Here's The Latest With Closing Schools In Middletown

MIDDLETOWN, NJ — Here is what transpired at the Tuesday night, April 21, Middletown school board meeting (watch it here).

Superintendent Jessica Alfone, Board vice president Frank Capone and Jacqueline Tobacco were not present at the meeting.

Subscribe

What's the latest with closing schools? The school board will be asked to finalize the school closures at next Tuesday night's meeting, April 28. That's when the board will be asked to adopt next year's budget (for the 2026-'27 school year).

If a majority of the board adopts the budget next week, Monmouth County will sign off on it and the budget (including closing schools) will be submitted to the NJ Department of Education.

NJ Education Commissioner Lily Laux could issue an emergency halt to the school closings — in response to this legal appeal filed by seven parents — however, so far the state has given no indication it will intervene.

About three quarters of the way through Tuesday night's meeting, Board member Erin Torres asked the board to reconsider closing schools. Torres tried to get the board to have a public conversation about closing the schools.

"We could take the year and get all of these issues worked out," she said. "I am really concerned that the long-term effect of this rash decision is going to put such a detriment in this town, this school system and take so long to recover (from) ... I have not yet heard from anyone about why this is so immediate and happening now. We have the time. We have a way to go forward with a new leader, a new superintendent and really do this the right way."

She's referring to the fact that superintendent Alfone will quit the district in June.

"That is what the board decided," school board president Chris Aveta responded to Torres. "Five people voted in favor of it."

The rest of last night's meeting was spent by the board discussing plans to prepare for the closing of Leonardo and Navesink elementaries, and turning Bayshore Middle School into an elementary.

Board member Joan Minnuies said the facilities committee wants to see how busing will be addressed for the new school patterns next year. Torres said she wants to see how the timing for school lunch will be worked out.

Torres and Minnuies again said the district is not prepared for such a massive upheaval. Closing schools and shuffling students around will affect thousands of Middletown kids and parents, plus staff.

"That's why we needed a plan," added Minnuies, to claps from the audience. "My wish would be that we put this whole plan off until next year, until we have a real plan."

Funding for bathrooms inside kindergarten classrooms at Bayshore needs to be budgeted for, board says

One of the biggest concerns parents have is that Bayshore does not have appropriate bathrooms for kindergartners. Bathrooms should be inside the classroom for the littlest students, many parents say.

A school board committee, made up of Minnuies, Erin Torres, Mark Soporowski and Caterina Skalaski, toured Bayshore last week. Minnuies said the committee wants to see bathrooms built attached to kindergarten classrooms.

Minnuies asked that funding for this be included in next year's budget before next week's vote.

Minnnuies said the committee also wants to see new playground equipment added at Bayshore. Playground improvements also need to be made to New Monmouth Elementary, said Torres and Minnuies.

The High School North baseball field also needs to be improved, said Minnuies.

"It absolutely needs to be fixed," she said.

Soporowski wants town to split the cost of armed officers in schools

Soporowski said he wants to have the town split the cost of having armed, Class-3 officers in schools. Currently, next year's budget as it stands has the district paying the entire cost.

There was supposed to be a shared-services meeting last week to talk about this, but Soporowski said that meeting was abruptly canceled and he does not know why. Aveta, who supports school closings, sits on the shared-services committee and he was one of the people who couldn't attend last week's meeting.

School district business administrator Amy Gallagher said Middletown Twp. agreed to meet next Wednesday, April 29 to discuss how to pay for the Class-3s, which Soporowski said was conveniently scheduled for after next Tuesday night's meeting, when the budget will likely have already been adopted.

"I just think that was a really important thing that should have been finalized before this budget," said Soporowski.

Soporowski also wants to reduce administrative positions in the district.

Next Tuesday's meeting will be at 7:00 p.m. April 28 in the gym at Thompson Middle School. It will also be livestreamed.

The Middletown Patch reporter is carly.baldwin@patch.com