Westwood Regional School District

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Westwood Regional School District
Westwood Regional School District Logo.png
Address
701 Ridgewood Road
Washington Township
, Bergen County , New Jersey , 07676
United States
Coordinates 40°58′52″N74°03′44″W / 40.981009°N 74.062298°W / 40.981009; -74.062298
District information
Grades K-12
SuperintendentPatrick McQueeney
Business administratorKeith Rosado
Schools6
Students and staff
Enrollment2,828 (as of 2023–24) [1]
Faculty259.2 FTEs [1]
Student–teacher ratio10.9:1 [1]
Other information
District Factor Group GH
Website www.wwrsd.org
Ind.Per pupilDistrict
spending		Rank
(*)		K-12
average		 %± vs.
average
1ATotal Spending$20,14858$18,8916.7%
1Budgetary Cost16,2546014,78310.0%
2Classroom Instruction8,541478,763−2.5%
6Support Services3,681662,39253.9%
8Administrative Cost1,912641,48528.8%
10Operations & Maintenance1,606361,783−9.9%
13Extracurricular Activities5045826888.1%
16Median Teacher Salary60,9132164,043
Data from NJDoE 2014 Taxpayers' Guide to Education Spending. [2]
*Of K-12 districts with 1,800-3,500 students. Lowest spending=1; Highest=68

The Westwood Regional School District is a comprehensive regional public school district serving students in kindergarten through twelfth grade from the communities of the Borough of Westwood and Washington Township in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, two communities located approximately 15 miles (24 km) northwest of Midtown Manhattan. [3] [4] The district is the county's only regional district serving grades K-12. [5] The district operates with a 1:1 ratio for students and computers.

Contents

As of the 2023–24 school year, the district, comprised of six schools, had an enrollment of 2,828 students and 259.2 classroom teachers (on an FTE basis), for a student–teacher ratio of 10.9:1. [1]

History

For the 2010–11 school year, Ketler Elementary School, which had served K–4, was shifted to become Westwood Regional Middle School for grades 6 and 7, while the other elementary schools would all serve K through 5, and the high school was shifted to grades 8–12 (from 7–12). [6]

In December 2017, voters in the two municipalities approved a referendum by a 61–39% margin that would allocate $24 million in bonds to be used for the construction of a 50,000-square-foot (4,600 m2) expansion of Westwood Regional Middle School so that eighth grade students would be shifted from the high school and served at the middle school. [7] [8]

The district had been classified by the New Jersey Department of Education as being in District Factor Group "GH", the third-highest of eight groupings. District Factor Groups organize districts statewide to allow comparison by common socioeconomic characteristics of the local districts. From lowest socioeconomic status to highest, the categories are A, B, CD, DE, FG, GH, I and J. [9]

Awards and recognition

Berkeley Avenue Elementary School was one of nine public schools recognized in 2017 as Blue Ribbon Schools by the United States Department of Education. [10]

For the 2000–01 school year, Brookside Elementary School was named a "Star School" by the New Jersey Department of Education, the highest honor that a New Jersey school can achieve. [11]

Schools

Schools in the district (with 2023–24 enrollment data from the National Center for Education Statistics [12] ) are: [13] [14]

Elementary schools
Middle school
High school

Administration

Core members of the district's administration are: [27] [28]

