Community Update

One of the most rewarding parts of being Superintendent is getting to watch students grow over time. I can’t believe that this year’s seniors had just moved up from second grade when I arrived in Syosset a decade ago.

This week, I stopped by Willits for one of my favorite events of the year – the Kindergarten Circus! This event has been an important part of the school culture for the past 30 years. Our youngest learners (the Class of 2036!) put on a show for their families, transforming into lion tamers, ring masters, magicians, jugglers (my personal favorite), clowns and more. The older students love the show – both to cheer on their younger peers and to reminisce about when they too were once in the greatest show on earth!

A reminder that our District budget vote and Board election will take place this coming Tuesday, May 21st. Voter information, as well as details about the budget, can be found on our District website. Polls will be open from 6am to 9pm.

At Monday’s meeting, the Board of Education voted to opt-in to the Town of Oyster Bay School Bus Stop-Arm Enforcement Program. The Town’s program began operating shortly after legislation resolving a legal ambiguity was passed last month in Albany. The program will issue automated traffic tickets to cars that illegally pass stopped school buses with their stop-arms extended. On any given day, an estimated 50,000 drivers illegally pass stopped school buses in New York State, endangering students boarding or exiting. This scary compilation video illustrates the risks children experience every day.

We anticipate the program becoming operational beginning June 1st. Several important notes:

• Cars must stop in both directions – even if there is a divided highway – according to NYS Law.
  

• Tickets will be $250 for first offense, and can increase with subsequent tickets.

• The Syosset school district does not receive any revenue from this program. Our interest is solely student safety.

Also at the Board meeting this past Monday, 24 teachers and four administrators were granted tenure. We’re proud to congratulate these dedicated members of #TeamSyo and look forward to their many years of service to the students and families of this wonderful community.

• Long weekend ahead. Our mild winter means that the District did not need to add any days to the calendar. So, the District will be closed next Thursday, May 23rd, and Friday, May 24th for an extended Memorial Day weekend.

• Shakespeare on Stage! Don’t miss out: tonight and tomorrow night at 7:30pm, the Syosset High School theater students are presenting The Winter’s Tale. Great seats are still available; you can purchase your tickets here. Just don’t sit too close to the bear 😳

• Artificial Intelligence Lecture. Next Tuesday, Carnegie Mellon math Professor Po-Shen Loh will be giving a special presentation hosted by the Syosset High School Math club entitled Future-Proofing Our Children. Dr. Loh has returned to offer a second thought-provoking keynote about artificial intelligence. To attend the event, please register at this link before it sells out!

We learned this week that our district won a New York State grant for $910,000 to enhance our Universal Prekindergarten (UPK) program. Every 4-year old student in Syosset has the opportunity to attend full-day prekindergarten with one of our local providers at no cost to parents or the District.

The UPK program isn’t just a huge benefit for our families, it offers several advantages for our District as well:

• We can establish a cohesive approach to educating our youngest learners by aligning preschool curriculum with our kindergarten curriculum;

• We are able to better prepare students for kindergarten by providing resources to our community partners in areas like phonics and reading instruction, deepening skill development at an earlier age; and,

• It also allows us to collect early data on both the number of Kindergarten students we are expecting, as well as their anticipated educational needs.

I guess the only thing better than a typical Syosset education is one that begins at age 4! We are so excited to continue to grow this program, and so appreciative of our community partners.

You may remember bus driver “Mr. Will” from my writeup about the school board’s tour around the District. His collage of pictures drawn for him by our students left a lasting impression on me.

Well, it turns out that I’m not the only one impressed by Mr. Will (Fernandez). He is being recognized as Nassau County’s Driver of the Year by the New York Association for Pupil Transportation. In his nomination letter from Village Principal Sari McKeown, she wrote of Mr. Will’s “deep-seated love for our students, and a genuine desire to make a difference in their lives.” She added: “His unwavering presence and infectious enthusiasm have made him a beloved figure among students, families, and staff alike.”

Congratulations, Mr. Will – yours is the first face our students see in the morning and you’re the last staff member to wish them a good afternoon. Thank you for transporting our students safely, and for starting and ending their every day with warmth and kindness.