001Good evening. We'd like to call the meeting to order and welcome everyone. >> This meeting is being held in accordance with the schedule of meetings adopted at the organization meeting held on January 5th, 2026. Adequate notice of this meeting of the Kennaworth Board of Education has been provided to the Home News Tribune, the Star Ledger, and the local source on December 18th, 2025. A copy has been filed with the Kworth Burough Clerk, posted in the business office, the Kennorth Burough uh Hall, Harding, and Brley Schools as is provided by the public act. >> Thank you, Mr. Canal. Please rise and join us in the salute to the flag 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
002all. >> Mr. Roll call. >> Biner here. Crinkoli >> here. >> David here. >> Haber >> here. >> Ferdina >> here. >> Lead. >> Penichi >> here. Tears >> here. >> Zimmerman >> here. >> We have quorum. >> Okay. We will now have the receiving of the minutes and the committee notes of the secretary. Monday, January 5th, 2026, we had the organizational meeting. Monday, January 12th, 2026, we had the finance and facility negotiations committee meeting. Monday, January 12th, we had the regular board of education meeting. Wednesday, January 21st, 2026, we had the curriculum and instruction committee meeting. Wednesday, January 21st, 2026, we had tab committee and Wednesday, February 4th, 2026, we had finance and facilities committee meeting. Can we please have a motion to accept the receiving of the minutes and the committee notes of
003the secretary? >> Second. >> Motion made by Mr. Habith, seconded by Mr. Viner. All those in favor, please say I. I >> oppose. Eyes have it. Motion carry. Mr. Ganella, do we have any um monthly correspondence? Yes. So we have one item of uh correspondence this month uh a letter from our uh our auditor Mr. Robert Holert uh to myself regarding the 2025 425 uh audit uh which we will discuss a little bit later on. >> Okay. Can I please have a motion to accept the uh monthly correspondence please? >> So motion >> second motion made by Mr. Haber, seconded by Mr. Biner. All those in favor of accepting the monthly correspondence, please say I. >> I. >> Opposed. Eyes have it. Motion carries. We will now have the superintendent report and presentation. Superintendent Davies.
004>> Thank you, Dr. Penichi. Good evening, everyone. So great to see so many families here and so many students. Welcome. Um this is an exciting night because we get to recognize Harding Elementary School and the um the Let's Talk About It staff. So, I'm going to introduce Miss Diarpa, who is the adviser for the Let's Talk About It um student newspaper. Um but before she gets up there to introduce her students, I just want to personally thank um the students for their most recent edition of Let's Talk About It. In there was a tips and tricks section on Harding's ultimate guide to building the ultimate snowman, which I used with my nine-year-old daughter, and we built an ultimate snowman in my backyard. So, thank you Harding newspaper folks uh for that. Uh really helped out
005on our snow day two weeks ago. Uh Mr. Ypa, >> good evening everyone. It has been three years now that the newspaper club has been in full swing at Harding School. Being the adviser has given me the honor of working with students who have taken their writing skills to new heights. I've challenged writers to work on articles outside their comfort zones, stretch their creativity, and have taught them how to interview other peers and adults as well. I'd like to sincerely thank the board of ed, Mr. Davies, and our school administrators for their continued support for this program. Our club has been able to share student voices with the Kennorth community and has allowed students to not only grow as writers and journalists, but as thoughtful, engaged members of our school and town. We're grateful for
006your commitment to student expression and for believing in the value of their work. We have a few writers here with us tonight to discuss some of their favorite jobs that they've worked on this year. So, if my newspaper kids could come on up and introduce yourselves and share what you love about the newspaper club. >> Hi, my Hi, my name is Lucia Rizzo and I am a student in the fifth grade. One of my favorite jobs that I have done for the newspaper club is interviewing the Hawk of the Month kids and highlighting them because they won. That is one of my favorite jobs because I think they should be highlighted like that because they won and they deserve it. And I think it's a fun, good, and socializing idea because then you get to
007learn a little bit more about the person. And interviewing people is fun for me. Good evening everyone. I'm I'm Victoria Pastor and I'm in the fifth grade. Before I completely start, I would like to give a thank you to Miss Yara for teaching me how to write parts of a newspaper and for being a better writer. Anyways, my favorite part of newspaper club is that a good portion of my friends and I get to work together to create something that a lot of people enjoy reading. Another thing I tend to love about the newspaper club is that I have a lot of fun coming up with new ideas to write about. One of my favorite activities has been doing the word searches, jokes, and rails. Before I finish, I would like to say it has
008been an honor to be here. It is an honor to be here. I am very glad I got to come. I hope you all I hope you all have a good evening. Thank you. Good evening everyone. My name is Jackson Kapper and I'm in fifth grade. One of the things I love most about the newspaper club is that we get to recognize students by writing the Hawk of the Month articles for each grade and get to learn a little more about the students when interviewing them. I also wanted to thank Miss Arpa for giving us all these opportunities and helping us step outside our comfort zone when writing everything. Hello, my name is Matthew Ramirez and two things that I that I love about newspaper club is that I'm part of something that makes a
009school community happy and have seen my hard work in in a printed newspaper. Although Miss Yara helps us too. Thank you for supporting our newspaper club. >> Hi, my name is Leticia Lerta and my newspaper club favorite is for sure Hawk of the Month. The reason why I talk of the month is because I got to interview kids and learn about their feelings and opinions. Hi, my name is Angelina Diaz and it's a pleasure to be here. I am a member of the newspaper club. What I love about being part of the newspaper club is I am able to interact with the younger students and talk to them. Good evening, Board of Education members, administration, teachers, family, and friends. My name is Alexi Feroli, and I'm in I'm a fifth grader in Harding's newspaper club.
