001flag salute to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. In accordance with the requirements of the Open Public Meetings Act, I wish to announce that the New Jersey Open Public Meeting Law was enacted to ensure the right of the public to have advanced notice of and to attend the meeting of bodies at which any business affecting their interest is discussed or acted upon. Notices announcing the date, time, and place for this meeting were sent to all concerned individuals, associations, and sent to Union County Local Source in accordance with chapter 231 of public law 1975. For the roll call, Mr. Maha >> here. >> Miss Justice, Mr. Hanley >> here, >> Mr. Gunderson here, >> Mr.
002Cho >> here, >> Vice President Kelly >> here, >> President Cohen >> here. >> You have a quorum. >> Thanks very much. And we're going to get started tonight with a K through five steam presentation led by Kristen Schuman. >> Invite the board to take a seat in the audience. Yes. >> Yeah. >> You guys like to talk about >> Good evening. It's certainly not uh normal to have a lighter on the lighter side of presentation and reports for our board meeting. So when we do, we like to take advantage. And this is an excellent opportunity to have some of our very own students and teachers represent one of our most effective and successful programs. And when I look at that slide, it's hard to believe it's a 5-year update. Kristen Schuman is our steam
003teacher over at Jefferson Elementary School and she was our original steam teacher when we did not have steam across the elementary spectrum. Um, so she is now our five uh grades one to five steam coordinator and she oversees all of the elementary steam programs that we've implemented. And I have to tell you from year one of this initiative and investing in our future with our steam initiative when we open up these steam labs in our elementary schools a huge huge hit evidenced by what our children are going to share with us today and they still love it every day. It's many many many students favorite class. So, I'm here to welcome Harris, fifth grader from Jefferson Elementary School, and Iris, his sister, third grader from Jefferson Elementary School. But we'll start with Kristen Schuman, steam
004coordinator for the district. Thank you, Kristen. >> No problem. Thank you. >> Okay, so uh this is a five-year update on the Steam program, and I don't have to introduce myself, so thank you very much. Um, so first of all, what is steam? Uh steam is an acronym. It stands for science, technology, engineering, arts, and math. Uh so I tell the students that we I teach them science, I teach them technology, I teach them engineering. Nobody really wants me to teach them art. So I do not teach art. Um but we use our art and math skills in steam because steam is a hands-on inquirybased uh learning that connects all of these subjects together. and we do real world problem solving. So we always give the students something that they can connect to in real
005life and solve problems using all of these skills from all these different subjects. Uh and because of that it really gives the students some 21st century skills of creativity, collaboration and critical thinking that they will use in careers that they will have in the future and probably careers that haven't even been invented or created yet. Uh so this is just a quick program overview. Uh as we just said the elementary program started five years ago. It was launched at Jefferson and now it is uh we have dedicated steam labs in every elementary school grades 1 to 5. This year we were very excited. We also launched it in uh the primary centers. I teach uh the primary center students steam and they learn the engineering design process and also are introduced to coding and robotics.
006Uh the program covers the science standard standards, the critical thinking standards, especially career readiness and uh design thinking and all of the robotics and coding standards. Oh, and this is a picture I just want to point out. Um, this was a collaboration actually with the high school. The high school uh teched uh class made ramps for each uh elementary school and then the fifth graders designed cars with different materials. Some were 3D printed, some were found in our classroom and they raced them and it was very very fun and those boards are very very huge but really nice of them to do that for us. Uh this is the structure of the steam program. So we have four units that we do throughout the year. The first one is a robotics and coding unit. Each
007grade learns a new robotics and coding um skill each year and then after we teach it, we use that robotics and coding uh tool throughout the year in their science lessons. And the unit two and unit three are science units with design challenges associated with them. So, for example, Iris is in steam right now and I see her class for three weeks at a time during that unit. She's doing motion instability. The first two weeks we do experiments and lessons associated with motion instability. And then you get a little sneak peek because we haven't done it yet, but her design challenge uh the last week is going to be creating a huge marble run based off of what she learned. So forces, gravity, potential, and kinetic energy. She puts all of that all together with
008her group and makes this big project connected to what she learned. Same thing with unit 3. And then unit 4 is an endofthe-ear dedicated uh design challenge that really focuses on following the design process. So the big ramp uh uh race car one that you saw, that is an example of the fifth grade end of the year project. Uh this is the engineering design process that we teach the students. Uh this is the same process that real engineers use and also the middle school and high school use as well. So we start the language in uh first through fifth and then that carries on through middle school and high school and we've collaborated with the middle school teachers to make sure that this is uh this language is cohesive between all of the grades. So
