001So, how was it? >> It was really cool. I mean, the ice was amazing. It was really cool atmosphere. It felt empty, though. Ridgewood had a lot of kids and uh I'm kind of glad that it was such a big stadium because it was it felt empty. So, any other environment, it probably would have been a little nerve-wracking. >> It was really proud to watch Steve and I attended so we got to watch. And you guys have a really good defense. >> You shut them down. That was, you know, you you you stop two power plays >> and that and they had that one guy just was amazing skater, but you just shot him down. So, and swimming was great. You guys won by power points in against Hillsboro, right? That's where you're tied all
002and it goes down to >> That's cool. Well, congratulations. I think it's a great celebration. We have amazing students doing all kinds of things from swimming to band to FBA in the arts and in the theater. So, thank you so much. The Are you looking for the agenda? They're back there. And for the public, their agenda is back there on the table, too. But thank you, Mr. Lee. Thank you, Dr. Lee. Anything else? All right. Thank you both very uh thank you both very much as always. We understand uh if you need to leave us to take care of uh stuff you got to do but always happy to have you here at the table as well. So thank you for being here. Uh we are up to item six, the superintendence report. Mr. Beers,
003>> thank you Mr. Pepe. So where we're going to start this evening is with our 2026 2027 tentative budget presentation. We're going to turn the screens on here and um we'll get this started up in one second. I will be presenting I shouldn't say uh Kevin Lomsky the the BA will be will do the majority of the presentation and I will chime in right at the beginning with our budget goals. Okay, we'll be presenting the 202627 tentative budget. This is not approving the budget. This is just approving it to be submitted to the county office for final review. Um and which then changes can still be made and there will be a public hearing and adoption at the April meeting. So, um, this isn't final. Okay. So, when we look at our budget goals as
004a district, I think first and foremost, we always want to maintain our focus on academic excellence and student opportunity. We we say every year, this is what we want to hone in in on. This is what we want to make sure is funded. And and we know that our goal is to become the premier school district in the state of New Jersey. and we're making a lot of improvements. But when we we look at opportunity and academic excellence, we're looking at activities in the classroom as well as outside of the classroom, right? We heard about the athletics. We've got the the uh uh the arts festival coming up. We've got all kinds of programs going on. We want to make sure that those things that make our district robust and the place that it is
005can continue on. We also want to attract and retain talented faculty and staff. want to continue to improve and maintain our facilities. As you know, we're in the throws of a $155 million referendum. And there's also other work that goes on, you know, just basic maintenance on a year-to-year bas basis, whether it's concrete work, curbs, um different odds and ends throughout the district. We have 11 different schools with um 1.2 million square feet. So, it's quite a lot to take care of. We want to continue our commitment to the overall security of the school community. We see in the budget this year that we continue that commitment with with adding security personnel so we have coverage throughout the district. That's an issue that came up earlier in the year and and we're happy that within
006this budget we we can deliver on those promises. And then finally, we we're always doing our best to maintain our fiscal discipline and provide the board of education and the school community with a budget that's sustainable and prepares us for the future. Now, there are a lot of factors outside of our control that that influence the budget, but I think it's important for all taxpayers to know that that we've had amongst the lowest tax levy increases in the whole county over the last three years. In 2023 and 24, we had a 2% tax levy increase. That was the fourth lowest in Somerset County. 2024 25 2.49% was the fifth lowest in Somerset County. And this year, when you see our numbers, I I do believe that once everyone reports out and shows what their tax
007levy increase is, we're going to be towards the bottom as well as far as percentage of increase. So, as we always said, we want to make sure we provide for our students, provide for our staff, but we also have to keep the uh the taxpayers on our minds as well and make sure that we are fiscally prudent. Thank you. All right. So, our district at a glance, this is as of October 15th of this school year, so 2025, our enrollment at the time, in district enrollment was 7,438. It's been steadily declining over the years. We had budgeted 1,240 employees, uh 1.2 million in square footage of building space. That will go up next year with the middle school edition. And the number of transported students is 7,700. Um the difference between that and our enrollment
008is we do have to transport out of district um students and our current budget is 187 million.9. So this presentation is going to kind of mirror last year's um more or less everything's been the same. We have the same inflationary pressures. Um, so when we started this budget process early in the school year, I looked at some of our key areas of the budget, salaries, health benefits, transportation, and I tacked on our known increases or anticipated increases. So for salaries, we follow collective bargaining. So once everyone was moved up their steps, we're looking at a $3.6 million increase just in salaries alone. health benefits. This is what you're going to hear in the news across all districts. The rise in health care costs has been skyrocketing. Um we're seeing 10 20 the state is seeing
009over 30% increases in health care. That alone we're estimating a $5 million increase which you can see is way more than the salary increase alone. And transportation is another large area of the budget. this. We follow the consumer price index for transportation. That's what we're allowed to renew uh routes at with contractors. So, we followed that percentage. And just looking at these three areas, we estimated a little over $9 million increase. Now, seeing a $9 million increase, the sources of revenue we looked at were our 2% tax levy limit, which is only $3.3 million. So, we're projecting a shortfall of over $5 million right off the bat. So, we knew we had to get to work. Um, so, first thing we looked at is our enrollment to see if there's any type of operational efficiencies
010we can find. So over the past five years, we've seen a decline of over 580 students. So this allows us to strategically staff um look at retirements, resignations to see if positions need to be filled rather than doing layoffs and riffs and things of that nature. So our next slide, I'm going to turn it over to Dr. Fonder uh once he settles in. But this this will summarize our changes in staffing um which you as you'll see in a future slide um helps us narrow that budget gap. >> Yes. Uh thanks. Yes. Uh for for the uh people who are watching via live stream, they see just the presentation. So they don't see the spill that just happened and the the cleanup that we're doing. the danger of having liquid beverages uh you know like
011coffee and water on the um table. Um so this slide is about uh staffing and um the the reduction of positions. So uh as Mr. Lomsky talked about in the beginning um over the last four to five years we've had a slow decline in enrollment. Um that's usually 100 to 200 students per year. And so with that, we've had a decline in staff uh where we're not reducing u you know we're we're not changing class sizes, we're not doing things like that, but we need less staff because we have less. This year uh we have about 30 and there were also adding some positions um particularly with uh the full day kindergarten. So we're launching full day kindergarten. This is something that we had budgeted for and is in the referendum. Um so there's nine
012additional kindergarten positions. Uh we're also adding two security monitors, security positions, one additional counselor that's also part of the reconfiguration. And then below that are the reduction of staff through attrition, enrollment, consolidation. So that's 29 positions and then up back up to the top. So it's a net reduction this year about 17 positions in in the budget. The uh 29 positions come from the elementary level, secondary level, also support staff and services, uh secretaries, teacher assistants, and then two administrative positions. Thank you, Dr. Fonder. Um so after all the changes in staffing, we were left with some other options for tax levy increases. So there is a 2% tax levy cap. However, the state does allow for some adjustments over that. The first one is called banked cap. It's essentially any adjustment from the prior
013year budget that you did not utilize can carry forward for the next three years. So, we are able to use bank cap from last year of $1.5 million, which we intend to utilize to help close the gap. The next adjustment is the same adjustment we had last year. Due to the significant rising cost of health care in the state health benefit plan, which this year they saw a 31% increase, districts can raise their health benefit line up to 29%. And that portion can be levied um in addition to your 2%. So for us this year, it was $2.8 8 million that we're allowed in additional tax levy that we can raise. Of that 2.8 million, we only need to utilize $158,000 of it. It's a little less than that. So that'll provide us with 2.6
014and change million of banked cap for future budgets. So how we close the budget gap a big portion is salaries and benefits through attrition as in the previous slide that Dr. Fonder went over. Um also we're projecting a less less of an increase in health benefits than initially. Um so with the reduction in staffing and health benefits that brought us about $3.1 million closer and the other um difference in closing the gap is we will be utilizing additional fund balance um mainly maintenance reserve um one time to help offset uh increase in budget. Our state aid uh which came out last week increased $287,000. Uh we'll be utilizing banked cap from last year of 1.5 million and the current year healthcare adjustment of 157,821. So this is a summary of this current year and the
015proposed 2627 year to show the differences in revenues. So you'll see we're looking to increase the tax levy 3.04%. State aid increased to 2.37%. We'll be utilizing 12.7% more in reserves and miscellaneous revenue increased 5%. Total budget overall we're looking at a 23% increase. So this is the revenue side. Here you'll see the appropriation side or expenditure side. So salaries overall are increasing 1.75 uh 1.74%. So much less than anticipated with the reductions. Employee benefits. This is all inclusive of not just health insurance but um other employee benefits, tuition reimbursement, um workers compensation, all all other types of benefits. So the net effect is a 9% increase. Maintenance and operations is increasing 3.5%. A lot of that has to do with um our custodial contracts. So their salaries and benefits appear in that line. transportation
016is uh relatively flat. Um we did find some efficiencies in for next year's budget. So that came in um better than expected. And our other category is just kind of everything else, legal, um our phones, copers, uh contracted service providers for IT, special ed, um the licenses, curriculum items, um insurance, uh business insurance, property casualty. That saw an increase of 4.8%. Next are out of district tuitions. This cost continues to rise every year as certain students are sent out and we pay the tuition for that. So as we are seeing increases in salaries and benefits those schools as well which then get passed on to us um school supplies, textbooks, um slight decrease. This number is tied to enrollment. So each school is budgeted per pupil. So, as the declining enrollment has been still trending
017down, that number is relatively flat or decreasing. And then the last item is equipment construction. Uh we have a slight decrease. Um I believe the majority of that is we're just budgeting one less 54 passenger and 24 passenger school bus. And that brings us to our total budget of 193,992,03. Here's just an image to show you where all the money is allocated. Um, and it's no surprise the biggest chunk of it is salaries, benefits, and tuition supplies. Mostly studentf facing expenses. um there's very few other miscellaneous administrative costs. Um so when we see these significant increases in health benefits and other items, our budget is mostly tied up with salaries and personnel. Some of the facility projects that we are planning for in this budget are softball field improvements. We are working with the township
018on trying to secure um better softball fields and even put money into it to improve it for the softball team. Um we're going to continue roof replacements. They're on a cycle of replacing a few roofs a year. Um continuous paving and concrete repairs. If you go around the schools, some of the walkways are in bad shape. So, we're working on that every year to improve that and make it safe for everybody. um painting throughout the district. I know currently our maintenance crew has been painting through the Eisenhower School. Um it's just kind of a refresh for all the buildings. We're continuing that. And then aside from the budget, we have referendum work. So, the current planned work to go on next school year, so starting this upcoming summer. All the primary school toilets will be
019renovated with the exception of Miltown because that's a fairly new school. Uh the middle school will be getting air conditioning um in a few years. So, that will be starting this summer. Also, the middle school classroom and cafeterias are planning to be actually they're currently being worked on uh and renovated and the upper elementary which are the current intermediate schools will see science room renovations. So, new STEM rooms um for the students there. The next two slides I'm going to share are the average tax impact for the residents. This first slide is Bridgewater. Um, so we have the average assessment. All the assessment data is for as of October of 2025. So the average assessment is $629,800. Our proposed school tax rate for the new budget is 1.28%. So for for every $100,000 of assessment
020about $37 increase is estimated and for the debt service portion a $7 increase is anticipated for every hundred thou hund 100,000 of assessment. Now this is strictly a snapshot andformational as I know homes are being reassessed and revalued throughout the year. So that can change depending on how everyone's uh ratables and assessed values change. This next slide is for Raridan. The average assessed home is 323,225 with a general fund tax rate of 1.813%. So the average increase for every 100,000 of assessment will be $27. And for debt service, a $10 increase for every 100,000 of assessment. This is all based on unequalized values. So it should mirror what's on your tax bill of unequalized. Um but as you become reassessed, that number will change. Um so the next steps after tonight, um it'll if it's
021board approved, the it'll then be sent to the county for review. um they review um all the personnel that's budgeted. They look at waiverss being utilized. Um they have a whole checklist they go through and then they they approve it. And then we will plan our public hearing and adoption for the April meeting which is on the 28th and there um changes can be made and if not then it will be adopted and finalized. This concludes my presentation. Are there any questions from the board? Yeah. >> First, I want to start by thanking Kevin and the rest of the team, including the FFT committee, for putting this budget together. Um, it it certainly was not easy to do because when you see that healthc care is rising at the rate, it's rising as well as
022some other costs that are beyond our control. I think to come in at at a 3.04 tax levy increase is quite a feat. So again, kudos to all the folks who have worked on this. Um, unfortunately, when we look at the at the budget pressures affecting not just this district, but any district and municipality in the state of New Jersey, the these pressures aren't going away. There there's no end in sight with with the health care cost rising exponentially. And as we know, energy costs, if we've driven past the gas pump recently, they're going up uh quite a bit as well. So, we're always going to have those pressures and we've got events that are outside of our control and and we've got to do our best to to really keep things under control where
023it's palatable for the taxpayers as well. So, again, thank you for everyone who worked on this and um there's good news and bad news, right? The good news is we came in at this that the bad news is as soon as we approve this at the end of next month, we really started all over again. So, so again, that that's where we are, but thank you for everyone who worked on this. I'll open it up for questions. >> Thank you to the administration for that report and all the work that you've done uh and especially in uh hosting us for a board retreat uh two weeks ago to go over this in a little bit more detail and give us a picture of where uh why these decision why and how these decisions were made.
024So, thank you for everyone and the board for being a part of that. All right. There are there any questions for the administration about the tentative budget report? um because the transportation is going up based on the CPI with the state of the world and with gas prices going up what happens to that and gas prices go up can they increase what they're charging us or eating that >> so if they choose not to renew uh we would have to go out to bid and there they can bid higher to recoup their prices. Um we do have contingency built in for any escalation in prices um for fuel. So um that is a possibility. >> I have a question. >> M Julie, thank you. Obviously enrollment's fallen a lot. We've also seen attrition with our
025headcount. uh in general, have we seen just back of the envelope, I'm not asking for a specific number, have we seen the employee to student ratio increase or decrease uh I guess over the past several years or even compared to last year? So the uh the goal is that that wouldn't be the case that we'd be able to proportionally reduce the staff with the student enrollment and so that we're not seeing larger class sizes because of the budgetary pressures, but it is challenging to do. Obviously, all the staff members who work for Bridgewater RAND Regional School District have important jobs to do and they work hard. But as Mr. Beer said, as soon as we're finished with this year, we're looking ahead to the next year knowing that probably even things don't get any worse
026where there's going to be 20 uh positions we're going to be looking to have because we're going to have fewer students. Um at the the board retreat I showed the board just kind of the headcount of the different grade levels. And so um you can see that there's not, you know, a blip on the radar with a a grade level cohort that's a little bit lower. there is a decline and it's not as precipitous as some other districts but it is you know in a district of over 7,000 students having 100 to 200 students fewer each year over a period of years you want to make sure that you're appropriately um maintaining the ratio um because we want to be fiscally responsible while at the same time not decreasing our service uh to the community.
027So, have we have we seen it increase in general or decrease over the past year? >> Class size, >> but like uh the employee to student ratio, >> we're trying to keep it the same. Yeah. The goal like we uh one of the things it's a little bit harder to quantify like administrators or secretaries or even teacher assistants. But the example that we used would be if we have 100 fewer students at the high school year-over-year, uh basically every student takes an English, a math, a social studies, a science. And so you probably can have one fewer teacher in each of those departments. And so, um, we look then if there's somebody who's leaving and we know that the next year we're going to need fewer. We're not rehiring into a position that's not going
028to be in existence, uh, a year from now. >> Okay. >> Any other questions from the board? Matt Christo, feel free to jump in, but obviously no pressure if you had any questions. >> If no one else has any questions, >> Mr. Lee, >> thank you. Um, I know we're expecting to use $660,000 of our maintenance reserve. Is that correct? >> Yes, that's correct. >> Um are there any specific budgeted uses for the use of maintenance reserve? >> It's used to um just support the maintenance budget. So ongoing repairs, replacement of items. Um so it's supporting the maintenance budget. >> So I guess when you're putting together that budget detail file, a portion of that is covered by the use of the maintenance reserve. In this case, it's $660,000. >> Correct. >> All right. Perfect.
029If anyone has any other other questions. Thank >> you. Any other questions on the on the tentative budget presentation or comments? Miss Lan, >> I had a question. Um it's it's actually just a small question. So the custodial um went up 3.52%. Was that as part of the because they were as part of the bargaining unit, was that what the raise was or was it? >> Right. So we outsource custodial services to um a contractor and they their employees are unionized. So they see a contractual increase which gets passed on to us. So uh in that line it's actually the salaries and benefits is the majority of it for the outsourced custodians. >> Understood. Thank you. >> But we're not negotiating those those prices though that's outside of us. >> Correct. >> Another question >>
030Mr. Lee. >> Uh for added district tuition obviously it's something that's increased quite a bit. You know, I know a lot of the placement is with private schools, a portion of it is with ESC's. Uh, do we have any sort of leeway in terms of negotiating the tuition that we're paying or is it in general sort of a mix match sort of situation? >> They set the rates um and then they get recalculated after um they're audited um with their actual expenditures. Um, so then the following year we'll receive a rebuild or a credit based on that. But it's um it does get right sized based on their actual expenditures. Um sometimes it's not in our favor, sometimes it is in our favor, but we we do not have any negotiating with um tuition with
031outside schools. >> Okay. All right. Um, and I know we have a budgeted surplus where it's around, correct me if I'm around 5 million or so. Four million. >> 4 million. Um, and it kind of shows up, correct me if I'm wrong, as revenue next year for as excess surplus. Correct. >> Yes, that is part of the proposed budget. So, I guess as a part of the budget, um, just maybe for the public and for maybe folks on the board here, uh, how exactly do you, I guess, figure out how to budget in that surplus into, you know, the budget detail file or just into the budget in general? Um, and how do you essentially, I guess, how does it work where that becomes next year's revenue? So part of that is done when we
032receive our audit for the prior year. So the school year that was just finished and audited and they um showed us what our surpluses were and where we would like to put them. So we put aside some in reserves. We put a um maintenance reserve, capital reserve, and then we state that we want to use a portion of it to fund the future year's budget. So, it's based off of actual generated surpluses. Um the plan is to not rely on that. Um within the budget, we budget for contingencies and you know, emergency scenarios and in a perfect world, nothing will go wrong and we'll have a surplus and that's what we use it for. Um but it's not good to always rely on that. So we it has been trended down over the years. Um
033but we have seen um significant not significant but we have maintained our surplus. So we were able to keep it flat for this proposed budget. Um but going forward we plan to reduce the reliance on surplus. >> Got it. Yep. And I guess maybe talking a little bit about bank cap and the surplus. Uh obviously last year's during the budget we were using a portion of our budgeted fund balance to offset some of the rising costs. So just because we this year used a bank cap then we you know used a portion of our budgeted fund balance I guess because as it was mentioned we're in a sort of continuous budget cycle right uh what's I guess the long-term plan for you know how these how we're going to address some of these long-term escalations
034especially in benefits where things have gone up quite a bit. um how are we going to sort of work on it if let's say we don't have that bank cap or you know it's challenging to figure out where we can grab it from the surplus. >> I just want to clarify that real quick before you answer though the the assumption in that question was that we're using that that uh $4 million towards closing the gap. I don't know that that's the case where we've been we carried over that $4 million from last year, >> right? It was carried over. It wasn't used to if we didn't utilize it, the gap would have been much larger. >> Not the surplus. I'm referring to the budgeted fund balance that was used at least in the 2025 226.
