The Ridgewood Blog Brings a Free Market Laissez-faire Point of View to Local, New Jersey State and National Issues.
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
KEARNY, NJ — A 36-year-old IT employee at Hudson Arts and Science Charter Middle School in Kearny has been arrested and charged following allegations of inappropriate sexual conduct involving two students under the age of 13, according to the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office.
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Montclair NJ, Montclair public schools were closed on Monday following a “potential threat” that led to the arrest of a teacher on administrative leave. The incident underscores the district’s commitment to student and staff safety while highlighting swift action by local authorities.
Continue reading Montclair School Closure: Teacher Charged After Potential Threat
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, with the discussion on back to school heating up many concerned parents are looking for alternatives. On of those options are home schooling, which some parents are investigating after positive experiences with remote classes this spring after most schools closed. While these options may appear similar on the surface, remote classes and home schooling are very different. Home school options vary widely, including utilizing existing curricula or developing personalized course work, and the standards and requirements vary from state to state.
While online classes and home school may be effective, they may not be viable options for everyone. These options may require computers, tablets, or smartphones and reliable high-speed internet service to fully participate, particularly for live-streamed classes or video sessions. Availability for both computers and internet services may not be feasible for lower-income families or those living in remote areas, and many parents may not be able to continue to work remotely or remain at home in order to supervise their children during the day.
Continue reading Parents Take 2nd Look at “Home Schooling” in Era of COVID-19
To my fellow residents,
I feel there is currently a disconnect between the board, teachers and residents and a lack of transparency from the board. The Board of Education budget is 65% of our property taxes and spending has increased by over 30 million dollars in the last ten years. It is critical to control spending by sharing services with the Village and working with the Village Council in an effort to stabilize or reduce spending. I want to make sure we are working as one community, the Board of Education and the Village Council should be working together and sharing purchasing opportunities, maintenance costs, security and any other costs that can be shared in an effort to reduce spending.
Continue reading Cristopher Kaufman Makes His Case for the Ridgewood Board of Education
JANUARY 8, 2016, 7:04 PM LAST UPDATED: SATURDAY, JANUARY 9, 2016, 12:23 AM
BY HANNAN ADELY
STAFF WRITER |
THE RECORD
A media frenzy that ignited after a Fair Lawn student was questioned about comments she made online about a “pro-Israel girl” in her school has left in its wake a worried family, a divided community, and a school that has been hammered by negative attention from around the world in an incident that some local residents say was misconstrued.
Bethany Koval
The controversy unfolded after high school junior Bethany Koval wrote, in detail, online, about being questioned by administrators over a tweet cheering that a pro-Israel student had “unfollowed” her on Twitter and her sharing the student’s name in a private message to a friend. She believed she was targeted by school administrators, she said, because of her anti-Israel political opinions on Twitter.
On Friday, Koval, 16, continued to draw wide support online as people viewed the incident as an attempt to stifle free speech and criticism of Israel. Locally, some residents defended the school, saying officials were only doing their duty to investigate a bullying allegation that a student had lodged against Koval.
JUNE 29, 2015 LAST UPDATED: MONDAY, JUNE 29, 2015, 2:52 PM
BY MATTHEW SCHNEIDER
STAFF WRITER |
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
Ridgewood Schools Superintendent Daniel Fishbein sent out a letter last month in response to two incidents that took place in the district.
Incident at GW
The letter described the recent “swatting” incident that took place at George Washington Middle School, in which someone phoned in a false shooter threat that the school nonetheless took seriously for safety’s sake.
The incident forced the school into lockdown procedures, with the students hiding in classrooms and the teachers working with police officers to ensure safety.
“Unfortunate as the swatting incident was, it proved that our response plan is effective in this type of emergency,” Fishbein said. “The first Ridgewood police car arrived at GWMS within 39 seconds. Four municipalities responded swiftly in a coordinated effort. Some police were responsible to enter the building while others secured the area around the school.
“Our communication to parents and guardians went out as quickly as we had factual information to report,” he said.
Fishbein described the way that parents attempted to go to the school during the threat, and explained that they would be turned away until the threat had abated.
He also expounded upon the fact that the fire department’s phone lines were tied up by concerned parents inquiring about their children’s safety.
Fishbein expressed relief that Ridgewood police officers are trained in live-fire drills at the schools, allowing them to handle such situations with practiced ease.
How are these results positive? They were discovered during a false alarm, mitigating their potential for disaster and allowing the school to make the appropriate responses and adjustments for the next time such an event should occur, if one ever does, Fishbein said.
Incident at BF
The next portion of the letter focused on the recent incident between a former janitor and student at Benjamin Franklin Middle School.
https://www.northjersey.com/news/education/superintendent-letter-seeks-to-reassure-parents-1.1365437