Kindergartners at Columbus celebrated their 100th day of school by displaying classroom posters they created and dancing during a variety of singalongs with teachers related to the number 100. The kindergartners also wore colorful paper hats to commemorate their milestone. As part of the event, the Columbus community collected more than 200 cans of food to donate to the Long Island Cares Food Pantry of Freeport.
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Columbus Celebrates 100th Day of School
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A Chopstick Partnership at Giblyn
Kindergartners and fourth-graders at Giblyn worked together to learn how to use chopsticks prior to enjoying a traditional meal during their observance of the Chinese New Year.
The students, who have been working together as class buddies this year, learned about the significance of the holiday. After learning how to position their fingers with their chopsticks, they used them to eat vegetable lo mein.
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Black History Month Celebration
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Boys’ Basketball Semi-Finals Information
Friday, February 27,2015 Freeport vs. Baldwin Hofstra University 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $6.00
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Freeport Students Give Kids a Smile
Members of the high school’s student government volunteered at Give Kids a Smile, a dental hygiene education event at the Cradle of Aviation Museum in Garden City. The students served as group leaders for children across Long Island who attended the event. Give Kids a Smile provides students with oral hygiene screenings, supplies oral hygiene products, and sets up appointments with the Long Island Jewish Medical Center to address any concerns.
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A Vision to ‘Transform Education’
Mimi Bino, library media specialist at New Visions, was recognized as the school’s February Employee of the Month for showcasing “effective use of data and technology to transform education.”
She was presented with a plaque and certificate by Superintendent of Schools Dr. Kishore Kuncham for seeking ways to enlighten New Visions students by offering resources that support 21st-century learning, and for assisting administrators and teachers with the collection and interpretation of data and technology.
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Students Showcase Musical and Artistic Talents at District’s Annual Black History Month Celebration
The story of black history is truly the story of American history. It is the history of a brave people, a people brought to this nation against their will who, quiet as it’s been kept, built this country. The districtwide Black History program celebrates the contributions of enslaved and freed people through spoken word, dance and vocal music. The story cannot be told in one hour, one month or even one year.
The art instructors presented stellar works from their students depicting the messages of peace, the art forms of expression that highlighted African Americans (not clear what the second half of this sentence means). The work was displayed in the atrium of the high school.
Students from Bayview (Brianna Bras, Jadon Easy, Malcolm Jean-Pierre, Katie Marcia and Tristan Meli), Archer (Rosanna Secchi) and Atkinson (Tatiana Andre, Dillon DeBourg and Reginai (sp?) Tucker) presented narrations of “Who Am I?” to the program. The segment included mentions of African-American icons, such as Harriet Tubman, Maya Angelou, Judge Thurgood Marshall, Alvin Ailey, Langston Hughes, Dr. Charles Drew, Dr. Daniel Hale Williams, Elijah McCoy, Lewis Howard Latimer, Henry Ossawa Tanner, John Stanford, George Washington Carver, Madame C. J. Walker, Rosa Parks, James Weldon Johnson, Hank Aaron, Crispus Attucks, Benjamin Banneker, Romare Bearden, Mary McLeod Bethune, Shirley Chisholm, Ruby Dee, Ossie Davis, Frederick Douglass, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Oprah Winfrey, President Barack Obama, and many more.
Students from Archer explained the history of stepping before they performed the same ritual.
District Director of the Arts Anne-Marie Hudley Simmons prepared student speakers Rajiv Chanda, Kira Brizill and Michael Desir from the high school to narrate the entire program, and their contribution was stellar.
The program included performances by the A.T.K. Dancers from Atkinson, steppers from Archer, and Retrograde, a dance troupe from Freeport High School. In addition, there were exciting choreographed choral selections by New Visions, Atkinson, Dodd and the high school. New Visions first-grader Isabella Diaz sang “We Shall Overcome,” commemorating the music heard at the march in Washington in the 1960s. The melodious tones of the saxophone were rendered by Skye Carranza, who mesmerized the audience with his improvisation of “Amazing Grace.” It was truly a night to remember.
