Board President's Monthly Statement
The school board meeting is a business meeting in public and not a meeting with the public. Oftentimes 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/Chief School Administrator (CSA). If the Superintendent of Schools/Chief School Administrator 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. After the committee discusses the matter, it is presented to the full Board for discussion before any action is taken. Only then, is it placed on the agenda for action at a public meeting.
Meeting Overview
Roll Call
Approval of Board Minutes: Executive Session and Special Public Session - December 20, 2021
- Agenda and Attachments
- Presentation: District Goals Update
- BOE Student Representative Presentation: Mid-Term Survey Results (As of January 29, Principal Sanchez shared the following update with the CHS community via their monthly newsletter: "The second big thing that happened this past week involved midterms. The CHS Faculty & Administration Team announced that we will be making a change to next week’s midterms. Based on our own conversations over the past two weeks and based on the student feedback from the Board of Education Student Representatives, we have decided to minimize the midterm grade from 10% of your final grade to now only 5%. This change will allow us to meet students, where they are, honor the work and collaboration teachers have already put into the midterms, and give us a starting point to discuss the relevance of midterms in the future.")
BOE President's Report
- Welcomed new board members Telesford, Vadlamani and Wittleder;
- 2022 Committee Structure: Last year, the Board experimented with that and placed three Board members on the other committees to balance workloads. The belief is that returning to standing committees of four Board members will give all committees the attention and time needed to do their work. To accommodate the request for more transparency across committees, this year we are planning for three committees to each have two meetings that include the entire Board and are open to the public. Those three committees are Curriculum & Instruction; Finance, Facilities & Technology; and Policy;
- Acknowledged that the NJSBA has declared January as "School Board Recognition Month" a time when all residents can acknowledge the contributions made by local school board members, who receive no remuneration for their services;
Acknowledged the 4th annual observance of "International Day of Education" an initiative started by UNICEF;
Board President shared that he was happy to take part in the first Essex County School Board Association (ECSBA) meeting of the year, along with board Member Wittleder. Discussions were held on the various reopening strategies in light of the Omicron surge after the holidays and a presentation on creative school construction project funding was led by the Business Administrator of Newark Public Schools;
Wished a Happy Lunar New Year to all who celebrate, further sharing, "may this year of the Tiger bring strength power and prosperity to all of us as we continue to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic."
To view the Board President's statement in full (at the 1:40.00 mark) click the link: https://youtu.be/7EEdzS1AIbo?t=6000
South Orange & Maplewood School District
The mission of the South Orange Maplewood School District is to empower and inspire each student to explore and imagine, to pursue personal passions, and to collectively create a better future by creating a learner-centered environment through multiple pathways; reimagined structures, systems and supports; innovative teaching; partnering with families; and maximizing community expertise and resources.
Email: info@somsd.k12.nj.us
Website: https://www.somsd.k12.nj.us/board-of-education/
Location: 525 Academy Street, Maplewood, NJ, USA
Phone: (973) 762-5600
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/somsdk12/
Twitter: @SOMSDK12