WW-P Board Meeting 7-29-2025

001[Music] Hello everybody. Good evening. It is great to see everybody out here, especially during the summer. Uh we called our meeting to order earlier in our closed executive session. So, thanks for your patience and waiting for us to all come out and gather. Um happy summer and um we're also excited tonight to welcome our newest board member, Paul O'Brien. He is fingerprinted, background checked, um you know, uh sworn in. So, congratulations and we're excited to have you. Um thank you. >> Yes. Well deserved. Uh so now I'm going to ask uh Dr. Hol, do you have anything to add tonight before we jump in? >> Well, good evening everyone. Um, I'll just share from for the well, first of all, congratulations and welcome to all of our student athletes, our families, our coaches that are

002here tonight. Um, we're thrilled to have you and we really appreciate you coming out in the end of July to to be here to be recognized. Um, for the purpose of the meeting, we are going to start with presentation of the student athletes. When that's over, we'll take a slight pause before the HIB presentation uh goes on. If you're here for the full meeting, you're welcome to stay. Um, but we also recognize that you might want to go on with your evening and not see a 40-minute presentation on harassment, intimidation, and bullying. So, no one should feel bad about getting up and walking out when the student athlete presentations are over. Um, and we will not be offended, but of course, you're all welcome to stay for the regular meeting. Um, as we work through

003the summer, we're very much into the hiring season. Um, we finally hired our last two administrative positions on tonight's agenda. Um, we're working through a couple last minute uh teaching and counseling vacancies uh that happen every year uh throughout throughout this time. Um, and we're also very actively working on construction as you can see around the district. Um, most of the construction is taking place inside with flooring upgrades at several of our schools. Um, you will notice some solar projects that start through the uh through the next couple weeks to months. Um, and also next summer as we put solar parking in five of our school parking lots. One of the reasons we do things like that is you can do energy savings programs. So, you can do construction at other schools. So, through our

004energy savings program, we're going to save um we're going to be able to do about $9 million worth of work of increase to our heating, ventilation, air conditioning systems. um with the money we would have spent on bills because we've decreased our energy costs. Um and that will replace almost all the remaining HVAC at Hawk that's so uh uh desperately needs to be updated. That work's happening this summer with 40 different unit ventilators. Those are those box units in classrooms getting ripped out and replaced and restored and reconnected this summer at Moraurice Hawk. So, lots of different work happening. Um, also since there's such a nice audience of families here to spread the word that the the bridge closure that's going to happen, we sent a letter out last week, but that bridge closure that's

005going to happen on the high school north side as you drive to North and community and Millstone from the West Windsor side will be a nightmare for 6 months. That is a county uh project over a waterway. They're expecting over 180 days of construction. Uh that started in July and will go through the better part of 2025, if not into 2026. So, uh if you're have a student driver in the room, they're going to need additional time. And if you have a bus, which almost everyone does, save your yourselves a headache, parents, and please put your children on bus because that will decrease traffic. And it will help us be able to get um students faster to school. And it will save you a lot of a lot of congestion, a lot of frustration, and

006a lot of uh uh money in the swear jar. Um so so with that, um we look forward to our athletic presentation. I'll turn it back to the board president. >> Perfect. Thank you for that. And uh yes, so now it's time to recognize our spring athletics. And we welcome Kate Dobinson and Jeff Riley. [Applause] So I won the torn class tonight. So I'm going to go toss tonight. So I'm gonna go first. There we go. Is that better? All right. So, tonight I have the honor of recognizing several outstanding student athletes and coaches from High School South. The first team I'd like to honor, and I'm going to ask that all members who are present to come up to be honored is the South volleyball team whose hard work, unity, and determination has made

007history for our district and community. Members include and if players could please come up and join me Lquille Gurapati, Rishi Saga, Kushaga Trapathi, Ishwan Mamadi, Jackson D. Costanza, Andrew Yan, Isan, Khal Uscar, Adicha, Shredhar, Shiva, Shivaashmore, Nagasi, Gorit, Nikquille, Koya, Ryan Thompson, Akquil Arun, Verun Shenoi, Sai uh Dian Didi, Noah Chen, and Surya Nanduri. In a season defined by perseverance and excellence, the South volleyball team captured its first BCSL tournament championship. A milestone that reflects the team's growth and commitment to excellence. But the commit accomplishments don't stop there. Under the leadership of coach David Cologne, the Pirates made a remarkable run through the NJSIA South Group Three playoffs, ultimately advancing to the sectional final for the first time in program history. Along the way, they competed with heart, energy, sportsmanship, and qualities that have become

008the hallmark of South Athletics. This season not only sets new records, but also sets a new standard for the future teams. From standout individual performances to collective team triumphs, the Pirates prove what's possible when talents meet tenacity of this team. I would also like to acknowledge two outstanding members. Shiva Moore, a sophomore at WWP South, has been named the BCSL player of the year. A remarkable accomplishment for any athlete, but especially for someone in just his second year. He has quickly become a dominant force in the conference and one of the top volleyball players in the state. This season alone, he recorded an incredible 323 kills, including 22 matches with double-digit kills and a season high of 18 in the sectional sectional semi-finals against WWP North. He also added 157 digs and played a key

009role as one of the team's top servers. In just two seasons, he has amassed 531 career kills, a testament to his consistency, drive, and athleticism. But beyond the m uh numbers, he plays with heart, humility, and a team first mindset that inspires those around him. Congratulations. The second individual that I'd like to recognize from the volleyball team is Coach David Cologne. Coach Cologne has been named BCSL Coach of the Year, and it's easy to see why. This past season marked historic milestones for the Pirates under his leadership. After years of dedication and steady progress, Coach Cologne guided the team to its first ever BCSL conference title and an unforgettable run to the South Group Three Final, the first in program the program's history. With a remarkable 22- win season, the Pirates also earned the third

010seed in the sectional tournament, an accomplishment that reflects the culture, excellence, discipline, and teamwork that Coach Cologne has instilled in his players. More than just wins and titles, Coach Cologne has helped shape a program that uplifts student athletes, teaches resilience, and builds community pride. He his impact extends beyond the field, and his leadership is helping pave the way for future success at South. Congratulations. It's been a lot of fun watching the volleyball team play this season. Um, and you know, a lot of my students athlete, student athletes see me pacing on the side in games, in matches. My tennis team can definitely say this, but um, I and I always tell all of you this that I love watching our student athletes compete and play. And, um, we've just had so many wonderful accomplishments here

011at South that I'm very proud of. So, thank you to the South volleyball team. Yes. >> Thank you. >> Yeah. >> The next team that I would like to recognize and I'm going to ask that all players who are here to come up is the South Boys tennis team. Please come up. South tennis has had truly an unforgettable and dominant season. One that has solidified their place in school in state history. Members of the team include Rashab Shakador, uh, Koko Ramasami, Py Dharma, Shrean Kumar, Cares, Buddha, Hadesh, Adv Pine, Shrian, Gopu, Rohan, Ramachandran, Rohit, Dada, and Steven Deng. This talented group of student athletes made history by winning an inaugural CBC tournament, edging out rival Princeton by just um minuscule points, half a point, and a thrilling finish that showcased their depth, focus, and compet

012uh competitive spirit. But the victories did not stop there. The team went on to win the Central Group three sectional title and then achieved the ultimate honor, capturing the group three state championship, bringing home the coveted title and making WWP South proud. In addition to their postseason success, the team swept through several major invitational tournaments this season, taking home championships at the Brian Bennett tournament, the Mortown Classic, and the Blue Devil Invitational. Each win was a reflection of their preparation, resilience, and unmatched teamwork. These accomplishments are not only a testament to the players incredible talent, and hard work, but also to the leadership of the coaching staff, the support of their family, and the unwavering school spirit behind them. On a personal note, and I had mentioned this previously, um they teased me so much

