001of the Mal Board of Education is open to members of the public to be physically present. Members of the public that attend will be asked to follow the same procedures as all other visitors to our schools. Those procedures can be found on the agenda page of our website. Additionally, the board meeting will be livereamed for viewing purposes only. Anyone wishing to view the meeting may do so via Zoom. Webinar ID is 8438994925 and the required password is 2110891. Call this meeting to order. Roll call please. >> Mr. Delva >> here. >> Mr. Kasmarski >> here. >> Mr. Copan >> here. >> Mr. Gavin >> here. >> Miss Daviniro. >> Mr. Mr. >> here, >> Mr. Hughes >> here, >> Mrs. King Jansen >> here, >> Dr. Dorothy >> here. Adequate notice that the agenda for
002this meeting has been provided to the Ridgewood News in the record specifying that the Mala Board of Education will meet on December 17th, 2025 at the Lambbe Meadow School, 160 Ridge Road, Mama, New Jersey. A copy was filed with the township clerk. uh a salute to our flag which is um Mr. Diance >> 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. Thank you, Mr. Denise. Um, all right. We are going to recess quickly uh for executive session in the beginning about 10 minutes or so and we will return. All right. Thank you. >> Oh, sorry. Oh, I need a motion. >> I'll make that. >> Yes. Motion to recess to executive session. Mr. Kasmarste by
003Mr. Hughes. Now we All right. I make a motion to reconvene to public action meeting this side. Mr. Coplin second by Mr. D. You um agenda questions. Please limit your questions. At this time, the resolution is under new business on this agenda. As a matter of fairness, you're asked to limit your questions to no more than one and your remarks to no longer than three minutes. If you're here representing a group, please identify yourself, the group, and your position in the group. You're here as an individual, please give us your name and address. This section of public participation will be limited to 15 minutes. Uh, please specify the resolution you are referring to in your question. All right. I need a motion to open the meeting to the public. Mr. Marski, second by Mr. Hughes.
004Thank you. We are officially open to the public. All right. Seeing no one come forth at this time, I need a motion to close the meeting to the public. Mr. G Marcy, second by Mr. Hughes. Um, our Mala student representative report this evening. >> Well, thank you for having me. First of all, >> thank you. So the seniors have an open trip coming up which is very fun. >> Close a little closer here or not. >> Sorry about that. >> It's a little tough. >> The concert is Tuesday night. Choir band or all performed. Winter sports have begun including wrestling and boys Olaf will start. Talent show will be held on January 9th at 7:00 p.m. which participated in. We did the adopted family fundraiser where we collected toys for a family of six. This
005was jointly run by SJ National Honor Society orchestra played at the chamber of congress lunchon and the marching band participated in many hal last week. That's all I've got. Thank you. >> Thank you very much and wishing you a happy holiday. >> Thank you, Steve. We'll see you next year. >> Um all right, our superintendence report this evening. Dr. Tutoro. >> Yes, thank you. Um, I would like to bring everyone's attention to agenda item 18e, the special special school district election. We've talked about this at various meetings and uh now it's time to vote on this agenda item. Uh, before voting, I just wanted to take a moment um, we've got a chance to talk about um, this the referendum in generalities and different bits and pieces have been shared. So, I wanted to take
006a moment uh, to share the detail of of this work. Under question one, Ma High School renovations include roofing, windows, and HVAC upgrades including boilers. Ramper Ridge of Middle School renovations include roofing, windows, HVAC upgrades, including boiler replacement, and a continuation of a major seat refresh. Joyce Kilmer uh renovations, roofing, windows, and HVAC upgrades. George Washington renovations, roofing, windows, new kitchen hood, masonry repointing and boiler replacement. The school in which we're in right now, Len Meadows, roofing, window glazing replacement and repairs, upgrade of temperature control. And just a reminder, this is the school that our last referendum took place, which is 2002. Betsy Ross renovations, roofing of the flat roof areas, HVAC upgrades including boilers, masonry roof pointing, and a gym. Building five renovations, new life skills room with two bathrooms, repair chimney, roofing, HVC
007upgrades, including backup boiler, building seven setting renovations. I want to go back to Betsy Ross renovations. We're on to question one. The gym is in question two. Building seven renovations, roofing, HVAC upgrades, including backup boiler and chimney repair. Central office renovation, roofing, backup boiler and HVAC upgrades, chimney repair, YMCA building renovations, roofing, backup boiler, repair of the chimney, maintenance, building renovations, roofing, fire alarm system upgrades. Under question two, Malay School auditorium upgrades and renovation and expansion of the lobby, replace turf field at main football field, replace lighting at the main football field, artificial turf and lighting, soccer field you find behind the high school and new gym and locker rooms. George Washington School, new gym, renovate existing stage to SGI space. Bessie Ross, new gym, media center, music room, and SGI rooms, and additional parking
008at the new gym. Round Ridge Middle School, artificial turf and lighting for the soccer fields. Now, this is a long list of opportunities, I have to say. And the reason why I say that is when you hear these renovations and additions, I'm really excited about I'm really excited about the future of Modell Public Schools. The next piece that I would I would like to be very clear with is the question would be well what have you been doing the past 10 years and I'm really happy to report to everyone our goal is transparency when it comes to the referendum and I strongly suggest that everybody goes to the website under the department section buildings and grounds you'll see facility upgrades the finance and facilities committee has been committed to doing great work and really thinking
