1. home and garden

GARDEN CITY PUBLIC SCHOOLS
On The Line ...Online
Online
E-Newsletter
www.gardencity.k12.ny.us
Vol. 5 • No. 1
Inspiring Minds, Empowering Achievement, Building Community
Legislative Affairs
Committee
The Board of Education’s newly formed
Legislative Affairs Committee has developed
a robust agenda for the 2014-2015
school year centered on achieving the
committee’s dual goals of advocacy and
education. By assessing the impact of
existing and proposed state and federal
education legislation, promoting legislation
that supports the district’s mission, and
communicating vital information to our
residents, the committee will champion
the unique needs of Garden City Public
Schools. Effectively communicating these
needs to our representative legislators in
Albany and Washington has never been
more critical. Preserving the excellence of
our educational program, an integral factor
in maintaining Garden City as a “destination
location,” requires joining together to make
our voices heard. Pictured above are the
volunteer committee members (left to
right, back row): Superintendent of Schools
Dr. Robert Feirsen, Mr. Joseph Ardito,
Mrs. Christine Alkin, Board President Mrs.
Barbara Trapasso, Assistant Superintendent
for Personnel Dr. Fino Celano, Mr. Douglas
Bohn; (front row) Coordinator of Public
Information Dr. Catherine Knight, Mrs.
Elizabeth Golden, Mrs. Stacey Young, Mrs.
Michelle Kaiserman, and Board Trustee
Robert Martin. To learn more, click on the
photo of Dr. Feirsen below.
Legislative Affairs Committee
Please join us on Friday, November 21st
and Saturday, November 22nd at 7 p.m.
as Garden City High School’s Masquers
present Neil Simon’s “Rumors,” a comedy
all are sure to enjoy. A special performance
for Garden City’s senior citizens, students,
and teachers will take place on Thursday,
November 20th at 4:00 p.m. Refreshments
for our senior citizens will be supplied
by the GCTA at 3:30 p.m. in the high
school library. For ticket information,
please contact Mr. Stephen
Mayo, 478-2531 or email:
[email protected].
Student Achievement Report
Dr. Teresa Prendergast, Assistant
Superintendent for Curriculum & Instruction
(pictured above), along with district
and building administrators, presented
the ninth annual Student Achievement
Report on Wednesday, November 5th, at
the Board of Education Work Session.
The annual Report is designed as a
comprehensive review and assessment
of Garden City’s educational program.
“We look at a three- to four-year span
with regard to achievement,” explained
Dr. Prendergast. “We share comparative
data when available, acknowledge student
awards and accomplishments, as well as
observations and analyses with regards to
student progress and the effectiveness of
our program.”
“There is no doubt in my mind, that
the culture of Garden City is to succeed,”
stated Director of Guidance Gina Christel.
“It permeates every classroom, hallway,
club activity, and on the athletic field.” Ms.
Christel and other presenters shared the
good news, and there was much of it:
•
95% of the Class of 2014 are attending
four-year colleges (4% are attending
two-year colleges; 1% are attending
a preparatory school, serving in the
military, or are employed)
•
•
•
•
In a four-year
analysis of the
highest initial
college
enrollments, the
top 25 colleges included three
Ivy
League colleges
In a four-year analysis of Garden City’s
49 Ivy League college attendees,
32 were accepted for academic
performance; 17 for athletics
86% of the Class of 2014 were accepted
to at least one of Princeton Review’s
Best Colleges
A total of 64 students during the past
four-years were named as National
Advanced Placement (AP) Scholars
(the highest level possible) by The
College Board; 206 AP Scholars were
designated in 2014 alone, and 803 were
so named in the past four years
CLICK on each image to see more:
(continued on page 2)
Homecoming 2014
Storybook Parades & Halloween
See page 4 for more about Homecoming and Spirit Week.
