The Presidents Letter

Transcripción

1 January 2007 White Plains High School PTA Issue 26, Number 2 The Presidents Letter Happy New Year! We wish you all a very healthy and happy Our next meeting will take place on Thursday, January 25 th at 7:00 at Highlands (a joint meeting with the Middle School). We will have a representative from the District Attorney s office speak to us on Internet Safety. This is a subject that gets more troubling all the time; we strongly recommend that you come and bring your kids if possible. Due to a scheduling conflict, we will not have a meeting in February. The subject of our March 22 nd meeting will be security issues at the High School. As you know, some of our meetings this year are joint with the Middle School, at which we have programs that are relevant to both age groups, and some are for the High School only. Regarding our programs, some parents feel they have heard it all a thousand times, while others feel they always learn something new and remark that their kids are at a new level of development every year. We will be developing next year s programs in the upcoming months; please let us know what you want to learn and we will try our best to make it happen. One of the best parts of being PTA co-presidents is that we meet with Ivan Toper every month. We all have general questions, concerns, or comments sometimes (not related to our particular child) that we d like to raise with the administration. If this is the case, please let us know -- we can bring them up at our monthly meeting and will get back to you. Incidentally, at one of these meetings we asked Mr. Toper: how can the PTA help you? His response was instantaneous: to spread the word that teachers say: we wish parents would reach out to us more! And that s what the PTA is all about a Parent Teacher Association. So please do get in touch with teachers directly, and also, join the PTA, come to our meetings, and give us your feedback! Communication is always an issue. The days of backpack fliers are long gone! As we consider how best to communicate with you, one idea is via . We can send you reminders for meetings and special dates, give you quick and easy information from our meetings with Mr. Toper, and give & get feedback with you. Please let us know if you are interested in this type of communication. You can Nancy at njblaney@mindspring.com, or Louise at doyle.clan@verizon.net. By now, we have all been on the receiving end of the district s new call-out feature, whereby the administration can reach out to each family on any number of topics. Every bit of communication helps! We look forward to seeing you at our meetings and events and -- it s not too late to join the PTA! Nancy Blaney, Louise Doyle and Barbara O Keefe, PTA co-presidents WPHS & WPMS PTA Meeting January 25 th 7:00 p.m. Highlands Campus

2 WISE We are very excited that WISE (Wise Individualized Senior Experience) will again be available to interested seniors during the school year. WISE is a program where students, under the mentoring of teachers/staff, can complete a project of their choice. Participating seniors will be given the opportunity to learn and experience the real world through internships, community service projects, or individual study of a specific area of interest. All interested seniors are required to complete an application, be interviewed by a Task Force Member, have a Mentor and attend meetings. Meetings will be held in the College and Career Center. Our WISE Task Force consists of enthusiastic parents, community members, students, teachers, staff and administrators and we continually welcome new members to the Task Force. Margo Devenney, WISE Advisor Culinary Arts Program White Plains High School Seniors are busy cooking up a storm! They are completing 900 hours of culinary instruction in the kitchen of the High School. The course is performance-based training that emphasizes the skills needed in the workplace. The students are preparing for internships in area Hotels, Country Clubs, Restaurants and food service departments of corporate, and health related institutions. Upon completion of the program, these seniors will receive a Certificate from the New York Culinary Training Institute. Chef Idris Mohammed, instructor from the Institute, is proud of his future chefs; two students have been accepted to Johnson and Wales Culinary Program. Newsworthy Congratulations to Liz Flooks of the Women's Basketball Team!! Liz is the latest WPHS winner (12/18-12/23) of the Con Edison Scholar Athlete of the Week. This award is given to one Westchester County athlete each week for their athletic, academic, leadership and citizenship accomplishments. Do you have a musical instrument that you would like to donate to WPHS? Contact Louise Doyle (lld7@westchestergov.com) or Nancy Ehrlich (nfehrlich@aol.com)

