Residents urge transparency on appointments, ask about therapy dog and athletic-complex costs

During the meeting's public-comment periods residents raised governance and program questions and offered praise for student programs.

Marlena Zawatska (67 Morris Ave.) criticized political appointments and asked whether agenda item 8.35 would grant the superintendent unilateral hiring authority over the summer or whether the board would still vote on hires when it reconvened. She also asked why an item related to a fee request had been removed from the agenda and whether a therapy-dog program that parents had previously signed permission slips for would proceed next year.

"Regarding item 8.35 on the agenda, does that grant Mr. Tomko full authority to hire without board approval, or... can the board still vote on it?" Zawatska asked, and later, "School 4 was supposed to have a therapy dog ... we signed all the permission slips for it ... is it gonna happen next year or is it just gone?"

Frank Barber and Everett Garnto Jr. urged the board to prioritize qualified local hires for open positions and praised student achievements, including the early-college graduates and the STEAM team fundraiser that raised $1,750 for Easy Ride for Life. Board members later clarified that the interim business administrator appointment covers the summer through September and that the superintendent's summer hiring approval was intended to allow filling vacancies before school begins.

Speakers and the board exchanged clarifying questions; the clerk and superintendent responded to procedural questions about the interim appointment timeline and hiring processes.