Superintendent’s Message

North Arlington School District Winter

Concert Schedule

Dec. 4 Middle School 7 PM

Dec. 9 High School 7 PM

Dec. 15 Washington School 9 AM

Dec. 16 Jefferson School 8:50 AM

Dec. 17 Roosevelt School 9 AM

Learning in North Arlington North Arlington Public Schools

222 Ridge Rd.

North Arlington, NJ 07031

Inside this issue:

“Breaking the Cycle” 2

Roosevelt School Gives

Back

2

Rotary Club 2

NAHS Heroes Lunch 3

NAHS Teacher and Stu-

dent Save the Day

3

Washington School

Honors US Veterans

3

NAMS Salutes Veterans 4

Jefferson School Cele-

brates NA “Heroes”

4

National Honor Society 4

NAMS Student Council 5

NAHS Gives Back 5

2013-2014 Testing 6-7

Rip Collins 7

November 2014

Dear Parents/Guardians,

This fall has once again been a very busy time at the schools. We have moved through the first quarter of the year with a myriad of learning programs in place. Along with instruction aligned to the Core Content State Standards and a keen eye on PARCC preparation, we have joined with many partners in the North Arlington community-at-large to model the spirit and practice of giving. In this newsletter, you will see information built on past newsletters, communications, BOE meeting presentations regarding student academic growth, as well as many of the tremendous local partnerships we are so fortunate to work with in North Arlington. There is so much to be thankful for in our schools and the commu-nity. On behalf of the entire North Arlington staff and the Board of Education, I would like to thank you and wish you a very Happy Thanksgiving and holiday sea-son!

Yours sincerely,

Dr. Oliver W. Stringham

Superintendent of Schools We’re on the Web

www.narlington.k12.nj.us

North Arlington Board of Education

Joseph Ricciardelli, President Stanley Titterington, Vice President

George McDermott, Trustee Anthony Blanco, Trustee George Rosko, Trustee

Dr. Oliver W. Stringham, Superintendent of Schools

Kathleen McEwin-Marano, Secretary/Business Administrator

Page 2

Recently, North Arlington High School took part in the “Breaking the Cycle” of School Violence Through For-giveness Program. This program underscores the efforts of principals, teachers, and law enforcement, to coun-teract school violence by proactively addressing its most common roots: bullying, peer pressure, gossip, racism, and other forms of intolerance. By addressing these problematic roots of school violence, assemblies organized by “Breaking the Cycle” generate self-respect and respect for others – both keys to school safety – and strength-en positive links between school employees, parents, students and local law enforcement officers.

“Breaking the Cycle” of School Violence

Learning in North Arlington

Roosevelt School Student Council Helps Community

The Roosevelt School Student Council members recently organized a food drive to help the local food pantry. Parents were asked to bring a food item to Back To School Night as their ticket to enter the school building. Stu-dent Council members collected the food that night and thanked the parents for their generosity. As you can see from the picture and the large bags, the Student Council collected a lot of food! Mrs. Arena's first grade class collected the most food! Ms. Frazao, the Student Council advisor, and Principal, Mrs. Griggs, delivered the bags

to the food pantry. The Student Council has great ideas and will continue to help the community.

Pictured from left to right, “Breaking

the Cycle” representative Ian Winter,

Police Chief Louis Ghione, Bergen

County Undersheriff Smith, Bergen

County Executive Undersheriff Ste-

ven Librie, Assistant Principal Den-

nis J. Kenny, Superintendent of School

Dr. Oliver Stringham, presenter Ann

Marie D’Aliso, presenter Hashim Gar-

rett, and presenter Charles Williams.

Ms. Frazao’s class proudly poses

with their donation.

Mr. Thomas Antonelli, from The Rotary Club and Dr. Oliver Stringham, Super-intendent, visited the third grade classes at Jefferson School on October 22nd to distribute a dictionary to each student. Every student in the third grade of all three elementary schools received a dictionary. This was a generous do-nation from The Rotary Club and was truly appreciated!

Local Rotary Club a Valuable Partner in Education!

Page 3

North Arlington High School Teacher and Student Save the Day

Mr. Daniel Farinola (pictured on the right), a physical education teach-er, came to the aid of Glenn Full (pictured on the left), a ninth grade stu-dent, who was choking during school lunch. Mr. Farinola, reacting calmly and confidently, successfully performed the Heimlich Maneuver, coming to the rescue of one of his students. Salma Elsafy (pictured in the middle), a twelfth grade student, witnessed Glenn struggling to breathe and successfully brought it to the attention of Mr. Farinola. North Arlington High School is proud of Mr. Farinola and Salma Elsafy!

Learning in North Arlington

NAHS Celebrates the “Heroes” of North Arlington

Recently, North Arlington High School conducted their annual “Heroes Luncheon”. In addition to cre-ating an opportunity to celebrate the efforts of the North Arlington Police Department, Fire Depart-ment, and Emergency Squad, it provides a valuable opportunity for NAHS students interested in a ca-reer of civil/community service to meet with the current “Heroes” of the community.

