>Abbott Schools: Why do the Newark public schools get inferior results compared to the Newark Catholic schools while spending far more per pupil?
The questions that the judge should ask are:
1. How much it costs to educate a Newark child in the Newark Catholic school system?
2. Why are the Newark public schools so much more costly on a per pupil basis?
3. Why do the Newark public schools get inferior results compared to the Newark Catholic schools while spending far more per pupil?
>RIDGEWOOD SCHOOLS MARCH IS YOUTH ART MONTH The District is honoring student artists this month with an exhibition of their work. The exhibit, on Floor 3 of the Education Center, is open to the public. An artists reception will be held on Thursday, March 10, from 6:30-8 p.m.
Silent Film – Organ Improvisation West Side Parton Series
West Side Presbyteiran Church, 6 South Monroe St., Ridgewood Thursday, March 11th at 7:30PM. Dr. John Schwandt, nationally acclaimed organist and performer, will provide organ improvisation to the charlie Chaplin film, The Gold Rush, using period tunes to underscore the characters and actions of the movie. This movie was Chaplin’s personal favorite film which showcases the classic “Tramp” character as a romantic idealist and gold prospector. Admission is free
Dad’s Night Friday, March 11 – 7pm & Saturday, March 12 – 4pm
DAD’S NIGHT is here again . .. 67 years strong, this timeless tradition boasts 230+ dads who will don costumes, build sets, and deliver lines to the endless delight of their children! Sponsors in the Dad’s Night Ad Journal and money collected during intermission will solely benefit Hawes & Somerville Elementary Schools – and the kids! Last year, approximately $40,000 was raised, and the funds paid for Smartboards, an interactive Science Day, Robotics Club, and new playground equipment additions. Show Dates: Friday, March 11 at 7 PM; Saturday, March 12 at 4 PM Location: Ben Franklin Middle School, 335 North Van Dien Avenue, Ridgewood, NJ Cost: $0 – Donation Bucket Passed at Intermission
West Side Concert Series Organ Concert
Sunday, March 13 at 4PM; West Side Presbyterian Church, 6 S. Monroe St., Ridgewood. Dr. John Schwandt, Associate Professor of Organ at University of Oklahoma will perform works by Bach, Widor, Dupre, and Ireland. Tickets: 201/652-1966 or www.westside.org
Fish and Chips Dinner All Are Welcome!
TASTEFULLY BRITISH CATERS FISH & CHIPS AT CHRIST CHURCH RIDGEWOOD Christ Episcopal Church, Ridgewood to hold Fish and Chips dinner on Wednesday, March 16. Tastefully British will cater this evening fabulous fish fry. We invite you to join us for dinner from 5pm – 7 pm in our Great Hall. There will be yummy, homemade desserts and beverages will be provided. Cost is $13 per person and two young children may share one dinner. Tickets must be purchased in advance. And take out is available, again with a pre-purchased ticket. Tickets may be obtained weekdays at the church office. Please call 201.652.2350. Christ Church is located on the corner of Franklin Avenue and Cottage Place. If you are using a GPS, you may enter 105 Cottage Place, Ridgewood as your destination. Go to our website: www.christchurchridgewood.org for more information.
Annual St. Patrick’s Dinner Dance
Saturday, March 19th, 7:00 p.m. Mount Carmel gymnasium,52 Passaic Street.The Village Caterer will be providing traditional Irish fare of corned beef and cabbage. Renowned New York City musicians Bob and Norm will be playing Irish classics and great dance music. There will also be a special appearance by the Irish Step Dancers. “This is one of our biggest fundraisers of the year, and it is a great opportunity for friends and neighbors to get together for a night of fun”, said Doug Findlay, organizer of the event. Tickets are $45 each.Payment can be mailed to:Doug Findlay 211 Circle Ave.Ridgewood, NJ 07450,(201) 670-9514
>REPORT SUMMARIZES JANUARY COMMUNITY PLANNING PROCESS
At the Board meeting on Monday, February 28, Ms. Nancy Stern, of Sousa & Stern Educational Consultants LLC, provided an update on the Community Planning process that was conducted in January. A packet that includes suggested goal statements and strategies was presented to the Board. The packet is considered to be a living document that can be revised as goals and strategies evolve. The next step in the Community Planning process is for the administration to create Action Plans, based on the suggestions and ideas that resulted from the January workshop. Pertinent summaries of the goal statements and strategies from the January workshop can be found on the Board page of the District website, under Board Goals. Click here to go directly to the report.
>Walker notifies unions of layoffs, but gives Democrats 15 days to reverse move
By Patrick Marley and Jason Stein of the Journal Sentinel
Madison — Gov. Scott Walker notified unions Friday of impending layoffs if a budget-repair bill isn’t passed in the next 15 days, even as both Republicans and Democrats showed signs of moving from their entrenched positions as they try to break a stalemate that has lasted nearly three weeks.
