Dugan and Brown to Lead Scarsdale Board of Education
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Jim Dugan is the new President of the Scarsdale School BoardWhile Scarsdale students may have just officially started their summer vacations earlier in the week, the Board of Education has already held their first meeting of the 2025-2026 school year! Though the meeting, held on the morning of July 1st, included usual business matters such as member and cabinet updates, perhaps some of the most noteworthy moments took place during the annual Organizational Meeting and the swearing in of new members.
New Leadership
In exciting news the Board elected Jim Dugan as President and Colleen Brown as Vice President for the 2025-2026 school year. In nominating Dugan for President, Brown shared, “Jim Dugan has been an integral member of the Board for the past four years. His ability to bring thoughtful and insightful perspective to every Board discussion has been invaluable in helping us advance our district strategic plan.” And in Brown’s nomination, BOE member Amber Yusef related, “Colleen Brown uses her experience in training as an educator to advance the initiatives the Scarsdale School District in support of our students…Colleen consistently focuses on the needs of our students and our district and Board will be well served by her leadership.”
In addition to these elections, the Board also welcomed its newest Board members starting with Laura Liu who is embarking on her first term. The Board also welcomed its two, new ex officio student Board members Anish Mehta and Lucy Eisenberg. Though having student members of the BOE is a newly adopted policy, Mehta, a rising senior at SHS and Eisenberg, a rising junior, proved in their first meeting that they will contribute an important and valuable perspective.Colleen Brown is the Vice President of the Scarsdale School Board
New Hires
In related news, during her Personnel Report, Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources, Meghan Troy introduced new faculty appointments including:
Christa Canfield who will be teaching 4th grade at Greenacres Elementary School.
Tamara Barbour will be joining us as an elementary PE teacher at Heathcote School.
Lauren Smith will join Edgewood as a 4th grade classroom teacher.
Matthew Suffern as a music teacher at the elementary level. Mr. Suffern will primarily be an orchestra teacher but will also provide instruction for our band students. He will be assigned to Fox Meadow, Greenacres, and Heathcote Elementary Schools.
Deborah Zides will be joining Scarsdale Middle School as a school psychologist.
Michael Berkowitz will be joining Scarsdale Middle School as a special education teacher.
Katherine Constan will be joining Scarsdale High School as a special education teacher.
Madeline Hyde, will be joining Quaker Ridge as a kindergarten teacher.
Bradley Magnusson as a leave replacement in the area of special education. He will be assigned to Scarsdale Middle School.
Nick Ferraro as the new Director of Facilities.
Congratulations to the Grads
Other highlights of the meeting included a heartfelt congratulations to this year’s graduating students. New BOE President Jim Dugan shared, “Class of 2025 you really deserve all the accolades that came to you and that will come to you. You've worked so hard, grown so much as people and as lifelong learners from your time here at Scarsdale and you are now well prepared to take the next step in your lives and to succeed as you move forward towards your life goals, whatever they may be, even if you're still trying to figure that out, whatever you do next. We wish you all the very best, and congratulations to all our fifth and eighth grade students who have moved up.”
Among other endearing sentiments, Dr. Patrick added, “And I also want to add my congratulations to the 2025, Scarsdale High School graduates and recognize the work and dedication of the high school faculty, staff and administration for really providing an amazing graduation experience for our students.”
To read more about the graduation ceremonies see here.
Girl Scout Gold Award
In her update, BOE member Suzie Hahn celebrated Samantha Levine, a Scarsdale High School senior, who was recently awarded the “Girl Scout Gold Award” the highest award in Girl Scouting that acknowledges the scout’s time, effort, leadership and creativity in designing and completing a sustainable service project that fulfills a need within the community, creates change and continues forward. Hahn reported that at the ceremony, “Dr. Patrick congratulated the young women who achieved this distinction and presented Samantha Levine with a certificate of recognition of her Gold Star achievement for her project called “Simply Cooking with Sam.” Levine’s project created recipes in English and Spanish to support Food Pantry recipients who receive free food but do not know how to make simple, healthy, fast meals with the ingredients found in food pantries.”
