Ridgewood NJ, Yes. Believe it or not, the crybabies on Clinton Avenue got their way again.
The street was recently repaved, but without the concrete curbs and concrete driveway cuts that were promised.
Village Engineer Christopher Rutishauser had told Village Council members concrete curbs and driveway cuts would be including in the repaving project so that the street would be “sidewalk ready.”
Reportedly, residents on the street did not want the concrete and told the Village Manager so.
AUGUST 30, 2015 LAST UPDATED: SUNDAY, AUGUST 30, 2015, 6:55 AM
BY JOAN VERDON
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD
At Ped-Agree Shoes in Wyckoff, owners Catherine Mattei and Luanne Rush were busy last week helping parents outfit their children with new shoes for school.
In Westwood, at the Ginger Kids clothing store, owner Sue Bahng said she loves back-to-school season. “This is when the kids come in with renewed eagerness for the fresh new year.”
But Ped-Agree Shoes, Ginger Kids and other retailers in North Jersey and around the country are seeing a shift in the rhythms of this annual ritual. A Labor Day that falls late this year, on Sept. 7, compared to Sept. 1 last year, and changing shopping habits are pushing a lot of back-to-school shopping into September, after kids are already back at school.
Retail research firm The NPD Group this summer admonished retailers that they need to rethink their marketing to respond to a changing back-to-school season. A survey by the firm showed that a majority of shoppers don’t get serious about back-to-school shopping until August, with much of the spending occurring in September and even October.
A look at where the money goes
$68 billion: Total Americans will spend on back-to-school and back-to-college purchases this year
$630: average amount parents will spend for children in Grades K-12
$217.82: Average amount for clothes, K-12
$197.24: Average amount for electronics, K-12
$117.56: Average amount for shoes, K-12
$97.74: Average amount for school supplies, K-12
$899: Average amount parents will spend on college students
$126: Average amount for dorm or college apartment furnishings
29%: Portion of parents who plan to spend more for back to school this year.
30%: Parents who waited to start shopping until one to two weeks before school starts
42%: Amount that average back-to-school spending has risen over the past 10 years
Source: National Retail Federation
“When so many consumers are planning to do their back-to-school shopping in the months not traditionally considered part of the season by retailers, it’s time to break with tradition and change the way we market and measure this shopping season,” said Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst for NPD, in reporting the findings.
Board of Education Announces Vacancy, Seeks 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
Mandatory Re-registration is Open for Parents and Guardians
Skyward Family Access is the district’s primary mode of communication with parents, so the district must have up-to-date email and phone numbers in the system at all times, especially for emergency situations. Beginning August 10 through midnight September 7, parents and guardians must logon to Family Access to complete the Mandatory Online Re-registration process.
Click here for details on Mandatory Re-registration
Lunch service is scheduled to begin on Thursday, September 3, the first full day of school. For information on children’s food service accounts and lunch ordering, please visit the district website at www.ridgewood.k12.nj.us and select the Fee Management and Lunch Info tab under the Parents label. Click here to go directly to that page.
Substitutes are Needed
The district has put out a call for additional substitute teachers, nurses and secretaries for the 2015-2016 school year. Substitutes enjoy the freedom of selecting their dates of work according to their personal schedules through a self-scheduling online system. Pay rates for the 2015-2016 school year are as follows: teachers $92 to $125 per diem; nurses $130 per diem; secretaries $12.50 to $17 per hour.
Click here for full information on the requirements and process. For further information, please contact Eileen Rix at 201-670-2700, ext. 10542 or [email protected].
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.
AUGUST 27, 2015, 11:55 AM LAST UPDATED: THURSDAY, AUGUST 27, 2015, 2:23 PM
ASSOCIATED PRESS
NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. (AP) — An elementary school teacher has been allowed to keep his job even though he was late for work 111 times over a two-year period.
In a decision filed Aug. 19, an arbitrator rejected an attempt by the Roosevelt Elementary School to fire 15-year veteran Arnold Anderson from his $90,000-a-year job, saying he was entitled to progressive discipline.
Anderson was late 46 times in the most recent school year through March 20 and 65 times in the previous school year, the arbitrator said. But the arbitrator criticized Anderson’s claim that the quality of his teaching outweighed his tardiness.
He relied on “micro-quibbles of a few unpersuasive explanations, with a macro-default position that even when he is late he nevertheless delivers a superb educational experience to his grateful students,” the arbitrator wrote.
Ridgewood NJ, Ridgewood Police announce progress since announcing amnesty for returning stolen street signs . So far over 20 Village signs have been returned to the Police Department , all except for one from the West Side of Town.
As a reminder signs can be dropped off at the Ridgewood Police Department until September 15th without consequences. After that date anyone found in possession of Village property will be charged with theft and prosecuted. We thank our residents for for assisting us with recovering the signs.
The Ridgewood Board of Education will hold a Regular Public Meeting on Monday, August 24 2015 at 5 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 July 20, 2015 Regular Public Meeting
Re-registration is Open for Parents and Guardians
Skyward Family Access is the district’s primary mode of communication with parents, so the district must have up-to-date email and phone numbers in the system at all times, especially for emergency situations. Beginning August 10 through midnight September 7, parents and guardians must logon to Family Access to complete the Mandatory Online Re-registration process.
