At the last Herricks School Board meeting the results of the PISA Assessment was announced by Superintendent Dr. Jack Bierwirth. Dr. Bierwirth said, "We have recently received a piece of extraordinary news. In late fall 2006 Herricks and a couple of other Tri-State districts participated independently in the third worldwide PISA assessment, run by The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). The 2006 PISA assessment focused on science but also included sections on reading and mathematics. As with the CLA/CWRA, PISA focuses on 'the capacity of students to extrapolate from what they have learned and to analyze and reason as they pose, solve and interpret problems in a variety of situations.'

"Statistically valid samples of 15-year-olds in 57 countries making up 'over 90 percent of the world economy' (according to the OECD) were assessed on the 2006 PISA. Since Herricks participated independently the results of the Herricks students were not included in the worldwide data. We received our own results and they are stunning.

"The following is a list of the mean scores for the top 10 school systems in the world, the OECD average, the United States average and the Herricks average. The numbers speak for themselves."

For your reference I have listed the mean scores for the top 10 schools

1. Finland	563
2. Hong Kong	542
3. Canada	534
4. Taipei	532
5. Estonia	531
6. Japan	531
7. New Zealand	530
8. Australia	527
9. Netherlands	525
10. Liechtenstein	522
OECD Average	500
U.S.	489
Herricks	566

1. Taipei	549
2. Finland	548
3. Hong Kong	547
4. Korea	547
5. Netherlands	531
6. Switzerland	530
7. Canada	527
8. Macao	525
9. Liechtenstein	525
10. Japan	523
OECD Average	500
U.S.	474
Herricks	546

Dr. Bierwirth said that the next PISA is in 2009 and he said he didn't know if Herricks would be allowed to take the test, but he will look into it. In an answer to a question in the audience regarding what other schools in the United States took the test he said that they do not give out that information. However, it said they wanted at least 100 students from each district to be given the test. Dr. Bierwirth added, "How that matters statistically, I don't know." Prior to the beginning of the meeting teacher Jodi Thompson and a group of students demonstrated the "We The People" program. The group came in second place on Long Island and then went to the state finals and scored seventh out of ten teams. Plus, they won "the best of the day" award focusing on The Constitution of The United States. A mock debate was conducted by Thompson for Tara Earls, Jessica Egre, Gregory Castro and Kanika Singh at the meeting and they had a chance to demonstrate their skills and talent. The Herricks board approved the agreement with Bell Auto School, 251 East Shore Road, Manhasset for driver education instruction for the '08/'09 school year at a cost of $305 per student, an increase of $10 per student,for additional fuel costs, plus $1,000 per car for extra insurance. The board then voted to accept a gift of a $500 scholarship from Set Newman, a dentist located on Glen Cove Road, Roslyn. The scholarship will be presented to a graduating high school student who has shown excellence in the sciences and wishes to pursue a career in the field of dentistry.

The board also approved an agreement with the National Center for Disability Services (Abilities) in Albertson for the use of their swimming pool for six days beginning on May 5 through May 20 at a cost of $4 per student per day, plus the cost of a security guard at $70 per session. It was established that Herricks will supply the life guard for the swim sessions at Abilities.

The meeting ended and it was established that the next regular board meeting will be on May 8 at the Herricks Community Center and will include a budget hearing.