The Sun sat down with Superintendent Stephen Cappello to see what’s slated for the new year
The year 2017 has come and gone, and for Cinnaminson Public Schools, the new year marks several significant changes in the district.
The Cinnaminson Board of Education will swear in two new members at the Jan. 4 reorganization meeting. Challengers Kathleen Quinn and Ed Kenney, who defeated incumbent Dennis Hassis in November, will assume their respective three-year terms. Board member Jackie Plunkett retired from the board on Dec. 19 after nearly two decades of service.
The BOE also announced a new paperless format for all meetings, making all agendas electronic only going forward. The same electronic workflow was recently applied to recruiting and onboarding processes for staff across the district, making all applications for vacancies available online starting in January. Superintendent Stephen Cappello said the move will make the board more efficient and streamline board business.
Cappello and the board will move forward in seeking and vetting applicants for a new director of curriculum instruction, who will work directly under the superintendent. Joe Miller is the interim director and will step down on June 30.
Cinnaminson High School welcomes a new administrator in Jay Meile, who taught social studies and coached soccer and basketball at CHS for more than a decade. Meile replaces Jim Weber, who retired in December, as the athletic director and an assistant principal.
“The sense of community here in Cinnaminson is unique, especially for me, coming from a larger town like Medford. There are so many advantages to working in a smaller community,” Meile told The Sun previously.
In an effort to reduce the stress of standardized testing on students and guardians, the district hopes to consolidate the PARCC with a new, shorter schedule. The eighth-grade state science test will also be administered electronically this spring.
During the fall, the district rolled out a launch program for its Special Olympics team after receiving a grant. Students on the team will participate in a number of activities in the 2018 seasons, which Cappello hopes will see continued success for the Special Education program.
Local government will swear in new committee members, Ernest McGilll and Ryan Horner, at the Jan. 2 reorganization meeting.
