001Good evening. Welcome to the May 11th, 2026 Hillsboro Township Board of Education. In accordance with the state sunshine law of New Jersey, adequate notice of this meeting of the Hillsboro Township Board of Education was provided on January 6, 2026 to the Hillsboro Beacon and the Courier News. Mr. Eert, would you please call the role? Mr. Aaron France >> here. Miss Jackson >> here. >> Miss Craig >> here. >> Miss Lenny Beer >> here. >> Mr. Marino >> here. Miss Nurse. >> Miss Stats. Mr. Trillo >> here. >> And Mr. Davis >> here. We need a motion to move to executive session. So whereas the open public meetings act chapter 231 of the laws of provides that a public body may exclude the public from the portion of a meeting of which the public body discusses
002certain matters for which confidentiality is required as permitted in section 7B of the act resolved by the board of education the township of Hillsboro and the county of Somerset in the state of New Jersey as follows. The matters to be discussed are negotiation updates with the Hillsboro Principles and Supervisors Association. The matter discussed in executive session shall be disclosed to the public when the need for confidentiality no longer exists. Do I have a motion? >> So moved. >> Second. >> All in favor? I. >> So we'll see you later. Baby N. Baby, baby. girl. Hey Heat up here. shoulder. Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey. Heat. Heat. N. Yes. I feel feel hey baby. Natasha. Heat. Heat. Hey, hey, hey. Hey, baby. Non- Heat. Heat. Noob baby. Do baby. Purchase.
003Nat. Hey. Hey. D Hey, hey, hey, hey. down. Hey Heat up here. Heat. Heat. N. Baby, baby, baby, baby, baby, baby, baby, baby, baby, baby, baby. Heat. Heat. N. Hey, baby. Nat. Hey. Hey. shoulder. on hey feel Hey. Hey. Hey. Hey. N baby baby. Baby, hey baby. Hey, hey, hey. Heat. Heat. me. Number n. Heat. Heat. Nat. Heat. Baby, hey. Baby, hey. Heat. Heat. shoulder shoulders shoulder. over. Nat. Hey. Hey. Heat. Heat. Heat. Hey, Heat. Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey. Hey everybody. Heat. Hey, Heat. N hey. Hey Heat. Heat. N. Heat. Heat. D hey. What do you think? Heat. Heat. Hey, hey, hey, hey. Heat. Heat. N. Hey, hey. Heat. Heat. Heat. Hey, Heat. Hey, hey, hey. Nat. N. Data money. Everything. Hey, hey, hey, hey. Heat.
004Heat. Hey baby, hey baby. Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey. Heat. Heat. down. Heat. Heat. N. Hey, hey, hey. Hey, hey, hey. shoulder. Baby, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey. Heat. Heat. Heat. Hey, Heat. Heat. Hey, Heat. Heat. Hey, Heat. Heat. Heat. N. Heat. Heat. N. Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey. Heat. Hey, Heat. Baby, hey. Noo. Baby. Baby d beat. Everybody Heat. Heat. bird. Hey Good evening. >> Welcome to the May 11, 2026 Hillsboro Township Board of Education. Uh we have returned from executive session. Mr. Eert, would you please call the role? >> Mr. Eric CR >> here. >> Miss Jackson >> here. >> Miss Craig >> here. >> Miss Lanning beater >> here. >> Mr. Mariny >> here. >> Miss Nurse >>
005here. >> Miss Stats. >> Mr. Rio >> here. >> And Mr. Davis >> here. Please rise for the pledge of allegiance. >> United States of America and to the for it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all >> a correspondence as noted on the agenda. And tonight we have uh a special meeting in recognition of staff student academic and extracurricular achievements. Our first recognition this evening is a truly historic one. I would like to invite our state champion United I'm sorry unified robotics team to please come forward. Mr. Marina. This This was the very first year for this team and to say they exceeded expectations would be an understatement. They soared past them to a state championship. This team is advised by staff members Anjanna Ayer and Kathy Zavaki. Mr.
006Marini will now present you with your certificates. Once you receive your certificate, Miss Ayar or Miss Zivaki, we would love for you to speak about the team's journey. If any of our student leaders would like to say a few words as well, the floor is yours. >> Good evening. I'm Jay. I am the CEO of Team 75, the Robberators, our uh our robotics team. And this year, we're really proud of something called Unified Robotics. And we're really glad to bring it to this district. We think the learning potential for unified robotics, not just for neurodeiverse students, but also neurotypical students, is a great amount. And this program, uh, we hope to continue expanding it, as well as we're making efforts currently to expand it to other districts in the Somerset area. So, we're looking forward
007to a really bright future for the program, and it wouldn't be possible without our faculty adviserss, Miss Ay, Missaki. So, thank you for your generous time and you've given us Would anyone else like to speak? Yes. Thank you. U so it's been it's been a total pleasure to watch the um our robotic students uh work along with our team. Uh we we have a splendid team. We have Quincy, Jenny, Ragav, um Jackson, uh Erin. They've all worked really hard and these students not only built the robots. Some of these students also helped them code. So there was block coding. So these students were also helping our students block code. So an inclusion, a true inclusion in you know in in in the vision right there in Hillsboro. Um so thank you. Thank you for all
008the support uh all the chaperones gave us. So it's it's a team effort. I think we all made it possible together. Thank you so much. Thank you all for representing Hillsboro so well. Congratulations again. You may be seated. Next, we would like to recognize several of our outstanding staff members. We will begin with Hillsboro High School. With the following individuals, please come forward. Beth Berliner, recipient of the 202526 teachers who make magic award. Luis Duralamo, I'm sorry, Louise, recipient of the Smart Mayor VFW National Citizenship Education Award. And Cole Hobbs, recipient of the MSTA Maitelland P. Simmons New Teacher Award. You will receive your certificates from Mr. Marini. And if any of you would like to share a few words, we invite you to do so. >> Would either Would either of you like to
009say a couple words? You can use the podium if you'd like to say anything. >> Hi, my name is Louis D. Geralo and I'm very proud to be a resident of Hillsboro and um I'm very proud to be a also a James Madison Fellowship um fellow for uh New Jersey 2026. uh next summer they are sending me to Washington DC to learn from constitutional and legal uh scholars on the constitution and I'll be having uh meetings with sup uh justices on the Supreme Court through the James Madison Fellowship program. They just released an article today on the Hillsboro patch. Please take a look. Um and I'm very excited to not only be representing the state of New Jersey but also Hillsboro. So go Raiders. >> Thank you Lewis. from Autton Road Intermediate School. I would
010like to invite Mary Beth Hughes to the front. Mary Beth, she's coming. >> Mary Beth is being honored by the New Jersey Department of Energy Exemplary Education Award. They're coming. Chris Car's coming. I'll turn the floor over to her principal, Chris Carrie, to say a few words. >> Thank you. Good evening. As we strive for and embrace excellence at Auton Road Intermediate School, it's always a proud moment when the state of New Jersey recognizes what we already know to be true. We have exceptional talent in our classrooms. And in this case, I'm honored to speak on behalf of Miss Mary Beth Hughes, grade six science teacher. In early December, we were thrilled to find out that Mary Beth earned the 2025 New Jersey Exemplary Educator Award. Mary Beth was selected through a competitive process which
