Board Meeting - December 19, 2023

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Dates: 
Friday, December 15, 2023 - 4:45pm

THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS

METUCHEN, NEW JERSEY

 

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 19, 2023

 

MEETING AGENDA

of the Metuchen Board of Education

Metuchen High School

400 Grove Avenue

Metuchen, NJ  08840

  1. Call to Order

 

  1. Flag Salute

 

  1. 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, and by filing a copy with the Borough Clerk as prescribed by this law.

 

  1. Roll Call

Mr. Benderly

 

Dr. Johnson-Marcus

 

Ms. Cook

 

Ms. Killean

 

Mr. Derflinger

 

Mr. Lifton

 

Ms. Dimbeng

 

Dr. Spigner

 

Mr. Glassberg

 

Mr. Suss

 

 

  1. Showcase of Success

    Tournament of Bands Chapter VII Group IV Open Champions

Tournament of Bands Group IV Open New Jersey State Champions

US Bands Group V Open Grand National Finalist

The marching band competes annually in the Tournament of Bands circuit with bands from NJ, PA, WV and MD.  They are currently the biggest band in the entire circuit, coming from one of the smallest schools.  They also compete in open class, which is the most advanced class in the circuit.  The Pride of Metuchen Marching Band is currently back-to-back state and chapter champions.  At the end of the season, the band also competed against bands from throughout the country in the US Bands Grand National Championship at MetLife Stadium. 

 




 

2023-2024

Pride of Metuchen Marching Band

 

* = Section Leader

 

Flute and Piccolo

Devin Fineman *

Abigail Hogan

Mirabella Hom

Kiko Li

Bella Staal

 

Clarinet

Ashley Chen

Ada Dolan

Joseph Duhme *

Amira Elsayed

Emma Huber

Ximena Johnstone-Asturias *

Anika Kundu

Neela Myers

Chloe Shen *

Anushree Sutradhar

 

Low Reeds

Daniel Afkhami *

Ayaan Saha

Ishaan Sarkar

 

Alto Saxophone

Sara Haq

Eliman Kassogue

Habib Kassogue

Nene Murao *

Shinnosuke Murao

Ryan Stein

Gianna Toscano

Victoria Zaniecki

Melody Zetino *













 

Tenor Saxophone

Daniel Choi

Caleb Han

Harshith Pasam

Daniel Ruiz

Nicholas Timko

Ryan Timko *

 

Trumpet

Tariq Alisammond

Sean Blaze

Julia Diaz

Alistair Fawcett

Elizabeth Fineman

Connor Gaughan

Jackson Gould *

Logan MacPherson

Michael McNamara *

Aidan McPherson

Vedant Naik *

Brandon Zhu

 

Mellophone

Alyson Chan *

Nicholas Cosenza

Ethan DelaGarza

Gianna Hernandez *

 

Baritone

Avner Chaplin *

Nell Massey

Siddhant Naik

Nicholas Reuter

Gage Rodey

Bowen Zhang

 

Tuba

Eli Duhme

Chamber Lam

Rose Michaels-LaMorte

Oliver Sydor

 




 

Drumline

Madeleine Cook

Praket Jha

Arturs Krumins

Janhavi Malik

Zoya Malik

Riva Nagvekar

Tyler Nicholson

Aidan Ogborn *

Ripley Wong *

Allen Zheng

 

Front Ensemble

Peter Coreschi

Katy Donohue

Joshua Feldmann

Milo Haviland

Alexandra Ho

Lindsey Kang

Peter Kukuruza

Emily Lanton *

Katherine Meyer

Gavin Moorman

Ronan Sequeira

Daniel Stone

Marisol Torres

Matthew Zetino *

Michael Zetino

 

Guard

Elizabeth Aiyeleso

Jocelyn Branch

Faith Cordova

Michaela Coreschi

Munachiso Ezem-Madu

August Garner *

Evy Hand

Zora Haviland

Eileen He

Adrienne Lee

Melinda Li

Gwendolyn Osmond

Caelum Ritzdorf *

Emma Staal *




 

❖ Sports Champs

 

MHS Girls Cross Country 

Red Division Champions

GMC Champions

Central Jersey Group 1 Sectional Champions

Group 1 Champions

 

Ella Andersen

Gianna Hernandez

Kaitlyn Hsueh

 

Sally Kelton

Lilly Kupersmit

Maggie Rivera



 

GMC Champion

Sectional Champion

 

