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Written by Joanne Wallenstein

Published: 14 February 2019

Created: 14 February 2019

Last Updated: 14 February 2019

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Scarsdale Village Assessor announced that she will be retiring as of March 1, 2019. We asked her a few questions about her years in Scarsdale and plans for the future and here is what she shared:

How many years have you been with the Village and what are you most proud of?

I have been with Scarsdale just 6 weeks short of 20 years! I can’t believe it really …
During my tenure, despite the many struggles along the way, this department has been brought into the 21st century. I am proud of my service, having created tangible and intangible betterments for the benefit of all Scarsdale taxpayers, the greatest being the increased level of awareness of the importance and critical roll an assessment department plays in the government function. Even in the face of adversity and personal attacks, I remain steadfast and to this day, continue to serve with great passion and desire to do a great job for all Scarsdale taxpayers. From my point of view, my greatest contribution has been the protection of the treasury from fraud and abuse and as we all know very well and notwithstanding, that has fueled a great debate and fire against me.

I have created a great foundation on which this department runs and leave it in great order, with organizational systems in place and a great staff to assist the new Assessor in leading it forward.

Has the controversy that surrounded the two revals calmed down?

Yes.

How many grievances were filed last year?

There were 552 grievances filed this year, of which 314 grievants appealed the decisions of the BAR to the small claims court and another 56 grievants appealed decisions of the BAR to the Supreme Court, Certiorari Part;

Why did you decide to retire on March 1?

Opportunities have been presented to me.

What impact will your departure have on this year’s assessment roll?

With the immediate hire of a qualified and experienced assessor, Scarsdale should not be impacted;

What do you plan to do after you retire?

Since I am still too young to retire from the work force and am not independently wealthy, I will mostly work, though not entirely. I still have passion for this business and drive to keep working, so with the wealth of knowledge and experience I gained from my time here in Scarsdale, I am now even better positioned to expand my horizons.

Parting words?

Nanette’s signature line on her email says,

“It is the assessor’s task to find the least erroneous answer to an unanswerable problem.”
Justice Benjamin Cardozo
United States Supreme Court

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Written by Joanne Wallenstein

Published: 26 February 2019

Created: 26 February 2019

Last Updated: 11 May 2021

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Scarsdale Edgemont Family Counseling Service (SFCS) today announced it has selected Michelle Sterling and Ron Schulhof to receive its annual Rising Star Award in recognition of their volunteer leadership and contributions to many Scarsdale organizations. The annual Rising Star Award recognizes leaders in the Scarsdale community who have demonstrated dedicated, impactful and active community service.
The Award will be presented to Ms. Sterling and Mr. Schulhof at the SFCS 2019 annual benefit gala, Colors of the Community, Thursday, May 9 at the Scarsdale Golf Club. Tickets to honor Ms. Sterling and Mr. Schulhof can be purchased here.

Michelle Sterling and Ron Schulhof are two of Scarsdale’s most active community leaders. Over the last five years, they have been instrumental in launching sustainability initiatives throughout the community. Together Michelle and Ron have helped all seven Scarsdale Schools, a number of Scarsdale houses of worship and the Village, launch food scrap recycling and zero waste programs. Their efforts have made a tremendous impact within the Scarsdale community as well as throughout Westchester; other organizations and towns have come to Scarsdale to learn and launch their own zero waste programs. In addition to work on sustainability initiatives, Michelle and Ron are also active members with local civic, school and sports organizations.

Michelle serves as co-chair of the Scarsdale Forum Sustainability Committee, a member of the Conservation Advisory Council, member of the Food Scrap Recycling Committee, member of the LED Streetlight Committee, member of the Forum Board of Directors and Executive Board, chair of the Scarsdale Middle School PTA Sustainability Committee, and member of the Scarsdale Middle School Compact Committee. Michelle has also served on the Citizens Nominating Committee, Procedure Committee, as PT Council Sustainability Chair and as chair of the Greenacres PTA Sustainability Committee. Michelle has also coached Scarsdale Youth Girls Softball.

Ron serves as Chair of the Conservation Advisory Council, a member of the Food Scrap Recycling Committee, a member of the LED Streetlight Committee, a member of the Forum Sustainability Committee and Forum Board of Directors, a member of the Citizens Nominating Committee, chair of PT Council Sustainability, Quaker Ridge PTA Sustainability Committee and a member of the School District Sustainability Committee. Ron is also a Little League coach.

Michelle holds a BA in Political Science from Columbia College and a JD from Cornell Law School. Michelle started her legal career practicing securities law at Thacher, Proffitt & Wood, and later was a Managing Director Principal at Bear Stearns & Co. in their Fixed Income Securities Division. Michelle currently lives in Greenacres with her husband David and two daughters who attend Scarsdale Middle School.
Ron holds a BA in Economics from Lehigh University and an MBA from Columbia Business School. Ron began his career at Bear Stearns & Co. and later worked at Deloitte. Ron lives in Quaker Ridge with his wife Rachel and two sons, one at Quaker Ridge Elementary School and one in preschool.

Scarsdale Edgemont Family Counseling Service is a nationally-recognized, not-for-profit family service agency, accredited by the Council on Accreditation of Services for Families and Children. The Agency's professional staff are licensed in New York State as providers of mental health services. The mission of the Agency is to be a center, in Scarsdale and the surrounding area, for family growth and learning. SFCS is a place where families, couples and individuals can find help with the normal problems of daily living, as well as with crises. The Agency provides psychotherapy, older adult services, youth outreach, social skills groups for children, mental health services and family life education.

For more information, please e-mail [email protected] or call (914) 723-3281.

