Weehawken Board approves 2025–26 staffing, awards $710,000 roof contract; president rebuts 'bad budgeting' claim

The Weehawken Board of Education on May 13 unanimously approved a slate of personnel appointments for the 2025–26 school year, accepted the Superintendent's April HIB findings and authorized several contracts, including a $710,000 partial roof replacement for Weehawken High School.

The meeting opened at 7:33 p.m. with President Bolcar presiding. During the public comment period Kathleen Clancy said rumors circulating in town attributed recent personnel reductions to "bad budgeting." President Bolcar responded, "this was not due to bad budgeting and that we are making financially responsible decisions because we do not know what the next year will look like with Federal funding. This happens every year as teacher contracts are only for the year when signed. We are doing everything we can to ensure student experience and programs thrive." The board did not take immediate action on personnel beyond the scheduled votes on appointments.

The board approved long lists of appointments covering non-tenured and tenured teachers, certificated staff and administrative positions. Appointments and related motions (including non-bargaining staff, bus drivers, hourly employees, custodial staff and substitutes) were presented by Trustee Carson and carried by roll-call vote with Trustees Ahmad, Cabrera, Cannata, Carson, Dennis, Martin-Melgarejo and President Bolcar recorded as voting aye; Trustees Acosta and Vice President Pinal were listed as absent on multiple roll calls.

On facilities and vendor matters the board authorized a contract with Northeast Roof Maintenance, Inc. in the amount of $710,000 for a partial roof replacement at Weehawken High School, awarded through a cooperative pricing bid program. The board also approved two three-year Chromebook lease agreements through HP Financial Services (one at $23,092.98 annually and a second at $26,307.78 annually, each with a $1 buyout), and ratified a series of professional appointments including RSC Architects as architect of record and NW Financial as the district's financial advisor.

The board approved submission of the 2025–26 Extraordinary Aid (ExAid) application and accepted several out-of-district student placements and extraordinary services contracts. Notable special-education contract amounts recorded in the agenda included two placements to The Phoenix Center at $131,674.32 each and ESY placements listed at $10,250 each. The board also approved Change Order #4 with H&S Construction & Mechanical, Inc. that applied $52,534.19 to the contingency allowance, leaving a remaining contingency of $13,316.96.

Food service operations were renewed with The Pomptonian, Inc.; the Food Service Management Company (FSMC) fee is $48,720 for the year and the total estimated cost of the contract is $487,107.57, which the agenda lists as inclusive of food, labor, supplies and the management fee.

Other routine business included designation of the Star-Ledger's digital edition as the district's legal newspaper, adoption of the 2025–26 board meeting schedule, approval of shared-services agreements with the Township for custodial positions, and the appointment of Township Chief Financial Officer Lisa Toscano as Treasurer of School Monies for a one-year term at $8,000.

The board entered an executive caucus at 7:55 p.m. to discuss personnel, collective bargaining and litigation matters; the closed-session summary in the minutes notes discussion of HIB matters at WHS and DWS and student discipline at WHS. The public session resumed at 8:27 p.m., and the meeting adjourned at 8:28 p.m.

The meeting minutes record that motions were moved and seconded as noted on agenda items and that roll-call votes were recorded for each approval. Several agenda entries list exact contract values, stipend amounts and leave dates; where the agenda did not supply additional detail those fields are marked "not specified" in district records.