Ridge Elementary
School HSA

ABSENCE VERIFICATION SYSTEM 

This telephone answering system serves as a double check of a student's absence and assures that each child sent to school has arrived safely. Parents should report student absences by calling (201)670-2740 ext. 1 any time before 8:45am or 1 :00pm. A recorded message will ask that the following information be provided: 

1. Student's name 

2. Student's grade and teacher 

3. Date(s) absent 

4. Reason for child's absence 

The messages will be checked twice a day at 8:45am and 1:00pm against the teachers' absence reports. If a child is not in school and has not been reported as absent, a secretary will call the parent. 

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IMPORTANT INFORMATION CONCERNING FOOD AT RIDGE SCHOOL

 

With the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004, the U.S. Congress established a requirement that all school districts with a federally funded school meals program develop and implement wellness policies that address nutrition and physical activity. As of September 1, 2007, Ridgewood's Board Policy #3542.1 affects us in the following ways:

 

NO CANDY or SODA may be sent to school for classroom treats, birthdays, or other celebrations (i.e. Halloween, Valentine's Day.) Teachers may not give candy or any food as rewards. 

Peanut butter, nuts and any food items containing such will not be served in the schools. Snacks may be consumed in the classroom if permitted by the classroom teacher. First and second grade students are allowed to have snack every morning; however, only healthy snacks are permitted.

 

Students may bring soda, other non-approved beverages, baked goods, or candy to school for their own consumption, although children and parents are encouraged to make healthy choices.

 

BIRTHDAYS 
Students may NOT celebrate their birthdays in school with food or gifts. 

Teachers/Students will brainstorm a list of ways to celebrate birthdays in school, e.g. recess, game, special activity cards. Birthdays are announced from the office each week . 

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PARTIES 
Any item sent to school for general consumption MUST include a list of ingredients. Teachers/Parents may not distribute any food item unless we receive a list of ingredients.

 

For store-bought items, the list on the package will be sufficient. 

Homemade items must include the ingredients in the recipe. 

NO candy is permitted, even as decoration on treats. 

NO soda is permitted at birthday or holiday celebrations.

 

REMEMBER ... 
A goal of the policy is that as students learn about healthy nutrition, they will bring healthy beverages and lunches to school; however, the guidelines do not limit what students can bring to school for their own consumption. 

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SCHOOL SAFETY RULES

 

BICYCLE PRIVILEGES 
Students in Grades 4 and 5 are permitted to ride bikes to and from school provided they ride legally, safely and considerately. Bike helmets are required by law. Children should dismount at the approach to the school driveway and walk their bikes to the rack. Ignoring crossing guards or disregarding safety rules may result in the loss of riding privileges.

 

SKATEBOARDS, ROLLER BLADES and SCOOTERS 
Skateboards, roller blades and scooters are prohibited and must not be brought to school.

 

SNOWBALLS 
Making, carrying or throwing snowballs is prohibited on school grounds and while traveling to and from school.

 

PARTIES 
Surprise parties for teachers are not allowed. Invitations to home parties may not be handed out in school. Remember that children's feelings are easily hurt. 

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OTHER HELPFUL INFORMATION

 

CELL PHONES AND SMART WATCHES 
Cell phones and smart watches arc not permitted for students. During school hours devices must be turned off and placed in student backpacks.

 

ILLNESS
Please do not send your child to school if he or she is not feeling well. Illness spreads quickly in a classroom environment. General guidelines include: 
No fever in the past 24 hours 
No persistent cough 
No thick nasal mucous 
No fatigue or general discomfort 
When a child becomes ill at school, the school nurse provides only first aid care and, when necessary, arranges for the child to go home. If parents are not available, the person listed on the child's emergency form is notified and asked to come for the child. No child will be sent home without an adult from elementary school.

 

MEDICATION POLICY 
The nurse cannot legally administer medicine internally without a doctor's written order. Therefore, the nurse cannot offer even such medication as aspirin. If it is necessary for your child to take medicine during school hours, the medicine must be given to the nurse along with the parental request. The student should not carry medication to school each day; instead, the container with the prescription label should be left in school with the nurse. Medicine intended for home use should be kept separately in a labeled container at home. If the school nurse is not available, the medication may be given only by the parent. The authorization for medication does not extend beyond the current school year.

 

HEAD LICE PROCEDURES 
Pediculosis is a continuing and annoying problem among school-aged children. In order to limit the spread of pediculosis, we have instituted a number of procedures at Ridge School.

 

It is the practice of Ridge School that any student determined to have head lice be temporarily excluded from school until they have been treated, rechecked by the school nurse and are "nit free." If you find head lice or nits (eggs) on your child at home, please do your part to prevent the spread of this communicable condition. Notify the school nurse immediately so she can check children in your child's grade level. 

This information will be handled in a confidential manner. Please also inform the parents of your child's close friends and check all family members for possible infestation for at least two weeks. After treating your child with lice shampoo, it is extremely important that you manually remove all nits from your child's hair. The school nurse must check your child before returning to class to ensure that he/she is not free.

 

FALL PARENT-TEACHER CONFERENCES 
Parent-Teacher conferences will be held between late September and Thanksgiving. The conferences are designed for parents to meet with their children's teachers in order to set goals for the year. Information about scheduling of these conferences will be communicated through the classroom teacher.

