by Robert Pritchard, Ed.D. | May 4, 2018 | Updates
The families, staff, students, and community of South Orangetown Central School District have been involved in an ongoing discussion about how to best prevent our students from engaging in risky behaviors. At the May 3, 2018 Board of Education, I outlined some of the practices that we currently use to prevent risky behaviors related to substance use and promoting positive mental health for our students. A copy of this presentation can be found at SOCSD Substance Use Prevention and Mental Health Supports.
As I have mentioned in a previous blog post, the Family Resource Center (FRC) will be a key element in forging these essential partnerships between families, the community, our children, and our schools. The mission of the FRC is to ensure the optimal development of every child (Pre-K through 12) and to empower families to be actively engaged in their child’s education by linking community, family, and students through innovative programs, advocacy, and integrated services. One thing is for certain…we are all partners in the pursuit of keeping our kids safe and ensuring that they are healthy and well-adjusted.
We anticipate that the FRC will be “up and running” by September 2018. The FRC is designed to strengthen and create new links between community, family, and school to help every child grow intellectually, physically, emotionally. We will achieve this through the expansion and continuation of:
- Early childhood development (e.g., playgroups, school readiness, and early childhood literacy)
- Parent University (to be conducted on a variety of parent interests)
- Community engagement events
- Information from (and referrals to) our community partners in order to support families.
Stay tuned for the schedule of events for the FRC categories listed above. We hope to have the location and staffing completed for the FRC prior to the opening of the 2018-19 school year.
by Robert Pritchard, Ed.D. | Apr 20, 2018 | Updates
By now, many of us who have raised our families in the South Orangetown Central School District, are familiar with the term Family Resource Center (FRC), but there may not be a common understanding as to what the FRC is. The FRC, as it is currently configured, is primarily a resource for families who wish to transition their preschool-aged children into kindergarten. While this is an important feature of the FRC, the SOCSD Board of Education and the admin team are committed to expanding the role of the FRC in assisting families of all of our students (from kindergarten through high school graduation). We are seeking our community’s support in the 2018-19 budget cycle towards an enhanced FRC. These enhancements are designed to strengthen partnerships between our schools and our families.
Preparing all of our students to thrive in an increasingly complex world is the central goal of our school district. In order for us to do this, we need a mechanism that ensures that ALL of our families are connected to the school district in terms that make sense to each individual family. Three years ago, I was a new parent in the South Orangetown Central School District…granted, there are certain advantages to being a dad who is also the superintendent, but even I felt a level of frustration that invariably comes with the challenges of parenting. No family should ever struggle needlessly over deciphering the language that is particular to schooling. All families (not just the superintendent’s) should find it “equally easy” to “crack the code” of accessing the educational program of the school where their children attend – that is where the FRC plays a critical role. In order for our FRC to be more effective, it must minimally have the following three characteristics:
- First, and foremost, it must have an FRC Coordinator managing the FRC activities. Our FRC, as it is presently configured, does not have a dedicated FRC Coordinator. We are presently in the process of working with the Rockland BOCES towards hiring an FRC Coordinator who will be scheduled to have a presence in all of our schools, five days a week. The FRC Coordinator will coordinate with outside agencies (such as Rockland 21C, BOCES assets, mental health agencies, human service agencies, etc.) and internal resources (administrators, teachers, student services staff, etc.) to ensure that families are better able to focus on their children’s education. We will ensure that the FRC Coordinator is someone who can be counted upon to be a confidential and trusted friend to our families.
- Next, the FRC must be located in a space where people feel comfortable and safe. As I mentioned previously, we will have scheduled time in each of our buildings during the week, but it is important to note that sometimes the best place to engage families is in their homes – especially new families who may not be familiar with our facilities. Upon request and as needed, our FRC Coordinator will make home visits whenever possible. Further, we will equip each of our FRC spaces on our campuses with computer access to assist families with any online access concerns or considerations (e.g., How do I access my child’s grades online? How do I access online curriculum maps or homework support?). Wherever the FRC is located, however, we will ensure that the environment is warm and friendly.
- Lastly, the time that the FRC is “open for business” must be flexible in order to accommodate working families. Whether we are scheduling weekly playgroups for preschool-aged children or “parent universities” for parents of older children (on a variety of topics to include substance use, college/career readiness planning, etc.), we understand that families have busy schedules. That is why we intend to schedule opportunities for families to participate in FRC activities beyond the school day.
We will publish a schedule of FRC activities and events (both online and in print) as we get closer to the grand re-opening in September 2018. As such, beginning in September 2018, the South Orangetown Central School District will be configured to reflect all of the above characteristics associated with enhanced staffing, space, and time.