009when they go to uh those specialized classes in middle and high school they know this. Um so when students are faced with a problem they go through the steps ask where they ask the big question imagine brainstorming solutions planning creating the most important probably test and improve which they could go back and forth between that cycle a bunch of times and that's where we really focus on having a growth mindset. It's okay if you make mistakes. It's okay if you fail you go back try again. Keep trying until you get what you want. And then they present, which again, we focus a lot on the process. When we talk about presenting, it is great that you have a final product, but it's more about the process than what the final product is. And then these
010are just some examples of some of a very small uh subject or um very small subsect of what we do. So these are examples of a couple of experiments that we have done in steam. Um in second grade they do a plant growth experiment where each group gets a plant and they have to give the plant different water. So salt water, tap water, uh bottled water, rain water and they have to record their observations over time of what happens and um they have to measure it. We talk about controls and variables even in second grade. And uh it's a really fun experiment. Fifth grade, Harris just did this one. We learn about chemical reactions and they do a mystery substance lab where they uh test different powdery substances with chemicals and see what the reaction
011is and try to figure out which chemical was you or which substance was used in a mystery. Uh third grade, that is an example of the marble run that I was talking about before. And you can see that was one from last year that the girls are doing in that video. Um, in fourth grade we do a soundproof box challenge where they learn about sound and then they create a box that can hold as much sound as possible inside and we measure that with a decibel reader and they love competing with each other to see whose box can uh not admit the or admit the least amount of sound. And then in first grade, we do a build a nest challenge where they learn about biomimicry and we kind of do a little bit of
012a reverse biomimicry and they have to create a nest for uh an egg that's dropped at different um heights and try not to let it crack. It is a real egg and it does get messy, but that's what steam's about. So I just talked a lot about all the science and experiments and uh everything that they learn with technology but steam also is about preparing them for the future and uh giving them these really important skills critical thinking creativity collaboration communication and problem solving. Um students every single time they come into steam work in groups and they have to learn how to listen to advocate for themselves to compromise when there's a problem that arises. Um it encourages that out of the box thinking. We give them those real world problems and they have to
013think creatively about how they're going to solve that and their first idea might not work and their second idea might not work and they have to keep trying until it's what they want it to be and that again promotes a growth mindset. Um, it like I said, we try to do a lot of real world challenges so that it connects to what their lives are like outside of school. And that is especially seen this week. We're celebrating Steam Career Week, which was an initiative that we started last year where we invite community members and parents into the classroom to talk about their Steam career. So, that's been happening all week in all of the Steam Labs. Uh, and the students have gotten to see what maybe future careers they would like to have. and um
014how it connects to what they're already learning in steam. And this is just some of the impact that we've seen since starting the program. There's a lot of high engagement in steam. When students don't have a steam unit, I am constantly asked when do we get back to steam? When can we have steam again? Um I just feel like it's because we make it fun and relevant for the students. Uh the dedicated lab time has been so important. I used to be a kindergarten, first grade, and fifth grade teacher. And anytime that I would try to do a science experiment in my classroom, it was so difficult because I didn't have the materials or the space or the time to prep it. Um, so the students are getting way more authentic science lessons and experiments
015than they ever would have if it was in the classroom. Uh the middle school science teachers have consistently been reporting to me that the students are more prepared coming to science uh in the middle school which has been great to see. The NJSLA science scores have risen which is great. Uh un like not the point of it but it's amazing that that has been a positive result of it. Um collaboration skills have been uh used in other places besides steam in classrooms and at recess. Uh teachers are seeing that students are able to communicate better with each other because they have practice these skills um in steam so much. And um one of our district goals is talking about authentic learning, which is clearly a lot of what we do in STEAM. Which brings me
016to that. At the beginning of the year, we were um introduced to our new goals by our committee. And the one goal that really jumped out at me was goal number four, which is to connect educational opportunities to real world through inquiry and project-based uh learning that develop critical thinking and problem solving skills. And I thought, "Oh, that's steam." Um, so I'm happy that the committee recognizes that that's super important for students because I believe that too and that's what Steam was based all around was this goal even though that goal wasn't thought of yet when that happened. So I know you just listened to me talk all about the steam program, but like we said, it is um amazing to listen to students talk about how much they love steam and how steam has
017impacted them. So, I have Harris and Iris here. And um Harris, I'm excited that a fifth grader can talk to you because Harris has now experienced every year of steam and that he's the first grade that has done that since it started five years ago. And when I was talking to Harris about this, I explained that to him that before he came to Jefferson, there was no steam. And he said, "I can't imagine school without steam." So, uh, Harris is going to share first and then we'll hear from Iris. Hi, my name is Harris and I'm a fifth grade student at Jefferson Elementary School. Steam is my favorite class because it's exciting, creative, and challenges me to think in new ways. We get to design and build projects, solve problems, and use our imagination to
