A monthly e-newsletter to keep you connected to your District

march 2019

Each year, the NJ Department of Education releases school performance reports on every public school in the State. Click HERE to access the reports for the 2017-18 school year and prior.

Family Wellness Series

MEETING HIGHLIGHTS

In March, the Board of Education held two public meetings.

MARCH 14, 2019

The first public meeting of the month focused on the approval of a preliminary budget for the upcoming 2019-2020 school year which represents continued support for existing programs and the goals of our Strategic Plan. The preliminary operating budget included:

2% Tax Levy Increase + Use of the Healthcare waiver + Portion of Banked Cap for a total of a 2.6% increase in the overall tax levy. For reference, the last adopted budget included an operating budget tax levy increase of 3.25%.
In addition to the general operating budget, at the meeting the Board also approved a withdrawal from capital reserves to facilitate the following needed facility improvements at no additional cost to the taxpayers:

The preliminary budget has since been submitted to the County Office of the Department of Education for review prior to a final vote for approval by the Board of Education at the public hearing on April, 25, 2019.

During the special public report portion of the meeting Dr. González presented a Progress Report on WRSD's District Goals

2018-19 Mid Year Review

Having trouble viewing it? Click HERE to view it as a PDF.

MARCH 28, 2019

The next regularly scheduled public meeting featured our Student of the Month and winter sports team and individual recognitions as well as reviewing our HS winter sports and visual/performing arts wrap up.

At the end of the meeting, the Board discussed and finalized a soil removal plan that included the removal of unsuitable soil off site and the reuse of the remaining soil to renovate the adjacent athletic fields.

Click HERE to view any of the agendas for our public meetings of the Board of Education.

UPCOMING BOARD MEETINGS

The April 25, 2019 public Board meeting will include our display of artwork by some of our HS students, student of the month recognitions, and the 2019-2020 Budget presentation and hearing. The meeting will begin at 6:30 PM, earlier than usual, for the Board to take part in a presentation by the NJ School Boards Association on the topic of Board Communications and Community Relations in support of their on-going pursuit to becoming a Certified Board.

The agenda for the meeting will be available in the afternoon on April 23. Click HERE to view all our agendas.

STUDENT ARTWORK ON DISPLAY

Westwood Regional Jr./Sr. High School Drawing I, Drawing II, Painting I, and Painting II students, under the direction of Pam Duffus: Lauren Rojo-Sanchez (11), Margaret Loftus (10), Ashley Francis (10), Alexandra Fulco (10), Amanda Anderson (12), Kaitlyn Anderson (12), Taylor Greene (12), Amanda DelRios (11), Jennifer Hoyos (10), and Sonia Williams (10)

Student Representatives Report

Each month at our public meeting of the Board of Education, our HS student representatives, Gabriella Dunay and Kaavya Muthuraman, report out on the exciting news and activity taking place at our Jr/Sr High School. Here's what they reported this month:

3/28 BOE Meeting

Click HERE to view an archive of the 2018-19 student representative reports from the Jr/Sr High School.

STUDENTS OF THE MONTH

Middle School and Jr/Sr High School

Jr/Sr High School: Ava Kemp and Steven Riedel

Middle School: Kaitlyn Langone and Michael Carcich

student ATHLETe RECOGNITIONS

Rachel Bussanich - Girls Basketball-surpassing 1,000 career points), Benny Dahdah - 6th in the State of NJ / 220-pound Wrestling Tournament , Isabella Park (not pictured) - 6th in State of NJ/500 Freestyle Event

girls basketball team

2019 North I Group II State Sectional Championship

Competition CHEERLEADING Team

2019 Group II All Music Championship

boys swim team

2019 North I Group A State Sectional Championship

Any policies currently under review by the full Board can found here and ALL final policies and regulations can be found on the district website under the Board of Education drop down menu.

