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Kingstone and Miles Fowler practice distance learning. Photo from Kristina Fowler

During challenging times like these, the Comsewogue School District reacted to be fully prepared to not only provide and keep its classes and academic standards at a high level but also to keep the students’ social and emotional well-being stable despite no longer being in the school buildings.

The administration, staff, students and community saw fit to have educational packets and more in place while the upper grades were provided with Chromebooks and resources online available before school was closed. The technology department was in close contact and continues to be communicating with everyone on a daily basis with updates and more.

“I was happy to receive additional training available up to the very last day,” said Camie Zale, a special education teacher.

“Teachers and students are comfortable with using technology and communicating with various websites and apps on a normal basis,” said Andrew Harris, a teacher at the middle and high school. “Unfortunately, I’m nowhere as savvy as most of these students who have grown up with this technology. If I ever have any problem, I can ask any of my students who usually solve it in a matter of seconds … they are amazing.”

Don Heberer, district administrator for instructional technology, said the 1:1 take-home Chromebook program in the high school and classroom carts at John F. Kennedy Middle School had allowed students and teachers to become comfortable with using the technology for education.

Melissa McMullan, a sixth-grade teacher in the middle school, said the school did a great job getting Chromebooks into kids’ hands. The process, she said, has been tricky to find what works and what doesn’t on an online space.

“The kids and I will solve the need for distance learning together like we always do,” she said.

Students in the elementary schools have grade-level packets posted online along with hard copies sent home. The district is also providing support to both teachers and parents remotely on using the technology.

”Comsewogue has always prided itself on being innovative and willing to try something new,” Heberer said. “We know that it will be a challenging change for everyone; however, Comsewogue staff has worked hard to provide the students, teachers and community resources during this period.”

The Comsewogue district has taken to online as well for interteacher-related processes. Harris said teachers received a message from the Pupil Personnel Services department that they will hold upcoming annual meetings on Google Hangouts as part of their annual review process. It has taken time and effort but he feels he has become comfortable and “up to speed” with the various programs.

“For me, I am learning as I go,” Harris said. “The first day I mostly communicated the way I was most familiar with — I picked up the phone and called most parents to let them know what was going on with their child’s education. From there I switched to text messages, and finally have been using Google Classroom and more as I get better.”

After checking in with several of the students, Harris said many teachers realized they were perhaps giving too much work. One parent communicated that her daughter was working from early morning until about 5 p.m. on her assignments and starting to stress out.

“I think many of the teachers didn’t want the students to feel like they were on vacation and get complacent,” said Joe Caltagirone, a teacher at the high school.

Harris said he wanted his very first assignment to be something light and be beneficial to his students and their families. He posted a YouTube video on how to do Box Breathing, a technique of taking slow, deep breaths to relieve some stress and help concentrate.

“I know people are highly stressed so I asked that the student watch this video first,” Harris said. “I also requested that they teach members of their family how to do it. I know from experience when you teach others you become very proficient at what you’re teaching. I asked them all to comment on how it made them feel.”

Harris, also a yoga instructor, said that breath work is easy to learn and perhaps the best thing people can do in these stressful situations.

Having said all of this, there are many in the Comsewogue community that may not be as comfortable as students are with technology, though there are many people willing to help distribute food and other resources to our senior citizens.

“The problem is that they may not know that there is help out there. Where many of us can easily access social media sites, many of these seniors don’t have the ability to do so,” said Ed Garboski of the Port Jefferson Station/Terryville Civic Association.

“Currently, I’m trying to find a way to bridge that gap,” said Harris. “We are trying to put together an electronic way to have our students write letters to the senior citizens who are being quarantined at local facilities. If we have to, we will have the letters printed and distributed to those seniors directly or through the facility’s printer, so they are not compromised.”

Superintendent Jennifer Quinn stated that the whole staff is committed to doing whatever is necessary to make sure the students continue to get everything they need to have a great education, and much more.

Information and quotes provided by Andrew Harris

Comsewogue Won’t Be Stopped by COVID-19

By Deniz Yildirim

Like the rest of New York, Comsewogue School District is facing unprecedented challenges with courage and teamwork. Following Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s (D) orders, all six of the district’s schools were closed on Monday, March 16, for a tentative two-week period. Administrators and teachers worked hard to create packets and uploaded countless resources onto the district’s website so students can continue their education at home.

