>I hope the Village Council will respect the voice of the voters and cut the Education budget. I just read an article in The Ridgewood News and it sounds like they are considering leaving the budget as is. What’s the point of voting? They need to cut the budget, and I don’t mean a token 1/10th of one percent like Jane Reilly either.
There are still cuts that can be made to administration staff and salaries that don’t directly affect students or teachers…..starting with the Office of Curriculum which is seriously overstaffed and undereffective. In my opinion the BOE has done a terrible job over the past 10 years. The Superintendent’s position has been a revolving door for many, many years. My child effectively went through 4 years of high school with no leadership in this critical position.
The BOE contracted and paid for consultants to advise them in this search, another waste of money. Their failure to negotiate with the teacher’s union (unlike Glen Rock and Wyckoff) is a disgrace. They are amateurs. The BOE representatives who have been serving for 15+ years are doing no service to the community and I would love to see term limits imposed. Some people get in, they never leave, and incumbents historically never lose, no matter what.
The community has spoken. They are sick of wasteful spending and weak decisions. If the Village Council does not respect this vote then I’m not even bothering to vote in Ridgewood ever again. It’s not for them to “interpret” the meaning of the vote. “No” means “no. Period.
>Stuart Lieberman, environmental attorney for The Preserve Graydon Coalition, has written a blog piece celebrating the wisdom of Ridgewood, NJ’s voters in electing preservation-minded candidates Tom Riche and Bernadette (Bernie) Walsh.
In a hotly contested municipal election involving four candidates running to fill two Council seats, the winners were the candidates who, among many other things, both publicly supported preserving an important local landmark –the Graydon Pool.
The two successful candidates openly (and we think quite correctly) opposed any effort to transform this natural, important landmark into a concrete pool. (The pool is really beautiful and has served the community for generations. Many local residents have strong memories attached to this landmark.)
Apparently, this issue meant a great deal to local voters – and in interviews some voters stated that the Graydon issue was an important one in deciding which way to vote.
Our hats go off to these two excellent candidates. And of course, to our amazing local community organization and other community organizations that dared to form and be heard.
Read Mr. Lieberman’s blog piece: Ridgewood Voters Choose Preservationist Candidates
>WHO wrote this article? Had to be either the Public Information Officer wrote this article or one of her friends. WHO could possibly make the argument that making cuts to textbooks and classroom materials, educators and programs that are REALLY a part of education, should be cut before a $40,000 (package) part time PR position? The information provided by the PR person is redundantly redundant. Years ago when taxpayers/parents wanted better information it revolved around a more comprehensive website with regular updates. That seems to have been achieved but not refined!
The mere fact that the Public Information Officer has the time to copy and paste those ridiculous inspirational quotes that clutter the beginning of every email is enough to “delete” the position.
AND the arrogance of the writer who makes the statement “not to blindly follow voters who are mad about their property taxes and who haven’t a clue what is required to educate 5700 students of all levels”.
Fire the PR person. Set up a Taxpayer/parent/non-parent task force to audit the excesses in each of the schools. The collaborative model alone has become a membership bonanza for the REA while totally unproductive. AND why are elementary school principals (k-5) earning $150,000? The BOE was forced to finally cut. But they are not cutting to bare bone. They are cutting the FAT from the hiring frenzy and excesses that have been going on for years.
For example: BFMS had (until this budget): 1 Principal, 2 Vice-principals, 2 (now 3) guidance counselors, 4 secretaries and GOD knows what else because that is not even getting to crisis counselors, social workers, psychologists, etc! It cost the Ridgewood taxpayers $1 million+ dollars for those first ten people before even getting to a teacher in the 680 student building. Secretaries earning $50,000 plus benefits for doing WHAT? With all that staffing how could anyone miss the bullying going on in the building? In fact, it might be too many people shifting work and responibility around! That school needs 1 principal, 1 Vice-principal and 1 guidance counselor(maybe). RUN a tight ship with zero-tolerance and see how things change for the better!