018create something from our own ideas. We are able to push ourselves to think harder and do things we never thought we could. In Steam, we work a lot in groups. I really enjoy working in groups because everybody brings different ideas when we plan. It's fun to hear what everyone else thinks and to figure out a solution to the problem together. Steam has helped me learn to communicate better, share ideas, and listen to others. What makes Steam different from all other subjects and classes is that it's hands-on. We are given challenges about real world things and use the design process to solve them. We learn about different science topics and do a lot of experiments. We also do coding and robotics in each grade. When it's the start of a new steam unit, everyone is in
019classes excited to go to Steam. Steam has also taught me to have a growth mindset and have grit. I've learned these that mistakes are part of the process and it's important to keep on trying. I've used these skills in other classes, too. In math, I was working on a really difficult long division problem that had way too many steps. It wasn't working at first, but I thought of steam and how we keep trying even if your first idea doesn't work or your second or your third or however many times it takes. I did eventually figure it out because I knew to keep on going even though it was tough. One of my st one of my favorite steam projects was in first grade box. Mrs. Schuman taught us the design process and allowed us to
020use our imagination to build something completely out of cardboard. Even though it was four years ago, I still remember how fun and exciting it was to work with our group through the design process. One of my other favorite projects was in fourth grade. We had to build boats that floated and held weight. My group had to test and improve at least 10 times until we figured out what the problem was. However, our boat was still able to hold the most weight. Steam has taught me to think creatively, work collaboratively, and never give up. It's an important class because it helps student build skills and that we can use in subjects and in life. Thank you. Hi, my name is Iris and I am a third grader at Jefferson. I love steam because we get to
021learn new things that I never knew before. We also do a lot of fun experiments. One of my favorite experiments was in second grade when each group got a plant and had to water the plants with different kinds of water. My group had food coloring water and our plants still grew, but the sewing and roots turned red. Another group used salt water and we learned you should never give a plant to salt salt water. One of my favorite science lessons was when we learned about pollination in second grade. We had to build fun structures to move pollen from a flower or to another. It was so famine. We also learn how to work in groups. I've learned it's important to listen to everybody's ideas and compromise so we can make our projects even better. I
022really love Steam because it makes learning fun. Uh well, thank you so much for listening to our presentation tonight. Um, I have been teaching in the district for 12 years. Uh, and I've taught lots of different grades as I said before, but the last five years teaching steam has been the best five years of my educational career. It's been amazing to see it grow from where it started and I can't wait to see where it continues to grow. Um, but most importantly, it's been amazing to see how the students have responded to it and how much they love it, too. Um, thank you to the board for your continued support. um Heather and Scott and everybody else um in administration. I really appreciate it. >> Thank you, Miss Schuman. Thank you, Harris and Iris. That
023was outstanding. Well done. As the board is taking their seats, does the board have any questions for Miss Schuman or Harris or Iris? >> I have one on the plant experiment. What did you pour on the plant that made it grow the best? Was Do you remember what you might have used? Was there anything specific? >> Tap water. Tap water. >> That makes good sense. All right. Thank you. Great job. >> Thank you. So, I'd like to just start by saying a good evening to everyone and thanking Harris and Iris and uh Miss Human for that fabulous presentation. Um it's really great to see our students getting these skills that are going to serve them well into their adult years. um both in my in my job both um that kind of iterative process of
024testing and then improving is very very important one as well as working in groups and listening to everyone's ideas and learning how to incorporate those ideas into a solution. So um it's really exciting to see our kids learning those skills um in elementary school and really reinforcing them over and over again. So thank you Um, since our last meeting, Vice President Kelly and I met with parents for a coffee and conversation at Franklin School. Um, and I want to begin tonight by expressing our grat gratitude for how open and constructive that discussion was. Parents raised a wide range of topics including lunch accounts and food options, PSAT logistics and fees, curriculum transparencies, including math and steam across K through 12, much like the presentation that we saw tonight. Um, medical illness policies and communication practices.
025Several key themes emerged. Families want clearer, earlier communication around budget rel related changes that affect students directly. They also expressed concern around fees in our lunch payment system and a desire for more consistent access to information about student purchases. On that point, Mr. just shared that families can avoid transaction fees by bringing a check directly to their their child's school and then you won't have to pay any fees if that if that is something that you're looking to do. Um and also parents can view their child's food purchases at any time through pay schools. In that app, there's a tab for reports where you can select patron activity and that takes you to a screen where you can enter a date range and then review your child's purchases for that period. So, thank you Mr.
