BOND UPDATECheck the district websiteand cable channel 74 forthe latest informationabout building optionscreated by architecturalfirm Burton, Behrendt &Smith, PC for the revital-ization, renovation andimprovements to ourschool facilities.Join the School Board forwork sessions to reviewdistrict plans and informa-tion about individualschools.

BOND MEETING DATESIN 2006Jan. 11 HHS

Jan. 26 LMK

Jan. 31 Parsons &Purchase

Feb. 8 HAS & Preston

All meetings will be heldin the LMK Auditorium at 7:30 PM

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H A R R I S O N

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Superintendent’s MessageDear Community Members,

From student performance to finances, our district continues to focus on improvement. Ournewsletter offers a glimpse of the impressive growth and progress being made across the system.

Harrison High School’s improved Regents diploma rate stands at 91%; an increase of 17% over last year in the number of seniors earning a Regents diploma. Our newsletter explains and celebrates how we closed the achievement gap between other high performing schools.

Acting on research that clearly indicates the benefits of early exposure to a second language, ourdistrict successfully introduced elementary foreign language in grades K through 5. Students,

HighlightsA p u b l i c a t i o n o f t h e H a r r i s o n C e n t r a l S c h o o l D i s t r i c t

J A N U A R Y 2 0 0 6

Contents:Growing…

HHS Sets Higher Goals.............2

Hola! and Ciao! Welcome to ElementaryForeign Language ....................7

Wise Senior Internship ............3

District Brings NationallyRecognized Experts forProf. Development...................6

New Teachers ..........................8

Children’s Author ..................11

Giving…

Katrina Relief ........................11

Harrison Educational Foundation .........11

Guiding…

Middle School ELA Parents Guide ...................6

Tech Paths Software: Charting a Path forK-12 Curriculum ....................10

HHS College Fair ......................4

Technology GivesStudents an Edge in CollegeProcess ...................................2

New NCLB Assessments ........10

91% RECEIVE REGENTS

DIPLOMAS

Superintendent of Schools, LouisWool and the Harrison Board ofEducation is pleased to announce that91% of the Harrison High Schoolgraduating class of 2005 receivedRegents diplomas, up from 74% inthe previous 2 years. This dramatic17% increase in one year stands instark contrast to the 19% growthover the previous six years (see chart).Regents diplomas are the criticalindicator of high school performancein New York State. The New YorkState Education Department requiresthat all students pass five Regentsexaminations and earn at least 22units of study in order to graduatefrom high school.

While the New York State Depart-ment of Education does not releaseofficial figures until February, aninformal survey of neighboringdistricts indicates that our results willput Harrison High School among thetop performing high schools in the

HHS Regents Diploma Rate Increase

continued on page 5

Regents Diploma RateHarrison vs. Westchester Similar Schools

What is a Similar School? All schools in this group are secondarylevel schools in school districts with low student needs in relationto district resource capacity. Some examples of neighboring similarschools include Rye, Blind Brook, and Scarsdale.

* 2005-06 Results for Similar Schools data is unofficial and basedon five high performing school’s results. The actual gap betweenHarrison and similar Schools is likely to be less than depicted.

continued on page 5

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HHS Sets Higher Goals – And Students Soar

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This past year Harrison High Schoolsignificantly improved performanceaccording to a variety of measures. In theannual Newsweek ranking of the topU.S. 1,000 High Schools, HHS improvedits standing by 447 places, up from568th in the nation to 121st. In addi-tion, 91% of the Harrison High Schoolgraduating class of 2005 received Regentsdiplomas up from 74% in the previous 2 years. [See related story.]

However, despite excitement about theimproved national and statewide stand-ings, the district is most excited thatmore students are challenging themselvesand choosing the most rigorous coursesof study. School officials also are pleasedthat participation in Advance Placementclasses and the number of AP examswritten by HHS students continues togrow. Research indicates that studentswho take two AP courses are 73% morelikely to complete their college educationwithin four years.

Superintendent Louis Wool believes theimportance of students challenging them-selves with AP courses cannot be under-estimated. “An AP course is modeled onfreshman level college curriculum, andexposure to this level of work during highschool is a key to a student’s long termsuccess in college.” Mr. Wool continued,“Think of it this way. You wouldn’texpect your son or daughter to drive a carwell during their first experience behindthe wheel. An AP course is like a learner’spermit for college. It provides invaluable

real life preparation for a successfulcollege transition.” He also pointed outthat colleges look for evidence thatstudents are willing to stretch themselvesby taking the most challenging coursestheir high school has to offer.

The Guidance Department also made aconcerted effort to motivate morestudents to take Advanced Placement

classes. The number of students regis-tered for AP classes and how many APexams they take (the numbers varybecause some students take multipleexams) are factors used by the collegesand universities to evaluate the rigor of aschool’s curriculum. Last year, 470 APexams were taken by students in thevarious courses offered. This year, it isexpected that more than 700 exams willbe written by students in courses rangingfrom AP Literature to AP Studio Art.

The increase in participation can betraced to the concerted effort of theGuidance Department, the supervisors ofinstruction, and the high school adminis-tration to work with students and parents

on opening doors to AP classes. Longconsidered to be a natural progression forhonor students only, last year HHSstudents with a commitment to successwere invited to challenge themselves inAP classes to better prepare them forcollege. Many educators agree, said Prin-cipal Keith Schenker, that students takingAP classes often learn how to workharder when the standards are set higherfor them.

Instead of predetermining who wouldmove into an AP class based solely onpast academic placement, counselorsasked students to carefully considerwhether they wanted and were willing tomake the effort required to succeed inthe AP courses. Mr. Schenker notedstudents in the AP classes are carefullymonitored by their guidance counselorsand given a chance to revisit their deci-sions at the end of the first quarter.Students are encouraged and supportedto succeed in the AP program.

Despite the ability to “opt out” of the APat the end of quarter one, few studentshave chosen to do so according to Assis-tant Principal Scott Wood. Are studentsreally interested in pursuing this chal-lenge? In a recent survey by the EnglishDepartment of the current junior class,65 of 164 respondents self-selected APEnglish courses for next year. Clearly,students are developing an understandingof the importance of challenging them-selves in high school and the benefits itprovides in the their long term success.

