My new connections!

With my new career just on the horizon, I have joined the South Jersey Paralegal Association. They are the nicest group of women That I have had the pleasure of meeting and have been so very welcoming to me! I wanted to share our new officers because I am so happy and excited about the upcoming year! If any of you are interested or know someone who may be interested, please share this with them as well!
Congratulations to all of our new Officers!

PRESS RELEASE FROM SJPA (By News Contact: Georgea Oshman)

New Board Of Directors For South Jersey Paralegal Association

SJPA installation of new officers fêted at Cherry Hill Restaurant

(CHERRY HILL, NJ)—June 27, 2011 – The South Jersey Paralegal Association is pleased to announce the installation of their new Board of Directors for the 2011–2012 term. A ceremony was performed by the Association’s guest speaker, The Honorable Ann Marie Donio, United States Magistrate Judge, during a dinner meeting held at the Caffé Aldo Lamberti in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, on June 27, 2011.

The new 2011-2012 slate of Officers are Betsy Lindenberg, President, Georgea Oshman, Vice President, Janice Kennedy, NJCP, Treasurer, Sue Merewitz, Recording Secretary, Rebecca Watson, Primary Representative to the National Federation of Paralegal Associations, Georgea Oshman, Secondary Representative to NFPA, Lynne DeRemigio, NJCP, Parliamentarian, and Christi Valerio, NJCP, Corresponding Secretary. Additional Committee Chairmanships will be appointed by President Lindenberg prior to September.

One of the major endeavors for the new Board will be the planning and hosting of the SJPA Paralegal Convention to be held for the first time in the South Jersey area. This special event is planned for March 30, 2012 at The Enterprise Center located on the Burlington County College Campus in Mount Laurel, New Jersey. Additionally, a September “kick-off” event is planned for the Marlton/Cherry Hill area. Details for this event will be posted to the South Jersey Paralegal Association’s website in July.

For more information please visit the South Jersey Paralegal Association (www.sjpaparalegals.org )

                                                             # # #

BIO:  South Jersey Paralegal Association

The South Jersey Paralegal Association is a New Jersey-based, non-profit organization incorporated in 1983 and is governed by a Board of Directors.  SJPA is a member of the national/international organization—the National Federation of Paralegal Associations—with 16,000+ members.  SJPA is comprised of paralegals, paralegal students, paralegal educational institutions and other entities that support SJPA’s goals and the paralegal profession. Traditional members are either employed or retained by law firms, corporations, governmental agencies or financial institutions throughout New Jersey.

WHEW!

Have you noticed I was gone? If you have, I have been absent for a good reason. I, a Mom of six children aged 4-14, decided to go back to college. I guess the daily tasks of Motherhood, laundry, cooking, cleaning, disciplining, carpooling, teacher conferences, IEP meetings, kids activities, blah, blah, blah, wasn't enough for me.

I made the decision to go, I registered before I could think too much about it and BAM! I was a student again! I was nervous. I was 39 years old, been out of work for 14 years to stay home with my kids, been away from school even longer, and I take 9 credits. (Hey, I don't do anything half way!)

It was wonderful! I haven't felt so alive in a long time! My kids were only mildly neglected and my husband only mildly annoyed with extra responsibilities. It worked out fine!

I ended the semester with A's in all three of my classes, and my kids have a new appreciation for school and it's importance.

I am taking two online classes this summer, and then, in the fall, I'm back in the classroom again! I have even started the ball rolling on a fall internship!

Wow, look at that, my fist blog in a while and it's almost all about ME! That feels swell!
:-) Looks like I do have a place after all!

It's a New Year!

Happy 2011 Everyone!  Well, another year behind us, another year ahead.  As I look forward, I'm happy, I'm nervous, I'm excited, I'm my normal crazy self!  I can't believe all the things that I have been through and survived in my life and I worry about what is to come. 
I would like to make a toast to all the people that have been in my life, through good and bad, for the short term and the long term.
Here goes.....

As I think about my life my family and my friends, I am amazed at how blessed I have been.  I have been given, throughout my life, so many people people that have taught me so many lessons through the years.

With you, I have experienced the hilarious, the uncomfortable, the emotional, the memorable and even the unthinkable.  We have disagreed, cried, laughed, hugged, held hands and loved together.

We have had broken hearts and broken spirits, we have picked up the pieces and dropped them again. We have sat in silence when there were just no words to say and we have interrupted when it was necessary.

