On October 16th author and Vermont native Natalie Kinsey-Warnock visited Edgewood's fourth and fifth graders. She encouraged the children to keep journals, talk to older relatives and seek out journals kept by their ancestors. According to the author, journals and interviews with relatives are great sources of material for writers. Many of Kinsey-Warnock’s books are about her life or events in the lives of family members. For example, her book, Canada Geese Quilt is about Kinsey-Warnock and her grandmother. She showed the students many of the quilts her grandmother made, including a few designed by the author. She kept the students on the edge of their seats with the true story from her book, The Bear That Heard Crying –which concerns the author’s great, great great, great, great aunt. According to family lore, at the age of three her aunt got lost in the woods and was cared for by a black bear for four days before she was found. This author visit was sponsored by the Edgewood PTA.
-Contributed by Tracy McCarthy

On October 19th, local firefighters Tyler Schultz, Greg DeSousa, Jeff Goodwin, John Brett, John Maxwell, and Michael Dwyer visited Edgewood's first graders to teach them about fire safety. The first and most important lesson they learned was to get away from the fire and out of the house as soon as possible. The firefighters said that everyone should know at least two ways to get out of their house and assign a meeting place outside where they can find their family members and call 911. Kids were instructed that if there is a fire the should wait for the firefighters to put out the fire and help any family, friends, or pets. Kids also learned that a fire needs three things to burn: an ignition source, fuel, and oxygen. To take oxygen away from the fire, the children were taught to stop, drop, and roll. After the children learned about the equipment that firefighters use, one of the fireman crawled into the room in all of his gear. Although he looked a little scary and his voice sounded different because of the mask, the children realized that firefighters are there to help them. The firefighters answered many of the children's questions, and the first graders seemed eager to attend the Fire Fair at the Crossway firehouse on October 20th.
- Contributed by Maura Lee

Scarsdale’s plan for maintaining their independence in teacher evaluation and assessment while meeting state requirements was the highlight of the Scarsdale Board of Education meeting held on the evening of Tuesday, October 9, at the Edgewood School. Prior to the BOE meeting, the Board visited with Edgewood administrators, and then held a meeting with parents and other Edgewood constituents where they were given the opportunity to share their accomplishments and ask questions of the Board. All schools are given the same opportunity for individual meetings with the Board, and the next such meeting will be held on October 22 at Fox Meadow School.

At the board meeting, Dr. Michael McGill, Superintendent of Scarsdale Schools, Dr. Joan Weber, Assistant Superintendent for Personnel and Administrative Services, and Ms. Lynne Shain, Assistant Superintendent for Instruction, presented their Education Report on “State Regulations and the Scarsdale Professional Performance Evaluation Plan.” McGill opened his statements by underscoring that he is not averse to metrics and standardized tests when used in a “responsible, meaningful and valid way,” emphasizing that this qualification was key.

McGill described the Scarsdale evaluation program as “part of a broad plan for hiring and developing the best available professional talent.” Based on the recommendations of Charlotte Danielson, an experienced consultant hired by the district in the past, teachers are evaluated in four domains:

• Planning and preparation
• Classroom environment
• Teaching (the act of instruction)
• Professionalism

Teachers are then rated by their supervisors in one of four categories: unsatisfactory, basic, proficient or distinguished. Evidence to make these ratings is currently gathered through classroom observation and other measurements, including standardized test results.

According to Dr. McGill, Scarsdale’s approach is one of continuous improvement. “No matter how good we are,” he said, “we can always improve. Our goal is to pick you up from where you are and make you better.”

In contrast to the Scarsdale plan, the state plan, while employing the same four domain format recommended by Danielson, rates teachers on a 100 point plan, and with the following subcategories:

• State test scores represent 20 points;
• Scores on locally selected measure comprise 20 points;
• Class observation comprises 31 points;
• Structured reviews of lesson plans, student projects and other “teacher artifacts” - a teacher’s portfolio - are worth the remaining 29 points.

McGill said that he felt the numerical rating would misidentify teachers as more and less effective, and that the mechanics would be cumbersome to implement, diverting attention from other priorities. “The rigidity of the rating scheme prevents supervisors from addressing serious problems,” he said. He also felt that the rating process would encourage competition and discourage collaboration currently fostered among Scarsdale faculty. Currently, teachers are rated relative to external standards of excellence, not in relation to each other.

Dr. Weber and Ms. Shain went on to explain how Scarsdale intended to comply with the state regulations, as laid out in their initial plan submitted to the state in July. For local measurements, the decision was made to use the state test results, giving these tests an overall weight of 40 points. Structured reviews of teacher portfolios, have been required in Scarsdale for a while, and will continue to be so, but teachers will have the option of receiving points based on the evaluation of their portfolios, or on self-directed growth, including activities such as lesson study, peer coaching, research, etc.

According to Weber, the biggest change will be in classroom observation of tenured teachers. Currently, all tenured teachers receive a limited review, and one-third of faculty undergoes intensive review. In order to accommodate the state requirements, all tenured faculty members will be observed twice annually and will receive short, written feedback. Probationary teachers will not see this change; they will continue to be observed four times annually, with conferences and goal-setting meetings with their evaluators as well as written assessments from their supervisors.

