RAMAPO INDIAN HILLS
REGIONAL HIGH SCHOOL DISTRICT
Maximizing opportunities to meet the needs of all students for a meaningful life
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The Future of Learning: K-12 Insights
March 6, 2022
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“It’s the essence of our humanity —
to create, to invent, to make our world better.” Ted Dintersmith
On February 17, 2022, Ramapo College hosted The Future of Learning: K-12 Insights where Dr. Dionisio was invited to serve on the educational leadership panel to represent Ramapo Indian Hills Regional High School District and the FLOW community. The event focused on arriving at a better understanding of the experiences and the needs of New Jersey’s K-12 students and K-12 districts. The panel discussions focused on identifying strategies colleges and universities may deploy to support students’ academic pursuits and socioemotional well-being. A sharing of ideas ensued to learn more about ways in which Ramapo College and K-12 school districts may partner for the mutual benefit of our students, our institutions, and the teaching profession. The panelists were: Ms. Melanie Alston-Balaputra, Vice Principal, Bergen County Technical School, Paramus; Dr. Rui Dionisio, Superintendent of Schools, Ramapo Indian Hills Regional High School District; Mr. Antonio Garcia, Principal, Passaic County Technical Institute; Dr. Thomas Gorman, Superintendent, Ridgewood Public Schools; Ms. Eileen Shafer, M.Ed., Superintendent of Schools, Paterson Public Schools.
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Ramapo Indian Hills DECA We are excited to share and extremely proud to report that 35 students from Ramapo Indian Hills DECA medaled in the final rounds of their competitive events at the 2022 NJ DECA State Career Development Conference.
We would like to thank Debi Greene, Angela Funk, Owen Ross, Michelle Patrickio, Eileen Shemon, and Connie Cheff for chaperoning and volunteering as competitive event judges for this conference. Our students' success would not be possible without their support. Thank you to all RIH Staff for your understanding in allowing these students to take time out of the classroom to pursue this incredible opportunity.
The following Ramapo Indian Hills students will be advancing to the International Career Development Conference in Atlanta, Georgia this April:
Indian Hills - Jack Shah & Nico Trocolar - Sports & Entertainment Team Decision Making Event
Indian Hills - Allison Lounsbury & Jennifer Mason - Travel & Tourism Team Decision Making Event
Indian Hills - Lauren Lim & Valeri Guevarra - Chapter Activities Project
Indian Hills - Megan Folina & Samantha Bluze - Travel & Tourism Team Decision Making Event
Indian Hills - Andrew Simmers & Julianna Zelnhefer - Financial Team Decision Making Event
Indian Hills - Jake Frederick - Food Marketing Series
Indian Hills - Jessica Strickland & Raini Saini - Business Law & Ethics Team Decision Making
Indian Hills - Erica Quadrini & Courtney Ficarra - Sports & Entertainment Team Decision Making Event
Indian Hills - Tara Flynn, Luke Festa, and Krishan Patel - Thrive Leadership Academy
Indian Hills - Ellen Kim - Quick Serve Restaurant Management
Ramapo - Jacob Steiner & Jessie Weiss - Business Law & Ethics Team Event
Ramapo - Emma Fernandez - Community Service Event
Ramapo - Anja Kearney & Kendra Phillips - Marketing Management Team Event
Additionally, we would like to recognize Indian Hills student Ellen Kim as NJ DECA’s outgoing Recording Secretary for preparing and presenting a successful conference! Please congratulate Indian Hills junior Ryan LaDuca who was elected as NJ DECA’s next Vice President of Media. Along with five other students from the state, Ryan will represent and serve all 10,000 members of the NJ DECA organization in the upcoming year. Such an incredible honor for our district to have one of our students sit on the State Officer Action Team, out of more than 125 high schools throughout the state that makes up NJ DECA.
Anja Kearney of Ramapo High School and Allison Lounsbury of Indian Hills High School also received a NJ DECA Scholarship! A special thank you to Ms. Gale Fanale for her leadership as the RIH DECA Advisor and for the community support for RIH DECA!
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Ramapo High School Academic Decathlon Team Congratulations to the Ramapo High School Academic Decathlon team.
A very special shout out to Heather Manzo and Kim Angerson for their help tutoring the team in Literature and Science respectively.
