Purchase Holiday Cards to Support the PTA Scholarship Fund
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The SHS PTA Scholarship Fund for College provides one-year grants to college-bound seniors. Graduating seniors of Scarsdale High School who are pursuing higher education are eligible to apply. These grants, generally ranging from $1,000 to $7,500, are made to seniors in good standing and who will receive a SHS diploma, on the basis of demonstrated financial need. There is no fixed number of recipients. Each year, awards are based on need, the number of qualified applicants, and available funds.
The Scholarship Fund Grant Committee makes allocations and administers the fund. All applications are held in the strictest confidence; applications are reviewed by number and not by name. The money available each year for scholarship grants comes from contributions by individuals, foundations, local businesses and community groups who have responded to an annual appeal, and from sales of "Gift of Education" and "Holiday" cards (currently on sale at their website here: https://www.scarsdaleschools.k12.ny.us/Page/23973)
Applications are available in January and may be obtained from any Dean at the High School or online. Completed applications should be submitted to the Scholarship Committee no later than May 5, 2017.
For more information, contact:
Chair Pam Fuehrer at pfuehrer3@gmail.com
SHS PTA President Amy Song at ajkimsong@gmail.com
Express Your Views on Plans for the Scarsdale Library
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(This letter was sent to Scarsdale10583 from ML Perlman, VP of the Scarsdale Forum)
The Scarsdale Forum has been soliciting survey feedback from Scarsdale Residents about the Proposed Library Renovation Option A-1 (revised July 2016).
First the Update: We have received an awesome 384 responses (and counting!). Now that we have so many responses, we feel a great responsibility to get as many folks to respond as possible. The Trustees will absolutely be looking at this survey carefully along with other resident feedback.
The Deadline: We would like to publish the survey results as part of the Forum's Municipal Services and Fiscal Affairs Committees' joint report before the Board of Trustees Committee of the Whole on November 29th Meeting at which they will be discussing the Library. That means we need responses ASAP.
Now the Request: Since we have this deadline, we would be sincerely grateful if you published our survey link URL reminding residents that this is a great way to make their voice heard. (Folks can also email info@scarsdaleforum.com for an email invitation or if they have any trouble.)
Click on the survey link here:
We look forward to sharing our report and survey results with the community.
ML PerlmanVP Scarsdale Forum
CNC Announces Election Results
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The Scarsdale Procedure Committee, which administers the Scarsdale nonpartisan electoral system, has announced that the following candidates were elected from each neighborhood on November 16, 2016 to the Scarsdale Citizens Nominating Committee (CNC):
Edgewood: Ron Sannicandro and Ryan Spicer.
Fox Meadow: Marc Greenwald and Judy Wenjing Kerr.
Greenacres: Daniel Brown and Jon Leslie.
Heathcote: Laura Kaplow-Goldman and Peter Tesler.
Quaker Ridge: Michael Gorelick, Mary Beth Gose, and Ron Schulhof.
There were 321 votes cast in the election. Fox Meadow had the highest number of voters with 168 ballots cast, followed by Greenacres with 68 ballots cast, Edgewood with 37, Quaker Ridge with 24, and Heathcote with 24.
This year's eleven new CNC members will join 19 others already on the CNC serving staggered three-year terms. The CNC will have its first meeting on Sunday, December 4th, and by early February 2017 will have nominated new candidates for the office of Mayor currently held by Jonathan I. Mark and for the Scarsdale Village Board of Trustees to fill the seats currently held by William Stern, Matthew J. Callaghan, and Carl L. Finger. The new candidates for Mayor and the Board of Trustees, along with any other candidates who may choose to run, will be up for public election in March 2017.
(Photo Credit M.L.Perlman)
Scarsdale STEP Program Marks 50th Year by Honoring SHS Teacher Rashid Silvera
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The entire community is invited to attend the STEP 50th Anniversary Celebration at the Scarsdale Women's Club on Saturday, November 12th from 6 - 8 PM.
Whether longtime STEP supporters or recent newcomers to Scarsdale, educators, parents, or students -- all are welcome to celebrate one of Scarsdale's finest community traditions and to honor inspirational SHS Social Studies teacher and true friend of STEP, Rashid Silvera.
Scarsdale Student Transfer Education Plan (STEP) is an independent community program that identifies promising students of color and enables them to attend Scarsdale High School for their junior and senior years. Established in Scarsdale in 1966 by former SHS Social Studies teacher Eric Rothschild, the program is supported by community donations, volunteers, and educators who are committed to public service and education in the liberal arts tradition.