009forward along lines of what our 500 00,000 square ft of facilities really needs. And that being said, we've been able to break down the work that's been taking place over the past 6 or 8 years to the tune of $20 million of upgrades that we've done to the facilities using our operating budget. All of this information we're going to be sharing from January to March. But prior to the vote, I wanted to give everyone an opportunity to understand the scope of work. Um, and like I said, I'm really excited about what's to come. Next thing I wanted to do was thank the finance and facilities committee, finance and facilities committee, uh, because I've been fortunate enough to sit on that committee and and really understand, um, the thought that goes into all the different projects
010that take place around, uh, the district. Um, not only the the to ensure that things are being maintained, but opportunities that come up. And a perfect example is the T3 building that was built. eight years ago utilizing our operating budget and I greatly appreciate that and the kids are definitely maximizing the potential of that space. I'd also like to thank the community relations team uh for the work that they're doing currently um in preparing uh an information campaign that's going to take place between January and February because our commitment is to get out to the community, share all of this information about the work, but more importantly about the opportunities and potential about what could come if this goes through. And last but not least, I want to mention the board as a whole. um
011from the beginning we started talking about this work and I think it's it's great to see um a group of of board members that come together that share their opinion um and want to do what's right for the students and the community of MA as a whole because I've said this before and I think it's worth repeating. I'm sure I'll say it a million times over. Uh this referendum not only enhances the student experience, but we're very fortunate because we have a great connection with the community and the rent program and the adult programs in the community and the use that is not only going to be taken advantage by the students during the school day, but the community as a whole after school hours. I'm really excited about what could come. So, thank you
012to all. Um and I look forward to the coming months. Last but not least, I want to take a minute to acknowledge one of our board members, uh, which this is going to be his last meeting, Mr. John Denise. John Dice has demonstrated long-standing dedication and service to the model board of education, having first been elected in 2015. Throughout his tenure, he has consistently committed his time, expertise, and leadership to advancing the district's mission and ensuring strong governance on behalf of the students, staff, and the broader community. During his initial term, Mr. Denise served on several critical committees, including executive planning, finance, facilities, policy, technology, and community relations. He also represented the district as liaison to the Burkham County school boards, strengthening regional collaboration and advocacy. Following his re-election in 2020, Mr. Denise continued to
013expand his leadership role with the board. He has chaired the policy committee guiding the development and revision of policies that support sound educational practices, legal compliance, and student centered decision-making. In addition, he has served on the finance facilities committee, negotiation, technology, and transportation committees where his thoughtful approach and attention to fiscal responsibility has supported long-term planning and operational effectiveness. Mr. has also maintained active involvement at the county and state levels through his work as liaison to the New Jersey School Boards Association and Bergen County school boards as well as his participation in the MAWA access for all initiative. His service reflects a deep commitment to equity, transparency, and continuous improvement in public education. Through his collaboration or through his collaborative leadership style, institutional knowledge and unwavering dedication to the community, Mr. Denise has made meaningful
014contributions to the governance and success of the school district. On behalf of the Malawa public schools, I would like to thank Mr. Denise for his years of service. All right. Thank you very much, Dr. Durro. Um, our assistant superintendent report, Dr. Fair, do we have a report this evening? >> Yes, I have a brief report this evening. So, just to follow up with Dr.'s report, uh, I just wanted to list for the board and our community members uh, all of the upcoming presentations and information sessions that will be taking place. Uh, you'll see on the left hand side of the screen, uh, we will have, uh, meetings with new organizations. We will be hosting two town halls, one virtual, one in person. And we will fi we will have five additional board meetings where we
015will be able to inform the public of what our referendum will look like and when the vote will take place. Some of my report was shared by uh our student, but I would like to just share some names attached to some of these achievements. You'll see here on this slide, our girls varsity tennis team were announced as league champions and celebrated uh their successful season with a championship breakfast uh yesterday morning. You also see on the screen uh eight students uh the boys team uh and the girls team for our our our swimming groups they were recognized for two record-breaking performances. Uh the boys team set a new school record in the 200 medley relay with an outstanding performance by Jin Mu Park, Alex Hang Lee, and Pton Egg. And additionally, our girls team broke
016the school record in the 400th Street relay. So congratulations to Don Kapor, Anochinsky, Lie Lee, and Ka Matt on this. If anyone was there last night, it was an amazing performance by our high school performing arts students in choir, instrumental music and orchestra students uh where they delivered a wonderful wonderful performance uh showcasing the talent and dedication to our programs. Uh the concert reflected months of preparation and a strong commitment to the arts in our district. So in addition to the performing arts news, our select strains that you can see on the bottom left hand corner of the of the screen. Uh they also uh were in attendance at the Resis MOA Chamber of Commerce holiday lunchon uh where they performed uh for the community. We recently had a a really wonderful parent academy that
