Communications Committee, Math Update Highlight Moorestown Board of Education's October Meeting

The month of October included the first football game on the Moorestown School district’s new turf field as part of the Building Excellence Referendum Project, a great high school fall play, and developments on the PARCC Test results.

District Math Supervisor Julie Colby provided an update on K-12 math curriculum, along with future goals, as the district continued its curriculum overview during the October Board of Education meeting.

A common theme of placing emphasis on the “why” and “how” a particular math problem is solved was conveyed, rather than traditional memorization, along with more rigorous standards throughout the district. Science curriculum will be presented in November.

Also at the meeting, Nutri-Serve Food Management, which provides student and faculty breakfast/lunch in the district, shared updates on federal nutrition guidelines, as well as district specific information.

A pilot program of a “make your own” lunch bar at WAMS is underway. This includes a rotating bar for students to select custom meals, including salads, burritos, and parfaits.

The goal is to expand this offering to the UES and the high school in the future.

It was conveyed that students need to be mindful to take the required amounts of fruits/vegetables to be charged for a “lunch meal,” rather than for a la carte purchases, which are often more expensive.

Many questions surrounding the PARCC Test results and how the district will use them have been raised.

In terms of rough timelines, the statewide results were released earlier in the month. District/school level results are expected in mid-November, followed by individual student results in early-December (possibly late-November)

A presentation to the board is likely to occur in January of 2016. Information will be posted as it is available, including how to understand what the results mean for the district and individual students.

The board announced the formation of the Communications Committee. The goal is to improve communication overall from the board, including identifying essential information to disseminate and new ways to share information. The committee is chaired by Caryn Shaw, and committee members include Anne Marie Reyher, Sheryl Sawin, and myself.

The next regular Board of Education meeting will take place on Tuesday, Nov. 17, 7:30 p.m. in the William Allen Middle School Media Center. I encourage you to visit a Board Meeting in the future, and please do not hesitate to reach out in the meantime if you need anything.

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The views and content in this column do not necessarily represent those of the Moorestown Board of Education as a whole or any other individual member.

About this column: In this column, Moorestown Board of Education Member Brandon Pugh provides monthly updates on what’s going on in the school district and on the BOE.