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Written by Alexandra Wilson

Published: 03 February 2019

Created: 03 February 2019

Last Updated: 03 February 2019

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Remi Tolchin with Dr. BoockvarThis past month, over 80 students missed most of their classes with the teachers’ consent to go and work. This was possible because each January, Scarsdale High School’s Alternative School program cancels their classes so its students can embark on internships of their choosing. Some students pick internships that align with their deepest passions, and others pick jobs that allow them to try something new. Several A-School students spoke out about their unique experiences this month:

Sam Friedman ’20, an aspiring filmmaker, worked with Timeline Video in Irvington to both explore his passion for film and absorb the surroundings of a cooperative workplace. “I was tasked with making a commercial for a fidget spinner within the month. I am doing every aspect of the production from talent casting, location scouting, to budgeting and storyboarding,” said Sam. He has also been tasked with directing storyboard artists and negotiating prices with them, as well as using the company’s money to order outfits for the production. The company placed a lot of trust in Sam and allowed him to be independent in his work, which was a great learning experience for him. “I’ve learned to trust myself more. This internship has proven to me that I am compatible with industry professionals. All of the technical things that they talk about, I understand and can engage as well,” he said.

Like Sam, Remi Tolchin ’21 chose an internship in a field in which she is considering a career. She worked for Scarsdale resident Dr. John Boockvar at Lenox Hill Hospital, where she pursued her emerging love for neurosurgery. “I have been pretty set on being a surgeon in the future, but I was always a little nervous about pursuing this career because I did not know what I was getting myself into. Now that I have had the opportunity to shadow Dr. Boockvar, I am convinced this is what I want to do with my life,” said Remi. Throughout the job, she was riveted by the Sam Friedman in the studiosurgeries she witnessed, the brain scans and tumors she saw and researched, and the environment in general. She even became more confident in her commuting skills this month after taking the subway by herself to the hospital each day. “Commuting alone has taught me to be more independent and resourceful,” said Remi. She is grateful for this experience and that she got an inside look at her potential career track.

Sam Hoffman ’19 took a different approach and decided to try something new, in a less familiar field to him. He worked at a private equity firm, where he primarily organized information and aided the people around him. “Even if this isn’t exactly what I want to do in life, I know financial literacy is a skill everyone needs, so I can’t really go wrong with this internship,” said Sam. Since his sponsor wanted to help Sam learn about the business, Sam also spent time sitting in on meetings, researching stocks, and interacting with coworkers. “Economics isn’t the only skill you need in a place like this - social and communication skills are also really important. It’s a lot more qualitative than I initially thought,” said Sam. He’s come to love the social feel of working in an office.

Jocelyn LewisJocelyn Lewis ’20 spent her month helping out with immigrant cases in the legal department at Make the Road NY. She chose this internship for a few reasons: to try something new (last year she worked with a dance company), to explore an interest she’s fostered in her work with the Students for Refugees club at school, and to learn more about an important topic. “There is a lot of conversation surrounding immigration, and I think it’s important to learn as much as possible about the issue so that you can form educated opinions… this internship is a step in being able to provide more accurate information for others and form holistic opinions for myself,” said Jocelyn. She filled her work hours with a multitude of tasks, one of which was closing cases, which gave her the deeper understanding of immigration that she wanted. Even when Jocelyn was completing somewhat tedious tasks, she found it fulfilling to contribute to Make the Road’s mission. “Because I am doing these tasks, the lawyers are able to spend more time on cases, helping people, as opposed to doing work that just needs to get done,” she said. Jocelyn’s desire to help the greater good made this month’s internship an excellent learning experience for her.

Zac Scheider ’21 spent his first A-School internship with a real estate firm called Westchester Choice Realty to explore his possible interest in the business. He enjoyed his time with his sponsor, Barry Kramer, who took him on trips to visit apartments and meet with people. When Kramer was not in the office, however, Zac helped with file work. He learned from this experience that although he has a deep appreciation for real estate and architecture, a job in real estate may not be for him. “The reason why these internships are important is because they give the student an idea of what a job in the real world is like, but it also gives students the opportunity to learn more about themselves and their own interests,” said Zac. He cherished the fact that the A-School gave him a chance to develop this insight. Dani Paz

For Dani Paz ’20’s internship, she commuted to NYC to work at the UN in the Peace and Security department. Her favorite part of the job is “really just everything,” she said. Between the atmosphere, the diversity in the workplace, and the tasks at hand, Dani says that this internship only strengthened her dream of being elected US senator someday. She even found tasks such as working analytics and spreadsheets on Excel to be fulfilling at this job, because she thinks it is “so satisfying to see your end product.” Dani also found satisfaction in knowing that her job benefits others.

Ross Forman ’19 does not have many hours in his week for an internship, since most of his classes are not in the A-School and therefore are still in session this month. Nonetheless, he is devoting every hour he can into a cause very dear to him: El Centro Hispano’s Mi Hermano Mayor Program. Ross has volunteered at this program for three years, where he partakes in a “mentoring/tutorial program for Hispanic 6th graders in White Plains,” he said. Throughout his time volunteering, he has developed close relationships with the group of students he tutors, so he was happy to have the opportunity to spend more time with them this January. “One of my favorite parts about volunteering in this program is to see the students' joyful reaction after they do well on a test and can't wait to show me the grade, or after they master a topic they have been studying,” said Ross. Ross has fostered a passion for his program, and internship month is allowing him to build on that.

Zac ScheiderWhether the students’ internships tapped into their passions or not, everyone experienced self-growth and acquired new skills.

This article was written by Alex Wilson SHS’19 who worked as an A-School intern for Scarsdale10583.com in January.

Sam Hoffman