Meeting Minutes

In attendance: Tessie Thomas, Courtney Redfern, Obdulia  (Obie) Miranda-Woodley, Andrew Gideon, Nina DeRosa, Dr. Kalisha Morgan, Susan Zartman, Allison Silverstein, Brian Fleischer, Linda Kow, Amy Uhlfelder, Irene Rosenthal (Marco Pedersen), Jada Roman, Maelle Fonteneau, Betty Shvetz, Sarah Spagnola Young, Reggie Valentine, June Raegner, Kayla Crawley, Patty Gamcsik, Deborah Villarreal-Hadley, Norrinda Hayat, Kristin Werner, Melissa Schrager, Amira Williams, Marci Clark, Anna Kondic, Natalie Sullivan, Veronica Harris, Najla Nazeemudeen, Selma Avdicevic, Jaime Bedrin, Dr. Jonathan Ponds, Holly Lehr-Hahn, Mary Sue Youn, Diane Tehranian, Yvette Frazier, Meredith Pressler, Larry Linietsky

1.     Call to Order 

2.     Review and approval of minutes for 5/9/21 meeting. Unanimously approved. 
3.     Remarks by outgoing President Deborah Villarreal-Hadley. PTAC Progress and accomplishments over the last four years 2016-2021: 

– Established PTAC as a signatory of the NJ PTA, garnering additional support for our group and visibility for PTAC at the state level

– Created a committee structure. More opportunities for parents outside of the schools’ PTAs to be involved in their student’s lives/schools

– Established strong working relationships with 4 different superintendents and their staff

– Brought attention and consensus among parents that constant changes in the superintendent’s office and staffing is damaging our schools and our children’s experience – such that parent leaders confirm their support, even as they comment about problems with our schools

– Advocated for PTAC and other stakeholders’ involvement in the schools’ budgeting process. The ‘District Budget Meetings’ were held for the last 3 years and will hopefully continue

– Established, as standard practice, the need to for diversity on our PTAC and PTA exec boards, to better represent and get input from families across all races, ethnicities and gender

– Establish a PTA, for the first time, at the high school

– Upgraded our PTAs’ websites to support better communication in all of our schools

– Through our work and community wide events we sponsored,  like the Mayor’s forum, virtual tours, and budget talks, we increased the visibility of PTAC in Montclair. PTAC and our PTAS have a firmly established reputation as advocates for all students in our public schools

4.     VP of Schools Report 2020-21. It was not an easy year, and at the beginning of the pandemic, it was not clear whether traditional PTA activities would even be possible. But thanks to Zoom and a great group of PTA Presidents, much was accomplished. PTAC sponsored Welcome to Kindergarten. Transition to Elementary and Middle School events. An author visit for numerous schools(collaboration). Collaboration across school included webmasters, equity, spirit wear and ASE.

Discussion of PTA Activities and Achievements 2020-21. The PTA Presidents discussed some of the activities and programs at their schools that were run /adapted for COVBID circumstances . Most schools were able to host after school enrichment (ASE) programs, either virtually or outdoors. Schools conducted fundraisers although in most cases (not all), revenues were down. In-person assemblies were replaced with online field trips and programs. PTAs focused on family engagement, hosting online events like family dance parties and trivia nights. Equity teams were active. But many PTA presidents were proudest of their initiative and programs to help students and families who were negatively impacted by COVID and the economic disruption it has caused, through food drives, holiday drives, and supply drives. In particular, the middle school PTAs were supportive of learners at Wally Choice and their families. Two of our PTAs were recognized by the NJPTA for their work in inclusion (Edgemont) and communication (Buzz).

5. VP of Committees and Committee Updates

• EAROG. Data from the district has now been received and the committee is beginning to formulate a plan to work alongside the district on equity issues. Statements about AAPI and the whistleblower incident.
• Communications. The MPS Guide was created and disseminated. A survey or surveys will be going out about the Guide and about communication in the district generally.
• Community Building. Events were held this year– Raise a Reader, Dyslexia forum and Finance 101. The previous year middle school fairs were held as well as a Mayoral Forum.
• Curriculum and Special Education (no report)
• Finance. Finance 101 panels were held with the goal of educating parents and other stakeholders about the budget process. 
• Policy (no report)
• Technology. The committee has been working to update processes, and to support PTAC and all PTAs. All PTAs got new WordPress websites and Google email addresses.
• Wellness (no report)

7.     Guest: Superintendent Dr. Jonathan C. Ponds

A discussion was held about the district’s budget and Proposed Staff Cuts. He is focused on collaborating with all stakeholders to make the best decisions. He is looking at breakage. He is not filling open positions with new bodies. He is taking recommendations from building and department leaders about where efficiencies can be found.

8.     Adjournment 

 

 

 

In attendance: Tessie Thomas, Deborah Villarreal-Hadley, Kathryn Fogliano, A Gideon, Anna Kondic, Brian Fleischer, Susan Gardner, Courtney Redfern, Amira Williams, Jada Roman, Reggie Valentine, Diane Tehranian, Norrinda Hayat, Marci Clark,  Marco Pedersen, Patty Gamcsik, Mary Ann Vanco, arah Spagnola Young, Holly Lehr-Hahn, Natalie Sullivan, Linda Kow, Beth Calamia, Irene Rosenthal, Mary Sue Youn, Amy Uhlfelder, Betty Schvetz, Adeola Whitney,  Yvette Fraziuer, Anna Kondic, Yoko Takebayashi,

Kayla Crawley, Selma Avdicevic, Melissa Schrager, Veronica Harris, David Schottland, Kristin Werner

1.     Call to Order 

2.     Review and approval of minutes for 4/12/21 meeting. Unanimously approved. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1EkxH1y_CCjnBngu2YOt9kjeXR8L-YnjFnPbMa5gvKqw/edit

3.     President’s Report 

• Discussion of AAPI statement. 
• Discussion of Whistle Blower letter and follow-up actions.
• Discussion of BOE activity.
  • Has there been a reaction to recent appointments?
  • Frustration because there is no news yet about HS start date
  • Middle school schedules are light– pressure to add Wednesday or open 5 days
• The Exec board had a meeting with Latifah Janah about the importance of allowing public comment. Possibility that PTAC and MEA will have an opportunity to comment at the beginning of meetings.

4.   Election

The Nominating Committee the following candidates at the April meeting. 

Tessie Thomas- President (new)

Vice Presidents- Brian Fleischer and Reggie Valentine (new)

Treasurer: Diane Tehranian (new)

Secretary: Courtney Redfern

No nominations were heard from the floor. A voice vote was held and all candidates were unanimously elected. 

The new board members will take office July 1, 2021.

5.     Committee Updates

• EAROG
• Communications
• Community Building
• Curriculum and Special Education
• Finance
• Policy
• Technology
• Wellness 

6.     Schools 

• VP of Schools Report
• PTA Presidents’ Reports/Discussion

7.     New Business
8.     Adjournment 

 

 

In attendance: 

Tessie Thomas, Deborah Villarreal-Hadley, A Gideon, Anna Kondic, Brian Fleischer, Susan Gardner, Courtney Redfern, Kayla Crawley, Holly Lehr-Hahn, Daniel Garcia-Pedrosa, Selma Avdicevic, Patty Gamcsik, Melissa Schrager, Veronica Harris, Linda Kow, David Schottland, Reggie Valentine, Kristin Werner, Marco Pedersen, Marci Clark, Norrinda Hayat, Obdulia  (Obie) Miranda-Woodley, June Raegner, Betty Shvetz, Jada Roman, Mary Sue Youn, Amy Uhlfelder, Ebony David, Natalie Sullivan, Kevin Quinn, Maelle Fonteneau

Minutes 

The minutes for the March 9, 2020 meeting were unanimously approved. 

