Ramapo Indian Hills Jumps Line to Undergo State Monitoring A Year Early

The Ramapo Indian Hills High School District will be going through state monitoring one year before it was scheduled to, but district officials say the moved-up date will be beneficial to the two high schools.

Interim Superintendent Beverly MacKay announced at a board of education meeting this week that the county asked for volunteer districts this year who would go through the Q-SAC, or Quality Single Accountability Continuum, monitoring.

The district goes through Q-SAC, which requires schools to submit documentation outlining what it does in each of its buildings on a daily basis, every three years. Districts also go through an on-site Q-SAC evaluation.

The district will be evaluated on its performance in five categories – operation, instructions and program, governance, fiscal management, and personnel. 

According to MacKay, Bergen County schools began undergoing Q-SAC six years ago with a relatively low number of districts participating in the first cohort. Now, in an attempt to even out the cohorts, who undergo the process together every three years, it is looking for volunteer districts to move into the first cohort, and undergo the process this year.

For RIH, moving into the first group means bumping up its scheduled review by a year, but MacKay said volunteering would benefit the district.

“The district is in a good place right now, our test scores are good,” she said at a board meeting Monday night.

Also, the standards that schools need to follow and are evaluated on during the Q-SAC process are anticipated to change next year, she said. The new standards will likely include a look into the implementation of new state policies, like the new teacher evaluation system, she said.

“It is in our best interest [to go through Q-SAC] this year, so we can let three years go by while we adjust to all of these changes,” MacKay said.

The monitoring will take place during the school year.