THERE is so much more waste in the district. The biggest waste and the first job to go should have been the Public Information Officer who even got a trip/travel out of the Ridgewood taxpayers last year. Enough is Enough! Delete.
>ok, here’s the postmortem of the election (in my view)….
1. Ridgewood voters will not fall for McGreevey election techniques. They are too smart. Pressuring everyone you know to put signs on their lawn does not guarantee they’ll vote for you.
As I said in an earlier post, from my personal discussions with a lot of residents, C/D support was a mile wide and an inch deep. Walsh/Riche, who spent a fraction of what C/D spent, had a much better turnout. But if you drove around the west side, it would have appeared that C/D would have won handily, and they didn’t.
The loudest voice does not win in a town such as ours.
Understated advertising and intelligent arguments are the way to win.
2. The town is sick of tax and spend liberals in office.
The last two elections have confirmed it. Ridgewood needs to get its fiscal house in order. That includes the school system. Suggest otherwise at your own peril.
We’re not so dumb as not to realize that the school spending has become an arms race you can’t win. Get back to basics.
Similarly, voters realized that if Cronk was elected, his wife (co-chair of the RPP) would suddenly reappear and it would have been much easier to push thru an expensive redo of Graydon.
Prediction: Graydon’s attendance is much better this summer since the water quality has improved and the RPP is not as big as a force as it was two years ago when it was scaring everybody away with negative advertising.
3. Valley Hospital growth needs to be contained
While we all appreciate the benefits of the hospital, its requests need to be balanced with the community’s at large.
Similar to the school system and corporations in general, the hospital has a tendency to “empire build” and if left unchecked will overexpand beyond what is truly necessary.
>The Fred d’Elia Memorial Day Ridgewood Run is a family-focused day of events that provide a fun environment in a festive open-park atmosphere. Seven distinct events provide the center of activity. They start at 8:30 AM and continue until after the conclusion of the Fun Run at noon. The road races are run through the tree-lined streets of the Village of Ridgewood NJ. Ridgewood is located in Bergen County bordering Rockland, Westchester, and New York counties.
The close proximity to New York City gives families from the NY Metropolitan area a chance to celebrate the holiday by spending a fun-filled weekend that concludes with a day of healthy exercise. At the Ridgewood Run, one spouse might run the 10K, the other the 5K, and then accompany the children in the Fun Run.
The Ridgewood Run has established itself as the must-run road race in the NY-NJ-Connecticut area on Memorial Day. The North Jersey Masters (NJM), the premier running club in Northern NJ, has been the organizer of the race since it’s inception in 1976. In those years NJM has built a reputation for hospitality and the ability to put on a quality day for all participants (see Race History).
Race Amenities in 2010 are: commerative t-shirt, a Flat & Fast Course, D-Tag Timing, a Baggage Check Area, Mile Clocks, Water Stops, Certified Routes. Other extras are: a Family Team competition in the 5K, Hotel discounts, and Photographs by Ken Shelton Photography.
Awards and Prizes are plentiful: 1) Prize money to the top three finishers in the Elite 1-Mile races, top 3 finishers in the 5K, and the top 10 Masters finishers in the 10K. 2) New Balance Gift Certificates to the top three finishers in each five-year age-group bracket. 3) Finisher’s Medal to all registered finishers of the Ridgewood YMCA Fun Run/Health Walk.
>Great news: Bernie Walsh and Tom Riche won the Village Council election last night
Ridgewood residents overwhelmingly elected the two candidates who had pledged to preserve Graydon. They will take office July 1.
Tom and Bernie expressed heartfelt thanks to all members of our Coalition who wrote letters to the editor, solicited votes, distributed flyers, spread the word on the internet, and—most important—voted.
Our attorney Stuart Lieberman responded via BlackBerry at 3:15 AM to our report of the election results: “Omg! You guys rock. Go democracy. Congrats.”
