I support our BOE 100% and feel the REA and their Unions are out of touch with reality, meaning the real world. We must stop kicking the can and giving in to unsustainable contracts. My family of 6 pays $20,000 to $30,000 per year for health care, each of us has a $3,000 deductible, and we get to pay $45 co-pays, up from $30 last year. No raises for the last 3 years, so no additional money to go toward paying these Obamacare increases. Healthcare on a whole is flawed now beyond comprehension. We all must suffer including the teachers, police, and all civil servants suckling off the teat of their Unions.To all teachers, teach us how you can pay your fair share and not push it off to the taxpayers. Same for all civil servants nationwide. Paid unused sick time and vacation needs to go away for all. What happened to getting approval to possible carrying over 5 days like everyone else gets? Stop the sweetheart deals for retiring police chiefs, toll takers, etc. Enough is enough. I support our BOE for their understanding and urge them not to settle. Why is this country siding with a loud mouth Trump? Because we do need real change. Not Obama change which is just change left in your pocket.
Another Friday marked by blitz of ‘robo-call’ bomb threats at North Jersey schools
BY STEFANIE DAZIO AND ABBOTT KOLOFF
STAFF WRITERS |
THE RECORD
In what has become a frustrating routine for law enforcement and school officials, thousands of students across North Jersey had their school day disrupted Friday when a series of bomb threats were phoned into at least 15 North Jersey schools, including 10 in Bergen County.
This was the second consecutive Friday that multiple schools were targeted by calls characterized by a robotic-sounding voice, and at least the third time since January, according to authorities. All of the schools were determined to be safe on Friday, as they were in the other incidents, after being inspected by law enforcement.
The Bergen County Sheriff’s Office bomb squad unit received 10 calls for help from local police over a period of about 30 minutes on Friday, starting at 11 a.m., authorities said. Officials confirmed threats across the region, in Ramsey, Mahwah, Cliffside Park, Waldwick, Teaneck, Fort Lee, Englewood, Hackensack, Oradell, Paramus, Paterson, Haledon, Little Falls, Nutley and Kearny. Most of the calls came in about 11 a.m. By 1:30 p.m., officials said, there was no longer a threat.
“Students who are absent due to illness, family business, etc. will have make up tests scheduled for them.
Please note that students who come to school during their grade’s scheduled testing time should be prepared to take the test. Our instructional program for the mornings listed above is PARCC testing. No alternative learning experience will be provided during testing sessions. If your child is going to be absent on a testing day for any reason, please notify the High School Principal’s Secretary. You are required to send a note to school letting the principal know why your child is absent.”
This letter does seem to contradict Procedure 2622 which was adopted by our school board in February 2015. Procedure 2622 states that on testing date “a student whose parent has provided prior written notice informing the Principal their child will not be participating in a Statewide assessment will be required to report to the testing location on the date of the assessment or to the area in the building as determined by the Principal, such as study hall, media center, or other location in the school where the student can be supervised by a school district staff member.”
The BOE website states that 2622 is still valid. Many suggest that because Ridgewood High School ( RHS ) had so many opt-outs, the schools didn’t have anywhere to put the students.
The Board of Education is committed to communicating accurate information related to contract negotiations with the Ridgewood Education Association (REA). Laura Grasso’s letter to the editor last Friday was significantly misleading. Here are the facts.
* The Board has modified its contract proposals several times in the last year and on Jan. 20 and again on Feb. 29 we offered higher salaries, withdrew proposals related to additional time, and modified our healthcare proposal.
* The REA’s latest proposal would reduce their healthcare contributions by over $2.1 million over a new 3-year contract. Accepting such a proposal would require the Board to make significant cuts in other areas of the budget.
* Teachers currently contribute 25.7 percent of the cost of their healthcare premiums and the district pays 74.3 percent. The Board has offered to adjust the individual percentage contribution rates as long as the net contributions continue to equal 25.7 percent of the healthcare premiums.
* In 2012 the Board reduced healthcare costs by changing to the state health insurance plans. The Board shared these savings with the REA by increasing their salary 2.75 percent each year for the last three years.
* The change in the health insurance plan recently proposed by the Board for the new contract compares favorably with plans offered in the private sector with copays of $15 for primary and specialist doctor visits.
