Thursday, May 23, 2013
Board adds classes to expand offerings for students in response to parents' concerns.
Starting in the fall, Hopatcong High School students will have the chance to take several new or newly reinstated electives. The Board of Education Monday approved the addition of criminal justice/law in courts, and athletic training to the high school curriculum. Other electives will be reinstated, including home economics, print media and public speaking. Board president Clifford Lundin said Monday that the additions were made in response to concerns raised last year by parents who felt that the number of electives at the high school had been diminished. He said the curriculum changes were made possible because the district shifted 4.5 teaching positions from the middle school to the high school. The job shift as possible because of …
School board plans June 24 vote to approve the agreement.
The Board of Education expects to approve at its June 24 meeting a new contract with the Hopatcong Education Association unit that represents teacher aides, custodians and cafeteria workers. Board president Clifford Lundin said Monday that an agreement has been reached, but that the contract language was being reconciled. No details about the agreement were released. In February the board accepted the findings of the state mediator brought in to settle the contract. The two sides reached an agreement in principal in April after more than three years of bitter negotiations. Lundin said the contract has been ratified by the members, now called paraprofessionals, but it is being reviewed by the state School Boards Association. The HEA unit …
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Cynthia Randina leaving Secaucus school district; will begin July 1 and says focus will be on curriculum.
Cynthia Randina was hired Monday as the next Hopatcong superintendent of schools. She will replace Charles Maranzano, who is retiring in June after four years at the helm of the 2,000-student district. Randina, who is leaving the job as superintendent of the Secaucus school district, will begin her tenure in Hopatcong on July 1. “I’m honored,” she said. She sought the Hopatcong post after telling the Secaucus board she was seeking other opportunities after her year-long contract expired. Previously she served as assistant superintendent and curriculum director for Wayne Public Schools. She said she has a “passion” for curriculum improvements. Randina said she understands the desire of the community and school personnel to improve …
Monday, May 20, 2013
Commencement ceremony will include Peace Prize announcement, speech from college president.
The County College of Morris (CCM) will graduate more than 1,100 students Thursday as the college hosts its 44th annual commencement ceremony. CCM President Edward Yaw will serve as the speaker of the event, which begins at 7 p.m. To highlight the graduation ceremony, the school will announce this year's Peace Prize winner, Alisa Brescic of Budd Lake. "Students were invited to create works focused on the general theme of world peace while expressing themselves through a number of artistic forms including writing, music, dance or visual arts," the college noted in a press release. Brescic will be honored for working to advance world peace through her video essay, "The Peace of the U.S." (Watch Brescic's video attached to this article.) This…
Sunday, May 19, 2013
Hopatcong and Sparta school boards both meet Monday night.
It’s time to put the dreary weather behind us and grab the work week by the horns! There are two major meetings going on this week, both of which land on Monday night. Let’s talk about them, shall we? The Hopatcong Board of Education will meet Monday night at 7 p.m. for its regular meeting, which is open to the public. In the time since its last formal meeting, public school rankings have been released by noth Newsweek magazine and U.S. News & World Report. Both publications gave the school district unfavorable rankings, however. Hopatcong is also searching for a new superintendent, as the current lead administrator, Charles Maranzano, will retire at the end of this school year. On the same night, the Sparta Board of Education will meet in…
Oak Ridge's Andrew Sperber recognized for achievements in graphic design.
Andrew Sperber is a pretty good graphic designer. Let's try that again. Andrew Sperber is a really good graphic designer. So good, in fact, the Oak Ridge resident and County College of Morris student was recently awarded a scholarship for a two-year student from the Art Directors Club of New Jersey (ADCNJ) for the quality of his design work. Seventy-five student portfolios were submitted this year from two and four-year students, according to County College of Morris. The awards were given based on the creativity and functionality of the work. “It’s a great honor for both Andrew and the graphic design department at CCM,” said Stephen Longo, professor and special projects leader of the graphic design program at CCM in a statement. Longo is …
Thursday, May 9, 2013
Fundraisers planned for Hudson Maxim’s Nancy Pascarella.
Editor's note: This article originally ran April 15. Hudson Maxim school nurse Nancy Pascarella is known around the Hopatcong School district for the care she gives to the children who aren’t feeling well. Now, as Pascarella faces her own health challenge in the form of a battle with cancer, the community is working to ease the burden of her fight. “Nancy is presently undergoing chemo therapy and is in need of immediate financial support,” said Hudson Maxim faculty member Cynthia Parello. “She is not feeling well right now but she is so appreciative of our support.” That support, according to Parello, has come in the form cards, emails, kind words, meals, donations and moral support that Parello has said “are a tremendous comfort to her.” …
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Wednesday, May 8, 2013
SteppingSTONE BAND is debuting 'I'll Be Coming Home' June 1st at the St. Moritz.
Teachers by day, musician by night. Three teachers are celebrating their CD with a release party at the St. Moritz in Sparta on June 1. Brad Marullo is a teacher at Thomas Jefferson and Sussex Avenue and plays guitar, keyboards and lap steel in SteppingSTONE BAND. He's looking forward to celebrating the release of their debut CD, I'll Be Coming Home in Sparta because his band has a strong presence in area. "We have played a number of clubs and bars in North Jersey including the Sparta Elk's Club, Beach 4, Krogh's and the St. Moritz," said Marullo. Sparta residents Ryan Schultz, who is a consultant with an energy conservation company in Oak Ridge, and Tommy Casperson, an art teacher in Mountain Lakes, are the local connection in …
Top 2,000 public schools across nation placed in annual standings, none from Sussex County crack list.
Hopatcong and Sparta High Schools both missed the top-2,000 high schools in the nation as ranked by Newsweek in its annual report released this week. The standings showed 93 schools from New Jersey made the master list, but none from Sussex County could crack the top 2,000. Just nine schools from Morris County made the list. Newsweek prefaced the list by saying the schools were ranked by how effective they were in turning out college-ready graduates. There are six components that factored into the listing methodology: In April, U.S. News & World Report released its top high schools in the nation, with the top-50 making the cut for New Jersey. Neither Hopatcong or Sparta High Schools made that list, either. No Sussex County school made the …
Sunday, May 5, 2013
Three charity walks set for May 18 and 19.
There will be a lot of walking for charity in Hopatcong the weekend of May 18 and 19. Three charity events are scheduled in the borough : The Relay for Life, the Seventh Annual Hudson Guild Charity Walk and the Walk for Hunger sponsored by the Association of Churches of Hopatcong. School board president Clifford Lundin said Monday that Hopatcong High School will host the Cancer Society’s Relay for Life. He urged his fellow board members to agree to participate so the board would have a better showing thaN the Hopatcong Borough Council. The Relay for Life will be held May 18 and 19 beginning at 4 p.m. May 18. According to the event’s website 24 teams have already signed up and 117 participants have pledged $9,358. The Hopatcong Spring …
Clay Thomas
8:50 pm on Friday, May 24, 2013
Look, college is great, there's no question the more education one can obtain, the greater the potential for earnings. However, most parents in Hopatcong simply can't afford the $100k+ that a four year college education will really cost. It's great if you can do it. Some years ago, when Hopatcong's administration decided that every student was going to college and the career focused courses were … more ›