011honors outstanding educators in New Jersey schools. This award recognizes secondary professionals who number one demonstrate an exceptional positive impact on students, colleagues, and the school community. Two, possesses a clear vision for quality teaching and learning. and three exhibit exceptional teaching and leadership abilities. Mary Beth is not just a teacher, she is a cornerstone of Hill of the Hillsboro School District. Since joining in 1997, she has dedicated nearly three decades to our students. And in the classroom, Mary Beth embodies a hands-on, minds on philosophy where she doesn't just teach facts. She fosters a culture where her students feel empowered to ask why and how. Beyond the classroom, her commitment to our school culture has been distinguished. Mary Beth is involved in numerous school committees uh including our school improvement panel and she generously shares her time
012as adviser of our STEM club, yearbook club, and year pictures club. Mirabth's influence also extends beyond the classroom door. She's a leader in the professional development area, frequently representing Hillsbor in events such as tomorrow's classroom today conference. In fact, earlier this year, Mary Beth and our district science supervisor, Lisa Keel, who is also here tonight to honor Mary Beth's recognition, were invited to uh by Fritz University to present their research experiences at the New Jersey Science Convention. In closing, I just wanted to reiterate how extremely proud we are of Mary Beth as she truly represents the very best at Off-Road and Hillsboro. This recognition as the 2025 exemplary educator is a testament to her lifelong commitment to teaching and to her students. On behalf of the entire art community, we are honored to have her
013on our team and we are thrilled to see her receive this welldeserved state recognition. Thank you. >> Dr. Carrie, would you please remain at the podium for a moment? We actually have a surprise for you this evening. Aha. We are thrilled to celebrate you this evening as a published author. Congratulations on this incredible personal achievement. Would you like to tell us a little bit about your book? Kind of like a jacket cover. Uh >> yeah, sure. Absolutely. It actually started when I first became principal at Offroad and I wanted to contribute something to the staff in a very meaningful way about just keeping the love of teaching, encouragement, inspiration. And so it became a once a day, maybe once a week thing. And then I kind of got overwhelmed by the job a little bit
014like we all do and things had to get pushed to the side. Um, and then after the pandemic, I put I continue to write a little bit more. So it's essentially it's um it's a collection of a hundred entries about teaching, encouragement. Uh they're quick reads and uh it's available on Amazon if you're >> Thank you. We're going to move on to student teams. We have an incredible array of talent to celebrate in the fields of STEM and academic competition. Please come forward as your team is called. Science Olympiad team led by advisor Nim Dang. They took first place at regionals, third at the Yale Invitational, and fourth in the state. Mr. Marini, do you have a certificate? >> Um, Mr. Dang, would you like to say anything or would anyone like to have anything
015to say from our science Olympiad team? >> There we go. >> Okay. Hi. So, my name is Cynthia. Um I'm honored to be one of the presidents for um HHS Science Olympiad um for the 2025 2026 season. Um we've had a great season so far. Actually winning so far. The season's over. Um but yeah, we've had a great season. So first place at regionals, fourth place um at stage, which is a great result. Um I'm so proud of all of our team members. Everyone's worked so hard from September all the way through March. Um our final meeting is going to be in June. Um, and I'll sad be sad to leave this club behind, but um, I know that it'll be even better next year. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> And also our robotics
016team 75 and 428 led by John Ascu and Tom Fidic. Would you please come up? They are being recognized for their sustainability award and achieving Alliance captain status. Would anyone like to say something? >> Hi again. I'm Jay again. Um the CEO of Team 75428. This year we had a a tremendous season building on the growth of our season last year. Uh continuing our success. We've actually won an award at every single competition we attended. And this year we became our district championship uh finalist in partnership with Villa Walsh Academy and other districts uh other schools around New Jersey including we've won the team sustainability award at our one of our district champ uh competitions as well as we were a lions captain at the Montgomery district event qualifying us for the Lehigh Championship. We've
017also committed over 6,000 hours of outreach and community service. So robotics is more than just building robots. It's really about building community around and we're really happy to continue serving just not just Hillsboro but the world and partnering with other FC teams across >> Thank you. We also want to honor our Hillsboro High School debate team advised Thank you. uh advised by Lewis Geralamo, uh Bed Bob Fster, Chris Riy. This year the team won best delegation at Rucker Model UN, best small delegation at London Youth Model UN, and best delegation at Rutgers Model Congress. >> Good evening and thank you for having us. Uh this was an incredibly successful uh season for uh for our students. Uh before you you have just a representative sample of our mostly our officers. Uh they were they competed
018on four conferences during during the school year. Something that is not the type of thing that we can do if we can replicate on school grounds with the same students over and over again. Uh most of our students most of our student officers here are juniors. they could not actually attend the Ruters model congress because it coincided with the junior prom. Uh so they had to settle for London where again they were we were the only Americans representing or we were only Americans at the conference and one thing that I can say uh consistently since 1995 uh how long I've been students on conferences when other adviserss ask what school are you from when I say Hillsboro they're impressed immediately. uh the the demeanor and behavior and performance of our students is unparalleled. Um Aditi,
019would you like to real quick our here's our our club president. >> So hello everyone. My name is Aditi. I am the president of model UN model congress. First I want to thank our adviserss for being able to take us on trips like this. I want to thank our officers, old members and new members alike for being able to compete in events like this and stay strong and be able to uh get awards like this. Um, I also want to say that traveling to London was such an unforgettable experience. Uh, particularly meeting new people and viewing model UN from an entirely new lens. And that's something that I know that we'll never forget. And, uh, I want to again thank you all, uh, for listening to this and understand that we all had a great
020year and I hope for many more years like this to come. >> Thank you. Next, we're going to recognize the Hillsboro Middle School Battle of the Books, the Ring Wraiths, led by Mrs. Tasha Gatu Barrera and Miss Jennifer Ler. The Ring Wraiths took first place in their regional competition. A comment, please. >> So, Six HMS Battle of Books teams actually competed in the Hunton County competition at Readington Middle School. We don't have school yet. Our schools went headtohead in some tough competition from Readington to exper um and all six of our teams performed exceptionally well, proving that our school still loves to read. We are thrilled to announce that our very own scene of the Ring Race took first place and I think that will be a first Asian tree. Mrs. Mrs. and Miss Lasser,
