SCHOOLS ATHLETICS REVIEW TO FOCUS ON PHILOSOPHY,CONSISTENCY, AND COMMUNICATION 

March 18, 2015 -- At last Thursday's North Shore Board of Education meeting, Schools Superintendent Dr. Edward Melnick and the seven board trustees discussed the process and areas of focus for the Athletics Department review that will begin next month.  

The review will be overseen by two retired Athletic Directors - Ed Cinelli formerly of the Patchogue-Medford Schools and Nancy Kalafus who had worked at Garden City.    

Dr. Melnick said that this spring the reviewers will visit sites, distribute surveys, and arrange meetings with graduating student athletes and their parents, as well as with School Board members and administrators.  

In the fall, the reviewers will survey middle school and high school students and meet with parent focus groups,  middle school and high school coaches,the Booster Club, and teacher organizations.  The final report will be submitted in December 2015

 The purpose of the review, Dr. Melnick explained is "to determine whether the philosophies and policies of the district are being followed and whether a communication line involving students, parents, coaches, and district administration is adhered to.  Furthermore, the review process is intended to assist the district in providing an exemplary interscholastic athletic program for all students while linking it to the academic mission of the school."

The review will focus on the following areas -

• goals and objectives of the program and determine whether the philosophy that came out of the review done 14 years ago still represents the wishes of the community - in particular, whether the district ought to continue to have a modified Middle School Program that allows all students who wish to participate in a sport the opportunity to do so, followed by a highly competitive JV and Varsity program.    Consistency in the way the current philosophy is being communicated and adhered to by coaches parents and students will also be examined.  
  

• the selection and classification process by which students in the Middle School can "challenge up" and play on a Junior Varsity or Varsity sports team.  The State Education Department, he said, is currently changing policy in that area to "make it more stringent," but it would be ultimately up to local districts to make the determination whether to "buy into that policy."  
  

• Policies regarding supervision, evaluation and retention of coaches and whether or not there is a policy in place and whether it is being followed.   Is there a consistent policy for try-outs and is it being followed? Is there consistency for students who miss practices? Do all coaches adhere to the academic eligibility process? Is the communication line involving district coaches students and parents clear and adhered to?

• And lastly to review equipment and resources for safety.  Are there safety protocols in place and are they effectively communicated to parents?  
  

During the discussion that followed the Superintendent's remarks, Trustee Joanna Commander spoke first.  The Trustee, who had served for a number of years as an athletic director in two districts, offered praise for the process as well as a few suggestions.  Board members had received copies of a draft survey that would be distributed to students and parents and she recommended that there be more specificity in the questions, as they could perhaps be construed differently by different people.  

With regard to allowing students to "challenge up," she said that the state was making eligibility for seventh and eighth graders to play on high school teams more restrictive and that she believed it was especially important to consider a 7th or 8th grader's emotional maturity when making that decision as they would be playing with 17 and 18 year-olds.

Additionally, she said that she was happy that health and safety issues were being addressed and that a part of that ought to be looking at female athlete triad syndrome - which is marked by any one or a combination of three conditions - eating disorder,  amennorrhea, and osteoperosis.  

Trustee Marianne Russo emphasized the college admissions process in her comments.  One question to consider, she said, is whether coaches identify summer camp opportunities where scouting and recruitment by coaches often take place.  Also she said she would like the Athletics Department and Guidance more closely tied together.  

Trustee Sara Jones said that perhaps the review could be broadened a bit to consider "how Athletics fits in with the overall school district mission."  She added that it would be useful to survey former participants and those who have chosen not to participate in athletics.   

Trustee Toni Labbate encouraged looking at the modified middle school program to see if there are enough teams to accommodate those students interested in participating, and to consider how "success" in the middle school program ought to be measured, and how athletics fits into the overall middle school culture. Trustee Commander replied that in the modified program, "success is measured by the level of participation." 

Trustee Michael Nightingale said that he believed the focus should be on the students who participate in sports, and not on those who do not participate.  He also recommended that the reviewers look into whether student athletes feel as if they are being treated fairly by coaches.  

Board President Herman Berliner said that the district needs to make sure that it prioritizes academic achievement and safety concerns.

During public comment, several parents offered their thoughts on the review.  Glen Head resident Lisa Visa said that it is important to look at communication between teachers, coaches and other extra curricular activities and it can be unfair for students to be pulled in different directions.  

Denise Reiner of Glen Head emphasized the importance of health education and the importance of having female role models. 

