Moorestown Schools Showed Great Progress in 2014

This time last year, the Moorestown School District was searching for an interim superintendent, was facing a particularly challenging budget cycle, and was considering large curriculum and technology improvements.

A year later we now have a permanent superintendent, a building excellence referendum was passed, a substantial investment in technology was made, and the 2015-2016 budget is being worked on.

Even though December is a short academic month due to the holidays, it was no exception to the active and productive theme present in 2014.

At the Dec. 9 meeting, the Board of Education said farewell to three school board members.

Leigh Powell has served on the Board for three and a half years, and is the current chair of the Technology and Revenue Generation Committees.

Christina Zajac has served on the Board for 10 years, and is a past committee chair and Vice President.

Don Mishler has served on the Board for 25 years, and has been President since 2005.

Serving as a board member is done without compensation, and takes a lot of time and energy, so I would also like to thank them for their service.

The Board received the 2013-2014 financial audit for the fiscal year ending on June 30, 2014. The Board accepted the audit, and approved a Corrective Action Plan based on one recommendation made by the audit firm regarding the food service program fund.

The audit firm indicated no material findings, and they indicated that the district’s financial statements are “neutral, consistent, and clear.” The findings of the audit can be found at www.mtps.com.

Progress is being made in terms of the Building Excellence Projects. After receiving many proposals and interviewing candidates, the Board approved New Road Construction Management for construction management services and Edwards Engineering Group for site engineer services. Timelines for projects and design plans are currently being reviewed and finalized.

The district received exciting news that it will not need to undergo the full Quality Single Accountability Continuum (QSAC) process this year, which is the NJ Department of Education’s monitoring and evaluation process for public schools.

High performing districts that satisfied 80-100 percent of the QSAC review standards will see the full QSAC cycle extended to six years instead of the previous three years.

This will help ease the compliance burden on the school district and allows the administration to focus its time elsewhere.

Looking ahead to January, be sure to mark your calendars for the MoorArt’s fundraiser, featuring an evening of performing and fine arts on Jan. 24 at the Community House. Visit www.MoorArts.org for more information.

Also, the Board will hold its reorganization meeting on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 7 p.m. in the William Allen Middle School media center. At this meeting, three new board members will be sworn in, and a new president and vice-president will be elected by the Board.

The next regular monthly Board of Education meeting will take place on Tuesday, Jan. 20, 7:30 p.m. in the William Allen Middle School media center.

In the meantime, do not hesitate to reach out to the Board as a whole, or myself if you need anything.

I look forward to seeing you in the New Year, and to the continued academic excellence that it will bring.

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The views and content in this column do not necessarily represent those of the Moorestown Board of Education as a whole or any other individual member.

About this column: In this column, Moorestown Board of Education Member Brandon Pugh provides monthly updates on what’s going on in the school district and on the BOE.