* The REA contends that the Board has $3.5 million to fund the contract settlement. This is untrue. The $3.5 million is a number calculated by the REA and the NJEA for their fact-finding submission. We believe that it fails to account for both the revenue and the expense sides in specific budget areas.
* Our teachers are among the highest paid in Bergen County. The Board recognizes the importance of competitive salaries to attract and retain talented and highly qualified teachers.
* NJ law, Chapter 44, limits the Board to annual property tax increases of no more than 2 percent. While the law allows for limited waivers to provide small tax increases above 2 percent, the Board is reluctant to further burden Ridgewood taxpayers.
* The fact that four of the Board members do not have children in our schools does not lessen our commitment to our students and staff. Our children graduated from Ridgewood High School. We are acutely aware of the quality of our schools and grateful for the education they received.
To continue our “tradition of excellence” our district must be financially sound. We cannot commit to salaries and benefit costs that exceed what the district can afford. To clearly understand the Board’s position, the public is invited to review our fact-finding memorandum posted to the district’s website at ridgewood.k12.nj.us.
The Board will continue to conduct our negotiations with genuine respect for our staff. We want to settle the contract with the REA and move forward in a positive manner.
Sheila Brogan
Vince Loncto
Jim Morgan
Christina Krauss
Jennie Smith Wilson
Ridgewood Board of Education
BOE-REA Negotiations
Click here to read a Letter to the Editor of The Ridgewood News, which appeared in the paper on February 12, 2016.
Click here to read the Ridgewood Board of Education’s Fact-Finding Presentation with the The Ridgewood Education Association.
Click here to view the backup for the Ridgewood Board of Education’s Fact-Finding Presentation with The Ridgewood Education Association.
BOE Meets on March 7 at 7:30 p.m.
The Ridgewood Board of Education will hold a Regular Public Meeting on Monday, March 7, 2016 at 7:30 p.m.
The public is invited to attend the meeting at the Ed Center, 49 Cottage Place, Floor 3. The meeting may also be viewed on FiOS channel 33, Optimum channel 77 or from computers via the “Live BOE Meeting” tab on the district website.FiOS channel 33, Optimum channel 77 or from computers via the “Live BOE Meeting” tab on the district website.
BOE MEETING REGULATIONS
At all regular meetings, two opportunities are provided for citizens to make comments. The public comment periods will be scheduled after presentations and approximately 9:00 p.m. or just prior to the end of the meeting, whichever occurs first.
The first opportunity may be limited by the presiding officer to conclude at about 8:00 p.m. in order for the Board to continue with its scheduled agenda. The second opportunity will occur at about 9:00 p.m. at the discretion of the presiding officer taking into consideration a break point in the agenda.
At every opportunity for public comment, citizens are invited to comment on subjects on the agenda or general topics. At the discretion of the presiding officer, public comments may be permitted at other times. Persons wishing to speak must, upon being recognized, rise, sign in, and state their names and addresses.
Each speaker shall be limited to four minutes. The Board Recorder will note the time. A speaker who has not finished in the allotted time will be directed by the presiding officer to summarize quickly and relinquish the floor within 30 seconds. Comments shall be limited to issues.
If personal remarks or discourteous statements are made, the presiding officer shall require the speaker to stop. No person will be recognized for a second time until all others asking to speak have been heard.
Click here to view the agenda for the March 7, 2016 Regular Public Meeting.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Not so tricky. More straightforward. Guessing allowed. The newly redesigned SAT college entrance exam that debuts nationally Saturday is getting good reviews from some of the students who took it early this week.
The new exam focuses less on arcane vocabulary words and more on real-world learning and analysis by students. Students no longer will be penalized for guessing. And the essay has been made optional.
The College Board says more than 463,000 test-takers signed up to take the new SAT in March, up slightly from a year ago.
Because the exam is new, the College Board, the nonprofit organization that owns the SAT, has restricted the exam on Saturday to those applying to college or for scholarships, financial aid or other programs requiring a college test score. People who don’t fall into these categories have been rescheduled to take the May test, which will be released at a point afterward. The College Board said it took the action because of concerns about possible theft.
We’ve been down this road before. Back in in 1998, Save Jerseyans, the U.S. experimented with full-day kindergarten via the lauded Head Start program.
