Five-Year Plan Revealed at Lynbrook Board of Education Meeting

Lynbrook Public Schools might be getting a facelift - and not just the cosmetic kind.

After nearly a year of deliberation, the Lynbrook Public Schools Strategic Planning Committee revealed a multi-faceted plan to revamp both the inner and outer workings of local schools during the Board of Education Meeting Wednesday night at

The committee, consisting of students, teachers, administrators, parents, and local officials, outlined goals to improve district facilities, guidance programs, social work and staff development, maximize academic achievement and communication, and combat student substance abuse.   

Lynbrook plans to enhance the academic experience by strengthening curriculum in lower grades. This will, according to the presentation, ease students’ transition to higher grade levels by improving “foundational skills”.

“If more kids are able to accelerate in the middle school, then they will be able to take those higher courses like calculus, pre-calculus, and more of the college level courses in the high school,” said Gerard Beleckas, Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment.

The district would also like to increase the level of detail with which high school subjects are taught, pushing students beyond what is required by the New York State curriculum.

The committee plans to survey Lybrook High School graduates in order to assess the effectiveness of the schools current “academic preparation methods." They hope to see increased enrollment in honors, AP, and other college level courses within the next five years.

Improvement of the districts facilities is one of the larger parts of the plan. Potential upgrades include a turf field at Marion Street Elementary, an elevator at Waverly Park Elementary, upgraded bathrooms at Elementary, new bleachers at North Middle School, a relocated baseball field at South Middle School, add classrooms at Lynbrook High School, and more.

Because of the sheer amount of requested upgrades at each school, financing and completing each individual project in a timely matter would prove to be a gigantic task. With this knowledge, Superintendent Dr. Santo Barbarino will offer his recommendations as to the order in which upgrades need to be addressed in January.

Communication improvements will include a better internet presence for the district. This includes the districts website.

 “It needs to now be a planned, well thought-out reality,” committee member Paul Lynch said. “We’ve heard from the community (that) the information is on there and (they) just can’t find it. That’s not acceptable and we’re going to start (fixing) that right off the bat.”

The committee will also research the possibility of using social media, such as Facebook, to keep in contact with alumni.

The possibility of creating an alternative high school for students in grades 10-12 will also be investigated by the district in 2012. The alternative school would cater to those students who cannot survive, academically or socially, in a traditional classroom setting. This may be because of truancy issues or other personal factors.

Following the presentation, Barbarino informed the assembled residents and faculty that the Lynbrook police will be using the school on Saturday, Dec. 10 as a hostage emergency training facility.