Plainedge Now: Looking Forward

August 24, 2021 | Issue No. 2

Looking Forward

A Message from Superintendent Dr. Edward A. Salina, Jr.

Looking back at the summer we had here at Plainedge, I feel immense pride. As educators, our goal for Summer 2021 was to open avenues for our students to maintain normalcy and minimize learning loss to the best of our abilities, with a better understanding of the world around us than we had in Summer 2020.

Our summer programs and camps had historically high enrollments, so our educators and staff members were up to the task of not just adapting, but excelling. As evidenced by the Summer Robotics Program, we have many students of all ages who are eager to learn and pick up a transferable skill such as programming while having fun in the process. It is not only our duty, it is also our pleasure to afford opportunities such as these to our Plainedge students.

The efforts that our coordinators and team leaders invested into our kids became very clear to me when I saw the results; our Summer Enrichment program’s ‘Spirit Days’ were a hit for the students who participated in them, but my personal favorite takeaway was the program’s talent show. As they say in theatre, “the show must go on” and we really learned this year what it means to adapt and put together a finished product for a deserving audience - our ‘audience’, however, is the very special community of learners of all ages we have at Plainedge, and our ‘show’ is our high level of efforts and successes as educators.

We have much to look forward to with the start of our new school year just around the corner. We are especially excited to start our Universal Pre-K Program which will take place at Eastplain Elementary School; it will be our pleasure to greet our 3 and 4 year olds on August 31st. I will also be afforded the opportunity to welcome many educators and team members to Plainedge, since we have almost 40 new staff members who are currently preparing eagerly to meet our students at the end of the month.

Although the context of the world around us changes daily, we continue to adapt and remain focused on our ultimate goal of keeping our kids focused on their education and we continue to focus on facilitating their growth as students.

While we strive to maintain educational normalcy, we also plan to maintain social-emotional normalcy for our students this school year. We recently released our 2021-2022 District Calendar (which is available on our website) and it contains the dates of all of our upcoming drama productions and art shows. Additionally, it is our pleasure to welcome T.J. Burke, our new Director of Physical Education, Health & Athletics, whose role in the lives of our student-athletes will be integral this year.

As we move forward, I am confident we can take on anything that comes at us this year because #WeArePlainedge!

The Summer Robotics Program

Click the image above to watch as High School Physics Teacher Mr. Gandolfo and Biology/Chemistry Teacher Mrs. Waldbaum explain our Summer Robotics Program with some commentary from a few of our college bound students.

Plainedge Named a Scholar-Athlete School of Distinction

This past July, NYS Public High School Athletic Association recognized Plainedge as a School of Distinction in NYS. This means 100% of Plainedge Varsity Athletics were Scholar-Athlete teams for the 2020-2021 school year. We were only 1 of 9 schools in Nassau out of 57 to receive this prestigious award. Congratulations to all our student-athletes for this distinguished honor.

2021 Summer LIT Program

VIDEO: Summer LIT Program Coordinator Brooke Meyers explains how our students get the extra support they need and "know and feel success" with hands-on learning activities. Plainedge School Board President Cathy Flanagan describes the highlights of this very successful program as well.

Fall Sports Tryout Schedule

Must be cleared by nurse in order to try out. Both packages on ZippSlip must have been completed for nurse to see. Try out info for the first two days below. Coaches will give times for the remainder of the week on day one.

