• August 21, 2025

     

    Dear Parents, Students, Faculty, Staff, and Community Members,

     

    The new school year is right around the corner.  It has been a super busy summer preparing for the return of students.  Here is a summary of a few things that are going on as well as some things to keep in mind as the new school year begins.

     

    Welcome Back Activities for Students

     

    Faculty and staff are looking forward to seeing the students come back on September 3rd.  Many welcome back/orientation activities have been scheduled.  Please click on the district wide August calendar to see what is going on in your child’s building.

     

    Community Bar B Q hosted by the school board

     

    The school board is also looking forward to the start of the school year.  The board members realize that their duty is to represent the residents of the NPCSD and they have a genuine interest in meeting with and speaking with their constituents.  For that reason, we are hereby inviting everyone to a community Bar B Q to be held at the high school (near the cafeteria) from 5 pm to 6 pm on August 27.  This event is planned to start at the same time the high school new student orientation is ending.  Hot dogs, hamburgers, and watermelon will be served.

     

    We encourage you to come out and join the school board members in welcoming everyone back for another school year.

     

    Community Survey Results and Goal Setting

     

    Over the summer, parents, students, staff members, and community members were asked to take our annual survey on all things related to the operation of our school.  At the school board meeting on Wednesday night, I presented the results of the survey to the board and the community.  You can see the slide show from this presentation by clicking on this link.  You can watch the full video of the board meeting by clicking on this link. If you wish to watch the presentation on survey results you can skip forward to the 32:19 mark of the video.

     

    After the presentation, the board spent a lot of time discussing the many comments that had been provided by the public in the survey and what the priorities of the district should be moving forward.  Ultimately, the board decided that our focus should remain the same as the district goals that were identified as priorities last year.  Therefore, the district goals for the 2025-2026 school year will be the following:

     

     

    Now that the board has identified these goals, administrators and staff members will determine specifically how to address these goals and how to measure the success of these goals.

     

    Welcome Band Teacher Brandon Sparkman

     

    At the school board meeting on Wednesday night, the board unanimously approved the hiring of Mr. Brandon Sparkman as the new music teacher/band director at New Paltz High School.  Mr. Sparkman participated in two levels of interviews and taught a band lesson to New Paltz students and faculty members as part of his selection process.

     

    Brandon has been teaching music and band at the Chester Union Free School District for the past 7 years and he was strongly recommended by everyone we spoke to about him. 

     

    Brandon will start working with our students close to the beginning of the school year.  We are very excited to have a person with his knowledge, energy, and enthusiasm on board.

     

    Projected Student Enrollment for September

     

    The student enrollment in our district has decreased significantly for the past few years.  As you can imagine, we are keeping a close eye on our numbers for this September.  At the school board meeting on August 6, I presented this summary of the number of students who are currently registered at our schools for the fall.

     

     

    We were somewhat surprised to see that the kindergarten enrollment is only 66 students.  Since we graduated a class of about 147 this past June, it is easy to see why bringing in a kindergarten class of only 66 drops our student population below the 1600 mark.

     

    The good news is that our pre-k enrollment is at an all time high.  This year our community partner, Tots in Toyland, will be running four sections of pre-K in our Duzine building.  Since not all students in our district attend our pre-K program, this would lead us to believe that our kindergarten enrollment in 2026 will be higher than the 66 we are seeing for 2025.

     

    Consolidation Study

     

    As you no doubt have heard, the declining student enrollment and the financial difficulties facing NY schools has prompted the school board and the district facilities committee to study/consider the feasibility of consolidating our school campus from four buildings down to three buildings. This would likely mean rearranging the classes throughout the HS, MS, and Lenape, and then renting or selling the Duzine building to an outside organization.

     

    Making a decision of this magnitude is not something the school board would do quickly.  This is why they have been proceeding carefully.  They have spent time listening to community feedback on the issue.  They have contracted with Dr. Chuck Khoury, former Ulster BOCES Superintendent, to do a full investigation of the feasibility and merits of closing Duzine and consolidating the students into the three remaining buildings.

     

    Dr. Khoury will be presenting what will likely be his final report to the school board at the meeting on September 3rd.  His presentation will be held at approximately 6:30 pm. Specifically, he will be telling the board what changes would be required if the Duzine building were to close, the financial future of the district if the Duzine building is not closed, and the financial future of the district if the board decides to consolidate and close the Duzine building.

     

    After the presentation, the board will spend some time discussing the information and determining what additional information, if any, that they will need to make a decision.  Although it is very unlikely that the board will make any decisions at the September 3rd meeting, we do encourage the community to come out and hear what Dr. Khoury has to say so everyone can be as informed as possible.

