Superintendent's Pay Raise, Sex Charges Stand Top River Dell Week

With unanimous board approval and the approval of County Executive Superintendent Robert Gilmartin, River Edge Superintendent Dr. Tova Ben-Dov's contract with the K-6 district was approved to allow for a $3,000 base salary increase for the coming year. The raise, which brings her base salary to $177,000, is based on merit and the achievement of her 2011-12 school year goals. 

Two former Paramus Catholic employees can be charged for allegedly having sex with students on a school trip to Germany, according to a Superior Court judge's ruling Tuesday. Artur Sopel of River Edge and Michael Sumulikoski of Elmwood Park will stand trial in the future after three teenage girls alleged that they had engaged in sexual conduct with the pair during a February 2011 trip. 

Bergen Community College was the site for Tuesday's Disaster Preparedness Conference organized by Jim Kirkos of theMeadowlands Regional Chamber and theBergen County Office of Emergency Management (BCOEM). The conference was designed to provide a forum that would offer municipalities and businesses guidance and information on preparing for severe weather events. 

While summer is in full swing, the Oradell Board of Education has been busy at work hiring additional staffing in anticipation of the 2012-13 school year. At a recent meeting, the Board hired five staff members for additional staffing for kindergarten, sixth grade, special education, ESL/Basic Skills and a nurse's aid for September.

For years, students at have alternated between a full immersion while learning Spanish and French during the school years. But come next fall, that may change as the Board of Education debates removing French from the World Language curriculum as only the incoming fourth and sixth graders would be enrolled in the course. If approved, students would model neighboring River Edge and only take Spanish.

After last year's successful season on the mat, River Dell head coach Mike Tota is hoping to see his wrestlers continue to improve during the off season - and the first step they had to take was to overcome not only some of the best wrestlers in Northern New Jersey but also their own personal difficulties during the first night of the River Dell Duals.

Over 200 cars, trucks, hot rods and motorcycles from every decade in history were on display this past Sunday, including vehicles from the 1920s to present day. 

Members of the Next Stage Ensemble of the New Jersey Shakespeare Theatre transported a River Edge audience through a fanciful and sometimes dark 16-year journey in one of Shakespeare's great mystical and mythical romances, "The Winter's Tale" recently. The event was co-sponsored by the Friends of the  and the  on the back lawn behind the library.

For the first time in two years, the  Class of 2013 can boast three rising seniors that will head off to Division 1 schools following their final season sporting red and gold. After the news that  early this summer, fellow teammates Kyle Quiero (Northwestern) and Rich Queen (UMass) followed suite.

In 1944, as Bob Levine, who had turned 19 just a month before, lay in a bed in a make-shift hospital, a wounded prisoner of war, he thought, "I may not make it to see 20." But last week on Independence Day, nearly seven decades later, the longtime River Edge resident served as the borough's grand marshal in its annual parade and later spoke of the significance of the holiday

If he’s jealous, that does not mean that he loves you. Same for if she threatens to leave you. Unfortunately, many teenagers see these as proof of affection, not warning signs of abuse, said Allison Bressler, the co-founder and co-director of A Partnership for Change, an Oradell-based non-profit organization that teaches teenagers to recognize the signs of dating abuse, to seek help and become advocates for themselves and their peers.

The Oradell Police Department recently conducted a survey of all borough crossing guard posts and the council will soon receive a recommendation on which, if any, should be eliminated and if other intersections might need an additional guard. The impetus for the survey came when the borough eliminated four posts before the 2011/12 school year. The change, which would reportedly save the borough $80,000 annually, was met with complaints from some parents and school officials about a lack of communication before the decision was made.

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