Any number of potential hot potatoes surfaced at the October 21 WW-P School Board meeting — from the latest bullying report to an update on the confirmed presence of Enterovirus D-68 in one Maurice Hawk student.
But the item that drew most public comment was the district policy toward field trips. While the Board members unanimously approved a number of high school academic and athletic field trips, Board Vice President Richard Kaye voted against the South varsity baseball’s trip to spring training in Fort Pierce, Florida.
Said Kaye: “I support field trips, but I believe we should bring them closer to home to lower the cost. I bring up this issue to continue the dialog about the need for students to travel by plane so far for training, and would hope that we could find a place that is closer to home and has a program of equal quality that the students could utilize.” This field trip was approved, 7 to 1, with Kaye dissenting.
A middle school field trip, which was not officially on the agenda, was also the subject of discussion. Several parents of students enrolled in the German language program at Grover Middle School spoke about their desire for the Board to approve a two-day German immersion field trip for eighth grade students. The trip, developed and run for many years by German teacher Annmarie Waidelich, involves an overnight trip to Washington, D.C., and includes a visit to the Swiss embassy, ordering in German at two German restaurants, and visiting a World War II museum. The trip was also the subject of discussion during the last school year. (WW-P News, February 7).
Virginia Manzari, parent of a ninth grader who was on the trip last year, and a sixth-grader taking German at Grover, said “a group of parents spoke with Assistant Superintendent Martin Smith about the trip, and we were told that it was being canceled due to cost. But the parents bear the cost, so that reason makes no sense. Then we were told it is not tied to the curriculum, but every aspect of the trip is tied directly to the published German curriculum. Then we were told they would miss too much school. But the trip is scheduled for a Friday and a Saturday, so the students would only miss one day of school. And the last reason was that it isn’t fair to students taking languages other than German, who don’t have the same opportunity. That is the worst reason of all — Frau Waidelich should be commended for coming up with such a meaningful trip, and other teachers should be encouraged to do so as well.”
Another parent, Laura Donnelly, explained the impact the German program, and the German trip in particular, has had on her oldest daughter, now a junior at New York University. “Because of the wonderful experience Frau offered to her German students, and especially the field trip, my daughter has continued to take German in college. I have three more children coming through the district, and they want to be a part of the German language experience too, including the field trip.”
“This type of program provides three benefits,” said Robert Dunne, who has an eighth grader and sixth grader at Grover, both taking German. “It provides real immersion into the language, it encourages the forming of a real team, between students and staff. This type of program enriches not only the students but also the teacher, and the district should be doing more programs like this.”
Parent Vic Sharma said, “you need to consider the sense of achievement that these kids have by doing an outside trip, which emphasizes such positives as an acceptance of diversity and different cultures. The fact that parents have to come before you to beg for this trip to be approved is kind of sad, frankly. If you choose to deny it, I hope you have a very good reason not to do it.”
A petition in support of the German trip has also been circulated to parents, and approximately 120 parents have signed the petition, including this reporter, whose son is a German student at Grover.
#b#Enterovirus.#/b# The school administration also communicated the latest updates of the existence of the Enterovirus D-68 in the WW-P district. “Over the weekend [of October 11-12] I received information from the West Windsor Health Department that in early September 2014, a student at Maurice Hawk Elementary School was tested for Enterovirus-D68,” said Superintendent David Aderhold. “The Department of Health did not receive the results from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) until late Friday afternoon, October 10, 2014,” due to the CDC’s system of prioritizing the testing of specimens.
The district knows of no other student infected with the virus. Said Aderhold: “The Department of Health has told us that due to the timing of the event, there is no cause for alarm. However, because Enterovirus-D68 is present within our community we should be vigilant in adhering to the recommended precautions issued by the CDC and the New Jersey Department of Health.”
A complete list of precautions can be found on the district website at www.west-windsor-plainsboro.k12.nj.us as well as on the West Windsor township municipal page at www.westwindsornj.org .
#b#Bullying.#/b# Aderhold presented the district’s annual report on Violence, Vandalism, and Harassment, Intimidation and Bullying (HIB), which showed that the numbers of incidents of both bullying and violence/vandalism have decreased between the 2012-’13 and 2013-’14 school years. While Aderhold noted this positive trend, he cautioned that this decrease could be the result of underreporting, especially in the context of HIB incidents.
He stressed the importance of district-wide anti-bullying and violence initiatives, especially those that engender respect for self and others. “In addition,” said Aderhold, “the idea of being an upstander, someone who sees an incident and reports it, rather than a merely a bystander, is an important message we need to get across to our students. Serious instances of bullying have been in the news lately, at a school where there was a culture of underreporting. We need to be vigilant and make sure that nothing like that ever happens in our district.”
The Board of Education voted 8 to 0 to approve the report; Board member Yu Taylor Zhong was not present.
#b#No Homework.#/b# Aderhold announced that the district would be observing four “No Homework Nights.” The first was held on October 22. The remainder of the dates will be December 16, February 10, and May 8.
“This is the start of a larger conversation on the benefits and drawbacks of assigning homework,” said Aderhold. “While there is tremendous value in engaging in meaningful homework assignments that reinforce concepts and skills taught during the school day, there are times when we need to have a break from the responsibilities of homework and enjoy time with family and friends.”
#b#Elections.#/b# Board President Anthony Fleres noted that the elections for board members will be held on November 4, the same day as the next board meeting. “All the candidates happen to be present here tonight, so I would like to thank everyone who is running. This is a volunteer position, and I hope that, no matter what happens in the election, you will all remain involved with our schools.”
