Happy Thanksgiving!

Hoo Boy!! One of the best days of the year coming up! Thanksgiving! I, like most guys, will be stuffed and zoned out in front of the television by 5:00pm.

Enjoy the Holiday. Remember the school will be closed Thursday through Sunday, 11/26-11/29. Will reopen on Monday November 30th!

Till next time...

GASO--What the Heck is that?!

Want to know what our REBEL II chapter is promoting for tomorrow? Check out the home page on Thursday and click on the link, G.A.S.O.--What the Heck is That? It could save someones life...

Till next time...

TWITTER, act 2

Looks like it might have been a good idea to write how to find my tweets, or how to follow my tweets. Again, that does sound funny coming from me! Anyway,

my user name is:

oxfordcentral

till next time...

TWITTER

Well, I finally did it! I am trying out Twitter. Yes, I am all a-twitter! If you would like to receive instant tweets from the school and become a "follower" of the OCS Twitter tweets ou will need to log-in to Twitter.com and register. Then you can become a follower of my tweets. Jeez, it sounds so goofy to be typing the word tweets!

Anyway, I will be giving this a try to provide another way to keep people updated about what is upcoming or happening here at the school. Things I will try to tweet (remember I am almost 50 and tweeting may take some getting used to):

school weather closings, emergency notices, upcoming events at school, reminders about new information coming home or new stuff on the website, etc...

What I will NOT tweet:

That I am brushing my teeth, washing my car, completing mundane tasks of my life--(even though being a superintendent is a very glamorous life), staring into space, ranting at the NY Giants, etc...

Don't worry, this will not be a voyeuristic look int my bizarre existence!

Let's give it a try and see how it goes...

Till next time....

Our Stimulus Money and an important letter....

are discussed in this blog entry. We have all heard many different ideas pertaining to the stimulus money that schools in New Jersey were given as part of the recent American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. I have included a letter that we put together so that our entire community could understand the financial realities of the stimulus money and the ramifications of this money. The letter is below:



Dear Oxford Residents:

On February 17, 2009, President Obama signed into law the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), which authorizes the expenditure of billions of dollars to revive the nation’s economy. ARRA could possibly be the greatest single infusion of federal dollars into education since Congress passed the Elementary and Secondary Education Act in 1965 during Lyndon Johnson’s presidency. Oxford is to receive ARRA funding in the following three areas:

No Child Left Behind (NCLB) (July 1, 2009 – September 30, 2011)
Oxford has been approved to receive $4,945.00 in ARRA funds under the NCLB Title I Grant which must be spent to “Strengthen Education, Drive Reform, and Improve Results for Students”. NCLB is a Federal Grant Program and therefore the manner in which funds can be spent is restricted. These funds are in addition to the regular NCLB funds received.

The US Department of Education Office of Elementary and Secondary Education has suggested that funds be spent on:
· Programs or activities that can be conducted productively for two years and then terminated;
· Costs related to attracting effective teachers to Title I schools (40% or more of its students that come from low-income families); or
· Conducting pilot programs to test approaches in Title I schools that, if successful, may be supported with other funds in the future.

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) (July 1, 2009 – September 30, 2011)
Oxford has been approved to receive IDEA funds in two areas; Basic (ages 5 – 21) and Preschool (ages 3 – 4). IDEA Basic will receive an additional $86,197.00 and IDEA Preschool will receive an additional $3,117.00 for a grand total of $89,314.00 in ARRA funds which must be spent to “Drive School Reform and Improvement”. IDEA is also a Federal Grant Program and funds may only be used to provide special education and related services to children with disabilities. These funds are in addition to the regular IDEA funds received.

The US Department of Education Office of Elementary and Secondary Education suggest the funds be spent on such items as:
· On-site professional development for special and general educators that leads to certification;
· Induction and mentoring programs for special educators;
· Technology hardware and software to improve achievement for students with disabilities;
· Assistive technology devices and services for students with disabilities.


