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ACROSS THE BOARD - October 2016
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| 2016 Newly Elected BOE Governance Seminar Participants |
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LAST CALL: 10/13 Social Emotional Wellness Program
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Reminder - Join us this Thursday evening to hear experts and colleagues discuss a topic that every school board needs to better understand:
Social Emotional Wellness for All Children
Thursday, October 13th
7:15 pm - 9:30 pm
Irvington HS/MS Campus - Campus Presentation Room
40 North Broadway, Irvington, NY 10533
Best Practices presented by our School Districts: First-hand look at the way seven of our districts are addressing mental health issues, social-emotional wellness, staff training, student surveys, preventative & therapeutic programs and other related services.
Panel Discussion:
Michael Orth, Deputy Commissioner of Community Mental Health - Westchester County
Jan Fisher, Director of Public Affairs - Westchester Jewish Community Services
John McCabe
, Lower Hudson Regional Special Education -TASC
Arlene Seymour, Program Director, Putnam Family and Community Services
Program is free and open to board members & administrators in WPSBA member districts.
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Keeping the Candle Lit - President's Message
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Welcome back to another school year and an opportunity to build upon our momentum!
Last year's advocacy efforts ended on a positive note with the removal of the GEA (Thanks to a cast of thousands across NY State.). Unfortunately, there are still at least a few challenges in the road ahead. Our mission as Board
 Trustees remains: "To Keep the Candle Lit" for All of the children enrolled in our Public Schools.
Keeping the light of learning burning is no simple matter, particularly when it comes to things like the Foundation Aid formula. Years and years of ad-lib adjustments have created a terrible hydra. Due to the diversity of our 54-member districts, it will be tricky to find the mid-line solution for which to advocate. We do however face a simpler path to follow in supporting adequate funding for our Special Act Districts.
On the Statewide level, we remain staunchly supportive of the need to provide a Sound Basic Education for all students.
To their credit, Board Trustees in our area are also concerned with the quality of life for students. Consequently, interest has been building around Mental Health Issues. West-Put has taken a leadership role locally in organizing a new program to both address these concerns and to begin sharing resources.
We are also wary of how exactly ESSA will unfold and how the regulations will be written. Our visits to Washington, D.C. and to Mr. Maloney's office inspired some anxiety, reminiscent of Yogi's admonition: "It ain't over 'til it's over!"
To a large extent, this advice could be extended to all of the work that we do. So, by all means, don't take your eye off the ball and "Keep the Candle Lit!" (And yes, it's a broken metaphor, but you get the picture!)
Have a Great Year!
~ Stephen O. Jambor, Ph.D, WPSBA President/Brewster BOE
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The Politics of Education - 39th Annual Joint Dinner
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With the Annual Joint Board of Education - Superintendent Dinner following on the heels of the Presidential election, our topic couldn't be more timely:
"The Ever-Changing Politics of Education"
39th Annual Joint Board - Superintendent Dinner
Monday, November 14th
6:30 pm Reception; Dinner: 7:00 pm - 9:30 pm
DoubleTree Tarrytown
455 South Broadway, Tarrytown
$54 per person
Register thru your District Clerk
Keynote Michael Usdan, Senior Fellow at the Institute for Educational Leadership, will address the federal role in public education -- historically and currently, and will comment on what we might expect in the next administration.
Mr. Usdan has served as President of the Institute for Educational Leadership (IEL), Connecticut's Commissioner of Higher Education, President of Detroit's Merrill-Palmer Institute, and a member of the New Rochelle Board of Education. He has taught at the college level, as well as in schools in NYC and White Plains. Mr. Usdan has written numerous articles and books on education and is a frequent speaker in the United States and abroad.
FULL BIO
In an attempt to "Go Green," Joint Dinner invitations were sent via PaperlessPost.com with the subject line "The Politics of Education." If you did not receive it in your inbox, please check your spam folder! Your district clerk also has a copy to pass along.
This event is sponsored by the Lower Hudson Council of School Superintendents, Dutchess County School Boards Association, Rockland County School Boards Association, and the Westchester Putnam School Boards Association.
We hope to see you there!
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Thirty-one newly elected board of education members from 24 of our districts took part in the WPSBA "Governance Thru A Regional Lens," seminar held September 17th at P/NW BOCES (photo at top of newsletter). WPSBA is a certified provider of this day-long NYS mandated training.
We're grateful to have had top-notch presenters: former Superintendent John Chambers, WPSBA Executive Director Lisa Davis, WPSBA President Stephen Jambor, Superintendent Brenda Myers of Valhalla, and Stephanie Roebuck of Keane & Beane.
Here's what some of our participants had to say:
"I arrived thinking how were we going to be there for 8 hours and left wishing we had more time!"
"I gave the binder to my district clerk to copy for other board members. Some great stuff in there!"
"Highly recommend this program for new board members. It should be a requirement to attend live!"
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It's Never Too Early to Think Advocacy...
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| ...And we need your participation as we develop a regional plan to address our Advocacy Priorities (Foundation Aid and regional cost issues top the list). We encourage every district to send a board representative to our Legislative Advocacy meetings so they can be part of the conversation and share information from and with your community. It takes a village- two counties worth of villages- to bring about the change that will positively affect our districts and our students. Mark your calendar for our upcoming Legislative Advocacy Meetings: November 10th ( 8 pm in Lakeland) and December 8th (8 pm in Byram Hills). |
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