[{"_1":2,"_100":-5,"_101":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6556863,"mediaKeyId","3395992-16d9cd0f9ee714be121f4a5cb7141beb","parentId",3395992,"title","Residents press Garfield board on transparency, OPRA costs and rehiring amid budget concerns","audioSeconds",507,"startMs",3603000,"endMs",4110000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3395992-16d9cd0f9ee714be121f4a5cb7141beb&start=3603&end=4110","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3395992-16d9cd0f9ee714be121f4a5cb7141beb/thumbnail_3603000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6556863/New-Jersey/Residents-press-Garfield-board-on-transparency-OPRA-costs-and-rehiring-amid-budget-concerns","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6556863-c311767fb388023e0d19237e506fbd6c/orig.mp4?Expires=1771191781&Signature=ZL3xrvXeMGsV~WJuxkasmWYyUS~NH9RchVvoA4j6Tg~XRPtEa93Le9ig4PWtSHFO9j~7F0FU7ud1bikFaUyh6wGzOIF~8LHjnLlhUMSAm1WoVTgALyV4ckenkG3AyIOymMUkXrnds8Rkbf0EqShYU01QfipXGZFF9k0tIYmJ~Z0HydLd0WYkrN8BcOszXrNYvSzehfJL4T8xGrBSGBnCSwuuk8AMLsULmKZYFrhlf59kOU43AwBgkARnGKSS5OJvHkg4V-YJoMqQVKn-OqnTDfLwqyNR3~P5cOcAlAE9YBtO0a-4SPehGug5qRk41IQb-cF7aoKYHL1qB~1vaRvLFw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Garfield Public School District","date","2025-05-05T22:59:32Z","article","Several Garfield residents used the public-comment period at the May 19 Board of Education meeting to press for greater transparency in hiring and contract renewals, raise concerns about Open Public Records Act (OPRA) charges, and ask whether the district will cut positions or stipends to free funds for teachers.

Frank Baldwin (262 Evans Place) congratulated award recipients but said the board’s online minutes are “bare bones,” making it difficult for the public to see who was rehired or released. He criticized recent contract renewals as “dead weight” and urged the board to scrutinize positions and contracts to free money for teachers.

Tanner Raymond, who identified himself as living at 93 Spring Street, and other speakers said they could not see explicit staffing cuts in the agenda and asked whether any positions had been eliminated. The board chair and committee members responded that two personnel items (agenda numbers 71 and 304) had been removed from the vote for further consideration and that stipends and some renewals remain under review.

Danielle Marcello (66 Krakow Street) questioned the district’s handling of OPRA requests and related fees. Citing her review of the posted OPRA logs, she said the district appears to have billed roughly $74.52 per hour for support services and $92.50 per hour for the custodian-of-record role in some requests, and that legal fees were sometimes charged. She asked who is incurring those costs and whether taxpayers are paying them; she said the district had spent more than $5,000 on OPRA-related fees since July (as reflected in the OPRA log she reviewed). The board did not provide a detailed accounting during the meeting; the business administrator and board members said they would follow up and review the posted records and that additional transparency would be considered.

Everett Bonto (51 Jewel Street) reiterated concerns about the agenda’s level of detail, calling it “vanilla” and urging the district to include clearer information about capital work (for example, boiler replacements) and facilities projects in its reports.

Board members responded during the public-comment period: one member said the abstentions on finance items 9.1 and 9.2 reflected members who were not present at the earlier meeting, and another explained that the two personnel items were pulled for further consideration. Several board members thanked speakers and said the personnel committee had spent hours reviewing renewals and would continue to refine the list before the next vote.

No formal policy changes or immediate staff reductions were announced at the meeting; board members said follow-up review of personnel items and stipends will continue.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","GBOE Live Board Meeting May 19, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","Multiple residents used public comment at the May 19 meeting to challenge the board on transparency in minutes and OPRA charges, question recent rehiring and contract renewals, and ask whether job cuts will be used to free up funds for teachers.","taxTitle","Garfield Public School District, School Districts, New Jersey","taxId",68130,"location","New Jersey","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6556868,"Garfield Board approves consent and committee resolutions; several items pulled for review",225,3322000,3547000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3395992-16d9cd0f9ee714be121f4a5cb7141beb&start=3322&end=3547","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3395992-16d9cd0f9ee714be121f4a5cb7141beb/thumbnail_3322000.jpg","/articles/6556868/New-Jersey/Garfield-Board-approves-consent-and-committee-resolutions-several-items-pulled-for-review","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6556868-8f280481531b26060899fbc4a11ec9e6/orig.mp4?Expires=1771191781&Signature=Cy4L0HIjvneTagT8h0y1OqRUUeee675fWV5MWZ-fgOMZhCWbsantKYOOQeDx3kRUFXu7e-ex-HtoAXM22LGc93JeN71hv912thjhvLv55cJVIS5WQF5UBvjfCaau8Y4EzvvIo4R~bQbn3U9WoT65ImJe1xyy8lZVDNLmXx-EI6DwHU0qJzDJOuJ3WicfiIpZ7R1dFQJrt6WIuJuFjxL7BquddRVd-YmxbasfyuU75XBvscnWg8OsqUTm4XZtv~9LIvT8KwxsKpENreB6WOle-2CPIFz89hblZpDKMtTIOdLW7Je-~Ouj1sCFZsxu~UpWZHe0qiH-QJOn4sCdwAMD6A__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Garfield Board of Education voted on multiple consent and committee resolutions during its May 19 meeting, approving grouped items from personnel, finance, education, facilities and policy committees while noting abstentions and the removal of two personnel items for later consideration.