Pictured from Left to Right: Assistant Principal, Dennis J. Kenny, Colin

Clifford, Detective Mark Ballantyne, Meagan Santiago, Jonathan Torres,

Vincent Verderosa, Giuseppe Gugliuzza, Salma Elsafy, Sarah Palma, Darian

Nogueras, Anthony Rotondo, Daniel Goffredo, Fire Chief Mark Cunningham,

and Officer Sean Mac Donald

The Washington School Student Council created a Wall of

Heroes to recognize Veteran’s Day. Family members’ names

were enshrined throughout the main lobby. Pictured be-

low are Student Council advisers Mrs. Fasouletos, Mrs.

Reap, and several Student Council members.

Learning in North Arlington Page 4

Captain John Hearn of the NAPD speaks

to 5th grade members of the Jefferson School

Student Council

NAMS Salutes US Military Veterans

November 12, 2014 was GI Go Jeans for Troops Day. Teachers had the opportunity to donate $5 to the GI Go Fund and

wear jeans to work to show support for the charity. Middle School student reporter, Anna Lasek, reported the Gi Go Fund works to help U.S. military veterans who have fought to protect our country. Mrs. Gagliano organized the

event. When asked what made her take on this mission at NAMS, Mrs. Gagliano stated “It’s a great opportunity to raise

money for a wonderful cause.” Jeans for Troops Day is a nationwide effort to raise money for veterans. Schools, corpo-rations, and agencies of all kinds register to participate in this event each year. For more information visit

www.gigofund.org.

Jefferson School Celebrates the “Heroes” of North Arlington

Jefferson School hosted a Heroes Luncheon for some of North Arlington’s Police Officers and other First Responders. Mrs. Linda Korycinski, Third Grade Teacher & Student Council Advisor, coordinated the event and invited the Fifth Grade Student Council members to participate. The students were given the opportunity to interact with the “Heroes” and ask questions. It was a wonderful event and we thank them for all that they do to protect and serve the North Arlington community!

On December 3, 2014, North Arlington High School will hold its annual National Honor Society Induction Dinner at The San Carlo. The evening, coordinated by Mrs. Karin Kusher, is always a tremendous tribute to each of our new inductees.

NAHS National Honor Society

Meghan Beyer Kayleigh Lavornia

Daniela Camacho Cheyenne McDermott

Michael Cammett Angeleah Mendez

Joseph Cappelluti Rachel Mirra

Tiziana Cristiano Victoria Namnama

Lauren Cross Joseph O’Dowd

Theresa D’Errico Melis Ozbey

Mariam Elias Adarsh Patel

Tiffany Ensmann Angelynne Pawaan

Andrea Fonseca Samanta Quinones

Ashley Fontes Dominic Rego

Alycia Giglio Alexis Rosko

Melanie Goffredo Brianna Wilson

Yohanna Gonzalez Joanna Seca

Hannah Herrmann Gianna Tetto

Devon Keen Olivia Rytelewski

National Honor Society New Inductees

2014-2015

Learning in North Arlington

Page 5

NAMS STUDENT COUNCIL ELECTIONS!

Middle School student, Dante Andrews, reports that the NAMS Student Council held student-run campaigns and elec-

tions. “Having elections is an opportunity to encourage good school spirit and positive role models within the school. It is also a way to give responsibility, by having students advertise themselves positively,” said Ms. Neubau-

er, who co-advises the club along with Mrs. Duff.

Creative and colorful campaign signs decorated the hallways throughout the weeks leading up to elections. An as-

sembly was held on Wednesday, October 29th at 1 pm, and the students running for Student Council were given the opportunity to present their speeches to the entire student body. The following morning, elections were held during

homeroom. Congratulations and a great job to all!

Election Results:

Grade 6 Rep.: Sunil Das Grade 7 Rep.: AJ Ford

Grade 8 Rep.: Chloe Medina Secretary: Eric McKenna

Vice President: Sid Das Co-President: Dante Andrews

President: Melinda Tidwell

The North Arlington High School Student Council, in co-

ordination with the VFW Calo-Sass Post 4697 and the

American Legion Alexander Stover Post 37, conducted a

food drive to help feed local families and Veterans this

Thanksgiving. When the VFW representatives came in

to collect the items donated, they were amazed by the

level of care of the North Arlington High School Commu-

nity.

NORTH ARLINGTON HIGH SCHOOL AND THE VFW CONDUCT A SUCCESSFUL FOOD DRIVE

Pictured from Left to Right: Assistant Principal,

Dennis J. Kenny, Student Council Advisor Saman-

tha Dembowski, and VFW representatives Mr.

Arthur Lemise, Mr. Antonio Alho Sr., and Mr. Ed-

ward McDonough

Page 6

Learning in North Arlington

2013-2014 Testing Information!

At our October 2014 BOE meeting, our school district reported data regarding State testing. Assistant Superintendent, Wal-

ter Curioni, proudly introduced the presentation explaining testing information and professional development opportunities

that we are working toward.

Data from our North Arlington High School had the highest percentage of students proficient or advanced proficient on the High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA), English Language Arts section, since the inception of the test as reported by our High School Assistant Principal, Mr. Kenny. The percentage of students achieving an advanced proficient score was the highest in 13 years. The current twelfth grade cohort posted one of the biggest improvements in Bergen County on the Mathematics portion with a 14 percentage point gain. The analysis below shows the 13-year testing cycle on the HSPA.

