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Emerson Borough School District board meeting, Sep 14, 2026

1 h 10 min

Reading and test scores ▶ 29:23

This board doesn’t post agenda times. Click a board member to jump to where they first speak; we list only members whose voice our check named. Video length 1 h 10 min.

  1. Who spoke · first speaks at
  6. Amy MaraVice President
What happened

What happened at this meeting

Emerson board hears 91% ELA, 86% math pass rates on state graduation test 33:00

  • A district staff member presented results from the state graduation test and the AP exam, reporting that 91% of the current senior class passed the ELA exam and 86% passed the math exam. 34:24
  • The staff member said 15 students reached the AP Scholar with distinction level last year, which the staff member called the high-water mark for Emerson. 37:37
  • Each member called in the roll call voted aye on a motion by one board member to adopt all items on the consent agenda. 49:34

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Item by item (11)
  1. Opening and roll call 0:01
    • Behrooz Pasdar called the meeting to order at 7:32 PM and asked for a roll call. 0:16
  2. Recognitions and new staff introductions 0:29
    • A staff member recognized students who exceeded a summer reading goal of 1,200 minutes in 6 weeks by reading 1,500 minutes or more, and said a total of 51 students took part in the summer reading or summer math program. 0:53
    • A student representative reported on student council activities, including a 7th grade orientation and a pep rally planned for October 2nd. 5:59
    • A staff member introduced new staff members, and the board then took about a 10-minute break. 7:04
  3. Graduation test and AP results 29:23
    • A staff member said 74 11th graders took the state graduation test, with 91% passing the ELA exam and 86% passing the math exam, and said the district anticipated every student would graduate. 30:17
    • The staff member said every student scored a 3 or higher on the English Lang and US Government exams and the U.S. history exam average was 3.58, and announced the next Portrait of a Graduate meeting for September 28th at 6 PM. 34:57
    • Amy Mara asked about the makeup of the AP Scholars with Distinction group, and Behrooz Pasdar asked about improvement in the AP Gov course; the staff member said the group included some juniors and credited a service learning approach in that course. 42:31
  4. Board president and superintendent reports 45:30
    • The superintendent thanked staff, administration and the police chief for the school opening and thanked the police department, fire department and emergency services personnel. 45:30
    • One board member thanked the superintendent for working with community members and the police department on changes to pickup and drop-off and said the changes had smoothed out. 46:42
  5. Public comment on agenda items 48:47
    • Will Graulich moved to open the meeting to the public for comments on agenda items only, and Behrooz Pasdar said there were no comments. 48:55
  6. Consent agenda 49:24
    • Amy Mara moved to adopt all items on the consent agenda. 49:34
  7. Committee reports 49:51
    • Behrooz Pasdar said the district was waiting for the School Employee Health Benefits Commission, which had deadlocked votes, to set the health benefit increase at its September 28th meeting. 51:09
    • Will Graulich reported a third required literacy screener, a new full-time K through 6 Spanish teacher and a planned refresh of the K through 12 science curriculum. 52:05
  8. Individual board member reports 56:00
    • Shannon Lucas encouraged attendance at the Portrait of a Graduate event on Monday the 28th and suggested parents encourage children to try one new activity. 56:08
    • Will Graulich welcomed new staff members and thanked teachers in the district. 57:43
    • Amanda Riccardi said board members would attend a workshop at the convention center in Atlantic City to learn about governance and policies. 1:04:33
  9. Drop-off follow-up and business report 1:06:19
    • The business administrator said the state health benefit crisis would be the number one driver in the upcoming budget cycle. 1:06:29
    • One board member said people with an issue should stay off social media and call or email the district office. 1:07:01
  10. Public comment 1:08:02
    • A speaker at public comment said the new drop-off procedure had led to children arriving on time and more learning time at the start of the day. 1:08:25
  11. Adjournment 1:09:34
    • Amy Mara moved to adjourn at 8:41 PM and said the next meeting was scheduled for October 12th, 2026 at 7:30 PM in the high school media center. 1:09:38

Written by software from the meeting's transcript and checked sentence by sentence against it.

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Video: posted by the district as “Emerson Public Schools Board Meeting 9.14.2026”