021our advisor uh wanted to congratulate all of our competitors for their hard work and represent HMS so well. We are so proud of them. Go Junior Raiders. Let's give all these teams a round of applause, please. My name is one of the five members of the grades. I just want to say in our HMS existence thanks as well. They they they put the time and effort to remind me to read my books. They just care for me a lot especially through this competition. And I would also like to thank thank my team. It wouldn't have been possible without a lot and I mean a lot extremely well. So I'd like to thank them as well. Any other comments? >> My name is Nash and like the people said it wonder if possible together because the
022thing is we each didn't read all the books. We only we split up the amount of books we read for each of us. So we we definitely had to rely on each other a lot and just very we >> Thank you. Thank you very much. Our performing arts program continue to set a standard for excellence. The Legacy Show Choir led by Ashley Matthews. They were named grand champions in their division and took home awards for best vocals, choreography, and entertainment value with a gold rating. We also have New Jersey Allstate Chorus. Selection to this group is highly competitive. Please join me in congratulating Ana Ajit, Si Dami, Karen Du, Yash Godboli and Pranav Yanamandra. The Hillsboro High School Wind Ensemble received the gold rating and high honors this year. Advisor Nick Clipperton and his students
023are currently in rehearsal and not able to join us tonight, but let's send them our congratulations along with these students that are here with us now. Thank you. If anyone would like to uh make a comment or say a few words, please step forward. >> Hi everyone. Thank you so much. My name is Anushka. I'm show captain for show choir this year. And behind me are some of my co- captains, Lily, Lilia, Scott, and Zach. And we're all very grateful for the opportunity to be co- captains together this year. Thank you for the opportunity to travel and to meet new people and and to go to new places. Um, and one of the competitions that we went to this year was Tantasa Showquire Spectacular, which is where Legacy won our first ever grand champion. So,
024we were we were lucky enough to be able to win this in our third year of the program. And we're also the first ever curricular show choir in New Jersey. So, we are very proud of that. And our spring concert is on Wednesday at 7 o'clock and we'd love to see you all there. So, thank you. Anyone else? Thank you very much. Please be seated. We now turn to individual student achievements. These students have distinguished themselves in academics, leadership, and the arts. Please come forward to be recognized when I call your name. National Merit Scholarship Finalists Nav Banerjee, Nan Bardage, Ishan Goyal, Cynthia Lei, Dia Nadamuni, Katheram Palinus, sorry, Palin, Palen, forgive my North American tongue palanayapan and sonakshi single. >> Yeah. And did I read tarun nadhamuni? >> Tarun Nahadmoney. Also, governor's school nominees
025vantar, Ana Verma, and Ricky Sue. And we have FBLA national qualifiers Ronav Desai, Saran Koular, Alia Kapor, Omar Bardage, Mariah Bayana, Mishka Baya, Maya Patel, Arian Aurora, Krypton, Luke, Jalalu, and Siraj Tripppathy. >> Would anyone like to make a comment? We're proud of each and everyone. Please. Thank you. >> Okay. Hi, my name is Alia Lapour and I'm one of the executive leaders of FBLA over at Hillsboro High School. I wanted to start off by thanking our adviserss who aren't able to be here today, Mr. Rogers and Miss Bridges. Um, even though we are a studentled club, us students need some guidance, too. Um, one of the main things that made us successful this year was the way that we were able to engage in the local businesses in our town. Over the years, we
026created partnerships. We talked to the businesses around us and we were able to incorporate all of our research and information into a grand project that we presented at states last year and this year. Because of the help of everyone in our town and the students in our club, we were able to place first in our state in our event and it was something that we were really proud of. My name is Ro and I worked with Alia long time grown up on the community service project. We're the ones who presented but honestly it's an entire club effort all like 95 members like all worked on it and it's a it's a community effort. What we're doing is not representing ourselves representing Hills. We compete representing Hills. We go to nationals representing Hills. That's what we
027stand for because we're the future business leaders of America but our chapter is future business leaders of Hillsboro. Thank you so much. shout out everyone that placed. So you have to come one by one. >> Thank you Board of Education for um for thanking us for uh qualifying for nationals and states. Um it was a very rigorous journey for us and I'm really glad to have support from our adviserss who were able to be here today, Mr. Rogers and Mr. Vickens. Um I really I'm really happy to have the support of the administrators and everyone else to help us along this journey and um thank you for us and I really hope to strive to um make our community proud and represent Hillsboro and Ash Texas. Thank you third place for securities and investments at
028city. Thank you. Hi, I'm Ryan. Um, this is my first year at State and I >> Hi, my name is Ken and this is my second year in Hillsboro and I play second at international business. Hi, my name is Raj. This is my first year and I'm studying international business. >> Thank you everyone so much. Have a good night. Thank you. >> Hi, I'm Mira Banji and I'm in 12th grade and I got national semi-finals this year. Um, there's not much to really say about the National Mer organization. there's just a lot of like people who score well on the PSAT, but I just wanted to say a thank you to Hillsboro um like Hillsboro Townships in general. I'm just looking in this room, I see um Dr. Obby, my my elementary school principal. I
029see Dr. Kitty, my intermediate school principal. And I see Mr. Doola, my high school principal. I see Mr. Fencster, my social studies teacher for three years. And I see Miss teacher in fourth grade. And I just want to say a really really big thank you to someone as someone who has been in Hillsboro school district since um Kitty Academic in 2012. So for the past um I guess 14 years in Hills um districts. I want to say a really really big thank you for developing me as a person developing me as a student as a learner and I am going to the University of Michigan this um this August in the Ros School of Business. So I just want to say a really large thank you for to Hillsboro Township Hillsboro public schools for setting
030me up for success in the future and it's my last word of education week. So once again thank you so much. >> Thank you very much. We also uh will be recognizing this evening for academic and leadership awards uh in the Paul Robson youth achievement awards Maki Treadwell and Daniel Francis Ana Verma first place regional brain B national qualifier Babaria, first leadership award semi finalist. Also in fine arts and performance poetry out loud champion Lya Desh Cartik show choir honors. Alejandro Medina, outstanding showmanship. And Scott Doyle, outstanding featured performer. And New Jersey Regional Band and Orchestra, Abby Vanlangan, Ellie Cludin, Cludinski, Abigail Twan, Esther Lee, and Brianna Gibson. some of whom can't be with us tonight. Would anyone like to say a word or share anything? about the basketball is an African-Amean worldowned basis, stage
031and film actor, professional football player and social activist. He is known for breaking racial barriers in the arts and place to champion civil rights lab solidarity and anti Pauler. My husband Omar and I female Daniel who is also our trail blazer. He's unique as he is both neurode divergent and gifted and talented. Daniel is a proud Caribbean American descendant of slaves and indentured servants of Guyana and Jamaica. While Daniel is being recognized here for his academics like Paul and his multi-talented and is also a buddy and dedicated athlete who can't be here tonight, he's at a basketball game and didn't want to let his teammates down. I would like to humbly thank the middle school who believed in it, including Mrs. C, the his science teacher who nominated him for the award, Mr. Joiner, his
