PUBLIC SCHOOL UPDATE

Lazaro Carvajal who was elected to the Board of Education in April 2001 is now chairman of the Facilities Committee. Carvajal did not agree with the Superintendent’s plan to build a temporary prefabricated building between Durie Avenue and Orchard Street which is a known flood zone. This temporary prefabricated facility would have cost homeowners and taxpayers $2 million dollars a year in rent. This temporary facility will not be built. Suddenly the Superintendent has found room in Quarles and Liberty Schools for the pre-kindergarten students. According to the Superintendent there are approximately 100 students registered for pre-kindergarten. This number is barely 50 more students than the existing pre-kindergarten class.

Our charter school will open a pre-kindergarten program next year as well.

Although our Superintendent was seeking a new five year contract, she only received three. Why? The reason is because of her performance as an administrator and an educator. The students test scores speak for themselves. Four of our elected Board of Education members did not want to renew her contract. Three of the remaining appointees and one of the recent elected trustees (Mrs. Meltzer) did want to renew the contract, creating a tie in the consensus. The trustees moved immediately to the review her contract. Otherwise her five year contract would have been automatically renewed by law. However, all perks and bonuses were removed from her contract. Her salary is $133,000 a year. She will receive bonuses only if the scores go up, including the SAT’s. We sincerely hope that our superintendent understands that she works for all of us and that it is up to the Board of Education members to make policy. Also we hope that she gives all the information requested by board members and the taxpayers. In the past three years she has not been forthcoming with public information.

We estimate that 50% of the student body have not been re-registered. The EHOA efforts for re-registration of the students were never aimed at those families who are homeowners or legal renters. It was aimed for the affidavit and non affidavit host category and all the student families who may be living in illegal rooming houses as well as those families who might be using fake addresses. Recently (and accidentally) the County Assistant Prosecutor in his investigation of an arson committed at the Dwight Morrow High School found that one of the students arrested lives in Paterson. The Superintendent has delayed the re-registration process for almost a year. Teachers and parents complained that most of the existing discipline problems in the schools are created by students who do not live in Englewood. On picture day several students from the middle school gave addresses to teachers listing Hackensack and Paterson as there home. Although the teachers reported it, the Superintendent did nothing about it to our knowledge.

We hope that the elected Board (which will become fully elected in the next school election in April 2002) will take seriously the issue of defending the educational rights of students who live in Englewood. It is our opinion their rights are being violated because they are being robbed of teachers’ time and classroom space.

The following contracts have been approved for the 2001 - 2002 school year:

Control Building Services Contract Renewal $1,112,081.50

This contract is for cleaning the schools. It doesn’t include landscaping, snow removal or, boiler cleaning or repairs or burner services. The cleaning contract will go up for bid next year.

Contracted Maintenance and Repair Work Cost Unknown

To date the cost of these contracts are not known to the public.

Approval: Appointment of Auditor

BE IT RESOLVED, upon the recommendation of the Superintendent of Schools, that the accounting firm of Inverso and Stewart be appointed to perform the district audit for the 2000-2001 school year.

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