Our friends have become our family and our families have become our friends.

For 2011, I wish for all of you love, peace and grace.

Happy and Healthy 2011 to all.  Every experience and every person has made me who I am today, I wouldn't change a thing.

Ho! Ho! Ho! Because I said so!

My babies in a rare moment of cooperation. I only needed to threaten my 14 year old once! That's progress!

Crazy Christmas

It's almost Christmas, five days to be exact. I hate to admit it, but as an adult, I've never really been a big fan of Christmas. It's all commercial and so overly hyped up that, honestly, no one could really live up to it. It's just a huge set up to an equally huge let down.

When my kids were little, some of the magic came back for me. Christmas through a child's eyes is magical and wondrous and infectious. I started to actually enjoy Christmas again. Then, the kids grew.

Let's face it, kids are born selfish. When a baby is hungry, he cries until he's fed, it's human nature, it's how they survive, I get it. I just wasn't aware that my 14 year old was at risk of death if he doesn't have a cell phone. That a Nintendo DSi was crucial to my 8 year old son's survival. No parenting book ever taught me that my 9 year old will absolutely perish if he has to wait one more year for an iPod.

Family Christmas visits are a disaster. What, in my mind, should be a Norman Rockwell painting of my extended family enjoying my wonderfully polite and well behaved children turns into a soccer game in my Aunt's family room resulting in a spilled drink and me melting down.

The Christmas season in my house is the joy of breaking up four fights over who's turn it is to mix the cookie dough. It's the harmony of White Christmas playing on the stereo whilst my four year old accompanies good ole' Bing with a temper tantrum.

In spite of all this, as Christmas draws near, I am sad. I am sad because as a divorced Mom, my oldest five children will be spending Christmas with their Father this year. Brian and I will only have our four year old for Christmas. It will be so quiet as Aidan will have no one to tease and torture him. I won't have any fights to break up but I also won't get to see the faces of my older kids upon opening their presents on Christmas morning. I am hosting a family Christmas with my own family fractured and incomplete. 

As I write this I have become melancholy and a bit sappy, because after all, my kids are at school and I am becoming delusional in the peace and quiet. I'm sure when they get home they will snap me back to reality.

So, for this year, I get to skip the whining and crying and fighting and disappointment over what presents they DIDN'T get. I will call my children on Christmas morning at their Father's house and hear about their gifts and they will tell me that they miss me and they wish that they were home for Christmas. I will smile and tell them that I miss them too (because I will) and I will know all the while that my ex will have to deal with the reality of it all, if only for one weekend, and I will be just fine.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Mom's can party too

I am going to confess.....

I love my kids, but I also want to be a person.  Being a Mom is great, don't get me wrong, but it can't be ALL there is to life.  I only know a few Moms that will actually admit to this although, I suspect that there are many more Mom's that feel this way but are afraid to SAY it.

Well, why the hell not?  Mom Guilt?  Fear that other Mothers might judge you?  Newsflash, they already do.  Before Motherhood we were women, we had careers, we had friends, we had FUN.  Why should ALL of that cease just because we had a kid or two or six?

Of course it gets harder.  Of course our children come first, that goes without saying.  I love a wild night out with friends today as much as I did in my 20's but if one of my kids is sick or has a project due, or has a social function, my fun gets put on hold.

I have learned through 14 and a half years of parenting that I am a BETTER Mother when I get time for me.  I have learned that it's okay to go out with your spouse or a friend for the evening.  Hell, I even get drunk sometimes!  *GASP*

So, lets end the Mom guilt.  Call your girlfriends, grab another couple, get out of the house and let loose!  Your kids will be fine, and you just might feel like a human again!

And if another Mother judges you for it, she's probably jealous, invite her out next time, I bet she goes!

Here come the girlfriends!

My oldest is 14.  He is also a boy.  This means that he doesn't often come to me with "boy type" problems or issues.  As his Mother, I am mostly grateful for that.  I am probably better off not knowing his "boy type" issues.

My son does come to me when it matters most though.  He will come to me when something is really bothering him, when he's really frustrated or confused by something or when he wants to ask about girls.

He always starts with, "Since you're a girl........."  It's right at that point when I take a deep but silent breath and remind myself to NOT sound like his Mother.

Those words evoke something in me.  Fear, joy, indigestion, I haven't decided which it is.
I'm not really a "girl" anymore.  I am a woman who has never really had a bunch of luck in the dating, boyfriend, love department until I finally got it right with my current husband.

