Parents and students finding out their SOMS team assignments.
As if back-to-school anxiety wasn’t running high enough, an extra frisson of tension was added for some middle school students in the South Orange – Maplewood School District when the list of first period teachers was not made public until the day before school began.
At South Orange Middle School (SOMS), Principal Joseph Uglialoro had sent a series of emails throughout the week promising parents that lists of first-period classes would be posted on the front and rear doors of the school, as is customary, and might also be emailed. At first, he said the lists would be posted by no later than Monday. On Monday, he sent an email saying it would be Tuesday.
On Wednesday afternoon, Uglialoro emailed parents thanking them for their patience and announcing the lists were finally being posted. “Our enrollment over the past week has surged to 806 students and we have been working very hard to adjust schedules so that class sizes are balanced,” he wrote. “This complicated and delayed our work, and we wanted to make sure we had everything right.”
Sixth grade students at SOMS are randomly assigned to one of three teams with a math, language arts, social studies, science and special education teacher; the team leader acts as coordinator. Students are often eager to know what teams they are on so they know what teachers they have and which of their friends are on their team.
Maplewood Middle School also works on a team system, but their information process is a bit different: parents received an email on Wednesday from Interim Principal Louis Brown saying that 6th graders should report to the auditorium on the first day. From there they will find out their first period classes. Most parents of 7th and 8th graders received a letter in the mail, said one parent.
The higher enrollment was not unexpected by the district.
“We were anticipating a higher number of middle school students this year due to the bubble that has been working its way through our schools,” explained Suzanne Turner, the district’s Director of Strategic Communications.
Turner said the demographer had projected 1,610 students in grades 6-8, and current enrollment is 1,611. Last year, SOMS enrollment was 711 students; as of late Wednesday evening the total stood at 803, Turner said — an increase of 92 students. At MMS, there were 738 students enrolled last year and this year there are 808, an increase of 70.
“Of course we cannot schedule students into classes until they are actually enrolled, which can result in last minute scheduling changes if students register at the last minute,” said Turner, who pointed out that the increased enrollment was one of the reasons the district built an addition to MMS.
