, and board of ed education members. We'd like to honor our student athletes from the winter season and spring season for all league along with two coaches who received coach of the year honors and lastly a championship team. First, I would like to call up outdoor head girls track coach Megan D. Carlo for being named coach of the year by her peers. [Applause] Next, our head boys volleyball coach was named coach of the year for her team by the league and also Bergen County coach of the year, Heidi Dawson. At this time, uh, I'm going to talk a little bit about the boys volleyball team with head coach. I would like to call up assistant coach Giamongo and coach Kim, please.
035This boys volleyball team went on an incredible run. They finished league play 10-0 undefeated, winning for the second year in a row. And to capture the Bergen County Championship, which is quite impressive. They beat several good teams and most importantly is the trophies and cup behind you. They were named Bergen County Team of the Year. Congratulations. I'm gonna ask Coach Dawson to call up our players. Yes. Good evening everyone. I'd like to call up the the players. Um if they are here, please come up. Um first, senior setter Roger Chavez. Number two, senior middle hitter, Fernelli Familia. Number three, sophomore defensive specialist, Gavin Bolus. [Applause] Number four, senior opposite hitter, John Sagga. [Applause] Number five, fellow captain to with Roger. Uh, senior outside hitter, Elon Tapper. Number six, senior middle blocker, Jacob Pishkatosski. Number seven,
036sophomore opposite hitter Mario Mini. Number eight, sophomore outside hitter, Jake Dudek. Number nine, senior libero Raul Cortto. Number 10, sophomore setter, Anatoli Fedunka. Number 12, senior outside hitter Ethan Dao. Number 23, sophomore outside hitter Liam Rivera. [Applause] Number 26, senior defensive specialist Kylo Paz Diaz. And last but not least, freshman middle blocker Eddie Mkage. Thank you. Want to take a picture behind him, please? [Applause] At this time, I'd like to call up boys basketball coach, Mr. Storms, to give out the boys basketball awards. [Applause] Thank you, Mr. Alfonso. Thank you, Dr. Tomco and the board of education. Um, I'll start with I know that I have three all league uh three all league honores this season. Uh, Elson Ger is honorable mention. I know he couldn't be here tonight. He's working, but that's Elson Gera,
037honorable mention. Um, another player that could not be here, Raphael Hernandez, first team all league. Ironically, his mom just messaged me. He's at the urgent care because he rolled his ankle playing basketball. So, he cannot be here. And if you know Raph, it's kind of fitting that this is what's happening tonight. Um, but I do have one of the young men here tonight. And I'd just like to say that Juan Yakz was also besides being second team all league. Juan Yakz was also one of our most improved players this season. He's a great young man and I thought he was going to Keen next year was the plan, but he just told me, which I'm very proud of him, he's decided to enroll in the Marines going forward. So, Juan, thank you in advance for
038your service and thank you again, Dr. Tomco, Mr. Alfonso, and everybody's support of the boys basketball program. [Applause] Wrestling coaches, please come up. Good evening everyone. Uh, I'd like to say that we had a great season this year. Uh, a lot of kids did well for us. Very excited to give out these awards to them. Um, first round we have Joseph Delator, first team all league award. [Applause] Next up we have Anthony Hawker, second team O League Award. Next up we have Jaden Halls. Second team all league award. Next we have is S do second team all award. Um next one up he's unfortunately he's not here today but I know he will be here uh if he could make it he'll be very happy to accept this award. Austin Falone second team all league
039award. We give it to the parents. Uh our next one up is uh Noah Cruz, second team all league award. Oh, he left today for the evening. And our final one is mentionable honorable mentionable league is Aiden Peterson, but he's unfortunately not here today. Thank you all for do having a great season this year. [Applause] Next, I will give out the uh bowling awards for our bowling coach. We have honorable mention Vincent Jordano. I don't think he's here. Indoor track coach Chris Pieri and Mr. Carlo, please. [Applause] For winter track, it's a little harder than spring track and most other sports because it's the entire conference getting together and competing to see who's the best in the league. How many I think it's like 30 schools, right, in the NJC. And we were for what?
