One Mount Vernon Digital Newsletter
April 5, 2024
MESSAGE FROM THE SUPERINTENDENT
Greetings MVCSD Community,
Thank you all for a phenomenal first week of school! From teachers and staff to students and parents, everyone contributed to a successful start to the school year. Our teachers did a wonderful job getting their lessons started quickly and providing support to their students. Classrooms throughout the District are already bringing my vision of Back to Basics, Forward to Mastery to life. Seeing so many parents bringing their children to school gave me great confidence for this school year. Our partnership with parents is so important to the District, and it is great to see that partnership growing.
High schools and neighborhood schools started the year strong. Students began learning new material and teachers utilized new lesson plans, so the first week really showcased the great improvements we have been making as a District. I am excited to see this momentum continue in the coming weeks. Denzel Washington School of the Arts also held a back-to-school kickoff that highlighted the creativity and fun that will occur throughout that school all year long. Activities such as the Textile Club, student government, the drumline and the PTSA were also featured at the event, with students being encouraged to get more involved.
This year, I am continuing to highlight the prestigious alumni that we have from this District, and I am starting with someone we have right here in Dr. Christopher Pearce, the Principal at Mount Vernon STEAM Academy. Dr. Pearce graduated from Mount Vernon High School and became an educator and served his own community as a math teacher, a dean of students, an assistant principal and a principal. He is doing great work to ensure that students at the STEAM Academy receive the same opportunities that he received and more. Thank you for your fantastic work, Dr. Pearce!
If you are still in need of school supplies, there will be a back-to-school backpack giveaway at 6 Gramatan Ave., today at 3 p.m., hosted by the City of Mount Vernon and other local businesses and officials. Get your student a backpack while supplies last! Thank you to all those involved in the giveaway for providing this to our students.
Kindest Regards,
Dr. K. Veronica Smith
Acting Superintendent of Schools
MOUNT VERNON CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT KICKS OFF THE 2024-2025 SCHOOL YEAR
Elementary and middle school students pranced into their school buildings while waving goodbye to their parents on Tuesday, September 3, 2024, for the first day of school. Smiles filled the hallways as students and teachers greeted each other with warm welcomes to kick off the 2024 -2025 school year.
HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS CONTINUE THEIR LEARNING IN FIRST FULL DAY OF THE 2024-2025 SCHOOL YEAR
High school students filled the hallways, with their new schedules in hand, as schools in the Mount Vernon City School District held their first full day of school on Wednesday, September 4, 2024. High schoolers began to get back in the flow of school and continued meeting their new teachers and reorienting themselves into a new school year.
DWSA BEGINS SCHOOL YEAR WITH BACK-TO-SCHOOL KICK OFF EVENT
Denzel Washington School of the Arts students ended summer break with a back-to-school kickoff party and welcomed the new school year by buzzing from table to table and enjoying food provided by various food trucks and the school. Music provided by a DJ boomed through the air as students danced around with their friends and made new ones by signing up for clubs and various organizations such as Girls Inc. of Westchester County and the school’s Textile Club. The kick-off was held on the first full school day on Wednesday, September 4, 2024.
OUR STUDENTS, NOW: DR. CHRISTOPHER PEARCE
Dr. Christopher Pearce, Principal at Mount Vernon STEAM Academy, is an alum of the Class of 1989 at Mount Vernon High School, and he has been an educator for the District since 2000. He began as a math teacher, then became a dean of students, an assistant principal, and finally a principal. He is at his second school as principal, having also led the former Benjamin Turner Middle School. He has committed the majority of his career to shaping the lives of students in the school district that he graduated from.
BACK-TO SCHOOL BACKPACK GIVEAWAY - FRI., SEPTEMBER 6 AT 6 GRAMATAN AVE.
There will be a back-to-school backpack giveaway on Friday, September 6, 2024, beginning at 3 p.m. at 6 Gramatan Ave., Mount Vernon, NY 10550. Each student present will receive one backpack while supplies last. The giveaway will be hosted by local government representatives and sponsors.