I wish to welcome everyone to the start of the new school year. I anticipate that we will have another wonderful school year filled with many opportunities for our students to grow and learn. I believe that the 2008-2009 school year will be an exciting and rewarding year for all!
I want to take this opportunity to welcome two new school administrators to Island Trees. Dana DiCapua is our new Assistant Superintendent for Business. Dana comes to us from the Plainview-Old Bethpage School District. James Cranmer is our new Director of Physical Education, Health & Athletics. Jim comes to us from the Shoreham-Wading River School District. I look forward to working with both of them and congratulate them both as new members of our administrative team.
For the second consecutive year, the New York State Education Department has recognized Island Trees UFSD as a High Performing School District. Our students continue to do very well academically as evidenced by our test results. Recently, Newsday published test scores form the 2006-07 school year and our students did very well. This past year, 2007-08, our students continued to do very well. The passing rate for all grades levels, 3-8, on the New York State Mathematics Assessment exceeded 90%. Our students also did well on the English language arts assessment and on Regents Examinations. Our high school’s Middle States Accreditation was renewed and Island Trees was once again recognized as one of the Top One Hundred Communities in America for Music. I extend my congratulations to our administrators, faculty, staff and students!
During the upcoming year, we anticipate working on some exciting initiatives. We will continue to expand our technology program by upgrading our network and installing interactive whiteboards. We have also installed the Connect-Ed system that will give us the ability to contact our parents by telephone simultaneously with important announcements. All core curricular areas have been mapped and we plan to complete the arts this year. Curriculum maps for each subject and grade level may be accessed on our website and I encourage all parents to do so. Just click on the link “New: Curriculum Maps” and you can view the topics to be covered during the school year.
Much work has been done to prepare our buildings and grounds for the new school year. Our custodians and maintenance personnel have worked hard to ensure that our buildings are ready for our students, faculty and staff. Moreover, several bond projects have commenced such as the unit ventilator replacement at our elementary schools and the refurbishment of the elevator at the high school. We will continue to implement bond projects as we receive approvals from the State Education Department. We have also completed the work recommended by the EPA this past spring regarding the lead testing at the high school.
Our clerical and food service personnel have been busy preparing for the new school year. Our administrators and many teachers have also been working to prepare for the opening of school. I commend our administrators, faculty and staff for a job well done!
The Commissioner of Education has issued guidelines for school districts regarding procedures to address the issue of food allergies. We have developed procedures using these guidelines. New procudres will be in place for the upcoming school year. You will hear more about this from your school principal.
Our summer has been a very busy time for staff and students. Our summer sport camps, music and YES programs were very successful, providing our students with extended learning opportunities and much fun! Many students attended our summer high school program and our SCOPE pre-K program. Now, we are ready for a new school year!
I congratulate our administrators, faculty, custodial, maintenance, clerical, nursing and food service personnel for all their hard work that will ensure a smooth transition to the new school year! I look forward to another year filled with wonderful educational opportunities for our children!
James Parla
Superintendent of Schools
James Parla Superintendent of Schools jparla@islandtrees.org
