SHEEPSHEAD BAY'S ONLY INDEPENDENT NEWS BLOG

The NYPD’s bomb squad has been called to Sheepshead Bay High School at 3000 Avenue X, after authorities may have found what’s believed to be an explosive device in the basement of the school.

A call came over police scanners at approximately 10:20 a.m., saying that police were on scene with what appeared to be a “military explosive device” found in the basement. The officers on scene requested the NYPD’s Emergency Services Unit.

Readers, like Lisa M., have told Sheepshead Bites that the police presence is heavy and that the school has been evacuated. Lisa wrote:

tons of cops over at Sheepshead High today…kids amassed outside…the police in front of my house (on Batchelder St. near Ave.Y) told me there was a “threat to the school”.

Sheepshead Bites has not been able to confirm with the NYPD if an actual explosive has been found and confirmed. We will update as more information becomes available.

UPDATE (11:14 a.m.): It appears that other schools in the area, including P.S. 52 on Nostrand Avenue and Avenue Z have also been evacuated.

UPDATE (11:30 a.m.): An aide in the principal’s office answered the phone and said that everyone has returned to the building and she believes, but was not sure, that the police have left. She declined to provide details about the cause of the evacuation.

Sheepshead Bites is still awaiting a response from the NYPD’s Deputy Commissioner of Public Information and the 61st Precinct.

UPDATE (2:50 p.m.): The “explosive” turned out to be an old science experiment left in the building’s basement. The Daily News reports:

The NYPD bomb squad determined the device was a harmless World War II-era depth gauge, school officials said.

“It is thought this suspicious package may be a World War II relic that may have once been used in a very old science project,” Department of Education spokeswoman Marge Feinberg said in a statement.

Students were allowed back in the school within two hours, officials said.

This is a breaking news story and may contain inaccuracies. We will update it as more information becomes available. If anyone has more information or additional photos, please send them to tips (at) sheepsheadbites (dot) com.

Pictured In Photo: Annetta Lee, Natasha Naveed, Noel Aly, Lisa La Spina, Selma Albin, Janet Kennedy, Assistant Principal, Jeanne Fish, Principal, Cherie Lang, Hillary Stackpole, Dell Coe (Photo Courtesy of Hillary Stackpole)

Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz awarded a special commendation to the staff of Gerritsen Beach’s P.S. 277 (2529 Gerritsen Avenue) in a ceremony last week.

According to a press release, the school’s Parent’s Association wanted to recognize the staff for their efforts in providing relief to the children and community of Gerritsen Beach following Superstorm Sandy. So they reached out to the beep and asked him to surprise the school’s team at a morning assembly, and he honored them for their terrific work providing comfort to the community kids.

Sheepshead Bites would also like to extend a salute and warm-hearted congratulations to the staff of P.S. 277 for all their excellent work throughout the trying days of Superstorm Sandy.

Peruggi (Source: KCC Digest)

YOU READ IT HERE FIRST: After nine years of serving as the first female leader of Kingsborough Community College, Dr. Regina Peruggi will retire at the end of the summer.

Peruggi, 65, announced her retirement in an April 5 letter to the school’s staff and faculty, in which she reflected on her time at the Manhattan Beach-based institution.

“These past nine years have been extraordinary ones for me. They have been challenging, creative, exciting, productive, and a great deal of fun,” Peruggi wrote in the letter. “I have met incredible individuals who have taught me a great deal and whose memory will be with me for years to come. Kingsborough faculty, staff, and students are the best in the country, and it has been a true privilege to work with each of you.”

Peruggi is expected to hand over the reigns to the school in August, although the school’s press office could not provide an exact date. The school’s spokespeople declined to comment on Peruggi’s retirement, as there has not yet been a public announcement.

Keep reading and see the farewell letter Peruggi sent to staff and faculty.

Murrow High School (Photo: Erica Sherman)

Edward R. Murrow High School is continuing to mold an army of Garry Kasparovs with its latest victory, their eighth win at the National High School Chess Championship on Sunday, according to a report in the Daily News.

The tournament was held in Nashville, Tennessee, and had over 5,000 competitors from high schools across the nation going against one another from Friday to Sunday.

