Statements & Testimonials
Board of Education Members Leslie Larson and Shelly Lombard Share their Closing Remarks (5/5/15)
At the Board of Education meeting on Monday May 4th, departing Board Members Leslie Larson and Shelly Lombard spoke on their service and the road ahead for our public schools. Here, we share their speaking notes (not verbatim presentations).
At the Board of Education meeting on Monday May 4th, departing Board Members Leslie Larson and Shelly Lombard spoke on their service and the road ahead for our public schools. Here, we share their speaking notes (not verbatim presentations).
| leslie_larson_remarks_-_5-4-15_montclair_board_of_education.pdf |
| shelly_lombard_-_final_comments_-_montclair_boe_-_5-5-15.pdf |
MKF Update on State Wide PARCC Results (4/17/15)
We wanted to pass on today’s Star Ledger editorial, which not only puts Montclair and our own PARCC participation rate front and center, but also showcases some very scary consequences and realities that we never heard during the General Comment period at our Board of Education meetings.
http://www.nj.com/opinion/index.ssf/2015/04/thanks_to_parcc_opt-outs_nj_schools_could_lose_big.html#incart_2box_opinion_index.ssf
Please note the following:
One conclusion is clear: While many acknowledge that the PARCC exam is not perfect, the vast majority in our State supports the new testing regime, including many of Montclair’s local neighbors with excellent school systems.
MKF has not yet formed a point of view on how we, as a community, should now address this issue, but we do believe that communicating, listening and sharing factual information with each other is the first step. That said, MKF supports the Montclair BoE Strategic Plan which included the use of the PARCC test to improve the quality of education delivered to our kids.
As the Star Ledger article mentions, NJ state officials will not ignore these results, and certainly a great deal of attention will be brought to bear on Montclair on this issue. There may also be financial ramifications to our recently approved budget. It is our hope that all of you will communicate your displeasure with these results and advocate that we move forward with positive programs for our kids to our Board of Education members. Their email addresses are:
David Deutsch: [email protected]
Anne Mernin: [email protected]
David Cummings: [email protected]
Jessica de Koninck: [email protected]
Robin Kulwin: [email protected]
Leslie Larson: [email protected]
Shelly Lombard: [email protected]
Since MKF is most focused on reviewing facts so we can make the best, most educated decisions for our kids, here are some more links that we hope might be helpful to you -
http://www.nj.com/education/2015/04/despite_opt-out_movement_most_nj_kids_took_parcc.html#incart_river
http://www.northjersey.com/news/n-j-releases-figures-on-opt-out-rates-for-new-state-tests-1.1309668
http://blogs.wsj.com/metropolis/2015/04/15/n-j-says-number-of-students-who-opted-out-of-tests-very-low/
http://www.njspotlight.com/stories/15/04/16/technology-earns-high-marks-in-first-round-of-online-testing/
http://observer.com/2015/04/weakening-standardized-tests-amounts-to-killing-the-messenger/
We wanted to pass on today’s Star Ledger editorial, which not only puts Montclair and our own PARCC participation rate front and center, but also showcases some very scary consequences and realities that we never heard during the General Comment period at our Board of Education meetings.
http://www.nj.com/opinion/index.ssf/2015/04/thanks_to_parcc_opt-outs_nj_schools_could_lose_big.html#incart_2box_opinion_index.ssf
Please note the following:
- New Jersey’s state-wide opt out rate for grades 3-8 is 4.6%.
- Montclair’s opt out rate for grades 3-8 is 31% (25% for elementary and 37% for middle school).
One conclusion is clear: While many acknowledge that the PARCC exam is not perfect, the vast majority in our State supports the new testing regime, including many of Montclair’s local neighbors with excellent school systems.
MKF has not yet formed a point of view on how we, as a community, should now address this issue, but we do believe that communicating, listening and sharing factual information with each other is the first step. That said, MKF supports the Montclair BoE Strategic Plan which included the use of the PARCC test to improve the quality of education delivered to our kids.
