Board of Ed Big Reveal
Didn’t want to sit through the meeting? Don’t feel like an outsider, just read the Insider.
Controversial rolling gradebook under fire
An apology to parents
A surprising new addition to the board
Plus more
BY DEBORAH SKOLNIK
With school back in full swing, there was a palpable shift in Tuesday’s Board of Education meeting. While discussions over the break centered around how changes to programs and policies might be received, there was now the question of filtering incoming feedback. The Board’s diligent efforts over the summer, now completed, were reviewed as well. Those in the audience, both virtually and personally, got a glimpse of the triumphs and challenges that lie ahead for our dynamic district.
New kid on the BOE block
In an announcement that caught many off guard, BOE President Suzie Hahn shared that a student, yet to be named, will soon join the Board’s ranks. The reason: Several days before the meeting, Governor Kathy Hochul signed legislation requiring all school districts outside of New York City to include at least one ex-officio, non-voting student member on their Board of Education effective July, 2025. Hahn expressed enthusiasm for the new measure: “Hearing from students directly on school matters has always been welcome and important feedback, and a student board member will hopefully empower and amplify that student voice even further, as well as engage students in matters of civics and governance,” she said. Continuing the theme of engagement, she announced that Board coffees, to which the public will be invited, will be scheduled soon.
A productive partnership
School Superintendent Dr. Drew Patrick spoke next, thanking the school staff for their hard work over the summer. He recounted the pleasure of attending the ribbon-cutting ceremony for a new Greenacres playground, and drew attention to the effort required to make it a reality. “For those who don't know, the property that the new playground sits on is actually school district property that has long been shared with the village to provide younger children in the neighborhood with a place to play, especially during the day when our students are using school equipment,” he explained. “ This is a good example of the many shared arrangements that we have with the village.” Dr. Patrick also shared that a meeting would occur the following day at which he, the school board president, the village manager, the mayor, and the deputy mayor would all be present. ”We look forward to another year of strong collaboration on behalf of the residents,” he said.
Domestic violence awareness program scheduled
Board member Leah Dembitzer provided insight into her role as liaison to the Safe Coalition, a program run by Scarsdale Edgemont Family Counseling Service for people seeking assistance with issues related to domestic violence. October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, Dembitzer shared, and on October 2nd, from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m., there will be a virtual event entitled Behind Closed Doors. Facilitated by the former director of Westchester County Family Justice Center and Deputy Director of Westchester County Office for Women, the program will seek to raise awareness about risk factors of lethality as it relates to domestic violence. In addition, attendees will learn about resources for those who find themselves in a potentially perilous situation. On the October 29th, at 7:00 p.m. there will be another virtual event: Sticks and Stones: Defeating the Culture of Bullying.
Auditorium update
The eagerly awaited renovation of the Scarsdale High School auditorium is proceeding at the expected pace, said Assistant Superintendent for Business Andrew Lennon. “The demolition and abatement that was scheduled to happen prior to school starting was successfully completed, and we received all the air clearances in time for students to return to Scarsdale High School, so we were really happy about that,” he told the Board. “All of the tradesman have been performing the ground-level demolition work that they're able to do until our scaffolding gets installed. We anticipate our scaffolding will go up next week,” he added. By November of December, Lennon expects the finishing stages of the project will begin. In the meantime, the school’s facilities team is working closely with administration to make sure that noise distrubances are quickly address. “We will make sure that contractors know students’ learning is a priority and if they cannot accommodate that, they will be forced to work second shift,” he concluded.
What's for lunch? The district is working to smooth out kinks in the meal ordering system.
Sorry about that school lunch snafu…
A number of parents been expressed exasperation about the switch from MySchoolBucks to Nutrislice for pre-ordering school lunches, since the latter charges the same fee for a single order as for a one-time order of multiple meals. Lennon provided the back story to the transition. MySchoolBucks represented a merger between our district’s student meal account system and Nutrislice, which is the program used by our district’s food service company. Last school year, however, the food service company informed the district that it would begin to accept credit payments, a change that would necessitate splitting from MySchoolBucks.
“After sharing that information with the food service management committee, and the parents on that committee sharing their desire to have immediate confirmation of the orders they place, we realized we needed to move forward…so we set about this summer making changes to implement the online ordering process,” Lennon explained.
”Unfortunately, there were several fits and starts, and it wasn't until late August that we were able to test the system,” he continued. “In that process we identified that the financial fees related to online transactions needed to be addressed…We decided rather quickly to match our fees to the one charged by MySchoolBucks.” It soon became clear the strategy was problematic. “We recognized that those who ordered for a full month were probably getting a little bit of a savings and those who ordered one meal would be paying a significant fee,” Lennon said. A decision was made to waive the fee for September and October while the matter is further investigated.
