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Parent presses Hopatcong board on summer online credit and classroom monitoring; superintendent outlines pilot
Summary
A parent asked whether students may take out‑of‑district summer or online courses for credit and urged stricter Chromebook monitoring; the superintendent said the district will pilot monitoring software and explained the district's policy limits on granting credit for courses that replace regularly offered required classes.
During the public comment portion of the Hopatcong Borough School District meeting, a parent identified in the transcript as Miss Johnson urged the board to allow students greater access to summer or out‑of‑district online courses for credit and to tighten in-classroom monitoring of Chromebooks.
"If I'm going to pay for it, why he can't take financial literacy or another class?" Miss Johnson asked, describing efforts to secure online credit for her sophomore son and recounting conflicting guidance from school staff. She also said students routinely access YouTube and other distractions during class time.
The superintendent responded that the district is "piloting and finalizing an agreement now" for software that will allow teachers to monitor student activity and, in some cases, boot students off distracting sites. He said the pilot is starting at the high school and will be expanded to the entire high school next year and to the middle school the following year. "YouTube is one of the hardest ones to filter and police," he said, noting the difficulty of blocking individual videos while preserving teacher access to instructional content.
On credit for out-of-district online courses, the superintendent said the district allows credit for a course taken externally if it covers a subject not offered in the Hopatcong High School curriculum (for example, trigonometry if the district does not offer that course). But he said the district will not grant credit for an online course that replaces a required course the high school already offers because of rules affecting class rank and GPA and because, if the class were considered a required course, the district could be financially obligated to provide it to all students.
He described administrative requirements for approval: families must apply, provide the course scope and sequence and standards, and show the course is taught and graded by a New Jersey-certified teacher. He said the district will not accept "online AI" classes as substitutes.
Miss Johnson followed up with questions about trigonometry and the ability to request an external course; the superintendent said there is an application process and that certain courses not offered locally can qualify for credit.
The exchange ended without a change to district policy at the meeting; the superintendent said the technology-monitoring pilot will be available to teachers next year and that credit requests will be considered through the high school's established application procedure.
(Quotes and policies above reflect statements made on the record during the public comment exchange.)
