By Stephanie Petrellese

The first Board of Education work session of the school year began on a positive note as Garden City Superintendent of Schools Dr. Robert Feirsen presented his annual list of district goals.

He started the meeting on Tuesday evening with the goals his administration has accomplished, which were then followed by those that are currently still being worked on, and those that the district plans to focus on during this school year.

Dr. Feirsen, who presented his first list of goals three months after beginning his job in August, 2005, said this year would be different because he wants to focus more on those goals which have been ongoing, rather than put effort into starting many new goals. His planned goal list for this year is relatively short when compared to previous years.

"We want to do things, and we want to do them well," he explained. "We do not want to give lip service to a goal. We don't want to be involved in the syndrome many school districts find themselves involved in, the flavor of the month, which everyone despises. With the limited time and staff that we have, we would like to spend a good portion of this year finishing those residuals and really getting quality work done in those things and focusing our attention this year on really major projects and preserving our resources the best we can."

The primary project the district is currently focused on is educating the public on the upcoming bond vote. Last month, the Board of Education unanimously voted to set October 27th as the date to hold a public referendum on a bond totaling $36.5 million to fund capital improvements throughout the district. The vote will take place in the gymnasium at the Garden City High School from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Dr. Feirsen showed a video designed to help show residents why the bond is so urgently needed. After a brief introduction by Dr. Feirsen, health and safety items are the primary focus as the viewer is given a tour of district buildings, many of which are in poor condition. The video is accessible via the district's Web site on the Bond Referendum page.

"This was a summer project that we wanted to share with the Board," Dr. Feirsen said.

"It gets worse every time you see it," commented School Board Vice President Barbara Trapasso, who has seen the video three times.

Other goals Dr. Feirsen proposed for this year include: increasing scores on the ERB writing assessment; implementing a full disaster recovery plan for business operations; implementing recommendations provided by a Research Committee; revising the district's 504 Plan to reflect changes made to the Americans With Disabilities Act by Congress; and several digital administrative initiatives.

In the area of technology, the district has already enlisted the help of virtual servers, and is now moving toward implementing virtual desktops. Other digital initiatives include expansion of the parental portal to include grades, and fine-tuning the district's automated IT help desk, facilities scheduler and maintenance assignments manager. At the middle and high school levels, Dr. Feirsen would like to see a SchoolTool grade book module established.

Even though the 2009-10 school year has just begun, Dr. Feirsen is looking ahead to 2010, when he has already established a list of the following goals: continue existing curriculum reviews; initiate spotlight year curriculum reviews in English Language Arts and technology; continue quality initiatives for responsiveness to stakeholders (the public); expand the number of teachers using "Understanding by Design" and related models for instruction that promote critical thinking; develop professional learning communities based on student achievement data that allow teachers to play a greater role; and implement the next phase of the Response to Intervention (RTI) plan.

If the bond passes, Dr. Feirsen foresees continuing facilities improvement projects and implementing educational program enhancements facilitated by the proposed alterations and additions to district buildings. For example, at the Middle School, the building would be reconfigured to include a multi-use space referred to as a "gym station," and a corridor which would allow for circulation round the building.