Category: Ridgewood Schools

Posted on by — Leave a comment

RIDGEWOOD SCHOOLS PARENT / GUARDIAN SURVEY REVEALS SLIGHT DECLINE IN OVERALL SATISFACTION WITH RIDGEWOOD SCHOOLS

BOE_theridgewoodblog

Positives : lower use of tutors

September 17,2015
the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, The results of the Board of Education’s 2015 parent/guardian survey are out. Individual school reports and district-wide results have been emailed to parents and guardians.

The survey was conducted via email from May 5-15, 2015 using SurveyMonkey software. Email invitations with private survey links were sent to all district parents and guardians with email addresses on file. Survey respondents participated on a secure survey website. Only one response was allowed for each email address. The survey was completely anonymous. Numerical data were compiled and charts were created using SurveyMonkey. District data were compiled from the grade-level surveys by members of the Ridgewood Public Schools Information Technology Department. The superintendent, administrators and school board members reviewed the data and all comments. How many parents and guardians participated in the 2014-2015 survey? How will these survey results be used? The data in this report reflect survey results for the district as a whole. Questions specific to a school or grade level have been included here with separate notation. District and individual school survey results have been provided to each principal, as well as the central administration and the Ridgewood Board of Education. The data will be used as one of several resources for the ongoing review and refinement of the programs of the Ridgewood Public Schools.

As of 5.31.15 # Enrolled Students 5682 , Emails on File 7786 , Survey Responses Participation Rate In-District  2773 35.6%

85.9 % of all respondents Agree or Strongly agree that they are satisfied with the overall quality of their child’s education, compared to 87% of all respondents during the previous survey.

80.8% of all respondents Agree or Strongly agree that they are satisfied with the academic progress of their child compared to 82.3% of all respondents during the previous survey.

74.8% of all respondents Agree or Strongly agree that the academic challenge for my child is appropriate ,compared to 75.7%  of all respondents during the previous survey.

56.1% of all respondents Agree or Strongly agree that the schools give opportunities to help my child do his or her best ,compared to 54.9% of all respondents during the previous survey.

69.1% of all respondents thought the amount of homework was just right compared to 69.2% of all respondents during the previous survey.

23.5% of all respondents supplement their child education with professional tutors ,compared to 31.9% of all respondents during the previous survey.

82.1% of all respondents Agree or Strongly agree that the condition/quality of the athletic facilities are acceptable compared to 80.5% of all respondents during the previous survey.

77.3% of all respondents Agree or Strongly agree that the parent or guardian was well informed as to the child’s progress compared to 80.4% of all respondents during the previous survey.

68.9% of all respondents Agree or Strongly agree that they had opportunities to express their opinions or concerns regarding their child compared to 74,3% of all respondents during the previous survey.

https://board-of-education.ridgewood.schoolfusion.us/modules/locker/files/get_group_file.phtml?gid=944840&fid=28828142&sessionid=f2fc552096d7f9abeb620bd07fd34d0f

Posted on by — 15 Comments

Ninth-grader’s arrest over a home-built clock, imagine if it happened in Ridgewood

texas-muslim-student-clock

The homemade clock Ahmed Mohamed brought to school was mistaken for a bomb. (Irving Police Department)

Why a ninth-grader’s arrest over a home-built clock struck a chord across America

A week after 9/11, a lapse of judgement ?

By Abby Phillip and Sarah Kaplan September 16 at 6:20 PM

Ahmed Mohamed just wanted to impress his teachers with a homemade invention. The story of what happened next has made the 14-year-old from Irving, Tex., the object of national outrage and attention.

Eager to show off to his engineering teacher, Mohamed walked into MacArthur High School on Monday morning with his hastily assembled invention: A digital clock.

Hours later, the ninth-grader was escorted out of the school in police custody after teachers mistook the device for a bomb.

The incident has triggered allegations of racism and made a Texas school district the target of outrage that began online and quickly spilled into the most powerful offices in the land.

As the story spread, along with a photo of Mohamed in a NASA T-shirt and handcuffs, support came flooding in.

“Cool clock, Ahmed,” President Obama wrote in a tweet Wednesday. “Want to bring it to the White House? We should inspire more kids like you to like science. It’s what makes America great.”