04030 36 schools. So, we were fortunate enough to have uh our high jumper, Victoria Hidalgo, come in third place at the uh the indoor NGIC championship meet for honorable mention all Next, I'll give out the girls swimming awards. First, we have honorable mention Luchia Lopez. [Applause] We'll mention Alexandra Sigorski. [Applause] and honorable mention Isabella Sorana Pinatada basketball. First we have first team all league Na Niger Mixon, [Applause] Amelia Rusfa, Destiny Davis, and honorable mention Elena Henry. Mr. Neim for the golf award. [Applause] Good evening everyone. the first person I would recognize and while he's not here I would like to give him the recognition he deserves. Alsora made first team for the first time in 30 years for Garfield Golf. So he definitely deserves some applause. And next we have honorable mention Abigail. [Applause] She's
041always there. That's why she won the team award this year. [Applause] Next, Mr. Frank Dawson for girls softball. [Applause] Thank you, Mr. Alonso, Dr. Tomco, board members. Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. It is my pleasure to be here tonight to announce our three all league players in softball. We had a improving young team this year. We had we went and proved from three wins to six wins and we're looking for even greater success next year. We had three all league players. First we had honorable mention all league Jasine Valley. Second team all league Lyanna Mendoza And we had one first team all league honorable mention all county. She couldn't be here tonight but first team all league Zaniah Riveros. We have her coach coming up to accept for her tonight. [Applause] Next, Coach Boco and
042Coach Gallagher, flag [Applause] First athlete we'd like to call up is Maya Menddees. First team all league offense. [Applause] Next athlete, Alana Henry. First team all league offense. Yeah. Next athlete, Destiny Davis, first team all league defense. Ava Eisman, she can't be here tonight. She's homesick, but second team all league offense. Samantha Lee, second team all league defense. Uh, also Samantha Lee, second league all, excuse me, second team all league punter. [Applause] Okay. All right. Cheyenne Fain, honorable mention, all league offense. Honorable mention defense Almina and honorable mention all league punt returner Maya Mendes. It's everybody. [Applause] Next, I'll give out the all league baseball. First, we have second team all league Devin Paisley and honorable mention all league Steven Seamanchek. Take a picture. [Applause] Next, boys and girls track coaches, Mr. Yormula and Mr.
043Carlo, please come up. [Applause] First off for boys track I have Max Mila for first team all league in the high hurdles. Next first team all league I have Jacob Stipokowski for triple jump. [Applause] I have second team O League for Raphael Hernandez in the Javelin. [Applause] And then I have honorable mention in the triple jump, Aaron Jilks. And honorable mention in the pole vault for Sed Dashukov. [Applause] Uh for girls track we have first team all league in the 1600 Julia Jablanska. Julia also went undefeated in the 800, the mile and the 3200 at the le in our entire league. First team all league Maya Mendes for the long jump. Honorable mention Sophia Tabet for the 200. Honorable mention Juliana Ramirez for the 800. Honorable mention Carla Miodto for the 3200. Honorable mention Alexandra
044Sakorski for the 100 meter high hurdles. Honorable mention again for the high jump, Victoria Halgo for outdoors. And then we had two girls tie for the pole vault. Honorable mention Mariah Briggs and honorable mention Fastina Fina, sorry, Fastina P. Last but not least, we had a very special athlete. Uh we had Alana Henry earn honorable sorry first team all league honors in the javelin and she and she also won the Bergen our league meet. What else did you win? You won everything. the the the county meet, the state sectional meet, and the farthest row in Bergen County this season with 128 ft. And she's still competing. We go this Sunday to Philadelphia to the New Balance Outdoor NA track nationals. It's track and field. Yep. [Applause] The last thing I would like to mention, Mrs.