I didn't date in Middle or High School.  It wasn't because I didn't want to, it was because the boy that I liked usually liked my friend and the boy that my friend liked usually liked me.  Like a bad episode of a High School drama, it went on and on this way.

So, now here I am with a 14 year old son who wants advice on girls.  I dare not tell him the truth.  The truth is, that he will like many girls who will not like him back, that he will have girls following him around, "in love" with him that he doesn't like at all.  That his heart will get broken, more than once, and that when it does he will pick up the pieces just to have it broken again.

I don't tell him that girls are as scared as boys are but mostly because if their girlfriends don't like the boy she is dating, she will have to dump him, no matter how she really feels.

I don't tell him that he's too young to be thinking about girls and dating and that there are more important things for him to focus on.  I also don't tell him that I don't really believe that he's too young to be thinking about girls and dating, I just want him to believe that so that he doesn't have to get hurt by it all already.

And so it begins.  His life is beginning to become his own.  This is the first step towards finding his future wife.  That sounds dramatic, but it's true.  Dating is how he will know her when he meets her. 

When the time does come for each of my children to marry, I do hope that they ALL will remember the one piece of advice that I didn't take myself the first time I got married BUT did get right the second time;

"Marry your best friend."

In the meantime, I will give advice only when asked, I will help him pick out corsages and I will not kick the ass of any little girl who breaks my son's heart.  What more could a son ask of his good ol' Mom?


   

My kitchen nightmare!

It's a four day "weekend". Well, for my kids anyway. An extended weekend or a school vacation may be a break for the kids, but not for a SAHM.  For us it's a double shift.  The lunch time that usually occurs at school is now at home, in my kitchen, and the mess is all mine.

I am not a fan of meal times. I have never been. I have never been a big eater and quite frankly don't "get" the whole love of food thing. Don't get me wrong, I can certainly appreciate fine cuisine, but normal day to day meals; not really my thing.

I have spent most of my life not caring much if I eat or not. I would grab a granola bar, a cookie, whatever, and be on my way.  I don't claim that it's healthy, it's just what I always did.

Now, I am a Mom. I have 6 kids. Six kids that insist on eating three meals a day, everyday! WHAT???!!!!
Of course I feed my kids, I HAVE to, but I don't have to like it.

I used to actually enjoy cooking! Inventing recipes, entertaining with food that I prepared. I didn't usually eat much of it, but I loved to make it. Then I had kids. It's hard to enjoy preparing a meal that, when placed on the table, elicits instant tears from my nine year old son because, he "doesn't like that."
Once I had kids, cooking became a required chore, not one of relaxation and creativity. It also became the focal point of my life. I am forced to think about dinner at 8am so that I can have something defrosted to cook that night.

Meals on a day that my kids are home from school typically go like this....
My kids get up and head down for breakfast at about 9am. I am NOT a morning person and I can't stand the smell of food cooking in the morning so it's usually quick and easy breakfast foods. I make sure I always have bagels, yogurt, fruit, cereal and instant oatmeal on hand for my kids. Now that my older three are 14, 12 and 9, with this method, I am able to avoid breakfast altogether! The older ones help the younger ones and they clean up after themselves, mostly.

By the time the breakfast fiasco is over it's close to 10:30. At about 11:00, without fail, my 7 year old son, Nicholas will be asking me, "What's for lunch?" Really kid?! You just finished breakfast!

At 12:30 or so the lunch nagging has become annoying enough that I have to stop whatever I am doing (laundry, cleaning, scrubbing...) to now prepare lunch. Yay.

Lunch is worse than breakfast. It feels like I'm running a diner with really bad employees. One order of tomato soup, one hot dog with cheese, one peanut butter and jelly sandwich, one plain cheese quesadilla, one can of Chef Boyardee, one "I don't like anything".

The older two begin by fighting over who gets to use the microwave first. The baby takes one look at his PB and J and says, "I don't want this."
My daughter decides that she doesn't want her hot dog on a roll anymore because the cheese, "Makes the hot dog slide out." The quesadilla is, "too hot" and the soup is "too chunky." It's usually about this time that I have to put myself in time out.

When I compose myself, I excuse the children and tell them I'll clean up, mostly so that I don't have to listen to the complaints anymore.

Lunch is over and cleaned up and it's usually around 3:00. (Yes, it takes that long to feed six kids lunch.)

