This is a summary of our activities as a group:

Our group has convened regularly since April, 2000, with the number of attendees varying, at different times, from six to thirty. On May 7, we met with Howard Johnson, director of the Medical Center Nursery School, to discuss the history and future of neighborhood schooling in our area.

On May 24th, nine of us met with Assistant Principal Schafran of PS 187, and briefly with the Principal, Ms. Arravena. Among the topics discussed were: staff development, techniques for teaching reading, class size, after-school programs, foreign language instruction, art and music curricula, hiring policies, School Leadership Teams, and the role of the Parents Association.

In mid-July two of us met informally with a member of the Parents Association. We expect this to be followed up with a larger, more organized meeting with the newly elected co-chairs of the PA.

The following are projects currently in the works:
--Arranging a meeting between members of the Hudson Cliffs Parents Association and prospective parents.
--Urging the school to increase the number of tours it offers parents
--Asking the school to produce a detailed information packet or brochure
--Encouraging the school to develop a web page where it can deliver the public information about test scores, admissions rates to specialized high schools, accelerated classes, after-school programs, etc.

Any new ideas? Are any of you interested in attending a PA meeting or contributing questions? Would you like to meet with other parents who have chosen the school or are in the process of making up their minds? Please let us know by submitting a question or response.

-- Ruth Lilienstein (mg143@aol.com), July 24, 2000