The select chorale opened with “The Star-Spangled Banner,” and with the mass choir singing Roland Carter’s “Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing,” accompanied by Brandon Belizaire on the Steinway, it was an electrifying and glorious night.
Christopher Fludd led the closing number in song, “I Need You to Survive,” and then continued to conduct the mass choir from Giblyn, New Visions, Atkinson, Dodd and the high school.
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Impact of the GEA on Freeport and the Albany issues that we need to know about that can affect state aid
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3/11/2015 - Budget Workshop/Planning/Action Mtg. Atkinson 7:30pm
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Marchers at Archer
Students at Archer celebrated the Chinese New Year with a Lunar Day Parade. The march featured students displaying various Chinese culture-related artworks, such as masks and lanterns. Each grade level had an opportunity to showcase its artistic creations for their peers.
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Seuss Celebrations
Students throughout the district celebrated Dr. Seuss’ birthday, also known as Read Across America Day, with a variety of reading-oriented activities.
At New Visions, teachers swapped classrooms to serve as guest readers of Dr. Seuss books to their colleagues’ students. Archer celebrated the author by hosting children’s musicians Scott and Beth Bierko at its Dr. Seuss Pajama Party. Bayview hosted its annual Family Book Club, which brought together students and their families for an evening of entertainment by teachers dressed as book characters who celebrated the joy of reading. A book fair was held at the school following the program. Giblyn welcomed several guests for special readings of Dr. Seuss books, including Superintendent of Schools Dr. Kishore Kuncham and Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction Gerard Poole.
The activities reinforced the importance of reading while celebrating the life of one of the most influential children’s authors in history.
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Jet Returns Bearing Books
The district welcomed its hometown hero, D’Brickashaw Ferguson, back for Read Across America Day.
Ferguson, an offensive tackle for the New York Jets drafted in 2006, visited the district’s four elementary schools for special readings of his book, “Brick’s Way Go Green.” The football superstar began by reading to students at Bayview, then made his way to Archer and New Visions before culminating at Giblyn, the school he attended. Ferguson answered students’ questions following the readings and donated hundreds of copies of the book to each school.
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FHS Select Chorale Serenades Barclays
The FHS Select Chorale once again took its talents on the road, this time to Barclays Center to sing the national anthem at a Brooklyn Nets basketball game. Following their harmonious rendition under director Monique Retzlaff, the group interacted with players and watched the Nets’ game against the Utah Jazz. The FHS Select Chorale, which also performed at the Empire State Building in December, is comprised of many members who were selected as All-State musicians earlier this year.
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3/25/2015 - Action/Budget Mtg FHS 7:30pm
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FHS Musical Tickets for Sale
The high school’s theatrical rendition of Beauty and the Beast will be showcased on March 27 at 7 p.m. and March 28 at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Tickets for both performances are currently for sale at the high school from either Bob Yarmola or the music department, and Columbus Avenue School from the Department of the Arts Office. Adult tickets are $12, student and senior-citizen tickets are $7, and tickets for children 12 and under are $5.
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A Superheroic Lesson for Giblyn
Students at Giblyn were introduced to Enviroman, a conceptual superhero who taught them about the importance of keeping their school and community environmentally sound.
Enviroman was designed to provide a school-wide lesson in cleanliness, and was spearheaded by a project in Mrs. Patricia Vollkommer’s second-grade class. Students in the class created paper ‘Enviromen’ and each design was hung up around the school without an explanation.
Students were told that this superhero had unexpectedly visited the school, and they were asked to predict what his reason was. The following day, broken pencils, erasers, crumpled papers and markers were taped to each Enviroman’s hand, and students were again tasked with making a prediction as to the reason for the clutter. On the third and final day, speech bubbles containing advice about tidiness were hung over each Enviroman’s head. School security guard Ms. Jocelyn also participated in the project by leading the investigation and examining the clues.