Nominating Committee

June Raegner: the Nominating Committee had a very positive experience discussing candidates for the board. Two candidates came forward from “outside” of PTAC. After deliberation, the following candidates were proposed to the membership for election at the May meeting:

President: Tessie Thomas

Vice President: Reggie Valentine

Treasurer: Diane Tehranian

A vote was held and these candidates were unanimously approved and will be submitted for election at the May 9th meeting. They will serve with current Vice President Brian Flesicher and Secretary Courtney Redfern, each of whom have one more year to serve. 

If others are interested in running for office, they may do so by sending an email to the PTAC President, Secretary or chair of the Nominating Committee (June Raegner) by April 23rd.

President’s Report

1. Debbie attended Leg Con and it was very informative. 
2. Obie has been meeting with Mr. Sedita regarding support for ELLs and their families. MFEE will staff the effort and train parents to be able to support families. PTAC has talked with Mr. Ponds about the need to identify and address the needs of ELLs as they enter our school system
3. Two Board members attended BOSE meetings and made statements acknowledging the difficult of the budget situation, urging everyone to work together, and urging the district to spend COVID funds for the benefit of the children, not just to save staff positions.

VP of Schools

Events recently held: PTAC supporting Senior food truck event (like 9th grade events). Transition to Elementary School and Transition to Middle School Zoom events held with all PTA presidents. Events were recorded and links posted on social media. 

PTA presidents’ Reports

•  Various schools reported on their recent events and fundraisers. 
• They are busy preparing their slates for next year. 
• Reopenings went very well.  Lots of excitement from kids and parents.  
• Most PTAs were asked by their principals not to organize welcome back events for teachers. MFEE provided water and snacks. Discussion about whether middle school PTAs will be able to contribute and welcome teachers back.

Committees

Policy

Kevin Quinn reviewed voting procedures for the May election. Voters will be PTA presidents and heads of standing committees. One vote per PTA or committee. If someone holds two roles, they still only have one vote and should delegate voting rights.

EAROG. 

No new data received yet. Drafted statement in support of AAPI. Met with Diane Anglin of NAACP to see how we can work together. A member pointed out that Dr Ponds was very responsive on the AAPI issues and will incorporate into training, retraining and evaluations. A different member stated that when the district rolled out ”Undoing Racism” for teachers that some signed into the training and then left, essentially getting “days off”.  So training is not the only answer.

Finance Committee

Held two events in partnership with district staff to discuss the budget process. Posted on social media and on the PTAC webpage (our YouTube channel)

New Business

A member expressed frustration that the BOE is meeting with the MEA to better labor relations, when the BOE should also be meeting and reaching out to parents to better relations. Trust has been damaged and parents are hurt. Where is RJ for parents? PTAC should invite the BOE to a trust-building event. 

Meeting adjourned.

 

In attendance: Tessie Thomas, Brian Fleischer, Courtney Redfern, A Gideon, Susan Gardner

Deborah Villarreal-Hadley, kathryn fogliano, Patty Gamcsik, Christine Banks Calderón, Linda Kow, Selma Avdicevic, Veronica Harris, Amy Uhlfelder, Jaime Bedrin, Natalie Sullivan, Obdulia  (Obie) Miranda-Woodley, Holly Lehr-Hahn, Diane Tehranian, Sarah Spagnola Young, Adeola Whitney, Mary Sue Youn, Marco Pedersen, Jada Roman, Maelle Fonteneau, Kristin Werner, Irene Rosenthal, Reggie Valentine, Marci Clark, Anna Kondic, JUNE RAEGNER, Beth Calamia Scheckel, Phoebe Williams, Dave Schottland, Brad Haggerty, Kevin Quinn, Norrinda Hayat

1.     Minutes of February 8 meeting approved.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1q1dE9xwvqcfyzOY9b6yHd5dLkCOm4xf8Z9gQF8ekvBA/edit

 

2.     Nominating Committee Election held– Selma Avdicevic, Veronica Harris, June Raegner, Jada Roman, Natalie Sullivan, and Adeola Whitney were unanimously elected. Nominations will be made at the APril meeting and elections held at the May meeting.

 

3.   PTAC President’s Report

• Dr. Ponds will be meeting with PTAs re the GoGuardian issue, and the application will not be used in the meantime. Members commented that he should have given advance notice and explained his reasoning for GG.
• March 9th court date. Dr. Ponds is confident the district is prepared to open on April 12th after spring break if the decision is in the district’s favor.  Says he will provide proof of facility fixes to the court and that an outside group will be filing documentation that special needs students in particular are being harmed by 100% remote.
• Dr. Ponds will be sending an RFP to various local organizations to run summer programs. Programs can be remedial or perhaps even enrichment down the line
• Essex County PTA Councils will be meeting in preparation for LegCon – more collaboration to come. Debbie will report back after the meeting. There is a lot of state and federal $$ up for grabs.
• Importance of completing Free and Reduced Lunch Forms to support grant applications. PTAC communications committee will help with flyer highlighting benefits and PTAs will distribute. A member commented that completion of the firm should be a requirement next year like all other forms 
• We are in a holding pattern on the high school PTA formation. Several parent initiatives are in the works, and Jeff Freeman has a lot on his plate.
• Debbie attended the last NAACP Education Committee meeting.  Diane Anglin is now the chair. Discussions about opening a second facility similar to Wally Choice.
• 2 new committees were formed. Mr. Sedita is helping English Language Learners by finding bilingual volunteers to help identify and meet their needs. PTA and committee volunteers collected supplies for Wally Choice students. Thanks to Obie, Amy, Sarah, Mary Sue and all other volunteers
• Congratulations to Brian, Tessie, Colleen, and Andrew on the MPS Budget 101 event. 
• Reviewed schedule for upcoming district budget meetings so that people can get involved. PTAC leadership will be attending.

4.   PTAC Committee Updates

– Communication – MPS 101 was launched– much positive feedback. Sent out through PTAs and also sent to houses of worship, non profits etc.

– Finance – Budget 101 event was held. Taped so people can watch later. There will be a follow up event.70 people attended and it was also recorded. There will be a follow up event on March 25th to address detailed questions raised in the first event.

– EAROG – Received some data from the district but not all. Not distributing further yet. Will report back with next steps. In the future–will partner with NAACP education committee. 

– Policy – Anti Racism Policy and Regulations. They asked us to comment on a draft/get involved. Jada asked– do they have a draft or is it so dated that they don;t want to share (yet).

– Curriculum and Special Education. Curriculum work has been difficult to get off the ground. Discussion of weekly updates on curriculum being “light.”Perhaps curriculum should really be under EAR because of equity issues.

– Technology

– Community Building

– Wellness

– SEPAC Very hard for parents to support children with IEPS when there are no lesson plans or syllabi to follow along with. Not best practices! Principals are supposed to get lesson plans from teachers, so how can teachers not have lesson plans to share with parents?!

5.   PTAC Schools/PTA Presidents’ Updates

VP of Schools: Tomorrow it will have been one year since kids were in school before lockdown. PTAs have really stepped up– have been very adaptable in doing “PTA business,” supporting families in various ways. The ASE committee has just heard/confirmed that outdoor grounds will be available for enrichment activities and presumably outdoor instruction as well. Outdoor event held for 9th graders at the high school was very well-attended.

– Bradford. Bedtime and Books event. Misty Copeland event. Organizing events for 5th graders to hear from 6th and 7th graders. Principal search: distinct didn’t choose anyone and had to restart the process. Very discouraging.

– Hillside. Collaborated with Nishuane on Black History month and Lunar New Year events. Peer socialization continues to be a concern. Home room teachers are surveying students by interest to form clubs which could take place virtually or in person. Parents and Key Club volunteers would be club advisors

– Edgemont. New principal hired– Montclair resident Brione Carr Clemente. Edgemont parent with lots of teaching and administration experience. She can’t start for 60 days. Edgemont is “trying to rebrand itself”– created a video to recruit families to choose Edgemont, Planning large number of outdoor ASE classes in April-June. Planning a book fair and asked teacher for book lists.

