by Robert Pritchard, Ed.D. | Jun 29, 2018 | Updates
It’s Summer Break here at the South Orangetown Central School District and we will certainly miss seeing the students and their families as much on our campuses. While it may be tempting to use social media to keep in touch, we have to remember that there are rules associated with social media use between our employees and the community. This policy is in effect year-round (not just during the summer months) but now is as good a time as any to remind folks that there are boundaries that must be respected.
Social Media regulations in the Employee Handbook: SOCSD Policy 8636 is referenced on page 17 of the South Orangetown Employee Handbook. This policy defines the appropriate and responsible use of social media between staff, students, and the community. The policy in its entirety can be found at: SOCSD Social Media Policy. The policy states that, “when using a social media site, an employee may not include current students as friends, followers, or any other similar terminology used by various sites.” The policy further states that “if an employee maintains or participates in a South Orangetown sponsored online community that extends to persons who are parents, alums, or other constituents, they must exercise good judgment about any content that is shared on the site.”
Additionally, employees should adhere to the following guidelines, which are consistent with the District’s policies regarding harassment, student relationships, conduct, professional communication, and confidentiality:
- An employee should not make statements that would violate any of the District’s policies, including its policies concerning discrimination or harassment;
- The employee must uphold the District’s value of respect for the individual and avoid making defamatory statements about the District, its employees, its students, or their families;
- An employee may not disclose any confidential information of the District or confidential information obtained during the course of his/her employment, about any individuals or organizations, including students and/or their families.
Exceptions to this are sites that are deemed as “Official SOCSD Social Media Sites.” For guidance pertaining to these sites, please refer to the SOCSD Policy 8636.
I believe social media is a great way to keep connected and encourage everyone to use it responsibly. In order to not blur the lines between personal and professional use, I have restricted much of my own social media presence to the following sites (trust me…my personal Facebook page isn’t that interesting):
Sometimes, a community member or student may feel slighted or put-off when an employee doesn’t accept a “friend” request and that is unfortunate since this policy has been put in place for everyone’s protection. In any case, there will be plenty of opportunities this summer to socialize in-person and in the community, and we look forward to seeing everyone back in September. Have a great summer!
by Robert Pritchard, Ed.D. | Jun 22, 2018 | Updates
(Below, please find the transcript of my 2018 TZHS graduation speech)
Trustees of the Board of Education, Principal Amos, colleagues, parents, friends and family, and especially our Tappan Zee High School Class of 2018, I am privileged to be your Superintendent and honored to speak to you. Above all, I wish to express a debt of thanks to the many family members and loved-ones who are joining us tonight – without your love and support, none of this would be possible.
Tonight we are here to celebrate an incredible milestone. Everyone in this audience, on this podium and throughout this supportive community is united, beaming and excited for these young men and women, the Class of 2018.
Graduating seniors – The BEING, the KNOWING, and the DOING: By now, someone has probably asked you the question, “what do you want to be when you grow up?” People still ask me this question. You might respond by saying you want to be a policeman, or a cook, a scientist, maybe even a school teacher. But that wouldn’t be an example of what you wanted to “be” but what you want to “do.” For example, if someone asked you what you wanted to “do” as a job you might respond by saying:
- I want to do research
- I want to help people
- I want to build things
Those are all things that you might “do” and all of those activities require training, education, and a plan to develop practical experience. My guess would be that each of you has some sort of plan to “do” something after you graduate and to “know more” in order to be competent in those areas. Some of your plans may be more definitive than others. You’ve all grappled with the question of what you might want to DO or what you need to KNOW, but it still doesn’t address the question of what, or whom do you want to BE?
So let’s go back to my original question: “What do you want to BE when you grow up?” I’m going to answer this question for myself with a metaphor: I want to be a shopping basket (again…I am speaking metaphorically. I don’t aspire to be an inanimate object any more than I aspire to be a rocking chair or a lawnmower). The point I’m attempting to make is that a shopping basket can be filled with important things (like groceries). The most valuable things that we might put into a shopping basket at the grocery store are those items that are often the most perishable. That notwithstanding, our beings can be filled like the shopping basket at the grocery store. The things that we fill ourselves with that are the most valuable (as part of our being) are the things that are perishable. Here are a few examples:
- I want to be filled with courage (which is the strength to confront our fears).
