WEST MILFORD — The West Milford Education Foundation (WMEF) is hosting its 10th annual “Taste of the Highlands” event on April 11, 2013 at Casa Bianca in Oak Ridge at 6:30 p.m. Information and tickets are available on the foundation’s Web site, www.wmefnj.org. The foundation provided $17,000 in grants this year to support educational programs in West Milford schools. The Taste of the Highlands event is one of the main fundraisers of the WMEF to fund the grants.
Forty three West Milford elementary teachers will attend a Saturday workshop hosted by Columbia University – under the umbrella of the Reading and Writing Project, to which the West Milford School District subscribes. The teachers will be offered a choice of over 125 workshops, and will hear from keynote speakers Katherine Paterson, author of "Bridge to Terabithia," and Alyssa Capucilli, author of the Katy Duck series.
Kindergarten registration is now underway. Superintendent James McLaughlin said that although there is no deadline for parents to register, parents of 2013-14 kindergarten age students are strongly encouraged to register without delay so that they may be included in the district’s Kindergarten Kickoff event scheduled for mid-April, at which time an overview of the program will be presented and child readiness assessments will be scheduled.
The New Jersey Alliance for Social, Emotional and Character Development has bestowed an honorable mention award to Macopin Middle School as a School of Character. Joe Trentacosta, the district's anti-bullying coordinator and Macopin School social studies teacher, coordinated the application process. Trentacosta and Macopin School Principal Mary Reinhold will be presented with the award in a recognition ceremony at Rider University on March 18. “We applaud Macopin and all our schools for their many efforts in the area of character education,” said McLaughlin
The school board appointed Patricia Hart as interim principal at Westbrook School replacing Dr. Joan Oberer who is retiring effective March 28. Hart recently served on an interim basis at Paradise Knoll School. McLaughlin said the school district will now conduct a thorough process to recruit and identify the next school leader for Westbrook.
The West Milford High School Bowling Team is the 2013 Big North Division and North 1B State Champions. McLaughlin called this “an outstanding achievement” and added, “We congratulate the members of our bowling team and their coach, John Caillie.”
West Milford coaches will be honored on March 6 by the Passaic County Coaches Association. The Honor Award will be presented to Bob Wiedmann, Sue Potzer will be honored for 200 victories on girls' ski racing, and John Finke will be honored for 200 victories in golf and 300 victories in boy's basketball. Elmer Zimmerman will be honored for 500 victories in boys' tennis and 500 victories in girls' tennis.