The New Providence Board of Education votes Monday, Aug. 31, on more than $3.3 million in bills and a three-year school security officer deal. Key supporting documents, including the security agreement and the detailed bills list, are not included in the online agenda packet.
Nj21st reported Sunday, Aug. 30, that the agenda describes the School Law Enforcement Officer shared services agreement as covering one year. The actual agreement extends three years through June 2029. No cost appears in the agenda.
Borough records obtained by Nj21st through a public records request show the deal pays each of three officers $38 per hour for an estimated 183 days and eight hours per day. That works out to $55,632 per officer annually. Including estimated FICA, the Borough's worksheet projected a combined annual cost of $179,664, with the BOE's share at $89,832.
The New Providence Borough Council also acted on the agreement, according to Patch, which reported Aug. 29 that the Borough estimates about $180,000 in annual costs with roughly half reimbursed by the BOE.
$188,000 in teaching-load payments
A single personnel item on the agenda contains 51 appointment lines. Twenty-seven are payments totaling about $188,000 to New Providence High School and middle school staff for taking on additional teaching loads, according to Nj21st's review.
Most involve teachers assigned to teach 16, 17 or 18 periods during a four-day rotation. One payment provides $8,000 to a high school department head for teaching four classes instead of three. The agenda offers no department-by-department explanation for why the extra assignments are needed.
The board is also being asked to approve a part-time district communications coordinator at $55 per hour, typically 20 hours per week. The position carries no end date or spending cap. Its effective start date is Thursday, Aug. 27, four days before the board votes. The language permits work beyond 20 hours per week if approved by Superintendent Lauren Zirpoli.
Bills and bid awards
The agenda lists $3,296,420.26 in August bills for approval. The detailed bills list is not available in the public packet.
Separately, the board will vote on bid awards through Educational Data Service, Inc. The agenda lists 17 individual category amounts but no combined total. Nj21st calculated those amounts at $110,482.04.
Student data privacy
The meeting includes a presentation on student data privacy and cloud services, followed by a vote to approve the district's list of software and data privacy agreements for the 2026-27 school year. That list is described as being "in the hands of Board members" and is not posted in the online packet.
The board will also vote on revised Policy 5516 and Regulation 5516 on student use of internet-enabled devices. The policy text is not included in the public packet.
Other agenda items
The board is scheduled to approve submission of a $525,277 IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) grant application and accept $54,962 in ESSA funding, totaling $580,239 in federal grants.
Fifteen curriculum guides are up for approval, including three new curricula: Advanced Weight Training, Universal Literacy Screening, and Cursive Reading and Writing. An AP Biology textbook is also on the agenda with no purchase price listed.
The board will vote on 32 New Providence High School course listings projected to have fewer than 10 students each. Not all represent standalone classrooms; several are combined with other levels and include special education, replacement courses and programs for multilingual learners.
Public comment is scheduled after all finance, education, personnel and policy votes have been taken.