Click here for details on Mandatory Re-registration.
Board of Education Announces Vacancy, Seeks 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..
Back-to-School Night Schedule is Out
Click here to view the 2015-2016 Back-To-School Night schedule.
Substitutes Teachers are Needed
The district has put out a call for additional substitute teachers, nurses and secretaries for the 2015-2016 school year. Substitutes enjoy the freedom of selecting their dates of work according to their personal schedules through a self-scheduling online system. Pay rates for the 2015-2016 school year are as follows: teachers $92 to $125 per diem; nurses $130 per diem; secretaries $12.50 to $17 per hour.
Click here for full information on the requirements and process. For further information, please contact Eileen Rix at 201-670-2700, ext. 10542 or [email protected].
School Calendars are Approved Click here to view the 2015-2016 school calendar. Click here to view the 2016-2017 school calendar.
OCTOBER 7, 2014 LAST UPDATED: TUESDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2014, 1:21 AM BY KARA YORIO STAFF WRITER THE RECORD
Amelie Wilday was coming home “weepy, cranky, tired and hungry,” according to her mother, Gaby. It was two years ago, halfway through the first month of first grade, and something was not right with the Ridgewood 6-year-old. Gaby Wilday, who had ordered Amelie’s lunch through the school’s food provider, asked her daughter to bring home what she wasn’t eating.”That’s when I noticed she just wasn’t eating,” said Wilday. Amelie didn’t like the food, and her mother didn’t like the quality. She also noticed the Wildays must not have been alone, as there were many lunches from outside food vendors being dropped off at Ridgewood schools.Already with a commercial kitchen for a sauce business, she decided to see if she could create a better school lunch model. She started with seven lunches, which she gave to a group of families for free in return for feedback. She ended up hearing from many more than those seven.
“By November 1st, I was getting emails from principals, PTO presidents, parents from other schools,” she said.
Common Core : Here We Go Again Welcome back to the Math Wars
PARCC testing is supposed to be more about the child’s facility with using a computer than his or her knowledge of the subject matter being tested. This is untested, seat-of-the-pants, thrown-together Obamacare website territory we will be in, and there will be a huge blowback. Fifth graders in particular need to be ready for anything, given that their standardized math scores for this year constitute the first 1/7th part of the rubric that determines whether they are ranked in the top 10 percent of their middle school in math at the end of sixth grade. If they are not so ranked, they will be prevented from taking Algebra in 7th grade and will be exposed to the Constructivist CMP math curriculum during all of 7th and 8th grade. This will stunt their growth at a critical time, and will eventually seriously limit their ability to compete for acceptance to a top notch school of engineering or science upon graduation from high school. CMP math in the middle schools is ‘the one that hot away’ about six years ago during the most recent battle in Ridgewood’s protracted Math War.
New Jersey making passing new tests a graduation requirement
OCTOBER 1, 2014, 4:59 PM LAST UPDATED: WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2014, 11:59 PM BY HANNAN ADELY STAFF WRITER THE RECORD
New Jersey is making all students pass new tests in English and math or hit a minimum grade on a college admissions exam to get a high school diploma beginning in 2016.
The decision appears to be a reversal for the administration, which had promised the new tests wouldn’t count right away.
Acting Education Commissioner David Hespe denied that the administration was backing off its promise, because the tests will not be the only option. Students can also graduate if they reach certain minimum scores on tests such as the SAT or ACT or can show a portfolio, he said.
Two years ago, Governor Christie publicly endorsed the new tests based on standards adopted by New Jersey and other states. But as the standards, which are known as the Common Core, have grown controversial among parents and conservative voters, the governor has said little publicly about them. In July, he said he would form a commission to examine the new tests and standards, but no members have been announced yet.
Asked whether the governor agreed to the changes, Hespe said, “that’s between you and the governor’s press office.” Christie’s office declined to comment when reached late Wednesday, and the governor was in California for a Republican Governors Association fundraiser.
The change drew rebukes from parents, teachers and education activists who say it’s unfair to rely on tests that are unfamiliar.
– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/new-jersey-making-passing-new-tests-a-graduation-requirement-1.1100217#sthash.qVibM0yy.dpuf
SEPTEMBER 26, 2014 LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2014, 12:31 AM BY GREG TARTAGLIA SPORTS EDITOR THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
Since being shut out by Northern Highlands on Sept. 17, the Ridgewood High School girls soccer team has paid the favor forward twice.
Senior goalkeeper Colleen Berry stopped both shots she faced in the Maroons’ 5-0 smothering of Hackensack last Friday. She needed to make only three saves to help RHS lock down Tenafly, 1-0 on Tuesday.
The back-to-back wins raised Ridgewood’s record to 5-2 entering Saturday’s noon match at Demarest.
Sophomore forward Val Diaz helped fuel the offensive outburst versus Hackensack with a pair of goals. Senior Aidan Trevisan and sophomores Riley Ricciardi and Emma LaFrance tallied a goal apiece, and seniors Maddie Philips and Dayna Bussanich each notched an assist.