Board of education

The district's board of education, comprised of nine members, sets policy and oversees the fiscal and educational operation of the district through its administration. As a Type II school district, the board's trustees are elected directly by voters to serve three-year terms of office on a staggered basis, with three seats up for election each year held (since 2012) as part of the November general election. The board appoints a superintendent to oversee the district's day-to-day operations and a business administrator to supervise the business functions of the district. [31] [32] Seats on the nine-member board are allocated based on population of the constituent municipalities, with five allocated to Westwood and four to Washington Township. [33]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 District information for Westwood Regional School District, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed December 15, 2024.
  2. ↑ Taxpayers' Guide to Education Spending April 2013, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed April 15, 2013.
  3. ↑ Westwood Regional Board of Education District Policy 0110 - Identification, Westwood Regional School District, adopted December 14, 2006. Accessed February 20, 2025. "Purpose: The Board of Education exists for the purpose of providing a thorough and efficient system of free public education in grades kindergarten through twelve in the Westwood Regional School District. Composition: The Westwood Regional School District is comprised of all the area within the municipal boundaries of the Borough of Westwood and the Township of Washington."
  4. ↑ About Our District: Community and District Profiles, Westwood Regional School District. Accessed July 24, 2022. "The Westwood Regional School District serves the Borough of Westwood (population 10,400) and the Township of Washington (population 9,800). These two communities are located approximately fifteen miles northwest of midtown Manhattan."
  5. ↑ Westwood Regional School District 2016 Report Card Narrative, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed March 26, 2020. "The Westwood Regional School District is the only K-12 regional school district in Bergen County, serving approximately 2,740 students from the Borough of Westwood and the Township of Washington."
  6. ↑ Yellin, Deena. "Westwood Regional School District to reconfigure its schools", The Record , January 3, 2010. Accessed June 11, 2012. "The Westwood Regional School District is moving ahead with preparations for a reconfiguration of the district, which will take effect in September. Under the new plan, students in Grades K-5 will attend Berkeley, George, Washington and Brookside schools. Students in Grades 6 and 7 will attend Ketler. Westwood Junior/Senior High School will serve students in Grades 8-12. Ketler School will be renamed Westwood Regional Middle School..."
  7. ↑ Snyder, John. 'Voters pass $24M plan: ‘True’ middle school in Westwood will be finished in 18 to 24 months", Pascack press, December 15, 2017. Accessed February 20, 2025. "Voters in the Township of Washington and in the Borough of Westwood agreed, 1,741 to 1,073, with a district proposal to spend approximately $24 million to significantly expand Westwood Regional Middle School.... Westwood was the lone K-12 district in Bergen County, and one of only two in the state, not to have a so-called 'true' middle school serving its grades 6-8 under one roof. Through the referendum, voters are buying a 50,224-square-foot, two-story expansion that includes new and renovated academic and student support spaces."
  8. ↑ Westwood Regional Middle School, FKA Architects. Accessed February 20, 2025. "As there was no Middle School in the District, the first step in the creation of the True Middle School was to realign the grades to move the seventh and eighth grades out of the Jr./Sr. High School. In doing so, the District converted one of their elementary schools into a Middle School, moving seventh grade out of the High School to form this new alignment. Sixth and seventh grade students found their home in the former Ketler Elementary School, a 47,000 sf school now named, 'Westwood Regional Middle School'. However, the ultimate transformation of the True Middle School project was yet to begin.... A lengthy analysis of the District's needs and projected enrollments created a program for the True Middle School that would mean the construction of a new, 50,000 sf addition to the existing building."
  9. ↑ District Factor Groups (DFG) for School Districts, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed December 1, 2024.
  10. ↑ "Nine New Jersey Public Schools Earn National Blue Ribbon Award from the U.S. Department of Education", New Jersey Department of Education, September 28, 2017. Accessed February 20, 2025.
  11. ↑ New Jersey Department of Education Star School Award recipient detail 2000-01 school year, Brookside Upper Elementary School, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed July 13, 2006.
  12. ↑ School Data for the Westwood Regional School District, National Center for Education Statistics. Accessed December 15, 2024.
  13. ↑ School Performance Reports for the Westwood Regional School District, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed April 3, 2024.
  14. ↑ New Jersey School Directory for the Westwood Regional School District, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed February 1, 2024.
  15. ↑ Berkeley Avenue Elementary School, Westwood Regional School District. Accessed February 20, 2025.
  16. ↑ Staff, Berkeley Avenue Elementary School. Accessed February 20, 2025.
  17. ↑ Brookside Elementary School, Westwood Regional School District. Accessed February 20, 2025.
  18. ↑ Principal page, Brookside Elementary School. Accessed February 20, 2025.
  19. ↑ Jessie F. George Elementary School, Westwood Regional School District. Accessed February 20, 2025.
  20. ↑ Contact Us, Jessie F. George Elementary School. Accessed February 20, 2025.
  21. ↑ Washington Elementary School, Westwood Regional School District. Accessed February 20, 2025.
  22. ↑ Contact Us, Washington Elementary School. Accessed February 20, 2025.
  23. ↑ Westwood Regional Middle School, Westwood Regional School District. Accessed February 20, 2025.
  24. ↑ Office of the Principal, Westwood Regional Middle School. Accessed February, 2025.
  25. ↑ Westwood Regional High School, Westwood Regional School District. Accessed February 20, 2025.
  26. ↑ High School Contacts, Westwood Regional School District. Accessed February 20, 2025.
  27. ↑ Staff, Westwood Regional School District. Accessed February 20, 2025.
  28. ↑ New Jersey School Directory for Bergen County, New Jersey Department of Education. Accessed February 1, 2024.
  29. ↑ Superintendent of Schools, Westwood Regional School District. Accessed February 20, 2025.
  30. ↑ Welcome to the Business Office, Westwood Regional School District. Accessed February 20, 2025.
  31. ↑ New Jersey Boards of Education by District Election Types - 2018 School Election, New Jersey Department of Education, updated February 16, 2018. Accessed January 26, 2020.
  32. ↑ Annual Comprehensive Financial Report of the Westwood Regional School District, New Jersey Department of Education, for year ending June 30, 2024. Accessed February 20, 2025. "The Westwood Regional School District (the "Board" or the "District") is an instrumentality of the State of New Jersey, established to function as an education institution. The Board consists of nine elected officials and is responsible for the fiscal control of the District. A Superintendent of Schools is appointed by the Board and is responsible for the administrative control of the District. A School Business Administrator/Board Secretary is also appointed by the Board and oversees the business functions of the District.... The Board currently operates a Pre-Kindergarten through grade twelve (12) regional school district." See "Roster of Officials" on page 13.
  33. ↑ Board of Education, Westwood Regional School District. Accessed February 20, 2025.
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