Finally finished in the kitchen, I resume my previous chore. Nicholas hunts me down to ask me a question;
"Mom?"
"Yes, Nick?"
"What's for dinner?"  The clock says 3:30.

"Hey, I'll friend you! What's your last name?"

You've heard it, I've heard it, hell, I've SAID it!

Facebook. Before you say anything, I'm not a basher, I'm on Facebook, I love Facebook, I'm a Facebook addict. I am also almost 40 years old.

I predate Facebook, I predate the internet, I predate computers. Okay, before some techy gets on my case about how computers and the internet have been around for longer than we think, blah, blah, blah…. I am talking about computers and internet for the general public, in people's homes, so relax.

When I was in school the "metric system was the way of the future" (hmmm, that conversion never took, huh?) When we went to the library, we looked up book titles and authors in the Card Catalog using the Dewey Decimal System (oh please, you 20-somethings, go Google it!) We made friends in school or in our neighborhoods.

As a person who has lived on both sides of technology, I am able to see and appreciate the irony. I actually enjoy it.

In Grade School, Middle School, High School, even college, I made friends, I lost touch with friends. Friends grew close, friends grew apart, life moved forward. It was the cycle.

Enter computers, enter the internet, enter; FACEBOOK. I joined, I friended family members that I rarely get to see. It was a lot of fun catching up and staying in touch.

Next, some of my friends (and by friend I mean the Friend as defined by Webster's Dictionary- one attached to another by affection, esteem or personal regard.) We would chat and share silly photos and just continue our friendship through an additional medium.

Later friend requests came from "old friends" people I used to know in H.S, College, Middle School and even some from Grade School. People I hadn't seen or talked to in forever, but were friends at some point in time, by the classic definition.

After a while, it got strange. Here come requests from ex-boyfriends and people from my distant past that I never really spoke to much or just flat out didn't care for. As a person who has lived life with the classic definition of "friend", I wasn't sure what was politically correct. Okay, I'll play, accept, accept, accept, accept. No big deal, right?

So, it seems to me that the while the original definition of "friend" remains the same, we may need a definition of "Facebook friend". Here's mine; Facebook friend- a person that you may or may not know, see, talk to, or enjoy the company of; another person on the social network, Facebook that has a pulse and appears on your "friends list". How's that?

Don't get me wrong, I'm not a serial "friender"! I can tell you where each one of my "Facebook friends" came from. I may have met them at a party, through a mutual friend, whatever the case may be. I can't help it, I like people! So, I guess that Facebook is the perfect place for me to be!

 

 

 

 

 

Balance

I went to the movies with a friend of mine last night. It was a real girls night. We had a couple of beers and then went to see Eat, Pray, Love. It was a great night with girly bonding moments, Mommy survival stories, a little bit of the we're too old for the high school bullshit chat and the teeniest bit of men can be idiots talk.

We had both read the book, several times, and we both loved it. We were worried that the movie wouldn't do the book justice. We didn't have to worry, it held it's own. We were both impressed considering the ground they had to cover in 2 hours or less.

If you haven't read the book (you should!) it's basically about a woman who is restless and lost and is constantly looking for the person, place or thing that will balance her life, bring her happiness and give her internal peace. It's about me. Well, not literally, but it could have been.

It was hard for me to read the book the first time, because as much as I loved it, all I really took away from it was; "I'm divorced! I've been through more than her! She left her husband because she was bored (I had a more serious reason) and I didn't get to travel to Italy, India and Indonesia!"
I was the proud owner of a "I was married for 10 years and all I got was these 5 kids" tee shirt. In other words, I was bitter.

Now, years later, the message means more to me. I have witnessed pain in other peoples lives that would make your blood run cold, I have accepted the fact that I can't control what other people say and do and feel, and I can't travel the world with six kids.

I think for me, my balance, is beginning to come from the realization that I need to balance myself and not the world around me.

"If you could clear out all that space in your mind, you'd have a doorway. And you know what the universe would do? Rush in. Everything else will take care of itself." -Richard from Texas, Eat, Pray, Love

That quote from the book and the movie, makes more sense to me now than it did before. Before, it was a puzzle to me as to how to "clear out all that space". I have never been still, I have never been quiet, I have never NOT had 10,000 thoughts in my head all at once. I have never been able to "let it be". (again, Richard from Texas)
I am a fix it, solve it, make it go away person by nature. Control freak? Maybe to a degree, but with all the best intentions.

I am a work in progress, but I am learning. I am opening up to possibilities beyond my own dirty laundry pile. I am letting things take care of themselves.

