Tuesday, January 21, 2025
The Hewlett-Woodmere Board of Education has voted to approve a nine-period school day at Woodmere Middle School starting in September 2025.
“Building and District administration are currently developing the new schedule,” middle school Principal John Andruszkiewicz wrote in an email on Monday. “This change will enhance learning, foster student development and support both academic achievement and personal growth for WMS students.”
In 2011, the Hewlett-Woodmere school board met with scheduling consultant Elliot Y. Merenbloom, of Merenbloom Seminars and Consulting, about implementing a nine-period day, but didn’t go forward with it because of the cost. On Oct. 10, Andruszkiewicz, district Superintendent Ralph Marino Jr., other administrators and board trustees met with Merenbloom again to revisit the idea.
The proposed transition from the current eight-period schedule was the focus of a detailed presentation at the board work meeting on Nov. 13, and unanimously approved at the Nov. 20 regular meeting.
Andruszkiewicz and district leaders outlined the benefits and logistical considerations behind the initiative, which aims to enhance instructional flexibility while meeting State Education Department requirements, he said.
Currently, Woodmere Middle School falls short of the mandated 990 instructional hours per year for grades six through eight, lacking 11 instructional days for sixth grade and 23 instructional days for both seventh and eighth grades.
Andruszkiewicz said that a waiver the district received from the state, allowing non-compliance from 2018 to 2022, was not approved for the 2022-23 school year or future years, which resulted in a loss of more than $159,000 in state aid in 2022-23.
Beyond compliance, the nine-period schedule proposal sought to enrich students’ educational experience by introducing additional Career and Technical Education, or CTE, opportunities.
“This adjustment would create more flexibility in student schedules, allow for additional exploratory classes and provide dedicated time for academic support and enrichment without sacrificing core instructional minutes,” Andruszkiewicz said at the Nov. 13 meeting.
A survey completed by 175 people, including parents and guardians of students across grade levels, revealed an interest in expanded offerings in science, technology, engineering and math, or STEM, as well as classes in finance and business education, among other topics, he explained.
With the new nine-period day, class periods will remain 40 minutes long. Changes will include a revised bell schedule, starting at 8:40 a.m. and concluding at 3:07 p.m.
Dedicated bus runs for middle school students have been budgeted to alleviate transportation challenges, with an estimated additional cost of more than $468,000, according to Andruszkiewicz.
Staffing adjustments are also anticipated. Declining enrollment has led to a projected reduction of five full-time educators in core courses, but three new positions will be added to teach CTE-related subjects, he said.
Meeting attendees raised practical concerns about student movement between classes, based on potential traffic in stairwells with students traveling to and from exploratory and core class floors.
Andruszkiewicz assured attendees that optimizing building space, and adapting during the transition, would be a priority.
“We are looking at how we can best utilize all of the space in the middle school to improve the flow in the hallways,” he said.
School board Vice President Cheryl May said she was happy to have taken part in the committee conversation to switch to nine periods.
“I just want to thank, on our behalf, the committee and Elliot (Merenbloom), who was wonderful throughout the process,” May told Andruszkiewicz. “I’m really glad that we had a chance to give a board’s perspective.”
Have an opinion on the Woodmere Middle School nine-period day? Send a letter to pschug@liherald.com.