Reveal Math
New Vice President of the BOE Colleen Brown also shared an update about the Reveal Math Coffee Morning. As she related, “This event was thoughtfully designed to address concerns raised by our community regarding the Reveal Math program, while also providing insight into the curriculum and collecting additional feedback to help move the program forward in a way that supports all of our students' mathematical learning needs. The session began with the hands-on learning stations led by our own teachers. These stations allowed us to engage directly with the curriculum, experiencing firsthand what our students encounter in the classroom. It also provided the opportunity to hear from teachers across all five elementary schools about their experiences with Reveal Math. Following stations, there was a brief presentation highlighting the specific concerns voiced by the community and outlining the District's plan to address them. This includes targeted summer work, fluency assessments, and supplemental material to strengthen the current curriculum. The event concluded with an interactive, feedback session where parents met in small groups with District staff, Board of Education members, Math Department coordinators and teachers. These small group discussions created space for honest, candid feedback that will be used to guide the District summer work and ensure we are meeting the needs of all learners, helping them grow and thrive in the field of mathematics. I would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to Edgar and his math team for organizing this thoughtful event. I'd also like to thank the District Cabinet members and all the teachers who took time out of their busy day to help deepen our understanding of this curriculum. It is clear that this coffee demonstrated the District's commitment to transparency and strong partnerships with our community. Together, we can continue to support our students as they learn, grow and thrive.”
Later in the meeting when the Board discussed Action Items, Dr. Patrick added his own description of Reveal Math when he provided background information and a proposal for renewing the contract with McGraw-Hill’s Reveal Math for three years. Patrick explained, “Reveal Math was chosen for its balanced approach to conceptual understanding, procedural fluency and problem solving, which supports the evolving needs of our students and aligns with the Next Gen math standards. In choosing to use Reveal tools, we're part of a diverse network of international educators, from Dover, Massachusetts to the International Community School in Singapore and many, many school districts, public and private across the world. This recommendation is the result of careful evaluation of both Reveal Math strength and areas that they need to improve, as well as a commitment to using these insights to guide ongoing professional development, curriculum adjustments, and targeted supplements from non Reveal materials.”
Patrick went on to say, “We're going to continue to use other select resources and publishers beyond Reveal, as we've discussed, and to make Scarsdale specific revisions as necessary. In fact, our elementary math coordinators and elementary teachers have already met once this summer to begin work toward the Fact Fluency benchmarking that we discussed both at the Coffee and at our last meeting. So our goal is to ensure that our instructional materials remain effective and adaptable, helping all of our students develop math fact fluency skills, confidence, and joy in learning math. We really do value the feedback we've received over the course of this year from educators, families, administrators, students, Board members and through various assessments of student learning. We've also shared direct feedback with McGraw Hill about concerns about some of their materials. Some of that feedback has led to immediate changes in their digital resources, (obviously, those move faster than the print in terms of making changes), while other suggestions are being considered for future print updates. By extending our partnership with Reveal Math, we will continue to offer engaging, rigorous math experiences and emphasize essential content, foster deeper conceptual understanding and promote real world applications. We remain dedicated to being responsive using evidence based approaches and informed by research and input from our community, and we welcome ongoing feedback as we work to meet the needs of each of our learners.”
In an update about Safety, Security, and Emergency Management, Mr. Eric Rauschenbach reported that this summer, the District will commence work on the “Door Ajar Sensors” and will be able to put in at least some of the priority doors in each of our schools across the district.
Tax Credits for EV Buses in Question
Assistant Superintendent for Business, Andrew Lennon, also provided an update having to do with the purchase of three new EV buses and his concerns about the EPA grant funding. He related, “The purchase for those buses was using EPA grant funding, District budget resources, as well as the presumption that we would be eligible for some federal tax credits. Given the current market environment, [My team] has concerns about whether we can rely on the federal tax rebates in order to continue to move forward with the program of electrification of our fleet. We've released a purchase order for two of the three busses, which keep us within our budget threshold, and we are continuing to investigate whether or not the federal tax rebates will make its way through the big, beautiful bill that is on debate at the Capitol at the moment, if that bill does lead us to believe that we will be eligible for those credits, we will continue with the third purchase and make sure that we have that third bus in the in the current year budget. If it does not, we will have to update the port on our status of the four total buses that we have EPA funding for.”
Lennon further shared, “Also included in the budget was the eight year lease approval for the EV bus charging infrastructure lease agreement. I am continuing to negotiate with Highland Electric Fleets regarding the terms and conditions of that, as well as fine tune the presumed design information so that we understand both if this agreement continues to make business sense for us, and if it provides us the flexibility we need to be responsive to either the changing landscape of EV buses or our District's ability to go it alone and continue to roll out the EV buses, but not having to partner with outside groups.”
