Dear Parent or Guardian,
As you are no doubt aware, the current schedule for school to start in the fall has students returning to class on Wednesday, September 8, 2010.
But over the past few weeks, we heard directly from many parents and school communities concerned about the impact of Labor Day and the Jewish holidays on the first week of school. They asked us to consider moving the first day of school to Monday, September 13, 2010.
Recognizing the importance of not losing an instructional school day, the parents who wrote us further proposed that our teachers and staff use that Wednesday, September 8, 2010, as a professional development day, and instead use what is known as Brooklyn-Queens day—a professional development day that falls on Thursday, June 9, 2011 as an instructional school day.
Both the Mayor and I thought this proposal made sense for all involved and, in fact, would save parents the hassle of finding child-care for a one-day, mid-week holiday in June.
But in order to move forward with this plan, we needed the agreement of the United Federation of Teachers (UFT).
Unfortunately, the UFT refused our proposal and therefore we are left with no choice but to keep the calendar unchanged.
I also want to briefly address UFT’s statements in the press that we should allow different schools to start classes on different days. That idea is simply not feasible.
We cannot have a chaotic system where different schools start classes on different days, which would require different bus schedules as well as different food schedules. It would be confusing to parents, a further strain on our budget, and disruptive to the overall school calendar.
We understand and are sympathetic to the stress some families may feel because of the schedule during the first week of school, and regret that we were unable to make a change we saw as straightforward and fair to all.
But given our inability to reach an agreement with the UFT, we will proceed with starting school on Wednesday, September 8, 2010.
I wish you and your families an enjoyable, relaxing summer, and look forward to seeing everyone in the fall.
Sincerely,
Joel I. Klein
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Monday, June 28, 2010
End of Year Reflection and Goodbyes
June 21, 2010
To the Holliswood School Community:
This year, we have had many wonderful memories. From our multicultural celebration to the numerous concerts and shows, we have had a successful year. We are thrilled to have such a supportive community of families and dedicated staff, committed to promoting the growth of every student in our school.
This month, our school became the winners of the Trashmasters Contest for Super Recycling, sponsored by the Department of Sanitation. We won the Queens Borough Award for best recycling. In sports, our Elementary Rugby Team became runners-up during the Citywide Mayor’s Cup Tournament on June 5, 2010. Fifty-six teams from private and public schools competed in that tournament.
Academically, our students have demonstrated growth. While all of our standardized test results are not yet available, we have exceeded our previous year’s performance on the fifth grade NYS Social Studies Assessment. This is not only attributed to our faculty, but to the tremendous work that you do with your children. We are pleased that our graduating eighth grade class will attend such prestigious high schools as Stuyvesant, Bronx Science, Brooklyn Tech, Townsend Harris, High School for Math, Science and Engineering at City College, Queens High School for the Sciences at York College, and local schools, such as Bayside, Cardozo, and Francis Lewis.
We would also like to share news regarding personnel changes. After four years, our Assistant Principal, Patrick Klocek, will be leaving our school and moving on to a principal position outside of New York City. Furthermore, after 23 years of service at the Holliswood School, our Supervising School Aide, Carmel Leong, will be retiring. Please join me in congratulating our beloved staff members who will be leaving us this year.
Thank you for everything you do to make our school community truly unique and special.
We look forward to beginning another terrific school year this September.
Sincerely,
Jennifer C. Ambert
Principal
To the Holliswood School Community:
This year, we have had many wonderful memories. From our multicultural celebration to the numerous concerts and shows, we have had a successful year. We are thrilled to have such a supportive community of families and dedicated staff, committed to promoting the growth of every student in our school.
This month, our school became the winners of the Trashmasters Contest for Super Recycling, sponsored by the Department of Sanitation. We won the Queens Borough Award for best recycling. In sports, our Elementary Rugby Team became runners-up during the Citywide Mayor’s Cup Tournament on June 5, 2010. Fifty-six teams from private and public schools competed in that tournament.
Academically, our students have demonstrated growth. While all of our standardized test results are not yet available, we have exceeded our previous year’s performance on the fifth grade NYS Social Studies Assessment. This is not only attributed to our faculty, but to the tremendous work that you do with your children. We are pleased that our graduating eighth grade class will attend such prestigious high schools as Stuyvesant, Bronx Science, Brooklyn Tech, Townsend Harris, High School for Math, Science and Engineering at City College, Queens High School for the Sciences at York College, and local schools, such as Bayside, Cardozo, and Francis Lewis.
We would also like to share news regarding personnel changes. After four years, our Assistant Principal, Patrick Klocek, will be leaving our school and moving on to a principal position outside of New York City. Furthermore, after 23 years of service at the Holliswood School, our Supervising School Aide, Carmel Leong, will be retiring. Please join me in congratulating our beloved staff members who will be leaving us this year.
Thank you for everything you do to make our school community truly unique and special.
We look forward to beginning another terrific school year this September.
Sincerely,
Jennifer C. Ambert
Principal
Monday, June 7, 2010
Half Day Reminder
Please be advised of the following citywide half days:
June 8, June 17 and June 28th
On all dates, dismissal will be 11:30 AM.
In addition, there is no school on June 10th due to the citywide staff development day.
June 8, June 17 and June 28th
On all dates, dismissal will be 11:30 AM.
In addition, there is no school on June 10th due to the citywide staff development day.