I am confident that the newly configured FRC will better assist our families in answering the question: “How can I better understand (and foster) what my child is expected to know and be able to do by the end of the grade-level in which she or he is enrolled?” This is the central question that must be answered by every family in order that we may best prepare our students “to thrive in an increasingly complex world.” In the coming weeks, I will provide additional details about the grand re-opening of the SOCSD Family Resource Center (FRC). In the meantime, however, please remember to vote on May 15. The 2018-19 school budget will provide the resources for these FRC enhancements. Thank you in advance for your continued support and we look forward to serving our families in a way that ensures the success of every child.
by Robert Pritchard, Ed.D. | Apr 13, 2018 | Updates
It’s that time of year again – the time of year when we consider and debate the value and importance of statewide testing for our students in grades three through eight. Each year, before these exams are administered, the New York State Education Department provides the public with information as to why these tests are crucial. In opposition to this, families who do not wish for their children to sit for these exams notify school administrators of their intentions to “opt out.” As superintendent, I interpret all of these signals through the lens of “doing what is good for kids” and re-emphasize why student assessment can be a contributing factor towards successful learning and teaching. Assessment can (and should) provide the benefits of feedback to teachers for improved classroom practice and increased learning for students.
From the perspective of improving classroom practices, our instructional staff in the South Orangetown Central School District use student test data from the Grades 3-8 New York State Assessments to guide “what is taught” and how the content is delivered (these results are one component of several sources of student data). This feedback guides the work that our teachers do regarding professional development and curriculum design. According to the educational researcher John Hattie, “teachers too often see assessment feedback as making statements about students and not about their teaching, and hence the benefits of feedback from such testing are often diluted (Hattie, 2012).” However, this is not the case in SOCSD since our teachers use student test data to provide valuable feedback towards improving classroom practices.
We also strive for students to develop mastery-level learning in the classroom. For this to occur, students must take ownership of their own learning and must challenge themselves to learn more. Here is where state assessments, as a feedback mechanism, are not likely to contribute to mastery learning. Effective feedback should allow students to answer the following questions (Hattie, 2012):
- Where am I going? What are my goals?
- How am I going? What progress is made towards the goal?
- Where to next? What activities need to be undertaken next to make better progress?
The current New York State 3-8 testing program is not designed to directly support the claim that “the primary function of assessment is to support learning by generating feedback that students can act upon in terms of where they are going, how they are going there, and where they might go next (Hattie, 2012).” Fortunately, in the South Orangetown Central School District, we have a variety of other means to provide this feedback in “real time” to students that promote mastery-level learning (a.k.a. Rapid Formative Assessment). However, the statewide 3-8 testing program is just not there yet, despite improvements in recent years. These improvements were remedies for test-construction flaws that existed in earlier versions of the tests (duration of exams, number of questions, types of questions, etc.).
Assessment as a feedback mechanism can be a powerful moderator of learning when done correctly. Therefore, the question that we should be asking is whether these statewide exams can adequately provide feedback to teachers so that they may modify their instruction for the benefit of student learning. The answer to this question is a qualified “yes” provided that efforts are made to use the resultant data in ways that best serve our students. Beyond this, I am still hopeful that the New York State Education Department will improve the Grades 3-8 New York State Assessments to provide feedback that moves learners forward and activates students as agents of their own learning. It appears that we have made some progress, but there is clearly room for improvement.
by Robert Pritchard, Ed.D. | Mar 23, 2018 | Updates
On Tuesday, March 20, the Turf Committee met to review products, equipment, and services from leading synthetic turf system distributors. The Turf Committee consists of facilities and athletic departments staff, parents, community members, and engineers from our architect firm, Clark, Patterson, and Lee. This committee was formed after a group of parents expressed an interest in providing input on our athletic facilities upgrades (on a side note – we very much appreciate whenever our families get involved in making our schools great places for students). The turf field replacement was approved by the voters in May 2017 and we are well underway towards making this project a reality for this summer’s capital project work. The Turf Committee will ensure that the prospective vendors provide us with a product that meets strict health and safety requirements for our students, staff, and community members who use our facilities.
While the turf field replacement will kick-off our summer capital project work, there are several other projects that are in development that have already received approval and funding from our voters. These projects include bleacher replacement and the wrestling room renovation at the Tappan Zee High School Gym, electrical upgrades at William O. Schaefer Elementary School, and the renovation of our technology classrooms and auditorium at South Orangetown Middle School. We also anticipate creating additional classroom space this summer at Cottage Lane Elementary School to be used as a Library/Media Center.
