Board Meeting - January 17, 2023 | Metuchen School District

Dates:

Friday, January 13, 2023 - 4:15pm

THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS

METUCHEN, NEW JERSEY

TUESDAY, JANUARY 17, 2023

MEETING AGENDA

of the Metuchen Board of Education

Metuchen High School

400 Grove Avenue

Metuchen, NJ 08840

Call to Order

Flag Salute

Notice of Meeting

I hereby make this statement to indicate compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act known as Chapter 231 of the Public Laws of New Jersey, 1975, which became effective 90 days after enactment, January 19, 1976.

Notice of this meeting was given by providing the location, time and date of this meeting, and posting of the same on the front door of the Board of Education offices, by delivering copies to the Borough Hall and the Metuchen Public Library, The Home News and Tribune, The Criterion Sentinel, The Star Ledger, and by filing a copy with the Borough Clerk as prescribed by this law.

Roll Call

Mr. Benderly		Ms. Killean
Ms. Cook		Mr. Lifton
Mr. Derflinger		Mr. Solasky
Mr. Glassberg		Dr. Spigner
Dr. Johnson-Marcus		Mr. Suss

Showcase of Success

❖ Governor's Educator of the Year Award Recipients

Meeting Open to the Public (for any topic)

Presentations

❖ SSDS and HIB Report September 2022 - December 2022

Reports

President’s Report
Superintendent's Report
Committee Reports
Student Board Member Report

Old Business

New Business

Approval of Minutes of the Board of Education Meetings

January 3, 2023	Special Business Meeting (1)
January 3, 2023	Special Business Meeting (2)
January 3, 2023	Board Meeting

Meeting Open to the Public (for any topic)

Recommendations of the Superintendent of Schools

(at this time the Board will take formal action on the following items – see attachments)

Often times it may appear to members of our audience that the Board of Education takes action with very little comment and in many cases a unanimous vote. Before a matter is placed on the agenda at a public meeting, the administration has thoroughly reviewed the matter with the Superintendent of Schools. If the Superintendent is satisfied that the matter is ready to be presented to the Board of Education, it is then referred to the appropriate board committee. The members of the board committee work with administration and the Superintendent to assure that the members fully understand the matter. When the committee is satisfied with the matter, it is presented to the Board of Education for discussion before any final action is taken. Only then, is it placed on the agenda for action at a public meeting.

PERSONNEL

Motion/Second/Comments/Roll Call

Resignation - Paraprofessional

Move to accept the resignation of Mary Ellen Polye, Paraprofessional at Campbell School, effective January 17,2023.

2. Volunteer Club

Move to approve the following additional Volunteer Club for the 2022-2023 school

year as listed (Agenda 8/23/22, Section 13 A15):

Volunteer Club	Advisor	School
American Sign Language Club	Alexa Baird	MHS

3. Maternity Leave of Absence - Revision

Move to approve the revised start date of the maternity leave of absence of Erica Hsu, School Counselor at Campbell School, effective approximately February 1, 2023 through approximately June 1, 2023 (Agenda 9/13/23, Section 13 A18).

4. Leave Replacement - Revision

Move to revise the start and end dates of the leave replacement term of Elaine Goldstein, Leave Replacement for Erica Hsu, School Counselor at Campbell School, effective approximately January 30, 2023 through approximately June 1, 2023 (Agenda 12/13/22, Section 13 A3).

5. Medical Leave of Absence - Extension

Move to approve the extension of the medical leave of absence of Mark Cooper, Custodian at Campbell School, through approximately February 1, 2023 (Agenda 11/15/23, Section 13 A8).

6. Medical Leave of Absence - Paraprofessional

Move to approve the medical leave of absence of Sandra Spinelli, Paraprofessional at Moss School, effective January 2, 2023 through approximately February 27, 2023.

7. Resignation - Leave Replacement

Move to approve the resignation of Alyssa Cosentino, First Grade Leave Replacement Teacher at Campbell School, effective March 6, 2023, or earlier if a replacement is hired. (Agenda 7/12/22, Section 13 A8).