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/09/16/why-a-ninth-graders-arrest-over-a-home-built-clock-struck-a-chord-across-america/

Posted on by — Leave a comment

The rise of ‘selfie lice’

the-top-18-worst-facebook-selfies-ever-18

SEPTEMBER 15, 2015    LAST UPDATED: TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2015, 1:21 AM
BY ARIANA EUNJUNG CHA
THE WASHINGTON POST |
WIRE SERVICE

As if you didn’t have enough to worry about with the new school year starting, now there’s this: “selfie lice.” In recent days, the Internet has been abuzz with fear over the latest scourge to hit our borders, and it has to do with social media and those pesky little critters that tend to latch onto kids’ hair.

The concern is that gaggles of tweens and teens with smartphones are touching heads while snapping and sharing pictures of themselves, causing a rise in lice transmissions.

No one seems to know where the idea originated, but some point to the selfie-seen-around-the-world that Ellen Degeneres took at last year’s Oscars. That led to snarky comments online about how close those beautiful heads — Jennifer Lawrence! Brad Pitt! Julia Roberts! Bradley Cooper! — appeared to be to each other and speculation about what might happen if any one of them had lice.

Everyone seemed to have forgotten about this for a while but as the summer ended and people began to think about school again, comments from a pediatrician in Wisconsin who spoke about seeing a rise in lice cases among teens went viral. Soon, experts from across the country, from cities big and small, were weighing in and saying that they, too, were alarmed about selfie lice.

It sounds bad, but there’s no need to panic. Let’s separate fact from fiction. First, experts say transmitting lice while taking a selfie is technically possible, but since lice cannot fly or jump, they’d have to crawl, and that can take a while, so you’d probably have to be head-to-head with your gal pal for longer than a few seconds.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/health-news/no-clear-picture-yet-of-any-danger-from-selfie-lice-1.1409883

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Ridgewood Board of Education Meets on Monday September 21st

BOE_theridgewoodblog

BOE Meets on September 21

The Ridgewood Board of Education will hold a Regular Public Meeting on Monday, September 21, 2015 at 7:30 p.m.

The public is invited to attend the meeting at the Ed Center, 49 Cottage Place, Floor 3. The meeting will be aired live on FiOS channel 33 and Optimum channel 77. Or it may be viewed live via the district website at www.ridgewood.k12.nj.us using the “Link in Live” tab.

Click here to view the agenda and addendum for the August 24, 2015 Regular Public Meeting.

BOE Announces Vacancy, Seeks BOE Applicants

The Ridgewood Board of Education is seeking qualified applicants to fill a vacancy created by the resignation of Michele Lenhard on August 1. The application deadline is Tuesday, September 15 at 4 p.m. Click here for details.
Click here to view the application..

Board of Education Releases Statement on Negotiations
Click here to read a statement by the Ridgewood Board of Education on the status of negotiations with the Ridgewood Education Association.

Posted on by — 12 Comments

Reader says high density housing will only result in MORE children in school AND HIGHER taxes for services to support those children

clock ridgewood NJ

It’s been said before and should keep being said, we all want seniors to be able to stay in town if they would like. Apartments currently exist for that purpose and a few more can and maybe should be built within the current density levels.

But the worst thing that could happen to seniors who would like to stay in their homes would be for hundreds of new apartments to be built. Either families would occupy those apartments OR the homes vacated by seniors moving into apartments. Either way the result is MORE children in school AND HIGHER taxes for services to support those children (school budget is by far the largest % of our tax bills). We NEED to find ways for people without children in school to stay in their homes and increasing the school budget is not the way to do it.

Posted on by — 6 Comments

Nothing like a 100 Million dollar Ridgewood School Budget

BOE_theridgewoodblog

Do it fer da kidz

September 11, 2015

Dear Parent or Guardian:

In July, the Ridgewood Board of Education (RBOE) announced that contract negotiations with the Ridgewood Education Association (REA), which began in February 2015, were moving from official mediation through the NJ Public Employment Relations Commission (PERC) to the fact-finding stage, also through PERC.  Our first fact-finding session will be held on September 16, 2015.