013at every single one of their matches at Mercer County Park because I would just be along the sidewalk pacing back and forth doing laps around the court just because the energy was so high. Um and every point, every serve meant so much to all of us. I would like to also recognize three individuals of this team. First up is Rohan Ramachandaran and Shirran Kumar for their remarkable achievement as runner-ups in the NJSIAA individuals doubles tournament. Competing against the top tennis players across the state, Rohan and Shrion displayed exceptional skill, composure, and teamwork throughout the tournament. Their journey to the championship match was marked by fierce competition under high pressure moments and an undeniable chemistry on the court. Finishing as state finalists is no small feat. It places them among the very best in New Jersey

014and speaks volume about their dedication to the sport, their commitment to each other, and their ability to rise to the occasion when it matters most. Congratulations. [Applause] The second individual I would like to recognize is Shran Gopou. In a program already known for its high standard, Shitton distinguished himself as a true standout competing at second singles and then eventually sec third singles and eventually second singles. He was a cornerstone of South's incredible run to the group three state championship. And he did so with consistency, focus, and unwavering competitive spirit. Throughout the season, Shitton racked up an impressive list of victories and came up big with big wins that allowed his team to move forward. Examples include in the New Jersey group three finals against uh Central Jersey finals against North, he overcome a tough second

015set and won a deciding tiebreaker 10 to3. In group three state finals against Milbourne, he once again rallied be from behind, turning a 26 first set loss into a thrilling 36 and a 106 comeback victory. These wins were these just weren't wins, but they were testaments to his mental toughness and ability to rise to the moment. He has been named the NJ.com tennis player of the year, and it is a reflection of all his hard work and dedication over the course of the season. The last individual I would like to recognize as part of South's tennis team is Coach Rich Arnold, who reached his 300th career win in tennis this season and finishes up the season with 301. Reaching 300 wins is more than just a number. It represents decades of commitment, mentorship, and excellence.

016Under Coach Arnold's leadership, the Pirates have consistently been one of the premier tennis programs in New Jersey, known for their discipline, sportsmanship, and competitive success. This latest milestone comes during a season that may go down as one of the best in program history. Um, complete with the CBC tournament title, sectional, and group three state championships, and multiple invitational wins. But what makes coach Arnold's legacy truly special is not just the titles, the trophies, or the team records. It's the countless student athletes he has guided, encouraged, and inspired along the way. And his AD coach Arnold has shared gener shaped generations of players both on and off the court. His steady leadership, deep knowledge of the game, and dedication to the development of young athletes have made a lasting impact not only on his players, but

017on the entire WWP community. As coach Arnold is also the coach of the North girls team. [Applause] This tennis team has accomplished so much over the course of the season and I could not be prouder. Congratulations. If you'd all like to turn around so we can get Oh, no. No. And just watch. >> Congratulations. The last South student athlete that I would like to recognize tonight who unfortunately is unable to be here is Bennett Seagull. Bennett has been named Tranonian baseball player of the year. Um Bennett's career is nothing short of remarkable. A consistent presence in the lineup both uh since his freshman year. He has reached a major milestone this season reached recording his 100th career hits. a rare and celebrated achievement in high school baseball. His 2024 2025 season was his most dominant

018yet with a 0.516 batting average, 78 slugging percentage, 32 hits including 11 for extra bases, 25 runs scored, 11 I'm sorry, 12 RBI's, and five stolen bases, and an impressive uh 410 career batting average over four years. His contrib contributions went far beyond the stat sheet. He was a leader both on and off the field. The type of players teammates look to in big moments and opponents know that they have to respect. His ability to rise under pressure paired with sportsmanship and maturity made him the heart of this year's team. Bennett's journey does not end here. He will be continuing his academic and athletic career at um Old Dominion University where he'll compete at a division one program. Throughout the course of the year, I have had the opportunity and pleasure to share with all

019of you the remarkable accomplishments of our student athletes. Thank you for continued support of all of our WWP athletes and coaches, and I look forward to the 2526 year and being here again to celebrate our athletes at South again. Thank you. Well, good evening. Thank you for having us here this evening to recognize our athletes and their accomplishments throughout the season. I'm Jeff Riley, the uh director of athletics at West Plains North, where it's always a great day to be a Knight. And uh you know, first of all, I'd like to congratulate our athletes from South. Kate was very kind in not mentioning that the tennis team defeat us in the finals, right? And the volleyball team defeat us in the finals. So, in other words, if if they didn't defeat us, we'd be here

020tonight. But anyways, but we just want to say congratulations. They're both wonderful matches and great games and it was it was a it was truly great competition. U we are here tonight to recognize our athletes that did some outstanding stuff for us in the spring and most notably our spring track and field teams. So, first I'd like to call up our girls track and field team. If you please come up. All representatives here, including coach Alt Bader. We had an absolutely outstanding season under the exceptional leadership of coach Diana Altvader, who was rightfully named the CBC girls track and field coach of the year. The team captured both the Mercer County Championship and the sectional championship which they did in the wintertime as well. A rare and impressive double victory that reflects the depth and

021strength of the program. Our sectional champions include Afia Apa, Ava Goodrich, Allison Lee, Evelyn Yang, Vivian Ma, Sarah Sakura, Fatima Arasu, Zuie Chinchalker, Bria Davis Owens, Nina Dex, Mahima Bansel, Ani Certiel, and Aditi Ravi. [Applause] These athletes not only dominate at the section level, but they continue to excel at the group championships where Allison Lee earned second place in the 3200 meters. Zooie Chinchalker placed fourth in the 1600 meters. Allison's journey didn't stop there. At the prestigious meet of champions, she once again delivered a phenomenal performance, taking second place in the 3200 meters, proving herself as one of the top distance runners in New Jersey. And then at the national level, Allison made history, finishing seventh in the nation in the 5,000 meters with a time of 163827. It was the number one time in

022the state of New Jersey this year. She was also a key member of the distance medley relay team alongside Zooie Chinchalker, Bria Davis Owens, and Sarah Sakura who finished ninth in the nation setting a school record of 1155.49 which ranks number two in New Jersey overall and number one amongst public schools. Congratulations and in recognition of being the best team in both the winter and the spring at Mercer County and our section. Your effort, your hard work throughout the winter and the spring showed and we can't say enough. Congratulations. Thank you. Picture Good. Thank you. Turning to our boys track and field team, we are equally proud to recognize their achievements of the team and Brian Gould, their head coach. Please come on up. All your representatives here tonight [Applause] at the meet of champions

023of 4 by 800 relay team. Shubami Allison, Luke Ferrer, Jordan Andred, and her grim jaw earned fifth place medals showing grit and competitiveness at the highest level. Additionally, the distance medley team of Paul Wittenberg, a Grim Ja, Shabumi Allison, and Madav Hadagali earned the honor of competing at the New Balance New Balance National Championships. A testament to the talent and discipline these young men bring to the track. What makes these accomplishers truly special is that they are the result of Tyos effort, commitment to teammates, and relentless pursuit of personal and collective goals. These at least these athletes have balanced rigorous training schedules with academic excellence and represent our district with pride and integrity. Thank you. A picture to the board of education. Thank you for acknowledging our athletes and making this a special thing that

024we'll continue to do going forward in the future. We look forward to doing it next year. Thank you very much. >> Thank you to both our directors of athletics for presenting our spring athletes and their coaches. um a lot of wonderful accomplishments. Uh thank you for representing WWP. And so it is time to move forward with our agenda for the evening. So if you'd like to depart and enjoy the rest of your evening, feel free. Um if you'd like to stay, we'd love to have you, but you know, we totally get it. So, we'll we'll take a couple of minutes to let the crowd disperse before we >> start our start our presentation. Congratulations. I was gonna say thanks for thanks for coming. Well, now that we've effectively cleared the room, um we're we're the