– Nishuane. Sponsored virtual field trip to Harriet Tubman museum. Held Black history trTrivia night and also Lunar New Year. Planning Bingo night end of March. PTA p[urchaesd sport equipment to support families in remote PE class (jump ropes etc)

– Bullock. Sent out MPSD101 to all families. Held two talent nights to build/maintain togetherness, connections between students. Held Valentines Day crafting event. Family Fun Dance with glowsticks. Principal participating in bedtime story events for K-2 and 3-5 populations. Held a parent event with a psychotherapist, links to resources. Planning more bingo/trivia nights.

– Northeast. Very active for Black History Month and also Women’s History month.. Virtual field trip, suggested readings. Conducted a parent engagement survey. Trivia night. Planning school dance at the end of April and hoiping to hold an end of year event in June. 5th grade held a very active car wash event.

– Watchung. Spring ASE will be held starting May with a workshop or two. Zwill be holding a book exchange. Bingo night. DEAR event with 200m children participating. PTA funding virtual field trip to the Liberty Science Center.

7.     New Business

A member expressed frustration that there is still no approval for outdoor instruction/certainty about reopening. Two members have withdrawn their children from the district.

Budget. Current budget suggests that 50+ positions will have to be cut. Government funda rw coming but not clear if it can (or should) be used to save staff.

Woodman Field– can be used for grad ceremonies for middle school and high school graduation?

8.     Adjournment 

 

PTAC General Meeting Minutes– January 11, 2021

In attendance: Tessie Thomas, Patty Gamcsik, Brian Fleischer, Andrew Gideon, Colleen Dougherty, Deborah Villarreal-Hadley, Courtney Redfern, June Raegner, Kathryn Fogliano, Amy Uhlfelder, Kayla Crawley, Najla Nazeemudeen, Irene Rosenthal, Karina Lynch, Reggie Valentine, Veronica Harris, Marco Peterson, Linda Kow, Adeola Whitney, Kevin Quinn, Jessica Schachter, Kristin Wood-Werner, Marci Clark, Maelle Fontaneau, Ana Cristina Dos Santos, Kimberly Latortue, Mary Ann Vanco, Selma Avdicevic, Meredith Pressler, Jayda Roman, Norrinda Hayat, Susan Gardner, Kayla Crawley

1. Minutes of the 12/14/20 meeting

Approved with one abstention by Laura Hertzog, who had not attended the meeting.

2. President’s Report

There seemed to be a “change in tone at the BOE Meeting on January 6th. Cautious optimism about opening on January 25th. Teacher remarks did not seem as ”threatening” and one Board member acknowledged that kids and families are being hurt by not being able to attend school in person.

There was a lot of interest in a HS parent group being formed. Next step following up with Jeff Freeman.

Upcoming meeting with Ponds with PTA presidents. Things we want him to talk about:

1. assessment, learning loss and how the we will catch-up
2. teacher/facilities preparedness for hybrid
3. concerns about teachers not showing up

4. What else?
comment at BOE meeting about learning loss for students and there being no “catch up” needed/planned
Finance 101. Is Ponds thinking his meeting with PTA presidents is enough? PTAC has an obligation to communicate with the larger community about the budget process. To be discussed at Friday’s meeting.

Other concerns raised during the discussion:
Will there be qualified subs for teachers who do not teach in person?
Will there be enough travel time for students to change classes?
Will there be tours for students who are new to the buildings?
Will assessments take place, especially for K-1 students?
Can cleaning supplies be used that are safe for asthmatic students?
One member expressed frustration with superintendent statements about various things being “decided at the school level.” He is responsible for what is happening at the school level and should be able to communicate about it.

3. Committee Reports

Community Building. Held an event about dyslexia. 130 registered and 75 attended. A recording will be made available.

EAROG. Still waiting on data requested in summer 2020. High level of frustration about this because a lot of work was done by committees and they are stuck now. Someone may file an OPRA request to get the information.

There are going to be regulations coming out to support the district’s equity and anti-racism statements, and the EAROG committee will have a chance to comment on them.

Q: What is the plan for an equity audit? Because schools and PTAs are applying for MFEE grants and some may be planning to do work the district might be doing. If so, they might have other uses for the grants.

Special Ed audit. SEPAC will be working with the district to put together parent focus groups to collect feedback.

Communications. Much progress has been made in drafting MPS 101 and they expect it will be finalized in February.

Finance. Planning to hold a Budgeting and Finance Zoom event in January, working with business office.
Technology. All PTAs have G Suite for email– PTA Executive Boards need to decide if they are going to use gmail addresses for officers.

Wellness. Need volunteers!

Curriculum. No substantive updates. Has been thinking about how instruction works when some students are in person and other virtual. Can/should it be done with the same teacher. Brad will volunteer to work with Ponds on multimodal instruction.

4. VP/Schools Summary
PTAs now are pivoting toward hybrid learning
PTAs continue making connections
PTAs are working together and collaborating

PTA Presidents Discussion of MLK Day

Bullock. Collecting food. Students making videos reading quotes from MLK speeches. Focus on service. Creating artwork, donating to seniors.

Watchung. Students create flip grids on various MLK_related topics. 4th and 5th grade having virtual assembly. Writing thank you notes to seniors and first responders.

Hillside. Hillside Cares Week of Service. Food drive, blessing bags. There may be a virtual assembly– not sure yet.

Nishuane. Will be collaborating with Hillside food drive.

Edgemont. Will eb screening performances from the Smithsonian African American history museum. Family friendly discussion moderated by SACs. collecting for AToni’s Kitchen,

Glenfield. Still under discussion.

Buzz Aldrin. Virtual experiences.

PTA Presidents’ General Discussion

Nishuane. Holding 10 ASE classes using a mix of teachers and outside vendors. We have tents now– could we hold ASE outdoors on school grounds?
Edgemont. Focused on principal search. 12 candidates. Submitted MFEEv grant application.
Bullock. Holding ASE classes remotely using outside vendors. 64 students served. Family engagement– small fundraising events, talent shows. Equity committee applied for an MFEE grant.
Watchung. Sent letter of interest for aMFEE grant.
Bradford. Focused on finding a new principal.
Glenfield. Focused on new fundraiser

6. New Business

Discussion about school tours– should we hold Zoom tours for MS or elem schools? Tabled pending reopening of schools 1/25 and 2/8.

7. Adjournment

PTAC General Meeting Minutes– November 9, 2020

In attendance: Deborah Villarreal-Hadley, Broan Fleischer, Tessie Thomas, Courtney Redfern, Kristin Wood-Werner, Holly Lehr Hahn, Andrew Gideon, Kevin Quinn, Ana Christina dos Santos, Brad Haggerty, Dave Schottland, Jada Roman, Jaime Bedrin, Kathryn Fogliano, Linda Kow, Natalie Sullivan, Norrinda Hayat, Patti Gamcsik, Sarah Spagnola Young, Simone Robinson, Steophan Powell, Yoko Takebayashi, Marco Pederson, Mary Ann Vanco, Meg Cavanaugh, Najla Nazeemuden, Selma Avdicevic, Christy Crawford, Colleen Dougherty

1.     Minutes of 10/20 meeting unanimously approved
2.     President’s Report

• Discussion of high school principal search. 
• Discussion of the last BOE meeting. District is providing Comcast Internet essentials for families. New 2.25 mile requirement for busing was announced. Various capital projects are being done now that were approved last year by the BOSE.
• Discussion of frustration with district communications. Brian Fleischer reminded meeting attendees that the district is not permitted to hire a full time communications person. 
• Discussion of parent comments at BOE meetings. Online attendees cannot see others who are attending or signed up to speak, There was agreement that this might inhibit input from parents and/or make them feel excluded. Not the same as in person attendance at BOE meetings.

