School board celebrates PTA Reflection winners, faculty and volunteers
Monroe-Woodbury. Special recognition was given to PTA Council President, Berny Vega, for her support of the M-W school community.
| 14 Jun 2023 | 03:27
Principal of Sapphire Elementary Caitlin Caldwell, BOE President Michael Ciriello, Community Connection Award recipient Raina Dameron and BOE Vice President Jamell Evans during the June 7, 2023 MWCSD board meeting. (
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Students, faculty retirees, volunteers, and community partners were acknowledged at the June 7 Monroe-Woodbury Central School District board meeting.
PTA Council President Berny Vega saluted the many students who participated in the annual PTA 2023 Reflections program which, as Vega mentioned, provides students from Pre-K to High School with opportunities to express their unique creativity in the arts, including dance choreography, film production, photography, literature, music composition and visual arts.
Once the students were presented with their awards, Superintendent Elsa Rodriguez recognized the volunteers from the seven district schools who made up the PTA in various capacities. The Community Connection Awards were then presented to the following for giving so much of their time and energy to the M-W school community:
Raina Dameron collected school supplies for Sapphire; Officer Dominick Gonzalez (MW alumni ‘05) from the Town of Woodbury Police Department, and Chief Darwin Guzman of the Monroe Police Department helped enhance the relationships between the school community and local law enforcement; and Father David Rider and Anthony Spagna from St. Patrick’s Church for their commitment to the Angel Tree program which benefits Central Valley students.
Other community volunteers included MaryLynne Malone (Orange County Water Authority) who, since 1994, has been teaching the students at all the schools about water conservation and the estuary program at the Hudson River; Noelle Larson for volunteering her professional stage skills to the Middle School drama students; and Caitlin Perrone (Woodbury Common Management Team) for her assistance in providing clothing and footwear to the high school student community.
A special recognition was given to PTA Council President, Berny Vega, for her “school spirit, shining example, and support” of the M-W school community.
The BOE meeting continued by calling to the stage the 38 staff and faculty retirees, and the 24 who achieved tenure this year. Other BOE business included the final update on the 2022-23 MW Goals by Eric Hassler and Matt Kravatz as they now begin work over the summer to formulate and create the new goals for the 2023-24 year.
Before the meeting concluded into Executive Session, Patrick Cahill announced the call for the community’s feedback on ways to spend the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) monies allocated to the District by the Federal Government. In January 2023, the ARPA funding covered expenses for guidance counselors, summer school programs, home instruction, repairs to pool, security initiatives and facility improvements. The community is invited to log onto https://www.mw.k12.ny.us/article/1143591 to access the current list of funding choices and provide feedback via a brief and anonymous online questionnaire.
The process for selecting new textbooks
One of the items on the BOE agenda was the approval of two new textbooks. The question of how a new textbook gets selected was answered by Eric Hassler.
This year, a new AP edition of a US History text and a new AP Biology 4 book were on the agenda for approval. The selection begins at the building level, noted Hassler, and in this case, three teachers at the High School who teach AP US History were asked to get textbook samples to review and pare them down to two or three finalists. After receiving the full accompanying packet of teaching material for these finalists, the books are piloted in the classroom with lessons taken from the material.
From their own experience, and feedback from the students, they ultimately settle on their choice. It’s the practice, Hassler said, on how books are selected throughout the district with all grades and subject matter.