- I want to be filled with hope (which is the understanding that our actions will have a meaningful impact in the future. This is the feeling that “things will turn out for the best” and you can’t have joy without hope)
- I want to be filled with faith (which is the understanding that you can have trust in the people around you and they can trust you). Some of you heard the parable of the “mustard seed” in the baccalaureate service last Sunday. I’m speaking of “faith” in the secular or temporal sense. For instance, I have no faith in a mailbox when I mail a letter…I always make sure to check that it actually goes down the chute.
The question, “what (or who) do you want to be?” can be answered as simply as wanting to be courageous, hopeful, and faithful. And here’s the good news: You don’t have to wait until you are all grown up…You can be all of these things right now. As a matter of fact, I would strongly suggest that you commit to what you want to “BE” before you figure out what it is that you want to “KNOW” or be able to “DO.”
When you go off to college, you will gain a better understanding of what you may want to do as a career and the related skills and knowledge that you will need to accomplish those goals – you will likely have many people who will advise you and guide you along the way. However, it can be very challenging to create, sustain, or regain courage, hope, and faith – especially when facing adversity (As I said earlier…these qualities are “perishable” as anyone who has lost hope, lost faith, or lost “their nerves” can attest). My best advice to you now is that you build all of these facets of your “being” by filling your hearts with as much love as your hearts can possibly hold. The more full your heart is with love, the less room there is for fear, anger, jealousy, despair, or hatred. Love allows you to let go of those things that may prevent you from being courageous, hopeful, and faithful.
Speaking of putting as much love into your hearts as your hearts can possibly hold, love has had an immeasurable impact on who you are today. Love from your teachers, your classmates, and, of course, those incredibly important people sitting behind you this evening – your families. Your teachers have sparked a resiliency in you to seek the truth and to remain steadfast in the face of adversity. The gift that they have given you is a love of learning and an endless curiosity for the world around you. Your classmates, some of whom will remain, lifelong friends, have shown you the meaning of trust, loyalty, and a collective sense of self. As a Tappan Zee High School alumnus, it is my sincere hope that you will treasure what it means to be a Dutchman and will never know the feeling of being alone. Lastly, and most importantly, take some time in the next few days to appreciate your families before you embark on the next leg of your journey. These people have been and will continue to be, your biggest supporters. They love you more than you know and are very proud of all that you have achieved.
In closing, have faith in yourselves, be courageous, and remain hopeful for the endless possibilities that lie before you.
Congratulations and I wish you all continued success!
by Robert Pritchard, Ed.D. | Jun 15, 2018 | Updates
As the school year comes to a close, we see an abundance of emotions in our families and students. We always strive to maximize the joy of success and minimize those regrets that are associated with missed opportunities. With few exceptions, our graduating TZ High School seniors are happy and excited to be entering into the next phase of their lives. The guidance team at the high school has played an important role towards assisting these students on their journeys.
While joy is abundant at graduation, there are those rare instances when a student or parent expresses confusion or regret that the student was not accepted into a desired college. When a student or parent expresses concern that his or her child was not accepted into a college program, I ask the administrator or high school counselor to assist the family with understanding why this happened and how to best move forward.
College admissions decisions can be difficult to understand for a variety of reasons. There are many factors that colleges use to determine college admissions and each college has slightly different criteria in this regard. Because of the complexity of these decisions, parents/students may have misconceptions about which variables best yield the anticipated highly-prized acceptance letter. To simplify this process, our counselors encourage families/students early-on to use the Naviance tools on our website to better guide them in this process. We formally begin this advisement when students are in the 10th grade.
Our counselors are especially good at explaining to families/students how to use Naviance and guiding them through the selection of suitable colleges. The tools that we present to our families/students to select possible colleges are excellent, particularly those that are on the Naviance site (but only as good as the students’/parents’ willingness to use the tools).
Below, is an excellent example of an actual college decision made by one of our graduating TZ High School seniors. The figures below show how the Naviance forecasting tool can be used to better inform students about prospective colleges (The actual TZ student’s data is removed from the illustrations below to protect her privacy). This type of information is presented to families/students as part of college admissions counseling starting in 10th grade. Families should be going into this process with their “eyes wide open,” and these tools have an excellent predictive capacity. Similar to Goldilocks selecting a bowl of porridge to eat, the TZ student in this example applied to the following three colleges ranging from a “reach school” (low chance of acceptance), “possible school” (fair chance of acceptance), and “likely school” (good chance of acceptance). Here is the Naviance graphic presentation of these choices.