026Jess for that information. Um, we also heard some specific actionable ideas from parents such as adding water refill stations in the middle school, learning more about technology oversight tools and developing parentfriendly presentations for students transitioning from middle to high school around college readiness and testing. There was also strong praise for our counselors and our teachers, the human side of the district, which parents truly and deeply trust. So, as a board, um, we I just want you to know that we take parent feedback very seriously and these are the kinds of insights that strengthen our decision-making. Ultimately, this kind of dialogue helps us sharpen our district's excellence, keeping us grounded in integrity and guided by respect, responsibility, and teamwork. We will be having another session after the first of the year, this time in the evening
027to make it easier for those who can't attend a morning session. And my thanks to all the parents who joined us for fostering such a candid conversation. These conversations help us live our mission to prepare all students to thrive in an evolving world. And with that, I pass it over to the superintendent for the superintendent's report. >> Thank you, President Conn. All of our elementary schools hosted Halloween parades on October 31st. I know it's always a special event where parents and families get to cheer on their students and staff as they parade around in their costumes. We want to thank all the parents and guests who have visited our elementary steam labs this week for Steam Career Week. Our goal is to expose students to a wide range of career opportunities within the steam field
028while also highlighting the diverse backgrounds of professionals in those fields. This effort highlights the strength and benefit of our partnership between our schools and community. As always, the happening in the schools at the primary centers, students recently honored veterans both from Summit and around the world by recognizing their service and sacrifice. Students are now preparing for an annual day of giving and an event that teaches young scholars how communities unite support one another. At Brighton, students celebrated the end of the fall disc golf season by holding a doubles tournament at a park in Basking Ridge and third graders enjoyed the field trip to the environmental educational center as the culminating activity for a science unit on habitat and animal behavior. Franklin Elementary School is sharing examples of commitment to community service in our schools. The
029kindest crew hosted a Halloween candy drive where students collected wrapped candy and donated to Grace in Summit and also hosted its annual turkey trop food drive where students donated non-p perishable food and hygiene items to Grace Jefferson Elementary School. Today, fourth and fifth grade world language students at Jefferson welcomed special guest speaker Marisel Chalice, who was a decorated US Army Reserve Colonel and the first Latina National Guard Blackhawk helicopter pilot. She shared her story and fielded many questions from students who were very interested in learning about her career. In Lincoln Hubard, students had a busy and exciting month filled with learning and community involvement. Fourth and fifth graders began their circus minimus residency. Students also honored veterans by wearing by by writing heartfelt thank you letters delivered to local American Legion halls. Academic highlights include
030second graders discussing kindness and inclusion through Katherine Ashtak Ashtachi's excuse me book one and first graders diving into their small moments writing unit while sharpening their phonics skills. At Washington, the school focused on wellness, creativity, and cultural learning. Families joined a PTO hosted wellness walk at Tatlock Track featuring a cheer from the school's spirit squad. Students met author Sylvia Chen who read her book Tricky Chopsticks and led a hands-on activity. The school celebrated Hispanic heritage through engaging lessons, enjoyed festive Halloween events, and participated in Steam Career Week. At the middle school, students reflected on their outdoor education experience during Stokes Night, reconnecting through videos, songs, and stories. And the school also honored veterans with a special assembly featuring program and performances from eighth grade band, chamber orchestra, and belto choir and tributes from the student
031council. I want to thank members of the board of education who attended and were able to see firsthand the talents of our students and their appreciation for our veterans at the high school. In conjunction with domestic violence awareness month, Summit High School hosted a special presentation featuring Julie Meyers, CEO of One Love Foundation and former UVA women's lacrosse head coach. Julie shared powerful insights on preventing relationships abuse and promoting healthy relationships. All students attended the assembly during the school day and parent presentation was offered in the evening. In the arts, Summit art community has been thriving. Students visited New York City to explore the Whitney Museum and photography galleries, while theater and music students attended an inspiring performance of ragtime at Lincoln Center. Elementary student artists also designed artwork for Thanksgiving dinner at Grace. SH
032SHS student musician Luca Milanikoff performed on Alto saxophone in Atlantic City with the Allstate Jazz Band last weekend and will perform again Friday night at NJPAC. The following SHS student vocalists were accepted into C TCJ honors festival choir. Emily Vegar, Nita Vachel, Elise Cohen, Iker Caneras Mandina, Gabrielle Lopez Dcasta, Adam Daniel, and Ryan Shan. These students will be performing talented with talented musicians from over 50 different communities and will attend clinics and master classes conducted by the TCJ music faculty and perform on the TCJ's beautiful campus. Opening night on the theater for the high school's department per the performance of Shakespeare as you like it is tonight at 7 p.m. Additional performances will be this Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m. And the middle school theater department is excited to present their fall production Witches
033in Salem next week. Performances are Friday 11:21 at 7 p.m. and Saturday 11:22 at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. And finally, in the world of athletics, our boys varsity soccer and varsity football teams are in the sectional finals tomorrow. Boys soccer plays Cranford tomorrow here at home at 3 p.m. Varsity football travels to West Mora Central to play tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. And we had a wonderful National Signing Day occurred this week where 10 students signed their letter of intent to continue their academic and athletic careers in college. Mary Manahan, College of Holy Cross for for lacrosse. Ryan Ban Bone, St. Joseph's University lacrosse. Robbie Kivitt, Fairfield lacrosse. McKenna Welsh, Taylor University volleyball. Joan Conneiff, Providence College, Lacrosse. Emma Busam, Arizona University lacrosse. Francesca Arecella, Colgate University Lacrosse. Sarah Scallan, University of V Vermont Lacrosse.