The experiment failed. Miserably.
Read the government’s own Head Start Impact Study Final Report which reported “no significant impacts were found for math skills, prewriting, children’s promotion, or teacher report of children’s school accomplishments or abilities.” They spent $7 billion per year on nothing.
More like False Start.
But despite the mountain of evidence proving it’s an expensive, valueless exercise, Trenton Democrats are resurrecting the cause right here in New Jersey. Shocker.
Senator Teresa Ruiz’s bill is a $78 million plan to force the 20% of New Jersey’s public school districts not currently offering full-day kindergarten into doing so. Her estimate is low. You’ll feel it in your property tax bills soon enough if it becomes law. The superintendent of Wayne’s schools reports that the proposal will cost $2.1 million for his district alone and likely bust the 2% cap unless major cuts are made in other areas.
BOE-REA Negotiations
Click here to read a Letter to the Editor of The Ridgewood News, which appeared in the paper on February 12, 2016.Click here to read the Ridgewood Board of Education’s Fact-Finding Presentation with the The Ridgewood Education Association.
Click here to view the backup for the Ridgewood Board of Education’s Fact-Finding Presentation with The Ridgewood Education Association.
BOE Meets on March 7 at 7:30 p.m.
The Ridgewood Board of Education will hold a Regular Public Meeting on Monday, March 7, 2016 at 7:30 p.m.
The public is invited to attend the meeting at the Ed Center, 49 Cottage Place, Floor 3. The meeting may also be viewed on FiOS channel 33, Optimum channel 77 or from computers via the “Live BOE Meeting” tab on the district website.FiOS channel 33, Optimum channel 77 or from computers via the “Live BOE Meeting” tab on the district website.
Click here to view the agenda for the February 22, 2016 Regular Public Meeting.
Click here to view the minutes of the February 8, 2016 Regular Public Meeting.
RIDGEWOOD — The school district’s superintendent will recommend next month whether the Board of Education should look to implement a full-day kindergarten program this fall or wait until 2017-18.
The recommendation, by Daniel Fishbein, will come on the heels of a report given Monday night by a special committee of parents, administrators and other professionals tasked with looking into the program’s feasibility in Ridgewood.
Cheryl Best, assistant superintendent for curriculum, instruction and assessment and the special committee’s head, presented two options: a tax-supported full-day program or an optional tuition-only afternoon service that would complement the district’s existing morning program.
Both would serve to extend the day for Ridgewood’s youngest students, the committee found, and allow more time for studying math, reading and science, as well as a snack/recess break.
But although the district could start a tuition-based program on its own, a tax-supported full-day program would require voter approval because the necessary money is not available in next year’s budget, school board President Sheila Brogan said.
In that case, the board would put a second question on the November ballot asking voters to increase the budget to fund it, she said.
Because the next school year will be well under way by the November election, Best said that any full-day program implemented in the school year starting in the year must be tuition-based. But if the board elected to wait for the 2017-18 school year, she said, it would have the option of posing the second question to the public this fall, and using the tuition-based proposal as a backup plan if it was rejected.
Fishbein said he will make his recommendation at the board’s March 7 meeting. Brogan said she was unsure if the board would make its final decision afterward — any request by trustees for further information could push the vote to March 21.
The unions sure all seem to think the state and municipalities can afford “platinum” health benefit coverage which covers 95% of all essential care with low deductibles and $5-15 copays. For that public workers are paying 35% or less of the premiums. From 2020 those plans will also be subject to a 40% excise tax and who pays for that? Well according to the unions like NJEA and our local PBA, taxpayers should pay that in addition to subsidizing their platinum coverage.
Most large private sector employers offer “bronze” level equivalent coverage with higher co-pays and higher deductibles. It’s time for all public sector workers to face this same reality; taxpayers cannot afford to subsidize your platinum level benefits anymore. Here in Ridgewood the REA and the PBA refuse to accept this and claim were not being “fair”? Let’s be honest: platinum level health benefits for the select few, paid for by the rest of us, are what is not fair. It’s time for these unions -and their full-time labor lawyers from the state unions behind the curtains – to negotiate with the Village in good faith, instead of these hostile negotiations over platinum health benefits.