Middlebury College (Needs Improvement or “reach” college):
University of Rochester (Fair chance or “possible” college):
Skidmore College (Likely chance or “good” overall possibility):
Consistent with the Naviance predictions, the student in the above example was not admitted into the “reach” college and was accepted into her “possible” and “good” chance college choices. I happen to know this student personally, and I’ve encouraged her to be happy that she is attending the University of Rochester (it’s a great fit, and she is happy). The Tappan Zee High School counselor did a great job of framing the process using the Naviance tools and prepared the student and her parents for any anticipated outcomes.
I recognize that there are more variables than ACT, SAT, and GPA that go into the college admissions process. However, these three variables serve an essential purpose in that they have a predictive value in understanding college acceptance decisions. Other variables, such as participation in extracurricular and co-curricular activities, also factor into the college admissions criteria that colleges use when selecting incoming classes of students. While less predictive, these variables play a far more significant role in the development of the “whole child.” To this end, we are preparing our students for life and not just for college admissions.
by Robert Pritchard, Ed.D. | Jun 1, 2018 | Updates
It’s the beginning of June, and I’m in my office signing diplomas for our graduating seniors. This activity, along with all of the other tasks associated with end-of-year activities, puts me in a reflective mood. On that note, the Board of Education and the governance team will present our “performance indicators” at the June 14 Board of Education meeting. We do this as part of a cycle of continuous improvement that is expressly stated in our Strategic Plan. This is the part of the cycle when we ask ourselves, “How are we doing?” The honest answer to that question is: The things that we do best are those things that are the most difficult to measure. For example, preparing students to be happy, healthy, well-adjusted, and productive members of society. That said, it is important to analyze and review those areas of greatest importance to us as a community of learners.
All are welcome to attend our June 14 Board of Education meeting when we will present our annual review of performance data as it relates to the “Five Focus Areas” of the Strategic Plan. However, we know that many families and working parents lead busy lives, so here is a quick summary of the Board of Education’s priorities:
Our Focus Areas
Focus Area A – Promoting Academic Success:
- This focus area is supervised by our Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction, Dr. Brian Culot. Each week, Dr. Culot presents information to the community in his blog. Please visit Dr. Culot’s Blog for more information on all the activities that define our core competency of promoting academic success for our students. Here, you will find videos, essays, updates, and essential curriculum materials.
- A significant priority for the South Orangetown Central School District’s Board of Education is developing “student-focused scheduling.” We have been working with Dr. Michael Rettig and the Tappan Zee High School “Master Schedule Committee” this year to consider how to best structure the school day for students to ensure that they are exposed to relevant content that inspires them to be passionate about learning. We are examining alternative scheduling models to accomplish these goals and hope to implement a solution by the 2019-20 school year. You can learn more about this work at “Master Schedule Revision Committee.“
- Every school principal develops a building-level plan and I review these plans with the principals as part of their annual evaluations. These plans can be found at:
- William O. Schaefer
- Cottage Lane Elementary School
- South Orangetown Middle School
- Tappan Zee High School
Focus Area B – Developing Human Resources and Professional Capacity:
- This focus area is supervised by our Director of Human Resources, Mr. Jeremy Barker. We, as a district, have high expectations for ourselves and understand our responsibilities to our students and hold ourselves to the highest professional standards. An overview of this department may be seen on our Human Resources web page. Specifically, we hold all of ourselves accountable through rigorous evaluation and professional development processes.
- We recruit and retain highly qualified faculty and staff and ensure that each employee receives professional development opportunities to promote the “Instructional Core.” All instructional and instructional support staff are required to engage in Professional Development opportunities.
Focus Area C – Improving Communication and Fostering School Community Engagement:
- Our primary focus here is to improve stakeholder involvement. Every parent should know what their child is expected to know or be able to do, by the end of the grade-level in which he/she is enrolled.
- We all have a shared responsibility to ensure effective communications and an engaged community, but the administrator who is responsible to ensure that the component parts of this are functioning is Mr. George Brady, Director of Instructional Technology.
- You can subscribe to receive electronic mailings via e-mail to stay updated on all the news around the district and at the school where your child attends.