010My favorite writing piece in the newspaper club is current events. This is my favorite because I get to write about what's going on in the world. I also benefit from writing about current events because I learn about the world around me. Not only do I write about world occurrences, but I also update the students of Harding on events happening within the school. It keeps others informed and gets the student body excited about the activities, assemblies, and events that are happening throughout the school year. I enjoy being part of the newspaper club at Harding and I'm honored to be speaking at the meeting tonight. Thank you for allowing me to share a little piece of what makes Harding's newspaper club so special. I hope you enjoy the rest of your evening. >> Hi, I'm Melissa Detos
011and I'm in the fifth grade and I'm a member of the newspaper club. I enjoy being in newspaper club because instead of writing boring essays, we can write about fun events going on in our community and also highlights of our school concerts, fun trends that kids enjoy right now, and many more. It's really fun getting to interview the principal and hawk of the month winners, too. It makes me feel like a real life reporter. The newspaper club is super fun because not only are we writing fun articles, but we also get to talk to our friends and create all these articles based on different themes, which is so much fun. Also, getting to do different activities in the newspaper club feels like going on an adventure. Those are some reasons why I love the newspaper
012club. Good evening everyone. My name is Alexander Chinawi and I'm in the newspaper club. And one of my favorite things about the newspaper club is oneliners. Not only do I email the teacher by may go to them. It takes me a breaking as I'm walking to the classroom. And honestly, I just need listening ears in a post and I'm done. The second favorite thing is making jokes. Like I know what to make. I can make any joke now. There are millions in the world, but I create tons. No need for Wi-Fi. It's done for you. Ens are just one or two things. The email you make, you don't do lots or lots of stuff. You do what is needed and and the rest is done for you. Thank you everyone for coming here to make
013the speech. I hope everyone has a wonderful time. Hello everyone. My name is Madison and I am a member of the newspaper club. My favorite genre I've written about this year was the second grade Hawk of the month. It was my favorite because the kids I interviewed were kind. Getting to meet the kids and talking to them in person helped them connect with me, making the interview process more interesting. I also loved it because the kids I interviewed were able to answer the questions I asked perfectly. They were extremely extremely polite while I was interviewing them and they had fun answering my questions. The newspaper club has helped me write better articles and essays. It has given me opportunities to expand my mind and to think outside the box. Lastly, I want to thank Mrs.
014Yara for motivating us and encouraging us to write for our community. Thank you for having us and I hope to write many more articles this year. >> Good evening members of the board, teachers, parents, and friends. My name is Benny Aovo and thank you for inviting us to this board of education meeting tonight. It is a pleasure to be here. Being part of the newspaper club is a great time to write about what's going on in our school. Miss Arpa is a great teacher. The newspaper club has helped us be creative and we really enjoy being part of this club. Thank you for giving us the chance to speak with you today about something that means a lot to us. Our newspaper club is more than just writing articles. It's where students become reporters and
015editors. We learn to how to ask questions, gather information, and share important news with our school. Thank you for listening and for supporting us that students learn and express themselves. Well, clearly you can see I am very very lucky to have such excellent writers in this program this year. Um, this year we actually just moved it to only fifth grade students when sixth grade came over to the middle school. It was uh our big kids, our fifth graders time to shine. So, they have really enjoyed it. Mr. Davies has a copy of all of for all of you your recent our recent issue and we've got a couple more coming out for the rest of the school year. So, thank you for having us tonight. >> Thank you. >> So, we're going to do a
016um group photo with the background if you wouldn't mind. Um, and while that's being set up, just to say thank you to all the students who came here tonight to speak. Um, you all are very polished in and poised in your speaking abilities as well as your writing abilities. So, congratulations and thank you. And I just encourage you to stay involved as you move forward in your school experience. >> So, we'll need all students with Miss Darpen. >> Yes. And parents, if you need to uh snap a shot, go for it. Thank you. >> Thank you everybody. >> Uh we appreciate your service to your school and your district. Thank you for coming out tonight. And students, on your way out, there's a little Valentine's treat on the counter in a little bag. Um so
017if you could each take one on your way out the door. Uh, thanks for being here tonight. >> Thank you, Mr. ARPA. >> Everybody, >> thank you. Bye. Bye. >> As they're heading out the door. Um, next in the superintendence report, I'd like to introduce Miss Katie Lima, who is our student rep liaison to the board. So, Katie is going to give us the student report. >> Go ahead, Kate. >> Okay, perfect. Well, now that I'm up here, I feel a little intimidated. They all did so good. I'm like, I don't know how I'm going to top that. Anyway, I hope you all had a great past few weeks and that you all enjoyed the big game yesterday with your families. hopefully it went in your favor and if it didn't I sincerely apologize for