Gianna Hernandez 



 

MHS Boys Cross Country 

White Division Champions

Central Jersey - Group 1 - State Sectional Champions

 

Brady Allen

Kai Englert

Arturs Krumins

Michael McNamara

Harry Moorman

Alex Patelski

Eric Schleif

James Vissichelli




 

White Division Champion

Central Jersey Group 1 Sectional Champion

 

Alex Patelski



 

MHS Girls Tennis

Co-White Division Champions

 

Julia Armour

Marina Armour

Alyson Joy Chan

Katie Chen

Nicole Dudek

Abigail Hogan

Lindsey Kang

Lauren Kantar

Emily Lan

Anna Leon

Cindy Li

Chelsea Lu

Mary McGrath

Erika Mihaylov

Suhani Modha

Nene Murao

Mai Nguyen

Samantha Schulz

Vrinda Surati

Gina Yip

 

  1. Meeting Open to the Public (for any topic)

 

  1. Presentations 

 

  1. Reports

  • President’s Report

  • Superintendent's Report

  • Committee Reports

  • Student Board Member Report

 

  1. Old Business

 

  1. New Business

 

  1. Approval of Minutes of the Board of Education Meetings

 

November 28, 2023

  Special Business Meeting (1)

November 28, 2023

  Special Business Meeting (2)

November 28, 2023

  Board Meeting

 

  1. Meeting Open to the Public (for any topic)

 

  1. 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.

 

  1. PERSONNEL

Motion/Second/Comments/Roll Call

 

  1. Retirement - Custodial Staff

Move to accept, with regret, the retirement of Mark Cooper, Head Night Custodian at Campbell School, effective February 1, 2024.

 

2.    Resignation - Certificated Staff

    Move to accept the resignation of Jaclyn Reisman, Metuchen High School Special Education Teacher, effective January 26, 2023. 

 

3.    Resignation - Paraprofessional

    Move to accept the resignation of Ernest Svolto, Metuchen High School Paraprofessional, effective December 31, 2023. 

 

4.    Maternity Leave of Absence - Date Revision

    Move to approve the updated effective date of the maternity leave of absence of Sofia Lopes, 4th Grade Teacher at Campbell School, effective December 14, 2023 through approximately May 23, 2024 (Agenda 7/18/23, Section 13 A17).

 

5.    Volunteer Clubs - Additional

    Move to approve the following Volunteer Clubs for the 2023-2024 school year as listed (Agenda 08/22/2023, Section 13, A10):

 

Metuchen High School

 

Club

Advisor

Writing & Literary Magazine Club

Aubree Deminski

SWENext

Jing Jing Wang

Edgar Middle School

 

Club

Advisor

Cheer

Brendan McCunney

 

6.    Appointment - Paraprofessional

    Move to approve the appointment of Lauren Corrigan, Paraprofessional at Metuchen High School, for the 2023-2024 school year, at a salary of $22,435/year, prorated, effective approximately January 22, 2024 (or earlier if released from her current district).

 

7.    Appointment - Certificated Staff

    Move to approve the appointment of Trey Jaworski, Biology Teacher at Metuchen High School, for the 2023-2024 school year, at a salary of $64,000/year, Step 1H, prorated, effective approximately January 30, 2024.

 

8.    Appointment - Leave Replacement 

    Move to approve the appointment of Maricruz Araujo, as Leave Replacement for Edgar School Spanish Teacher, effective December 12, 2023, at the rate of $150/day. 

 

9.    Appointment - Paraprofessional

    Move to approve the appointment of Victoria Dunyak, Paraprofessional at Moss School, for the 2023-2024 school year, at a salary of $24,255/year, prorated, effective December 20, 2023.

 

10.    Rate Increase – Substitute Secretaries

    Move to approve the rate increase for the following Substitute Secretaries, to $16/hour, effective January 1, 2024.

 

Lucy MacDonald

Amy Jeney

Rosemary Orlandini

Patricia Yelencsics

Kellie Davideit

Jeanmarie Teitler

Lauren Cohn

Jennifer Korpon

 

11.    Rate Increase – Substitute Custodians

    Move to approve the rate increase for the following Substitute Custodians, to $16/hour, effective January 1, 2024.

 

Thomas Bilgrav

Miguel Gonzalez

Kelda Asiain-Arvizu

 

12.    Rate Increase – Lunch Aides

    Move to approve the rate increase for the following Lunch Aides, to $16/hour, effective January 1, 2024.