- We also recognize that there is often no substitute for face-to-face communications. This past year, we have held open forums on substance use (see Focus Area D below), turf field replacement, and other events held at the school buildings such as open houses and “Meet the Teacher” events.
- District Calendars can be easily accessed online on your computer or mobile device. Further, each household in the district is sent a printed calendar via the U.S. Postal Service.
- If you are reading this, you are probably aware that our school district, and each individual school, goes to great lengths to ensure that we reach our community using a variety of media to include digital and print. Please go to our District News Web page to see all of the interesting stories around the district. Further, each of our schools’ post daily and weekly news stories at:
- WOS
- CLE
- SOMS
- TZHS
Focus Area D – Ensuring the Health and Safety of Our School Community:
- This focus area is currently supervised by our Athletic Director, Mr. Keith Johnson. Beginning July 1, 2018, Dr. Karen Tesik will assume the duties of Director of Special Education and Student Services and will supervise those efforts that will positively impact the health and safety of our students.
- The Board of Education has placed a special emphasis on addressing substance use and mental health concerns. This year, we have taken immediate steps to increase family awareness regarding substance use in several evening workshops as well as restructuring our Family Resource Center to better coordinate resources between families, student supports, and outside agencies.
- Another tool that has been invaluable has been the implementation of the Anonymous Alerts reporting system where students and families can report urgent student concerns quickly to school officials. This allows students who witness or are the victim of an act of harassment, bullying, or hazing to report it directly to an adult at school. If unable to reach a school official directly, an individual may use this form to report an incident related to harassment, bullying, hazing, and discrimination. Students who report this type of incident have the right to be safe from any type of retaliation.
- We also think that keeping kids healthy and safe is the result of keeping them engaged in a variety of co-curricular activities (interscholastic sports and music performance) and extracurricular activities (clubs). The South Orangetown Central School District is well-regarded for our ability to provide this programming and understands the need to promote co-curricular and extracurricular activities to develop the “whole child.” The overwhelming majority of our students participate in one or more of these programs. We are especially proud of our competitive sports teams, performing musical ensembles and clubs such as the FIRST Robotics Club.
Focus Area E – Developing Management Systems that Emphasize Quality Control and Continuous Improvement:
- This area of responsibility is directly supervised by the School Business Administrator. This department includes facilities, maintenance, finance, purchasing, risk management, food service, and transportation. This focus area is centered on the management of resources to ensure fiscal stability and operations that support our mission – the growth and development of our young learners.
- The district maintains a detailed status of all outstanding and ongoing capital projects work in the district.
- In order to synchronize the effort of all departments and to ensure continuous improvement of our educational services to students, the Board of Education and the governance team engage in strategic planning. Below, please find a detailed description of the SOCSD Strategic Plan.
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Focus Area A: Promoting Academic Success
SOCSD will ensure that all students have equitable access to rigorous curriculum, aligned instructional materials, and meaningful assessments to guide instruction that engages students and provides them with the knowledge and skills to succeed as effective citizens, workers, and leaders in the future.
STRATEGIC PLAN
To promote academic success, SOCSD is committed to the following:
- Provide Students with 21st Century Learning Opportunities
- Enhance Student Literacy
- Address the Needs of Diverse Learners
OBJECTIVE 1
Provide Students with 21st Century Learning Opportunities SOCSD will:
- Conduct research, manage projects, solve real-world problems, and make informed decisions.
- Learn, discuss, and debate human, cultural, and societal issues and practice legal and ethical behavior.
- Utilize digital tools and technology to gather, evaluate, and use information.
- Create “remarkable learning environments” that are an expression of a well-articulated K-12 culture by addressing the structures of TIME (duration, frequency, task determines time); SPACE (facilities, classrooms, virtual spaces 24/7, field experiences); GROUPING (personalized, field experience based on interest, based on learning progressions); PERSONNEL (see Focus Area B, Objective 2)
OBJECTIVE 2
Enhance Student Literacy SOCSD will:
- Implement a workshop model in all classrooms to include mini-lessons, guided, independent, and group work through authentic reading and writing.
- Use ongoing formative assessments regularly share the information from these assessments with colleagues, administrators or grade level teams.
- Meet regularly to discuss reading and writing units of study, mini-lessons and instructional strategies.
