Pursuing Equity (Fall 2020)

GREF will underwrite Glen Ridge’s participation in the Central Jersey Consortium for Excellence and Equity (CJCEE) at Monmouth University.  Comprised of administrators, teachers, support staff, parents, and students, the consortium shares ideas and strategies to help school districts enhance the well-being and academic success of all students by eliminating the disparities in achievement and school engagement.

https://www.monmouth.edu/school-of-education/centers-academies/cjcee/

Online Reading Assessment (Fall 2020)

To help educators more accurately assess K-8 students’ reading ability in an online environment, GREF is funding Literably — a powerful online tool that identifies A-Z reading levels, diagnoses skill gaps, screens students for reading difficulties, and monitors progress. 

Emergent Needs (Spring & Fall 2020)

When schools turned on a dime to be 100% virtual in March, GREF offered to purchase whatever teachers needed to make the transition.  The offer has been extended this fall with many more teachers making requests.  We have been able to quickly supply extra monitors, document cameras/software, lap desks, a teacher tracking camera, and manipulatives that can be sanitized.

Virtual High School (Ongoing since 2011)

Our commitment to fund the GRHS Virtual High School through 2023 will be honored, providing students with opportunities to take courses offered beyond Glen Ridge. Since GREF first funded the program nearly a decade ago, hundreds of students have been able to study a wide range of topics of interest, and enhance their academic resume.

Support education in Glen Ridge for today and tomorrow.

DONATE HERE

For more information click here.

The Glen Ridge Educational Foundation is pleased to announce the award of $18,000 to fund professional development for teachers, adding to the several tens of thousands of dollars devoted to this aspect of the Foundation’s interest areas over the last couple of years.  This grant, for support and training in the development of the Language Arts curriculum, builds on a former grant which focused on implementation of various LA teaching techniques in the classroom.  In the presentation requesting the grant, several teachers spoke to how they are currently utilizing the best practices techniques they learned and their goal of wrapping “what works best” into the formalized curriculum. 

Like most professions, education is constantly changing and the Foundation is pleased to be able to help keep district teachers up-to-date thus enhancing the opportunities of our students.

Diversity in Science Literacy                                                Paulette Cinotti, Gerald White

Scientist very in gender, ethnicity, and cultural background; embracing this diversity should be part of the learning experience in the science classroom. By using a variety of books written by and about non-dominant groups, we will celebrate cultural diversity and pave the way to inclusivity in science education. These books will be housed in the RAS media center and used as a resource for specific class projects, with the goal of nurturing cultural literacy in our sixth grade students.

Pretend Play for Real Learning                                          Megan Connolly

This project will allow for children to experience additional dramatic play scenarios beyond the traditional “housekeeping”. Children will be able to engage in the added worlds of a grocery store, doctor’s office, ice cream parlor, restaurant, and veterinarian’s office. These varied settings will create new opportunities to develop vocabulary, cooperate with peers, and practice problem-solving skills. Frequently changing materials, such as games, puzzles and art projects will spark excitement in the children. This project will allow for that excitement to extend to the dramatic play area as well.

Expanded Innovation Grants

The DBQ Project                                                                  Eric Dimeck, Carol Svetik, John Lawlor 

The goal of this initiative is to improve critical thinking skills by providing teachers with the teaching tools, and students with strategies for writing document document-based question (DBQ) essays and further develop essential analytical skills. Two professional development workshops with a trainer from the DBQ project will be provided to Middle School and High School Social Studies and English teachers, and online and print resources will be purchased. These resources will help students break down the process for answering essential questions from ancient history to modern times by analyzing sources, constructing a thesis, and supporting claims with evidence.  Examples of questions students will explore taking on the role of historians as they learn to critically read primary and secondary sources and construct claims supported by evidence are:

• How Did the Renaissance Change Man’s View of the World?
• Female Workers in Japanese Silk Factories: Did the Costs Outweigh the Benefits?
• Martin Luther King and Malcolm X: Whose Philosophy Made the Most Sense for America in the 1960s?

Collaboration Café                                                                           Lindsay Coral, Jessica Gill

Third and fourth grade students will join forces and have the opportunity to improve their language arts abilities. Two classes of students will read books of their choice in a café environment. Comfortable

seating, special amenities, and books will be provided during each meeting setting the stage. Fourth grade students will act as mentors and develop a sense of leadership during this time. Third grade students will look to mentors for help to increase their Daily 5 language arts skills. Both groups will seek to build reading stamina, fluency, comprehension, and writing skills through this collaboration.

Reimagining Recess                                                                          Megan Connolly  

Recess is an important time within the elementary student’s day. Often what comes to mind when one thinks of recess are visions of children running, climbing on equipment and bouncing balls. However, if one reimagines recess, a much fuller picture can emerge. A picture of children engaged in teambuilding using large blocks, taking turns playing games, practicing eye-hand coordination with a beanbag toss, balancing on alphabet stepping stones, and role-playing with construction vehicles. Reimagining recess will provide Central School students with more varied opportunities during outside recess time but more importantly also during inclement weather when the playground equipment is unavailable.