032English teacher, and his algebra teacher, Mrs. Mley, who would not give up on Daniel. Thank Thank you to all the community for your support. Daniel and our family are having an amazing experience at the middle school and I'm truly grateful for your support. We thank you for valuing him as a whole child. A child who lost to the beat of his own drum and his value, not just for the numbers that he puts up on his test scores, but for his kindness, his humor, and his authenticity. Thank you. Hi, my name is Maya and um first I would like to thank you guys because you guys are the reason that lab is in Hillsboro and that me as well as all of the contestants were able to participate in something that is so wonderful actually
033we all became friends at the end of the day. So I would like to thank you guys for those friendships as well. I would also like to thank Miss Miss Leven and Mr. who were the teachers in charge for their tireless efforts in making sure that we were well prepared and uh for the regions especially they were the most amazing coaches that anyone could have given me. I would also love to thank my mother and my family because without them I would not have gotten so far. So thank you all. My name is And really all I want to say here is that I'm really grateful to both my captain and all the members of the group as well as I took So, thank you. And finally, we recognize students who have shown a commitment
034to our community and our nation's history. VFW display of patriotism. Yashmi Yatham, Shuham Sawant, Devin Milano, and Akshaya Shurkuma. Also, we have the NJSBA. That's the New Jersey School Board Association unsung hero Owen Tyke. Thank you. Would anyone like to share a few words? Um, hi everyone. My name is Yashi and I've been doing this BFW essay competition since 8th grade. And it's a really great competition that I encourage all high schoolers to try out at some point because it really gets you to think in a new way about what you value as a citizen and about our democracy. And it's a really great opportunity that like makes you feel so good about yourself and also just look outward and see what the community has to offer. So this is really great. Um, so my
035name is Shua and I really wanted to come out here to thank like everyone who made this possible. Like first of all, uh, the people at BFW for giving us this opportunity. And then, um, I would like to thank my Boy Scout troop, Troop 1776, for helping me like get in touch with BFW. and like learn about the essay guidelines and stuff. And then lastly, I would like to thank you guys like the public Hillsboro Township public schools for like giving us like a stage giving us like an opportunity to actually be recognized. And I really like this essay because it isn't like just any normal essay. really helps you learn like how democracy is in America, how communities support each other, how people band together to help each other even when things are not
036boring. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Um hello, my name is Ashai. I am a sophomore at Hillro High School. Um, I thank BFW and everybody here today for this like opportunity to receive this award. Um, writing this essay was really fun for me because um, like like like Shon said like it's not just like any other essay. It just like helps you learn about democracy in general and like as someone who aspires to go to law in the future like this was really like rewarding for me. >> Thank you. Hello, my name is De Milano. I don't have too many things to say other than thank you for the recognition I'm getting tonight and also an opportunity to write this essay. I've always I think I've always had an interest in politics and government
037and I really enjoyed writing this essay. So, just thank you and have a good night everyone. >> Hello, my name is Todd. I just like to take a moment to share this recognition. My mother may know passed away a little over a year ago. Um she worked at some school as an instructional assistant. She cared for me very much and and thank you. Thank you all. Thank you very much. Lastly, which is one step beyond finally. Lastly, I would like to invite Mr. Bob Fster and his US history one honors students. His class participated in the history happened here program in conjunction with Revolution and J. Two of these projects will be recognized at a statewide celebration at Ruckers later this month. And I'd like to invite uh Mr. Fster and his team to share
038a few words. >> Thank you very much. Uh, history happened here is a joint project with the New Jersey Historical Commission and Crossroads of New Jersey in connection to or commemorating the 250th anniversary of the United States. And what's special about history happened here, as might be indicated by its name, which some very attractive person came up with when he was working for the state. Uh, it it deals with local history. And so the students in my US1 history honors class uh had to pick pick topics that were connected to revolutionary ideals, themes of the American Revolution, not necessarily the American Revolution itself. And as uh as Mr. Davis mentioned, the uh two of two of the projects, we have three of our four students, two teams of two. Skyler Haynes could not be here
039tonight. uh they'll they'll just give you a quick overview of what they did and how through this project they learned uh that that history is not something abstract but something that literally happened in their backyards. >> Hi, my name is Shi and I'm very honored to be here talking about our project. Unfortunately, my partner wasn't here. But to talk about our project to start, it was about Doris Duke, which you might know is the founder of Duke Farms in Hillsboro, New Jersey. Initial Initially, we wanted to focus on her environmental achievements. And while researching, we stumbled upon her darker aspects in her past. Her best friend, Eduardo Terrella, was run over by a car, and the public suspected that Doris Duke was responsible. However, the case lasted mere days and was considered um um considered
040to be disregarded. But then she realized that the case was going to last mere days because she only had to pay thousands of dollars which was considered a pocket change and she was the richest child alive. has said. From this we learned that how our justice system can be skewed by popularity and money and how someone responsible for so much good can also use their wealth and money to avoid accountability. And this opportunity was very appreciated. And thank you to our teacher, Mr. Fester. And thank you for having us tonight. Thank you so much for having us tonight. Our names are Asia and Sammy. And our history captain here project focuses on the Belby Depot, which is our current day, Mountain View Park. The park holds a lot of history and importance in shaping our
041town today. The depot was the largest military supply during World War II that played a big role in helping the US win the war. The depot shaped a unique culture of inclusion, patriotism, and equality. Workers at the depot came from all backgrounds, including other countries. Many settled in the town of Hillsboro, which contributes to the diversity we see in our town today. Many years after the war had ended and the depot had shut down, the town of Hillsboro came together to do something with the land. They decided to make it into a place for people of all kinds to come together. The park was truly created by the people of Hillsboro for the people of Hillsboro. We are lucky to have a park as beautiful as Mountain View that holds the stories of the deep.