During this time, the teachers and secretaries continue to receive their full salaries and benefits and work under the terms, conditions and protections of the expired contract that began on July 1, 2012, and ended on June 30, 2015.

It is important to remember that our teachers and secretaries are working within the contractually specified hours listed below and that drop-off and pick-up times at our schools must be followed:

Elementary schools:  8 a.m.-3:35 p.m.

PLEASE DO NOT DROP YOUR CHILD OFF PRIOR TO 8:35 A.M. AND PICK UP AT 3 P.M.

Middle schools: 7:45 a.m.-3:20 p.m.

PLEASE DO NOT DROP YOUR CHILD OFF PRIOR TO 7:45 A.M. AND PICK UP AT 2:55 P.M.

Ridgewood High School:  7:40 a.m.-3:15 p.m.

DROP OFF AND PICK UP WILL BE THE SAME

In addition, please understand that during this stage in the negotiations, teachers may decline to do some activities that fall outside of the contract.  For example, they may decline to chaperone overnight/after school field trips, decline to participate or volunteer in activities that they had in the past, or may adhere to the 7.5 hour daily contract hours by arriving and leaving on time each school day.  If any such actions occur that result in changes or cancellation of certain activities, school principals and other administrators will explain the reason why.

Many parents have offered to volunteer and take over these responsibilities.  Some activities can be sponsored or supervised by parents, while others can’t for various insurance and personal liability reasons.  Please see your principal for guidance.

While changes to activities may be an unfortunate reality during this period, it is important to stress that the RBOE and REA are working towards an agreement that satisfies both parties.  Throughout the State of New Jersey, negotiations are taking place between teacher associations and Boards of Education.  The vast majority of contract negotiations, almost 80 percent, are not completed prior to the expiration of the preceding contract.

Finally, if the fact-finder is unsuccessful in mediating an agreement, both parties will present their “case,” and a written report will be prepared that will be made public 10 days after they receive his non-binding findings.

Thank you in advance for your understanding as the RBOE and REA work through this process and complete the negotiations in the shortest time possible.

Sincerely,

Daniel Fishbein, Ed.D.
Superintendent of Schools

Posted on by — 7 Comments

Ridgewood again exploring full-day kindergarten

kinopoisk

SEPTEMBER 7, 2015, 12:30 PM    LAST UPDATED: MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2015, 12:49 PM
BY CHRIS HARRIS
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD

RIDGEWOOD — The Board of Education is once again exploring the pros and cons of offering a full-day kindergarten program in the district, but officials are concerned that coming up with the money to do so could be problematic.

Officials claim a full-day kindergarten program would require 10 additional teachers with an estimated cost of $1 million-plus.

Providing daylong kindergarten has been a longtime goal for Ridgewood’s educators, said Sheila Brogan, president of the village’s school board.

“We are one of the few districts that don’t have full-day kindergarten, and we realize it would be an enhancement,” Brogan said. “The question for us is: Is it feasible?”

The school board discussed the prospect of expanding its offerings during a meeting held late last month.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/ridgewood-again-exploring-full-day-kindergarten-1.1405082

Posted on by — Leave a comment

N.J. students offered reprieve from statewide exams

o-STANDARDIZED-TESTS-facebook

SEPTEMBER 9, 2015, 4:52 PM    LAST UPDATED: THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2015, 12:08 AM
BY HANNAN ADELY
THE RECORD

High school juniors in New Jersey will be allowed to forgo controversial state tests in English language arts — exams many had already been skipping — if they take other high-level exams in the subject, the state education commissioner announced Wednesday.

The change comes amid a backlash from parents and educators who argue that too much testing is creating stress and taking up valuable teaching time. Many parents refused to let their children take state tests last spring, even though the state required them for all students in Grades 3 to 11 in math and English.

