Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Board Meeting Roundup topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Woodland Park Board OKs personnel slate, emergency contracting and revised Pre‑K waiver
Summary
At a special Aug. 29 meeting the Woodland Park Board of Education unanimously approved a bundled personnel slate (resignations, hires, salary adjustments), authorized an emergency contract for ECC parking work, approved a transportation contract and sent a revised Pre‑K waiver to the NJDOE; no public comments were offered.
The Woodland Park Board of Education unanimously approved a broad package of personnel actions, contracts and a revised Pre‑K waiver during a special meeting on Aug. 29, 2023.
Board members voted 8–0 to approve personnel agenda items 224‑66 through 224‑90, a single motion that accepted several resignations, approved reassignments and new hires, and set a small number of salary changes and leave arrangements. The motion was made by Laura Vargas and seconded by Jairo Rodriguez and carried by roll call (8 YES). Resignations accepted included Laura Masefield and Monica Voinov (elementary teachers) and Christina Sturdy (middle school science). New hires approved included Mark Rivera, elementary teacher (MA, Step 1, $64,530), Michael Cruz, middle school teacher (BA, Step 1, $58,080), and others; the board also approved leave‑replacement and substitute appointments and additional hours for several pre‑K aides. The minutes state some salary figures are tentative: several entries note salary changes are pending settlement of the WPEA collective bargaining agreement.
The board also approved a change in salary for Giovanna Irizarry, Director of Special Education and Student Services, from $141,113 to $143,613, as part of the personnel slate.
In finance and contracting, the board approved a transportation contract for 2022–23 bus routes, including Route Q2857 (Charles Olbon) with Ace School Bus Transportation at an estimated route cost of $4,050 plus a $162 surcharge for service through June 2023. The motion carried by roll call, 8–0.
Separately, the board approved an emergency contract with In and Out Construction for land clearing, drainage and paving of the Early Childhood Center (ECC) parking lot (motion 224‑12A) and approved a contract with H&H Leadership, LLC to provide a two‑week leadership, health and fitness program at Charles Olbon at no cost to the district (224‑13A). Both contracts were approved by roll call, 8–0.
Under Buildings & Grounds, the board approved a revised Pre‑K waiver application to the New Jersey Department of Education addressing classroom sizes at School 1, Charles Olbon and the ECC (224‑92). That motion also passed 8–0.
Board members began the meeting with a presentation of the WIDA Access test scores for the 2022–23 school year; the minutes note the presentation but do not include test results. The board entered executive session at 7:20 p.m. to discuss personnel, litigation or contract matters and returned to public session at 7:50 p.m. The executive session minutes list two discussion items: an emergency contract and a negotiations update; the minutes say those matters will be made public when confidentiality is no longer required.
No members of the public spoke during the two public‑hearing opportunities on the agenda. The meeting closed with a Community Relations Committee report (Ms. Marren said the committee discussed an ECC grand opening/ribbon cutting) and adjourned at 8:00 p.m.
The minutes record vote tallies and motions but contain no verbatim public remarks or quoted statements; all approvals noted above are recorded in the board minutes and will become part of the official district record.