The following students earned awards at the Regional and State Competitions:
- Ahmed Azizogli: Honorable mention in Math, Silver medal in Art, Gold medal in Language/Literature
- Tamara Baghal : Silver medal in Math
- Sarah Chagares: Bronze medal in Math and Economics, Gold medal in Interview, Most Valuable Player at Regionals, and Ramapo Honors medal high score at States
- Emily Goodrich: Most Valuable Player at States
- Alex Popa: Gold medal in Math, Honorable mention in Science and Economics
- Renee De Bellis: Silver medal in Art, Gold medal in Science, Honorable mention in music at Regionals, and Honorable mentions in Math and Science plus a Gold medal in Art in States
- Tristan Walder: Gold medal in Art, Social Science and Speech, Silver medal in Science, Bronze medal on Essay and Economics. Tristan was also the overall Silver medalist at the Varsity level in the entire Region. Also, Ramapo Varsity medal high score at States
- Madison Hutkin: Bronze medal in Social Science and Language/Literature
- Julia Brickman: Bronze medal in Interview and Honorable mention in Speech at Regionals and Silver medal in Math, Bronze medal in Speech at States
- Daniella Caso: Bronze medal in Social Science and Economics, Silver medal in science at Regionals, and Honorable mention in Science in States
- Rebecca Le Moult: Silver medal in Music at Regionals and Bronze medal in Math, Silver medal in essay, Ramapo Scholastic medal high score at States
Our entire team did a fantastic job. Please join us in congratulations to the following students: Seniors Sarah Chagares, Emily Goodrich, Juliana DeFino, Tamara Baghal, Ahmed Azizogli and Matt Albino; Juniors Rebecca LeMoult, Julia Brickman, Alex Popa, Kelly Kim, JiJi Rai, Madison Hutkin, Erin Finnigan, Bryan Fortunato, Daniella Caso, Deniz Gur, Renee DeBellis, Illeana Nunez; Sophomores Tristan Walder, Maddy Engleman-Sanz, Cassie Tafuri Del Vecchio and Griffin Eisele; and Freshman Ava Armando
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Congratulations to our students at Indian Hills and Ramapo who were selected from over 100+ submissions from Northern New Jersey to be exhibited in the State Youth Art Month Virtual Exhibit this month. Indian Hills' Jaclyn Kotora's beautiful colored pencil portrait from Mr. Mungiello’s Memory Project was selected. Ramapo’s Katie Haigs’ colored pencil landscape was chosen. Jaclyn and Katie are both extremely talented artists. Congratulations on this impressive recognition. There will be a virtual reception for the AENJ State YAM Virtual Exhibit on the evening of Monday, March 14th at 7:00 pm. Please look out for the digital invitation and Zoom link that will be sent out. | |
Boys Bowling Team Congratulations to the Boys Bowling Team who won the North 1 Group 2 State Sectional Championship! Tom Picinich, Jake Willis, Evan Reid, Josh Fishman, Apollo Pascual, and Joe Brugna all bowled great!
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Carnegie Hall Concert Award in the International Music and Arts Society Congratulations Bo DeFalco, Ramapo senior, on winning the Grand Prize Carnegie Hall Concert Award in the International Music and Arts Society Olympia Competition. The International Music & Arts Society was founded in 2010 with the mission of advancing musical and cultural relationships between teachers and students from all over the world. Bo DeFalco will be performing Jeaux d’eau by Maurice Ravel at Carnegie Hall March 26, 2022. Please join us in congratulating Bo DeFalco!
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Board Policy 7250 As a follow-up to Superintendent of Schools public Board updates, the District is coordinating a committee to examine and discuss the possibility of a field dedication in memory of Coach Drew Gibbs. The current Board policy maintains the following 3 year exclusion period in Board Policy 7250 School and Facility Names where the Board approved waiving this exclusion period by Board resolution below. The District will coordinate a committee of community stakeholders and provide a recommendation in the coming weeks. Our thoughts and prayers remain with the Gibbs Family in their time of healing.
RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, Board Policy 7250, “School and Facility Names” imposes certain requirements before a person may be recommended to the Board for memorialization in a school building, room, or structure name, including that the proposed honoree be deceased for at least three years before being considered for such memorialization (“three-year requirement”); and
WHEREAS, the Board wishes to suspend the three-year requirement set forth in Policy 7250 to enable a designated committee under the policy to consider a recommendation for memorialization of the late Coach Drew Gibbs under the policy; and
WHEREAS, suspension of the three-year requirement shall only be for the purpose set forth in this resolution and shall otherwise remain a requirement for any future recommendations under Policy 7250; and
WHEREAS, Board Policy 0131, “Bylaws and Policies” requires policy amendments to be proposed and approved at a previous meeting of the Board unless the Board suspends the operation of a bylaw or policy; and
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Board hereby suspends the three-year requirement to permit a committee designated under the policy to consider the late Coach Drew Gibbs for memorialization under the policy.
