Minutes for April 8, 2019History icon Archived Minutes

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A regular business meeting of the Board of Education was held this day at the Angelo L. Tomaso School, 26 Washington Valley Road. The following is a record of that meeting.

I. CALL TO ORDER: The meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m. by Board President

David Brezee.

Open Public Meeting Statement – Mr. Brezee read the following statement:

Re: Chapter 231 P.L. 1975: “The adequate notice of this regular meeting as required by the open public meetings act was provided by the posting, mailing/delivery, and filing of this notice on January 8, 2019. This notice was on that date was posted on the Courier News, and TAP into Warren, all in accordance with the requirements of the Open Public Meetings Act.”

II. Pledge of Allegiance – Mr. Brezee led the assembly in the Pledge of Allegiance.

III. Roll Call

Present: Aaron Bellish, Christian Bellmann, Naresh Chand, Lisa DiMaggio,

Marc Franco, Ayanna Taylor-Venson, Patricia Zohn and David Brezee

Absent:

Also Present: Dr. Matthew Mingle, Superintendent, and Patricia Leonhardt, Board Secretary, and members of the public and press.

Jeannine Sarosy arrived at 8:32 p.m.

IV. Minutes

● Mrs. DiMaggio moved the following:

RESOLVED, that the Board of Education approves the public session minutes of the March 25, 2019 Board Meeting.

The motion was seconded by Mr. Bellmann and approved by 7-0-1 roll-call vote. (Mrs. Taylor abstained.)

V. Correspondence and Information

● Mr. Brezee reported on an email sent to the Board of Education regarding a School Resource Officer.

· HIB Information

Total # of Investigations:

Total # of Determined Bullying Incidents:

2

2

· Suspension Report

In School

Out of School

0

1

· Fire Drills

ALT Central Mt. Horeb Woodland Middle
March 27 March 15 March 14 March 13 March 19

 

· Security Drills

ALT Central Mt. Horeb Woodland Middle
March 12 March 12 March 12 March 12 March 12
Lockdown Lockdown Lockdown Lockdown Lockdown

 

VI. President’s Remarks - Mr. David Brezee

Mr. Brezee welcomed all and thanked Ms. Smith for the tour.

Mr. Brezee noted the due date of Board of Education member petitions, which is July 29th.

VII. Presentations

● Angelo L. Tomaso School Student Presentation - Ms. Smith and 1st grade teachers and students provided a presentation showcasing student SMART goals.

● Strategic Planning Overview - Dr. Mingle provided an overview of the upcoming process.

VIII. Superintendent’s Remarks – Dr. Matthew Mingle

Dr. Mingle addressed the incident last week in the Warren Middle School All Purpose Room, noting the district’s response.

IX. Discussion

N/A

X. Committee Reports

● Curriculum/Communications & Technology Committee - Mrs. DiMaggio reported on the evening’s meeting, which reviewed library updates and proposed policy changes.

● Finance/Operations/Security Committee - Mr. Bellmann reported on the April 1st meeting, which discussed the Warren Middle School interior renovations schedule, purchasing, the Boiler and Pump replacement project, Safety Grant award, review of the budget process, End of Year Financial Status, and the Capital Improvement Plan.

XI. Public Commentary (agenda items only)

Note on public input at BOE meetings: Board Policy #9322, adopted on January 21, 2013, provides for and encourages public participation in Board of Education meetings. Such participation is governed by the following rules:

  1. A participant must be recognized by the presiding officer and must preface comments by an announcement of his/her name and place of residence;
  2. Each statement made by a participant shall be limited to three minutes’ duration (limit may be adjusted at the discretion of the presiding officer as circumstances dictate);
  3. No participant may speak more than once on the same topic until all others who wish to speak on that topic have been heard; and
  4. All statements shall be directed to the presiding officer—no participant may address or question Board members individually.

The portion of the meeting during which participation of the public is invited shall be limited to fifteen minutes (limit may be adjusted at the discretion of the presiding officer as circumstances dictate).

● Darlene Fenton, King George Road, referenced her personal experience with last Friday’s incident.

● Phil D’Avella, Dubois Road, also spoke of Friday’s incident and an upcoming meeting.

● Meredith Landau, Christy Drive, spoke to the topic of School Resource Officer staffing.

● Gina Valenti, Providence Road, spoke to the concerns of Warren Middle School students.

● Noelle Mortillo, Mt. Bethel Road, discussed parents’ concerns.

● A student spoke of student concerns and the need for guidance.

● John Wishnia spoke to the nature of the communications regarding the Warren Middle School incident.

XII. Items for Board Consideration/Action

Dr. Chand asked a question regarding registration costs for the International Society for Technology in Education Conference.

