Wednesday, January 2, 2013
BOE communications committee says district website and community groups will spread word of fields election.
With less than a month before residents vote Jan. 22 on a bond referendum question to approve plans for $7.7 million in improvements to athletic facilities at Parsippany and Parsippany Hills high schools, the Parsippany-Troy Hills Board of Education has laid out its communication plan for disseminating information to voters. Board member Susy Golderer, who heads the communications committee, recommended during the board’s Dec. 20 meeting that all official information about the referendum should come intially from the board. One of the chief tools the board will use, she said, is the district’s website, which was uploaded with referendum information following the meeting. The website now has links to the PHS and PHHS project scopes and …
Sunday, December 30, 2012
Outgoing members thank public for the opportunity to serve, praised by peers for their dedication.
The Parsippany-Troy Hills Board of Education said goodbye to two of its members who reached the end of their terms on Dec. 20, the final board meeting of 2012. Frank Neglia, who served for six years and was the board’s vice president, had run but lost in a bid for another term on Nov. 6. Deborah Orme, who served nearly seven years on the board, had begun to campaign but discontinued her bid in September. Both outgoing members spoke for a few minutes about their time on the board, thanking the public for the opportunity to serve. Neglia, who said he’s “always tried to do the best I can,” mentioned that being on the board offers a different perspective from sitting in the audience. “There’s always some regulation or rule that prevents you …
Friday, December 28, 2012
Committee suggests keeping board's policy of allowing three minutes for each resident.
The Parsippany-Troy Hills Board of Education’s public comment policy of three minutes per individual during meetings will remain, if the board adheres to recommendations from its policy committee. Board member Fran Orthwein, chairwoman of the policy committee, explained the board had asked the committee to discuss the possibility of removing the timeframe or rewriting the bylaw dictating that “each statement made by a participant may be limited to three minutes’ duration.” Orthwein said the committee does not recommend any changes after she met and received basic guidelines from a representative of the New Jersey School Boards Association. “[Our policy] does provide a structure for public participation,” she said. “You can either have a …
Friday, December 21, 2012
Board president demands action on security in Parsippany schools by end of January.
The Parsippany Board of Education held a moment of silence during its meeting Thursday night in memory of the 20 children and six adults gunned down last week at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. Board President Dr. Frank Calabria said it was difficult for him to find the words to express his feelings about “this unspeakable horror.” “Today I was at an elementary school, and I saw these little sixth- and seventh-graders walking,” Calabria said. “It was all I could do to not hug every single one of them.” Calabria has also suggested the board perform a good day each day for 26 days in honor of the 26 victims. He also suggested expediting a district-wide study that will help the board make recommendations as to what the district…
Joanne Mancuso, who was elected to the Parsippany Board of Education in November, said she does not want to be sworn in.
Joanne Mancuso, who was elected to the Parsippany Board of Education Nov. 6, will not be taking the oath of office in January, according to a letter she sent to the district. Interim Business Administrator Mark Resnick announced Mancuso’s decision during the board’s Thursday night meeting. Resnick did not say whether Mancuso listed any reasons for her decision. Mancuso, who had previously served on the board, was one of three candidates—along with James Carifi and Dr. Frank Calabria, the current board president —to win seats on the board. Those three beat out Alison Cogan, Anthony DeIntinis and Frank Neglia, current board vice president. Mancuso had previously said she planned to get up to speed on board issues and, after her January …
Monday, November 5, 2012
Need to express yourself? Send a Letter to the Editor to natalie.davis@patch.com.
- OPINION
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Monday, November 5, 2012
“Believe it or not! Is it good for the students? Is it good for Parsippany? Can we afford them?” Thus began a letter ’penned’ by Mike Strumolo and published in the Oct. 31 addition of Parsippany Life newspaper. Do you believe it is fair or unbiased for a newspaper to print a letter containing accusatory statements against candidates in an upcoming election without allowing time for rebuttal? [EDITOR'S NOTE: Mr. Strumolo asked Patch to run the letter to Patch Nov. 4; we opted to publish it Nov. 5, along with Mrs. Orthwein's rebuttal.] Unlike Mr. Strumolo, I will identify myself as a member of the Parsippany Board of Education and state clearly that the opinions expressed in this letter are my own and not those of the board. And as a citizen…
If you have something to say, send your Letter to the Editor to natalie.davis@patch.com.
- OPINION
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Monday, November 5, 2012
Believe it or not! Is it good for the students? Is it good for Parsippany? Can we afford them? Do you believe these simple questions are asked by [Parsippany Schools Superintendent] LeRoy Seitz in his decisionmaking process for the turf fields? Then he must also believe that the lawsuit he initiated against the Parsippany Board of Education meets these criteria. Do you believe it is a good thing for our students to lose money out of the classroom to spend it in the courtroom to defend against "the poster child for greed and arrogance" and his litigation? Seitz and his supporters do! Do you believe that after the State of New Jersey rejected Seitz’s contract as being too generous his supporters rushed through a contract exceeding the …
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Deborah Orme's current BOE term expires after the November election.
Parsippany Board of Education member Deborah Orme said she has been moved by the praise and support coming from colleagues and residents in the wake of her decision to end her re-election campaign. "The kind words of support I've received have been greatly appreciated and it was an extremely difficult, heartwrenching decision for me to withdraw from the 2012 BOE election," she said in a statement. "I have truly treasured the last 6 and a half years that I have served on the Parsippany Board of Education but it is best that I take some time away from service at this point." Orme told Patch she is not yet ready to discuss the reasons behind her decision to stop her campaign and step away from the board when her term expires after the …
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
The 2012-13 school year kicks off Thursday, and the district has strict rules for getting your student registered.
The new school year begins Thursday, which means there are lots of things for parents to consider and prepare. One of the most important is to make sure one's child is registered in time for the first day. If your child has not been registered yet for whatever reason, it's time to get to it. The Parsippany-Troy Hills public school system follows rules set by the Board of Education. A parent or guardian must present proof of residency. According to the school district website, individuals must provide one document from Category A (either a contract of home sale, mortgage document or payment book, property tax bill, recorded deed or signed lease) and two documents from Category B (a bank statement with redacted figures to protect privacy, …
Monday, July 9, 2012
Parsippany teachers have gone without a contract for more than a year.
Contract talks are at a standstill between the Parsippany Board of Education and the New Jersey Education Association, the organization representing teachers, according to union representative Douglas Finkel. Finkel told Patch that teachers, who have gone more than a year without a deal with the district in place, are hoping a mediator can help the two sides come to a compromise on the issues of salary increases and health care coverage. "We're in the process of having a mediator assigned and waiting to hear back on that," he said. "Currently we're in a holding pattern. Both the union and the board negotiations team have decided that we're at an impasse." Finkel said he expects mediation will take place "maybe in September." According to …
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11:05 am on Wednesday, January 9, 2013
Why do we put so much attention on athletic fields and so little attention to the education of the students: From the list of the 2012 Top High Schools Parsippany Hills from 50 in 2010 to 23 in 2012. Although Parsippany seems to have shown great improved, how did this happen when Parsippany High School and 10 other schools—the district would not reveal which—failed to meet Adequate Yearly … more ›