042From this project, we learned the importance of our temp's history and looking at the many ways that everyday places were involved in shaping our country and town as we have it today. Thank you. Thank you all. This concludes our recognition for this evening. We are so proud of the talent and dedication displayed by our students and staff. We will take a brief five-minute recess to allow families to depart before we continue with our regular business. Five minute recess Call to order. We have one minute to go, but everybody seems to be in place. We're going to move on to our next agenda item, which is the superintendence report. Thank you, Mr. President. Um, first of all, congratulations to all of our recogn those who have been recognized. Um, it's tremendous talent that we have here
043in Hillsboro, both for staff and students, and all of your efforts are appreciated and all of your accolades are indeed welld deserved. Uh, the only part of my superintendence report tonight is something that's going to be an ongoing part of my superintendence report. We've had some recent discussions uh about budgets and school finance. So I am creating a new part of my superintendence report that will be on every single agenda um where we can learn a little bit of something about school finance and budgeting and the highlight of this uh uh part is going to be Mr. Eard over here and it is going to be entitled school finance thoughts with Jerry Eert. So at every board meeting Mr. record is going to take one small little part of school finance or budgeting, help educate
044board members as well as the community and uh he's going to do it with flare and style and you can see a nice picture of him on the board behind me and this will be here every week as part of my superintendence report. As in all seriousness, I know board members in the community want to know the intricacies of school finance. So today, Mr. Eert will be talking about budgeted fund balance. Here it is, the inaugural school finance thoughts with Jerry Eckert. >> Thank you, Mr. Bulby, for allowing me the opportunity to share some information about school finance. This month, I will focus on providing a brief explanation of budgeted fund balance. One of the annual revenue items in our budget is budgeted fund balance. Each year in our annual comprehensive financial report or audit,
045the last page of exhibit C1 shows a recapit recapitulation of balances. Using the most recent report from the 202425 school year, the first two lines of this recap are as follows. Excess surplus restricted for 2026 2022 of 4.5 million and excess surplus restricted for 2025-26 again of 4.5 million. These funds that were restricted for 2526 is from surplus generated during the 23 24 school year and set aside to be used as the budgeted fund balance in the current 2526 budget. The funds that were restricted for 2627 is surplus is from surplus generated during the 2425 school year and set aside to be used as the budgeted fund balance in the 2026 27 budget that the board approved at the April 30th meeting. The current amount of 4.5 million was set when the 2022 23 budget
046was created and adopted and 202627 budget was the fifth straight year that we have maintained that amount. We must remain efficient and conservative with our spending each year to be able to generate the same level of bud of budgeted fund balance in subsequent years. If we're not able to regenerate the 4.5 million each year, it would create a hole in our revenue for the upcoming budget cycle. For the last few years, if you recall, our auditor has commended the districts for for keeping this amount flat and stable when it reports on the audit each November. Mr. Vulpi, that concludes today's >> Thank you. So, Mr. Eard, I just have one question for you. So, so is what you're telling me that after we put money in reserve for projects and after we pay our bills
047and after we do everything during the course of a year that as superintendent and you as business administrator, we have to make sure in addition to all of that, there's another $4.5 million that we haven't that we've been conservative and haven't spent so we can make next year's budget work. >> That is correct. >> Okay, ladies and gentlemen, >> thank you. school finance thoughts with Jerry Aker. You can give him a be back here next week for another budget item. >> And Mr. President, that concludes my superintendent's report. >> Thank you. Uh we move to committee reports. I'd like to start with the ed committee with Miss Jackson. The ED committee met on April 28th and we discussed the curriculum for board approval, revised course proposals, overnight trip, and we had a last chance for
048the committee to discuss the budget. That's it. >> Thank you. Uh HR committee, Miss Nurse. Oh, no. I'm sorry. >> Sorry. Um uh the committee met on Wednesday, May 6th. Um first item we discussed was um with uh full day kindergarten uh anticipated for the upcoming school year. There is construction and um because of the construction certain uh teachers may be asked to pack up most if not all of their classrooms um for the construction to take place. um those who are impacted by that um there was discussion about giving them an additional personal day um for the upcoming school year because of those that need to pack up and then put back in place again. Um we also discussed a personnel matter. Uh we discussed staff non-renewals and we discussed um summer hours for
04912 month staff. >> Thank you. Uh the operations committee, Mr. Marini. >> Yes. So we we discussed a couple of items. I will do the order of the agenda, not the order of the meeting, but we looked at health insurance renewal uh discussions for a blue cost blue shield. Uh we did have some continued budget discussions. Um, we approved uh the recommendation to uh pay the bills. Important, we did look at the uh Woods Road ceiling bid timing uh that will occur on I believe uh May 15th. Uh and then we had our architects on site to discuss uh the era's property evaluation uh for the potential for a uh bus depot location. Uh and then last but not least, we did discuss moving the meeting date for one of our upcoming meetings. That's it.
