Board Hears Equity Committee Plan as Schools Mark First Week Back
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The Board of Education accepted, with regret, the retirement of longtime Central School pre-k teacher Elaine Russoniello, whom Board President Elisabeth Ginsburg said made a difference in the lives of countless students during their first school experience, along with the resignations of nurse Aylin Acikgoz and childcare employee Regina Smith. The board approved $794,188.25 in bills and claims and ratified $1,238,629.99 in payroll and related payments, and accepted a $7,775.39 donation of Chromebooks, licenses and a charging cart from the Forest Avenue Home & School Association.
Superintendent Dirk Phillips reported that Glen Ridge High School was ranked 18th in New Jersey and 396th nationally by U.S. News & World Report, and that New Jersey's public schools were ranked first in the country by Education Week for the second consecutive year.
Phillips gave the board an extended presentation on the district's new Equity Committee, a roughly 25-member group of staff, paraprofessionals and administrators formed over the summer to set goals around hiring, professional development, student leadership, curriculum and social-emotional learning. He said the district hired 21 staff members over the summer, six from minority backgrounds -- four teachers, one child study team member and one paraprofessional -- putting new hires at 25 to 30 percent diversity. Several residents, including Tricia Akinwande, Jocelyn Gottlieb and Hayley Krischer, spoke during public comment to praise the presentation, with Akinwande and others asking to formally join or be represented on the committee.
Multiple residents raised concerns about the reopening: Greta Sawa said the Zoom link for the meeting was hard to find on the district website, a complaint echoed by another commenter; Rebecca Keszkowski of 29 Burnett Street praised teachers' effort but said 30-minute class sessions were leaving students with closer to 20 minutes of real instructional time; freshman Ashley Johnson said students needed more passing time between virtual classes; and resident John Boyle asked whether the high school's HVAC repairs remained on track for an October 5 reopening, to which Phillips said he'd have an update after meeting with the job foreman the next morning.
- Approved $794,188.25 in bills and claims and ratified $1,238,629.99 in payroll and related payments
- Accepted a $7,775.39 Chromebook/cart donation from the Forest Avenue Home & School Association
- Accepted the retirement of Pre-K teacher Elaine Russoniello and resignations of nurse Aylin Acikgoz and childcare employee Regina Smith
Watch key moments
- 11:14 — Superintendent Phillips lays out the new Equity Committee's goals across hiring, curriculum and school culture
- 44:40 — Resident John Boyle presses for a straight answer on whether the high school HVAC repair stays on track for an October 5 reopening
- 45:43 — Resident Rebecca Keszkowski describes teachers "killing it" over Google Classroom while warning 30-minute periods leave barely 20 minutes of real instruction