045Demo uh reminded me of and we're very proud of to win the sportsmanship award, which means we were ejectionfree from every sport. Uh the state recognizes it and not many schools get that. So, we're very proud to announce that for two years in a row. I think the last time that happened, it was when Voych was in high school. But congratulations. Thank you. Let's give everyone a round of applause again for the sports awards. Oh, hold on one second. Sorry about that. One more. Girls tennis. Mr. Phoei. [Applause] Good evening everyone. It's actually boys tennis and we have two um girls is also my sport. Uh but we have two young men uh to receive awards. Uh our first award was first team all league for Miguel Arisenna senior. Miguel was also the team MVP
046team captain and he played first singles. And the second award is for uh our third singles player, Joseph Delator. He received all league honorable mention. [Applause] Okay. All right, one final note. Uh, congratulations again to everyone. I just want to say I'm looking forward to uh sitting for graduation uh next week. It's sort of like uh well to stick with a sports team. It's sort of like the academic Super Bowl of the year when we get to honor all the great things that not only the students but our faculty, staff, administration, board of education, all the programs we put together uh and all the prowess of the city. So again, thank you for an incredible year progress uh and your uh Mr. President, I turn over to you. Business administrators report, please. Good evening. There
047is nothing new to report at this time. We're currently getting ready for graduation and all of our summer projects are going to be started. Thank you. Thank you. Committee reports. Uh the personnel meeting met on June 10th. Uh all members were present. We met with the superintendent and made some changes regarding uh multiple positions in order to maintain fiscal responsibility while supporting school efficiency. Um there are a couple there's are a couple of positions uh that are just renamed. The uh term disciplinarian is not recognized by the state. So it's not really a ch it's just a change in the terminology. They're now uh dean of students. At this time, I'm going to open up the meeting to the public for public comments on agenda items only. Please state your name, your address, and your
048comments. Thank you. So this is only about the agenda items, right? Okay. Marlene Zawatka 67 Morris A. So for I just want to make a point when you guys are looking at your agenda that no individual who is widely viewed by Garfield residents as corrupt should hold any position within the board of education just my opinion. But when political appointments are handed out for like favors the focus shifts from our children to personal gate and that's unacceptable. Just an FYI. Um, regarding item 8.35 on the agenda, does that grant Mr. Tomco full authority to hire without board approval or if he hires someone during the summer, can the board still vote on it? Um, on the topic of the interim business administrator, I'm just curious if this is like Elwood Park or Belleville. there was
049no other possible candidate or was this like a nationwide search like we did with the superintendent? And on the agenda, the one thing that disappeared off of the agenda, the Oprah request cost, residents were asking how you guys got the fees, so you guys did not answer and now just made it disappear. And that's all about the agenda. I'll be back. Thank you. Are there any other comments from the public? Hearing none. how you doing? Uh Frank Barber, 262 Evans Place, Saddlebrook. Um but I am a taxpayer in Garfield. Uh I was looking at the agenda. I know last time I was here I was talking about like uh getting rid of some dead weight or as um the young lady over here was saying there were some appointments that were made over the past
050year or so where they were handed to people for political reasons. um not that they're qualified to do the job, but because of who they knew and who supported them. Um I see that they're on here tonight and I'm going to watch very closely to see what happens because I would hope that moving forward we start getting people in positions that are qualified for that position. meaning they've held some background in education or have done some HR work in the past that involves schools. Um, I do notice that some of the positions have you guys have been doing a good job of trying to like reel that in, but tonight I want to see and I'm hoping to see that you further reel it in and now these positions become available to more qualified people.