On behalf of [Food Service Director Tara Cook], I want to apologize for the way that was rolled out, with very poor communication,” Lennon said. “I think it was unfortunately the timeline that we are underm and a desire to quickly implement this. So we're going to look back at that and make sure we do a better job in the future with communicating these types of changes.“
Reality bites
The topic of food service did not end there; Board Member Leah Dembitzer inquired as to whether the department is adequately staffed. “I know in past years sometimes staffing was difficult with the acai bar at the high school and the yogurt stations, and I'm just wondering are we up and running with everything.” Lennon reply was direct: “We are short of staff. The labor category that we’re talking about is one that is perennially hard to fill, and we are no different last year than in previous years.” Tara Cook, he added, had been hard at work interviewing candidates just days before school began.
CSE progress
The Board shared happy news that the district has a new CPSE/CSE chair, Alexandra Hughes. Along with her assistant, the school is looking to rejigger caseloads. Alexandra and the other CSE chairs are reaching out to those families that will have a change in their CSE chairperson to introduce themselves. It won’t instantaneous switch due to the long history of understanding client families and students, but overall, the transition is going smoothly.
Public comment on a hot topic: the rolling gradebook
[Summary] During the first public comment session, resident Jennifer Zola addressed the board. She thanked the board profusely for their warm welcome back to school, as well as the community-engagement initiatives coming up shortly. “I just think there’s a lot of great work being done here,” she said. Yet she expressed concern about the rolling gradebook system the school has implemented as of last year for assessing students’ academic performance. “ I do think it needs to be thought through a little bit more carefully for a full collaboration on what that means for students,” Zola said.
“I know what the objectives were, and I think some of them aren't necessarily being made with the way it was rolled out last year,“ she continued. I want to make sure that the Board of Education is able to continue that conversation and keep parents aware of where it goes, and help students to understand what the grading policy is so they're not confused by the report cards. They [need to] understand how the measurement of success…is presented to them— that it's not just the letter that they see in front of them for any given quarter, because the report cards still do show quarters. That it's the feedback that they get, the timing of their tests, of their papers, but a little bit better understanding of how grading can be done to further student understanding of their success in a class.“
Does our math program add up?
[Summary] Second to comment was Scarsdale resident Max Grudin. After thanking the Board for their time and devotion, he voiced concern about the quality of the district’s math program. Sharing that he was about to pick up his son from a private math-enrichment program, he commented that some 50% of the children enrolled in that program are from Scarsdale elementary schools. “I think that as a community, we should consider how we address our tax dollars to select a good math program so that we do not have to go to these [classes],” he said. He suggested a more open dialogue about the way Scarsdale teaches math: “I think as a community we should try to strive to find a program that is compliant with the state guidelines but also doesn't leave our kids behind,” he stated.
Back to the rolling gradebook
Dr. Patrick noted that the district has received a lot of feedback on both the rolling gradebook and other practices that impact grades. “I think it's begun to coalesce around a series of important themes,” he observed. “One is this challenge of the quarter grade versus the rolling grade. An wouldn't it be nice to see both, for example, as one possible adaptation to that?” He shared that administrators are working with Scarsdale High School Principal Kenneth Bonamo to consolidate those themes and share them back out to the community.
”I've gotten a lot of questions,” Dr. Patrick conceded. I know board members and others or PTA representatives have gotten a lot of questions about this [too] and I know it can be a little disconcerting or feel uncomfortable, but I see this as a sign that we've opened up good conversation about a practice that's been in place a long time…I would want our community [to know] we're listening and the high school's listening and has a approach to digest that feedback and make good sense of it.” He encouraged parents to attend Mr. Bonamo’s first parent coffee on September 24th. “Thank you and certainly feel free to keep the input coming,” he concluded.
More math
Dr. Edgar McInstosh shared that he and his team worked hard over the summer to make the district’s Reveal Math program better than ever. “We continue to get positive and robust data back that our kids are not only developing in their skills but also developing in those practices and those dispositions that we value,” he said. He encouraged community members to call him to discuss the system or to voice questions or concerns.
Crunching the numbers
Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources and Leadership Development Megan Troy shared the latest stats surrounding our schools. “We welcomed 4,695 students into our schools and classrooms last week,” she shared, eight fewer than last year. There are 2,127 students at the elementary level, 1,086 in grades six through eight, and 1,482 high schoolers. In all, total enrollment is a mere 37 students lower than in the previous school year. Staff-wise, the district is 3.1 FTEs over its projected staffing number due to shifting demands. For a detailed look at enrollment and staffing figures, click here.
A new textbook
Dr. McIntosh presented a book being added to the school curriculum, The Door of No Return, by Kwame Alexander. “It is a powerful historical novel set in nineteeth-century Africa. It follows the story of Kofi, a young boy from Asti Villagem he navigates his coming of age journey. He experiences cultural traditions, familial bonds, and the looming threat of captivity,” Dr. McIntosh says. “The novel explores, themes of resilience, identity, and the impact of historical events on individual lives, all conveyed through Alexander's poetic narrative style.”
The meeting adjourned soon thereafter. To watch it in its entirety, click here.