Over the last couple of years the Foundation has contributed roughly $250,000 to fund projects and programs in each and every of the town's schools.  Part of those monies were for Innovation Mini-Grants and Expanded Innovation Grants.  Below is a list of those that were funded during the 2018-2019 school year.  Please join us in congratulating all of the staff members who have brought their ideas for improving the delivery of the curriculum to the students.  For more information about these projects please go HERE.

Paula Horton: March Book Madness

Paula Ely: Hygge-The Cozy Nook

Lisa Petruzzi, Jody Walsh: "Forest Flies" Around the World

Diane Blazier, Alyssa Roqueni, Michelle Klein: Reading Comes Alive with Daily Five

Katie Stapp, Trish Fagan, Danielle Chesney, Rob Stomber, Elaina Frissel, Pamela Barton, Theresa Messineo, Cindy Barrington, Joe Caravela: UNICEF Kid Power

Monica Nieves, Christina Rodriguez: Technology in the Spanish Classroom

Jerry White: "We Need Diverse Books":A Celebration of Our Differences

Francoise Spano: Creation Station

Theresa Messineo, Megan Connolly: Many Cultures, One School

Andrew Shohan: Robotics Team

Jessica Gill: Soft Starts for School Success

Erin Goldstein: Literacy Circles for the Curious Kindergartner

Andrew Shohan: Engineering and Programming with Arduino Quadcopter

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

• The 6^th grade science classroom at Ridgewood had not had a major update in a generation or more until the Foundation raised the funds to install a facility necessary to deliver the curriculum of the 21^st
• The auditorium at Ridgewood had missing floor tiles and seats covered in duct tape to keep the stuffing inside. The Foundation raised funds to completely renovate the only large auditorium in our school system.
• The Synergistics Lab, where students in grades 3-6 explore STEAM topics through hands-on learning, was created and maintained through funds raised by the Foundation.
• Every high school student has a Chromebook provided by the Foundation in partnership with the district, facilitating the way teachers lead their students in learning today.
• The TV studio is integral to the communications in the school as well as enhancing the curriculum.
• The Virtual High School has enabled hundreds of students to study a host subjects and take AP courses our small school cannot offer, thus supporting the recent high achieving AP school award.
• At Forest and Linden, students will soon be learning improved safety behaviors through a grant from the Foundation and have been enjoying numerous mini-grants awarded to their teachers for classroom enhancements. Learning gardens were initially started this way as was Forest’s “One School, One Book.” Linden’s youngest students have also been benefiting from an additional way of curriculum presentation through I-Rover smart boards supporting traditional methods.
• Most recently, GREF has committed to funding additional teacher professional development for both math and language arts as they seek to provide the best learning opportunities for all our town’s public school children.

• There were no lab tables for experiments, just uneven, tipsy desks  
• There was insufficient counter space for lab materials
• The storage units were inefficient, antiquated and damaged
• The lack of facilities made it difficult for students to work collaboratively and to complete more complex experiments

Improving the situation was critical for our STEM (Science Technology Engineering Math) program, especially given the implementation of the new N.J. Core Curriculum Content Standards and the Next Generation Science Standards developed by the National Research Council.  The new curriculum places a greater emphasis on hands-on learning, including personal observation, analysis, experimentation and communication.  More labs are required and the course demands a higher level of understanding to draft lab reports that are aligned with the Middle School program. 

________________________________________________________________________________________

Two and a Half Decades of Funding Projects for All Glen Ridge Students

• Project One-to-One Chromebooks for Middle School and High School
• Ridgewood Avenue School  Auditorium Renovation
• Virtual High School
• Communications Project / TV Studio
• Lucy Calkins Writing Program
• Leveled Reading Libraries at Forest and Linden
• Junior Great Books
• Impact Concussion Project
• Foreign Language Lab
• Equipment to enhance fitness education at the High School
• Macbeth: The Rock Musical – written, directed and produced by the High School Drama Club
• CAD Lab
• Staff Development for Teachers
• Programs and Technology for Special Needs Students
• Hundreds of Mini-Grants

• 6th Grade Science Classroom
• Synergistics Lab at Ridgewood Avenue
• High School Robotics Team and 8th grade class – electronics equipment
• 3D printer for CAD and engineering classes at Middle and High Schools
• teentech™ – conference for High School girls interested in exploring STEM-based career options

Board of Trustees

Arthur Dawson PhD • Duval Graham • David Lefkovits, CFA • Ann Marie Linke. • James Lisovicz, Esq.• Mary Louise Malyska PhD 

John McCusker, Esq • Maureen Mycka • Marcia Horton O'Grady • Dirk Phillips • Bill Potter • Karima Ravenell  

Benjamin Ringe • Gwen Schoenfeld, Esq.• Linda Seyffarth • Tracey St. Auburn • Anthony Turiano • Fran Wong  • Tom Wright

¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾¾

 STIMULATE·INNOVATE·FACILITATE