While there were no Public Comments made at this first meeting of the 2025-2026 school year, there was a lot of other information discussed and shared. Watch the meeting in its entirety here.
Some Enchanted Evening: SHS Graduates the Class of 2025
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It’s the moment parents and seniors anticipate and dread in equal measure—graduation. A time to look back on years of growth and hard work and to face the bittersweet reality that the children they once knew are now grown and flown. Life at home will never be quite the same.
With hearts full of memories and eyes set on the future, grandparents, aunts and uncles, parents, teachers, and administrators gathered on Butler Field on the evening of Friday, June 20, to see the transformation of 360 high school seniors into graduates of Scarsdale High School.
Thankfully, the Class of 2025 reached this milestone beneath an azure sky, shielded from the storms and uncertainty of the wider world. The surrounding days brought record-breaking heat and thunderous weather, and the following day the President would declare war. But on Friday evening, time stood still. As the sky shifted from blue to gray to pink, the class, led by Class Advisors Carol D’Angelo and Michael Kumaresan (Dr. K), processed onto the field, cheered on by their teachers who lined the track.
School Board President Suzie Hahn addressed the graduates::
“You have completed a famously rigorous course of study to earn your Scarsdale diploma and demonstrated resilience and fortitude in the face of every challenge. You’ve charted your own paths, both in and out of the classroom, honing essential life skills and developing a strong sense of self.”
She continued, “Be confident that your experiences in Scarsdale have prepared you well for these rapidly changing times. You’ve learned to communicate clearly, listen carefully, and think critically and creatively. You’ve collaborated with classmates, supported each other, and formed lifelong friendships. As you reflect on your time here, I hope you’re as proud of yourselves as we are of you. Watching you grow has been a joy.”
Quoting the school motto Non Sibi—not for oneself—Hahn reminded the class of their responsibility:
“You have so much to offer. Engage with others with kindness and an open heart. And be kind to yourselves, too—for you are precious, and enough. I have every confidence that you will lead with integrity, serve with empathy, and live with purpose.” She closed with warmth: “Don’t forget to call home regularly after you’ve flown the nest—and please, come back and visit us here in Scarsdale.”
Class Officers Amelia Feder and Mason Levy took the stage to thank Advisors D’Angelo and Kumaresan for their unwavering support over the past four years.
“Their constant encouragement shaped our class,” they said. “From prom to community service to barbecues, they helped us pull off incredible events. Whether the issue was big or small, they were always there.” “Señora D’Angelo brings warmth and a love of teaching,” they shared. “Dr. K can explain a calculus problem five different ways until it clicks. But their support went far beyond academics—they made sure we were seen and heard. They helped us be our best selves."

Señora D’Angelo said, "Today we are charged with leaving you with a last impactful message and so we would like to talk to you about two aspects of life: relationships and responsibilities.
Aristotle said: “Good moral character is not something that we can achieve on our own. We need a culture that supports the conditions under which self-love and friendship flourish.”
Take a minute to look around and see all of the people who made this moment possible and all of the relationships that you made along the way."
Dr. K added, "For most of you, you will never ever have to refer to any of this anymore: chemical equations, the plots of novels, historical dates and names, the quadratic formula, the carbon cycle, Shakespeare, the subjunctive conjugation, the causes of World War I – in real life, people just look that stuff up on Wikipedia – or better yet, ask chat GPT!
So then, what was the deal with all those tests and quizzes and homework?
There are many people in the world who never got the chance to go to school and all those people know why your tests and quizzes and homework were important. They know that they’re missing something. They know the simple truth – that it’s better to know, than to not know. They know that it’s better to read the newspaper than to be uninformed. They know that being able to learn about great literature, the cells in the human body, the chemical composition of the stars, and the fundamental theorem of calculus is a privilege not a chore."
"... So what should you do with this privilege? That we don’t know! But of course, that’s the hard part, because it’s entirely up to you. What we do know is that the world isn’t perfect. We’ve got a lot of problems and challenges.
But you’re a capable group of young people. As your class advisors, here is one last charge: to not only develop deep and meaningful relationships, but also to use the privilege of your education responsibly. Strive to make your own personal future as good as you can, and hopefully to leave your corner of the world a little better than it was when you first got there."
