1. education
2. school

THIS WEEK (June 1–5, 2015)
• June 1: Grades 4 & 8 Written NYS Science Assessment
• June 1: High School Metro Awards, 4–10 p.m., Stepinac High School
• June 2: Board of Education Meeting, 7:30 p.m., PHS Library Media Center, Reports: Fund for Learning
Grants; 2014-15 Board Goals Update
• June 3: Boys’ Varsity Lacrosse Downstate Semifinal v Cold Spring Harbor, 3:30 p.m., Middletown HS
• June 3: MS Grade 5 Spring Concert, 7:30 p.m., PHS Auditorium
• June 4: BRS Family Barbeque, 5:30–7:30 p.m., BRS Playground
• June 4: PHS Science Symposium, 6:30 p.m., PHS Library Media Center
• June 5: Principal’s Coffee for Grade 8 Parents, 7:45 a.m., MS Principal’s Office
• June 5: BRS Incoming Kindergarten Scavenger Hunt, 3:15 p.m., BRS
DISTRICT HAPPENINGS (May 25–29, 2015)
At Bedford Road School…
At the Middle School…
• Two amazing wellness events, K Fit Day and Jump-a-thon, took place this week during recess. Both
encouraged students to move and groove to keep their minds and bodies healthy! Many thanks to teachers
Jen Picco and Tom Miccucci and PTA parent volunteers Mrs. O’Reilly and Mrs. Catalano for their steadfast
commitment to keeping BRS students on the move!
• Mr. Marsden’s third graders wowed the audience with their performance of The Granny Awards. The lights,
cameras, speeches and songs celebrated the true heroes in many popular fairy tales.
• Student Fill a Bucket Committee members decorated a fence on the parade route with inspirational
messages for members of the Pleasantville Police Department to read as they marched by in the
Pleasantville Firemen’s Parade.
• Mrs. Vinchkoski’s and Mrs. Canfield’s seventh grade students participated in a mock trial to reinforce what
they learned about the Judicial Branch of government. To quote one student, “The trial was a different and
fun way to learn. I had a blast!”
• Library Media Specialist Marissa Fraher was recently elected to the Southern Westchester BOCES School
Library System Council for a term of three years.
• On Friday, fifth and sixth graders had a wonderful day “traveling” through the Western (USA, Canada,
Mexico, Dominican Republic, Argentina, and Brazil) and Eastern (Italy, Greece, Israel, Turkey, India,
Africa, Australia) Hemispheres, respectively. We are so grateful to the Middle School PTA for sponsoring
this annual culmination to our fifth and sixth grade Social Studies programs.
At the High School…
• Nicole Osinoff & Sabrina Mittelstadt were inducted into the PHS chapter of the National Speech and Debate
Honor Society at its end-of-year dinner on Tuesday evening.
• Boys’ Track qualified for six events in the NYS Track Meet that will be held at SUNY Albany, June 12-13:
400 (Eric Hughes), 800 (Patrick Watts), 1600 (Patrick Watts, who also set a new PHS record for this event),
3200 (Drew Dorflinger), 4x400 (Patrick Watts, JC Yahia, Eamon Coburn, Eric Hughes and a new PHS
record), and 4x800 (Dylan Bronkema, Eli Waxler, Drew Dorflinger, Patrick Watts). The line-up for the relay
events may be revised prior to the meet. Until this year, only two boys have participated in the state meet
over the last 15 years.
• On Thursday, two teams of current or former AP Computer Science students (Angela Calvi, Jayson Calvi,
Lorenzo Castoldi, Tucker Coburn, Jackson Wong, and David Zweibaum), accompanied by teacher Virginia
Nalbandian, participated in the annual St Joseph’s College Programming Competition. Students were given
8 programming problems to solve using Java, Python, or C++ within a 2.5 hour timeframe. Of the 48 teams
competing, the winning team completed 5 of the 8 problems; the PHS teams completed 4 (25th place) and 3
(34th place) respectively.
• At a school-wide assembly on Friday, students gave a lengthy standing ovation to “freshman” principal Joe
Palumbo after yearbook editors announced that the PHS Class of 2015 had dedicated its yearbook to him.
The dedication states, in part: “Although this is your inaugural year…you have truly made a difference in
our school and have helped to make our senior year everything it was meant to be…You have left such a
mark in our memories and will continue to do so for years to come.”
UPCOMING HAPPENINGS (June 8–12, 2015)
•
•
•
•
•
June 9: June 10: June 10: June 11: June 11: PHS Spring Concert II, 7:30 p.m., PHS Auditorium
PHS Theatre Scenes Program, 4:30 p.m., PHS Chorus Room
BRS Spring Concert, 7:30 p.m., PHS Auditorium
PHS Senior Prom, 5 p.m., PHS Front Circle
MS Grade 8 Awards Night, 7:30 p.m., MS Multipurpose Room
DID YOU SEE…?
• Educational Channel (Verizon Channel 32 & Cablevision Channel 77, simulcast Fridays on Cablevision
Channel 76) Schedule for May 28–June 4: 7 a.m., 12 p.m., 8 p.m. & 12 a.m., Board of Education Meeting of May 19, 2015; 11 a.m., 4-Dolan: The 13 Colonies; 3 p.m., PHS Band Concert; 5 p.m., PHS Talent
Show; 7 p.m., MS Grade 6 Spring Concert
• New York Times: Costly Tax Break for Nonpublic Schools
• The Examiner: Get Education Bill Right