 

Ana Ayala

Nancy Chin

Joan DiFino

Sheri Kady

Donato Minutillo

Carmelita Spears

Jeffrey Salzer

Cheryl Weisberg

Debra Knight

 

13.    Family Medical Leave of Absence - Certificated Staff

    Move to approve the family medical leave of absence of Deanna Kindler, First Grade Teacher at Campbell School, effective November 13, 2023 through approximately December 22, 2023.

 

14.    Appointment - Certificated Staff 

    Move to approve the appointment of Adero Solomon, Special Education Math Teacher at Metuchen High School, for the 2023-2024 school year, at a salary of $58,564/year, Step 3A, prorated, effective approximately January 29, 2024, pending receipt of certification, through June 30, 2024. 

 

15.    Appointment - Additional Substitutes

    Move to approve the appointment  of the additional substitutes for the 2023-2024 school year, effective December 1, 2023, pending completion of substitute training and criminal history clearance:

 

Last Name

First Name

Position

Rate

DeCerbo

Mia

Substitute Para

$15/hour

Yerger

Colin

Substitute Para

$15/hour

Almeida

Lily

Substitute with college credits

$100/day

Dreitser

Annie

Substitute with college credits

$100/day

Corrigan

Joseph

Substitute with college credits

$100/day

Smith

Victoria

Substitute with college credits

$100/day

Shin

Yohan

Substitute with college credits

$100/day

Bruno

Rachel

Substitute with college degree

$105/day

Toomey

Angelina

Substitute with college degree

$105/day

Solomon

Adero

Substitute with college degree

$105/day

Sullivan

Allison

Substitute with college degree

$105/day

Dees

Amy

Substitute with teacher cert

$110/day

 

16.    Rate Increase – Daily Substitutes

    Move to approve the rate increase for the substitute teachers and paras, as listed on the attached, effective January 1, 2024.

 

17.    Student Teacher Mentor Stipend

    Move to approve a Student Teacher mentor stipend of $275 to Jeremy Barnes, Campbell School Teacher, for mentoring Michael Small, Student Teacher, for the months of September to December 2023 funded by the University of Phoenix. 




 

18.    Appointment - MHS Winter Coach

    Move to approve the following 2023-2024 Metuchen High School Coach Appointment:

 

Name

Assignment

Step 

23-24 Stipend

McKenzie Larsen

Winter Cheer Head Coach

1

$3,743

 

19.    Leave Replacement 

    Move to approve the appointment of Christine Piovoso, Leave Replacement for Deanna Kindler, First Grade Teacher at Campbell School, at a rate of $301.49/day, effective December 13, 2023 through approximately December 22, 2023.

 

20.    MHS Winter Coach - Rescind

    Move to rescind the appointment of the following coach for the Winter 2023-2024 school sports session at Metuchen High School (Agenda 06/13/2023, Section 13 A19):

 

Team

Coach

2023-2024 stipend

MHS Winter Track

Michael Spark

$3,339 (Step 3)

 

21.    Medical Leave of Absence - Certificated Staff

    Move to approve the medical leave of absence of Andrea Agnone, Special Education Teacher at Edgar School, effective December 7, 2023 through December 22, 2023.

 

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

 

  1. FINANCE

Motion/Second/Comments/Roll Call

 

  1. 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 October 31, 2023.

 

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 December 19, 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 October 31, 2023.

4.  Professional Development

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

 

Start Date

End Date

Activity Title

Name

Building

Requested

Approved

Payment

FFPI Proposal #

11/28/

2023

11/28/

2023

Youth Summit

Abbott, Beth

MHS

0

No cost

 

11/28/2023

12/8/

2023

12/8/

2023

NJSELA Meeting at Rutgers University

Lemerich, Kathryn

Central Office

0

No cost

 

12/8/2023

1/5/

2024

1/5/

2024

North New Jersey Math Supervisors Roundtable

Lemerich, Kathryn

Central Office

0

No cost

 

1/5/2024

1/6/

2024

1/6/

2024

IMSE Phonological Awareness Digital Course

Masters, Sarah

Moss School

$400

FFPI

24-080

1/6/2024

1/11/

2024

1/11/

2024

Strengthening Students' Writing Skills While Significantly Decreasing Grading Time (Grades 6-12)

Wagenblast, Eileen

MHS

$279

FFPI

24-084

1/11/2024

1/12/

2024

1/12/

2024

AP STEM Roundtable

Green, Samantha

MHS

0

No cost

 

