001Good evening. I'd like to call to order the regular meeting of the board of education. Today is Wednesday, October 8th, 2025. Please rise for the pledge to the flag. >> Please stand for the pledge of allegiance followed by a moment of silence. >> I pledge of allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. >> Please be seated. >> Good evening everyone and welcome to our special board of education appreciation night. We are so excited to have you here with us. Tonight's meeting is extra special because we want to show you a little bit of what we've been learning, how we work together, and what makes our school such a great place to learn and
002grow. On behalf of all the students and staff, we want to thank our board of education members for everything you do for our schools. Your time, support, and care make a huge difference in helping us learn, dream big, and reach our goals. We hope you enjoy our presentation and feel our appreciation for all that you do for us every day. And we really love the new playgrounds. >> I think the students said it all. Thank you, Alyssa, Elliot, and Kaden, and Natalie. Um, right now you're going to see a short presentation that was done by Mrs. McGawan and Mrs. Dphano's second grade class. And once again, thank you, Board of Education, for everything you do. And welcome to the North Main Board of Ed meeting. Have a great night. [Music] Is good because I spend
003time with my Second grade is better than first grade. >> Um, second grade is good because I have so much friends. >> Second grade is fun because I have a lot of friends. >> Second grade is the best. Second grade is awesome because my friends [Music] >> this year I'm looking forward to doing fun Friday. >> This year I'm looking forward to math. [Music] >> I can't wait to go to gym. I can't wait to learn about math. [Music] >> I really like the specials. >> I really like gym because it is fun. >> I really like to run in gym. >> I like gym. my double sacks. >> One thing I learned about this year is double snacks. >> My favorite thing about Northman is having fun. >> The best thing about Northman is
004I get to see my sister. >> My class is a family. My class is great. My class is a family. My class is the best. [Applause] Thank you so much, North Main. We're very happy to be here. And I'd like to turn it over to Dr. Norman at this time. >> Good evening, everyone. Thank you, Miss Talbert and our amazing North Main students and staff. At this time of year, we like to express our deepest gratitude to the nine members of the Monro Woodbury Board of Education and our student board representatives. We're truly thankful for all that you do to support and care for our students, uplift our staff, and serve our community. Please enjoy this special video message from our students. Hi crusaders. Today we are working on a recipe for a great school
005district. >> What is the secret ingredient for a green school district? >> Happy students, families. Let's see. >> A big cup of love. >> You need some love. >> Are you sure? That's a lot of love. >> Let's add some more. >> If someone falls, you can help them back up. If someone is hurt, you can go tell the teacher to help them. >> You could treat others how you >> show kindness. >> A pinch of compassion. >> We care about each other and every day. >> Are you sure that's enough? Let's add some more. >> Hey guys, what's wrong? >> Oh no, I make sure something seems off. Did we follow the recipe? >> I think so. Let me see. Love, kindness, teamwork, compassion. Oh, respect. >> Yes, respect for our for each other
006and our community. That's it. But something else is still missing. >> Where is it? Did you find it? >> I think so. >> Oh, keep mixing. Okay, so we have love, check, >> kindness, check, >> passion, check, >> teamwork, check, and respect check. >> Um, the missing ingredient is you. >> From each and every crusader, thank you for being the key ingredient to our district success. >> Thank you. [Applause] Thank you so much. We're very happy to be here and serve in our roles. So the we're going to start with the reading of the mission statement. We are committed to academic achievement and success for all students in a safe environment in partnership with families in our community. Our mission is to promote confidence, inspire a passion for learning, and to prepare our students to
007become responsible global citizens. >> Next is the approval of the agenda. Is there a motion? >> Motion. >> Second. >> All in favor? I motion carries. Next is questions or comments from interested citizens. First we have Charlotte Witrock and Juliana Ferrara. [Applause] >> Good evening board of education. Thank you so much for letting us speak tonight. My name is Charlotte Whitrock. >> Hello. I am Juliana Ferrara and we are eighth graders at Monroe Woodbury Middle Schools. And we are also Girl Scout cadets from troop 599. We are working on our silver awards project which is one of the highest awards a girl scout can earn. For our project, we are partnering with Mr. Davis and Miss Greenblat to build a Gaga pet for the students at North Main. Our goal is to create a fun,
008inclusive, and active space that will benefit North Mainers for years to come. >> You might be asking, what is Goa Ball? Well, Gogo Ball is a fun and fast-paced game that takes place in a Gaga pit where players must dodge, jump, and track the ball to a getting out. Last year, our middle school was fortunate enough to install install a Gaga pit. This gave us the idea of how great it would be to have Gaga pits at the elementary schools so when they got to the middle school, they would know how to play. Over the summer, we met with Miss McKenzie, a health teacher at the middle school, who spearheaded the Gaga Pit project. She walked us through the steps of how they got the Gaga Pit at the middle school and spoke to us
