Board Finds Bullying Substantiated at High School, Welcomes New Superintendent

The Glen Ridge Board of Education, meeting July 23, 2024, accepted Superintendent Kyle Arlington's recommendations on four Harassment, Intimidation and Bullying investigations, finding that one complaint at Glen Ridge High School (Report #264530) was substantiated. Three other HIB investigations reviewed the same night — at Ridgewood Avenue School (Reports #266902 and #265240) and Linden Avenue School (Report #265636) — were found not substantiated. All four votes passed by the same 6-0 roll call of the members present: Mr. Campbell, Mr. Dehnad, Ms. Gottlieb, Ms. O'Neil, Dr. Yaros-Ramos and Board President Elisabeth Ginsburg. Ms. Akinwande, Mr. Bonnett and Ms. Graham were absent.

The board also accepted, with regret, the resignations of paraprofessional Madison Levine at Ridgewood Avenue School, effective June 30, and teachers Alyssa Stevens at Glen Ridge High School and Candice Snyder at Ridgewood Avenue School, effective June 30 and July 30 respectively. Separately, the board approved paying Caitlin Reilly for up to eight hours of summer work on HIB investigations at $76.63 per hour.

The meeting doubled as the first for new Superintendent Kyle Arlington, who used his opening report to introduce himself at length, recapping remarks from his April appointment and describing a three-phase transition built around "conversations, reviewing all the possible written information," and what he called finding a "transition break-even point" — the moment he is contributing as much to the district as he is still learning from it. He said his review of the district's diversity, equity and inclusion report and its special-education audit had been "illuminating," and that he plans meet-and-greets with the community in the fall.

Before that, Ginsburg opened the meeting — which began with a closed executive session on personnel, negotiations and confidential matters before returning to public session — by offering condolences to the family of Montclair Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Jonathan Ponds, who died unexpectedly on July 12. She noted Montclair's board had just named Damon Cooper, that district's director of secondary education, as interim superintendent, and that she had personally reached out to Cooper and Montclair's board president with the district's condolences and any offer of help, receiving a note back. Ginsburg added that Dr. Ponds left behind three young sons. She also reported that a state task force on teacher evaluations, convened after legislation passed this spring, is due to issue recommendations by September 30 on reworking a roughly 13-year-old evaluation system.

On finances, the board approved bills and claims totaling $248,515.13 and ratified payroll and other payments of $5,093,590.90, along with an open purchase order report of $37,441,884.92 for the 2024-2025 school year. It also approved new student-services contracts, including a 3P Learning "Reading Eggs" program for Forest Avenue, Linden Avenue and Central schools, an anti-bullying software contract with HIBster for $2,800, and NWEA testing programs totaling roughly $24,000.

The board thanked the Ridgewood Avenue Home & School Association for a run of donations: $8,660.20 for classroom furniture, $2,000 toward a 2025 field trip to Fountain Springs, $5,000 for collaborative problem-solving training, $3,000 for a "GiveThx" program for staff and students, $600 in Teachers Pay Teachers gift cards, and $522.93 for solar eclipse glasses. The Glen Ridge Educational Foundation also donated $8,250 to fund 50 contracted seats in the Virtual High School program for 2024-2025, which Ginsburg called "enormously attractive" to students for offering AP and other courses the district can't provide on its own. The board separately approved field trips for the History Club to Washington, D.C. in October and for athletic team captains to a leadership event at West Essex High School in August, and approved an Emergency Virtual/Remote Instructional Plan for the coming school year.

Also approved without debate was a change in the district's legal representation: the board's longtime law firm, a boutique practice built around attorney Ms. Osborne, has become affiliated with the larger firm Methfessel & Werbel, with attorney Jeff Marino continuing to handle negotiations and Athena Cornell heading the new school-law team. Board members joked about the tongue-twisting new firm name but said the same lawyers and rates will continue.

In committee updates, board members reported the curriculum committee has not met since June, and that the personnel and policy and finance and facilities committees are still working to schedule sessions around the board's upcoming retreat. The negotiations committee met earlier in the month on a contract issue that could not be discussed publicly. Gottlieb said the Glen Ridge Association for Special Education's leadership was meeting the next evening to plan volunteer recruitment, and Ginsburg reported the district has set an August 1 meeting with Mayor Deborah Mans, two members of the Borough Council and Borough Administrator Michael Zichelli to continue joint conversations with the borough. O'Neil said the Gas Lamp Players' summer programs are active. No members of the public spoke during either of the meeting's two public comment periods, and the board noted it currently has no student representative on the board, since both of last year's representatives graduated in June.

Action items

• Found HIB report #264530 (Glen Ridge High School) substantiated; found three other HIB reports not substantiated.
• Accepted resignations of Madison Levine, Alyssa Stevens and Candice Snyder.
• Approved Caitlin Reilly for up to 8 summer hours on HIB investigations at $76.63/hour.
• Approved bills and claims of $248,515.13, payroll/payments of $5,093,590.90, and an open purchase order report of $37,441,884.92 for 2024-2025.
• Approved donations from the Ridgewood Avenue Home & School Association (classroom furniture, field trip funding, staff training and other gifts) and an $8,250 Glen Ridge Educational Foundation donation for Virtual High School seats.
• Approved an Emergency Virtual/Remote Instructional Plan for 2024-2025 and a change in legal representation to Methfessel & Werbel.
• Approved field trips for the History Club (Washington, D.C.) and athletic captains (West Essex High School).

Watch key moments

• 11:10 — Board President Elisabeth Ginsburg offers condolences on the sudden death of Montclair Superintendent Dr. Jonathan Ponds and describes reaching out to Montclair's new interim superintendent.
• 13:15 — New Superintendent Kyle Arlington delivers his first report to the board, reflecting at length on his transition into the district.
• 25:25 — Board members share a laugh over trying to pronounce the name of the district's newly affiliated law firm, Methfessel & Werbel, three times fast.