HOWELL – The Freehold Regional High School District Board of Education presented awards to one paraprofessional worker from each of the high schools for outstanding service.
The recipients were Dawn Fox from Colts Neck High School, Michael Ingui from Freehold High School, Anne-Marie Lloyd from Freehold Township High School, Jonathan Harrison from Manalapan High School, Karen Blaser from Marlboro High School, and Jennifer LaSalle from Howell High School.
“Miss LaSalle has been an invaluable member of the Howell High School community for three years. She has a natural gift for working in the autistic program. Miss LaSalle knows how to reach the students and each situation to quickly assess what needs to be done. She has a calm yet firm demeanor which helps the students become their very best self. Not only is she wonderful with each student, but she is also a wonderful colleague. She’s kind, considerate, and supportive. Miss LaSalle is reliable, can always be counted on no matter what the situation. We are grateful at Howell High School every single day to work with her. Congratulations,” Superintendent Dr. Nicole Hazel said in LaSalle’s presentation speech.
A paraprofessional in a school is described as a school aide who supports teachers by providing academic, behavioral, and emotional support to students, often those with special needs or other challenges. These staffers work under the supervision of a certified teacher, assist with classroom duties, help develop and implement educational plans (IEPs), and work with students one-on-one or in small groups.
According to the Freehold Regional High School District’s Website, these paraprofessionals collaborate daily with the Child Study Team and teachers to help every student reach their full potential in diverse settings, including classrooms, extracurricular activities, the After-School Recreational Program, and the Extended School Year (ESY) program. The resources and council the paraprofessionals provide are vital in the educational development of many of the district’s students, as they are one of the few school based resources that can reach beyond the classroom.
The awards were meant to give a special form of recognition to a few paraprofessionals from across the district and honor them for their exceptional contributions to their students.
Covid Policy Abolished
In the second half of the meeting, the Board of Education announced that it would be revising policy 10173, which outlines the duties of the public school accountant. A lot of what was reworked had to do with the way certain policies were worded, rather than their effect or the actual rule they were meant to enforce. However, there is one change that perhaps stands above the rest that were mentioned.
According to Board Member Diana Cappiello, policy 1648.15, which mandates COVID-19 record keeping for healthcare settings and school buildings, has been abolished.
The policy was implemented during the pandemic to ensure schools maintained a log of positive cases among employees and staff. Despite each school board having its own version of the policy, this type of policy has been largely abolished statewide by the individual school districts. This rule was abolished because of the changing healthcare needs for it. As the pandemic gets put further and further in the review mirror, school boards are taking steps to reflect that.