025projector is starting to warm up. So, I think I can start to uh I can introduce our um uh our next topic is our special public hearing on harassment, intimidation, and bullying. So, I'll ask Dr. Jessica Smmedley to uh provide us the presentation. Take it away. >> Thank you. Okay. Well, welcome everyone. Um, it's hard to believe we were doing this just um just about six month five months ago actually. Um, so I'm here tonight to do our harassment, intimidation, and bullying semiannual report about reporting period 2 from January to through June of um 2025 and also go over our HIB uh self assessment with the NJDOE rubric. So without further ado, um we will also take a look at some data analysis patterns and themes we've noticed from the year um specifically from reporting

026period 2 um talk a little bit about the culture and climate summit which we were all really excited to have this spring um in May and then like I said we'll go over the self assessment grades. So just a quick warmup um about the definition of HIV which stands for harassment, intimidation and bullying. So HIPP includes any gesture, written, verbal or physical act or any electronic communication whether it be a single incident or series of incidents. It must be reasonably perceived as being motivated by either an actual or perceived characteristic um that takes place on school property at any school sponsored function on a school bus or off school grounds and substantially disrupts or interferes with the orderly operation of the school or the rights of other students. Next, we just want to review preliminary

027determinations. So, um, a couple years ago now, we had a change, um, there was a change in the law, an update to the law, which then, um, we changed in our policy to allow for what's called preliminary determination. So that means that um and I'll just read this that prior from the law or from our policy prior to initiating an investigation regarding a reported incident or complaint the principal or designate in consultation with the anti-bullying specialist shall make a preliminary determination as to whether a reported incident or complaint assuming all facts are presented as true is a report within the scope of NJSA1 18A37-14. So what this means is that we can choose in the principal or designate um in consultation with the anti-bullying specialist and also with me as the anti-bullying coordinator um take

028a look at the initial facts and if there if we don't believe that it meets that three-prong criteria that I went over in the prior slide then we would take care of that through other means and that could be through um through the just through code of conduct also could be um that we are doing a restorative practice just that there's not enough there. There's not enough information reported to continue on with the full HIV investigation. So, in reporting period 2, which again represents January 1 to June 30th of 2025, uh we had eight total preliminary determinations with six of those being at our our two middle schools and two being in our K through five schools. So, and I just want to um note again that this doesn't mean that these situations aren't being

029addressed. Anytime anyone tells us that they're having an issue or a concern, um we certainly take that report seriously. It just means that there isn't e either is not enough evidence to support the full hip investigation or it's a straight conduct um referral and it's dealt with through the code of conduct and our student handbooks. Um and usually in these preliminary determinations there are remedial measures even if it's not um to continue on with the investigation and that can look like counseling, pure mediation and restorative conversations. Okay. In reporting period 2, we had a total of 84 incidents or reports. Um 43 of those were to be founded. So um representing 48.8% 8% of all total reported um incidents and 41 were found to be unfounded or inconclusive. Inconclusive generally means that there just wasn't

030enough um evidence to support again that three-prong approach, but um there was enough information uh to conduct the the full investigation. Next, we have HIPP investigations by gradeband. So again we have total incidents in our K through five schools we had 47 um in grades 6 through 8 19 and in grades 9 through 12 18. So K through 56% uh 6 through 8 was 22.6% and grades 9 through 12 was 21.4%. And when we take a look at our data to analyze kind of where are we seeing these things happen um we take a look at what's happening uh or our reports by location. So um I have the percentages up here but I'll give you the raw numbers. So our cell phone um via cell phone so that could be through texting, it could

031be through an app, it could be through uh social media was found was there were five incidents reported. The school bus was 11 incidents. Um the playground seven um other so one that's not named three the classroom 33 um one internet so that could be not the phone but again some of those same sites um and platforms I mentioned 14 in the lunchroom and 10 in the hallway and I'll come back to this when we talk a little bit about trends but we can see um and I like to point out that there are um a large chunk of our pie here the orange section 39.3% um are in the classroom room that typically comes because another peer overhears something or a teacher, especially in our K through five, often the adults are the people

032creating the report. And so that's often a teacher or an instructional assistant um or even a parent volunteer, someone who sees something in the classroom that they need to we need to investigate a little bit further. We also see a lot of unstructured time sort of cumulative is still more than the classroom. Okay. Then we look at what are the distinguishing characteristics. So this slide outlines the distinguishing characteristics that were cited in the in the incidents this um this reporting period. So most common were um race, ethnicity and appearance uh with over each with over 20 incidents attri attributed to them. Um so these patterns are uh consistent with national data um that these are the areas that um not only in our district but in the state and across um well we'll talk specifically

033about the state since it's a New Jersey law um that we kind of fit right in with um what's typical. So here we have so race, ethnicity we had 22 incidents. Next highest was appearance at 20. Um and we see on here too not identifiable is the 22. Those are generally represented by um the ones that were found to be unfounded because this having a distinguishing characteristic is one of the prongs to show to demonstrate that you have a founded incident of HIP. So um again this is it's inclusive of all of our investigations. And then our other category uh where we had seven is most commonly socioeconomic status and um somewhat more specific uh physical appearance. So body size versus appearance um that could be and this is up sort of in the eye

034of the investigator. So um a a slur or a use of like you're ugly could be could be an appearance. Um it also could be in the other category. So that's what represents other and we had nothing in ancestry um this reporting period. Our month-by-month analysis we continue to trend about the same as we have been over the past several years. Um we tend to see you see March has 23.8% 8% of our um which is the the highest um personally and anecdotally and having done this um been in this role for for 15 years too here in in WWP but several in prior districts is that that's the month before spring break. And so um we tend to have sometimes we have days off in March. This year we did um but we tend

035to have a pretty long stretch of time between um president's weekend and spring break which can sort of amp up um some of these behaviors. We get a little antsy for those breaks um need a little break from each other and so that trends as well. The other place um the other time of year that we tend to see a slight increase is October and I know I talked about that at the last time I presented and some of that is because we're settled into school and so some of the the newness wears off or we're getting to know people better, starting to get into group projects, um more unstructured time together, but it's also um the anti-bullying month and uh violence awareness week and so we're also messaging a lot more in the month

036of October. over. So that can also tend to increase like when when kids hear things um they tend to maybe want to talk about it or they might report because it's something that is fresh in their mind. Okay. So talking about some patterns and trends. Um so we had 92 total uh reports. Uh again 41 were to be founded or were founded. um 43 unfounded with tw I'm sorry with eight preliminary determinations. Um most frequent motivations race appearance. Um and disability is another one that goes into that category. It can be in in other it can also be an appearance because if you think about what's again what sort of slurs are used with that it's up to the person doing the report to sort of figure out and put it into a category. So,

037um, we see common locations. We did have the most in classrooms, but when you add up all the unstructured time, it still actually is more than the structured time. And so, we see that lunchrooms, um, lunchroom also in our reporting because of of what we can report includes playground. So, that's another unstructured time. Um, school buses, and then hallways, recess, that kind of thing. Um this spring the majority of our incidents were in the K to5 grade band. Um and as we might expect our middle school cases had some more complex um pieces to it. It's also it's unsurprising to me that that's also where we have um a higher number of preliminary preliminary determinations um because they're the conflict is more common um and they're developmentally um getting or really stuck in that teen

