It’s Budget season for the Board and we will be presenting it to the public at our annual Open Public Budget meeting on April 25 at 6:00 pm. For the first time under the School Funding Reform Act of 2008, we are finally scheduled to receive our statutorily required State Aid allotment. Advocates, both past and present Board members, administrators, and community members, deserve credit for years of beating the drum for the funding formula to be run as designed. Credit also belongs to our state legislators and Governor Murphy for making it happen. Consequently, between State Aid and local property taxes, the district will be spending “at adequacy” which is the standard that the state requires local districts to spend on students. In summary, Woodbridge families should know that the district is getting our rightful amount from Trenton and the district is investing it right back into the classroom, putting all of our students on par with any student anywhere in the State.
The Board and I attended the Woodbridge Metro Chamber of Commerce’s State of the Township address in late February. The Mayor touched on dozens of topics, including his strong partnership with the school district and I was reminded of that bond when he discussed how the Township budget contributes $7.5 million annually towards paying off school construction debt from the revenue derived from the PILOT agreements on the new large-scale economic projects over the past decade. I mention it because it’s easy to forget that our community has expanded or significantly renovated schools, and in one case, replaced an entire school, along with nine new top-notch athletic facilities and performing arts facility upgrades—benefiting both current students as well as the entire community.
A big “thank you” to the Presidents' Council of Woodbridge Township for hosting the Board on February 22 for the annual Winter Parent Meeting. Parents, be sure to sign up for the Spring Meeting on May 8 meeting at PresidentsCouncilWB@gmail.com. Hear from the Board members and Superintendent on the latest happenings around the district and other news affecting our kids. Parental involvement is critically important in our district. Several board members, including myself, are active on Facebook where we appreciate hearing from parents and grandparents about our schools. A couple of months back we heard from parents frustrated with how to add money to their students’ school lunch accounts. In response, the district has produced a flyer to educate parents about their options. Keep the input coming!
Congratulations to Woodbridge High School’s Athletic Director Joseph Ward on being recognized with the 2024 Sectional Award of Merit by his statewide peers. Kindergarten registration for the 2024-2025 school year is now open. The online application process is open on our district website at www.Woodbridge.K12.nj.us/page/student-registration. The district encourages families to register as soon as possible so we may accurately account for staff needs and class sizes. In an attempt to limit first-year class sizes for the benefit of student learning and retention, the district has implemented a new priority registration criteria which can be found on the registration page.
Finally, we ask for your patience as applications take time to thoroughly vet each application for accuracy and proper residency. The Board will hold its next regular meeting on Thursday, April 25 at 6:00 PM. The Board meets in the gymnasium of the Ross Street Elementary School #11, 110 Ross Street, Woodbridge. The public portion of the meeting will promptly begin following the conclusion of the Executive Session. As always, you can view the live feed of the meeting on the district’s Facebook page or Woodbridge Channels YouTube channel. The yearly Board meeting calendar is as follows: May 2 (Budget Adoption); May 16; June 13; July 18; August 15 and 29; September 26; October 17; November 21; and December 19.
Should you ever require my assistance, I welcome your input at one of our monthly Board of Education meetings. You can also e-mail the full board at board@woodbridge.k12.nj.us or call the Board Secretary’s office at 732-602-8536. As always, Dr. Massimino welcomes any questions at Joseph.Massimino@woodbridge.K12.nj.us.