Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Petitions are due to Bergen County Clerk by June 4.
Anyone interested in serving on their local school board has until June 4 to submit a petition to the county. Board members are responsible for a variety of duties each year, including setting district goals, overseeing the budget and curriculum and hiring administrators and staff. There are four seats up for election on the Westwood Regional Board of Education this year, including two three-year terms from Westwood, one three-year term from Washington Township and a one-year unexpired term for Washington Township from outgoing member Barbara Gregory. The Hillsdale Board of Education has two of seats up for election this year, including one full three-year term and one unexpired one-year term from former member Debbie Loganchuk. There are …
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Tuesday, May 7, 2013
The authors of a study commissioned by Woodcliff Lake said splitting the regional school district would save their residents money, but cost Hillsdale and River Vale residents.
Hillsdale Mayor Max Arnowitz said Tuesday that the borough and River Vale "have commited 100 percent to fight" a proposed splitting of the Pascack Valley Regional High School District. Arnowitz's comments followed a Woodcliff Lake Council meeting Monday at which a retired CPA recommended Woodcliff Lake attempt to withdraw from the regional district, NorthJersey.com reported. James Kirtland, the CPA who helped prepare a study for Woodcliff Lake examining the possible effects of their proposed withdrawal from the district, said there would be "substantial overall financial and educational benefits" if Woodcliff Lake and Montvale pursued a separate regional district or had a sending-receiving relationship without Hillsdale and River Vale, …
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Taxes could rise by $500 per year for the average Hillsdale homeowner if the district is dissolved.
An attorney and the authors of a study which reported that splitting up the Pascack Valley Regional School District "would succeed" will give a presentation about their findings and take questions from the public during a Woodcliff Lake Council meeting next week, NorthJersey.com reported. A report on the same subject prepared on behalf of Hillsdale and River Vale found that there would be high costs for residents of those towns if the district were split. The meeting is scheduled to take place Monday night at the Tice Senior Center, 411 Chestnut Ridge Rd. Woodcliff Lake and Montvale previously petitioned the Executive County Superintendent to withdraw from the district, citing a higher cost per pupil than that paid by Hillsdale and River …
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
The work to install a fiber optic network at the borough's elementary and middle schools will allow them to share Internet service with Pascack Valley High School.
New fiber optic cables being installed at Hillsdale's three K-8 schools will allow the district to enter a shared service agreement with Pascack Valley High School that will improve Internet speed and save the district money. The Hillsdale Board of Education approved a $110,137.43 contract with Millennium Communications Group to install the network and an additional $2,300 for an annual inspection after the warranty period during their meeting Monday night. Millennium submitted the lowest of three bids for the project, according to district officials. The funds for the project have been alloted in this year's $21 million budget. The Hillsdale and Pascack Valley Regional Boards of Education both previously voted to approve a shared service …
Monday, April 15, 2013
The New Jersey Department of Education released School Performance Reports comparing every school in the state.
More than 90 percent of Pascack Valley High School students passed the HSPA test in math and language arts last year, according to the 2011-2012 School Performance Reports released by the Department of Education last week. The report graded Pascack Valley's academic achievement as "very high" compared to schools across the state and "high" compared to its peer schools. A total of 98 percent of students passed language arts and 94 percent passed math. "I continue to be extremely proud of the academic strength of our district," Superintendent P. Erik Gundersen told Patch. "Every district has room to grow and our district is no exception — as we always strive to improve." The peer schools replace the old District Factor Groups for comparing …
Monday, March 25, 2013
Yas Usami will be leaving the Pascack Valley Regional School District for a position in Tenafly.
Yas Usami, the business administrator of Pascack Valley Regional Schools, will be leaving the district June 30. The Board of Education voted to accept Usami's resignation "with regret" during their meeting last week. "This is a bittersweet moment for all of us," board member Jeffrey Steinfeld said. Board President Bertram Siegel estimated Usami saved the district "hundreds of thousands of dollars" during his three years here. "It's really a wonderful, wonderful service he renders the public," Siegel said. Superintendent P. Erik Gundersen also praised Usami, who presented next year's $48 million budget during the same meeting. "He is leaving this district in excellent financial shape," Gundersen said. Usami will be taking the business …
Both the Hillsdale and Pascack Valley School Boards approved their budgets last week.
The average Hillsdale homeowner will see a combined increase of $228 for the K-8 and regional school districts next year. The average Hillsdale home was assessed at $549,000 before the revaluation and $469,400 now. Both the Hillsdale and Pascack Valley Regional Boards of Education approved their respective budgets last week. Hillsdale approved a $21 million budget with a $99 increase for the average homeowner. Pascack Valley approved a $48 million budget with a $129 increase for the average Hillsdale homeowner, though the change in the tax levy varies for each of the four towns in the district. The tax levy for Hillsdale Schools will increase 1.97 percent next year. The Pascack Valley tax levy will increase 2 percent. State law allows …
Friday, March 22, 2013
Taxes will increase by varying amounts for Hillsdale, Montvale and River Vale residents.
The Pascack Valley Regional Board of Education approved the district's budget for the 2013-14 year during their meeting Thursday night. The $48,452,517 budget includes a tax levy of $44,292,465, a 2 percent increase from this year, Business Administrator Yas Usami said. Because of the state law determining funding of regional districts, taxes in the four sending towns will be affected differently. The average Hillsdale homeowner, with a property assessed at $549,000 before the revaluation or $469,400 now, will see a tax increase of $129, according to Usami. Average Montvale and River Vale homeowners will see increases of $67 and $41, respectively. The average Woodcliff Lake homeowner will see a decrease of $314. The district will receive …
Monday, March 11, 2013
The tentative budgets for both Hillsdale and Pascack Valley Regional Schools will increase the tax levy if they are approved.
The average Hillsdale homeowner could see a school tax increase of more than $200 next year. The proposed $48 million Pascack Valley Regional Schools budget would include increases for average homeowners in Hillsdale, River Vale and Montvale, according to Business Administrator Yas Usami. The average Woodcliff Lake homeowner would see a decrease. State law dictates that regional school district tax levies be divided between the towns based on their assessed values. In Hillsdale, that means an increase of $127 for a property assessed at $549,000. The Hillsdale K-8 district's budget would cause an additional increase of $99 for that same property, for a total increase of $226 in school taxes next year if both budgets are approved by the …
Thursday, March 7, 2013
The Hillsdale and Pascack Valley school districts both agreed to enter a shared service agreement for high-speed Internet.
Hillsdale K-8 schools will share Pascack Valley High School's fiber optic Internet connection under a new interlocal agreement approved by both school boards Monday. The new service will improve Internet speed and capacity at the schools while saving money, according to Hillsdale Superintendent Rick Spirito. "When two districts work together, it removes duplicate services and saves both districts money," Spirito said. The shared service will take place from September 1 this year until September 1, 2018 at a cost of $1,500 per month that Hillsdale Schools will pay to the regional high school district. The agreement allows for a renewal for as many as five additional years. New fiber optic cables will be laid to connect Hillsdale's three …
Common Cents
10:11 pm on Tuesday, May 14, 2013
My friend always said get the petition from the county office so the school does not know you are running until it is too late for them to get somebody in there to carry out thier agenda! I believe the petition gets returned to the county, so they will never know who is running until all petitions are in. I am sure you can find a dozen friends who will keep thier mouths shut for a week or two. more ›