As guest of honor at STEP's 45th anniversary event in 2011, Rothschild commended Scarsdale's enduring commitment and community-wide effort: "We could have sat on our laurels and built a moat, but we didn't. Instead we decided to share our educational and community resources by becoming one of the 30 communities with STEP-like programs in the U.S. Today, Scarsdale has the only remaining program."
It was also Eric Rothschild who, as SHS Social Studies Department Chair and with an enthusiastic second from then Superintendent Thomas Sobol, brought this year's STEP guest of honor, Rashid Silvera, to SHS in 1981. This unique educator's 35-year dedication to his students at SHS, including many generations of STEP students, makes him the perfect guest of honor for this year's STEP anniversary celebration.
Rashid, as his students know him, teaches
popular Social Studies elective classes on Psychology and Race and Ethnicity. His "caring before sharing" approach to teaching has enabled him to bring out the best in his students, building lasting confidence and fueling their inspiration beyond SHS. In addition to making an enduring impression in the classroom, Rashid has been a pioneer in the world of Black fashion modeling. He was among the first African-American males to appear on the cover of GQ magazine and the first to model for Ralph Lauren.
The STEP 50th Anniversary event will bring together generations of graduates from the STEP program, including Ojetta Rogeriee Thompson (SHS 1969), who is now a federal appeals court judge with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, Ken Marks (SHS 1970), who is now General Council of Exostar LLC in Herndon, VA, and his former classmate Evelia Jones (SHS 1970), a retiring LA teacher who had made coming back to see Scarsdale High School again a key item on her bucket list. Some of the more recent graduates in attendance will include Keith Martinez, (SHS 2012) who recently graduated from Villanova, DonTavius Holmes (SHS 2016), currently a freshman at Oxford College at Emory University, and Robert Lee (SHS 2015) a sophomore at Vanderbilt University who will introduce guest of honor Rashid Silvera.
Those attending the November 12th event will have a chance to meet STEP graduates, Scarsdale host families and both current and former STEP Board member volunteers, as well as enjoy cocktails, light bites by Carey Gross, and desserts from some of Scarsdale's favorite bakeries.
For more information and to purchase tickets to STEP'S 50th Anniversary Celebration, click here. Please note that the deadline to RSVP has been extended until November 5th.
And to learn more about STEP, to inquire about becoming a host family, or to make a donation, visit the STEP website.
Submitted by STEP Board member Mary Beth Evans
Why Are There Plastic Bags Around Crane Pond?
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What are those large plastic bags around Crane Pond? We asked Assistant Village Manager Ingrid Richards for an update on this capitol improvement project in Crane Berkley and here is what she shared.
It turns out the pond and surrounding watercourses needed to be de-silted and cleared of sediment and vegetation. The Crane/Berkley Homeowners Association (CBHA) asked the Village to help to restore the small pond in Crane Berkley and watercourse system between Tisdale Road and Taunton Road.
The Village agreed to partner with neighborhood association to manage the process by providing administrative and technical assistance and to fund the Village's proportionate share of the project. The Village, took the first step and re-established, by Village Board resolution dated January 29, 2015, the Crane Berkley Special Improvement District, providing the legal and financial vehicle for the Village and CBHA to undertake the project construction and for the CBHA District participants to reimburse the Village for their share of the project cost over a number of years in their annual Village tax bills.
The Village engaged the engineering firm of Professional Consulting Inc. (PCI), to perform the necessary surveying, engineering, permitting and preparing of construction plans and specifications. PCI developed a plan, with input and assistance from the Village and CBHA that removes the accumulated sediment, and debris and vegetation from the watercourse and ponds thereby ensuring the integrity of the overall drainage system.
Work began on August 8, 2016 and since then, the contractor, Aqua Cleaners, has removed a large amount of sediment from the Crane Berkley ponds. The organic sediment is removed from the pond by two pumps which transfer the sediments into the dewatering bags. These bags are specifically designed to retain the organic sediments while removing the water which is returned back to the pond.
This process typically takes between two and four months. Once the water has been completely removed from the bags, they are cut up and removed from the site. Removing the sediment from the ponds creates more storage capacity in the ponds thereby helping to manage storm water in the area more efficiently. It is estimated that the dredging process will be done by the beginning of December and the dewatering bags will be removed from the area in the Spring of 2017.
The total cost of the project is estimated at $626,908, some of which will be reimbursed from local property taxes paid by those homes in the special improvement district over a period of years.
