April 10, 2025 at 7:00 PM - Work Session Meeting

1. NOTIFICATION OF MEETING
Welcome to a public meeting of the Alexandria Township Public Schools under the Open Public Meetings Act of 1975, also known as the “Sunshine Law.” The District hopes that you will find this meeting informative and instructive, and that citizens are afforded an opportunity to better understand and appreciate the District’s operation and functions.

Under the Sunshine Law, the District must provide notice of all open meetings to allow citizens to attend and observe the deliberations of the District.  This meeting was properly advertised according to the Open Public Meeting Act (P.L. 1975:31) in the Hunterdon Democrat, January 9, 2025, and NJ.com, to begin at 7:00 PM at the Alexandria Middle School Media Center, 557 County Road 513, Pittstown, NJ.

2. ROLL CALL
April Abelman
Ann Marie Austin
Renee Bagley
Caterina Dobak
Eric Joseph
Marybeth Madlinger 
Wanda Quinones
Michael Small
Doug Walker 

3. FLAG SALUTE

4. PRESENTATIONS

  

5. BOARD PRESIDENT'S REPORT

6. SUPERINTENDENT'S REPORT
District Update
HIB
 

7. SCHOOL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATOR/BOARD SECRETARY'S REPORT
Canopy/Walkway Project

8. PUBLIC INPUT - (Agenda Items Only)
The Alexandria Township Board of Education recognizes the value of public comment on educational issues and the importance of allowing members of the public to express themselves on school matters.  Public participation at board meetings is intended to allow individuals of the public to address the Board on issues of public concern, and is not intended as a forum for extended conversation or two-way dialogue with the Board members and/or District officials.  The Board has set aside a specific section of the agenda, titled Board Discussion of Public Comments, whereby the Board can discuss the public comment topics in open session.

Thus, the Board shall set aside two twenty-minute periods for public comment at each meeting. In order to permit the fair and orderly expression of such comments, public participation shall be governed by the following rules:

1. A participant must be recognized by the presiding officer and must preface comments by announcing his/her name, place of residence, and group affiliation, if appropriate.
2. Each statement made by a participant shall be limited to 5 minutes in duration.
3. No participant may speak on the same topic until all others who wish to speak on that topic have been heard.
4. All statements shall be directed to the presiding officer; no participant may address Board members individually.
5. An individual cannot give his/her time to another individual.

The Board President is responsible for maintaining a respectful environment during public participation, so that public comments can be heard and considered by the Board. The President, therefore, may interrupt or terminate any individual’s speaking privilege if the speaker’s comments are excessively loud, disruptive, obscene, or otherwise in violation of applicable law. Further, an individual may be cautioned that a personally directed statement may be slanderous or defaming and that the individual may be liable for his/her statement.

Examples of unacceptable behavior that will not be permitted include, but are not limited to:  naming District employees and engaging in personal attacks, racial slurs, excessive loudness, calling out, yelling, generally disruptive behavior, attempting to disrupt the meeting or inciting others to do the same.  

Any disregard for the rules of decorum stated above will not be tolerated and may subject the individual or group to removal from the meeting.  If necessary, the board meeting will be adjourned temporarily or until the next scheduled meeting.

9. OLD BUSINESS
Referendum
25/26 Tentative Budget
 

10. NEW BUSINESS
Board discussion of Public Comments
 

11. CONSENT AGENDA
Motion made by __________, seconded by __________, upon the recommendation of the Superintendent of Schools that the Alexandria Township Board of Education approve the Consent Agenda as follows:

ROLL CALL VOTE:
Abelman ____ Austin ____Bagley ____ Dobak ____ Joseph ____ Madlinger ____ Quinones ____ Small ____ Walker  ____

11.A. Finance

11.A.1) Bill List
Resolved upon the recommendation of the Superintendent, the Alexandria Township Board of Ed approve the following Bill List:
March 20, 2025 - April
Check #   A13052 - A
Check #   B 
Total - $

11.A.2) Change Orders:
Motion to approve the following change orders:
Santorini Change Order #32 - Deduct $343.19
Sunnyfield Change Order #5 - $2,888.49

11.A.3) Withdrawal of Funds
Motion to approve the withdrawal of funds from Maintenance Reserve to the General Fund, in the amount of $175,000 for an expanded scope of the canopy/walkway project.

11.B. Personnel
RESOLVED upon the recommendation of the Superintendent, the Alexandria Township Board of Education approves the following:

11.B.1) New Hire
Motion to approve Amy McCormack as a 12-month Administrative Assistant, effective May 12, 2025 at a salary of $50,000 prorated for the 2024-25 school year pending completion of required documentation.