Technology Gives Students an Edge in College ProcessHarrison High School is utilizing a new software programcalled Naviance that will improve the process of informationgathering required for the often-complex college applicationprocess. Through the web-based program, students can conductexhaustive and detailed college searches based on their uniquecriteria and inform school counselors of prospective matches.Using this new system, counselors, administrators, students andparents can track students’ data and application status. Theprocessing of applications is monitored and informationincluding upcoming events, deadlines, and college visits areaccessible to the students and parents. It allows students toinstantly determine their eligibility for scholarships.

Counselors can create a graphic representation to show how astudent's grades and test scores measure up to previous HHSapplicants to particular colleges. While maintaining confiden-

tiality, the program will show accepted, rejected, deferred andwait listed students. The program also provides historical dataabout how similar academic profiles have fared in applying tothe selected schools over several years.

High School counselors are looking forward to the springsemester 2006 with great anticipation. The goal is to useNaviance to assist the junior class with thecollege search process. The program'sFamily Connection will allow all studentsentering the high school to benefit from itsfeatures, particularly in the develop-ment of a four-year plan. Studentsand their families will now be ableto make the most informed deci-sions about their future.

“An AP course is like

a learner’s permit for college.

It provides invaluable real life

preparation for a successful

college transition.”

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Senior Internship Program Offers “Real Life” Experience

Harrison High School has joined otherschool districts in the area, includingBronxville, Scarsdale, and White Plains,in a wide-ranging mentorship and internship program that links the schoolexperience with the real world.

In the WISE Individualized Senior Experience program, high schoolstudents, under the mentorship ofteachers and administrators, design projects that include internships withlocal community agency members orbusiness people, intensive research, orcultural, artistic, and performance-basedprograms.

In the program’sfirst year inHarrison, during2004–05, 12seniors signed onfor the half-creditcourse. Duringthe last quarter ofthe school year,the seniorsdevoted signifi-cant time toworking on theirinternships,conductingresearch, keepingdaily journals,discussing theirtopics of choicewith one anotherand meeting withtheir mentors to

explore and reflect upon project issues.When participants complete their projects, they submit their journals forevaluation and make presentations beforea panel of students, teachers and commu-nity members.

Because the goal of the WISE program isthe individual development of eachstudent, designing project topics is a critical factor in each student’s success.Victor Leviatin, president of WISE andone of its founders, trained HarrisonHigh School faculty in the program,encouraging them to give students a

chance to share their reflections, providethem with support, and build communityinterest.

Graduate Stephanie DeFazio said in herWISE presentation, which was filmedlast year by a fellow WISE student, thatperhaps the greatest reward of theprogram was her ability to develop astrong bond with her counselor at school.She said the program gave her a chanceto explore her passion for ballroomdancing, and she plans to continue byjoining dance clubs and organizations atcollege. The culmination of Stephanie’sproject was her presentation, in whichshe used a SMART Board to explain thebasics of ballroom dancing. She alsodisplayed photographs of her experienceand provided a live demonstration of theposture and steps required in a ballroomdance performance.

“Performing on that level, dancing infront of an audience, opened up possibili-ties for me in terms of how I felt aboutmy own capabilities,” said Stephanie.

Students last year designed individualprograms in a wide spectrum of areasincluding teaching, psychology, mortuaryscience, cosmetology, and social work.High School social worker Larrie Gold,Harrison’s advisor to the WISE program,looks forward to the interaction that willtake place among the students whosigned up for WISE this school year.

High School Social Worker Larrie Gold meets with senior Gena Skoufalos, the WISE task force student representative to discuss this year's program.

This year, the High School also turnedits attention to the ninth grade, wheretraditionally the primary focus has beenon transition. “Instead, said Mr. Schenker,the emphasis is on setting academic goalsfor ninth graders as soon as they enterthe school. In fact, teachers and adminis-trators are redefining what the ninthgrade experience should be. The ultimategoal will be to think globally, settingspecific goals for completion of ninthgrade and of each grade thereafter.”

To accomplish this, interdisciplinaryninth grade teaching teams have been

created and charged with developing theacademic benchmarks required forexiting ninth grade. Team meetings focuson academic growth and shared content,along with any issues regarding individualstudents. Teachers are creating a ninthgrade project that will integrate goals,and provide coursework designed todemonstrate mastery of content and skillsneeded for student success in tenth grade.By setting long-range, rigorous academicgoals early, students will be betterprepared to not only simply meet thosegoals, but also achieve higher levels ofsuccess in high school and beyond.

Ninth Grade Teaming Implemented at HHS

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Second Annual HHS College Fair a Success

Representatives from more than 80colleges, universities and armed servicesattended the HHS College Fair to helpjunior and seniors plan their futures.Students walked from table to table,comparing academic programs, campusphotos and collecting literature aboutschools from California to Vermont.

The HHS College Fair, coordinated byHHS guidance counselor CarolynChieco and Assistant Principal ScottWood, and sponsored by the HarrisonHigh School PTA, was created to helpsimplify the college selection and applica-tion process. The difficult choice ofselecting what to study and where tostudy is made easier when students havethe opportunity to speak with representa-tives from each school. Face to faceconversations, making eye contact withan admission counselor, or speaking withone of the hundreds of communityalumnus that make themselves availableto HHS students is of tremendous valueas students and families make decisionsthat affect the future of each individual.

Dana Ellis, a junior at HHS, was a littleoverwhelmed with the enormity of thecollege search process. “It’s so frustrating,”she said. “It’s so hard to narrow downyour choices.” She does the research onthe internet, talks with seniors and familyfriends, but is looking to the guidancedepartment to help her make choices.Armed with a booklet provided to eachstudent by the PTA, she was able to walkup to college representatives and say tothem, “OK, tell me about your school.” In the booklet she had anoutline with questions to ask,criteria to evaluate, and ways tofigure out what was importantto her, such as urban vs. countrycampus, dormitory availability,or scholarship or financial aidpossibilities. When she beginsto narrow down her list, she’llbe able to call communitymembers who have printedtheir names and phonenumbers in a directory toanswer questions or even facilitate a connection betweenstudents and colleges.

Mrs. Chieco sees the fair as anopportunity for the students tobe more involved in the college

process and is constantly looking for waysto make it more meaningful. She wouldlike to offer small workshops prior to thefair on just how to decide what each indi-vidual is looking for, what questions toask, and how to decide priorities in thecollege selection.