018the loss and you'll get them next time. Um I wanted to start off with an update on our winter sports. Our Brley track and field team was most recently at the Ocean Breeze Invitational taking third in the boys 200 meter relay and fourth in the girls 55 meter hurdles. The boys basketball team is set to play Perth and boy Tech at a home game. And the girls basketball just most recently won against Hillside at an away game, bringing home a great win of 50 to 38. We actually have our coach in the house tonight, Mr. Ryan. Um, and our boys wrestling team just went three for three against Irvington, Lynden, and East Side in a great senior here at Brley. Ryder V just hit 100 career wins, which is an amazing win for Brley. Um,
019and all in all, it has been a great winter sports season so far, and we are looking forward to come. In recognition of this past January being trafficking awareness month, a junior here at Brley, Brianna Rivera is leading a she's an office donation drive to support women in shelters where donations are going to end on March 1st. She also serves on the She's an Office exclusive board and She's in Office is an international youthled organization dedicated to empowering youth to drive gender equality through political action and community leadership. This initiative promotes community service and social responsibility connecting Brley to a meaningful cause beyond our small town here. So it's a very amazing initiative that she's leading. And Brley has launched a new scholarship website offering local scholarships for students at Brley applying to college and
020also those pursuing vocational trades providing easier access to funding opportunities. Looking forward, we have the annual student council volleyball game is scheduled for Thursday, February 26th, where each team will have a unique theme and color as they compete in friendly rivalry. Um, the Black Cultural Society will hold its third annual Black Cultural Celebration on Friday, February 27th. The event will feature performances from the dance team. It will have opportunities to learn about history and we'll also have delicious food. So hopefully everyone shows out. And spirit week is coming up in the first week of March with fun dressup themes to boost school spirit and student engagement. That's something to look forward to. And we also have a day off on President's Day giving us a three-day weekend. And that is just one of the many
021things we have coming up to look forward to as well. And I guess to close out, I want to say thank you again for this opportunity. It's always a pleasure and I hope you all have a wonderful rest of your night. Thank you. Thank you, Katie. Does anyone have any questions for Katie before we move forward? Um, I'd also like to introduce now Miss Kathleen Derillo. Miss Cath Miss Derillo is our director of student personnel services and she is here tonight with our CPAG group. >> Hi, good evening. Um, tonight we have the opportunity to learn about CPAC, uh, the special education parent advisory group. At the heart of CPAG um are parents and we have two amazing ones here to talk to us. Um I'd like to introduce Miss Monica Tawari uh and Miss
022Lissa Herman. They are our co-presidents to talk a little bit about CPAG. >> Thank you, Miss Durillo. Good evening, President Ponichi, members of the board, Superintendent Davies, and members of the school community. My name is Monica Tari and I'm proud to serve as the president of Kennel CPAC and I'm here with Lissa uh Herman who is the co-president. Uh I'm also a Kennle resident and a parent in the district. Thank you for the opportunity uh to share an overview of our district's special education parent advisory group also known as CPAG. A special education parent advisory group or CPAC is a statemandated district level parent-driven group. Its purpose is to provide input to the so local school district on system level change challenges related to special education and related services under New Jersey administrative code section
0236A chapter section 1.2H that took me a while to read. Each board of education is required to ensure that a CPAC is in place to provide input on issues concerning students with disabilities. CPAC also helps uh build positive relationships. They create opportunities for parents and school leaders to establish shared goals and priorities, connect with teachers and child study team and collaborate with community resources to improve programs and services. Parents are as Merlo mentioned are the core members of CPAC. It includes parents of children with disabilities who have ind individualized education programs as well as the parents of children without disabilities too. Whether those students are educated within district placed outside of the district. While CPACs are parent driven, other members may participate to support collaboration. This may include school leaders such as the district supervisor
024of special services or members of the board of education, teachers, child study team members, other school professionals, students or former students and community members committed to improve to improving education. So actually just everybody in the community, school community as well as the town community could participate in improving outcomes for all of our students, especially students with disabilities. A CPAC is not intended to focus on a single disability category, a single school, or a single issue. Instead, it is designed to benefit all students with disabilities across the district. At its core, a CPAC provides parents with a formal and constructive avenue to offer direct input on district policies, programs, practices that impact students with disabilities. An effective CPAC can help improve educational outcomes and overall well-being for students with disabilities. CPACs work best when there is