 

RIDGE E-NEWS -TUESDAY NOTICES
Each Tuesday, school notices will be emailed to parents and posted on the Ridge School website. Your child may also bring home materials if they are not suited for posting on the website.

 

SCHOOL VACATIONS
The calendar included in this handbook lists the school vacations for the year 2022-2023. Please try to schedule family vacations at these times to avoid unnecessary disruptions in your child's academic program.

 

PUPIL RECORDS
State regulations and Board of Education policy require that parents be informed that they may request a copy of pupil records upon the child's departure form the Ridgewood Public Schools. If you wish to have a copy, please direct your request to the school principal. Parents may make an appointment with the principal to review their child's records at any time.

 

LOST AND FOUND 
Lost and found items are located on the table near the front door. Please check there if you are missing items of clothing, etc. Please label all your children's belongings to limit the number of items in the lost and found.

 

INTERRUPTION OF CLASSES - Items may not be dropped off during hybrid/virtual

Because of the potential for interruptions of the instructional program, the office does not call students out of class for lunches, instruments, homework, library books, etc. Teachers have been instructed to send students who are missing these items down to the office to see if they have been delivered. Please reinforce with your children that if they realize they are missing any of the above items, they should check with the office to see if they have been delivered. Please do not deliver items directly to the classrooms or closets during school hours.

 

BILL WARD DISCRETIONARY FUND 
The Bill Ward Discretionary Fund, named for former principal Bill Ward, provides financial assistance to families with children at Ridge Elementary School who find themselves in need. Assistance may be used to help pay for such things as summer school and summer camps, rental of musical instruments, Book Fair, class trips, book gifting, etc. The money in the fund is invested in an interest bearing account that will allow access to funds whenever needed. If you or anyone you know are in need, please send a note or make a telephone call to the principal, Jean Schoenlank. The privacy of the recipients will be respected and all requests will remain confidential. Contributions may be made to the fund by writing a check payable to the Bill Ward Discretionary Fund, and forwarding it to the HSA Treasurer.

 

STUDENT CODE OF CONDUCT

 

Students in the Ridgewood Public School District's six elementary schools are expected to follow a golden rule: 

Treat other people and their things the way you would like to be treated. 
We believe this rule is a clear compass to guide all behavior in all situations. In addition to modeling this rule through daily actions, the faculty and staff regularly address this rule through weekly character education sessions, regular read aloud sessions, and school wide events. 

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We believe that elementary school is a time to grow and learn from mistakes. Therefore, we are guided by a progressive discipline philosophy. We have listed some possible consequences for violating our Student Code of Conduct, in order of severity. Because we believe that the consequences for students should have meaning and help them learn, we also explore alternative forms of discipline if we feel it is in the best interest of the students.

 

Infractions that are not acceptable in a school environment include: harassment, intimidation, bullying*, theft, destruction and/or defacing school property, fighting, leaving school property without permission, disrespect to fellow students/faculty, violation of acceptable use policy for technology, and inappropriate behavior that is disruptive to the learning or safety of others. 

Possible consequences include: 

Discussion with students and/or their parents 
Written reflection 
Lunch/recess detention 
After school detention 
Alternative discipline such as an assignment or community service 
Suspension or expulsion in the case of dangerous or unsafe behavior, serious or repeated harassment, intimidation, bullying*, fighting, theft or vandalism.

 

Our discipline standard requires that we address any action of which we are made aware by investigating it and, if necessary, by implementing discipline. Our philosophy of progressive discipline focuses on teaching a student to behave properly so the consequences may be simply talking to a student and recording the incident, or as severe as a suspension. Should a student repeat the same offense or several small offenses, she will receive more severe discipline.

 

Counseling and the Child Study Team services may be utilized in order to assist students in adhering to the Student Conduct of Conduct. Teachers and administrators provide additional group and individual support as appropriate. Student conduct is almost never black and white and we will provide due diligence in any investigation, but we are not a court of law. We do not discriminate based on gender, age, religious orientation or any other protected class, and our policies and practices are implemented without regard to membership in such groups. We do not make public the disciplinary actions that we impose on a student, even to the family of a victim if there is one. We respect the privacy of all students. 

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*Ridgewood Board of Education Harassment, Intimidation and Bullying Policy and Regulation (5512, R 5512) may be found at www.ridgewood.k12.nj.usunder Board Policies and Regulations.

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DISCLAIMER

 

This directory is a publication of the Ridge Home & School Association and is not an official publication of the Ridgewood Public Schools system, and is published solely for the informational and social convenience of Ridge School families. No one, including, but not limited to, members of the Ridge Home and School Association, Inc., and any employee or representative of the school system is permitted to give information in this document to any person or organization which solicits or is engaged in any commercial, outside charitable, political or partisan purpose. No one may use the information in this document for personal gain. The names, addresses, telephone numbers and e-mail addresses of families in this directory should be treated as private and confidential.

 

SCHOOL INFORMATION

 

RIDGE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL ADDRESS 
325 WEST RIDGEWOOD AVENUE, RIDGEWOOD, NJ 07450 SCHOOL

HOURS 8:35 AM - 3:00 PM

EARLY DISMISSAL TIME 12:45 PM

PRINCIPAL Michael Piacenza
 

 

HSA BOARD PRESIDENT 

Tanya Ramos

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VICE PRESIDENT

Amy Hayes

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more about HSA Board members

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