Education

WEST ORANGE, NJ - It was a Spooktacular Day in the West Orange Schools as students, teachers, and administrators donned some wild and crazy Halloween costumes on Oct. 31 and enjoyed the balmy weather.

All of the above photos were provided by Cynthia Cumming, Communications Coordinator for the West Orange School District.

WEST ORANGE, NJ — A tightly contested race for the two open seats on the West Orange Board of Education resulted in a near three-way tie with a race too close to call.

With 95 percent of districts reporting, less than 100 votes separated all three candidates, according to the unofficial election results provided by the Essex County Clerk’s Office.

Cheryl Merklinger had a scant ...

WEST ORANGE, NJ - School has become more like a venture into the business world for a group of students at West Orange High School who are participating in the school's new Virtual Enterprise International (VEI) program, just launched in the district this year.

VEI is an educational nonprofit that aims to transform students into business professionals by "bringing the workplace into ...

WEST ORANGE, NJ — Meet Cheryl Merklinger, a candidate running for the West Orange Board of Education on Nov. 6.

A project manager who has lived in West Orange her entire life, Merklinger is a Rutgers University graduate who attended Gregory and Roosevelt schools in West orange before graduating from Mount Saint Dominic Academy. Merklinger's husband Rob is a middle school teacher in ...

WEST ORANGE, NJ – Eight months after renewing the contract of Jeffrey Rutzky as the superintendent of the West Orange Public Schools district, the West Orange Board of Education (WOBOE) voted on Oct. 19 to accept his voluntary resignation from this position and approved a separation agreement between Rutzky and the district, effective immediately.

“The four non-conflicted board ...

WEST ORANGE, NJ – An 11-year-old girl who has traveled to 19 states and has shared her message of hope and love all over the world through her brand, “The Liv Bits,” recently spent two weeks visiting all seven of West Orange’s elementary schools.

Olivia VanLedtje, along with her mother and literacy consultant Cynthia Merrill, met with hundreds of parents, students and ...

WEST ORANGE, NJ — A separation agreement in which West Orange Superintendent of Schools Jeffrey Rutzky has agreed to voluntarily resign from his employment with the district was approved during a special meeting of the West Orange Board of Education (WOBOE) on Friday morning.

In accordance with state law, the WOBOE will provide three months' pay for each year remaining on ...

WEST ORANGE, NJ — During a special meeting being held on Oct. 19 at 9 a.m., the West Orange Board of Education (WOBOE) will vote on a resolution that would terminate the employment relationship with Superintendent of Schools Jeffrey Rutzky.

According to the resolution as written in the Oct. 19 meeting agenda, the board and Rutzky agree that it is in both parties’ best interest ...

WEST ORANGE, NJ — Following an executive session held on Monday evening to address time-sensitive legal and personnel matters, the West Orange Board of Education (WOBOE) determined on Wednesday that an additional executive session is needed and will be held on 8:30 a.m. on Friday, Oct. 19.

In order to be in compliance with the Open Public Meeting Act’s requirement of allowing at ...

WEST ORANGE, NJ — On behalf of the West Orange school that raised the most money to support the eighth annual Walk/Run for Nikhil, Gregory Elementary School Principal Makeida Estupiñan accepted a $2,000 grant from the Nikhil Badlani Foundation (NBF) during Wednesday night’s Parent-Teacher Association meeting.

After the foundation issued a challenge to the West Orange ...