050Thank you. >> Thank you, Mr. Rainey. The uh governance committee did not meet uh after the last board meeting, so there's nothing to report there. It is now a time for public input. We very much welcome input from the public. During board meetings, there will be two 30 minute periods of time that the meeting will be open for public comment where members of the public are invited to comment, which they may do if they are attending in person. There is a clipboard for all participants to write their name. Before commenting, please state your name and address. There is a three minute time limit on public comment. Please understand that our public forums are not structured as question and answer sessions, but rather are offered as opportunities to share your thoughts with the board. In instances
051where the board believes that there is a misunderstanding or inaccuracy, the board president or superintendent will address the comment. There may be times when a member of the public makes a comment or asks a question about personnel or hiring decisions. Kindly note that the open public meetings act and the privacy rights of public employees encompass therein do not permit the board to discuss personnel issues in public sessions. Thank you. Good evening. We are honored to be here representing the Thespian Honor Society at Hillsboro High School under the advisement of Mrs. Pamanti. We are here representing our board of officers. My name is Ashley Ringle and I'm the president. March was theater in our schools month, a period dedicated to advocating for the importance of theater education, not only in our program, but in schools as
052a whole. And we wanted to showcase some of what we've done in the past few months to recognize that theater is a community and our goal is not only to put on successful shows, but to nurture individuals in the process. We built leaders, teaching students to step outside of their comfort zone and pursue their strengths to the fullest potential. We built artists, allowing students the ability to express themselves creatively, developing true meaning in their work both on and backstage. And above all, we built human beings, providing a safe space to make friends, experience life, support one another, try, fail, and try again. Theater in itself is a form of expression presenting an incredibly important opportunity to be yourself and be accepted by all. We are more than just a club. We are a family and
053we are constantly growing our community to assist all those who seek it. >> Hello, I'm Revina, the vice president. The honor society inducts students who dedicate at least 100 hours of quality work to theater. Members participate in productions, serve on committees, and support events like performance nights and fundraisers. Through bestians, students develop communication, teamwork, and leadership skills that serve beyond high school. Our truth also gives back. This year, we collected six car truckloads of food for the Hillsboro Camp Association through Tops trick-or-treating so kids could eat. Our troop also raised over $200 to our philanthropic organization, Broadway Carequity Fights AIDS, a nonprofit organization that supports those affected by HIV/ AIDS and other critical illnesses through fundraising, grants, and advocacy in the theater community. Finally, in the area of outreach, we sold concessions at our Hillsboro
054municipal play and musical this past year. Additionally, in March, students from our tech group provided workshops in workshops to the middle school students while we the board presented a short presentation on how to become a bestian. We also had students help the middle school's tent crew during their musical and help choreograph some of their dance numbers. Students from the middle school often go to find a community within Hillsboro High School Theater every year. Some of us here today remember when former board members spoke to us when we were much younger. >> Hi, I'm Drew. I'm the troops treasurer. And you may be wondering what else a thespian is besides a student who dedicates 100 quality hours towards theater at HHS. Thesbsspians are dedicated and passionate artists who meet monthly to discuss how to improve something
055they care about. Our meetings begin with a call to order followed by an icebreaker and our itinerary before we break out into committees. As the head of the morale committee, I facilitate events to keep us bonded throughout the productions since we often don't see some of our friends at certain groups until later in the rehearsal process. One morale in particular, we made bracelets where each bead represents a quality we admire in another person. An upper class an upper classman you look up to was one given to given to me that made me smile. We also run performance nights where students can perform and show off their skills in a safe and encouraging space. One of the reasons we believe that people in our troop are so successful is because they're willing to recognize other people
056and extend a helping hand. Speaking of success, not only have the students from troop 10385 gone on to direct their own shows in community theaters, write their own theatrical pieces, and receive scholarships for the arts, they've also received leadership positions outside of theater, had successful job interviews due to their confidence, and are active members of their community. >> Hello, my name is Stephanie Evans. I'm the secretary of my troop. In January, we attended the New Jersey Best Festival, which provides students with educational opportunities. While there, students attend workshops and classes focused on all aspects of theater, including dance, singing, acting, costumes, plays, and sounds. Students have the opportunity to explore new areas that introduce to them and improve their skills while learning from industry professionals. In addition, the festival is a great place to meet
057new people from all over the state, making connections and friendships with other students who all share the same love and passion for theater. Students also have the opportunity to compete and present in a variety of competitions and performances, which many of them did. Peter Kalchek performed a musical theater solo which earned him the top superior rating. Corine Kramer performed a musical theater solo and won a superior rating for a monologue. Drew Gernson performed a monologue and a musical theater solo. Andy Gordon performed the musical leader solo. Scott Doyle presented a scenic design of a set he created and many members of our tech crew and stage management team participated in tech Olympics. Um hello, my name is Emma Watts and I'm the troops historian. And aside from all these amazing nominations, HHS was also named
058the gold honors troop the highest distinction for the third year in a row. Being a gold honors troop signifies the troops exceptional work in their school and community. In addition to this status, I also help received the title of best presenter. We understand this is an overwhelming amount of information thrown at you, but it only provides a glimpse into the passion, dedication, and talent of the students who compromise H comprise HDS theater and dance. The students in our program care deeply about each other, our school, and Hillsboro as a whole. Going into the next school year, we hope to continue to provide students with a safe space to work on their leadership, teamwork, and creative skills, produce quality productions, and champion how positive theater can be for the development of young minds. We hope you
059we hope to do it with your support. With your help, our audience can grow and more people can be aware of the good that we do for Hillsboro small businesses, national fundraising organizations, and local community service. Tell a friend, repost a video, or share a post since the more people we reach, the further the influence of theater and the arts and community spreads. Thank you for your time. >> Hello everyone. My name is Aman and I'm here to talk about my Girl Scout Golden project and inform the community about what I did. Uh my project was installing a communication board in Hillsboro, which luckily I was able to do that at Hillsboro Elementary School. My project is focused on improving communication accessibility at Hillsboro Elementary School. First, I'd like to thank the board of ed
060for approving and supporting this project. I'd also like to thank Miss Xing the principal at HS and Karen Graves um for his support throughout this project. Um, communication is something many of us take for granted. But for children with speech delays, autism, language barriers, or other communicational challenges, expressing even basic needs can be difficult. In Hillsboro, there are over 1,200 children living with communication related disabilities, leaving them to feel left out or having a hard time making friends. They they deserve to be heard and included. To help address this, I installed a communication board at Hillsboro Elementary School. sport uses symbols and words to help ensure students express their needs and emotions and ideas simply by pointing. I worked with the school to determine the best design and location. The board is now installed and
061available for students to use every day. Two weeks ago, I had the opportunity to meet with the entire school and to introduce the board to show students how to use it. I got to stay for the day and watch the kids use the board during recess. They came up to me and asked more questions and talked to their friends and asked them to do things like play on the slides or climb on the monkey bars using the board. I was excited to see that they were using it. My goal for this project is to spread awareness and promote inclusion for all children, giving students a voice and encouraging them to talk to their peers. The board is designed to be a lasting resource that will continue to support the school for uh years to come.