035>> I'm going to say that that statement is incorrect. >> Oh, it's not a statement. It's just a question. >> Well, no, no, you made a statement that we used Excuse me, I've been quiet. I'm I'm trying to answer your question, but you got to let me talk. >> Go ahead. >> You made the statement that we utilized our fund balance to close the budget gap last year. That's fundamentally not true. did >> okay I just for clarification sake that's not true what we did use just like this year is a combination of the healthcare waiver plus bank cap those are two entirely different things than what you just described so I just think for the public it's very important to be concise with our speech and and we can't throw around terms that we
036use this to to balance the budget because it's not true >> okay let me rephrase my question perhaps there's misunderstanding. >> No, I didn't misunderst I'm talking about budget fund balance. In the 2025 to the 2026 budget, we used up the 2% increase limit on tax. Wait, we we used the 2% t tax increase that we were statutoily driven to do. We also used the health care waiver adjustment. But I also remember that we used or at least in the budget we saw budgeted fund balance as a part of >> that's been budgeted every year um since >> well the reduction of it where it went from I believe some other amount to 4 million >> correct from four and a quarter to 4 million. >> Yeah. every year in the past it's been reduced
037250,000 to reduce our reliance on you know hoping for surplus at the end of the year so to say so to speak >> so because we've gotten to a point where we may not want to necessarily eat into that surplus which will hopefully not have to be used >> what's our long-term plan >> I just answer that question okay go ahead because >> really the goal of the fund balance is to bring it down to zero That's been that's been the goal over the years. At one time it was it was $7 million. We've reduced it by a quarter of a million dollars a year over several over several years. And and you've got to understand anytime you reduce that that fund balance, it's actually a reduction in spending of the corresponding amount. >> So
038you you've got to cut that out of your budget. But I mean we're going down this road. I'm not quite sure where it's leading. So I don't know if we could tie this up. >> Let me let me ask interject for a moment. Miss Lockchran has a question. >> It was a it was a question and it's for Mr. Beers. Um you you mentioned briefly about, you know, the economic circumstances that were kind of all in with inflation, but can you elaborate on the economic conditions that districts are facing and how particularly how Bridgewater has, you know, by comparison kept our budget increase very modest. >> No, I appreciate that question. So there there are cost drivers that are you know th those macroeconomic forces that are are not under our control. Healthcare rates are
039something that that we cannot control. Um and and and that's kind of half true where being that we're self-insured, our rates have gone up about half as much as the state plan. The state plan was looking at a 31% increase. we're at about 15 or 16 or or somewhere in that range because we're self-insured. And again, that's a testament to the business department for for setting that program up for us and our employees. Then there are there are other co cost drivers as far as your contracts, your utilities, all of these things that that I mean we know as consumers, they're going up at at a pretty rapid rate. And then we have a 2% cap uh uh 2% tax levy cap. So the problem is we have a 2% tax levy cap, but we
040don't live in a 2% world. So what we have to look at are ways to actually cut your budget every year. So, as Kevin showed, when we when we started this whole process, we were in a $4.5 million hole that we had to close through through staffing, through through efficiencies, through all kinds of things. And and it really takes quite a bit of work. Um, but but to the point now, here's the gloom and doom part. It it's not sustainable. And I think that's the question you were asking before, Jeremy. I I'll come right out and say it. This is not sustainable. There is no way we can continue down this road or municipalities can continue down this road with 30% increases to healthcare every year. There just there's just no getting around it. And
041and what's going to happen year after year? Do we want to know what it means? If things don't change, it means real cuts to real programs that affect everyone. That's that's the gloom and doom part. and and what's in our power to change it. Unfortunately, not that much, right? Th those changes would need to come at the state and federal level um to help us out. So, I hope that answered your question and and uh again, it's it's a world that we live in and a lot of schools live in where there are just there are cost pressures well outside of our control that we have to deal with. >> Singer, >> there. >> Thank you. Um so, I just want to ask a question about this general fund balance that we're talking about. Um,
042it's $4 million. Uh, four years ago it was four and a half. Two years ago it was four and a quarter. Last year it was four. This year it's going to be four again. This is we can't spend money that we don't budget for. So am I correct in thinking that this $4 million is a contingency or rainy day fund in case the middle school floods again or something else happens? You know, we had a horrendous storm last night. If a tree falls somewhere um and causes damage, it's my understanding that this $4 million is things that are not currently budgeted for, but could happen in the future. >> Correct. Yes. >> So, it's it's a safety net. >> Yes. >> And we and we've been lucky in that we've been able to reduce that
043safety net over the past couple years, but we still need a safety net. >> Correct. >> All right. Thank you. >> Any further comments or questions? >> Right. Final question. Mr. Lee, go ahead. >> Thank you. Um, obviously we want to make sure we're funding a lot of these programs. Uh, in the current budget that we have right now, um, is there any sort of spending that's dedicated for funding any full day accelerated gifted and talented programs for students, particularly the AI program? >> I think that's the next uh might be the topic of the next presentation. So my unless the administration has anything, we can hold off on that. What >> was a question about the budget? Understood. That's go that may be answered in just a moment more fully. >> It's a yes
044or no question. >> I'll answer it. No. >> Okay. Mr. Beers, anything on Mr. Beers, anything else on that before it's your report? So, if you'd like to move on. >> No problem. >> Good. Thank you. Thank you. Okay. Good evening everyone. My name is Robert Beers. I'm the superintendent of schools. Tonight we're going to provide the community and the public with with updates to our gifted and talented program transition. We we had made a presentation last at the last board meeting describing some of the changes and we we figured that um due due to some of the the comments we received that we would hopefully uh provide everyone with a little bit more clarity on where we're headed and and why we're headed in the direction that we are. All right. Once we go
045through this, I'll open it up for questions and and that will be to the board and then obviously there will be public comment later in the program where the community can have their their voices heard. So So we want to give you tonight my colleague Dr. Jones, the assistant superintendent of schools and I are are going to provide an update on our gifted and talented programs. Uh so so with that, let me uh just jump right into it. I know why a lot of people are in the audience is because of the AI program and and there have been a lot of questions and concerns over the last month about what why we are making these changes to the AI program and and it's quite simple when we look at this program it doesn't lead
046to anywhere yes and that's the title it's a dead end and this is why and that's not to be construed as that there is nothing good going on in the classrooms in AI at Hamilton School. That's not what I'm saying. What I'm saying is the AI program accelerates students for three years. So a student gets into second grade AI. They're told, "Okay, you're accelerated a grade. Okay, you're going second grade, third grade, fourth grade. And then when you get to grade five, guess what happens? you kind of stay in grade five and you join join the cohort at the intermediate schools in the EC classes and you're on grade level. So again, it's acceleration in grades 2, three, and four, and then it comes right back to the to the uh school cohort in grade
047five. So that's what I mean where it's a dead-end program. It doesn't lead anywhere. So when we look at the grade six outcomes, all students from grade 5E or AI, they're placed in the same 5E and sixe cohort as the majority of students who qualified for e-grouping but never participated in the AI program. All right? So you have three three years of separate acceleration. There's no distinct outcome. There's no advanced pathway. the AI program was and still is a dead end. And that's the clunky part of the whole thing. So, I know it I know folks are here that believe that it's something, but I'm telling you, it's not everything that you think it is because with this E cohort, twothirds of the kids in the E cohort were never in the AI program. I'll
048say that again. in the E cohort twothirds fully twothirds were never in the AI. I'm sorry. Can I just interject with a question real quick? And I know you don't sure the E program, what exactly what does E stand for? Because I I I know many people in the community know it, but some people may not know that. >> AI is academically independent. E is enriched. And actually what happens and we'll go through this as we continue through this slides um what you see is that for AI in um second and third grade it is second third and fourth grade. It's accelerated in math and English language arts. It's never accelerated in science and social studies. And I'll go through this a bit more as I go through the slides. um when they go into
049fifth grade and it becomes E, E and AI actually combine in English language arts and math. Um so what happens is English language arts is actually at grade level but enriched. Math is accelerated because that's the program that continues into sixe into seventh grade algebra into eighth grade geometry. But all the other classes English, social studies, science become ecourses which then feed into the honors program in high school. Okay. All right, thank you very much. >> So, let me go through this and hopefully this will help to clarify some things and then we're going to send out additional information to provide more clarity. But, um, so what's changing? So, currently in grades 2 through four, students are in self-contained classrooms and that means that they're with the same teacher and the same cohort of kids
050for math, English language arts, science, and social studies. Math acceleration, math instruction is accelerated. English language arts is also accelerated, but this is where I think it gets confusing and we're going to send some clarifying information out because English is um it functions more like enrichment even when we're calling it acceleration. And that's because the way that language development happens is it's just not linear as math is. It doesn't build on skills in the same way. So, it kind of functions more like a web than a ladder is the analogy that I would use. Um, by the time you get to grade five, English language arts instruction, as I just said, is at a grade level. Science and social studies, as I also just said, are always taught at grade level. They're not accelerated. Um,
051and I went back to 2009, and it was like that, you know, from at least 2009. Um, students are bus to Hamilton school in this two through four cohort. This year they're coming from four other primary schools, but this actually changes from year to year. They could come from, you know, six different schools depending on who um is identified and then enrolls in it. We have fewer than 70 students in the AI program at the primary school. And so this is, you know, one of the things we've been talking about is the cost for the program is $512,000 per year which is made up from transportation and personnel. In fifth grade, AI students are combined with e students and it is they have the same curriculum in English language arts and in math. And then
052as Mr. Beers said the AI program ends and students all become part well if you're identified you become part of the 6E cohort. So what's going to happen in this new model is students will be in their home schools. AI students will be placed automatically or at least be automatically eligible to be placed in a gifted and talented cohort. Now, like all students, they are go all students, whether you're identified for gifted and talented or not, you're going to have daily enrichment as part of an extended learning period. They've been working on these modules. They're going to be super exciting when we start sharing these. Um, but in addition, if you were in AI or you're identified for gifted services, you're going to have daily cluster groups in math and English arts. English language arts.
053I'm going to go a little bit more into that in this presentation, but then we're going to send out lots more information on that. And then you have um 5e accelerated math still and 6E pathways are continuing. And as we said last time we presented, these pathways are the pipelines that feed right into, you know, your double acceleration of algebra in grade seven or in grade 8 geometry and into honors and AP classes. Um and so in looking at things this way, what we're hoping to do is use resources to benefit all students. All right. So why the change? So we reviewed programs and student pathways and really what drove this was it was in light of the grade shifts that are happening across the district for 2026 2027 due to the reconfiguration. So as
054Mr. Beers already stated and this was this was a big point for us. AI didn't have a distinct outcome that couldn't be that couldn't be achieved in another way. So one of the ways we know this is because twothirds of the students who are in 6E were not in AI. They didn't come from that pathway. We also know that AI and E students are combined in fifth grade. And we know that that AI and E curriculum in well curricula in both English language arts and in math are identical in fifth grade. So as previously stated, I know I'm saying it again, the program costs $512,000 specifically for 68 students. So with this change, students will still benefit from from the acceleration from enrichment, but they will be learning in their neighborhood schools. and that will
055allow us to redirect resources and to expand enrichment so that more students have access. So to go into a little bit more detail about what this will look like and again we're going to send home we're going to keep layering information so people will have more and more information. Um the current second grade students will return to their home schools. they will be automatically eligible for daily math and ELA cluster groups. Um again, cluster groups involves acceleration and enrichment opportunities and they'll be working with teachers who have experience in providing gifted and talented services. Most of our teachers right now in the primary schools who have been doing cluster groups for a couple years now or the small group investigations had training. We had a um consultant come in. We have our own coaches, our
056director, our ETSs's elementary teaching specialists working with teachers, um, supervisors of course. So, we will continue that support. Students will also be eligible for the weekly small groupoup investigations and like all students, they will receive daily enrichment through this extended learning period. And everybody's getting increased time in science and social studies. Now, for the current third grade AI student who will be entering fourth grade, now you're going to notice we tweaked some things based on feedback. They will attend Eisenhower or Hillside school. And what's going to be different than for the current second graders is that they are going to, we can do this because they're moving into two schools. They're going to remain with their cohort, but join other eligible students in an advanced math class. And this advanced math class will bridge the
0573AI curriculum with a 5e curriculum. And we're actually going to use the 4 AI curriculum for this purpose. There was someone who sent an email and actually asked how we can do that with students who haven't been in AI. And that's what we do every year in 5A. We're combining kids that way. We test kids. We universally screen. We no longer have the program where we just randomly test some kids on Saturdays. We screen everyone. and then we're able to determine that some kids have mastered the next grade level standards and they could be added to that cohort, they're equally successful. Um, the current fourth grade students, they're going to have all the same services that I just reviewed with the one exception again being math. So, they will be placed in 5e math. So,
058again, oops. While we do understand that parents have questions and I think one of the big ones is really how will cluster groups look. We are going to send additional information that will be more detailed and specific that will explain these services. I was saying before that to me, you know, math and English are different. Math's very linear. You learn it like a ladder. The standards are that way. They build upon other standards. English language arts is more of a web that you're kind of um kind of cycling over things but doing it in an increasingly sophisticated way with sophisticated text and we expect that you're able to communicate and write in an increasingly sophisticated way. So to end this part I just want to say that um we're also planning still to have our
059annual parent gifted and talented presentation and that date will be on the website soon. We actually removed it because we want to spend a little more time planning for it so we can make sure we're addressing people's questions. >> Thank you, Dr. Jones. Next slide. Okay. And and one of the things that that's really critical for everyone to know is that currently in our neighborhood schools, there is a robust gifted and talented program that's happening right now. And why we can say that is that these are the numbers of the kids who who participate in these programs. All right. Now, just to take a walk down memory lane, we found that until 2009 2010, this district had an AI program and it also had gifted and talented in every school. Due to the budget crisis,
060a decision was made by people in my chair at that point to pull all the gifted and talented services out of the neighborhood schools and strictly have AI. That move made us non-compliant with New Jersey state law. We've seen a lot of reference to the New Jersey gifted and talented law. We understand the law and that's why we implemented these programs in the neighborhood schools because gifted and talented education is very different than an accelerated program. They're not the same thing. So, so due to Dr. Jones and her team, we've been able to to get these programs and we're talking about small group investigations, cluster groups, uh, and and the combination in every grade. And, and we see there the combination in K to4 for small group in instruction, 333 kids, cluster groups 81, and
061the combinations of K to 4 SGI and cluster group 340, 2 to 4, SGI, and cluster group combined, 234. We have a robust program down at these schools. So when I say that kids can join the cohort and receive gifted and talented services, we're not making that up, nor are we creating a program. It's already in place. And then finally, it's our commitment to every learner. and and we've got to know that this program that that we're going to implement for next year, it's a comprehensive schoolwide enrichment model. Produce a strong academic and socioeconom four decades of research and gifted education points. It's the right choice for every learner in this district, including those currently in the AI program. And this is what we have to know leaving here. We're not making this up and
062pulling this out of the air. These programs are used by the top school districts in the state of New Jersey and the nation. All right. And uh and then finally, we're going to have dedicated cohorts, right, where current AI students are going to join cohorts with peers in their home primary and intermediate schools for gifted and talented programs. We know these pathways, the the e pathways are preserved. So the fully accelerated program continues grade six. And we know what is that? That's the precursor to your your honors courses in high school and your AP classes. And then every year, look, we we provide data to this board and to the public every year on how these programs are performing and we're going to continue to do that. So again, that's our commitment. That's our plan
063and this is what we're putting in place for next year. So I I'd appreciate any comments from the board of education and uh the public will will have an opportunity to uh to make their comments after um you know later later in the program. Um, but again, it's important to know that we didn't make this decision lightly. Wasn't a knee-jerk reaction, but it's in looking at how we can best serve the needs of all kids in this district, right? And and that's that's the thing we also have to remember. These programs are are important to the kids who are in them. And I and I I get that. But there's no other school with this model. There's no other school in the state of New Jersey with this model. I'll say that again. And there's
064a reason for that. All right? Because we can do better by changing things up. And I understand change is a dirty word for a lot of people. Um but the one thing we have been is fully transparent with this. We've made the announcements in a in a public forum. We're doing it again. We've sent out letters to every parent. We've communicated with folks and we're going to continue to do so. So with that, I'll turn it over for questions. >> Miss Lan, and you had a question. >> Um, so you had mentioned that um, we were not compliant and I don't think that this was an opinion of administration or the board. I I don't remember when, but we had a consultant come and review all of our gifted talented. Could you just elaborate a
065little bit on that process? Yes, I sure can. Um, actually like if you go back to the history, it looks like what happened is exactly what Mr. Beer said and you know 2009 predates us. But basically there must have been a schoolwide enrichment program and also another gifted and talented service was AI. That was the year of budget cuts. They cut other things too like world language was cut in the elementary schools. The chorus was cut for fourth grade students but not for teachers somehow in their schedules. um they're all returning next year by the way in our schedules. And so they also for some reason chose to cut schoolwide enrichment. Right in their own 2009 program evaluation it says AI was only supposed to target about 3 to 5% of students. And so it
066is strange to me that the program that was more comprehensive and and reached more students was the one that was cut. I can't speak to that. But what happened with the strengthening gifted and talented act is as soon as it was cut because AI only serves like second through fifth grade, we're required to have some kind of services in kindergarten and first grade. We didn't have them. We're required to universally screen students, which means every student takes the same assessment so we can identify students. And I can tell you that for years in this district and no one complained about it, the way that it was done was, you know, a letter went home to parents and they had to register to, you know, enroll for register for testing if they were interested in having
067their kid in the AI program and then they brought their child to school on a Saturday. I know because I I proctored it a couple times to take the test. So what happened is we had a consultant come in. She was she's an expert. Her name is Lenor Corina um from Ruckers. She's an expert in gifted and talented education. We knew we had a problem anyway and we did a whole program evaluation which included surveying all our different stakeholders, community members, parents. We separately uh surveyed the parents of students in AI groups. We did focus groups and what we came up with was that we had to make some changes to our identification process which was also restrictive because there were things like a writing prompt which precludes kids who might be twice exceptional or
068students who um are multilingual learners from being identified. And then the other thing that was problem at the time was the gifted and talented program only the AI program only existed at Hamilton school and we had three other primary schools none of which were Hamilton where we had ESL students. So basically we were saying as a district that like if you're an ESL student you can't possibly also be a gifted student because we didn't even have you in the same school. So she identified all these I mean we knew them but she came in she identified them. We met with people, we made our recommendations for changes and that's when we started rolling them out. I would guess I would have to go back and look. I think maybe 2023 2022 was one of the
069first years where we universally screened and at the time we had many upset parents too because you're also supposed to be as many parents pointed out in the emails using um local norms. We do use local norms when we're looking at our small group investigations, when we're doing cluster groups. And the reason you do local norms and not national norms is because our students here could overperform national norms or underperform. And the purpose of a gifted program is really that you're you're you're target you want kids to be interested, engaged, challenged. And so when they so cognitive cognitively outperform their chronological peers to the point where we can't meet their needs through differentiation, that's when you need a service. So if you have a whole school or a whole district of kids who are high
070performing, you don't need those same services because you can do them in the classroom because you can effectively differentiate. And and that's that's really what the difference is. And so um you know that's that's what we started doing. If I could just make a I'm sorry, Miss Yeah, >> Mr. Josh. Go ahead. >> Yeah. So, a couple of questions Karen. Um, >> so if I understand this correctly, the AI program in technically speaking is really not going away. is being integrated into a larger gifted and talented program >> almost like a >> I would be hesitant to say it in that way because I think it just you know would be confusing to parents and I don't want to confuse people more than anybody might be confused but you are correct that the pieces that
071involve acceleration we will continue to have it will just be so I wouldn't call it AI will continue as it is because AI is actually a cohort of students who together for these classes. But um you know, we will still have pieces that accelerate. We will still have the acceleration in math. We will still have the enrichment with some acceleration in English language arts. We're increasing science and social studies for everybody because right now students in grades K to five have it only three times a week and it rotates. So like, you know, they never have science and social studies at the same time of year. Now all kids, the way we built the schedule will have both science and social studies like all year long. So that will be increased opportunities for all kids
072and improve enrichment. Um >> that was going to be my next question that the science and social studies will be >> you know added more I guess in a way uh instead of just a couple of days a week or so. Um now were there parents or were there kids who never took they just chose not to take the Kogat or be in the AI program? So, we missed out on quite a few uh folks that just chose not to include their kids in the AI program, right? >> Everybody takes the Kogak because it's universal screening. So, even if they're not >> in the last two years, everyone's >> there are people who I wouldn't say like I I don't know what all the numbers are. I don't think that's the significant point. I think
073the significant point is that by the time you get to fifth and sixth grade, twothirds of the kids who are there and successful there come from different pathways. said that we know that can be done any >> No, what I'm getting at is that some folk, some families chose not to >> Oh, in the under the old system where you had to go >> on a Saturday. That's correct. >> Oh, absolutely. >> Right. So, they chose not to have their kid in the AI program even though they knew >> or they weren't able to make testing or due to family commitments or things like that. So, so yes, to to say until three years ago to say that was definitively the top performers in the district due to the format of testing would be an
074erroneous statement. >> Um, can I just before you go on, can I just go back because I lost my train of thought with norms and I just want to return to that. Um the reason we continued to use national norms with the AI program is because we had a lot of push back from parents at the time when we were trying to create local norms and the problem was we couldn't create local norms for um Kogat testing for example because the only kids who had ever taken the Kogat test were the kids who were you know registered for AI and were taking the test on the Saturday. So what we needed to do is have a year where we administered the test to everyone and then look at that data to establish our local norms.