Ridgewood NJ, To celebrate the creativity, expression and talent of our Kindergarten through Grade 12 students, the district is excited to showcase a fantastic collection of their art work. The exhibit will be on display at the Education Center throughout the month of March. Please stop in to view the great creativity and talent of our students. The public is also invited to an artists’ reception at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, March 2 at the Education Center, 49 Cottage Place, floor 3.
Asian Festival is March 5 .This year’s Asian Festival Benefit celebrating the diverse cultures of Ridgewood (Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Philippines) will be held on Saturday, March 5 at 6 p.m. in the RHS Campus Center. All are welcome! Tickets are $5 for adults and $3 for students and will be available the day of at the door (cash only, please). All proceeds go to Doctor’s Without Borders.
BY MATTHEW SCHNEIDER
STAFF WRITER |
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
RIDGEWOOD – An exploratory committee gave a presentation examining the feasibility of full-day kindergarten at the Feb. 22 Board of Education (BOE) meeting.
While a previous report by demographer Ross Haber indicated that the district offering full-day kindergarten was feasible, BOE trustees have said in the past that the district simply does not have the funds to make this option available.
As a result, the committee looked into other options for implementing the change, like offering tuition-based kindergarten or raising taxes to generate funding.
According to Cheryl Best, assistant superintendent for curriculum, instruction and assessment, a number of residents filled out a survey asking their preferences regarding full-day kindergarten.
As shown in the presentation, an overwhelming majority (73 percent) were in favor of implementing full-day kindergarten. Additionally, 71.3 percent of those surveyed said that they used a supplemental enrichment program to complement their children’s current half-day kindergarten. Furthermore, 57 percent would support a tax increase.
Nominations Sought for Teacher Recognition Awards
It is time again for nominations for the Teacher and Educational Services Awards program for the 2015-2016 school year. Click here to read a letterexplaining the process. Nominations must be emailed by Thursday, March 24 to recognition@ridgewood.k12.nj.us or returned to the Ridgewood Teacher Recognition Committee c/o Human Resources, Education Center, 49 Cottage Place, Ridgewood, NJ 07450.
Click here for the Teacher nomination form to be completed by RPS staff.
Click here for the Educational Services nomination form to be completed by RPS staff.
Click here for the Teacher and/or Educational Services form to be completed by parents and guardians.
All are invited to the recognition ceremony, which will be held on Tuesday, May 10 at 7 p.m. at the Education Center, 49 Cottage Place
Ridgewood NJ, The PARCC exams will be soon be administered once again but the state’s first experience with the controversial tests in 2015 continues to resonate, not just for the many students who took the tests but for the many students opted out.
The Christie administration can not provide data on exactly how many sat out the test in protest, maintaining that PARCC provided no way to count each student based on their motivation. Students could have missed the tests for many different reasons including alternative tests .However more students missed the PARCC tests than for any previous standardized testing, led by those at the high-school level and the highest percentages of students who didn’t take exams were mostly from more affluent districts like Ridgewood .
While this list is dominated by schools from the wealthier suburbs, Newark’s selective Science Park High School led the way in terms of percentages, with an active student group doing much of the organizing against the testing. Better than 9 in 10 students didn’t take the 10th-grade language arts tests and the Algebra II test.
2. Montclair High School
Right up the road, Montclair was a hotbed of the protest movement in a number of its schools. At the high school, 92 percent of 11th-graders didn’t take the language arts test, and 80 percent weren’t counted on any of the math tests.
3. Brick Memorial High School
This Monmouth County high school saw a large protest movement organized by parents. Just 8 percent of students took the Algebra II test, while only 16 percent took the 11th-grade language arts exam.
4. Morristown High School
Another case of 11th-graders skipping the test, in part because it was not required to graduate. Nearly 90 percent sat out the language arts, and 82 percent skipped the highest level math exam.
5. Princeton High School
The district got a lot of attention for its opt-out movement, and also saw juniors sitting out in large numbers. But the percentages dropped in the lower grades into the 60 percent-70 percent range, albeit still a majority of students.
6. Ramsey High School
Ramsey High School was among several northern Bergen County high schools to see high numbers of students not taking PARCC tests. Nine in 10 juniors didn’t take the language arts test, although the percentage dropped to just about half in ninth grade.