051people that are from town that can move up, people within the district that can move up and use these positions to further the employees here to a higher level, not bring people in from outside all the time, you know, because we do have a lot of qualified people within our district. We have a lot of qualified teachers, administrators that should be moving up. And I think that's what we got to do. that boosts morale, that makes people want to work harder because they know they have the ability to be able to move up within the district and it's not going to be handed to for political gain or whatever else may happen there. So, this is a a moment where the board can change direction and we can see that you're moving in the right
052direction and these positions can now be available to qualified people within the district. And that's what I hope to see tonight. I'll kind of get an idea from that. And you know, I commend you with the work that you've done so far, but I hope it moves along, you know, more saves some tax dollars here. And ultimately, that's going to save money so that it can go back to the the uh the students and the teachers because, as we all know, there's budget shortfalls and things like that. So, um, by doing these things, it's going to save money and the teachers can then get more supplies and it will help with the classroom and the students, which ultimately that's the job of the board members is to do what's best for the students. But that's
053really all I had to say. Thank you. Have a good night. Thank you for your comments. [Applause] Everett Egarnto Jr. 51 Jewel Street, Garfield, New Jersey, taxpaying citizen of this wonderful city. I just want to first and foremost congratulate the student government board that represents the students. You guys and and gentlemen and young lady, you do a phenomenal job. I think it's very important to be the voice of the students and bring it back to the board for the concerns and I applaud you for going three for three. That's a very uh successful uh accomplishment. I just want to commend you and I actually want to commend the board for bringing them back. I don't know why they let them go for a while, but I know when I was on the board, we started
054it and then it just ended for a while. But you guys are doing a phenomenal job. I just want to recognize you. Um, also I want to commend anybody that was involved with that easy ride. I know you guys collected and girls collected over $1,700. I want to commend you on that. Also, give yourself a round of applause. Also, the early college graduates, congratulations to all the students that received your degree from Bergen Community College. That's a huge accomplishment. It saves your parents money. Um, and I think um, you know, I think this was instituted probably about eight years ago in this district. I could be wrong, but I know I was on the board when it was. And, uh, it's it's great that I see we're all seeing the students that are taking advantage
055of this. It's a very good good program and I commend everyone that uh, successfully uh, graduated. Also, I'd like to congratulate the uh, steam tank competition. I know I believe you said you were ranked third in the competition or or maybe in the state top three. I want to commend you the teachers and the students involved in that. You deserve a a round of applause. Also, congratulations tonight to all the athletes that were recognized for whether you're first team, second team, honorable mention. Um I think it's very important for all students to be involved in some sort of activity other than you know your school uh with sports whether it be a chess club whether it be football uh any kind of activity other than sitting home and uh just being idle I think it's
056very important to be involved in so I want to commend all the athletes and last but not least I'd like to congratulate and commend coach Heidi uh Dawson and uh the phenomenal season she had with the boys volleyball team coming in. I think they won the county championships. And I want to commend Coach Heidi Dawson and all the athletes. Thank you. That's it. Thank you. Thank you. Are there any other comments from the public? Thank you very much. Public comments are closed. Motion for resolutions 8.1 through 8.41 41 personnel. I'll make a motion up second. Mr. Taylor, roll call poll, please. Dr. Porche. No to 8.1, 8.3, and 8.3. I the rest. I'm I'm sorry. 8.1, 8.3, and 8.38. Mr. Taylor, uh, no to 8.1 to the rest. Mr. Otto, no to 8.4. Yes to
057the rest. Mrs. Isan, no to 8.4. Yes to the rest. I'm sorry, Mr. Taylor, did you want to correct your vote? Mr. Taylor, please restate your vote so uh record. I'm saying to the Okay. No worries. And then I had Mr. Otto. No. 8.4. You're all done. Okay. 8.4 was a no. Yes. On the rest. Mrs. Isan. No to 8.4. Yes to the rest. Mr. Ramos. 8.124. Mr. Kees, clarification. No to 8.1. No to 8.2. Note to 8.3 and note to 8.38. I to the rest. Yes, I agree with the rest. Correct. Mr. Gaba 8.4. No. And I the rest. Mrs. Peter. Okay. Is this 8.4 and maybe I'm making myself like a fool here. I don't agree with 8.4. So if I'm voting yes, is that to remove 8.4 or is that to promote
