September 7, 2016  

Dear Parent/Guardian:  

Welcome back!  I hope everyone has enjoyed their return to the Park Ridge School District.  The month of September is always a busy month.  My family calendar is full of school related activities, athletic practices/games and family events.  I do think following a routine is good; however, the change from August to September can be a shock to the system …  

Our district continues to move forward with a variety of updates and improvements in a number of areas.  Please make note of the following announcements, upgrades and changes for the 2016-17 school year:  

• In the September 2016 issue of New Jersey Monthly, Park Ridge High School was listed as #20 in their list of top 100 public high schools.  Also worth noting, P.R.H.S. was #2 in Bergen County.  Thank you to everyone who made this distinction possible.  

• All K-12 report cards will be available online this year.  At the end of the first trimester (K-6) or first marking period (Gr. 7-12), all report cards will be mailed home (hard copy) and available online.  After the first reporting period, all subsequent report cards will only be available electronically, via the parent portal in Powerschool.  More information will follow from your child’s principal.  

• Speaking of the parent portal in Powerschool, sixth grade parents will now be able to follow their child’s progress in the electronic grade-book.  While parents in Gr. 7-12 have been utilizing this resource for years, this will be new for sixth grade families at East Brook and West Ridge.  

• This year all fifth graders will be using Schoology as part of our 1:1 laptop program.  Use of this learning management system will make it easier for students to communicate with staff in many areas, i.e. viewing homework, submitting documents, participating in discussions, etc.  Until this year, Schoology has been used by students in Gr. 6-12 only.  

•  Over the summer, security cameras were installed at all three schools.  They are located on the exterior of the building and cover all of the entrances/exits.  School administration will have access to this new system, along with the Park Ridge Police Department during emergencies.  

• The fire detection system at all three buildings is currently being upgraded.  The Board hired a contractor to replace the wiring and install addressable smoke alarms.  This work is scheduled to be completed by the holidays.  It is important to note that the old system will remain operational, until the new system is available.  

• On August 11th, RAMM Environmental Services tested water samples at all three schools, to examine the quality of drinking water for lead content.  It is important to note that all results report less than the United States Environmental Protection Agency Guidelines and New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection for safe drinking water (15 p.p.b.), except for one location at the high school.  This water fountain was immediately turned off and it will be replaced with a new bottle filling station that contains a water cooler and filtration system.
  
  
• Back to School Night is a good time to learn about expectations and become familiar with the programs and services that are offered in Park Ridge.  Please mark your calendars according to the following: 

In closing, I am looking forward to another productive and rewarding school year with our students and staff.  As always, feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.  All the best!  

Sincerely,  

Robert M. Gamper, Ed.D.

Superintendent of Schools