A scene from a previous year’s performance of ‘Running Scared, Running Free’ Photo from WMHO
In honor of Black History Month, Long Islanders can truly celebrate the meaning of freedom with Ward Melville Heritage Organization’s acclaimed “Running Scared, Running Free: Escape to the Promised Land.” These riveting live theatrical performances, held over 150 years after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation, will be a poignant experience about the power of the human spirit and Long Island’s connection to the Underground Railroad.
Sponsored by Empire National Bank, “Running Scared, Running Free” is an interactive production based on investigative research compiled by the WMHO and was attended by over 7,000 young people and adults when it first opened in 2005.
Oral histories shared by Native Americans inspired WMHO to research the movement of escaping slaves from the south to Long Island and north to Canada. A St. George Production, the drama is set in the mid-1850s and is told through the eyes of “Dorcas,” a female slave fleeing South Carolina. The production shows how Native Americans, Quakers, free blacks and abolitionists assisted in the Underground Railroad through the fascinating use of secret codes in quilt patterns as a vital means of communication. It is estimated that at least 30,000 slaves, and potentially more than 100,000, escaped to Canada via the Underground Railroad.
Performances will take place on selected dates between Feb. 1 to 29 at WMHO’s Educational & Cultural Center, 97P Main Street, Stony Brook Village, at 10 a.m. and noon. In addition, there will be a special evening performance on Feb. 26 at 7:30 p.m. with dessert and coffee or tea.
General admission is $13 adults; $12 per student (up to 35 students); $8 per student (over 35 students); Distance Learning is $250 per class connection (IP and ISPN connectivity); $1,500 in-school performance.
The program is aligned to meet National and New York State Common Core Standards and BOCES Arts-in-Education reimbursable. For further information call 631-751-2244 or visit www.wmho.org.
Port Jefferson Free Library's children's section is bursting with books. Photo by Heidi Sutton
A library board president was unseated on Wednesday, in an election that will also fill the board for the first time in a while.
Two incumbents and two newcomers were gunning for three positions as Port Jefferson Free Library trustees this week, at a time when the library is working on plans to expand its facilities.
The library announced on its website that Trustee Susan Prechtl-Loper was re-elected to the board with 129 votes and newcomers Carl Siegel — who once served on the board in the late 1990s — and Joel Rosenthal were elected with 135 votes and 126 votes, respectively.
President Laura Hill Timpanaro lost her re-election bid, garnering only 77 votes, according to Tom Donlon, the interim library director.
Being the top two vote-getters, Siegel and Prechtl-Loper won five-year terms on the board, while third-place winner Rosenthal won a two-year stint that became available after former Trustee Harriet Martin vacated her spot on the board with the time still left on her term.
The library has recently acquired two properties adjacent to its corner building at Thompson and East Main streets in downtown Port Jefferson — a residential property on Thompson and a business on East Main — and is working on developing those properties to help satisfy the library’s parking and general needs.
The Smithtown board of education meets on Tuesday night to discuss potential school closures. Photo by Alex Petroski
The Smithtown school district board of education is weighing its options for ways to cut costs, and thus far parents in the district have delivered a clear message: Do not close Branch Brook Elementary School.
In a housing report released in November 2015 by the school board with Superintendent James Grossane’s name on it, the recommended course of action was to close one of the district’s eight elementary schools, specifically Branch Brook.
The report estimated that closing an elementary school would save the district about $725,000 annually, though very little data was provided to back that up. Prior to the 2012 school year, an advisory housing committee was formed and recommended that Nesconset Elementary School be closed, based on substantial data accumulated about the district and the community. Residents accepted the closure.
This time around there is little evidence that any data was used to come to the conclusion that Branch Brook deserves to be closed, according to Peter Troiano, who is a member of the Save Branch Brook group.
The organization is comprised of about three dozen parents, Troiano said in a phone interview last week, but a look at the group’s Facebook page or their petition showed support in the hundreds.