Class Officers Zane Kohn and Arielle Pitchon also expressed gratitude to the school’s faculty and staff:
“We’re here to celebrate our hard work, but we also thank the incredible teachers, deans, aides, and custodians whose help shaped our journey. Our teachers gave us knowledge, critical thinking—and the support we needed to manage the stress of high school.”
Class Vice President Jay Paradkar spoke of the lessons he learned about leadership and resilience, but emphasized, “It’s the sense of community I’ll cherish most… Everywhere we go, we leave a piece of ourselves behind.” He also praised Class President Daniyal Naeem: “He carried the role with pride, enthusiasm, and a great sense of humor.”
Naeem recalled starting high school during the pandemic:
“We entered SHS sitting six feet apart from our friends. But this school taught us to think critically—and to speak up for what we believe in. Soon we’ll be in lecture halls where no one has heard of Scarsdale. But we’ll bring this community with us. We know how to make a difference. We’ve learned to really listen—not just respond. And hey—we’re graduating before the cell phone ban kicks in! I hope you lived the dream these past four years—because I sure did.”
SHS Principal Ken Bonamo gave an insightful address about the impact of Artificial Intelligence on learning and education. He said, “AI presents incredible opportunities and innumerable questions to us as individuals and as a society.” He warned of the risks of AI, similar to nuclear. energy or plastics, “where both the costs and benefits are significant and significantly at odds.” Posing questions about the educational process in the age of AI he said, “If AI can produce a decent or better quality literary response essay or even now a fully cited research paper, are those tasks still valid today as worthy of our time for you to write them and for us to grade them? If they are, how do we protect them from being invalidated by AI—and is that even possible? And if they aren’t worth our effort, then what is?”
Bonamo encouraged students to find meaning amid the uncertainty: “To make sense of all this—the world around you at the moment of your high-school graduation—I urge you to find a through line of humanity, and perhaps to begin by thinking of non sibi, of selfless service."
Read his remarks here:
After wishing the class a bright future, Bonamo turned the podium over to Superintendent Drew Patrick, who formally certified the graduation of the Class of 2025.
Then, one by one, the names of all 360 graduates—some with long and complex pronunciations—were read aloud by the school deans with grace and precision.
The entire event, seamless and heartfelt, was expertly orchestrated by Assistant Principal Andrea O’Gorman, who never misses a beat.
Click here to see the hats fly!
As the ceremony ended, the field filled with joy: students lighting cigars—both girls and boys—posing for photos, embracing friends, and beaming with pride. Darkness settled over Butler Field and the Class of 2025 stepped into the night—well prepared to face the future and the challenges that lie ahead.
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A Day of Experiential Learning and Hands-on Service at SHS
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Drawing upon the District’s motto of Non Sibi, “Not for one’s self alone,” on Friday May 24th Scarsdale High School celebrated its fourth annual “Non Sibi Day” where students organize and take part in a wide variety of sessions that promote generosity, responsibility, empathy, and a deeper understanding of the world around us.
With over fifty sessions to choose from, students had no trouble finding a variety of topics that piqued their interests and sparked their passions. Some of the sessions included activities like Bracelet Making for Kids with Cancer at Sunrise Israel, Bronx River Path Brook Cleanup, Making Sandwiches with Habitat for Humanity Club, Making Toiletry Bags for the Homeless, Narcan Awareness and Response Training, Origami Making for a Children’s Hospital, Solve the Conflict and Escape the Room, just to name a few.
Deepening the sense of responsibility, many of the classes and activities were designed, organized, and led by SHS students. While some sessions hosted a guest speaker, other lessons were taught by students themselves who shared information about their topics through thoughtfully prepared slideshows and presentations.
In one incredibly poignant session the SHS STAY (Students Take Action for Youth) Club invited Lauren Johnson, an addiction professional with Somers Partners in Prevention, who delivered a Narcan Training and taught students how to respond in a potential overdose situation. This valuable and potentially life-saving training (organized by STAY Club chairs Nell Rompala, Zoe Kofman and Jasleen Virk) helped to increase awareness and knowledge around overdose recognition and to empower students to act in emergencies.
Rompala explained that in addition to learning the life-saving steps to take in recognizing and responding to an opioid overdose, students learned about the Good Samaritan Law and received a free Narcan Kit.
In another productive session, president of the Breast Cancer Awareness Club Siri Polepalle, helped to organize a bracelet making activity for patients at White Plains Hospital. In addition to creating uplifting bracelets, Polepalle and her co-chairs Maya O'Doherty, Maya Kossakowski, Martin Cengotitabengoa, Nico Brenner also shared important information about breast cancer.
