Students in the Wantagh School District will not have a February vacation this year as a result of missed days from Superstorm Sandy and an early November nor'easter.
Wantagh Acting Superintendent of Schools Maureen Goldberg sent a message to parents late Tuesday morning informing them of the calendar adjustment. In addition to having school during the previously scheduled February vacation holiday break from Feb. 18-22, students will also have classes now on March 15 and April 1, which were originally slated to superintendent conference days. The district was forced to close schools for six days a result of Superstorm Sandy as well as on Nov. 8 due to a nor’easter.
“Although at this time the Spring break has been preserved, should further days be required due to any upcoming inclement weather, this vacation time may need to be abbreviated as well,” Goldberg said in her message to parents Tuesday. “Let's all hope for a warm winter.”
Seaford school officials could not immediately be reached for comment on the district’s status with making up six lost days from Sandy and the nor’easter. Districts across Long Island have inquired with the New York State Department of Education about waiving the requirement of having at least 180 days of instructional time due to Sandy, but no decision has yet been made.
Seaford where do you stand?? Were waiting.........................
Please feel free to cut and past, Victor. Dear Gov. Cuomo, Please help us. Our school district wants to, like, make sure that our kids get a full 180 days of education. They even canceled the fabricated February recess. You know, the fabricated break that should have been done away with a long time ago. Now, our children will be forced to learn for 2 straight months in a row without a break. Please do something. Intervene! Deploy the National Guard! Stop the insanity! PS I also demand that you do something about our astronomical taxes and the exorbitant salaries that teachers are getting paid.
I HOPE i am wrong but we shall see!
I can tell you, from first-hand experience, that there is also an enormous amount of pressure on teachers in Long Island's most prestigious districts to inflate grades... Dramatically in some cases.
And I am not stereotyping all top districts, just agreeing with Old Miller that this certainly is the case at times.
I applaud Wantagh for putting kids back in school for eight make up days. They have their educational priorities in Order. This town does seem to have a "red cup" mentality. Anthony is correct.
I'm sure most other districts will address the issue prior to, or during, their December BOE meetings. As is the case in Levittown, the plan is currently a "proposal" by the Supt. and is pending BOE approval: http://www.levittownschools.com/resources/parent/Calendar%20Revision%20Letter.pdf#page=1&view=FitH&navpanes=0 If Seaford's December BOE meeting (which I am sure will be attended by so many of the malcontents) comes and goes and the matter isn't addressed, then I could see the complaining/insulting. But for now, it is a bit premature.
If you want to call me a malcontent then i wear that lable proudly because to be SATISIFIED with never being a LEADER Academically is a diservice to EVERY STUDENT that passes thru the doors of our schools. When you LOWER your expectations to settle when you deny the students the ability as a DISTRICt to be a leader others emulate then you fail. . DO the Jerichos of the world PUSH their teachers and students to cheat, i strongly doubt it, nor is it as rampant as you think most people have integrity. , i do however find that when we dont expect BETTER we are AS at fault as the ones who do cheat because we are CHEATING OUR STUDENTS by not giving them higher standards to aspire to and reach as a DISTRICT.
And in regard's to Old Miller's post, it certainly does exist in some of these top districts. I am not saying all, but it sure does exist. And Jericho isn't one of the ones I have any personal knowledge of.
"If Seaford's December BOE meeting (which I am sure will be attended by so many of the malcontents)..." I was speaking of the chronic complainers who never attend meetings
Which is totaly ridiculous. Lets put it this way if 300 separate families had vacations planned during spring break does anyone actually think this administraiton or board or ANY rational Admin or Board would give them ANY consideration if they chose to make up the days during spring break vs winter break? of course not. So WHy should the board and Admin be dithering about a Band Trip and refunds. If this is truly the case then yes i question their judgement and priorities.
A school district's priorities, in practice not in writing, are a reflection of the values held by the community that it serves. If you do not like Seaford's apparent tendency to place sports and activities above academics, you only have your neighbors to blame. We have the same issues in Wantagh, as well as much of the districts on the South Shore. Parents yearn for the immediate gratification of seeing their child's name in lights rather than appreciating the sacrifices that need to be made for success in the long term. Conversely, the children on the North Shore, for the most part, have been conditioned to fight for the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, which, of course, brings its own baggage for kids to manage. And that leads, irrefutably, to grade inflation. You may want to take a moment to reflect before you begin slamming away at your poor, poor keyboard.
We are FAMILY oriented , We are Community oriented , we are for the most part compassionate neighbors who strive to help each other regardless of our own circumstances. This has been most evident in the aftermath of Sandy. We need as parents, taxpayers and as communities to grasp the concept that we need to combine What makes US special and unique and wonderful with a stronger focus on EDUCATION. I came from a NS mentality "waspy" "tony"" priviledged" community in Westchester. What I took away was the top notch education the rest i happily left behind - Much to the chagrin of my parents(understatement) . Affluence & success are not JUST synonomous with geography .Its a Mind set However if we combine the BEST of both, Family and community values we hold dear and incorporate the higher education values of others, establish new" traditions" that support both then there would be limitless possibilities for our students , they would then have the ability to SOAR . What parent wouldn't want that for their child?
But wait...there's more! (Paraphrasing) "Spend less, teach more and teach better, but do not sell that decrepit hulk of a school on Seaford Avenue. Do not get your hands dirty by touching that $5 million sale price; walk, no run away fast from that $500K annual tax revenue from the proposed development; and, let's keep on spending that spare $100K to insure it and maintain it every year, while we keep on cutting Middle School sports to make up for the lost $400K rental income since BOCES bailed-out." And the coup de grace: "Vote to not change anything!"
Well then i suspect that MANY companies across the GLOBE that DO and are currently subscribing to the " spend less and increase performance" probably arent going to succeed either. SHAME on EVERY business model, shame on every CEO, shame on every STOCK HOLDER out there then, for you and Chris and Sal obviously dont quite grasp or subscribe to this current methodology .. Might want to talk to your bosses about this to see where you stand in the scheme of things. .. lmao