075So we use local norms for the SGI's cluster groups. We stayed with the national norms for AI. >> And my last uh question or comment would be this that um you did look at other schools and Mr. years that mentioned that um other high performing schools in the state, you know, higher than us do not have this program. Is that correct? That is correct. So, we're basically modeling after those schools that are high performing in the top 25, top 30. Um and >> I'll even say the top three. >> So, this our program is more robust than what Montgomery has. It's pretty similar to what you find at West Windsor Plainsboro, which is, you know, for public schools. West Windsor Plainsboro is generally speaking the highest performing school district in the state of New Jersey.
076>> So this would >> Tennifly, we could go down the list. >> So this would follow that model almost. You can >> absolutely 100%. And AJ, that makes sense again when you consider the gifted and talented law because when you have a very high performing district, they don't need to do that because you know you can you are capable of differentiating appropriately in the classroom for their needs. >> Okay. >> Can I if I could jump in real quick? Um you talked about ESL students effectively not being eligible. I noticed that um for for a long time is it true that our two title one primary schools JFK and Adamsville wouldn't have been that there weren't really any gifted and talented ser services there at all. >> Is that correct? >> That is correct. >>
077Can I also ask a follow of order said >> that's not a point of order. >> I have a question. >> I was talking I was talking to the board. >> Excuse me. I have a point of order. Excuse me. I have a point of order. >> I was talking to the board. Please don't talk over each other. Do we really need a point of order, Michelle? Someone to call. >> My point of order is that >> Miss Lockan has already spoken once and had an opportunity to. >> Mr. Jooshi has already had opportunities to speak before. I would like to ask one question because there are other folks here that have already >> I'm ask I'm gonna Mr. Lee, I've heard your point of order. I I look, we're all adults here. I think
078we'll all get a chance to talk. Miss Lock, you jumped in a couple times to be fair, especially in follow-ups. Miss Locker, go ahead and then I'll call on somebody else. >> Thank you. I wanted to ask a follow-up question to what you were discussing just now since it was on point. Um, so in the last two years that you have been testing uh throughout the school district, have people been offered the opportunity to go to the gifted and talented program and turned it down because it wasn't in their home school? Yes, >> people turned down AI who've been eligible. >> Yes. >> And we we can't provide numbers that are under a certain number. We we do need to know under 20 because those those children could be identifiable. >> Any other comments? >>
079Question. >> Uh you mentioned that this decision was based off of 40 years of research. Uh can you reference some of the different research that was used in support of this decision? >> Dr. Joseph Enzulli, >> can you talk a little bit about what exactly that study is? >> I I'm not here. Okay. It it's a schoolwide enrichment model which has been in place uh for a number of years. You you can you can do a little type it into the Google machine and look up Dr. Joseph Renulli and and what that whole school model is and and a lot of what we've implemented and what other schools implemented is based off of this the whole school model. Understood. All right. Uh I know there's obviously a lot of grants that are out there. Have
080they considered grants uh available to support expanding gifted and talented programs or at least retaining them rather than rolling back things like >> nothing is being rolled back. It's being repackaged but nothing is being rolled back. Have we explored the use of grants to fund some of our gifted and talented programs? >> There are no grants available that we're aware of. >> Okay. Um >> so you're asking a series of questions. Um >> well ask a series of questions. I would like to have the same rights as every other member to ask question. So I'm just pointing out because you commented on it before. So let me pause for a second. Does anyone else have any other other thoughts? Dr. Lee. Um, I want to actually piggy back on a question regarding people declining service.
081Has there been any people declining SGI or small group clustering? >> You know what, Lucy, that's a great question. I'm not sure, but I can I can look into that. I mean, I'm sure there are some people, I would imagine, but I'm not sure. So, I I will check. Okay. >> I know anecdotally there's a few. I think it's fair to compare how many people decline service for SGI and small group clustering. I >> I think it would be hard to compare. We'd have to look at percentages because there are so many more students who are actually in small group investigations and cluster grouping. And another difference too between the two which I think probably would factor into this is that the way that we have run small group investigation and cluster groups and we
082realize like the kids who are transitioning from AI it would be different and they would remain in these programs but um AI you are identified the first year for it and then you just stay in the AI cohort unless there was something you know some egregious reason why we would have to remove you whereas when you're doing cluster groups or SGI we're reidentifying dying every year because the needs of kids change. And it's just very interesting because even in looking at our data from our students who are like our current AI students, not second graders because we don't have enough data on them, but third through fifth grade students who were identified because they met all the criteria for AI, but then if we looked at all the their test scores the following year using
083the same identification criteria, we have 57% who wouldn't have been eligible for AI the following year. So I mean it just shows you one more thing that um is different between the AI program and SGI or cluster groups. >> I have a question. >> Thank you. Um you you've talked about uh enriched the AI program being enriched ELA and accelerated math. Um, it's my understanding that if you didn't reach a certain score in the Kogat in both of those subjects, you didn't get into the AI program. So, what happens to the kid that scores very high in the Kogat in math but not in ELA? Where do they fall since they wouldn't be in the AI program before? >> So, that's that's another great question. Um obvious right now they're they're receiving services through math
084cluster groups but that actually has happened and prior to us implementing math cluster groups it was more of a problem because another thing that the gifted and talented law states is that you have to be able to provide services to student who are advanced in any one area. It only has to be in one area. And so unfortunately when the schoolwide enrichment was cut at all the schools and the AI remained intact, you're right, you need it um like a composite. You needed to be able to be highly, you know, you needed to be gifted in English language arts and in math in order to receive this accelerated math services where we do have other students. That's why we're so successful in 5e in combining kids from the different pathways because there are always going
085to be kids who really are that advanced in math but did not get into AI because of their scores. So, we worked with um we do it now through cluster groups, but there have been times in the past, I was looking through something the other day where we've had students who like, you know, we have a a math supervisor, we have coaches, we have elementary teaching specialists, and you know, sometimes we just have to do something different for one child in a classroom because they need something different and then we're all willing to do that. >> I have a question. >> Mh. Mr. Lee and then Matt, you're next. Uh does I know there's been a focus on the enrichment side of this. Does daily enrichment for all learners particularly through K through five include
086enrichment and acceleration across all the different subjects that a student is learning on a daily basis with dedicated instruction. >> Say that one more time Jeremy the second part of it. I got the first part with the everybody's getting enrichment right. Does AC do we do we offer enrichment across every subject on a daily basis for all learners under this new model? >> Yes. So actually even under the old model um students should be enriched across all their classes. And you know what we do is when we develop curriculum there's three parts to it. The first part is actually the required part that you can see online and that's more the standards and the summary of the course. It has the resources. um it tells you the skills that the content, the standards that students
087have to achieve. But then we have things that for teachers where they have um a third stage, there's a second stage with assessments too, but a third stage that's not public where it talks about lesson plans and in those places you can also find um ways to enrich. That's going to be different, Jeremy. the enrichment that's done in each of the classes from we we're now actually going to have a period in the day for K5 students. It's called extended learning and it's going to be exploration. It's very exciting because I just looked at some of the work and I'll just quickly tell you that the first one I looked at was pumpkin exploration in first grade and it's STEMbased and it's five weeks there. No shooting of pumpkins. That's a that's a high school
088that's high school physics. Um, and you know, they're going to look at the stages of the life cycle, observe pumpkin seeds as they grow, compare and contrast pumpkin and gourds, um, sort pumpkins based on characteristics, count and graph seeds, very exciting. And then they'll identify, describe, and observe. And they'll come up ultimately with some kind of creative project way of showing their learning. But that's just one module. There'll probably be like six at least modules per grade level. We'd like to get 10, but we're going to start with six. And um, you know, I looked at other things. because we have career exploration, fractured fairy tales. I actually think the kids are going to love it. Every kid will have this. I think the teachers are going to love it. But, you know, we'll see.
089>> Another question. Sorry. Um Oh, Matt, go ahead. >> Matt, go ahead. Thank you. >> Um, okay. So, I feel like if we're trying to raise like the education broadly across all students in the district, right? Um, how would we do so by separating within classrooms? Because would the gifted and talented programs be able to be in separate classrooms? Because if you have multiple kids, multiple groups of classes in one school, in one grade, then what what makes you like what's stopping you from just saying the kids in the gifted group of this class of math and the gifted group of that class like I'll just be in one class instead. And then you have that that class just elevated higher than other classes in that same school grade level. That's a great question and
090and that's part of why we we combine peer groups, right? Because the whole idea is that this instruction that that we're talking about, right, enriched instruction, it's not just good for the highest learners, right? It's good for all learners. And um and what's so important for for everyone, whether you're in the highest cohort or not in the highest cohort, is that you intermingle with your classmates. I mean that that's what see that's what we can't lose sight of in this whole process. We're talking about kids like they're mini computers, right? They're not they're kids. They need to play together. They need to have friends who and even friends who aren't in their math class, right? So I I think that's what you're getting. But but within the schedule, teachers can differentiate. They they can have
091different groups. They can do those things. So I I think the point is saying so you don't have an isolated group and then other students are isolated from interacting with that group but but that there are times during the day where people come together and learn together etc. I don't know if I answered your question >> right but it's the idea that if like you're pre-esting students on like certain skills or um standards and they already have them they're already secure in them you wouldn't want to spend time retaching them or have the kids sitting through that again. So the teachers receive like specialized training and how to accelerate them, but we also provide the resources for that. So it's not like people have to make things up. There's resources of this is how you
092would be able to provide it. Also with cluster group and research, there are certain ways you organize the classrooms too. So you're not just throwing together any classroom and then like figuring out the grouping, but you want to make sure that it's grouping that makes sense. So usually um you're looking at the level of kids and and matching them so that a teacher would be able to differentiate. And then kids when they're working in groups, sometimes they're getting direct instruction and sometimes they're going to be working collaboratively or working independently. Um, and it's very typical at the primary schools too already at elementary schools for students to be receiving small groupoup instruction. I don't know if you remember that from your elementary school days. And honestly, it should be happening somewhat in the high school
093as well, but that's a different story. >> Do you have something else on that? >> Yeah. Um I remember like I was I was in AI for fourth grade. Um for third grade I was not and I found myself getting bored like very often. Um I was in these small groups and I would get separated but then you know the it kind of takes away teachers attention from other things as well. Right. I was in third grade and they were giving me I was in Crim and they were giving me like everything from fourth grade and I had finished it and they had nothing left for me to do there. So they started giving me coloring sheets. Um I would be like painting Mr. Krab and then I'd be killing Mr. Krab because I was
094mad because I was bored. Um and that was because I was being separated into these kind of side groups where I was getting focus attention for small amounts of time. But then in the time that my teacher also had to go and teach the other kids in the class, I was then thrown back into groups in the level that I did not I was not performing at. Um, and so like I just felt like I was kind of being held back in some circumstances in that class. >> Well, luckily we have cluster grouping now and we did not have that when you were in it. >> Okay. >> So, but that is why we would need it. Absolutely. Yes. >> So, the cluster grouping would break kids into separate classrooms. No, they would be in
095the same classroom, but it would give teachers and students the skills that they need to be able to effectively um differentiate and to provide challenges to accelerate strands. Like, so in other words, if you were outperforming kids in your class, honestly, Matt, and not to I don't know who your teacher was, you shouldn't have been given coloring sheets, right? That means you've already mastered a standard. You should be moving on to the next standard. >> That's that's what should have happened. So, I'm sorry to hear that. >> And and with cluster grouping, I I think it's important though. So, when when kids are universally screened, >> so the cluster group, I mean, they're they're looking at scores on a standardized test and they're saying, "Okay, within this classroom, there are three, four kids, let's say,
096that are on this level for mathematics." So, now we're going to pull them aside and and these kids, you know, are are going to have, you know, a mini cohort, so to speak, to to work on these things. >> Yeah. Can I piggyback on that because that's an excellent point that I forgot and that's true. Back when you were in third grade, you know, they just create those classes with they weren't intentional about how kids were grouped. So, you might not have been with somebody else who would have been, you know, a good group for you to feel challenged and to to to work to that level in. So, that's another difference. We're doing it very intentionally and identifying kids with universal screening, which didn't exist in our district till about four years ago. >>
097Okay. I'm very glad to hear that. So, it sounds like it's like more integrated, more match making going forward. Okay. >> The word is I think it's intentional or that's what we're trying to do. >> Thank you. Great question. Any Oh, yes. Go ahead, Crystal. >> Um, it's kind of similar to like this thing. I remember cuz I went to Miltown and I was never in AI. I actually don't know what this was called, but when I was in fourth grade, like every time we would go to math class, I me and like a couple other kids in my class, we would go to a separate math class to like do advanced math, but then after that like time was over, we would like come back to the normal class. So, I'm kind of that's
098like not my main point, but I'm just like wondering what that was because for the longest time, I had no idea what I was doing. >> That that was 4A. That was that was 4A math. And and honestly, you know, because we have elementary teaching specialists, we have coaches. If we need someone to work more directly with students to be able to do that, like that's what we were saying, sometimes you just have students who are anomalies, who are really performing at that level, and you have to do all kinds of creative things to to meet their needs. And so they did a great job then of doing that for you in Miltown. Yeah. Can I ask where you went in fifth grade? Is that an hour? >> No, I mean the math class. >>
099Oh, uh I was in like E >> 5. Yeah. Okay. >> And even like it was like a small group of us would go to this other class for math and then we would come back and I remember even if it was like in um reading or anything else like I would still have those kids who were I guess like with me in those math classes like I remember doing like book discussions like with someone who was um going to the math classes with me and we would we if we wanted to discuss something that like maybe was a little bit more challenging, we were able to. So, and I think in general from like you want kids to be ready for fifth grade, sixth grade, and then ultimately high school. When I look back
100on it as someone who kind of got accelerated learning, but also was with her like the normal kids. I feel like in the end I don't I didn't really see any of a difference when I got to like seventh grade when everybody was like together and it was if you were never went to AI versus if you were like in I guess my like 4A versus like AI kids at the end of the day everyone ended up matching up the same and even to this day in high school I don't see much of a difference versus me who never went to AI versus somebody who was in AI and actually I feel as though when someone's in AI They spend their entire elementary school with the same group of kids that then gets transferred into
101um um Eisenhower Hillside and then into middle school. So they constantly spend you not allowing yourself to talk to anyone else but the kids in your like AI group. And I think that because I was able to um spend my classes with other kids that it ended up doing me more good than like just having me sit around because I was able to see how other students saw even if they weren't the smartest. So that's just like what I wanted to add. >> Can I just interject and not to come back? I I can't tell you how much I appreciate your comments and your comments at this table tonight. this is really how how student representatives should function and I I want to tell the whole audience and board we don't go through anyone's answers
102beforehand right uh you know they're they're young adults and and and obviously they're incredibly bright people who have a mind of their own and and I'm glad that you were able to ask these questions and speak in this forum because that's really important to us to hear that student voice as well. So thank you. So before we get into it, I just want to make sure you >> Okay. I do know people have more questions. We have a long agenda to get to. So So does anyone and I and we're eager to hear from the the public on this and I'm sure other matters as well. Does anyone have any like final thoughts or questions on this? Dr. Lee and then Mr. Lee. >> All right. Thank you for this is my final comment before
103I want to hear from the public as well. uh earlier there was a distinction distinction that was mentioned between enrichment and acceleration as to whether that's gifted and talented. I think uh acceleration itself is a model for uh gifted and talented. the e program itself is uh accelerated and enriched right so um so enrichment uh is probably mainly the SGI and group group clustering was was about right or the E itself has both and AI has both too that's my understanding of it now since acceleration really needs to be done in a well thought out and constructed way if we don't have acceleration starting from um second Right? Or ideally even earlier, how do we bridge gap between the E and the SGI or the claxer grouping if acceleration wasn't in there to begin with?
