Briarcliff TAs to Help with Fewer First Grade Sections

The loss of a section for Todd Elementary School's incoming first graders in September will be cushioned by TAs in the building, Dr. Kusum Sinha, Briarcliff Manor's assistant superintendent of curriculum, instruction, assessment and human resources told the Board of Education last week.

She said the administrators "will continue to monitor" how the 89 students split across four classrooms will play out this year.

That means there will be "a little over 22 [students] per section" this year, which Board Vice President Dina Brantman asked if was reaching its "break point."

Sinha said, "We are at that cusp," adding, "We will have a TA and a teacher in the classroom."

Trustee Michael Haberman wanted to know what will happen to the first graders when they enter seventh grade, asking if the TAs will move up with them.

"I think we have to monitor our numbers and certainly make sure we have the appropriate sections," Sinha said.

Board President Jennifer Rosen added the district will need to keep an eye on the size of the incoming kindergarten class, which Sinha said is presently at 69.

She noted the 14 new two-bedroom condominiums on North State Road that accepted applications over the summer are expected to be move-in ready in the fall.

"Because they are two-bedrooms, we may anticipate having some children moving into the district," she said.