South Plainfield School District board swears in three members, elects officers and adopts procedural items

Thomas Cascio, William Sesselberg and Rhonda J. Williams were sworn in as members of the South Plainfield School District Board of Education during a regularly scheduled meeting. The board then moved to select officers, approve procedural rules and adopt its calendar for 2026; all recorded motions were approved by voice or roll call.

The meeting began with the reading of election results: Cascio received 5,386 votes, Williams 4,259 and Sesselberg 3,642, with 183 write-in votes. The newly elected members took the statutory oath of office affirming their qualifications and pledging to support the U.S. and New Jersey constitutions and to perform the duties of office. "I, Thomas Cascio, do solemnly swear that I will support the Constitution of the United States," Cascio recited during the oath. Similar oath language was recorded for Sesselberg and Rhonda J. Williams.

After the swearing-in, the board conducted roll call and opened nominations for board president. Members nominated Thomas Cascio for president; nominations were closed and the board approved the selection. The board then nominated and approved a vice president (named in the record as "Mister Bernice" or similar); the record indicates the nomination was seconded and approved.

The board approved the 2026 meeting dates and adopted the stated parliamentary authority for meeting conduct, each by motion, second and recorded affirmative votes. The board also adopted a board member code of conduct (referred to in the record as the "board member code of balance"). All motions recorded in the meeting transcript were approved by voice or roll call; the transcript does not provide explicit yes/no vote tallies beyond members responding affirmatively during roll call.

During the public-comment portion, a speaker identified as Mr. Bowman thanked "Chuck" for donating two sets of boards to the Special Olympics team and noted the team's upcoming competition this weekend. Several board members and attendees offered congratulatory remarks to the newly sworn and returning members and expressed commitments to collaborate for student success.

The meeting concluded after a motion to adjourn was moved, seconded and approved. The transcript does not include a meeting date or location; those details were not specified in the recorded segment.

Authorities referenced in the oath included statutory citations read aloud in the record (noted in the transcript as references to R.S. 19:4-1 and N.J.S.A. 18A:12-1).