Here’s the scoreboard on the wall in the Senior Center at Village Hall where the candidates gathered to learn the election results as they came in. The numbers across the top represent voting districts.
The newly elected Council members and their supporters, including Marcia, Suzanne, and Alan, headed for an impromptu celebration at Bernie and Mike Walsh’s house. Also of our group, Eileen Negrycz gave Bernie a bouquet and Tim Collazzi and Danny Castellanos arrived later. Other guests included outgoing Councilman Pat Mancuso and former Council members Quentin Wiest and Jacques Harlow as well as friends and family.
How you can celebrate: Buy Graydon badges for your family. Ridgewood residents (ages 2-61) pay last year’s prices through May 22. Ridgewood seniors age 62+ pay $15. Ho-Ho-Kus and Midland Park residents also welcome.
Residents of additional towns may join if sponsored by a Ridgewood resident with a current badge. Information: 201-670-5560.
The Parks & Recreation Department is holding its first-ever special Graydon badge senior signup tomorrow (Thursday, May 13) from 9:30 AM to 12:30 PM on the first floor of Village Hall. Every Ridgewood resident age 62+ is encouraged to come buy a badge. Cash, check, or Visa or MasterCard accepted.
For free door-to-door transportation for the badge day, reserve a ride on the Senior Bus at 201-670-5500 x200. Call today (Wednesday) for a ride on Thursday.
Other ways to buy badges
Looking to the future with relief and anticipation, Marcia Ringel and Suzanne Kelly, Co-Chairs The Preserve Graydon Coalition, Inc., a nonprofit corporation “It’s clear—we love Graydon!” [email protected] https://www.preservegraydon.org/
We know that Graydon is not the only issue. But it is a significant and symbolic one. Graydon is the heart of the Village, both literally and figuratively. Yet some wish to rip it out and pave it over. Important points to consider before pressing the button
• Flood hazard zone. Among the candidates, only Bernie and Tom understand the expense, danger, and recklessness of paving over a flood hazard area that repeatedly experiences severe flooding.
Residents who are relatively new to town cannot imagine the destruction that Ridgewood has already experienced from floods, including canoes down the streets and evacuations. They cannot fathom how much worse the situation could be without Graydon, our 3-million-gallon catch basin—now routinely emptied to make room for all the rain when big storms are predicted. Excess water also seeps down through the sand afterward. Those tons of water could end up in our neighbors’ basements and worse.
DO NOT BELIEVE protestations that certain minds are open to improvements at Graydon of the type we envision. DO NOT BELIEVE that a Request for Proposals (RFP) would merely invite “new ideas”—it’s a contract document for a big construction job.
Electing the other candidates would be Graydon’s death knell.
• Fiscal restraint. Bernie and Tom know that taking out additional large bonds could compromise Ridgewood’s ability to borrow. They urge financial caution.
• Independent thinkers. The other two candidates could form a three-vote majority with a like-minded sitting council member.
• Homegrown campaigns. No huge donations. No expensive political consulting agency. No multiple mailings of glossy flyers. No ten million yard signs on unoccupied property. Just the candidates.
Village Council elections have low turnout. Make sure every registered voter in your household visits the polls between 6 AM and 8 PM.
RIDGEWOOD IS COUNTING ON YOU TO DO THE RIGHT THING. VOTE FOR COGHLAN-WALSH AND RICHE.
x Line 1: Bernadette Coghlan-Walsh Line 2: [ignore] Line 3: [ignore] x Line 4: Thomas M. Riche
>Executive summary for Tuesday, May 11 * Line 1: Bernadette Coghlan-Walsh Line 2: [ignore] Line 3: [ignore] * Line 4: Thomas M. Riche
We endorse Bernadette Coghlan-Walsh and Thomas M. Riche for Council. They proudly display “Keep Graydon Natural” signs on their front lawns. Only if they are elected will Graydon as we know it be likely to survive.