Preparing work for over 5,000 students with numerous and distinct needs such as learning disabilities and language barriers could only be completed with hard work and collaboration. Reading teachers, English as second language teachers, teaching assistants and even special area teachers like music teacher Ellen Rios came together to create comprehensive packets that were sent home with students on Friday, March 13. Parents could come in person to pick them up if their child wasn’t in school to get it themselves.

Superintendent Jennifer Quinn has been regularly calling parents with updates and also informed families that the district is even willing to lend out its Chromebooks to students who couldn’t otherwise access the online learning tools.

“This is a scary time for everyone and our students’ health comes first. We want to share what we have to make them feel safe and help them continue to learn,” said Quinn. “Families are advised to call the district so they can prepare the appropriate materials and ensure a smooth and sanitary pick up.

In addition to student work, Comsewogue is continuously posting statements on its website (in English and Spanish) in order to keep families informed. One such notice comes from Robert Pearl, the district’s new administrator for Pupil Personnel Services and Micheala Finlay-Essig, the assistant director of PPS; they have been rescheduling important meetings regarding student services that will now be “teleconferencing” meetings through Google Meet. The instructional technology department led by Don Heberer has never been more critical and everyone can testify to the key role they are playing.

“We’re here to help our students, teachers and community,” Heberer said. “We have been supporting our teachers through technology professional development, so the teachers can support our students’ learning. We are updating the district website and mobile app daily to keep our community informed and provide vital resources.”

Comsewogue graduate, parent and now teacher Kristina Fowler said she’s never been prouder of her community. Fowler has a unique perspective because she’s been in everyone’s shoes, so it’s particularly meaningful to hear her say that Comsewogue is going above and beyond her expectations. She supports her two sons, fourth-grader Kingston and second-grader Miles and lets them “play” with their friends via FaceTime. Most recently, Kingston and Kristina helped classmate Liam Schneph with a question he had about his new hamster.

“It’s so important to stay connected and let kids be kids,” she said. “Comsewogue won’t be stopped by COVID-19.”

Deniz Yildirim is a librarian at the Terryville Road Elementary School

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The College Board has said they are pushing back this year's SATs to August. Stock photo

In response to schools closing around the country and to the ongoing isolation caused by the coronavirus Covid-19, the College Board has canceled face-to-face Advanced Placement exams, replacing them with a 45-minute only exam students can take at home.

The Advancement Placement tests often offer high school students the opportunity to receive college credit for subjects they have mastered.

The College Board is providing free remote learning resources. Beginning Mach 25, students can attend free, live AP review courses, which AP teachers across the country will deliver. The classes, which can supplement any online teaching students receive through their schools, will be available on demand and will focus on reviewing the skills and concepts from the first 75 percent of the course. There will also be some supplementary lessons covering the final quarter of the course.

The College Board will also unlock any relevant free-response questions in AP classroom for digital use, so students can study practice questions that are similar to the ones that would appear on the exam.

Any student registered for an AP test can choose to cancel at no charge.

The College Board decided to change the format of the exam after surveying 18,000 AP students, 91 percent of whom wanted to have the chance to take the exam.

To be fair to students who may have had more time off from school amid the virus outbreak, the College Board plans to focus the exam questions on topics and skills most AP teachers covered in class by early March.

The College Board indicated colleges supported this solution and are committed to ensuring that AP students receive credit for scores that meet their requirements. Colleges have accepted a shortened AP exam for college credit when groups of students experienced other emergencies, the College Board explained.

Students can take the exam on any electronic device. They will also be able to take a picture of handwritten work.

The College Board uses a range of digital security tools and techniques, including plagiarism detection software, to discourage and catch any potential cheating.

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Robert Niedig, Robin Hoolahan and Sean Leister deliver bags of food to students who need it. The program is expected to continue as long as the schools remained closed. Photo by Kyle Barr

Though schools in the Port Jefferson area may be closed, districts have been working constantly to get food to the children who may need it now more than ever.

Volunteers and staff help deliver meals at both JFK Middle School and the Comsewogue High School March 19. Photo by Leigh Powell

Port Jefferson Deputy Superintendent Sean Leister and a few volunteers stood inside the high school’s cafeteria Friday, March 20. For the weekend, the district was handing out three meals, one for Friday, Saturday and Sunday respectively. 