The team qualified for the tournament when they won the state championships for the 16th time in February. They also won the state championships last year, and took home the national title in 1992, 1993, 1994, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007. The school’s team counts Olympic chess players and world title holders among its alumni, and an award-winning book has been written about the team’s formation.

Azeez Alade, a member of the current team who hails from Nigeria, told the Daily News that now that they have secured their victory – yet again – it’s time to declare check-and-mate on some burgers and video games.

“We’re all going to go to Dave and Busters! No more chess! We’re done with that — we’re celebrating,” said Alade.

Congrats to the Murrow team! We look forward to more victories in the future.

A coalition of Turkish-American organizations forked over $40,000 yesterday to the Gerritsen Beach library (2808 Gerritsen Avenue) and Gerritsen Beach Elementary School (P.S. 277), institutions that have suffered in the five months since Superstorm Sandy rocked the community.

The donation came from Turkish-American groups, non-profits and businesses, spearheaded by Helping Hands Relief Foundation, Kimse Yokmu, Council of Turkic American Associations, Turkish Cultural Center and the Brooklyn Amity School.

Of the $40,000 donated yesterday, $30,000 is going to the Brooklyn Public Library’s Gerritsen Beach branch, one of two branches in the system that has been unable to reopen due to extensive damage. The checks were handed over during a ceremony in front of the branch. Prior to the ceremony, Congresswoman Yvette Clarke toured the facility, which has been gutted down to bare walls, floors and rafters.

“We believe that Brooklyn Public Library and P.S. 277 are invaluable resources for the community, where people of all ages will benefit tremendously in many different ways,” said Nevzat Yilmaz, president of Helping Hands Relief Foundation. “This is dedicated to building a better future for the children and families of our community, and leaves a footprint for the next generations of Turkish-Americans to take care of community facilities that serve the people.”

Brooklyn Public Library President and CEO Linda Johnson was on-hand to receive the check, delivered by a cadre of Amity School students. She said the library would use the funds in part to rebuild the library with green technology and infrastructure.

P.S. 277 Principal Jeanne Fish said the school would use the funds to install new smartboards and laptops in classrooms.

See this story in photos: Images of the gutted library, and more from the event.

Photo by Erica Sherman

Kingsborough Community College (2001 Oriental Boulevard) continues to earn top honors, now ranked as one of the four best community college in the United States of America by the prestigious Aspen Institute.

The announcement follows our report last October,  when Kingsborough was named one of the best community colleges in the country at implementing modern technology.

The Aspen Institute ranked colleges by measuring the jobs found by students after graduation. On average, KCC grads earn annual salaries of $41,000 five years after finishing their studies.

KCC’s third place finish came with a $100,000 prize used to fund the school’s scholarship program.

Congrats to Kingsborough!

Source: Wikimedia Commons

The Panel for Educational Policy, which has the final say on closing schools in New York City, voted last night to approve plans to phase out and ultimately shutter Sheepshead Bay High School and 21 other schools at the end of this semester.

Much like the closure hearing held earlier this month at Sheepshead Bay High School, opposition at last night’s meeting was thin compared to previous years.

The New York Post notes:

While hundreds of parents and teachers came to protest the move, the meeting wasn’t nearly as volatile as in past years, when thousands packed the auditorium and raucously taunted education officials.

… Before last night’s vote, far fewer elected officials spoke out than usual, the crowd thinned within hours, and even the head of the UFT sent his No. 2.

NY 1 reports that some of that scale down in opposition is because the UFT has “given up” on challenging Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s policies, and is now looking ahead to the new mayor. NY 1 reports:

This is the fourth year since a state law was revised to require that the panel votes on school closures, but since the majority of the panel is appointed by the mayor, the panel has approved every single one of the DOE’s proposals to date.

Of all of the DOE’s controversial policies, closing schools consistently generates the most vocal push back. Even if the outcome of the final vote is almost certainly assured, thousands of people show up to the meeting every year. Most are teachers, students or parents at the schools that are being closed, but the teachers’ union has also traditionally brought in hundreds of other members to speak out against the policy.

This year, the United Federation of Teachers has not organized a large protest for the first time. The union president said that he has given up trying to work with the current mayor to get anything done and is focused on the next mayor.

As many as 142 schools have been closed of phased out since Bloomberg took office in 2002.