I guess I am realizing that I have come a long way from where I once was. Life is crazy and hectic and unpredictable. Kids get sick, friends disappoint. Life is no different than it's ever been, it's me that's different.

I just might be getting the hang of this "growth" thing after all!

What was your name again???

It's that time of year that I look forward to the least, back to school night. I know, it's sounds horrible. I know I'm supposed to be "so excited" to be meeting my kids teachers. I know the teacher is the person that my child will spend the most hours with for the next 9 months or so, but quite frankly, I'm over it. How can I be "over it", you ask?

My youngest is 4, but he is special needs so he goes to Preschool Disabled in the public school.
He has 1 Special Ed. teacher, 1 Para-professional, 1 Speech/Language Pathologist and 1 Case Manager that I deal with daily.

My second grade twins are in the same class so they have 1 teacher. However, my daughter is also special needs so add in her Special Ed. teacher and her Case Manager. My twins are also in speech.

My fourth grader seems to be my most "normal" kid! He has 1 teacher, no special needs for learning, but does go to Speech.

As a sidenote, I will need to be in all three of the above classrooms simultaneously. Fortunately, my husband will be along for the ride tonight, so I'll put him in Pre-School and I'll run back and forth to the other two grades.

Here's where it gets fun! I have kids in higher grades!

My Seventh grader has 6 teachers and a Guidance Counselor. Lucky for me, he is an Honors student and your classic over-achiever, so I don't have to talk to his teachers much.

My High School Freshman keeps me on my toes! He has 7 teachers, which is to be expected in High School, but he also has ADD so as a result, 2 In Class Support teachers, a case manager and a guidance counselor. He can also be a bit unmotivated at times so I spend many hours in contact with all of his teachers and case manager.

It's a lot of people to keep track of and my brain at almost 40 is not what it was at 20-something!

So as I prepare to go to my first of three back to school nights, I will remember to keep in mind the importance of my children's education, the love that I have for my kids, and the fact that the teachers don't want to be there either!

Hope everyone's Back to School Nights go well! See ya around the halls!

We survived the first week of school!

Wow. It's finally Friday. I didn't think I would make it, but I did!
My kids went back to school on Tuesday. Big years for Michael and Alec. Michael started High School and Alec started Middle school. I was worried for both of them.

My little ones are still doing the grade school thing, and Aidan has one more year of preschool Special Ed. Thankfully, our home school opened up a preschool so at least he doesn't have to be on a bus for 40 minutes each way anymore. Yay!

So, now my day starts at 5:45 am. For many Moms, that's not a big deal, but I AM NOT a morning person, never have been. It doesn't help that in addition to not being a morning person, I am a NIGHT person and a person with insomnia. Not a good combo.

Michael gets up first, then Alec, then the youngest four. Mornings go pretty much as you would expect when there are six children involved. Someone is pokey, someone is cranky, someone is forgetful....kind of like if the 7 dwarfs suddenly woke up with attitude problems.

Everyone managed to get out the door each morning. Most of them got home each afternoon. Yes, I said most. I did get one phone call from my oldest who managed to miss not one, but two late buses. I never did get the whole story.

So it begins; soccer, gymnastics, Cub Scouts, Cross Country, Track and of course the dreaded Religion classes. All that tossed in with homework, tests, projects and science fair, it can be a bit overwhelming for all involved.

So, I try to remember to heed the advice that I give my kids. "One thing at a time." I encourage them to try to focus on one hurdle at a time, while remembering the hurdles ahead. It's the only way to stay sane in a world that is spinning way too fast.

So, we survived the first week!

I am so looking forward to the weekend!

Ahhh, the joys of Motherhood!

Today, August 31 is my second son, Alec's 12th Birthday. It's hot, and I mean, HOT outside and the two hurricanes (Danielle and Earl) that are brewing off of the East coast are stirring up some nasty rip tides. Rip tides mean no swimming at the beach so it's not a beach day for us! So, what's a Mom to do?

Being that we have an appointment this afternoon to have Alec do a walk through of his Middle School schedule for September, we have a time crunch problem. I decide, LUNCH, might be the perfect solution!

I consult Alec. He agrees, lunch sounds fun, so he picks Spicy Cantina. Spicy is on the boardwalk in Seaside Heights, they have outside, balcony seating so it sounds fun, right? We can look at the ocean, people watch, enjoy the cool ocean breeze while we enjoy a pleasant birthday lunch.