034Audrey Carrian, Lafayette College, cross country track and field. And Jake Ryhold, Sacred Heart University for Lacrosse. And that concludes my report for today. Madame President, mic. >> It's just I think battery. Thank you. Um, thank you so much, Superintendent Huff. Um, we need a motion on item six A and B. Uh, the superintendent's recommendations for suspensions and for Hib investigations. Do I hear a motion? >> Some moved. >> Second. >> Any discussion? >> Mr. Maha? >> Yes. >> Miss Justice? >> Yes. >> Mr. Mr. Hanley, >> yes. >> Mr. Gunderson, >> Mr. Cho, >> yes. >> Vice President Kelly, >> yes. >> President Cohen, >> yes. >> Motion carries. >> Next up, we have the student board representative report. >> Hi everyone. It's great to be here again. Um, so to start, our fall play
035is taking place this weekend. Everyone has been working super super hard to prepare and the cast and crew have put in countless hours. So, we're really looking forward to this great turnout and performance. In athletics, there's been a lot of excitement. The boys soccer team has had a big game on Tuesday. They won 3 0 against Colonia. So, they're on their way to the section semi-final finals tomorrow. Um, talking about section finals, our football team is heading there this weekend and we wish them the best of luck. The cross country team is also having a great season. Ella Ryan and Nico Vanoni both qualified for the League of Champions meet, so they will be competing on Saturday. We've also wrapped up several other fall sports seasons, including field hockey, girls soccer, and gymnastics. There's definitely
036a lot of a lot to be proud of, and it's a great time to be a Hill Topper. Academically, we just finished the first quarter and began the second on Monday. Students are also participating in field testing for a new technology of NJSLA Wednesday through Friday this week. We've also recently celebrated Veterans Day. A student performed a beautiful song in the hallway during lunch to honor our veterans. And Miss Grimmaldi gave an amazing speech in the morning to remember the importance of our community and the people that fought for our country. Student council recently hosted our annual Halloween assembly which was a huge success. Sports teams participated in a short choreographed dance competition that was judged by teachers. The event was full of school spirit, creativity, and a lot of laughter. And in the end,
037the gymnastics team took home the win. Overall, it's been super busy but exciting at the high school. It's been full of school spirit, success, and just enough homework to keep us all humble. Thank you. >> Thank you so much. And um if you'd like, you can you can you're excused. You don't have to stay for the rest of the meeting. >> Um are there any additions or revisions to the agenda? >> Uh yes, Madame President, there are two. The first is an addition under finance. It's the approval of the settlement agreement between the Bennett Company, Inc. and Summit Board of Education. The second is a removal under personnel. We are removing item R. >> Thank you very much. Next up is committee reports. Beginning with um education and student activity services committee. >> The uh
038education and student activities and services committee met on November 10th at 12 noon for one hour. The committee members in attendance were superintendent Scott Huff, director of curriculum Heather Roco, board members Melanie Con, Molita Justice, and myself. The first item uh under discussion was the Genesis student uh records and grades program. The administration is reviewing the policy on gradebook access during the school day and week. Second item is the K through 12 Holocaust curriculum. Staff is doing a review of our curriculum across K through 12 on the Holocaust to confirm compliance with state curriculum requirements. Some adjustments were noted for grades four and five materials. Uh most recently last week, November 4th, was a professional development session for the district. The elementary teachers and instructional aids had a session on AI. Middle school staff on
039training for the ongoing NJSLA adaptive field tests, improving student discussions, and training on department-based vertical articulation for grades 6 through 12. For the high school staff, they had training also for the upcoming NJSLA adaptive field test, a session on communicating with families, and a department-based vertical articulation for grades 6 through 12, which is really related to the course sequencing as kids progress through the middle school and high school. Based on the comments on fourth, I'm sorry, next item is class size. Based on comments from the October board meeting from parents expressing their concern around class sizes at Brighton Elementary for second and third grade, the committee requests the administration to review what the numbers are for our peer school district status at the other elementary schools and summit and what has been the class size
040ranges historically discuss what could be done to mitigate the concerns expressed by the parents superintendent Huff to follow up and work with Braden staff on potential next steps. Uh, next item was the athletic update for the high school and middle school. Athletic director Allison Flockheart provided an update on participation and highlights for the fall season. There are a total of 604 total fall athletes for at both the middle school and Summit High School with football, soccer, and cross country having the largest number of students participating. At the high school level, there are 30 varsity sports, including cheerleading, and six at the middle school. And over a dozen more JV and freshman teams are at the high school also. And these numbers do not include our unified sports program, which has been expanded the past few
041years. And as noted by superintendent Huff, November 12th was National Signing Day. And as always, a number of our summer high school seniors will formalize their plans to continue in their sports in college. In September also had a formal media day for fall sports with both team and individual pictures with a professional photographer. And the last item noted was the K through five steam uh presentation that was presented by uh Kristen Schuman. The uh no items for board action and the next meeting will be December 11th at 12 noon. Any questions for board members? Promise. >> Thank you. Thanks. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Next is the operations committee. >> Thank you, Madam President. Uh the committee met this past Monday, November 10th, at 2 p.m. for 1 hour and 45 minutes. Attending uh the meeting
042included our superintendent, our business administrator, the assistant business administrator, as well as Eileen Kelly and myself. And unfortunately, one of our esteemed board members had a work conflict and was unable to attend, Mr. Maha. The items discussed on the month's agenda include the following. Agenda item number one, which was the primary bulk of the meeting, was a presentation made by our district's auditors recapping the findings of their annual review of the district's finances for the fiscal 2425 school budget that of course closed in June of 2025. Uh most importantly to all of us on the board here and the administration after the extensive audit over the period of a couple weeks the auditors did share their findings with one recommendation for action and that was the following. When reviewing student activities accounts and I believe
043this was related to flash in particular SHS did not deposit all the collections within 48 hours of receipt. It was recommended that SHS communicate the policies and procedures to ensure all collections are deposited within a 48 hour window and could be achieved through procedures such as having students or parents pay through an online portal. So with so with that said, first I think we should congratulate the administration, superintendent and particularly the business office for again a very fine and clean audit. Uh so thank you. Uh secondly, I would add and this was not in my minutes, but uh I think that if individual board members would review that information throughout regarding my notes on the audit, if you still feel there's a need for a presentation, a formal presentation here at the board meeting, please
044speak with either the operations committee or uh superintendent how and we can uh we could arrange for that because we had that as an open question. Uh the remainder of the audit discussion was focused on the auditor's analysis of the financials and the committee and the auditors had a very detailed discussion of the various reserve funds, their purposes, our current level of reserves and what the auditors see in comparable districts as as best practices and their experience uh what they measure as prudent levels of reserves or uh in each specific category for a district and school budget of our size. Um the auditors informally apply that the district and our finances are being managed in a fiscally conservative manner. We are at or close to very prudent reserve balances in all categories in their view.