104I'm a little confused about the question because and and let me just restate when we look let's take mathematics for example when we look at acceleration the acceleration pathway for mathematics ends up that you are a ninth grader taking algebra 2 honors that's the double accelerated math path pathway, right? So, so if we we were to reverse engineer this program, we're saying, okay, we need ninth graders, right? Because the top cohort, and if we look at any of the top high schools in the state of New Jersey, what's the competition? And and I'm only taking mathematics because it's the most clear. Kids would take algebra 2 honors, pre-calculus, calculus BC as a junior. Right? If if you're looking at getting into a top top-notch university, that's the pathway, right? And and and I I mean
105I this is one of the I can tell you I I know this, right? That's the pathway. So now you continue to reverse engineer that. What does that mean? Well, that means you take geometry in eighth grade. That means you take algebra in seventh grade. And then you go back farther to say, okay, what are the skills we need for these kids to be successful in this double accelerated cohort, to be successful in seventh grade algebra, eighth grade geometry. So that's really what this whole program is based on. many times in in mathematics um and and you hear even our our students at at the table here have said most places you're going to get that bonafide acceleration where where it's like this is the subject you have to master in order to go on
106to this it's going to start around the fifth grade some do it in fourth some do it in sixth right we do it in fifth and and there's a clear pathway let's say in mathematics to to get you there so to your point Lucy I don't know if answers the question. But I think when we talk about acceleration, I always look at it from a programmatic standpoint, I say, what does this acceleration lead us to, right? What what is the end goal? And I think in mathematics, it's clear, right? This is the goal. We want to get that elite cohort to this point at that time and and go from there. Um I don't know if that answered your question. Actually um I think we all can look into the theory a little more but
107acceleration itself is a modality for gift and talented education. >> Yeah I just have a couple of questions. Uh just a yes or no would be great. Um >> I'm the invitation was not for a yes or no question. Everyone had multiple opportunities to ask questions. I believe I have my opportunity administration and hold them to a yes or no. These are more complicated um complex multiaceted issues than that. All right, I don't want that to be the expectation. >> With the exception of daily exploration, does the current AI program or does the current system that we have have any sort of specific dedicated instructional enrichment for social studies and science from K through five? I'm jumping in uh as a uh as being the principal of Hamilton School from 2010 to 2020, but I
108don't know if I'm going to be able to give you a yes or no because you're giving multiple grade levels and your also multiple subject areas. So, ask the question again and I'll try to like parse the answer into the parts with uh the clearest answer to it. >> Sorry, it was a little bit unclear. Let me ask my question. Just let me just if you have any thoughts why don't you I give you one chance to get any thoughts if you have any questions please ask them now and then we'll >> I will ask all of them right now with the exception of daily excuse me I'm speaking excuse me I'm speaking I know you're speaking but we have members respond to your question >> we do have members of the public who have
109waited for almost two hours here so I I want to pay respect to them >> and if questions can be condensed or I mean it it just feels more like an interrogation versus questions for understanding. >> So >> I'm going to ask my questions. Uh with the exception of daily exploration, does the current system we have where we don't have AI include dedicated instructional enrichment for social studies and science >> across K through 5. You mean >> the one that's going to be implemented? >> My apologies. Correct. >> Current. >> Sorry. My apologies. >> So we could say the current system. No. >> Right. I didn't want to say that in that. >> Okay. So that's your question. What's the next question? >> No, but no for the new system. >> Yes, the new system
110will have enrichment in science and social studies. >> Will there be uh cluster groupings or any sort of dedicated instruction? >> We'll just have enrichment that will not be specific. There won't be cluster grouping. >> There won't be enrichment. Yes. >> How will the enrichment for social studies and science look across? >> We're we're going down through here. I >> No, I I think I think people deserve answers. I've emailed these questions. I haven't received I'm the superintendent of schools and I'm asking you for a little bit of common courtesy and respect. >> I'd like that too. >> You get it? We have a parent meeting coming up that goes into these details. But I am going to tell you this feels more like an interrogation versus basic questions. So I'm saying at this point,
111can we please move on where we can let the public speak and then we can talk later? I think >> that's a yes or a no. >> I'd like the public to hear the answers to questions that I believe are important for the public to hear. That's what I think. >> Okay. You >> and I was I was not given any opportunity I was given far fewer opportunities than the rest of this board to ask questions. >> Many many times this evening and I think some of your questions are good and they're valid, but I agree with Doc with Mr. Beers. It feels like an interrogation when you lead with is this I want a yes or no answer. No one's on the witness stand. Um, we're talking about our schools, talking about education. These
112are complex Me answers, >> right? So, we're Mr. Beers, is there anything else from your report? >> No, I think I think we need to move on. So, we >> You're not going to let me ask my questions. You're not going to let me ask my questions. >> We're going to move on. There's no motion on the floor. If this We can discuss it more. >> Thank you. All right, Mr. Beers. Anything else for your report? I think I asked that already, but they want your answer to get stepped on. >> I appreciate it. >> Thank you very much. All right, up next is the president's report. Uh, I'll be be very brief. I know uh January was school board's recognition month. I I didn't say anything then, so my teachers would tell you I
113I usually procrastinate. So, I'm two I'm a month and a half late, but I just wanted to thank everyone on the board for their service on the board. And I've noticed it especially just being at different events in the community. Um, the involvement that so many people here have outside of this role specifically that enrich our community. So whether it's running a a cultural event for the Lunar New Year or uh running a basket auction to raise money for a theater programs or whether supporting the parks and recreation programs or serving in the NJSBA or running the Winter Guard show which was incredible. I just want to thank everyone at the board for their service out in the community. And I know those events don't happen just because of any of you. But um I
114think it's indicative of the service we see throughout our communities on behalf of our students and to enrich everyone. So that's uh the only thing I had uh and that brings us up to committee reports. Uh just because uh to Mr. Beer's point, we have um a large audience that's willing to speak. If we could keep our questions and thoughts to a minimum, we could always come back around when we get to the action items. That would be my that would be my preference. Mr. Singer, we could do that. Is there interest in the board? All right. So with that, we are going to skip over. Thank you for that suggestion, Mr. Singer. We are going to skip over for the time being section 8 committee reports and move up to section nine, open to
115the public. Just give me one moment because I'm going to read a little bit more than I usually do. Individuals andor groups are invited to present their concerns, comments, and requests to the board of education at this time. Um, please be advised that a video recording of this meeting will be posted on the district website. uh as we have as we've said many members of the public in attendance tonight. We want to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to speak you know without having to be here till till midnight. So under uh per policy 0167 I am going to limit public comment to two minutes per speaker. The policy also allows us to if comments run for an hour to cut off public comment entirely. I'm not going to do that. I do not want
116to do that. But if we get to the point where um the comment has gone on past an hour of of real time, I'm going to reduce, which is also in policy, the speaking time for any of those last speakers to one minute. Um for those of you who haven't been to the to board me, and I'll let you know when that happens. Um for those of you who haven't been to board meetings before, this is the opportunity for the community to speak to the board. It's not a back and forth or a question and answer period. Uh we're not going to be able to respond to any questions that you have, but we very much value your comments and we take them very seriously and at least I take them to heart. So >>
117I have a question about the one minute. I don't think we've ever done one minute. I don't think people will ever be able to say anything in one minute. Let's do it still two minutes. That's my suggestion. >> Let's see how it goes. I'm I'm going to say that for now. Um let's see where we're at in in an hour because we also want to respect everyone. We want to respect everybody's time, >> I think, >> including the people who are speaking toward the end. >> Should we make a motion to see whether we do one minute or two minute >> per per policy? I I that's my that's my prerogative. Thank you. >> Right. >> This is only if it goes over an hour over an hour. >> And I just want to comment
118for the record that it's almost 9:00. So that puts us 10. And of course, we welcome everyone to send the board emails. We've got a number of them. Um, you always ask the administration questions. We value that very much. So, uh, thank you for that suggestion, Dr. Lee. All right. Uh, with that, is there any public comment this evening? Please step up to the microphone. Uh, if you just say your name and m and municipality, you don't have to give your address and sign in on the the form. We appreciate it. Uh, just just for everyone, I'm going to keep track on this oldfashioned stopwatch. If you get to 30 seconds left, I'm just going to give you a little tap. Feel free to talk right through that. Just so you know, you have about
11930 seconds to wrap up your comments. Thank you. >> Uh Manish Patel, U Bridgewwater. Um I've never attended a board meeting. I have actually never viewed one in the 23 years I've lived in this town. I have two kids who went through the system. And I just want to uh commend the system uh the teachers uh the administrators and past and current board members uh for the outstanding job they've done because uh there's a reason why I did not attend and view any prior board meetings uh because you guys did a great job. Uh I had one daughter go through AI. I had one son who did not go through AI. Uh it was a tortoise and hair type of situation where my son eventually caught up. uh they're both doing very well at this
120point in life again thanks to the fine education they got out of this district. I also sit on a undergraduate research and innovation board at NGIT. Um and about 15 years ago we started a program or they started a program. I just happened to join the board uh where they had a special program for the honors college. It was called IDS interdisciplinary studies. uh and it was kind of exclusive uh to only kids in the honors college about uh 15 of them and uh it grew uh to maybe 30 or so of the students in honors college. The school recognized it was a great program. Why don't we expand it to the entire university outside of the honors college? It is now um you know uh processed about 3,000 students. Uh it's raised over $10
121million because it's turned into an outstanding marketing tool for the entire university. uh and uh we've got uh over 350 students at a time that are now presenting. So, as JFK said, right, a rising tide lifts all boats and I believe that what you're working towards is probably going to do that as well. Um the biggest advantage I saw out of AI uh was that my daughter was picked up uh by the bus right in front of our house and that was wonderful. I'm not disparaging the program, but I'm saying level setting, flattening the program, expanding it to more students will make property values better. So, everyone should worry less about that because if you're only going to base your property values on the uh what you delivered at 20, thank you very much for
122your comment. I appreciate it. >> Thank you. >> Right. >> Any further comment? >> Hi, good evening. I have both of my sons here and I will also go as well. Dear Mr. Beers, my name is Levi and I'm in second grade AI. I'm writing to ask that we keep AI at Bridgewater Schools. People did not think of us and we are already in AI. We are learning one step ahead of us because we are advanced and we are fast finishers. We talked about this with our class before we wrote our letters. It is really sad. First, we are in AI and we learn one step ahead of our age level. So, we will be learning the same things and it will not be fun. Second, most of the teachers and students in AI will
123be sad. Even my parents want us to be in AI. It stands for academically independent. We will learn how to do that through AI. Third, almost everybody wants to keep AI. Almost everyone is trying to keep AI and I have been wanting to be in AI then I have been in it for almost one year. We need AI. In conclusion, AI will help us a lot. Will help us to build mental skills and help us be independent. Sincerely, Levi. >> Thank you. Thank you. My name is Luke and I am in fourth grade AI. I don't think AI should be ended because of my experience. During AI, I got to learn ahead of my age level. AI is I also get enough work for myself. If AI is over then a AI students will be
124learning the same things all over again. It also doesn't make sense that is it's to save money because our taxes already pay are already paying for that. >> Thank you very much for your comment. I appreciate you being here tonight. >> Right. Is there any further comment tonight? >> All right. Good evening uh Mr. Beers and the rest of the board members and fellow fellow parents. My name is Chidima Anukagu and I'm a resident of this district. I'm here to speak about the proposed elimination of AI um program in the Bridgewater Radaran Regional School District and more importantly the process by which this decision has been introduced to the community. Major academic decisions deser deserve transparency. I know last time Mr. Beers did comment that it has been very transparent. Um, I believe families should
125be informed well ahead of time. Elected boards should be fully engaged and community voices should matter. Public educa education is a public trust. What is deeply concerning is not just the proposal itself, but the lack of due process surrounding it. A program that has been exist in existence for over 35 years is now being presented for a sudden elimination without clear evidence of a formal board vote. uh rob robust community discussion and meaningful stakeholder engagement. That is not how decisions of this magnitude should be made. I've reviewed the proposed plan for what replaces AI and I have to be honest, it is not comparable. Replacing a structured dedicated program with fragmented support like small group investigation or cluster grouping does not provide the same level of rigor, consistency or depth. These discussions should consider the
126full continuum of education from elementaryaries through high school. So the question becomes if AI is being removed, where is the tr where is the truly comparable alternative and why is the community only now being brought into the conversation that feels like it it has already been decided. I respectfully urge this board to pause, engage families, provide clear data, and ensure that any change is made with integrity, openness, and a true commitment to to meeting the needs of all students. If this decision is truly in the best interest of our students, then it should be able to withstand transparency, community input, community input, and an open vote. Anything less undermines the trust this district was built on. Thank you. >> Thank you for your comment, ma'am. Good evening everyone. My name is Mao. Um I'm a
127proud mom of three girls. They all want to be here tonight because they wanted to share their perspectives of the AI program. Uh Henong, she's uh sixth grade, has been in AI program from third to fifth. and Joy is currently AI program student and Alina her twin sister isn't in AI but wanted to be part of it. So let's I I believe they represent three groups of students in our community that are impacted in different ways. So let's listen to them to directly because their voices are truly matters. >> Hello my name is Helen. Everyone learns differently. Some students need more time. Some learn faster and some students learn best when they are challenged to explore ideas more deeply. The AI program gives students who are ready for that challenge a place to grow. Being
128in the AI program pushed me to think more independently, to ask deeper questions, and to really challenge myself. In addition, we learned how to think through problems, share share our ideas, and explore topics in greater depth. Programs like this are important because not every student learns the same way or at the same pace. The AI program allows students to grow, develop their abilities, and reach their full potential. Students in the program benefit benefit from it every day, and younger students deserve to deserve and hope to have the same opportunity in the future. Please continue the AI program so more students can have the chance to grow, learn, and reach their full potential. Thank you. Thank you very much for your comments. >> Hello everyone. My name is Joy Mau and I'm a proud student in
129this AI program and I want you to hear directly from us, the student in impact. I'm in third grade, but my love of learning has grown so much throughout this program. While the parents have spoken, we the students Okay. Experiencing the difference. I asked the board to continue this program because it feels a passion and challenges I bring. Let's keep it going. My name is Alina and I'm in third grade. I'm not in the AI program yet, but I want to be. I'm seeing how excited other students are and I want that chance, too. If you take away the program, I may never get a chance to be a part of it or experience it. Please continue it. Not just for today's students, but for the other students out there who want to be a
130part of it, too. I'm eager to grow and this program can help me do that. Thank you for giving all of us the chance to be part of it. Thank you very much for your comment. >> Thank you for your time and and listening. >> Thank you. >> Good evening. Uh this is my daughter Audrey. She is the second grader in AI program. Um she will uh speak about her feeling about um eliminate eliminating AI first and I will have my comments. Hello everyone. I am a second grader that is in the AI program. When we heard the AI program might end, we were totally sad and disappointed. We want to save the AI program because we enjoy the AI program. Our teachers teach us new things we are ready to learn, not things we
131already know. It helps us feel excited, challenged, and happy to learn every day. We enjoy challenges, so don't hold us back. The AI program benefits everyone. Not only we enjoy the AI program, the our friends who are not in the AI program yet see what we are learning and feel inspired to work hard and join in future. We may not fully understand everything grown-ups talk about like budgets but we do know AI program helps us learn more grow more so we will create more value in future. I also joined the SGI program last year but AI is a full day program where we learn deeply in all subjects. SGI is a short time and cannot cover everything like AI does. That is why the AI program is so important to us. Please don't end the
132AI program. Thank you for listening to me. >> I thank you for your comment. >> Good evening. Um, so the district original reason for elim limiting AI has focused heavily on whether students will still end up in the same accelerated math pathway later. But that means the larger academic value of AI. AI is not just about where students may end up years later. It's a daily learning environment across core subjects where students are consistently challenged through faster pace, deeper content, higher level discussion and learning with uh intellectual peers. That's very different from a short weekly pull out such as SJI. The fact that some students succeed without AI doesn't prove that AI has no academic value. I understand that the district is now framing this change in terms of equity and broader access. Equity matters.
133I do I do agree uh expanding opportunity matters but equity should not mean reducing academic challenge for student who have already been identified as needing a more advanced learning environment. Equity should mean supporting every student at their level. A strong district should be able to expand access without weakening what already has clear academic value. Families have heard different explanation from this decision budgeting, student distribution and now equity and broader access. But whatever the explanation is, the central question remains the same. How will district preserve the academic value of AI? The district recent message explained that AI will be replaced by a combination of SGI cluster groups. But for families whose children has actually experience experienced SGI and the mass cluster group, this is not true replacement is a reduction because it doesn't match the quality,
134depths or consistency of AI. AI has real academic value until the district can clearly show that any alternatives will >> I'm just going to pause you there. That's been two minutes. Thank you very much for your comment. I appreciate it. >> This program should be preserved. >> Thank you very much. >> Hello everyone and uh um thank you for your attention. Uh my name is Bailey Thai. I'm the taxpayer proud tech taxpayer of Bridgewwater Township. Uh so I came here to speak uh with you uh on May the 5th about the same topic uh for AI pro uh for AP program. Uh so I'm here again uh to support AP program and um advocating for removing the the the barrier to AP program uh for our kids. Uh so I have three children. They are
135not with me right now but I'm they're the whole reason why I'm here. And so I have a high schooler um who's really interested in physics. However, he didn't realize that he's has a strong interest in physics until his 11th grade because that's the earliest time that he can he would be able to take physics, you know, based on the current course study design in the Bridgewater High School. So um the current design would not allow kids to take option two algebra 2 in the summer and that would not be recognized as a prerequisite for uh the science that STEM related AP programs. So that's why he cannot take it in the younger grades like ninth or 10th grade. So um that become a problem. So I asked the board to reconsider uh if kids
136with the younger grade like ninth or 10th grade can take physics AP AP courses. Uh the current course design also um put a prerequisite of biology and chemistry before physics and I don't know the rationale behind because they are completely different and unrelated subjects. So uh I asked the board to reconsider if they can put if you can put the physics before um the biology or um or in parallel with biology and chemistry. >> Um and then also the other thing is about the self-study uh with my kids taking Chinese in Chinese school Chinese school why are they not allowed to take >> that's two minutes but you're welcome to send any further comments along to the board and the administration. Thank you for your time tonight. >> Thank you. Thank you. >> Hello, I'm
137Paul Dudek. Uh, this is my daughter, Nina Dudek, third grade uh, AI program in Miss Ryan's classroom. Hamilton. >> Hi, my name is Nina and I am in third grade AI. I think you should keep AI because my sister is in SGI right now and I want her to have a chance to get in to it. Another reason why that me and the rest of AI should stay in fourth grade AI is that we will just relearn all of fourth grade math and reading. So, please keep the AI program. Thank you for listening. >> Thank you for your comment. >> Good evening. My name is Good evening. My name is Jesse Jang. I'm the uh a hu a parent of Bridgewater. Uh I want to focus on two simple question tonight. First, the budget. uh
138the AI program cost 512,000 out of 1983 million budget that is 0.28% roughly 16 per household per year before eliminating a program that has served the community for decades. I'm asking the board directly. Did the district apply for gifted education grants through the NJOE, the Jacob K Jevatist Gra uh gifted and talent studies education program or the NJ association for gifted children before deciding to cut? Did the district consider asking parents to voluntarily cover busing costs, one of the program's largest expense drivers to preserve the academic program itself? Did the district explore PTA co-founding, community foundation partnerships, or any alternative revenue model before reaching for elimination? Other districts facing similar budget pressures have found a creative solutions. We would like to know on the record what was explored here and what was not. The second
139question the new model. We received the letters last week describing a schoolwide enrichment model for next year. Three letters, three slightly different models. A schoolwide enrichment team. >> I'm gonna have to pause you there. That's two minutes. You're welcome to send along any information, any comments or questions to the board and the administration. Thank you. >> Thank you both. >> Thank you very much. >> Hello. >> Hi, my name uh Hi, my name is Elizabeth from fourth grade AI. Uh okay. I've been in all three programs, SGI, Math Cluster, and AI. SGI and Math Cluster are very thoughtful. But even though they are helpful, SGI and math cluster cannot compete with AI. The AI program is definitely more advanced because we are in a separate classroom and everything taught to us is at a higher
140level. SGI is researching and putting it into a craft while math cluster is getting pulled aside to do a couple of challenging problems. I feel the normal classes are not as enhancing as the AI class. The problem is that the two uh programs are enrichment not like the AI acceleration. >> Thank you very much for your comment. I appreciate you coming out. >> Good evening everyone. My name is Kareem Benubcker. Uh I live in uh Bridgewater and I'm a Bridgewwater High School uh graduate. I will compare AI classes to my experience with AP classes. I took AP physics with Mr. Wargo and AP French with Miss Costus during my sophomore year in high school. AP CL AP and AI classes are not just about looking good. mission. It's also for people like me who wanted
141to learn something new, something exciting, not the usual stuff that gets taught in class that students like me might already know, but somehow we have to sit there in class with a teacher repeating himself over for everyone else to finally get the information. It could get boring. It might actually lead students to dislike a class. I've been there before. I felt like I was stuck in a classroom and that I should be I shouldn't be there. Some kids are naturally slow or just not serious about learning. So why would talented kids like in AI classes? This is the future of our nation. These kids are the future. I would like this to be considered. And also, I would have appreciated as a member of the public if Mr. Lee's questions were answered earlier. Thank you.