WAIT ONE MINUTE! I must have forgotten, I have six kids! Okay, I didn't forget that I have six kids, I just forgot what dining is like with six kids.

We arrive in Seaside, walk over to Spicy and sit. It is largely uneventful. Time to pick our meals, this is where is gets tricky.

You see, I have a 14 year old, who wants to eat like an adult, but doesn't like all the things that come with an adult meal. My 9 year old likes essentially, nothing, but eats like a horse. My 7 year old son likes everything, my 7 year old daughter knows what she likes and only orders what she likes, she's easy. Then there is my 4 year old, oh, he's fun. (Read sarcasm)

Here is a summary of lunch; kids drinks come out in kid cups, 14 yo, 9 yo are annoyed.

Michael (14yo) orders empanadas, too spicy.

Justin (9y0) orders adult tacos (because the kids meal is too small) but tacos must be only meat and cheese. No lettuce, no tomato. He hates the beans and rice.

Nicholas and Clarissa (7yo twins) are happy with their meals. Yay!

Aidan (4yo) Discovers "dots" on his mac and cheese. These "dots" can not be seen by anyone else but him so I assume that he has superhero vision, take his word for it, and order him a new meal.

The new meal comes and now he has a "stomachache".

We get through lunch and Alec wants to walk on the boardwalk. It is Alec's birthday after all, so we go, but not without a running dialog from Aidan;

"I want to go to the arcade!"

"I want to go on the rides!"

"My knee hurts, carry me!"

By now we're ALL over it and we head home. Aidan promptly falls asleep on the ride home, and the silence become Alec's best Birthday present ever!

Happy Birthday Alec!

Long time, no see!

Okay kids, it's been awhile, but I'm back! The consolidation fell through, thankfully, and our little school is better than ever! We just opened up a full day preschool! This is wonderful for us so now my little special ed sweetie doesn't have to be on a bus half the day!

I'm going to make a real attempt to get back into my writing. All six of my kids will be in school full time in 2 weeks and I am determined to do this, for ME.

I have also started to write articles for associated content. It's not what I usually write and not what I'm used to, but it's a good way to hone my skills and get me motivated. I will be sharing here as well.

I look forward to getting back into writing, see ya around the blog!

Now, if i could just get some more followers! :-)

"These studies are in turmoil." That is a direct quote from someone who knows!
Feasability studies for Consolidation are due to be reviewed March 2010, problem is, bids aren't even in yet. We will be lucky to see a feasibility study by 2014, yet Ritacco is pushing, pushing, pushing for shared services with Island Heights. Why? Because he wants to be a common factor with Island Heights Grade School.

The regs. for shared services and consolidation are *supposed to look at consolidating schools that have a relationship, such as the relationship Island Heights has with Central Regional. Island Heights has NO relationship with Toms River at all, that is what Ritacco is trying to establish with his shared services proposal. He is trying to find a way to steal our school out from under us.

If we begin a shared services agreement with Toms River to use Ritacco as our Superintendent then he in essence becomes the decision maker for our district, pretty sneaky of him. Not at all surprising and actually pretty characteristic of this man.

There are legal issues, contractual issues, legislative issues and financial issues that all block the way for Consolidation. This entire proposal may crash and burn, we can only hope.

I will continue to fight and to educate everyone I can on this matter. A wise person said to me today, "Bring the Vampires into the light, and they will crumble." Michael Ritacco is our Vampire, lets bring him into the light.

I survived the school board "Meet the Candidates Night". I was impressed with most of the candidates and even if I don't win I would be comfortable with *most of the candidates winning a seat except for two.

It was stated last night by another candidate how one of my opponents is running strictly on a personal agenda, and it was clear who that was. My question is; If you so badly want your children in Toms River Schools, then why not move to TOMS RIVER??

I don't understand the mind set of someone who chooses to live in Island Heights, full knowing the schools that the children attend, and then fighting to force the rest of the town to go to the school that you desire. It's simple, move.

I live here for Island Heights Grade School and also for Central Regional. Both small schools.

Anyway, I digress. At the assembly, I was flanked by Master's Degrees on both sides and I was a little bit intimidated, but I held my own.

I got the best advice this week some from very good friends; "speak slowly", "think of a calming place", "speak from your heart".
"Speak from your heart." Those were the words above all others that stuck in my head. I can do that, I do that everyday. One thing about me, I am led by my heart. I decided to run for school board because my heart led me to.