3.     PTAC Committees Update

— SEPAC–  In a holding pattern at the moment. Parent support meeting tomorrow. Administrators are invited to the CPAC meetings. The start of ABA self-contained classrooms was not planned to be staggered.

—    Policy. Kevin attending the virtual legislative summit of the PTA. There may be some Covid-related changes to policies.

—    Finance (see Community Bldg)

—    Curriculum and Special Education. As with other committees they are kind of in a waiting game. 

—-   Communications Committee. Discussions were underway about creating a survey of parents about communication. Morphed into a plan to create a document about the district and how it operates, who the players are, etc. Goal is to educate parents. 

—    Community Building. Event planning is becoming difficult because we are all competing for the same zoom spots in the evenings– affects attendance. Thinking of a number of sessions on various topics. December would be budget/finance 101 which is being headed by Colleen Dougherty working with Brian Fleischer.

—    EAROG. Several meetings with Dr, Morgan. Subcommittees put together a consolidated information request which was presented to Dr. Morgan on October 12th. Followed up two weeks and was directed to Amber Reed. No response as yet. Jada will keep following up. 

4.   PTAC Schools- PTA Presidents’ Updates

—    Renaissance

—    Glenfield 

—    Buzz. MemberHub working very well.

—    Watchung

—    Northeast. Working on MFEE Grant. Very low engagement in the PTA. Fundraising 10% of goal. Halloween book distribution went well– they were able to give two books to each kid.

—    Nishuane

—    Hillside. Parents discussing with Dr. Anglin what the five day hybrid schedule would look like. Kids would have four core classes and one related arts class per day. The current plan is that teachers will rotate rather than kids. As with other PTAs, parent engagement and fundraising are suffering. They are currently working on getting holiday meals out to families.

—    Edgemont

—    Bullock. They just received an eight page document regarding how hybrid instruction would work at that school. Had a very successful book swap and a food drive that took place at the same time. Also a pancake breakfast. Reporting a high level of parent frustration. Keep hearing about people leaving the district. Some parents consider it a wasted year. 

—    Bradford

6.     New Business
7.     Adjournment

PTAC General Meeting Minutes– December 14, 2020

 

In attendance: Tessie Thomas, Patty Gamcsik, Brian Fleischer, Andrew Gideon, Colleen Dougherty, Deborah Villarreal-Hadley, Courtney Redfern, June Raegner, Kathryn Fogliano, Amy Uhlfelder, Kayla Crawley, Najla Nazeemudeen, Irene Rosenthal, Karina Lynch, Reggie Valentine, Veronica Harris, Marco Peterson, Linda Kow, Adeola Whitney, Kevin Quinn, Jessica Schachter, Kristin Wood-Werner, Marci Clark, Maelle Fontaneau, Ana Cristina Dos Santos, Kimberly Latortue, Mary Ann Vanco, Selma Avdicevic, Meredith Pressler, Jayda Roman, Norrinda Hayat, Susan Gardner, Kayla Crawley

1.     Minutes of the 11/9/20 meeting were unanimously approved.
2.     President’s Report

• Discussion of MHS parent meetings regarding possible formation of PTA/parent group at the high school. First meeting was held. Consensus was in favor of a parent group. Many parents expressed that a parent group could be helpful in working with the administration to address social-emotional learning concerns, student isolation, etc. 
• The latter discussion led to a general discussion of possible measures to support students in socialization. One person commented that then high school does not have the bandwidth as the moment to address this and that parents (parent group) should take initiative to plan things, pass along good ideas etc. Suggestions mentioned:
  • Organize “Among Us” games (app) to be played in class
  • Trivia Competitions
  • Drive in Movie night in HS parking lot
  • More frequent homerooms esp for 9th graders
  • Mentoring during Friday lunchtime
  • Let students use school grounds to meet, play basketball etc
• Debbie V. has joined the township’s COVID taskforce on behalf of PTAs. If anyone has suggestions or recommendations to be raised there, pass them along.
• MFEE has launched its Healing Huddles initiative. Debbie V. is attending training and others should consider getting involved.
• PTAC Executive Board decided to approach the MEA to try to form/re-form a relationship. Debbie V. reached out to MEA President Petal Robertson a couple of weeks ago; no response as yet. 
• Reminder: PTAC dues have been reduced to $100/PTA for this year.

3.     VP/Schools Summary

• All PTAs remain very busy and are working hard despite the current circumstances. Activities include Thanksgiving food drives, coat drives, Holiday Giving for families in need and holiday gift collections for teachers.
  
• PTA Presidents want to ensure that they are doing their part to support Equity causes and efforts in each school. So a group was formed with Equity Chair(s) from each school to share best practices and do more. This group will also coordinate with EAROG. Some school PTAs have Equity Committees while others are working through their principals or SATp. 
• PTAs are applying for MFEE Equity Grants. 
• Family engagement continues to be a challenge in this pandemic, though it is more important than ever in the remote environment. Despite any weariness, the PTAs are working harder than ever.

4.   PTAC Schools- PTA Presidents’ Updates

• Nishuane. PTA busy with collecting Christmas gifts for families in need. Held a joint trivia night with Hillside which was successful and will be repeated. PTA costs are down. They have new spirit wear including Nishuane facemasks.
• Northeast. Held a “Count Me In” fundraising campaign which raised $14k. They issued an online cookbook which was undersubscribed. They conducted a 7 question survey focused on engagement.
• Edgemont. Principal search to replace Jeff Freeman is ongoing. Disappointment that outdoor learning was not launched this fall. Shared tents with other schools to recoup costs. Held an online ”Friendsgiving”. Good diversity activities: America to Me group, Bilingual Bedtime Stories, and a ”Nice White Parents’ discussion group. 
• Bullock. Held a webinar on “how to talk to your kids about race.” Planning a Zoom holiday caroling event. Conducting a coat drive. Planning events for next year: MLK Day, a virtual talent show. Brainstorming ways to engage families. Karaoke? Art?
• Watchung. Provided complete Thanksgiving meals for six families delivered by principal Krenn. Conducted a food drive. Chose not to participate in Wrap And Roll b/c of privacy concerns but will get gifts to families directly. Villalobos fundraiser. Restarted SATp.
• Bradford. Also not participating in wrap and roll due to privacy concerns. Applied for MFEE grant. Concerns about social emotional learning. Principal Naomi Kirkman retiring. 
• Glenfield. Dr. Ponds wants all middle schools to be consistent. Did a survey. Spirit Wear pop up. Met with RJ staff. 
• Buzz Aldrin. 2 restaurant nights. Running an online Book Fair. Created 42 Thanksgiving food baskets (versus 20+ in past years). Doing gift cards to families instead of Wrap and Roll.
• Hillside. Coat drive, Thanksgiving drive and collecting Make a Wish gift drive. Held spirit wear pop up at Van Vleck. Talent show and joint trivia night with Nishuane. 

5. Committee Reports

• EAROG. Collecting information in response to questions created by subcommittees. Dr. Ponds wants the committee to work “alongside other stakeholders”. Information will be shared with subcommittees but not publicly shared– technically could be OPRAd but Ponds wants a chance to come up with plans, not just share bad news.
• Communication Committee. Planning to create an online guide on “how things work in the Montclair Public Schools”– who’s who, etc. Planning to post sometime this winter. 
• Finance. Planning to hold a Budgeting and Finance Zoom event in January, working with business office.  
• Community Building. Planning to hold a joint event with SEPAC on January 7th on dyslexia. 4 expert speakers.
• Technology. All PTAs have G Suite for email though some are using MemberHib. District head of information systems retiring; will have to find out who is in charge next.

6.     New Business

Amy Uhlfedler reported on an event held at Glenfield with Restorative Justice people. The RJ folks sought to clarify that the true cost of RJ is not their salaries ($600k) but  the cost of substitutes to replace them in the classrooms ($200k).

