School District of the Chathams Packet Summary — 2026-07-13
Board Meeting — Regular Business Meeting, 7:30 PM
The School District of the Chathams Board of Education is scheduled to consider a broad July agenda covering preparations for the 2026/2027 school year, staffing, student programs, finances, a proposed facilities bond referendum, grants, tuition, policy updates, and school calendars. The packet also includes an addendum expanding the personnel and finance/facilities agenda.
Key Items on the Agenda
Proposed Facilities Bond Referendum Moves Into Planning
The board is scheduled to consider a resolution advancing planning for a proposed bond referendum involving facilities and instructional renovations. The proposal would retain Parette Somjen Architects for architectural services and authorize preparation and submission of schematic plans, educational specifications, a project application, cost estimates, and any necessary Long Range Facilities Plan amendment to the New Jersey Department of Education.
The district intends to seek state Debt Service Aid for the project. The resolution would also authorize district officials, the architect, financial advisor, and bond counsel to take steps necessary to preserve the option of presenting the project to voters in a future school district election.
The superintendent's administrative report also lists the referendum as a scheduled topic, while the business administrator's report includes construction and storm updates.
2026/2027 and 2027/2028 School Calendars
School calendars for both 2026/2027 and 2027/2028 are listed under board business.
The packet includes a 2026/2027 calendar and a 2027/2028 "Option #1." The supporting calendar documents identify both as approved on July 13, 2026; because the agenda is a pre-meeting document, the board's actual action at this meeting should be confirmed from subsequent meeting records.
For 2026/2027, the calendar provides for:
- Staff professional development on August 25–27, 2026.
- The first day of school for students on August 31.
- 184 student days and 188 staff days, including four emergency-use days.
- A last day of school and Chatham High School graduation on June 18, 2027.
- Pending unused-snow-day closings on May 28 and June 1, 2027.
The 2027/2028 Option #1 calendar provides for 183 student days and 187 staff days, including three emergency-use days, with the first student day scheduled for August 30, 2027.
First Reading of Districtwide Policy and Regulation Update
The board is scheduled to consider the first reading of Strauss Esmay policies and regulations spanning the district's full policy framework:
- Series 0000 — Bylaws
- Series 1000 — Administration
- Series 2000 — Program
- Series 3000 — Teaching Staff Members
- Series 4000 — Support Staff Members
- Series 5000 — Students
- Series 6000 — Finances
- Series 7000 — Property
- Series 8000 — Operations
- Series 9000 — Community
This is identified specifically as a first reading, rather than final adoption.
Major Financial Items
$12.67 Million in Bills and Payroll Listed
The finance/facilities agenda includes proposed approval of bills and payroll totaling $12,674,614.81. The packet lists:
- Bills List — June 17, 2026: $158,398.04
- Bills List — June 29, 2026: $682,001.41
- Bills List — June 30, 2026: $1,357,543.94
- Bills List identified in the packet as July 15, 2025: $4,868,013.50
- June 15 payroll, including coaches and stipends: $3,194,301.37
- June 30 payroll: $2,414,356.55
The agenda also includes the May 2026 county transfer report, Board Secretary report, Board Treasurer report, and finance certification.
School Lunch Prices Proposed for 2026/2027
The board is scheduled to consider updated standard lunch prices for the coming school year:
- High school: $5.35, up from $5.25.
- Middle school: $5.35, up from $5.25.
- Elementary schools: $4.85, up from $4.75.
- Reduced-price lunch: $0.40, unchanged.
- Adult lunch: $5.35, compared with $6.00 in 2025/2026.
A la carte items would remain subject to individual school price lists.
Federal Education and Special Education Grants
The agenda proposes submission of the district's 2026/2027 Elementary and Secondary Education Act grant application. Listed allocations are:
- Title II-A: $36,213, including $2,589 in non-public funds, leaving $33,624 for district spending.
- Title III: $9,803, which the district plans to participate in through a consortium with Springfield Public School District.
- Title III Immigrant: $10,297, including $915 in non-public funds, leaving $9,382 for district spending.
The board is also scheduled to consider submission of an IDEA grant application totaling $883,126: $856,016 in IDEA Basic funding and $27,110 in IDEA Preschool funding. Of the IDEA Basic allocation, $42,996 is designated as non-public funds, leaving a district spending amount of $813,020.
Additional State Nonpublic Aid in the Addendum
The addendum proposes acceptance of four 2026/2027 New Jersey Department of Education nonpublic-school aid awards:
- Security Aid: $57,071
- Nursing Aid: $38,293
- Textbook Aid: $14,612
- Technology Aid: $10,310
Together, the four awards total $120,286.