11.C. Approval of Minutes
RESOLVED upon the recommendation of the Superintendent, the Alexandria Township Board of Education approves the following meeting minutes:
Meeting Minutes March 20, 2025
Executive Session Minutes March 20, 2025


 

11.D. Finance and Facilities

11.D.1) Donation
Motion to approve a donation by Flemington Lowes of time and materials to build and install raised garden beds for use by the Environmental Club.

11.D.2) Donation
Motion to accept a donation by the PPO of bus transportation for Music in the Parks with a value of $2,841.06.

11.D.3) Coordinated Transportation
Motion to adopt the resolution for participation in coordinated transportation services with the Hunterdon County Educational Services Commission for the 2025-2026 school year.

11.D.4) Spiezle Architectural Group Entrance Canopy and Site Improvements Proposal
RESOLVED upon the recommendation of the Superintendent, the board approve an amendment to the proposal from Spiezle Architectural Group, Inc. for additional professional services to prepare and submit required soil disturbance reports to the DCA.  The amendment adds $5,400 to the fees in the existing agreement.

11.E. Education

11.E.1) Policy and Regulation Revisions
RESOLVED upon the recommendation of the Superintendent, the Board approve the 2nd and final reading of the following Policy:
P 7440.1  Immigrant Students

 

11.E.2) Board Sponsored Commencement Awards
Resolved upon the recommendation of the Superintendent, the Board approves the sponsoring of the following 8th Grade Awards:
The Arthur Pfefferle Award - $50
Academic Excellence Award - $50
World Language Award - $50

12. PUBLIC INPUT
The Alexandria Township Board of Education recognizes the value of public comment on educational issues and the importance of allowing members of the public to express themselves on school matters.  Public participation at board meetings is intended to allow individuals of the public to address the Board on issues of public concern, and is not intended as a forum for extended conversation or two-way dialogue with the Board members and/or District officials.  The Board has set aside a specific section of the agenda, titled Board Discussion of Public Comments, whereby the Board can discuss the public comment topics in open session.

Thus, the Board shall set aside two twenty-minute periods for public comment at each meeting. In order to permit the fair and orderly expression of such comments, public participation shall be governed by the following rules:

1. A participant must be recognized by the presiding officer and must preface comments by announcing his/her name, place of residence, and group affiliation, if appropriate.
2. Each statement made by a participant shall be limited to 5 minutes in duration.
3. No participant may speak on the same topic until all others who wish to speak on that topic have been heard.
4. All statements shall be directed to the presiding officer; no participant may address Board members individually.
5. An individual cannot give his/her time to another individual.

The Board President is responsible for maintaining a respectful environment during public participation, so that public comments can be heard and considered by the Board. The President, therefore, may interrupt or terminate any individual’s speaking privilege if the speaker’s comments are excessively loud, disruptive, obscene, or otherwise in violation of applicable law. Further, an individual may be cautioned that a personally directed statement may be slanderous or defaming and that the individual may be liable for his/her statement.

Examples of unacceptable behavior that will not be permitted include, but are not limited to:  naming District employees and engaging in personal attacks, racial slurs, excessive loudness, calling out, yelling, generally disruptive behavior, attempting to disrupt the meeting or inciting others to do the same.  

Any disregard for the rules of decorum stated above will not be tolerated and may subject the individual or group to removal from the meeting.  If necessary, the board meeting will be adjourned temporarily or until the next scheduled meeting.

13. EXECUTIVE SESSION
WHEREAS the "Open Public Meetings Act" (Chapter 231 Laws of 1975) authorizes a public body to exclude the public from that portion of a meeting at which specified topics are to be discussed under circumstances where the public consideration of such topics will clearly endanger the public or where the personal privacy or guaranteed rights of individuals whose activities or affairs are to be discussed would clearly in danger of unwarranted invasion; be it

RESOLVED that the Board of Education of the Township of Alexandria now adjourns its public session to reconvene in Executive Session for the purpose of discussing the following:

___Confidential Matters by Law or Court Order
____Purchase Property
_X__Personnel Matters
____Invasion of Individual Privacy Employee or Student
____Investigation into Violations of Law
____Suspension, Civil Penalty or Loss of a License or Permit
____Disclosure would Impair District's Right to Receive Funding
____School/Public Security
____Collective Bargaining
_X__Pending, Ongoing or Anticipated Litigation


And be if further RESOLVED that the matters discussed in Executive Session will be made public when confidentiality is no longer required. 

Motion to Enter Executive Session
Motion made by __________, seconded by __________, upon the recommendation of the Superintendent of Schools the Alexandria Board enter Executive Session at _____ to discuss __________.

14. OPEN SESSION
Motion made by __________, seconded by __________, upon the recommendation of the Superintendent of Schools that the Alexandria Board return to Open Session at __________.

15. ADJOURN
Motion made by __________, seconded by __________, to adjourn the meeting at __________ .