Ricciardi scored the lone goal at Tenafly in the first half, as the Maroons launched 22 shots on net in the win.
Ridgewood Girls Tennis has confidence heading into Bergen tournament
SEPTEMBER 26, 2014 LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2014, 12:31 AM BY MATTHEW BIRCHENOUGH ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
Just nine matches into the season, the Ridgewood High School girls tennis team has made it clear that even with several new coming underclassmen playing prominent roles, it is still one of the top teams in the area.
The Maroons have a sophomore and freshman holding down their top two singles spots and all the players that returned from last season’s North 1, Group 4 title team are in different positions, but nothing has seemed to faze this RHS team.
“I think they’re beginning to actualize their potential and see what they’re capable of,” head coach Medha Kirtane said in a phone interview Wednesday.
And hopes are high for the team heading into this weekend’s Bergen County tournament at Old Tappan.
“We’re just excited to be in a competitive environment with a number of wonderful dreams that are going to push us in every single draw,” Kirtane said. “It’s a great intense environment to be in that only makes you better.”
North Jersey parents vow to ban alcohol at home parties
SEPTEMBER 28, 2014 LAST UPDATED: SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2014, 1:21 AM BY DEENA YELLIN STAFF WRITER THE RECORD
Schools around North Jersey are wielding a new weapon in the fight against teen drug and alcohol use: the parents’ pledge.
Dubbed the Safe Homes Pledge, it’s part of a nationwide movement that asks parents to sign an agreement committing themselves to providing adult supervision for parties in their homes, securing prescription medication, and not serving alcohol to any guest under the age of 21.
Among the North Jersey towns and school districts where parents have participated are Ramsey, Ridgewood, Ramapo Indian Hills Regional High School District, Northern Highlands Regional High School, Pascack Hills, Ringwood, Wayne and Wanaque. The names of parents who have signed the agreement are then listed in a local directory.
Now, parents in the Northern Valley Regional School District are being asked to take the pledge.
The initiative is the latest step in a wide-ranging campaign by the Northern Valley community to fight alcohol and drug use.
Gymnastics: Ridgewood, Holy Angels are closer than they appear
SEPTEMBER 26, 2014 LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2014, 12:31 AM BY GREG TARTAGLIA SPORTS EDITOR THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
RIDGEWOOD — Kerry Callaghan is the new kid on the block who isn’t entirely new — much like her gymnastics team’s most recent opponent.
The Ridgewood High School junior grew up in the village but was not with the Maroons for the past two years. In 2012, the Callaghans moved to suburban Dallas, where Kerry attended Marcus High School in Flower Mound, Texas.
Her family came back to Ridgewood this summer, and she is now a part of the RHS program for which two of her three older sisters competed.
“It feels good, seeing my old friends again and doing gymnastics with girls I’ve competed with since the third or fourth grade,” Callaghan said.
The Maroons are equally happy about her return. Callaghan’s scores on vault (8.75) and floor (8.4) counted toward their team total versus Holy Angels on Wednesday, and Ridgewood needed every tenth to secure a 102.875-102.225 win in NJGL A Division action.
SEPTEMBER 26, 2014 LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2014, 9:26 AM BY JODI WEINBERGER STAFF WRITER THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
The first thing students at Ridgewood High School (RHS) did with their new Chromebooks was power them up and test out their log-ins and passwords to make sure they worked.
The second? Change the background screen.
Some students gathered their friends and took a selfie with the computer’s built-in camera for a truly personal background, others chose bands or cartoons. Junior Becca Feder laughed before saying what her new background was, but then finally admitted, “SpongeBob.”
According to the district’s manager of information technology Ryan Kenny, the other first priorities for the teens was whether they could remove the hard plastic cover and put stickers and decals on the case – the answer to both was “no.”
All together, 1,717 Chromebooks were handed out to the students this week, each one engraved with “Ridgewood Public Schools” and plastered with a barcode and the student’s name for identification.
The high school used the students’ gym period to hand them out, giving them the time to play around with the device before using it for paper writing and other activities in the classroom.
“Is it charged already?” one student asked as he signed his name indicating that he received the laptop.
Community pitches in on Ridgewood schools planning
SEPTEMBER 23, 2014 LAST UPDATED: TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2014, 9:29 AM BY JODI WEINBERGER STAFF WRITER THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
Like excited learners, adults invited to the Board of Education’s (BOE) community planning session readily shared their hopes and dreams for the Ridgewood school district, collaborating with officials and administrators in a way that’s rarely possible at 49 Cottage Place.
The first task as part of the four-hour strategy session on Sept. 13 split the group of 50 or so individuals into smaller clusters to draw a representation of their goals for the schools.
Under the direction of former state school board members Cathie Sousa and Nancy Stern, of Sousa and Stern Educational Consultants LLC, the groups got to work literally coloring their vision of the future.
In the casual atmosphere, enhanced from the standard public BOE meetings by a cheese plate and other snacks, everyone had equal input alongside the school board members, principals and administrators, public safety officials, clergy persons, parents, and other community leaders.
“Some strategic planning processes can take months,” said Superintendent Daniel Fishbein. “This really works.”
