December 17, 2021 

Dear Hastings Families & Staff, 

Our Holiday Recess is nearly here. We have earned rest, relaxation, and joy. This week’s update starts with two celebrations and then shifts to a reinforcement of two serious areas: Security and COVID-19. 

Expanding Student Leadership: The Hastings Affinity Group 

I continue to meet with student leaders to listen, learn and consider improvements and changes for the district. This week, I sat with student leaders from Hastings Affinity Group, who shared insights about the experiences of students of color. Constructive concerns were shared about the need for greater representation in the curriculum and lesson plans, as well as among administrators and staff. Healthy questions were raised about the implementation of DEI and DASA as two parallel frameworks intended to ensure Hastings is a respectful and inclusive school district promoting the dignity of students and staff. 

Six students took time to meet, each impressing me with their clear thinking and compassion. Our conversations will continue and reach more students. For now, I publicly thank Riya Chandra, Eesha Chen, Aya Hinawi, Sabine Paz-LeDraoulec, Victoria Pereira, and Liam Shanley. They give me hope as future leaders for our nation. 

The Affinity Group’s Mission statement: 

The Hastings Affinity Group offers a safe space for self-identifying students of color to have conversations pertaining to: racial justice, equality, equity, and diversity. We aim to create an inclusive environment for students to feel safe and represented within the school community. The group also discusses potential projects for racial equity within the school district. One of our notable projects is the Hastings Affinity Mural Collaboration Project of 2021 located on the 3rd floor between the Math, English, and Science hallways (Link). This is just one snapshot of the goals we have accomplished, and we aim to continue our work within the Hastings School District. 

Thank you Jenice Mateo-Toledo and Tesfa Stewart for serving as faculty advisors.

The Music Continues: HHS Winter Concert – 12.16.21 

Hastings be proud, be really proud. The reputation for this Village and school district as a beacon of musical excellence is well earned. Last evening I joined with families, students, and administrators to relish the instrumental and vocal talents of the HHS Band, String Sinfonia, HHS Orchestra, HHS Chorus and HHS Jazz Band for their Winter Concert. Find a copy of the Concert Program, so you can see the remarkable range (and challenge) of the pieces, covering Goransson, Dunton (who composed his piece at age 17 in Brooklyn), Mittal, Mendelssohn, Brahms, Whitacre, Bernstein, Lauridsen, Hadar, Quick, Rossini, Morgan, Mancini, Debussy and, of course, Sondheim. Featured soloists were exquisite: Miles Levine (Cello), Yumay Lin (Piano), Will Muller (Percussion), Frieda Belasco (Percussion), Luca Dimnet (Vocalist), Gigi Richer (Vocalist), Celia Silverstein (Vocalist), and Jasper Zimmerman (Piano). 

This gift of music was brought to us by the dedicated trio of Eric Day, Jon Riss, and Mike Rubino. They are “playing forward” their obvious musical excellence through their students. It is a gift for Us. 

I shift to two serious matters buoyed by the music of last night, shared in an auditorium brimming with community and good feeling. 

Security Matters: A Reminder and Review 

We have to periodically remind ourselves that we are a secure school district, and review the steps we take to ensure our students and staff are safe. Let me share a brief statement I prepared in response to questions from several parents over the past week. 

My highest priority as superintendent is keeping our students and staff safe for quality learning. Since becoming a superintendent 10 years ago, I have had to concentrate on guiding districts to maximize security, largely because of the proximity of Greenwich and Weston (where I was superintendent) to the Sandy Hook tragedy, and then the ripple effect of subsequent school shootings regardless of the miles separating us from the particular school. 

I have learned that several guiding principles are essential: 

1. Districts (and their superintendents) must work closely with their local police departments, especially the command structure (Chiefs and top officers), and security experts. This relationship provides districts (and their superintendents) the best information on how to maximize security. It also allows superintendents to learn lessons from other tragedies, including facts that are not reported publicly. 
2. Security must be multifaceted and layered, with plans and actions addressing: Personnel (internal and external), Facilities and Infrastructure, Technology, Procedures for Drills, Training, and Communications. 
3. The social, emotional, and psychological well-being of students and staff have to be monitored–individually and collectively–to pick up warning signs for problematic situations. If troubling signs are identified, they must be confronted directly in firm and clear ways, and with the immediate involvement of law enforcement when necessary. 
4. District leaders must keep the Board of Education well informed, which per state law typically occurs in Executive Session to ensure better security. 

Working with Altaris Consultants, Hastings developed a Safety Brochure. This brochure documents that we are following best practices. It is posted on the Webpage HERE. 

I would highlight a series of specific actions we have underway: 

1. A tiered approach to safety and security starting with CPS Security Officers, HOH PD, building level threat assessment teams, emergency response teams, and Altaris. 
2. A collaborative and professional relationship with the Hastings-on-Hudson Police Department, whose officers participate in all drills. 
3. Comprehensive, confidential Emergency Plans specific to each building are updated, reviewed, and implemented annually. 
4. Annual scheduling of drills, which ensures there is repetition and consistency, with the vast majority of these drills conducted in the beginning of the school year. 
5. Students are prepared for several types of emergencies. Preparations include drills on evacuations, sheltering within school, and lockdowns. There is a significant focus on lockdown drills, which are guided by NYSED (New York State Education Department) and national best practices. 
6. Front line security, which entails: a single point of entry; locked exterior doors; monitors with two-way radio communication on the exterior of the building when students are outside the building; and, a visitor policy (visitors are vetted and approved to be in the building for a legitimate purpose before allowing them beyond the security desk). 
7. Continuous training of faculty in safety and security. 
8. An active threat assessment team, which is activated to evaluate student behavior when red flags are raised. 
9. Provide mental health services and have teams in place to deal with acute mental health crises. 
10. Future plans to implement an Anonymous Reporting System and plans to implement a See Something, Say Something Campaign. 
11. Continuous evaluations of safety and security by our Altaris Coordinator. 

In closing, let me stress that my long-standing commitment to security is matched by the long-term dedication of Hastings administrators and staff. 

COVID-19: Be Prepared 

I now turn to COVID-19 and the impact of the new variant, Omicron. 

We intend to stay fully in-person. Let me repeat, we intend to stay fully in-person. 

Given Omicron, however, and concerns among public health and medical experts about rapid spread, as we are seeing in higher education in the region, we need to make sure we are ready to shift to remote learning options. We don't want to do this, but we have to be prepared. 

Principals will be meeting with their faculty and staff to make sure we are ready if a change needs to occur. Our Special Education team is reviewing what is required for students with IEPs. One meeting already occurred at Hillside, which helped identify items that need attention ahead of any shift to remote. 

Three immediate points need to be understood: 

1. Any change would come with as much advance warning as possible. We do not anticipate it being an "overnight shift." 
2. As always, we are subject to any directives from the NYSDOH or WCDOH; they are the ultimate arbiters on our approaches to mitigating the spread of COVID-19 and now the Omicron variant. 
3. Levels of confirmed positive cases among staff, such that we cannot safely open a building, might lead to a district decision to shift temporarily to remote. 

We will communicate more next week as to what we are learning about the implications of Omicron for schools. If nothing else, accept this update as a "Be Prepared" moment. We have learned the hard way that not being prepared is a problem. 

I head into the weekend gratified by our budding student leaders and lifted by our wonderful musicians. We have to embrace moments of joy as we move forward. 

Be well.

William S. McKersie, Ph.D. 

Superintendent of Schools