Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the District Programs And Facilities topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Superintendent highlights student awards, CTE growth, UPK expansion and facilities grants
Summary
Superintendent Dr. Murphy reviewed recent student honors, a $16,395.67 student fundraising total, career-technical enrollment, planned training room at the high school, UPK expansion and a $100,000 playground grant during the April 1 board meeting workshop.
Dr. Murphy, superintendent of the HAUPPAUGE UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT, opened the superintendent’s update with student recognitions, program highlights and facilities notes at the April 1 meeting.
Students and activities: The superintendent announced that middle-school students earned regional recognition in the National Junior Innovation Challenge and that the district’s Long Island Code Conquest junior hackathon team won first place for the third consecutive year and also received a best-logo award. He also reported the Hapag Strong student fundraising team raised $16,395.67 for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.
Career and technical education: Dr. Murphy said 72 students participate in career-technical offerings through BOCES and local partnerships, citing popular programs including HVAC, electrical, plumbing, cosmetology and animal science. He described plans to build a high-school training room with trading terminals and a public ticker display to expose students to finance and career pathways.
Universal Pre-K expansion and funding constraints: The superintendent described a UPK (universal prekindergarten) expansion to 10 sections—about 80 children—served by the district’s provider, SCOPE. He said the state per-pupil UPK allotment is currently $5,400 while SCOPE’s charge per child is $5,800, creating a $400 per-child gap the district has been covering. Dr. Murphy said the district has approximately $900,000 in UPK funding but can use only a portion of it under current state formula rules; he said roughly $300,000 of available UPK funds were not usable under the existing allocation formula and that districts are urging Albany to change the rule.
Facilities and grants: Dr. Murphy said a replacement playground at Forest Grove will be funded in part by a grant from Senator Martinez worth "about a hundred thousand dollars," and that the district plans to begin refreshing security vehicles, targeting two to three replacements in year one of the plan.
Health, safety and support services: The superintendent highlighted an expanded social-work presence via a partnership with Northwell for tier-3 student supports, and said the district has added a BCBA (board-certified behavior analyst) as an in-house hire to reduce outsourced costs.
Strategy and outreach: Dr. Murphy said the district will produce a strategic plan using ThoughtExchange to gather community feedback and reiterated efforts to maintain class sizes as a board priority.
Board follow-up and next steps: Dr. Murphy and staff encouraged board members and the community to attend upcoming PTA roadshows and college/career events; administrators will present additional budget details and the EPC audit results as they become available.