3 What s Right at White Plains High School Two weeks ago, I dropped my beautiful new red wallet filled with money, credit cards and my driver s license. I was already out the door when I was chased by two students. The two young men chased my out into the parking lot to return my wallet. I had absolutely no idea it had slipped out of my backpack. It happened so quickly that I didn t even get their names and regret that I did not do something special to reward their honesty and sensitivity. The next day, I opened my classroom door and found a beautiful and expensive Native American bracelet that I had lost prominently displayed so that I could not help but find it. The evening maintenance man, Mr. Bruce, had left it where he knew I would find it. I was touched by the concern of individuals at White Plains High School. I was touched and impressed by the fact that they not only returned my property but that they went out of the way to do so. In an age when the newspapers are all too quick to print negative articles about our youth, let s take a moment and recognize that every day at White Plains High School people are doing nice things and the rights things for one another without waiting for a reward or recognition. I m proud to be a teacher at White Plains High and proud to work with the people I do. Rita Rohrmann White Plains High School Foreign Language Spanish club: It is now up and running! The officers are in place and we have several activities planned. We will invite the other language clubs to participate in a soccer tournament with us. We will learn to dance, listen to some music, view some art and taste some food from many of the different Spanish speaking countries. We are hoping to go to the Guggenheim Museum to view some Spanish artists in the early spring. I am excited to be part of this wonderful club with more than 30 active participants. We meet on Tuesdays at lunch in room A211. Costa Rica Trip: 23 students will join Mr. Polanco, Mr. Mariani and I on a trip to Costa Rica from March 28, 2007 until April 7, We are busy preparing for the trip. We will have a Cabaret in early February. Come see the students perform (and maybe some teachers too!). We have some wonderfully talented people here at the high school. This will be my third trip to Costa Rica and I am delighted to be going with such a wonderful group of people. SEED (Seeking Equity and Educational Diversity): Our club has been meeting to discuss many social issues. We use an article, a song, a new event and/or a clip from the media to start the conversation. We also do charity work. Multiple Sclerosis and Seeds for Africa will receive checks at the end of the year due to our fund raising efforts. Each year we raise more than $ We have around 30 active members and several staff members including administrators and teachers have participated in our talks. We have an open door policy and the students and I welcome all visitors to come and participate in our discussions. We meet on Wednesdays from 2:45 to 4:15. Wendy Dale Spanish Teacher White Plains High School

4 Upcoming Events MEETINGS Date Time Event Location Topic/Speaker *Thurs., Jan. 25* 7:00 pm PTA Meeting Highlands Internet Safety Thurs, Feb 15 7:00 pm PTA Meeting Library Security Issues at WPHS Thurs., Mar. 22 7:30 pm PTA Meeting Library Test Anxiety (SATs and Regents) Thurs., Apr. 19 7:30 pm PTA Meeting Library Budget Presentation (Joint mtg w/pta Council T. Connors) Thurs., June 14 7:30 pm PTA Meeting Library PTA Social * - joint meeting with Middle School; check starting time carefully! SNACK BARS: Sat., May 12 8:30 am Snack Bar HS Field House - Loucks Meet OTHER EVENTS: Thurs., March 15 7:30 p.m. 8th Gr. Orientation Auditorium Weds., April am 2 pm Staff Appreciation Atrium Fri., June 1 10 a.m. Senior Breakfast South Gym