038time that we need to do a lot of um pure mediation. So that again sometimes looks like what the preliminary determination leads to is doing a pure mediation instead of a hip investigation. We were pretty steady in volume like I said slight uptick in March um a slight uptick in April into May. Um I'm not sure what that was about. We actually we saw it specifically um some of them were started before right before spring break and then we had a little bubble at the right after spring break at the end of April. So um that was interesting. It was actually something that some of our um teams looked at at the culture and climate summit relative to what else was happening. Um but I do like to keep everyone grounded in our incidents and

039these when we think about the topic um generally tends to follow what's happening outside of the walls of our school and outside the borders of our community and matches what's happening um in our state, in our nation, and in our world. Okay. All right. So, I'm going to move on to the school self assessment for determining grades. And so, um, this is another annual report we do. So, the anti-bullying specialists who are all school counselors and student assistance counselors in our buildings. Each of our buildings has a school climate and culture team or climate and safety team. and they meet regularly and once a year um perform a self assessment of how things are going. And that includes everything from what kind of programming are we providing that's um proactive and um immediately intervention um

040related. And then also relates to they also score on did everyone get training? Um that includes staff, parent volunteers, bus drivers, all of our related service people. Um and then what are they doing to improve and take a look at school climate? So each indicator has a maximum of three points. Um this is the rubric here. So does not meet requirements is zero points, partially meets requirement one point, meets all requirements, two points, and exceeds requirements three points. So um the maximum school grade is 78 points and we were very close. Our average was in the high 70s. Um, and like I said, that is determined by each school. So, the rubric contains eight core elements used as a guide in assigning school and grades. Um, it's a means to educate our school staff on

041best practices. So it's actually basically an annual audit of how are we doing um with meeting all the requirements meeting or ex in our case I we exceed in most areas um exceeding the requirements of the law and on these teams we have representatives from um they was developed through a panel of experts and in conjunction with the state several years ago. Um this these scores relate to the entire school year. So my data in the first part of the presentation was really focused on January through June, but when they do their self assessment, that's a once a year task. So they take a look at the inclusive um school year. Okay. And here's our score by element. So core element number one is HIP programs, approaches, and other initiatives. And we scored uh 14.7

042out of 15 across average school across all of our schools. Um core element two is training on the BOE approved HIP policy. So that we um we got a nine out of nine. That usually includes having we always have our um our board of education attorney educate our faculty, our teams specifically our all of our administrators. Um so that's an annual event and then we take that training and turnkey it to all the rest of our staff. So through faculty meetings, through department meetings, grade level meetings. Um, and we also do I run a um a monthly meeting for all of the anti-bullying specialists where we talk about trends and what's happening and specifically with regards to consistency in investigative procedures. So that's also included in that training. Core element number three is other staff

043instruction and training programs. So these are some of our other software programs we use to do this training. um looking at the trends uh having uh GCN training available to all of our um all of our staff. And so we scored a 13.9 out of 15 on average. Core element number four is curriculum and instruction on HIB and related information and skills. So this is where we see um where we've embedded more education about the prevention of bullying, harassment, intimidation into our school curriculum. So, we were a six out of six on that area. Our core element number five, HIP personnel. This means that we have um we have trained staff members in all of our buildings. We've done all of our thorough training both turnkey um and um and in the schools and also

044with students. So, this means pushing into classrooms, doing lessons, which I'll talk a little bit more about in a little bit. Um so, that is for personnel. Uh it also means that we have an an abs anti-bullying specialist and an anti-bullying coordinator assigned which we do. Um core element number six is the school level HI incident reporting procedure. We scored 5.9 out of six for that. Core element number seven is our HIP investigation procedure and um this is up actually in the self assessments um from over last year from 11 and it is 11.7 out of 12 and I would credit that um taking a look at those and having now a second year of these monthly meetings where we really take a look at are we all are we all filling out the paperwork

045the same way? are we handling from the minute we get knowledge that there is a report filed um to our time following up to having the conclusion and making sure that um all families are aware of the restorative practices any disciplinary measures and any follow-up that's necessary. And finally core element number eight is about HIP reporting. So um that we use a software system called Hipster to track that. So we're able to have um take a look at our own data analytics and so we scored a six out of six in that area. Okay. So just a little bit about our trainings, programs and initiatives. We continue to have a lot of different initiatives and um HIP kind of touches a lot of our uh several of our strategic goals and so um that work

046is embedded in in this as well. Uh this year we we did the um New Jersey Sky or the school climate initiative survey to our students in grades three to through 12. And so we did a lot of work um in our teams at the school level principles setting goals with their um with their climate and safety teams and being able to share that with students and staff throughout this throughout the year. Um we continue to do SEAL strategic goal work and the castle framework which is a lot of that prevention um building empathy and um creating sense of belonging in our schools is really important to us. Professional development and training that goes from everything from um from these other areas to the actual straight HIV requirements. Uh we have continue to have a

047strong mental health and counseling staff here in WWP. And finally, our HIB student training. And these are some of our proactive approaches to bullying prevention. So, we have um several are the ones that were on the the slide prior. But in addition, um we partner with PTSA for events and to talk about these things, make sure that our families understand how to report, see, if you see something, say something. Um and just work together in community. I talked about our um our monthly meetings. We do take a a look, we rely heavily on the data of what's happening and what we're doing um and try to do a gap analysis so that when we plan for uh future years, we can take a look at what else do we need to add in. Um this

048year we were able to train several dozen of our teachers in nurtured heart which is an approach um that we were actually able to bring the training in through a what's called the dreams grant which the board approved last summer at this at this meeting um which is really a proactive restorative approach um that can be used in the classroom. It's also used in in homes and taught to families and caretakers. So, our next level of work with that is to to be able to train more families and caretakers. We're looking forward to more about that and I think probably at some point in the not too distant future, Miss Totero and I will probably be presenting on some of some of that related to goal three work. Um, we also have looked at um

049what are we doing in tiered behavior support? So, as we continue to grow our uh multi-tered system of support teams in each of our school, um taking a look at what are we doing for students who need behavior supports who maybe have had um incidents of HIV either as an offender or a victim and um oftentimes it's both um and so what are we doing and so that the MTSS team provides another opportunity for a multiddisciplinary team of adults to talk about what would be helpful to our students who have needs in this area. Okay, so we have some pictures. I didn't get Dr. Adhold to sign a release for his photo, but I didn't think he'd mind. Everybody else is from the back. Um, so we had our annual culture and climate summit on

050May 28th. Uh, we had about 70 people in this room. Um and that consisted of our school safety and uh climate and safety teams which um is inclusive in the grades 6 through 12 also of students. So there were about a half a dozen students that came. We had administrators, the anti-bullying specialists, teacher representatives, and parent representatives at these teams. And so this year's focus was really taking a look at the board had just um written the statement on DEI. And so Dr. Adhold um came and explained to this group kind of why you did that and and why that was important and um really helped all of our students and staff and family and caretakers who were there that day understand um how talking about climate and culture and harassment and tinidation and bullying

051fits into the wider objectives of the school. Um he also gave us really good information. And I feel like I I learned a lot that day about some of the political scene and executive orders and even how things were working and happening at the time. And I believe something had actually just been um introduced that week. So it was extremely timely. Um the engagement was super high in the room and it was the perfect way to sort of frame for our our teams what they need to do kind of like what who we are, what we stand for and what does that mean for what you're doing as teams and what does that mean for activities, support um and again cultivating that sense of belonging in each one of our schools. We also heard from

052uh Miss Totero about district-wide trends uh within the school the NJ Sky the climate and survey the climate survey. Um and so that also helps set up districtwide what are we looking at again broad strokes but what does that mean? What do each school want to do with that to plan for their activities um for next year. So at the we kind of look at what are we doing, what have we done that take that inventory these teams. This is one of two the climate and culture summit is um one of two district-wide meeting days in the year that we um which is a compliance piece to they have to meet at least twice a year. So one of them is the summit. Um most of our schools meet monthly with their teams. Um so