The following Board policies were approved at the most recent Meeting of the Board of Education:

POLICIES

P2415.06 Unsafe School Choice Option (M)
P2422 Health and Physical Education (M)
P2431.3 Practice And Pre-Season Heat-Acclimation for School-sponsored Athletics and Extra-Curricular Activities
P2610 Educational Program Evaluation (M)
P4219 Commercial Driver’s License Controlled Substance and Alcohol Use Testing (M)
P5111 Eligibility of Resident/Nonresident Students (M)
P5337 Service Animals
P5600 Student Discipline/Code of Conduct (M)
P5611 Removal of Students for Firearms Offenses (M)
P5612 Assaults on District Board of Education Members or Employees (M)
P5613 Removal of Students for Assaults with Weapons Offenses (M)

P5756 Transgender Students (M)
P7440 School District Security (M)
P8461 Reporting Violence, Vandalism, Harassment, Intimidation, Bullying, Alcohol, and Other Drug Offenses (M)
P8561 Procurement Procedures for School Nutrition Program (M)
P8860 Memorials

REGULATIONS

R2460.8 Special Education-Free and Appropriate Public Education (M)
R5111 Eligibility of Resident/Nonresident Students (M)
R5530 Substance Abuse (M)
R5600 Student Discipline/Code of Conduct (M)
R5611 Removal of Students for Firearms Offenses (M)
R5612 Assaults on District Board of Education Members or Employees (M)
R5613 Removal of Students for Assaults with Weapons Offenses (M)

jen grochowski

Westwood Regional Jr./Sr. High School

HIGH SCHOOL TEACHER

After graduating from Fair Lawn High School, Dr. Grochowski attended Trenton State College (now TCNJ) and earned her BS in Health and Physical Education. She was fortunate enough to get hired right away by the Hillsborough School District where she taught for three years. She chose instead to pursue her MA in Special Education in Flagstaff, Arizona. Two years later she graduated from Northern Arizona University summa cum laude and had the chance to teach an elementary mathematics course as an adjunct professor. While she enjoyed living in Arizona because of all the outdoor activities (hiking, backpacking, rafting, climbing) and down-to-earth people, she decided to accept a

teaching position back in New Jersey. She taught special education in Summit for seven years before leaving to pursue a doctor of chiropractic degree from Life University in Marietta, GA. Upon graduation she returned to New Jersey and worked as an independent contractor for three and a half years.

She began to miss teaching and was fortunate enough to be hired by the Westwood Regional School District in the fall of 2013 at the Jr/Sr High School in the science and special education departments. “It felt amazing to be back in education!” Within a couple of years she acquired her Biology and Chemistry teaching certifications. “I have had the good fortune to co-teach with some incredible colleagues who I have learned a lot from. When the opportunity to create the Honors Anatomy and Physiology and co-create the Sports Medicine & Anatomy I and II electives came up a few years ago, it was exciting.” Teaching anatomy and physiology had been a goal of hers for a very long time. She is grateful for the chance to teach something she enjoys so much. She consults with the AP teachers whose courses share content about topics to include and to reinforce in an effort to better serve their shared students. Last year our Honors Anatomy and Physiology elective became part of the Bergen Community College dual enrollment program. Additionally, she has previously served on the I&RS Team and currently serves on the district Green Committee.

Last year also brought with it a big change in her personal life when her foster children, Phoenix (6) and Miles (4), came to her home just a few weeks before the start of the 2017-2018 school year. “Balancing work and my responsibilities at home has proven to be challenging, but the joy I receive from both are worth it all. The truth is I wouldn’t be able to do any of it without the incredibly compassionate and supportive people I work with. Coming back into education was the best decision for me and being at the high school with such wonderful students and colleagues makes it my pleasure to go to work each day.”

You are cordially invited ...

MARK YOUR CALENDARS

2018-2019 upcoming dates

April

15-19: District Closed
25: Board of Education Meeting (Annual Budget Hearing)

May

9: Board of Education Meeting (Annual Personnel Meeting)
27: District Closed

School Calendar 2018-2019.pdf

2019-2020 SCHOOL CALENDAR

At the January 17, 2019 meeting, the Board approved the school calendar for 2019-2020. The calendar is attached for your reference and can be found on the district website, here, along with the NJ Department of Education list of religious holidays permitting student absence from school.