5 I am pleased to have the opportunity to write to you in your school s PTA newsletter every once and a while about important school and parenting issues. I will give you advice about the best way to communicate with school staff and remind you why you should do so regularly. I will share suggestions on helping your children with homework and just before the parent/teacher conferences in November, I will give you some tips on how to prepare for them. I need your help. Please call Virginia Calderon, our counselor/translator at the Parent Information Center at or me: lauretteyoung@wpcsd.k12.ny.us and let us know what questions you have or what issues I should write about in a future column. Virginia can be a tremendous help - call her anytime if you have any questions. The most important message I can give you is to get involved with your child s education. You may think, It s easy for her to say that because she speaks English well and I don t. You may not speak English at all, or might just know a few words. That doesn t matter. You can still make an important difference in your child s school life. It won t be easy for you, but there are many things you can do and many people who can help you. First of all, there s a good reason to get involved. A tremendous amount of research shows that when parents are involved in their child s education, the children do better in school. Of course, we all want that for our children. Through your involvement, you give your children a very powerful message: their learning is very important to you and you value their school. Here are some things you can do: Make sure your children attend school every day and schedule trips only during school vacations so they don t lose valuable class time. Attend school events. It would be a good idea to sit down with the school district calendar and circle the dates of events at your child s school and then attend those events. Most school meetings have translators available. Ask your children frequently if they have any notes from school. If you are asked to sign something, it is important to do it right away and return it to school. Ask your children questions such as, What did you do today that you never did before? or What did you do today that was a lot of fun? or Will you teach me something you learned in school today? You ll get better answers from these questions than if you ask, What did you do in school today? Practically every child in the world answers that question by saying nothing. Read to your child or have your child read to you in Spanish or in English for at least minutes every day. It is the most valuable thing you can do. Use the books your children bring home from school, the newspaper, or borrow books from the library. They have English, Spanish, and bilingual books. In the next column, I will talk about how to help your children with homework and how to organize them at home. I hope your family has a great school year. Sincerely, Laurette Young, Coordinator Parent Information Center Especially for Latino Parents

6 School-Based Council Adds New Members The School-Based Council for the High School is a group consisting of representatives from each of the constituencies involved in the school: students, parents, teachers, CSEA representatives and administrators along with the Principal. All members serve two year terms with a two term limit. The Council meets monthly and is provided with an annual budget to develop and support new initiatives that will benefit the all students and enhance student achievement. During the 2005/2006 academic year funds were allocated toward: Completion of the College and Career Center, Funding towards the WISE program, Sound system in the Auditorium and Little Theater, Project BRAVO (transportation for 2 students), Community Health Fair (T-shirts for volunteers, Enhancement of the WPHS sigh in front of the school, and funding towards China trips (Mrs. Altman and Mrs. Kass) to build a liaison. June Lewis, Silvia Rodriguez, Margo Devenney and Sheryl Brady are continuing members and Mr. Leroy Dixon, Assistant Principal, will be attending the Council meetings this year. Emily Masseo and Hannah Eddy are representing the student body. Emily is a sophomore at WPHS and the Vice President of the class of 09. Emily participates in many other clubs throughout the school. She plays soccer, lacrosse and is a captain on the Lakenridge Swim team. She is very excited to serve on the School-Based Council. Hannah is also a sophomore, plays lacrosse, is a member of a travel soccer team, and captain for the Lakenridge Swim team during the summer. She is also very involved in several clubs at the High School. Michael Ferder is representing the staff. He has been a Biology teacher at WPHS for the past four years. Mr. Ferder previously taught in New York City and spent the first 27 years of his science career as a researcher. He was the Director of Plastic Surgery Research at Montefiore Medical Center where he taught microneurovascular surgery, and carried out research in the areas of nerve regeneration, and free tissue transfer. He became a teacher in order to share his love of science with high school students. Jodie Ferrari is the new parent representative this year. Mrs. Ferrari has 3 children in the White Plains schools; Christina is in the 10 th grade, Elisabeth is in the 7 th grade at Highlands, and Michael is a 1 st grader at Post Road School. Mrs. Ferrari s greatest involvement as a parent has been at the Post Road School. She has chaired fundraising events, volunteered at a number of school functions, sat on teacher selection committees and has been a liaison between schools and the food and nutrition program. Mrs. Ferrari is a graduate of the S.U.N.Y. at Oneonta with a B.S. in Dietetics. She was on staff at New York Hospital/Cornell Univ. Medical Center for 5 years. While at NYH, she completed graduate work at NYU with a M.S. in Nutrition/Nutrition Education. Mrs. Ferrari is currently a consultant for the Foodservice director at White Plains Schools, Ed Marra. Mrs. Ferrari is a strong supporter of our district and would welcome the opportunity to play a role in its continued development. Frank Pandolfo has been a White Plains resident since He has been president of the Idle Forest Association of the White Plains Council of Neighborhood Associations for the past eight years. Mr. Pandolfo has been a science teacher in Mt. Vernon High School for 35 years. He holds a B.S. in biology from saint John s University, an M.S. from Iona and a Certificate of Industrial Labor Relations from Cornell University. Mr. Pandolfo has coached girls softball for many years in the White Plains Little League and is presently an umpire as well as a National US Swim official. Mr. Pandolfo is married to Linda Pandolfo, a school librarian at George Washington School in White Plains and Dad to Julia, a 2006 grad of WPHS and a freshman at Providence College and Laura, a WPHS sophomore.

