Superintendent's Message
November 2019
Dear Shoreham-Wading River School Community,
The 2019-20 school year is off to a great start! So much has been
happening in our four schools since the first day of classes on Sept.
4th: team building and new perspectives with Mrs. Claudia Smith at the
helm as Principal of Miller Avenue, Prodell students learning about the
benefits of healthy choices with informative and proactive assembly
programs, and collaboration with our High School, Middle School and
Wading River students who are engaged in the Student Spaceflight
Experiments Program, which will keep them active in the coming months as
they work to design authentic research for the International Space
Station. This program will lead to a group of our student scientists
collaborating with astronauts to have their experiment conducted in the
space station! The High School renovations completed over the summer
have truly brightened student learning environments. The new audio and
lighting system in the High School auditorium is having an incredible
impact on our theater program. New safety initiatives such as interior
bus cameras, day gates and a new integrated security management system
have been implemented to enhance security.
This year we
are also offering six new electives at the High School, have expanded
our Chromebook initiative to the High School, and are looking forward to
having our students become involved in the Section XI unified
basketball program. We have also added several new clubs throughout the
District that will enrich our student offerings such as a Middle School
Best Buddies club, an elementary newspaper club and bell choir.
This past fall, the Board of Education reviewed our student
outcomes for the 2018-19 school year. Our students continue to excel in
all areas. For example, last year our high school students earned over
1,000 collegiate credits through participation in our robust Advanced
Placement program. The percentages of students graduating with an
Advanced Regent’s Designation diploma continued to grow and is now at
72%, an increase of over 23% in the last five years! Average student SAT
scores grew by 20 points, with student averages exceeding New York
State SAT scores by 100 points. Ninety-three percent of last year’s
graduates are attending 78 different colleges/universities, including
Cornell, U Penn, and Harvard. In addition, on Sept. 26th it was
announced that Shoreham-Wading River High School was recognized as a
2019 National Blue Ribbon School for exemplary student performance from
the United States Department of Education, an honor that it has achieved
for the SECOND time!
Thank you to all of stakeholders,
residents, parents and staff as all of these accomplishments are due to
the incredible support given to our students from our community.
Sincerely,
Mr. Gerard W. Poole
Superintendent of Schools