“I’m not a PTA dad, I’m not involved in the schools,” Troiano said. “When I saw this proposal I knew right away looking at it that it doesn’t make sense.” Troiano said that he’s never a fan of closing schools, though he understood the necessity to close Nesconset a few years ago based on the data and research provided by the district.
The overwhelming sentiment from the Save Branch Brook parents at the meetings has been to ask for another housing committee to be assembled, and the same due diligence done as was done prior to 2012’s closure. A housing committee was assembled in 2014 to assess the feasibility of closing another elementary school, but no specific one was chosen, Annemarie Vinas, a member of that housing committee said at Tuesday night’s board meeting. Vinas contended that none of their findings would lead them to suggest Branch Brook be closed, but that is what the board recommended anyway.
“No one wants to close a school,” Grossane said in an interview following Tuesday’s meeting. “We need to be fiscally responsible. The board asked me to look at the results [of the housing committee’s findings]. These were my suggestions. The board is listening to the community. It’s their decision. I’m not sure where they’re going to go.”
Grossane declined to get any more specific than that prior to the Jan. 19 public work session for the school board, which will be their first chance to address the specific questions and concerns that the community has presented since November.
Since that November 2015 school board meeting that made it evident closing Branch Brook was on the table for the board, very little else has emerged as a topic of conversation at multiple school board meetings, workshops and hearings.
The Save Branch Brook parents came armed not only with matching blue T-shirts sporting the group name, but also with substantial statistical data.
Parents involved in the Save Branch Brook movement who wish to remain anonymous who are also analysts put together their own presentation for the board ahead of the December 2015 meeting. Entitled “Quantitative Analysis of Smithtown Elementary School Information,” the report concluded that Branch Brook was the elementary school that made the least sense of the eight to close based on the following factors: projected enrollment decrease over the next 10 years; building occupancy; square foot per student; students per usable classroom; and utility cost.
Another area of contention is the New York Avenue district office building. The housing committee that condemned Nesconset Elementary also suggested that this building be sold, and another space in a school in the district be used for the school board. To date that has not happened, though Grossane said at Tuesday night’s meeting that the board is working with the community on a way to repurpose the building and move to save costs.
The debate seems to be just getting started, though more will be clear following the work session on Jan. 19.
Kings Park Central School District Superintendent Timothy Eagen says the district has already responded to recommendations made by the state comptroller’s office. File photo by Barbara Donlon
Changes have been made to the way that Kings Park Central School District officials track and record fuel usage for district vehicles, following an audit by the Office of the State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli.
The comptroller’s report recommended that written policies and procedures be adopted to ensure that fuel inventory is measured and records maintained, especially when fuel is delivered or pumped. The district has approximately 62 vehicles, according to the report.
“New formal fuel accountability procedures were adopted and went into effect on Dec. 14, 2015,” Eagen’s response said. “The new formal fuel accountability procedures require that tank fuel levels be measured — morning and afternoon — and reconciled both daily and every 10 days. The procedures also require that any significant reconciliation issues be submitted in writing to the superintendent of schools.”
The audit was conducted from July 1, 2014 through July 31, 2015, but the results were given to the district back in December.
“The district has embraced all of OSC’s recommendations, and as of today, all of these recommendations have been fully implemented,” said Timothy Eagen, Kings Park Central School District superintendent.
Eagen said in his statement that he was happy to report that fuel accountability was the sole focus of the audit, and not issues with the district’s budget overall. “This speaks to the high level of internal controls and budgeting procedures that are typical of the Kings Park CSD,” Eagen said.
Issues with the district’s tracking of fuel stemmed from sloppy record keeping, not a loss of fuel, which would indicate potential theft or environmentally dangerous leakage, Eagen said.
“On both the diesel and gasoline forms, Department personnel entered the same beginning and ending inventory amount on multiple lines of the forms or entered the same beginning and ending inventory amount even when fuel use was recorded that day,” the report said. These forms were provided during the audit period, in lieu of the hand written notes that were the only real source of record keeping before the audit.