062Thank you again for the support and helping make this project possible. Seeing that there are no more comments, we will close the public comment section. Oh, I'm sorry, Miss Nurse. >> Yeah, I do. I um >> Thank you. Um, I am just asking to amend my vote and have it reflected in the minutes at our last meeting, which was on Thursday, April 30th. On motion 12.2, I voted yes to all new substitutes. Um, but I need to amend that to vote for yes to all new substitutes with the exception of Ryan Nur nurse, which in case I have to abstain. >> This is so noted. >> Thank you. >> We'll make sure that's reflected in the in the minutes of that meeting when they're presented to the to the board for approval. >> Yes. Sorry,
063everybody. I remembered at the beginning of the meeting and with all of our talk and focus on and my computer issues, I forgot that she was on that. board minutes. Thank you. >> Any other comments? With that, we will close the public comment session. >> U Mr. Vulpi, uh we're moving on to item 10 on the agenda. >> Thank you, Mr. President. I'd asked for the board's consideration to approve the following motions in the area of education. professional and travel related expenses. The superintendent's HIV determinations staff for 2026 Title One summer camp at Hillsboro Elementary School. Staff for 2026 Title One summer camp at Sunnyme Elementary School. Staff for the 2026 summer multilingual learners program. staff to admin administer the measure of developing English language testing for ESL curriculum course propo proposals and approving the
064long-term suspension of a student whose name is on file in the office of the superintendent. >> Do I have a motion? >> So move. >> Second. >> Any discussion? >> Mr. Eert. >> Mr. Eric. >> Yes. >> Miss Jackson. >> Yes. Miss Craig, >> yes. >> Miss Lenny Beer, >> yes. >> Mr. Marini, >> yes. Miss Nurse, >> yes. >> Mr. Trillo, >> yes. >> And Mr. Davis, >> yes. >> Thank you. In the area of human resources, which is long tonight, I'd ask for the board's consideration to approve the following motions. Retirements and resignations, appointments for 2526, appointments for 2627, leaves of absence, change in employment, extra coverage, revised six period coverage, group changes for 2526, the reappointment of the contract of the business administrator, board secretary, the reappoint and contract of the assistant
065superintendent for curriculum and instruction, the reappoint of the contract for the assistant superintendent for instructional technology, the renewal of non-tenured certificate, ated staff, the renewal of tenure certificated staff, the renewal of a licensed practical nurse, the renewal of instructional assistants, the renewal of lunch aids, the renewal of HA office personnel, the renewal of clerical assistance, the renewal of building monitors, the renewal of bus drivers and bus aids, the renew renewal of custodians, maintenance and mechanic workers, the renewal of HPSA staff non-tenured and tenur, the renewal of unaffiliated administrators, non-tenured and tenured. the renewal of unaffiliated staff, summer athletic camps, summer enrichment program, and the extended school year program. >> Do I have a motion? >> So moved. >> Second. >> Any discussion? >> Mr. Eert. >> Mr. Anrans, >> yes. >> Miss Jackson, >> yes.