Assistant Principal Scott Wood finds thecollege fair equally helpful to juniors andseniors. Some academic achievers startthe process in their junior year and bythe time they attend the fair as seniorshave already completed their collegeapplications. But he said that many

seniors are still either undecided aboutwhere to go to college or what programis the right choice for them. “The impor-tant thing is to bring them to an eventlike this so that they can learn what is outthere for them,” he said. The ultimategoal is to help students find the rightmatch.

Madeline Dufour, a senior at HHS,visited 25 schools before deciding toapply early decision to one university andwas still waiting to hear if she had beenaccepted. She made her first choice basedon both the academic and sports offerings

of each school. But still, shedidn’t miss the opportunity totalk to representatives of manyof her second choice schools asshe kept circling the fair.

Bob Katz, HHS Class of ’42,was on hand representingLafayette College and wasdelighted to be a part of thefair. “It was an incredibly wellorganized and attended event,”he said, “I loved going toschool here (back when it wasin the LMK building) and Ialso loved my college experi-ence. If I can help these kidsmove in the right direction, itis my pleasure to help.”

Juniors get a jump on the college process with the Syracuse University representative.

Alumni Bob Katz is delighted to share information about his alma mater, Lafayette College.

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HHS Regents Diploma Rate Increase continued from the cover

county. The superintendent noted that thisstatistic is particularly compelling becauseit indicates how well we are serving allstudents, and it places our high schoolwhere we expect it to be… “competitivewith the best in the region.”

MANY FACTORS CONTRIBUTE TO SUCCESS

Key to the success of the high school has been an improvedcoordination and supervision of the instructional program.These efforts have been led by Assistant Superintendent forInstruction, Louise Cleveland, Harrison High School Principal Keith Schenker, and each of the Supervisors ofInstruction collaborating with teachers to pursue the bestresearch-based practices for teaching and learning. Cornerstonesof the improvement agenda have centered on a student-centeredagenda of high quality professional development, a morecompelling use of data, dynamic instructional technology andkey restructurings.

The culmination of these initiatives hasresulted in significant academic improve-ment at the high school. According to Mr. Schenker, “Making certain eachstudent gets the program of instructionthat best supports their needs is thepriority.” Harrison High School AssistantPrincipal Scott Wood has led a re-organi-

zation of the guidance department and data systems. All thedata systems were reviewed and updated, to insure the efficacyof the guidance process. Mr. Schenker also cites efforts by theguidance department to encourage students to enroll in chal-lenging courses, improved monitoring systems, and reachingout to students on a more frequent basis to insure theiracademic success. Students and parents are counseled on theimportance of achieving a Regents Diploma and its impact on a student’s post-high school opportunities. Mr. Schenker said,“Priorities at the high school are set to insure that every studenttakes a rigorous regents and academic program.”

Superintendent’s Message continued from the cover

parents and teachers have quicklyembraced the program and thedynamic teachers who are leading thisbilingual revolution.

Our district has recently published itsparent guide for middle level languagearts, and is using technology to developcurriculum maps, outlining the contentand skills to be mastered at each gradelevel or course offering. These are twotangible examples of the district devel-oping ever more effective partnershipswith parents.

The Harrison Educational Foundationcontinues to be an incredible resourceserving to fast track the district’s mostexciting instructional innovations andas you will discover, this year was theirmost successful. Our district PTAreached across the nation to provide

support for the children who lost theirhomes and their schools in HurricaneKatrina. They provided a busload ofsupplies for schooling — and the bus!

People are the cornerstone of our orga-nizational improvement plan. Readabout our district’s commitment tohigh quality professional developmentand the many teachers who lead theway as innovative life long learners.Our newest staff is the result of acomprehensive and far-reaching recruit-ment program. I’m certain that youwill be impressed with the professionalpreparation and experience they add toour current contingent of committededucators.

While all of our accomplishmentscannot be fully captured in anewsletter, some other recent and

worthy undertakings are worth noting,including the reintroduction of ourstrings program, the implementationof a standards-based middle level mathprogram, and the creation of a highschool writing lab. Congratulations,also, to our entire business department,led by Assistant Superintendent RobertSalierno, on the recent assessment byour new independent auditing firm,which declared the business and finance functions of our district to be in excellent standing.

We appreciate your continued support for our children and will continue topress for improvement at every level ofour organization.

Sincerely,Louis N. WoolSuperintendent of Schools

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Nationally Recognized Experts Provide Professional Development

Professional development is an important way that teachers andstaff continue to grow as educators. And in Harrison, teachersare given the opportunity to learn from the leading educationalauthorities about the newest and best practices in the field.

This past summer, all new teachers in the district attended aworkshop in “Differentiated Instruction,” an educationalapproach focusing on reaching students who either may not be able to learn in traditional ways or need to be challenged tomeet grade-level, district and New York State expectations.

Teachers returning for their second year in the districttook a workshop called “Classroom Instruction ThatWorks,” which trained them in methods proven to workbest in the classroom. They discussed such diverse topicsas ways that children can be taught good note-taking practices, methods of positive reinforcement, how best toassign homework and how to create cooperation in theclassroom.

Workshops in the science field included SMART BoardMastery for science and technology and a workshop forteachers interested in reaching young scientists whilethey’re in elementary school. Social Studies teachers wereable to take advantage of the proximity of the Metropol-itan Museum of Art and study at its Ruth and Harold D.Uris Center for Education. Literacy workshops over thesummer touched on the subjects of guided reading, vocab-ulary instruction and the highly acclaimed Six Traits ofWriting taught by nationally renowned educator andwriter Ruth Culham, Ed.D.

Numerous professional development workshops arecontinuing into the 2005–06 school year and more arebeing planned for next summer. Harrison teachers canregister for classes directly on the District website using a

program called mylearningplan.com. This simple tool allowsfaculty to review all professional development courses beingoffered and enroll in those most applicable to their grade andsubject area.

High School Principal Keith Schenker said he was delightedwith the attendance of faculty at the summer workshops.“These teachers are so fortunate to have the best of the educa-tion field brought right here to their doorsteps,” he said.

At the Puchase School in August, all new teachers in the district attended workshops with Cindy Strickland, a nationally recognized expert in Differentiated Instruction.

New ELA Parent Guide at LMKThe school district has released a newEnglish Language Arts and LiteracyParents’ Guide for Louis M. KleinMiddle School. The guide is designedto explain what’s taking place in theirchild’s classroom, describes the worktheir children should be doing inde-pendently or with parents at home, andwhat parents can do to foster theirchild’s success.