045They commended the administration district for the sound fiscal policy, budgeting procedures, overall budget management, and current fiscal positions. For the public's information as well as uh fellow board members, our reserve balances as of June 30th, 2025 are the following. The capital reserve finished at 4.324 million down only approximately 175,000. The maintenance reserve was 1.218 million down only 77,000 and the food service enterprise fund was 682,000 uh and some change up approximately 61,000. Our current year excess surplus is 2.5 million versus 2.483 million the year prior. Excuse me. Lastly, the current net pension liabilities of the district are now 15.1 million, down from 16.5 million the prior year. When asked the hypothetical question, should something unexpected happen and the state of New Jersey unfortunately go bankrupt? Do the pension liabilities potentially fall back on the city
046of Summit in some way since we are the ones hiring and employing the staff at local levels and creating the liability in the first place. The auditor's answer was that that's a great question and we simply don't know how that would be resolved but potentially some or all of it could. We're simply not sure. So I think that uh we raised that just to simply create an awareness. Uh it's prudent that I think all in the community are aware uh that the pensions exist as they relates to the district employment and staff. Um finally, the auditors advised us that the final audit report will be held up unusually so by the federal government shutdown where the district typically receives the official report in December. This year it is possibly to be as late as March.
047So it has nothing to do with our district. It's it's statewide. Agenda item number two, uh the committee received an update on the bonded projects and most importantly there the district has successfully resolved the issues with its contractor on the LCJS SMS remaining project work. Uh the contractor essentially is returning to work to complete the project in its entirety with the same deliverables, the same expenses and with no with no other financial penalties or notable added expenses to the district. So, the wellness center work and other financial final project initiatives will now be resumed. Agenda item number three, the committee reviewed and discussed the prek tuition program and potential rates charged by the district for the new upcoming year. Additional information was requested, so no final decision or recommendation was reached and the topic was
048tabled until the next meeting when the additional info requested can be presented and reviewed. Agenda item number four. Following discussions by the negotiations and personnel committee, the operations committee was then asked to review and approve the administration's request to pursue establishing a stipen for the new facilities foreman role. The operations committee reviewed and unanimously recommends full board approval of this stipen. Uh item number five, two of the district's four school buses have reached their end of life and need replacement. The committee discussed and reviewed the considerations regarding the purchasing of electric power versus gas school buses. The committee began its review of the analysis provided by the business office regarding those decisions. But we agreed to uh review further offline and to table and reschedu the agenda item for the purposes of further review and
049discussion at a future meeting so that a decision can be made and purchases completed within this school year. Other items reviewed and discussed by the committee but with no formal action taken included a review of the monthly food service P&L results. The operating income generated was positive uh and in line with expectations. An updated budget calendar for the upcoming budget process was reviewed and the committee was presented a consolidated maintenance plan by the business office. Uh so there in summary, the committee's recommendation for full action tonight is that we do unanimously recommend the board approval moving forward to establish the site for the facilities form and role. And lastly, we did run out of time to review several items in more detail, including but most notably the look back review of the past four years
050of budget trends and key categories. Therefore, we decided another 1-hour meeting would be scheduled to cover these items and prior to the next regularly scheduled monthly operations committee meeting that is going to be held December 10th at noon. The interim 1-hour meeting date and time have yet to be established. So, they are TBD. Uh, with that, I will conclude my remarks. See if any of my fellow committee uh members had anything to add. Just one just one point as well for our additional meeting because we run at an hour and 45 is not long enough for this ops committee. Um I do I do want to also bring in the feedback from the coffee with the board um specific to food service and menus. So just want the public to know we will be talking
051about those things as well in an upcoming meeting. >> Are there any other questions? >> Um yeah, just a comment. First I do want to commend the administration and business office for the uh the clean audit report. I thought that's that's really awesome. And I also wanted to ask if the um preliminary draft audit report and the annual comprehensive financial report could be sent to each one of the board members. >> Absolutely. >> Thank you. >> I'd like to comment for the board that the action item of approving the maintenance form was pulled as Derek just mentioned in the beginning. We will have it on next month's agenda. There were some lang language cleanups that we needed to take place with the MOA with SEA. Anything else? >> Thank you, Mr. Hanley. Policy committee is
