A Message from the Superintendent

It has been a year of challenges for both the students and staff of Center Moriches School District – and without exception we have met these challenges head on. The good news is that our struggles and triumphs have helped to create a “wave of success” that has built positive momentum as we head into the future.

For our students, it must be hard to believe that their first semester has already come to an end. Before they know it, they will be preparing for end-of-year exams and will begin making plans for next year. Among our seniors and juniors, there is already talk about “the Prom,” college choices, and future plans. Fortunately, we have given them the tools for success – and we are most confident that they will continue to thrive outside our walls.

For our teachers, too, the year has progressed quickly. Conversations center around our meeting the New York State mandated Annual Professional Performance Review – and they will continue to do so until it is fully implemented. As we make clear-cut efforts to interpret the expectations of the State, we continue to move towards our goal of providing the very best for our students.

I am pleased to announce that our Board of Education continues their commitment to provide technology throughout the District to support the global shift that is occurring. Teachers are engaged in using this technology in exciting and innovative ways. They are already busy developing original lessons with the ever-present goals of student growth and preparedness for the 21st century workplace.

One of the challenges our Administration faces is incorporating the rigors of New York State’s Common Core Learning Standards and creating horizontal and vertical alignment within that curriculum District-wide. This, coupled with balancing our budget under the constraints of the new “2% Tax Cap,” has created some difficult trials for our District this year. Under the new law,the tax levy – the amount of money a district can raise for its budget through taxes – cannot increase more than two percent or the rate of inflation, which- ever is less. This can only be overridden by a 60 percent “super-majority” vote.

The challenge we have before us is great. How do we maintain the many and varied programs that continue to bring our students success and of which our community is so proud while implementing the new Tax Cap statute? As a community that values its educational system, it is imperative to stay informed about the property tax cap and its effect on the 2012-13 school budget. I invite you – in fact, I encourage you – to join the open discussions at our regularly scheduled School Board meetings prior to the budget adoption in April and the budget vote on Tuesday, May 15th.

As always, our goal is to continue our “wave of success,” persist in our efforts to overcome all challenges, and ensure the very best for our students, our District, and our community.
I look forward to seeing you at our regularly scheduled School Board meetings.

Russell J. Stewart,
Superintendent