The guide is available on the Districtwebsite and at LMK. It was created,published and aligned with a similarguide that was distributed last yearoutlining the Elementary EnglishLanguage Arts Parents’ Guide (alsoavailable on the District website).

Educational concepts with names likeliteracy, attributes, the “big idea,” andreceptive and expressive language areexplained in a manner all readers can

understand. The ELA guide connectsthese concepts with the lessons thatstudents are being taught in the 6th, 7thand 8th grades. It describes how chil-dren are being taught to read effectivelyand better understand what they arereading, and provides instruction andguidance to parents on how toencourage children to read often andvary their selections of reading material.

The guide underscores that literacydoesn’t end with reading. It also encom-passes how students interpret languagethat they see and hear. Language andliteracy applies to the television showsand the movies they view, or even theway they communicate online. TheELA guide explores the many waysstudents are taught to communicate andexpress their thoughts and feelings toothers. This is an essential skill as they

grow in an ever more communicationrich environment.

Most importantly, the guide shares howstudents are being assessed and encour-ages them to become “self assessors” in each of the forms of communication.Student expectations are outlined in an easy-to-follow format, includinggrading, assessments and the state standards.

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Hola! and Ciao! Welcome to Elementary Foreign Language

If you hear a group of young children greeting each other with“Hola!” and “Ciao!” — don’t be confused. You’re not at theUnited Nations; you’re in the Harrison Elementary Schools.This year the district introduced children to foreign language,beginning with Spanish in grades K–4 and one half year ofItalian and Spanish in grade five. In grade six, students aregiven the choice of studying French, Italian or Spanish.Linguistics experts agree that elementary school is the idealsetting for initiating the study of a second language. Researchindicates language acquisition is more effective at the earlygrades, and the benefit of this early exposure is profound at thehigh school level.

Superintendent Louis Wool noted, “Many people believe thatthis initiative is rooted in our desire to make students fluent in a second language at an early age. While that is desirable, it isnot our primary purpose. This is really a high school initiative;students who are exposed to a second language early in life haveconsistently scored higher on the verbal portion of the SAT,had superior performance on English assessments, and arestronger writers. As importantly, as we continue to realign ourforeign language program, we would like to see high schoolstudents have the opportunity to pursue two foreign languages.We think this will provide a significant advantage for ourstudents in an ever more competitive college admissionsprocess.”

Researcher Eileen Rafferty found that elementary students whohad foreign language instruction outperformed others onlanguage arts standardized tests, regardless of race, gender oracademic level.

Preston fifth grade teacher Geri Pelliccio said, “I love the waythis is teaching them to think. They are energized and excitedabout learning and language.” Foreign Language ElementarySchool (FLES) teachers Enzina Zaino and Marissa Coulehanare overwhelmed by the students’ response. “They motivatethemselves,” said Mrs. Zaino. “It is all interactive; there is not alot of pencil and paper. So we can even connect with the kids

that don’t learn in traditional ways.” Said Ms. Coulehan, “Wetap into their visual and auditory senses.”

The district’s elementary teachers are enthusiastic andsupportive and often sit in with the students, raising their handsand showing the same interest for learning a foreign languageas the students. “We’re not taking away from the regular lessontime,” said Mrs. Zaino, “they’re learning to think, analyze andcompare. They are learning that there are many ways to speakin the world and it makes them look at their own world a littledifferently.”

Students are immersed in the language as FLES teachers speakonly the foreign language during their class. Even outside theclassroom, if there is a student within hearing distance, FLESteachers will only speak Spanish or Italian. “Some of the chil-dren think I don’t even speak English,” said FLES teacherDanielle Rosen. She knew students were learning when she wasable to ask (in Spanish) a student to help her find the right milkcontainer in the cafeteria and the student got it right.

The teachers use multisensory methods including songs, phys-ical movements and games. The teaching is interdisciplinary.Walking into the end of a Purchase School classroom’s maplesson, Ms. Rosen was asked by students which country hadpeople who speak Spanish. “They seemed to look at the world alittle differently when they decided that about half the worldspeaks Spanish,” she said. The goal of FLES is that studentswill learn to use and comprehend language to socialize, obtainbasic information and express personal feelings and emotions.When they move on to the middle school and high school, theywill be better prepared to take advantage of opportunities foraccelerated study and gain higher achievement in State Assess-ments of Language Other Than English (LOTE) and ForeignLanguage Advanced Placement (AP) classes.

The FLES teachers have been working with a nationally recog-nized expert in the teaching of foreign language, HarrietBarnett. Although only in its first year of implementation, withher guidance and expertise, and the enthusiasm and dedicationof our FLES teachers, the program has already been recognizedas an exemplary model for elementary foreign language.

Ms. Enzina with her friend, Lino the dog, speak about their day in Italian.

Ms. Rosen plays games in Spanish with first graders at Purchase School.

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WELCOME TO NEW TEACHERS AND STAFF

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Finding not only qualified, but excep-tional teachers is not an easy task.The Harrison School District isdelighted to have the following educa-tors join an already exemplary team.

District-wide Appointments:Mary Ellis Elementary Supervisor, ELAMs. Ellis is a graduate of the Mannes College ofMusic where she received a Certificate inMusical Performance and Bachelor of Music.After careers in the computer and music fields,she pursed her Masters degree in ElementaryEducation from Pace University. She has taughtat Rye Country Day School, the Kent Elemen-tary School (Carmel, New York School District)and in the Mahopac, New York School District.Mahopac chose her for participation in theFuture School Administrators Academy whichwas run in conjunction with Teachers College,Columbia University and Putnam-NorthernWestchester BOCES. After completion of theselect program, she was granted an SAS andSDA certification.

Carole Levy Secondary Supervisor, ScienceMs. Levy received her B.S. in Biology from CityCollege of New York and an M.A. in Environ-mental Science from St. John’s University. Shereceived her certificate as a School Adminis-trator/Supervisor after receiving her Profes-sional Diploma from St. John’s University. Shetaught both general science and biology for tenyears in New York City. She has been theSupervisor of Science and Mathematics inHighland Park, New Jersey and most recentlyFranklin Township, New Jersey. She has writtennew curricula and provided supervision toteachers in the implementation of several newprograms in science. Ms. Levy has been alecturer in the Graduate School of RutgersUniversity and has been active in numerousprofessional organizations related to scienceeducation.