Student Achievement Report
(continued from page 1)
•
In Mastery Levels (85% or higher)
on the most recent Regents exams
available for comparison (2013),
Garden City students scored in the top
five of our comparator group* in 9 of
10 exams
• On the English Regents exams, Garden
City students achieved the highest
Mastery Level on Long Island; the 5th
highest in New York State
• On the Integrated Geometry Regents
exam, our high school students
achieved the fourth highest mastery
rate on Long Island
• Our high-schoolers earned the fourth
highest mastery rate in the County on
the Algebra 2/Trigonometry Regents
• Grade 7 ranked first in New York State
and in Nassau County on the 2014
math state assessment
• In science, our high school students
achieved the second highest mastery
rate on Long Island on the Living
Environment Regents and the Physics
Regents, and the third highest on Long
Island on the Chemistry Regents
• On the U.S. History Regents, our
students achieved the highest mastery
rate on Long Island, and the fifth
highest on the Global History Regents
• 136 high school students are
currently enrolled in five college level
languages: French, German, Italian,
Latin and Spanish, and taught by our
own college-certified teachers
• The high school was named a Top 100
school nationally for financial literacy
• In 2014, 19 Advanced Placement art
students earned $1.4 million in fouryear college scholarships
• Music students continue to achieve:
73 students performed at the AllCounty Music Festival, two students
and three alternates were selected
to perform at the All-State Festival,
and the Marching Band won the state
championship including Best Music,
Visual, Guard and Percussion awards
• For the ninth time, the high school
was named a NYSPHSAA School of
Distinction for all 32 varsity teams
maintaining a collective GPA of 90 or
higher
• At the elementary level, fifth-graders
ranked third in English Language Arts
and fourth in mathematics in Nassau
County on the 2014 state assessments
These are just a few of the many recent
distinctions earned by Garden City Public
School students shared at this year’s
presentation. To learn more, readers
can view the
GARDEN CITY HIGH SCHOOL
2014 Student
Class of 2015 Profile
Achievement
Report in its
entirety by
clicking here.
170 Rockaway Avenue
Garden City, NY 11530
516 478-2012; Fax: 516 747-4647
Click here for Garden City High School website
CEEB Code: 332040
District and High School Distinctions
• NationalGoldMedal“BestHighSchool”:U.S. News
• “America’sTopHighSchools”:Daily Beast
• “America’sMostChallengingHighSchools”:The Washington Post
• Ranked8thofallhighschoolsinNYS(of1,079):SchoolDigger.com
• NewYorkStateEducationDepartmentReward School
• NAMMBest Communities for Music Education
• GRAMMYSignature SchoolSemifinalist
• W!SE:Top 100 Schools for Financial Literacy
• Nine-timeWinnerScholarAthleteSchoolofDistinction:
NYS Public High School Athletic Association
High School Administration
NanineMcLaughlin,Principal
DavePerrotta,Assistant Principal
KevinSteingruebner,Assistant Principal
DawnCerrone, Director of Athletics
Central Administration
Dr.RobertFeirsen
Superintendent of Schools
Dr.TeresaPrendergast
Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum &
Instruction
Dr.FinoCelano
Assistant Superintendent for Personnel
Ms.DanaDiCapua
2
Assistant Superintendent for Business &
Finance
Board of Education
BarbaraTrapasso
President
AngelaHeineman
Vice President
TomPinou
Trustee
RobertMartin
Trustee
LauraHastings
Trustee
Counseling Center
GinaChristel,Director of Guidance:
[email protected]
High School Counselors
TimothyCasale
[email protected]
PatrickDoyle
[email protected]
JeanneKennedy
[email protected]
NatashaKhan
[email protected]
JamesMalone
[email protected]
KarenWhiston
[email protected]
To learn more
about the Class of
2014, click on the
High School Profile
image at left.
Do You Speak “Tweet”?
Follow Garden City on Twitter to receive
the latest news and announcements.
From achievements to reminders, sign
up to follow our various feeds:
District: GCUFSD
High School: Garden City HS
Stewart: StewartSchoolGC
Stratford: StratfordAveGC
Locust: LocustSchoolGC
We’d Like to Hear From YOU!
Has someone in the
district gone above-andbeyond to help you, your
child, or someone in your
family? Please consider
honoring them with a Success-o-Gram. It’s
easy - just click here and share your story.
Selected submissions will help us honor
the school district’s deserving employees.
