Superintendent's Message

Greetings to all!
I
am John Fauta, the Superintendent of Schools, in the West New York
School District. I hope that the first week of school went well for
all and that everyone is happy with their new teachers, their
schools, and their friends. I hope that our community of students is
rested and ready to embark on this new school year with a shared
sense of commitment, motivation, and excitement. My appreciation is
extended to all that participated in preparing our schools and
programs over the summer. Once again, on behalf of our Central
Office Team and the Board of Education, I invite you to explore our
website and view the tradition of great accomplishments that
characterizes our community and all of our schools on local, state,
and national levels. We hope that you will enjoy your tour of our
website and that it will encourage you to visit our schools and seek
involvement in your child’s education.
As
I enter into my second year as your Superintendent I continue to
share and support the vision of striving to educate the “whole
child" keeping in mind that “one size does not fit all” and that our
goal is to reach all types of learners in the classrooms and explore
their passions to make for a successful and happy future. Our
dedicated staff is committed to providing all students with a high
quality education that promotes critical thinking, effective
communication, and life long learning. As you browse through our
website you will see that we celebrate the uniqueness of every child
with a keen awareness of the different strengths, learning styles,
and emotional needs of every child placed in our care. We are
committed to creating and maintaining contemporary 21st century
classrooms displaying "cutting edge" technology for our professional
staff and students. To nourish and support our multicultural
environment we continue to strive to teach our students to be proud
of their heritage and who they are. In support of our new
Antibullying Law our individual School Committees are gathering and
planning ways to help students raise their level of tolerance and
respect for one another. We will honor the "Week of Respect" which
will begin on October 1, 2011.
Our school district continues to house six elementary schools,
one Middle School, one High School, and a growing Early Childhood
Program established throughout the schools and community.
Some of our great accomplishments are the following:
-
Memorial High School has met the state benchmark in the area of
Language Arts and made adequate yearly progress (AYP) in
Mathematics on state assessments.
-
Select Elementary Schools made adequate yearly progress (AYP) in
the areas of LAL and Mathematics.
-
President Clinton Foundation for a Healthier Generation Wellness
Program-Memorial High School-Gold Medal (only such award in the
U.S.)- Harry L. Bain School-Bronze Medal, School #1 Silver
Medal, and School #2 Silver Medal
-
SNAP program from Rutgers University in our classrooms to
educate our students on wellness
-
Fresh Fruits and Vegetable Program in all elementary schools
-
New breakfast program being piloted in two elementary schools
whereby children receive a working breakfast in the classroom
-
Through the Alliance with the President Clinton Foundation for a
Healthier Generation Wellness Program, Rachael Ray visited
School # 4 to teach our students and community about healthy and
delicious meals. This segment was aired on September 20, 2011.
-
Implementation of Anti-bullying Committees in all schools to
address the new mandate on keeping students safe, healthy, and
happy.
-
In collaboration with the West New York Recreation Department
the district will be opening more schools in the evenings to
offer students activities after school.
-
Central Office Business Office had three major audits receiving
100% compliance in all areas.
-
New Highly qualified teachers were hired for our Middle and High
School Math and Science classes.
-
Social Workers were added to the Middle and High School
supporting the need to educate the "whole child."
-
Our in-district Autism program continues to expand bringing back
students from out of district programs to a least restrictive
environment in their neighborhood.
-
The continuation of Participation in the Syracuse Project,
Caldwell College, Kean University, and others which enable our
High School students to obtain college credits while attending
MHS.
-
Getting much closer to the opening of our brand new School #3
which will hopefully take place in the beginning of 2012.
-
Exploring the expansion of Memorial HS by utilizing the St.
Joseph’s High School building which is currently vacant.
-
The Early Childhood Program opened additional classrooms housed
in a new location, School Annex 4.
-
100% participation in SEMI (Special Education Initiative), a
Medicare funded reimbursement from the federal government
education services, generating significant amounts of dollars in
revenue for the district.
-
Memorial High School continues to move forward with the building
of small learning communities.
-
Our Technology Plan continues to support the additional
purchasing of interactive boards for all classrooms in the
district.
-
In-district monthly Professional Learning Seminars will be
provided to our staff for professional growth in a variety of
areas.
Our top priority continues to be the achievement of all of
our students and we strongly believe that children learn best when
the entire learning community works together to establish powerful
and meaningful partnerships that share the common vision of keeping
up with educational trends and continuously seeking the next highest
level. Our Central Office and the Board of Education will continue
to work very closely to maximize the benefits that our students
receive in the district of West New York.
I have an open door policy, value your input, and welcome your
ideas, support and involvement in our schools.
Enjoy exploring our website and please do not hesitate to contact me
should you have any questions or need assistance.
Sincerely,
John Fauta
Superintendent of Schools
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