New Milford superintendent returns; district reports hurricane damage covered by insurance, free lunch rollout and federal testing funds under review

Superintendent Danielle, speaking at a New Milford Board of Education meeting, said she has returned to the district and emphasized building safety, staff and student wellbeing, and support for teachers while reporting on damage from a recent storm that the district’s insurance is covering.

Danielle told the board that the start of the school year — already complicated by COVID-19, staff turnover and a recent hurricane — has been ‘‘incredibly anxiety ridden’’ for teachers and families. She said the district’s reopening plan is a live document that will be updated as state guidance changes and that the district is working to provide more parent communication about new lunch procedures as universal free lunch begins.

The superintendent said insurance appears to cover ‘‘everything that was damaged’’ after fast, running water from the hurricane caused damage across district property, and that officials were exploring options for replacing a damaged snack shack with a movable or shared unit. Facilities and finance staff were asked to meet and evaluate options.

Stephanie Kuchar, facilities-related staff mentioned by the superintendent, reported the district filed claims for damaged vehicles including a decommissioned 2006 Chevy school bus and a grounds dump truck; both were described as total losses. Kuchar said the main athletic field was certified safe after a vendor’s inspection once infill is redistributed and that flood insurance and a FEMA claim have been started.

About lunches, Danielle said universal free lunch begins immediately and families should expect slower service initially because many more students may take school lunch than in a typical year. She asked parents to be patient and said teachers or principals will communicate classroom-specific lunch plans; district staff confirmed paper selection forms will be distributed next week so families can choose meal options going forward.

Danielle said close contact is now defined as within 3 feet without a mask, so some parents may be notified to quarantine while others in the same classroom might not. She said the district will follow state and county guidance on contact tracing and that she will work with the county to try to establish on-site vaccine clinics when appropriate.

On federal and state testing support, Danielle told the board that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention awarded $267,000,000 to the New Jersey Department of Health to provide COVID-19 screening and testing resources for local educational agencies. She said the district is awaiting legal guidance from its attorney about which options — on-site testing by an outside agency, reimbursements for approved testing, or other models — it could pursue, and that a response to the state is due by September 13.

Danielle also said the State Board of Education had adopted a graduation assessment requirement for the classes of 2023–25: students in those cohorts will take a New Jersey assessment in grade 11 aligned to the state’s learning standards (grade-10 ELA and algebra 1/geometry). The superintendent said more detail would follow in an assessment update.

She reviewed personnel and program priorities: continuing a teacher leadership cadre, a constructivist learning supervisor role, professional development and capacity building for teachers and leaders, and a focus on social-emotional supports in partnership with Care Plus, which will host monthly virtual family meetings to support caregiver strategies.

Danielle shared local student recognitions and extracurricular notes: an elementary student called her first day ‘‘great,’’ Alexandra Albanese placed sixth nationally in an essay contest run by InvestWrite, two high school students were accepted into the Dispatches Young Writers program, and students will participate in athletics with field repairs underway. She said senior night will be rescheduled until the field is cleared.

The superintendent closed by saying her door is open to students, that she responds to parent emails and calls, and that she will publicly correct mistakes when necessary.

Ending: Board members thanked staff and community volunteers for storm response; borough officials and a councilman thanked the district and reminded the public FEMA would have a mobile site in town the next day. The board moved on to routine agenda items after the report.