At the Board of Education meeting last Night, there were multiple presentations made during the Board meeting. The Burlington County Student Spotlight recipients were recognized by Senator Jean Stanfield who presented a Proclamation from the NJ Senate to BCSSSD student Jaxon Keefer and another on behalf of Assemblyman Michael Torrissi Jr., a Proclamation from the NJ Legislature to BCIT student Audrey Lehman.  Congratulations.

The second presentation was from BCIT West Principal Joseph Venuto who presented a certificate of appreciation to the Board which was awarded to Dr. Nagy, Mr. Venuto and the BCIT West Staff and Culinary Students from the Acting Commissioner of Education Dr. Angelica Allen-McMillan and State Board of Education President Kathy Goldenberg on May 17, 2023 at an NJDOE awards ceremony hosted at BCIT West. THE NJDOE and all in attendance were so impressed with BCIT, the students, staff and particularly what the culinary students were able to prepare and present.

The third presentation was made by Security Director Veldon Harris to honor the Security Leads of the Year, namely, William Dutch Braun at BCIT West and Quincy Hendryx at BCSSSD West and Officer of the Year Award to Darlene Colquitt at BCIT Medford. The awards recognize the important work of our security team in both districts. Pictured in all three pictures are

Director of Security, Veldon Harris and Assistant Director of Security, Domenick DiLeo presented:

Security Officer of the Year to Darlene Colquitt, BCIT Medford

Co-Security LEAD of the Year William “Dutch” Braun, Security Command Center at BCIT West

Co-Security LEAD of the Year Quincy Hendryx, BCSSSD Westampton

BCIT’s Fashion Design program led by teacher Kyra Baider has been engaged in a project to make Angel Gown pockets at the request of Angel Gown representative Jean Lee to honor the deceased babies at birth or shortly thereafter in the delivery rooms. These pockets the BCIT made will be distributed among the hospitals in New Jersey. It was an incredible presentation.

On behalf of the Board, I would like to congratulate and thank our student BoE representatives whose last meeting is tonight and we will have others serve for the next school year. In this the inaugural year of having students on the Board we could have been prouder to have you represent your fellow classmates and to be a voice for them. Our perspectives have been enriched as a result. We wish you Favour Oyelade and Jaxon Keefer the very best. 

On behalf of the Board, Dr. Nagy acknowledged all those on the agenda who announced their retirements. We thank each and every one of you and wish you good health and happiness in your next endeavors.

Dr. Nagy referred to the calendar for the next school year. Though approved back in January 2023, a clarification to the calendar was provided regarding the early start for all staff which will take place the last week of August. That Friday, September 1, 2023 will be a day where only 12 month employees on respective campuses report to get ready for the first day of students who arrive the following week.

This year, the reorganization meeting will take place on July 6, 2023 at 9am.

The Board approved the Board and District goals for both Districts. Dr. Nagy thanked the the Board, administration and the staff who provided input.

The Board approved a number of Statements of Assurances as per requirements.

The Board approved the Assistant Superintendent contracts and Business Administrator as well as the Board Self-evaluation and completion of superintendent evaluation.

Among other approvals, the Board approved a job description update for the BCSSSD Assistant Principal position, a shared service agreement between BCIT and BCSSSD as well as resolutions for generation services.

A school-based behavioral threat assessment and management training program has been signed into legislation by Governor Murphy.  The purpose of a threat assessment team is to provide school teachers, administrators, and other staff with assistance in identifying students with behaviors of concerns, assessing those students’ risk for engaging in violence or other harmful activities, and delivering intervention strategies to manage the risk of harm for students who pose a potential safety risk. Veldon Harris, Director of Safety has put together a Threat Assessment Team on each campus and these individuals will be invited to attend a training course within the next few months.  The Board approved the Threat Assessment Team participants and their trainings.

Dr. Nagy thanked all those administrators and staff who made it possible to honor our staff during Teacher Appreciation Week. The various acts of kindness and words of appreciation went a long way to say “Thank you for a job well done.”