052up next. Thanks, Madam President. The policy committee met on Wednesday, October 29th for 35 minutes. Uh committee members in attendance from the administration, Superintendent Scott Huff, Rob Gardella, and Kathleen Murphy. Board members in attendance Mark Gunderson, Rick Hanley, and myself. The committee discussed several policy related topics and the policy discussed were the following. Policy 0142.1 nepotism. Policy 0142.1 is an internal rewrite to an existing policy after a review. The review has shown that Summit's current nepotism policy is more restrictive than our peer districts and limits our ability to hire the best candidates in an already challenging labor market. It is recommended that the policy language should be changed to align with Strauss SMA's recommendations as well as our peer district's nepotism policies. Policy 0142.1A nepotism abolish. It is recommended that policy 01421A should be abolished
053as it would no longer be needed based on our recommended policy 0142.1 revision. Regulation 8630, emergency school bus procedures. Regulation 8630 is an internal revision that requires language changes. This includes language cleanups that have been updated and/or incorporated into this revised policy and regulation. Committee recommendations. First reading of policy 0142.1 and 0142.1A and regulation 8630. Our next meeting will be Wednesday, December 10th at 9:30 in the district office boardroom. Does anyone have any questions? Thank you, Madam President. >> Thank you, Miss Justice. Communications Committee, Mr. Maha. >> Thank you. The communications uh committee met on November 11th for 54 minutes. Uh members in attendance were um board members Mark Gunderson, Miss Eileen Kelly, superintendent Scott Huff, and cabinet member Miss Lorine Dickinson and myself. Um we heard about the coffee and conversation, so you got
054some great details some from the president. Um board president, Miss Melanie Cohen and Vice President, Miss Eileen Kelly attended a coffee and conversation session held at Franklin School on October 24th. Turnout was good and there was high engagement. Various topics were discussed, questions answered, and suggestions captured for follow-up. More sessions will be scheduled as feedback has been very positive. An update on the Brighton uh principal search. Superintendent Huff and director of HR, Mr. Gardella, met with parents and staff, focus groups, and distributed surveys to collect stakeholder input and key qualities desired. The Braen principal search is in process. Applications were received and screened. Interviews are taking place and finalists will be recommended to meet with Superintendent Huff with a decision targeted at being made by the December board meeting. There was um a communication regarding
055food assistance. Communications were sent to provide resources and links to obtaining essential food supplies for those in need. The district made a community pledge of 100 bags of hope for Grace's food pantry and received over 250 donations in a week. The winter weather protocol communication was made, the annual message that was sent sharing the decision process to determine delays and closures. There are no committee recommendations at this time and the next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, December 9th at 12 p.m. Are there any questions, comments? >> Thank you, Mr. Mitcha. Um, the negotiations and personnel committee met on Thursday, October the 30th from 9 to 10:00 a.m. approximately. In attendance was Mr. Henley, Vice President Kelly, um, myself, Superintendent Huff, and Mr. Gardella. Um, to discuss confidential personnel matters. Are there any liaison reports? >>
056Okay, none being heard. We are up to item 10, public comment. Uh, thank you, Madam President. Uh, anyone wishing to speak shall first seek recognition by the presiding officer. Please come to the microphone and state your name and address in a clear audible tone for the record. Please direct all comments to the board president and not an individual member of the board. And please remember to conduct yourself with the quorum and respect when speaking and addressing the board. Unless additional time is granted by the board president, please be respectful and keep your comments at three minutes or less. In addition, please note that this portion of the meeting is for public comment and not meant to be a back and forth. Upon closure of public comment, information that is available to answer questions will be
057provided. If information is not readily available, the question will be answered by the superintendent or his designate as soon as the information is readily available. Thank you. >> First, public comment on items on the agenda. None being heard. Public comments on items not on the agenda. So none being heard we can close public comment. Do we have a motion? >> So move >> second. >> Any discussion? All those in favor? >> I. >> Any opposed? >> Any abstensions? Motion carries. >> Item 11, approval of board minutes. Do we have a motion? >> Second. >> Any discussion? >> All those in favor? >> I. Any opposed? Any abstension? Motion carries. >> Item 12, curriculum, instruction, and program. Do I have a motion? >> Some moved. >> Second. >> Any discussion? >> Mr. Maha? >> Yes. >>