0588.4 then I would like to change that vote. I keep messing myself up because I'm looking at a reduction in that. That's my clarification. 8.1 I'm good with I'm good with 8.3. No to 8.4. I don't know where my brain is right now, but I keep reading reduction. That's not what it is. Mr. Taylor, I'm just going to ask you to clarify your vote so it'll be recorded properly. So, so no to 8.1 to 8.3. No. That's fine by me. Just make sure. Thank you. Okay, Mrs. Peter. Yes. No. Mr. Focino. No. To 8.4. Are you on the rest? Okay. Let's give a second. I just want to clarify the votes because it was a little bit Mr. Durich, if you don't mind, I'm just going to ask for you to reread what was voted
059so we know the record's correct. That would be great. Doc Dr. Pivarroek said no to 8.1, 8.3, and 8.38. And that's I the rest, right? and then I the rest. Correct. Mr. Taylor said no to 8.1, 8.3, and 8.4, and I to the rest. Mr. Otto said no to 8.4 and I to all the rest. Mrs. Isan said no to 8.4, I to the rest. Mr. Ramos said no to 8.1, 8.2, 8.3, and then I believe 8.34, and then 8.38, and then I to the rest. Mr. Kelesz, no to 8.1, 8.2, 8.3, 8.38. I to the rest. Mr. Gaba, no to 8.4, I to the rest. Mrs. Petiri, no to 8.4. I to the rest. Mr. Firerino, no to 8.4. I to the rest. Thank you. You're welcome. Finance. A motion for resolutions 10.1 through
06010.35. I'll make a motion. Mr. Gaba. Second. M. Ramos. Roll call, please. Dr. Porche, abstain. 10.3. I of the rest. Mr. Taylor, I Mr. Otto, abstain from 10.4, 10.5, 10.6. Uh, 10.17 number eight recuse. 10.17 number number eight recuse. Mrs. Isan abstain from 10.4 10.5 and 10.6 I to the rest Mr. Ramos from 10.3 10.32 10.34 Mr. from 10.3 Mr. Gaba abain from 10 check number 01907 I rest Mrs. Mr. Focarino abstain from 10.4 10.5 10.6 10.21 10.22 22 I on the rest. Okay. Motion on education resolutions 10 point. I'm sorry. 12.1 and 12.22. Call for a motion. Mr. Ramos, Mr. Dr. Pvaric. Roll call. Dr. Porchek. I Mr. Taylor. I Mr. Otto. I. Mrs. Isan. I. Mr. Ramos. Hi, Mr. Keith. I Mr. Gaba. Hi. Mrs. Petiri I Mr. Focarino I facilities resolutions 14.1
061through 14.2 motion please second sorry Mr. Ramos first second yes M roll call please Dr. Porchek I Mr. Taylor I Mr. Otto I Mrs. Isan I Mr. Ramos Hi Mr. Keles I Mr. Gaba Hi Mrs. Peteri I Mr. Rino I policy resolution 17.1 through 17.2 motion please. I'll make a motion. Second second. Mr. Gara second. Roll call please. Dr. Porche. Hi. Mr. Taylor, I Mr. Otto, I Mrs. Isan, I Mr. Ramos, hi Mr. Keles. Hi, Mr. Gaba. Hi, Mrs. Petiri. I Mr. Focarino, I. With that, I'd like to open up the comments to the public. Are there any public comments at this time? Marina Zawatka 67 Morris. I just have two questions. Um, school 4 was supposed to have a therapy dog where we signed all the permission slips for it. And I was under
062the impression that the superintendent in Clifton even offered support to show how it could be implemented at no cost to the district and it it sounded really cool, but it just like disappeared. So, I was just wondering if it's going to happen next year or it's just gone because we did sign permissions to support it. And just an odd question with the new athletic complex at nearly every meeting it seems new additions or changes are being proposed. Can we expect the final and completed project at some point with no further expense beyond maintenance? That's all. Thank you. We can make comments about anything, right? Not just what you just voted on. Correct. Okay. Thanks, Nancy Classen, 458 Lanza Avenue. Good evening. Um, I would like to take a moment to recognize and celebrate the incredible
063musical experiences that took place across Garfield this month. I had the pleasure Yeah. I had the pleasure of attending the middle school's Harlem Renaissance collaboration between the band choir and dance and the outstanding production of the Wizard of Oz and the delightful song of first to fourth grade performance at school number nine. A heartfelt thank you goes out to Miss Francika and happy retirement, Miss Teal, Mr. Ebles, Miss Maluso, and Mr. Pella for their unwavering dedication and inspiration they bring to our students. Your passion and support truly make the difference in their lives. I'd also like to extend my gratitude to the board of education members as well as the mayor and council for attending these performances. Your presence sends a powerful message of support to our students and educators. As the school year winds
