ESX-C-000018-21 03/05/2021 07:12:44 PM Pg 1 of 10 Trans ID: CHC202143895

Isabel Machado, Esq.

MACHADO LAW GROUP, LLC
1 Cleveland Place
Springfield, New Jersey 07081
(973) 232-5291
(973) 232-6261
Attorneys for Plaintiff,
Montclair Board of Education
imachado@machadolawgroup.com

------------------------------------------------------X
:
MONTCLAIR BOARD OF : SUPERIOR COURT OF NEW JERSEY
EDUCATION, : CHANCERY DIVISION
: ESSEX COUNTY
Plaintiff, :
: DOCKET NO: ESX-C-000018-21
vs. :
: Civil Action
MONTCLAIR EDUCATION :
ASSOCIATION, : AFFIDAVIT OF JONATHAN C. PONDS
:
Defendant. :

------------------------------------------------------X

I, Dr. Jonathan C. Ponds, of full age, being duly sworn upon my oath according to law,

depose and say:

1. I am the Superintendent of Schools for Montclair Board of Education (“Board” or

“Plaintiff”).

2. I submit this Affidavit in support of the Board’s Reply to Defendant’s Opposition to

Plaintiff’s Order to Show Cause.

3. As Superintendent of Schools, I have a responsibility to all children of the District.

Pursuant to the supplementary guidance issued by the State of New Jersey on July 24,
 ESX-C-000018-21 03/05/2021 07:12:44 PM Pg 2 of 10 Trans ID: CHC202143895

2020, all students are eligible for fulltime remote learning, if their parents opt for virtual

learning. See Exhibit 1.

4. In Montclair, however, Parents have absolutely no option for in-person instruction, due to

the Montclair Education Association’s (“Association”) refusal to report to work in-person.

5. At this time, I intend to open all the elementary (K-5) schools, including Charles H.

Bullock, to in-person learning for both students and staff. The middle school and high

school will follow when deemed appropriate, because of the nature of the school schedule

(students changing classes) and to ensure that the short-term recommendations to those

buildings have occurred and have been reviewed accordingly.

6. I have personally walked all of the buildings, inspected the systems and I am comfortable

that the District’s allocation of $1,200,832.09 in remediation costs, in conjunction with

social distancing protocols and PPE, have made our elementary buildings safe for students

and staff.

7. As required, I have submitted the District’s plan for reopening to the New Jersey

Department of Education, and it has been approved.

8. The District submitted its reopening plan, as required, to the New Jersey Department of

Education, together with the completed “Checklist for Re-opening of School 2020-2021”

and affirmation of same. Please note that school districts were required to submit the

affirmation electronically to the New Jersey Department of Education, and there was not a

mechanism to print out same.

9. On or about September 16, 2020, the District’s Reopening Plan was approved by the

Executive County Superintendent’s Office. A true and accurate copy of Executive County

Superintendent Joseph Zarra’s September 16, 2020 approval email with the District’s
 ESX-C-000018-21 03/05/2021 07:12:44 PM Pg 3 of 10 Trans ID: CHC202143895

Reopening Checklist and the District’s August 13, 2020 Reopening Plan is attached hereto

as Exhibit 2.

10. The District developed a Remote Reopening Learning Plan dated August 2020. A true and

accurate copy of the District’s August 2020 Remote Reopening Learning Plan is attached

hereto as Exhibit 3.

11. The Board has approved Policy 1648, Restart and Recovery Plan. A true and accurate copy

of same is attached hereto as Exhibit 4.

12. The District has the following policies, procedures and/or protocols in place regarding the

reopening of schools for in-person instruction, which were provided to the Association on

or about February 10, 2021:

a. Closure Guidance. A true and accurate copy of same is attached hereto as Exhibit

5.

b. Mask Policy. A true and accurate copy of same is attached hereto as Exhibit 6.

c. Updated Re-entry guidance. A true and accurate copy of same is attached hereto as

Exhibit 7.

d. Contact Tracing and Notification. A true and accurate copy of same is attached

hereto as Exhibit 8.

e. Re-entry Health and Safety Contract. A true and accurate copy of same is attached

hereto as Exhibit 9.

f. Protocol for Supply Distribution. A true and accurate copy of same is attached

hereto as Exhibit 10.