I hope that the people of Island Heights will feel that a passionate point of view will benefit their School Board. That is what I bring to the table, passion. I truly love this town and all it means. I feel as if the staff of Island Heights Grade School is an extension of my family. They care for my children much the same way I do. When do you get that in a public school?

Now it is up to the people of Island Heights. Win or lose, my fight will not be over. I will continue to fight for my town and our small school. I will keep the best interest of my children and the children of Island Heights first and foremost in my fight. I will continue to educate myself on consolidation and regionalization and I will continue to speak from my heart.

I can't help but wonder, what do the residents of T.R. feel about this consolidation? I know that they have been largely kept in the dark about all of this and I am frequently shocked when T.R. residents don't know anything about the consolidation plan. It was written by their Superintendent after all.

How do the T.R. residents feel about crowding even more children into their already packed schools? How do T.R. residents feel about three towns worth of children attending thier middle and High Schools on a waived tuition in basis, while those three town's tax dollars continue to go to Central Regional?

Who is going to pay for the law suit that will undoubtedly be filed by Central Regional Schools when Michael Ritacco systematically "steals" towns from their districts? The contract with Central Regional is a legal, rather than legislative issue; why does Mr. Ritacco think he can disolve a legal contract with a legislative loop-hole?

The Consolidation plan that Mr. Ritacco has written reads like a work of fantasy with holes through which one could drive a Mac Truck.

If we are looking for savings, this is not where we are going to find it. Studies have shown that consolidation does not automatically result in savings and just serves to hurt our children.

If Mr. Ritacco is looking to save money, let him start with a voluntary paycut.
According to his contract, Ritacco's base salary from the regional district for the period ending June 30 is $228,000 annually.

COPYRIGHT 2008 Professional Media Group LLC
IN NEARLY 20 YEARS AS A SMALL district administrator, I have participated in two formal regionalization studies, conducted by the boards of education of two or more school districts considering consolidation. In each of these studies data revealed that there would be little if any financial savings for the districts. When weighed against the research supporting the educational benefits of small schools, the districts all opted to maintain the status quo rather than risk negatively impacting student academic achievement. The main concern was that in consolidating districts, local small school's would close and the students would merge into larger regional schools. Deeply rooted in the tradition of "home rule," many of New Jersey's school districts have fewer than 500 students in only one or two schools. Many of these districts serve students in the elementary grades only, then send middle and high school students on a tuition basis to a neighboring district. There are 593 operating school districts in New Jersey--but not for long.

Smaller Districts under Attack Almost 40 years of research and literature indicate that small schools compared to larger schools have higher attendance and graduation rates, fewer dropouts, equal or better levels of academic achievement (standardized test scores, course failure rates, grade point averages), higher levels of extracurricular participation and parent involvement, and fewer incidences of discipline and violence. But New Jersey's smallest districts are under attack. Daily headlines prove that war has been declared: "New Law: No School, No District"; "School Consolidation in New Jersey: Why Not Do This? Better Schools, Lower Taxes: What This Could Mean to You." The fiscal accountability, efficiency and budgeting procedures recently signed into law by Gov. Jon S. Corzine promise a new executive county superintendent with expanded powers to promote school consolidation. The Uniform Shared Services and Consolidation Act Chapter 63, P.L. 2007, was passed to encourage "the financial accountability of local units of government through empowering citizens, reducing waste and duplicative services, clearing legal hurdles to shared services and consolidation, and supplementing, amending, and repealing sections of statutory law." The perception is that through consolidating small school districts, tax dollars will be saved by reducing administrative and instructional costs. What about academic standards? What about student performance? What about doing what is best for kids? At what point will the political consolidation and regionalization conversation acknowledge the wealth of research supporting small schools and admit that the district structure in New Jersey is meeting the needs of students in the most effective way? New Jersey has laid out a plan of attack against small districts, ignoring overwhelming research, including that of the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory (NREL), which has repeatedly found small schools to be superior to large schools on most measures and equal to them on the rest. NREL researchers found that states with the largest schools and districts have the lowest school achievement, highest dropout rates, and least favorable teacher-student ratios. New Jersey is even disregarding its own research and is ignoring the "Executive Summary of Findings" of its own Assembly Task Force on School District Regionalization (1999). This document clearly states that school regionalization does not automatically reap major savings or improve the quality of education. Furthermore, it indicates that small districts can produce excellent results and should not be regionalized simply because their enrollment falls below a certain number. Urban Schools Go Small Counter to the consolidation movement in New Jersey, large metropolitan districts such as the Chicago Public Schools are actively creating small schools as a districtwide school improvement strategy. In their report Small Schools Get Results, they update the research with snapshots of factors including higher GPA, increased graduation rates, decreased dropout rates, improved attendance, decreased negative social behavior, and higher levels of extracurricular participation, all reasons for sustaining small schools. When large metropolitan districts like Chicago, New York, Cincinnati, Philadelphia, Oakland, Portland and Tacoma are seeking ways to create smaller schools, why then is New Jersey ignoring the research and moving toward consolidation and regionalization? It would appear that although the preponderance of professional literature indicates that educational researchers support the concept of small school effectiveness, the determinants of school size are seldom the result of research. More often, school size is the result of other factors--political, economic, social and demographic. Educate Your Communities Small districts nationwide should watch the events unfolding in New Jersey. Is this a trend that could spread? What can other small districts learn from New Jersey as they watch this political process play out? Clearly, the first lesson is the need to educate your community about the value of small school educational programs. Residents need to know that research supports small schools as effective and efficient for delivering quality education. Use the media to spread the word that bigger is not always better. Second, don't be afraid to brag a little. Let your community know the good things that are happening in small schools. When communities see that their tax dollars are supporting a high quality product, they will be less likely to relinquish control of that program in the false pursuit of cost efficiency.