The program is based on the district’s previous reduced cost lunch program, but now its being donated to anybody 18 or under free. Nobody has to sign up, and nobody at the door checks if the person lives within the district.

“The program is not restricted, it’s for any child 18 and under that feels they have a need,” Leister said.

When school was normally in session, Leister said the district had 110 students signed up for the program, where around 65 normally picked it up. In the last week or so, the district has been producing around 50 to 60 meals each day. Middle School Principal Robert Neidig has also volunteered to deliver to those resident’s houses who said they were unable to come out to pick their meals up. He said families have been really appreciative, even one young girl who comes to the door so excited to see the meals he’s brought.

“It’s like if I were delivering them candy,” Neidig said.

Each bag comes with a sandwich, bagel or wrap, along with fruit and milk. Any untaken meals are being given to Infant Jesus RC Church for them to distribute any remaining food.

Leister said the district has also applied to New York State to allow them to make breakfast and dinner meals as well. Local residents can get these meals at the Port Jefferson High school from 11 to 1 p.m. on weekdays.

Meanwhile in the Comsewogue school district, staff and a score of volunteers worked Thursday, March 19 at two separate schools to donate around 1,800 meals to children in need within the district.

Volunteers and staff help deliver meals at both JFK Middle School and the Comsewogue High School March 19. Photo by Jennifer Quinn

Comsewogue School District Superintendent Jennifer Quinn said the staff took everything from the schools cafeterias and even raided the faculty food pantry. Originally the district thought they would be able to only give out 1,100, but they went far above what they expected. 

“This is one of the toughest things we’ve ever experienced — we will do what we need to do, together,” Quinn said. “We need to make sure our families are fed and our children are educated, and we are as whole as possible by the end of all this.”

Food included in bags were cold cuts, bread, apple sauce, juice, milk, cereal, cereal bars, and frozen hamburgers and meatballs. Staff and volunteers placed the bags inside the cars of those who drove up to the high school and JFK Middle School. Volunteers also drove meals to families who said they were unable to come by the two pickup locations.

There were around 30 volunteers who came by to offer aid. Quinn said they were offered aid by over 100 residents, but she felt she had to turn most away to try and reduce the chance of any kind of contagion.

The Comsewogue district is expecting nonprofit food bank Island Harvest to donate them another 300 meals come this Monday. Quinn added the district is likely to raid the cafeterias in the other schools, and should have another 1,100 meals after they receive aid from a New York State program giving food aid to schools during the mandated shutdown.

The Comsewogue School District is expecting to host its next bagged food drive Thursday, April 2.

 

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Northport Middle School closed after contamination concerns. File photo

Remediation work is currently underway at Northport Middle School, according to a district letter sent to parents March 12. The district also detailed that no toxic chemicals had reached the groundwater at the building.

Robert Banzer, superintendent of Northport-East Northport school district, said in the letter that an investigative data report from P.W. Grosser Consulting, of Bohemia, has been received and reviewed by the Suffolk County Department of Health Services.

Banzer said in order to receive a “notice to remediate,” which would allow for remediation work to start from SCDHS, PWGC had to send investigative data directly to the county agency.

“The full comprehensive study [from PWGC] is expected to be completed and reported to the community in the next few weeks,” the superintendent added.

According to the letter, the remediation work will consist of pumping out the “contaminated” sludge or liquid from the septic tanks and leaching pools. An industrial waste transporter, licensed and approved by the state, will remove the waste. SCDHS will be on site during what is called “end point sampling” which is a confirmatory sampling test conducted after remediation is performed to ensure that all waste has been removed. PWGC will then prepare an “underground injection control” remediation report documenting the results and, if acceptable, the county will indicate that remediation is complete, and no further action is required. District officials expect remediation work to take approximately one to three weeks.

Previously, PWGC found elevated levels of mercury in cesspools outside the building and high levels of benzene in two septic tanks. The middle school has been closed since January. 

At a March 5 board meeting, district officials said that reopening the school could be an option depending on what comes back from the ongoing remediation work as well future sampling and testing at the grounds. 

Rich Rowehl, a Northport parent of a seventh-grader in the district, said his daughter and other students have been resilient during the transition. Though he said they do feel “homesick.” 

“They feel like they don’t have a home,” he said. 