- Continue to use and revise our writing rubrics and agree upon benchmark writing pieces for each unit of study.
- Schedule ongoing opportunities for teachers to participate in peer observations and/or instructional rounds with a focus on balanced literacy.
- Continue to develop reading and writing curriculum within the content areas.
OBJECTIVE 3
Address the Needs of Diverse Learners SOCSD will:
- Continue to utilize the RTI model to provide specific targeted interventions? Intervention in reading, writing, math, counseling and other related services.
- Provide life skills training (e.g., family, organizational and consumer skills, time management, communications etc.)
- Teachers will differentiate instruction to meet the various needs of students.
Performance Indicators:
- Percentage of students achieving advanced or proficient status on state and national assessments
- Increased 4-year graduation rate
- Upward trend in SAT composite scores
- Upward trend in ACT composite scores
- Enhanced student engagement as evidenced in bi-annual Student Engagement Survey
- State and federal accountability ratings
- Increased student attendance
- Decreased discipline referrals, student tardiness, suspensions, expulsions, and dropouts
- Increased development of portfolios of student work that demonstrate mastery of 21st century skills to educators and prospective employers
- Increased evidence of portfolio of measures to assess the educational system’s effectiveness at reaching high levels of student competency in 21st century skills
- Monitor RTI intervention strategies
- Publish reading and writing curriculum units and assessments
- Develop a strategy to monitor the use of digital tools and evaluate the effectiveness
FOCUS AREA B: Developing Human Resources and Professional Capacity
Recruit, support, and retain highly qualified staff.
STRATEGIC PLAN
To develop human resources and professional capacity, SOCSD is committed to the following:
- Develop and support a highly-engaged employee community
- Nurture a professional culture that allows employees to be actively engaged in lifelong learning
OBJECTIVE 1
Develop and support a highly-engaged employee community SOCSD will:
- Recruit: Identify highly-qualified pools of candidates for positions by actively recruiting through online platforms, traditional print resources, and university placement offices.
- Hire: Revise and implement district hiring policy and guidelines to ensure that objective processes include the investment of multiple stakeholders and identify the most qualified candidates for all vacancies.
- Retain: Provide outstanding service to our employees relative to benefits and support around state requirements, such as data reporting and certification for pedagogical employees.
OBJECTIVE 2
Nurture a professional culture that allows employees to be actively engaged in lifelong learning SOCSD will:
- Professional Development: Provide multiple pathways for our employees to develop their skills, for example through the range of opportunities available in our professional development catalog, mentoring and new teacher training for pedagogical employees and the utilization of other available resources, such as BOCES and the NYSUT Learning Trust, for our school-related professionals. Provide training opportunities for instructional support staff (e.g., clerical, custodial, transportation, maintenance) to improve proficiency, safety and enhanced opportunities for professional growth. Promote a culture of professionalism for all staff – instructional and instructional support. Provide additional opportunities for instructional coaches to develop new and innovative teaching strategies.
- Compliance Training: To promote a safe, professional workplace, ensure that all employees complete annual training required by federal and state law and Board of Education policy through online modules, including annual orientation to the district’s most essential policies through the SOCSD Employee Handbook.
- Observation/Evaluation: Ensure that all employees receive timely, appropriate feedback and actively participate in setting targets for their professional growth by implementing observations and evaluations according to NY State Education law 3012-d and existing provisions of independent labor and collective bargaining agreements between our employees and the district.
Performance Indicators:
- Percentage of students taught by accomplished or highly-qualified teachers.
- Evidence of increased educator proficiency as demonstrated through teacher evaluations
- Updated recruiting practices
- Increased percentage of employees completing compliance training
- Increased opportunities for professional development for all employee groups
- Evidence of strengthened employee morale through Employee Engagement survey
- Exit survey for all employees leaving the district
- Increased recruitment success measured by the quality of responses on OLAS
- Increased percentage of teachers earning National Board Certification
- Increased retention rate for all staff
- Evidence of increased customer service outcomes
- Increased compliance with NYS certification requirements
- How/what does this metric look like?
FOCUS AREA C: Improving Communication and Fostering School Community Engagement: Effective communications through meaningful school community engagement.