025an ongoing collaboration between families and district leadership. Our CPAC meets monthly, typically on the last Thursday or Friday. We warmly welcome board of education members, district leaders to attend our meetings, listen and engage with the parent community. Some of our upcoming sessions would include a workshop on understanding IEPS led by Miss Darello and an informal informational session on DVRS DDD as well as transition to adulthood. So thank you so much for this opportunity board members and especially to Mr. Davies for inviting us to present our CPA group. We hope we see some of you over there uh to have a good conversation and work collaboratively with the school district. Thank you so much everybody. Have a good evening. Thank you uh both for being here. I appreciate the the active and energized um leadership that
026you've shown to CPAC. It's been it's great to see that in our district. Um great to see parents engaging. So, thank you so much for your leadership. Um I want to give provide an update on our uh David Brley High School principal search. After 40 applicants, uh 15 who made it to a round one interview, uh three then made it to a round two interview, two made it to a round three interview, and one finalist made it to the personnel committee. Um so we put him through the ringer for sure. U and I am proud to introduce tonight our finalist for David Brley's next educational leader who is standing in the back. Um and I'd like to introduce Mr. Vincent Kukaro. Um before he speaks for a moment, Vin describes himself as loyal. He presents
027as eager for David Berley High School, not just any principal position, but our principal position. And I love seeing that in him. Um he's someone who's going to invest himself in Kennallorth and make our high school his home for a long time. The leadership team sees him as a strong communicator, willing to have tough conversations with any individuals, good conversations with any individuals. He was a high school English teacher for nine years prior to entering school leadership as an assistant principal. He writes well, speaks well, and carries himself with confidence. The Brley staff interviewed him and saw him as approachable with strong interpersonal skills, someone whom you'd easily be able to speak with. His references talked about how hardworking he is. And our Brley student panel described him as as leading with heart. Um, our
028students saw him as someone who will truly care about each student and the well-being of our school. So, I am eager for Vin to take over on April 15th. In the meantime, he and the leadership team will be coordinating several high school visits uh over the coming weeks. Um I'm confident in Vincent Cucharo's leadership. As you know, the success of David Brley is near and dear to me, not just because I'm superintendent, but because I called Brley home uh for four years as its principal. It's a special place with some amazing staff members, some wonderful students, and Mr. Kukaro is the educational and instructional leader that will take Brley forward in a positive direction. Uh with that I just draw your attention to resolution number 15 which is his approval. Um so I look forward
029to welcoming Mr. Kukarella. Vincent, >> thank you. Thanks everybody for being here. I thought um Miss Darpa's new newspaper club is going to be tough to follow but and uh Katie raised the bar even higher. So I'm up for the challenge. Um I tried to wear my beerly colors tonight. Blue and yellow. Hope uh hope it looks okay. Um good evening, President Ponichi, uh members of the board of education, Superintendent Davies, colleagues, families, community members. Thank you so much for the warm welcome and for the opportunity to speak this evening. I understand it's a late night, so thank you all for being here. I appreciate it. I'm honored to stand before you as a newly appointed principal of David Brley High School. First thing I want to do is express my sincere gratitude to the
030board of ed and superintendent Davies for the trust you've placed in me. I don't take this responsibility lightly and I'm deeply appreciative of the confidence that you've shown in me. Barely has a strong tradition of academics, student involvement, and community pride as I've learned more about this district and what st but what stands out is not just the programs or achievements but the people, the dedicated educators, the engaged families, the students who bring the energy, the curiosity, the purpose every day to the building. As principal, my top priority is student success academically, socially, and emotionally. I believe every student deserves a safe, supportive, and challenging learning opp environment where they feel seen, valued, and empowered to reach their full potential. Achieving that requires strong relationships, clear expectations, and a shared commitment to growth. I look
031forward to working closely with our teachers and staff, partnering with families, and listening to student voices. Together, we'll build on the strength strengths already in place while continuing to meet the evolving needs of our students. I also want to emphasize my commitment to open communication and transparency. My door will always be open. I want to thank my family, my wife, Linda, my 12-year-old daughter, Bren, my 10-year-old son, Jude, and my five-year-old daughter Blake, and even our dog, Silly Lily, at home. They made this moment possible. So, thank you. I really do appreciate it. You guys are everything to me. Um, I'm incredibly grateful to have you all by my side when I take on this new role. A few other people I just want to mention quickly. My current principal in my current district is
032outstanding. She's a true role model for me. Heather Pinoy, thank you. JP Mavati, John Vitali, I work with handinand every day. Uh, they're just a great team to work with. Same with Superintendent Mary McLaughlin. Um, I want to thank my mother and my father, my in-laws who are both in education. Uh, my sisters who are both in education. So, I do want to thank one more person, which is a story I've told a little bit. So, I'm hoping uh you bear with me as a former English teacher. I love stories. Um, I don't know who the person I want to thank is, and I'm hoping to get to meet them one day. Uh, my first inerson interview of Brley, Mr. uh Mr. Davies gave me some very specific instructions. said, "Enter through Monroe Street and