1/12/2024

1/18/

2024

2/5/

2024

Taking a Deep Dive with Section 504: Understanding, Implementing, and Compliance

Kirschner, Brooke

Campbell

$199

Other

 

1/18/2024

1/22/

2024

1/22/

2024

Increase Your Success in Working with Students with High-Functioning Autism Spectrum Disorders

Agnone, Andrea

Edgar

$279

FFPI

24-083

1/22/2024

1/22/

2024

1/22/

2024

Increase Your Success in Working with Students with High-Functioning Autism Spectrum Disorders

Thompson, Lauren

Edgar

$279

FFPI

24-082

1/22/2024

1/26/

2024

1/26/

2024

3D Printing and Data Science Teacher Workshop

Stranz, Jennifer

MHS

0

No cost

 

1/26/2024

1/26/

2024

1/26/

2024

3D Printing Teacher Workshop

Caponigro, Emily

MHS

$15.52

FFPI

24-081

1/26/2024

2/13/

2024

2/13/

2024

Beyond Bias: Unconscious Bias

Nalepa, Lindsay

MHS

0

No cost

 

2/13/2024

 

5.    Nonpublic Technology Aid

    Move to approve the following nonpublic technology aid for the 2023-2024 school year. These expenditures are required for the district to fulfill certain legal obligations under state legislation to administer federal or state funds provided to nonpublic schools within our jurisdiction:

 

School

Vendor

QTY

Item #

Description

Price

Total

Metuchen Christian Academy

CDW-G

8

7608123

HP S5 840 G8 Core i5-1145 256GB SSD 16GB RAM W11 Notebook Computer

$660.84

$5,286.72

 

6.    Behavioral Technician Services - Revision

    Move to approve Soliant Health, LLC, to provide behavioral technician services, at a rate of up to $65/hour, not to exceed $120,000 (Agenda 11/28/2023, Section 13, B7).

 

7.    BCBA Services

    Move to approve Brett DiNovi & Associates as a provider of independent BCBA services for the 2023-2024 school year, at a rate of $135/hour and Clinical Associates services at a rate of $60.50/hour, not to exceed $60,000 (Agenda 06/27/2023, Section 13, B31).

8.    Resolution

 

WHEREAS on December 7, 2023, the Metuchen Board of Education (“Board”) held a public bid opening for additions and alterations at Metuchen Schools; at Moss and Edgar Middle School

 

WHEREAS the Board received six (6) bids at the public bid opening; and

 

WHEREAS all of the bids received substantially exceeded the Board’s cost estimates for the Project and the Board’s appropriation for the Project; and

 

WHEREAS, the Board has determined that the bids are not reasonable as to price based upon the prior cost estimates provided to the Board; and

 

WHEREAS, N.J.S.A. 18A:18A-22 permits a board of education to reject all bids when they substantially exceed the Board’s appropriation for the Project and/or the Board’s cost estimates for the Project.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the above recitals are incorporated herein as if set forth here at length.

 

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that pursuant to N.J.S.A. 18A:18A-22, the Board rejects all bids for the Project on the basis that 1) they are unreasonable as to price as they substantially exceed the Board’s cost estimate for the Project and/or 2) substantially exceed the Board’s appropriation for the Project.

 

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Business Administrator is authorized to return the bid securities of all bidders.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Business Administrator is authorized to re-bid the Project.

 

9.    Resolution

 

WHEREAS on December 14, 2023, the Metuchen Board of Education (“Board”) held a public bid opening for additions and alterations at Metuchen Schools; and Campbell Elementary and Metuchen High School

 

WHEREAS the Board received three (3) bids at the public bid opening; and

 

WHEREAS all of the bids received substantially exceeded the Board’s cost estimates for the Project and the Board’s appropriation for the Project; and

 

WHEREAS, the Board has determined that the bids are not reasonable as to price based upon the prior cost estimates provided to the Board; and

 

WHEREAS, N.J.S.A. 18A:18A-22 permits a board of education to reject all bids when they substantially exceed the Board’s appropriation for the Project and/or the Board’s cost estimates for the Project.

 

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the above recitals are incorporated herein as if set forth here at length.

 

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that pursuant to N.J.S.A. 18A:18A-22, the Board rejects all bids for the Project on the basis that 1) they are unreasonable as to price as they substantially exceed the Board’s cost estimate for the Project and/or 2) they substantially exceed the Board’s appropriation for the Project.