STRATEGIC PLAN
To improve communication and fostering school community engagement, SOCSD is committed to the following:
- Engage all stakeholders to improve student success
- Improve stakeholder involvement
- Enhance communications to involve all SOCSD stakeholders
OBJECTIVE 1
Engage all stakeholders to improve student success. SOCSD will:
- Engage students (Refer to Focus Area A)
- Engage families by keeping them informed about what students need to achieve at each grade level, hosting parent workshops to support instruction, by developing Family Resource Center as a robust resource for strengthening home-school partnership, working with PTA leaders in support of shared goals, and sharing non-PTA volunteer opportunities (similar to the community, below)
- Engage staff by exploring the development of an intranet and/or developing Workplace @ Facebook as a platform to share best practices and resources, with Instructional Coaches as leads
- Engage community members by sharing information regarding existing volunteer needs (committees, coaching, PLTW STEM Pipeline, clubs, guest speakers) as identified by building and central office administrators, and developing and implementing a framework for volunteer recruitment and management
OBJECTIVE 2
Improve stakeholder involvement. SOCSD will:
- Improve family involvement by encouraging the use of teacher websites, expanding Family Resource Center (FRC) participation through the development of meaningful K-12 resources and programming, and supporting PTA communication efforts
- Increase the quality and use of teacher websites to supplement “in-class” experiences and to be a meaningful resource for families outside of schools. This includes enhanced access to online curriculum maps for all subject areas.
- Improve community member involvement by encouraging attendance at district and school events (arts, fairs, athletics), encouraging the use of district website and social media to keep informed.
- Celebrate the contributions of school community members through special events
OBJECTIVE 3
Enhance communications to reach all SOCSD community members. SOCSD will:
- Continue to build a strategic and coordinated multi-platform approach to communications (web, print, email, social media, video, robocall, media relations, etc.)
- Increase access to information for ENL families by working through Student Support Services to: identify families that require translated information, identify what information needs to be translated, provide the timely translation of key materials, and produce and disseminate materials to identified families via email, print, robocall, etc.
- Increase access to information by enhancing district electronic communications tools to conform with WCAG 2.0 Level A & AA guidelines
- Work toward development and implementation of a districtwide framework, beyond electronic communications, to optimize accessibility
- Increase access to school community members without internet access through the launch of a print newsletter to share school district news, through ongoing administrator outreach to/participation in local Rotary Clubs, piloting “Meet & Greet” events with the superintendent throughout the school year
- Continue to develop its ongoing partnership with PTA leadership to support and inform outreach efforts
Performance indicators:
- Evidence of increased satisfaction with the school environment as measured by School Quality survey
- Implementation of communication and customer services solution
- Evidence of expanded opportunities for parent involvement/community support
- Evidence of expanded and effective use of traditional and non-traditional approaches to reach external publics
- Employee Engagement Survey
- Increasing communication with parents and community about events, workshops, and volunteer opportunities
- Increasing satisfaction with the quality of information delivered and events coordinated, as indicated by community and employee surveys
- Increased number of volunteer hours of service to schools
- Evidence of increased external support for the district
- Enhanced customer service experiences
- Development of strategic community partnerships
FOCUS AREA D: Ensuring the Health and Safety of Our School Community
The cornerstone of the South Orangetown Central School District is a culture based on high expectations for healthy and safe behaviors while promoting respect and good citizenship.
STRATEGIC PLAN
To ensure the health and safety of our school community, SOCSD is committed to the following:
- Reduce risky and unhealthy student behaviors by integrating outside agency supports with in-house pupil support services that stress prevention, treatment, and intervention.
- SOCSD will provide students with a well-rounded curriculum in Health/Physical Education and Athletics
- Foster and enforce a respectful learning environment
OBJECTIVE 1
In order to support students identified as at-risk and establish effective prevention programs to improve post-secondary outcomes SOCSD will:
- Establish a School Quality Task Force
- Continue to research and update bullying prevention programs and reporting protocols
- Promote standards-based school counseling and mental health programs.
- Better integrate social, health and other services through interagency collaboration
OBJECTIVE 2
SOCSD will promote healthy lifestyles for students through curricular (Health/PE), co-curricular (interscholastic sports), and extracurricular (e.g., clubs, events, trips) by:
- Evaluate existing programs to ensure more equitable access for all students
- Promote wellness activities that encourage healthy lifestyles at-home and at-school. This includes a review of the school lunch program and improved awareness concerning nutrition guidelines beyond the school day
- Promote extracurricular activities, K-12, to include increased daily physical activity that is based on varied student interests
- Ensure appropriate use of wireless devices and digital technologies to prevent unsafe online behavior.
