Community Update

Welcome back to school! Well, almost…! We are so excited to welcome our students back next Tuesday. The buildings have been missing their heartbeat without the clamor of little voices filling the halls. As I went around the buildings today, I can see the pride our groundskeepers and custodial staff have been putting into making everything perfect for our young peoples’ return.

Before we welcome back the students, our teachers return to their classrooms to get ready. Last week, we proudly welcomed 40 new teachers to join our ranks. Syosset High School Student Government bought them all Syosset branded T-shirts to give them an instant sense of belonging - how great is that? I used that act of kindness to illustrate that Syosset is so much more than just a stellar academic institution – we intentionally instill kindness and empathy in our students, helping you raise them not just to be smart people, but good people.

And this week, as our entire faculty returned for professional development, we welcomed back Dr. Po-Shen Loh, Professor at Carnegie Mellon, Coach of the US Math Olympiad Team, and Artificial Intelligence expert to speak to all of our faculty about challenges and opportunities of Artificial Intelligence, and how to leverage it as an advantage, rather than view it as a threat. Importantly, he emphasized that AI is no replacement for innately human qualities like compassion, kindness, empathy, critical thinking, and originality – the kinds of things teachers teach!

We are continually updating our Bond website (bond.syossetschools.org) with new information related to the upcoming facilities improvements referendum on Tuesday, October 1st. Over the next month, you may be sick of hearing from us – but we want to make sure you have all of the information you need to make an informed decision on October 1st.

The District is implementing a new transportation procedure to further protect our students. Starting in October, the requirement to have an adult present to meet Kindergarten students at the afternoon bus stop will be expanded to include First grade and Second grade students, unless otherwise designated.

If an adult is not present to take the child/children off the bus, the bus driver will finish the route and if possible, come back to the stop at the end of the route. If there is still no adult present, the child/children will be taken back to school and emergency contacts will be called.

We appreciate the feedback and support we received from individual PTA units and the PTA Council leadership as we explored this change in practice with them last school year. This practice will align Syosset with many other school districts in Nassau County and will result in a safer experience for our students.

If this presents a hardship for your family, please contact your building principal for assistance

Rising Syosset Seniors Audrey Chen and Emily Huang are trying to make the world a more purrrfect place. The two co-founded the nonprofit Forever at Home, which collects funds to donate to various local animal shelters. Since its founding, the nonprofit has raised about $6,000 in funds through local snack sales and business partnerships, which has resulted in 42 animal adoptions.

But wait, there is more! When Audrey and Emily had this idea, they knew they needed partners – and who better to partner with than fellow Syosset students? Lily Ke, Erica An, Shuhan Ying, Sarah Chen, and Isabella Diep all serve as officers in this organization, working together to improve the lives of their feline and canine community members. Of course, we found out about these efforts through a local newspaper article. I’m not the only one who loves to spread the good news about our Syosset students!

Congratulations Forever at Home Team, for making the world a cuddlier place.

Enjoy the last weekend of summer. See you all Tuesday morning!