District's Vision Statement Reminder, Student Representatives' Updates, Special Education Updates, Enrollment Disparity and More
As I sat down this week to prepare my recap of the March 27 Board of Ed meeting, I went back to remind myself of the District’s Vision Statement: To ensure that our students graduate with the skills, knowledge, and behaviors necessary for success in a global society and with the personal and social attributes to maximize their opportunity for a meaningful life. With that, I thought I would summarize things a little differently this time for those who were not able to attend:
Student Representatives provided updates on recent events and activities happening in their respective schools. Sophia Wowkun, the Ramapo representative, shared various achievements in sports, extracurricular activities, and support for college and career readiness programs. She also announced upcoming events and opportunities for students, such as the theater program's performance of Urine Town, the district art show, and the Ramapo High School Jazz Festival. Additionally, she reported the up upcoming events and opportunities available to students by the Guidance Department, including the Second Annual Violence Prevention Symposium at Ramapo College, the 2023 Girls Career Institute at Rutgers University, and the Ramapo High School Alumni Forum. Kinjal Patel, the Indian Hills representative, also reported on sports accomplishments and upcoming events. She mentioned Indian Hills' recognition at the Bergen County coaches association dinner and numerous student-athlete awards. She also shared information on student club events, such as the Interact Club's Bunny Bag Collection and Hills Spike Out Hunger Spike Ball Tournament. Both representatives provided great updates and remind us of the great things happening in our schools and the many opportunities available to students. The full transcript of their reports can be found below.
Our Superintendent, Dr. Dionisio, started his report by commending and thanking the two Student Representatives for their hard work and dedication. He emphasized the importance of their role in representing the student voice at the Board table and commended them for their commitment to this task. He also expressed gratitude to the Director of Special Education, Dr. Mauriello, for his efforts in to bolster the district’s Special Education department and coordinating a partnership with Saint Elizabeth's University. Dr. Dionisio shared his deep respect for the district systems information analyst, Mr. Brian Belthoff, who resigned and recognized his significant contributions to the district over his 21 years of service. Additionally, he showed an incredible willingness to be responsive to the needs of our Muslim community by recommending that one of the unused snow days be given back as a holiday for Eid al-fitter. Overall, Dr. Dionisio's report was informative, thoughtful, and reflective of his true dedication to the district and its students. The full transcript of his report can be found below.
Other items I thought were of interest:
• Policy 0155.2 Use of Teleconferencing in Committee Meetings removed the requirement that Board members affirm they are in a location that ensures privacy. Sullivan, Ansh, Emmolo, Mariani and Bogdansky voted for the new Policy that removed the best practice guardrails that were in place. Almost 20 minutes of a 1 hour and 45 minute meeting was spent discussing this one item (almost 20% of the meeting).
• The Board unanimously voted yes on three HIB (Harassment, Intimidation and Bullying) recommendations, a continued reversal by Sullivan, Ansh, Emmolo, Mariani and Bogdansky who voted down 6 of the 9 Superintendent’s recommendations earlier this year.
• The Board unanimously voted to approve the Feb 13 Board Meeting Minutes. This was the exact same Minutes the five (Sullivan, Ansh, Emmolo, Mariani and Bogdansky) voted down last meeting. No changes were made. Kim Ansh stated that she wanted the Board Secretary to be “more fair and balanced”, a clue that she knew what changes the five wanted and didn’t get.
• A FLOW resident and longtime teacher with experience in both Education and Special Education was recommended by the Superintendent as a substitute teacher, and was voted down by five Board members (Sullivan, Ansh, Emmolo, Mariani, Bogdansky). It is really hard to find good subs for our schools. To have someone with both education and special education experience is a huge plus for our students. Why was this person voted down?
• Disparity in enrollment was an issue raised by members of the community, including an Indian Hills teacher and coach. He noted that total enrollment at IHHS will be around 686, and at Ramapo it will be 1,296. This leads to disparity in learning environment, class offerings, sports offerings, etc. No proposals are currently on the table to address the issues, although the Superintendent reported that students have been surveyed about which school they chose and why. The answers were generally sports, friends, and transportation/distance.
• School Ethics charges brought by Oakland resident and former board president Filomena LaForgia against board member Vivian King concerning any conflict of interest regarding Yudin’s Appliances were dismissed by the School Ethics Commission. A link to the full School Ethics Commission Decision can be found here.
A final thought: Board President Judy Sullivan continues to lavish praise on the four Board members who are part of her majority. It is important to note that the four Board members she chooses to ignore are elected representatives of our community as well, work equally hard, and provide equal commitment and contribution to the overall operation of the district.
Transcript of Ramapo Student Rep Report:
Transcript of Indian Hills Student Rep Report:
Transcript of Superintendent Report (2 Pages):
