Passi heading to Bayport-Blue Point

After three years in the district, Long Beach High School Principal Dr. Gaurav Passi will leave his post at the end of the school year to take over as principal at Bayport-Blue Point High School on July 1.

The Bayport-Blue Point Board of Education appointed Passi to the position at its May 7 meeting, and approved a three-year contract that includes an annual salary of $169,000.

Passi follows Dr. Vincent Butera, the district’s former assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction, who was hired as the Bayport-Blue Point School District’s Superintendent of Schools in October.

“He really was an asset to the school,” School Board President Roy Lester said of Passi. “I’m personally sad to see him go, he was very much an educator and he really brought the school a long way.

This year, Long Beach High School has received accolades from the Washington Post and Newsweek for being among the nation’s best high schools, Lester said. Factors like graduation rates and college readiness are used to make these distinctions, and Lester said that Passi played a large role in those achievements. Passi was also instrumental in bringing the International Baccalaureate program to the high school, as well as increasing the number of Advanced Placement classes offered, Lester said.

According to a press release issued by the Bayport-Bluepoint School District, under Passi’s leadership, the number of Long Beach students enrolled in Advanced Placement and IB courses grew. Additionally, the school worked to reduce its achievement gap among students, its graduation rate reached a historic high and the number of students receiving Regents diplomas with Advanced Designation continued to increase.

Passi also initiated a comprehensive character education program in LBHS, according to press release from the Bayport-Blue Point district said, which included the formation of Long Island’s first anti-bullying club and programs focused on students’ social and emotional learning.

Lester said that the district has begun its search for a new principal for the coming school year.

“This isn’t a decision to rush into,” said Lester. “The superintendent is going to look for a specific type of person that’s going to continue improving the high school.”