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Kenilworth Borough School District board meeting, Aug 24, 2026

1 h 08 min · 0 public speakers

Chronic absenteeism ▶ 20:01Enrollment ▶ 28:37Phones in school ▶ 33:25Reading and test scores ▶ 12:29Safety, weapons and police ▶ 7:51

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 08 min.

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What happened

What happened at this meeting

Kenilworth school board approves 48 resolutions in roll call vote 1:07:16

  • The superintendent gave presentations on school safety data, student attendance and possible changes to public comment rules. 7:51
  • Robert Beiner, Gregg F. David and Alison Tears reviewed finance, personnel, and curriculum and instruction resolutions on the agenda. 49:10
  • No one from the public came forward during public comment. ~1:06:50
  • A staff member said 48 resolutions were on the agenda, and after a roll call the motion carried. 1:07:16
Item by item (12)
  1. Opening, minutes and correspondence 5:04
    • A staff member read the meeting notice under the Open Public Meetings Act and reported a quorum present. 5:11
    • The board took up the minutes of the July 20th, 2026 regular meeting and monthly correspondence that included a thank-you card. 6:11
    • The board voted by voice to receive the minutes and accept the correspondence. 6:11
  2. School safety data report 7:36
    • The superintendent reported violence was down, vandalism slightly up and substance abuse significantly down, with 13 confirmed HIBs compared with 7 the year prior. 8:30
    • The superintendent said restraints fell to 3 in '25-'26 from 37 the year prior. 10:31
  3. English learner and alternate assessments 10:31
    • A staff member said the WIDA ACCESS is an annual assessment measuring English language proficiency of multilingual learners and that Harding teachers are being trained in sheltered instruction, 15 hours per teacher. 12:29
    • Alison Tears asked whether the training was outsourced, and the staff member said it is being turnkeyed, with a December 1st deadline for Harding teachers. 15:45
    • The staff member said 2 middle school students participated in the DLM alternate assessment this past spring. 17:37
  4. Student attendance and absence policy 20:01
    • A district staff member asked the board to consider whether regulation 5200 on student attendance could be tightened and to talk it through in committee. 20:01
    • The superintendent said chronic absenteeism at Brearley went from 16.9% in '23-'24 to 15.3% in '24-'25 and district-wide from 13.9 to 13. 21:04
  5. Public comment rules 29:12
    • The superintendent said surrounding districts set public comment at 3 minutes and that the revised statement requests rather than requires an address. 29:12
    • The superintendent said the board may take action at the September meeting to change the public comment time from 5 minutes to 3 and possibly limit total public comment to 1 hour. 30:35
  6. School opening and policy updates 33:25
    • The superintendent said 22 policies were on the agenda, including new Policy 5339.01 on student sun protection and Policy 5516 on the state cell phone ban at the high school. 33:25
    • The superintendent said the district is fully staffed instructionally, 11 staff members will attend new teacher orientation and September 8th is a full first day of school. 34:43
    • The superintendent said the law and policy require accommodations for health, IEP or 504 reasons. 45:32
  7. Finance and facilities committee report 48:46
    • Robert Beiner said the business office set action plans for the audit's 2 recommendations on capital assets and balance sheet account reconciliations. 49:10
    • Robert Beiner said the committee reviewed the 24⁠-⁠25 audit report, the corrective action plan and preliminary 27⁠-⁠28 budget planning. 49:27
    • Asked about non-resident tuition, a staff member said the district can take tuition students up until 6th grade but not in choice grades 7 through 12. 54:36
  8. Personnel and management committee report 55:20
    • Gregg F. David said resolutions 20, 21 and 22 accept the resignations of 2 secretaries and 1 aide. 56:19
  9. Curriculum and instruction committee report 59:51
    • Alison Tears said Resolution 40 aligns several district curricula across K-12 to the current New Jersey Student Learning Standards. 59:58
    • Alison Tears said Resolution 45 accepts the superintendent's findings on harassment, intimidation and bullying incidents reported during June 2026. 1:01:30
  10. Old and new business 1:02:05
    • A speaker asked about enrollment of 1,355, about a 5% drop, and a staff member cited more students choosing UCVTS or a private school and a general drop in population. 1:02:43
    • A speaker thanked the Girl Scouts for caring for the garden behind Harding. 1:03:48
  11. Public comment 1:04:47
    • A staff member read the public comment statement, including the 5-minute limit per person. 1:05:09
    • No one came forward, and the board voted by voice to close the public portion. 1:06:50
  12. Resolutions vote and adjournment 1:06:50
    • A staff member said 48 resolutions were on the agenda and called the roll. 1:07:16
    • A staff member said there was no need for a closed executive session. ~1:07:39
    • The motion on the resolutions carried, and the meeting was adjourned. 1:07:34

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 “8-24-2026 Kenilworth BOE Meeting”