Hawthorne Public School District board meeting, date not confirmed yet

2 h 31 min · 2 public speakers

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What happened

What happened at this meeting

Hawthorne school board hears graduation assessment results and custodial services concerns 1:02:09

  • The board president said finance item F3 would authorize the business administrator to use competitive contracting to solicit proposals for custodial management services and that the board was not voting to outsource services or award a contract. 17:56
  • District staff presented results from the state graduation proficiency assessment, reporting that 72% of Hawthorne students met the graduation-ready score in ELA and 57% in math. 1:02:09
  • A motion on the negotiations item sought approval of the HDA sidebar agreement, and during a later roll call one speaker voted no on F3 and yes on everything else. 1:57:57
  • A speaker at public comment raised concerns about the custodial proposal and urged the board to reject it. 2:09:13
Item by item (14)
  1. Opening and approval of minutes 8:08
    • The board took a roll call on a motion to go into the regular public meeting. 8:08
    • The meeting regulations for public comment were read, and no one spoke during comment on agenda items. 8:41
    • A motion to approve the minutes of September 15th, 2026, was seconded and a roll call was taken. 8:41
  2. President's report 10:51
    • The board president reviewed the board's three goals for the 2026⁠-⁠2027 school year, including strengthening the committee structure, recognizing student and staff achievement and strengthening board governance. 10:51
    • The board president said the School Employees Health Benefit Commission approved a 34.4% premium increase for active employees for 2027 on September 25th. 15:52
    • The board president said item F3 would request proposals for custodial management services and that the board was not voting to replace employees, select a vendor or award a contract. 17:56
  3. High school activities update 21:25
    • A speaker gave an update on high school activities, including fall sports, the homecoming spirit week and club events. 21:25
  4. Superintendent's report 24:05
    • The superintendent said the high school marching band took first place at two competitions. 24:07
    • The superintendent said each building scored in the 70s on a required self-assessment, with the top score being 78. 26:04
    • The assistant superintendent said a new Title I intervention program for the high school would begin at the end of October and run through May. 29:14
  5. Recognition of long-serving employees 30:28
    • The district honored employees who have served 25 years and presented each with a pin. 30:28
    • Building principals spoke about each honoree. 30:28
  6. Graduation proficiency assessment presentation 1:00:22
    • A presenter said 72% of Hawthorne students were graduation ready in ELA and 57% in math, compared with 68% and 52% for the county and 76% and 61% for the state. 1:09:25
    • A presenter said 47 students in total were retesting. 1:26:11
    • A presenter said 157 out of 158 students graduated in 2026, which is 99.4%. 1:40:22
  7. Committee and liaison reports 1:41:59
    • The legislative report said the School Employees Commission approved a 34.4% premium increase for plan year 2027. 1:44:12
    • The finance report said a sidebar agreement would pay certified long-term replacement teachers $306 per day rather than the daily substitute rate of $130. 1:45:20
    • The buildings and grounds report said high school renovation work was anticipated to start during the March 2027 recess and continue through the summer. 1:56:05
  8. Negotiations sidebar agreement 1:57:53
    • A motion to approve the sidebar agreement was made, seconded and put to a roll call. 1:57:57
  9. Curriculum and instruction resolutions 1:58:41
    • A motion covered resolutions CI 1 through CI 17. 1:58:44
    • A speaker asked why several CI items listed the same school and student numbers, and a responder said there were multiple contracts in this case. 1:59:14
  10. Personnel resolutions 2:00:49
    • A motion covered resolutions P1 through P35, offered pursuant to the recommendation of the Superintendent of Schools. 2:00:49
  11. Finance and administration resolutions 2:03:19
    • The resolutions included acceptance of a donation of school supplies valued at $1,500. 2:03:21
    • A speaker asked whether F2 was replacing someone, and the answer given was that it was replacing the person they had. 2:04:25
  12. October bill list 2:05:22
    • A motion to approve the October 2026 bill list was seconded and put to a roll call. 2:05:25
  13. Public comment 2:08:22
    • A speaker at public comment said the custodial subcontracting proposal was about people, not numbers on a spreadsheet, and urged the board to reject it. 2:09:13
  14. Board comments 2:12:59
    • The same member said the state Department of Education would hold virtual school funding forums on October 22nd and November 12th and an in-person session in Newark on October 27th. 2:15:08
    • A speaker asked whether there could be an opportunity for questions at the end of presentations. 2:19:26

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

Who spoke

Who spoke

We can’t yet tell who is speaking at this board’s meetings.

Video: posted by the district as “BOE Regular Meeting 10-13-26”