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Good Afternoon Secaucus Families,

I hope everyone is doing well and enjoying our crisp, fall weather. 

We are happy to report that most of our district families have completed the re-registration process. If you still have not completed it, you should have received a disenrollment letter via email. Through this process, we have had a number of students disenroll and have proven that other students do not live in Secaucus. Again, we thank all of our parents/guardians who have willingly participated in this process in order to rightfully educate only the students that live in our Secaucus community. 

As cold weather arrives, so do coughs, colds and stomach bugs. We ask that all parents/guardians consider keeping their child/children home if they exhibit signs of a communicable sickness. We are seeing many signs of common illnesses in students visiting the nurses office, many with elevated temperatures early in the school day. Please be reminded that you should adhere to the Health Contract you acknowledged in the beginning of the school year, promising to NOT send students to school that are ill. We will do our part by ensuring that our schools are regularly sanitized and disinfected on the weekends. 

I am providing you with the latest FAQ based on the “Parent Communication Form” questions that have been asked over the past two weeks, located just below this letter. The Parent Communication Form is still open for questions and can be accessed here: https://forms.gle/wFy9mQYpd1HdzRuk7. There is also an easy-to-use button on the www.sboe.org home page that you can click that will lead you straight to the form. We welcome all questions!

Take Care and Enjoy the Weekend,

Dr. Daniela Riser

Acting Superintendent

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Frequently Asked Questions - 10/21/2022

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Our Parent Communication Form is still open! If there are any questions you would like to ask the district administration, please visit this link to ask: https://forms.gle/Xcx1QzgPN52JFH6DA

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Q: Would like to know more about dis enrollment if the student takes 10 days of leave (2 weeks). There will be some unavoidable circumstances which lead us to make immediate travel plans  like visa stamping for which we need to go out of the country and come back. For that we need at least 2 weeks of leave. 

A: Unfortunately, the state of NJ does not recognize foreign travel as an “excused” absence for our public schools. As part of our yearly accountability measures, students who are chronically absent impact our local and state rankings. The federal government also ranks student absenteeism up to 15 percent of a district's ratings, ultimately impacting the funding our district receives. Please note that when a student is disenrolled from our system, they will be re enrolled after they return from their absence. As of now, virtual instruction is NOT an option for anyone in our school district, since that would require the hiring of additional instructors to be done correctly. 

Q: Lunch provided to students is not enough for the 5th grader that gets only a small piece of pizza and is charged $3.50 and when they ask for juice or any other item they are told it will be charged separately. What are we doing to resolve this ?

A: All school lunches are served with a fruit juice or a low-fat milk option, as part of the National School Lunch Program. Most days students are given a lunch with many different options that is portioned well for the grade level that the student is in. With the increased price of supplies and food, Maschio’s has done all they can to keep the school lunches at a reasonable rate for our students. Please note that school lunches are voluntary and parents are welcome to send lunch in with their children each day as another option.

Q: I just wanted to express my thanks for this informative and helpful Q&A communication.  Thank You!

A: You are very welcome! We are dedicated to keeping our lines of communication open here at the board office and being transparent with all of our stakeholders. Keep the questions coming!

Q: Thank you for spearheading this important initiative.  I am interested to know the statistics of how many parents who did not participate in the mandatory registration.

A: As of today, over 91% of families participated in the re registration process. Through this process, we have had a number of students disenroll and have proven that other students do not live in Secaucus. Again, we thank all of our parents/guardians who have willingly participated in this process in order to rightfully educate only the students that live in our Secaucus community. 

Q: I just received information on the NJ Student Learning Assessment that my child took in the Spring. How are these scores going to be used in our schools to make them better?

A: Dr. Riser and the administration have developed a plan for utilizing the test scores to improve instruction in a variety of ways. Here are some examples:

• We will review district evidence statements with teachers/grade level teams from Grades 3-12 to determine how to proceed with instruction and how to potentially amend the curriculum to address any shortcomings
• We will explore expanding Basic Skills ELA at the middle school level to address our learning gaps, offering potential after school enrichment periods for eligible students
• We will amend our Basic Skills program for Math at the Middle School level to assist with students who need extra help during the school day
• We will expand the use of Link It assessments and ALEKS, as well as expand Basic Skills instruction in high school math, focusing on standards that need improvement
• We will expand IXL into the high school as a supplement for ELA 

Q: I am concerned with class sizes at the elementary level. It seems that the earlier grades are packed. What is being done to address this?

A: The administration is in the process of developing a plan for the potential reconfiguration of the elementary schools to accommodate the increasing enrollment and to explore a more effective educational model. We will also be getting another enrollment study done for our school district due to the new residential projects that have been added in the past few years. We understand that our population is expanding and will make every effort to ensure that our class sizes remain manageable for our teachers and our students continue to receive the best education possible.