Concurrently, we are in the planning stages of developing capital projects to be constructed in the summers of 2019 and 2020. These projects have been authorized by the voters and will be funded by existing capital project reserves and include:
- TZHS: Turf field (to begin Summer 2018 – mentioned above), stadium seats, and press box renovations
- SOMS: Library and art room renovations and installation of air conditioning in the auditorium
- CLE: Modular library installation (to begin Summer 2018 – mentioned above)
- WOS: Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance improvements in the gym and cafeterias
- Districtwide – Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance improvements in restrooms and removal of underground fuel storage tanks at various campus locations
We are grateful for all the support that our community has given the school district towards the preservation of these publicly-owned assets. Our facilities belong to the people of this community and we appreciate the input and guidance that our voters provide as part of the budgeting process. For example, we have identified high priority projects that will be addressed as part of the 2018-19 draft spending plan. These projects include renovations at Tappan Zee High School of cafeteria/kitchen spaces and locker rooms. Beyond this, we seek to make our classroom spaces safe and healthy places for students to grow and learn. Our Facilities Committee will continue to identify future needs and funding sources and make recommendations to the administration and our board of education. Thank you again for your support of these projects and commitment to our students.
by Robert Pritchard, Ed.D. | Mar 14, 2018 | Updates
The National School Walkout Day was an opportunity for our middle and high school students to express their commitments towards keeping our schools safe. As the superintendent, I was impressed by the respectful manner in which our students honored those who lost their lives in the tragedy at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. It is vital for our students to recognize that I share their concerns and will seek ways to encourage their continued participation in making our schools safe places to work and learn.
As a result of this student demonstration, we will include more student involvement in our district-wide school safety planning processes. The district-wide school safety team consists of representatives of the school board, teachers, administrators, parents, and school safety personnel. While no portion of a confidential building-level emergency response plan can be shared with students, it is vital that students are empowered (on an appropriate scale) to voice their concerns while having a have a sense of agency in the process. Student agency refers to the level of control, autonomy, and power that a student experiences in a school setting and is a critical component towards their overall development into adulthood.
Two days before the March 14 student walkouts, I had the opportunity to meet with Tappan Zee High School students to discuss strategies towards improving communications between students and staff. At our meeting, the students and I were joined by teachers, administrators, and local law enforcement to discuss their concerns about school safety in light of the recent Florida tragedy. We shared many valuable ideas and committed to meeting regularly with student representatives who will serve on the district-wide safety team. At our next district-wide school safety team meeting in May, we will address the following issues expressed by our students, staff, and families:
- ensure a synchronized response (nonconfidential) between students, faculty, law enforcement and other first responders;
- review our recently implemented “Anonymous Alerts” web-based reporting system and its alignment with existing reporting methods for identifying risks and preventing school violence;
- use of nonviolent conflict resolution training programs;
- assess our current peer mediation programs, Orangetown Youth Court, and mentor programs;
- discuss the viability of closed-campus safety measures to include revision of master schedules, capital improvements, and crisis response protocols (nonconfidential);
- develop and review our existing Code of Conduct and requirements of Dignity for All Students Act (DASA).
At our June 14 Board of Education meeting, we will have a public hearing to present the findings of our district-wide safety meeting. We look forward to hearing more from our students on this matter. Our students’ participation in the National School Walkout was a valuable reminder from them that school safety remains our top priority.
by Robert Pritchard, Ed.D. | Mar 9, 2018 | Updates
Once again, I share my sadness with you concerning the loss of 17 lives, students, and adults, in the senseless, horrific tragedy that occurred in Parkland, Florida. As our nation grieves, students from across the country – and in our own community – have expressed a desire to protest violence in schools through the National School Walkout Day on March 14.
Following discussions with other Rockland County school districts, the South Orangetown Central School District has decided to provide middle and high school students with voluntary, educational opportunities to express their opinions and concerns about school violence on March 14 at 10am. These voluntary events will take place at Tappan Zee High School, South Orangetown Middle School, and Rockland BOCES. Students choosing not to participate will be respected and supervised inside the school buildings.
We are coordinating with the Orangetown Police Department, school staff, and our security personnel to ensure that these events are conducted safely in protected, designated areas. For security reasons, the Orangetown Police Department will monitor the events at SOMS and TZHS and members of the outside community will not be permitted to enter the school grounds from 10:00 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. After these brief events, students will return to classrooms for discussion on how this form of student expression connects with our school district’s mission and goal to promote and maintain a safe and secure learning environment, consistent with the Project SAVE Law enacted by the New York State Legislature in 2000.
Due to the mature themes associated with this event, students at our elementary schools will not participate. Families are asked to speak with their elementary-aged students as they deem appropriate. For support with communicating with young children on this topic, please contact your building principal.
Sincerely,
Robert R. Pritchard, Ed.D.