Freshman Mira Hole led a “Donut Decorating” activity where students learned about the important work of Scarsdale’s First Responders and decorated 120 donuts that were later delivered to the fire and police station. Hole explained that she has been researching this topic for another class and felt compelled to find a way to spread awareness and express her gratitude.
Sophomores Maya Glaser and Laela Belleu organized a “Cupcake Decorating for Sanctuary Families” activity. The cupcakes decorated by students in these sessions were then sold during the Community Hour with all proceeds donated to Sanctuary for Families, a non-profit organization. Belleu said, "We chose Sanctuary for Families because my mom worked there for many years and so through the years, I have been able to observe first hand the impact this organization has, and I wanted to contribute to their efforts".
At the “Inside 9/11: A Firefighter's Experience” session, SHS student Liam Maor invited Scarsdale Fire Chief Mytych and Firefighter Capobianco to help spread awareness and share personal stories about the impact of 9/11. Maor explained, "I was scrolling through 9/11 pictures and articles one day and was really reminded of the impact of 9/11. My peers and I weren't alive when it happened, and there can be a sense of detachment since we didn't live through it. I wanted to find a way to reignite my generation's connection with the event. So I decided to do something to honor the first responders and especially honor Mr. Capobianco’s extraordinary and inspirational story."
Gabriel Greene, one of the founders of the SHS Israel Culture Club, helped to organize, “The Empty Shabbat Table: An Art Installation Honoring the 59 Hostages and Taking Action” a session that aimed to raise awareness about the 59 people who are still hostages - 4 who are American. "We want to help bring these hostages home and also honor those who are not with us.” In an effort to support bringing the hostages home, Greene along with other members of the club including Sophia Kahan, Scarlett Dorr, Eli Zargari, Coby Cukierman, Max Gasthalter also sold student-made bracelets and other jewelry during Community Hour.
The co-chairs of the Mental Health Awareness Club, Ellie Greenspan, Emma Florence, and Stacey Liew organized a session where students made dog toys for the therapy dogs that regularly visit SHS to help with stress and mental health. The co-chairs related, “We love this activity and working with the therapy dogs because we feel like we are making a real difference in our community." Greenspan added, “Non-Sibi Day is a great day for our community to come together and connect in a way that isn’t stressful and just centered around academics, but rather on doing good and giving back to others.”
In the “Bracelets for Pediatric Cancer Patients,” sophomores Kaoruko Daito and Isabel Lin led two sessions of bracelet making for pediatric cancer patients at New York Proton Center.
As has been the tradition in years past, the common Community Hour allowed students to unwind and connect with friends while playing games like Chess, Apples to Apples, and even Ping Pong. Outside, students took part in rousing games of Can Jam, Spike Ball, and Corn Hole. In addition to these fun ways to connect with their peers, this year student clubs also sold snacks and goods in an effort to raise money in support of organizations like Pleasantville Cottages, The Weinberg Nature Center, Able Athletics and so many more.
While these are only a few of the highlights from the dozens of incredible sessions, the day also included activities like field trips to nearby elementary schools and sessions with topics such as Self Defense, Shaping Scarsdale's AI Policy, Seizure First Aid Training, Making Cards for Support Staff and many more.
It should be mentioned that this remarkable day of experiential learning and hands-on service, couldn’t have happened without the support and planning of the Non-Sibi Day Committee which included Ethan Paul, Kimberly Summerfield, Kevin Anton, Robin Bray, John Catania, Dina Dadabo, Amanda Rios-Thomas, Jessie Towle, and Danny Zeliger. This team of caring faculty members truly demonstrated the day’s theme of empathy, agency, and action.
Superintendent Wishes Retiring Teachers Joy and Happiness
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“I wish you imagination and creativity, for the world is a blank canvas to paint your masterpiece. I wish you adventure and curiosity, to go where there is no path and leave a trail. I wish you health and well being, for they are worth more than all the riches in the world.” Assistant Superintendent of Human resources, Megahn Troy, shared these thoughtful sentiments from the children's book, “I Wish You Happiness” in a perfect ode to this year’s retiring faculty members.