017took place uh that provided families with valuable information through a comprehensive crash course and college admissions testing. The session covered essential strategies and insights to help students and families navigate the admissions process with confidence. Uh big shout out to our school counseling team and particularly Mr. O'Hara who's our director of school counseling for the district for bringing this informative and impactful program to our community. I think he's heard uh pretty loud from our admin team as well as our board of ed the power and importance of uh ever communicating with with our uh with our school community. And lastly, we just learned this morning that for the third consecutive year, MA High School has been recognized as an IT EA school program of excellence, which is a distinction awarded uh by the STEM center for
018teaching and learning. This honor reflects the district's continued commitment to delivering a robust and meaningful STEM education experience for students. What was most important, I think, to note is that we've been talking a lot about making the connection between our younger and older students across the district and uh the reviewers of our application for this award. Uh they highlighted just that. Uh in particular, what uh inspired this recognition was our Thunderbird partnership program and in particular the connections that our high school students from STEAM clubs including robotics, gems, and the science club with elementary students for hands-on and STEM learning and community service uh they found to be uh really impressive and has been a really important hallmark to our district. So this recognition celebrates the collective efforts of our teachers, administrators, students, and stakeholders
019in advancing innovative STEM education. So congratulations. And that's our report this evening. Thank you. >> Thank you, Dr. Far. And congratulations uh on another fora district. Excellent. Um all right, let's move on to my report this evening. Um, and I will follow up uh with a few remarks of my own regarding >> Oh my god, I am so sorry. This is now the second time and I'm sitting connected to her business administrator uh board secretaries report. Thank you. You're going to I'm going to have no report. I apologize again. >> Okay. And you must have you have a very long report for us this week. >> It's not that long. >> So, um it's okay. So, I just want to discuss how we were awarded um $80,410 to the trees for school grant. We'll be
020planting 80 plasma trees in the spring of 2026. Um the finance and facilities committee met to review the proposed plant locations and tree species and it's an exciting enhancement for schools in our community. The and facilities committee also met to discuss investment options and we're recommending that the district move forward from investment option through TE that item is included on resolution 18D on tonight's agenda. Additionally, on resolution 18F, the board will be asked to approve the completion of the 2425 audit. I'd um like to sincerely thank miss our auditors as well as the business office and central office teams for their professionalism, collaboration and hard work throughout the audit preparation process. Um yesterday I met with all principles and administrative assistance as we officially move into the 2627 budget development process. They are actively working
021on their submissions and we will reconvene in January to review all budget line justifications in detail. Um, I'd also like to take a moment to thank Mr. Dupe for his commitment and service to the district and the board of education. Although I didn't um have the honor or opportunity to work with you for a long period of time, I truly appreciate your dedication and you'll certainly be missed. So, I wish you nothing but the very best in your future endeavors. Um, lastly, happy holidays to everyone and I hope everyone has a happy new year and I hope everyone stays safe and has a joyous break. So, thank you. >> Excellent report, Mr. Roas. Again, I apologize again. I did it the first meeting that she joined us, and I seem to have done it again.
022I think I'm having reading issues. I think I need glasses. All right. Now, Mr. Dilla, may I move on to the president's report? Thank you for the correction. I do. No, I actually do appreciate it. Um, all right. always keeping me on my toes. Um so back to um this is our last meeting with uh John Denise, my fellow board member. So I also had a few remarks. Um thank you Dr. Dur for kicking us off with your remarks. So, John, it's been a pleasure working together over these many years, and I personally would like to thank you for your dedication and support of our local school community, uh, and the model students. Um, your commitment to volunteer work is admirable. Um, you have always been flexible in your approach and very easy to work
023with. Even when we have agreed to disagree, uh, we found a way to come together and work collaboratively. You've been a supportive board member who takes time to observe before offering your perspective. Thank you for your contributions to various committees, serving on the executive planning committee, and most recently for being chairperson of policy committee. We will miss having you on our board, but hopefully you're moving on to bigger and better things in public service. Best of luck and thank you, and we'll see you around 10. Thank you very much, John. Appreciate it. Um, let me just open the floor. Do we have other any other board members who want to say a few words? We'll just do it now versus board. Do you want to wait until board member remarks? Mr. Dilla. Fine. Okay. Well,
024John, we have something for you. Sorry. >> Thanks, John. >> Yeah, 10 years of service to this board, John. That's a that's tremendous. Thank you very much. Um and on a personal note, um happy holidays, uh happy new year, um and uh we will see you next year and we will be raring to go. We have a lot on our agenda starting in January and we'll continue to take the uh show on the road and um so look for our various meetings at different schools. Um, and we're going to be talking a lot about uh this referendum process uh which will be coming up in March. So again, be safe uh and enjoy time with your family and friends. Um all right, now let's move on to board committee reports. Mr. Copelan with community relations.
