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Schools

Northport School Board Notes

Awards and presentations were a major part of the agenda at the Oct. 25 Board meeting

Students, teachers, and even the Trustees themselves were honored at Monday night's Board of Education meeting. Among the highlights:

As part of School Board Recognition week in New York State, the nine Trustees received commendations from Western Suffolk BOCES and the Northport-East Northport School District and PTA Council. 

Corinne Zmoos, a high school senior, was recognized by Patricia Schmitt, District Chairperson of English K-12, as the English Language Arts Department Student of the Month for her outstanding commitment to the art of language and texts.

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Schmitt also recognized two other outstanding students: Eliza Brine and Meghan Flynn, recipients of the NCTE Achievement Awards in Writing.  In addition, Northport High School English teacher Linda Bennett and Nicholas Raio, an eighth grade English teacher from Northport Middle School, were recipients of the New York State Council Teachers of Excellence Award.

After the awards portion of the meeting, Schmitt delivered a presentation on the district's English Department 2010-2011 initiatives, which include designing and developing a curriculum for grammar and composition for grades K-8.  Trustee Lori McCue noted that she welcomed the effort to focus particularly on the area of grammar. Schmitt also addressed the more stringent requirements for the English Language Arts test which makes it more difficult for students to achieve a score of 3 and 4. According to Schmitt, most districts took a 15% to 20% cut in their proficiency rates. The complete report, including the ELA cut scores for grades 3-8, along with a comparison of cut scores for the district in 2009 and 2010, can be found at Board of Education.  

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Ms. Jo Imwalle, Administrator of Community Services, reported on the recreational summer camp program. Describing it as a "gem", Imwalle highlighted the many recreational and educational activities, including bowling and beach trips. Over the course of the summer, 714 students were enrolled in full day camp, and another 745 attended the morning and afternoon sessions.  In addition, 133 high school students gained work experience through the Counselors in Training (CIT) program.

Imwalle also delivered a report on the 2010 BOCES regional academic summer school, which is open to both residents and non-residents of Northport. Chemistry and Earth Science were new to the program this year.

Trustee Julia Binger questioned how the district was reimbursed for hosting the summer school. Matthew Nelson, Assistant Superintendent for Instruction and Administration, replied that there is no reimbursement. "It is a convenience for our students. We didn't want them to have to go to Huntington or Commack." The only cost involved is security; salaries are paid for by BOCES.

Dr. Marylou McDermott, Superintendent of Schools, said, "We're looking to share summer school so perhaps the program will rotate." However, she stressed that the issue is more about wear and tear on the building rather than one of cost.

Ms. Lori Beekman gave a report on the 2010 elementary summer school program which had an enrollment of approximately 403 students, which was roughly the same as last year, but still higher than in 2008. However, this doesn't include AIS (academic intervention) students. Trustee Andrew Rapiejko expressed concern over the large number of students and the ability to maintain the current student/teacher ratio of 8 to 1. "Are we going to have a meaningful program to help this number of students in a short term program?"  Beekman said she shared his concern and McDermott stressed the importance of focusing on a specific skill set during this time frame.

The audience was treated to an entertaining video showcasing students at various musical programs throughout the summer, including the marching band clinic held at SUNY Farmingdale. Izzet Mergen, Director of Music Education, reported that 1016 students were enrolled in the elementary and middle school summer music program, the first time that enrollment has surpassed the one thousand mark.

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