The polls will be open from 6 AM to 8 PM. That’s 14 hours—no excuses, please.
What else you can do: Call as many people as you can ON MONDAY to discuss the issues and ask them to vote for Walsh and Riche (pronounced RICH-ee). One-on-one conversations are the best way to encourage participation.
Talking points: The other two candidates would form a three-vote majority with Councilman Paul Aronsohn. The Council should consist of five independent thinkers. Village Council elections often have low turnout and are close. Everyone’s vote will count. Ask the people you call to make sure every registered voter in the household gets to the polls. Encourage them to “make it viral” and call others. Time is tight; e-mail is better than nothing.
A democracy gets precisely what it deserves. Deserve the best. Vote for Tom and Bernie on TUESDAY, MAY 11. Swimmingly, Marcia Ringel and Suzanne Kelly, Co-Chairs The Preserve Graydon Coalition, Inc., a nonprofit corporation “It’s clear—we love Graydon!”
TRENTON — A state appeals court today rejected Gov. Chris Christie’s executive order curbing political donations by public worker unions.
The three-judge panel said Christie’s action infringed on separation of powers with the Legislature, and such donation limits cannot be imposed by a governor unilaterally.
“We do not reach this conclusion lightly. Nor do we otherwise discount or question the Governor’s policy objectives or his considerable and well-established constitutional authority over the Executive Branch and the management of the State workforce,” the judges wrote. “We simply hold that what (the executive order) seeks to achieve must be pursued through legislation.”
• N.J.’s largest state worker union files challenge to Gov. Christie’s ban on political donations The order, signed by Christie on his first full day in office in January, broadened campaign finance rules to limit donations by labor unions that have public contracts. Christie said he was simply bringing unions in line with other “business entities,” such as law and engineering firms that have state contracts worth more than $17,500. Those businesses are barred from donating more than $300 to statewide campaigns, but freer to give in local races.
Several unions sued, saying the order violates members’ First Amendment rights by barring them from supporting candidates and participating in the legislative process. Organized labor, a traditional Democratic constituency, worked feverishly against the Republican Christie during the gubernatorial campaign.
They also said collective bargaining contracts could not be treated like business deals.
The ruling will take effect July 1, “in the interests of accommodating potential review by the Supreme Court.”
The Communications Workers of America, the largest state workers’ union, said it was “gratified” by the ruling.
“The Court rightly held that the Legislature never intended to restrict the right of labor unions to participate in the political process, and the governor has no power to do so on his own,” said Hetty Rosenstein, CWA New Jersey State Director. “Today’s decision is a valuable reminder of the wisdom of our system of three co-equal branches of government.”
Christie said he was not happy to see the order struck down, and would consider whether to appeal the ruling, seek legislation, or pursue another route to accomplish the same goals.
“We’re going to look at all of our different options,” Christie said at a press conference. “The executive order was about achieving a policy objective, and that is to level the playing field.”
“I don’t think that there is one class of speech that should be regulated, and another class of speech that should not be,” the governor said.
Adding unions to the pay-to-play restrictions had been praised by the Election Law Enforcement Commission, the state’s campaign finance watchdog agency.
Unsure what to give Mom for Mother’s Day? Give the gift of choice – an American Express Gift Cheque. Available at The Travel Center / American Express, in denominations of $25, $50 and $100 for a fee of $2.50 per cheque, Gift Cheques can be used to buy virtually anything.
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Upcoming Gift-Giving Occasions:
*Mother’s Day – Sunday, May 9
*Father’s Day – Sunday, June 20
*Graduations
*Weddings / Showers
*Teacher Appreciation
*Birthdays
*Anniversaries
Have additional questions? Contact The Travel Center / American Express and speak with a Financial Services Representative:
>New Jersey Laborers Union Endorses Republican Kathleen Donovan for Bergen County Executive
One of the state’s most powerful unions, the New Jersey Laborers Union, endorsed Bergen County Clerk Kathleen Donovan for Bergen County Executive today, citing her management experience, her ability to reach across party lines and build consensus, and her vision for responsible economic development in Bergen County as well as her commitment to improving infrastructure and creating jobs for local residents.