To start the special Retirement Ceremony held on Monday, June 9th, Superintendent Drew Patrick shared his well wishes to the nine retirees by saying,
“This evening, we are recognizing a group of educators who together have served the district for a collective 227 years. These remarkable individuals approach the work of teaching and learning as a mission and as service to our community. Their talent, their dedication, their care, their curricula and their passions brought this mission to life for our students. They created opportunities for thousands of Scarsdale students to experience the joy and richness of thinking and problem solving, reading and writing, speaking and listening, researching and synthesizing hypothesizing and experimenting, playing and collaborating, practicing and performing.
On behalf of a grateful Scarsdale community. I thank you all for your distinctive contributions to our students, to our schools and to our community. Congratulations on your well deserved retirement. We wish you joy and happiness as you continue to pursue your passions, especially on random weekday mornings unencumbered by the first bell.”
Before introducing each retiring faculty member, Troy added, “When I think about your collective and individual impact on our students and the larger school community, it is truly remarkable. You have helped your colleagues to grow and learn. You have supported thousands of Scarsdale families over the years, and have touched and altered the lives of the many students who have sat in your classrooms or in your gyms. As you head into retirement, we have so many hopes for all of you in the future.”
Troy then acknowledged each retiree and invited them up to receive a small gift from the BOE. The retirees include:
Elementary School Teacher, Kim Assatly
PE Teacher, James Borgia
Elementary School Teacher, Susan Hendler
PE Teacher, Health and Wellness Department Chair and Coach, Robert Keith
High School World Language Department Chair and Teacher, Mary Leech
ELA Coordinator, Sue Luft
Elementary School Teacher, Beth Martin
Elementary Instrumental Teacher, Adam Weber
High School Chemistry Teacher, James Williams
The heartwarming ceremony, attended by colleagues and family, concluded with a thoughtful departing message from BOE president Suzie Hahn,
“On behalf of the Board, I would also like to express our appreciation to this year's retirees for all that you have done for our students and for our school community. For so many years, you have provided such an important impact to so many students that have come through these hallways and classrooms. Your careers have been distinguished and your contribution significant. Thank you for your unwavering dedication, your years of service and the legacy you leave behind. We wish you joy, rest and new adventures in this next chapter.”
District Announces New Grading Policy at SHS and Tactics to Address Concerns About Reveal Math
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If you have been tuning in to the Board of Education meetings over the last several months, you’re most likely aware that folks have had a lot to say about the newly adopted Rolling Gradebook at Scarsdale High School and the Reveal Math curriculum at the elementary school level. Administrators have devoted special time to these topics at several recent meetings and, in an effort to maximize communication, transparency, and understanding, did so again in their Education Reports at the BOE meeting on Monday, May 12th.
But at the meeting on Monday, the district did more than listen – the administration announced changes to address feedback about high school grading policies and the Reveal Math curriculum.
Superintendent Andrew Patrick surprised many with his “top down” decision to institute a common online gradebook portal for the 2025/26 school year at Scarsdale High School, which will allow students to access their current grades online. Addressing parent’s complaints about Reveal Math, the district unveiled plans several measures to improve “Fact Fluency,” to assist children with word problems and to introduce complementary resources to help those struggling with the curriculum.
Here are the details:
Before delving into the reports’ details, Superintendent, Dr. Drew Patrick took a moment to address the community.
In a rare but thoughtfully prepared statement, Patrick shared: “Before jumping into either of those, I want to ask for your indulgence, just to articulate some broader thoughts about public engagement and change, as both topics covered in tonight's Education Report have been touchstones for significant public comment and faculty input. A vast majority of that input has been constructive and representative of important and valid stakeholder’s voices and opinions. Public comment, emails, phone calls and in person, meetings with school staff are all meaningful ways to express opinions about the work of our schools, including curriculum policies, practices and approaches.
I want to say unequivocally that I understand how much the parents in our community care about their children and the education they receive. I also want to say unequivocally that our teachers and leaders are passionate and caring professionals and dedicated experts. Each is operating from a single driving force, the desire to do what's best for our students…Thus our work requires a partnership in which we are able to listen and to ask questions, to trust one another and remain open to compromise, to give and to take and to assume good intentions, even when the outcome isn't exactly what we want.
I firmly believe the track record in this school community to do just that is strong. It's one of the things that sets Scarsdale apart from many, if not most, other school districts. Decisions aren't made haphazardly, rather, they reflect thoughtful consideration of relevant information from a variety of perspectives and sources. Tonight's updates on elementary math are an example. Math education is in the midst of a shift in this country. Our approach has been responsive to, and reflective of that shift. However, the input from educators and parents signals to us that we have some work to do to get it right. We won't throw the baby out with the bath water, but we will make smart, responsive adjustments to support our educators to implement those changes and monitor student progress in the moment to make sure they are the right changes.