As the Star Ledger article mentions, NJ state officials will not ignore these results, and certainly a great deal of attention will be brought to bear on Montclair on this issue. There may also be financial ramifications to our recently approved budget. It is our hope that all of you will communicate your displeasure with these results and advocate that we move forward with positive programs for our kids to our Board of Education members. Their email addresses are:
David Deutsch: [email protected]
Anne Mernin: [email protected]
David Cummings: [email protected]
Jessica de Koninck: [email protected]
Robin Kulwin: [email protected]
Leslie Larson: [email protected]
Shelly Lombard: [email protected]
Since MKF is most focused on reviewing facts so we can make the best, most educated decisions for our kids, here are some more links that we hope might be helpful to you -
http://www.nj.com/education/2015/04/despite_opt-out_movement_most_nj_kids_took_parcc.html#incart_river
http://www.northjersey.com/news/n-j-releases-figures-on-opt-out-rates-for-new-state-tests-1.1309668
http://blogs.wsj.com/metropolis/2015/04/15/n-j-says-number-of-students-who-opted-out-of-tests-very-low/
http://www.njspotlight.com/stories/15/04/16/technology-earns-high-marks-in-first-round-of-online-testing/
http://observer.com/2015/04/weakening-standardized-tests-amounts-to-killing-the-messenger/
An Update from MKF (4/3/15)
Hello All,
First off, I would like to welcome everyone who has joined this mailing list since our last message.
As many of you already know, we had our first group meeting this week. Attendance was much larger than we had hoped and the dialog of thoughts and ideas on how MKF can best serve the community was encouraging and productive. Thank you for all who attended and shared their voice.
If you could not attend the meeting, we’re sorry to have missed you. From listening to those in attendance, I believe that until we formalize our mission and goals, my expectation is that I will remain the only public contact. If for some reason you were not contacted about this meeting and would like to join the next one, please let me know directly.
For those of you who could not attend, here are a few of the outcomes of the meeting:
Please share this communication with your friends, and ask them to consider joining us at http://www.montclairkidsfirst.org
On this holiday weekend we wish everyone a Happy Easter and/or Passover, and I hope to see you on 5th Avenue wearing a silly bonnet.
Best,
Jon Bonesteel, MKF
Hello All,
First off, I would like to welcome everyone who has joined this mailing list since our last message.
As many of you already know, we had our first group meeting this week. Attendance was much larger than we had hoped and the dialog of thoughts and ideas on how MKF can best serve the community was encouraging and productive. Thank you for all who attended and shared their voice.
If you could not attend the meeting, we’re sorry to have missed you. From listening to those in attendance, I believe that until we formalize our mission and goals, my expectation is that I will remain the only public contact. If for some reason you were not contacted about this meeting and would like to join the next one, please let me know directly.
For those of you who could not attend, here are a few of the outcomes of the meeting:
- We established a steering committee to narrow the focus of our near term goals, and we are working to update our mission given the events of the past few weeks.
- We had a productive and detailed discussion on the current environment and how we can best engage the community.
- We discussed a variety of initiatives that MKF can establish to support our schools and address issues like the Achievement Gap.
- Most of all, I think we all stand united that for the property taxes we pay and the values we share, that Montclair should not have an Achievement Gap and our high school should not be ranked 120 of 339 in the State.
- MKF will also continue to support the grievance against Councilman Sean Spiller. The Judge will be hearing the full case on an expedited timeline. We have nothing against Mr. Spiller personally. He has the right to be a paid elected officer of the NJEA. He also has a right to be appointed to the Board of Estimate. But doing both is an obvious conflict of interest that prioritizes the union that pays him over our kids.
- On anonymity, a bit of a personal note - After my Letter to the Editor of Baristanet was published, I received what I expected in terms of responses. Some of those responses were disappointing I must admit, but I have also been energized by the breadth and number of positive messages. We at MKF understand and appreciate that the strength of our organization depends upon more members stepping out front like I have to engage the public directly. As we look to finalize our mission and our priorities, I expect to introduce you to others who will join me very soon.
- Thanks again for your interest and involvement.
Please share this communication with your friends, and ask them to consider joining us at http://www.montclairkidsfirst.org
On this holiday weekend we wish everyone a Happy Easter and/or Passover, and I hope to see you on 5th Avenue wearing a silly bonnet.
Best,
Jon Bonesteel, MKF