The status of the middle school has been a divisive topic in the community. Some want the school to remain closed, while others believe the school shouldn’t have been closed to begin with. 

“We don’t want a quick fix, we should wait for the results to come out,” the Northport parent said. “If they feel like it is safe to go back, then I’m sure the district will have those discussions.”  

Rowehl is confident the board can make the right decision with the information it is given, once the full report comes out.

“Let’s just play things out and see what happens,” he reiterated. 

Rowehl also brought up the ongoing demographic study in the district. He said they should wait on those results to determine what steps needed to be taken going forward. 

“Declining enrollment at the district could be a factor,” he said. “Do we need two middle schools, or could we be better off combining schools, or moving students to another building?” he said. “It’s something to think about.”

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Centereach High School

Suffolk County schools closed for two weeks starting Monday, March 16, in response to concerns regarding the coronavirus pandemic.

After recommendation of the Suffolk County Health Commissioner and consulting with the Suffolk County School Superintendents Association, County Executive Steve Bellone (D) March 15 issued a Local Emergency Order to close all schools in the Suffolk for two weeks.

In a statement, Bellone said discussions with state officials and the Superintendents Association included issues involving student meal programs and childcare.

“There is evidence that the virus is already present in many communities we serve, and our efforts now must be aimed at preventing its spread,”  Bellone said in a statement. “As part of our larger social distancing efforts, we believe that closing schools is the right thing to do at this time.”

Bellone said the county asks parents to encourage children to practice social distancing and hand washing frequently to help to contain the coronavirus. The county also suggests that anyone who is symptomatic to stay home and quarantine themselves as a precautionary measure.

Administrators and teachers will have access to school buildings during the closures. This will enable them to conduct district planning, distance-based learning, set up temporary grab-and-go meals and address childcare issues.

 

 

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Smithtown school district's administrative Joseph M. Barton building on New York Avenue. Photo by Kyle Barr

Editor’s note: On Saturday, March, 14, Russell Stewart, Smithtown’s interim superintendent, in an email to those in the Smithtown district, said a household relative of a Great Hollow Middle School staff member has tested positive for COVID-19. There are still no confirmed cases of the coronavirus among staff members and students.

The Smithtown Central School District sent an email March 12 to notify the school community that all schools in the district would be closed Monday, March 16, through Sunday, March 22.

The district said the closure was “in the interest of the health and safety of our students, their families, our staff, and the greater community at large.”

Even though there are no cases of the coronavirus in the schools, according to the district, the week off will allow them to monitor the public health situation. The time will also be used to determine if the closure should be extended.

In addition to classes, all activities and building-use will be canceled during the week.

Essential personnel such as custodians, maintenance and assigned security staff will be required to work. Other personnel needed to maintain essential administrative functions will also be on hand.

 

 

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Last year’s first-place winners Nicole Xiao and Juliet Weschke pose with their books. Photo from Emma S. Clark Memorial Library

Emma S. Clark Memorial Library announced the winners for the Helen Stein Shack Picture Book Award. The annual contest invites junior high and high school students in the Three Village Central School District to create a children’s picture book.

First Prize (Grades 7–9 category): “Oliver’s Walk” by Celia Gordon (eighth grade, homeschooler)

First Prize (Grades 10–12 category): “Your Part” by Rebecca Blumenthal (11th grader at Ward Melville High School)

Second Prize (Grades 7–9 category): “The Knight and the Monster” written by Ricky Herling and illustrated by Ashton Hopkins (both 8th graders at P.J. Gelinas Junior High School)

Second Prize (Grades 10–12 category): “How Tom Talks” by Riley Meckley (10th grader at Ward Melville High School)

For “Oliver’s Walk,” Celia Gordon used watercolors to illustrate the story of a baby bird and mother bird taking a stroll together. The bird uses his imagination and pretends that the puddle is really a river or that a single pink flower turns into a big bouquet for his mom. “Your Part” by Rebecca Blumenthal gives examples of what one can do to be a good person for the earth and for others. It’s told in a sing-song voice, which makes it a perfect read aloud book.

