Blue Jay News - October 2024

October 2024 Newsletter

Blue Jays Return to the Nest!

The leadership team and members of the faculty and staff greeted students on the first day of 2024-2025 school year. The "Rock the First Day" welcome included bubbles, drum beats, pompoms, high fives, and lots of smiles! Click on the image below to view our first day video.

Deaf Awareness Event with the NYPD

A huge blue jay "thank you" to the NYPD's 115th Precinct and the NYPD Community Affairs Bureau for visiting Lexington as part of International Week of the Deaf!

Students were thrilled to see demonstrations from the TARU Unit (drones & digidog), Highway Unit, and Mounted Unit. The NYPD's new Deaf Awareness Vehicle and the NYPD game truck were a big hit with all students!

Members of the varsity basketball teams received NYPD basketballs, with each ball memorializing an officer who has fallen in the line of duty or during 9/11. High school and middle school students proudly displayed gifts of caps and patches from the NYPD, while elementary and preschool students received toys. Click here to see NYPD's video of the event!

Halloween Boo Bash - Saturday, October 19th

The Lexington Alumni Association (LAA) will host the 3rd annual Halloween Boo Bash on Saturday, October 19 from 2 to 7 pm in the school cafeteria. The family-friendly event will include games, a costume contest, and, for an extra fee, entrance to the “Haunted Room.” Contact the LAA at lexingtonalumni@lexnyc.org or VP 347-448-4558 for more information.

Homecoming & ESDAA Soccer - November 1-3

Lexington is proud to be hosting the Eastern Schools for the Deaf Athletic Association (ESDAA)’s 8th annual Soccer Tournament on November 1-3. Eight schools will be participating in the tournament. Games will be played at Monsignor McClancy Memorial High School, 71-06 31st Avenue, East Elmhurst. The Lexington Alumni Association will host Homecoming on Saturday, November 2nd. Email athletics@lexnyc.org for volunteer opportunities or to make a donation in support of the tournament.

Visitors to Lexington

New York City offers a wealth of resources to support the Deaf community. During the month of September, Interim CEO/Superintendent Seth Bravin welcomed the President of Queens College, New York State Assemblywomen from Districts 29 and 76, and the Commissioner for the Mayor's Office for People with Disabilities (MOPD) to the campus to explore new opportunities for our students and clients.

Assemblywoman Alicia Hyndman, 29th District, visited the school on September 19th. Tenth grader Obama U., a resident of District 29, served as student ambassador and explained a recent science experiment during the tour.

Queens College President Frank Wu (third from left), 76th District Assemblywoman Rebecca Seawright (fourth from left), and Jay Hershenson, VP for Communications & Marketing and Senior Advisor to the President of Queens College (far right) met with Seth Bravin and the administrative team.

MOPD Commissioner Christina Curry met with Adele Agin and Seth Bravin to discuss challenges and opportunities for Deaf students as they prepare to enter the workforce.

Blue Jay T-Shirts

Lexington students were thrilled to receive bright blue t-shirts as part of their welcome back to the nest. The awesome shirts were made possible thanks to generous donations from the Lexington Alumni Association (LAA), the Teachers' Association (TA), and the Parent Staff Association (PSA). A big blue wave of thanks to the LAA, TA, and PSA for helping our students show off their blue jay pride!

STEM Academy: NYC

STEM Academy: NYC, a cooperative STEM program between Rochester Institute of Technology’s National Technical Institute for the Deaf (RIT/NTID) and Lexington, returned this summer. During the three-week program, campers had the opportunity to build and program VEX robots and drones, explore different countries using Virtual Reality headsets, and hone their academic skills in mathematics, ASL, and English language arts. Field trips included a visit to i-Fly.

Students experienced a vertical wind tunnel and learned about force and velocity at i-Fly.

Virtual reality headsets helped students learn about other countries.

Summer School

Our six-week Summer School (Extended School Year) program helps students reach the academic goals of their Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) while combating summer learning loss. The program includes hands-on enrichment activities and field trips to offer students a fun and rewarding summer experience.

Younger students took a break from reading & writing at the Lexington "beach" on the upper courtyard.

When it was too hot to go outdoors, gym teachers adapted by teaching table tennis.