Nanuet HS Graduation Speech - 2005

Travel Light & Don’t Panic

Welcome to our graduates, family members, friends, administration, teachers, support staff and my fellow Board Members. Thank you to our buildings and grounds crew for preparing our graduation tent. And a special thanks to our music department and performers.

Just a week ago I hit the 50-year mark. It hardly seems possible – but it happens. So I’ve decided I’m old enough, to share some “Chauncey” words of wisdom – not too profound, but that’s the whole point.

Keep it simple so you won’t forget when you start forgetting.

One of my favorite books from years back – before it became a movie - was Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams. I took two important teachings from Hitchhikers – “Travel Light” and “Don’t Panic”.

When my husband and I started our lives together over 28 years ago, we had nothing – I’m not kidding. At our wedding, we had taken in a total of $1500, and we gave $500 to our parents to help cover the cost of the reception. Talk about traveling light – in our first apartment we had one chair, an old table, and a cot which was our sofa. We pushed the table close to a radiator which became my chair.

We had college degrees and the bills to prove it. We were happy.
We were lucky. We had no possessions to tie us down to any particluar place. We were healthy and capable of working hard to get ahead.
We didn’t panic.

Every morning we’d wake up and point our noses in a direction we’d chosen and step out. We didn’t necessarily accept everything that life threw our way in a gracious manner. Sometimes life was disappointing.
On the other hand sometimes the day brought delights that still give us great joy today.

I wish all of you simple beginnings as you venture forth – a blank canvas which awaits your design. Good luck – enjoy your lives!

Nanuet HS Graduation Speech 2004

Welcome to our graduates, family members, friends, administration, teachers, support staff and my fellow Board Members, and any member of our Nanuet Family that I may have missed.Thank you to our buildings and grounds crew for preparing our graduation tent. And a special thanks to our music department and performers.

It has been a practice for the Board President to keep her commencement speech under five minutes. It is a tradition worth keeping, so I will be brief.

Graduates of 2004, I bet you thought you'd taken your last exam … well I have one more for you. I believe Dr. Fuhrman will be pleased. Yes Ed, I've listened attentively to every one of your presentations and I thought I'd try my hand at developing a culminating assessment for our graduates.
Our graduates should be familiar with the format, but I think our guests may require some definitions before we begin.

Essential Question:
An essential question is the important idea at the heart of every subject.

Exemplar:

An exemplar is an ideal model or example - the best of the best against which you can evaluate your own performance.

Rubric:

A rubric is a progression of skills from novice to expert. The rubric for this exam is a 3 level rubric. Level 1-novice and Level 3-expert

Ready, let's begin.

Listen carefully, here are your ...

DIRECTIONS:

You have approximately 70 years, give or take a few, to complete this exam. It is an open-book test. You can consult every information source that you can get your hands on. Indeed, you will be bombarded by the media 24-7 - but please understand that there are few sources of information that can be trusted - even those in the highest places will tell you half-truths and sometimes they will out and out lie. You can ask your family and friends for help, but the solutions to some of the toughest questions can only be found within yourself and there are no definitive right and wrong answers.

THE ESSENTIAL QUESTION:
You are a child of the universe. How will you live a life that matters? How will you save the world?

HINTS:

Travel Light
Don't Panic
Don't Whine
Have Faith
Make Music
Give Back
Be Good
Do Good
Love

EXEMPLARS:

Mariam Wright Edelman
Ghandi
Eleanor Roosevelt
Douglas Adams
Peter Senge
Mother Theresa
Mr. Rogers

RUBRIC:

Level 1:
You look at yourself years from now and realize you never left high school. Your life is defined by how hard you partied last night with the same friends you partied with 30 years ago. You realize that you've never really tried to be or do better, and now you have the horrible feeling that it's too late to start.

Level 2:
You've worked relentlessly to become a financial and professional success, but you look at yourself and wonder what happened to the person sitting in your seat today. You remember what it was like to invest some of your time in the service of others, but there is no time to invest. You forget to make time to nourish human connections with spouses, with children, with friends. You have succeeded in achieving your financial and business goals, but you know that you have not lived.

Level 3:
You give ten percent of everything you earn and twenty percent of your time to effect social change. You have been politically active supporting legislation that makes life better for every member of society. You've traveled the world. Social, political, and religious beliefs of those you've met along the way have added a new dimension to your own understanding of humanity. You've cultivated friendships with persons from all cultures and walks of life. Your chosen profession gives you a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment, but you give your friends and family the same careful and considerate attention which you give your career.

If there are no questions, you may begin, good luck.

What Was I Thinking?

RCSBA Legislative Breakfast - January 31, 2004

In his book, The End of Public Education, Neil Postman wrote, "public education does not serve a public. It creates a public." [1]

The message our children get day in and day out from the media is a message that emphasizes personal gratification, withdrawal from public life, political apathy and cynicism.

Contrast that to the message that public education was created to convey and continues to convey day in and day out across this nation.

