YOUR VOICE MATTERS NOW!! TELL THE RBR BOE TO “VOTE NO”TO THE NEW CURRICULUM!!!
YOUR VOICE MATTERS NOW!!
TELL THE RBR BOE TO “VOTE NO” TO THE CURRICULUM UNLESS THE STANDALONE 10TH GRADE HONORS ENGLISH IS PART OF THE CURRICULUM!
The Red Bank Regional Board of Education needs to hear from you NOW!! As of the beginning of February 2023, the 10th grade standalone honors English class has been canceled and will no longer be available for the 2023-2024 school year! For years, the BOE repeatedly told parents that the class would NOT be canceled, then they hinted at its removal, and now, 10th grade standalone honors English class has been canceled! This was done unilaterally WITHOUT the required Board approval. Additionally, this was done in the face of a petition sent to the Board with over 1000 signatures in protest of removal of the 10th grade standalone honors English class. The Monmouth County Superintendent has stepped in and clarified that the proposed curriculum requires approval. The Board will vote on Tuesday, April 4th at 7:30 pm. RBR students need your help! Get the word out! Spread this petition! Contact the Board members directly at their emails listed below! Real community engagement is needed NOW!!
Removing standalone honors classes helps NO ONE! The RBR superintendent and BOE are removing options and access for EVERY student at RBR! The embedded honors option that is replacing the 10th grade standalone honors ELA class is both exclusive and punitive. Any student can choose to be in the standalone honors classes but the new embedded honors option requires students to meet a variety of criteria to be admitted. The program is also punitive. Many students have been kicked out already for minor missteps.
Also important to note was that the student survey presentation given by the RBR Superintendent to support the removal of standalone honors provided inaccuracies. Of 334 students surveyed, ONLY 55% of the students agreed that the fiction and nonfiction texts are engaging and challenging as compared to the 89.4% that was presented to the public at the BOE meeting. RBR students will lose approximately 75 hours of honors level instruction over the course of the school year with the removal of standalone honors English. RBR STUDENTS NEED EVERYONE TO STAND AGAINST THE REMOVAL OF 10TH GRADE STANDALONE HONORS! TELL THE RBR BOE TO “VOTE NO” TO THE CURRICULUM UNTIL THE 10TH GRADE STANDALONE HONORS ENGLISH IS INCLUDED IN THE CURRICULUM!
Here are some more things you can do to help:
- Email RBR Board members and copy the Business Administrator. This is super important. They recognize each piece of incoming correspondence at each meeting. It is generally 2-3 emails. We need 100s over the next couple of weeks. Email template and email addresses below but please feel free to personalize!
- Get your RBR students or middle school students who will attend RBR involved by writing to the BOE members themselves or by coming to the meetings to speak out against removal of the 10th grade standalone honors English class.
- Mark your calendars for Tuesday, April 4th @ 7:30 pm to attend the Board meeting when the vote will take place and speak out during the first public comment portion of the meeting telling the Board you want 10th grade standalone honors ELA to remain an option at RBR.
Sign and share the petition!
Email Template:
Dear Respectful Members of the RBR BOE,
I am a (Parent/Student/Concerned Community Member) from (Red Bank/Little Silver/Shrewsbury/Other) and I urge you to keep 10th grade standalone honors English as an option for RBR students! Removing the 10th grade standalone honors English, or other standalone honors classes, is not good for ANY of the students at RBR. The 10th grade standalone honors English class is open to EVERY student if they choose to enroll in honors classes at RBR. Sadly, the students will lose approximately 75 hours or more of honors level instruction over the course of the school year if the embedded honors option is implemented in 10th grade. If you remove the 10th grade standalone honors English, you remove access for EVERY student. The students at RBR deserve many options to meet their needs, not less! Show the students at RBR that they are ALL worthy of honors level classes! "VOTE NO" TO THE CURRICULUM UNTIL 10TH GRADE STANDALONE HONORS ENGLISH CLASSES ARE INCLUDED IN THE CURRICULUM!
Sincerely,
(Your name)
RBR BOE Members Email Addresses:
rmendelson@rbrhs.org
pnoble@rbrhs.org
smcbride@rbrhs.org
edoherty@rbrhs.org
jgarofalo@rbrhs.org
mcrystian@rbrhs.org
tgibb@rbrhs.org
jvenino@rbrhs.org
jlipp@rbrhs.org
RBR Business Administrator Email Address (make sure to cc her):
dpappagallo@rbrhs.org