A discussion was held about the Montclair F.A.I.L. group on Facebook, which wants students returned to school in person ASAP.

A discussion was held about the possible use of school grounds for after school and PTA activities.

7.     Adjournment 

 

The Zoom meting was called to order at 7:00pm on Tuesday, October 20 – postponed from Monday, October 12th due to the Columbus Day holiday.

The minutes from the 9/14/20 meeting were approved.

Attendees included: Deborah Villareal-Hadley, Tessie Thomas, Brian Fleischer, Courtney Redfern, Kristin Wood-Werner, Diane Tehranian, Marco Pedersen, Julie Clemens, Simone Robinson,  Norrinda Hayat, Natalie Sullivan, Patty Gamcsik, Kathryn Fogliano, Jada Roman, Brad Haggerty, Mary Sue Youn, Marci Clark, Amy Uhlfelder, Laura Hertzog, Adeola Whitney, Trente Miller, Selma Avdicevic, Andrew Gideon, Christine Calderon, Lisa Ryder, Christy Crawford, Meredith Pressler, Veronica Harris, Eileen Birmingham

If you were in attendance but do not see your name please contact deborah.villarreal@gmail.com to add your name.

President Debbie Villarreal reported that…

– at the HS a group of parents have begun to schedule meet-ups for their freshmen students, but the plans for organizing a PTA-like parent group have stalled

– the PTAC had a conversation with the MFEE to work together to fundraise for 1:1 computers in the district, an initiative proposed by Dr. Ponds and Sergio Gonzales

– Edgemont’s emergency town hall was well attended and provided parents with more information about the benefits of outdoor learning

– Other meetings in the past month including EAROG, PTA presidents meeting and  the PTAC meeting with Dr. Ponds have helped to keep us informed of the status of our parents and students during this isolating period

– suggested reading; in NJ.com – the unsafe re-entry of special education re-entry of special education students and staff

– and about being able to get our students back into the classrooms, this article in NJ.com   outlines measures that could help us negotiate with the MEA

• Provide all teachers with a temporary hazard pay increase of 5%. But Brian and Laura added the the district does not have the excess funds to be able to do this
• Grant a waiver for children of teachers to attend full-time.
• Offer onsite day-care.

Debbie wrote to the BOE and Dr. Ponds that…  “It would help ease parents’ stress to telegraph in some legal way, that steps are being taken to make it so that our teachers will come back to our buildings so that students will be able to go back to school.” Laura commented that the union does not always share the information/negotiations with the teachers. Consistent with what has happened before.

– Debbie noted that there may be an influx of teachers joining our PTAs which is good news as we need to hear from our teachers. But as so many of our teachers are expressing their disapproval of actions taken by the superintendent and the BOE, PTA Presidents should not feel pressured to take actions on any issues they feel would not be in the interest of all of the students in their school

Highlights from the 10/19 BOE meeting:

– report about ventilation upgrades

– genesis whitlock talked about wanting to meet again with PTAC and other student leaders

– in light of the fact that many parents feel as though they do not have enough information to decide either hybrid or remote, Dr. Ponds reported that about 60% of families had made their decision. The deadline to decide has been extended to 10/22. Trente Miller reported 56.6% responded; 43.40% did not respond yet. of the total # of families in district, 37% selected hybrid, 20% selected remote

– Teachers and some parents were critical of the districts’ actions with regard to going back into th classrooms. There were repeated requests for more information.

In the conversation that followed… Brian commented that more questions mean more answers. 140 Qs from Sarah Blaine. 90 from the teachers. There are weaknesses and some basis for criticism. But the narrative that every question needs to be answered now and in public is setting the district up for failure. Amy agreed that there are too many questions. Things may change. Says on forms about opportunity to change from remote to hybrid. Literature does not guarantee you a spot if you come in later. Jada wants Dr. Ponds to be more collaborative. What he has said we have not seen. Details are needed during a pandemic. Parent university – what happened. Teachers will be there and not one shows up. Needs to put people in place to be accountable.

Other comments… parents need to be able to give more input, doubts that we will be going back into the schools. And a suggestion that the district should publish for teachers and students/parents, separate lists… The 10 things that should be in place to go back into the classroom.”

Simone – Communication issue. Teachers don’t want to go back. You can select the hybrid model and switch to remote. Teachers are comfortable being home. Parents need to answer the survey. Teachers are disgruntled because. Ponds didn’t respond.

Natalie – concern about teaching both populations. Concern about who is going to loose their teacher?

Diane – thank you for the conversation. Not like what was at the meeting. Not like what is on FB. Other districts are opening up in states with higher covid rates without incidents. Hope we can bring sanity.

Mary sue – complex chicken and egg. Spoke with Dr. Sack. Talked about temp sensors, ventilation, teachers can ask for leave. Many teachers are excited to be back in the building. She has a problem not knowing how many students she can fit. What happens if 90% come back – what then. Some of the communication can’t be shared with the parents. Frustration for principals.

Laura – communication with Ponds and planning. He comes from a district with 400 students to a district with 7000. Surrounded by new people. Learning curve and lift. I would advocate for statement of support. Four different superintendents said our union was the most aggressive. Turnover is so great. The MEA believes that they run the district. When the parents are silent the district feels like they are left out to dry. Reality is that if the teachers don’t come back they loose their jobs. Union agrees or they get fired. The union knows that Ponds won’t fire teachers during a pandemic.

Julie – not everyone would support hazard pay. Suggests that is our statement we should describe what success look like. Too many questions. What do we want to see happen.

Kathryn – has asked many questions of Dr. Ponds and is not happy. Loudest voices support their teachers. They won’t like us supporting the administration.

Courtney – the MEA has a PR firm. We don’t. They insist that no teachers get sick.

Natalie – frustrated. Angry. Spoken to both sides. We have heard things that can’t coexist. Too much chatter.

Amy – plan was done without details about what was done in every different building. Glenfield will have double the amount of COVID touchpoints.

Laura – both can be true that the superintendent can do a better job and that the MEA can sabotage him. More useful to address what we are hoping for and we expect that the district will do to get to the success points. And lets get the district to get there.

Adeola – our job as volunteers to hold all of the leaders accountable. Frustration comes from the experience of our students. Center our needs. Not taking a side. Focus on that and work with everyone. We will support the district and the leaders.

The group voted to write a statement asking that the district make it so that all of our students are able to learn in the environment they choose.

Report from Tessie about the schools and PTA Reports:

These are a few initiatives that exemplify the outstanding work being done….together!

The first initiative is a telling example of “Collaborate to Reduce Costs” –Bullock PTA wanted to bring in a speaker. The speaker fees are fixed and based on the time they would spend. So, given that everything happens on Zoom now, this PTA reached out to other schools to see if they had an interest in attending the speaker session. 6 PTAs decided they are in and the cost per PTA dropped from $600 to less than $100!

The second initiative is an example of “Innovation in Pandemic” Dr. Ponds granted permission to the first use of school grounds for outdoor ASE program proposed by Edgemont. It’s a first and other schools can now follow this. We now have clearer guidance on the process and forms/permissions involved to get this done. In fact, Dr. Ponds’ last email asked me to call him if there are any hurdles that arise as schools goes through this.

“Collaborate to Prioritize Efforts” in ASE and Spirit wear. One school’s negative experience with their mask fundraiser resulted in all other schools knowing the do’s and don’ts around masks. Similarly, the shared experience around ASEs has been assuring to all in that all schools are facing low turnout, but fulfilling some critical needs.

Finally, similar to ASE, Spiritwear, Webmasters, we are now planning to form a group of heads of equity to share best practices and coordinate with EAROG. This process has just started. Working with this stellar group reminds me every day that we are in this together and that we can collaborate to work through all of this and more.