Honoring Our Veterans
Stewart School’s Mail Call
p In a heartwarming tribute on
November 7th, students at Stewart School
honored Veterans who served in WWII,
Korea, Vietnam, the two Gulf Wars, as
well as two who are currently serving
our country. Fifth-graders wrote letters
of appreciation read by several of the
Veterans aboard the September “Honor
Flight.” To view the broadcast of CBS News
Anchor Jennifer McLogan’s coverage of this
wonderful event, click on the photo above.
Six Veterans visited with students at
Hemlock School on November 14th to share
their experiences serving in the military.
Each Veteran had a connection to a student
at the school. Kindergartners and firstgraders gave a warm welcome to each
speaker in turn, listening carefully as they
explained the jobs they performed. To see
an a photo album of the assembly, click on
the image below.q
Hemlock Welcomes Veterans
Telling Our Story
This year, Garden City’s Board of Education has been taking its Regular
Meetings on the road to the district’s schools. Each meeting offers a tour of
the building for community members since the initiation of the Bond and
EPC work, and each building principal shares a presentation highlighting
what makes the school unique. In October, the Regular Meeting was held at
Homestead (below, left); in November, at Stratford (below, right). On December 16th, the
Board will hold a tour of Garden City Middle School at 7 p.m. Principal Dr. Peter Osroff will
present an overview of life at the middle school at 8:15 p.m.
Stratford School's Board presentation
focused on its mathematics program.
Second- and fourth-graders were featured
in a video, third-graders demonstrated
math manipulatives to the Board members,
and fifth-graders shared their applied study
of parabolic curves through bridge building.
Click on the photo below to see more. q
p At Homestead School, being a “Bucket
Filler” - a responsible, caring person - is at
the core of the school’s character education
program. Here, Dr. Viscovich asked firstgraders to kick off the meeting with an
explanation of what it means to be a
“Bucket Filler.” Click on the photo above to
view a short video “catching” Homestead
students in acts of kindness.
*Cold Spring Harbor, East Williston, Great Neck, Herricks, Jericho, Locust Valley, Manhasset, North Shore, Port Washington, Rockville Centre, Roslyn, and Syosset.
Garden City’s Shining Stars
Nat’l Schools to Watch Re-designation
Garden City Middle School teachers
Kimberly Greenwald and Melissa Wolk, and
guidance counselor Mrs. Robyn Weiner
travelled to Arlington, VA this summer to
accept the Schools to Watch Re-designation
Award at the 2014 National Forum Schools
to Watch Conference. Middle school
representatives attended the September
16th Board of Education to be recognized
here in Garden City for the re-designation.
Nat’l Merit Scholarship Semifinalists
Two Garden City High School seniors were
named 2015 National Merit Scholarship
Semifinalists. Pictured here are (left to right):
Director of Guidance Gina Christel, guidance
counselor Patrick Doyle, semifinalists
Michael Crapotta and Ryan Smith, guidance
counselor Jim Malone, and high school
Principal Nanine McLaughlin. Michael and
Ryan become Garden City’s 19th and 20th
students named as semifinalists in the
competition since 2009.
NYSSMA All-State Musicians
Pictured above are Garden City’s 2014 AllState musicians with (left to right) Board
President Barbara Trapasso: juniors Jack
Casler (alternate - clarinet), Andreas Petrides
and Lindsay Grippo (Symphony Orchestra),
and Michael Snyder (alternate - clarinet),
Coordinator of Music & the Arts Dr. Nina
Prasso, and Assistant Superintendent Dr.
Teresa Prendergast (absent: senior Andrew
Andron (alternate – jazz piano).
New York State Reward Schools
Stratford Avenue, Garden City Middle
School, and Garden City High School were
recently named 2014-2015 New York State
Reward Schools. A Reward School is a public
school that has made significant progress
or has the highest performance with no
significant gaps in student achievement.
Nat’l Merit Commended Students
Congratulations to the five students
recently named as 2015 National Merit
Scholarship Commended Students. Pictured
here (left to right) are guidance counselors
Jim Malone and Patrick Doyle, Commended
Students Brandon Choi, Alexis Leighton,
Danielle Heavey, Leslie Wann, Matthew
Mage, and guidance counselors Jeanne
Kennedy and Karen Whiston, and Principal
Nanine McLaughlin. Since 2009, Garden City
has had 61 Commended Students.