142>> Good evening everyone. Um, my name is Jim Zen. Um I'm living in B water and tonight I want to make a comment on the duty of of POE. I have two kids. Uh my bigger kids was in a program now entering into middle school for which for whom I am concerned about the AP cost restrictions that I learned about in the first two year of high school uh water high school and also have my younger kid was entering is entering the the grade one which I am concerned about the removing of AI program. So the boards of education the responsibility to safeguard the accident academic excellence yet we are seeing as a consistent pattern in the past two year or three years is gradually to reloading and by eliminating the AI program the air
143program at the elementary school uh level this year starting this year the the district removed the critical early support for the gifted students and by restricting the AP cost assets at the high school level as a policy change that was implemented about two years ago that I learned recently. It further limit the opportunity for advanced academic uh growth. So in my view this change seem not to be isolated in the past two or three years. It go form a long-term tra uh trajectory that slowly weaken the district the academic competitiveness over the next 10 five to 10 years. So to me this is a huge deviation from the model of the Bruce water district claiming academic excellence but I don't want to see the bastwater district moving towards the deviation or the direction of academic
144media ochre in here that I I don't know if you can see the picture from the high school in there. So I don't want you to continue keep the academic asinance in here rather than going into academic mediocre. So I would like to make comment that this is not just a policy disagreement with the the administration or BOE current. >> Sir, I'm going to have to pause you there because that's two minutes. But thank you very much for your comment tonight. Feel free to send us any more information. I look forward to reading it. >> Good evening. My name is Jen. I have two daughters in the Bridgewwater public schools. My older daughter has been in the I program since second grade. It has shaped not only her academics, but the friendships that she has
145built with kids in both AI and E. My younger daughter has gone through several semesters of SGI. The that exposure to more advanced topics has helped her grow. We are fortunate that these programs exist and have met both of their needs. We are also fortunate that we to have had that choice. We chose AI for our older daughter because it was right for her. The 40-minute a week SGI program, not in how it looks on paper, but what it is in reality would not have been that. When we talk about equity, this is what it looks like. Programs that meet students where they are. and for us as families to have the choice to pursue them. And this but this decision to eliminate the AI program, this is not equity. First, the AI program is
146not a dead end. And second, this is not a decision to open up the AI program to everyone. This is to push those AI students down, right, to the to everyone else. It puts our advanced learners in an environment that will hold them back and it destroys that choice that we as parents should have. Lifting some students up does not require holding others back and that is not equity. That is a missed opportunity for all of us as parents and educators. The AI program has enabled my older daughter and countless other students here to excel academically and we need to preserve it, not dismantle it. If we want to live up to the goal of building a truly inclusive program where every student has the opportunity to excel, then I urge you to support the
147AI program, not tear it down. Thank you. >> Thank you very much for your comment, sir. >> I'm going to let my daughter speak next. >> Thank you for giving me this opportunity to speak today. My name is Arya and I am a fifth grader. A few weeks ago, I heard the school was planning to shut down the AI program. I don't believe that is the right choice. Today, I am here to ask the district to keep this AI program. I am asking this because I can tell you from my experience how much this program helped my friends and me. Keeping the AI program will benefit many others. I joined this school district in kindergarten. In kindergarten and first grade, I have a clear memory of the curriculum not being challenging for me. Through the
148efforts of my parents and the school, I was able to have extra enrichment and even skip to another grade level halfway through the school year. While I am grateful they were able to do that for me, it still was not enough. My parents filled in that gap by working with me and finding other learning opportunities outside of outside of school. This all changed when I joined the AI program. One of the best things about AI is being with other children who learn like me. When we do group activities, there are students I can be placed with, whereas in first grade, I was being grouped with the teacher. I met other friends who share many of my interests. Outside of school, my friends and I have a book club and a crochet club. Another one of
149the best things about AI are the teachers and lessons. Not only is the program accelerated by one year, but the teachers also enrich our lessons through group work, special projects, and presentations. I will always be grateful for those special teachers. In conclusion, students like me have a unique learning need. The AI program is designed to meet that need. Keeping it will allow many other kids to benefit from it like I did. Thank you. >> Thank you very much for your comment, Arya. >> Good evening. As our children are taught in the AI program, >> ma'am, please have your name for the record. Yes, sorry. Lenor El Karu Bridgewwater. >> Thank you. >> As our children are taught in the AI program to take a few extra steps, we are collectively here tonight to also take
150a few extra steps to ensure that our children continue to get the education they need to thrive. Our son was enrolled in the SGI program in kindergarten and first grade, which were the only gifted and talented options for those grade levels. It was an okay program, but being pulled out of the class for only 40 minutes per week to learn mainly about social studies was not helping him advance in the core subjects of math and language arts. This year, he's in the second grade AI class, and for the first time in the classroom since preschool, he is being challenged through the AI advanced class material, his teacher, who is an experienced professional in gifted and talented education, and his peers in the classroom who challenge each other with their advanced and gifted abilities. How could
151you possibly meet the needs of these kids in a 40inut per week SGI class or cluster groups, which what I understand is just a few extra worksheets. The point I want to make is that my son is actually excited to go to school this year because he's no longer bored and disengaged and we strongly believe that the AI program is the perfect program for him to be in to achieve, learn, and grow at his highest potential. Thank you. I'm Zario. Zaryio Elaru Bridgewater. I'm ready to ask. Save AI. We will be so bored. We We will miss our friends. I wanted and I wanted to do fourth grade math. First, we will be bored because we'll take the same test and we will get 100 on all the tests. Second, our friends will go back
152to their home schools and we will miss them. Third, I wanted to learn fourth grade stuff to get smarter. In conclusion, I would like AI to get smarter, keep my friends, and not be bored. Thank you very much for your comment. >> Good evening. My name is Good afternoon. Um, so good evening and thanks for the opportunity to speak here. >> Um, hi. >> Thank you. >> I'd like to offer a perspective from a nonAI students and the teacher in the classroom. Um, students who are several grade levels ahead often have very different academic needs. When those needs are not met, it can create challenges in the regular classroom. These students may finish assignments very quickly, become bored, to look for ways to occupy themselves that can unintentionally disrupt the learning environment. It can also
153create unnecessary pressure for other students. When some students constantly answer every question immediately and accurately, other students may hesitant to participate or feel dis discouraged. Classroom works best when students feel comfortable learning at their own pace. Teachers are also placed in a difficult position. They already work incredibly hard to meet a wide range of needs in the classroom. When some students is several grade level ahead, teachers must find ways to keep that student engaged. while still supporting everyone else. That can become additional burden in a already demanding job. In some cases, students who previously struggle with behavior improved significantly after joining the AI program simply because they were finally challenging and engaged. Programs like AI don't only support um advanced learners. They help the core classroom where teachers can focus on learning teaching. Um we
154are not just by eliminating AI we're not just eliminating individual students we awakening the future of our community our country and the work that we need supporting academic excellence today is an investment in that future thank you >> thank you for your comment >> hello my name is Yayun and I'm in the third grade ahead AI isn't just one activity. It's our school day. In AI, we learn new lessons every day, at least three days a week. We learn the next grade's curriculum together and they teach our teachers us things step by step. Most kids in the class like learning and makes the school more intriguing. The students were chosen because they learn fast and need harder lessons. Being with other kids who learn the same way help us to learn better before a I
155did SGI in first grade. The only assignment I had in SGI was to make a presentation about bats. The project was basically searching for facts and making slides. It was only one thing and it wasn't challenging at all. AI is different. In AI we learn new academics and new ideas every day that makes us things we don't already know. >> Makes me excited to come to school every day. I hope you will think carefully about keeping the air program. Thank you for this. >> Thank you very much for your comment. >> Good evening. My name is Fa. I'm from Bridgewater and this is my daughter Serin Sunun who is currently in third grade AI. Um we are here to um have have several questions. So as this district move to the schoolwide enrichment model for
156the this coming school year, we support the goal of including all students. But true inclusion should mean every stu every student gets what they need to grow. Not that all student are placed in the same setting without the right level of challenge of of challenge. I have a few questions about this change will affect AI students. My first question is about learning with peers. Highly advanced students need classmates who are at the similar level to learn and grow both academically and socially. So my question is how will a part-time cluster group in a regular classroom give AI students the same experience as learning full-time with intellectual peers in the current AI program? My second question is about academic growth. Equity means helping each student make real progress, not just placing them in the same classroom.
157So, does the district have proof that students in the new model will make the same academic gains as they do in the centralized AI program? My third question is about teacher support. In regular classrooms, teachers often need to focus on students who are struggling. Advanced learners may be left to work on their own. How will the district make sure AI student receive direct instruction and challenge work instead of having to teach themselves or help other students? My fourth question is about fairness and student needs. Equity means giving each student the level of challenge they need, not treat everyone the same. Is the change based on evidence that AI students are not doing well or is it ma mainly to make programs the same across schools? How will the district make sure high achieving students are
158still challenged? >> Ma'am, I have to pause you there. Thank you very much for your comment. Feel free to send us any further uh anything else you'd like to send us. >> Thank you. >> Hi. Uh good evening, president, superintendent, and board members. Uh my name is Jack. I'm a Bridgewater Raritan parent. I'm here with a simple request. Uh adopt a clear written policy that allows Bridgewater students to register for AP exams based on readiness even if they are not enrolled in the AP course. I'm not asking to lower any standards or invite more work. The AP exams themselves are the standards. If a student isn't ready, the score can show it. And if students is ready enough through uh self-study or tutoring uh the exam is exactly what they need to prove it. Additionally,
159the college board um allows students to take the AP exam um even without taking the AP classes. So it is uh it's not this is not an entitlement uh decision but a local access decision. So if the kids can are allowed to even sit in the exam that would be great. Um I also want to ask the district to restore the earlier spirit of option two to help students meet prerequisites and free up time for deeper learning. This doesn't inflate GPA but does provide some uh flexibility for the advanced students. Right now um the families are hearing uh if you want to take the AP exam you must follow our way. you must take the course here and you must to say say to the ex them as we directed that sounds rigor but the
160student it also discouraged initiative um so here is a simple manageable policy I'm proposing so hopefully that we can adopt it so one uh any uh any bridgewater students may register for an AP exam even if it's not enrolled in the course and secondly the exam readiness can be verified by the teacher recommendations or prerequisite grades um or practice exam benchmarks. So in that way we can evaluate if a students is ready for AP exam or not. And thirdly to protect >> sir sorry I'm going have to pause you there. I hope that you'll send us the rest of that information though. I appreciate you coming out tonight. >> Okay. All right. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Good evening. My name is Artish Sha and I'm a Bridgewater resident. My daughter is in second
161grade AI. My daughter participated in SGI in kindergarten and first grade. SGI is once a week pullout program for one period with end of the year presentation on one single topic. A weekly pullout uh program combined with the cluster group is simply not comparable to a full day AI class where gifted students learn alongside like-minded peers every single day. The administration justifies eliminating AI by stating that more than twothirds of students in six ecourses did not participate in the AI program. This is an incorrect basis to cancel a flagship program. Can you please share what time frame and the number of students which were considered for this calculation? Over the past couple of years, the identification criteria for AI programs have been made so stringent that barely 20 plus students get into this program each
162year. Of course, that appears as a small fraction of the overall e program. The district cannot restrict entry into a program and then use its small size as justification for eliminating it. We should be looking at overall performance of the AI students in the ecourses and not the input capacity. The system works when it allows students to enter at different stages. It is not the destination, the journey, the experience that matters. AI students are selected for cognitive ability, not just academics. When they learn together, they elevate each other in ways that benefit the entire district. Uh, I'll use my last 30 seconds to ask for a show of hands. If anybody has to go on a Saturday to appear for a Kogat exam, >> Ma'am, I just have to ask that you address your comments
163toward toward the board. You're welcome to put anything out there, but no, it's okay. >> Thank you for the opportunity. I'm done. >> Thank you, ma'am. I'm Lauren Lamaro Richton, the Bridgewater parent of a fourth grade AI student. I want to drill down on what specific changes will be made to classrooms after AI's discontinuation and receive an explanation as to why 5e ALA is also being terminated. When I heard AI was being administratively discontinued, I was struck by the lack of detail as to how the district will fulfill its educational and ethical obligations to students it is sumearily evicting from AI. I'd like to focus on language arts. I'm aware of the argument that students are already being held to grade level milestones. That being said, this is all ELA classwork my child completed this
164year for fifth grade labels. Includes reading and grammar worksheets and all the class spelling words. What will be done to minimize classwork duplication for former AI students? Will the district use some of its cost savings for higher level books and educational material for all classrooms? Or will the responsibility of generating lesson plans for extra clusters with no new resources fall on overburdened teachers? This is a recipe for regression and boredom. The district has been reticent about explaining the discrepancy between ending 5e ELA and continuing 5e math next year. I would hate to suggest that the district is unfairly prioritizing math, but in the absence of meaningful explanation, while grad attending a graduate seminar at Ruckers, I've consistently heard concern from parent professors about collegebound students abilities to read critically, write precisively, and research. Considering the
165rise of artificial intelligence, is reducing ELA instruction truly in our students interests? I'd like to encourage everyone to reconsider the ending of the 5E Ela. Thank you. >> Thank you for your comments tonight. >> Good evening members. Uh my name is Emma. I'm a parent of a second grade AI child. Thank you for your dedication. And I know it takes a lot of uh work to be there and listening to us and also having that dialogue. I can appreciate the gravity of the budget constraint. I should know I work in corporate. This is what I do day in day out and I have to make hard decisions and offsets. However, I this is not corporate. We don't have shareholders. We have communities. We have families. We have children. And I can't help but see that
166our children seem to be steamrolled and you know essentially when you remove AI and the challenges of AI these children will withdraw uh they will give up and they'll be demotivated and I really want to point you to a study in Yukon or John Hopkins. I'm going to send that in the email. Now having said that, my child most likely not a unique situation with all the other children here came home bored. Bored as in bored to tears like why do I have to go to school? And I had to sit with him and do third grade math, third grade English when he was in first grade. He qualified for SGI and cluster groups. He excels at art and coloring. He's great at it now. You know, I can't help but say that. And he
167finally and now that we he was an AI, he finally found a place he belonged and unfortunately he will be left to an arbitrary seeming program to differentiate his instructions. I'd urge you to reconsider. Last note, Benzolei center according to Google machine says one of the most effective intervention for gifted students is acceleration which is AI rest. Thank you. Thank you very much for your comments. >> Good evening board. My name is Doug McKenzie. I'm proud parent of two AI kids. Aaliyah here be possibly the last beneficiary of the AI program. Unfortunately, um the AI cohorts provide something that cannot be easily replicated in a subject specific cluster group. a consistent, appropriately paced learning environment across the entire day. Students who are ready to move faster or think more deeply don't just need that in
168one subject. They need that in how they approach learning overall. When when that consistency is missing, they spend large portions of their day waiting, repeating, or disengaging. Cohorts provide true peer alignment. This is not about labeling or separating. It's about connection. When students are surrounded by others who think, question, and learn at a similar level, something powerful happens. They collaborate more. They challenge each other. And importantly, they feel understood. For many advocate learners, this is the first time they feel they fit academically and socially at the same time. Academically independent cohorts allow for depth, not just acceleration. This means more crit critical thinking, more creativity, and more inter interdisciplinary work skills that are increasingly important in today's real world. Cluster grouping, while helpful, often depends heavily on the ability to differentiate within a mixed classroom,
169which can limit how far students can truly go. Finally, this is about engagement and long-term outcomes. While subject specific clustering has its place, especially for students with strengths in one area, but for those who are advanced across multiple domains, academically independent cohorts provide a level of alignment, challenge, and community that is difficult to replicate. I urge you to continue with this program, not as an exclusive pathway, but as a necessary option within a system that aims to meet all students where they are. >> Thank you very much for your comments, sir. >> THANK YOU. GOOD EVENING. MY NAME is um I'm here because my son won it and he made posters, Google slide decks to advocate for AI program to continue and um but when he comes here he's um too shy to speak. So
170I'm speaking on his behalf and uh my son Zou is currently in second grade AI and has been identified for and participated in SGI in first grade at his home school. Well, he hasn't complained about um the SGI program. Um that program doesn't seem to help him stay engaged in school given its nature. But his second his first grade teacher has shared that he often appears um bored and distracted and tends to already understand the material being taught. So we've heard similar feedback from other parents. The academically independent program is not really not a dead and track and it provides students like my son and his peers with the daily challenge and engagement they need to stay focused and motivated in school. So three years of uh engaged learning is impactful especially when they're young
171and in comparison SGI which means only once a week cannot offer the same level of consistent support and my son feels he has finally found a group where he belongs and truly engaged in learning and he feels sad to lose his friends and relearn everything back again in in his home school. Thank you. Uh Eugene Terry at Bridgewwater. Good evening. I'm a Bridgewwater taxpayer as well as a resident and parent of two two children currently in the academically independent program. I hear three reasons tonight. Budget, equity, and enrollment. And I want to address them each briefly. budget. I understand the pressure, but cutting from the classroom should always be the last resort, not the first. Over half my property taxes fund the school system. I expect those dollars to serve every type of learner, including
172advanced ones. Equity. Gifted education is equity. These students have different learning needs, too. Eliminating a program doesn't create fairness. It just shifts who gets left behind. Enrollment. Small doesn't mean unworthy. Many specialized programs serve small populations. That's the point. I moved to Bridgewater specifically for this program. Believe it or not, my children earned their place in it. I'm not here to fight the future. If the program ends ends, I guess I'll I'll have to accept it. But abrupt elimination harm students who are midjourney learning a grade ahead and now asked to simply adjust overnight. My ask is simple. If we can't keep the AIA program, at least consider grandfathering the current students through it. Let them finish what they started. That's not a policy reversal. It's basic fairness. These kids deserve everything right. Honor that.