Bradford  – Kathryn – ask Kathryn for her notes.

CHB – Marco. Let’s talk about the kids. Is participating with the speaker collaborative. Committee chair meeting. To arrange events. Meet with the class parents to connect them. Pancake breakfast on-line and pick-up. Also coat drive and canned food drive. In tandem. Remote learning survey. Reviewing answers now. ASE registration closed starts in November. Coalition for healthy school food to serve more plant based food. 10/28 green apple summit. Talk about school in the age of covid, Brooklyn mayor will be there.

Edgemont – Norrinda – hybrid harvest day. Virtual farm tour, band. Hybrid part is Brookhollow tour. Grade meet-ups outside. Making scarecrows. Nice white parents discussion. Friends giving at Montclair Brewery. Storytelling with Liz Manuela. Working on outdoors ASE. Teachers can use tents if they choose.

Hillside. Brian had a meeting with Dr. Anglin the day after the return plan was published. She answered as many questions as she could. More than 100 people showed up for the meeting. Discussed all of the parameters they need to develop. Coat drive going on now. Brian is on their pandemic response team meeting. Insight into logistics. Building leaders have measured the classrooms ID’d all of the spaces.  Exec board met with parent advocates about outdoor. Financial limitations – phased in program. Outdoor fresh air breaks. Opportunity for teachers to go outside with their class. Safe and welcoming spaces. Virtual book fair with scholastic this year. Not Watchung.

Nishuane – Diane. Pancake breakfast was a huge success. Community building on zoom. Nishuane aprons sold with Bisquick delivered to their door if they wanted. Pancake competition.  Reader for the kids. Trivia on cahoot. Book fair is going on now. Thanksgiving drive. Collecting money with grocery gift cards. Explorers is in their 3rd of 6 weeks. Will look into doing outdoor for next cycle. Tent for bussers and for ASE classes. Hopefully teachers will use them. We can get tents from Edgemont

Northeast. Adeola. Annual giving campaign exceeded goal of spirit wear. Global heritage cookbook. Share favorite family recipe along with teachers and staff. Working with principal and teaching staff and SAT – DEI. Global studies mission will change to include DEI. Also planning to purchase tents. Virtual blacktop – open space to engage with families to talk with PTA. Birthday books for students. Outdoor activities developing.

Watchung – Patti – walk and roll to school. Students filmed walking outside around the school. Put up on flip grid. Week of respect. Daily activities. Book fair starts 11/7. Running one ASE class. For the younger kids. Starts next week. Possibly outdoors next semester. May be doing something for Halloween. Possibly costumes. Coffee with Kren – 50 people. Another one at night for working parents. Partner with restaurant to fundraise. Partner with Bullock and look forward to collaborating with other speakers.

Buzz – Mary Sue. Memberhub is up and running. House liaisons. To help with communications. Sept pta mtg – speaker talking about anxiety. 2nd meeting about fundraising. Some parents are volunteering. New spirit wear. New designs. SATp had a meeting. Working on cyberbullying curriculum. Some anti racism work. Parent happy hour no one came to the first one. Trying to give other spaces for parents to connect. Peer mentors 8th to 6th graders via email. Clubs are meeting – science Olympiad, NOS, others. Social emotional learning during office hours.

Glenfield – Amy. Townhall, pta meeting. Record breaker attendance. Zoom helps more parents to participate. Looking for younger talent for exec board. Bring more people in. need to engage more people. Pierce and Abushi are very collaborative. Benefiting all of the parents. At the upcoming meeting teachers will talk about plans. Soft fundraising. Don’t want to run a deficit. Teacher grants to make remote learning more robust. To fill in gaps from district and MFEE. Pop up spirit wear pick-up. Send her information about in person sixth grade gatherings in the park.

Renaissance

Committee Reports:

EAROG – from Jada. Held a full committee meeting. 8 sub committees. Created a point of contact for each committee. Problem with info coming from the district. At the start Dr. Morgan was open and receptive. Now a trickle. Jada is aggregating requests for data from all of the groups – with a goal to have the information in 30 days. Census info. Breakdown by school – race, gender, ward location. Sub committee work in process… busing for equity committee. Looking for info and going deeper into transportation routes to go to contractor.  Eurocentric curriculum – Amistad curriculum. Express that the district website does not make it easy to find needed information.

 Communication

Community Building – How to Raise a Reader on October 26th at 7PM. Marci will re-send the flyers and blurb tomorrow to the distribution.

Curriculum and Special Education. met a few weeks ago. Our next steps – both as advocates for our children and as informed ambassadors to families from the district – desperately depend on some face time with instructional leadership, either Dr. Morgan or Ponds. I am very sympathetic to the demands they both face on their time so would love to piggyback on any existing meetings to get some of that facetime. We want to be a resource to PTAs and parents generally about the district’s academic vision for all students but will struggle to be successful without some face time. Also – we are in convo with EAROG on key issues common to both committees. Thank you for creating the space for the convo to start our meeting.

Finance – Updated charter. Initiatives for the year to educate our community about the budget process culminating in a community event with board of school estimates. With Jon Forte. Meeting again tomorrow. Need to connect with the BOE finance committee. District is too overwhelmed.

Policy

Technology

SEPAC -ABA parents are all different. Some of the parents are speaking out in support of teachers. Many do want to go back to school . growing concern about being remote. Concerned that the quality of remote will go down. Parents worried about widening gap. Can cause regression or delay. Individualized support. Parents in the dark.

Health and wellness are meeting with MFEE, work in mental health and physical health. Pushing those into the learning.

Meeting adjourned at 9:00pm

In attendance: Deborah Villareal-Hadley, Tessie Thomas, Brian Fleischer, Courtney Redfern, Kristin Wood-Werner, Diane Terhanian, Meredith Pressler, Larry Livietsky, Marco Pedersen, Martha Bonta, Anna Kondic, Julie Clemens, Simone Robinson, Daniel Garcia, Norrina Hayat, Natalie Sullivan, Veronica Harris, Patty Gramcsik, Colleen Dougherty, Kathryn Fogliano, June Raegner, Jada Roman, Christine Banks, Laura Farrell, Mary Ann Vanco, Dory Hack, Karina Linch, Brad Haggety, Mary Sue Youn, Marci Clark, Erin Herlihy, Jaime Bedrin, Irene Ronsenthal, Patti Marn, Sarah Spagnola Young, Christine Calderon, Eileen Birmingham, Selma Avdicevic, Allison Silverstein, Yvette Frazier, Anne Kilkullen, Phoebe Williams, Najla Wazeem, Reggie Valentine, Meslissa Shrager, Chanel Gilmer, Christy Crawford, Colleen Dougherty, Ana Christina Tininha, Amy Uhlfelder, Holly Lehr, Dasve Schottland, Maelle Fontaneau, Meg Cavanaugh, Norrinda Hayat, Obie Miranda, Linda Kow, Betty Shvetz, Patty Gamcsik, Yoko Tekebayashi Guests: Masiel Rodriquez-Vars; Faye Lederman.

• Call to Order 
• Proposed Minutes from 8/10/2020 meeting

Approved.

• Treasurer’s Report

Submitted budget for 2020-21 fiscal year.

• President’s Report

A big part of our PTAC focus for 2020-21 is on anti-racism and inclusion. We should all be cognizant of these issues as we work on increasing PTA membership and participation, and as we do our committee work.

Congratulations to Bradford for having received a National PTA Grant. PTAC’s grant application was not successful, but was similar to what MFEE is now proposing. PTAC looking into collaboration with MFEE. There are volunteer and financial support opportunities.

PTAC is still working with the administration to create a parents group at MHS that will be fully inclusive. We cannot do that without the high school’s support as they have the contact information for all families. 

PTAC is meeting regularly with the district administration. Dr. Ponds and Sergio Gonzales of the BOE will be invited to the October PTAC meeting.