The journey with high school grading has followed a similar path with one notable divergence, I will confess, the advocacy for changes to the Rolling GradeBook approach took me by surprise. I didn't anticipate it, and when the feedback from parents started coming in, it took me some time to digest and understand exactly what was being communicated. The High School Assessment Committee and faculty have been responsive to that feedback, though, opinions on the Rolling Gradebook remain somewhat mixed.
However, what also became clear is that some of the outpouring of feedback wasn't about the rolling grade book at all, but about other practices, including the degree to which students are able to know where they stand with respect to their grade at any given point in a quarter. As I listened and came to better understand this particular concern, I determined that I needed to make an uncharacteristically blunt, top-down leadership decision. I directed the high school administration to move to a common online, Gradebook for the 2025/26 school year. This decision has justifiably been called into question by some of our faculty, not as a matter of practice, indeed, this is already the practice of a significant number of our faculty, but for its notable lack of process, which is a sacred component of our school culture. I think it's important to publicly own this decision and acknowledge that while I believe it's the right way forward, the concerns raised by our faculty about the lack of process are legitimate, have been thoughtfully articulated, and raise justifiable concerns about unintended consequences of the decision. I look forward to continuing to listen to those concerns and to further explain my rationale over time.”
Rolling Gradebook
Patrick then introduced Laura Weiss, High School Assistant Principal, who shared the results from a recent survey designed to garner community feedback in regards to the new Rolling Gradebook at SHS.
Weiss conveyed that the survey, given in early March of this year, received responses from 825 students, 260 parents, and 87 teachers and noted that 56% of the total student body participated in the survey. The survey found that there was a modest increase in preference among student responders for the rolling grade book, up from 46% last year to 54% this year.
The survey also revealed that 58% of SHS teachers participated in the survey, offering a strong representative voice from across disciplines. Here too the percentage of respondents preferring the Rolling Gradebook increased over five points from 66% to 71%.
According to another slide, the survey garnered 260 responses from parents with a bit more than half indicating that they would prefer a return to the Quarterly Gradebook and a quarter indicating no preference. Here Weiss noted that feedback from parents was considered, not only from the survey, but also from the emails and conversations that SHS has received since last summer.
In considering parent feedback, Weiss explained, “It became clear that the questions around turnaround time, early notification of a change in [student] performance, and overall transparency, were more salient than the choice between the Rolling Gradebook and the Quarterly Gradebook. We have now focused our efforts on these major themes.”
Weiss then outlined some of the changes made in response to parent feedback. She related, “As presented to you by Mr. Bonamo in November, we issued guidelines for homeschool communication regarding changes in student performance. In January we published expectations for turnaround time on student work. We also held information sessions for students and parents about the Rolling Gradebook and administered this survey that I just presented to address issues of transparency. It was decided, as Dr Patrick just outlined, that we will introduce an online student grade portal next school year. Student grades on individual assessments will be posted on Infinite Campus within one week of being returned. Students will have daily access to the portal, while parents will continue to receive information aligned with progress reports and report cards.”
Weiss went on to add, “We believe that this is developmentally appropriate and honors the student's role in managing information about their performance. Parent access to the portal will be based in the context of the continued availability of how they've always been able to communicate with teachers. And the key point here that we want to underscore is that we want the student and parent to have a conversation about student progress before there's communication with the parent and the teacher.”
Before concluding, Weiss clarified that they are exploring guardrails for the new student portal to minimize notifications and working hard to support teachers in making this change in time for the fall. See the Rolling Gradebook Survey Results here.
Reveal Math
In Dr. McIntosh’s absence, Dr. Patrick delivered a detailed report with updates about Reveal Math, the elementary math curriculum, based on feedback first from educators that came through a survey and discussions, and also from feedback received from parents over the last several months.
Patrick used a slideshow to communicate educators’ feedback on growth, gaps, resources and professional development. Starting with some of the positive feedback garnered from faculty, he explained that teachers have noted growth in their students’ ability to explain their mathematical thinking and conceptual understanding. Patrick added, “I concur with that. Having focused my classroom visits on math classes when possible, [students] have been able to explain their thinking both verbally and in writing, using appropriate academic math vocabulary, and engage in math discourse. The program encourages students to discuss and collaborate on problem solving, fostering deeper engagement and confidence in math.”