173>> Thank you very much for your comment, sir. Nancy Lim Bridgewwater. Um, my comment is directed at Dr. Jones regarding the right that is regarding the 57% in your statement. It concerns me that we're framing our students for the responsibility of the shortcoming. The first thing we should ask is what we're doing as adults to support them. Okay? So that would be my comment and to sit at a board this actually concerns a citizen like myself and the community that frame framing statements like this is impacting our decision at the board. >> Oh it wasn't that was just the data. I wasn't >> that's strictly my comment and I'm allowed to do >> ma'am ma'am I'm gonna ask I'm gonna ask that you address the entire board but >> thank you. >> All right enough
174people saying about AI and that would be my comment for tonight. Thank you. Thank you for coming. >> I didn't want to step on. >> Hi, I am Mahalakmi Langovan. Um, I am the Bridgewater resident, parent of G1 who is in second grade AI Hamilton. So, good evening. Um, I'm here to talk about my kid who is already in the AI program. So this AI program is a tangible program for uh it is a goal for mo most of the students who is in uh their home school right like my other younger one is in the kindergarten and I have um I know many of the parents who has kid who is in kindergarten and first graders they they see the AI programs like um they um they they see the path to the AI
175program through my kid and the other kids who are in the AI program already. So when you eliminate this program, you aren't just cutting the budget. You're sending a message to every kid in this district that exceeding expectations has no reward that and that excellence especially before high school doesn't matter. So for the kids who are ready for advanced work, being placed in a consolidated environment without a specialized AI curriculum can feel like hitting a ceiling. So these students need to be pushed to to stay engaged. Removing the AI pathway at risk leaving high achieving students under stimulated which often leads to disengagement or a loss of interest in subjects they once loved. So I have to almost console my child every day. Every day when he comes home he's asking me mommy am I
176going back to the home school? Am I going to study the same syllabus? Um am I not going to see my kid friends again? I'm not able to console him these days. It's it's really sad to see them. They asked me to say, "Mr. Beers, please save AI." He literally asked me to save this. Please say save AI. Thank you. >> Thank you for your comment, MA'AM. >> HI, my name is Jing Lee. Uh Jing Lee. I'm um My name is Jing Lee. My family live in Bridgewater uh 23 years already. My two children attended AI programs and completed many AP class in high school. they both in um they're in college and under graduates and my I have three question here today. So at the February 21st meeting BOE meeting I was here I
177spoke and I mentioned the AI students and top five GPA high school graduates are students are highly correlated because at least for my son's grade top five top five percent students 80% of them are related to AI they are AI alumni so I sent email to Mr. PP and ask of more historical data report. Uh I mean just to find report. I have yet to receive the report and then I've been told someone will answer me. Um I'm still waiting. I'm just question who should we contact or should I contact you again for getting the report back because no one answer me back yet. So that's my first question. Second one said did uh my question is I was shocked the last meeting that AI was cut and then from the next year. So my
178question is did BOE full board members are vote to cart AI uh did it happen the full meeting and if it happened and then which day and then what's what is the voting record can we say that so third question is recent years our bill uh our um district are pushing or expanding the SGI programs uh my kids never enjoyed the SGI program but they were both in AI. My question is that is there any data support SGI is better than AI or is there any sideby-side comparation and then can we see the report? Thank you. >> Thank you for your comment this evening. >> Sir, is that all the same thing or is that one set of >> I'm uh it's for all the for all the members. You guys are going to get
179the same thing. I can email it to you as well. Good evening. My name is Indriit Banga. Uh like everyone like all the parents here, I'm a parent of second grade AI. I was also here on March 3rd. Before I begin, I want to acknowledge something sincerely. This board and the administration are navigating really difficult budget constraints. Uh the 2% cap is real and the pressures are real and I have no doubt that no one in this room has made this decision lightly or is thinking about this decision lightly. We recognize it and we respect it, but we're here because we believe in something and a better way through this. And we would rather be partners than finding uh it to be opponents and recognize across the table. My son is in the AI program.
180Before AI, he was an SGI. He went to school, he came home, he was fine. He was not challenged. He was not excited. He was not being met where he is. his first grade in AI uh everything changed. He came home engaged, curious, excited to learn. That's not a small thing and especially in second grade. All we're asking is that our children are met where they are, not where the budget needs them to be, where they actually are. Superintendent Beers, you stated that enrichment is mandated, but by law, acceleration is not. I want to respectfully respond using the very research that you cited. Renuli and Ray wrote directly that enrichment is not well supported as as acceleration and that acceleration produces strong long-term benefits. Enrichment is valuable. We support it. But for every for children
181who are ready for more enrichment alone is not enough. You've suggested that because AI students reach the same outcome that the journey doesn't add distinct value but the journey matters. What is built inside a child during grades second to to fourth? The love of learning, the intellectual confidence, the identity of a student who is generally challenged and that does not show up in a placement chart. It shows up in life. >> I am respectfully asking this board >> I'm going to have to pause you there. >> Yeah, I'm I'm I'm done. I am respectfully asking this board explore every alternative before April 28th. Grants, parent supported transportation, restructured delivery. >> Thank you very much, sir. If you have any further meet our children where they are. Thank you. >> Send it along to us. Thank
182you. >> Hi, I'm uh Raj Chimluri. I've been a resident of Bridgewater paying taxes for the last 22 years and this is the first time I have I'm forced to come here. I respect uh everything that people have said about how difficult it is to manage budget. As a CEO of a company that is global in four continents, I know how difficult it is to manage budgets. But I do not find data basically corroborating some of the claims that are made like there is a dead end. No, it's not. What the student gets in the 2, three, four in the program is something that they carry forward from fifth, sixth and all the way to 10th. And uh I would like to see some data. I asked for these things. I sent an email already.
183I don't want to waste everybody's time. But I want to see data substantiating that the number of students that are actually in the top 5% somebody just quoted 80% are AI students. So that speaks for itself as to the efficacy of the AA program. Now with respect to the budget, I'm I'll be happy like if there is a parent support needed for transportation because uh abolishing a program that is working well for transportation is sounds silly to me but definitely I understand the budget pressures and you're all you know obviously obligated to manage your budget but uh happy to contribute in any way that we can. Thank you so much. I I request everybody because I know it's very difficult decision for all of you and as uh Mr. Indra said we are not opponents
184we are here to see what is the best for our children I have two daughters one in AI another in SDI they are not apples and to apples that's all I want to say thank you >> thank you for your comment SIR there any further public comment this evening sir all right just just out of curiosity how many more people are planning is there anyone else planning on speaking okay sir you two minutes. Thank you. >> You're just after the hour, but we'll we'll grandfather you. >> No, I'll be patient. My name is Pavan. Thanks for the opportunity and lot of excellent points are already made by from third graders to like excellent maybe PhD holders. Please take the request is simple to all the board members as you're telling like I'm requesting all the
185board members take a pause see what is it like because if the reason is like the first slide the program would have entered in five to six years right so you would see that okay it's not helping you are going into sixth grade with all the e E things so take a pause like a couple of them suggested phase it see what you can look into the budget aspects. Um if it is there are two to three classrooms happening AI can you distribute in two different schools like we are trying to over complicate trying to address this uh structure of um AI curriculum or like AI selection can we say on the budget of the consultants what you are paying I'm not sure how much like just that is the request take a pause phase
186it Take a pause for one year, check it out. What can be done best? All excellent points. People are um very thankful to the board, thankful for the school district and are very proud to be the part of the community. Let's be in that mode. Thank you. >> Thank you very much, sir. Any further comment this evening? Right. That I'm going to end the section of You're good, sir. Going to end the section of public comment. >> It's 9:48. It's going to move us into like a 34 minute break and we'll come back at 9 9:52 953. So, everyone stay up and stretch for a minute and we'll be back to continue on with the agenda. Thank you everyone for coming tonight. All right, everyone. We're going to reconvene in just a moment. We are
187still in open session, so everyone's welcome to take their seats. If you have any uh conversations you'd like to continue, you're more than welcome to do it out outside in the hallway or in the uh auditorium. Okay. All right. Nah, I'm good. There we go. We got the 30 second warning. >> Okay. So, long, ma'am. Thank you. All right. We're going to go back into the agenda. We're going to go backwards. Thank you once again to uh everyone from the P the public who came out to talk on uh well, a couple different subjects. Yes, especially our students who came out. I know a lot of them have left, but uh everyone spoke very very well in a challenging I know when I was the first aboard member at at the table, I was like
188I don't want to say anything. So for a student especially in elementary school to come up and do it in public is uh is is a big achievement and I give them a lot of um props for that. Thank you Dr. Jones for that point. All right. Uh so we are going backwards to section 8 committee reports starting with the academic committee. Mr. Johi, >> our next meeting will be uh April 20th. >> Okay, awesome. Thank you. Uh Mr. Singer with finance, facilities, and transportation committee. >> The committee met on February 18th at I'm sorry, did I print out the wrong one? Yes, I did. Give me one second, please. Do you want us to uh do you want us to go to a head to to another committee or >> that would be lovely.
189>> All right. So uh Mr. Walker, are you good to to to pinch it or move up the order? >> I got I got March 10th. >> All right. Personnel committee Mr. Walker. >> Thank you. Thank Thank you Mr. President. Um we had a meeting virtually on March 10th at 5:30 p.m. and attends is Mr. Dr. Fonder, myself, Miss Usana, Mr. Lee, and Mr. Pepe. The first item we discussed was the draft personal addendum for this evening. We discussed the the committee discussed the personal addendum items. Dr. Fonda reviewed specific se sections of the addendum and answered some questions. The recommendations the committee supported the actions taken. Are there any questions? Great. Um we Dr. Fonder talked to us about the job fairs update. Um Dr. Fonder discussed sharing the information of the district's recruitment
190efforts and attends different jobs fairs. Did you go to TCJ? Have you been there already? Were you going there or is that this week? >> Yes, the TCJ job fair was very successful. That was Wednesday, March 11th, the day after the meeting. But then this week, there's another job fair, the NJ Stride job fair. >> He's out there waving the BR flag, find the best and brightest for us, you know. So that's fantastic. So there's no action taking as you see. He's been they're doing a great job filling and find the best >> and and and with some help, too. You said you have some company from your your department on that. >> That's right. >> Oh, yeah. So the human resources has a great department. We don't give them, we don't usually get a
191chance to talk about them, so I'll give them a shout out. But so, uh, we have a great human resources department and at the TCJ job fair. Nancy Bonia was there with me and then Nancy and Sonia Williams are and Michelle Munley are going to be there with me for the NJ Stride job fair. So, >> thanks for everyone else for going out and about. >> Did you fill that extra interview spot? >> The interview >> the extra extra interview spot. You had one. Did you fill it? >> Oh, yes. Okay, good. >> There you go. >> He he he left one open just in case for that perfect candidate. Um some of the other matters we discussed some conf confidential personal issues and discuss the next month's inperson meeting >> and we adjourned at
1926:29 and our next meeting is April 21st at 5:30 p.m. at the Wade building. Are there any questions? >> I have a question. Uh, I know we talked a lot about job fairs and this is a great way to hire talent, but you know, did the committee also talk about some other different talent acquisition strategies and what are I guess some of the other talent acquisition strategies you guys use to find the right teachers, the right personnel? >> We look at the different places that our jobs are posted. The idea would be that you'd want the job posting to be in the place where the potential candidate was looking. you know, like like all those advertisements that you might see on TV or in the radio or online about, you know, like the different companies.
193I'm not going to give them a plug, but the ones that are the big names and that. Um, so we use the the um the format that we think will attract the right candidate. We had talked about NJ School jobs is a great site that is for New Jersey educators specifically. So, when we're hiring education jobs, that's a a place where we do postings. If we're posting a job that isn't necessarily only in the education sector like a a technician or a secretary or something that there would be people looking that who aren't necessarily educators by trade. Um we sometimes use Indeed and and district website. So our recruitment efforts kind of involve lots of different things. We do go out to places where we look are looking to meet educators. So the job fairs
194we attend are typically ones where we're looking for teachers because that's the majority of who we employ. Got it. Thank you. Any else, Mr. Walker? Or you have a few more? Uh, >> I think that's it. >> Thank you very much. >> Thanks, Mike. >> Uh, all right, >> Mr. Singer. All set. >> Yes. Thank you. >> Apologize for that. >> We met on uh Thursday, March 12th at 5:30, a special Thursday meeting. In attendance was myself, Mr. Maloney, Mr. Pepe, Mr. Lumsky, and Mr. Beers. Up first was the business agenda review. The business administrator reviewed the draft business action items for tonight's meeting with special attention to the purchase sections which will award the middle school clock and speakers referendum project change orders to provide additional tire work for the Adamfill toilet renovations and
195approval of the 2627 tentative budget. The consensus was to approve the action items. Are there any questions? We then moved on to the tentative budget. The business administrator shared with the committee the 2627 tentative budget which was presented tonight. Slight changes were discussed after the release of state aid which resulted in an additional $288,000 and a reduction in charter school tuition expenses of 23,580. This reduced the initial budget gap down to 1575 157,821 which will be covered by utilizing the allowable tax levy adjustment for healthcare costs. The end result is what we saw today, a tax levy increase of 3.04% and $2.7 million remaining in bank cap. The consensus was to support the 2627 budget. As we already discussed budget, I'll move on to the next item. Other matters. The business administrator shared a listing
196of the six, seven, and 8,000 series policies to be reviewed as part of board goals. Also discussed were concerns with the hillside gym floor, which is showing signs of depths. The committee decided to review the 6100 series policies ahead of the next FFT committee meeting and to discuss any concerns or questions regarding those policies. At the next FFP meeting, the business administrator along with buildings and grounds will assess the conditions of the hillside gym floor. We adjourned at 6:35 p.m. and our next meeting is returning to Wednesday. It will be April 22nd at 5:30 p.m. >> I have a question. >> Um, and you mentioned talking briefly about the budget and we won't I won't go into depths about the budget, but you mentioned that the consensus was to approve the budget. Was there any
197opposition or concerns raised about the budget during committee meeting? >> There was an extensive discussion of the budget during the committee meeting. There were no uh opponents to the budget. >> There were no opponents. All right, no problem. Thank you. >> Um I have a question I should have asked earlier, but you said that u this is for Kevin. Um the assessments are done various times a year. So this was from last year. Um how would that change just for the information purposes when assessments do change uh mid year? Um well the data snapshot that was in the slide um compared to last year Bridgewwaterers ratables or assessments s rose more than raridens. So that in turn will put more of the tax burden on Bridgewater. um from for the tax levy. >> But would
198that change mid year or no? Because once this >> it could. Yes. So as um actually no, I'm sorry. That won't change until next year because the portionment of the taxes is given to us by the state based on that snapshot. So um I know Ryarden's going to be going through a reassessment. >> Yeah. I'm not sure when that's going to be how long of a process that is. So depending when that's completed, it may or may not be um reflected in the new, you know, the 27 28 budget >> and then that falls into the equalization side, right? >> Correct. >> Because usually Ritin is was under assessed by the actual value and Bridgewater was floated between 90 and 100 usually, right? >> We were in the closer range. So that impacts that that
199number too. Correct. >> Yes. >> Yeah. No good questions. Anything else? I'm sorry. >> You're done. All right. There we go. >> Mike, can I go backwards? I forgot part of my report. This one section I just noticed. I apologize. >> That's okay. >> If you don't mind. >> Not at all. Back to personnel. >> Back to personnel. So, we had one of the we discussed the nonbargain bargaining unit staff discussion. Dr. Fonder shared the information with the committee about the roles of non-bargaining unit, non-affiliated staff members just forformational purposes. So, we're educated in those areas and we there were no recommendations at the time. Any questions? >> I just wanted to Sorry. Thank you. >> Yeah, no problem. My my comment would be it's interesting to see the kind of the layered >> Yeah.
200>> kind of structure we have. Some people are in bargaining units but have tenures. Some are outside of it and don't. So, it's >> it's a very interesting. It's a good discussion to have personal department that takes care because they they do a good job of tracking everything. I'm impressed. >> Right. Anything else for personnel before we move on? Right. Thank you all. Um community relations with Miss Lock. Uh the community relations committee met yesterday, March 16th at 5:00 pm. Uh in attendance was myself, Mr. Beers, and Mr. Singer along with several administrators in the district and Miss Crest, who is the president of BRA. Up for discussion were the two school board, I'm sorry, up for discussion were the two school calendars for the 2026 2027, sorry, 2027 2028 school year. Uh it's it's
201not on the agenda, but the calendars are available for the board to review. I believe that you can find the link to those in the community relations agenda um and minutes. Uh the majority of the committee were in favor of option A, which the the shortest version of explanation is that it basically starts after Labor Day versus before Labor Day. And and for clarity, the m majority of the people that met were representatives of the school district, teachers and um and administrators. So, you know, we relied heavily on their input and it was a very effective meeting. So, thank thank you for arranging that, Mr. Pierce. Um uh as a walk-in, a board member raised concerns about conduct during meetings. The committee discussed, you know, the the bold strategy of just trying to make it
202work and continuing to stay committed to conducting business the best that we can and to keep meetings productive, focused, and moving forward. And we adjourned around 6 pm. I don't have another date on the calendar. >> Questions? >> Mr. Lee, >> thank you. Um I know we went through the calendar uh the last last time it included a lot of the major holidays. Does the current budget that oh not budget does the current calendar we have I guess or we're discussing which seems to be option A does that include all the major holidays that were covered >> I guess this year in this year's calendar? >> Yes. Got it. Um and then and that's all my questions. Thank you. >> Thank you, Miss Locker. Anything further? >> That was it. You had asked for questions.
