Tennis Season Round-Up
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At Scarsdale Golf Club both the Ladies C and B teams won their divisions this season. The C team won for the second year in a row. In a hard fought season, they battled seven other Westchester county clubs and prevailed. They will move to a higher division next season.
Team Members:
Leslie Andersen
Seema Daniel
Linda Edwards
Melissa Fastov Captain
Amy Fogel
Valerie Greenberg
Tami Haas
Karen Holtmeier
Pamela Montgomery
Emilia Rodriguez
Carol Wolfe
Trudy Zohn
The Ladies B team also dominated their division this season and will move up next year.
Team Members:
Captain Carrie Belk
Kathy Cutlip
Claudia Hagenbuch
Sarah Kaspers
Laura Kempner
Jenn Love
Cindy Nicholl
Kathy Siekierski
Connie Vaughan
Angela Waterhouse
Fran Zimmermann
Scarsdale's Town Women's A-2 Team did not win, but had a great season, finishing
sixth in their league.
Team members:
Lori Abrams,
Mary Bracken
Marlene Buchwald
Charlotte Carr
Lori Falow
Susan Groner
Helen Kyriak,
Anne Moretti,
Lisa Nelson
Shuling Smith
Naomi Proctor,
Cynthia Roberts
Pam Rubin
Paulina Schwartz
Pat Simmermacher
Debbie Singer
Cecelia Steffenson
Joanne Wallenstein
Did you play on a team this season? Send your team photo and details to scarsdalecomments@gmail.com and we'll post it on Scarsdale10583.com.
STEP Celebrates Robert Lee Jr.s' Graduation
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STEP student Robert Lee Jr. was center stage at an elegant graduation party hosted by the STEP Committee at the home of Lisa Rodman on Thursday June 25th. Lee, a Memphis native, attended Scarsdale High School for the past two years, after he was selected by the board of the Student Transfer Education Plan. He lived with the Berke family and by all accounts flourished in the 'dale. He even had the privilege of speaking at the SHS graduation. Lee plans to attend Vanderbilt in the fall, but before he could leave Scarsdale, his family travelled north for the party and the graduation and had the chance to meet many who guided Lee through two years at Scarsdale High School.
Here are some photos from the event:
Scarsdale Board of Ed Extends Superintendent's Contract and Accepts Gifts from Maroon and White
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The Scarsdale Board of Education has extended Superintendent Thomas Hager's contract for one year following a comprehensive review of his performance. Dr. Hagerman, who had previously served as Superintendent for the nationally renowned Winnetka School District 36 on Chicago's north shore, came to the District last summer after the Board conducted an extensive national search for a new superintendent.
As part of its duties, the Board of Education engaged in a comprehensive review process to evaluate Dr. Hagerman's performance during his first year as Superintendent. This process resulted in the conclusion that, especially given the unique challenges of a transition to a new administration, Dr. Hagerman was a highly effective Superintendent, leading the District through a successful 2014-15 school year.
Dr. Hagerman's success was evidenced by, among other things, the implementation of an ambitious entry plan through which he engaged with numerous school and community representatives and groups through hundreds of meetings and discussion groups, the development and passing of the 2015-16 school budget by a substantial majority, the successful development and passing of a facilities bond for essential school construction related to the provision of 21st century education, the recruitment of outstanding individuals to replace key departing administrators and principals, the reorganization of Board meetings to be more efficient and accessible to the public, and a thoughtful reorganization of the District's central administrative office functions to capitalize on strengths, clarify roles and responsibilities and balance workload.
Reflecting on his first year as Superintendent, Dr. Hagerman commented: "As part of my formal evaluation process, I had the opportunity to reflect deeply on the challenges and successes of the year. It is heartening that there have been more of the latter then the former, putting us on a positive trajectory moving forward. I am also pleased that, embedded in much of this year's progress, there has been a real coalescing of community, Board, parent, faculty and student interests and needs. This year has proved to be a testament of why I came to Scarsdale: people are clearly passionate about this place, and are committed to the ongoing success of all of our students."
Board of Education President Mary Beth Gose noted that "Scarsdale is very fortunate to have Dr. Hagerman at the helm of our community's most important asset. The Board unanimously decided to offer Dr. Hagerman a contract extension and hopes that the success achieved by Dr. Hagerman will continue as we work together over the coming years to preserve and enhance the quality and breadth of the educational experience for our children."
