Just in from the New York State Education Department…

The Office of the Attorney General has been investigating law firms and lawyers who have improperly characterized themselves as school district and BOCES employees to receive state benefits to which they would not otherwise be entitled. The State Education Department has been working closely with the [...]

This year, fourth grade students at Columbus Magnet School in New Rochelle are working on a math and design project funded by a $2500 grant from Cappelli Enterprises of New Rochelle.

Students, working under the guidance of architect-in-residence, Yves Roger, from the New York Institute for Architecture, will be transforming their school’s 100’ by 60’ gymnasium [...]

The art show features student artwork from the district’s high schools – Lakeland High School, Walter Panas High School and the Lakeland Alternative High School. Work ranges from photography and oil painting to watercolor and drawing.

The Lakeland Week of the Arts at the Jefferson Valley Mall will be held May 12-18 2, 2008. The [...]

Julie Suchman, a Byram Hills parent, says she and other parents are “stunned” that school psychologist Dorrie Bernstein did not receive tenure. They plan to protest at the Board of Education meeting at 7:30 p.m. tonight. The meeting will be held in the administrative building near the high school.

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From the Hendrick Hudson school district… 

The Hendrick Hudson School District estimated tax increases in the proposed 2008-09 school budget will be lower than expected thanks to additional New York State aid, it was announced last week.

The Hen Hud Board of Education in its regular meeting on April 29 voted to use an expected additional $350,000 [...]

From the Harrison school district…

The Harrison Central School District has earned the rare AAA rating from Standard & Poor’s, making it part of an “exclusive club” of strong financial managers.

Harrison, Pelham, and Cold Spring Harbor on Long Island are among only three in New York state and just 27 of the nation’s 15,000 public school [...]

The following is from Barbara Livingston Nackman, a Journal News staff reporter who writes the blog Book by Book at books.lohudblogs.com about book events and people in the lower Hudson Valley.

Yesterday morning tenth graders at Mahopac High School spent the first three hours of their morning hearing about career choices and grilling various professions.   I [...]

Allegations that a former Putnam Valley Middle School teacher drugged and raped a 12-year-old girl in his classroom were handled improperly by school officials, police and prosecutors, according to the New York State Commission of Investigation.

In a report made public today, the commission says the teacher, who is not named in the report but court [...]

Feeling overwhelmed with all the school information and scheduling you constantly have to juggle, such as, “When is that PTA meeting?” “Where is that football game?” “What’s the cafeteria serving for lunch?”

Of course, the list goes on and on.

Well, I just got a pitch to write about a new site called SchoolPulse and I thought [...]

From Congresswoman Nita Lowey’s office:

Congresswoman Nita Lowey (D-Westchester/Rockland) today announced that the Bronxville Union Free School District will receive more than $5.4 million in two grants from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to repair damage incurred during the April 2007 Nor’easter.

“When a natural disaster occurs, the federal government has a responsibility to help communities [...]

The Pleasantville High School’s Art Department cordially invites the public to the Sixth Annual High School Art Show at the Jacob Burns Film Center on Saturday, May 17, 2008 between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. A special presentation will be held at 11 a.m.

This one day event will include drawings, paintings, ceramics, photography and graphic [...]

A federal appeals court has unanimously ordered an Illinois school district to allow a student to wear a t-shirt that says “Be Happy, Not Gay” to protest a day meant to promote tolerance of gay students.

The t-shirt was in protest of the Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network’s “Day of Silence,” which aims to make schools [...]

From the school district…

At its April 24th  Board Meeting, the Peekskill Board of Education appointed Dr. David Fine  principal of Peekskill Middle School. Dr. Fine – an educator with over 15 years of experience, is presently Middle School/High School Assistant Principal in the Putnam Valley Central School District. He assumes his new duties on July [...]

Putnam Valley High School is celebrating academic achievement this month! A new plaque was dedicated and hung in the building’s foyer, listing the names of all of the valedictorians and salutatorians to date, with new names to be added each year.

The high school opened its doors in 2000 and its first class graduated in 2004. [...]

School districts here in the Lower Hudson Valley often are comprised of more than just one town. Here’s a letter I recently received talking about how the system “is badly broken” and is “tearing us apart” because of tax inequalities between different towns.

“Hello Diana.  My name is Marc Kirschner.  I’m a trustee on the Tarrytown [...]