“We are cognizant of testing time and demands,” Education Commissioner David Hespe said Wednesday. “After lots of conversations, we think this is a smart move and the right way to reflect that students in 11th grade are taking challenging course work.”

https://www.northjersey.com/news/some-n-j-high-school-juniors-will-be-able-to-skip-state-english-tests-1.1406218

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Ridgewood H.S. soccer marathon for charity on Saturday, Sept. 5

soccer-ball1_theridgewoodblog

SEPTEMBER 4, 2015    LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2015, 12:31 AM
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

Tomorrow, the Ridgewood High School boys and girls soccer programs will host their second annual “Dawn to Dusk” marathon soccer match to benefit two local charities, Gear Up for Owen and Support Rachel Grygiel-Loughlin, and to help raise money for the RHS soccer programs.

This year’s Soccer-A-Thon will be an eight-hour event, with kickoff planned for 8 a.m. at the Ridgewood High School Stadium field, and play will continue until 4 p.m.

The RHS boys soccer program is raising funds to support 6-year-old Owen Betrus, son of George Washington Middle School teacher Rob Betrus.

Owen was diagnosed at birth with quadriplegic cerebral palsy. He also was diagnosed with cortical visual impairment just before his first birthday, and with intractable epilepsy at age 3. More info on how to help support Owen is available online at gofundme.com/gearup4owen.

For the Ridgewood girls soccer program, the 2015 Dawn to Dusk fundraiser is very personal, as the program will be helping a Maroon alumna who is in need. A portion of the proceeds raised through the Soccer-A-Thon will be donated to RHS Athletic Hall of Fame inductee Rachel Grygiel-Loughlin.

This past May, Rachel was faced with the tragic and sudden loss of her husband, Matthew. The couple were married in July 2014, and Rachel is expecting their first child in November. Dawn to Dusk proceeds will go to an online fund that has been set up in Matthew’s memory to help relieve some of the stress and financial burden Rachel is currently enduring. For more info on how to help, visit youcaring.com/rachel-grygiel-loughlin-360921.

RHS soccer players will donate their time and energy, and they will solicit sponsorships based on eight hours of play. Parents will be contributing time as well, helping to organize the event and support the players. Numerous businesses have agreed to sponsor the event, including Tarleton & Family Landscaping Co. (TLC), The Ideal Supply Co., The Valley Hospital, Stifel Investment Banking, Thomas Flint Landscape Design & Development, Clemente Orthodontics, Keller Williams/The Nuber Team, Park West Tavern, Ridgewood Tips From Town, Fitness 1-2-1 Personal Training, Ridgewood Physical Therapy, C.C. Van Emburgh Funeral Home, Skinners Landscaping and Bedra Intelligent Wires.

According to parent organizer Jeanmarie Mulholland, “We are expecting this event to be a tremendous success, not only in the amount of funds we raise but also in creating a sense of caring and camaraderie within the soccer community.”

 

https://www.northjersey.com/community-news/community-events-and-announcements/rhs-soccer-marathon-for-charity-tomorrow-1.1403575

Posted on by — 9 Comments

Ridgewood school district exploring move to full-day kindergarten

kindergarten-cop-comedy

SEPTEMBER 4, 2015    LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2015, 12:31 AM
BY MATTHEW SCHNEIDER
STAFF WRITER |
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

The years-old question of full-day kindergarten for Ridgewood schools was once again raised at last week’s Board of Education meeting.

However, such a change isn’t likely to come to Ridgewood for a while, according to school district officials.

While some, like board trustee James Morgan, say they understand the value and importance of full-day kindergarten, they realize that it isn’t a feasible option at this point in time.

“Full-day kindergarten is one of the most effective methods for teaching young children,” Morgan said. “It’s a great idea, but the major question is how do we fund it?”

The issue lies in the board’s budget limitations, Morgan said.

Were full-day kindergarten to be instituted, about 10 new teachers would need to be hired, each making around $75,000 per year, according to Morgan. Once these amounts are factored in with the cost of resources, the price jumps to over $1 million per year, which is an amount that the board just doesn’t have at this point, officials said.

Morgan said there are major hurdles to surpass if full-day kindergarten were ever to be truly discussed.

 

https://www.northjersey.com/news/education/district-explores-move-to-full-day-kindergarten-1.1403625

Posted on by — 7 Comments

Chaperone Problems at 6th grade overnight Camp at BFMS

BF_middle-school_theridgewoodblog
September 4,2015

the staff of the Ridgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ , Just got word that teachers are not willing to chaperone due to contact not being signed.
Ridgewood Parents are outraged! The Camp will be daycamp instead of overnight.

