The Northern Valley Board of Education is considering dual enrollment opportunities with Bergen Community College and Montclair State University as well as the implementation of internship and mentorship programs for high school seniors.

These recommendations came from a committee formed after the school board’s annual summer retreat to enhance the educational experience of seniors. The 13-member committee includes teachers, students, parents and administrators.

"A lot of research has been written [in educational journals] about how senior year should not be just another year. And there’s a great deal of concern about when this senior year is not meaningful or rigorous, [students] have difficulty in college freshman year," district Superintendent Jan Furman said.

Northern Valley interim district guidance director and the committee’s chairman, Lou Centolanza, told the school board at the Feb. 25 meeting that the proposed experience would help students make "informed choices" about what career opportunities to explore senior year.

Centolanza said the experience would begin in ninth grade, calling it a "systematic plan of action over four years."

Mentors would be assigned to students at a ratio of 1-to-10. The plan also calls for hiring an additional staff member at an expense of $55,000 to $60,000 who would serve both high schools and oversee the various educational opportunities that arise over the years.

According to Centolanza, students would benefit from the experience by learning leadership and communication skills and receiving 0.5 credit on their transcripts.