On motion by Mrs. DiMaggio, seconded by Mr. Bellmann, the consent items A.1. through A.5., B.1. through B.6., C.1. through C.6., and D.1., were approved by a 8-0 roll-call vote.

A. Education

A.1. HIB Report

RESOLVED, that the Board of Education accepts the HIB Report submitted by the Superintendent for the period ending on March 25, 2019.

A.2. Tuition Contract

RESOLVED, that the Board of Education approves tuition contract with the parent of Student #3739524860 for attendance at Central School, effective September 1, 2019 through June 30, 2020, at a monthly cost of $408 per student.

A.3. Home Instruction

RESOLVED, that the Board of Education approves up to 10 hours per week of home instruction for Student #2628487106, beginning April 22, 2019, at a rate of $50 per hour, at a cost not to exceed $2,000.

A.4. Home Instruction

RESOLVED, that the Board of Education approves up to 10 hours per week of home instruction for Student #5687900216, beginning April 1, 2019 at a rate of $50 per hour, at a cost not to exceed $6,500.

A.5. Field Trip Destination

RESOLVED, that the Board of Education hereby approves the field trip destination for the 2018-2019 School Year as follows:

  1.  
    1. Monster Mini Golf, Edison

B. Finance/Operations/Transportation

B.1. Travel Approval

Whereas, in accordance with State of New Jersey School District Accountability Act (A-5) and the Warren Township Schools’ policy number 4133-Travel and Work Related Expense Reimbursement, travel by school district employees and Board of Education members must be approved in advance.

Now Therefore Be It RESOLVED, the Warren Township Schools Board of Education approves the following expenses for faculty, staff, administrators, and board members for seminars, conferences and workshops. The expense includes travel costs, if applicable:

Name

School

Workshop/ Conference

Location

Month/Yr

Cost

Matthew Mingle

District

New Jersey Association of School Administrators /

New Jersey Association of Pupil Services Administrators

Spring Leadership Conference

Atlantic City

May 2019

$923

Ronald Berry

District

Safe Schools Resource Officer/School Liaison Training

Mahwah

June 2019

$541

Cynthia Cassidy

MS

Book Expo 2019

New York, NY

May 2019

$157

Lance Riegler

Technology

International Society for Technology in Education Conference 2019

Philadelphia, PA

June 2019

$375

Cynthia Cassidy

MS

International Society for Technology in Education Conference 2019

Philadelphia, PA

June 2019

$311

All of the above travel has been approved by the Superintendent. The School Business Administrator shall track and record these costs to insure that the maximum amount is not exceeded.

B.2. Vehicle Purchases

RESOLVED, that the Board of Education approves the following purchases:

Item

Purchasing Bid

Vendor

Amount

2019 Ford F-350

65MCESCCPS - ESCNJ 17/18-21

Beyer Ford

$48,766.16

2020 Thomas 051MS 24 Passenger Bus

HCESC Bus Bid Trans 17-01B

DeHart Company

$61,841.32

B.3. Dell Purchases

RESOLVED, that the Board of Education hereby approves the following purchases from Dell:

● 20 Dell Interactive 70 inch Monitors, at a cost of $2,599.99 each, for a total of $51,999.80.

● 20 Saros Sound bars, at a cost of $398.49 each, for a total of $7,969.80

● 25 Mobile Precision 3530 laptops, at a cost of $1,246.74 each, for a total cost of $31,168.50.

All purchasing under New Jersey State Contract M0483.

B.4. NJSIG - ERIC North Sub-Fund Application for Safety Grant Program

RESOLVED, the Board of Education approves the submission of a grant application for the Safety Grant Program through the New Jersey School Insurance Group’s ERIC North Sub-Fund for the qualified purposes of offsetting the cost of Public Address system upgrades throughout the district. The grant monies, in the amount of $9,489.51, are for the period of July 1, 2019 to June 30, 2020.

B.5. Proximity Card Readers Purchasing

RESOLVED, that the Board of Education hereby approves the following purchase from SHI International Corporation:

● Identicard controllers, readers and all associated peripherals for 10 doors across the district - $39,278.85

All purchasing under New Jersey State Contract M0003, subcontract 89851.

B.6. Approval for Asbestos Abatement

RESOLVED, that the Board of Education hereby authorizes asbestos abatement work through Academy Construction Inc. as part of the district’s Boiler and Pump replacement project as follows:

School

Amount

Warren Middle School

$41,400

Mt. Horeb School

$35,650

Pricing through Ed Data Cooperative Purchasing Contract #8521, Package #42.