The board is scheduled to consider several donations, including:
- $73,928 from the Chatham Education Foundation for K–2 literacy, added through the meeting addendum.
- $20,000 from the Lafayette Avenue School PTO toward new playground equipment and installation.
- $13,922 from the Milton Avenue School PTO toward outdoor basketball hoops and equipment and new soccer nets.
- $12,096.70 from the Performing Arts Booster toward string instruments.
- $5,500 from the Chatham Booster Club for a HUDL subscription, added through the addendum.
- $750 from the Chatham Jaycees for the Chatham High School robotics program.
- Two Charities Aid Foundation of America donations of $250 and $241.72 for use at the CHS principal's discretion.
Staffing and Summer Programs
Superintendent Hiring Authority for July and August
The board is scheduled to consider authorizing the superintendent to hire essential personnel during July and August to fill 2026/2027 vacancies. Under the proposed resolution, those administrative items and appointments would then be formally presented for approval at the next regular board meeting.
The personnel agenda also includes resignations, new and amended contracts, paraprofessional appointments, extra-duty stipends, leave-replacement assignments, coaching positions, unpaid absences, substitute appointments, and summer curriculum work.
Among the proposed administrative appointments is a Supervisor of Mathematics, K–12, at a base salary of $147,521 plus a $1,000 doctoral stipend, with a September 14, 2026-or-sooner effective date and a prorated total listed at $122,961.57 for the term.
Substitute Compensation Rates
The board is scheduled to establish 2026/2027 compensation rates that include:
- Short-term substitute teachers: $120 full day / $60 half day
- Long-term substitute teachers: $328.23 per day after 10 or more consecutive days in one position
- Substitute school nurses: $200 full day / $100 half day
- Long-term substitute school nurses: $328.23 per day
- Secretarial/clerical substitutes: $20 per hour
- Paraprofessional substitutes: $17 per hour
- Bedside instruction: $60 per hour
- Athletic site managers: $100 per event
- Athletic crowd monitoring: $75 per event
- Athletic clock operators: $60 per event
The agenda separately proposes reappointment of returning district substitutes for July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027.
ESY Program Extension After Weather Cancellations
An addendum item proposes extending the Summer 2026 Extended School Year program by two additional days in July, bringing the program to 23 staff days. The packet attributes the change to weather-related cancellations on July 6 and July 7 and provides that participating staff would be compensated based on submitted and approved timesheets.
The regular agenda also includes proposed summer telehealth counseling and ASPIRE counseling at $60 per hour, along with additional Extended School Year staffing.
Student Programs and Tuition
Out-of-District Special Education Placements
The board is scheduled to consider tuition and transportation costs for 2026/2027 Extended School Year and regular-year out-of-district special education placements. The packet lists placements at numerous specialized programs, with some individual tuition, aide, and program totals exceeding $150,000.
The curriculum agenda separately proposes approval of district special education program type codes for MAS, SBS, WAS, LAF, CMS, and CHS in accordance with New Jersey Department of Education requirements.
Incoming Tuition Students
The board is scheduled to set annual tuition for several incoming students of district employees, with listed rates ranging from $1,000 to $8,400 depending on the student and school.
Three incoming out-of-district students at Chatham High School are each listed at a proposed annual tuition rate of $24,000 for 2026/2027.
Field Trips and PTO Enrichment
The curriculum agenda also includes proposed approval of:
- 2026/2027 district field trips, subject to principal or designee approval.
- PTO-sponsored after-school enrichment classes at district elementary schools.
- Harassment, Intimidation and Bullying investigative findings and affirmation of determinations previously reported to the board.
- Review of the district suspension report.
What to Watch at the Meeting
- Referendum planning: The facilities resolution would move a potential bond referendum into formal architectural, state-review, and debt-service-aid planning while preserving the option of placing the project before voters.
- Two years of school calendars: The board business agenda includes both the 2026/2027 calendar and a 2027/2028 option, making school schedules and emergency-day planning a notable operational item.
- Districtwide policy overhaul: The proposed Strauss Esmay first reading spans every major policy series, from governance and administration through students, finances, property, operations, and community relations.
- School-year readiness: Staffing, substitute rates, hiring authority, lunch prices, tuition arrangements, special education programs, field trips, grants, and summer-program adjustments collectively prepare the district for 2026/2027.
- Public participation: The agenda provides public-comment opportunities before the action items and again near the end of the public meeting.
Civic Translator summarized publicly available meeting materials provided by the School District of the Chathams.