Susan Lockhart Special Education ConsultingTeacher and Chairperson of the Elementary

Committee on Special EducationMs. Lockhart has been a Special Educationteacher at the Parsons School in Harrison forthe past three years. Prior to Harrison she was ateacher in the Mt. Vernon School District andSouthern Westchester BOCES for nineteenyears. Her background and extensive knowledgeof special education practices within the districtand in the BOCES system will serve her well asshe chairs the Committee on Special Educationon the Elementary Level. Ms. Lockhart iscurrently pursuing her certification in SchoolDistrict Administration, which she plans toachieve by August, 2006.

Linda Finegan LottElementary District wide Music (Strings)

Ms. Finegan Lott is assigned to work in theelementary schools to develop the new district-wide strings program. She graduated fromIndiana University in Bloomington, Indiana

with a Bachelor’s degree in Musical Perfor-mance and then received her Masters degree inMusical Performance from West VirginiaUniversity in Morgantown, West Virginia.

Ms. Lott has performed with several orchestraland chamber music groups in the Tri-State areasince her graduation. Her teaching career hasbeen with young students in private schools,music schools, and with private lessons in herown studio since 1982. Most recently, she hadbeen employed at the Hackley School as astrings teacher.

Harrison Avenue SchoolElizabeth Heller Library MediaMs. Heller is a cum laude graduate of BrynMawr College, Class of 2000, where shemajored in history and was awarded the Eliza-beth Duane Gillespie Prize for outstandingwork in American History. She received herMLS from the Palmer School of Library andInformation Science, a division of Long IslandUniversity. She has served as an elementarylibrarian in the New Rochelle School District.

Viktoria Kharkina Elementary Foreign LanguageMs. Kharkina is a leave replacement ESOLteacher. She herself was an English Languagelearner as she was born and raised in Russiawhere she received both her Bachelors andMasters degree in foreign languages, Englishand German. Prior to coming to Harrison, shewas a leave replacement ESOL teacher in theBedford Central School District.

Jayne Marraccini KindergartenMs. Marraccini is a graduate of Hofstra Univer-sity where she received her B.A. in Educationwith a minor in Speech and received her M.A.in Education from C.W. Post College.

Ms. Marraccini was a tenured teacher in theFranklin Square Union Free School District onLong Island and has worked as a substituteteacher in Harrison prior to her appointment tothis position.

Marilyn McLean Elementary Foreign LanguageMs. McLean has a slightly unusual backgroundthat has prepared her well for the position ofteaching Spanish to elementary school-agedstudents. She graduated from the University ofDenver with a degree in Sociology and Spanish,summa cum laude and was elected to Phi BetaKappa. From 1979 to 1985 she lived andworked in Mexico where she taught English tostudents and foreigners at the AutonomousUniversity of Mexico in Mexico City and whereshe developed texts in English and Spanishbased on the communicative model of learning aforeign language.

She earned an M.A. in Applied Linguistics fromTeachers College, Columbia where shecompleted the requirements for certification asan ESOL teacher. Prior to coming to Harrison,she taught Spanish in the Foreign Language forElementary Students program at the HillsideElementary School in Hastings-on-Hudson,New York.

Joanna Murawski ElementaryMs. Murawski is a magna cum laude graduate ofSUNY Geneseo. She majored in elementary andspecial education and was certified in both areasupon graduation. In August 2005, shecompleted her coursework for a Masters degreein Literacy at Fordham University maintaininga 4.0 average. She taught elementary educationfor one year in New York City.

Nicole Prete Special EducationMs. Prete is a graduate of SUNY at StonyBrook where she received her B.A. in Englishand Child and Family Studies. She earned herMasters of Professional Studies from Manhat-tanville College. Prior to coming to Harrison,she was a teacher at PS 340 in the Bronx, NY.

Parsons Memorial SchoolMartha Enes Elementary Foreign LanguageMs. Enes is a graduate of Barry University in Miami, Florida, where she received her B.A.in International Studies. She completed herMasters degree in ESL from The College ofNew Rochelle and has done further study in theteaching of Spanish at Lehman College in theBronx, New York. Prior to coming to Harrison,Ms. Enes taught Spanish at Salesian HighSchool in New Rochelle for three years.

Gina LaSorsa Elementary Ms. LaSorsa earned her B.S. in ElementaryEducation from the College of St. Rose in Albany,New York and her Masters degree in CreativeTeaching and Learning (Gifted Education) fromthe College of New Rochelle. She is currentlytaking classes toward certification in special educa-tion at CNR. Prior to being appointed to thisposition, Gina was a teacher assistant in the schooldistrict and served as a leave replacement specialeducator in the spring of 2004.

Purchase SchoolJenifer Hughs ElementaryMs. Hughs worked as an elementary teacher forthe past twelve years in Independent Schools.She graduated from the Steinhardt School ofEducation at New York University with a B.A.and an M.A. from the Department of Teachingand Learning. As a post graduate, she hasstudied at the Center for Montessori TeacherEducation at the College of New Rochelle andis currently enrolled in the Educational Leader-ship program at Fordham University.

Danielle Rosen Elementary Foreign LanguageMs. Rosen received her B.S. in Spanish Educationat Pennsylvania State University in May, 2005.While at Penn State she was honored as aDean’s List student for almost all of her timethere. As part of her program, she did herstudent teaching at Franklin Regional HighSchool and Middle School in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

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Enzina Zaino Elementary Foreign LanguageMs. Zaino earned her B.A from New YorkUniversity with majors in Spanish and Italianand minors in Economics and Education. Sheearned her M.A. in Italian Language and Litera-ture from Middlebury College and an M.S. inEarly Childhood Education from LehmanCollege.She has worked as a teacher assistantand then an associate teacher in an early child-hood program in Dobbs Ferry.

Preston SchoolColleen Carolan Library MediaMs. Carolan is summa cum laude graduate ofFordham University where she was elected toPhi Beta Kappa. She earned a B.A. in Englishwith a minor in French. She worked in thepublishing field for several years and as a libraryassistant in a Rockland County parochial schoolfor several years. She is completing her Mastersdegree in Library and Information Science atthe Palmer School of Long Island University,Purchase, New York.

Marissa Coulehan Elementary Foreign LanguageMs. Coulehan graduated from the University ofMaryland in May, 2005 where her GPA was aperfect 4.0 and earned her Summa Cum Laudehonors. She did her student teaching at theHyattsville (MD) Middle School where shetaught Spanish 1 to eighth grade students.