025>> Actually I have two >> and transportation. Thank you. >> I'll start with community relations. Uh first broad continue to share updates of our weekly meetings with Bishop uh to the board members. So if anyone has any questions, please reach out to myself, Dr. Fair, Dr. Turl. Um it's very very important that all board members are on the same page and understand what we're doing. Um second weekly community relations, we had our second community communications committee referendum. Say that five times fast. uh Monday night we had about 16 I think about 16 people from uh from residents of of Malawa attended. Uh it was very was a good meeting. We did it via Zoom so there's always stuff there but it was uh it was I was very happy with the conversations. Uh also want
026to point out to the board that this committee is made up of of all residents. It's not just those that have students current children in the school district. Uh we we had some really good conversations with um with a woman who was in town who doesn't have children in the district anymore and she had really some really great questions. So, appreciate everyone that came out for that. Um, wanted to piggyback on what Dr. Fair mentioned about the town halls. Uh, please say the dates. February 4th will be in person and February 11th will be uh virtual uh which we're recording as well. So, please not mention us at every single meeting. district. We want as many people as possible to come out to those meetings and really good education from North. Um that's all for
027community relations for transportation. I want to point everyone to agenda item 18K. I want to thank the board as a whole for the support of the transportation committee over the last four years. I think it's been four years. Um and this policy change makes the transportation committee a standing committee. It moves it from ad hoc to standing. Uh so I want to thank everyone for their support on that and hopefully we have the support to pass that through. So um other than happy holidays, happy new year. Thank you. >> Thank you very much, Mr. Coplin. Other board committee reports this evening, Mr. Galla, >> finance and facilities. >> Just reporting for finance and facilities. I would I want to um uh recognize uh Dr. Turo's um support and hard work on the referendum issues and
028um referendum for the three of us who've been on the finance committee for the last 6 years. It's been a long time in coming. Um and uh we're I'm extraordinarily excited to be able to put pass this agenda item tonight and start the work of informing our community of the good work that we intend to do for the students. Um it's a generational investment. um in our district which will um put us in good standing for many decades. This is not just a vote that will help get us over the hump for the next year or two. This is a generational investment in our students and our programs and um in many ways it will protect LA taxpayers from from unplanned maintenance issues from from uh crises that will develop in our infrastructure. These are
029proactive investments to avoid those types of things that you hear about so much in the news in other districts. We we don't want to be in the news for those items. We want to be in the news for the accomplishments and success of our students, not because our boilers aren't working or appreciated and this investment gets us there. Um I also I think uh Katherine buried the lead on the audit. Our audit came back clean. There is one corrective action item related to payroll. um which is is um has already been corrected. But more importantly, the auditor for again for the last number of years I've been on the committee came back with a report that said all of our processes and practices in the district are in good order and that our financial statements
030um can be relied upon for um for the public to to review and trust and also in more importantly in our referendum and financing that they will be um relied upon by investors to buy the bonds that hopefully our public supports. Um, so that's that's my report for now and I look forward to the to the work ahead in the next couple of months getting the word out to our to the public about the referendum. It'll be very exciting. >> Thank you very much, Mr. G. Uh, any committee reports? I hear Mr. Denise last committee report. >> Excellent. There's only two on here. Uh the policy committee has two policies on its agenda for the first reading. The first one is policy 0155 which uh Brett had mentioned. Um that policy has been revised to
031include the transportation committee as now a standing committee and policy 2411 school counseling changes. Thank you very much. Um any other committee reports? All right. Um then let me uh update on instruction and curriculum uh because we did have a meeting um last week. Um and so here's a few things going on with instruction and curriculum. Um, one thing, um, that is very exciting, um, Courtney Fela came to report, um, there's a program, uh, an opportunity at MA High School called the Confidence Closet. Um, and this is, um, a a closet that sort of gently worn things, if students need anything, um, you know, donations come in, etc. Um we've extended that or they've extended that to Brema Ridge which is um a nice opportunity um if students uh have needs um and it's done
032um you know through teachers through counselors um and uh they're hoping to have it up and running by January. It's going to be located across from the cafeteria, but it's a nice program to support peer-to-peer support and some of the students I think work in the closets as well. Uh so it's a nice opportunity for our students to support each other. Um there's uh Miss Craft reported our director of curriculum uh regarding um we uh have they've come up or she's come up with an AI initiative uh committee. Um and they're going to work together and develop the goals for the year. Um this will be a district-wide K through 12 committee. Um, and they've mapped out a timeline of monthly meetings, topics they're going to address, and kind of creating a framework and defining
