News from the Mahopac Central School District

March 18, 2024

Letter from the Superintendent

Dear Mahopac Community:

March is Music in Our Schools Month and I am constantly impressed with the talent of our student musicians as well as the dedication of our music educators. In addition to the wonderful events that have taken place earlier this year, Band-o-Rama, the High School Pops Concert, and the Middle School musical production of Newsies, Jr. were outstanding performances that were enjoyed so far this month. Student musicians who have been selected to perform with All County ensembles, Area All State ensembles, and the NYS Band Directors Association Honor Jazz Ensemble will be recognized at the March 19, 2024 Board of Education meeting. A complete list of these outstanding musicians can be found here. Congratulations to all of our student musicians!

Thank you to all of our community members who completed the recent Budget Input Survey. The input provided from the 1400+ respondents was invaluable. This information will guide us as we continue to develop the school budget for the 2024-2025 school year. You can access the summary of the survey here. You can also find all of the information regarding the 2024-2025 School Budget on our District website or by clicking here. Please check this site often as updates will be posted throughout the next two months. Please mark your calendar to participate in the annual School Budget Vote and Trustee Election on May 21, 2024.

We have many community organizations that support our students and provide additional opportunities. On our website, we have a Community Bulletin Board where information about a variety of programs can be found. Please check the Community Bulletin Board often for the latest information. It is located under the “District” tab on the website or by clicking here: Community Bulletin Board.

Sincerely,

Christine Tona

Superintendent of Schools

Austin Road Students Visit Taconic Outdoor Education Center

Austin Road fourth graders got a sweet lesson in maple sugaring last week when they visited the Taconic Outdoor Education Center.

Students from Carolyn Ryan, Tiffany Ziegelhofer, Sue Downey, and Katie Douma’s fourth-grade classes visited the center where they learned about the science and history of maple sugaring. For example, students learned that long before the first settlers came to New York indigenous people harvested the sap of maple trees and made maple syrup.

“What kind of weather did we say that we need to get maple sap from our trees?” asked Educator Jamie Cantin.

“Warm days and cold nights!” replied a chorus of students from Downey’s class.

Students learned about the Maple season and the precarious requirements to get sap from Maple trees. They got hands-on with some of the processes used to harvest sap including the history of the practice, from discovery by Native Americans to modern methods of tapping and evaporating.

“One of the stories that is told about the discovery of maple syrup is that there was a chief who stuck his hatchet into a maple tree. The sap came out of the tree and filled a trough that they used to cook a stew,” said Educator Cantin. “The stew was delicious and sweet. They wondered why and realized that the sugary fluid came from the tree.”

Students gathered around a campfire, where they saw an old school cauldron over an open flame boiling off the excess water in sap as well as a small evaporator operated by Taggart Lake.

“This is too liquidy to be syrup!” said Austin Road fourth-grade student Rocco.

“That’s right, the sap starts out being only 2% or 3% sugar and the rest is water,” said Lake. “We still need to boil off more of the water, by the time that it’s syrup, it will be 60% sugar.”

Students moved on from Lake’s smaller evaporator to a car-sized machine used to do the bulk of the evaporation for the Taconic Outdoor Education Center. Housed in its own building, educators showed students just how much work and sap goes into producing a single gallon of syrup.

“It takes 40 gallons of sap to make a single gallon of syrup,” said Program Coordinator Gregory Kofsky. “Every year, we make about 4,000 gallons of sap into 100 gallons of maple syrup.”

Some students noticed that some of the larger maple trees had multiple spiles or taps and buckets on them. They learned that the trees used their sap to store sugar and that only bigger trees could have multiple spiles so that the trees would have enough sap left to survive.

Students were able to explore the education center in short sleeves and jeans thanks to the beautiful weather and educators took full advantage of the day to impart lessons about local history, biology, and the physics of making maple syrup to the students.

“This workshop is a great opportunity to learn about our connection to the environment, but also New York State’s history,” said Environmental Education Assistant Nicole Sedran. “We’re happy that it was a nice day and it was great to have Austin Road back at the Taconic Outdoor Education Center.”

This Week in Photos

Mahopac Middle School Theater Company Performs Disney's Newsies Jr.

Extra! Extra! Read all about it! The Mahopac Middle School Theater Company wowed audiences with its licensed production of Newsies Jr. this weekend. Clad in suspenders, old-timey dresses, and, of course, newsboy caps, the cast sang favorites including "Carrying the Banner," "Seize the Day," and "Santa Fe." Newsies Jr. has been called a timeless story full of spirit and heart. Congratulations to everyone involved in this MMS Theater Company production on an incredible performance.

Mahopac Middle School Celebrates Pi Day

Last week Mahopac Middle School students celebrated Pi Day (3/14) by learning all about the peculiar little irrational number. Math teachers Marie DeNicola and Morissa Townsend encouraged staff and students from all across the school to get in on the fun, with a massive scavenger hunt for tiny rubber ducks with Pi facts and jokes attached to them. Students searched far and wide, turning in the little ducks for candies.

DeNicola’s room was decorated with streamers and the symbol for Pi, while students completed themed activities and prepared for a special Pi Day challenge. Students were tasked with memorizing the first 30 digits of Pi. Those able to recite the digits from memory today (Monday, March 18th) will be allowed to join a pie party at lunch.

Students were even encouraged to bring in circular-themed food items for donation as a part of a Pi Day food drive for the Putnam Community Action Partnership. The drive brought in over six boxes full of circle themed food items for those in need.

Students Scour the Shelves at Austin Road Elementary Book Fair

Whether they were looking for fiction, non-fiction, adventure stories, or books about animals, students were sure to find a story to their liking at the Austin Road Book Fair. Hosted by the Austin Road Elementary Parent Teacher Organization as a fundraiser, the event was held in the cafeteria. Every student had a chance to browse the shelves for their next literary adventure.

Mahopac High School Senior Scholarship Opportunities

Mahopac families, clubs, and organizations want to support seniors with post-graduate plans through scholarship opportunities. Seniors should visit the Senior Awards Website to see which scholarship opportunities are a good fit for them.

Kindergarten Registration for the

2024-2025 School Year

Kindergarten registration for the 2024-25 school year will be held from January 1st, 2024 - March 31st, 2024. Check out the attached documents to register.

English Document https://5il.co/2bd71

Spanish Document https://5il.co/2bd70

Ad Hoc Advocacy Committee Opens

Suggestion Box

The Ad Hoc Advocacy Committee invites our community to provide any concerns/issues/policies for the Advocacy Committee to discuss and consider advocating for/against. Your information will remain confidential and only your suggestions will be shared.

On behalf of the Mahopac Advocacy Committee, thank you for your participation!

Advocacy Suggestion Box