the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, Form the Facebook group “Ridgewood Moms and Dads with Free Speech” Saurabh Dani commented asking readers to take a look at .” Pete and Susan’s comment in this video are REALLY important.” Its nice to see more taxpayers starting to recognize the fiscal mess the State of New Jersey is in and the enormous pension deficit, particularly with the teachers pension.
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, Results from the semi-annual National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) were released this morning. The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), first administered in 1969, is the largest continuing and nationally representative assessment of what our nation’s students know and can do in subjects such as mathematics, reading, science, and writing. The results of NAEP are released as The Nation’s Report Card, and are available for the nation, states, and in some cases, urban districts. Teachers, principals, parents, policymakers, and researchers all use NAEP results to assess progress and develop ways to improve education in the United States.
Continue reading New Jersey Students Lose Ground in Reading and Math
by Beata Savreski CPA, MST Individual and Business Tax
Upper Saddle River NJ, now that fall is here and school has started, many teachers are dipping into their own pockets to buy classroom supplies. Doing this throughout the year can add up fast. Fortunately, eligible educators may be able to defray qualified expenses they paid in 2019 when they file their tax return in 2020.
Continue reading What teachers should know about deducting out-of-pocket classroom expenses
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, With World Teachers’ Day around the corner and teaching among the lowest-paid professions that require a bachelor’s degree, the personal-finance website WalletHub today released its report on 2019’s Best & Worst States for Teachers as well as accompanying videos.
Continue reading New Jersey Is 2019’s 2nd Best State for Teachers
“Wilson was appointed, not elected, four years ago. Mary Micale fought hard in Wilson’s favor to have her appointed. At the time, Mary vouched for Wilson saying they worked together for years; YWCA and Foundation. That alone should recuse Wilson form interviewing and nominating this candidate. Instead, she lead the interview. It was so obvious that Mary was given information other candidates didn’t have. Clearly, her interview was coach and scripted.
Now it’s time to return the favor.”
“Mary Micale was helped by a board member and therefore given an unfair advantage over the other nine applicants. I hope our BOE will not ignore that and and by doing so, allow this process to be tainted by one of the four current board members. We deserve transparency on our board of education… independent thinkers, not predetermined allies.”
” Let’s speak openly about the real reason this Board wants Mary Micale and the importance of this open position (which is only a 6 month position). In the next six months before a member can be elected, the Board majority needs to deliver on their promise (to special interest groups); commit to multi million dollar projects and move the election back to November so residents won’t be allowed to vote or change the school budget. None of what they are planing will directly impact the children’s programs, education or stop the decline in school ranking. Residents pockets will be tuned inside out and we will all be financially crippled by debt. WAKE UP RIDGEWOOD! “
” Our town is infested with personal interest groups that have found a way of using public money to progress themselves, friends and family. It’s metastasized and rotting us to the core. “
the staff of the Ridgewood bog
Trenton NJ, “Dark money” group New Direction New Jersey (NDNJ) is no longer quite so dark. Some nine months after promising to disclose its donors, NDNJ finally did last week. But only after the Sunlight Policy Center of New Jersey (SPCNJ), POLITICO and the Bergen Record dug up the major sources of its funding. And only after lawmakers passed a new disclosure law (now under legal challenge). The gig was up and NDNJ knew it.
Continue reading NJEA Owns Governor Murphy
Hey, NEA! No way!
by: André DiMino
At its 2019 National Convention, the National Education Association (NEA) passed a resolution to have Columbus Day renamed Indigenous Peoples Day, stating, “As an education association, recognizing, observing, and celebrating factual history is important to maintaining our academic integrity.”
Really? Come on! How hypocritical. The current onslaught of politically correct hysteria foisted upon the Great Discoverer is just plain false. Shame on the NEA for being complicit in this nefarious conspiracy to obfuscate the facts and perpetrate the rewriting of history.
Continue reading Italian-American civil rights Group Takes on NEA’s Attack on Columbus Day
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, The New Jersey Educations Association’s 125-member political action committee (NJEA PAC) voted to endorse 59 candidates for election to the New Jersey General Assembly in the upcoming November election.
“NJEA members have seen the profound impact that political decisions have on their lives and on the lives of their students,” said NJEA President Marie Blistan. “NJEA members have always been active participants in the political process, because we care about our profession and our students. As the burden of Ch. 78 and the lack of job justice for educational support professionals (ESP) make clear, it is more important than ever that we elect candidates who share our priorities and values.”
Continue reading NJEA PAC Endorses 59 Candidates in Legislative Contests Including Some Republicans
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, The Italian American ONE VOICE Coalition (“IAOVC”), a nationwide coalition of anti-bias activists, has assembled a Task Force, comprised of a wide array of Italian American organizations, to demand that the National Education Association (“NEA”) overturn its Resolution, passed at the NEA National Convention last month, to eliminate Columbus Day.
“As a former teacher and Italian American I am outraged that the NEA launched this attack on Columbus Day, using their pulpit to poison the minds of children with the overblown, false, non-factual narrative about the history of Columbus,” stated Dr. Manny Alfano, Founder and President of IAOVC. “This is not only an attack on Italian Americans it is an attack against all Western culture, using Columbus as a figurehead. This is Anti-Italian and Anti-American.”
Continue reading Italian American Group Galvanizes Widespread Opposition to NEA Resolution to Eliminate Columbus Day
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, Over the last two weeks, since our launch, the Sunlight Policy Center of New Jersey (SPCNJ) has shined a strong light on two important issues related to the powerful NJEA.
We showed, with each step clearly sourced, how the NJEA leadership funds its powerful political machine through a unique system based on billions of taxpayer dollars. We have also highlighted the political professionals who have specifically benefitted from all that money, whether it be the millions in political contributions to elected officials or the millions more to NJEA headquarters staff, including six one-percenters who make ten times more than their union membership.
Continue reading How Much Does The NJEA Really Spend On Politics?
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, according to Garden State Initiative the NJ’s teachers’ pension fund (TPAF) will be bankrupt by 2029 & Public Employees’ Retirement System (PERS) by 2034.
There is a current unfunded liability of $41 billion in the TPAF & PERS pension funds for teachers and state employees that will rise to $51 billion in 2023.
This is unsustainable for New Jersey taxpayers who are facing a fiscal cliff of tax increases to pay for public employee pensions. Reform is needed. Now.
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, Last week, the Sunlight Policy Center of New Jersey issued a report that made news throughout the state, when we uncovered that the NJEA has been secretly funneling millions of dollars into a dark money group supporting Governor Murphy.
Continue reading Did You Know that Every New Jersey Property Taxpayer Directly Funds New Jersey’s Most Powerful Special Interest Group?