The winners will be celebrated at a private awards ceremony at Emma S. Clark Memorial Library Monday, April 27, at 7:00 p.m. At the reception, each first-prize award recipient will receive a $400 scholarship, and each second-prize award recipient will receive a $100 scholarship. The newly bound books — made into hardcover by the library — will be presented to the winners and copies will be added to the library’s Local Focus Collection. Light refreshments will be served at the reception, and The Bite Size Bake Shop, a local Three Village business, will donate desserts.

Each entry in the contest could be the work of a single author/illustrator or a collaborative effort of an author and an illustrator. The contest was divided into two grade categories, grades 7 through 9 and grades 10 through 12, with one first-prize winner and one second-prize winner selected from each group.

This award is given in memory of Helen Stein Shack by her family. As a teacher, Shack was committed to the education of children, and she especially loved literature written for them. She was a frequent visitor to Emma Clark library where, even in retirement, she kept current with the latest children’s books. The library is grateful to the children of the late Shack who have established a substantial endowment with the library to cover the cost of the prizes.

Past ceremonies have had library trustees, teachers and top school district administrators, as well as elected officials from New York State, Suffolk County and the Town of Brookhaven, all in attendance to honor the winners and present them with certificates.

The Emma S. Clark Memorial Library is located at 120 Main St., Setauket.

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File photo

The Shoreham-Wading River School, Rocky Point and Miller Place school districts announced they would be keeping their schools closed early next week. Rocky Point, Miller Place and Mount Sinai will be closed Monday March 16, while SWR is shutting down both Monday and Tuesday, March 17.

All districts are closing just to students, while staff will still be made to report to school in preparation for the possibility of all educating going online.

Rocky Point Superintendent Scott O’Brien said in a statement that while they do not have any cases in the district, the possibility of a longer term shutdown where students will have to learn online is real.

“While learning in our district primarily occurs inside classrooms with face-to-face teaching by certified instructors, please be assured that our district has been planning viable options should a long-term school closure be necessary,” the Rocky Point superintendent said. “Students were asked to bring materials home or travel to and from school over the next several weeks with textbooks, workbooks, and work packets so that needed materials for online learning may be facilitated by our teachers should a long-term closure be necessary.

Earlier in the week, SWR Superintendent Gerard Poole said they were still working out their plans for potentially bringing all learning online. The SWR board of education held an emergency meeting earlier today.

Miller Place Superintendent Marianne Cartisano said the time will also allow them to perform a “deep cleaning” of school buildings.

In terms of sports, Section XI has notified districts it has suspended all athletic games and scrimmages until April 3.

 

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Ward Melville High School. Photo by Greg Catalano

The Three Village Central School District has decided to follow the lead of neighboring school districts and close schools for a five-day period from Monday, March 16, through Friday, March 20.

In a letter to school district families and staff members, dated March 13, Superintendent Cheryl Pedisich announced the district would take a proactive step in temporary closing the schools.

“As I have continued to communicate, the district has been closely monitoring the rapidly evolving coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic,” Pedisich said in the letter. “While there is no confirmed case of an individual with COVID19 in our area, there are cases within our surrounding communities and the overall numbers in the county continue to rise.”

In addition to classes, all after-school activities were canceled as of March 13, and Pedisich added that Section XI had notified the district that it has suspended all athletic games and scrimmages in Suffolk County until April 3.

Pedisich said the district will perform a deep cleaning of all buildings and wait for further guidance from health organizations and the New York State Education Department.

Elementary school teachers sent home learning packets with students Friday, according to Pedisich, and secondary students will receive individual direction from their teachers.

“Please know that this decision was not made lightly, and we recognize the impact such a closure will have on our families,” Pedisich said, adding the closure will not affect the remainder of planned vacation days as the district had five unused snow days.

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Ward Melville High School. Photo by Greg Catalano

Editor’s note: On March 13, Three Village Central School District made the decision to close schools March 16 through March 20.

By Andrea Paldy

Utmost on people’s minds these days is the steady approach of COVID-19. Even as school districts try to conduct business as usual, behind the scenes, they are at work on contingency plans.

Tuesday, Three Village parents received a robocall and email from district superintendent Cheryl Pedisich, who assured them that the district is “taking extra precautionary steps to safeguard our students and staff.”

She said the district is getting advice from the New York State and Suffolk County departments of health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the New York State Education Department and that it will continue to update protocols as it receives new guidance. Additionally, Three Village is planning for “viable options should a long-term school closure be necessary” as advised by the Department of Health or “other trusted agencies.”