Football / Coach Rob Shaver: robert.shaver@plainedgeschools.org

Tuesday 8/24 8am Helmets only

Boys Varsity & JV Soccer / Coach Jason Cinelli: elway7J@aol.com

Monday 8/30 6-8:30pm

Tuesday 8/31 6-8:30pm

Girls Varsity & JV Soccer / Coach Mike Vitale: michael.vitale@plainedgeschools.org

Monday 8/30 3-5:30pm

Tuesday 8/31 3-5:30pm

Boys Varsity Volleyball / Coach Joe Como: joseph.como@plainedgeschools.org

Monday 8/30 5-7pm PHS Gym

Tuesday 8/31 6-8pm PHS Gym

Girls Varsity & JV Volleyball / Coach Colin Fratrik: colin.fratrik@plainedgeschools.org

Monday 8/30 2:45-5pm PHS Gym

Tuesday 8/31 2:45-5pm PHS Gym

Varsity Cross Country / Coach Joe Ancona: anconalax@gmail.com

Monday 8/30 9:30am-10:30am

Tuesday 8/31 2:30-3:45pm

Girls Varsity Tennis / Coach Joe Zaidinski: josephzaidinski@gmail.com

Monday 8/30 - 8am -10am

Tuesday 8/31 - 3pm - 5pm

Boys Varsity Golf / Coach Brian Connors: brian.connors@plainedgeschools.org

Monday 8/30 3pm bus to driving range - meet outside gym w/golf clubs

Tuesday 8/31 time tbd bus to range or course

Varsity Cheerleading / Coach Marie Esposito: marie.esposito21@gmail.com

Monday 8/30 - 3:15- 5pm BMAC

Tuesday 8/31 - 3:15 - 5pm BMAC

JV Cheerleading / Coach Alexa DiGristina: alexa.digristina@gmail.com

Monday 8/30 - 3:15- 5pm BMAC

Tuesday 8/31 - 3:15 - 5pm BMAC

Varsity Kickline-Practice (Try out already took place in June) Coach Brenna Venth: brenna.venth@plainedgeschools.org

Monday 8/30 - tbd - working on a location. Coach will send a remind

Tuesday 8/31 - tbd - working on a location. Coach will send a remind

Meet a Board Member: Raymond Paris

Raymond Paris became a resident of the district in 1994, where he spent time as a member of the Plainview Fire Department. He has two college-aged children (Plainedge alumni) and more than 25 years of leadership and management experience in the business sector. As a vice president of operations, he has gained key skills in negotiation, collaboration and problem-solving through teamwork. Mr. Paris believes that his “real-world experience,” combined with his desire to work with others to create a world-class educational system while demanding smart usage of our limited resources, will be an asset to the school board. He is also active with the PAL Lacrosse league.

In his most recent re-election to the Board, Mr. Paris said his primary focus as a Board member is “to see that our district continues to strive to the highest levels, provide better program choices for our students, to allow them to reach for higher standards to handle whatever life has in store for them. Using my training from New York State School Boards Association and experience as a business leader, I will continue to strive for excellence, ask the tough questions and demand thorough and transparent answers for our children and the Plainedge community.”

Teacher Spotlight: Ryan Lane

Ryan is about to start his 8^th year in the Plainedge School District and is the only educator in Plainedge who has received tenure as both a science teacher and a special education teacher. He came to Plainedge right out of Molloy College and began his time here as a special education teacher with a certification in biology as well. After working with special education students for four years, Ryan realized that his true passion lay in teaching science. When retirements in the science department led to a vacancy, Ryan applied and was happy to switch over to teaching biology in the high school. Ryan is now also certified in chemistry and has taught a huge variety of courses including Advanced Placement biology, living environment (honors and regents), chemistry, oceanography, forensics, and astronomy.

Outside of his position as a science teacher, Ryan is also very proud to be the director of the HS Musical. His love of the theater extends beyond the school too, as Ryan has had many roles in Syosset's Cultural Arts Playhouse Theater. Certainly a renaissance man, through all the different courses Ryan has taught, one of his favorites continues to be astronomy, because as Ryan says, “Astronomy is really the combination and study of all sciences.” Ryan is beyond excited for the upcoming school year and as he says often, "Very happy to be part of the Plainedge family!"

Can we reply to this Plainedge Now email?

The quick answer is no. It is important to note that when we send out The Plainedge Now e-newsletter, responses are not monitored and are not replied to. If you have any school-related questions, please contact the district office at 516-992-7450. #WeArePlainedge