BOE Recognizes Middle School Students, Bids Farewell to Student Rep

The Fort Lee Board of Education opened its regular meeting Monday by recognizing a group of Fort Lee Middle School students for transforming their school’s center-island garden into something the whole school can be proud of.

Some of the students who participated in the project along with their teachers, their principal and some of their parents were in attendance at the meeting.

Lewis F. Cole Middle School principal Rosemary Giacomelli gave a slide presentation of the students’ work from start to finish before Fort Lee Superintendent of Schools Raymond Bandlow presented each of the students who attended the meeting with a certificate for their hard work and dedication in “contributing to the beauty and climate of their school.”

Also at the outset of Monday’s meeting, one of the board’s two student representatives said farewell. Graduating senior Peter Liapes, who was attending his last meeting in the role, gave his report before telling the board and those gathered for the meeting what a great school experience he had throughout his years in the Fort Lee school system and thanking the board, administrators, teachers and others for giving him the opportunity to serve.

“I cannot thank everyone enough for giving me—honestly—the greatest school experience anyone could ask for from kindergarten all the way through high school,” Liapes said. “If you ask my friends, I tell them all the time, I’d do it all over again.”

The board later passed a resolution essentially replacing Liapes, who departed Monday’s meeting to a standing ovation from the board, with junior Ross Fasman. Fasman will join current student representative Sarah Moore, who was not in attendance Monday, in the role next year.

Much of the public discussion at the meeting that followed the feel-good opening centered on several issues: renovation of the central office, the new special education curriculum, a security and emergency management audit process the board later approved, concerns over the school district’s reading curriculum—especially at the elementary level—and technology issues, such as taping and televising board meetings and the school’s new student management system, among others.

Editor’s Note: Patch will take a closer look at some of these issues in subsequent articles this week so stay tuned.

Other Business

Before recessing into a private work session to discuss personnel and legal matters, the board passed the following resolutions:

Board

• 1B – Appointment of Ferraioli, Wielkotz, Cerullo and Cuva, P.A. as district auditor at a cost of $36,750
• 2B – Approval of SSP Architectural Group as architect of record
• 3B – Approval of a revision to the schedule of board meetings cancelling the July 11 meetings

Committee of the Whole

• 1CW – Appointment of Fort Lee High School senior Sarah Moore and junior Ross Fasman as student representatives to the board

Building and Grounds

• 1B&G – Rejection of ground service bids received May 24 due to budget constraints and non-attendance of required walk-through
• 2B&G – Approval of SSP Architectural Group as architects for the central office renovation at a fixed fee of $142,610 plus project allowances of $11,000
• 3B&G – Approval of summer projects, including painting sections of Fort Lee High School and computer lab relocation at School No. 3, not to exceed $39,250

Curriculum and Instruction

• 1CUR – Approval of Class trips
• 2CUR – Approval of modifications to Academy of Performing Arts program
• 3CUR – Approval of new special education programs

Finance

• 1F – Approval of current bills list
• 2F – Proposal for school security management and emergency management audit process at a fee of $28,750
• 3F – Approval of maximum reimbursement of travel expenditures
• 4F – Renewal of dental and vision benefits
• 5F – Acceptance of donations

Health, Welfare and Safety

• 1HWS – Payment of home and bedside instruction services
• 2HWS – Approval of Bergen County special services for non-public 192/193 service agreement
• 3HWS – Approving Catapult Learning, LLC agreement for substitute nursing services for the 2011-2012 school year
• 4HWS – Out-of-district placements for 2011 extended school year program for 55 students

Personnel

• 1P – Approval of staff trips and conferences at a total cost of $562.92
• 2P – Participation of Superintendent in Science Education Institute
• 3P – Appointment of bussing staff
• 4P – Alternative High School Assessment (AHSA) proctor
• 5P – Appointment of additional substitutes
• 6P – Appointment of learning disabilities teacher consultant interns
• 7P – Salary correction for Rosa Sgro, an elementary teacher at School No. 4, for 2011-2012 school year from $73,200 to $70,400 due to a lack of required work days during her maternity leave
• 8P – Appointment of Robert Feldman as K-8 Instructional Supervisor
• 9P – 2011 summer employment
• 10P – Appointment of summer clerical assistant
• 11P – Overnight stipends

Policy

• 1POL – Second reading and adoption of policy/regulation updates, including Superintendent’s duties, school-level planning, school district goals and objectives, certification of tenure charges, pupil suicide prevention, use of physical restraint, tuition income, budget preparation, contracts for goods or services funded by Federal grants and financial reports

• 2POL – First reading of policy/regulation updates, including conduct of board meetings and recording of board meetings