g. PowerPoint presentations prepared by each school nurse. Please note there is only

one middle school presentation, because they are all the same except for the slide
 ESX-C-000018-21 03/05/2021 07:12:44 PM Pg 4 of 10 Trans ID: CHC202143895

with the nurse’s name. A true and accurate copy of same is attached hereto as

Exhibit 11.

h. Technology update. A true and accurate copy of same is attached hereto as Exhibit

12.

i. PowerPoint presentation on cleaning supplies used in the District. The content of

the information was provided through various training sessions with the custodians,

who are members of the MEA. A true and accurate copy of same is attached hereto

as Exhibit 13.

j. SDS sheets regarding the cleaning supplies that were previously provided to the

custodians. The SDS sheets are also posted in the custodial closets. The Buckeye

system was being used by the District prior to COVID-19. Therefore, the District

was already prepared for the pandemic with respect to the cleaning process, the

products, and procedures. A true and accurate copy of same is attached hereto as

Exhibit 14.

k. COVID-19 Guidance for Staff and Students (updated 1/27/2021). A true and

accurate copy of same is attached hereto as Exhibit 15.

l. Montclair Public Schools Return to School Plan. A true and accurate copy of same

is attached hereto as Exhibit 16.

13. The District continuously updates its staff, students, and community regarding any

significant developments surrounding the reopening of schools and COVID-19 through

updated communications, a copy of which are posted on the District’s website. A true and

accurate copy of the District’s webpage where this information can be found is attached

hereto as Exhibit 17.

 ESX-C-000018-21 03/05/2021 07:12:44 PM Pg 5 of 10 Trans ID: CHC202143895

14. The District has purchased the recommended EnviroKlenz portable HEPA/UV units,

temporary portable ventilation system, as recommended by EI Associates Architects &

Engineers, PA. (“EI Associates”). A true and accurate copy of the backup for ventilation

documentation regarding the recommended EnviroKlenz portable HEPA/UV units is

attached hereto as Exhibit 18.

15. Please also note that the EnviroKlenz unit recommended by EI Associates is also the unit

under the State cooperative purchasing program. A true and accurate copy of the February

16, 2021 email from Melinda Lopez advising of the State contract with enclosed

EnvironKlenz booklet is attached hereto as Exhibit 19.

16. The District has incurred over $1,200,832.09 in expenditures for various repairs,

equipment, supplies, and investigated work to remediate maintenance issues for the

opening of schools. A true and accurate copy of the District’s relevant purchase orders and

supporting documentation is attached hereto as Exhibit 20.

17. The Association was given the opportunity to walk through the buildings on January 12-

14, 2021.

18. During the Association’s walk throughs on January 12-14, 2021, only the HVAC systems

in Glenfield school were not turned on because of a wiring issue, which has since been

remedied. The HVAC systems in all other District buildings were turned on and

observable. Please note that the Glenfield school is a middle school that the District is not

currently opening.

19. PPE is available in all District buildings when the teachers and students return to the

buildings for in-person instruction.

 ESX-C-000018-21 03/05/2021 07:12:44 PM Pg 6 of 10 Trans ID: CHC202143895

20. Plexiglass dividers have been installed for the main office for the secretaries and for some

elementary classrooms as appropriate, as well as in small group instruction classrooms.

Please note that some plexiglass dividers are portable, for example, for the ABA

classrooms, self-contained classrooms, and testing rooms. Please further note that the

District’s reopening plan provides for social distancing of six (6) feet apart.

21. The District has hand sanitizer, and it is available for each room of the District’s buildings.

It will be distributed upon school’s reopening.

22. The Association’s request concerning the cubic footage in rooms where purifiers are placed

goes beyond the CDC requirements. The CDC encourages the consideration of portable

high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) fan/filtration systems to help enhance air cleaning.

Air purifiers have been placed in rooms where there is no natural or mechanical airflow.

23. Pursuant to The Road Back, page 25, school districts must include protocols for the

“[e]stablishment of an isolation space” for symptomatic students and staff. The Road Back

does not require a separate isolation room as stated by the Association. The District’s

separate isolation space is compliant with The Road Back guidance and is the same as other

school districts’ isolation space.

24. In response to the Association’s question as to whom will be taking temperatures and on

what rotating schedule, the answer is each principal has discretion to assign staff to that

position, which may include a nurse or a paraprofessional. It will be treated as a duty

period.

25. In response to the Association’s question about the protocols for custodians opening

windows, the answer is that the custodians will be coming in an hour before school starts

to open the windows.