OBJECTIVE 3
SOCSD will foster and enforce a respectful learning environment by:
- Continuing monthly Character Education assemblies and school-wide events that introduce key character themes and literature.
- Enhancing the lines of communication that promotes an empathetic dialogue between parents and teachers.
- Ensuring continued compliance with the Dignity For All Students Act (DASA) and Code of Conduct. Accountability for student behavior is not only a function of code enforcement but of self-efficacy among the student body.
- Ensuring continued compliance with Title IX, Americans with Disabilities (ADA) Act, and Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) of 1990. Promote continuous monitoring of all compliance measures to ensure equal access to all available opportunities regardless of employee’s/student’s race, color, religious creed, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender, genetic information, age, or disability.
- Promoting student-led peer mentoring for students requiring social supports.
Performance Indicators:
- Increased student attendance
- Evidence of school Quality through School Quality Survey
- Increased graduation rate
- Improved VADIR metrics
- Percentage of students who feel safe when they are at school
- Increase number of clubs and organizations for students
FOCUS AREA E: Developing Management Systems that Emphasize Quality Control and Continuous Improvement. Develop and align instructional support infrastructure, leveraging technology, operations, and business services to build a culture of alignment and continuous improvement.
STRATEGIC PLAN
To develop management systems that emphasize quality control and continuous improvement, SOCSD is committed to the following:
- Foster and maintain a collaborative environment for higher quality decision-making
- Use resources to achieve district’s vision
- Continually assess, maintain, and improve all facilities and equipment
OBJECTIVE 1
To create a collaborative environment for higher quality decision-making, SOCSD will:
- Fill all open seats and maintain Finance Council and Audit Committee to help vet ideas, plans and forecasts of financial data as well as help to measure performance by the business office in carrying out our mandate. Council and Committee consist of BOE members, community members and key district personnel that takes advantage of the wide range of talented financial professionals in the district to facilitate better decision making.
- Form and maintain Facilities Committee to include BOE members, key district personnel, vendors and, when appropriate, community members to discuss and recommend courses of action related to the facilities infrastructure and capital projects (developing and updating long-term capital plans), including financing options, facilities design, priorities of projects and facilities use.
- Include representatives from all buildings as well as all administrators in the budget development process. Present budget draft information and get feedback from Finance Council prior to the presentation of the final budget to the Board of Education for adoption.
OBJECTIVE 2
To use resources to achieve district’s vision, SOCSD will:
- Create and update high quality Long-Range Financial Plans (including 5 year Capital Plans) that compliment and support the District’s academic vision and allow for growth.
- Work with pedagogical colleagues in developing a budget that supports new initiatives and maintains successful programs in a cost-effective efficient manner.
- Periodically review vendor contracts and use the RFP process to obtain the best services for the lowest prices so that resources are freed up for reinvestment back into the District’s programs.
OBJECTIVE 3
Assess, maintain, and improve all facilities and equipment SOCSD by:
- Ensure effective communication among business, curriculum, athletics, technology as it pertains to completing projects
- Conduct a regular needs assessment to help inform the five year capital project plan
Performance Indicators:
- Increasing satisfaction with the quality of financial services as measured by annual surveys
- Evidence of increased efficiency in school operations as measured by realized cost savings
- Number of annual efficiency reviews completed
- Positive outcomes from financial audits
MONITORING PROGRESS – Major Milestones over the next five years
2018-2019
By June 2019, all focus area goals of the strategic plan will have been implemented. SOCSD will publish an annual report with performance targets. Focus area goals and objectives will be reviewed to determine whether objectives and strategies should continue, be revised, or discontinued.
2019-2020
By June 2019, all focus area goals of the strategic plan will have been implemented. More specifically, when comparing results from the performance targets from the previous year, SOCSD will review focus area goals and objectives to determine whether objectives and strategies should continue, be revised, or discontinued.
2020-2021
By June 2020, all focus area goals of the strategic plan will have been implemented and SOCSD will publish an annual report with performance targets.
