It is always a remarkable experience to walk into a school building in Roslyn on the first day of school. Only a few minutes into the day, and everything is running as smoothly as though we were in the middle of the school year.

Many of us undoubtedly have a different image in our heads of what the first day of a new school year was like when we were children. We may remember a somewhat chaotic atmosphere for the first few days, as students took some time to acclimate themselves to their surroundings once again.

What accounts for the difference in the Roslyn School District? Well, it does not happen by accident, of course. It is the result of a concerted effort to provide continuity from the end of one school year to the beginning of the next one. Essentially, we never really close for the summer.

This effort is a tribute first of all to our staff, many of whom--custodians, secretaries, bus drivers--work a full schedule throughout the summer to ensure that our buildings are ready and that the many services we provide are ongoing.

Many of our teachers spend their summer months engaged in professional development activities and writing curriculum. It is normal to see faculty members in their rooms during the weeks prior to the start of school so they are fully prepared to "hit the ground running" on the first day.

New faculty members attend a comprehensive orientation program for a week before the start of school. Students entering the high school and middle school also participate in orientation programs before school starts to make them feel welcome and comfortable in their new environments.

Students entering grades five through 12 are given reading assignments over the summer, so they too have a mindset to begin learning from the moment they step into their new classrooms. Several hundred Roslyn youngsters also participate in our summer programs during the month of July, keeping them in touch with school beyond the regular school calendar.

As I walked around the schools on the first day of school last Wednesday, I could not help but think about the fact that we were about to mark the second anniversary of the attacks of September 11. The opening of school in early September will now always be followed closely by the commemoration of this traumatic event, which touched the lives of so many of us.

It occurred to me that one of the single most important ways we can honor the memory of those who perished on that terrible day is to create a better world for our children. An education that stresses tolerance and values knowledge as a vehicle toward improving the lives of all people is a major part of that effort.

Equally important is maintaining an environment in which youngsters feel secure and hopeful about their futures. Therefore, starting out the school year in the right way is about more than just efficiency and high educational standards. All that hard work "behind the scenes" is also a statement about how much we care for our children.