 The Ridgewood BOE had previously issued this statement on the contract talks with the REA , “The Board and the REA will continue to negotiate with each other in good faith in a respectful manner.” . We guess the teachers didn’t get the memo.
Posted on by — 2 Comments

Ridgewood students return to school Today

RHS_Sign_theridgewoodblog

SEPTEMBER 1, 2015    LAST UPDATED: TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2015, 11:40 AM
BY MATTHEW SCHNEIDER
STAFF WRITER |
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS

With the 2015-16 school year right around the corner, students and district staff members are gearing up for another year of learning.

Improvements and new options will be awaiting students when school begins on Sept. 2.

A number of donations to the Ridgewood Board of Education (BOE) have made many building upgrades possible, such as a $30,000 contribution for new science classrooms at George Washington Middle School and a $4,222 gift to pay for new auditorium chairs for Hawes Elementary School. The donations were made by the Home and School associations for the respective schools.

Other buildings have been revamped utilizing funds already in the Board of Education’s budget.

“We have many different facility improvements at our schools,” said Superintendent Daniel Fishbein. “They vary from painting and re-flooring classrooms district wide, to the new cutout at BF to some paving at Travell.”

George Washington and Benjamin Franklin middle schools will be included this year in the district’s 1:1 Chromebook initiative. The district will be providing all students at the middle schools and Ridgewood High School (RHS) with Chromebook laptops for use during lessons to familiarize them with technology while streamlining their work.

https://www.northjersey.com/news/education/ridgewood-schools-to-open-doors-wednesday-1.1401779

Posted on by — 2 Comments

RIDGEWOOD BOE MEETS SEPTEMBER 21st

BOE_theridgewoodblog

RIDGEWOOD SCHOOL BOARD MEETS ON SEPTEMBER 21, 2015

The  Ridgewood Board of Education will hold a Regular Public Meeting on Monday, September 21, 2015 at 7:30 p.m.

The public is invited to attend the meeting at the Ed Center, 49 Cottage Place, Floor 3. The meeting will be aired live on FiOS channel 33 and Optimum channel 77. Or it may be viewed live via the district website at www.ridgewood.k12.nj.us using the “Link in Live” tab.

Click here to view the agenda and addendum for the August 24, 2015 Regular Public Meeting.

Posted on by — Leave a comment

Ridgewood School Crossing Guards – Applications Available

School Crossing

SCHOOL CROSSING GUARDS

The Ridgewood Police Department is accepting applications for School Crossing Guard Positions. Applications are Available at the Police Desk located at 131 North Maple Avenue Ridgewood NJ. P/T position, 10 hours per week (2 hours per day) starting at $17.49/hr. Send application to Police Chief John Ward, Ridgewood Police Dept, 131 N. Maple Ave., Ridgewood, NJ 07450 or return the application to the Police Records Room. The Village of Ridgewood is an EOE and civil service community.

Posted on by — Leave a comment

ASHBY, TRADITION OF EXCELLENCE AWARDS ARE PRESENTED AT CONVOCATION

ASHBY
August 31,2015

the staff of the Ridtgewood blog

Ridgewood NJ, the 2015 winner of the coveted Ashby Award is Ann Brown, George Washington Middle School Library Media Specialist. Ann, who has been the Library Media Specialist since 2001,holds a Masters Degree in Library and Information Science from the Palmer School of Library and Information Science at Long Island University.

The Ashby Award was established in 1966 to honor former Superintendent Lloyd Ashby and his wife, Lois, for their distinguished service to the community.  The recipient is selected from nominees submitted by staff members and is someone who, in the opinion of his or her peers, has upheld the Ashby tradition of service and contribution.  This is the highest award that can be bestowed upon a Ridgewood staff member.

The 2015 Tradition of Excellence Award for Support Staff was presented to Pat Kowalczyk, Administrative Assistant in the Office of Special Programs.

The Ridgewood Board of Education established the Tradition of Excellence Award in 2014 to honor a member of the support staff, who in the opinion of their peers has made an outstanding contribution to the excellence of the Ridgewood Public Schools