Walker warned Thursday that he would issue the notices on Friday that would affect up to 1,500 state employees. The actual notices, however, did not spell out how many people could be laid off, and a spokesman for the governor said the layoffs could be reduced by employee retirements.
https://www.jsonline.com/news/statepolitics/117405123.html
>Village Council looks at Preliminary Budget Numbers
the Staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ – With the Village budget set to increase 7.81% the Village Council has started the process of working down the budget increase to get it within a 2% state-mandated cap. The council is expected to pass a resolution allowing it to raise the budget by 3.5 % ,however passing this measure would not necessarily mean the budget will come in over the 2% cap.
The Village needs to cut at least $377,000 from the current preliminary budget numbers. Village Manager Ken Gabbert told the Ridgewood News that at the same time that at this time last year,the Village was looking at a 13.4% budget increase . Measures were taken including employee layoffs that brought the increase down to a still sizable increase of 4.79% . No layoffs have been discussed so far this year.
>March 04, 2011
Governor Christie’s Budget Adds $4.7 Million for Local Schools
Kevin O’Toole
Dear Friend:
I am pleased to announce that the proposed state budget for the next fiscal year projects that the towns in District 40 will receive at least an additional $4,703,383 in education aid, almost doubling the total for the thirteen towns in Legislative District 40 and netting $10,693,293.
This additional aid will be applied as badly needed additional property tax relief.
The supplementary aid for our schools is included in a budget that spends less for the second year in a row and cuts business taxes to create jobs and help spur economic recovery. The Governor’s plan is more equitable because it provides increased school aid for every single school district in the state, rural, suburban and urban, not just the select few urban districts.
The tough choices made last year by Governor Christie and the Legislature to bring about fiscal discipline has created the opportunity for the increase in school aid this year. In my role as a member of the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee I will search for any further amounts that can enhance education aid for our schools.
The additional school aid plan would provide local schools with the following additional amounts:
School District School Aid Increase ($)
CEDAR GROVE TWP $244,259
FRANKLIN LAKES BORO $251,625
LITTLE FALLS TWP $123,778
MAHWAH TWP $554,386
MIDLAND PARK BORO $191,303
OAKLAND BORO $251,532
RIDGEWOOD VILLAGE $849,425
RINGWOOD BORO $201,584
VERONA BORO $275,172
WANAQUE BORO $145,530
WAYNE TWP $1,290,732
WYCKOFF TWP $324,057
>Projected 8.9 percent increase in N.J. pension bills underscores need for reform, treasurer says
Jarrett Renshaw/Statehouse Bureau
TRENTON — Local governments and school districts will see their pension bills climb by 8.9 percent next year, according to figures released Friday by the state Department of Treasury.
The steep rise follows an even bigger 22 percent increase in the local pension bill for 2011. State Treasurer Andrew Sidamon-Eristoff said the increases underscore the need for lawmakers to pass the pension reforms proposed by Gov. Chris Christie.
“Without passage of the governor’s reform package, local taxpayers will put almost $1 billion more into public employee pension funds over the next five years,” Treasurer Andrew Sidamon-Eristoff said. “The cost of local pension contributions in 2011 and 2012 illustrates again the high cost of doing nothing about pension and benefit cost inflation.”
https://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2011/03/nj_pension_bills_to_rise_by_89.html
>Welcome Home, Democrats
BY PAUL ARONSOHN
It warmed my heart. It gave me hope.
When thousands of police officers and firefighters converged on the state capitol yesterday, they were greeted by scores of Democratic legislators. From Barbara Buono to Paul Sarlo … from Bonnie Watson Coleman to Joe Cryan — the Democrats were out in full force to welcome NJ’s finest with words of support and gratitude.
In many respects, it was a flashback to an earlier time – when Democrats would stand shoulder-to-shoulder with union workers, particularly those who put their lives on the line every day. The banners and signs. The adrenaline-filled speeches. The solidarity between Democrats and the hardworking people they represent. It was all there, and it was all good.
Sadly, however, it was all too unfamiliar as well.
For the past year, my Party has largely stood on the sidelines as union workers were vilified and scapegoated. Silent and passive, many Democrats did nothing as others attacked the very people at the center of our Party. No defense. No counteroffensive. No nothing. During the past year’s great debate over worker’s rights and responsibilities, the Democrats – by and large – refused to show up.
This is not to suggest that all Democrats have abandoned the cause. Some of our legislators not only get it; they have also demonstrated their willingness to passionately fight for it.