058Miss Justice? Yes. >> Mr. Hanley? >> Yes. >> Mr. Gunderson? >> Yes. >> Mr. Cho? >> Yes. >> Vice President Kelly? >> Yes. >> President Con? >> Yes. >> Motion carries. Item 13, finance items A through M with the changes noted by Mr. Jess earlier. Do I have a motion? >> Second. >> Any discussion? >> I just want to clarify, Mr. Jess. I'm sorry. Could you repeat the change the agenda? >> Sure. Under under finance, we're adding item N, approval of settlement agreement between the Bennett Company and the Summit Board of Education. Okay. Got it. Thank you. >> You're welcome. >> All right. Mr. Maha, >> Miss Justice, yes. >> Mr. Hanley, yes. >> Mr. Gunderson, yes. >> Mr. Cho, >> yes. >> Vice President Kelly, >> yes. >> President Con? >> Yes. >> Motion
059carries. >> Um, item 14, school board operations items A through C. Do I have a motion? >> Second. >> Any discussion? >> Mr. Maha? >> Yes. Miss Justice, yes. >> Mr. Hanley, yes. >> Mr. Gunderson, >> yes. >> Mr. Cho, >> yes. >> Vice President Kelly, >> yes. >> President Con? >> Yes. >> Motion carries. >> Uh 15 items A through S with the changed um discussed by earlier by Mr. Jess. Do I hear a motion? >> So moved. >> Second. >> Any discussion? >> Mr. Maha? >> Yes. >> Miss Justice? Yes. >> Mr. Hanley? Yes. >> Mr. Gunderson? Yes. >> Mr. Cho? Yes. >> Vice President Kelly. >> Yes. >> President Con. >> Yes. >> Motion carries. >> 16. First reading um of policies as noted by the policy committee. Do I have a
060motion? >> So move. >> Second. >> Any discussion? >> Mr. Maha? >> Yes. >> Miss Justice? Yes. >> Mr. Hanley? >> Yes. >> Mr. Gunderson? Yes. >> Mr. Cho? >> Yes. >> Vice President Kelly? >> Yes. >> President Con? >> Yes. >> Motion carries. I do not believe there's any need for executive session tonight. So, we are going to have a motion for adjournment. So, move. >> Is there a second? Thank you. Any discussion? >> I just want to before we end the meeting, if it's okay, I I wanted to um give the board a brief overview and I've been able to speak to a couple people as well as Superintendent Scott Huff about an event I attended at New Providence High School, which was a conversation by a group called Mindful Generation. Um and
061I think it's really pertinent because we recently updated our uh device policy across the district and in New Providence as well. They have basically a like to like policy. But um this event was I think really I would say a great um symbol of partnership between the school, the parents and then the city. Um the night was a conversation around screen time, delaying screens for children, not just in the school but you know how we how we operate as parents. uh the superintendent kicked off the night. The assess assistant superintendent was there about half a dozen teachers. The school nurse spoke about just how she's now more inundated with mental health issues. And so I really wanted to um highlight that I think it's a you know a great event that we could potentially look
062at. If the ed committee could find a little bit more out about about the um about that event, I'm happy to to share more details. I know we do our own wellness symposium and I think that it has a similar feel, but there's a lot more partners that were involved here. And again, just this is a hot topic and it's a really critical one. I have little ones that will sort of endure um all the all the really um shocking, you know, information that's just coming out about devices and particularly smartphones and the impact on anxiety, depression, and unfortunately suicide. So, I think we've done a great job with our policy. If the ed committee could also look at this event for something to potentially kind of explore and mimic, that would be great. >>
063Thank you. If anyone has any questions, comments, let me know. Thank you, Vice President Kelly. >> Thank you. I just have two quick things. One is I just wanted to um mention uh the great opportunity we had to attend the veterans assembly at the middle school. It was really well put together, very touching, and we honored um many of our veterans including um thank you for your service, Mr. Chowo here with us, Mr. Cho. And um it was really special and it was really great to see kids witnessing, you know, what a privilege we have to have um the freedom that we we enjoy in this country thanks to the great veterans and those that are in service and sacrifice for us. And I think it also serves as an example to kids as you
064know how how important that is and maybe had I'm sure it had an influence on them as they continue their their education here in Summit. Um and then the second thing, so thank you for that and I heard of many great celebrations across the district and I really think that uh that's really an incredibly positive thing to do. So thank you for for having that. Um secondly, um I had a great uh opportunity today to have a tour at Jefferson School and uh thanks to Mr. huff for enabling it and u principal um who Dan Haley who who hosted us and we got to walk around and see the kids engaging with the teachers and you could just really see and sense you know um the positive environment the engagement the caring you know those
065intangibles you have to be there to witness now my kids all went through Jefferson and it was that way when I was there but it was really great to see it in you know still in motion strong and uh I really appreciated that so I just wanted to acknowledge that and thank again uh m the m um superintendent Huff and uh uh Principal Healey for allowing me to um to be there. Thank you. >> Thank you, Mr. Maya. >> Anything else? Any other discussion? >> All those in favor? >> I. >> Any opposed? Any abstensions? We are adjourned at 6:55. Thank you. Have a good evening. >> Thank you. Thank you.