064down, let's remember that music is not a luxury. It's a necessity. Every child deserves access to the arts and Garfield is full of talented students who are just waiting for their chance to to shine. Let's continue to invest in and uplift the arts in our schools. And as always, I'm here and happy to help whenever I can. Thanks. Have a great year. Thank you. Are there any other comments from the public? Frank Barber, 262 Evans, please. I just want to say I watched and I'm I'm very proud of the majority on this board of what you did tonight. Um it shows me that you guys are moving in the right direction and you should be proud of yourselves that you did something tonight that's moving this district in the right in the right direction. And
065I I thank you for listening to the public, to the people. Um, proud of you guys tonight. Thank you. Thank you. Last call for public comments. Public comments are closed. Any comments from the board members? I had the pleasure. This month was a very busy month between the carnival at number 10 school which was outstanding. Funday at number four school, number 10 school, the play Annie, it should have been on Broadway. It was excellent. Uh the Garfield Middle School, Wizard of Oz, my granddaughter had a ball. Um the the high school dropped me off at Harlem. I had no idea what that was going to be out about. It was actually a history lesson. It went from the 1920s to the 1990s. It was unbelievable. Uh scholarship night uh night at the high school. Uh
066uh also the top 10 ceremony at the high school, the honor society awards at Garfield Middle School. It has been my pleasure even though it was an extremely busy month, but being able to attend at least most of these functions. Also, um I'd like to congratulate all the students that are um got their associates degree at Bergen Community College. And I don't know if the gentleman's still here, the student who is going to the Marines. Be safe. Godspeed. Um easy um easy ride. Thank you for getting that money donated to us. And I have to make we have a hero among us on this board. An incident happened at my home on Friday. A neighbor of mine got a two-year-old girl locked in the house. I pan She came to me. I panicked. I reached
067out to Mr. Gaba who was at my house in like four minutes, ran up the steps cuz a tenant lived upstairs like if it was a fireman, opened the door and whispering to the baby who happened to be asleep. But again, Mr. Gaba, thank you so very much. No problem. [Applause] Mr. Quillis, I as well would like to congratulate um the middle school for the awesome show they provided. Um Wizard of Oz, the play was amazing. Like Mr. Peterry said, uh it was like it should have been on Broadway. That's how that's how great they performed. to uh to the student of the month. Congratulations. To all the athletes, congratulations. Job well done. Continue to succeed. To the 16 students that graduated with an associates degree. It's amazing to the parents for supporting you guys
068and for what you have accomplished. I also want to give kudos to the pioneer, Miss Kutzup, who was part of instituting this program to Garfield. I'm not sure she's around. I see her husband, but I don't see her. Miss Cuts Up, your legacy will always be remembered because there's more than 50 to 60 students who already have accomplished that because of what you've started. And so as a board member, we thank you [Applause] to the to the uh students government. What an amazing job you guys have done. It is exactly what we wanted to see to move forward to have this experience where you guys understand as well listen to what the uh what's happening in our school district and bring it and merge it and and and and make it where everybody understands that
069we can make a difference. We can be part of it. we can come to a common ground and understanding where you guys feel comfortable, safe place and feel free and be at be a be a young man and a young woman to accomplish your dreams while you in school. And so we thank you guys for your input and I'm glad we all agree to continue to uh help you succeed and move this student government forward. And to the uh the teacher, Mr. uh Mr. burns. Thank you for being that mentor for these young young kids. They are learning immensely and as they move with their life experience, this is important. This is a process that they will always take and move forward with helping others. So once again, I thank the board for everything and
070for everyone. You guys have a good evening and thank you for coming. [Applause] Any other board member? Um uh Frank Sorry. Go ahead. I just want I just wanted to thank all of you, the Garfield community, for always supporting the students and supporting me, my teachers, um my friends, and especially the board for giving me this opportunity to represent the students. Um it's been a long four years and I cannot believe I'll be graduating next week, but I'll be forever grateful for everybody um who made like my GR experience feels so much better. And again, thank you to my teachers and friends and the board. To add to Frank's comment, I'd also like to thank the board of education for allowing us this opportunity of sitting here. It's a huge honor. And um as to
