Massapequa School District -

To Our Massapequa Family, The warmer weather has finally arrived, and with it, the excitement of end-of-year activities is already in full swing across Massapequa Schools! Even with a weeklong break, April was another vibrant month in our district. Among the highlights were the debut of pickleball intramurals at the high school, the annual Alumni Career Day at the Ames Campus and school initiatives for Autism Acceptance Month. You can read more about these and other great moments in the latest editions of the Massapequa Minute and Moment: Massapequa Minute – April 2025: https://youtube.com/shorts/_IeaIOaDBeQ?feature=share Massapequa Moment April 2025: https://drive.google.com/file/d/18goh0LQUeNr7td0srPTFltce9TEk6dIc/view?usp=drive_link Sincerely, William Brennan, Ed.D., Superintendent of Schools

Dear MSD School Community, As a reminder, we invite you to visit https://www.msd.k12.ny.us/page/summer-programs to read our 2025 Summer Programs letter, which includes important program and registration information for Summer Fine Arts, Summer Lego Robotics, Summer Sports, and Summer Recreation. If interested, please save the registration and program dates! Sincerely, The Massapequa School District

Dear Parents/Guardians, Parent Action Requested - Starting today, April 30th, we're excited to launch the Rooms feature in our district app for teacher-parent communication! Please check your email or visit www.msd.k12.ny.us/app for account setup and more information. Sincerely, The Massapequa School District

To our Massapequa Family, Each year, our school calendar builds in a few extra days just in case Mother Nature throws us a snowy curveball. This year however, we barely saw a flurry - and as a result, we didn't need to use our allotted emergency days. That means we get to give one back to you! I am excited to share that all schools will be officially closed on Friday, May 23rd, just ahead of Memorial Day weekend. This day off applies to all students, faculty, nurses, clerical, cafeteria, paraprofessional and administrative staff. We hope you enjoy the extra day off. Sincerely, William Brennan, Ed.D. Superintendent of Schools

Dear Parents and Guardians, This is a reminder that the “Rooms” communication feature in our Massapequa School District app will be ready on April 30th. With this new feature, all of our instructional staff and parents will be able to communicate through this common platform to streamline communications. With Rooms, you’ll have access to even more exciting features like: • Stream: A place where teachers and staff can post announcements and communications • Messages: Direct communication between teachers/staff and parents On April 30th, you will receive a text message and email with detailed instructions on accessing your account through our app and/or the web. If you haven’t downloaded our app yet, please visit the Apple or Google Play store and search for the “Massapequa School District” or visit www.msd.k12.ny.us/app. Sincerely, The Massapequa School District

Dear Parents, SEPTA’s next meeting is on April 23rd. Please join us and hear from our guest speaker, Randi Comack, regarding executive functioning. The school district budget will also be presented. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1jXiefqESo0__hTQoJIHKFZ_22_Bjks6j/view?usp=drive_link Thank you, Massapequa School District & SEPTA

Dear Parents of Grade 3-8 Students, Last week we paused our ELA assessments due to technical issues with the state. We understand this was disappointing and frustrating for everyone involved. We have received assurances that the system is ready to go, and we are committed to completing the assessment as planned. Session II of the New York State English Language Arts (ELA) Assessment is scheduled to take place on April 23, 2025. You can expect additional follow-up from your buildings on Tuesday, April 22. Thank you for your patience and attention to this matter. Sincerely, The Massapequa School District

Dear Parents and Guardians, We would like to thank you for your ongoing support with our new website and app! If you haven’t downloaded our app yet, please visit the Apple or Google Play store and search for the Massapequa School District. As a reminder, our district app currently offers: • District, school, and community communications • Access to our spotlight, events/calendar, lunch menus, and district/school webpages As we shared at the end of last school year and throughout this school year, we are excited to announce the launch of our “Rooms” parent-teacher communication app/website feature! After ongoing district planning and training, the “Rooms” communication feature will be ready on April 30th. With this new feature, all of our instructional staff and parents will be able to communicate through this common platform to streamline communications. With Rooms, you’ll have access to even more exciting features like: • Stream: A place where communication/announcements can be posted by teachers/staff • Messages: Direct communication from teachers/staff to parents and parents to teachers/staff We will be sharing additional information and directions on how to access your account in the near future! Sincerely, The Massapequa School District

Dear Parents of Grade 3-8 Students, We are writing to provide an important update regarding the New York State English Language Arts (ELA) testing that resumed today, April 9, 2025. Unfortunately, NYS encountered another round of technical issues with its online testing platform this morning. Due to these issues, NYS instructed us to pause, and then later to resume testing. While many students at Berner and our elementary schools managed to complete their tests, some couldn't even start. We will contact those parents/guardians directly. Given these ongoing complications, we are pausing testing district-wide until after the break, awaiting further guidance from the state. Tomorrow, April 10, 2025, will be a normal school day without state assessments. We will provide updates on the continuation of the ELA assessment as soon as we receive details and assurances of testing capabilities from the state. This situation is incredibly frustrating due to the loss of instructional time and the time invested in preparing for this test administration. Additionally, there are now questions about the validity of this assessment which we hope will be addressed once we receive further guidance from the state. We will update the community as soon as more information becomes available. Thank you for your continued patience and understanding. Sincerely, William Brennan, Ed. D. Superintendent of Schools

Dear MSD Parents/Guardians, At this time, we invite you to visit https://www.msd.k12.ny.us/page/summer-programs to read our 2025 Summer Programs letter, which includes important program and registration information for Summer Fine Arts, Summer Lego Robotics, Summer Sports, and Summer Recreation! Sincerely, The Massapequa School District