Mathematics Language Arts

# # % # % # % % # # % # % # % %

School

Year Tested Partial

Prof PP Pro-

ficient P Adv.

Prof AP % P

or AP Tested Partial

Prof PP Pro-

ficient %P Adv.

Prof %AP % P

or AP 2004-

05 110 35 31.8% 57 51.8% 18 16.4% 68.2% 111 33 29.7% 73 65.8% 5 4.5% 70.3% 2005-

06 135 36 26.7% 74 54.8% 25 18.5% 73.3% 135 16 11.9% 110 81.5% 9 6.7% 88.1%

2006-

07 124 42 33.9% 72 58.1% 10 8.1% 66.1% 124 21 16.9% 87 70.2% 16 12.9% 83.1% 2007-

08 136 35 25.7% 81 59.6% 20 14.7% 74.3% 136 17 12.5% 110 80.9% 9 6.6% 87.5% 2008-

09 149 47 31.5% 86 57.7% 16 10.7% 68.5% 150 24 16.0% 114 76.0% 12 8.0% 84.0%

2009-

10 113 30 26.5% 71 62.8% 12 10.6% 73.5% 113 11 9.7% 96 85.0% 6 5.3% 90.3% 2010-

11 121 32 26.4% 73 60.3% 16 13.2% 73.6% 121 9 7.4% 98 81.0% 14 11.6% 92.6% 2011-

12 124 31 25.0% 86 69.4% 7 5.6% 75.0% 124 7 5.6% 104 83.9% 13 10.5% 94.4%

2012-

13 124 18 14.5% 81 65.3% 25 20.2% 85.5% 124 5 4.0% 96 77.4% 23 18.5% 96.0% 2013-

14 121 18 14.9% 79 65.3% 24 19.8% 85.1% 121 2 1.7% 91 75.2% 28 23.1% 98.3%

At our elementary schools, our North Arlington district met the ESEA requirements as established by the State of New Jersey.

There were record breaking accomplishments in each building. Roosevelt-The 3rd grade posted a perfect score on the NJASK

Mathematics portion. Roosevelt Principal, Mrs. Griggs, reported that the 5th grade class achieved near perfection on both the

Mathematics and Language Arts section of the NJASK with the distinction of either proficient or advanced proficient. Wash-

ington School Principal, Mrs. Jaume, presented State data showing that Washington students outperformed the State average

on both the English Language Arts and Mathematics section of the NJASK at every grade level. Washington school met every

target set forth by the State. (continued on

page 7)

(continued from page 6)

Jefferson School achieved tremendous success at every grade level. Jefferson Principal, Mrs. Rodriguez, presented State

data that showed Jefferson students outperformed the DFG (District Factor Group) and State averages at every grade lev-

el. The 4th grade classes achieved some of the biggest gains in Bergen County. The 5th grade class outperformed the State

by a whopping 12 percentage points in Mathematics. Mrs. Russo reported that per the State data, the Middle School

achieved some record-breaking results at each grade level. The 6th grade class achieved the highest Mathematics scores

in the past seven years. More than 88% of students demonstrated proficiency or advanced proficiency on the NJASK

Mathematics portion. Students with special needs outperformed the State by 20 percentage points in Mathematics and 10

percentage points in English Language Arts. The 7th grade class matched or exceeded the State averages in both Mathe-

matics and English Language Arts. Students with special needs outperformed the State by 20 percentage points in Mathe-

matics and 9 percentage points in English Language Arts. The 8th grade class posted tremendous NJASK scores. More

than 87% of students demonstrated proficiency or advanced proficiency on the NJASK English Language Arts section.

Students with disabilities outperformed the State and DFG by more than 30 percentage points in this section.

“Our perennial goals each year include student growth and success on various measures including, but not limited to

state assessments; along with students graduating NAHS with the skill sets necessary to be accepted into institutions of

higher learning upon graduation. The NAHS Class of 2014 was another tremendous class that because of the superlative

efforts of our staff and students, and support of our families, had 90 percent or better of North Arlington graduates accept-

ed into colleges, universities and trade schools,” explains Superintendent, Dr. Oliver Stringham.

Congratulations to all of our staff and students for the successes earned!

A NEW ERA BEGINS FOR THE VIKINGS!

On September 26, 2014 The North Arlington community re-opened the gates at their storied Edwin “RIP” Collins Athletic

Complex. The evening kicked off with an opening ceremony and ribbon cutting that included speeches from the Board

President, Joseph Ricciardelli, and Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Oliver Stringham. The opening ceremony also featured

an inspiring performance from the NAHS Marching Band/Color Guard and a surprise visit form the Viking mascot. De-

spite the Vikings’ loss to Cresskill, the energy and excitement on and off the field was electric. The crowd was filled with

many familiar faces both past and present. The field was not only home for the football team, the Vikings had several

night and post season soccer games as well. The athletic department is looking forward to the spring season, where

“RIP” Collins Field will host for track and baseball.