033park at the unmarked spots on the left." So, I pulled in, not really nervous, but excited. And as I pulled in, that excitement kind of went away because every single parking spot was taken. So, I wasn't sure what to do. I kind of sat there a few minutes. I decided I was going to pull around to the back and I parked in spot 101, the same spot I parked in every single time I've been here since that day. And as I walked up, again, still not nervous, but a little bit uneasy. Kind of throw threw me off a little. I wasn't sure if Mr. Davies was testing me or not, if this was part of the interview process. Um, and as I walked up the sidewalk here, right outside these very windows, a staff member
034was coming out and her hands were full of everything a teacher holds. Lunch, coffee mug, bags, I assume, all types of whatever it might have been, essays, quizzes, whatever that person was working on. And I was dressed similar to this. And I guess she knew that I was coming in to interview. and uh she said the front entrance is right up that way to the left and don't worry you'll do great. Good luck. And that's what really made me appreciate the people of Brley. That's what made me really want this position. Not a position, this position. So, whoever that person is, I hope to meet them soon. Um I'm beyond excited to begin this journey with the Beerley Beerley community. I'm proud to serve this district. I'm fully committed to uploading the values and advancing
035the mission. Um, one more short story if you don't mind. When I was going through the application and interview process, I talked to my dad. My dad grew up uh in Union County, went to Westfield High School. So, I asked him a little bit about Kennallorth. Give me some background. He gave me four words. Great town, great people, and that's all that that's all I needed to be sold. So, um, thanks again for the opportunity. Thank you again for the support. I look forward to serving the community. I look forward to serving the school. Thank you very much. Look forward to the work ahead. Have a great night. >> Thank you, Vin. Um, your family probably wants to head out, but before you do, we have a little welcome gift for you and some candy
036bags for your kids because they're out here late on a on a Monday night. So, thank you so much. Alo get Congratulations. >> You're welcome to stay, but >> my oldest has a basketball game against Scotch Plane, so try and manage it. We'll see. >> Thank you for being here. >> Absolutely. >> Hello, family. >> Thank you for coming. Congratulations. Um, moving on in our um report, just a couple of more things. School calendarwise. I just want the the board to know that we have the school calendar um uh in your packets. And just to give you a few details, we are planning on starting the school year for staff before Labor Day. Uh so there's three days of professional development before students return. That's before Labor Day. and then students would return the day
037after Labor Day, the Tuesday. Um, we also uh are proposing a move of Harding's parent teacher conferences to align with Breley's midterms so that we can ease some of the difficulties of altered schedules on families so that um all students during the January week have um partial days as opposed to Harding in November, Brley in December. Uh yeah, that'd be great. Um, spring break is aligned with the Easter holiday, high school graduation, and the last day of school is June 17th. Um, and note that we built in one snow day in this upcoming um calendar. Um, the attempt was to try to finish school right before that three-day weekend in um in June. So, that's why we made some of those decisions. Um the calendar itself will be voted upon at the March meeting, but
038I wanted you to have an advanced copy and kind of review some of these details with the public um in advance. Um so there's an opportunity to make any changes, but I just want you to have the calendar in your um hands. Also, um by statute, we have to report our school safety data system, um the SSDs report. So um that's what you see on the screen ahead of you and then it's also in your packet. Um, so we report in January or we report at the end of January and we report at the end of June. Um, so we do this twice a year. So you see a comparison of the violence, vandalism, substance, weapons, HIVs, um, and then, uh, other disciplinary infractions that caused a suspension. So the yellow is the most recent
039term January through um I should say September through January, pardon me. Um so the yellow there should be um what we're currently looking at. Um you'll see some of our HIVs that are confirmed have risen. U so that's the thing that kind of stands out to me in this area. Um, I credit that to hard work on the part of our staff who are identifying HIVs and I identify I I look to that as not a great statistic but a statistic that shows that there our teachers, our staff and our administrators are being responsive to things that are happening um in hallways or classrooms. Um, so while we don't love that statistic going up to 11, um, it is important to note that that shows that when we have issues, we deal with them and
040we take them seriously and we act upon them. Um, so I don't ever want to shy away from that kind of data. Um, so I wanted to highlight that as um, we want to make sure that those those go down, but it's also not a bad thing that we're dealing with stuff because this these type types of things happen in schools. Um the next slide is just the um statistics behind the trainings that we've done. So you'll see comparable to um things in the past, we haven't had a lot of restraints this year. So that's a good statistic there. Uh Mr. Gaggle, did you want to speak briefly about um our >> the imposttor? >> Our imposttor who's sitting here, our guest playing Anthony Lady. >> Uh so uh thanks very much. Um so uh