With more than 20,000 members statewide, including 900 members of Building Laborers Local 592 of Fort Lee, and 8,000 members of General and Heavy Construction Laborers Local 472, which represents Northern New Jersey–the New Jersey Laborers Union is committing its full resources to the Donovan campaign.
It is anticipated that hundreds of laborers will volunteer time to the campaign through phone banking, voter registration drives, get out the vote drives, and member-to-member education.
Laborers Vice-President and Eastern Regional Manager Raymond M. Pocino called the early endorsement a sign of the union’s confidence in Ms. Donovan. “Through the years, no matter which political party was on the rise or what party was down, Bergen residents time and again re-elected Kathe Donovan for public office. There is a reason for that. It is because of her consistency of effort, her commitment to put people first and her ability to solve problems and create opportunities,” said Pocino. “We support her candidacy for county executive, and more importantly, we support her vision for Bergen County.”
Pocino praised Kathe Donovan’s leadership and experience with economic development as a key factor for endorsement. “Kathleen Donovan was the first woman to chair the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and she understands that prosperity won’t happen without smart public investment and job growth,” said Pocino. “Kathe Donovan not only has a vision for Bergen County’s future but she also has a track record that residents can trust.”
The New Jersey Laborers Union is affiliated with the Laborers’ International Union of North America (LIUNA), and represents more than 20,000 members statewide in various industries, including construction, clean energy, environmental remediation, sanitation and recycling, security, and education. The New Jersey Laborers are widely viewed as having been instrumental in helping to lift living standards and workplace safety for employees in construction, clean energy, and hazardous materials removal, and for developing innovative cooperative relationships with employers.
>Ridgewood Water Company subscribers may soon be faced with additional rate increases following a revelation at Wednesday evening’s Village Council Work Session that an electric service hook up to the new Valley View Avenue water storage tank will cost $135K.
Although the $135K estimate for electric service installation was presented to Ridgewood Water Company officials on September 4, 2009, Village Council members were not made aware of the need for additional project funding until April of 2010.
It is believed that the recently installed Valley View Avenue water storage tank will not become operational until the $135K electric service installation is complete. Thus, Village Council members have now been backed into somewhat of a corner. That is, they must approve an unexpected $135K expenditure, or be faced with a new water storage facility that can’t be made operational (and lawn sprinkler peak season is rapidly approaching).
The Fly would like to know how many more Village employees will be laid off in order to make up for the surprise $135K expenditure?
>Union protest outside Valley today. They were asked to remove the coffin that they were using as a prop because it might upset the students walking past.
The hospital administration contacted us to let us know they have asked the protesters to get rid of the coffin when children are going to/coming out of school. The hospital is waiting to hear back from the protesters about that. In the mean time, the hospital has said they will have a security person (possibly an off-duty Ridgewood Police officer if one is available) cross students to other side of the road and they will try to put up some sort of barrier up to shield the coffin from view on that other side of the street.”
According to Valley Hospital administration a union is protesting about some asbestos removal work that hospital had done over the weekend. The hospital assured us that they used a properly licensed contractor and all the work was done with proper precautions and without incident; but union is unhappy that the contractor used union workers who were paid off the union scale because the contractor didn’t go through the union hall to get the workers.
The union has set up a display on Van Dien Ave. There are two people on the sidewalk handling out leaflets. On the grass between the sidewalk and the street they do a coffin set up on saw horses. Part of the coffin is open and a dummy is in there with a helmet and gas mask on. There is also a large sign in front of the coffin that says “Asbestos Kills”. The image may be disturbing to some children.
