MAY-15-2019-BOARD-MEETING.Pdf
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
BOARD OF EDUCATION IRVINGTON, NEW JERSEY Regular Board Meeting – May 15, 2019 The Regular Meeting of the Irvington Board of Education was held on Wednesday, May 15, 2019 at University Elementary School, 1 University Place, Irvington, New Jersey 07111. The meeting was called to order by Board President Orlander Vick, followed by a flag salute. Present were: Luis Antilus Syesha Benbow Ronald Brown Joseph Sylvain Richard Willliams Audrey Lyon, Vice President Orlander Vick, Board President Others: Dr. Neely Hackett, Superintendent of Schools Reggie Lamptey, CPA, Assistant Superintendent for Business/Board Secretary Dr. April Vauss, Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction Roger Monel, Associate School Business Administrator Cherelle Tolor, Human Resource Manager Raymond Hamlin, Board Attorney Eseohe Ronald, Student Trustee Aisha Shabbir, Student Trustee Several other administrators, interested citizens and newspaper reporters **************** Board Vice President Orlander Vick reported that in accordance with P.L. 1975, Chapter 231, adequate notice of this meeting was posted in the Administration Building and copies of said notice sent to the Irvington Herald, the Star Ledger, and Township Clerk. Sandra Boone-Gibbs, Principal of University Elementary School thanked all for coming and welcomed those present. She acknowledged her scholars, scholar leaders, community, and parents, noting she was very proud to be the leader of the University Elementary School Hawks. Mrs. Boone-Gibbs gave some highlights of what was going on at University Elementary. The Performing Arts Club lead by Ms. Barthole, the 2017-2018 Teacher of the Year, performed excerpts from their spring concert, “The Black Experience”; SojounerTruth- Ain’t I Living, Maya Angelou’s I Rise and Childish Gambino’s-“This is America”. Board President Vick acknowledged the presence of Irvington Township Mayor Tony Vauss, Irvington West Ward Councilman Vernon Cox, Southward Councilwoman Jamillah Beasley, Councilwoman-at Large, Dr. October Hudley, Councilwoman-at-Large Renee Burgess, and Essex County Freeholder at Large Romaine Graham. Board President Vick than noted there were two applicants who applied for the open seat advertised on the Irvington Board of Education. He stated he would call on the individuals, ask them a series of questions and then the board members would vote. 1 REGULAR BOARD MEETING MAY 15, 2019 He called the first applicant Mr. Conrad McPhearson to which there was no response. He went on to the next applicant Anthony A. Vauss. Mr. Vauss was asked if he served on any other boards to which he stated he served on the Library Board for 4 years. Asked if he was a part of any faith based organizations he noted he was a member of Metropolitan Baptist Church in Newark, NJ. Asked if he was a district leader, he stated he was elected in 2016 during the General Election to be a district leader of North Ward District 2. Asked what was his community involvement, he stated for the past 10 years he managed the Tony Vauss Civic Association where they did a lot of community outreach. President Vick called for a motion to appoint Mr. Anthony A. Vauss to the Board of Education. Motion by: Audrey Lyon, Seconded by: Melody Scott Roll Call: Unanimously approved on a roll call vote. Assistant Superintendent for Business/Board Secretary Reggie Lamptey performed the swearing in of Mr. Vauss. Roll Call: Luis Antilus Syesha Benbow Ronald Brown Melody Scott Joseph Sylvain Richard Williams Anthony A. Vauss Audrey Lyon, Vice President Orlander G. Vick, President SUPERINTENDENT’S REPORT Dr. Neely Hackett, Superintendent of Schools began her report by congratulating Mr. Vauss on being a member of the Irvington Board of Education stating she was looking forward to working with him. She then turned her report over to the student trustees for their section of the report on Irvington High School. Eseohe Ronald reported that the character trait for May was “Trustworthiness”. She said advisory lessons included activities around trustworthiness which was defined as the quality of a person or thing that inspires reliability. May included two celebratory weeks. “Teacher Appreciation” and “Special Education” Weeks, painting a brighter future one step at a time. May 4th Comcast Cares in partnership with Meet the Need combined with over 300 volunteers who completed the following projects: A classroom was converted to an apartment for Special Education students who will remain after 18 years to learn life skills. A court yard was converted in to a sensory garden, bathrooms were painted and once the paint dried, inspiring quotes would be decaled on the stall doors. Twenty-six classroom chalkboards were converted to whiteboards, the front landscaping was revamped to include more bushes, mulch and painted posts. On that same day May 4th the Special Olympics were held and Fat Boy spoke with the students about the importance of staying in school and