On Monday night, the Pascack Valley Regional High School District Board of Education (BOE) observed a moment of silence to honor Brooke Dryerman and her parents, recognized staff member accomplishments, presented NJSLA score reports, and addressed testing concerns’ follow-ups.
The meeting began with student BOE representative Andrew Varian addressing the passing of Hills senior Brooke Dryerman and her parents, David and Michele Dryerman. He shared anecdotes about Brooke’s legacy as a kind, happy, and giving person.
He listed the impact Brooke had on the community as a Camp Raspberry co-president, member of the unified program, executive board member of Teens Against Cancer (TAC), played on the Girls’ Tennis Team for three years, was accepted into the Teacher Cadet Program, was a Valley Chabad executive member, and religious teacher to children at Temple Emanuel of the Pascack Valley.
The Hills community continues to paint rocks, write cards, place candles, lay flowers, and put stuffed animals in Brooke’s parking spot at school to pay homage to her beautiful soul and display the remembrance she deserves.
“We as a community must come together to continue Brooke’s legacy so she can never be forgotten,” Varian stated before the board observed a moment of silence in remembrance of Brooke and her parents.
Board member Michael Weaver commented, recognizing the loss of Brooke and how the Hills community, especially Principal Tim Wieland, addressed the tragedy with love and respect.
“When you lose a student, it is the most difficult thing that you need to manage as a building administrator and now for two years in a row, we have seen you, Mr. Wieland, do that with excellence and compassion and the way you have led your community through that is appreciated as a parent, so thank you,” he said.
Principal Wieland presented the recognized staff members for 25 years of experience, sharing stories and personal praises for each faculty member.
“For 25 years, Doug Goodman has been a fixture on the second floor of Pascack Hills…[his] commitment to Pascack Hills and to education is unquestioned…and I couldn’t imagine Hills without him…I would be remisced if I did not mention [Deborah Horn’s] eight years as the PVRA president…Deb, I cannot thank you enough for that leadership and for helping me become the administrator and principal I am today…[Lillian Murray] is one of the most professional and caring people I know, and she is the eyes and ears of the main office,” he said.
Principal Wieland congratulated the following Hills faculty members who have earned recognition for 25 years of service:
- Douglas Goodman, Social Studies Teacher
- Deborah Horn, Social Studies Teacher
- Lillian Murray, General Secretary
Board executives alongside the district principals and the district’s faculty members that earned 25 years of service recognition.
Principal Wieland also recognized the following newly hired Hills staff members:
- Frank Cherichello, Leave Replacement School Counselor
- Deven Deppert, Paraprofessional
- Johnna Duffy, Part-time Secretary to the Athletic Director
- Cassandra Leibfried, Special Education Teacher
- Matthew Marini, Mathematics Teacher
- Ani Mooney, Social Worker
- Jennifer Ring, School Psychologist
- Jerry Rodriguez, Athletic Trainer
- Axelle Sandt, World Language Teacher, French
- Margaret Schmidt, World Language Teacher, French
- Jennifer Stalknecht, Paraprofessional
Board executives alongside Principal Wieland and newly hired staff members.
Superintendent Sarah Bilotti announced newly tenured staff in the district, at Valley and Hills and emphasized the importance of such a recognition.
“One of the things that I think is really impressive about the Pascack Valley school district is that we put a lot of emphasis on the evaluation process. We also put a lot of emphasis in making sure that we are recruiting and hiring the absolute best people that we can to work with our students and within our community. Earning tenure is a big deal…it is something that people truly work for,” she said.
Superintendent Bilotti listed the following newly tenured Hills staff members:
- Aarti Mallya, Science Teacher
- Claire Mazan, Family and Consumer Sciences Teacher
- Meg Pettigano, Media Specialist
- Jennifer Zimmerman, Student Assistance Counselor
Board executives alongside district principals and newly tenured staff.
In continuation of the last meeting, Dr. Barry Bachenheimer, Ms. Valerie Mattessich, Ms. Megan Graziano, and Dr. Mark Russo presented the NJSLA Score Report in their respective sections. In most subjects, Hills had small improvements and, for example, in science, Hills maintained instead of improving, but remained above average.
Bachenheimer addressed questions from the board, one of which being that school-issued-testing is no longer optional and must be done no matter what.
Superintendent Bilotti explained future plans, based on NJSLA scores and past concerns, of expanding the functionality of canvas, representatives attending future board meetings for more answers regarding Canvas and Scoir, and the five percent total midterm and final exam weight on grades.
BOE student representative Varian gave his monthly report. He discussed Anatomy class cat dissections, Entrepreneurship class business creations, AP Government & Politics class court case presentations, the fall pep rally and its new pie-eating competition, the t-shirt fundraiser for senior Jamie Brown, and senior sunrise.
In terms of Hills sports, Varian discussed Girls’ soccer recent record, Abby Roche’s commitment to Stony Brook University for soccer, Cross-Country medals and records at a recent meet, and a Football team win this past Saturday.
Debra Stephans was officially confirmed as board vice president through the proper voting procedure, despite her preliminary congratulations at the Sept. 2nd meeting.
For a full viewing of the BOE meeting, click the link below.