Donna Van Horn is chief school administrator of the Weymouth Township School District and an instructor in the Rutgers University Graduate School of Education.

RESOURCES Big School, Small School: High School Size and Student Behavior, Barker, R, and Gump, P. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press, 1964.
Education and Urban Society 21/2, "School and School District Size Relationships: Costs, Results, Minorities, and Private School Enrollments." Jewell, R. S. (February 1989).
Educational Researcher 23/5, "Losing Local Control." Walberg, H.J., and Walberg, H.J. III. (June-July 1994). School Size, School Climate, and Student Performance, Cotton, K. Portland, Ore.: Northwest Regional Education Laboratory, 1996.
COPYRIGHT 2008 Professional Media Group LLC
More Articles from District Administration

Volleyball Game

On Monday, I watched Island Heights Grade School face off against Seaside Park Elementary School in a friendly volleyball tournament. We do this quite a bit, they hosted the basketball game last week, we hosted volleyball this week.

Seaside Park is also a small school, another one that is being lost to "the powers that be".

As I watched the fourth, fifth and sixth graders of these two schools, it struck me how similar they are. All from tiny towns, no designer sneakers or clothes, just kids being kids. Not a cell phone in sight, no one was texting. It was refreshing, then it was sad. I got a strong sense of impending extinction. Suddenly our small schools, who no one really cared about before, are under attack.

How will we ever explain this to our children?

My sweet school.

I started this blog because I am frustrated, I am sad and I am furious. It's tough to have all these emotions at once without having your head explode, so you can imagine how close I am to brains everywhere. Let me explain..........

I live in a small town, a town in New Jersey called Island Heights. We are a 1 mile town, we are a quiet town, we are a proud town. Our town has it's own police department, fire department and grade school; Island Heights Grade school.

Island Heights Grade School is a lovely, small school. We have a gazebo and a beautiful garden that surrounds it where you can find our students hanging out, talking and creating friendships, lifelong friendships. We have full day Kindergarten with a wonderful teacher who remembers that her students are still babies in many ways, while still teaching them everything that they need to learn before first grade.

Each year the sixth grade class hosts a spaghetti dinner for the Town, and whoever else would like to come. The students and staff and even the parents of the younger children help out. The 6th graders serve as wait staff to the hundreds of people who attend, serving salads, spaghetti and meatball dinners and drinks.

Every spring Island Heights Grade School holds a Carnival to celebrate the end of another successful school year and to welcome future students. Our Fire Department brings out the antique fire truck, "The Fox" for the occasion and the kids just love it.

It not just all fun though. Island Heights Grade School ranks number 101 out of 1,369 schools in New Jersey and number 27 out of 604 school districts. (schooldigger.com)

Sounds like a wonderful thing, right? Well, we are about to lose it. Thanks to state legislators and Michael Ritacco, we are being forced out of our building and forced to bus our children to a Toms River school so that Toms River may use our building to house Toms River preschool and full day Kindergarten.

Why? To save money and I'm not convinced we will.

Who will pay? Our children.