Eva Applegate Takes Over As School Board President

Joseph Tonzola will continue in Veep spot

The Wall Township Board of Education on Thursday voted in a longtime member to the panel’s top spot. Eva Applegate at the board’s organization meeting was tapped by the 9-member panel to become this year’s president.  Former board President John Tavis nominated Applegate for the presidency. There were no other nominations. The vote to install Applegate was 8-1. Board member Donald Herbert cast the lone vote against. Joseph Tonzola, in his second year on the board, will continue on as the board’s vice president. Tonzola’s nomination -- made by board member Robin Cervantes -- also was unchallenged. The vote was 8-0, with Tonzola abstaining. New board members Robin Zawodniak and Kenneth J. Dioguardi and Mary Catherine McCarthy, as well as …

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School Board Mulling Putting Audio Recordings Online

Board may make audio recordings available on district website

The Board of Education is mulling whether to put audio recordings of its regular meetings online, requiring the reversal of a policy put in place by the board in December giving the board discretion on whether to record meetings at all. Newly elected board member Joseph Tonzola reported to the board at Wednesday’s meeting that the policy committee, which he heads, is exploring the idea of recording regular meetings and making those recordings available through the district’s web site. Tonzola said schools Business Administrator Brian Smyth will contact other school systems in the county that have adopted this practice to gather feedback and best practices. But, Tonzola said, the current policy regarding meeting recordings would have to be …

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Letters to the Editor

Custodians More Than Just Floor Sweepers

Intangible benefits have no price tag

Editor, Wall Patch: My career as a custodian with the Wall Board of Education began eight years ago at a pivotal time in my life. I was entering a new chapter in my life, a new home, a new career and a new start. The job of a school custodian is often looked down upon as having little status in our society, but after undertaking this position I quickly learned the importance of my new vocation. Our duties go far beyond sweeping the floor and taking out the trash. We provide a clean and safe environment for the children and the staff, yes. We are also the helping hand that ties a child’s shoe so they don’t miss the bus at dismissal. We are the ones who set up for the school fair, providing the parents with whatever they request so that the …

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