Louis M Klein Middle SchoolLisa Buzin Special EducationMs. Buzin graduated in the spring 2005 from

the Steinhardt School of Education at New YorkUniversity with a B.S. with a dual major inChildhood Education and Special Education.She is currently enrolled in a Masters programat Teachers College, Columbia.

Rosalie DiChiara Foreign LanuguageMs. DiChiara has her B.A. in Spanish andItalian Education from the College of Mt. St.Vincent in Riverdale, New York and her M.S. inEducation from Iona College. She has previ-ously taught in the Ardsley School District aswell as Our Lady of Victory Academy in DobbsFerry, New York.

Julia Kafarski ArtMs. Kafarski graduated from ManhattanvilleCollege with a B.A in Studio Art and an M.A inArt Education. She was a Dean’s List studentduring her undergraduate years and did herstudent teaching at Parsons Memorial School.

Luciano LoMonaco GuidanceMr. LoMonaco received his B.S. in Psychologyfrom Iona College and his M.S. in Guidanceand Counseling from the College of NewRochelle with additional graduate credits inPublic Health from New York Medical Collegein Valhalla, New York. Mr. LoMonaco has beena physical education teacher at a Catholic schoolin the Bronx and for the past four years was aguidance counselor in several Middle Schools inthe New York City School System.

Erica Mayus PE/HealthMs. Mayus is a graduate of Harrison where shewas recognized as the outstanding female athletein her senior class. She received her B.A fromPace University in Pleasantville, New York inLiterature and Communications. She received a

B.S. in Movement Science and Health Educa-tion from York College, Queens, New York andan M.A. in Education with a specialization inElementary Education from Fordham Univer-sity. Prior to coming to Harrison, Erica was anelementary teacher in the Yonkers SchoolDistrict where she received tenure.

Elizabeth McEvoy Special EducationMs. McEvoy is a graduate of SUNY Geneseowhere she received her B.A. in Psychology. Shereceived her M.A. in Teaching English toStudents of Other Languages (TESOL) atTeachers College, Columbia. She has done post-Masters work at Fordham University, LongIsland University/CW Post and KeimyungUniversity in Korea. Elizabeth has taught ESLin Korea and in San Francisco before going onto a two-year stint with the Peace Corp inKyrgyzstan. Prior to coming to Harrison, shetaught for two years in two different highschools in the Bronx, New York.

Adele Morton Elementary Foreign LanguageMs. Morton is a graduate of Brandeis Universitywith a B.A. degree in Spanish and Latin Amer-ican Studies and an M.A. in Foreign LanguageEducation from New York University.

Ms. Morton has taught at New York’s ChapinSchool and Nightingale-Bamford School andFairfield Prep in Fairfield, Connecticut.

Shana Rago Social StudiesMs. Rago is a graduate of the University ofWisconsin – Madison where she received herB.A. in Legal Studies and History. She recentlycompleted her Masters degree in Social StudiesEducation at New York University havingstudent taught at the Landmark High Schooland East Side Middle School in New York City.

Jessica White Special EducationMs. White is a graduate of Mount Saint MaryCollege, in Newburgh, New York where shereceived her B.A. in English. She later receivedher Masters degree from SUNY New Paltz inSpecial Education. Prior to coming to Harrison,she worked as a special education teacher in theArlington Central School District, Arlington, New York, the Washingtonville (NY) SchoolDistrict and the Hopewell (NY) SchoolDistricts.

Harrison High SchoolFrank Caputo Guidance Mr. Caputo graduated from Queens Collegewith a B.A. in Psychology. He received his M.S.Education from Hunter College in Guidanceand Counseling and a second Masters degree inPsychology from The New School in New YorkCity. He is currently pursuing his certificationas a school administrator at ManhattanvilleCollege. Mr. Caputo has worked at Sara’sCenter Day Treatment Program where heprovided counseling to psychiatric adults andhad case management responsibilities. He thenwas guidance counselor at Xavier High Schoolin New York City, Eastchester High School andthe Westchester Magnet Academy.

Dianna Caruso MathematicsMs. Caruso is a graduate of Iona College whereshe was a Dean’s Scholar. She student taught atRye Neck Middle and High Schools prior tobeginning her tenure in Harrison.

Sharon Ciccone Special Education andMathematics

Ms. Ciccone graduated with a B.S. inPsychology from Mercy College where shecompleted her course work for certification inSpecial Education. She earned her Mastersdegree in Reading from College of NewRochelle. She taught at Blind Brook HS, theGreenburgh Central 7 district, and was ateacher of mathematics in a Bronx middleschool.

Meghan Dalton Social StudiesMs. Dalton received her undergraduate degreefrom Columbia College in New York Citywhere she earned her B.A. in American History.She attended Teacher’s College, ColumbiaUniversity and received her Masters of Arts,Teaching of Social Studies. She has taught atI.S. 218 in Manhattan.

Debra Davis-Galliard ScienceMs. Davis-Galliard began her career as aneducator in September, 2004 in the Blind BrookHigh School. Prior to that she was employed byIBM for thirty years. She holds a B.S. in Educa-tion with a concentration in Earth and GeneralScience from Indiana University. She receivedher M.A.T. in Education from ManhattanvilleCollege.

Judith Ford Special EducationMs. Ford is a certified teacher in both SpecialEducation and English, which will assist her inassignment as a co-teacher in mainstream classes at the high school. She has a B.A. in Englishfrom The College of the Holy Cross inWorcester, MA and her M.S. in Special Educa-tion from the Bank Street College of Educationin New York City. Prior to coming to Harrison,she was a special education teacher in theBedford, New York School District.

Gina Funicello PsychologistMs. Funicello is a graduate of Harrison High School. She received her undergraduatedegree from Iona College in Psychology andher M.S. Education in School Psychology fromLong Island University.

Ms. Funicello worked in the New York CitySchool System as a school psychologist for sixyears. Prior to coming to Harrison, she workedas an educational psychologist and evaluator forthe Young Adults Institute in the Bronx.

Janessa Grieco ScienceMs. Grieco received her B.S. degree from TheUniversity of Michigan in Movement Scienceand Exercise Physiology. She attended Michiganon an athletic scholarship for gymnastics. Whileat Michigan, she was named to the Dean’s Listfor four years and earned Academic All Amer-ican and Scholastic Big Ten honors for hersuccess in the classroom and the athletic arena.After graduation, she earned her M.S. inSecondary Education at Mercy College. Prior tocoming to Harrison she worked at the Michiganand Iona College Athletic Departments. She didcontinued on next page

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K – 12 Curriculum Mapping with TECHPATH

Harrison teachers are using a valuable technology tool that willhelp them “map” curriculum that will guide and link instructionfrom kindergarten through graduation in a smooth, uninter-rupted process.