 ESX-C-000018-21 03/05/2021 07:12:44 PM Pg 7 of 10 Trans ID: CHC202143895

26. In response to the Association’s request for update class rosters and classroom assignments,

the answer is the principals have the rosters but have not yet sent them out. They will be

sent to the teachers once a date for school reopening has been determined. The rosters

allow for the 6 feet social distancing in each classroom.

27. With regards to transportation, all transportation, including any paraprofessionals needed,

are contracted. The Association is not required to take student’s temperatures on school

busses.

28. Each District bathroom will have a sign that states the number of students limited inside

the bathroom at a time, and urinals are tapped off limits.

29. The District buildings’ Power Point presentations are different to the extent that the

buildings have different schematics.

30. After this lawsuit was filed, the Board’s Director of Personnel, Mr. Damen Cooper, sent

an email on February 2, 2021, advising teachers not to enter the District buildings until

after the mediation and lawsuit was resolved, because the District was concerned with the

Association staff members compromising the reopening plans.

31. On or about February 18, 2021, eight parents and/or sets of parents filed a Complaint

against the District and me, as Superintendent, in federal court seeking declaratory relief

and temporary injunction. The District parents claim their students are being deprived of

their right to an education due to the last twelve months of remote learning. A true and

accurate copy of the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey Complaint

Docket No. 2:21-cv-2922 is attached hereto as Exhibit 21.

 ESX-C-000018-21 03/05/2021 07:12:44 PM Pg 8 of 10 Trans ID: CHC202143895

32. In February 2021, the CDC issued additional guidance for when and how to safely reopen

schools involving the assessment of the level of community transmission. A true and

accurate copy of the CDC’s guidance is attached hereto as Exhibit 22.

33. On or about February 24, 2021, the District received from the Office of the Sheriff, Essex

County Office of Emergency Management, the Situational Awareness Report depicting

Montclair in the color “green” concerning the total number of cases per 1000 residents

from the last fourteen (14) days. A true and accurate copy of the Office of the Sheriff’s

Situational Awareness Report (SIT) #445-2/24/2021 is attached hereto as Exhibit 23.

34. As reported on Monday, March 1, 2021, by New Jersey Governor Philip Murphy, out of

New Jersey’s 811 public school districts, charter schools, renaissance schools, and schools

for student with disabilities, 110 have all in-person learning, 533 have hybrid instruction,

142 have all remote learning, and 27 have a mix of in-person, hybrid, and remote learning. 1

The number of all remote learning dropped by 48 school districts from three weeks ago

which is a decrease of approximately 25.3%. The number of all in-person learning rose by

15 school districts from three weeks ago which is an increase of approximately 15.8%. The

number of hybrid instruction rose by 42 from three weeks ago which is an increase of

approximately 8.6%. A true and accurate copy of the transcript of Governor Murphy’s

March 1, 2021 Coronavirus Briefing Media is attached hereto as Exhibit 24.

35. The total enrollment of students in the District during the 2019-2020 school year was 6597.

During the 2020-2021 school year, 459 students disenrolled from the Montclair Public

School District, which is approximately 7% of District students. Out of the 459 District

1
See also Transcript of Governor Murphy’s March 1, 2021 Coronavirus Briefing Media at
https://www.nj.gov/governor/news/news/562021/20210301d.shtml
 ESX-C-000018-21 03/05/2021 07:12:44 PM Pg 9 of 10 Trans ID: CHC202143895

student that disenrolled, 246 are elementary students. Thus, out of the total number of

students that disenrolled, approximately 53.6% of those students are elementary students.

A true and accurate copy of the District’s enrollment reports for 2019-2020 and 2020-2021

school years is attached hereto as Exhibit 25.

36. On behalf of the Montclair Public Schools, I have made every effort to remediate systems

where we could for the opening of the school buildings, to follow every statutory and

regulatory requirement required for the reopening of the schools. I have followed the

advice and recommendations of the CDC. I have negotiated in good faith with the

Association to no avail. I truly do not believe I have left any stone unturned.

37. I plead with this Court for relief. This cannot be permitted to continue. The Association

should not be permitted to thwart the efforts of the District, who has tried so hard to reopen

its doors to in-person learning especially for the school children. Our children, our families

and our community are hurting. Our children deserve better.

ESX-C-000018-21 03/05/2021 07:12:44 PM Pg 10 of 10 Trans ID: CHC202143895