This past week, the County Governor’s Educator of the Year Awards program took place at the Westin in Mt. Laurel. Many of our campus staff honorees were present to receive their award at the catered breakfast. This was the first time in three years since the pandemic that this event returned to in-person. Congratulations to all awardees.

As we look to the end of the school year, please find a schedule of the Graduations for BCSSSD and BCIT:

·      BCSSSD 8^th Grade Graduation Ceremony: Thursday, June 8, 2023 at 10:30 am Burlington County Amphitheater

·      BCSSSD Daycare Ceremony: Monday, June 12, 2023 at 10:00 am BCSSSD Media Center

·      BCSSSD Preschool Ceremony: Tuesday, June 13, 2023 at 10:00 am BCSSSD Media Center

·      BCSSSD Westampton and Lumberton Graduation: Thursday, June 15, 2023 at 10:00 am at BCIT Westampton campus.

·      BCAS Graduation Ceremony will be held on Thursday, June 15, 2023 at 4:00 pm at BCIT Westampton.  

·      BCIT Westampton Graduation: Tuesday, June 20, 2023 at 5:00 pm

·      BCIT Medford Graduation: Tuesday, June 20, 2023 at 7:00 pm

In addition to the report by our student representative Favour Oyelade, please find a few additional highlighted items for the past month.

Dr. Nagy thanked once again BCIT West Principal Joe Venuto and the culinary instructors and students for doing a phenomenal job to provide breakfast for the awardees recognized by the NJDOE. This was a great experience and the food and service were exceptional.

We are looking forward to the building expansions of both BCIT campuses which we anticipate will begin in the fall. This represents an exciting opportunity for BCIT and expansion of programming.

This week, Dr. Nagy has the opportunity to visit the welding, HVAC, Electrical Adult Ed classes this week on BCIT Medford campus and had an opportunity to speak with the students and will make some connections with employers to consider hiring those students who do not yet have a job waiting for them. The students presented their recent projects and talked about how BCIT’s programs have been a great turning point for them.  He encouraged them to share their resumes with him of those who do not yet have jobs.

Dr. Nagy congratulated the BCIT Theater Arts Department, many of whom were in attendance at the Montclair State University annual Theatre Night awards.  BCIT’s production of “The Outsiders” was nominated for four awards this year, winning Outstanding Achievement in Stage Combat.  Mr. Scott Cooney was honored with the prestigious JoAnne Fox award which is given each year to “a theatre teacher who is an inspiration to his/her students, whose passion for theatre is infectious, and who creates a community, a loving extended family in his/her school in the process of producing high-quality productions”.  BCIT was also nominated for:

Outstanding Achievement in Live or Original Music in a Play – Alauna Clinton

Outstanding Achievement by an Acting Ensemble of a Dramatic Play – The Cast of “The Outsiders”

The Ingenuity in Direction Award – Scott F. Cooney

As we prepare for the approach of the Memorial Day weekend and the last leg of the school year, I am reminded of the words written by author and journalist, Tamra Bolton, "This is the day we pay homage to all those who didn’t come home.  This is not Veterans Day, it’s not a celebration, it is a day of solemn contemplation over the cost of freedom". 

I would like to take a moment of our time to reflect on Memorial Day, formerly Decoration Day, which honors the men and women who have died while serving in the military. We thank those on our staff who served or who are serving in the armed forces in the reserve and we remember all those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedoms. 

When looking back to the start of the school year, we have much to be grateful for and for how much we have accomplished and grown throughout the year.  On behalf of the Board and Administration, I thank our parents, guardians and students for their dedication, support and confidence in us to bring our very best each and every day to lead, guide, nurture and inspire.

As we anticipate the end of the school year, I leave you with a 30 Day Gratitude Challenge to complete one phrase each day.  If you have time during the summer, I recommend Shawn Achor’s book, “The Orange Frog”, because an attitude of gratitude creates blessings.