As students may have noticed by now, there is a new voice speaking over the loudspeaker, checking late students into school, and marking down absent kids. This July, Mrs. Lauren Bielan took over for Mr. Bob Buesser as the new attendance officer at Pascack Valley.   

After it was announced that Buesser was retiring at the end of the last school year, Bielan knew that she was up for the task.

“I guess just from word of mouth, I heard about [this position],” Bielan said. “I worked in the district for many years as a substitute teacher and so I was aware as to what positions were open.”

Before becoming the attendance officer, Bielan worked three years as a sub and one year as a secretary at George G. White Middle School. Just before taking on this position, Bielan was the program secretary to the PARCC Academy in GGW which is apart of the Pascack Valley High School District.

Both of Bielan’s children, Tommy and Jonathan, went to PV. Her older son, Tommy, graduated in 2014 while her younger son, Jonathan,  graduated in 2017.

“I had two kids come through here so I knew Buesser for seven years as a parent,” Bielan said. And then I knew him for three years as a substitute teacher and I would call in my absences to him.”

When asked about her favorite part of the job so far Bielan said, “I really do love having contact with students.”

“I just want to do a good job. That’s what most people want to do.” Bielan said, “I love the district and just want to be a part of it.”

After the retirement of PV secretary, Ms. Margaret O’Hara, at the end of last school year, Mrs. Jamie Taylor has taken over the position as the secretary for both Mr. John Puccio and Ms. Debbie Squiccimarri. She started this new job in July of this year.

“I handle all the substitutes so whenever a teacher is absent and they need their classes covered, I make sure there is a substitute or I have teachers cover the classes. I handle all of the busing for field trips, making sure field trips are approved by Mr. DeMaio, figuring out all the calendars for the school, all the canvas calendars, the rotation calendars that everyone sees which all the teacher and students have access to, I am in charge of those,” Taylor said. “Whenever someone wants to use the auditorium or the cafeteria for clubs or anything like that, they go to me to make sure everything is available.”

Prior to working at PV, Taylor worked at a dentist office as a treatment coordinator. She was responsible for going through treatment that patients needed and handling their insurance.

Bielan and Taylor are both very excited about their new lives at PV.

In 1961, Mr. Bob Buesser moved to Hillsdale just in time to start his freshman year of high school. Fifty-seven years later, he is still here at Pascack Valley.

After working at PV as the attendance officer for 21 years, Bob Buesser officially retired on Oct. 31.

Buesser’s decision to retire was due to his physical condition and health.

“It was a struggle for me to get to work every day,” Buesser said. “Physically, I just couldn’t do it.”

Buesser started his freshman year of PV in 1961 and went on to graduate in 1965.

“I basically lived and worked in Hillsdale since 1961,” Buesser said. “This school was part of me.”

From there, Buesser worked as a police officer and later as a detective for the Hillsdale Police Department.

In 1982, he was approached by Mr. Jeff Jasper, the PV athletic director at the time, but currently a history teacher and girls basketball coach. Jasper offered Buesser a coaching position for the freshman football team. Buesser, having had experience from coaching Hillsdale Pee Wee football, accepted the offer and went on to coach football, indoor track, and baseball at PV.  

In 1997, Buesser retired from the Hillsdale Police Department. At this time, he was approached by the Frank Sullivan, PV’s school administrator, and informed of the open position of PV’s attendance officer.

Buesser took the job and has “been here ever since.”

As the attendance officer, Buesser recalled that a typical day began with students walking in late. Then, he would go through 60 to 70 voicemail messages every morning, sorting out the students who were not coming to school and those that had to leave early. He would also create daily field trip lists and update the attendance records.

For Buesser, his favorite part of the job was just being part of the environment at PV.

“I just loved it,” Buesser said. “I loved being around people.”

Buesser said that he did not feel like working at PV was an actual “job” because he truly enjoyed coming to work every day.

Although retired now, Buesser still comes to PV to volunteer and assist Mr. Shawn Buchanan, the current athletic director. With Buchanan, he checks bussing and schedules and itemizes things for budgets.

“I was grateful for this [volunteering] opportunity came along for me to do something,” Buesser said.

As for Mrs. Lauren Bielan, the new attendance officer, Buesser expressed that without a doubt in his mind, he is sure that she’ll do a great job.

While Buesser may have retired from his official working position, it is not an end to his journey at PV. Rather, it is a new beginning.