041I think you all know that for the past approximately 20 years my deputy in serving the Kenworth Board of Education ML Fabian has announced her intention to retire as of June 1. And while there are a whole host of attorneys at our firm who support our education clients, I've always thought it beneficial that a client only really deal with a subset of that lest you deal with a uh revolving cast of strangers who don't know the district well. Uh Brian Jardina, who has been with our firm for several years, has handled some uh him and I think he's been before you for a hearing with Janelle maybe about a year or 18 months ago. And so given uh Brian's expertise and his prior service to the district, made sense to me to have Brian deputized
042to assist in serving Kennaworth. So when you are not um seeing me at one of your meetings, you will see Brian and I know that periodically uh Jeremy and Vincent when they need assistance, if they don't reach me, of course there are other people, Janelle, Carrie, Wright, whatever. They'll also be dealing with Brian now in the wake of ML's retirement. So Brian, I don't know if you want to say anything. I didn't tell you to prepare something, but >> No, no. Just happy to be here and work with you all. So super excited. >> Thank you. >> Welcome. >> Thank you, sir. >> Yeah, absolutely. Um, in terms of policies, resolutions 30, 31, and 32 um are just of note. Resolution number 30 is a new there's two new policies in question. uh policy in
043regulation 1552 um is sexual harassment. Um this is a it's a new policy but it's based on old policies. So you'll also see simultaneously in resolution 32 the abolishment of 3362 and 4352. So um Strauss SMA is recommending the abolishment of those two and the creation of the new sexual harassment policy. This is to line align with um guidance regarding title seven or title nine. Um in the end when we have questions about sexual harassment, we call our attorneys um and take their guidance. But this does require us to think about the complaint procedure um of sexual harassment and um it's combining those two. The 3362 was about staff complaints and 353 4352 was about sta um support staff. So teaching staff and support staff have now been combined into one sexual harassment policy. Um
044no real changes within the policy. So I think it's um one that can easily um be approved. U but this is the first reading of that. Um the other new policy is policy and regulation um 2535 um and this is about library materials. So New Jersey recently passed the freedom to read act. Um that policy guides the cur curation of library materials uh establishes criteria for the removal of library materials and provides protections against attempts to censor library materials. So um that's what that policy is all about. Um then the revision is about 2530 that's resource materials 2530 is being revised simply because library materials have been removed from resource materials. Um so that revision is nothing much. Um, so I just wanted to kind of cover those in resolutions 30, 31, and 32. Couple
045last things. Um, you'll see resolution 13 is the retirement of Lisa Sihojis. Um, this is the acceptance of um, Lisa's letter of retirement. Miss Saijis has served the students of Harding Elementary School since 2006. Uh for 20 years in Kennallorth and five years prior in previous out of state districts, Miss Ahojis has served as our special education reading specialist, providing one-on-one and small group instruction to our most struggling readers. Miss Ahojis has the skill and the strength to grow students abilities and confidence in reading, enabling to flourish in ELA classes and across all disciplines. The district and I thank Miss Ahojis for her service to the youth of Kennorth, and we wish her all the best in her retirement. We look forward to celebrating her retirement at the last regular board of education meeting in
046June. Thank you. Thank you for saying that. >> Sure. >> Um you'll also see resolution number 14 um which is another res uh retirement. Um and that is Mr. Ganella's retirement. U so I wanted to just make a m take a moment to recognize him uh and resolution 14. Mr. Ganella has served the district since 1989. Um, and he has navigated our district through deregionalization, the es and flows of school funding crises, and most recently the expansion and renovation of our campus facilities and the grounds laying the foundation for the creation of a middle school and the expansion of prek. His management and oversight of our district security, facilities, financing, operations, and governance reveal a career consistently centered on student successes. Words that come to mind to describe his service to our students include dedication,
047pride, and loyalty. The loyalty that he has shown Kennallorth for 37 years in the same position is unmatched in our profession. I look forward to recognizing Mr. Canela's broad and lasting impact on the youth of Kennallorth in the fall when that retirement date does come. In the meantime, the district will be searching for Kennallorth's next business administrator and board secretary. This is a very consequential position to fill as you know and the institutional knowledge that he holds is significant. Um I will be conducting a thorough and expert search to find the best candidate to recommend to the board someone who will ensure the continued fiscal strength of our district. So an early congratulations and thank you to Mr. Canelo. Thank you. Uh, with that, um, there are, um, three HIVs that were investigated this past