Curriculum mapping is a comprehensive method in whichschools connect the material being taught from teacher toteacher, subject to subject and even school to school. Mappingis a calendar-based process that records data that can later beexamined to determine whether class lessons and assignmentsmatch up with New York State standards, need to beimproved, and build sequentially, becoming morecomplex as students gain under-standing of the subject matter.

Over the summer in a series of professional development seminars, theDistrict’s teachers learned how to useTechPath, curriculum mapping softwareintroduced this year.

TechPath allows teachers across subjectsand grades to more easily address the totaleducation of students and allow them toresearch what schools across the country haveintroduced to enhance classroom lesson plans.

Eighth grade social studies teacher Steven Goodstein, who will explore the Reconstructionperiod of American History this year, has enteredinto TechPath the essential questions he will ask his classes

concerning the social, political and economic effects of Recon-struction on the nation and its people. Mr. Goodstein entered

subject matter he intends to discuss, such as the15th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and the Freedman’s Bureau.He has charted in TechPath the skills he

would like students to acquire while in his class, including how to find and use

primary sources, and how to work with mapsand graphs.

With TechPath, Mr. Goodstein can also access anassessment section in the process, aligning his own

work with multiple areas of the New York StateStandards including United States History,Economics and Geography.

Mr. Goodstein said that TechPath has been avaluable tool, making the complex and oftendaunting task of mapping curriculum more

user-friendly and easier to accomplish. Evenwith the help of the software, the project

in Harrison will take three years tocomplete.

“I’m very excited about what this will do to helpteachers deal chronologically with subject matter, how it

will help us better schedule our lessons,” said Mr. Goodstein.“We will be able to reinforce and review without unnecessaryoverlapping.”

What NCLB Means for Our ChildrenNo Child Left Behind (NCLB), a federaleducation initiative has produced newmeasures of marking students’ achieve-ment in schools throughout the state.The NCLB Act was passed in 2001 “toclose the achievement gap throughaccountability, research-based instruc-tion, flexibility, and options for parents,so that no child is left behind.”

Under NCLB, all states that receivefederal funding for education arerequired to test students in grades 3through 8 in reading and math to bettermeasure annual progress. High schoolstudents will continue to be tested atleast once in these subjects duringgrades 10 through 12. Here in NewYork, where a comprehensive testingprogram had already been under way,English Language Arts and math testshave been added to grades 3, 5, 6 and 7to meet the requirements of NCLB, andstudents in 4th grade and 8th grade willcontinue taking ELA and math tests. In

addition, New York administers a grade4 science assessment, a grade 5 socialstudies assessment, grade 8 scienceperformance and science written exams,and a grade 8 social studies exam.

In Harrison, this meant reexamining thetests administered in all grades. Toadequately prepare students withoutdetracting from curriculum instruction,Harrison schools will eliminate theHoughton Mifflin Tests of New YorkState Standards (TONYSS) in grades3–8. TONYSS have traditionally beenused to measure students’ mastery of theNew York State Learning Standards forEnglish Language Arts and Mathematicsin grades 2–8.

“The new tests will replace theTONYSS standardized tests previouslyadministered at grades 3, 5, 6 and 7.TONYSS testing will continue at grade2. Grade 2 is the first time students areasked to take standardized tests. Theresults from all tests are used to guide

program and instruction decisions,” saidAssistant Superintendent of CurriculumLouise Cleveland.

In New York, all 3–8 ELA testing willtake place in January and all mathtesting will take place in March. Infor-mation gathered from the results of thetests will be used by the State to deter-mine whether schools and districts aremaking adequate yearly progress towardthe achievement goals. Schools that donot meet achievement goals will beidentified as Schools in Need ofImprovement.

For more information about NCLB, go to the New York State EducationDepartment’s assessment home page at:http://emsc33.nysed.gov/osa, or to theU.S. Department of Education’s NoChild Left Behind Guide for Parents at:http://www.ed.gov/parents/academic/involve/nclbguide/parentsguide.html.

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Harrison Educational Foundation Raises $180,000

The HarrisonEducationalFoundationhosted 100golfers in Septemberat Old OaksCountry Clubfor its annualgolf tourna-ment, “Drivefor Education.”“Drive forEducation,”

the principle fund raising event for the foundation, raised morethan $180,000 to support educational initiatives of the HarrisonCentral School District, which are beyond the scope of theschool budget. Superintendent of Schools Louis N. Wool stated, “The Districtis truly indebted for the continued support of the Harrison

Educational Foundation and each of the generous participantsat the golf outing. The Foundation has provided us with theaccelerant required for innovation in our schools. The Founda-tion’s Board of Trustees has worked tirelessly to help us fasttrack our academic agenda and provide enriched learningopportunities to each and every child in the Harrison CentralSchool District.”The day’s events included 18 holes of golf at Old Oaks CountryClub, one of the most prestigious country clubs in the metro-politan area, a silent auction of sports memorabilia and a$10,000 cash raffle – the highlight of the day’s fundraising activities. This year’s raffle winner was Town Councilman BobPaladino, who magnanimously donated his prize back to theFoundation. Harrison Educational Foundation Chairperson Abby Mendelsohnstated, “I am always amazed at the generosity of our communityand their commitment to the children of Harrison. I am especiallygrateful to Bob Paladino not only for his extremely generousdonation, but also for his ongoing support of the HarrisonEducational Foundation since its inception.”

Phil Drogin, Bruce Mendelsohn, Rob Warshauer, and Thacher Krasne get ready to tee off.

Harrison Kids Stuff the Bus for Katrina ReliefHarrison families and the First Student Bus Companyresponded to the needs of the children devastated by HurricaneKatrina. Coordinating with the Louisiana based “Big BuddyOrganization,” the First Student Bus Company and theHarrison PT Council stuffed a bus with backpacks filled withschool supplies and sent it on its way on Friday, September16th. When the bus reached the Gulf Coast, the backpackswere used by the organization to set up temporary elementaryschools for children in Baton Rouge who had lost everythingthey owned.

With just three days to get the backpacks ready before the buswas scheduled to go, PT Council representative Helena Jaffesent out emails and flyers alerting all district families of therelief effort underway. The Solomon Schecter School andScarsdale real estate firm Julia B. Fee, both of whom had been

looking for a way to help, called to arrange sending their owndonations along on the bus.

