Academic Scheduling: Update and Add/Drop
Academic scheduling and development of the Master Schedule was a major focus of work and investment of time this summer. Master scheduling must take into consideration parameters including approved class sections, teacher availability, room allocation, class sizes and student requests. With district changes impacting Guidance staffing and office hours this summer, Mrs. Perry worked with a limited Counseling and Scheduling Team weekly to confirm the schedule and fix as many presenting issues as possible.
All students and their parents/ guardians were directed to Genesis this year for scheduling access. Freshman students received their schedule on Wednesday, August 28th to prepare for the RIH Orientations. Upperclassman received their schedules on Friday, August 30th. The release of the final schedule is reflective of previous years.
As is past precent at RIH, students are permitted to make changes of an educationally sound nature to their academic schedules beginning on Monday, September 9th until Friday, September 20th (Electives) and Friday, September 27th (Core Course Levels Classes). Students can make an appointment to speak with their School Counselor regarding any requested changes. Students can also email, recognizing that this will likely be a time when Counselors may be inundated and working as expediently as possible. The Schedule Add/Drop forms are now available (posted below). Changes will be reviewed beginning on Monday, September 9th.
Following September 27th, students will only be permitted to drop courses. Additional information regarding the scheduling Add/ Drop process and course descriptions can be found in the RIH Program of Studies
Students will not be released from classes to speak to Guidance about their schedules. Students should be directed to come to the Guidance Office during a study hall/commons, their lunch period, or before/after school. Please note that a student schedule change is not finalized they officially come off of the teacher roster in Genesis. Students should continue to attend and complete assignments for a course while pending a (potential) schedule change.
Not all schedule changes will be feasible due to class size restrictions, course availability and other scheduling parameters. Course pre-requisites and teacher recommendations from Spring 2024 will be followed throughout the scheduling process. Advocating for a particular order of classes, specific teacher and/ or scheduling based on convenience will not be supported. Scheduling is very specific and not a la cart. Please be patient with the School Counselors as we work to review each presenting scheduling question.
RIH Student Handbooks
The RIH Student Handbooks are a great resource for understanding expectations of students including the code of conduct and attendance obligations. Information on the Bell Schedules, Emergency Procedures and Athletic Eligibility are outlined. National Honor Society and World Language Honor Society eligibility criteria are important to review. Please take the time to read the Student Handbook!
Attendance Policy / Questions
The start of a new school year presents an opportunity to review the RIH Attendance policies. Please note that attendance is reviewed and policies enforced by the RIH Administrative Team, beginning with the Assistant Principals and conferred by the Building Principal. Students are expected to adhere to the attendance policies or face consequences including potential loss of credit. Loss of credit in a course means that the student will have to repeat the class either in summer school or the following academic year.
Each building has a point person for Attendance. Please contact Ms. Virginia Labinski (RHS) at vlabinski@rih.org OR Ms. Caren Fassbender (IHHS) at cfassbender@rih.org with questions.
Dual Enrollment Options!
There are several dual enrollment opportunities to be aware happening now within the RIH district. RIH has partnered with Bergen Community College to offer dual enrollment courses in the following subjects: Drawing II, Digital Design II, Digital Photography II, Digital Illustration and Animation II, Culinary Gourmet / Real World Cooking, Computer Science, French 4 H, Italian 4 H, Spanish 4 H, Environmental Science, and Horticulture. Students earning a "B" or better in the class will earn college credits that they can then potentially transfer to their college of enrollment.
The Syracuse Project Advance (SUPA) course represent another avenue to obtain dual enrollment credits. Courses include Gender & Literary Texts Honors and Introduction to Creative Writing Honors. Information pertaining to these classes will be shared by the respective classroom teacher. Since SUPA classes are semester-based options for Seniors only, payment is typically requested midway through the course.
Other approved opportunities included affiliations with Ramapo College for Sociology and Centenary University for Social Media Marketing Honors. Students and parents/ guardians received communication about these dual enrollment options annually in September as per the college deadline for payment.
All course descriptions can be found in the RIH Program of Studies. Information specific to Dual Enrollment can be found on the RIH Dual Enrollment website. Students and parents/ guardians are also encouraged to contact their School Counselor with any questions!
Fall College Visits
Junior and Senior students are afforded with the opportunity to meet with various college representatives that visit Indian Hills and Ramapo High School each fall. The information session typically lasts an entire class period. The times/dates are available for students to view in Naviance. A student should present their teacher with a printed document from Naviance for their signature in order to attend an information session. Please note that allowing a student to miss the respective class period for a college visit is at the teacher discretion. Students are not permitted to attend a college information session if they have an assessment during that designated time. A student can email their School Counselor if they are unable to attend a college visit so that the Counselor may gather information materials from the college representative.
State of NJ: Testing Graduation Requirement
The State of New Jersey reviews and determines standardized testing requirements for graduation annually. The RIH school district administers testing in alignment with state requirements. It is important for students and parents/ guardians to understand what testing is being administered throughout the school year and the impact on student progression. For the Class of 2025, the State has identified multiple pathways to graduation:
Pathway One: NJ Graduation Proficiency Assessment (NJGPA)
Pathway Two: Multiple Testing Cut Scores (SAT, ACT, Accuplacer, OR PSAT)
Pathway Three: Portfolio Appeals
The majority of students will meet the requirement through Pathway One. However, the School Counseling Team and Administration will work to support students in need through Pathway Two. Students are encouraged to submit any test reports obtained from independent testing (Saturday administrations of the ACT and/ or SAT) the the respective Guidance Offices. The Accuplacer will be administered during the school-day to Seniors in need of a cut-score. Information on the Accuplacer including practice tests and scoring is available for review.
PSAT NMSQT Testing: Juniors
The RIH Guidance Department will administered the digital NMSQT PSAT Juniors on Tuesday, October 22nd. The PSAT is a practice SAT given to provide students exposure to test material, give indicators of areas of strength and areas to focus for improvement when planning to take the SAT as a standardized test for college readiness. Junior students who take the PSAT are also reviewed for the National Merit Scholarship eligibility. The PSAT is administered annually in October. Here is a great guide to interpreting the scores: Understanding your PSAT/ NMSQT Scores
Students will be registered through through the respective Guidance Departments. The RIH District will be paying for the administration for each Junior student. Additional information regarding this testing information will be provided closer to the testing date.