“District officials are responsible for establishing procedures to provide assurance that vehicle fuel is accurately accounted for and used for appropriate District purposes,” DiNapoli’s report said.
“To determine day-to-day use for each fuel pump, department personnel subtract the previous day’s pump reading from the current day’s reading and note the gallons pumped. No reconciliation was performed to determine if the gallons pumped agreed with the change in stick reading from one day to the next.”
Prior to the audit period, the fuel pumps and tanks at the district’s bus garage were monitored by security personnel 24 hours per day along with video surveillance, though no official written policies or procedures were in place to assist employees in accurate tracking of the fuel inventory. The comptroller also recommended that all employees who use fuel document the gallons pumped, vehicle and type of fuel.
Montesano crucial to success of Abrams after it was shut down for gun violence
Rae Montesano has served as principal at the STEM school since 2014. Photo from Jim Hoops
Huntington Superintendent Jim Polansky is searching for a new leader for the Jack Abrams STEM Magnet School following the news that Principal Rae Montesano will retire at the end of the school year.
“Rae has been instrumental in helping me to put this school in a place where it has found tremendous success, and great things have happened for children since she took over as principal,” Polansky said in an interview following Monday night’s school board meeting. “She will be missed based on all of the work and effort that she has put forth.”
Montesano has held the position since July 2014, though she served as the acting principal beginning in January of that year. She was previously the district’s chairperson of science and instructional technology for grades seven through 12.
“I’m just very appreciative of the confidence that the board had in me to make me the principal and of the wonderful opportunities here at Huntington,” Montesano said.
The Jack Abrams STEM Magnet School opened in September 2013, three years after the building, then called the Jack Abrams Intermediate School, closed in July 2010 due to recurring gun violence in the area. Between that spike in gun violence and when the school reopened with a focus on science, technology, engineering and math, police reported they had successfully reduced crime around the school.
“On a personal level if it wasn’t for Rae, I don’t know if we could have gotten this off the ground,” Polansky said during Monday’s meeting. “I know I couldn’t have done it myself. Rae has been right there with everybody every step of the way.”
Montesano has a degree in psychology from Cornell University and a master of science in education from Hofstra University, according to a press release from the district. She worked at various districts before landing in Huntington, including Harborfields Central School District.
“I’m going to miss the children,” Montesano said in an interview Monday night. “I’m certainly going to miss my colleagues and the parents. Everyone’s been very supportive of me in the district.”
Port Jefferson High School. File photo by Elana Glowatz
If all goes according to plan, Port Jefferson school district residents will pay almost the same in taxes next year.
Between those taxes, state aid and other revenues, the total budget for 2016-17 could actually go down, according to a presentation from Assistant Superintendent for Business Sean Leister at the school board meeting on Tuesday night. That’s largely because the district would not spend as much on capital projects next year, with the new high school elevator being one big-ticket item that will not be repeated, and because the district will see a drop in its debt repayments.
Those two significant decreases would offset increases in health insurance payments and transportation costs, among others.
The proposed $41.3 million plan would maintain all academic programs and staffing levels, despite the 2.5 percent decrease in spending as compared to the 2015-16 budget. But Leister noted that the tax levy would go in the opposite direction — residents would see a slight increase of 0.11 percent. That levy bump would come in just below the state-mandated cap on how much it could increase next year, which Leister estimates at 0.16 percent.
Leister’s estimate for next year’s increase in state aid is larger: He’s putting that at 6 percent, a number he called “conservative,” especially in light of the recent discussion between state officials about the Gap Elimination Adjustment.
The adjustment, a deduction taken out of each New York school district’s state aid, was enacted several years ago to help get the state government out of a fiscal crisis. The deduction has been decreasing lately, and there is talk that it could be removed completely in the coming cycle.
Leister is not as optimistic.
“I’ll believe it when I see it,” he said.
If, however, Port Jefferson receives more state aid than it allots for in the budget, Leister said school officials would decide together how to spend it.