During the meeting the board moved to approve personnel items listed on the agenda (identified by the board as Resolutions 7.1 through 7.20), with two items — item 7.1 (agenda number 71) and item 3 0 4 (agenda number 304) — removed from the vote for additional review. The motion covering the remaining personnel items was approved; the board recorded abstentions on the pulled items and on a small number of other numbered entries, and the president announced that stipends and selected renewals remain under review for future action.

The finance committee’s grouped motion (Resolutions 9.1 through 9.7) passed after roll-call voting. Several board members recorded abstentions on specific finance entries (the transcript records abstentions on 9.1 and 9.2 by members who said they were not present for the earlier meeting), but the motion carried. The education committee’s grouped motion (Resolutions 11.1 through 11.11) was approved by roll call. The facilities committee’s single resolution (13.1) and the policy committee’s grouped motion (Resolutions 16.1 through 16.3) also passed on roll call.

Board members used the meeting’s roll-call process to register individual votes and abstentions; the clerk announced “motion carries” after the roll calls that produced majority approval. No ordinance- or contract-level adoptions were recorded in the meeting minutes beyond the routine approval of agenda consent items. The board adjourned following final remarks.

Votes at a glance
- Consent/personnel (Resolutions 7.1–7.20, with exceptions): Approved; items 7.1 (listed as 71 in the agenda) and 304 were removed for further review; some abstentions recorded on specific items.
- Finance (Resolutions 9.1–9.7): Approved; abstentions recorded on 9.1 and 9.2 by members noting they were not present at the referenced meeting.
- Education (Resolutions 11.1–11.11): Approved by roll call.
- Facilities (Resolution 13.1): Approved by roll call.
- Policy (Resolutions 16.1–16.3): Approved by roll call.

The transcript shows the board relied on standard roll-call votes for each committee block and did not provide detailed tally counts in the spoken record; the meeting record indicates further contract and stipend reviews will continue before finalization of some renewals.","At its May 19 meeting the Garfield Board of Education approved grouped resolutions across personnel, finance, education, facilities and policy committees, with two personnel items pulled for further consideration; several board members recorded abstentions on particular items.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6556873,"Garfield Board honors teachers, paraprofessionals and student of the month",2372,487000,2859000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3395992-16d9cd0f9ee714be121f4a5cb7141beb&start=487&end=2859","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3395992-16d9cd0f9ee714be121f4a5cb7141beb/thumbnail_487000.jpg","/articles/6556873/New-Jersey/Garfield-Board-honors-teachers-paraprofessionals-and-student-of-the-month","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6556873-880aff59d232dcee90bb446a223f1213/orig.mp4?Expires=1771191781&Signature=EOC-2yBWsEydoGaU7ZUyC3WC0npOJqtUmWci1JlgPuId4kSlWOjou91DvSbHGzzO7yoGCOI8u6cCYH~zvbnvZWWDIO7d-5HE8REbJEvjIbFwa6OeztMtzLXWTnc6DCcAEfR7nc7DM1UA0YOSeM~ox-Dq3MBAfabsuJNzk7dyV-~c~CZQtgj6xzHArdGILYejeLzy~f8cIYjn1TL39nCyUvZl~g7NV6VkgAMBNGDyw9zLyX7N-vIQK74asBRiPAHkK-Ap3E34sGHutmNjMTOJRZ54dCfpQK1bTY9Y35vwgPamq9nVybUcxaseMNmRx6Ld2th3IItoeP0yV2K-8VYgKg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Garfield Board of Education on May 19 honored teachers and paraprofessionals from every district school and named Garfield High student Fernando Arrajes as the May student of the month.

Board Superintendent Dr. Tomko opened the program and said the district is “making a lot of progress” with end-of-year activities and summer program planning. The district’s director of curriculum and instruction, Miss Bellinger, told the board the district used a new digital nomination platform this year to select one Teacher of the Year and one Paraprofessional of the Year at each school, and the selection criteria included classroom climate, student achievement and building relationships with staff and families.

Principals and school leaders presented brief remarks about each recipient’s work and community impact. Several principals highlighted recipients’ long service to students — for example, Deborah Simpson, a kindergarten paraprofessional with 25 years in the district who is retiring — and the role paraprofessionals play in specialized classrooms. At the Early Childhood Learning Center, Madeline Teal was recognized for her speech-therapy work and for organizing the school lending library. At James Madison School No. 10, art teacher Sarah Wish and paraprofessional Mrs. Neville were singled out for classroom creativity and student engagement.

The ceremony included short remarks from the Garfield Federation of Teachers president, who read a nomination and congratulated the winners. A walkathon fundraiser organized by an “Easy Ride for Life” student club was also announced; organizers said the event is scheduled for May 31 from 9 a.m. to noon and aims to raise funds to subsidize rides for residents with limited mobility.

The board concluded the awards portion with a group photo opportunity and brief logistical remarks from event organizers. No formal board action was required for the awards themselves; the presentation was part of the meeting’s recognition and community outreach agenda.","The Garfield Board of Education recognized Teacher of the Year and Paraprofessional of the Year recipients from each school and named a high school student as May student of the month; district officials described a new digital nomination process and invited the community to upcoming fundraising and summer programs.","actionData","errors"]

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Residents press Garfield board on transparency, OPRA costs and rehiring amid budget concerns

Garfield Board approves consent and committee resolutions; several items pulled for review

Garfield Board honors teachers, paraprofessionals and student of the month