Votes at a glance: board tables, finances, contract approvals and employee placed on administrative leave

At the meeting the board acted on a package of governance, operations and finance resolutions and recorded several procedural outcomes.

Clerk (Speaker 3) announced that resolution R1.11 would be tabled and that R1.22 (a personal leave of absence without pay through April 30, 2024, and related settlement for an employee whose name is on file) was added to the agenda. Under operations, the board added R5.14, approval for the business administrator to withdraw funds from the maintenance reserve in the amount of $250,000, and R5.15, approval to enter into a contract with Montclair speech therapy pending attorney review. The board also scheduled approval of the tentative 2024–25 school budget (R5.04) for submission to the county superintendent.

In finance items the board discussed terminating the tri‑op agreement with the Kearny‑North Arlington program (resolutions R5.08 and R5.09) and entering talks about a middle‑school hockey team. Multiple members recused themselves from votes that involved payments to Reed Academy and from related check‑register items; recusals were announced on the record by board members prior to roll call.

The board moved into executive session; after returning to public session the board considered and approved a resolution to place an employee (name on file) on administrative leave with pay pending an investigation. The resolution was moved and seconded and approved by roll call; the public transcript records members’ affirmative roll‑call responses but does not enumerate a final tally in a single line of minutes.

Several routine motions were approved by roll call throughout the meeting, including acceptance of donations of IT equipment (valued at $1,800), approval of class trip vendors and athletic cooperative agreements, and authorization of the tentative budget submission. Where members recused themselves the clerk noted recusal on the record.

Notes and follow‑up: the Montclair speech‑therapy contract (R5.15) remained pending attorney review on the meeting record. The board directed staff to provide additional information on terminated tri‑op arrangements and to respond to parent inquiries about the changes.