It is a message which talks of openness to other viewpoints, respect for the rights of others, realizing that every right brings a corresponding responsibility, understanding the democratic process, and participation in public affairs. We are not born with this knowledge and understanding ... they are lessons to be learned.

Allison Tropiano, a young woman in the Nanuet school district who had just turned 17, responded as follows when she was wished a happy birthday.   -- “I have one more year before I turn 18, I can’t wait  ...  then I’ll be able to …  VOTE.”

Today, we take public education so much for granted that we undermine and under fund the only institution whose primary mission it is to prepare our children for citizenship. 

Have you ever done something that makes you stop dead in your tracks, hit yourself in the forehead and ask, “What was I thinking?”   If you’re lucky, you recover with a little mid-course correction and move right on along, thank you very much.  If you are really lucky, no one else even notices what you did.

Have you ever known someone who couldn’t recover from a, “What was I thinking?” episode?

Or worse yet, hadn’t yet asked the question.

Consider Governor Pataki who asserted that, “An eighth grade education is sufficient to meet the needs of our students.” Is the complexity of living in, and maintaining, a democracy possible with eighth grade educations? Not to worry, an elite group of individuals will be educated for that task … the others can go along for the ride and spend their off hours watching “The Simple Life” or, better yet, “Survivor”.

Do you think that Governor Pataki has had his, -- “What was I thinking?” -- moment yet?

In the movie, “A Wonderful Life”, George Bailey, with the help of his guardian angel, Clarence, gets to see what the world would be like if he had never been born -- and then he gets a second chance.
“I love you, you old building and loan!”  he exclaims.

Ladies and gentlemen, there is no Clarence to show us what would happen if we were to turn our backs on public education.
 
But I am certain that we would get up one morning and ask, “What were we thinking?”

I am not certain how we would recover, are you? …
“I love you, you old Public Education!”
 

1. Neil Postman, The End of Education { New York: Knopf, 1995} : 18.

Nanuet Schools Welcome Luncheon 2003-2004

Good morning, Start with the Pledge…

On behalf of the Nanuet Board of Education, I would like to welcome you to this 2003-2004 school year.

(Introduce board members, Anne Byrne, Karen Franchino, Dr. Harold Fogelman, Charlene Caulk, Tom Morr, Jim Mahr, district clerk (Lucille Anemone), Dr. McNeill, Dr. Fuhrman, and Phil Sions – have those who are present stand)

First, a special thank you to everyone involved in preparing the wonderful luncheon we are enjoying together today.

Many individuals are responsible for planning and delivering our educational program.

administrators, directors of special education and technology, teachers, librarians, speech and language therapists, psychologists, nurses, secretaries, tutors, teacher aides, and teacher assistants, counselors, coaches, family resource center staff and volunteers, bus drivers, custodians, maintenance workers, buildings and grounds staff and cafeteria personnel.

Many of you have worked over the summer to prepare for the new school year. Thank you for your professionalism and commitment to our children.
I’d like to welcome our new teachers -- how lucky you are to be working with such a talented staff in one of the best school systems in New York State.

We know that our success is dependent on the cooperation and the active involvement of our families and community organizations. A special thank you to our PTA and Family Resource Centers for providing programs that keep that involvement alive.

In closing, I would like to share one event from last year’s 8th grade moving up ceremony that I will never forget and which inspired what I’d like to share with you as my final thought today.

You know the routine, the subject is named and the student with the highest grade is called forward, and he or she marches up to receive the award.
But one student was called forward in a different way. He was not called forward as the student with the highest grade – he was called forward as “an author in the making”. The smile on xxxxxxxxxx's face and the emotion that went with it made that a magical moment.

Indeed each one of us in this room today is “someone in the making” and we will be “someone in the making”, if we’re lucky, until we take our last breath.
Our students, no matter how young or how old, are in the process of becoming, being formed as human beings. Everything they do and say can inform our decisions about how to further their growth and nurture their potential.

Our words, our actions, a single look -- can encourage or discourage, build up or tear down, show empathy or show apathy.

Martin Buber, the existentialist philosopher had a phrase, “confirming the other” which has everything to do with nurturing the process of becoming.

Increasing student achievement is a primary goal of this Board, but we know that it can only be realized when all of the members of our school community feel valued not only for what they do, but also for who they are as human beings.

I am proud to be a part of this community -- you are precious -- consider yourselves hugged!

Find Books Online

- Project Gutenberg

- Bartleby

- Searchable Nonfiction in the Works... " Executives at Amazon.com are negotiating with several of the largest book publishers about an ambitious and expensive plan to assemble a searchable online archive with the texts of tens of thousands of books of nonfiction.."

Cafe Express - Create Your Own Books

Publishing Service In BETA! We're excited to announce that CafePress Publishing is now in BETA! More info can be found by visiting: http://www.cafepress.com/cp/info/sell/books.aspx
During the beta period, you can create your books but they won't show up in your shop for sale. We expect to officially launch the program on July 28, at which time all completed books will be made for sale.