066>> Miss Craig, >> yes. >> Miss Lanny Beer, >> yes. >> Mr. Marine, >> yes. >> Miss Nurse, >> yes. >> Mr. Hill, >> yes. >> And Mr. Yes. >> Thank you. In the area of operations, I'd ask for the board's consideration to approve the following motions. monthly bills, monthly financials, financial status, line item transfers, renewing the proposal for health and dental benefits from Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield, renewing the proposal for VSSP vision care insurance, disposal and sale of obsolete equipment, accepting a donation, approving Sedexo Food Services Management Contract renewal for the 2627 school year, approving 2627 school year cafeteria prices, awarding emergency contracts for Sunnyme Elementary School and Hillsboro Elementary School. Approving the municipal tax levy payment schedule for Hillsboro Township Municipality and Milstone Municipality. Approving the resolution for ceiling and lighting replacement
067at Woods Road Elementary School. The motion to pay bills between May 11th and June 22nd. Out of district placements for 2627, out of district placements for 2526, and approving tasks from Land Associates proposal of October 20th, 2025, revised May 8th, 2026 for A&E services for a new transportation complex. >> Do I have a motion? >> So moved. >> Second. >> Any comments? I would like to make a comment just for information. Item 12.10 is about increases in cafeteria prices for the ensuing three years. Uh we advised that prices in the cafeteria for students have not been changed for a number of years. And uh so the proposal is to have a 25 cent increase uh in both breakfast and lunch prices for the 2627 school year and then the following two years as well. Uh
068additionally there will be a one-time 50cent increase for alocart items. So I just wanted to read that for general public information. Are there any other comments? Mr. Eert. >> Mr. Arrance, >> yes. >> Miss Jackson, >> yes. >> Miss Craig, >> yes. >> Miss Lanning Beater, >> yes. >> Mr. Mariny, >> yes. >> Miss Nurse, >> yes. >> Mr. Ho, >> yes. >> And Mr. Davis, >> yes. >> We've come to our second public comment period. Uh, we very much welcome input from the public. There is a clipboard for all participants to write their name. Before commenting, please state your name and address. There is a threeinut time limit on public comment. Please understand that our public forums are not structured as question and answer sessions, but rather are offered as opportunities to share your
069thoughts with the board. In instances where the board believes there is a misunderstanding or inaccuracy, the board president or superintendent will address the comment. There may be times when a member of the public makes a comment or asks a question about personnel or hiring decisions. Kindly note that the open public meetings act and the privacy rights of public employees encompass therein do not permit the board to discuss personnel issues in public session. Thank you and good evening. >> Hello. I live in Hillsboro. Just wanted to say two things. Um, last week we had a really nice uh staff appreciation teachers uh custodians lunches. I don't think we really got the bus drivers. I don't know if they came in to have food and things like that at the middle school, but I've seen really nice
070displays on Facebook from a lot of different schools. So, I just want to say thank you for all that you do for us. Uh second uh just for those who have middle school students at least some of the main graders. Don't forget that we have Zootopia showing Zootopia 2 on Friday. Uh you can check out the Facebook page or morning announcements for more information. It's $6 per ticket and we will have one of our HSA members uh making cotton candy models. It's really fun and we feel like more snacks. Thank you so much. Are there any comments from the board? Well, I guess Cassandra, do you want to report in? >> I'm just going to give you guys a little blurb on spirit night because it consumed like two weeks of my life just like
071every single day. Um, so I wrote a little something. Hillsboro High School Student Council hosted Spirit Night on May 1st where every grade got an opportunity to showcase their various skills and compete for bragging rights to win spirit night. The seniors won by a small margin and everyone had a great time. I definitely recommend searching up spirit night dance or movie videos on YouTube to see the Raiders school spirit that's harnessed every spirit night. Um, I had the opportunity to run spirit night this year with my co-executive board members Vera, Sienna, Stella, An, and Carter. And then I also want to recognize the constant um effort of our student council adviserss, Miss Dunn and Mrs. Broen. And that's it for me. >> Cassie, if I could just say it's not it for you. You made
072a pretty big decision recently, right? >> Oh, yes. I'm committed to Purdue University. >> Congratulations. >> Any board comments? Seeing that there are no comments, um I move that we adjourn. >> So moved. >> Second. >> Oh, Mr. Eron Crafts. >> Um we've had a a unique possibility pop up regarding the bus terminal, bus facility, but it would require input from the planning board. And I would like if the board president could uh represent the board's interest to the planning board, but I think Joel would like our approval to go to do that. So, just let me put a show of hands, I guess. >> Well, we haven't really discussed it. >> Discuss it first. >> Yeah, we would need to discuss it first so that people know what they're asking me to do. Um,
073>> in committee, right? >> Excuse me. >> In committee. Um should we do it in committee or do it here? >> You do whatever you want. >> I think we can do it quickly here and if some and if Mr. Marie feels it needs more discussion then we'll move to committee. So Mr. Erin CR what is it that you're bringing up? >> Okay. There is a an old Providence Bank on Route 206 which is adjacent to our school, our elementary school and is possible that we could. is currently under contract. If they get a variance, it's a done deal and we're done with it. But if they don't get the variance, it's a possibility that we could acquire those three acres and that would solve a lot of uh problems that we have with uh
074updating that facility for the bus the bus facility and it potentially could save us a lot of money to do that. Do >> you need more information on that or >> I I think we need probably a lot more information. Yes, we probably need more information. Yeah, there's a vacant bank building. I guess it was Provident Bank. Uh it has been purchased by a party >> under contract. >> It's under contract and they would like to uh put a car wash. >> It's a corporate car wash that they want to put in there. So, they need a variance in order to do that, >> right? >> Which they may or may not get. We don't know. So whether or not our planning board would approve a car wash in that location or not is up
075for question apparently. Um and Mr. Erin thinks that this because of its location. It's adjacent to our Hillsboro elementary school location and the property extends back uh this probably 4 acres or so or we don't know precisely but the idea is that if we were to inform the planning board that the school district might have some interest in acquiring that property were it available. And the context is with regard to the transportation facility, a place to park buses, put a new building, all these types of things, as opposed to using the field here next to ARIS. If we had that property, might that be a better choice? Part part of the problem with the the updated property is that it would be disruptive if we had to move the operation someplace else and it would
076require uh renting at great expense another property if we had this additional land. We would not have to uh disrupt the operation while the uh improvements were made and the property itself would give us egress on two different roads 206 and Amwell. There's already utilities uh at the place because the bank's property is there which would also be useful as uh offices. So there's a lot of >> potential uh pluses to this. >> Some but somebody else wants to use the property and it would be up to the planning board to decide if that were an appropriate use. And if that were to happen then this the whole conversation's moved because someone is moving in that direction. But if it were to turn out that for some reason that did not come to fruition and
077if the property were to become available uh it might be something in which the district would be quite interested and Mr. Erin Cray had suggested that I should as board president I should contact the uh planning board to let them know that we might be interested if something were to open up and I would uh like the board to know what I'm doing before I run off and speak for the board. And so that's really the point of this. Uh and there you go. I don't know if we need >> Mike. You want to make a comment? No, I think I think you summarized it very quickly that I think your intent, Mr. Aaron CR, is just to have um if the board if this was the will of the board to have a representative
078of the board, whether it would be the president or the president asking me to do this on behalf of the board, letting the planning board know that we are interested in that property um if things kind of fall through. No financial commitments, just that we have a general interest. >> Yeah. Do we know how much is under contract for? >> No, do not. >> It's really >> I'm sorry. >> We're getting a little close on something that probably should be an executive session issue at this point because any any comments could impact any future um negotiations if the property were to become available again. >> Thank you. >> So, just letting you know. >> Thank you, Mr. Erin Kratz. Have we gone too far? Almost. Therefore, I move to adjourn the meeting. All in favor?