Greetings,
The corridors of Lexington have come alive over the last few days as students participating in the Hybrid Instructional Plan returned to the building. Faculty and staff were on hand on February 23rd to welcome more than 50 Ready to Learn, Preschool, Elementary and Special Needs students back to the building. Classrooms have been re-organized with separate desks and supplies, hallways and classrooms have taped floors and signs to keep students distanced, and numerous hand sanitizer dispensers have been placed throughout the building.
Except for a few first day "jitters" among some of the youngest students, the students are happy and excited to be back in school. I have enjoyed visiting the classrooms (pictured above with preschool teacher Marian Hart and instructional assistant Chrissy Hayward) and seeing the creative ways that teachers are engaging with their in-person and virtual students.
I encourage everyone to purchase a ticket to the Drama Club's Opening Night Virtual Watch Party on Thursday, March 18th at 7:00 p.m., EST. This year's production, Diverse Connections, will be presented in a virtual format and includes a series of vignettes about who we are and how we connect as people. I would like to thank our faculty and staff for their efforts to make our re-entry to the building safe and successful. While there will still be many challenges ahead, everyone is doing their best to provide a robust instructional program while maintaining necessary health and safety protocols.
With wishes for health and safety,
Russell O. West
CEO/Superintendent
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Many of Lexington's Ready to Learn, preschool, elementary and special needs students returned to school on February 23rd for hybrid learning. Teachers and staff helped students learn new health and safety procedures and the Lexington Blue Jay made a special appearance. For families who selected the hybrid model, in-person learning will occur on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays and virtual learning on Mondays and Fridays. We can't wait to welcome our middle school students back to the nest on March 9th, with high school students returning on March 16th.
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Students were happy to return to Lexington on February 23rd. |
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Special thanks to Carlos Aponte-Salcedo, Jr., Carl Sorrentino and Jennifer Spensieri for making a Back to The Nest video!
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One of the important safety procedures at Lexington is a daily health screening that must be completed by all students, employees and visitors who enter the school building. There are three ways to complete the survey. Employees and students may have the screening questionnaire e-mailed to their homes each morning, the questionnaire may be accessed via our website, or paper copies can be sent in with students. Meggi Smith, Family Liaison, and members of the Safety Committee created a short video to help families, employees and visitors understand the new process.
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Click on the image to view instructions for completing the daily health screening. |
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Drama Club Presents "Diverse Connections" |
Lexington's Drama Club will be presenting this year's production, "Diverse Connections," in a virtual format. Presented as a series of monologues and dialogues, the performance includes funny, happy, sad and powerful stories about who we are and how we connect as people. Tickets for the Opening Night Virtual Watch Party, on Thursday, March 18, 2021 at 7:00 p.m. EST are available for $5 (individual viewing) or $10 (group viewing). Click here to purchase tickets or to make a donation to the Drama Club.
The performance will be presented in American Sign Language with English interpretation and captioning. Due to mature themes, the production is not recommended for children under 13.
A free link to the recorded performance will be available on March 19th. On Sunday, March 21st at 2:00 p.m. EST, the Drama Club will host a special panel discussion between the story contributors and the actors.
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Teachers Return to Classrooms |
Teachers and staff returned to Lexington on February 9th to set-up classrooms and learn safety procedures in preparation for the hybrid learning model. It was great to see everyone after almost a year of remote instruction. A special thank you to our friends at Sorenson Communications for donating grab-n-go snack bags, tissues and calendars to everyone. |
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Home Depot Donates $1,000.00 to Lexington |
Lexington would like to thank the employees of the Bulova/Queens Home Depot Store #6844 for their recent donation of $1,000.00 to support the school. The Bulova/Queens Home Depot and Lexington share a special history with several vocational services clients receiving internships or jobs at the store. Special thanks to store manager Oscar Castro, assistant store manager/operations manager Vashi, manager Nicole Mckoy and supervisor Tavi Leroi for their efforts to secure this donation for Lexington. Pictured in photo (l-r): Dorothy Corporan-Nieves, Lexington ALS Interpreter, Oscar Castro and Vashi. |
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Class Elementary 8 recently learned about similes – a comparison of two things using the words “like” or “as.” Each student created artwork and a short video to explain a specific simile, which was compiled into an e-book using Book Creator. Thanks to teacher Marjorie Ryall and instructional assistant Tina Stincone for a creative and engaging unit on similes. Click on the book cover to see the students' work. |
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Click on the book cover to read this e-book! |
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Jayden Orlang Selected for National Basketball Team |
Senior Jayden Orlang has been selected as a member of the Puerto Rico Deaf National Basketball team. According to Carl Sorrentino, Athletic Director, “Jayden is an accomplished student athlete and leader, on and off the court. He has always contributed to Blue Jay Athletics, whether it be hitting the books, practicing, weight lifting or playing.” Among Jayden’s many awards are Deaf Digest Varsity Boys Basketball All American (2018, 2019, 2020), ESDAA Boys Basketball All-Tournament Team (2018, 2019, 2020) and Championship Game MVP Varsity Boys Basketball ESDAA Championship (2019). |
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Senior Jayden Orlang is hoping to make it to the 2021-2022 Deaflympics as a member of the Puerto Rico Deaf National Basketball team. |
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Lexington's Multicultural Committee, Black History Club and Lexington Alumni Association provided a wealth of resources to help students, faculty and staff acknowledge and celebrate the many contributions of Black Americans and Black Deaf Americans as part of February's Black History Month celebration. Among the resources were Gallaudet University's Division of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, which published a series of Black History Month Facts. Lexington's own Claudia Gordon, Esq., alumna and board member, was one of the trailblazers recognized by Gallaudet for her accomplishments as the first Black Deaf Female attorney! (Photo/graphic courtesy of Gallaudet University.)
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