     

    Fall Community Continuing Education Program

     

    We are nearing completion of our Fall 2025 Continuing Education Brochure.  This program will feature over 25 classes that will be available to community members, faculty, staff, and students.  We plan to have the brochure available by the end of next week so people can start signing up for courses that will start in mid September and go through the first week of December.  While the deadline for proposing courses to offer has passed, we are always open to good ideas.  If you have new courses to propose or if you are just looking for more information on this program, we encourage you to email continuinged@newpaltz.k12.ny.us.

     

    Student Cell Phones and Student Lockers

     

    Governor Hochul’s new electronic device law and the new NPCSD cell phone policy will be in effect on the first day of school.  The cell phone rules can be found starting on page 29 of the 2025-2026 code of conduct. The concept of students not being able to use cell phones or devices that connect to the internet at all during the school day will be very new for the high school students.  It is important for middle school and elementary students to realize that they are also not allowed to access their devices from the start of the school day until the end of the school day.

     

    Since students will not be able to have these devices on their person, they must have a place to put these devices if they choose to bring them to school.  Elementary students will be expected to keep their devices in their backpacks or cubbies.  Middle school and high school students will be required to keep their devices locked in their lockers from the first bell of the day to the last bell of the day.  They are not to use them during the school day and they can not keep them on their person or in their backpacks.

     

    For the MS students, using a locker will not be a big change.  For the HS students this will be something very new.  The HS lockers, which have been rarely used for years, have been cleaned and prepared for use.  When MS and HS students receive their course schedules, a locker number and a combination will be on their schedules.  All students are encouraged to find their lockers, make sure they know how to open them, and get them set up for use before the first day of school.

     

    Attendance and Tardiness

     

    Being on time for school and attending school regularly is one of the most important ways for students to achieve academic success.  The district attendance policy, which can be found on page 49 of the District Code of Conduct, explains the expectations for tardiness and attendance.  In particular, students who miss more than 10 days in a half year course or 20 days in a full year course (or a full year for elementary students) will be considered to be “chronically absent” and parents and/or students will need to meet with school administrators to formulate a plan to improve attendance, make up missed time, and gain credit for the course.

     

    We are pleased that since this policy went into place a couple of years ago student attendance has greatly improved.  We really appreciate the fact that parents and students are demonstrating a commitment to being in school and being on time.  We believe this is a great benefit to everyone.  Please contact your building principal if you have questions about the attendance policy.

     

    Student ID Cards

     

    We take safety very seriously at the NPCSD.  One way we work to ensure the safety of our students is to make sure that only authorized people are allowed to enter the buildings.  All faculty and staff are required to wear clearly displayed ID badges at all times during the school day.  Similarly, all students must be identifiable.

     

    During the first couple of days of school, all elementary parents will be provided with ID cards for their children.  Parents should keep these cards on them when they come to campus and be prepared to display them when they pick up their children.

     

    Middle school and high school students will be provided with ID cards on the first or second day of school.  They must show these ID cards to school personnel each morning in order to gain access to the buildings.

     

    We appreciate your cooperation with these plans.  Following these steps will help support the safety of everyone.

     

    Free Breakfast and Lunch

     

    I have had a few people reach out and ask me if we will still be providing free breakfast and lunch for all students this year.  As you may know, last year our school qualified for the first time for the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP).  This is a 5 year grant that we are now able to access because our percentage of low income students has reached the minimum limit of 25%.

     

    We are now in year two of the grant.  All students, regardless of their family's income, are entitled to receive a free breakfast and a free lunch each day.

     

    We are pleased to be part of the CEP and to be able to provide free breakfast and lunch for all students.  As long as the CEP remains fully funded by the government, we will continue to provide these services.  We encourage all students to take full advantage of them.

     

    Fall Sports and Coaching Openings

     

    Although school does not start for students until September 3rd, I want to give a shout out to the JV and varsity athletes and coaches who have already begun practicing for the fall sports season.  It takes commitment to come out and start working weeks before the entire student body arrives.  Modified sports start on September 3rd.  At this point, we still have a few coaching positions left to fill.

    If you or anyone you know is interested in being a modified coach, please reach out to Athletic Director Pete Bianco at pbianco@newpaltz.k12.ny.us.

     

    That concludes my summary for today.  I hope you are looking forward to the start of the new school year as much as we are.  If there is anything we can do to make your child’s start to the year as smooth as possible, please don’t hesitate to reach out.

     

    Best wishes, 

     

    Stephen Gratto - Superintendent