Change the High School zoning for Silverton

I will not sign.  If they used to allow you to pick the HS and are no longer doing this - perhaps it is because the school TRE is not big enough to accomodate more students. 

I believe children are better off being exposed to challenges in life early on.  Why do you feel the need for the child to 'stay with the peers?'  Let them develop their own sense of belonging and independence, survival and social skills are important - not 'follow the flock and do as the flock does'. 

My child attended IE and is now at TRN, and didn't feel the need to remain with the large number of friends made there. Adjusted well to TRN and is now a sophomore doing very well academically and socially.     Are they going to follow the 'group of friends' to college? 

#13 : -  the reason any school has 'kid clicks' IS because they have only experienced their inner circle.  And honestly if the 'clicks' don't have room for new friends to join them - then they are not the kind of kids I would want my children to be 'clicking' with.   

 Some light reading -  http://www.familyshare.com/12-ways-to-be-the-meanest-mom-in-the-world

I'm NOT signing! My kids go to East and I don't want an over-crowded school. #8's facts are correct and if you re-align based on intermediate schools, East's classes will be too large and the facility is too small to handle it.

#26: Guest - Enable your child to grow on their own 

 VERY WELL STATED!

#23: - Re: Re: DITTO #3 

 Not always true. My children are both athletes and get involved in clubs. They are still treated differently by their peers, like the new kids . One teacher refered to the Silverton kids as a bunch of troublemakers. 

I want to respond to those who said this petition is misleading and I did not provide the facts, here are the facts:

High School North has a student enrollment of 2,368 with 161 full time teachers with a student/teacher ratio of 15:1

High School East has a student enrollment of 1,719 with 125 full time teachers with a student/teacher ratio of 14:1

The average 5th grade class at Silver Bay Elementary school is 100 students, give or take.  That adds about 100 students entering high school from Silverton each year.

If you add 100 additional students to HSE each year that brings the ratio to a little below the 15:1 at HSN so no, it would not overcrowd HSE to add the Silverton population.

If you think your children would receive a better education at HSN, take a look at the test scores.  For HSN, Math proficiency is 82% with HSE doing slightly better with 85%.  Language arts HSN and HSE are equal at 95%.  College readiness score is slightly higher for HSE at 17.3% with HSN at 15.8%.

Now the reason for this petition.  Silverton is the only area of Toms River that is asked to split with their peers upon entering HS.  There are 3 intemediate schools in Toms River; North goes to North, South goes to South so why is it that East does not go to East?  These kids are asked to start a new school without any support from a majority of their friends.  High school is already a difficult time with social, peer, athletic and academic pressures, why do we need to make it any more difficult than it needs to be?  Of course they will "adjust" if they have to, but why should they have to?

Everyone has a right to their opinion and what they feel is best for their child.  If you dont wish to sign the petition, that is your right.

Makes total sense, I attended intermediate east, than move on to high school east while others went onto north. Why cram classrooms, and over stretch resources when there are schools that have not reached their max capacity in this district yet?

#29: - Re: Re: Re: DITTO #3 

 That teacher should be talked to and taken down a notch! 

And the problem in today's society is no one (not even their parents) will tell these snob kids- "that is not nice" .    I will not allow my kids to snob or speak uggly of anyone.  Yet I have had my own children come home crying because these peer groups or popular kids (which they have been in school since 1st grade with) want them to behave, speak, be friends or not friends with  and do as they say.   And I have to remind them that they are individuals and should speak and be friends with whom they want. And to treat as they want to be treated and not offend!  True friendship  is more important than grouping peers.

#30: -  

 All well and good but East cannot handle a growth of 400 students in 4 years. It's just not big enough. 

#33: - Re:  

 It would not be a growth of 400 students in 4 years as there is always a graduating class.  The students coming in from Silverton would be 90-100 a year at best thats less that 1 student per full time teacher. 

#34: - Re: Re:  

 do the math ... you add 100 next year and you graduate the same number that you have been. Add another 100 the next year, and still graduate the same number. You won't graduate a larger class for 4 years so it is an increase of 400 in 4 years, after that there will not be any increases because you will be graduating the larger classes.

#35: - Re: Re: Re:  

 I did do the math.  It is still less that 1 student per teacher. I know for a fact that classes in HSE are at a minimum right now.  Teachers are asking janitors to remove desks from their class rooms because the are empty.  Did you research the maximum capacity of students for HSE?  If you did, please provide me with that number.