2021-2022
By June 2021, all focus area goals of the strategic plan will have been implemented and SOCSD will publish an annual report with performance targets.
by Robert Pritchard, Ed.D. | May 17, 2018 | Updates
We would like to invite the public to a presentation and information session on Thursday, May 24, 2018, at 7 P.M. in the Tappan Zee High School Library. The topic of the presentation will be the Tappan Zee High School Stadium Turf Field Replacement Project. A “Q&A” will follow the presentation, and we will be joined by the SOCSD Facilities Committee and members of the community who have served for the past several months on the Turf Field Replacement Committee. Also in attendance will be our architectural firm and engineers who specialize in synthetic sports turf replacement.
The presentation will cover the various options available to school districts that use synthetic sports turf on their athletic fields. Also discussed will be the decision criteria that are used to select a system that is engineered for performance and safety. We appreciate the work that our “Turf Committee” went through to recommend a system that will benefit our students and community. Lastly, the presentation will discuss the costs and implementation timeline.
This presentation is especially critical in light of some of the recent stories in the media related to health concerns that are possibly linked to materials used in synthetic turf fields – specifically, the use of recycled automobile tires to provide the crumb rubber “infill” on playing surfaces. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published research on this topic at: https://www.epa.gov/chemical-research/federal-research-recycled-tire-crumb-used-playing-fields
The Turf Committee has considered natural alternatives to the crumb rubber (EPDM) infill in its review and will help guide the discussion of the design of the Tappan Zee turf field system. Such alternatives include plant-based “Geofill” made of coconut fibers, walnut shells, or natural sand. We will discuss the “pros and cons” of these various systems and select the one that best meets the needs of our community. An example of a Geofill sports turf field (installed in 2006) can be seen at nearby Suffern Middle School. In this example, the school district considered the anecdotal evidence that suggested a relationship between crumb rubber infill and cancer rates and subsequently opted for the installation of the coconut husk-based alternative.
Thank you to the Tappan Zee High School PTA for allowing this important topic to be included on their May 24 meeting agenda. Because this sports turf replacement has such a widespread impact on our entire community, we feel that it is essential to have an open dialogue with as many stakeholders as possible. The Tappan Zee High School Stadium is a vital public asset to this community, and we are looking forward to having you join the discussion on May 24.
by Robert Pritchard, Ed.D. | May 11, 2018 | Updates
This week is Teacher Appreciation Week and also Nurse Appreciation Week. Our teachers and our nurses are very important to us since these individuals directly impact on the success of our students. Our mission, as a school district, is centered on our ability to promote the “Instructional Core” which is to:
- Empower students to take charge of their own learning…coming to school each day, ready-to-learn
- Ensure that all of our teachers are proficient and have the resources to be the best professionally
- Provide a meaningful curriculum that is relevant to student development and 21st Century opportunities
Teachers and school nurses play a vital role towards ensuring that our students are healthy and passionate about coming to school each day. At the very heart of our ability to serve our community is the love and concern we have for our children and their futures. That is the driving force behind all that we do and I am inspired by so many of my colleagues for their service.
So…Imagine how thrilled I was when our friends at the nearby United States Military Academy reached out to me to invite all of our teachers and staff to a football game at West Point in their honor! It’s really good to know that public service is respected and appreciated by the folks at this venerable institution where they have literally written the book (s) on selfless service. Here’s what Ms. Kristi Lawless in the Army Ticket Office wrote to us:
I am reaching out to you regarding our 2018 Teacher Appreciation Day. Last year was our first attempt at reaching out to the large community of educators and dedicating a game to them, and it turned out to be a success! We are hoping to continue to grow this event, reach more educators and support staff, and expand across larger networks this year and in years to come.
This year the game will be on September 15 vs. University of Hawaii. Kick off times are TBA, but we are estimating a 12:00 PM start. All school administrators, teachers, staff and their families will receive discounted tickets at $30 each in either the endzone or the upper deck, along with recognition of their school’s or organization’s name on the video board!
With the success from last year, we were able to include a bit more this year. The school with the largest group attending the game will be rewarded with a guest speaker from West Point to present a speech at a schoolwide assembly.
I would greatly appreciate if you could share this with your faculty and staff, as it is a great opportunity for employee bonding, and with the time of year the game is being played, it could be used as a nice kick off to the school year. We can go as simple as just tickets, or as large as a reserved tailgate spot with catering, tent rentals, etc.
2018 Teacher Appreciation Day Flyer KL (003)-zmuv6g
