Ramapo Indian Hills approves school curriculum, interim superintendent search
OAKLAND — A new voting majority of the Ramapo Indian Hills Board of Education helped approve a curriculum for the upcoming school year at the board's regular meeting Monday and authorized a search for an interim superintendent to succeed the outgoing schools chief.
But not without opposition.
After the board's two-hour closed executive session, Director of Curriculum Elizabeth McDermond led a one-hour presentation by various department members about curriculum changes for the coming year.
The curriculum
Education & Personnel Chairman Thomas Bogdansky asked whether the "1619 Project" or "critical race theory" was being taught, which McDermond denied, adding there was only an emphasis on "diversity and inclusion."
Several parents complained that computer links to curriculum details did not work and did not allow a full review of materials.
Board member Kim Ansh argued that the state mandate for one inclusionary example per class had been met, but that "more and more are added to our curriculum each year," and she said board efforts would be better spent on improving test scores to lower the estimated 25% of students projected not to be "graduation ready" in recently released data.
"In pre-calculus, there are multiple word problems referencing same-sex relationships or gender ideology, yet there is only one example referencing people with disabilities," Ansh said. "In AP chemistry, three out of four units give examples of female scientists who are part of the LGBTQ community, yet not one example from the disabled community. Residents and parents want their children to be taught how to think, not what to think."
Parent Cynthia Phillips objected to "ideologies in every unit."
"Parents want you to tell true historical history," Phillips said. "Gender ideology is not a science, it's a personal belief. Climate change is not a settled science. The 1619 Project very clearly says the United States of America was founded upon slavery. That is a lie. America was founded on freedom from the tyranny of the British."
Bogdanksy cautioned that failure to approve the curriculum would be costly and inconvenient, coming days before the start of the school year. The motion passed, over objections from Ansh by an 8-1 vote.
Superintendent search
The board also clashed over how to proceed after the Aug. 15 announcement by Superintendent Rui Dionisio that he will be leaving the district to assume charge of the 5,384-student, nine-building Fair Lawn school district by Nov. 12 "unless mutually agreed upon with Dr. Dionisio for an earlier date."
Board President Judith Sullivan attempted to hold a special board meeting last week where the primary action item was a motion to "authorize the solicitation of proposals from professional service firms to perform a superintendent search for the board," with a recommendation to be announced three business days later.
But five members failed to appear at last week's meeting, forcing it to end without a quorum. More options to replace the superintendent were proposed Monday, including:
Advertise internally for an acting superintendent from among Ramapo Indian Hills employees who could assume the role for three-month increments.
Advertise externally for an interim superintendent from outside the district qualified to assume charge of the district for an unspecified period of time.
Advertise externally for bids from search companies to find Dionisio's successor, with a recommendation to be made at the board's next meeting on Sept. 11.
But during board discussion, trustee Aaron Lorenz made motions to table two of the three proposals: one to hire an acting superintendent and a second to immediately seek a search firm for a replacement, favoring an interim superintendent search instead.
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"The board is not in any position to be supervising an acting superintendent at this time," Lorenz said. Bogdansky added his support, saying he had interviewed five superintendents and "all five gave the exact same solution" to first seek an interim, while a firm is engaged to conduct a more leisurely search for a permanent replacement.
Board member Vivian Yudin King seconded Lorenz's motions, contending that a resolution to hire a superintendent search group should be done "closer to the end of the year."
"It is time for the board to get down to business and do what is in the best interest of the students, teachers administration and the district as a whole," King said.
Sullivan questioned voting on agenda items before they were discussed. But interim Business Administrator Dora Zeno said motions to table did not require discussion, only a vote.
Bogdanksy again joined the minority faction in voting to table the two options. Voting no were Sullivan, Ansh, Marianna Emmolo and Doreen Mariani.
No set rules
There are no set rules on how a school board replaces outgoing administrators.
Ramapo Indian Hills took 15 months to hire an Illinois search firm in March 2021 to replace former Superintendent Beverly Mackay. She had announced in October 2019 that she planned to retire in August 2020, but interim Superintendent Bruce Watson resigned a month after assuming the post in September 2020 for unknown reasons, and a second interim had to be hired while a search for a permanent replacement was underway.
It took another year to hire Dionisio in August 2021. He joined the district that November and would serve just two years of his almost five-year contract. At the time, former board President Filomena Laforgia attributed the delay to a combination of staff shifts and COVID-19.
In contrast, Fair Lawn Superintendent Nicholas Norcia announced in April that he was leaving the district effective July 23, and Dionisio's appointment to the post was announced Aug. 15.
In Teaneck, Superintendent Christopher Irving announced in April 2022 that he would leave the district that June. Retired Superintendent Barbara Pinsak was hired to return as an interim in May, and, as promised, the board had hired Texas schools chief Andre Spencer by Dec. 15.
Sullivan announced that the board's next meetings would be Monday, Sept. 11, and Thursday, Sept. 28.
A video of the Aug. 28 meeting can be viewed on the board's website under Board Livestream Archives.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Ramapo Indian Hills OKs curriculum, interim superintendent search