Larry Ruisi said that the review should be as broad as possible and look at the connection between academics and athletics.  

Frank Castiglione of Roslyn Harbor said that a good athletics program is not "all about winning and losing."  "It's more important for coaches to convey and to teach sportsmanship . . .  and to not make students athletes feel bad about themselves."  He expressed concerns about the impact that certain aggressive coaching styles can have on some kids and "that coaches need to recognize that each kid is different" and that they get to know each of their players.  For most student athletes, he said, playing organized sports ends in high school, and so the athletics review ought to be done with the understanding of how the school sports experience shapes the person.

---

OTHER STORIES FROM 3.12.15 BOE MEETING

LETTER SPURS CHARTER SCHOOL DEBATE AMONG TRUSTEEES 

OTHER HEADLINES FROM 3.12.13. MEETING
- College Board Announces SAT and PSAT changes
- Board Completes Budget Review - Third Lowest Increase in 60 years
- Opt Out Discussion
- High School Track Repairs

SAT AND PSAT CHANGES NEXT YEAR
During his report to the Board, Dr. Melnick announced changes to the format and the administration of both the College Board's SAT and PSAT exams.  For the SATs, students will only be required to take a Verbal and Quantitative section, which will be more "common core"-like with reading passages for the verbal section.  The essay portion, which had been introduced about a decade ago, will now be optional  and a "critical lens" type of task.  That essay will be scored separately from the rest of the test, and the exam overall will revert back to the 1600 point scale that those who graduated from High School before 2005 are familiar with.   Also, students will no longer be penalized a quarter point for wrong answers on the multiple choice sections. For the math section, students will only be allowed to use calculators for half of the exam. For students receiving special education services who have "calculator use" on their IEPs, the district will have have to apply for special modifications. Administration of the PSAT will no longer be on Saturdays, but during the school day on a Wednesday.  Dr. Melnick said that school administrators are unhappy with the change as it affects classroom time, and creates logistical problems, especially with finding proctors for the exam when teachers will be teaching.  Despite school district's expressing these concerns, Dr. Melnick said that the College Board would not budge. He said that Superintendents would be writing a letter to the National Merit Scholarship Program requesting that they provide an alternative route, other than achieving a high PSAT score, to earn National Merit Scholar designation, in an effort to pressure the College Board to reconsider the change.  

BOARD COMPLETES BUDGET REVIEW - THIRD LOWEST INCREASE IN 60 YEARS
Although on the agenda, there was little discussion of the 2015-16 budget at last Thursday's meeting, with the Board having completed its page by page review of the spending plan at its previous meeting on February 26.  At last Thursday's meeting, Dr. Melnick offered a very general overview of the budget, saying that the decline in the District's required contributions to the Teachers Retirement system enabled the district to maintain all of the programs it currently has.  The highlights of the budget, he said, are - that the  high school tennis courts will be replaced and that plans have been submitted to the State Education Department; the tax levy for next year will be $139,000 below the limit; and that the 1.8% budget to budget increase is the third lowest in the 60 year history of the district.  Trustee Maryanne Russo asked how much of the funds that were received from the State to offset the potential tax shift from the demolition of the LIPA power plant had been used so far.  Dr. Melnick said that the State Legislature has agreed to $5.4 in grant money for that particular purpose.  To date the district has actually gotten $3 million, with the remaining $2.4 million promised from the Senate last spring not having been received yet. $160,000 of the total is being used in the current budget (2014-15) and $600,000 will be used for the 2015-16 budget.  

OPTING OUT 

During the Public Comment portion of the meeting, resident Dana Baron asked what the District's position was going to be this year regarding parents opting their children out of the state standardized tests administered in grades 3-8. She said that while she understood the district's hands are legally tied with regard to what it can say, she asked what parents could do to get the message out.  Dr. Melnick replied that legally the district could not encourage parents to opt their children out.     If parents wish to opt out they must submit the request in writing (email) to the school principal prior to the administration of the exam. 

"My advice publicly on the record," he explained, "is that the state requires these tests, and students should take the tests, but they should be put in perspective by their parents and be told this is a test of the school and its programs and it’s intended to help you but we will certainly respect the option of parents who choose to opt their children out and we will not just make them sit there doing nothing."