All-County Musicians
Congratulations to 80 of Garden City’s
young musicians - the highest number of
students ever selected from the district
to the New York State School Music
Association (NYSSMA) All-County Music
Festival Concerts to be held at the Tilles
Center in January. “We had 26 students
chosen from the elementary level alone,”
explained District Coordinator of Music and
the Arts Dr. Nina Prasso.
(continued on page 4)
National Science Semifinalist
Brandon Gong, pictured here with Garden
City High School science research teacher Dr.
Steven Gordon, was selected as a semifinalist
in the 2014 Broadcom MASTERS (Math,
Applied Science, Technology & Engineering
for Rising Stars). “This honor places Brandon
among a select group of 300 semifinalists
named from more than 6,000 nominees
throughout the United States,” explained Dr.
Elena Cascio, district coordinator for science.
National Top 100 Schools
For the fourth year in a row,
Garden City High School was
recognized by W!SE (Working
in Support of Education) as one
of the top 100 schools in the
nation for financial literacy. Dr. Erin McKinstry
(left) and Mr. Reid Sclafani (right) were named
“Gold Star” teachers, and their business
students were awarded a “Blue Star” for their
high level of achievement on the W!SE 20132014 financial literacy test.
Adelphi Leadership Prize
Nine Garden City High School seniors were
awarded the Adelphi University Leadership
Prize. The $1,000 award also includes two
free courses at Adelphi. Pictured here with
high school principal Nanine McLaughlin are
this year’s winners (back row, left to right):
Anne Ostrowski, Alison Hoge, Lucas Hildreth,
Bobby Clarke, and Michael Crapotta; (front
row) Annemarie Kane, Shannon Tierney,
Bobby Menges, and Bridget Bingham.
3
Shining Stars
(continued from page 3)
Scholar Athlete
Congratulations to Garden City High School
senior James Sullivan III for being named
Garden City’s newest News 12 Scholar
Athlete. James is pictured here with
Ms. Dawn Cerrone, Director of Physical
Education, Health and Athletics (left) and
Principal Nanine McLaughlin, just prior
to his television interview with News 12
correspondent Kevin Marr.
Ro
Marching Band
Garden City’s Marching Band won the
U.S. Bands Division 2A New York State
Championship held on Mitchell Field. They
received a final score of 79.325 and swept
all categories: Best Music, Best Visual, Best
Guard, and Best Percussion. On November
9th, the Marching Band traveled to the
National U.S. Bands Finals in Allentown, PA
where it finished 13th, scoring 86.9.
NYSSBA Artists
Sophomores Carlos Africa and Emily
Schaubeck, Garden City High School art
students of Ms. Denise Holz, had work
(“Deconstructed Cartoon Kicks”) selected to
the New York State Art Teachers Association
Student Art Exhibit to represent Garden
City at the 95th New York State School
Boards Association Annual Convention held
in Manhattan on October 26th-28th.
pirit We
S
g
n
i
ek
ck
Each school celebrated Spirit Week
with a variety of activities designed to
raise Trojan spirit, culminating in an
amazing Homecoming, 2014. Check out
performances by Garden City’s cheerleaders
and kickline at the high school Pep Rally by
clicking on the kickline photo to the right.
High School
Homestead
Locust
High School
Recorded by GCHS alum Paulina Zaferiou
Stewart
nity Day
U
d
n
A
Trojan Spirit sculpture
created by art teacher Shawn
Uttendorfer’s students.
Garden City Public Schools
56 Cathedral Avenue
Garden City, New York 11530
www.gardencity.k12.ny.us
Inspiring Minds,
Empowering Achievement,
Building Community
Barbara Trapasso
President
Stratford
4
Tom Pinou
Trustee
Robert Martin
Trustee
Hemlock
Unity Day, a nationwide “Unite Against
Bullying” observance, fell in the middle of
Spirit Week. It was a sea of orange across the
district as students and staff wore the color
to signify being an“Upstander” for safe and
supportive schools. Many thanks to social
workers Lori Kuster and Michele Vincent.
Angela Heineman
Vice President
Laura Hastings
Trustee
Robert Feirsen, Ed.D.
Superintendent of Schools
Middle School
Catherine Knight, Ed.D.
Coordinator of Public Information