7 Especialmente para Padres Latinos Me complace tener la oportunidad de escribirles en la revista del PTA de su escuela de vez en cuando sobre temas escolares y de crianza importantes. Yo les daré un consejo sobre la mejor forma de comunicarse con el personal escolar y recordarles el porque ustedes deben hacerlo regularmente. Compartiré sugerencias sobre como ayudar a sus niños con las tareas escolares y poco antes de las conferencias de padre/profesor en Noviembre, les ofreceré unos consejos sobre como prepararse para ellas. Yo necesito su ayuda. Por favor llamen a Virginia Calderón, nuestra consejera/traductora al Centro de Información para Padres al o envíenme un a: lauretteyoung@wpcsd.k12.ny.us y déjennos saber que preguntas tienen y sobre que temas debo escribir en columnas futuras. Virginia puede ser de gran ayuda llámenla en cualquier momento si tienen preguntas. El mensaje más importante que yo les puedo ofrecer es envolverse en la educación de su niño. Ustedes pueden pensar, Es fácil para ella decir eso porque ella habla Inglés bien y yo no. Ustedes puede que no hablen Inglés, o a lo mejor saben unas cuantas palabras. Eso no importa. Ustedes pueden aún ser la diferencia importante en la vida escolar de su niño. No será fácil para ustedes, pero hay muchas cosas que ustedes pueden hacer y mucha gente que los puedan ayudar. Primero que todo, hay una buena razón para envolverse. Una gran cantidad de investigaciones muestran que cuando los padres están envueltos en la educación de sus niños, lo niños se desempeñan mejor en la escuela. Por supuesto, todos nosotros queremos eso para nuestros niños. Mediante su participación, ustedes les dan a sus niños un mensaje muy poderoso: su aprendizaje es muy importante para ustedes y que valoran su escuela. Aquí, algunas cosas que ustedes pueden hacer: Asegúrense de que sus niños asistan a la escuela todos los días y programen paseos sólamente durante las vacaciones escolares para que ellos no pierdan tiempo valioso de clases. Asistan a los eventos escolares. Sería una buena idea sentarse con el calendario escolar y circular las fechas de los eventos en la escuela de su niño y asistir a ellos. Muchas de las reuniones escolares tienen un traductor disponible. Pregúntenle a sus niños frecuentemente si tienen alguna notificación de la escuela. Si le piden que firmen algo, háganlo inmediatamente y devuélvanlo a la escuela. Háganle preguntas a sus niños tales como, Qué hiciste hoy que no hayas hecho antes? o Enséñame algo que hayas aprendido en la escuela hoy? Ustedes obtendrán mejores respuestas que si preguntaran, Qué hiciste en la escuela hoy? Practicamente todo niño en el mundo responde a esa pregunta diciendo nada. Léanle a sus niños o hagan que sus niños les lean en Español o en Inglés por lo menos de minutos todos los días. Es la cosa más valiosa que ustedes pueden hacer. Usen los libros que su niño llevan a casa de la escuela, el periódico o préstense libros de la biblioteca. Ellos tienen libros en Inglés, Español y bilingues. En la próxima columna, yo hablaré sobre como ayudar a sus niños con las tareas escolares y como organizarlos en casa. Espero que su familia tenga un año escolar excelente. Sinceremente, Laurette Young, Coordinadora Centro de Información Para Padres