053but they we have to have at least two. So we bring everybody together for this one and really take a look. We look at the HIB data. So what's happening? They take a look at those trends at the school level versus what I've presented tonight at the district level. Um we also had some opportunity for our teams to work together. So the whole K5 team work together. We also we had the 68 team working together. So there's slight differences in schoolto school and some of that just depends on the number of students in the school. It's really not that much different when you disagregate the data. Um and then our high school teams also met together. I think that was really powerful for um for our students too to be able to hear what's happening

054in other schools. And sometimes we think things look really different and when you get down and you really take a look at the nitty-gritty, it's actually very similar. And then I'm happy to share um kind of to conclude things where what these teams came up with. So we gave them about an hour to um to take a look at and do their celebrations and also kind of what they see given the data and what happened this year where do they see us going for next year. So just um briefly run through these. So continued focus um by and large on on SEAL. So in grades K through eight we use the um secondstep SEAL program that's led by our school counselors. We're excited to have at one of our elementary schools piloting the um the

055sort of expansion of that into classrooms and also with our responsive classroom uh training as more of our our teachers are trained in that area. Blending some of those different SEAL um activities and strategies together. We also use zones of regulation which is really just all about emotional regulation that's used in classrooms. It's used um heavily by our um our occupational therapists and speech therapists, our school counselors. So, kind of bringing that infusing that more into into everyone's every day. So, those are our tier one supports. So, we're going to continue those. Um a lot of our schools also have month a monthly focus. So, they pick either a character theme or a monthly focus. Um I think one thing that came across loud and clear in the um in reading each school's slide and

056their notes from the day and their goal statements for next year is really trying to build strengthen um peer relationships and cultivating that sense of belonging. So um you can see in in the results from their work that they picked up on what Dr. Adderhold and Miss Totero were sharing about what we are all doing together as a school community. Um lot of excitement around that intentionality around lessons on empathy, respect, inclusion. Um also using common language that was a a theme is um how are we talking about conflict resolution? So, and that comes up particularly as we are now going into um our second year with with SecondStep and to have as we're growing the number of students who who speak that language. One of the core elements of the SecondStep program is is

057problem solving. So, how are we using our problem solving skills, building that into peer mediation so that the students have the skills to do that with each other hopefully in the in the hopes of preventing um some of the incidents that we end up investigating. Um, in terms of creating kind of more inclusive, like whole community inclusive um, environments, there were several um, schools that talked about having bus families connecting kind of like what's happening in the community and the neighborhood with what's happening in school. So, and creating positive reinforcement um, more community and family engagement. So, we have um, PTA, PTSA events, um, inclusive readalouds, inclusive programming in general. So, at the secondary level, we have the United program. Um, but how can we do things with our peers um to make sure that

058everyone feels like they have a place and that they belong. Um, we're we were really excited to see um the number of I don't think I think if I let them have as many slides as they wanted to, they the high schools probably could have kept going for another hour and a half after our our climate sum our um summit ended. But we have so many affinity groups, student panels, um, and students teaching teachers is really a way for students to give their feedback and feel like they are in control of of things in their school and that um, helping their teachers and other staff understand them. And that also happens through advisory committees. And then finally, everyone's always super proud. It gets a little competitive at the shareout at the summit about everyone's spirit

059weeks activities. um recognitions and um you know how to just create that positive spirit that also makes school a place that everyone wants to be, everyone belongs, and just cultivates that um that safe and supportive school environment. So, we're really excited for the upcoming school year. And finally, I'd just like to close with our district mission um is to we are committed to providing all students with a safe learning environment that is free from harassment, intimidation, and bullying. We're we adhere to the New Jersey Anti-bullying Bill of Rights. We are committed to training all of our staff to identify, report, and address HIP, proactively engaging, educating caregivers, students, and board of education members, and establishing positive school communities. hip expectations and a commitment to safety and respectful behavior. So that's it. >> Thank you, Dr.

060Smmedley. >> You're welcome. >> Any questions or comments from the board for Dr. Smmedley? >> Uh Ly. >> Thank you, Dr. Smiley. It's always very interesting to to hear your report. I was just curious because I noticed that I guess before CO when I remember hearing these reports the um the incidents or the investigation numbers were always higher for like middle school and high school and I would think postco CO I think I mentioned this before that the numbers would go down especially with preliminary determination being but it still looks like the K5 uh at 56% is the breakdown in terms of founded incidences this um correlates the the pi chart that you have the same for K5. Is there like a separate? >> It does not. I don't have that um like off the

061top of my head, but there are less found there are fewer founded incidents at the K5 level than there are at 6 through 12. >> Middle school will always I think always be our anecdotally at least or in my experience it's the most it's it's just the most incidents in general when you especially when you take a look at the whole year. Um, and unsurprising also for preliminary determinations because it's it's the first time we do see some students reporting on their own a K to five, but it's pretty rare. And so when you hit middle school, that's when you get not just um mom, dad, caretaker making that report or a teacher or other staff member making a report, the students report on their own. So, and they often go to um their counselors,

062their teachers, trusted staff members who then will make the report. So, that's where we see a little bit of a bubble. >> Okay. Thanks, Lily. Go ahead. >> Thank you again for the presentation. Um just looking at the slide, uh founded incidence of HIV, distinguishing characteristics. Yes. If could you explain again the difference between no identifiable and other? >> So no identif identifiable characteristic would be that it's generally a report of something that isn't founded. So it could be essentially like there's a a straight code of conduct violation. Like for example, a student hit another student. That's all that happened. And so it got reported through HIB. And so we had to run through that investigation, but it wasn't found to be founded because there w upon investigation and interviewing everyone involved, there wasn't something

063that happened to create the hitting or that the hitting occurred that had anything to do with any of these distinguishing characteristics. Okay? >> If that makes sense. So, but it's all in there because we're talking total investigations. other is again in the eye of the beholder because I know sometimes with um with race versus ethnicity versus um national origin. Um I think sometimes that can be you're really taking a look at it's it's based on impact not on intent. So different words and name calling and slurs mean different things to different people. And so we know that it happened, but it may not fit in the in the investigators if they put other and if they think it's other instead of appearance. So for example, I think probably the easiest one is if if someone

064calls someone else fat, >> that could be appearance, it could also be other. >> Okay. Thank you. >> Sure, >> Dana. >> Thanks again for the presentation. Um you may have said this but I'm um want to I guess want to hear it again. Um so how many um of these have been incidents like how do they compare to other school similar districts? Like do we have any data like that? >> We don't take a look um at this point. So um typically we're in line well within line of everyone else. What happens with these um with the self assessment and even the um the total incidents they are reported yearly and so um the trends we really are a couple years behind to look at everybody else's data because we submit everything actually it's

065all due to the state on Thursday um but then they take time to um review it all accept it all and then it's published and publicly available at the on the state performance report. So we put it in the student safety data system, the SSDS, which is part of our um plethora of New Jersey reporting requirements annually. So the publicly available information is generally 18 months to two years behind. So up to the point that we have publicly available information, I would say we trend in the same um averages as other school districts, but we don't have live like they haven't released the performance reports, correct me if I'm wrong, for last year yet. Right. They're usually like or they just did. So that's like you're always a little bit behind. >> Sure. Go ahead,