071what we're going to do next year, we're going 10 times harder. Everything that we did this year, plus more. And we're so excited to show you guys what we're going to accomplish next year. Any other comments from the board? Is he on? Yes. Uh so I I have a lot of notes down here. Uh the student of the month, Daniel Gerachowski. Just want to say congratulations on all your achievements. Uh it's not easy to uh make the student of the month and so we're all very proud of him. Uh to the student government, I think you do such a great job keeping the other students engaged and we really appreciate the time you take to come up here and share with us what you're doing with the other students. Um, uh, for the students that
072were in the Easy Ride, uh, fundraiser, I mean, we always want to support the community by giving back, and I think that it's really great that they're starting at a young age. Uh, and so, you know, it helps with their community pride and, uh, like just a just that um, sense of community. Uh, 16 early college grads. I think it's just phenomenal. It's uh it's already hard enough to make it through high school and they're not only doing high school, they're also in college and like they said, many of them work, they're in sports. They have a very high load and it's it's very phenomenal that they're graduating uh both from high school and college at the same time. Uh the Insync STEM competition is in the top three of the state. So I I
073don't see any of them here. I know it's late, but uh if anyone is still here, good luck in Atlantic City. Uh uh also the musical performances. I think we have really good uh fine arts programs and the the musical performances were great. I saw the Wizard of Oz in Harlem. Uh and I think Mr. Till's programs just get better every year. So, I'm glad to see uh that they're doing more of those. uh to answer some of the questions um for the the interim BA that is uh just for the summer. Um there is a date stated on there that that's uh through September. Um for the summer approval for Dr. Tomco that is so he can continue uh trying to get more employees in. There are a lot of uh open positions that
074we're trying to get filled before school starts. And then there are also sometimes, you know, people decide they want to leave during the summer. So that way we're not waiting until the first day of school to try to get new people in. Uh just one very important thing I forgot to mention when I spoke. Um for those watching at home, I just want to thank every single person that voted. We had a total of 539 students that took time out of their days to vote and the 443 students that voted for me and elected me as their current their for and just to just to add one more thing uh I've been involved in student government for the past four years. Uh so I work in different positions with different advisors uh in different uh
075environments and on and of course I'm biased but I think working with Dala this year has been like the best year for me working like with all of my peers but also for the students. We have done so much this year and I'm so happy to see so much progress in Garfield. [Applause] Any other board members? So I most things were covered already by all the board members. Uh but I do want to recognize uh this past Saturday was Flag Day. Also recognizing the 250th anniversary of our armed forces. Uh this past Sunday was Father's Day. Today is National Canoli Day. Very important. Uh I do want to congratulate the 16 college students uh that graduate with a college degree and again with your high school diploma, your college degree is fantastic program and Miss
076Cusp, thank you very much for get instituting that program. Uh the steam tank champs, congratulations. We look forward to seeing them in Atlantic City. Uh, congratulations to the champion sports teams that we've had, the award-winning athletes, the award-winning coaches who really drove our athletes to their successes and our teams. The two nearly $2.1 million in grants and scholarships that were awarded recently, that's a phenomenal number. And uh to our current student government council, uh Frank and Darla, it's been a pleasure working with you over the past tenure. uh your professionalism and and dedication to the position is has gone unmatched. Uh Frank, we're going to miss you. Uh based on your performance, we feel you're going to do very well in your leadership position in the future. Darla, we'll see how you do next year.
077She's going to miss it. With that, I call for a motion to adjourn our meeting. Mr. Quillis first, Mr. Oto second. All in favor? Opposed? Meeting adjourned.