7. Westwood Jr./Sr. High School
This is another affluent district that saw a vocal protest movement. It has had many students who had other options for passing the high school graduation requirements. Of the school’s 11th-graders, 91 percent weren’t tested. The percentage not taking the exams dropped below 50 percent in ninth grade.
8. Pascack Hills High School
This was another Bergen County high school with high numbers who didn’t take the test. Interestingly, the percentages were not quite matched by its regional brethren at Pascack Valley High School. Pascack Hills saw 90 percent of 11th-graders not take the language arts test, while 75 percent didn’t take the Algebra II exam.
9. Livingston High School
This Essex County high school drew some media attention when its superintendent informed families of the process for sitting out the exams. In the end, 90 percent of 11th graders skipped the language arts test, although that dropped to 54 percent for ninth-graders.
10. (tied) Bernards High School, Montville High School, Ridgewood High School, Cherry Hill High School East and West Orange High School
These schools were the leaders among dozens of high schools where at least a half of the students sat out one PARCC test or another.
Science and technology inspire us to ask insightful questions and get amazing answers. This month, many students are working hard on wonderful exhibits showing the results of their own experiments at school science fairs throughout Northern New Jersey.
Super Science Saturday was founded 28 years ago to bring together student science exhibits from many different schools to encourage learning about and appreciation of science and technology in our daily lives. Professional scientists also have joined in with their own interactive exhibits and shows.
Student science exhibits remain a vital part of Super Science Saturday and show the broad interests, creativity and knowledge of Northern New Jersey students. Several generations of students fondly remember attending and exhibiting at the event.
In that spirit, the Super Science Saturday all-volunteer Executive Committee again invites students to showcase their exhibits at our 28th annual, award-winning event from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 27 at Ridgewood High School, 627 East Ridgewood Ave., Ridgewood.
Billed as “Northern New Jersey’s biggest science extravaganza,” Super Science Saturday is a free, non-competitive event that recently won a prestigious New Jersey Inventors Hall of Fame Award for encouraging the “Advancement of Invention and Process,” among students of all ages.
Students from any school or who are home-schooled are welcome to exhibit. Signing up and bringing exhibits to Super Science Saturday is free, easy and convenient. Exhibits may be brought to Ridgewood High School from 5 to 7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 26, or starting at 8:30 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 27, the day of the event. Volunteers will be there to help you find your exhibit space. Parents can sign up at supersciencesaturday.org so we can reserve a space for their student’s exhibit.
Students do not need to stay with their exhibits for the entire event. They can enjoy the 9:30 a.m. show by special guest “Thomas Edison” (wonderfully played by actor Patrick Garner of Montclair), witness interactive exhibits of robotics, wind energy and drone racing, and see a live video presentation of arctic core sampling and what it tells us about the earth’s climate history. There also are ever-popular events, such as the Great Paper Airplane Fly-off, 28-foot Egg Drop Challenge and model rocket launches, and interactive exhibits by 60 amateur and professional scientists.
Through Super Science Saturday, students can showcase their science projects to a much larger audience and be inspired by all of the educational and fun shows and exhibits at the event. For more information on Super Science Saturday, please visit supersciencesaturday.org.
MichaelAaron Flicker
Head of the Super Science Saturday Executive Committee
When the new SAT is given for the first time on March 5, many high school students across North Jersey will be sitting it out.
They’re concerned that the test, uncharted and unfamiliar, will be too much of a gamble despite test makers’ pledge that the new version will focus more on what students learn in school and less on test prep and “tricks.” Even some guidance counselors and experts are urging students to wait before taking the new test or to take an alternative college-entrance exam called the ACT.
“We have been talking about this at length,” said Kelly Peterfriend, counseling supervisor at Northern Highlands Regional High School, who is recommending that students take the ACT. “The reason is that you have to give the College Board, the colleges and the test-prep companies time to see what the new test is all about.”
The SAT, created in the 1920s and administered by the non-profit College Board, remains an important measure for admission at many colleges, and in an academically competitive area like North Jersey, students may spend months or even years preparing for the exam. But now, those lessons could mean little as students sit for an exam with a new format, content and questions — one where strategies long taught by tutors no longer apply.
While experts say the test changes could be good for students in the long term, the current crop of high school juniors say they feel confused and worried about the choices before them, and how the changes will affect their scores and college prospects.