033policies, uh, and developing staff training for our district. um they're going to meet this month and uh this will continue uh for several months and hopefully uh by the beginning of the next school year September of 2026 uh they will have some sort of definitive um uh framework uh within which uh we will uh use AI uh within our district which is already happening I know but this is just to ensure uh that we create uh proper policies to support Um next uh Fasel Shik talked to us uh the math supervisor about uh they are looking at um the 6 to8 math program. So this is at Rico Ridge. Um they are under review of selecting a new program for implementation um in the next school year uh 2026 to 2027. Um they developed three
034main criteria to assess potential programs. Uh conceptual understanding, rigorous practice and enrichment resources. Um they've created a teacher committee to evaluate four shortlisted programs. Um and they will be getting vendor presentations in January uh and hopefully piloting uh a program for the next uh school year. Uh Miss Craft reported on January a professional development day uh which is primarily peer-led um p uh professional development offerings um which is very exciting again um teachers teaching teachers so it's a great opportunity and other um and then we had um a very dynamic presentation by Mr. O'Hara uh Jim O'Hara who is um uh the uh guidance department um in charge of our guidance department. Um one of the things he really emphasized um and I think was very important is creating um this new vernacular that uh
035we talk about it as an opener guidance I shouldn't use the word um counseling. So it is MA school counseling which more incorporates um K through 12 rather than just a guidance department. Um so um that he was very clear about the importance of that. I think one of the big changes that um I think the committee saw um is Mr. O'Hara has a very proactive approach um versus reactive in any way. So I mean he's talking about communication. He's talking about how do we transition students better from um you know the different points fifth to 6th, 3rd to 4th, 8th through 9th. Um how do we um look at some processes for INRS for 504? Um how do we look at next steps? What are we creating? Um a third grade buddies program for
036example um expanding our career partnerships um and social emotional learning programming as well. There was just a lot of good stuff. I think the one thing to highlight was the um eighth grade um Thunderbird for a day um which is an was an opportunity for eighth grade students to go to the high school um and sort of partner with a high school student and go to a few classes sort of experience what that's like at the high school. So again um Mr. is very dynamic and seems to be doing great things with our MA counseling program. So, um that's all we have and we will have our next meeting in January after reorganization. All right. Um board member remarks. Mr. Dilva, >> what makes you think I do you do? >> Okay. Um three things.
037I just want to follow up on uh Mr. uh comments about the uh the referendum. Um this is a process that we started probably 7 years ago and was really planned to happen uh back in 2000. Um as the pet service for this building uh was retired, you know, unfortunately CO kind of screwed up our our time frame and it definitely got delayed. Um I'm glad to see that it's it's you know, we're we're at the point where, you know, we're actually doing it. Um I do want to recognize our administration team. Um, Dr. Far, Dr. Couturo, Mr. Rizzo, Mr. Romero, Miraoto's gotten up to speed really quickly. The amount of work to get us to this point um is a lot more than a lot of people realize and to be able to to
038get us here as efficiently as as has happened without skipping a beat on all of the other things that you know that that they need to do on a daily basis. Um, is a huge and definitely needs to be recognized. Um, so thank you all and clarity for dedication to hard work. I've been on on the finance abilities committee for a long time and since the the 2% budget cap became a thing. Um we've been talking about the day when the lines cross because obviously you know things our budget you know has to go up more than 2% every year because the cost of things go up by more than 2% every year and the math is what it is. Um, we've done an excellent job, I think, of maximizing what we can and finding
039efficiencies where we can. Um, but this is kind of a product of the fact that we're at the point where the lines are getting ready to cross. Um, so I'm happy that we're at this point that we're, you know, we're ready to go on it tonight to uh actually make it happen. I am optimistic. Um, it's going to be a busy couple of months for us to, you know, make sure getting the the word out and making sure that people on board. Um so we'll see what happens in March. Uh so that's the first thing. Second thing is tonight is uh our Lady T-Works wrestling team is hosting their first home match at the high school right now. So I'm excited about that. I think, you know, as as quickly as that program has kind
040of developed and grown, you know, for them to be hosting a home match tonight, um, is a huge deal. That's exciting. So, we definitely want to mention that. Um, and finally, and I know there's a whole lot more that I can, uh, that can add that hasn't been said. John, congratulations on, uh, on on your you've done your penance. is actually I'll be pleasing you the chair of the house. >> Second second let's go exactly the same thing. >> I take I take back everything I said. >> Thank you. You're the only one left standing that was here my first year. It's been a minute. So thank you. Thank you for your dedication. Thank you for putting in the time for uh for the community and for the kids involved. Thank you, Mr. Dilla. Uh,
