Mount Pleasant Central School District

As we turn the page to another month on the calendar, I wanted to take a moment and share some of what the district has been working on through the summer months.

If you have visited the Westlake Campus or Columbus Elementary School, you have seen firsthand the amount of work that has been occurring in and around our schools.  As recent as today, the crews continue to pour concrete, install new lighting, work on the infrastructure of the inside of our high school and improve the overall health and safety of our buildings. Construction is always difficult, but it is exciting.  The work will provide more up to date and current learning environments for our students and teachers and those community members who visit our schools and campuses. 

As many of you are likely already aware, we have some exciting new personnel changes in the district as well.  Dr. Adam Bronstein has joined the district office leadership as the Director of Curriculum, Instruction and Administrative Services after serving as Principal of Westlake Middle School .  Mrs. Vineetha Joy has also joined the district leadership team as Director of Technology and Data after serving the Carmel Central School District as Director of Data for the past fourteen years.  I am confident that their experience and expertise will help continue and add to the strength of our instructional program in the district. I am also happy to welcome Mr. Anthony Mungioli as our new Principal of Westlake Middle School.  Having served as Principal of the Nelson A. Rockefeller Magnet School of Applied Sciences and the The SEEALL Academy in New York City, Mr. Mungioli brings leadership and curriculum experience that will help the students of Westlake Middle School succeed in every endeavor.  Please do not hesitate to reach out to any of our new administrators, even if it is just to introduce yourself!

Many of our teachers have been working hard throughout the summer on areas that we will be looking to strengthen our program as we move into the new school year. Some of that work includes work on the New Generation Learning Standards and our new Stemscopes Science Curriculum, training on the specialized Wilson Reading Program, Preparation for our new STEAM coursework at the high school, and continued work on the IB program for the middle school.  These efforts will help us start the new school year with purpose and focus and allow all of our staff to collaborate on these important topics throughout the 2019-2020 school year.

As was shared in our last edition of From the Heart, the district will be transitioning to a new communication system for phone calls, text messages and mass emails.  Please watch for additional information on the rollout of the new system and how to make certain that you are registered in the system to receive communications in the format of your choosing. 

Please take notice also of the 2019-2020 school calendar.  This year, we will be piloting a once per month early dismissal for staff development time.  These hours will be valuable for our instructional and support staff to be able to plan, evaluate, and modify program for students.  All of these release times are noted on the new calendar. 

Finally, with school only a month away, I must challenge all of our students to avoid the summer slide. Read, practice and exercise.  Do things that you enjoy, but also that will keep your skills sharp. The New York State Education Department offers access to digital resources for those of you who like to read online. Those resources can be found at: http://www.summerreadingnys.org/

I hope that all of you are enjoying wonderful time with family and loved ones this summer.  The opening of the new school year is just weeks away, so enjoy the last weeks of vacation! I look forward to seeing everyone back on our campuses and in our hallways as we get ready to start the 2019-2020 school year!