Serving Roslyn, Roslyn Heights and Old Westbury
$1
Friday, May 1, 2015
vol. 3, no. 18
DAY MOTHDEinRin’S g & Gift Guide
a blank slate
ns special
r publicatio
media / litmo
section •
GUIDe TO mOTHeR’S DAY
eDSD TeACHeRS APPROVe DeAL
BILLY JOeL TO CLOSe COLISeUm
pAGES 31-50
pAGE 2
pAGE 25
may 1, 2015
Increase in opt outs for math tests
ROuGH RIDE
21.9% of students on the N. Shore decline to take latest state exam BY JA m eS G A L L O w AY One week after hundreds of North Shore students sat out the state English Language Arts exam, test refusal figures jumped even higher for the state’s math exam in a sign the opt-out movement continues to pick up steam. More than 2,200 students, or about 14.7 percent, opted out of the English exam administered to grades three through eight two weeks ago, between the Herricks, Mineola, East Williston, Great Neck, Roslyn, Manhasset, Port Washington, New Hyde ParkGarden City Park and Sewanhaka school districts. But for the math exam, North Shore opt outs swelled to 21.9 percent as more than 2,600 students from the same districts refused the test, a trend that was largely consistent across Nassau County. “I think the [opt-out] movement is like a snowball rolling
down a hill: It’s gaining momentum as social media and the press pick up on it,” said Mineola Superintendent Michael Nagler, whose district’s opt outs rose to 20.9 percent for the math exam from 18.3 percent for the English. Statewide, at least 193,000 students opted out of the English exam. And, with less than half of school districts reporting, math exam opt outs already exceed 150,000, according to figures from the anti-testing advocacy group NYS Allies for Public Education. Across Long Island, 46.5 percent of students opted out of the math exam, according to figures compiled by Newsday — and many districts in eastern Suffolk reported opt-out rates in excess of 50 percent, with Comsewogue leading the way at 83.5 percent. Even as opt-out numbers increased across the North Shore, the extent varied greatly: Sewanhaka saw the highest increase as Continued on Page 66
PHOTO BY BILL SAN ANTONIO
The motorist of a silver sedan (pictured) that collided with a green pickup truck along Northern Boulevard Monday was hospitalized. See story on page 13.
Mintz, Rosen to address classmates at graduation BY B I LL SAN ANTONIO
to why. But when Mintz reached the main office and saw AnRoslyn High School seniors drews standing in the doorway Rachel Mintz and Jordan Rosen with a smile on his face, she inwere summoned separately to stantly knew. “Dr. Andrews just said, ‘Oh, principal Scott Andrews’ office in February, briefly unaware as hi valedictorian,’” she said. “At
first, I thought he was kidding. I had no idea this was coming out at the time. He brought me into his office and explained it all, had me call my mom, just reassuring me that he wasn’t kidding around.” Continued on Page 65
For the latest news visit us at www.theislandnow.com D on’t forget to follow us on Twitter @Theislandnow and Facebook at facebook.com/theislandnow