048month in January. Uh, there was one at David Billy Middle School, two at David Billy High School. Two of them were unfounded and one was founded. Those details are in your packets if you have any questions. Um, I'll be happy to to answer them. Um, and as you're also looking through things, there's the January discipline report, there's the enrollment report, and the residency report. Um, and that concludes my report from the superintendent. I just want to wish everyone a happy Valentine's Day. Um, as we head into the long weekend, happy President's Day. Um, and I hope everyone enjoys that, uh, Monday holiday. Anyone have questions for Superintendent Davies or do you would you like a moment or two to read any of the reports or have any questions? >> I have a question just about
049the calendar. So the Harding School um proposed is that the Harding School um conferences will be >> In January when the teacher has much longer time to really get to know the student. >> Yeah, this this idea came from the teachers. They're looking forward to having a full trimester under their belt, having more data under under their watch so that they can really speak to the parents about the progress that they're seeing in their children. >> Great. >> Questions? Okay, seeing no questions, we'll now move on to report of committees, review of resolutions, and board discussions. Up first is Mr. Ganella, who will be reporting um finance, facilities, and negotiations from Mr. Solid. >> Thank you. Uh typically uh the board would be accepting the annual comprehensive financial report um uh for the prior year
050at this meeting. However, due to some unforeseen personal circumstances, uh the board's auditor has uh withdrawn from comp uh completing the financial report. Um it is important to note that the district fully prepared and has completed all required technical milestones. August uh in August of 2025 the audit field report uh fieldwork was completed in September uh additional testing examination was completed by the auditors in December review of the ASSA and DRTRS data data was finalized and also in December the odds sum was certified and uploaded which is a critical piece to the uh budget process. Uh the next steps uh will be um that we will proactively uh seek formal direction for the Department of Education to determine the district's uh next regulatory steps to finalize the filing. I've been in contact with our executive
051county superintendent and he has been in contact with the department of ed um and hopefully they will be getting back that determination soon. Uh resolution number 10 on this evening's agenda acknowledges this delay. So, we wanted to formally uh acknowledge it and incorporate it in the formal record. Um, moving on to more finance and facility uh committee stuff. Um, the committee formally uh began its review of the 2627 budget um at the uh February 4th committee meeting. Uh the notes were included in this evening's packet for your review. Uh the committee is conducting a department uh by department deep dive into uh uh to ensure instructional uh integrity uh despite the f uh uh financial constraints which there are numerous ones. Uh on February 4th we reviewed the Harding Elementary School program uh human resources
052curriculum and instruction uh with specific focus on textbooks and professional development. And I thank the administrators who participated in those discussions. On February 11th, uh this Wednesday, we're scheduled to review the David Brley Middle and High School uh budgets, guidance, uh department, uh special services, and athletics. And then on February 25th, a review of phase three school business administration documentation. And then on March 9th, the administrators will uh present uh budget highlights or lowlights um to the public. Um uh to further complicate uh an already challenging budget season, the governor's budget address uh originally scheduled for February 24th may be delayed. Uh pending legislation uh could move the address to March 10th uh from uh the 24th, February 24th, which would push the release of the critical state age figures uh to March 12th. Uh
053given that state aid or lack thereof is the cornerstone of our uh district's financial planning, we are monitoring these developments closely to ensure the uh projections remain accurate. Uh this budget cycle is particularly critical as the district prepares to navigate a projected uh fiscal cliff and significant budgetary challenges. We are carefully monitoring several uh key variables. State aid, potential double doubledigit increases in health benefits, rising utility costs, uh program compliance requirements, and other strategic and and the strategic use of our reserves. If we are able to navigate this budget season without further reductions to staffing or programs, it is solely due to the discipline uh use of reserve and the proactive decision to suspend spending midway through the fiscal year 25 and even earlier in fiscal year 26. However, this strategy is not sustainable. Eventually,
054the reliance on reserves will no longer be a viable solution to the fiscal cliff as the ability to regenerate those funds uh is reaching its limit. Uh some uh several uh highlight resolutions on this evening's agenda. Number seven includes payments to contractors for referendum projects. Number eight is awarding a contract to Musco lighting for the ward field upgrades um uh light to the lighting uh system utilizing a mix of state aid and bond funds. Uh number nine is a contract extension for custodial services to Pritchard Industries for the 2627 school year. Uh resolution number 11 sets the 2026 Harmon Horus Haymon Memorial Scholarship awards for the class of 2026. This year, uh, the total, um, award will be, uh, $6,000, uh, to various students. Uh, resolution number 12 is tuition reimbursement for graduate courses to