8 WHITE PLAINS PTA COUNCIL Committee for Special Needs Programs for School Year Using Behavior Modification to Teach Good Behavior February 8, 2007 Edward Cardillo, NY State Licensed Psychologist specializing in behavior modification will discuss how to address challenging behaviors in the class as well as at home. Bring your questions! Dr. Cardillo has taught childhood development, behavior modification, and psychology at Manhattan College. He works with children, teens, and their families, as well as schools, to address problem behaviors Developing Social Communication and Friendship Skills April 12, 2007 Pat Rowan, LMSW, Licensed Clinical Social Worker, will discuss the characteristics of social communication disorders, friendship skills from a developmental perspective, and share tips for helping kids acquire social skills. Pat Rowan has worked for over 15 years with special needs children and their families, and runs social skills groups for kids ages All programs are at 7:30 p.m. at the White Plains High School Media Center About the White Plains PTA Council Committee on Special Needs This is a new subcommittee of the PTA Council formed from a collaboration of parents and the school district. Our mission is to provide the opportunity for teachers, administration and parents to work together to share information and resources, and to create an on-going dialogue about issues relating to students with learning differences and disabilities. Our goal is to address the needs of a broad range of students, not just those with an IEP, and to increase acceptance and inclusion of students with learning differences in our school community. To be added to distribution list, send to madfis@us.ibm.com

9 CONSEJO DEL PTA DE WHITE PLAINS Comité para Necesidades Especiales Programas para el Año Escolar Usando Modificación del Comportamiento para Enseñar el Buen Comportamiento Febrero 8, 2007 Edward Cardillo, Psicólogo Licenciado del Estado de NY especializado en la modificación del comportamiento tratará sobre como lidiar con los retos de comportamientos en la clase al igual que en casa. Traiga sus preguntas! El Dr. Cardillo ha enseñado sobre el desarrollo de la niñez, modificación del comportamiento y psicología en Manhattan College. El trabaja con niños, adolescentes y sus familias, al igual que con las escuelas, para tratar problemas de comportamiento Desarrollando Comunicación Social y Habilidades de Amistad Abril 12, 2007 Pat Rowan, LMSW, Trabajadora Social Clínica Licenciada, conversará sobre las características de los desórdenes de comunicación social, habilidades de amistad desde una perspectiva de desarrollo y compartirá ideas para ayudar a los niños a adquirir habilidades sociales. Pat Rowan ha trabajado por más de 15 años con niños con necesidades especiales y sus familias, y dirige grupos de habilidades sociales para niños entre las edades de Todos los programas son a las 7:30 p.m. en la Biblioteca del White Plains High School Sobre el Comité de Necesidades Especiales del Consejo del PTA de White Plains Este es un nuevo subcomité del Consejo del PTA formado en colaboración con los padres y el distrito escolar. Nuestra misión es proporcionar la oportunidad a los profesores, administración y padres de trabajar juntos para compartir información y recursos y para crear un diálogo contínuo sobre los temas relacionados a estudiantes con diferencias de aprendizaje é incapacidades. Nuestro objetivo es tratar las necesidades de un amplio número de estudiantes, no sólo aquellos con un IEP, y para incrementar la aceptación é inclusión de estudiantes con diferencias de aprendizaje en nuestra comunidad escolar. Para ser añadido en nuestra lista de distribución de , envíe un a madfis@us.ibm.com

10 PTA MEETING JANUARY 25 TH Highlands Campus - 7:00pm Internet Safety PTA MEETING MARCH 22 ND WPHS Library - 7:30pm Security Issues at WPHS