Patrick went on to share, “Our teachers are also observing improvements in students ability to understand and apply their math concepts, particularly in problem solving, number decomposition and distributed and the distributive property, and then increase flexibility with numbers. And I'd say that's what I really notice. When I'm talking to the students, they’ve become more comfortable using multiple strategies to solve the problems that they're encountering and to have a stronger number sense.”
The presentation then addressed some of the challenges faculty are working through and the approaches being taken to respond to these challenges.
One of the first challenges identified was in regard to some students’ deficiencies with Fact Fluency and with basic math facts such as addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. Patrick recognized that educators worry about a lack of automaticity as impacting students’ ability when they get to those more complex concepts.
Patrick explained that in response to this concern, faculty will work toward math Fact Fluency benchmarking that will work in concert with the fluency checks students currently find in the Reveal Math book. He further explained that during professional development programs over the summer, teachers will work on a process to create benchmarks around appropriate levels of fact mastery in grades one through five. In addition, faculty will create Fact Fluency assessments in a recording system which Patrick describes as “An exciting opportunity for teacher professional development, especially since none of our previous math programs had any specific or formal fact assessment.”
Word problem comprehension was another challenge outlined in the presentation. Patrick recognized that the language is rigorous and students can struggle with understanding and solving word problems, particularly multi-step problems, and this can be exacerbated by those who experience difficulties in reading comprehension. To address this concern, Patrick shared that, “Our team will spend time looking at kindergarten and first grade curriculum and refine the language there and adapt problems as appropriate.”
Teachers have also expressed concerns about introducing students to multiple strategies up front without allowing sufficient time for mastery and believe that this can confuse some students. Because teachers have communicated a need for deeper focus on the success of individual strategies before moving on, Patrick revealed that the Math Coordinators and Math Committee have identified a range of complementary resources which will be embedded into the Reveal Math units. Patrick also explained that these teams are creating a K-2 Enrichment Application Station in Padlet. After exploring these additional resources, teachers will be asked to weigh in to identify what works best for them.
During the presentation, Patrick made sure to acknowledge parental concerns as well. In response to some of the feedback they received, he noted that the team has launched a math parent-facing math website with curated resources such as videos, the math replay videos, and the letters for every unit.
In addition to the website, the team is planning the first District Workshop this June that will be a single event for all five buildings, with representation from all five buildings of teachers and administrators creating the opportunity to experience Reveal Math and deepen the understanding of how the program works. Patrick also conveyed that a program slated for the fall will be responsive to a forthcoming family survey and will provide opportunities at each school to allow parents to engage with the educators.
While Patrick outlined the steps being taken to respond to constructive criticism, he also highlighted the fact that not all of the feedback the District has received from parents has been negative. Rather, parents have also taken the time to express some of the positive outcomes experienced with Reveal Math, some of which includes seeing noted improvements in their children's math understanding and confidence, an appreciation for the opportunities for their child to try different strategies and explain their thinking, and an appreciation that the curriculum puts an emphasis on the real world connections and inquiry based learning, which they feel helps deepen their child's understanding of the math concepts.
Though many of the BOE members related their appreciation for the District’s responsiveness to community feedback and their commitment to the importance of transparency, one parent spoke about Reveal Math during the Public Comment period. Oana Papazoglu said her concerns are not about communication, but rather about the curriculum itself and noted that the challenges outlined in the presentation, fact fluency and word problem comprehension, are at the heart of what math is all about. She went on to share her experience of growing up in a communist country in a small town of coal miners saying, “None of those people, including my own parents, had the time or resources to help their kids in math and yet, that small town produced national Math Olympiad winners. The same is true for all these Math powerhouses, China, former Soviet Union, Korea, Singapore, nations from which the US keeps, to this day, importing mathematicians. None of the parents follow their kids' elementary math curriculum. International Olympian winners do not have resources for parents behind them. They don't have websites, research and so on. What they have in common is a love of math, developing in school due to a rigorous curriculum and dedicated teachers. No iPads, no smart boards, no presentations, no parent coffees, none are present or take place in any of these places where math is taught successfully. Math is math. The beauty of it is that it is a universal language, and if taught this possibly can be the greatest equalizer.”
To review the full slideshow see here.
And to watch the video of the entire BOE meeting see here.