009about the many benefits that Gaga Ball has for the middle school students. Benefits of goggle ball include developing multiple physical skills and abilities. It develops strategic thinking, agility, jumping, striking, and dodging skills, as well as hand eye coordination. Miss Burroughs, the unified PE teacher at the middle school, loves to take her classes out to the Gaga pit. We spoke to her and she told us about the many ways that Gaga Ball supports inclusive play and adapted PE. ball has simple rules and quick learning curve, making it accessible for all students abilities. It's a game where everyone can participate and feel successful. The game is non-cont and played with a soft ball in an enclosed space, which helps reduce anxiety and physical strain. It's perfect for students with mobility limitations, sensory needs, or those who might
010be overwhelmed by traditional team sports. Because ball is a fast-paced game and has players constantly roing rotating in and out, students naturally build friendships, practice good sportsmanship, and feel a sense of belonging. Rules can be adjusted to support individual abilities. It can work well for students with IEPs or 504 plans, and helps PE teachers meet diverse classroom needs. >> Goggle ball fosters agility and motor skills while also building confidence and resilience. Many students who might not participate in other sports thrive in this game environment. >> We feel that North Main would benefit tremendously from having a go pit installed on their side lot. As you know, North Main's lower field playground is not always accessible, leaving North Mainers to utilize the sidelot for recess. A go pit will be such a great addition for the
011students at North Main for years to come. We have been in contact with Coach Cliff, the vendor that the middle school used. We have priced out a pit for North Main at approximately $4,400. >> So, why are we here tonight? Well, to ask you for money, of course. Unfortunately, North Main does not currently have the budget to fund this project, which leads us to fund raise. We have already begun fundraising at the back to school bash, wayback burger, and hosting a Girl Scout tea party. So far, we have earned $540. It will be very difficult for us to afford the full size of the pit, though. Even though North Main cannot fund this, we still really want to make this happen. We come to the board to humbly ask that you help us financially make
012this project a success. Would you consider helping us fund this and help our our vision to life? >> We would love the opportunity to discuss our project with you at a further time. >> Thank you so much for this opportunity to speak tonight. We hope you have a wonderful evening. >> Thank you. >> Next is Mrs. Lorraine Loaning. Hi. Um, good evening. My name is Lorraine Looning. I'm a district resident. Uh, first I want to say those kids are adorable and I feel really at a disadvantage following them. It's not fair and I know it's very hard to speak in public and those you guys are great. Uh, back to me. Um, this evening I'd like to speak about the pool, specifically the enrichment programs that used to be held there. In the past, the
013district offered a variety of programs. Learn to swim classes for both children and adults, diving instruction, and adult water aerobics classes. My family personally benefited from these offerings. Both of my children learned to swim through the district's programs, and I thoroughly enjoyed uh participating in the water aerobics classes. These programs were understandably suspended during COVID. But now that CO is well managed and most other activities have resumed, it's time to bring back enrichment programs at the pool. I'd like to offer two reasons why reinstating them is important. First, during the discussions leading up to the turf field vote, I spoke at several meetings about the need to address deficiencies at the pool. At that time, Mr. Cahill uh he indicated that pool improvements would be part of a phase B plan. Reintroducing enrichment programs would
014help re-engage families with the pool. And when families are actively using and valuing a facility, they're far more likely to support future investments in it. Second, and more importantly, is this is a matter of safety and public health. According to the CDC, the United States, drowning is the leading cause of unintentional injury death among children ages 1 to four. And for children ages 5 to 14, it's the second leading cause of death right after motor vehicle crashes. Every year, hundreds of children die from drowning and thousands more suffer non-fatal incidents that can lead to brain injury, long-term disability, or learning challenges. These are preventable tragedies. As educators, you understand the power of education to change a child's life. But when you teach a child to swim, you may actually save their life. The district's enrichment
015swim lessons have not been reinstated since COVID, even though so many other activities have returned. That's a missed opportunity and a real loss for our community. I respectfully urge the district to bring back the swimming enrichment programs as soon as possible. Thank you. >> Thank you. [Applause] >> Okay, there is no update on questions or comments raised at prior meetings. Next is the approval of the minutes from the September 17th, 2025 meeting. Is there a motion? >> Motion. >> Second. >> All in favor? >> I motion carries. Approval of the agenda. Is there a motion? >> Motion. >> Second. >> All in favor? >> I. Motion carries. And for personnel, Mr. Burgerer. >> Good evening. I am respectfully asking for board approval of personnel items 9.1 through 9.25. >> Is there any questions? Is there