The hospital administration contacted us to let us know they have asked the protesters to get rid of the coffin when children are going to/coming out of school. The hospital is waiting to hear back from the protesters about that. In the mean time, the hospital has said they will have a security person (possibly an off-duty Ridgewood Police officer if one is available) cross students to other side of the road and they will try to put up some sort of barrier up to shield the coffin from view on that other side of the street.
There doesn’t appear to be any cause for alarm over this. We just want to make sure parents are aware of it if/when your children come home with an unusual story about their trip to or from school.
Over the past few weeks, Governor Christie and the media have made a big deal about some recently-released data. It showed that statewide, over the past 10 years, enrollment in New Jersey schools has grown 3%, while staffing in NJ schools has grown 14%. The Governor and others used these statistics to back-up the claim that there has been a “hiring spree” in our schools and that today there is “plenty of room to cut.” I would totally agree on a statewide level.
However, the statistics in Ridgewood are very different:
2000-2010 Ridgewood: (from DOE reporting) Enrollment Growth = 11% Total Staff Growth = 6.9%
And if we project ahead to next year (2010-11) based on the cuts we are making, it will look like this:
2000-2011 Ridgewood: (from DOE reporting) Enrollment Growth = 11% Total Staff Growth = 0%
In other words, Ridgewood’s staffing-to-enrollment growth ratio is the complete opposite of the rest of the state. (See year-by-year comparison chart at the end of this post.)
Unlike many other districts, Ridgewood is educating many more students in a much more rigorous program with much more state-mandated curriculum – and with the same number of staff — as 10 years ago. This doesn’t look like “bloat” to me.
FYI, the number of administrators in the district has gone down 34% in the same 10-year period. Our highest number of administrators was 37 in 2004-2005 down to 27 currently in 2009-2010 and cut to 21 next year. We have not had so few administrators in decades.
Our district serves 5,700+ students every day. And we will accomplish this next year with 21 administrators. I have to be honest and say while I’m all for streamlining and working “lean,” I’m a bit concerned about the workloads and effectiveness of those 21 administrators. It is for this reason that I can’t support cutting any more administration at this time.
Of course, if the Governor’s proposed 2.5% budget cap becomes law, we’ll be cutting our budget more next year, and we may have to find ways to consolidate a few more administrators. But for now, for this year, I think we’ve cut enough.
The Cartel will be playing at Bergen County Community College’s Anna Ciccone Theater this coming Wednesday at 7:30pm. Tickets are available on our website: https://www.thecartelmovie.com/
Here is a bio on Mr. Bowdon:
Bob Bowdon, The Cartel’s director, has been a New Jersey-based television producer, reporter, news anchor, and commentator for the past fifteen years. His varied career has seen him producing television shows; hosting news programs; conducting in-depth on-camera interviews; appearing in satirical news sketches for the Onion News Network; anchoring regional news broadcasts covering New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut; and shaping Bloomberg Television’s World Financial Report. He is president of Bowdon Media, an Internet marketing firm, and holds degrees in mechanical engineering, engineering management, and film production from Purdue University, Stanford University, and New York University. The Cartel is his first film.
And a short snyopsis of the movie:
Teachers punished for speaking out. Principals fired for trying to do the right thing. Union leaders defending the indefensible. Bureaucrats blocking new charter schools. These are just some of the people we meet in The Cartel. The film also introduces us to teens who can’t read, parents desperate for change, and teachers struggling to launch stable alternative schools for inner city kids who want to learn. Behind every dropout factory, we discover, lurks a powerful, entrenched, and self-serving cartel. Balancing local storylines against interviews with education experts, the film explores what dedicated parents, committed teachers, clear-eyed officials, and tireless reformers are doing to make our schools better for our kids. Together, these people and their stories offer an unforgettable look at how a widespread national crisis manifests itself in the educational failures and frustrations of individual communities. The Cartel takes us beyond the statistics, generalizations, and abstractions that typically frame our debates about education, and shows us our educational system like we’ve never seen it before.
