Board and Teachers Report Contract Progress as Testing Data Reveal Uneven Pandemic Recovery

The board accepted, with regret, the retirement of longtime special education teacher Janet Dobbs at Glen Ridge High School, effective June 30, 2023; both Board President Elisabeth Ginsburg and Superintendent Dirk Phillips praised her decades of positive influence on students. The board also gave a formal send-off to Assistant Principal Tim Liddy, who has about two weeks left before his retirement takes effect; Phillips, who came up through the district alongside Liddy as a fellow coach and administrator, called him more than a colleague and thanked him for decades of putting students first as a teacher, coach and administrator.

Board President Ginsburg read a joint statement, agreed to by the board and the Glen Ridge Education Association, saying both sides are negotiating in good faith with a mediator and have made "substantial progress" toward a new teacher contract, with the next session set for November 21. Ginsburg also reported that the state Senate voted to eliminate the edTPA testing requirement for new teachers, a step aimed at easing the statewide teacher shortage.

The board approved bills and claims of $687,309.37, ratified payroll of $1,532,309.08, and approved an open purchase order report of $654,049.16 for the 2022-2023 school year. It also accepted a $10,000 grant from the New Jersey Chinese Teachers Association to support the Chinese program at Glen Ridge High School.

Phillips presented the district's 2021-2022 testing report. The district's triennial state QSAC review rated it a high-performing district, though it lost points on the personnel score over what Phillips called a disputed finding of late certification paperwork tied to a state software changeover. On the NJSLA, the state's standardized test, the district saw score declines it attributed to pandemic disruption and to third-through-fifth graders taking the test for the first time, with the steepest drops concentrated in the middle grades; district scores nonetheless remained well above the state average. On brighter measures, 316 students took AP exams in 2022, up from 238 in 2018, with the district administering 843 exams and 72% of students scoring 3 or higher; 12 seniors earned the AP Capstone diploma, and 118 of the district's 142 seniors received AP recognition. The Class of 2022 posted a combined average SAT score of 1272, with reading and math scores at their highest levels in five years, and six students were honored in national Chinese language competitions. The district's graduation rate stood at 99%, with 89% of graduates enrolling in college. Student representative Colin Pennington also reported that the marching band won first place in its division, with the highest scores of the day in every category, at the New York Field Band Conference in Huntington, Long Island, and that the football team beat Newark Collegiate Academy in the homecoming game.

The board approved the state-mandated School Bus Evacuation Drill Report and the School Self-Assessment for Anti-Bullying, and approved the termination of an out-of-district placement for one student at the Essex County Schools of Technology, effective October 11. NJSBA representative Charlene Peterson gave the board a refresher presentation on board members' roles and responsibilities, and the board worked through draft board and district goals for the year, including a new commitment to report out publicly on goal progress each quarter and a proposed goal to identify the district's next area for an in-depth outside review, following recent special education and equity audits.

During public comment, resident Darius Dehnad pressed Phillips on the district's decision to add a seventh classroom section only in kindergarten, the smallest incoming class at 109 students, while first, second and third grades have 137, 134 and 139 students respectively; he said his own family had asked to transfer to get a smaller class size and was told no such option existed. Phillips said starting with kindergarten avoids uprooting students already settled in a building and that the district plans to extend smaller sections into first and second grade in coming years. Resident Heather Yaros-Ramos asked for a breakdown of the middle school's test results by subject area and whether the district would commission a new demographic study given how outdated its referendum-era data has become; Phillips said no study is currently planned but agreed one is likely overdue. Resident Phil Johnson asked for earlier public notice of events like this month's HIB parent presentation, welcomed the district's new shared-services partnership with the Central Jersey Program for the Recruitment of Diverse Educators, and pressed again on the still-unfilled Spanish Club and Spanish National Honor Society advisor position; Phillips said the stipend positions are tied up in ongoing contract negotiations and that no district Spanish teacher has volunteered to take them on. One resident asked the district to release specific MAP testing data and program participation numbers, such as how many students are enrolled in the summer boost program, rather than general references to programs like phonics; a board member pushed back on describing the score declines as "learning loss," calling the term alarmist and preferring "learning acceleration." Resident Howard Stearns later told the board it was unfair to cut off a speaker's follow-up question by citing the two-minute rule while giving other speakers more latitude, a concern board members acknowledged was valid.

Action items

• Accepted the retirement of special education teacher Janet Dobbs, effective June 30, 2023
• Accepted a $10,000 grant from the New Jersey Chinese Teachers Association for the high school's Chinese program
• Approved bills and claims of $687,309.37, ratified payroll of $1,532,309.08, and approved an open purchase order report of $654,049.16 for the 2022-2023 school year
• Approved termination of an out-of-district placement for one student at the Essex County Schools of Technology, effective October 11
• Approved the state-mandated School Bus Evacuation Drill Report and School Self-Assessment for Anti-Bullying

Watch key moments

• 1:34:32 — Resident Darius Dehnad challenges the district's choice to add a smaller-class section only in kindergarten while larger upper grades get no relief.