Guest: Masiel Rodriquez-Vars. MFEE has been working with the NDC and Al Pelham of the NAACP to create a network of learning centers where lower income kids can do their remote learning. One obstacle is that if they have over six kids in a space, they need to be licensed as child care providers. They are working with the State of NJ to see if this requirement can be waived. They will need volunteers to help run and fund the program. Q: how are the students being identified? Answer: consulting with principals and SACs, working with Succeed Together and Imani.

5.     School PTAs

–      VP of Schools Report: PTA presidents have been meeting regularly and they have been working together, focused on three themes: (1) pivoting to an online learning environment (2) making connections between students and parents though we cannot meet in person (3) inn the spirit of one district and one community, working together as a team to share best practices. An example of this is how well the webmasters have been working together to produce the websites. 

“MPS 101” the event for incoming kindergarten parents on August 12 was a great success, with 193 participants attending for 106 minutes. Attendees were sent to breakout rooms by school.

There have been multiple zoom events at the elementary and middle school level organized by the PTAs in collaboration with their principles. Some PTS have sent home welcome folders and boxes of supplies.

The PTA calendars are all ready for uploading by the district.

6.     COMMITTEES

VP of Committees:  All committees are forming. SEPAC is represented on every committee.

 Communications Committee

“The primary function of the PTAC Communications Committee is to ensure effective communications between and among stakeholders – parents and caregivers of children in the district, district leaders and staff, the Board of Education, other organizations in town and, yes, YOU. In short, your work is our work. 

Here are a few immediate ways we can be a resource for all PTAC Committees:

1. To help stakeholders understand what you/we do….we can help you write your committee’s description for the PTAC website.
2. To streamline information-gathering…we are planning to organize a parent survey that will compile questions from various PTAC committees. Soliciting family/caregiver feedback is a step toward seeing trends in parent perspective and making our committee goals more inclusive. Consolidating into one survey will streamline our request of parents and caregivers and, hopefully, increase participation.
3. To keep communications consistent and on a regular cadence…we can review communications you plan to send and, whenever possible, coordinate with other committees to prevent overload. This may take the form of a regular PTAC newsletter but logistics are TBD.”

Community Building Committee

There are new members. Things under consideration: 

A PTAC speaker series in collaboration with the community. Perhaps every month. School financing in November. Others: Special ed. HIB policy. Fundations Program.  Restorative justice groups.

Exploring an online reading program called “Book It”– students keep track of minutes, win prices. 

Gardening committees in each school– may start collaboration

EAROG Committee. They have been meeting and there are 6 subcommittees. Currently identifying chairs for each subcommittee and tasks lists for each.  They have met with Dr. Morgan once and scheduled to meet with her again on September 21

Finance and Facilities Committee

Want to be active in the budget process. Educate people in the process budget– maybe run “Budget 101” with Marci. Develop relationships with new key decision-makers.

Focus on accountability and transparency. Give feedback to Dr. Ponds. Look how other districts operate.

Technology Committee. See written report (attached). Committee has 4 new people. G suite and Internet hosting has been the focus.

Curriculum and Special Ed. Focus on developing the mission vision and purpose. How does curriculum and instruction work in the district? Plan: (1) meet with Dr. Morgan. (2) conduct a survey of PTA presidents. 

Health and Wellness Committee  No chair. Committee members – brainstorm and just pick a chair. Possibly connect with MFEE regarding the learning centers

7.     New Business

–       Norrinda (Edgemont PTA president) and Guest Faye Lederman shared information about outdoor classroom proposal and petition to ask the Superintendent to allow/support outdoor learning ASAP. Outdoor learning wss something already being explored at Edgemont pre-COVID and they have bought tents. A discussion was held concerning the petition and the concept of outdoor learning, including the process by which that could happen (at the district level or at edgemont). Issues discussed include logistics, financing, insurance, scheduling, and whether the MEA would be in support. 

8.     Adjournment

This a summary of the 8/11/20 PTAC meeting with Dr. Ponds and BOE member and PTA Liaison, Sergio Gonzalez. The call was attended by 50+ people, including officers of the PTA Council, the executive boards of our PTAs, PTAC committee members, and MPS staff including Director of Technology Chris Graber, Director of Operations/School Support Services Felice Harrison-Crawford and Supervisor of Nursing Betty Strauss.

Prior to the meeting, PTAC had sent Dr. Ponds a list of questions to guide the discussion, which was expanded to include suggested questions from PTAC members. Dr. Ponds opened his remarks by saying that he puts out weekly communications because he believes it’s important to codify everything in writing. He is also responding to parents and others who send him emails. He emphasized that they are getting continual (and sometimes changing) guidance from the NJ Department of Education that informs their decisions. He emphasized that he cannot talk about personnel matters and this might limit some of his responses. His priority is the safety of students and staff and making sure instruction has rigor – “first and foremost.” He wants that there be a lot of instruction during the day, focusing on core curriculum. He is also looking at how to integrate the magnet themes. Providing proper ventilation for our schools is also a high priority.

See below for responses to 25. Questions. All responses are from Dr. Ponds except for health-related questions (indicated) addressed by Betty Strauss, Supervisor of Nursing.

• What hurdles need to be overcome to put the current plan for our schools in place?

1. 1. 1. Dr. Pond’s  primary concern is safety for students and staff. He asked for an inspection of all facilities with respect to ventilation and is expecting a report “today” (the 11th).
      2. He is working with the schools’ physician on safety protocols.
      3. Instruction (both in person and remote) must demonstrate “rigor.” HIs “benchmark” is live instruction in the core* classes every day, which he defined as “someone talking to you directly”.  This will be in writing and codified in a future update. (Note it was unclear whether global language classes are considered “core” classes for this purpose.)

• What does the most current data from parents/caregivers about choosing a plan show?

1. 1. 1. Parents go back and forth in response to changing news. They want to know what the day to day schedule will look like. Future updates will have more information about this so parents can make their decisions.

• How will every child have access, irrespective of their means, to remote learning if they choose to do so? The last survey had requests for 400 laptops.

1. 1. 1. Dr. Ponds said he is working to address this. Ideally we would be a one-to-one district but that would cost $1.3 million. If anyone has ideas about how to find/raise this money, contact Dr. Ponds!

• About Mounties and Bulldogs, will students in one family be assigned to the same group even if they are in different schools?

1. 1. 1. Yes. But K-2 students will NOT be included in the Mounties/Bulldogs designations as they will have a different system. Parents will get a request through school messenger/genesis asking them to choose all remote or hybrid after which students will be assigned Mounties and Bulldogs.
   2. The hybrid model is four hours for in-person days. How late [in the day] will the last school begin? How much time is scheduled/anticipated for arrival, inclusive of temperature screening? 
      1. The priority is being able to get quality rigorous academic work done. Scheduling issues are still being worked out. The schedule may not follow the traditional times. For example, classes may be scheduled so that older (HS) students would be able to help pick up younger students in their families from school. Dr. Ponds is also working with the YMCA to provide morning care and afternoon care.
      2. Regarding arrival procedures and length of time that will take: Dr. Ponds has been working with Chris Graber, Director of Technology, to obtain mobile screeners. People will just walk through the screeners to cut down on time required. Children will be screened before boarding busses.

• What is the average number of hours per day on-line students will be attending synchronous classes? K-5, 3 – 5, 6 – 8, 9 – 12? Will this be a mandate or a recommendation?

1. 1. 1. Discussions are ongoing and there are currently some disagreements. When we have resolved it, the information will be sent out. One concern is screen fatigue– determining how much time students can/should spend online.

• Is the district having a difficult time recruiting teachers for the hybrid model? For the all on-line model?

1. 1. 1. This is a personnel issue. The district is collaborating with the MEA. Dr. Ponds wants to be a true collaborative partner with MEA – does not want to do or say anything to affect that goal. He said association members are part of the design teams and that they are working with us.