Board Accepts Gifts from Maroon and White:
On Monday June 22nd , Maroon and White donated an additional $24,161 to the Board of Education for the PE and Athletic programs at Scarsdale High School as well as Scarsdale Middle School. With these gifts, Maroon and White has given over $35,000 dollars to the Scarsdale School District in 2015. Maroon and White is the parent booster organization that supports and encourages athletics at Scarsdale High School and only donates items that are not funded by the school budget.
Since its inception over 48 years ago, Maroon and White has played a vital role in supporting the athletic programs at Scarsdale High School through the recognition of student athletes and financial contributions to the physical education and athletic programs. This year's gifts include the following:
· Swim team: Swim timers/watches
· Wrestling: Table score clock and tournament wrestling mat
· 10 Lacrosse helmets
· Cross Country, Indoor and outdoor track: EZ UP tent
· Field Hockey: Rollers, straps, bands for flexibility and strength training, HUDL (15 items)
· Girls Lacrosse: 3 agility ladders
· Cheerleading:. Tumbling mat, Minivox sound system
· Boys Baseball: Screens, tamps, balls, caddy (6 Items)
· Boys and Girls Crew Team: Pylo boxes and medicine balls (8 items)
· SMS PE Program: 1 recumbent bike
· SHS/PE program: 41 Rollerblade skate/helmet packages
· Boys and Girls Swim Teams: Swim banner and swim storage bench at WCC
· Football/All Teams: Sports scope camera video system
· Baseball/Softball: Tension batting cage
· Girls Soccer: Soccer tennis net, wobble pillow (6), match play ball bag, game day notebook (3)
· Trophies for basketball, cheer and wrestling tournaments
Maroon and White is a 501c(3) organization. For more information about Maroon and White and to become a member go to www.maroonandwhite.org
Happy Birthday to Emily Hirsch
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Emily Hirsch, the owner of Candy 'n Cards in Scarsdale, will celebrate another big birthday on Tuesday June 16th. Though she doesn't want to share just how big a birthday it is, she did admit to running the store for a record 47 years. Undoubtedly one of the most seasoned retailers in Scarsdale, she enjoys her customers who she has known so well for so long, and the sense of community in the Village.
On Tuesday, the Chamber of Commerce organized a surprise birthday party for Emily at Lange's where Tony Domini provided this massive cake.
Stop by Candy 'n Cards on Spencer Place on Tuesday to wish Emily a happy, happy and many more!
Seven NYS Regents Reject New Teacher Evaluation Changes
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In an unusual show of dissent, seven members of the 17-member Board of Regents have signed a statement opposing the recently enacted new teacher evaluation law and the State Education Department's proposed regulations that would make student test scores the most significant factor in teacher evaluations.
Citing their accountability to the public and their review of research, the seven Regents say the current amendments "are based on an incomplete and inadequate understanding of how to address the task of continuously improving our education system."
In order to "remedy the current malfunctioning" teacher evaluation system, they call for a delay of implementation; a significant reduction in the weight given to student standardized test scores, a reduced role for "external" evaluators, and consideration of the developmental needs of English Language Learners and special needs students. Click here to read all six of their "essential" proposed amendments.
The Board of Regents is elected by the Legislature and charged in the State Constitution with the power to set P-12 education policy. The new Annual Professional Performance Review (APPR) law, enacted by the Legislature and Governor as part of the State Budget on April 1, set key parameters but left it up to the Regents to interpret the details through regulations.
Among the signers of the opposition statement is Regent Judith Johnson, who was elected in March by the Legislature to represent Scarsdale and other communities within the 9th judicial district (Dutchess, Putnam, Westchester, Orange and Rockland). Back in April, as a participant on the Scarsdale Forum panel discussion on the Common Core held at Scarsdale High School, Regent Johnson received a standing ovation from the audience when she called for a reconsideration of the new teacher evaluation system.
The position of the seven Regents is similar to that expressed recently by 40 area superintendents, who created an online petition to "Suspend and Amend" the NY teacher evaluation law. As of the date of this writing, the on-line petition had 20,450 New York signers, with over 200 from Scarsdale, including Superintendent Dr. Thomas Hagerman.
The NYS PTA also wants the law delayed and revised with input from parents and teachers. The Assembly has already passed a bill to delay implementation of the new teacher evaluation law; however, with the Legislative session about to end on June 17, the Senate has yet to take action.
The NYS PTA is now urging members to send a message to their Senators: "Time Out on Educator Evaluation Provisions".
NYS PTA education coordinator Catherine Romano writes: "As the recent opt-out movement showed, parents are concerned about over-testing and over-reliance on student test results to evaluate teachers and principals. Assessment is important, as most parents and teachers realize, but the new system goes too far and makes a single test at a single point in time the predominant factor in educators' evaluations."