Dear Grade 3-5 Elementary Parents/Guardians, As previously communicated, due to unforeseen technical issues and as directed by NYSED, the administration of the NYS ELA assessment scheduled for today was postponed. The District received notification this morning that the NYS testing platform, Nextera, was having technical issues across the state. At this time, the district has received notification that the technical issues have been resolved. Therefore, Session 1 of the NYS ELA Assessment will be administered tomorrow, April 9, 2025, and Session 2 will be administered on Thursday, April 10, 2025. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused. Thank you for your support. Sincerely, The Massapequa School District

Dear BMS Parents/Guardians, As previously communicated, due to unforeseen technical issues and as directed by NYSED, the administration of the NYS ELA assessment scheduled for today was postponed. The District received notification this morning that the NYS testing platform, Nextera, was having technical issues across the state. At that time, some students at Berner Middle School had started to log into the platform, but most were unable to enter or begin the exam. Approximately 41 students were able to log into the platform but were asked to pause the exam after receiving direction from NYS to postpone until the issue could be resolved. At this time, the district has received notification that the technical issues have been resolved. Therefore, Session 1 of the NYS ELA Assessment will resume tomorrow, April 9, 2025, and Session 2 will be administered on Thursday, April 10, 2025. Any student who was directed to pause their exam will be able to log in tomorrow morning and resume Session 1. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused. Thank you for your support. Sincerely, The Massapequa School District

Dear Parents of Grade 3-8 Students, We are writing to inform you about an important update regarding the New York State English Language Arts (ELA) testing that was scheduled for today, April 8, and tomorrow, April 9. Due to a statewide technical issue with the NY ELA testing platform, testing is postponed for today, April 8. We will follow-up with additional communication once we confirm the issue is resolved and we receive further guidance from NY State. At this time, buildings will be resuming their regular schedules. We appreciate your understanding and cooperation as we work to ensure a smooth testing process for all students participating in the assessment. Thank you for your continued support. Sincerely, The Massapequa School District

Dear Massapequa Community, We are proud to present our very first HEALTH EDUCATION NEWSLETTER . Please access the following to obtain our newsletter https://drive.google.com/file/d/1r26MqoJMEkNroj8P4USz_9dC3IHY414V/view?usp=sharing Hope you enjoy reading about our department. Sincerely, Massapequa School District Health Department

To our Massapequa Family, We are thrilled to share an exciting update about our district-wide Playground Construction Project! Thanks to the incredible support of our community through the 2023 Bond, we are soon replacing the playgrounds in all our elementary schools. I’m very thankful to our building administrators who led a collaborative effort with their school teams and playground designers to create new, engaging play spaces across all our elementary schools. As I reflect on all the capital work we have going on, this is one of my favorite initiatives because the importance of play cannot be understated. Playgrounds are more than just equipment and surfaces – they are places where friendships are formed and imaginations come alive. Through this project, we will replace aging playgrounds with safe, modern, ADA-compliant environments featuring enhanced safety measures like improved flooring and fall protection, ensuring all Massapequa students can enjoy these spaces for years to come. Construction is set to begin in mid-April, taking advantage of the school holiday, with the demolition of existing playgrounds to make way for the new installations. Each site is expected to take approximately 3-4 weeks to complete. We understand that construction can be an inconvenience, especially as warmer weather approaches, but we are confident the results will be worth the wait! Our schedule for the work is slightly different in each building, and you can expect to hear from your building administration with more specific timelines. We appreciate your patience and support as we create vibrant, safe and engaging play spaces for our schools! Sincerely, William Brennan, Ed.D. Superintendent of Schools

To our Massapequa Family, This March brought a variety of events and student experiences to our district. From the high school Drama Club’s performance of “The Addams Family” to the World Language Festival and the Science Discovery Fair, there was something happening almost every day. I invite you to take a moment to dive into all the many events across our schools in our latest editions of the Massapequa Minute and Moment: Massapequa Minute – March 2025: https://youtube.com/shorts/49OSNUEO3fY?feature=share Massapequa Moment – March 2025: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Vft9ULep3Q3i0mvKxpF29m3PnvHdyYrx/view?usp=drive_link Sincerely, William Brennan, Ed.D., Superintendent of Schools

Dear Massapequa Community, Executive Session - March 31, 2025 The Massapequa Board of Education will hold a special public meeting at the Connetquot School District, 780 Ocean Ave, Bohemia, NY on Monday, March 31, 2025 at 6 p.m. for the purpose of entering into Executive Session to consult with attorneys regarding litigation matters. The Massapequa School District

Dear Massapequa Community, We are disappointed to share that a federal judge has dismissed our lawsuit challenging New York State’s regulation banning Native American mascots. While this decision is not the outcome we had hoped for, it does not change our unwavering commitment to protecting and preserving the identity and traditions of our community. Throughout this process, our priority has been to stand up for local control and the ability of communities to honor their heritage in a respectful and meaningful way. We firmly believe that decisions about our schools should reflect the voices of the people who live here, not be dictated by the state. Despite this setback, we remain steadfast in our advocacy and will continue to explore all available options. We will be consulting with legal counsel in the coming days to determine our next steps. Thank you for your continued support as we work to protect the values and traditions that make Massapequa special. Sincerely, The Massapequa Board of Education Mrs. Kerry Wachter, President Mrs. Jeanine Caramore, Vice President Mrs. Cher Lepre, Secretary Mr. Christopher Brooks, Trustee Mrs. Danielle Ocuto, Trustee