Friday, May 5, 2017
Vol. 93, No.33
FOUNDED 1923
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LOCALLY OWNED AND EDITED
Advice for teens PAGE 8 n Pineapple Ball PAGE 3
Community forum investigates later High School start time BY RIKKI N. MASSAND
Division Memorial off of Clinton Road and Commercial Avenue, as a daunting task for many older veterans and their families. “Ultimately after going back and talking to American Legion members we’ve decided not to alter the Memorial Day parade and stick with the original, normal route of starting on Eleventh Street, turning south on Franklin Avenue, and turning right on Stewart Avenue and ending at the Village
After nearly two full academic years and countless research on a national trend, Garden City Public Schools’ Steering Committee on High School Starting Time will present its formal recommendation to the board of education at the Tuesday, May 16 meeting at Garden City High School. An open community forum held this Monday, May 1, provided a setting for constructive dialogues, facts related to keeping the current 7:40 a.m. high school start time schedule and also changing it substantially to an 8:30 a.m. start, plus the necessary adjustments to other the grades in Garden City. Pamphlets were handed out to those in attendance stating medical facts on teens maturing body “shifting the sleep cycle up to two hours, making it difficult for teens to fall asleep before 11 p.m. and wake before 8 a.m.” “With a start time of 7:40 a.m. and the packed schedules of students who are involved in a myriad of courses and co-curricular activities, students attending Garden City High School are caught between a rock and a hard place,” the handouts stated. On Monday night parents presented strong input on either side of the issue. Many of the three dozen people in attendance wanted to ensure that the Committee or school board will not make a change until residents’ feedback was received and evaluated. Superintendent of Schools Dr. Robert Feirsen, who is set to retire this summer, assured the community all of their opinions were on the district’s radar to go with survey results just received on May 1, as the end date was April 28. Feirsen started by presenting some frequently asked questions. He says the results of three separate surveys done over the school year are all “remarkably parallel.” For the three unique in-district surveys, a total of 1,814 Garden City parents responded; 275 Garden City Schools staff members responded and 1,884 students responded. Feirsen says those response rates range from 60 percent for staff to almost 90 percent for students. Feirsen noted that there would not be any change possible for next school year but if the board voted to establish new starting times, those would take effect for the 2018-2019 school year. “We want to give people plenty of time to adjust to any time changes or schedule changes and what that would require for your families. In addition we want to make sure we’ve looked at all the details – we may make a recommendation to change the
See page 26
See page 27
Garden City High School’s varsity lacrosse teams continue their great seasons. Both teams are headed for the playoffs. Above, the teams relax prior to the annual Woodstick Classic game against rival Manhasset. The girls team won 9-6, but Manhasset beat the boys team 10-8.
Memorial Day Parade back to traditional route BY RIKKI N. MASSAND A special Garden City parade route and ceremony marking 100 years since the founding of the Camp Mills military base on Long Island during World War I will be postponed for the next six months. Despite prior plans for a new east Garden City route and venue, Memorial Day – Monday May 29, 2017 -in the village will be observed in traditional fashion, with an action proposed for the Board of Trustees to amend the parade
route. Commander Christopher Blume of Garden City’s American Legion William Bradford Turner Post #265 spoke with The Garden City News about changing back to the traditional Garden City parade route, one most familiar with residents as the Easter Sunday Vintage Car Parade occurred a few weeks ago. He cites the lack of walkability of the recently approved Memorial Day route heading east down Stewart Avenue, ending at the Rainbow
Garden City Foundation awards scholarship PAGES 44-45 Teachers’ “GC for a Cure” race raises $30K for charity PAGES 54-55