Noreen Brunini
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Comments
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On the article Greenwood Gardens Opens [PHOTOS]
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On the article Report: Millburn High Ranked 15th in New Jersey, 225th in Country
Noreen Brunini
1:49 pm on Monday, April 29, 2013
ReplyIt looks to me like there is a major error in the US News calculation for MHS. The ranking is based upon only 58% of students passing (score of 3 or higher) the AP exams in the year evaluated. In past years the AP pass rate held consistently steady in the mid 90% range and the truly impressive thing about Millburn was how many students scored 4's and 5's. I don't have the details on the year in question but would wager a strong bet the number reported is wrong as it is hard to believe a single class just nosedived in results one year. Also in this ranking "College readiness/material" seems to be assumed to be only provided by taking AP courses which is just silly. For instance the Science Research program which has produced multiple award winners and is extremely rigorous is not part of the AP program. This is just one example; there are many excellent nonAP courses at MHS.
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On the article Report: Millburn HS Moderately Ranked Among Peers, First in SAT Average
Noreen Brunini
5:33 pm on Thursday, April 18, 2013
ReplyWas initially very confused by this report and Dr Crisfield's quote re HSPA. Dr Crisfield's quote implied HSPA results just ok but in fact the HSPA results are consistently excellent year after year. In this case:98% of students passed Lang Arts with 53%, the majority, advanced proficient (2 students did not pass)and 95% passed the Math with 69%, again the majority, advanced proficient, (6 students did not pass). The students who did not pass were Special Needs students and no way to tell from report if it was "reasonable to expect" for them to "pass the HSPA exam". MBHS is first is state for SAT average and first in state for AP test takers scoring 3 or higher. The only weird statistic is the % of students taking the SAT at 92%. Then I realized this is likely what is throwing things off, MBHS guidance about 8 years ago began recommending students decide if the SAT or the ACT is the better test for them individually -- excellent advice by the way. But the NJ DOE appears to only be counting the SAT participation, not SAT and ACT. I will bet NJDOE is assuming anyone not taking SAT is not collegebound and is using the *% not taking the SAT as a negative. If my assumption is correct this is merely a bad metric and does not look at the complete picture of what is happening and is a poor basis for comparison. If you look at the facts, MBHS has consistently continued to perform at the highest levels of excellence.
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On the article McDermott Announces He Won't Run for Re-Election
Noreen Brunini
8:47 am on Thursday, March 21, 2013
ReplyWow, the end of an era. Thanks Tom for all you have contributed to our Township.
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On the Blog Post Millburn Residents Don’t Buy School Superintendent Budget Priorities
Noreen Brunini
8:47 am on Thursday, March 21, 2013
I like Dr Crisfield and would like to see him succeed but residents without children in the schools deserve to be equally well informed about how their taxes will be spent and educational decisions. All residents care about the quality of our educational programs. I don't consider my comment at all bullying. And given that two new articles were posted hours later on Patch announcing the change in budget hearing/vote date and the newsletter now being posted online I would say the District agreed they had made a mistake in not being more proactive in communicating the info earlier. So Patch readers are now informed, but what about the Item readers who don't read the Patch? How will they be informed?
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On the Blog Post Millburn Residents Don’t Buy School Superintendent Budget Priorities
Noreen Brunini
9:07 am on Wednesday, March 20, 2013
ReplyDr Crisfield, in my opinion, left 2 important messages out of his newsletter: 1) How many are aware that the "Public Hearing on the Budget is this coming "SUNDAY, March 24, 2013 PLEASE NOTE: THIS MEETING IS ON A SUNDAY DUE TO PASSOVER ON MONDAY" (info in quotes cut and pasted from District website, capitals not my emphasis) and 2) the Budget District Newsletter is posted on the District website.
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On the article Millburn Superintendent Weighs in on District Budget
Noreen Brunini
8:49 am on Wednesday, March 20, 2013
ReplyDr Crisfield, in my opinion, left 2 important messages out of his newsletter: 1) How many are aware that the "Public Hearing on the Budget is this coming "SUNDAY, March 24, 2013 PLEASE NOTE: THIS MEETING IS ON A SUNDAY DUE TO PASSOVER ON MONDAY" (info in quotes cut and pasted from District website, capitals not my emphasis) and 2) the Budget District Newsletter is posted on the District website. I understand it is not being mailed to every resident to save mailing fees but how are residents without children supposed to know this type of information is there if you don't tell them? Not having children in the schools anymore, I found this accidentally when I checked the website to see if the questions above were answered in any of the budget documents posted on the website. Some, but not all, of the above questions are addressed in the posted Newsletter.
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On the article Do You Support the Proposed School Budget?
Noreen Brunini
5:50 pm on Wednesday, March 13, 2013
ReplyI would like to clarify above comments. I am NOT saying the current budget recommendations are wrong. I'm saying I personally do not have enough information to assess if I agree with what is being proposed and the above are my questions and personal opinions about how budget items were prioritized in my time/opinion. I am hopeful the BOE/Administration will take the questions raised by the full community and better explain their budget objectives in the near future. Having been a BOE member, and living and breathing the budget for many months, I know one does not always realize how the budget message is perceived (correctly/incorrectly) until you get public feedback. I thank each of the BOE members and Administration for their hard work on behalf of the community.
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On the article Five Millburn School Board Candidates Explain Qualifications
Noreen Brunini
5:28 pm on Wednesday, March 13, 2013
ReplyIt is a point past BOE's have taken into consideration. Past BOEs have appointed a former board member to serve until the next election and the former BOE member promises not to run. But its a Catch 22 for the BOE because some see this approach as a type of cronyism and can be perceived as an attempt by the BOE to recruit someone they know in advance will always agree with them. There is no perfect answer. This BOE made its decision. The candidates who have applied were top notch. No reason to think they won't do an excellent job.
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On the Blog Post Why only a minimal increase for teachers in a maximal Millburn school budget?
Noreen Brunini
11:44 am on Wednesday, March 13, 2013
ReplyMillburn never had a class size goal of 15 max, that would have been a minimum class size.
Noreen Brunini
1:49 pm on Monday, April 29, 2013
FYI: Greenwood is now open to the public on Sundays, Mondays and Tuesdays. Admission is free for members and nonmembers need to order tickets which you can get on the website, www.greenwoodgardens.org The grounds look fabulous!