203I keep forgetting that. >> So, looking at the calendar, two different calendars when it came recommendation. You know that a lot of the nine the regional high schools districts they start I think Mr. B should say everyone's back at August 15th. They start school then, right? Like Northton where your kids are at as an option. Did you guys does anything was that how was that sh I just don't know if that came up because sometimes high school districts because majority of the high schools are you know probably half the high schools are back for August 15th between all the clubs and sports going on and know if that came up in the conversation. >> It it did come up and um probably the biggest reason why we're looking at the calendars the way we are
204as as far into the fall season as we are is is because of the number of holidays that we've added to the calendar. um which I off the top of my head probably couldn't list but we we were all here for them. So there was quite a few. >> Just want to clarify you're not suggesting a separate calendar for high school versus lower school. >> I didn't suggest it. Did you just suggest it? >> No. >> I didn't mention that. >> Steve suggested I didn't >> I know one topic that came up the meeting before that was with some of the building projects we have going on at even I know that's the year ahead but it can't hurt to have a little extra wiggle room. Although this is not the calendar for next year,
205but >> you are correct though two years at least while the referendum is going on starting after Labor Day >> is always advantageous for what we're trying to do as a district. >> Some some whole buildings are closed down for the summer. >> That's it. >> In some especially the AC projects >> and we know that some of these project as Miss Crest will tell us they come right down to the bitter end and uh we want to make sure that um that we have that wiggle room so to speak. And since you brought it up, it did it did come up that we'll uh have AC at that point in time and that going into the summer months a little later, we will have cooler buildings. >> Correct. >> Great. Are there any liaison
206or delegate reports? Mr. Singer? >> Uh so this is a county school board's uh liaison update. Uh on March 2nd, they had their unsung heroes event uh which was as always um uh enlightening and uh inspiring. Uh we did have uh a a representative from the high school there. Um I don't want to go into too many details to keep their uh privacy. Um but needless to say um someone who uh has overcome great um uh adversities in their life and uh seems to be someone who is uh well loved in the school. Uh in attendance was myself, Mr. Maloney, uh Mr. Walker, Mr. Pepe, and Mr. Sunna. Um and it was as always a lovely event. We thank the school board uh Somerset County School Boards Association for holding it. Our next meeting is
207to my knowledge May 8th. >> And that's the that's the final meeting of the year, right? The regular recognitions and celebrations. final meeting and I think we'll have to appoint uh a vote for a new board then. Yeah, >> I think you'll be voting for two board two or three members. I think it's a two-year term for the president, but there's there's two un three unfilled two unfilled positions. >> Thank you. >> Any other liaison? >> I have two um and they're both for the ed foundation. So, the Ed Foundation Club at the high school, the first one, um, established this year, they're holding, the kids are holding a volleyball tournament fundraiser. >> Oh, wow. >> Slash. Um, it is on April 10th, Friday. Um, so they've done um a tremendous job going out gathering
208donations and gift cards and all kinds of things. Um, planning and all of that is going on. So, please, they have seven teams. I think they're looking for anywhere from 10 to 12 and they're all kids uh kid teams. So, that's one. And then the the Ed Foundation is holding uh their annual third annual golf outing on Thursday, July 9th at Fox Hollow and it's a big event. Um it's a showcase event and last year, how many people did we have? We have over 200 >> golfers. It was and there's dinner um and again all the proceeds go to um various grants for the teachers in our schools. So write those down. Thank you. One thing from the Burough of Radan, the recreation department is hosting an Easter egg hunt on Saturday, March 21st with
209a rain date the very next day. It's at Freeling Heisen Park. Um, and uh, it promises tons of candy and prizes, pictures with the Easter Bunny, snacks and hot chocolate and talk and chalk drawing. And I know one thing about Raritan when they promise lots of candy and prizes with the people running it, there will be, I'm sure, lots of candy and prizes. Uh, so that that's on the March 21st. Um so this this weekend at 12:00 and there will be uh for different age groups including a uh at 12:00 opportunity for children with with uh special needs to uh have their own Easter egg hunt um in a way that to have their own Easter egg hunt. So that from the bureau of any further liaison or delegate reports >> on March 10th Mr.
210Singer and I attended the CSA meeting here at the building. >> Sorry. Um, Mr. Beers gave an overview of the new gifted and talented program to kind of get that out to all the PTOs to help disseminate the information. And we also learned about some upcoming events, main one that just happened this past Saturday, which was the NFL pros at the high school. And also, it was great to see all the combined fundraising between all the schools and the distribution of checks that went to all the PTOs for that fun. >> I think it was I think so. >> 65 each PTO that is a member of the CSA and pays their dues $6500 >> and their CSA summer camps are coming up too. They talk about that. That's it coming up too. That's coming
211soon. >> Fast and Furious. That's where a lot of the fundraising comes from. >> Right. Anything further? Right. That's the end of committee reports. Thank you everyone. Uh and that brings us to No, not open to the public again. Approval of minutes. We have uh section e section X of the X. Oh my goodness. Section 10 of the agenda approval of minutes. Uh Mr. Lumpsky, before we have a motion um for the February 24th meeting, there's a separate listing for close session. On the agenda I have, it says three board retreat. Does that encompass the Do we need to clarify that that encompasses the close session minutes from the retreat? Should we add a four on there? >> Yeah, we should. >> Okay. Do we need a motion for that or can we do that
212before we >> There should be a motion to add it. >> Okay. >> And then and then vote on it. >> All right. So, can I ask for a motion on the approval of minutes with the addition of section 4, the March 5th board retreat minutes from close session? There are, I believe, two sets of minute. >> So moved. >> Motion. >> Second. Motion a second. Or is that sufficient? Mr. Lumpky, >> we should vote on that. vote on the addition of the >> adding it to the agenda and then the vote. >> Okay. So, this is a vote to Was that your motion to add it to the agenda? Okay. This is a vote not to approve the minutes but just to add them on. >> Parliamentary inquiry. Parliamentary inquiry. >> Yes. >> Uh
213can you restate the question before the board? >> Sure. I may have misstated one point. Um, so this is a motion to add uh under section 10 approval of minutes a number four uh March 5th board retreat close session minutes and there are two sets of those that were provided in the folder. >> Perfect. Thank you. >> No problem. Any further questions or discussion? Right. To add the to add that section, Mr. Lansky, please call the role. >> Do a voice. >> I already asked for the roll call. So that's >> Mr. State. Miss Lan, >> yes. >> Dr. Lee. >> I wasn't there. >> Mr. Lee, >> yes. >> Mr. Maloney, >> yes. >> Mr. Joan, >> yes. >> Mr. Walker, >> yes. >> Mr. Sunna, >> yes. >> Mr. Pepe, >> yes. The
214motion carries. All right. Uh, approval of minutes. Do I have a motion for numbers 1 through four, which has just been added? >> So moved. >> Motion. Is there a second? >> Second. >> Okay. Any discussion on the minutes or corrections? Mr. Lee, thanks for catching a few things, especially as one of them touched on my decision. I was a decision I made at one point I was a little confused on at first, but you were 100% right. So, thank you for making that clarification and looking at it. Um, any further discussion, right, Mr. Lomsky, please call the role to approve the minutes. >> Mr. Singer, I'm going to recuse myself on the March 5th minutes, both of them, and yes on February 24th. >> Miss Lan, >> yes. >> Dr. Yes to February 21st.
215Recuse from uh abstain from March 5th. >> Mr. Lee. >> Yes. >> Mr. Maloney. >> Yes. >> Mr. Jooshi. >> Abstain on both of the February 24th. Yes. To March 5th. >> Mr. Walker. >> Yes. >> Mr. Sunna. >> Yes. >> Mr. Pepe. >> Yes. The motion carries. Right. >> Just one moment. All right, that brings us to personnel through personnel 2627. Do I have a motion for the personnel agenda? >> Second. >> Motion and a second. Any discussion on the personnel agenda? Right. Mr. Lmsky, can you please call the role? >> Mr. Singer, >> yes. >> Miss Lan, >> yes. >> Dr. Lee. >> Yes. >> Mr. Maloney. >> Yes. >> Mr. Joshi. >> Yes. >> Mr. Walker. >> Yes. >> Mr. Sunna. >> Yes. >> Point of >> Wait, Mr. Lee. >> Yes.
216>> Mr. Pepe. >> I'll abstain. >> Motion carries. >> Yes. >> Right. We are up to curriculum 2643 through 2645. Do I have a motion? >> So move. >> Motion and a second. Is there any discussion? Seeing none, Mr. LSKY, can you please call the role? >> Mr. Sanger, >> recused on curriculum 2643. Yes. On the other two. >> Miss Lan, >> yes. >> Dr. Lee, >> yes. >> Mr. Lee, >> yes. >> Mr. Maloney, >> yes. >> Mr. Jooshi, >> yes. >> Mr. Walker, >> yes. >> Mrs. Sunna, >> yes. >> Mr. Pepe, >> yes. The motion carries. We are up to business 26101 through 2611. Do I see a motion? >> Motion. Is there a second? >> Did second. Motion in a second. Any discussion on the business section of the agenda? >>
217I have some discussion. >> Mr. Lee. Thank you, Mr. President. I first just want to take the time to thank our residents, our students, the parents, and the public for speaking tonight and making your voices heard. Having grown up here in Bridgewater and walk these halls uh kindergarten through graduation, I owe my foundation to this district, and I care really deeply about the future of our schools, which is exactly why I cannot sit by and watch us dismantle the programs that make our district exceptional. Tonight I am speaking out against the tenative budget before us and I urge my colleagues. >> Okay, there's a point of order. Mr. Lee, please pause for a second. Mr. Sununa has a point of order. >> I don't believe this has to do with the section. >> Mr. Le,
218are you commenting on one of the are you? >> I am speaking about the tenative budget. >> Tenative budget can right. >> Go ahead. Tonight, I am speaking out against a tentative budget before us, and I urge my colleagues to join me in voting no for two fundamental common sense reasons. This budget actively harms our highest achieving students, and it fundamentally mismanages taxpayer dollars. My greatest concern is a deliberate defunding of our AI program. We are stripping away gifted and talented enrichment and acceleration opportunities from kindergarten through fifth grade. And why? to chase ideological trends like the warmth of collectivism and equity rather than focusing on individual academic excellence. This isn't a step forward for our students or families. It's a tragic step backwards. Furthermore, the public is being handed a misleading statistic. We're told
219that the AA program cost $512,000, but that number lumps in baseline teacher and transportation costs. It is not the marginal cost of providing our gifted students with the accelerated education they deserve. The elimination of the AA program will not reduce taxation or the budget appropriations by $512,000 unless we decide to entirely abandon the educational needs of our gifted and talented programs. And is the board majority prepared to nickel and dime taxpayers by cutting busing for AI students, cutting teachers in our classrooms, and unsustainably increasing class sizes in the pursuit of funding misplaced priorities. The reality is that our AI program delivers one of the highest returns on investment in our district, driving long-term student success well after they graduate, which is why we should be funding this program. Some have argued that because twothirds of
220the sixth grade math and ELA students didn't start in the AI program, this program is somehow failing. And I look at that same statistic and I see an incredible success story. It proves that our general education students are working hard and growing and earning their way into advanced classes in our gifted and talented programs. It proves that our universal screening efforts are working, finding talented kids from every background and challenging them to reach their full potential. When a program successfully expands opportunity and rewards hard work, common sense dictates that we expand and invest in it. We don't kill it. This budget also represents a fundamental breach of trust with our gifted and talented families. During the 2024 candidates night, families were explicitly assured by the current academic committee leader that our advanced elementary classes, the
221AI program, were a protected priority. The exact quote provided to voters was a promise to continue to advocate for these as long as I'm on the board. Yet today, the recommendation is a complete retreat from that very public commitment. Voting to defund these programs tonight doesn't just eliminate opportunities for our students. It directly contradicts the mandate those families voted for. We cannot ask the public to trust this budget when the line items incited breaks the promises that put board leadership in their seats. But this isn't just about bad policy. It's about broken promises. Uh and while we are breaking these promises uh and supposedly so strapped for cash that we must cut core academics like our AI program, this budget is packed with bloated, questionable spending. We're handing $17,000 to a consultant for records management
222while we already spent $4 million on secretarial staff. We're outsourcing custodial management for $32.4,000 despite already having a buildings and grounds team. We're spending $48,000 on phone licenses, $10,000 on administrative cell phones without even considering a cost-saving bring your own device policy. And it gets worse. $25,000 on new weight room equipment after budgeting $27,000 last year, $16,000 for Porter John's, $15,000 for lanyards, $9,500 for piano tuning for a handful of pianos, $7,000 for piano accompanments. instead of simply asking the community and student volunteers. $4,700 for cheerleading choreography when we already pay our coaches. And finally, we're spending $4,000 on pet therapy. I think it's kind of absurd that we're putting pet therapy ahead of supporting the academic growth of our gifted and talented students. And when you look at these misplaced priorities, the defunding of
223our gifted and talented program is nothing short of an insult to our families. All of this happening while taxes continue to skyrocket, pushing hardworking families to the absolute financial brink. And I cannot in good conscious look our taxpayers in the eye and support an unaffordable budget that slashes core academic excellence to fund administrative bloat and pet therapy. And I recognize the importance of approving a budget and funding our schools, but this budget is a nonstarter. Our students deserve better. Our taxpayers deserve better. and I urge my fellow board members to stand with our community and vote no on the senative budget and ask for a budget that fully funds student instructional programs. Thank you. >> Any further discussion? >> Yeah. Uh I just want to add that uh the same budget is the budget that
224you enjoyed when you were walking around the hallways. So if you went back and looked at the past budget, you would find the same exact line items. So you just said that you enjoyed walking around in the in these hallways and you enjoyed the education. Guess what? All of those line items were present at that time. Secondly, the AI program is not going away. Okay? And the presentation showed today. So if you were following along, you know, instead of inciting um you know hysteria with this, if you had listened, the administration explained the benefits of this and in fact Mr. Beer said that uh this program is similar to some of the highest performing high schools school districts in the state. This is a similar program that they're proposing and it's integrating it's the the
225acceleration of the program is being integrated into the new program. So please listen to what the administration is saying. And lastly, why would why would any one of us sitting here drive this boat into an iceberg when this is our crown jew jewel of the municipality? Our school districts are our asset. Why would any one of us do something to to the detriment of the entire community? Please ask yourself that question before you know, creating this hysteria. You get you give great speeches. Hold on. I'm not done. You gave great speeches. I I love it. >> They're going to go to someone else if they have a comment after Mr. >> So, you know, I'd like to know like what, you know, AI program you're using because they're great, but please, you know, use some
226reality in there. Thank you. >> Uh, yeah. So, first I I want to comment that when the budget came up last year to fund AI, I believe the same board members voted no. So, so that was one point that I wanted to make. Also, all of the things that you mentioned from athletics to music to therapy dogs for kids with special needs affects a large number of students in our district. And I I just I can't understand how like you even made that speech, let alone didn't recognize how offensive it was. I know we're I'm supposed to address you. Um but what I I heard a lot of negative commentary around SGI, so I just I wanted to comment on it because I have two daughters who were both identified the very first year that
227universal testing went out. And it was I was completely shocked because I'm not exactly what you would call the highest performing math student. And here I found out that I produced two children who somehow were identified as very smart in math. Um, and it's been tremendously successful for them. And the fact that they were they were identified not because I sought that academic opportunity for them, but because the district had the foresight to know that there are students out there whose needs weren't being met is is kind of remarkable. And I just I I want to commend Miss Jones and her team for rolling this out when they did so that more students could have access to this advanced education. And I'm I'm pleased to also add to that that my oldest daughter is now
228in 5e going into sixe and my youngest will be going into 5e next year. Something like that. I'm close. Um so as a parent I just want to thank you for the work and effort that your team does. I'm done. >> I just make a a a comment to like the individual line items. I know every year my business administrator in my district sends us the bunch of cataloges and an online platform to go and shop for things for your classroom that you might need. And I'm shopping generally in the low end of the catalog. You know, paper clips and paper and um you know, maybe maybe a poster if I'm really splurging, but I'm surprised at how expensive that stuff could be. I don't know if Mr. if you agree with me. But when
229you start to flip those, every once in a while I'll flip the calendar the the catalog to some of the more specific areas, athletic equipment, like furniture, those costs get pretty high pretty quick. So buying a couple of things the catalogs we're shopping from and the which is the you the place we have to go to shop some of those may be a little bit misleading when you consider the size of our district and the cost of individual individual items. That's my thought on that. >> Any further discussion? I'm going to Mr. Excuse me. I I I got the meeting. I was saying the same thing just as you were right. I got it. I'm doing my best. I'm doing my best. Jeremy, I have to leave. I have early morning. All right. Thank you
230very much, Mr. Josh. Have a >> AJ. Have a good evening. >> Right. Is is there any further discussion on the business agenda? >> I do. >> Okay, Mr. Lee. >> Thank you. Uh AJ, well, Mr. President, I'd like the record to reflect that AJ Johi, as a matter of fact, said AA is not AI is not going away. It is literally ending. So that's a misleading and at most untruthful statement. Uh and honestly the real reason you guys are doing this is for equity. Your your whole idea of you know the the warmth of collectivism and this constant focus on you know these these misplaced priorities. I would just like to say I would just like to say this. My vote against this budget isn't about just AI. It's about making sure that we
231are investing in the programs that our students need. And I do support expanding opportunities for AA students and I think SGI is a step forward in that. But SJA and these cluster math groupings and all these other math groupings are simply not an adequate replacement and I don't think that's where we should be uh dedicating all of our gifted and talented spend towards. Um, and as I mentioned, uh, you know, people have asked me just listen, listen, listen. Uh, unlike the rest of this board majority, I don't just blindly trust what people tell me. I ask questions. I just want to make sure that's heard. >> I would like to make a comment. I haven't >> Look, there there is a there's a motion on the floor to move the question. >> Point of order.