066Liz. >> Thank you also for the presentation. So I I heard the words belonging a lot during the presentation which was very positive and encouraging more so than hearing like diversity and those other types of um words. How do you how do you communicate that and work with students at different age levels to you know expand upon what it what it means to belong to a group or in the school community? How do you support that? And um also the second question I had was how do you create like processes to help sure that the kids understand it their age level what their actions may have been you know going to your point about impact versus intent. >> Sure. So um little bit of the same same response to both parts of your question. Um

067so we are in classrooms a lot messaging to students about what again in the student training what this means for them. Um I think for for the first part about belonging um it starts with teaching with some teaching about empathy for others understanding other people's viewpoints um and even starting at the basis of basics of what makes you want to come to school um what do you think makes other people want to come to school? It was how we sort of started from our earliest learners creating using our other programming like second steps certainly responsive classroom with our our daily meetings that the teachers run up through announcements, message boards, clubs and activities for our secondary students of we're we're always trying to create an environment where if you get involved, you want to come

068to school. and a lot of overt messaging on we want our schools, we want every person to feel safe and secure at school because when you do and when you are and you know that people will be kind to you, you're going to be kind to other people and that's what makes us want to come here and be together every day. So, I think it's a lot of overt messaging, a lot of um there's dactic teaching involved, but also our time that we just spend together making connections. I think what comes before feeling that you belong is feeling like you're connected to people. So that could also look like students who um or even families who might report to us that their child doesn't feel like they know anybody or they don't have any friends

069at school. You know, one of the ways that we talk um and coming attraction for our parent webinar coming up on Friday, I'll just advertise about going to middle school um that I'll be doing with Karen Abrams and Lindseay Linbarger is how how do you getting involved and um getting engaged in both learning classroom learning curricular learning but also our extracurriculars and um practicing being a good human being helps cultivate that. And so that's really the messaging that we do. >> Did I get everything or did you did I not get your second part? >> No, you did. >> Okay, you did. I just had like something similar. So when I've gone to some of the school events, you know, to help out at whatever it is, I've noticed like in the cafeteria, the lunch

070times could be one of those times when people when students can feel like alone. They're sitting by themselves at a table or, you know, um not having someone to engage with. Are there things that could be done to help those kind of students where and the adults are observing that someone is by themselves, you know, to be more proactive to ensure that they have this like lunch buddy or whatever it is. Just putting it out there, especially at the middle school level. I think it could be very lonely. So, >> it can and it and one of the things that we try to do is um is watch for that. And um it is we rely on um actually our students are some of the best reporters of that. So in training like our peer

071ambassadors, our peer leaders um in middle school and high school is to take a look at who needs support and so we try to build a support network for those students. Um our school counselors run um new student groups. So it can be a lot um I mean obviously when we go to middle school our mixing happens so much more so there's so many there's a lot of people who are meeting a lot of new people. Um, and but it can also be much harder if you're coming from a different community, even if maybe you lived here a few years ago and your family left and you came back. Um, our counselors, our child study team members, and our administrators are on the lookout for that to make personal connections to try to draw students

072together. And I think our our teaching staff and our extracurric our teachers and other staff who run extracurricular programs whether those are stipended or not stipended our athletic programs certainly is inviting students to those things. So um you know just letting making sure that they know and I think that that also relates pretty heavily to how we communicate. So, um, one of the things that we're hoping to do with our our middle school parent, um, navigating the climb, we're calling it sort of, um, parent orientation is how how do you engage so that you know what's going on? So, you because we know parents and caregivers know their children the best. So, make sure you know how how are the teachers spreading information, how are how do they get announcements? Um, and again, try to

073find something. There's so many different ways to get involved and engage and meet one person and there's also a lot of power in having another thing we do especially at middle school is quality over quantity. So how do you you know and building trust trusting relationships with our peers and that is a a core skill of adolescence and so we have to do a lot we do a lot on the back end of that because we know they're just learning. We don't expect anybody to to come to school and just know how to be be um a great citizen, you know, and a great friend. It's like teaching the empathy, teaching look around. If you see something, you see someone's not being treated right or you see someone alone, let us know. Help, you know,

074um step up to the plate. We have so many students who love to be student leaders um and peer leaders that um I think we're really lucky to have that. It's about making the connections. But your point is well taken like I think taking a look and helping these kids um identify that there's a lot of opportunity. >> Yeah. >> Other questions? Oh, Ajant, go ahead. >> Thank you so much for the presentation. It's super informative. Um, as you're looking at all these different data sets and you're aggregating data sort of historically, are there sort of any outliers or any trends that you've noticed that you're either planning for for next year or just something that has some sort of anomaly from year to year? I didn't see anything that was an outlier. I think

075one thing that has improved over the past few years, so I mentioned the the change of preliminary determination as part of the updates from a few years ago. Um and uh so they were actually changed in July of 2022. And so we are now we just went through our second full year of having um having those changes and having a consistent reporting form that um we had one always, but the state has one specific form. And so I think that that has been helpful. Um it's in the same place for all students. um it's still available um in paper format if people want it. But that's one thing we noticed even from um anecdotally but also in taking a look at data from other places like emails, other conduct incidents because occasionally um and what

076we were finding before we had that consistent form and even talking as the anti-bullying team about what you're doing schoolto um some things were going to conduct first and we really need to be running a hip investigation side by side. So, I think that's one trend that I've noticed has improved. I feel like we are a lot tighter about that. It's also really helpful to talk as a team once a month because um there's a little bit more um well, there's sharing, there's like it's almost like a peer supervision opportunity of what what would you do in this circumstance? What have you Oh, we had one like that last year, so this is what we did. Um, in terms of incidents, I would say the only real trend I don't really feel like there's outliers.

077I think that we continue to match what's happening in the rest of the world. So what you what you hear if you look at incidents by type, by month, and this has been quite a a last 10 months, year, week, day, whatever we want to name. And so that our data follows right along. Right about a week behind any any major news comes the HIV matching it. >> Uh speaking of data, uh I love how data data driven this all is. So my question has to do with um uh one of the things you talked about was the uh average scores for some of the core elements like HIV reporting. So, I wondered in in trying to calculate that score, is it based on um is there a quote unquote healthy number of HIP reporting

078um by number of students, by grade level um to come to that number? Um and I and I asked that in the way I relate it to say like the corporate world where there's like um compliance and ethics reporting where by depending on the number of employees in an organization a certain number of reports is a good thing because zero would mean the system for reporting is not working and too many of course there's some bigger issues at hand. So is there some kind of formula like that for >> there is not. So these are they're primarily questions around compliance. And so again that meets versus exceeds. So um it's it's more um it's less it's not quantitative actually at all. Okay. >> It's qualitative and it doesn't relate. The only number they ask for

079on that um self assessment report is whether the district has in their policy um for the preliminary determinations and how many preliminary determinations by school. So other than that, it's really not that. It's more taking a look at and I think our increase in number, >> I don't think the number of actual reported incidents. I mean, we haven't gone, we've trended down since we've tightened some of this stuff up to take a look at the preliminary determinations, but by and large, we're still looking at everything that gets reported as HIV. Our preliminary determinations are low given our population. So I feel confident saying we're looking at things. Um and I think there's other um qualitative and anecdotal information that comes back through um our assistant superintendent, former deputy superintendent meeting with families, Dr. Adterhold meeting

080with families um who have had an experience on either side of a HIP investigation and how that gets resolved. What questions, you know, do you still have questions that remain? We have a pretty tight procedure in place that um you know in terms of like sort of like a due process that if you if you're if you're not satisfied or you have more questions about what happened in the school investigation, I'm a resource. Now, Miss Sinata is going to be a resource and Dr. Adhold continues to be a resource that um you know I don't we haven't had well I think another good anecdotal piece is that you you have not had an appeal to you which to me says that we're taking care of addressing um family and caretaker concerns. >> Excellent. Oh that's