8. Appointment – Additional MHS Weight Room Supervisor

Move to approve the following additional MHS Weight Room Supervisor for the 2022-2023 school year (Agenda 6/14/22, Section 13 A17):

Brooke Bandola

9. Appointment – Additional Event Staff

Move to approve the following additional Event Staff for the 2022-2023 school year (Agenda 8/9/22, Section 13 A13):

Brooke Bandola

10. Appointment of Substitute Teachers

Move to approve the appointment of the following additional substitute teachers for the 2022-2023 school year, pending criminal history clearance and substitute certification (Agenda 8/23/2022 Section 13 A16):

Substitute	Certification	Per Diem Rate
Christina Garison	Substitute w/teacher cert	$110/day
Maria Palacios	Substitute w/college degree	$105/day
Erica Naranjo	Substitute w/college degree	$105/day

11. Appointment of Substitute Nurse

Move to approve the appointment of the following additional substitute nurse for the 2022-2023 school year, pending completion of substitute nurse certification and criminal history clearance (Agenda 8/23/2022 Section 13 A16):

Substitute Nurse	Per Diem Rate
Amanda Rodriguez	$200/day

12. Appointment of Substitute Paraprofessional

Move to approve the appointment of the following additional substitute paraprofessional for the 2022-2023 school year (Agenda 8/23/2022 Section 13 A16):

Substitute Paraprofessional	Rate
Anne Sookchand	$15/hour

13. Informal Mentor Assignments

Move to approve the following informal mentor assignments for the 2022-2023 school year (Agenda 8/23/22, Section 13 A26):

New Teacher	School	Mentor	Assignment	Payment
Laura Hermans	Moss	Nga Pham	Informal Mentor	$48/hour, up to 6 hours
Niki Kogan	Moss	Katie McKenna	Informal Mentor	$48/hour, up to 6 hours
Kevin Smedley	MHS	Bonnie Stanski	Informal Mentor	$48/hour, up to 6 hours
Emily Caponigro	MHS	Chad Murray	Informal Mentor	$48/hour, up to 6 hours
Jessica Kovacs	Moss	Kelsee Young	Informal Mentor	$48/hour, up to 6 hours
Brooke Bandola	EMS/ MHS	Melanie Gilbert (.5)/Beth Abbott (.5)	Informal Mentors	$48/hour, up to 3 hours each

14. Clubs and Co-Curricular Activities – Revision

Move to approve the following co-curricular stipend revision for the co-curricular activity for the 2022-2023 school year as listed (Agenda 1/3/23, Section 13 A19):

Metuchen High School
Advisor	Club	2022-2023 stipend
Rescind Kevin Smedley	Mock Trial	$2,417.00
Approve Evan Robbins	Mock Trial	$2,417.00

15. Maternity Leave - Certificated Staff

Move to approve the maternity leave of absence of Emily Mertz, 5th Grade Teacher at Edgar School, effective approximately May 1, 2023 through approximately December 1, 2023.

16. School Psychologist Intern

Move to approve Julia Kenny as School Psychologist intern from Rutgers University, at Moss and Campbell.

17. Integrated Preschool Presenters

Approve Kelsee Young and Jessica Kovacs to provide an Integrated Preschool evening parent presentation, at a rate of $48 per hour, up to 2 hours.

18. Resignation – Certificated Staff

Move to accept the resignation of Katie Tencza, English Teacher at Metuchen High School, effective March 31, 2023, or earlier if a replacement is hired.

----------------------------end of personnel section--------------------------

FINANCE

Motion/Second/Comments/Roll Call

Treasurer of School Monies and Board Secretary’s Reports

Move to approve the Treasurer of School Monies’ Report, and Board Secretary’s Report as of November 30, 2022.

2. Payment of Bills

a) Board Secretary’s Certification

Pursuant to N.J.A.C. 6:20-2A.10(d), the Board Secretary has certified that as of January 3, 2023 no budgetary line item accounts have obligations and payments which exceed the amount appropriated by the Board of Education.

________________________________________ _______________

Michael A. Harvier, Board Secretary Date

b) Approve the Following Items Submitted by the Board Secretary

Payment of bills and claims, as shown on the attached list(s) that have been certified by the Board of Education and filed in the Business Office.

3. Budget Transfers

Move to approve budget transfers effective November 30, 2022.

4. Bus Purchase

Move to approve the purchase of a 2024 Endera Bus, 29 passenger van from AT New York City, LLC. for $98,830.86 (ESCNJ BID #22/23-24, ITEM #7).

5. Approve Vendor

Approve TTI Environmental Inc to perform a Hazardous Materials Building Survey at all four schools at cost not to exceed $74,000.