And Superintendent Ken Bossert assured the school board that the district also has a plan in the event of receiving less state aid than estimated in the budget proposal.
There are “still a lot of moving parts” in the budget planning process, Leister said. In addition to the question about state aid totals, school districts are still waiting on final numbers for their tax levy caps.
Comsewogue kids are going to get another view of their education system.
“Beyond Measure,” a documentary by director Vicki Abeles about “America’s troubled education system,” will be screened on Tuesday at 7 p.m. in the high school auditorium, in an event hosted by TASK, Comsewogue High School’s student government. The film is a follow-up to Abeles’ 2010 documentary “Race to Nowhere,” which provided a close-up look at the pressures placed on young students in America.
“In Beyond Measure, we find a revolution brewing in public schools across the country,” according to a description on the film’s official website. “From rural Kentucky to New York City, schools that are breaking away from an outmoded, test-driven education are shaping a new vision for our classrooms.”
Comsewogue school district and its superintendent, Joe Rella, have been at the forefront of the battle against the Common Core and standardized testing, standing out as one of the strongest voices on Long Island and in New York State. In addition to appearing at local protests, the district even went as far last year as considering a proposal to refuse to administer state exams unless the state delivered more education aid and reduced the weight of student test scores on teacher and administration evaluations.
The description of “Beyond Measure” on the documentary’s website echoes some sentiments expressed by educators and parents who oppose the Common Core and state testing.
“We’re told that in order to fix what’s broken, we need to narrow our curricula, standardize our classrooms, and find new ways to measure students and teachers,” it says. “But what if these ‘fixes’ are making our schools worse? In ‘Beyond Measure,’ we set out to challenge the assumptions of our current education story.”
Screenings of the film have taken place across the United States over the past year, with more scheduled to take place in the coming weeks.
“I am thrilled that our high school students are actively playing a role in exploring education policy, and look forward to their insight,” school board member Ali Gordon said in an email. “I believe that the issue of standardized testing is central to the debate about the direction of public education all over the nation, not just here. Education policies created at the federal and state level focus heavily on data collected from standardized testing, which has resulted in a huge shift away from student-centered learning.”
Tickets to attend the screening of the film at Comsewogue High School are $10 and are available online or at the door prior to the event.
For more information about the film, visit www.beyondmeasurefilm.com.
An anti-Common Core rally in Smithtown. File photo
By Gary D. Bixhorn & Susan A. Schnebel
After years of legislative gridlock in Washington, President Barack Obama has signed the Every Child Succeeds Act into law and called it a “Christmas miracle.” The bill had strong bipartisan support in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Educators across the country have eagerly awaited the passage of this bill, which replaces the 15-year-old Bush Administration’s No Child Left Behind Act and the subsequent Obama Administration’s Race to the Top program. In combination, these two initiatives significantly expanded the federal government’s role in educational matters traditionally subject to state and local control. It’s been New York State’s implementation of these overreaching federal initiatives that’s generated so much dissent within the educational community and ultimately resulted in a public revolt in the form of the opt-out movement.
It appears, based on the new federal legislation, which scales back federal involvement and restores state and local control, that our leaders have learned an important lesson: A parent will not let their child’s education become an academic research project or a campaign platform. Parents expect schools to provide a safe, secure environment where teaching and leaning is fostered and protected. Given the new federal direction, it’s now time for the state to work with local school districts to give parents what they expect and students what they deserve — schools meeting high standards, with outstanding teachers and rich program offerings.
Clearly, now is the time to “hit the reset button” on reform efforts. Many of the more controversial provisions of the state’s effort to reform education were put in place to align with federal requirements that are now changing. Accordingly, key members of the state legislature are beginning to voice support for a moratorium on new state legislative requirements involving testing and teacher evaluation in accordance with recommendations of the Suffolk County School Superintendents Association and others. In addition, both Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the state education commissioner have established advisory councils to help sort out the tangled web of issues that have been created.
