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Garfield honors students for NJSLA success; middle‑school STEAM team wins third at state
Summary
The Garfield Public School District recognized dozens of students for perfect and near‑perfect NJSLA results, showcased a middle‑school STEAM team that placed third at the state Steam Tank Challenge, and the district’s data director reported year‑over‑year gains—notably in fourth grade—while outlining interventions and upcoming programs.
The Garfield Board of Education used its Nov. 1 meeting to recognize student achievement across grades and programs and to present district NJSLA results and instructional supports.
Superintendent Dr. Tomko opened the recognitions, praising students and staff and previewing upcoming initiatives including a high‑school scheduling workshop Nov. 19, a proposed “Degree in 3” accelerated pathway, and exploratory work on Nanomage virtual anatomy tools for academy students.
The board recognized the high‑school band and color guard for competition performances and an NJMEA silver rating. The district called forward dozens of elementary, middle and high‑school students who achieved perfect or near‑perfect state test scores; administrators and principals presented certificates and photos.
Garfield Middle School’s Team In Sync presented its Steam Tank challenge project — a collapsible, filtered, eco‑friendly portable hand‑washing station called InSync. The team demonstrated the prototype, described engineering revisions informed by external consulting (including triangular support legs, locking hinges and a filtered reusable bottle) and said the design includes biodegradable towels and a push‑button light. GMS advisors and the board noted the team earned third place in the state finals and brought home a $1,000 award for their program. A school presentation said Team In Sync competed against more than 206 middle‑school teams and 520 teams overall.
District data director Ballinger presented three years of NJSLA data (ELA and math grades 3–9; science for grades 5, 8 and 11) and highlighted growth in elementary grades. Ballinger told the board that “our fourth grade is outscoring the state in level fours. We had 45.5 percent of our students meeting proficiency level. The state’s at 37.8.” The presentation noted additional district strengths: fourth‑ and fifth‑grade gains in math and ELA, and improved proficiency among English‑language learners and students with special needs on certain science and ELA measures. Ballinger also said Garfield’s eighth‑grade honors Algebra 1 results “outscored the state by 45.”
Ballinger described district strategies tied to the results: targeting Lexile and independent reading levels, digital programs (Renaissance Learning, Albert, Discovery Ed), 1:1 devices, five additional professional‑development afternoons, supervisor vision walks, common assessments, extended‑day tutoring, and tiered MTSS interventions.
Superintendent Tomko and board members praised students, staff and parents for the results and emphasized the district’s focus on growth rather than absolute rankings. The board also heard that an SDA capital grant allocation for 2026 is under review and that facilities work (including boilers and heat) was completed for the October heating season.
Administrators said further details and slide materials would be posted on the district website.