As of Wednesday, field trips, out-of-district staff conferences and unnecessary travel for students and staff have been suspended, she said.

In a telephone interview, Pedisich said district administration continues to meet regularly as information changes. She added that she does not want to “build anxiety” and wants to “keep a positive atmosphere” for students and will continue to keep the community informed.

Every Student Succeeds Act

Last week, amid growing concerns about the coronavirus, Three Village held its regular board meeting, where Laura Pimentel, chief information officer and assistant director of instructional technology, discussed the district’s federal report card. The district schools are all in good standing, though there were some concerns about the system of measure. 

In her report, Pimentel explained the criteria used to measure New York State school districts under the Every Student Succeeds Act, passed in 2015 to replace No Child Left Behind.

For elementary and middle schools, criteria include student growth levels, English language proficiency for English language learners, academic progress in English language arts and math, chronic absenteeism and a composite of state assessment scores in ELA, math and science.

High school progress is measured with the same criteria — using Regents scores from math, English, science and social studies, she explained. The ratings also measure graduation rate and college and career readiness, as well as the still-to-be-determined criteria for civic readiness. Student growth is not measured.

To see how a district compares to others, the district receives a composite score, comprised of a “weighted average achievement measure” and a “core subject performance measure,” Pimentel said. Student test scores are allotted a set number of points. The weighted average divides the points for the students who took the state tests by the total number of students enrolled in the district. The core subject performance measure divides students’ allotted points by the number of students who actually took the test.

As a result of the robust opt-out movement on Long Island, only about 36 percent of the district’s students took the tests. While this brought down the weighted average achievement measure considerably, the core subject performance measure raised the composite scores to an achievement rank of level 3 for all schools except for Arrowhead Elementary, Pimentel said. 

Because high school students don’t opt out of the Regents exams — they need them to graduate — the high school measures only include the weighted score. Ward Melville was ranked a level 4 for academic achievement.

Pimentel said student growth at the elementary school and junior high levels is measured by following students for three years and ranking them against similarly scoring students over the three-year period. Composite scoring showed that Three Village elementary students fell within a level 3 mean growth percentile and that students at Nassakeag Elementary School, which had the highest percentage of students taking the state tests, scored a level 4 mean growth percentile. Both junior high schools fell within lower levels of the growth percentile because most eighth-graders take the Regents exam instead of the state math assessment, Pimentel said.

English language learners in Three Village are well above the state index for success, she said.

Measures of interim progress are set by the state and require districts to close the gap between the district’s baseline and the state’s end goal by 20 percent every five years, she said. These scores included only the weighted average achievement measure, which brought down the district’s elementary school and junior high progress rankings. Ward Melville, however, exceeded the state’s long-term goals for both English and math and met the state’s end goal for English.

All district schools exceeded the state’s long-term goal for absenteeism, and the high school exceeded its end goal for graduation with an above 98 percent graduation rate. Ward Melville also exceeded the state’s long-term goal and is quite close to its end goal for college and career readiness.

Though all district schools received a distinction of being in good standing, two received the distinction after an appeal. Nassakeag Elementary School and R.C. Murphy Junior High were flagged because there were two subgroups of students with low scores in multiple areas, Pimentel said.

A closer look at the scores showed that while there were enough students to make up a subgroup, there were not enough students from the group who tested. As a result, a core subject performance score couldn’t be tabulated. Only a weighted average achievement score was used in the ranking, which skewed the results, Pimental said. But the distinction for the schools was changed after a successful appeal.

“We should be concerned because this report card is public information that is reflecting poorly on our district at the elementary and middle school level, and it’s not even an accurate picture of what’s going on in Three Village schools,” Pimentel said.

She added that “not having test information makes it really challenging for all of us to make the decisions to allocate resources, train our staff and maintain our curriculum so that students have the most growth possible during their time in Three Village Schools.”

2020-21 Budget

Jeff Carlson, deputy superintendent for business services, announced that the cap on the tax levy increase would be 1.96 percent. He also said that there would be an increase in payments to the employee retirement system and health insurance, estimating that the overall budget increase would be around 1.7 percent.

“We do not anticipate having to make any reductions in any programs or services or staffing in order to comply with that, other than what we would do anyway because of changes in enrollment or course requests,” Carlson said.

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