055to administrators for their fall 2025 semester. That's all I have. >> Anyone have questions for Mr. Ganella on the finances negotiations report? >> Thank you, Mr. Ganella. Next, Personnel and Management. Mr. Habith. >> Oh, Mr. David. >> Oh, I'm sorry, Mr. David. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. >> No worries. Um, so the personnel committee met briefly last Wednesday um to meet and ask questions of excuse me, our new principal. Um, and that's uh basically it on that. And then we have a number of resolutions this evening. Resolutions 13, 14, and 15. Mr. Davies already went over in his report. Um, resolution 16 approves um some aids. Um, resolution 17 um rescends an employment offer for a special education aid. Resolutions 18 and 19 um approve a revised maternity leave for staff. Resolutions 20 and 21
056um approve the employment of lead replacement teachers. Resolution 22 is a voluntary transfer um from of staff member from um Harding to Brley. Resolution 23 approves the appointment of staff to tutor M middle middle school students. Resolution 24 approves unused vacation days for our former principal. See, resolution 25 approves some athletic volunteers um basically baseball coaches for spring 2026 season. Resolution 26 approves um uh yeah, approves the appointment of current and future um cafeteria and playground aids. And let's see. And finally, resolution 27 um approves some substitute staff. And that's all I have. >> Any questions for Mr. B? >> Okay. Thank you. Up next, curriculum instruction. Mrs. Tears. >> Um on Wednesday, January 21st, 2026, the curriculum committee met. Um, we discussed the 2026 2007 course updates, district math updates, um, strategic planning, high
057school academic and career pathways, and upcoming PDS. We have two resolutions tonight. The first one, resolution 28, is for the school safety data system, and resolution 29 is the HIP report from December 2025. Questions for Mrs. Tears? Anyone have questions about policy that Mr. uh Davies, Superintendent Davies went over before? Okay. Thank you. We'll now move on to old business. Any old business? I'd like to remind the public, please continue to read the Friday folders, check our websites, follow all the information. If you have questions, please look on our websites for the right leadership, teachers, anyone that you need to contact. Please make sure that you're leveraging all the information that's available to you on the website. Any new business? Just for Superintendent Vince, um because just looking at the residence report, I remember a
058few months ago, we we talked to the guy in Zoom about digital information. I forget what it was as that guy started. >> No, we're going to we're going to probably start that in July. >> Okay. We just could not get the quick turnaround over Christmas break and uh couldn't get all our ducks lined up for that. >> Just just curious heavy heavy duty vetting process as you can imagine >> the information that they were pulling requires a lot of vetting. So >> July. >> All right. Thanks. >> Anyone else with new business? No. Okay. Seeing none, we will now move on to the public portion. comment of the meeting. Is there a motion to open up the meeting to the public? >> Motion. >> Second. >> Motion made by Mr. Hudina, seconded by Mr.
059Hith, I'm sorry, Mr. David. All those in favor of opening the meeting to the public, please say I. >> Opposed? Eyes have it. Motion carried. Mr. Gell. >> Yes. >> Public comment will now be accepted. The board of education sets a limit for the public to speak at a board meeting to 5 minutes per person unless prior permission has been granted by the board of education to for extended time pursuant to BOE bylaw 0167. Please be reminded that while uh while members of the board may speak on uh while members of the public may speak on personnel matters during public comment, the board of education is legally prohibited from discussing individual personnel issues in public unless the employee at issue has been requested has requested a public discussion. The board's role is to set policy
060and ensure the effective operation of our schools while personnel recommendations are exclusive responsibility of the superintendent of schools. The board reviews and acts on those recommendations in accordance with state uh uh law and district policy but does not initiate or manage individual staffing decisions. >> Hey, thank you. Is there any public that would like to come up and speak at this time? >> No. Okay, >> seeing motion to close the public portion of the meeting. >> Second. >> Motion made by Mr. David, seconded by Mrs. Tears. All those in favor of closing the meeting to the public, please say I. >> I. >> Opposed? Eyes have it. Motion carried. The meeting is now closed to the public for comment. Mr. Ganella, are we ready to uh vote on roll call resolutions? >> Yes, we are.
061Uh there are 32 resolutions on this evening's agenda. Any of those need to be voted on separately? >> No. Okay. for resolutions 1 through 32 on the agenda. Biner, >> yes. >> Crinkolei, >> yes. >> David, >> yes. >> Haber, >> yes. >> Herd, >> yes. >> Tears, >> yes. >> Zimmerman, >> yes. >> Panichi, >> yes. >> Motion carries. >> Thank you. Do we have a need to go into close executive session? >> Yes, we do. >> Okay. Can I please have a motion to go into close executive session? >> Second made by Mr. >> Motion made by Mr. David, seconded by Mrs. Tears. All those in favor of going into close executive session, please say I. >> Opposed. Eyes have it. Motion carry. Mr. Ganella. >> Yes. Uh, be it resolved by the
062board of education um that the board meet in private session from which the public shall be excluded to discuss the topics of personnel and to conduct the KA grievance hearing uh which private discussion is being held pursuant to section 7 uh B and 8 of the open public meetings act. Matters under this discussion will be disclosed to the public as soon as final decisions are made and voted upon. Biner, >> yes. >> Crioli, >> yes. >> David, >> yes. >> Haber, >> yes. >> Harderina, >> yes. >> Tears, >> yes. >> Zimmerman, >> yes. >> Ponichi, >> yes. >> Motion carries. >> Okay. Uh, we will be going into close session. This concludes the public portion of the meeting. Uh, we will be not be returning and we will not be taking any action this
063evening. >> Thank you. Have a good night.