#36: - Re: Re: Re: Re:  

 Your not doing the math correctly .... it would be an increase of just less than 1 student per teacher in the 1st year ONLY. 2nd year, the increase is up to just less than 2 students per teacher. Year 3, just less than 3 and year 4 just less than 4 and then it levels off. So if this were to go into play in 2016, by 2020 you would be at an 18:1 ratio which would be one of the highest in the state not to mention again, the facility can't handle that kind of increase. 

#37: - Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:  

 The math would be done correctly if you take the additional 100 children entering 9th grade and divide by how many teachers you have for the freshman classes offered.   Just because the school has 125 teachers on a roster doesn't mean they all offering freshman classes.  

The bottom line is  - is the petition to level off student to teacher ratio OR to accomodate children to remain with the same group from school to school ?

It seems the real problem is that most people here want their kids to have an easy transition to high school and stay with their friends.  So why not petition to change middle schools when so many different elementary schools are already coming together anyway?  In official rankings HSNorth has the best ratings of the  3 TR schools - why would you send your kids to HSEast on purpose?  If you are truly in this to help your kids - change their intermediate school instead!!

#38: Guest - Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:  

 i have always thought it was unfair to ask these kids to split up at a HS level but assumed that it was due to lack of space at HSE.  That is until I was told by quite a few teachers that East has room for the kids and they were always told that it was the parents in Silverton that wanted to send their kids to HSN.  I wanted to show that the parents are not the reason these kids are going to HSN.  I remember going to a PTO meeting when my son was in kindergarten and parents of older children were bringing this issue up.  My son is now a freshman at HSN, so we are going back 8 years.   Back then Mr. Pizza said "its always been that way and its not going to change now."   If there is a logical space, transportation, faculty issue than I can accept it, not just "thats the way it has always been."  I have a daughter in 8th grade who asks me everyday if she can go to East because she does not want to leave her friends and start over with a group of girls who already have their established friends and groups.  I know families in Silverton who have moved to other parts of Toms River in order to send their kids to HSE.  I know kids who have suffered severe anxiety going to HSN and have had a medical excuse to transfer to East and now parents have to provide transportation to and from school everyday.  Its an issue whos time has come and should be addressed appropriately.  Thats the purpose of the petition.

#40: - Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:  

 Respecting the parents need to stand up for their children and wanting to give the children what they want ' stay with the same group of friends'  but I don't think eveyone feels that same need.  There have been plenty of children who have parted ways for HS and done well and kept old friendships despite attending different HS.  I also believe if the parents themselves see this as an opportunity for the children to branch out and meet new kids make new friendships and expand their social circles they can convey this to their children and have them feel more confortable with the situation and those kids will thrive in any environment.  Sheltering children by making things easier might not be the best for their children.   With that said it is obvious each parent is looking for the best interest of their own child and you might have parents whose children where not accepted in the 'group of friends' are welcoming the fresh start for their children.    the school board should place the 'my child wants to be with her friends she had for 3 years in Intermediate schools" aside and base the decision on how will this benefit the community at large with ease of transportation, class room ratio etc.  Perhaps 8 years ago HSE was at max capacity and today is no loger that case.

#39: None - Do the truly right thing and change Middle Schools!! 

 Going to Intermediate North would be fine. We are just looking for the same consistency that the test of the town gets. 

#42: g - Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:  

 North's population is only going to grow. There is that new neighborhood being built on Rt 9 near Cox Crow and there is condos being buits somewhere over by the YMCA. Voth of those areas would feed in to North whereas East has no room for new construction. 

#3: - I WILL NOT SIGN 

 Some people feel that the overcrowded classrooms at North are hindering their child's learning experience as well as the hallways being overwhelming.  Everyone is entitled to their own opinions and due to the hurricane East's enrollment is way down which is a good thing for classrooms and the learning experience but the sports teams are being affected in a bad way as well, when I went to East as a child they redistricted my neighborhood to go to South because of enrollment numbers, luckily I was a senior at the time and was allowed to remain at East.  I am proud that my daughter does to East and if your child goes to North already perhaps they will give you the option to remain there but you shouldn't put down another school because of your preferences.  East has a great academic program and it is very difficult to change schools anymore. 

This is not news they have been talking about this for years.... our kids do get overlooked when it comes to the sports tho.. but it is what it is.. if you want your kid to go to east them drive them yourself stop whining

#48: - does it really matter 

 It wouldn't be an issue if they allowed you to choose to go to HSE. You cannot choose your high school. People seem to think that its an easy thing, even if you are wiling and able to provide the transportation to and from school. This is NOT the case.

We moved here with the understanding that our children would attend High School North which they are both doing. I would think everyone who moved to Squire Village did so with the same understanding. If parents want to drive their kids to another high school, that doesn't affect any of us and is fine with me. If parents are trying to change the school that all of our children go to, I am 100% AGAINST that.