016a motion? >> Motion. >> Second. All >> in favor? >> I I motion. >> Miss Tober, I just have a quick question. Did we have the approval of the agenda twice on here? >> Yeah, I was going to speak to after the meeting. >> Uh, okay. So, we have a motion and and motion carries. There's a lot of personnel here. I have to get to my next section, business and financial. Mr. K. >> Thank you. I also respectfully request approval of business financial items 10.1 through 10.4 which include our monthly financial reports, a budget transfer for BOE approval, and the approval of a transportation contract with Orange Strobosis. >> Any questions? >> Motion. Motion second. >> Second. >> All in favor? >> I. Motion carries. >> Is there a motion to approve the recommendations of
017the committee on preschool special education? >> Second. >> All in favor? >> And reports by board and central office. >> Thanks. Thanks to North Main. Um, as the parent of a of a fifth grader, this is my 11th and final year of having a child at North Maine. So, I think the kids did an amazing job of capturing how awesome North Main is. So, great job everybody. Awesome. Um, just a few other quick things. Uh, hopefully everybody received an email about the announcement of the first ever Monberry Hall of Distinction. Um there's information in that email and on the district website about how to nominate. We're super super excited about um celebrating some of the the the notable people from our past, whether it be people who've contributed to the school district or people who
018are distinguished alumni. So please check out that information on the website. Uh the Hall of Distinction is made possible by the Hall of Distinction booster club that is donating all of the needed materials and items to the school district to roll out the Hall of Distinction. Uh please continue to look on the district website for additional news and updates related to that. Also our our district leadership committee met recently and the goal of the DLC this year is social emotional wellness with an emphasis particularly on cell phone use screen time and social media uh in the era of distracted free learning the governor's initiative. So there's going to be a variety of events that are going to be planned over the course of the school year around that theme. So I encourage people to please
019participate in that. The first one coming up is actually tomorrow night, October 9th. The high school PTSA is having an event on teens and technology presented by Dr. Sana Dave from the American Academy of Pediatrics. It's at the high school tomorrow evening. It's uh more information is on the district website. So we encourage people to please attend. Uh finally uh congratulations to our National Merit Scholarship winners that were recently announced this week and Red Ribbon Week is coming up. Please wear red on October 27th. Thanks. >> Before we move on to Miss Novak's report, I just want to back up a little bit on the agenda and do reports by committee chairs. >> Oh, >> so I'll start with Mr. Reynolds. Is there an update from visitation and >> Absolutely. So, we've had two visitation
020meetings. Um, just pulling up my notes here since the last meeting. Uh first one was at Pine Tree where we saw the new vestibule uh which looks great and obviously adds safety to our students and community members that are visiting there. And then uh the new playground obviously is a highlight for our students and hopefully our staff as well. Um nothing like seeing a teacher on a swing. So hopefully they're having a little fun. Um there's some things that we want to continue to do obviously through the capital project uh and things like that. And the uh the active floor I believe is what they called in the computer lab was kind of cool of how interactive that is for our students. So I recommend you ask your Pineree students about that and I think
021that's something we could look at the other schools as well if that's possible. Uh the middle school we visited after that. Um so the new gym floor is in looks great. The bleachers are coming in December I believe. Um so that will help us do volleyball games and everything else that's in there for people to arrive and go. Um there's some a little bit of some uh cameras that we need to update I think that are in the building. So that um that we talked about with Patrick and and the principles that will hopefully get uh done quickly. The ACs are great. It's nice and somewhat cool um in the middle school. So that's great for again our students and our staff and faculty. Uh and then we're looking to update some things in the
022cafeteria. Um, not only the cool stuff of the freezers and walk-in coolers, which I'm sure sure the students will love, um, but some exterial thing, exterior things as well, just to spruce it up a little bit for our middle school students. That's kind of the uh quick thing. And also one last thing, we're going to look into doing some fencing too as well um outside in that new play area where it's been paved and maybe some adding some soccer nets for our students so they can uh again be healthy lifestyle for for all of our students and obviously safety as well. >> That was the quick roll. >> Mr. Kale, do you want to add anything regarding the capital project? Uh we intend to uh have a uh presentation later in the month and uh
023I think a public presentation probably in early November. Uh we're going to roll out uh a lot of information. We we're very busy this summer with phase one of the construction uh of capital project phase one. So that was the vestibules. That was uh some work at the education center. Uh boilers at the high school, boiler at Smith Globe. So although it didn't appear like a lot was going on, there actually in fact was a lot going on. And phase two, uh, bids are out right now. We expect the bids back, uh, this month, later this month, and that will start, uh, probably before the summer. And phase two is largely about the reconstruction of the tennis courts and a lot of the HVAC work at Pineree. >> Thank you, M. Donghue. For policy, >>
