Superintendent's Scoop
Dr. Manno's E-Brief, Nov. Edition, #5, 2017-18 School Year
INSPIRING AND CHALLENGING OUR STUDENTS
A message from the Board of Education and Superintendent of Schools
Dear BCSD Families,
It is quite a busy time of year.
We are working diligently to move forward our new Success Plan, which resulted from our Strategic Planning work last school year. You can find our long and short-range Success Plan, as well as this year's Action Plans for each of our BIG Goal areas here. Areas of focus continue to include improving programs for students, improving communications and community engagement, improving climate and safety, and improving fiscal and operational management. These are BIG Goal areas in which we continuously seek to refine and improve our work. Our Action Planning teams meet regularly and work with grade levels and departments to achieve the objectives of our Success Plan.
We are in the process of developing the 2018-19 Superintendent's Budget, which gets presented to the Board of Education and Community during our February 28th Board of Education meeting. At this time, we are working with principals and directors to understand building and program needs. In January, the budget will begin to take form. Once the Superintendent's Budget is presented to the BoE, the Board begins its work to refine and finalize the budget.
At this week's Board of Education meeting, the Superintendent of Schools will provide a presentation which includes recommendations regarding our Dual Language Bilingual Education Program. Details are below.
Additional upcoming Board Presentations include:
November 29th - Director of Special Education's Status and Entry Report
December 13th - New Course Proposals Overview for Fox Lane High School
December 20th - District Goals Fiscal Impacts Report for 2018-19 Budget
Finally, our Community Advisory Committees - Budget Advisory, Space and Enrollment Advisory, and Student Achievement Advisory - have started meeting to discuss and provide input on the direction of our District.
We wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving with family and friends.
Sincerely,
Brian Sheerin, President
Michelle Brooks, Vice President
William Canavan
Colette Dow
Pam Harney
Edward Reder
Beth Staropoli
Dr. Christopher Manno, Superintendent of Schools
Substance Use and Abuse Prevention Presentation
Special Focus on the Newest Trend—Vaping
Thursday, November 30, 2017—7:00 PM, FLHS MLMT
Do you know:
- Your child’s perceptions of drug and alcohol use?
- About vaping and the associated dangers?
- Indicators that your child might be vaping?
- That drug overdose is the number one cause of death in the U.S., surpassing car accidents?
- Our children are at risk—Parents, you need to attend and consider doing so with your child(ren).
Alarming Facts:
- Vaping is associated with “Smoker’s Cough” and bloody sores. The hotter the inhaled vaped liquid, the harsher the effects on human cells. A relatively new vaping trend called “dripping” increases the heat of vaped materials and the dangers for users. New data suggests e-cigarette vapors may contain cancer-causing chemicals.
- Students as young as 12 or 13 are now more likely to vape than to smoke. Vaping is a gateway to the use of nicotine, THC (the active ingredient in marijuana), and increased substance abuse.
Fox Lane Student Survey: Substance Use Prevalence & Trends:
Dr. Christopher Manno, Superintendent of Schools, will discuss the results of the student survey
Everything Parents Need to Know About Vaping:
Heather Buono, Student Assistance Counselor; Tom Burns, FLHS Health Teacher; Ahmad Warren, School Resource Officer; Dr. Brett Miller, Principal of FLHS; Sue Ostrofsky, Principal of FLMS; Northern Westchester Hospital; Partners in Prevention.
DLBE Study Board Presentation on Wednesday, November 15th, 7 p.m., FLMS Little Theater
The 2016-17 BCSD Space and Enrollment Advisory Committee called for the evaluation on the possibility of a Dual Language Bilingual School of Choice, while the Budget Advisory Committee called for the District to explore alternate ESOL delivery models at MKES and to evaluate the effectiveness and cost of such programs. These recommendations were presented in the respective committee's final 2017 reports to the Board of Education which are linked above. In April 2017, the Board of Education charged the Superintendent of Schools with evaluating the DLBE program, and more specifically, how MKES serves children who participate in the traditional (English-only taught) sections.
Beginning in May 2017, the Superintendent convened a working group of school leaders to study, evaluate, and analyze the situation. The group met weekly and engaged in a systematic process of reviewing the history of programs at MKES, studying Part 154 requirements and all options for ESOL program models, establishing objectives of the committee’s work, identifying seven alternatives to consider, evaluating those alternatives against the objectives, engaging in risk and fiscal impact analyses, and reviewing student achievement data. This work continued throughout the summer of 2017. In the fall of 2017, the team engaged stakeholders in multiple (11) focus groups to glean teacher and parent perspectives about MKES programs. An interest survey of incoming first-grade students for 2018-19 at the other elementary schools for a DLBE School of Choice housed at MKES was also conducted.
Dr. Manno will present the findings and recommendations of the study on Wednesday, November 15th, 7 p.m. in the FLMS Little Theater.
Emergency Closing/Delayed Opening Procedures
In the event of inclement weather or other circumstances that would cause the closing of schools, a delayed opening, or an early school closing, communication with staff and families occurs in multiple and redundant ways.
Families and staff members will get notified via phone, email, and text using our School Messenger system. Please make sure your school has up-to-date contact information .
The District also posts delay, early dismissal, or closing information on the District Website, BCSDTV, and uses WHUD, News 12, NBC-TV, CBS-TV, FOX 5, and ABC-TV to broadcast school closings, late arrivals, and early dismissals.
On days when inclement weather is predicted, the decision to close school could be made the evening prior. If not, the decision-making process begins at 3:30 a.m. and includes research on weather conditions, assessment of site conditions for our schools, consultation with the highway departments of our towns, and a conference call with regional superintendents of schools. A decision will be made by approximately 5 a.m. and the communication process will be initiated.
Some important information:
- A "Delay" means a 2-hour delay for students and staff. Students report to their bus stops or arrive at school 2 hours after normal time.
- When a "Delay" is called, please continue to be alert for communications, as a "Delay" can become a "School Closing."
- For "Early Dismissals," the earliest bus runs for the high school/middle school would begin at 10:20 a.m. Elementary students would be dismissed at 11:30 a.m.
- If schools are closed, facilities are not available for use for after-school or evening activities by internal or external organizations; therefore, all after-school activities are canceled, with the exception of after-care occurring in schools.
- For "Early Dismissals," staff members are dismissed after students have left the campus.
- If schools are closed or there is an early dismissal on a Friday, please check the District website for the status of weekend activities.