041Mr. D. >> So, I just want to um echo everything that people have said about John. I also work with John at um over at St. Paul. We did a fish fry and we also do other community cooking. And John joined us, I don't know, five or six years ago. And he's helped us make thousands and thousands of meals that we've donated to the community. So, it's not just the work he does on the school board, but also the work he does out in the community. And and we thank him for he can't leave that, but he is leaving this. And I thank him for his service to our to our school and to the students here. Uh the other person I'd like to recognize is Brett Coplin, who was a nominee for volunteer of
042the year here in town. and due to his commitment to the community whatever the name of the committee is the community community committee um on Monday he was not able to attend the ceremony that at the tenant council meeting where he would have received his certificate but I just want to recognize him for his volunteer service and and the huge amount of work that he and the administrative team have done on the communications aspect of a referendum um is um is mindboggling it boggles my line and uh but I think it's going to pay off uh for our community in terms of the information that there's nobody in who's not going to know about this referendum March and um and I know everybody on this board is is uh eager to get that going and
043is available to community with questions and fill any gaps that are necessary to um to make sure that everybody's on the same page. As Rick pointed out, this is really a numbers. It's it's a math thing for our future and um and it's it's vital that we uh obtain the community support necessary to get this done. So, I just want to recognize Brett John, two outstanding board members. Thank you. >> Thank you very much, Mr. Mr. >> Yeah. two quick things I want to uh just point out. Uh we have five PA athletes uh compete in the USATF Junior Olympics cross country championship out in Indiana. And not only was it in the end, it was in the snow. Uh so congratulations to those five athletes. Uh I know one of them meddled. I forgot
044honestly I don't believe the lady's name. Um but she meddled. That's a huge accomplishment on a national level for for all athletes. And um to echo everything that everyone's saying about John, thank you John. Um some you know the residents sometimes forget that this is a volunteer role. We're we're giving up a lot of the time professionally and personally to be here to work on behalf of of the township and and the students and the staff members here. Um, I hope that you were able to sit back and reflect on say 10 years uh your time here and and look back and be satisfied with what you've done and and realize that uh you were a small piece of the cog that Mal School District is and uh see all the success that we've had
045and and just smile a little bit. So enjoy enjoy some more time with the family and uh thank you on behalf of everyone here. Thank you. >> Thank you Mr. Copa, Mr. Kizari. Sure. Um I'll just echo what people have said. John has been it's been a fun ride. We've been doing this a lot together ourselves on various committees and whatnot. Had kids go to the district together, but uh we're proud of the work we put in. You're leaving an interesting time as we busy busy time as we venture into the the referendum and I'm sure there'll still be a voice in the community. Look forward to your rest. So good luck to everything. will be. >> Thank you, Mr. Hughes. Let's just go down the line. >> John, thank you for your service to
046this district. Thank you for your service on the policy committee. Thank you for all the laughs and most importantly, thank you for being a good friend. So, just echoing everything that's been said, but I also want to acknowledge that being the newest member of the finance facilities committee, I can attest that we should all have extreme confidence in what we put in. I'm appreciative of everyone bringing you up to speed as the newest member and allowing me to ask many questions, but I think this is a great investment in our community and students and we this is a really good um investment. So I just ask everyone if you have questions just come to us. It's everything's on the site. It's very well laid out and thought out. There's so much that's gone into this
047that it is a job and everyone watching and I can attest to how much work it's done. So thank you very much. And also want to give a shout out for all the concerts this week. I've been to many where I've experienced the heat differential in the rooms. Um and also want to thank the Thunderbird for the day. My son got to participate and I look forward to seeing that expand. and he came home surprised with how much time and attention was given to him. He got a little thank you card and a picture of him being there for the day. So, the little things go a long way in. So, thank you. >> Great. Thank you, Miss Tim Jansen and Mr. Views. Um, all right. Let's move on to 17 old business. We're going
048to take uh A and B, the minutes from the December 3rd public meeting and December 3rd executive session. Um, I need a motion on the floor. Um, Mr. Dilva, second by Mr. Kasmarski. Mr. Roto, I need a roll call. Thank you. Mr. Dilva, >> yes. >> Mr. Marski, >> yes. >> Mr. Gallow, >> yes. >> Miss Davin, Mr. Denise, >> yes. >> Mr. Hughes, >> yes. >> Mrs. Tansson, >> yes. >> Mr. Coplin, >> yes. Dr. Boy. >> Yes. All right. We're going to now take new business. Um I'd first um again um like to take 18 separately uh since we've all been talking about this uh quite a bit. Our special school district election um which goes on for about two or three pages. So it's um going to be in March of 2026.