We cannot delay in taking advantage of the unique opportunity that the new legislation and a moratorium offer. We have an unusual second chance, a chance to “get reform right.” This time we must approach the issues in an inclusive, collaborative manner. In order to do this we have to identify the key issues and assign responsibility appropriately for addressing each of them.
What are the issues? Simply stated, they include the adoption and introduction of higher educational standards, appropriate student assessment, meaningful teacher evaluation, equitable school finance and state support, turning around failing schools and serving student populations with unique needs. A comprehensive, coordinated approach to addressing statewide needs in each of these six areas should begin without delay.
The Board of Regents and the commissioner of education, in concert with the governor and legislative leaders, should begin to draw up a plan to bring together stakeholders and form work groups focused on each of these areas. The work groups should include nationally recognized experts in the area of focus, as well as parents and seasoned practitioners. The work group looking into school finance and state support should also include representatives of the Division of Budget, the State Education Department, the comptroller and the legislature to assure that their work is tied to the reality of the state’s budgeting process.
Overall coordination of the effort should be within a structure agreed upon by the governor, legislative leaders and the Board of Regents. This isn’t as complicated as it may sound because so much effort has been expended in working through recent difficulties. There are many people who have a wealth of experience in dealing with these issues who would willingly contribute to such an effort.
We already know what the problems are; we’ve already made our mistakes. We should take advantage of our recent experience and immediately begin a comprehensive, coordinated, inclusive and transparent process and “get reform right” this time. The stakes are far too high to delay.
Gary D. Bixhorn is the executive director and Susan A. Schnebel is the president of the Suffolk County School Superintendents Association.
Diana Todaro stands with Francesco Ianni, who was named her successor. File photo
Change is in the air in Harborfields and Cold Spring Harbor school districts.
Superintendent Judith Wilansky, who has served Cold Spring Harbor for the past eight years, and Superintendent Diana Todaro, who has been at Harborfields for 14 years, and lead as superintendent for three, announced their retirements this past week.
While Cold Spring Harbor has just begun the search for a new superintendent, Harborfields has already named Todaro’s successor: current Assistant Superintendent for Administration and Human Resources,
Dr. Francesco Ianni.
Todaro’s contract had been extended through June 2017 by the school board, however, she said she wanted to “accelerate the timeline in order to mentor my successor within the upcoming school year and provide the opportunity for a smooth transition,” according to a statement.
Wilansky has had an unprecedented run at Cold Spring Harbor, being the first female superintendent for the district and holding the second longest term in the history of the district. She has been at Cold Spring Harbor since 2000 as a central office administrator.
Cold Spring Harbor Superintendent Judith Wilansky is leaving her position next school year. Photo from Karen Spehler
“I’ve been here long enough to see children go through their entire school career,” Wilansky said in a phone interview. “I was at the middle school’s winter concert recently and it dawned one me that I would miss their graduation, and that’s what I’ll miss the most — seeing these kids graduate and having the opportunity to watch them grow up.”
Wilansky said she’s most proud of Cold Spring Harbor schools for meeting the needs of all students in the district because “that’s what a public school is designed to do.”
She also said she spoke to the board about what she thinks a good search project should look like, but has no idea where the decision will land on her replacement. Her final day as superintendent will be June 30, 2016.
President of the Cold Spring Harbor Board of Education, Robert Hughes, said Wilanksy was an important asset to Cold Spring Harbor and will be missed.
“She has been a steady hand at the helm,” he said in a phone interview. Todaro began her career at Harborfields as a student teacher at Oldfield Middle School.
“For the past 14 years, it has truly been my pleasure to be in the Harborfields school community,” Todaro said in a statement. “It has been my distinct honor to be the superintendent of Harborfields Central School District. I am confident that the district will continue to excel and be recognized as a leader of the state.”
Board member Nicholas P. Giuliano said Todaro has been dedicated to every student that has walked through the buildings of the district.
“She has every reason to be proud of her achievements and we, as a district, are lucky that so many of her achievements were accomplished for our children.”
Ianni brings years of experience in Harborfields, working as assistant principal at the high school for four years, and has been in his current position since 2013.