Mrs. Vollkommer’s students kept the clues to the mystery a secret, and wrote a song about Enviroman to the tune of Spiderman. During a live visit from an Enviroman and an Envirogirl, the students sang the song and honored them with a Giblyn Clap Out ritual.
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A Glimpse of Future Careers
Students at Archer were exposed to the wide array of future occupational choices available to them as part of Career Day.
The school welcomed a variety of guest speakers, including a judge, electrician, orthopedic surgeon, police officer, yoga teacher, animal shelter worker and Zumba instructor, to speak to students about their careers. The students learned first-hand about the different fields they can begin thinking about pursuing in the future.
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Congratulations to the Caroline G. Atkinson Intermediate School PTA Reflection Art Contest Participants and Winners!
In this picture from L To R Front Row: Jaiden Plummer, Jillian Igneri, Brenna Igneri, Nicholas Quintanilla, Elise Smith, Natalia Vega. Back Row L to R : Ms. Emily Hertzberg (Art Teacher) and Linton Brown.
Fifth Graders:
Nicholas Quintanilla * Nassau Region Entry
Natalia Vega *District Winner
Breanna Igneri * Nassau Region Entry
Jillian Igneri *District Winner
Sixth Graders:
Linton Brown. *District Winner
Tasheena Evans *Nassau Region Entry
Jaiden Plummer. * District Winner
Natalia Warren. * Nassau Region Entry
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BOE Trustee Ron Ellerbe Receives Statewide Award
Board of Education trustee Ronald Ellerbe has been named the New York State School Boards Association Advocate of the Year for his longstanding dedication to public education and his tireless efforts on behalf of students. This statewide award is presented to an individual school board member from New York State for outstanding contributions to public education, children and community through advocacy efforts at the state and/or national levels. The advocacy award was presented to Mr. Ellerbe on March 16 during the Capital Conference in Albany."Ron is recognized as an effective advocate for children, and it has been his tireless mission to maintain relationships with legislators and to cultivate a keen awareness of the needs of the children of New York,” said Tim Kremer, executive director of NYSSBA.
Mr. Ellerbe’s name has become synonymous with both advocacy and Freeport. He has served the children and families of Freeport as a member of the Board of Education for 18 years, as vice president from 2006 to 2008, and as president from 2000 to 2001. Mr. Ellerbe chairs the Board’s Legislative, Budget and Safety committees. Recently, he was appointed to the Commissioner’s Roundtable representing NYSSBA.
Mr. Ellerbe is widely known and highly regarded on Long Island. Local school districts elected him to the Nassau BOCES Board, on which he has served since 2007. He is a member of the Nassau-Suffolk School Boards Association Executive Board and is currently vice chairman of the NYSSBA’s Finance Committee. He is also a member and past president of the Reform Education Finance Inequities Today (REFIT) Executive Committee. In recognition of his contributions to education on Long Island, he was a recipient of the 60 Over Sixty Award, presented by School Business Partnerships of Long Island. Mr. Ellerbe’s contributions to the broader community were recognized by the Freeport Council of PTAs, which awarded him an honorary lifetime membership for his service to parents and children. His service to his community extends to the entire Village of Freeport, where he has been elected to the Village Board of Trustees.“I know Mr. Ellerbe truly exemplifies the personal and professional qualities that are honored through this award,” said Superintendent of Schools Dr. Kishore Kuncham. "Our elected officials understand that he is a fierce advocate, and they have a great respect for his knowledge and insight.”
Mr. Ellerbe is retired from a highly respected career in law enforcement. He is a graduate of Fordham University and holds a master's degree in public administration from LIU Post. He also holds a Master of Boardsmanship from NYSSBA.
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4/15/2015 - Budget/Planning/Action Mtg Atkinson 7:30pm
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