The Mineola schools will welcome approximately 3,000 students as it begins the 1999/2000 school year. The new year promises to be a time in which we will continue to work on reorganizing our curriculum, introducing a new central office structure, advancing administrative and instructional technology and integrating 19 new professional staff members.

Under the leadership of Ms. Michalena Russo, director of curriculum and instruction and all of our subject area directors, in conjunction with selected faculty, have been working on the essential curriculum project. In brief, this is a comprehensive effort to align all the areas that we teach with the newly developed state standards mandated by the Board of Regents. Included in this effort are new approaches to teaching and learning as well as integrating technology throughout the grades.

Another major systemwide effort in curriculum is the continuing development and implementation of the Mineola Reading Literacy Project. This reading program taught in all of our elementary schools assures uniformity in terms of knowledge and skills areas, while integrating creative teaching approaches on the part of the faculty. We are very proud of the fact that in last year's highly publicized statewide fourth grade language arts examination, our Mineola students performed in the upper quartile of all schools in the state.

This year will mark a new division of responsibility in our Central Office. After many months of examining alternate approaches for decision making at the district level, we are instituting an approach which coordinates and clarifies responsibilities and authority without the addition of any new administrative staff. Specifically, we will have a division of learner services, which incorporates, among other areas, special education, guidance and instructional support programs. The division of human resources will be responsible for personnel acquisition, retention and evaluation. The division of research, evaluation, planning and technology will be responsible for the areas implied in the title. The division of financial services will be responsible for managing not only fiscal matters, but also transportation and buildings and grounds. As noted above, the division of curriculum and instruction will be responsible for all phases of teachers and learning.

We are particularly proud of the quality and commitment of our professional and support staffs. This is exemplified by the recent announcement that one of our colleagues, Mr. Michael Terc, assistant principal at the Mineola High School, has been named New York State Assistant Principal of the Year. He has been nominated as well for the National Assistant Principal of the Year. From our custodians, bus drivers, secretaries, teacher aides - in support of our dedicated teachers and administrators, we look forward to providing the best of a learning year for our children.