C. Personnel/Student Services

C.1. Employment for the 2018-2019 School Year

RESOLVED, upon recommendation from the Superintendent that the Board of Education approve the following Personnel items including the emergent employment of the following employees (indicated by *) conditional upon the final approval by the New Jersey Department of Education The Board further authorizes the submission of an application for emergency hiring pursuant to N.J.S.A. 18A:6-7.1, et. Seq., N.J.S.A. 18A:6.14.12, et. Seq., if applicable Staff members shall be paid in accordance with provisions in their collective bargaining agreement and/or in accordance with a schedule provided to all employees prior to the beginning of the contract or school year.

Name

Position/PCR

Location

Degree

Step

Salary

Effective Date

Discussion

Maryanne DuBois

1:1 Paraprofessional

32.5 hours

08-35-08/biv

Mt. Horeb

N/A

1

$23,817

4/22/2019 - 6/30/2019

New position

Spencer Adriaanse

Night Custodian

04-35-10/apz

Mt. Horeb

n/a

n/a

$36,000

On or about April 9, 2019 - June 30, 2019

(pending successful completion of final employment testing.)

Replacing employee #3282

C.2. Substitute Teachers

RESOLVED, that the Board of Education approves the following to be appointed as substitute teachers for the 2018-2019 school year.

Name

Joan Goldstein

Jennifer Scharf

C.3. Leave Request

RESOLVED, that the Board of Education approves the following leave requests:

Employee ID

Paid/Unpaid

#1275

FMLA - April 9, 2019 through May 22, 2019 (paid)

#2930

FMLA - April 23, 2019 through May 3, 2019 (paid)

FMLA - May 3 , 2019 through June 30, 2019 (unpaid)

(This motion supersedes the previous motion approved January 22, 2019.)

C.4. Additional Hours

RESOLVED, that the Board of Education approves the following additional hours:

Name

Student #

Club/Purpose

Starting Date

Cost

Nancy Lauber

8433407152

Gold Band Concert

May 28, 2019

$65

C.5. Long Term Substitutes

RESOLVED, that the Board of Education approves the following individuals as a Long Term Substitutes:

Name

Effective Date

Replacing

Employee

Cynthia Helmers

April 9, 2019 - May 22, 2019

#1275

Eileen Sebor

May 13, 2019 - June 30, 2019

#3219

C.6. Transfer/Change in Assignment

RESOLVED, that the Board of Education approves the transfer/change in

assignment of the following district staff:

Name

Effective Date

From

To

Salary

Joseph Scott

April 9, 2019

Middle School

Night Custodian

04-33-10/aob

Middle School

Day Custodian

04-33-10/auc

No change

D. Policy

D.1. Policy – Second Reading

RESOLVED, that the Board of Education approves the second reading of the following policy:

Number

Name

New/Revision

Source of Changes

5337

Service Animals

Revision

SEA

XIII. Unfinished Business

N/A

XIV. New Business

Mr. Franco raised the idea of a parent feedback End of Year survey.

Mr. Franco made a motion, seconded by Dr. Chand as follows:

RESOLVED, that the Board of Education hereby authorizes a survey of parents, prior to June 2019, regarding their feedback.

After discussion, a motion was made by Mr. Bellmann, seconded by Mr. Bellish, to table the above motion. The motion to table passed by a 9-0 roll-call vote.

It was then determined that the Curriculum, Communications and Technology Committee would review the options for a survey and provide a recommendation to the board.

XV. Public Commentary (any topic)

● Heather Silver, Quail Run, reminded all of tomorrow’s Middle School PTO meeting.

● Phil D’Avella, Dubois Road, asked a question regarding incident severity.

● Darlene Fenton, King George Road, mentioned previous district surveys.

● Mariette Dzeletovic, King George Road, also discussed the incident at the Middle School.

XVI. Executive Session

● At 8:12 p.m. Mrs. DiMaggio moved the following:

WHEREAS, the Open Public Meetings Act, N.J.S.A.10:4-11, permits the Board of Education to meet in closed session to discuss certain matters, now, therefore be it

RESOLVED, the Board of Education adjourns to closed session to discuss: (select one or more & include the word “and’ if two items)

protection of public safety and property and/or investigations of possible violations or violations of law

Action will not be taken upon return to public session;

the length of the meeting is anticipated to be approximately 15 minutes; and be it

FURTHER RESOLVED, the minutes of this closed session be made public when the need for confidentiality no longer exists.

sion be made public when the need for confidentiality no longer exists.

The motion was seconded by Mr. Bellmann and approved by unanimous voice vote.

On motion by Mrs. DiMaggio, seconded by Mr. Zohn, the Board reconvened in open session at 8:46 p.m.

XVII. Adjourn

On motion by Mr. DiMaggio, seconded by Mr. Bellmann, the meeting adjourned at 8:47 p.m.

Minutes submitted by,

Patricia Leonhardt

Board Secretary