Achieve Foundation celebrates 20 years of excellence

SOUTH ORANGE, NJ — Achieve Foundation hosted a nostalgic celebration highlighting 20 years of resounding success with the Achieve Volunteer Tutor Program and also the retirement of founding Executive Director Deborah Prinz at the Orange Lawn Tennis Club in South Orange on June 5. The event, “Wine Tasting and Conversation,” featuring Hank Zona of The […]

District unveils plan for buildings, grades

MAPLEWOOD / SOUTH ORANGE, NJ — Acting Superintendent Thomas Ficarra unveiled the South Orange-Maplewood School District’s long-range facilities and integration plan at the Board of Education’s May 14 meeting. In his presentation, Ficarra introduced a plan to renovate and upgrade the district’s school buildings while better integrating the schools by redrawing district lines. The plan […]

Meetings on facilities and integration plan in SOMSD

SOUTH ORANGE / MAPLEWOOD, NJ — The South Orange-Maplewood School District will hold several community meetings to discuss the long-range facilities and integration plan. Each meeting will include the same presentation. Meetings will be held: Wednesday, May 30, at 7:30 p.m. at Seth Boyden School, 274 Boyden Ave. in Maplewood; Thursday, May 31, at 7:30 […]

Eighth annual River Day draws hundreds

SOUTH ORANGE, NJ — A cloudy, cool day didn’t stop South Orange residents from donning rain boots and rubber gloves and heading to Mead Street for the village’s eighth annual River Day celebration, an afternoon dedicated to cleaning up the section of the Rahway River running through South Orange. Town officials, students and residents picked […]

Students speak out at BOE meeting

MAPLEWOOD / SOUTH ORANGE, NJ — A group of middle and high school students from South Orange and Maplewood spoke at the April 23 South Orange-Maplewood Board of Education meeting about school safety and students’ ability to organize protests in response to gun violence. The students told BOE members and district administrators that they have […]

50th Maple Leaf Award recognizes community service

MAPLEWOOD, NJ — On Sunday, May 6, Joan Crystal, Cynthia Thompson and the Maplewood Garden Club will be honored as recipients of the Maple Leaf Award for volunteer and community service. “This year’s Maple Leaf Award recipients include relatively long-time residents of Maplewood,” Maple Leaf Awards Chairwoman Mary Devon O’Brien said in a press release. […]

MMS investigating fake Instagram account

MAPLEWOOD, NJ — Maplewood Middle School Principal Dara Gronau sent a letter home April 23 alerting parents and guardians of a false Instagram account that an unknown person had made in her name. The account was made under the name “@daracrockergronau” and used a publicity photo of Gronau likely found through an internet search. The […]

SOPAC receives hefty grant to partner with school district

SOUTH ORANGE, NJ — The South Orange Performing Arts Center received a $75,000 grant from the William Randolph Hearst Foundations to advance its arts education program. The funds will be used both at the center and in the South Orange and Maplewood communities. The William Randolph Hearst Foundations are two nonprofits that work together to […]

MMS, Senior Share partner for intergenerational program

MAPLEWOOD, NJ — Senior citizens and a group of Maplewood Middle School students came together for a brainstorming session in the school’s library Monday, April 16, to discuss the benefits of middle school students and seniors spending time together for the launch of the Share/Exchange program. The event was a collaboration between Maplewood Senior Share, […]

Maplewood MS students walk out

MAPLEWOOD, NJ — Maplewood Middle School eighth-graders participated in the National School Walkout on March 14. In addition to sharing their thoughts on gun violence, students read the names of those who died at the Parkland, Fla., school shooting on Feb. 14. Photos Courtesy of SOMSD