081great because then you can kind dive in deeper beyond these superficial numbers. >> Yes. >> That's awesome. Well, thank you so much for the presentation. >> Sure. All right. Thank you. Have a good night. >> Awesome. Now we can move on to uh the special opportunity for public comment on harassment, intimidation, and bullying. The board invites thoughts and reactions on the district's semiannual report of harassment, intimidation, and bullying from member of our community who are present. Each participant is asked to give her name and address prior to making a statement. Each comment should be directed to the presiding officer, not individual members of the board, and must be made in accordance with the procedures and three-minute time limit set forth in board policy 0167. This public comment period shall be limited to 10 minutes. Seeing

082none, uh I'll close this special public comment portion and um ask for a motion to uh approve and accept the January 1st, 2025 to June 30th, 2025 district semiannual report of harassment, intimidation, and bullying as required by the New Jersey State Department of Education under the anti-bullying bill of rights act as and verified that the school district and school grade report issued by the New Jersey Department of Education was reviewed as required by the anti-bullying bill of rights. act and that this report was posted on this on the district's website pursuant to NJSA18A17-46. Um, Liz and Schwatha. Uh, any questions or concerns? Okay, now we can do a roll call. Okay. Uh, Miss George Tanara, >> yes. >> Miss Crew, >> yes. >> Missa, >> yes. >> Mr. O'Brien, >> yes. >> Miss Shaw, >>

083yes. Miss Shetty, >> yes. >> Miss Bonsel, >> yes. >> And Miss McCuin, >> yes. Uh, now that means we can adjourn this special public hearing on harassment, intimidation, and bullying and move to the first opportunity for public comments. The board invites thoughts and reactions on agenda items and items of concern from members of our committee who are present. Each participant is asked to give his or her name and address prior to making a statement, which will be limited to three minutes in accordance with board policy 0167. uh statement shall be directed to the presiding officer. This public comment period shall be limited to 60 minutes. And seeing none, uh I will close this public comment period and move on to committee reports. So I'll ask Dana for report on administration of facilities. >> Okay.

084Good evening. Um the ANF committee met on July 23rd. The committee reviewed the newly mandated suntan lotion policy. The committee recommends the first reading um this evening which grants students the ability to utilize sunscreen and sun protective equipment without requiring documentation from a physician or other licensed health professional health care professional. The committee recommends that this that the policy uh grants district min administrators the the ability to create restrictions on specific types of sun screen use that may be deemed harmful to students with asthma or other respiratory ailments or a nuisance to students or staff. Next, the committee discussed the data regarding the number of students currently on the um Maurice Hawk Milstone River uh Grover South sending path. The committee plans to revisit this conversation and sending path during this upcoming school year. And

085for now, the committee recommends the district maintain the current sending path knowing the district has an exempt exemption process which caregivers can complete if they request to attend a school not in the outlined sending pathway. The committee was informed that the district schools are continuing with their yearly update of school handbooks and the WWP for the first time has a student representative uh representing the district at the national level for student council serving as the New Jersey state representative. Um the committee reviewed the district nursing services plan for the 2025 2026 school year that supports student health services and emergency management. The final spring and fully year athletic participation numbers were shared with the committee. Spring high school athletic participants will be honored. They were already honored at tonight's meeting. And a preview of the

0862025 2026 fall season will be shared at our next committee meeting. The committee also reviewed seven job descriptions including director of data, community education program coordinator, supervisor of K5 language arts, supervisor of K5 mathematics, supervisor of curriculum and instruction, supervisor of accounts and payroll supervisor were shared with the committee. The committee recommends these job descriptions for approval on tonight's agenda. Committee will next meet on August 19th. Thanks. Thank you, Grayen. Um, the curriculum committee met on July 15th. Um, we first discussed the district professional development. Dr. Gold highlighted the topics uh and opportunities for professional learning available during the administrative retreat uh which will be held the week of August 12th. Next, the committee discussed and um previewed the wonderful professional development opportunities available to educators through the TCJ teachers as scholars partnership. Uh on

087the agenda for approval this evening, we have several items. First, um evaluation instruments. The committee recommends approval of the four that I'm about to mention. First, the Charlotte Danielson framework for teaching um 2013 as the evaluation instrument for all certified staff uh except administrators. The New Jersey principal evaluation for professional learning as the evaluation instrument for administrators. Uh the highly effective option and the alternative evaluations rubric um are being used as part of the evaluations process as well for highly effective teachers. um and the Charlotte Danielson framework for teaching 2022 as the evaluation instrument for all certified staff. I think new teachers as well except uh administrators. Uh next, technology. The committee recommends approval of a one-year agreement with Wii Video to provide 6,000 licenses from July 1st of this year through Jul uh June

08830th of 2026 at a cost not to exceed 21,000. and another one-year agreement with um excuse me, BrainPOP to provide schoolwide access uh for grades K to 8 from December 9th of 2025 through December 8th of 2026 at a cost not to exceed $27,084. Uh moving on to professional development, the committee recommends approval of a couple of professional development. the first uh foundation for educational administration to provide mentoring management services for new administrators in the district at a cost of about 850 each. The district also agrees to reimburse new administrators for the cost of their mentor at 1,500 for the first year and 1,000 for the second year. Uh next, three teachers and one administrator per session to p to participate in the Ryder University Science Education and Literacy Cent's NGSS assessment professional learning workshop

089series um during the 2526 school year at a total group cost of $300 plus mileage. And then we have the uh for two district mathematics uh interventionists to attend I coach team institute conference in Chicago from August 3rd of this year. Oh yeah August 3rd to August 8th of um 2025 not to exceed 900 per person including travel. Uh next professional development consultants. The committee recommends approval of um for language and literacy associates for multilingual and multicultural education. uh LLC to present three days of professional development to district teachers during the 2526 school year um at a cost not to exceed 9,000 including travel. Um, and second, entering into an agreement with American Institutes of Research Center on U multi-tered systems of support to provide on-site and virtual training for district employees from July 2025

090through June 2026, not to exceed 16,600. Uh, next, professional contracts. The committee recommends approval of uh first the district the district's membership in professional development school network uh at the at uh TCJ for the 2526 school year at a cost of uh membership includes registration for one staff member in each of the uh teachers as scholar seminar. The second one is a district membership um in teachers as scholars at at Princeton University for the uh upcoming school year at a cost of 2160 2160 membership includes 21 professional development days at teachers and scholars seminars. And then the third um professional contract is uh we recommend approval of entering into an agreement with propriial language services to provide professional translation services for the upcoming school year in all languages for a total amount not to exceed

091uh $10,000. Uh next for community education programming, uh the committee recommends approval of the current, excuse me, of the fall 2025 adult youth um after school enrichment programs through community ed uh in tonight's which are listed in tonight's agenda. And then we have field trips. The committee recommends approval for the uh WWPI uh United Cheerleaders to the National Conference Championship in Orlando, Florida from February 4th through February 9th of 2026. And the cost of the trip is approximately $1,200 per student. And then last but not least, um committee recommends approval of one administrator to uh Taipei Taiwan as a guest of the Ministry of Education and the Taiwan Economic and Cultural Office from November 1st uh through November 8th of this year. Uh total cost not to exceed uh $300. The committee will next meet

092on Tuesday uh August 12th. >> Thanks, Ly. Any questions, comments? All right. Next, I'll invite Ajanta for finance. All right. So, the finance committee met on July 22nd. Uh, we reviewed the following agenda, the review of the agenda items. So, the committee reviewed the monthly financial reports. The administration confirmed that there are no major accounts that are overexpended and that are insuff that there are sufficient funds available to complete this the year. Additionally, the committee reviewed the following motions on the agenda for approval. Approve an increase in the bid threshold from 44,000 to 53,000 in accordance with state guidance. approve cooperative purchases exceeding the bid limit, including HVAC installation funded through capital reserve, installation of a new combi oven funded through food services, new furniture installation funded through IDA, and a new AV equipment installation

