Congratulations to Charlotte Ring and Monika Dharia – both top 10 students – on JUST being announced as semifinalists in the Intel Science Talent Search contest for 2015! See the full article with their topics listed here: http://data.newsday.com/long-island/data/education/intel-talent-search/#o:c=;|
“Innovative” has bee a word used a lot to describe Mineola lately. We seem to be continuously getting awards for ‘innovation.’ The latest was to Vincent Interrante, who is a master trainer for Microsoft, and was recognized as a global leader in using technology to increase productivity and transform education for students. He was selected as a Microsoft Innovative Educator Expert for 2015 for his excellence in using technology to help students learn and achieve more, and ultimately succeed in a mobile-first, cloud-first world. We are very lucky to have him.
He will be featured for receiving this award in Newsday’s Winners Column on January 5. Keep an eye out!
Fifth-grade Family and Consumer Science students decorated tote bags for dialysis patients at Winthrop University. A representative from Winthrop visited the school to collect the tote bags yesterday and made a small presentation about dialysis and the importance of service learning. The kids decorated over 200 bags for the patients, which is really amazing. 
In an effort to entice more students to read a wider variety of books, Hampton Street’s library media specialist Diane Nodell created an interactive recommendation station for students to explore potential new book selections through QR codes. Second-graders were selected to write a “book talk summary” on their favorite book, describing why they love it and why someone else should read it. Using the district-issued iPads, students then took the summaries and converted them into short video descriptions where they “sold” the book to other students and created a QR code for others to access the video. What a great way to incorporate technology and reading; all while keeping the kids engaged.
Yesterday I was 1 of 100 Superintendents invited to the White House to represent school districts that are advanced in using instructional technology. Considering there are approximately 16,000 school districts in the United States- this was a great honor for me and the School District. President Obama held a news conference to launch his Future Ready School program. The Superintendents in attendance (along with 1,200 virtual supt’s) signed the Future ready pledge. The pledge is a commitment to work with our school community to deliver 7 foundational pillars. I am happy to report that Mineola is well on the way to actualizing all 7.
Next to the White House is the Eisenhower Executive Office Building (EEOB). This building houses all of the offices, work spaces and an auditorium. We started the day debriefing in the auditorium and then walked across the lawn in front of the East entrance of the White House. This entrance is the iconic image of the front entrance with large white pillars and the giant light fixture. When you walk in that door you enter a huge ‘hallway’ that is welcoming. A marine playing a large grand piano welcomed all of the visitors. Portraits of past presidents adore the walls as we waited in a grand hallway to enter into the press conference. Once seated you understand the enormity of a presidential news conference; the number of cameras, photographers, teleprompters are things you never see on TV. The president delivered his speech and I was 3 rows away from the podium, after he exited we returned to the EEOB for panel discussions and presentations. I learned quite a few things that will help my thinking about guiding Mineola to be future ready.
As always I take great pride in representing our school District and I am truly grateful for the opportunity to do so.
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One of our great teachers, Mrs. Uryevick, is up for Teacher of the Month in a K98.3 contest that highlights the ‘best teachers’ on Long Island. She was nominated last year by Isabella, a student in her class, and is just now vying for the win. Please join me in voting for her. Here’s how: 1.) click this link (if it doesn’t work, go to the k98.3 website and use keyword “teachers”): http://www.k983.com/teacher-of-the-month.aspx 2.) you will need to register and become a ‘member’ in order to vote; 3.) vote for Mrs. Uryevick. If she wins, she and her class will all receive cards for a free bowl of noodles at Noodles & Company in Garden City.
John Couch, Vice President of Education for Apple, visited our middle school today. I was so proud of the opportunity to ’show off’ our students and teachers to a senior Apple executive who was genuinely interested in all aspects of our program – the 3D capabilities, the way specific apps are differentiating instruction, and how teachers and students alike are acclimating to the iPad universe. It has been quite a week for us here.
Of course when the governor was considering locations to host the Smart Schools Commission Report press conference and announce a proposition to bring $2 billion for technology into schools across the State, he wanted to visit with students who are already using technology in the classroom – and thus came to Mineola Middle School. It was a unique experience for our school and our students. Here is a photo of him, County Executive Edward Mangano myself and a member of the commission in our 3D classroom. 
The district together with the District Council of PTA’s presents a series of three fun events for children each year. The first one for 2014-15 will be held next Saturday, November 1 at 2:00pm and will feature Muttville Comix Canine Comedy Show. Tickets are only $5 per child. The next one is Dec. 6 at 2pm, and then Jan. 10 at 2pm. All at the Mineola High School Theatre. Bring your entire family, the shows are really enjoyable! Contact Debbie Tobar at debtobar@yahoo.com for more information or to get tickets in advance.
On November 21 and 22, the Drama Club and Thespian Troupe # 276 will present Neil Simon’s hilarious, family-friendly comedy, Fools. Originally produced on Broadway in 1981, Fools begins with the arrival of a young, idealistic teacher named Leon Tolchinsky. Leon’s determination to break a local curse and to marry the girl of his dreams sets in motion a plot that will keep the audience laughing right up to the final curtain.
The talented cast includes seniors CJ Asam, Aldrian Diaz, Melissa Dunlop and Tyler Villalona, juniors Theo Bischoff, Julie Ortiz, Kristina Shevlin and Felicia Villa, sophomore Zachary Sloan and freshman Sarah Harty.
Performances will be held Friday, November 21 at 7:30 and again on Saturday at 2:00 and 7:30 at the Theatre at MHS. Tickets are $10 and can be purchased in advance by calling the Mineola UFSD Department of Fine and Performing Arts at 516-237-2625 or at the door.