In McGill’s view, the critical weakness in the state’s system of evaluation as its assumption that classroom problems are due to low test scores or things observable in classroom visits. However, these are not the issues we face, he said. “Our issues stem from poor human judgment, ineffective human interaction, and bad personal relationships,” said McGill. “These don’t show up in the state formula. If state scores conflict with our professional judgment,” he went on to say, “we will go with the judgment of our professional staff.”

The superintendent closed by reinforcing the district’s willingness to risk lower state test scores rather than sacrifice the mission of providing a deep, rich education to Scarsdale’s students. He reminded the board that tests with high stakes narrow and flatten curriculum and lead to strategic efforts to raise scores through test preparation, manipulation and cheating. Thus, the administration plans to follow an overall strategy of complying with state law and regulations while favoring human judgment over numerical formulas, continuing a directed parent-teacher dialogue about teacher quality and remediation, and focusing on quality education. Said Dr. McGill, “Teach a great course, scores will be what they will be.”

Tracy Jaffe is a graduate of Brown University and Columbia University’s Graduate School of Business. A past president of Heathcote’s PTA and Scarsdale PT Council, Tracy has 3 children in the Scarsdale school system, and currently sits on the boards of Scarsdale/Edgemont Family Counseling Services and the League of Women Voters.

Scarsdale welcomes back SHS graduate and journalist Kate Stone Lombardi who will re-examine the mother-son relationship and discuss her newest book, “The Mama’s Boy Myth,” Why Keeping Our Sons Close Makes Them Stronger.

Ms. Lombardi’s talk will touch upon a family bond that has rarely been discussed. She’ll review her findings on redefining a healthy mother–son relationship at every age and stage of development. “Should a mother defer to her husband when he insists that she stop kissing their first-grade son when she drops him off at school? If a mother cuddles her ten-year-old son when he is hurt, will she turn him into a wimp? If she keeps him too close, will she make him gay? If a teenage boy is crying in his room, should a mother go in and comfort him, or would this embarrass and shame him? If a mother is too affectionate with her son, might it be construed as seductive?”

Lombardi is the recipient of six Clarion awards and has written for The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. She is also the mother of a 23-year old son, who is “proud of his close relationship with his Mom.”

See her at the Scarsdale Middle School on Tuesday October 23rd at 7:30 pm.

Scarsdale School’s Chief Financial Officer Jeff Martin presented what he called “relatively good news,” as he reviewed the June 2012 financial report for the Scarsdale school district at the Board of Education meeting this past Monday night. According to Martin, the actual financial results for the year were very close to estimates, with the addition of $153,000 to the fund balance, $60,000 of which went to the undesignated reserve, which ended the year at 3.81% of overall budget, just under the maximum allowed of 4%. Martin noted the following drivers of these results:

• A $1.3 million surplus in teacher salaries due to a large number of retirements and significant retirement savings, as well as the need for 4.8 fewer teaching positions budgeted than necessary. He noted that this year, there were 2.9 more teaching positions that had been budgeted for, due to enrollment growth, resulting in a smaller surplus this year;

• A deficit in the special education budget due to litigation;

• A surplus in the oil and gas budget of $470,000 due to the unusually warm winter;

• A surplus of $600,000 in electric use due to historically low usage;

• A surplus of $575,000 in the health insurance line, $300,000 of which came from a one-time federal program;

• And a retirement contribution reserve surplus of $348,000.

Martin and Linda Purvis, Assistant Superintendent for Business, mentioned the concern that employee retirement system contribution rates could go up as much as 21% this year, given that contribution rates are impacted by the lack of ability to earn interest in the market, and the assumption of by the system of a rate of return of 7.5%. The contribution is expected to close the gap between this assumptions and what the market actually provides.

The district’s auditors are reviewing the financial results, and the final report for the 2011-2012 school year will be presented to the board at its November 5 board meeting.

The board met prior to the meeting to discuss investment options for the $113 million in tax receipts expected to be collected this fall. President Liz Guggenheimer stated that, due to guidelines, there is limited flexibility in what can be done with this money, and that the board understands the need to be conservative with these funds. Given the environment of low interest rates, the board will only budget $200,000 of revenues from this source this year, and would discuss this in more detail later this fall.

Superintendent of Schools Dr. Michael McGill raised the topic of teacher evaluations. Dr. McGill said that the board will be discussing the question of how school districts in New York state and Scarsdale in particular address issues of quality assurance at the board meeting on October 9. Under discussion will be the process of teacher evaluation and professional performance review, as well as Scarsdale’s longstanding practice and recent state initiatives that Scarsdale is being required to undertake.

Also at this meeting, the board authorized the disbursement of $32,500 in funding to the Scarsdale Teen Center, with another $32,500 to be disbursed on March 1, 2013. This funding was accepted as part of the 2012-2013 budget passed by voters last May.

The board has scheduled a special board meeting for this coming Monday, Oct. 1 at 8pm in Room 170 at the high school, and will have its regularly scheduled meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 9at 8pm at Edgewood School.