024yes, we met on Friday, 9:26. We discussed several policies dealing with student regulations. They will be on the agenda at our next meeting, which I believe is October 22nd for first reading. Um, our next meeting will be on Friday, October 24th at 3:30 p.m. at the Har. And as always, our meetings are open meetings. >> Mr. Seriel, for audit. >> Yes, thank you. Um, audit committee, the first one of the year scheduled on October 20th, which is a Monday, at the Haramman Center. It is going to be a longer one than normal. Uh 6:00 to 6:30 will be uh the external audit report. 6:40 to 7:30 will be the internal audit report. And I just like to remind the public that you are invited to attend committee meetings. Uh and that's all I have. >>
025Thank you, Miss Novak. Now, >> um just wanted to say a big thank you to North for hosting us. Um it's always great to hear from our students, especially when they're giving us cookies. So, just wanted to extend my gratitude and and the the students did an excellent job. Um, and like Dr. Hassler, I had my children go to North Main. My my youngest is a sixth grader now. So, it's good to be back in the building for for one evening. >> Dr. Moras, >> thank you Mr. Davis and Miss Greenblat for your hosting the sport of ed meeting to our students who presented. Um, we are excited that all of our playgrounds are officially open. So there will be more to come about how we are marking that and everybody have a good night.
026>> Mr. Seriela, >> I want to thank North Main again for hosting. Um I want to thank the building building leadership, the students for the presentations. Um it's always nice to be on site and the building looks good. So thank you very much and have a great evening. >> Thank you Mr. Burgerer. >> Yeah, good evening. I too want to thank Mr. Davis, Mrs. Greenblat and North Main for hosting tonight. I thought that the students did an excellent job uh this evening. It's always great to be able to see the kids. Um I thought that the videos were great. Um it's it's great to highlight what our community or what our school community is. Um congratulations to all of the new hires, the new employees. I did a quick scan into the audience and we
027do have one new upcoming hire that is joining us this evening. So I did want to recognize and welcome Aiden or Rearen who's going to be a technical assistant with the MCC. So congratulations and welcome to Aiden and have a great evening. Thank you. >> Thank you Mr. Reynolds. >> Thank you for all of hosting us here and of course the kids are the best part. So have a great night. >> Dr. Vas big shout out to all the stakeholders for supporting us uh in a phone migration project. This was a big undertaking for us. It was just about 18 months of planning and we tried over the summer and we ran into some issues and we were able to successfully migrate that. So thank you for all your support and be patient uh with
028us in in during the transition time but now we are on the other side of Cisco call manager and we are already looking to expand it to the next system as well. Um also a big thank you to uh our all the administrator but especially high school and and middle school administrators, our teachers, students and parents uh for a good successful distraction-free learning. It's almost a month now. Um and and we are making some great strides. Um we have a we actually had and I didn't even get a chance to talk to cabinet and Dr. Norman about this, but we had a a person uh from Yonder on site today and he was super impressed with how both middle school and high school have done it. So Jason Rafael, you and your team did a
029really really great job with all the stakeholders. He did have some suggestions. So we are looking to always improvising the process that how can we better on the other hand we are also ready to send out a survey and and the purpose of this survey is to gather the feedback of what's working where we can improve some of the some of the areas and really inform us for the next step. So there are three different surveys that we are going to send out in next couple of days. One survey is for our students. So 6 to 12th grade students will get this survey. The the second survey is for our K12 parents and third survey would be for the entire school district staff and and really the purpose is to give us some feedback where
030can we improvise and then where can we support our students a little bit better. On that note, have a good night everyone. >> Thank you. >> Mrs. Tor, I'm sorry. Can I interrupt for one second and go out of order? I apologize. Uh, but when I was scanning I did not see we have one other new hire that's all the way in the back row and I could not see from my position but I would be remiss if I didn't recognize her as well. Um, so if I can I just want to quickly recognize we do have Megan Grimes who's joining us as a temporary teacher at Central Valley. She was a teaching assistant and is being um promoted to a teacher for the rest of this year. So congratulations and welcome to Megan as