6. Professional Development

Move to approve the following professional development activities as shown on the following chart:

Start Date	End Date	Activity Title	Name	Building	Approved	Payment	FFPI Proposal #
10/10/ 2022	10/10/ 2022	Promoting Diverse Perspectives Through a Learner-Centered Curriculum	Ortega, Anais	MHS	$58.33	FFPI	23-086
10/10/ 2022	10/10/ 2022	Promoting Diverse Perspectives Through a Learner-Centered Curriculum	Williams, Raquel	Edgar	$58.33	FFPI	23-088
1/10/ 2023	3/14/ 2023	Cyber Security Workshop	Evans, Neyda	Edgar	$18.80	No cost
1/10/ 2023	3/14/ 2023	Cyber Security Workshop	Williams, Raquel	Edgar	0	No cost
1/23/ 2023	1/23/ 2023	Social Emotional Character Development	Wang, Jingjing	MHS	$44	FFPI	23-095
2/1/ 2023	2/1/ 2023	5th Grade NJSLA- S Science Assessment Training Session	Nolde, Jonathan	Campbell	0	No cost
2/9/ 2023	2/9/ 2023	Supporting STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES	Agnone, Andrea	Edgar	$279	FFPI	23-090
2/9/ 2023	2/9/ 2023	Supporting STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES	Thompson, Lauren	Edgar	$279	FFPI	23-092
2/9/ 2023	2/9/ 2023	STUDENT-CENTERED IEP PLANNING	Masters, Sarah	Moss	$75	FFPI	23-098
2/23/ 2023	2/23/ 2023	The IEP Process: Essential Strategies for Special Education Teachers	Masters, Sarah	Moss	$91	FFPI	23-099
2/10/ 2023	2/10/ 2023	101 Best Strategies for Teaching Social Studies, Grades 6-12	Stoner, Richard	Edgar	$159	FFPI	23-097
2/27/ 2023	2/27/ 2023	Shape NJ Annual Convention	Gilbert, Melanie	Edgar	$169	FFPI	23-094
3/3/ 2023	3/10/ 2023	Using the Patterns of Strengths and Weaknesses Model to Identify Specific Learning Disabilities	Lewis, Patricia	Edgar	$140	FFPI	23-089
3/3/ 2023	3/3/ 2023	Language Acquisition through Motor Planning (LAMP)	Donlin, Emily	Campbell	$139	FFPI	23-096
3/10/ 2023	3/10/ 2023	Beyond Question & Answer:Supporting Engaged Literature Discussions: grades 4-8	Thompson, Lauren	Edgar	$240.33	FFPI	23-093
3/10/ 2023	3/10/ 2023	Supporting Engaged Literature Discussions: grades 4-8	Agnone, Andrea	Edgar	$240.33	FFPI	23-091
3/29/ 2023	3/31/ 2023	School Transportation Supervisors Conference in Atlantic City	Plancher, Marissa	CO	not to exceed $700	includes reg fee, hotel, mileage, tolls
4/25/ 2023	4/25/ 2023	You're Going to Love this Kid! Educating Autistic Students in the Inclusive Classroom	Young, Kelsee	Moss	$175	FFPI	23-087

7. CCL Therapy LLC

Move to approve CCL Therapy LLC for Occupational Therapy evaluations at rate of $400 per evaluation and Occupational Therapy services at a rate of $95 per hour.

----------------------------end of finance section--------------------------

POLICY

Motion/Second/Comments/Roll Call

Suspensions

The Board hereby acknowledges receipt of the suspension report summary for December 23, 2022 - January 13, 2023.

2. Harassment, Intimidation and Bullying

Move to affirm the findings of the previously reported cases:

EMS121422001
EMS122222001
METHS122222001

----------------------------end of policy section--------------------------

CURRICULUM

Motion/Second/Comments/Roll Call

1. Coping Skills Pilot for the 2022-2023 School Year

Move to approve the following staff to serve as turn-key trainers for the Embedding Coping Skills Pilot for the 2022-2023 school year, not to exceed 10 hours each at the contractual rate of $48 per hour. To be paid from the ARP ESSER III Learning Acceleration and Coaching Federal Grant:

Name	School
Katie McKenna	Moss
Katie McKenna	Moss
Kelsee Young	Moss
Sofia Lopes	Campbell
Sofia Lopes	Campbell
Emily Presuto	Edgar
Michael Butler	Edgar
Lindsay Nalepa	MHS

2. Facilitators for SEL Mentor Program

Move to approve the following teachers to serve as facilitators for the EMS / MHS SEL Mentor Program for the 2022-2023 school year, not to exceed 20 hours each at the contractual rate of $48 per hour. To be paid from the Title IV federal grant.