And this is not to suggest that Democrats and union members should agree with each other on each and every issue and negotiating position. Quite the contrary. The Democratic Party is as diverse as union membership, and thus, disagreements over the particulars are not uncommon.
https://www.politickernj.com/45532/welcome-home-democrats
>Christie wants to grade teachers
A Christie administration task force has proposed that a combination of test scores, personal observation and school-wide performance be used in New Jersey to figure out which public school teachers are the most successful. (Fleisher, The Wall Street Journal)
https://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703300904576178891699058806.html?KEYWORDS=jersey
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Photo Caption: Guests enjoy themselves during intermission at a past CantaLyrica Cabaret/Auction.
>Parents who didn’t support the “dumb dumb” math were talked down to and ignored to promote Math program sold by the text book publisher
“I was one of the parents who examined all four of the proposed elementary school math programs when they had an open house at cottage place. I voted for Singapore Math, along with many others. I have an engineering degree and know a little bit about math. Unfortunately, my vote was overruled.”
“I was one of the parents from my childs elementary school selected to participate in the very first focus group. I also reviewed all of the proposed elementary at Cottage Place and presented my input at that time. I, too, felt Singapore was the best and most appropriate program for our Ridgewood students. On both occasions, my iput was ignored. Why, you ask? Because I am a highly educated, working scientist and not a math educator! I was told that I did not understand the way children learn (despite the fact that I was heavily afterschooling all of my kids in math).”
“How about the math teachers that tell a class full of parents on back to school night NOT to help their children with homework because you (the parents) won’t understand it. Talk about the arrogance! The majority of parents probably have Master’s degrees and NOT from Montclair.”
“I do remember being talked down to by the math teacher. Sort of joking about parents not understanding new math. I may have missed something, but math is not new. The programs sold by the text book publishers are new and there is a sucker born every minute (Botsford).”
“How patronizing to pretend that parents don’t understand how to teach math. I have a middle schooler and I teach him math every night. He gets NOTHING from school.I teach him and he understands.”
>Abbot v. Burke fact-finding hearings: It’s all over – but the final report
The deputy attorney general was the last to speak after three weeks of hearings in the Abbott v. Burke school equity case, and she was barely into her closing statement when the judge chimed in with a question. (Mooney, NJ Spotlight)
https://www.njspotlight.com/stories/11/0302/2248/
>Connected and enVision Math a boom for the math tutoring business
Wow, it sure is a “I told you so” moment. Sad how educators are ruining education from Ridgewood to NYC all in the name of, “it’s for the children.”
Regina has to go and Daniel has to fix this pronto. Not another year should go by with our children being subjugated to either Connected or enVision Math.
Write the cost of both programs off, admit our mistake and implement Singapore Math ASAP. Then parents, teachers and even older siblings will be able to help our kids learn math.
A friend of mine sarcastically quipped that he loves these new crappy math programs. That’s because he owns a math tutoring business.
The marketplace never lies. Create a demand and it will be filled. My friends business is booming. Way to go Regina I had know idea your goal was to create more jobs in the private sector. And all this time I had you pegged as a lefty liberal. My bad. Sorry.
>5 Lesser Known European Islands
Here are five spectacular, yet lesser-known European islands where you and your loved ones can escape the crowds.
1. St. Agnes
St. Agnes, one of the Isles of Scilly, is the southernmost inhabited bit of England. Temperatures are moderate and pleasant year-round with beaches and shorelines reminiscent of the Caribbean. You can spend your time walking around the island, visiting the lighthouse, and relaxing over a pint at the Turk’s Head, England’s southernmost pub.
2. Corvo, Portugal
This island boasts a stunning verdant caldera with two crater lakes. It is also well-known as a birdwatching spot. Food lovers should enjoy Corvo’s local handmade cheese, distinctive corn bread, and larded tarts made with rock grass.
3. Kasos, Greece
Situated between Crete and Karpathos, Kasos is a sparsely populated dot on the map at the southern end of the Dodecanese Islands. The island has several remarkable beaches, delightful churches, and maintains a busy festival schedule throughout the year. The festival of St. Marina, held on July 17, is the most important summer season festival event.
4. Bornholm, Denmark
This rural island is packed with attractions. Among these is Hammershus, the largest castle ruin in Northern Europe, which dates back to the 12th Century. Bornholm is also a hub for arts and crafts, and hosts an annual Culture Week festival in September.
5. Hiiumaa, Estonia
This quiet western Estonian island is full of charming rural corners: old churches, lighthouses, little forested islets, and beaches for swimming and sunning. Hiking is a big draw here, and there are also opportunities for horseback riding and kayaking.
For more information or to book your next trip, contact:
The Travel Center / American Express
“Ridgewood’s ONLY Travel Agency”
50 E. Ridgewood Ave.
Ridgewood, NJ 07450
(201)447-3311
[email protected]
TheTravelCenterNJ.com
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