SOMERS, N.Y. - The Somers Board of Education kicked off the new year by discussing topics ranging from the search for a pair of administrators to special education services and the school district’s response to the recent discovery of a swastika on a desk at the high school.
SAFE, SUPPORTED, VALUED
Board President Amanda Kandel opened up the Tuesday, Jan. 6, work session by thanking the administration for its “prompt response and clear communication to our community following the discovery of swastikas on our campuses.”
Schools Superintendent Dr. Adam Bronstein on Dec. 16 notified families of the incident the day students reported finding the symbol. He pointed out that in September, three swastikas and an obscenity were found on the wall of a student bathroom at the middle school.
In his message, Bronstein said Somers took “great pride in providing a safe and supportive learning environment for all students.”
The graffiti was a “stark reminder” that there was more work to be done,” he added.
Speaking for the school board, Kandel said that it was essential that the district remains “proactive in addressing these deeply troubling incidents.”
Administrators are “actively formulating a comprehensive plan,” she added.
The priority is to ensure that every student, teacher, and staffer feels “safe, supported, and valued,” said Kandel, urging anyone with “questions or concerns” to reach out to Bronstein.
“Together, we will uphold our commitment to fostering an inclusive and respectful environment for all,” Kandel pledged.
High school senior Allie Lusthaus, one of the board’s two "ex officio" student members, also spoke up.
“I just really want to put it out there that, as bad as it is that this is happening, it’s a great opportunity for further education,” she said, adding: “So, I really appreciate the district’s response and how it was dealt with.”
“I couldn’t agree more, Allie,” Kandel said.
CANDIDATE SEARCH
Dina Miller, the district’s new assistant superintendent for human resources and student services, updated the board on the searches for a new physical education, health, and athletics director and for a director of pupil personnel services.
Last May, Marc Hattem, who had been in the role for three years, announced his intent to resign, effective in June. He gave no specific reason.
The district appointed Tommy Albano, a longtime football coach and former teacher, as interim athletic director in July.
Stacey Elconin, director of special services, will retire at the end of the 2025-2026 school year.
(That job’s title is being changed to director of pupil personnel services.)
The search team surveyed families, teachers, and staffers in December and got “a really wonderful response,” Miller said.
That job posting closed on Jan. 2.
The search team was “really pleased with the amount of candidates, and the caliber, that came in,” Miller said. Screenings were underway and it hoped to “send six candidates forward” for the next round.
The new director of pupil personnel services is likely to appointed on Feb. 10
“So, we’re rockin’ and rollin’ there; it’s all good,” Miller said, segueing to the hunt for a new director of physical education, health, and athletics.
A survey in that case will be sent out by the end of the month.
Trustee Rosalind Gallino asked if students were surveyed as well.
They weren’t in the director of pupil personnel services search, but that's a “great idea” in the athletics director’s case, given the number of Somers students “who are involved in sports,” Miller responded.
“We’re excited. It’s a lot of hiring but I think that getting out as early as we are, we’ll have a great crop of candidates and hopefully they’ll be attracted to this wonderful district that we have,” Bronstein said.
Kandel wanted to "make it clear" that when Albano was brought on last year as an interim athletics director he knew “this was all part of the process.”
“We began this process very late in the year so we were very transparent that we would re-post (the job) again in the spring. But we’re doing it a little bit earlier,” Miller said.
SPECIAL ED PERSPECTIVES
Elconin presented the board with the district’s annual special education report.
Much of the data she referenced came from the state Education Department and is often 18 months to two years old because it takes them that long to update it.
She pointed out that whether older or current the information is “consistent” and “is painting a similar picture.”
Classifications for IEPs are dependent on a number of things, including learning disabilities, other health impairments, speech and language issues, and autism.
There are currently 517 Somers students in grades K-12 who have IEPs. Of those 451 are classified as “in district”; 32, placed “out of district,” including home instruction and residential placements; 20 are placed by their parents in, for instance, private schools; and 14 who attend John F. Kennedy Catholic Preparatory School.
According to Elconin, the district’s “classification rate” for 2024-2025 for Putnam Northern Westchester BOCES districts remains 20 percent, which matches the state average.
North Salem’s went up slightly from 2023-2024 to 2024-2025, from 19 to 20 percent, and Lakeland’s from 17 percent to 18 percent.
Mahopac’s (21 percent), Yorktown (18 percent), and Katonah-Lewisboro’s (16 percent) stayed the same.
(The percentages mean different things compared to the actual size’s of each district’s student population.)
Elconin also addressed state “indicators” of a “successful” special education program – such as graduation and drop-out rates, not to mention participation and mastery on state assessment – that have to be reported yearly.
“We meet all of these regularly,” she said.
For instance, she said, Somers’ 5.8 percent dropout rate for 2023-2024 represents 14 students, but does not include those who may have gone to BOCES for a GED or remained beyond the six-year cohort.
State information only gives a six-year graduation rate, but some students are with Somers for seven years or eight years before graduating, she explained.
So 5.8 percent is a “little misleading,” Elconin noted, explaining that the indicators don’t reflect students that leave, maybe not with a high school diploma, but with skills and achievement credentials as well as vocational training experience, which helps them transition into the adult arena.
The team as the high school does “an amazing job” of supporting those students for whom Regents or a full course load might not be appropriate, she added. That doesn’t mean they are on a trajectory that’s any less “successful.”
The district’s overall graduation rate is 99 percent.
“It’s not reflected here because we track kids until they get a diploma even if it is seven years or eight years or they went to BOCES to get their GED instead,” Elconin explained
According to the 2023-2024 stats, 65 percent of all school-aged students with IEPs spent the majority of their day with their “typical” peers.
However, Somers didn’t meet the state “benchmark” for serving preschoolers in what’s called a LRE (Least Restrictive Environment). The state threshold is 45 percent and Somers was at 40 percent.
She explained that children who are three or four years old often have communication and behavioral challenges requiring more therapeutic settings. The district aims for “intensive” early intervention in the hope that little learners can move to less restrictive settings later.
Among the “notable” things happening in special education this year is an increase in the number of SCIP (Self Contained Individual Program), which address the learning and behavioral needs of students who require smaller class sizes, additional specialist instruction, and more intensive related services.
Professional development has been enhanced.
Elconin noted that there is now an “executive functioning team” and special ed point person in each building.
Before becoming an administrator, Elconin held a number of roles in the district, including as a teacher at SIS and PES, and an assistant principal and principal at SIS.
She's preparing an “year-at-a-glance” calendar with all “important tasks, timelines and supports” needed and is also compiling procedural materials for her successor.
Elconin said the early posting of her position will give the new hire time to “shadow” her, ensuring a smooth transition.
Student BOE member Jimmy Gallivan, pointed out that Elconin was his principal at SIS.
“To see you in that role and now supporting students every single day is incredibly amazing,” he said. “When it comes to school districts like this, and our schools, it’s not just about the average student, but educating all our students wherever they may be. This is a large part of it and it’s incredible to see all the work that’s being done. We’ll miss you.”
Having had a child in SIS when Elconin was principal, Gallino echoed that.
“Whoever takes this position next is going to have some very big shoes to fill, she said, adding that the special services report wasn't “just about data and facts.”
It’s a reflection of “the soft skills and the way people leave meetings knowing they’ve been heard, that their child is more than a set of numbers, and that their child is an integral and important part of our district,” Gallino said.
Board Vice President Chadwick Olsen said the report showed Elconin’s “depth” of knowledge, experience, and caring for students.
“We’ve been blessed and we really appreciate you,” he told her.
Comments
No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here