getting their education. The Middle States Association Visiting Team was welcomed on Tuesday, May 7th with music, food and drink for a Meet & Greet. Teachers were celebrated at that time with words of encouragement and a celebratory cake. 2 REGULAR BOARD MEETING MAY 15, 2019 The Visiting Team ended their reaccreditation visit on Friday, May 10th with their final oral report indicating that Irvington High passed the 12 standards and received other commendations however the report included some recommendations that would be addressed. Overall the visiting team recommended a seven-year accreditation. Aisha Shabbir reported that the May IHS PTSA meeting held on May 6th was conducted in English supported by Hispanic and Haitian Creole interpreters. June’s meeting would be held on June 10th due to the snow day give back. The Middle States Report would be presented at that meeting. Marking period 4 Progress Reports would be distributed Friday, May 17th. Student grades and attendance was always available on the Power School Portal. State Testing had begun for NJSLA ELA and Math subjects. NJSLA Science would begin on May 20th. College Boards AP Exams would continue through May 16th. May 27th was the Township Memorial Day Program and Parade. May 29th the School Leadership Council in coordination with staff hosted the Student Empowerment Conference. May 30th the Visual and Performing Arts Department hosted their day and evening program. May 31st 9:00 am was the Senior Awards Assembly where many seniors were recognized and many scholarships were awarded. Ms. Shabbir ended by acknowledging the accomplishments of the individuals who stood out in Spring Track and Tennis. Dr. Hackett continued her report with acknowledging all those in attendance from Irvington High School stating they all worked hard the past year to get ready for accreditation and after a week of review and monitoring they found out they received accreditation for seven years. She also thanked the student trustees for their report. Dr. Hackett acknowledged University Elementary and Ms. Boone-Gibbs saying “What a performance”! The students were given another round of applause. Dr. Hackett went further with her report giving recognition to students. She explained the Board Members wanted to do something special because these were students who were not always recognized. She said these students made great improvements showing that hard work really pays off: The students were called individually as their information was shared by a board member or member of the administration as noted under their brief bio. SECONDARY STUDENTS-BOARD MEMBER MOST IMPROVED STUDENTS MOST IMPROVED STUDENTS IRVINGTON HIGH SCHOOL George Duah - 11th grade George is being nominated for improved grades and excellent attendance. George transferred to Irvington High School in January 2019 only passing one of his classes. Now at the end of Quarter 3 he has earned all As, Bs, and Cs. George has made a conscious effort to do better and he has succeeded. Recognized by Board Member Melody Scott 3 REGULAR BOARD MEETING MAY 15, 2019 Amirit Singh – 12th grade Amrit has been chosen as a most improved student for his improved grades and attendance after overcoming many personal and emotional obstacles. Amrit’s quarterly grade point average, (GPA), has improved by 1.38 points from Quarter 1 to Quarter 3. Amrit has dedicated himself to recovery credits, improving his attendance, and is now on track to graduate on June 20, 2019. Recognized by Cherelle Tolor, Human Resource Director. Ms. Singh was also recognized by South Ward Councilwoman Jamillah Beasley. Davidson Sinome - 12th grade Davidson has been chosen as a most improved student for his perseverance toward earning a high school diploma after transferring to Irvington High School in May of 2018 with only enough credits be considered a 10th grader. He's currently in grade 12 (senior) with a 2.65 GPA. Davidson’s quarterly GPA has improved from Quarter 1: 2.78 to Quarter 2 3.11 and now Quarter 3: 3.44. Davidson is attending both Irvington High School during the day and Blue Knights Academy at night, which has helped him achieve 12th grade status. Davidson has plans for his future and one of his goals is to pursue his education. Davidson is on track to graduate and has been accepted to Essex County College. Recognized by Reggie Lamptey, CPA, Assistant Superintendent for Business/Board Secretary. Because he was going on to college the Board Members presented him with an additional gift to be able to obtain books or paper for school. Joel Guions - 9th grade Joel has been chosen as a most improved student for his improved grade point average (GPA). Joel has an overall GPA of 2.48 with quarterly GPA as follows: Quarter 1: 1.86, Quarter 2: 2.63, and Quarter 3: 3.13. Recognized by Board Vice President Audrey Lyon UNION AVENUE MIDDLE SCHOOL Rooselet Tou Puissant - Grade 6 Rooselet has improved academically. He has made positive adjustments to his behavior, which improved his growth as an overall successful student.