State Fiscal Stabilization Fund (SFSF) (July 1, 2009 – June 30, 2010)
New Jersey received $1.3 billion in State Fiscal Stabilization Funds under ARRA to be used for education. Oxford is receiving a total of $381,099.00 in SFSF funds. Unlike NCLB and IDEA, the funds received under SFSF are NOT in addition to funds already received. In New Jersey, Governor Corzine used some of the national ARRA funds to replace the deficit in education funding for the 2009-2010 school year for those school districts that receive Equalization Aid (a portion of some school district’s state aid determined by district property wealth and district income). If this was not allowed under ARRA, state aid to Oxford and other districts which receive Equalization Aid may have been cut for the 2009-2010 school year.

The State of New Jersey allocated some of the ARRA funds in this fashion in order to save and/or create jobs for this school year. If Oxford’s state aid would be reduced by $381,099.00 the district has but two options available to close the revenue gap; raise taxes or cut expenses. Since only a fraction of the school district budget is discretionary the district would have to lay off approximately 16% of its staff and made drastic program and facility cuts. This would have a devastating effect on the educational programs and level of services that are currently provided in the district.

There are many variables that the district takes into consideration in constructing a responsible and educationally sound budget. This year we face a gubernatorial election which has, in the past, typically delayed notification to school districts as to the amount of state aid they will be receiving. This leaves districts the daunting task of formulating a budget without knowing exactly how much aid they are going to receive.

The goal of your Administration and Board of Education throughout this process is to promote transparency and accountability in its fiscal operations. We continue to ask questions, seek answers and explore alternate means of funding that will maintain the quality educational programs currently provided for all our students.

Thank you for your time and should you have any questions or if you would like additional information regarding the ARRA funding, please feel free to contact us at (908) 453-4101 or go to www.recovery.gov .


Very truly yours,



Robert J. Magnuson Patricia A. Decibus Milissa Dachisen
Chief School Administrator Business Administrator Vice-Principal
Ext. 2100 Ext. 2105 Ext. 2104

Money, Money, Money...

It is time for another go 'round of budget preparations for the 2010-2011 school year....

This school year, as we prepare to put our budget together for the 2010-2011 school year--a process that has already begun-- we will be hosting a number of planning sessions and we invite those citizens who would like to have input into the process to attend the meetings. The meeting dates will be:

Thursday, December 10, 2009 10:00 am;
Monday, January 11, 2010 1:00 pm;
Wednesday, February 11, 2010 10:00 am.

Please give the Business Office a call if you will be attending. The meeting room will be based on the number of people who express an intent to attend.

Till next time...

What goes on at school...

when the students and teachers are off? Plenty! The cafeteria floor was rewaxed! The air filters in all our air conditioning and heating units have been replaced, state reports have been filed, the front door that was delivered with a big scratch--cleverly concealed by me with a green crayola-has been replaced with a brand new door and our front steps have been repaired. I included a picture of the steps. See everyone on Monday, November 9th.

Honor roll updates

A few parents asked me last night about the honor roll requirements for this school year. This past school year we began to look at our grading procedures and our report cards as well. A committee was formed to analyze changes that could be made and we decided to amend the honor roll requirements and make a few subtle changes to the report cards.

In order to be on the honor roll a student in grades 3-8 must have an average between 83 and 93 and have no grade lower than an 83. They must also maintain conduct that is satisfactory or above in all classes.

The high honor roll is computed with an average of 94 or above in all classes and no grade lower than an 85 in any class. They must also maintain conduct that is satisfactory or above in all classes.

This change is reflected in Board Policy 5124 and is also in our 2009-2010 Parent/Student handbook on page 23.

Till next time...

Could it possibly be...

the end of the first marking period? Time certainly goes by fast! Hopefully everyone remembered to shift their clocks back one hour this past weekend and this is always a good time to remember to check and change the batteries in the smoke detectors in your home!

Tomorrow is the New Jersey election for governor but here at OCS the race is over! In our student body mock election held last Friday, Republican candidate Mr. Chris Christie won the race for governor! Let's see how the students of OCS fare against the rest of the state on Tuesday November 3!

Don't forget that this week school will be closed on Thursday and Friday--November 5 and 6.

I am also looking for a new football team! The Giants are slowly torturing me...

Till next time...