Teacher Luncheon - September

Everyone is Someone In the Making

-Impact intellectual and emotional development

8th Grade Moving Up... as awards were announced, the words that were read for one particular presentation stayed with me long after the ceremony was over.

When Ms. Litts gave her English award she said (paraphrased) - Shane is an author in the making ... what a powerful accolade -- an author in the making, not someone who got excellent grades in English or someone who would be an author someday, but someone who was an author in the making.

-Compare the interactions between teacher and learner in "Finding Forrester", "Mr. Holland's Opus", and "Songs of the Heart" ...'
> Forrester uses "kick in the butt", heavy handed red-pen treatment to inform and motivate his young apprentice.

Our Government

"Ben's Guide to U.S. Government for Kids is brought to the World Wide Web as a service of the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO). Ben's Guide serves as the educational component of GPO Access, GPO's service to provide the official online version of legislative and regulatory information."

Tour of the Capitol
"Welcome to the U.S. Capitol Virtual Tour -- an interactive, user friendly, comprehensive and integrated multimedia tour of the U.S. Capitol."

Whitehouse for Kids

Library of Congress

Commencement Speeches

My principal exhortation to you today is to go forth and raise hell,'' the Doonesbury'' cartoonist Garry Trudeau said at Trinity College in Hartford. Surprise yourselves. Surprise your parents. Surprise the world.''
Following are other excerpts:

Everyone Has a Story

Ordinary People, Extraordinary Stories - By Bill Mitchell - Poynter Online
"Published daily in the paper's special section, "A Nation Challenged," the profiles typically focus on a single aspect of the subject's character or an especially endearing talent or trait. They often include a little life lesson -- the extrovert who learned to seek out unhappy people at parties, the creator of family surprises, the friend who never lost touch -- that Times reporters have managed to reveal and celebrate in a couple of dozen words."

Stories in Pictures...

How to Make Ice Cream at the Halsey Valley Ice Festival

How to Stuff a Turkey - Thanksgiving 1997

How to Make Polanta

Road Trip 2003

>West Point Game

Children Book Authors and Teaching Resources

TeachingBooks.Net - The goal of the site is to give all educators easy access to children's book authors and authoritative teaching resources. The huge multimedia children's literature database uses "cutting-edge technologies to connect educators and families with authors, books and authoritative teaching materials," said Nick Glass, who, before launching the site, was an educator and a bookseller.

Reading and Children

Surely everyone here knows either the story of Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings. Harry’s throbbing scar reminds him that the evil Voldemort is lurking and Frodo’s “ring” whispers a wish to return to its tyrannical master.

I believe we all have stories that whisper to us – our stories define who we are and influence what we do.

So, enough facts and figures, I’d like to share a brief story with you this morning.

When I was in high school, people in my hometown used to call the school office if they needed a babysitter. Their names and phone numbers would be placed on a list and students could sign up to for the jobs. At 14, this was a great way to make a little money.

One of the babysitting assignments was a real eye opener. Dishes were piled high in a sink, the floor was filthy, the kitchen table looked like it hadn’t been wiped down in weeks and the kids -- there were seven of them under nine years old.

The orders were simple. They were going out for a night on the town. Throw the kids in the room with the two mattresses on the floor and if they gave me any trouble, smack ‘em.

When the door closed, I still remember standing there for what seemed liked minutes, and was probably only 10 seconds -- staring at the children – and they were staring at me.

Being as task oriented then as I am today, I was already making mental notes on the steps required to achieve my goal – wash dishes, clean table, clean kids, (clean bathroom first), find some food to give them a snack and get them to fall asleep on two mattresses in one room.

The thing I remember most about that night was the moment I got all of those kids into the “bedroom” and asked what story they’d like me to read to them. They just looked at me – finally the little girl – probably five years old said, “We don’t have any books to read … and they didn’t … not one children’s book in that whole place, actually not one book of any kind. So I told about ten stories and finally got them to agree to go to sleep.

About a half hour later, I was sitting carefully in the middle of the sofa – I didn’t want to touch anything if I could help it – and the little girl came out, stood in front of me, took the fingers of her two hands and pinched my leg while saying – I want you to come back here and tell us stories again. She said nothing else, turned around and went back to bed. I swear I can still feel that pinch today when I think about reading and kids.

Anyway, I made it a point to find that name on the list and signed up to babysit for them. I brought a book and hid it under a mattress – the oldest boy told me nobody would ever find it there – and I’d read to them for a long time before they’d go to sleep.

Then, someone else took that babysitting assignment one day. The next day I was called down to the office by an angry school secretary – she asked me why I hadn’t reported the condition of THAT family – after all we didn’t want that kind of family on our list. I never saw those kids again.

I remember feeling angry. I can still feel a throb in my leg where that little girl pinched me whenever I think about kids who miss the simplest things in life.