232Debate. >> Point of order. Sorry, let me just make sure I'm understanding what's going on. Then I'll entertain your point of order. Um, move the previous question. I don't believe there is debate on that. But before we we we uh we vote, Mr. Lee, uh, could I ask your point of order? >> Yes. Point of order. Under Robert's rule section 49 col21 governing small boards, members are permitted to speak an unlimited number of times and motions to close debate are not in order and should not be entertained. >> Okay. >> Yeah, that is exact that's what to the previous question does. >> Okay. >> Yeah, actually it is because the parliamentary authority established by bylaws is as a matter of fact Robert's rules of order. So, we voted on this before. It hasn't been raised
233before. I will >> I need I need a ruling on my point of order. >> Ruling is going to be that I'm going to overrule that. This is this is something that we've um >> done many times. Uh >> like silence people. All right. >> But now you're interrupting me, Mr. Lee. >> So, to be honest with you, I disrespectful >> to to be >> uh I'm going to wait a second. >> Sorry. I'm going my classroom here. I'm going to vote against the motion because I think it's the budget. It's important and I think we need some uh more time to discuss it. But there was a motion to call the question or to move the previous question. I'll interpret that as the same thing. That's a twothirds majority. Correct. Mr. Lumpsky. >> All
234right. Mr. Lumsky, can you please call the role? >> Mr. Singer. >> No. Miss Lan call. No >> Dr. Lee. >> No. >> Mr. Lee? >> No. >> Mr. Maloney? >> No. >> Mr. Walker? >> Yes. >> Mr. Sunna? >> Yes. >> Mr. Pepe? >> No. Right. Motion fails. Dr. Lee, I believe you had a question or a comment. >> Thank you very much. Thank you very much for the whole board to allow this discussion about budget to continue. It is really important question. I feel like this board really is having this responsibility uh on behalf of Bridgewater to make sure budget is properly deliberated and discussed. Thank you for the board who voted to not end the discussion right here. >> What was your comment? >> My comment about this. >> Excellent. My my
235comment about this business section is geared towards uh item number uh 26110 the tenative budget. I have a particular comment regarding the gifted and talented program that many of our community member have come here to speak about. They have uh spoke with their kids here. They have told us how it has benefited their the students experience, how it has benefited their families, how it has served a purpose to really bring equity to all families so that their kids can be met at where they are. And I understand many concerns were brought up such as you know the criteria in the past uh required u family to voluntarily sign up. But I would like to say that change to the criteria does not mean to eliminate the program. And we actually have changed the criteria while
236AI program is in place. And we also um should um look at and listen to the families who have poured their heart out to advocate to make sure that their successors the future kids can have opportunities they had enjoyed themselves and to to also uh speak for my own experience. I am a a AI parent and my kids have attended SGI as well and I can say that from my personal experience it's not the same more program more options are great diver learning styles needs diver diverse diverse learning styles needs diverse programming and AI serves a particular purpose it has been beneficial let's not try to get rid of it and uh for all um related to this. We should keep our programs. We should offer more instead of less and we should eliminate limits
237instead of imposing them. We should enable our kids empower them so that they can achieve their highest potential. So for that reason uh although I would like to learn more about the budget, I have to say that I did take a short break uh from engaging and asking my questions. But for that particular reason today, for this tentative budget, I intend to vote no. Thank you. Right. Any further comments on the budget section of the I'm sorry, the business section of the agenda? Right. Seeing none, Mr. Lomsky, can you please call the role on business 26101. Again, this is for the entire business section of the agenda 26101 through 2611. Oh, and uh thank you, Miss Cissuna. Um, thank you very much to uh our our donors uh anonymous donor to the BRTV program and
238uh the Hamilton School PTO and the Van Holton School PTO for not just the donations but the I'm sure the work the considerable work that goes into getting those funds. Mr. Lumpsky, please call the role. >> Mr. Singer, >> yes. >> Miss Lockan, >> yes. >> Dr. Lee, >> no to 2610. Yes to the rest. >> Mr. Lee, >> no on 2610. Yes. On the rest, >> Mr. Maloney. >> Yes, >> Mr. Walker. >> I recuse on business 2611. Yes. To the others. >> 2611. >> Mr. Sunna. >> Yes. >> Mr. Pepe. >> Yes. The motion carries. Right. We are up to special services through 2628. Is there a motion? >> So move. >> Second. >> Motion and a second. Is there any discussion? Seeing none, Mr. Lomsky, can you please call the role? >>
239Mr. Singer, >> yes. >> Miss Lockan, >> yes. >> Dr. Lee, >> yes. >> Mr. Lee, >> yes. >> Mr. Maloney, >> yes. >> Mr. Walker, >> yes. >> Mr. Sunna, >> yes. >> Mr. Pepe, >> yes. >> Motion carries. >> Oh, thank you. Sorry. All right, that brings us to other 2617 and 2618. Is there a motion? >> Motion and a second. Any discussion would need to be held in close session. There any discussion? Okay, seeing none, Mr. Lomsky, please call the role on other. >> Mr. Sanger, >> yes. Miss Lan, >> uh, yes to 2617. Abstain from 2618. >> Dr. Lee, >> yes. >> Mr. Lee, >> yes. >> Mr. Mr. Maloney, >> yes. >> Mr. Walker, >> yes. >> Mr. Sunna, >> yes. >> Mr. Pepe, >> yes. Motion carries. All right,
240we're up to policy. Uh, just for the board. As a reminder, we started um again, not a great example because there's not a whole lot of policy on here, but we're going to take them one committee at a time. Uh, just to keep the discussion a little bit more focused and any, you know, anything that stems from that. So, do I have a motion for policy 2619, which is the academic committee policies and regulations? >> So, moved. >> Motion. >> Second. Motion in a second. Any discussion on the academic policies? >> Discussion. >> Mr. Lee. >> Thank you. Uh, I would just like to say as it relates to this amendment. This amendment fails to align us with what many other school districts offer without the arbitrary and unsubstantiated artificial limits imposed by this policy
241on international student enrollment. Many on this board insist that we follow straws estimate recommendations exactly and I believe that should be the case and I don't know why we're deviating from that. Uh the proposals laid out in committee deviate actually quite substantially from stra's estimate recommendations and in my opinion are not backed by logic. They're not backed by facts and they devious deviate us away from the practices of other districts who unlike this board understand the value that international students can bring to the learning environments of our children and boosting student outcomes and global perspectives. Students uh according to a study by the journal of international students found that interaction with international peers actually had a positive effect across almost every uh academic outcome variable. uh and exchange programs are a win for student outcomes.
242I also want to add that the limit of three students imposed is entirely redundant since the board can decide whether to accept more students or less or not even at all actually under this policy. And this allows us to determine if in re reality we can have five or 10 or even one or two. And this limit therefore adds unnecessary language to the policy when the straws estimate recommendations emphasize that this number is dependent on whether or not the administration and board decides to accept more or less students which is entirely up to the board to decide. And I ask this board to join me in voting against these uh arbitrary limits uh and to come back to committee and to uh consider the standardized policy provided by strame. Thank you. Any further discussion on
243the academic policy and regulation? Seeing none, Mr. Lomsky, can you please call the role on policy 2619? >> Mr. Singer? >> Yes. >> Miss Locker? >> Yes. >> Dr. Lee? >> Yes. >> Mr. Lee? >> No. >> Mr. Maloney? >> Yes. >> Mr. Walker? >> Yes. >> Mr. Sunna? >> Yes. >> Mr. Pepe? >> Yes. The motion carries. Right. All right, we're up to policy 2620, which is approval of personnel committee policy. There is one policy up. Uh, do I have a motion? >> So moved. >> Motion. >> Second. >> Motion and a second. Is there any discussion? >> I have an amendment, >> Mr. Lee. >> Thank you. Uh, I move to amend policy resolution 2620 with the language provided the the motion language provided in the email sent to the board at 4:19
244PM. the motion to amend policy resolution 2620. >> Mr. Lee, can you forward that to me? I'm a member of the board. >> You're not a voting member of the board. >> I'm a member of the board and as the district leader, I I should common come courtesy, I believe, or procedure. >> Well, let me let me voice out my motion as well. >> You said that to me. >> Well, I'm I'm going to say I'm going to say it right now. I move to amend the second reading of the revision of policy 0142.1 to add in the following. >> I said it to you and Dr. Fonder. We do like >> Excuse me. I have a motion. >> Yeah. No, no, we're we're doing logistics because you're trying to change the policy in the
245districts. We want to make sure everyone has what you're talking about and that could potentially get >> adopted if the board if the board voted for it. So, I apologize for talk for talking over you, but next time say to everyone, you won't have that. >> May I state my motion? >> Oh my god. >> I'm I'm sorry. Can you say that one more? >> May I state my motion? >> You I'm sorry. >> May I state my motion? >> Go ahead and make your motion. I thought I thought you had already, but go ahead and restate it for the record. >> I move to amend the second reading of the revision of policy 0142.1 to add in the following. No employee will be placed in any position or building where direct or indirect administrative
246or supervisory authority can be exercised by relative or by any other person residing in the same household. For it is not feasible to eliminate such a direct or indirect supervisory relationship, appropriate screens and/or alternative supervision and reporting mechanisms must be put in place. A supervisor or administrator who becomes a relative of a person who reports to the supervisor or administrator shall disclose the new relationship to the superintendent. And to remove the following language, the district may employ a relative of a board member or the superintendent provided the district has obtained approval from the executive county superintendent. Such approval shall be granted only upon demonstration by the district that it conducted a thorough search for candidates and the proposed candidate is the only qualified and available person for the position. Second >> has a motion and
247a second. Does everyone was everyone able to see Mr. Lee's motion? >> Thank you. >> Okay. No problem. Is there any discussion on the motion? >> Have discussion. >> Mr. Lee, go ahead. >> Thank you. I'd like to point out that relative to the nepotism policy that was discussed in the personnel committee and reviewed in the personnel committee, there were several key and substantial changes in the policy that were made without discussion during the personnel committee or without notice to the personnel committee or to the board and most concerningly to the public in the official red line that was introduced for first reading. These changes were not brought up or discussed at any point and nor did the first reading red line of this policy show that key provisions of this policy would be removed
248which I believe is a blatant attempt at putting in things with zero transparency which this board is about to vote for. One of these clauses prevents a staff member from supervising relatives. A pretty common common sense measure to prevent favoritism and nepotism in our district. Another clause requires administrators to disclose new family relationships to employees that report to them. Another pretty common sense measure to ensure nepotism does not get swept under the rug. Relative to the original policy we have, the closed dooror committee, with the exception of myself, also chose to take advantage of a l loophole to allow the hiring of relatives with approval from the county superintendent with no specifics on what a specific appropriate hiring process looks like. This is a dangerous loophole that represents a Pandora's box to nepotism in our
249district. And these policy changes set a dangerous precedent for our district that I refuse to support. Thank you. Any further discussion, >> Mr. Singer? >> Dr. Fonder, are these policy changes what was recommended by stress res? >> Yes. And I I don't know what Mr. Lee is talking about in terms of the policy not being the one that was discussed by the personnel committee because that's what was discussed by the personnel committee and you said a lot of the same things at the personnel committee meeting that you said here. So, how could you have said them if it wasn't the thing that you're disagreeing with. Just kind of point of logic there there. Um, so I I'm not really sure what that point is about. The other point is that the stress estimate changes are
250because this policy is guided by law and so it's the the law changes. The part here about the county superintendent, the law says that you can't hire a relative of the superintendent or the board. The only exception would be if you go to the county superintendent and say there's no one else who can do this job and you meet all the other requirements. Then the sup county executive county superintendent has the opportunity to approve or deny that. Um a board of education could strip themselves of that ability to do that. >> That's what I'm advocating for. >> I'm sorry. Please let Dr. fun. That's >> that had to be in the the policy that you're saying you never saw before. I don't like when you say that the personnel committee didn't have the policy that
251then the board voted on. I don't understand how you could say that you said this already, but you never saw it. Those two things seem in congruous with each other. So, it's late at night, but I'm I'm still trying to be sharp. So, I think I'm not I'm not sure where you're where you're going with that. Um, I understand your point and I, as I said in the committee meeting when we discussed this, that is something the board could do. If I took this to Doug Sylvestro or to Strauss Esme and I said, can you strip away your ability to do what the law says you could do, they would say, yes, you don't change the law when you do that, but you could have in your policy that doesn't say that. And so, yes,
252that is something the board could do if the board wanted to. >> And that's what this would ask a question actually myself. Um, I haven't spoken yet on this. Dr. Fonder, I don't know if can you speak just very briefly? If it's a long answer, feel free to get back to me later. What happens if currently or under this? What happens if there's a relationship that comes up after someone's hired, someone gets married or someone joins the board and they have a or becomes a superintendent or administrator? >> Right. >> Is that like we wouldn't have to dismiss that person right away? I I I take it. No, it's disclosed and the the uh I mean the the law says that you have to this is the direct indirect supervision that you're not having the
253person who has the family relation directly supervising the person. Yeah. >> Thank you. >> It's not something that comes up often but we would address the situation if we did. >> Further discussion on the amendment. >> Sure. Yeah. That wasn't actually done before, so that's all right. It's not your fault. Um, I just want to follow up on what Dr. Fer said, and I know that I get into uh too much legal ease according to uh some people, but this does directly quote from the New Jersey Administrative Code 6A colon 23A-6.2, which as Dr. Fonder said, the the language specifically states that you need approval from the Executive County Superintendent. This is not language that Strauss is making up or that we're making up. This is directly from the legislative code which was passed effective
254November 4th of 2024. >> Mr. Lumsky, can you please call the role on the amendment? >> Mr. Singer, >> no. >> Miss Ler, >> no. >> Dr. Lee, >> yes. >> Mr. Lee, >> yes. >> Mr. Maloney, >> no. >> Mr. Walker, >> no. >> Mrs. Sunna, >> no. Mr. Peppa. No, the motion does not pass. Right. Which brings us back to policy 2620. Uh the main motion. Is there any further discussion? >> Seeing none, Mr. LSK, can you please call the role? >> Mr. Singer? >> Yes. Miss L? >> Yes. >> Dr. Lee? >> No. >> Mr. Lee? >> No. >> Mr. Maloney? >> Yes. >> Mr. Walker? >> Yes. >> Mr. Sunna? >> Yes. >> Mr. Pepe? >> Yes. Motion carries. Right, we're up to item 12, old business. Is there any old
255business? >> I have old business. >> Mr. Lee, just please wait to be recognized. That just everyone the chance to get in first. I do see that you would like to speak. >> Mr. Lee, >> thank you. I would like to move to amend policy 2464 with the new 2464 gifted and talented students and honors and advanced placement pathways uh policy amendment that I have emailed to the board today. Thank you. >> What was that email? >> I'm going to forward that to >> Oh, so I didn't get a copy of that item. I am a member of this board. You're a non- voting member of this board. >> I have a point of order. >> Okay, hold on. So, there is a motion on the table. Can it wait till >> second? >> Motion
256in a second. >> Okay, hold on. We had a point of order first. So, let me handle that and then we'll move on. >> This is >> this was brought up at our last meeting and we voted to move it to committee and we do have it on the committee meeting agenda next month. Um, so I think this is a preliminary discussion or vote to be having >> already. So hold on one one thing at a time or we get lost. So that was a point of order. >> Okay, that's noted. I don't think that that's although the way our board works um that would be the right process to follow. There is a motion on the table. I think the whole board could take action if it wanted to. I I would advise against
257it because it is in the committee. >> I thought we did that already though. >> I I I think we did too, but we're still meeting as a whole board. So I don't think I'm going to just quash I don't think I have the ability to quash that >> to comment on it. >> I'm sorry. >> Yes. So this is a different this is an objection >> obj. >> Yeah your microphone Mr. >> Reason I'm making the objection to the making of this motion which is a non debatable automat doesn't need a second is because it's supposed to go to committee. Let's discuss in committee because that's the procedure this board has been using and it's been successful before we debate it out here and have the syllable queasing everything going on. >> Let's have
258a conversation in committee. >> Point of order. Point of order. Point of order. >> I'm sorry. Let Mr. Walker. >> The objection to the consideration question is correct. Not a not is a non-debatable question, but you're not allowed to explain why you're making that motion. You make the motion and then we vote on it. There's a roll call. There's no second. It's a two-th3 vote. So, Mr. Mr. Walker is out of line for speaking about this motion. >> You made your point. We're we're doing our best here, Mr. Lee. So, thank you for your uh expertise on that. I will look into it. >> Am I allowed to comment on it? >> No, you're not allowed to comment on it. >> Excuse me, Mr. Lee. You're not running the meeting, >> right? These are substantial
259changes. So, let me just let's just clarify. >> You might want to talk, >> Mr. Walker. Could you please restate your motion just so it's clear or your objection? >> Okay. So, I've interpreted that as objection to the consideration of the question. For the record, Robert's rules might say we've always had a second for things like that. So, I'm gonna ask for a second for that motion. >> There is a second, and that requires a twothirds majority to pass before we vote. No, let's let's call let's call the role on that. Uh, this is a motion to object to the consideration of the question, which is Mr. Lee's email. Uh, what Mr. Lee sent to us. Are we all clear on that? >> Okay. Mr. Lounsky, please call the role. >> Mr. Singer, >> yes.
260>> Miss Locker, >> yes. Dr. Lee, >> no. >> Mr. Lee, >> no. >> Mr. Maloney, >> yes. >> Mr. Walker, >> yes. >> Mr. Sunna, >> yes. >> Mr. Pepe, >> yes. So, that motion passes. So, we will not be considering Mr. Lee's uh motion at this time. Although I'm uh it is so Mr. Josh, should you agree it is and Dr. Jones that is on the academic um agenda for our next meeting. Uh there's some interesting points. I look forward to the the the discussion and hearing what the administration and the board has to say. Is there any further old business at this time? Seeing none, we are on to new business. Is there any new business, >> Mr. Beers? >> Just as far as an update to this proposal. I did send
261something to the entire board of education for your perusal just on the reasons why we do what we do. So, I I I at least think it's worth taking a look at. That'll go into our decision making. >> Point of order. >> No. No. Mr. Beers has the floor. It's new business. >> And it is new business because it's the document that I shared with with the board of education, >> but it's related to the motion. >> Mr. Lee, Mr. Beers has the floor. And as far as new business, I don't know what the board could do about it, but I think it would be beneficial if a specific board me member, namely Mr. Lee could share all the documents with the entire board and stop playing his childish game of trying to ice me
262out of getting information that he plans to bring up and waste everyone's time with at public meeting. Last time I checked, I am the person who runs this district and I think what's going on is incredibly rude, disrespectful, etc. But look, I expect nothing less. So, I'm going to ask you, Mr. Lee, can you please stop acting like a child? And when you share something with the board, you share it with me as well because although I am a non- voting member, I am a member. Thank you. >> Mr. Beers, we have >> Is there I'm sorry, I've not recognized anyone yet. >> Received it yet. Does anyone have any new business? >> I would like to be >> I just wanted to comment that we did not receive it yet. I don't know if
263it's held up on the server. >> Are you talking about the document Mr. Beers referred to? It might be in the board. It's in the board brief, I believe. Oh, >> so it might be embedded in the No, I understand what you're saying. You might have to I'm sorry. I misunderstood. Okay. >> Anything else on >> Thank you. I appreciate that. >> I would like to be recognized. I have some new business. >> Mr. I just want to say that I think it's disingenuous to characterize acting like a child as asking questions, actually focusing on what this board can do to advocate for the students. I mean, tonight we heard from so many students >> about this is not business. >> Are you you're silencing me? >> I I >> All right. You're silencing me.
264You're silencing me. Okay. >> What are you bringing up? >> Okay. All right. So, that's we're discussing things generally. All right. There's no more new business. The chair will look with favor on a motion to adjurnn. >> So moved. >> Motion and a second. All those in favor say I. >> Anyone opposed. Right. We are adjourned. Our next meeting is right back here on April 28th to 2026, 7 o'clock as of now. Have a good evening everyone. Happy St. Patrick's Day. >> All right. >> Thanks for coming out.