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Ramapo Head Football Coach Search Update Out of respect for Coach Gibbs and the Gibbs Family, as well as for our students, coaches, and all members of our community, the District made the deliberate decision to post the Head Football Coach position in early January to provide the Gibbs Family and our community time to begin the healing process. In that spirit, our goal remains focused on the anticipated Superintendent's recommendation to the Board of Education to approve a new head Football Coach in early March. The search and interview process has been rigorous and intensive while engaging input from numerous stakeholders in a variety of modalities while maintaining confidentiality. Fidelity in this process helps ensure the engagement of various stakeholders who bring important and varied perspectives to the table. The District is on track to accomplish our goal to provide stability for our student-athletes, for Ramapo High School and the entire District, and for our FLOW community.
Supervisor of Special Education/CST Update The District is in process of interviewing candidates for the Supervisor of Special Education position at Ramapo High School to replace Dr. Barudin. This is an important position and we are making sure we engage in a rigorous process to select the candidate who is best for our students and staff. I will provide further updates on our status as they become available.
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Women’s History Month Indian Hills Science & Social Studies departments shared resources with faculty and students via Schoology to kick off the month of March for Women’s History Month to provide opportunities to expand and enrich our learning. This year’s theme is “Women Providing Healing Promoting Hope;” as a “tribute to the ceaseless work of caregivers and frontline workers during the ongoing pandemic and also as recognition of the thousands of ways that women of all cultures have provided both healing and hope throughout history.”
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The 2022 - 2023 School Calendar has been Board approved and is posted on the District website. The School Calendar may be accessed below or by clicking here. | |
Since 1986, FLOW Follies has been a unique example of volunteerism in the communities of Franklin Lakes, Oakland, and Wyckoff. We are a parent-led volunteer organization that brings people together from three towns for a common goal: to raise scholarship funds for graduating seniors of Ramapo Indian Hills Regional School District, and we have a lot of fun in the process! You will meet new people, make new friends, and gain lasting memories as we put together the production and fundraising events.
Our success is made possible by the dedication of parents who generously contribute their time and talents to the writing, creation, production, and performance of an original musical comedy. We give everyone opportunities to act, dance, sing, or help behind the scenes. However, we expect all volunteers to participate in our fundraising activities. After all, our ULTIMATE objective is to put on a great show whose net proceeds are scholarship funds for graduating seniors of the RIH High School District & community.
FLOW Follies has raised over $800,000 which has been distributed to hundreds of students making us the single largest scholarship fundraiser for our two high schools. We are a registered 501(c)3 non-profit organization under the parent organizations of the Ramapo Indian Hills Regional High School District. Read more here.
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Mask Mandate & Contact Tracing Update March 3, 2022
Dear Ramapo Indian Hills, Franklin Lakes, Oakland, and Wyckoff School Community,
Effective Monday, March 7th, masks will be optional while traveling on school buses and in the Ramapo Indian Hills Regional High School District, Franklin Lakes Public Schools, Oakland Public Schools, and Wyckoff Public Schools (FLOW) for students, staff, and visitors. The decision to wear or not wear a mask is a personal one, and no staff member or student will be treated differently or criticized for his or her choice. As Covid-19 case rates, percent positivity, and hospitalizations continue to decrease significantly and stabilize across New Jersey after our Omicron surge in early January, it is appropriate for the FLOW districts to choose a more typical communicable disease control model. Moving forward, absent a New Jersey Public Health Emergency declaration, the FLOW districts will rely on a local assessment of the pandemic’s trajectory in regard to the implementation of any communicable disease control guidelines. Read more here.
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Welcome to the
Ramapo High School APTS
Association of Parents, Teachers & Students
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Welcome to the
Indian Hills High School PTSO
Parent, Teacher, Student Organization
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The Ramapo Indian Hills Board of Education implemented a new video streaming platform on our District webpage. RIH Board of Education meetings may be viewed directly on our District website by clicking here or at the following link: https://tinyurl.com/RIHBOELivestream
Archived Board of Education videos may be accessed at the following link. Additional information is available on the District webpage under the Board of Ed tab at the top of the page.
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