 

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Business Administrator is authorized to return the bid securities of all bidders.

 

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Business Administrator is authorized to re-bid the Project.

 

10.    Resolution

 

BE IT RESOLVED that the Metuchen Board of Education hereby authorizes the use of a Project Labor Agreement for additions and alterations at the Metuchen Schools. 

 

11.    Technology Equipment Disposal

    Move to approve the disposal of the technology equipment as shown on the attached list.

 

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

 

  1. POLICY

Motion/Second/Comments/Roll Call

    

  1. Suspensions

The Board hereby acknowledges receipt of the suspension report summary for November 24, 2023 - December 15, 2023. 



 

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

 

  1. CURRICULUM

Motion/Second/Comments/Roll Call

 

1.    Field Trips - Retroactive

    Move to approve the following field trip, retroactively, 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

Algonquin Theater for A Christmas Carol

Grade 5-12; CRP1. Act as a responsible and contributing citizen and employee CRP3. Attend to personal health and financial well-being CRP4 Communicate clearly and effectively and with reason.

Dawn Valovcin, Christina Dybas, Alexis Wolford, Michelle Schutz, Jordan Leitner, Marilyn Levine, Joseph DiMeglio, Janine Haulenbeek

12/15/

2023

12

$130

no subs needed

 

2.    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

Piscataway High School

Grade 9-12; To participate in a mock trial scrimmage in order to prepare for the mock trial competition

Kevin Smedley

1/6/

2024 (after school)

10

$160

no subs needed

MHS

Middlesex County Courthouse

Grade 9-12; Transportation for Mock trial Day 1

Kevin Smedley

1/22/

2024 (after school)

10

$110

no subs needed

MHS

Middlesex County Courthouse

Grade 9-12; Transportation for Mock trial Day 2

Kevin Smedley

1/23/

2024 (after school)

10

$110

no subs needed

MHS

Middlesex County Courthouse

Grade 9-12; Transportation for Mock trial Day 3-Mock Trial Competition semi finals. Please note that we will only require transportation if we make the semi finals.

Kevin Smedley

1/24/

20204 (after school)

10

$110

no subs needed

MHS

Middlesex County Courthouse

Grade 9-12; Transportation for Mock Trial Competition semi finals. Please note that transportation will not be necessary if we do not perform well in semifinals.

Kevin Smedley

1/25/

2024 (after school)

10

$110

no subs needed

MHS

Strand Theater

Grade 9-12; We have been invited to participate in the 36th Annual Music Spectacular Jazz Festival at the Strand Theater in Lakewood. Included in the performance is a clinic with some of the top jazz musicians in NJ and also a recording of the event.

John Messenger and John Flynn

4/16/

2024

25

$500

1 sub needed

 

3.    Curriculum Writing 

Move to approve the following curriculum writers for the following subjects: 

 

Subject

Grade

Author

Amount

Social Studies

1

Jennifer Spak

$650.00

Social Studies

1

Lisa Levin

$650.00

 

4.    Outdated Book Disposal

    Move to approve the disposal of outdated books from the Campbell Elementary School Library as per the guidelines outlined in the district's policy on Disposition of Property. 

 

5.    Externship

    Move to approve Devin Croake for an Externship placement with the following teachers for the Spring 2024 through Lafayette College:

 

Name

Placement

School

Emily Bianchi

Speech Therapist

Campbell Elementary School

Edgar Middle School 

Lindsey Omark

Jenny Pasquale 

Special Education and General Education

Campbell Elementary School

 

6.    Curriculum Writers

    Move to rescind and approve the following curriculum writers and amounts for Summer 2022, (Agenda 6/14/22, Section 13 D2):

 

Course

Author

Amount

PE 

Grade 5

Rescind: 

Melanie Gilbert

$1,000

PE

Grade 5

Rescind: 

John Butler and 

Kristen Kulthau

$650.00 each writer

PE 

Grade 6

Rescind:

Rick Carter

$1,000

PE 

Grade 7

Rescind

Melanie Gilbert

$1000

PE

Grade 5

Approve

Kristin Gallo

$1000

PE 

Grade 6

Approve

John Butler

$1000

PE

Grade 7

Approve

Rick Carter

$1000

 

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

 

  1. Meeting Open to Public (for any topic)

 

  1. Announcements

 

  1. 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.

 

  1. Adjournment

Groups audience: