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Seth lipshie

Photos courtesy Miller Place UFSD

By Katherine Kelton

The Miller Place Union Free School District Board of Education met on Oct. 30 and discussed the many approved constructions of the schools, ranging from elementary to high school. They also addressed school changes following a threat against the high school. 

Superintendent Seth Lipshie shared safety plans for the school district, including using explosion detection canine searches at the high school and North Country Road Middle School. The searches will be unannounced.

Additionally, the district has employed armed guards at stations outside of each school. To enter any building, a person must have administrative permission and identification. 

All staff will complete two tutorials: School Safety for New York and Student Mental Health. During the year, each school will have four lockdown drills. 

For the Be Heard portion of the meeting, three concerned parents spoke about the threat against the school a week before the meeting, yet parents were not notified for days following. One parent said, “There’s really no excuse, in my opinion, for the fact that we were not notified last week.”

Another parent proposed that a committee review the Code of Conduct, including the word “threat,” as a violation against the school. She also wanted to develop a crisis management plan. 

President Lisa Reitan also addressed a Be Heard from the last meeting, where a parent spoke about the summer assignments for AP and Honors classes. Reitan stated, “The district is compiling data about assigning summer projects for AP and Honors classes.” Many other high schools around Long Island, including Ward Melville, have been doing away with summer assignments due to parental complaints. 

Trustee John Galligan attended the New York State Department of Education online meeting where regionalization was introduced. The department hopes to incentivize interdistrict cooperation over sharing education resources, such as the BOCES  program. Although BOCES is already a shared resource for many Long Island schools, regionalization would provide subsidies for such schools.

Regionalization plans are to be created every five years. The first draft of the school planning process was due Nov. 1 and will be implemented in the 2026-2027 school year. The Department of Education also stated that there would be no attempt to consolidate school districts, something Reitan is concerned about. She said, “The biggest con is local control. We are Miller Place, y’know.”

School Business Official Colleen Card spoke about the recently approved revitalizations of the district’s schools. Most significant are the plans for Miller Place High School: a ventilation system, a new art room and showers for the boys’ locker room. Andrew Muller Primary School is wrapping up construction on the gymnasium with an upcoming fire marshal inspection. Andrew Muller also finished building a kindergarten playground. Laddie A. Decker Sound Beach School recently installed a ventilation system as well.   

Lipshie also recapped the district’s celebrations and news. The Safe Halloween event, held at the high school, was a great success at raising funds for the Miller Place UFSD. Boy’s varsity soccer earned a play-off qualification. Girls field hockey won the Division 2 Regular Season Championship and is now 16-2. 

In upcoming events, Lipshie highlighted the sixth- and seventh-grade dance, the Miller Place Driver’s Safety Program, winter sports starting on Nov. 18 for the high school and Nov. 4 for the middle school and college admissions workshops. More information about the events can be found on the Miller Place School District website (www,millerplace.k12.ny.us).

The next BOE meeting will be Nov. 20, at approximately 8 p.m., at the Miller Place High School.   Photos courtesy Miller Place UFSD

High school drama production draws a crowd to two performances

Photo courtesy MPSD

The Miller Place Panther Troupe recently captivated audiences with two performances of their fall drama production “The Curious Savage,” written by John Patrick.

“I’d like to commend the actors, set designers, musicians and everyone involved in the incredible production of ‘The Curious Savage,’” said Superintendent of Schools Seth Lipshie. “Our students put on two engaging performances that moved their audience with scenes that were both poignant and comedic. Congratulations to everyone involved.”

Over the course of this fall, cast members developed their characters and honed their acting skills while crew members sharpened their technical theater skills and helped curate the set. Director Jenna Ely and assistant director Colleen Annicelli led a talented cast that had their audiences laughing, crying and thoroughly enjoying the show.

The Miller Place Panther Troupe captivates audiences with two performances of ‘The Curious Savage,’ written by John Patrick. Photos courtesy MPSD

“The Curious Savage” follows the story of an elderly widow named Ethel Savage who was left $10 million from her late husband. She seeks to donate the fortune, but her stepchildren seek to thwart her plan and have her committed to a sanatorium.

She bonds with the kind residents there and discovers the meaning of love and family. The dramatic comedy opened on Broadway in 1950 and starred Lillian Gish as Ethel Savage.

For their work on “The Curious Savage,” the Miller Place Panther Troupe is eligible for the East End Arts’ 22nd annual Teeny Awards. The annual high school theater awards show, given its name as a reference to the Tony Awards, will take place this June.

For more information about the Miller Place school district, please visit the district’s website at www.millerplace.k12.ny.us. To read more about the great things happening in Miller Place schools, visit www.millerplaceinthemedia.com.

Miller Place school district officials break ground on the Andrew Muller Primary School gymnasium with representatives of RENU Contracting & Restoration. Photo courtesy MPSD

Miller Place Union Free School District recently celebrated the start of construction of a new gymnasium at Andrew Muller Primary School.

Superintendent of Schools Seth Lipshie joined with members of the district administration, the Board of Education, district architect and representatives of RENU Contracting & Restoration to celebrate the groundbreaking.

“We are thrilled to announce the start of construction of the new gymnasium at Andrew Muller Primary School,” Lipshie said. “Our district has worked diligently to make this possible. This provides an excellent physical education environment for our students. The current shared gymnasium space can now be utilized for a dedicated cafeteria and an area to host school assemblies.”

The site of the new gymnasium will be located to the left of the main entrance with an adjoining hallway. The construction of the primary school gym is part of the district’s bond referendum, approved by voters in October 2021.

For more information about the Miller Place school district, please visit the district’s website at www.millerplace.k12.ny.us. To read more about the happenings in Miller Place schools, visit www.millerplaceinthemedia.com or the district’s Facebook page.

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Miller Place Superintendent Marianne Cartisano. Photo from MPSD

A beloved superintendent will be retiring from Miller Place school district, effective June 2022.

Marianne Cartisano said that the retirement has been in the works for years so she can focus on the next chapter in her life. 

“I’m going to sleep,” she joked. “I’ve been in administration for the entire 31 years of my career. So, it’ll be the first time probably, since I’m about 16 — even when having my children — that I will have an extended period of time just to do an appropriate decompression.”

She plans on spending time with her family, and will continue to mentor.

“I had spoken to the board a couple of years ago when we were planning a succession plan for Miller Place,” she added. “Mr. Lipshie has been my right-hand person for 10 years so that has made the transition a little bit easier.”

Deputy Superintendent Seth Lipshie will be taking on the role of superintendent of schools 

“I’m super excited, I’m motivated,” he said. “It’s an opportunity for me to continue my service in Miller Place.”

Lipshie said he is in his 32nd year in the district and he’s done a bit of everything while working there. From 1990 to 2001, he was a social studies teacher and in 2001 he became assistant principal at North Country Road Middle School. From 2002 to 2010 he served as principal of Miller Place High School before being appointed as assistant superintendent in 2010 and deputy superintendent in 2014. 

Deputy Superintendent Seth Lipshie. Photo from MPSD

“I’ve either hired or interviewed almost probably a good majority of the staff that now works in the workplace,” he said. “One of the things I think that I’ll bring to the table is some stability, something familiar.”

By having all this experience, Lipshie said that he has developed “some very strong ties with staff and the unions in terms of making sure that we can serve the students as best we can without any issues.”

He has also been adviser for the AV Club as well as spearheaded the Mock Trial Club. He coached soccer at both the middle school and the high school, was the varsity basketball coach for nine years and has been an umpire for high school baseball for the last 17 years.

Cartisano said that promoting Lipshie to the role of superintendent was a no-brainer — it was important to keep things consistent. 

“Having been here now 10 years, that’s a long stretch of the superintendency, especially with the last two COVID years,” she said. “It’s been so rewarding, and the work is so purposeful and meaningful — it just has been a great run.”

But Cartisano said that Lipshie is not a carbon copy of her. 

“It’s a marriage made by workplace, and we probably agree on 85% of the time,” she said. “The other 15% we don’t, and that has allowed this district to move forward because we don’t have one mindset, we have different perspectives. That’s the way we lead. It’s not that Seth is a mirror image of me nor me of him. That would not be good leadership.”

She added that there is nobody that could have been a better fit.

“This is an organization that has 500 staff members that show up every day and educate our children, we have 2,500 customers who get off buses every single day for us, and it’s important that the school district stays consistent,” Cartisano said. “We’re very excited.”