093funded through technology funds, the approval of the disposal of obsolete equipment, approve a correction to the cost of an aid from a previously approved bus route, approve the cancellation of one to from school transportation, quote, and the awarding of a new quote for summer activities related school transportation and approved staff professional development and travel expenses. Uh the 20 24 the 2425 end of year rollover and audit. The business office is in the process of closing out the current fiscal year with the rollover into the new school year scheduled for Monday. The annual audit is set to begin during the second week of August. Although this is later than previous years, there remains sufficient time to complete the audit before the statutory deadline. Merit goals. The administration shared that there will be a motion in the

094agenda to submit for merit goals for the 202526 fiscal year. Transportation was discussed during the section uh one of reviewed agenda items. Cafeteria. The 2025-26 food service management contract was approved by the New Jersey Department of Agriculture. There were five additional serving days in June 2025 compared to June 24. Therefore, the monthly number of lunches served is not directly comparable. On an annual basis, the number of breakfasts served increased while the number of lunches served decreased. The proportion of lunch served to students eligible for free, reduced, and were NJ income eligible programs remained steady all year at 34%. Similarly, 83% of the breakfasts that were served to students were in these categories, a figure that was also consistent. We discussed a number of construction updates. So EIP 2, all existing classroom air conditioning units and

095accompanying shelves have been removed from Morris Hawk and installation of the new units is underway. The new boilers will be delivered to the village boiler room in preparation for installation. The scheduling of the crane for the rooftop units at Moraurice Hawk and Grover Middle School is currently under review. Summer projects. The flooring installation in the foyer at Grover Middle School is progressing well. Additionally, the concrete work in the school's entrance has been completed. Flooring replacement is also underway at various locations throughout the district. The installation of new cooler boxes at both Town Center and Milstone River School is also progressing smoothly. Uh other business, the committee also discussed the following. Etna has committed to a 0% administrative renewal rate for dental coverage through December 31st, uh 2027 with a 3% increase effective January 1, 2028.

096Um, on July 9th, the district sold 57 solar renewable energy certificates and 21 New Jersey uh class one solar renewable energy certificates, generating a total of 11, $459.25. The next meeting will be held on August 19th. >> Thanks, Ajanta. Any questions or comments? Nope. Okay, so that takes us to the voting portion of our meeting. Can I get a motion for administration items numbers 1 through 10? Uh Dana and Liz, questions or comments? Okay. >> Okay. Miss Krug, >> yes. >> Miss George Tinera, >> yes. >> Miss Maliga, >> yes. >> Mr. O'Brien, >> yes. >> Miss Shaw, >> yes. >> Miss Shetty, >> yes. >> Miss Bonsel, >> yes. >> And Miss Mchuan, >> yes. Can I get a motion for curriculum and instruction items numbers 1 through 11? Uh Ly and Puja, any

097questions or comments? Okay. Uh Miss Maliga, >> yes. >> Miss Bonsel, >> yes. >> Miss Shetty, >> yes. >> Miss George, >> yes. >> Miss Krug, >> yes. >> Mr. O'Brien, >> yes. >> Miss Shaw, >> yes. and Miss Mchuan. >> Yes. Can I get a motion for finance items numbers 1 through 21? Janta and Paul, any questions or comments? >> Okay. Miss Shaw, >> yes. >> Mr. O'Brien, >> yes. >> Miss George Chin, >> yes. >> Miss Krug, >> yes. >> Miss Maliga, >> yes. >> Miss Shetty, >> yes. >> Miss Bonsel, >> yes. >> And Miss Mchuan, >> yes. Can I get a motion for personal items numbers 1 through 4 plus the green, pink, and yellow agenda? Uh the yellow one having a verbal addition um at the end of the very

098last sentence to add with no back pay. Um Schweta and uh Ly any questions or comments? Okay. Um Miss Shetty, >> yes. Miss Maliga, >> yes. >> Miss George Janera, >> yes. >> Miss Krug, >> yes. >> Mr. O'Brien, >> yes. >> Miss Shaw, >> yes. >> Miss Bonsel, >> yes. >> And Miss Mchuan, >> yes. Uh before we move on, I'd like to recognize a couple of retirements from the district. Uh first is Donna Sworn uh district secretary who is retiring after 25 and a half years at WWP as well as Beth Fitzpatrick uh the health and physical education teacher at High School South who is retiring after 26 years in the district. Um thank you so much for your years of service to WWP and lots of congratulations on your retirement. Enjoy, best

099of luck. And then uh so now we'll move on to um uh approval of board of education minutes. So can I get a motion to approve um minutes from June 24th with one verbal correction on the uh June 24th meeting minutes. Um Ajanta uh was listed as present but she was happily uh away that week. Um uh Schweta and Liz. Um, all in favor say I. >> I. Uh, any abstensions? >> Yes, I also abstain. >> Perfect. Thank you. Um, do we have any board leazison reports this evening? >> Nope. Any new business? >> Uh, go ahead, Dr. Adold. I I just wanted to note that uh this evening as the board uh adopted the evaluation frameworks that uh one of the adoptions is the highly effective uh educator model of commissioner approved activities. Uh

100I'm pleased to say that um just Thursday last week the New Jersey Department of Education updated evaluation guidelines um as a result of the year-long task force that turned into a working group. um first it was a governor uh appointed task force and then there was a New Jersey department edging group. So just Thursday they released 35page report as a result of our work over the last year. I had pleasure to serve on both. Uh pleasure to be the chair for the governor's task force. Um the working group adopted the vast majority of the recommendations that they could. Some are going to be moved forward through pilot. So, um there are now six highly effective options for tenure teachers um which will allow teachers to and we're it allows and there's there's every district has

101to make some choices that that we're working through. But essentially for the state uh tenure teachers will have an opportunity to opt in which would take the place of their um their annual um some their sec their approve sorry >> their second >> right their second observation um the other component of that is also that um there's work for the alignment of the PDP and the SGO um the professional development plan and the student growth objective uh with the recommendation to work towards alignment so that the two be can become one or and they have to look at that through code that uh sunsets in 2027. So, as a result of that, the DOE has put out a request for pilot districts. Um it does not require board approval, but I want to let the

102board know that we have submitted as of today um for participation in the pilot. Uh it's to work with like a liaison group of uh representative teachers as well as administrators to engage in that. will have to still be selected to participate it, but um but we're looking forward to that possibility. Um so I just wanted to let you know that there that that work has brought forward um some pretty big recommendations across the state and that we're taking a next step and to submit to participate in the pilot. >> That's really great. Thank you for all your work uh serving on that task force and um it's good to hear that they're adopting most of the recommendations. So thank you. >> Absolutely. Um, do we have any other uh Oh, any other new business,

103I guess. So, that takes us to our second opportunity for public comment. The board invites comments from members of our community who are present. Each participant is asked to give his his or her name and address prior to making a statement, which will be limited to three minutes in accordance with board policy 0167. All statements shall be directed to the presiding officer. This public comment period shall be limited to 15 minutes. >> I feel a lot of pressure. There is no pressure. I'm I'm not looking at you. >> It is, you know, I want to be inclusive of our one remaining uh participant. But hearing none, that's totally fine. I can close this public comment period and move on to everyone's favorite part uh adjournment. So, can I get a motion to adjourn tonight's meeting?

104Uh Paul and Schwatha. All those in favor say I. >> I. And that is it. Thank you everyone. Uh and good night. [Music]