In addition to closing Sheepshead Bay High School, the panel voted to approve the co-location of four new schools, including two charters, on the 3000 Avenue X premises. A “phase out” period in which no new ninth graders would be accepted to the school begins immediately. Current students would be allowed to graduate or transfer out over the next three years, and, beginning this September, a new public high school, two new charter high schools, and a district transfer high school would all be co-located in the same facility.

The charter high schools will both be managed by New Visions for Public Schools, a nonprofit that manages more than 70 schools across the five boroughs.

Source: ps193pa.org

Midwood’s P.S 193 Gil Hodges School once had an award-winning music program, but budget cuts have scaled back their capabilities. That’s why school music advocates at organizing the Spring Music and Family Fest, a fundraising musical showcase to restore the program to its former glory.

The school has lined up as many as 20 accomplished musicians and performers, including a handful of school alumni, set to rock P.S. 193′s 2515 Avenue L auditorium this Saturday, from 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Genres range from hip-hop to opera, and features well-known performers like Yah Supreme and The Lords of Liechtenstein.

The school’s music program was once thriving, with the students winning awards in the Riverside Symphony Music Memory competition and elsewhere, and a choral teacher who wrote original scores for the end of the year school musicals. The school hopes to close a budget gap created by September 2012 budget cuts.

It’s not just music on tap for the night; the event will feature activities such as free face painting and a raffle with prizes from local businesses such as a gift card from Tête-à-Tête Café.

Purchasing the tickets online cost $12 per ticket with a V.I.P package available when four tickets are bought. Tickets at the door will cost more.

The school’s music teacher, Nonie Schuster, wrote in an essay the school posted on their site, “As music teachers, if we can instill a love and appreciation of music in our students, we’ll give them a gift that will nourish and sustain them throughout their lives.”

Check out the school’s site to learn more.

From a rally to save the school when it faced closure in 2010.

The Department of Education held a required hearing to “phase out” Sheepshead Bay High School (3000 Avenue X) last week, but the event drew a smaller crowd of about 80 students and faculty, as compared to hundreds in the previous attempts to shut it down.

It’s the third year in the row the city is trying to shutter the school – this time by replacing it with two public schools and two charter schools – and some school supporters say the teachers, students and parents have simply been beaten, broken and demoralized by the process.

If the plan to close Sheepshead Bay High School is approved, a “phase out” period would begin in which no new ninth graders would be accepted to the school. Current students would be allowed to graduate or transfer out, and, beginning this September, a new public high school, two new charter high schools, and a district transfer high school would all be co-located in the same facility.

Continue Reading »

Hooray for Kindergarten! Good times… Source: SFA Union City / Flickr

We received the following announcement from the New York City Department of Education’s Elementary School Admissions Team:

Welcome to Kindergarten Admissions! If you live in New York City and your child is turning five years old in 2013, your child is eligible to attend kindergarten in September 2013. We understand the registration process can be challenging at times, so please know that we’re always here to offer a hand should you need one. To help you get started, below you will find important dates and other resources meant to guide you throughout the application period.

Key Dates

March 1, 2013: Deadline to submit application

Early April, 2013: Placement offers distributed to families

April 8 – April 26, 2013: Pre-registration at schools

Application Process

You must submit an application in order for your child to attend kindergarten. If you would like to apply to multiple schools, you must submit an application to each school.

Elementary School Directories

The 2013-14 Elementary School Directories are available on the Elementary School Publications website. Directories will be available at all public elementary schools later this month.

Each borough’s Directory contains information about the kindergarten admissions process, schools located in that borough, district maps, a list of charter schools, and a chart that provides a summary of all public kindergarten programs in the city. Use the Directories as a resource to help you decide where you would like to submit a kindergarten application.

Districts 1, 7, and 23 are choice districts

There are no zoned schools in District 1 (Lower East Side), District 7 (South Bronx) and District 23 (Brownsville). You can apply to schools in these districts online, by phone, and in person at an Enrollment Office. For more information about these districts, visit the Kindergarten Admissions website.

Questions?

For more information, visit the Kindergarten Admissions website. If you have questions or concerns as you prepare your application, contact ES_Enrollment@schools.nyc.gov or call (718) 935-2009.