Monday, May 20, 2013
The remediation of Verona High School's Football field could cost upwards of $7 million.
The Verona Board of Education is looking into several different options to fix the High School football field, which is peppered with sink-holes that popped up during summer practice. Shortly after, the Board hired French and Parello Associates to test the field and report back. On Tuesday, May 14, representatives of French and Parello Associates presented their findings to the board with several different options. Geotechnical engineer Joseph Tierney and environmental engineer Bryan Heller discussed the history of the field, which was filled in with soil and debris in the 1970's. The concrete and rebar materials created voids, or sinkholes, which developed in 2002, August 2012 and October 2012. In September of 2012 French and Parello …
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Program focuses on information-based reading and increased STEM opportunities.
The Verona Board of Education received a curriculum update for the 2013-14 school year from three district administrators during Tuesday night's meeting. The three administrators, Director of Instructional Studies Liz Jewett, Director of Instructional studies, Supervisor of Math and Science Nicole Santora and Supervisor of Humanities Sumit Bangia who outlined areas of focus and how they fit in with the district’s newly drafted five-year plan. “We recently have the implementation of the common core state standards for literacy and mathematics,” said Jewett. “We still have the New Jersey core curriculum content standards for our other subjects and we are looking at national standards as well for science.” One major shift in curriculum is to …
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
Vote planned for December 2013 or January 2014 on buildings and grounds repairs, Forte says.
The Verona Board of Education Tuesday discussed holding a referendum for repairs to various buildings and grounds repairs and upgrades, presented during a November meeting. “We are waiting to hear back from engineers on the cost,” said Verona Superintendent Steven Forte. “We are looking at a referendum hopefully in December or January.” During a meeting last November, Verona Director of Facilities Paul McDevitt provided an update for the board on the status of buildings and grounds, including previous improvements and a laundry list of what still needs to be done. The top five priorities are heat and controls, doors and security, Lower Field turf, sidewalks and blacktop while other priorities are improvements to masonry, fire alarms, …
Saturday, March 30, 2013
The Verona Board of Education cut three percent from school supplies in the budget, causing an outcry from residents.
The Verona Board of Education announced that they were cutting the line item for school supplies by three percent in the 2013-2014 budget, prompting discontent among the attending residents. “With all this discussion of cuts in the supply line budget it seems to me we are not really cutting supplies,” said resident Virginia Citrano. “We are just cutting the money from the taxpayer pocket and shifting it to the mom pocket.” “We are still being asked to buy these things but I'm still buying them with my personal dollars as opposed to my tax dollars,” she added, saying she has had to buy $150 calculators in the past which was only used for one month. Verona resident Meredith Goldstein approached the board and said she has also been asked to …
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Board reviews, passes 2013-14 blueprint Tuesday night.
The Verona Board of Education approved a $33 million final budget for the 2013-14 school year during Tuesday night's meeting. According to Verona Superintendent Steven Forte, 94.5 percent of the budget will be funded through local taxes, which means a tax levy increase of 2.5 percent. Based on the average assessed home in Verona at $360,200, a Verona resident can expect an increase of $126 in their property taxes, said Verona Board of Education member Joseph Bellino. By state mandate a budget does not have to go to a public vote if it is under a two percent increase on the tax levy. However, said Forte, this budget does not have to go to a public vote even though it is a half-percent above the cap because the district qualifies for waivers…
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
Key items discussed during the Verona Board of Education's March 12 meeting.
[20:00] Board discusses what's in the 2013 budget. $100,000 in curriculum budget. $180,000 New Special Education course to keep students in district. $14,000 history textbooks. $30,000 teacher evaluation system. personnel shift from elementary schools to middle school to accommodate growth. [23:35] Board discussed what's not in the 2013 budget. Additional money for security personnel. Technology and network upgrades are not in the budget. Buildings and grounds. Freshman sports. Salary increases for teacher aides. [25:20] Board discussed items that were cut from the budget to stay below the 2.5 percent tax cap. [55:20] Board provides security update. [1:13:30] Board Member Glenn Elliott says he is “shocked and outraged”about the student I.D…
Thursday, March 14, 2013
Pilot program will require students to have ID cards in their possession.
Students attending Verona High School will undergo new security measures under a pilot program slated to begin next week, officials said Wednesday. In response to the December 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Conn., in which 26 people were killed, district personnel and police officials have been attending twice-monthly meetings and classes to learn measures to improve school safety as well as preparedness, Verona Police Chief Douglas Huber said Wednesday morning. At the last safety class in February, he said, Verona Schools Superintendent Steven Forte and several police officers attended. As part of the pilot program, students are being required to have their school identification cards in their possession, Huber …
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Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Verona, Cedar Grove boards pass preliminary blueprints Tuesday prior to Thursday county deadline.
[Updated: March 6, 10:00 a.m.] Both the Verona and Cedar Grove Boards of Education met for special sessions Tuesday night to approve their respective preliminary budgets. Each district had to hold a special session to approve the preliminary budget before the March 7 county deadline. Verona The Verona Board of Education unanimously approved the preliminary 2013-14 budget which amounts to $33,686,705. “It includes an increase of 2.5 percent on the general tax levy,” said Verona Board member Joseph Bellino. “There have been numerous deletions from the requested funds and there have been some small additions to the budget.” The additions include a new special education class to keep those students in the district, salary increases, health …
Monday, March 4, 2013
Budget season continues in Verona and Cdear Grove.
The word "budget" is still on the tip of everyone's tongues as budget season continues in Verona and Cedar Grove. The Cedar Grove Township Council has completed their public budget hearings and will meet for a regular council meeting at 7 p.m. on Monday, March 4 at town hall. An agenda is not yet available. The Verona Council has just begun its budget workshops and is also scheduled to meet for a regular council meeting at 7 p.m. on Monday, March 4 at the Verona Civic Center. An agenda is attached as a pdf. Both the Verona and Cedar Grove Boards of Education will be meeting for special sessions after state aid figures revealed that neither district will see an increase in state aid. The Cedar Grove Board of Education meets at 8 p.m. on …
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
Watch the Verona Board of Education debate on the issue of a new school security director.
The Verona Board of Education discussed creating a new position to concentrate exclusively on school safety versus hiring an outside safety auditor, during its public hearing on Tuesday, Feb. 12. Verona Superintendent Steven Forte and board of education member Glenn Elliott took opposing viewpoints, with both men amicably discussing the pros and cons of each action while other members of the board weighed in. The audit would cost the district about $20,000 while the new part-time security position would be an annual cost of somewhere between $20,000 and $25,000, said Forte. Watch the discussion for yourself. Key times in the video are: 20:25 Board Member Glenn Elliott introduces topic of school security. 21:20 Elliott states his concerns …
Helen M. Carson
2:02 pm on Sunday, March 31, 2013
Don't think so....maybe we spend too much of our tax dollars for fields, fields, fields and ignore the basic needs of our students. If we can't afford or don't have the money for basic items we should not be constantly repairing, replacing, building, seeding, mowing, digging up, re digging and spending endless dollars for outdoor areas. saying there is no money for paper towels and tissues is … more ›