“I am humbled by the board of education’s confidence in my ability to lead our prestigious district,” Ianni said in a recent statement. “We are fortunate, at Harborfields, to have benefited from the successive leadership of our exemplary superintendent, and I hope that, in collaboration with the board of education, a strong administrative team, superior teaching staff, knowledgeable parents, and of course, outstanding students, our tradition of excellence will continue.”
Turf fields, locker room upgrades and more discussed for schools
A man stands next to termite damage on the high school gym floor. Photo from Regina Pisicani
Northport athletes may see some improvements in fields and facilities throughout the district in the upcoming years.
The Northport-East Northport school district’s Athletic Facilities Citizens Advisory Committee gave a presentation to the board last Thursday, Dec. 10, highlighting the problems student-athletes face with the current conditions of locker rooms, fields and more, and gave a five-year comprehensive plan for upgrades.
Members of the committee toured all the schools in the district, and spoke with representatives from synthetic turf companies, members of buildings and grounds departments from multiple school districts and coaches to get input.
The recommendations were divided and spread out over a five-year span to offset the estimated cost of about $17 million. Trustee Regina Pisicani, who spearheaded the creation of this group, said deciding which projects came first was the most difficult part.
The current gym lockers at Northport Middle School are decaying. Photo from Regina Pisicani
“We want it all and we want it all now,” Pisicani said at the meeting. “Because the facilities have been neglected for so long, it all needs to be done now, but we know that is not possible.”
Immediate projects include several upgrades to the Northport High School football field. Replacing the football field with synthetic turf using alternative fill, installing a new track, adding stadium lighting and replacing the sound system were suggested.
Committee member and Northport teacher Rocco Colucci said many members of the Northport community use the high school track.
“The high school track team uses it, the middle school uses it, but also the community uses it for Relay For Life and the [Northport} Running Club,” Colucci said. “This track gets used almost every day.”
Constructing an outdoor concession stand and permanent restrooms, as well as replacing the asphalt by the long jump and pole vault area at the high school were also suggested, as well as replacement of the tennis courts and fencing at Northport Middle School.
The committee expects the costs for first-year projects to range from $5.6 million to $5.9 million.
For the 2017-18 school year, projects include replacing the soccer field at the high school with synthetic turf and adding protective fencing, adding a natural grass field with irrigation for the junior varsity and varsity baseball fields, and a new backstop with increased overhand suspension at the junior varsity and varsity softball fields.
During the presentation, Pisicani said the stairway leading to the wrestling room should be painted and the ceiling and lighting at the wrestling room entrance needs to be replaced or repaired, too. Committee members thought these renovations should be tackled in the second year, as well as projects for Northport Middle School, including an all-weather track, new long jump pit, improvements to the softball and baseball fields, and replacing the ceiling and lighting in the gym.
At Bellerose Elementary School, new lighting and a ventilation system are suggested for the gym. The total projected cost for year-two projects is about $7 million.
The cost for year-three projects is significantly smaller with a projected budget of approximately $1.7 million. Recommendations focus on the ceiling and bathroom area of the girls’ and boys’ locker rooms at the high school, and air conditioning in the high school’s main gymnasium. Renovations for the Northport Middle School boy’ and girls’ locker rooms include new lockers, windows and bathrooms. The committee also suggested that the East Northport Middle School multipurpose field benefits from an irrigation system.
The approximate $340,000 year-four projects include renovations of the tennis and handball courts at both the high school and William J. Brosnan School, and irrigation to the main field at Pulaski Road Elementary School.
The final year of projects has a plan to redesign the entryway to the gym area for teams and spectators at the high school, installing an all-weather track and irrigation for a natural field at Brosnan school, and an irrigation system, driveway and path to the back field at Bellerose elementary. The anticipated cost is about $2.4 million.
Pisicani urged the board to take tours themselves to help see what state the facilities are really in. Members of the board thanked Pisicani and acknowledged that this overview was needed, but no immediate decisions were made.
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