Wellness-Nutrition Policy Workshops 16 morning and afternoon sessions sponsored by NJ Department of Agriculture on eight dates in March.

Program is designed to help school districts develop and implement local wellness policies by September 2006 as required by state and federal regulations. Workshop dates and locations:

For workshop registration information and directions, contact the Division of Food and Nutrition at (609) 984-0692.

NJSBA is working with the state Department of Agriculture to develop sample policy language. It will post an updated sample wellness policy (File Code 3542.1) on its Web site in the near future. Check NJSBA's Web site for updates.

Bergen County Shared Services Conference Sponsored by the county executive and Department of Planning and Economic Development, March 15, 8: a.m.–3:30 p.m., Teaneck Marriott at Glenpointe, Teaneck.

The conference will focus on the root causes of the property tax problem in New Jersey and reducing the tax burden on taxpayers. Presentations will examine ways to reduce property taxes, eliminate redundancy in services, and establish a regional approach to balancing costs and benefits in schools, police and fire protection, emergency services, and public works.

Registration is $40 per person in advance or $50 per person at the door. For information, call the Bergen County Department of Planning and Economic Development at (201) 336-6446.

PEI Roundtable Meeting -- Arts and Humanities Education: Beyond the Test Scores Co-Sponsored by the Institute for Arts and Humanities Education, March 10, 8:30 a.m. – 12:15 p.m, Livingston Campus Student Center, Piscataway.

A study by the Council for Basic Education determined that the No Child Left Behind Act is resulting in schools spending more time on reading, math, and science but squeezing out social studies, civics, geography, languages, and the arts. This raises the specter of minority students from low-income families being denied the liberal arts curriculum that more privileged students take for granted, according to the council. Speakers will include representatives of the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, the Music For All Foundation, as well as students and educators.

To register, call 732-564-9099 or e-mail your name, address, telephone and fax number to rupei@rci.rutgers.edu.

Celebration of Teaching and Learning Tri-state conference for educators, parents and education leaders, March 24-25, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., Pier 94 – The UnConvention Center, New York City.

A leadership summit, called “The Schools We Want, The Schools We Need,” will be geared toward school administrators, board members, and other stakeholders in the education community. Other events include professional development conferences, exhibits, awards, a town hall meeting and a concert. The event is sponsored by Thirteen/WNET in partnership with New Jersey Network.

For information and to register, go to www.thirteencelebration.org or call (212)-560-4900. The deadline for registration is March 14.