By:Scott Brinton
Caramore offered a brief statement at the start of the meeting. He said he has given the Central District "a philosophy of purpose" in striving for academic excellence.
The superintendent noted three major district initiatives during his tenure as superintendent: creation of a formal, well-funded science-research program; expansion of the Advanced Placement program; and addition of a ninth period at the high schools. He also said Regents and AP test scores have continued to rise each year.
"I hold many memories of my years in Bellmore-Merrick ...," Caramore said. "Most of all, I will remember the staff." He said that he had hired 95 percent of the current teaching staff, which comprises more than 500 educators in three high schools and two middle schools.
The staff "is my primary legacy," said Caramore, who holds a doctorate in education from Columbia University's Teachers College and has been in the education field for some 37 years.
Janet Goller, the Board of Education president, offered Caramore congratulations "on his future retirement," and said she would be very sorry to see him go. "Dr. Caramore is truly an extraordinary superintendent," Goller said. "He always had the total support of this Board of Education. He is going to be extremely difficult to replace."
Goller said the superintendent had indicated to the Board of Education three years ago that he planned to retire in 2005. She said the board would immediately develop a timetable to hire a new superintendent and report back to the community at the February board meeting.
Beth Barzone, a social studies teacher at Merrick Avenue Middle School and treasurer of the Bellmore-Merrick United Secondary Teachers Association, offered a statement from the union. She said, "On behalf of BMUST, I would like to thank Dr. Caramore for almost three decades of service to our district.
"Dr. Caramore's high expectations for both his students and staff," Barzone continued, "have made us a district of academic excellence, of which we are all proud to be a part. Thank you, Dr. Caramore. We wish you continued success."
In an interview after the meeting, Barzone said that Caramore emphasized the need to train teachers in-house. All new educators begin their careers at Bellmore-Merrick with a week-long orientation, and then are closely supervised and critiqued during their first three years of teaching. As a result, Barzone said, "The teachers are really among the best in the state."
Saul Lerner, the district's athletic director, said Caramore has "been a tremendous resource for this district. ... I've been the beneficiary of working for him, and have learned a tremendous amount from him. He mixes a strength of character with human understanding.
"When he took over four years ago," Lerner said, "the feeling was this district couldn't get much better." At the time, it was already ranked among Nassau County's 10 best academically. But Caramore continued to seek ways to improve, and continually rising test scores demonstrate his commitment to excellence, Lerner said.
The athletic director noted the success of the district's science-research program, which Caramore engineered. In the 2003-04 school year, Bellmore-Merrick boasted one finalist in the prestigious Westinghouse science-research competition and eight semifinalists in the Intel contest.
Lerner also said that Caramore has been mindful of district spending, and sought ways to keep the budget in check. He noted that the Central District's per-pupil spending, $13,000, is the lowest among Nassau's elite districts.
Theresa Rybicki, president of the Central District PTA Council, said that Caramore has "always been open-minded and receptive" to parents' suggestions. She noted that, at the urging of the PTAs, parent-teacher conferences were recently instituted in all district schools. Previously, the conferences were offered only in the middle schools and only during the day. Now they're held during the day and at night, so parents don't have to take time off from work to meet with their children's teachers. Caramore, Rybicki said, was instrumental in bringing about the change.
Rybicki also said that, under Caramore, the district instituted an "inclusion" program for special-education students. Through the program, special-ed students are mainstreamed. Their special-ed teachers follow them into the classroom and work collaboratively with the mainstream teachers. The students, Rybicki said, don't even know which is the mainstream and which is the special-ed teacher, because the two work as a team.
"It's been a very good program," Rybicki said. "A lot of the special-ed students in the collaborative program are excelling and meeting the standards of the Regents, which is a big accomplishment."
Though he has been enormously successful, Caramore has also seen controversy during his tenure as superintendent. In September 2003, the Mepham High football sex-abuse scandal exploded, attracting national media attention and sending the district into a downward psychic spiral from which it is still recovering.
Caramore took a lot of heat for the scandal. Many blamed him for failing to institute policies to protect children on overnight trips. Some parents called for him to resign.
His many supporters, however, said that no one, including the superintendent, could have anticipated deviant behavior on the part of three football players, and so it was unfair to lay blame on Caramore. Those closest to the superintendent said he was the rock that kept the district on a steady course through its most trying hour.
The sex-abuse victims are now suing the Central District, Caramore, a host of administrators and coaches, the perpetrators and their parents. But it appears that Caramore is looking to put the scandal behind him and the district. Richard Grebinger, of Bellmore, who had spoken out several times about the need to better protect children on overnight trips, last week asked whether the district's ongoing investigation into the football camp had concluded.
"As far as I'm concerned, yes. We've moved on," Caramore said, offering nothing further.
Comments about this story? SBrinton@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 203.