049you'll get a lot more information, but let's take that separately. Uh, and do roll call on that separately. So, can I have a motion on the floor for 18, Mr. Pismari? Second by Mr. Denise. >> All right. Thank you, Mr. Mr. D. Silva. >> Yes. I just wish it was longer. >> Mr. Garski, yes, >> Mr. G. >> Yes. Enthusiastically, >> Mr. Denise. >> Yes. Mr. Dees, >> yes. >> Mrs. Ting Jansen, >> yes. >> Mr. Copan, >> yes. >> Dr. A final yes. Thank you very much. Um, all right. Now, let's take 18 A uh to S excluding E. Um, I need a motion on the floor, Mr. Coplin, second by Mr. Gallow. Uh, all right. Thank you, Mr. for roll call. Mr. D. Silva. >> Yes. >> Mr. Kesmarkski. >> Yes. I'm abstaining
050on check number 122067. I thank >> Mr. Gallow. >> Yes. On 18A. I'll be abstaining from check 122056 and 122273. >> Mr. Denise. >> Yes. >> Mr. Hughes. >> Yes. Put no on O and B. >> O and B. >> B. >> Mrs. T. Jansen. >> Yes. >> Mr. Coplin. >> Yes. >> Dr. Dory. >> Yes. Um. All right. Let's take um 19 is new business personnel. Let's take A through N. I need a motion number on the floor. Um, Mr. Coplin, second by Miss Tain Jansen. Let's go into the table. Roll call. Please motion. >> Mr. Dilva. >> Yes. >> Mr. Kazarski. >> Um, yes. I will stay on 19B. Although I am fully supportive. >> Mr. Gavin. >> Yes. >> Mr. Tase. >> Yes. Mr. Hughes, >> yes. >> Mrs. Timson, >> yes.
051>> Mr. CPley, >> yes. >> Dr. Woodley, >> yes. Okay. Now, let's move on to public question or comment. Public participation at board meetings is in accordance with bylaw 0167. At this time, members of the public may ask questions or make a comment on educational issues or school matters of community interest. As a matter of fairness, you're asked to limit your questions to no more than one and your remarks to no longer than 3 minutes. If you are here representing a group, please identify yourself, the group, and your position in the group. If you're here as an individual, please give us your name and address. All right. I need a motion to open the meeting to the public. Mr. Dilva, second by Mr. Marski. We are officially open to the public. Good evening. Uh my
052name is Katie. I'm here on behalf of Mal Muslims. Um and a few weeks ago on October 29th, I had submitted a letter to the superintendent and to the board. Um which I would like to partly put on the record and not for me. I think we have just a couple students who also like to be heard on the issue. Um >> I think can you just give us your um position? >> Oh, president of So on behalf of Muslims, we extend our sincere gratitude to the MA board of education for it thoughtful decision to recognize one of our major holidays, Eagle Fitzger, as a district holiday. This action reflects the board's commitment to inclusivity and respect for the diverse religious and cultural backgrounds represented in the township of Mal. In that same spirit conclusion,
053we respectfully request that the board consider adding a second holiday in Palahhata as a district holiday in the 2026 27 academic calendar. By our estimation, approximately 100 Muslim students currently call out of school to observe this holiday, which underscores the meaningful impact that official recognition would have on attendance and student participation. This past year, this past year, our students were faced with a difficult choice of attending school due to tests, projects, and field trips scheduled on Eagle or observing one of only two holidays that we have in the year with our family, friends, and community. As MA continues to grow in its diversity, uh your willingness to engage with and support all groups strengthens our shared sense of belonging. We welcome the opportunity to further discuss ideas on how to make this request possible. Thank
054you again for your leadership and ongoing dedication. Happy holidays and happy new year. So uh with that I would like to request uh model high school student Noas Khan to share his uh thoughts on the issue. >> Thank you Mr. K. >> Good evening everybody. My name is and I'm student. Uh, I participate on the wrestling team and spring. I really appreciate that the district recognized the eagle zipper and I'm here to ask you all to consider closing school for the second ego. When school is open on the eve, I have to take the day off. That means I can miss orange school events and opportunities that other students don't want to make a choice between. It could be a match or me or even a team event that day. It also affects my academics.
055It takes a toll on me. I'm not major women's holiday and I return to school meaning to catch up on lesson quizzes and assignments that creates extra stress about the day that's supposed to bring joy and being prepared for this isn't just about me there are other Muslim students across this district who experience the same thing recognizing both these as would be a strong message that all students who want equally and thank you so much for your time >> thank you Mr. We have one more student who would also like to be heard. >> Good good evening ladies and gentlemen of the board. Thank you for daring to speak today. My name is Ursa G. I'm a fifth grader at Ghost Elementary School. Today, December 17th, is my 11th birthday. I found it more important
056than anything to be here tonight, boys and daughter that is important to me and my peers. Last year in fourth grade, I I was put in a situation where I had to miss the school trip to one of my favorite places on Earth, a museum, or missing my religious holiday friends celebrating with family and friends. Making that decision was so so hard and I really wish I made this up because it made me feel so busted out. So I ask you the board of execution to please consider honoring our religious holiday school holiday. Thank you for your time. >> Thank you Miss and first of all happy birthday. Wow that is dedication honestly. Thank you very much. Um uh and thank you for all of your remarks. Um was was that it was >> okay.