Sydney Rudin

Emily Presuto

Michael Butler

Lindsay Nalepa

Kelsee Young

3. Parent Academy Facilitator

Move to approve Dr. Sandy Vorensky to serve as facilitator for the Elementary Math Parent Academy at the contractual hourly rate of $48/hr for the 2022-2023 school year, not to exceed 16 hours. To be paid from the ARP ESSER III Learning Acceleration and Coaching Federal Grant.

4. Field Trips

Move to approve the following field trips for students in the Metuchen School District as shown:

School	Destination	Class/Group/ Purpose	Teachers/ Advisors	Date(s)	No. Of Students	Board Cost- Transportation	Number of Subs Needed
MHS	Highland Park Senior Center	Grades 9-12; Perform Chinese Lion and Dragon Dance for Senior Citizens of Highland Park to celebrate Lunar New Year and promote cultural diversity	Yoko Kato	1/24/ 2023	20	$0	1
MHS	Moss School	Grades 9-12; The students of the Asian Heritage Club will be performing Lunar New Year Lion and Dragon to the Moss School students.	Yoko Kato	2/16/2023	16	$80	1
MHS	Middlesex County Court House	Grades 10-12; Mock trial Competition on 1/23/23 and 1/24/23	Evan Robbins and Kevin Smedley	1/23/2023	15	$220(Total for 2 days)	0
MHS	Montclair Museum of Art	Grades 9-12; Students will attend a tour of the Montclair Art Museum and a studio workshop. The Montclair Art Museum has a diverse collection of American and Native American art and on our tour we will focus on the new exhibition of artwork created by Vanessa German, a contemporary African-American mixed media artist. German's power figure sculptures explore themes of strength, love, and social justice. Students will then engage in a studio activity to explore mixed media assemblage and create their own power figures inspired by German's exhibition. It is important for art students to view contemporary art in person and this field trip will provide the opportunity for them to do so as well as engage in critical discussion and reflective artmaking.	Kelly Murphy, Margo Banner, Liz DeMott, Ashley Jaye	3/22/ 2023	40	$0	2
MHS	Middlesex County Fire Academy	Grades 10 and 11; Students will compete in NJ Consumer Affairs High School Bowl. In this quiz bowl, students demonstrate knowledge of consumer issues that teenagers may face in the future (e.g. fraud). If it snows on February 15, 2023, the backup date for the competition is 2/16/23. In the event we win the county competition, there will be a second competition ~ a month later at another location in NJ. In the event we win we will advance further.	Karen Van de Castle	2/15/ 2023	5	$140	1
CES	Tony’s Pizza	Grades 1-4; Community based instruction to the Tony's Pizza to generalize communication goals outside of the classroom and practice attending within the community. 2.1.P.D.2 Develop an awareness of warning symbols and their meaning (e.x., red light, stop sign, walk, etc.). ELA.EE.SL.2.1 Participate in conversations with adults and peers.	Brian Jeney Lori-Anne Diserio Sonia Aswani Kelly Vissichelli Olivia Williams Michael Small Abeera Omarzai Anu Bakshi Patricia Kobayachi Iffat Rouhi Emily Donlin Isabella Massaro Karla Riera	2/10/2023	10	$50	0

5. SECD Committee

Move to approve the following teachers at the contractual hourly rate of $48/hr to implement the SECD Committee plans to extend SEL Education to the community for the 2022-2023 school year. To be paid from the Title IV federal grant:

SEL Education	Certified Staff Members	Not to exceed
CMS Student Mentor Facilitators	Jennifer Pasquale	13 hours
	Lindsey Omark	13 hours
	Jeremy Barnes	13 hours
	Jennifer Spak	13 hours
	Lisa Levin	13 hours
Reflection Facilitators	Elizabeth Smith	4 hours
	Emily Presuto	4 hours
	Christina Dybas	4 hours

----------------------------end of curriculum section--------------------------

Meeting Open to Public (for any topic)

Announcements

Motion to Go Into Executive Session (when applicable)

Resolution to Close Meeting

BE IT RESOLVED, pursuant to the Sunshine Act, N.J.S. 10:4-12 and 13, that the Board of Education will now meet in executive session to discuss _____________________________________ and that matters discussed will be disclosed to the public as soon as the reason for confidentiality no longer exist.