PT Council representative Helana Jaffe and First Student Bus Company driverTodd Monteferrario load the bus with backpacks bursting with school supplies.

Preston Students Welcome Children’s Author Steven KelloggElementary students enjoyed a sneak peek at the newest bookby one of their favorite authors, Steven Kellogg, during his visitto Preston School in September. His series of illustrated books,including many retelling tall tales from around the world andcharacters Pinkerton and Jimmy’s Boa, have kept millions ofchildren enthralled for years. He encouraged the students todraw, write and imagine as he showed them slides of illustra-tions and story ideas. Kellogg explained how he got his storyideas and the process of writing and illustrating books. Hetalked about how his books grow out of his relationships withhis children, grandchildren, pets and his own life. Kellogg wasdelighted with the gift of a book of Tall Tales written by thestudents in Mrs. Sullivan’s second grade.

Principal Bruce Downer watches as Mrs. Sullivan’s second graders present StevenKellogg with their own publication.

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Welcome to New Teachers and Staff continued from page 9

Non-Profit Org.US POSTAGE

PAIDWhite Plains, NYPermit No. 28102

RESIDENTIAL ONLYWEST HARRISON, NY 10604

ECRWSS

12

Harrison Central School DistrictHarrison, NY 10528BOARD OF EDUCATIONDavid Singer, PresidentPhilip Silano, Vice PresidentJoseph AcocellaDavid BrunnerDebbie ImperiaGeorgia ReidelJoan TiburziSUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLSLouis N. Wool

her student teaching at Mahopac Middle andHigh Schools.

Terrence Hinson GuidanceMr. Hinson is a graduate of North Carolina Central University where he earned his B.A. inSpanish and Psychology. He went on to TeachersCollege, Columbia University where he earnedhis M.S. Education in Psychological Counseling.Mr. Hinson has been a guidance counselor inthe Freeport Public Schools for two years andworked as a program coordinator for adolescentprograms in Hempstead, New York.

Renee Katzenberg GuidanceMs. Katzenberg is a cum laude graduate ofSUNY Binghamton where she received herBachelor of Arts in Social Studies. Shecompleted her Master of Arts in Counseling andGuidance from New York University’s Stein-hardt School of Education. Ms. Katzenberg hasextensive experience at Midwood High Schoolat Brooklyn College where she was a schoolcounselor for her first two years and for the pasttwo years was a college counselor.

Laryca Makarczuk Social StudiesMs. Makarczuk is a graduate with highesthonors from Pace University with a B.A. inHistory with a minor in Art. She also receivedher M.S.T. in Social Studies Education fromPace. She completed her student teaching atHendrick Hudson HS in Montrose, New York.

Jessica Maricevic EnglishMs. Maricevic is a graduate of Stonehill Collegein North Easton, Massachusetts where shereceived her B.A. with a major in English and aminor in Secondary and Teachers College,Columbia University where she received herMasters Degree concentrating on curriculumand instruction and learning disabilities. Whilein the program at Teachers College, she was a

presenter/speaker at the 5th Annual NationalDisabilities Conference held at Teachers College.

Lawrence Mastrota Assistant PrincipalMr. Mastrota is a graduate of Boston Universitywhere he received a B.A. in Economics. Hebegan his teaching career as a secondary socialstudies teacher at John F. Kennedy CatholicHigh School in Somers, New York. He taught afull range of social studies classes, includingAdvanced Placement classes, at Brewster HighSchool. Mr. Mastrota received two graduatedegrees; an M.A. in Secondary Education fromLong Island University and a second M.A. fromFordham University in School Administration.During the summer of 2004, he was the Assis-tant Principal of the BOCES Summer School inYorktown, New York.

Sarah Mercer Special EducationMs. Mercer has been a teacher for eighteenyears in various school districts in New YorkCity and New York State. She holds her Bach-elor’s degree in Animal Science and Occupa-tional Education from the University of NewHampshire and her M.S. in Special Educationfrom Hunter College in New York City.

Cynthia O’Keefe Social Studies Ms. O’Keefe is a graduate of SouthernConnecticut State University where she earnedher Bachelor’s degree in Political Science with aminor in History. She studied in Paris for a yearwhere she earned a Post-Graduate Paralegalcertificate in International Trade Law. She willbe completing her Master’s degree in Geog-raphy from Hunter College in December 2005.Ms. O’Keefe has had a variety of teaching expe-riences prior to coming to Harrison. She taughthigh school social studies in Bridgeport, Ct.;worked at the Shanghai American School,Shanghai, China where she taught middle andhigh school social studies; and most recently shetaught social studies at St. John’s Prep inAstoria, New York.

Alyssa Penso Special Education/ReadingMs. Penso comes to Harrison High School afterworking in the Greenburgh 11 School Districtwhere she was a teacher of Grades 4 and 5. Shereceived her B.A. in Psychology and Educationand her M.P. S. in Special Education andReading from Manhattanville College.

Jessica Reap EnglishMs. Reap is a graduate of Randolph-MaconWoman’s College in Lynchburg, Va., with a B.A.in English and Philosophy and received herM.A.T. in Secondary English from Manhat-tanville College. She had previously worked asan English teacher in Greenwich High Schooland Turn of River Middle School inConnecticut and Blind Brook High School inRye Brook, NY.

Joseph Santo BusinessMr. Santo is a graduate of SUNY Oneontawhere he received his B.S. in BusinessEconomics and Marketing. He earned hisMasters degree from Pace University in Business Education in May 2005. Mr. Santo didhis student teaching at The Fox Lane HighSchool in Bedford, New York.

August Vita Foreign LanguageMr. Vita is a graduate of Manhattanville Collegewhere he received his B.A. in RomanceLanguages (Spanish and Italian) with a minor inClassics (Latin). He went on to receive hisM.A.T. in Second Language Instruction alsofrom Manhattanville. Prior to coming toHarrison, he taught in the Lakeland SchoolDistrict.

John Wilde Special EducationMr. Wilde holds a B.A. in Education/SpecialEducation from Lehman College in the Bronx,New York and later received his M.S. Ed. fromthat same institution. Prior to coming toHarrison, he taught at the Clearview School inScarborough, NY for one year, School 18 inYonkers for one year, and for fifteen years atP186X as a Middle School Special Educator inthe Bronx, New York.