District to meet deadline

PHILLIPSBURG | Phillipsburg school officials said Monday they overcame a late start but will have a first-ever required state assessment ready on time.

Called the New Jersey Quality Single Accountability Continuum, the assessment reflects lower scores on the state's standardized tests, according to unofficial tallies. State officials raised benchmarks for acceptable performance on the tests, called the New Jersey Assessment of Skills and Knowledge.

QSAC, in its second year statewide, is a way "for the state to retain oversight on education," according to Rich Vespucci, spokesman for the state Department of Education.

The report examines five major areas and is due to the Warren County Department of Education by November.

School board President Paul Rummerfield said former Superintendent Gordon Pethick received training on the QSAC process but failed to notify school officials of the requirement before retiring in January. The late start forced the hiring of a consultant, Phil Esbrandt, of LeadershipEnergies LLC, in June for $28,500 plus expenses.

"If you would have asked me in May if we'd be to this point in September, I'd be doubtful," acting Superintendent George Chando said Monday.

Without Esbrandt, Rummerfield said, "We absolutely would have never been done in time."

Marian Trapani, co-chairwoman of the board's QSAC coordinating committee, said the report should be in the hands of the county superintendent by the deadline.

"We are feeling very confident right now," she said Monday.

State changes in standardized test scores and a more demanding exam for fifth- through eighth-graders is to blame for the 60 percent score, district officials said.

Vespucci said students must now answer 50 percent of test questions correctly rather than 40 percent.

"We are looking at a much more rigorous, much more challenging high school experience in the next few years," he said.

Vespucci said a drop such as this is common following the changes. Other districts may face similar results in their QSAC reports, he said.

In the meantime, Chando said, a detailed action plan would be put into place to bring the scores up to the new standards.