Dr. Melnick then gave an overview of Governor Cuomo's proposed changes to the teacher evaluation system. Student performance on standardized tests would account for 50% of a teacher's evaluation score rather than the current 20%); 35% would be based on a single classroom observation by an outside evaluator; and 15% would be based on district measures.  He said that in his conversations with the district's Albany connections, it was unlikely that the full proposal would be adopted, but that we can expect state standardized test scores to count more than the current 20% but probably less than 50%.  The observation by an outside evaluator "has no legs" he said.  

If a teacher receives two successive years of "ineffective ratings," because of the test scores, the Superintendent explained,   then the district can begin proceedings to remove the teacher.  However, "what our board has said," he continued, "is that it is committed to looking at the full performance of the teacher."  In other words, if a teacher was highly rated under district measures such as observations, but received an ineffective rating because of the state portion based on standardized test scores, the district would most likely opt not to remove the teacher 

The Superintendent also said he received a question from a principal concerning what would happen to a teacher who refused to proctor the test. State Ed replied that the teacher would face 3020a (termination) proceedings by the state and that the individual would lose his teacher's license.  

Ms. Baron also stated that she had heard that some teachers had a classroom party after the test from which students who had opted out being excluded.  Dr. Melnick said that the taking of a test should not be celebrated with a party. 

Dr. Berliner said that the Long Island delegation in the state legislature was opposed to the changes and was working to temper them.  

Trustee Toni Labbate said that she believed that the forums and protests around New York State, and particularly on Long Island, have had an effect in blocking the full implementation of the Governor's proposals. 

Resident Noah Blumenthal, following up on Ms. Baron's original question posed a few questions to the Superintendent pertaining to concerns he has heard from parents about opting their children out of the exams.   

He said that the biggest concern he hears from parents about opting out is that their children would no longer be eligible for enrichment or academic intervention services (AIS).  Dr. Melnick replied the state only requires that districts provide AIS to students who receive a "1" on a state assessment, but that the district would offer AIS "to every student we believe needs it" regardless of their score on the exams or whether they sat for them. He also said that opting out of the tests would not affect a child's placement in the enrichment program.  

Mr. Blumenthal said many parents believe that the tests enable them to learn about their child’s strengths and weaknesses relative to other students.  He asked if teachers are capable of telling parents what their child's academic strengths and weaknesses are relative to other students without the use of standardized tests, he asked.  Dr. Melnick replied "absolutely and that a teacher would be able to give an accurate prediction of how your child would perform on that test."  He said that there are many measures that teachers use, and that the tests provide one additional piece of data of a child's strengths and weaknesses.  He added that "there will be no negative consequences for a child who chooses to opt out of this exam."  

The Superintendent added that there is some concern among the faculty that if large numbers of students opt out, and those happen to be high performing students, it would affect the teacher's negatively negatively.  "What we have tried to tell teachers," he said, "is that we have their back - that we understand the situation and please don't worry about that. That's important for two reasons - we don't want to put pressure on kids and we don't want to go back to a culture of test prep. . . . As a community, our message to the faculty has to be 'we have your back.'"

Lastly, Mr. Blumenthal asked if the state tests were a "quality mechanism for measuring the effectiveness of teachers."  Dr. Melnick replied that they are not for that particular purpose, that he believed that there is a role for standardized tests in education and there is a role for helping students to understand how to take tests."  

Dr. Berliner then interjected that anti-testing activist Diane Ravitch has said that there is a role for testing, but not what they are currently being used for.  

Mr. Blumenthal replied that he agreed that there are appropriate uses for testing but that "high stakes testing for teachers is atrocious."      

Mr. Blumenthal added that the direction the state is going in continues to be the wrong direction with the increase in the percentage of a teacher's evaluation being based on the state assessments.  “Follow the money and you will know where the governor is headed.  The money is in the testing. . . This is a money grab." 

He continued that there are few things that the state could do that would cause more damage to the educational system than it is doing now, and that "the trend is not going to change until the community puts the pressure on"

Mr. Blumenthal said that he would be opting his children out of the exams, and that he would "be encouraging others to do so as well.”

TRACK UPDATE
During public comment, high school track team member Diana Vizza, a junior, asked Dr. Melnick for a status update on the high school track, and whether it would be usable for the spring season, as it has been off-limits because of problems with seams on the surface that have lifted up.  Dr. Melnick said that the track currently cannot be used - at the direction of the district's insurer because of safety and liability issues, but that it would be repaired by the end of this month and be ready for the track season.  Because the contractor is bonded, the superintendent explained, there would be no cost to the district for repairs or replacement.  Hopefully, he said, the track which was installed only two years ago, but repeatedly has had problems with its seams, will be replaced with a new one this summer.