• Will a given teacher be responsible for simultaneously teaching students in the classroom and connected remotely? Or will teachers be scheduled so that they’re teaching only in-person or only remote at a given time? Is this the same K-12?

1. 1. Dr. Ponds repeated that he wants to be a true collaborative partner with the MEA – it is still being worked out.

• Many hybrid plans are designed so that students stay in the same classroom while in school, and the teachers rotate from class to class. Is this true of our plan? How will it work for high school students who have more complicated schedules?

1. 1. Dr. Ponds is working with his medical team, the department of health and reviewing CDC guidelines. He emphasized the importance of getting the right team in place.
   2. Betty Strauss, Supervisor of Nursing – with regard to screening children when they come into the schools, they will be using thermal scanners. Staff will also be eyeballing the students to make sure they look OK. Temperatures will be taken on busses. There will be social distancing in the classrooms. Schools will institute one-way hallways and social distancing in lines, for example, lines to the bathroom.
   3. Every student will need to wear a mask or a shield, according to the governor’s most recent ruling.
   4. Nurse Strauss is working on a rubric for symptoms – how do deal with every student and make a judgement specifically about that student when they are ill.
   5. Nurses will be wearing scrubs. There will be weekly health reminders for staff and students. In the event of illness, judgements will also take into account the difference between casual and close contact.
   6. Betty Strauss is also conferring with the Healthy Minds Committee.
   7. This is also a personnel matter

• Are extracurriculars being included in the hybrid plan? In the remote plan?

1. 1. 1. 1. The importance of extracurriculars (“specials”) in our magnet system was acknowledged but is not yet clear how they will be handled.
         2. Dr. Ponds did add that he hopes to have live gym classes at home.

• What happens when a teacher or child reports that he/she is sick? Or that he/she has tested positive for COVID? Does the entire school then have to quarantine/go remote, or the entire “Team” (Mounties or Bulldogs) at the school? Or just the class?

1. 1. 1. 1. Betty Strauss, Supervisor of Nursing: The NJ State DOE is putting out guidelines and the Department of Health recommends assessing each situation individually and using contact tracing, which is what the district will do. Investigations will rapidly determine if/whether the classroom needs to be closed, if a class needs to quarantine, close versus casual contact, etc. Everything will be handled on a case by case basis. Information will be relayed to the Public Health department, which will make recommendations as to how to respond.
         2. The latest guidance differentiates between close and casual contact. All families will be notified about a positive diagnosis, but it doesn’t necessarily require quarantining for other students/staff.  The classroom may need to be closed for a couple of days to clean. Whether others have to quarantine will depend on the social distancing in that situation.
         3. Anyone who walks into the building will be screened. Contact tracing will take place as indicated. There will be no differentiation between student and staff.
         4. Each school will have designated space/staffing close to the nurse’s office for isolation. If someone is sick/appears at risk for COVID, parents will be asked to pick students up ASAP, and staff will be asked to go home. A negative test will be required before returning.
         5. There will be no COVID testing onsite. If students are sick with other illnesses, they will need to present a doctor’s note to return to school. It may be difficult to draw lines as COVID presents so many different symptoms.
         6. All school nurses will be taking a Johns Hopkins class on contact tracing. District will follow directives of the Dept of Health. Guidelines for everything are changing twice a week.
         7. Example of moving the original graduation date – Dr. Ponds worked with a team of people to decide.

• • What is the procedure if a teacher reports that a particular child attending for live instruction has shown himself/herself unwilling or unable to comply with mask use, social distancing, etc?

1. 1. 1. 1. Mask-wearing is required. Maintaining a safe learning environment is first responsibility. Discipline for noncompliance will be handled in accordance with the child’s age and “intent.” If someone cannot wear a mask, they can wear a face shield instead.

• • As teachers call in sick, will hybrid students be taught by a substitute teacher, whether it’s a hybrid or a remote day? Are there enough substitutes willing and able to come in to provide live instruction? Might the teacher deliver instruction remotely from home to students who are physically at school in the classroom

1. 1. 1. The district is working to make sure there is enough coverage for each building. Substitutes have to meet safe health/safety screening before coming into the buildings – temperature check and questionnaire.

• Are there contingency plans in the event of a teacher strike or other job actions (e.g., sick-out, widespread FMLA or other leave requests)?

1. 1. 1. Dr. Ponds did not answer as this is a personnel matter.

• Do you expect the plan to change drastically from what has been described? Will we be prepared? Under what criteria will we switch to all remote learning?

1. 1. 1. Dr. Ponds is planning right now to move forward with the current plan – if that changes, it will be communicated as soon as possible.

• We had inquired about the possibility of our After-School Enrichment programs using school grounds for small, in-person enrichment classes to help ‘level the playing field’ – which is our model. What are the rules with regard to PTAs and other groups using school property in the fall?

1. 1. 1. Normally he is in support of this, but using school property or anything related to schools would require the same safety protocols (screening, etc) as in person instruction.
      2. Dr. Ponds will address this issue in September as he needs to consult with the district attorney.

• Can you explain why the conversations for high school parents/caregivers interested in creating a parent group were postponed?

1. 1. 1. Dr. Ponds wants to have a conversation about this with our PTAs and PTAC group. He Is in favor of communication and conversation, but wants it to be fully collaborative and inclusive. (Note: PTAC officers have a meeting scheduled with Dr. Ponds and high school staff members for Friday 8/14 and will follow up.)

• What about outdoor instruction?

1. 1. 1. He is currently having conversations about this possibility and working to get it approved by the county. Also, working with the MEA to see if it can be done. There is an MEA representative on all of the design teams.

•  What the plan is for contact tracing and notification if there is an outbreak. Will the district do it? Contract a company to do it? Rely on the county health department? (Which was overwhelmed in April and could not handle the volume.) 

1. 1. Mr. Santagato had conversations with the department of health and the school physician. It all depends on proximity. For example, everyone on the football field is not considered a close contact. If a student or teacher gets sick we would probably have to close down the classroom for a couple of days. The class would switch to virtual.

• What exactly are the metrics for possible school closure? What is the trigger? Number of cases? (If so, how many?) Only an order from the health department or governor? And would any shutdown be district wide or done on a school by school basis? 

1. 1. State guidelines are changing everyday. We will do what’s safe and be conservative in our judgements.

• What is the protocol for handouts and individual attention for students who arrive for hybrid learning? 

1. 1. We are looking at using on-line books. Passing paper could be a problem. We want to make sure we can do our work without much contact. But it may be different for young students who work with manipulatives.

• For families with children in K-2 and in the older grades in elementary school (assuming the same school), pick up can be tricky during in-person days with K-2 being 2.5 hrs and the older grades being 4 hours. Can the younger students stay at school until their siblings are done? 

1. 1. Great questions – we are still reviewing K-2. And discussing morning and afternoon care with the  YMCA. Dr. Ponds thanked parents for responding to the survey about bussing. Aftercare can be tricky and hard – there will be more information about  this on Friday.

• If a teacher is quarantined, how would we ensure that applicable Mountie and/or Bulldog sessions receive appropriate instruction – would all affected children join the remote learning group?  How will the district ensure that the online instructor isn’t overburdened with too many children, or that the students who join into the remote learning experience and those that were in-person learning are on the same level?

1. 1. There are HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) regulations around reporting when personnel get sick. Same for when students get sick. This also influences what can be said about procedures.

• Will children (and teachers) who fail the temperature check be administered a COVID test on site? How will they safely quarantine children if multiple fail the check (only a subset could actually be infected with COVID). 

• • There will be no COVID testing on sight. Every school has to have at least one isolation area. Carved out with plexiglass. Anyone with symptoms will be isolated. They do not have rapid tests.

 

8/12/20

Courtney Redfern

Debbie Villarreal-Hadley