Ossining Students, Staff Are Looking Forward to a Great Year

Meeting new teachers, catching up with friends, reading, recess and learning new math skills were just a few things Ossining students said on their first day back to school that they are excited about this year.

Teachers and other staff welcomed the roughly 5,100 students Thursday for the first day of school.

“I’ve been waiting for all of you to get here. I’m so excited to see you,” Claremont School Assistant Principal Ferzeen Shamsi told children as they exited the buses on a hot morning. “Come on in. Happy first day! Can I get a couple of high-fives?”

Third-grader Jayden Grabowicki said he is excited about studying science, learning to play instruments and reading. “I love to read,” he said, his eyes lighting up. “It makes you smart.”

Fourth-grader Laura Peralta said she knows she will be learning a lot about math and other topics this year, and she’s ready for the challenge. “I’m looking forward to my nice and amazing teachers, and I’m looking forward to stuff I’m going to learn,” she said.

Okief Barrett, a seventh-grader, said he is looking forward to learning from his teachers and meeting new people. “I think I will have a good school year this year,” he said.

Superintendent Raymond Sanchez said the first day of school was a success, despite the relentless summer heat. “Our schools were bursting with positivity and kindness, and I am deeply grateful for what everyone did to set the stage for an amazing year,” he said in a letter to families.

One of the first things children learned is that the district now offers a free “Grab and Go Breakfast” for all students. They also noticed that a lot of construction and renovations took place over the summer. That includes a new main entrance at Ossining High School; library renovations and a building addition at Park School; a new kitchen and outdoor space with tables at Roosevelt School; and new gym bleachers at Anne M. Dorner Middle School.

Teachers and administrators attended two Superintendent’s Conference Days earlier in the week to prepare for the new year. “It’s incumbent upon us to make sure that we meet the needs of all our children in a variety of ways,” the superintendent said. “I think we do an outstanding job with that.”

The district released a video this week in which students talk about why they love Ossining schools and some of lessons they have learned, such as the importance of kindness, compassion, equality and open-mindedness.

The video includes a performance of “This Is Me,” from “The Greatest Showman” by Ossining students. Several students sang the beginning of the song at a few locations in Ossining. A large group of singers and dancers performed the rest at one of the Superintendent’s Conference Days in the Ossining High School auditorium, with a special appearance by Dr. Sanchez. The full performance is included in the video.

The superintendent said Ossining plans to continue the Kindness Challenge that began this summer. Families and school staff members emailed photos of “acts of kindness” to the district, such as donating shoes collected from friends and walking a shelter dog.

“We will be capturing little acts of kindness that are happening in our community, recognizing and knowing that little acts of kindness go a long way in supporting our children and changing the world,” he said.

The district will also continue the important community partnerships to ensure the needs of children and families are met, such as the Ossining Public Library, the Food Bank for Westchester and Open Door Family Medical Centers.

The Ossining ACTION Committee, which stands for Acting Conscientiously to Ignite Opportunity Now, will continue helping staff food banks, delivering books to families, and other important work.

“Booking is when we go around to various families with bags of books and we go up to their house and put it on their doorstep and basically say, ‘You’ve been booked,’” Dr. Sanchez said, adding the goal is to spread literacy throughout Ossining. “And then, in turn, it’s their job to book another family.”