Westfield Families Who'll Have 2 Intermediate School Students Can Keep Kids Together

In response to requests from parents, the Long Range Planning Committee recommended that families who will have two students at the intermediate level in the next few years can request that both children attend the same school.

The following is Westfield Schools Superintendent Margaret Dolan's synopsis of the Tuesday, March 19 Board of Education meeting: I am pleased to share with the Board and the public excerpts from a letter dated March 4, 2013 from Christopher Cerf, Commissioner of Education.  Mr. Cerf sent “congratulations on the many prestigious awards and accomplishments recently earned by students of Westfield Public Schools.”  While addressed to me, this letter is a reflection on our entire community, as Mr. Cerf notes, “The stature and wide range of the accomplishments are a testament to the commitment of not only the students, but also the parents, teachers and school administrators.”  He requested:  “Please extend my congratulations to your students …

• Photos (2)

Westfield Schools Superintendent Proud of Recent Student Accomplishments

Students achievements range from STEM and literature to diplomacy and athletics.

Dear Editor, I would like to share with our community many of the recent accomplishments of Westfield Public School students. We have barely passed the midpoint of the school year, and already milestones have been achieved. As our school district moves forward in our STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) initiative, our students are achieving success in and out of the classroom. In three different challenging science competitions, our Science Olympiad teams from Edison, Roosevelt and Westfield High School captured top regional awards and progressed to the state level of competition. In the ePals-Smithsonian Invent-it Challenge in which hundreds of K-12 students from around the globe participated, Franklin School fifth grader …

• Photos (1)

Proposed Budget Makes Class Size Top Priority for Westfield Public Schools

Salaries and benefits comprise 80 percent of budget

The following is Westfield Schools Superintendent Margaret Dolan's synopsis of the Westfield Board of Education meeting held Tuesday, Feb. 19 taken from the district's website:  2013-2014 PRELIMINARY BUDGET Business Administrator Dana Sullivan presented the 2013-2014 Preliminary Budget that was created with the following priorities: The budget is preliminary since we have not yet received information on state aid, which is expected on February 28.  State aid has dropped dramatically since 25 years ago when it represented 11% of our budget. In 2012-2013 state aid was 3.89% of our total budget. This year there is new state software for budget purposes, of which we have received only a portion.  For planning purposes, districts have been told…

•  2 Comments
• Photos (1)

Westfield Schools Superintendent Updates Message to Parents

"All of our staff members will be looking out for the different needs of our students," wrote Dr. Margaret Dolan.

Following Friday's tragic school shooting in Connecticut, Westfield Schools Superintendent Dr. Margaret Dolan sent a message to parents. On Sunday, Dec. 6, Dolan updated that message. It reads as follows: Dear Parents, I join you in struggling to make sense of the tragedy in Connecticut. We are all still looking for answers, but we also know that your children will be in our schools tomorrow morning. Please know that your child's teachers, counselors and principals have been working over the weekend to prepare for this first school day after Friday's heartbreaking events.   Before the school day starts the teachers will have been given guidance as to how to respond to concerns or questions raised by students. We realize that some of our …

• Photos (1)

A Message from Westfield Schools Superintendent

SATS canceled for Saturday, Nov. 3. If schools have power, they will open Monday.

With the Westfield Public School district’s e-mail and web servers down, we have relied on our emergency alert system to provide information to parents this week through a half dozen different messages. We also appreciate the Mayor including our messages in his announcements. As soon as power is restored, we will begin work to reestablish our usual methods of communication. And, as soon as power is restored, we are ready to open our doors and welcome our students back. Our maintenance workers and custodians have been working since Tuesday to prepare our schools. They have taken down trees and limbs and removed debris from all of our grounds. While our schools did sustain some minor damage, our staff has made necessary repairs. We will send…

•  4 Comments
• Photos (1)

Westfield Schools Superintendent Issues Welcome Back Message to Students, Parents

Westfield schools superintendent welcomes 6,350 students back to school.

Letter: Schools Superintendent Discusses Recent Rankings

Dr. Margaret Dolan addresses NJ Monthly and The Star Ledger's placement of Westfield High School among top schools in the state.

As we prepare to open our doors for the 2012-2013 school year, two statewide magazines have made it clear that the academic achievements of Westfield High School students continue to rank among the best in the state. This is demonstrated by student performance on the SAT, the High School Proficiency Assessment (HSPA) and Advanced Placement tests.   The Star Ledger’s Inside New Jersey’s article – “Top Performing High Schools” – (www.nj.com/inside-jersey ) - based its criteria solely on academic performance. Using these measures, Westfield High School ranked as the top performing comprehensive public high school in Union County. (Vocational and technical schools were also included in this listing.) New Jersey Monthly’s rankings included not …

•  11 Comments
• Photos (1)

Westfield Year Ahead: Hopes and Expectations

Westfielders shared their thoughts on what they hope to see in town in 2012.

A new year brings new hopes and expectations. Westfielders shared some of their thoughts on what they'd like to see in 2012. Westfield Schools Superintendent Dr. Margaret Dolan shared her expectations and goals for the district for 2012: ·        Develop increased opportunities in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) fields.  ·        Disseminate the District’s new Code of Conduct (developed by a community-wide committee) to students, parents and staff members and continue efforts to encourage respect and anti-bullying; ·        Perform a demographic analysis of projected enrollment to provide data in determining long range facility, staffing and curriculum needs; ·        Revise and introduce curriculum to meet and exceed …

• Photos (3)