031well. Sorry. >> Thank you Miss Donahghue. Thank you. Um, I'd like to thank North Main for hosting as always. Your hospitality is so inviting and your your students are amazing. I'm looking forward to eating. Um, thank you so much. >> Thank you, Mr. Cahill. >> Uh, I'd also like to thank North Main for hosting tonight. I'd like to wish student, staff, and parents continued success in the new year. And, uh, with that, I hope everyone has a nice evening. Thank you, Zoe. >> Good evening and happy BOE appreciation week. Firstly, those videos were incredibly sweet and very heartwarming. So, thank you. Um, thank you Nortmain for hosting us and thank you POE members around me for everything you've been doing for the past couple of months to even years. Um, for my report this meeting,
032I recently made a survey which was a Google form for high school students in grades 9 to 12. Um, the survey was published this afternoon around 3:30 p.m. in each graduating class's Google classrooms. And the survey has already gotten a couple of responses. The last time I checked, it was around 30. Um, so when it's out for a little bit longer, I would like to share the data and information in information with the board. In terms of the actual survey, I made it with the intention to see where the high school students head headsp space are for the start of the school year and what they are looking forward to. This form was also sent out anonymous besides their grade level so I could get some data from that. This is also so they aren't
033nervous about a name being attached to the answers and it will also allow them to be completely honest and transparent which is what I'm looking for. There were a total of 13 questions asked with a space at an end for anyone to voice any statements, concerns, or questions. Some of the questions were required and some weren't just so students are actually answering more than one question. The questions ask for what grade are you in? A required question. And then the next question will only shown to grades 10 to 12 and it's stated, what is one thing you enjoyed from the past years at the high school? Also a required question. Now for all the grades on a scale of one to five, how was the start of the school year been so far? With one
034being pretty difficult to five being a cakewalk, also a required question. What is one thing you are looking forward this school year? Do you feel safe at school? A required question. What's your favorite class? Also a required question. What is one thing you like about the school year so far? What is one thing you dislike about the school year so far? If you could change or add something to school, what would you do? What activities do you do after school and why do you enjoy them? A required question. How would you describe the overall school environment right now? Positive, stressful, exciting, exciting, disconnected, and more. A required question. What do you think would make your school years more enjoyable? What is something you want to see being improved on? And again, a place for them
035to voice statements, questions, or concerns at the end. I eventually want to put the same survey out to middle schools with the same exact questions. And I was also thinking two to five schools, but I want to dive into that more soon because I'm not sure exactly how that works. Um, I also plan to put out another form like this in the spring and winter as well with similar questions to see if any of the feedback or answers has changed throughout the school year. That's all from me and have a great rest of your week. >> Thank you, Zoe. Superintendent Norman. >> Good evening everyone. I want to first and foremost thank the North Main community for your warm hospitality. Our students are simply amazing. October is breast cancer awareness month. Students, staff, and community
036members are encouraged to think pink and wear jeans on Friday, October 17th to help build awareness for breast cancer. Members of our district will once again participate in the Hudson Valley Making Strides Against Cancer Walk on Sunday, October 19th. Hope to see you there. Reminder, Orange County dismissal drill is taking place on Friday, October 10th. This countywide drill would take place on Friday, October 10th, and students will be dismissed 15 minutes early. Parents and guardians should expect should be prepared for students to arrive home 15 minutes earlier than usual. Athletics Friday night lights. I've enjoyed our football games and I have to say I've done a lot of push-ups which means that they're scoring a lot of touchdowns. And I do want to acknowledge our cheerleaders because they um they work hard and uh they
037really your gift spirit and I promised them that I would acknowledge them whenever I had the platform. So thank you cheerleaders and certainly thank you to our athletes. I've also had the pleasure of attending some of our dive and swim competitions, bodified soccer and two JV football games that take place on Saturday. And I really want to encourage those that can to attend those. We want to make sure we support them as well. Board of Ed, I personally want to thank each and every member of our board of education for their commitment to our students, support of our staff, and dedication to serving the community. You truly are the key ingredient to our successful school district. We cannot do this important work without you. Thank you. Good evening. >> Thank you. And like everybody else,
038I want to thank North Main for having us here and the students and the presentations. And it's the best part of of the job seeing the students talk to us and presentations. And thank you to everybody for all the work that's been going on. And I'm happy to hear that the yonder pouches are successful. I know that there was a lot of apprehension initially about how this was going to work out and it seems to have been done seamlessly. So, thank you to all the staff and everyone that coordinated the uh new law for us. And uh with that, I wish everyone a good night and ask for a motion to adjurnn. >> Motion second. All >> in favor? I I >> meeting adjourned.