057>> I won't speak for anyone else but from my side. Yes. >> Okay. All right. Thank you. Um time for Toro. Did you want to anybody else? >> Okay. Good. I'm going to turn. >> First and foremost, I just want to thank everyone for coming out. I think it's extremely important to hear from the community. Mr. team and I have talked on a number of occasions specific to this important uh topic and let me start first by saying again happy birthday to be here on your birthday you're the best so thank you so much I hope you had a fantastic day uh the thus far um the second thing I wanted to talk about which I greatly appreciate the way in which you you posed your statements um the board of education for a number
058of years now has done uh their very best to make sure that everybody here in Malawa uh feels connected and feels like this is part of their home. Um with that effort, we've done uh our very best to look at the calendar and be cognizant of all the cultures that we have um within our community here. Um we were happy to find those opportunities to add the new the new holidays uh to show our respect to our community. Um and looking at the calendar now uh we have a very diverse set of days that we are able to acknowledge many different cultures and backgrounds. That being said, we did speak about the challenges of building building a calendar. Um and there are other holidays that do um celebrate on multiple days. That being said, I
059would love to sit here and tell you that it's an easy fix. I can put it in the calendar and and starting 2026, I can acknowledge them all. Unfortunately, uh we're really confined to a certain amount of time. Uh we have 180 days that we have to compress into September through June. As you can see already, we're spilling into late June. Um without acknowledging any sort of snow days or things of that nature. That being said, I do want to speak to a very important piece. um last time that we had our conversation, which I greatly appreci bring to my attention, no student should have to choose between a field trip or anything like that and respecting their culture and honoring their holidays. So what I am committed to you guys first is to say
060being that this is a new addition to our calendar. I need to educate my team and the district as a whole to understand what days are on the calendar, what dates are not on the calendar and be respectful of that because no student should choose going to your fa favorite field trip or acknowledging a holiday. Um so that being said, I am committed to talking to my team and and making sure that they're aware of these important dates. Um but on unfortunately as it stands right now I'm not able to acknowledge another day for that holiday. We will continue to look at our calendar. We'll continue to look for opportunities. We'll continue to make sure that all um cultures and backgrounds are acknowledged because that is a number one priority for me because I greatly
061appreciated number one when we were adding this in before I had great conversations with families especially the students that came up to me and talked about the importance of them being with their family during this special time. And please know that we hear you and we understand. Um, and we will continue to look for all opportunities to celebrate the great diversity that we have within our district and the wonderful rich cultures that we have in the city. >> Thank you very much, Dr. Durro. Um, I just wanted to give some historical perspective because um, I've had students in the district as well. My kids are now um, in their 20s. Um, I used to encourage them to take a holiday for the volley. Um, and they never would because of the same reasons that you
062guys said, you miss work, those kinds of things. Um, so it is a difficult decision. Um, and we do understand that. Um, we've had this request on the board. I've been on for many years. Um, because Rashashana, for example, has a second day as well. Um, that some districts do give. Um and um we've actually had that request as well for a second day. Um and as Dr. Duro um spoke to at that time actually we didn't have the uh or Eid um as holidays. So um listen I have been talking about these holidays for a long time. So um I'm just grateful that we can value and respect um at least one of the holidays um and and the volley as well. But um it does it does make it very tight in our
063calendar. Um the other thing I did want to just say that um for the students in particular, Mr. Khan, um you spoke about missing work and those kinds of things. Um there's um if you go to um the New Jersey Department of Education, um they have like 300 plus holidays on this list. So, if there's ever a time that you have to miss, and again, I know missing schoolwork is not necessarily the priority, but um if you have to miss, it should be an excused absence. Okay? There should not be any penalty for missing work. I know how high schoolers you don't want to miss anything. I get it. But, um there is a whole list um on the Department of Education website. So if that comes up then please know there that work for
064that day should be excused. You should be able to get some additional time to complete that. So I just wanted to highlight that. Um and you can go take a look um at that website. Um so anyway, thank you very much though for coming out and and sharing with us your perspective. We do we do appreciate it very and we love hearing from our students. So thank you very much. Um all right. Um motion to close the meeting to the public. Mr. Miss Marsy, second by Miss Ting Jansen. Um, all right. And we do not need an executive session here at the end. So motion to adjourn. Mr. Denise and Mr. Denise, if he has a second, Mr. Hughes will be your second. All right. Thank you very much. Happy holidays, everyone. Thank you for
065coming out this evening. We really do appreciate it.