First Blog 31AUG26

     Urban Assembly Institute of Math and Science for Young Women

31 August 2026

School Leadership Message.

Welcome back to the 2027-27 school year! 

I am humbled and excited to step into the role of Principal as we continue to push for the level of excellence that we know all of our students deserve. I am also thrilled to announce our two new Assistant Principals - Rosario Orengo and Kelly Preston! Together, we are committed to leading with purpose and ensuring that our core values of Rigor, Power, Equity, and Joy are reflected in everything we do - from the classrooms, to the hallways, to the decisions we make as a school community.

This week's message is a short one - there's lots of information for you to digest below, please read carefully and we look forward to seeing some of you in the building this week! 

I hope you all enjoy your last week of summer!

Upcoming Events. See Master Calendar Here.

• This year we are centralizing all activities on one master calendar.  
• Trips, assessment days, evening family events, student engagement activities and more will be listed and linked for all to access. 
• The blog will continue to highlight key upcoming events below.

September:

• 31AUG-03SEP - Classroom Set-up, 8-3p
• 01SEP - New Teacher Orientation, 9am
• 08-09SEP - All Staff Opening Day PD, 8:30-3:20p
• 10SEP - First day of School!
• 11SEP - Clubs Fair during lunch
• 14-18SEP - Spirit Week
• 21SEP - Yom Kippor - no school
• 24SEP - In-person Family Conferences, 5-7:30p
• 25SEP - PTA Breakfast with Admin, 9am

Announcements:

• Teachers are invited in this week, Aug 31- Sep 3 to set-up classrooms for training rate persession (up to 5 hours). 
• You MUST clock in and out in order to be paid. 
• The buildings hours are 8:00 - 3:00 pm this week, please be mindful that there is no flexibility around those hours since we do not have a permit in place.
• If you'd like to pick up your keys please stop by room 301.
• Need help with classroom set-up? National Honor Society members are available to help set up your classroom Monday to Thursday. Please email Amanda at aethridge@schools.nyc.gov if you’re interested so she can coordinate times.

• You are welcome to decorate your classroom the way you see fit! Please mind these Dos and Don'ts:
• DO NOT tape anything on the front of the doors
• DO NOT to fully cover the windows on the doors
• DO NOT place any excess furniture or trash in the hallways. If you have extra furniture, please try to find a home for it in another classroom or label it to move to the locker room on the 5th floor.
• DO NOT dispose of any materials or textbooks. Please find them a new home with another teacher OR continue to store in your closets. We have limited storage space in our school, leaving us only with classroom storage closets as our only option.
• DO NOT use nails or tape anything else that damages the paint on the walls.  Folks have had success with command strips or Blu Tack.  
• DO fill the room with subject matter decorations & supplies
• DO make the room warm and welcoming
• DO make a folder outside of your room for your attendance sheets
• DO visit the general supply closet (across from 145, our main office) for any materials you might need
• DO set-up desks in groups.  We believe in collaboration and discourse.  Rows inhibit this, so please set the desks up so that students are encouraged to work together.
• Please check your furniture and technology.  All rooms should have:
• A cart with 25 Chromebooks.
• A document camera and projector.
• At least 25 student desks & 25 student seats.  Most classes are fewer than this but we do have limited storage for furniture in our school.  So, please try to find a use for the extra desks (e.g. resource station...independent work site...conference site..etc)
• Please check in with Kelly and Rosie in room 401 if you have any needs for your classrooms.

• By EOD September 9th, please review the attached letter IEP Provider Notification of your responsibilities regarding students with IEPs, including the requirements under Chapter 408 regulations. Once you have reviewed the letter and have been provided with the list of your assigned students with IEPs, please complete the acknowledgement form.
  By completing the acknowledgement, you are confirming that:
• You have reviewed and understand the requirements outlined in the letter.
• You understand your role and responsibilities in supporting students with IEPs.
• You understand the applicable requirements under Chapter 408 regulations.
• You acknowledge your responsibility to implement and follow the required procedures.

• We kick off the school year with two days of full staff PD on September 8-9. 
• Both days run from 8:30-3:20p, per contract. 
• I am working to confirm how late the building will stay open on September 8-9th and will let you know.

• September 8: Day One Agenda
• 8:00 AM  -  Optional Breakfast & Coffee (provided by UAI)
• 8:30 AM  -  Introductions & Connecting
• 9:15 AM  -  Principal’s Address
• 9:45 AM  -  State of the School SY26-27
• 10:15 AM  -  Break
• 10:30 AM  -  Science Of Reading Context & Purpose
• 11:30 PM  -  Lunch (provided by UAI)
• 12:30 PM  -  Review Staff Handbook
• 1:30 PM  -  Subject Teams Meet 
• 2:30 PM  -  Classroom Set-Up & Sexual Harassment training

• September 9: Day Two Agenda
• 8:30 AM  - Community Builder
• 9:00 AM  - What is Productive Struggle?
• 10:15 AM  - Break
• 10:30 AM  - Subject Teams Meet
• 11:30 AM  - Lunch (Campus lunch provided by school cafeteria)
• 12:30 PM  - First Day Logistics
• 1:00 PM  - Building Relationships
• 1:30 PM  - Classroom Set-Up

Instruction and Curriculum Updates.

• See here for our Master Schedule!
• Heads up, some big changes are coming this year...
• For the first time ever we are down to one sixth grade class. While we prefer to have more, trimming down to one will allow us to open an additional ICT section in the 8/9 band and allows us to program our 8th graders for Advisory, in addition to 6th and 7th. 
• All students will now have lunch during 4th period, 6-12. We will have quiet room options for lunch for both MS and HS students. By having one lunch period we open up the possibility for teacher teams to meet vertically and it allows all students engage in lunch clubs and student activities together. 

• See here for the updated Pacing Guide template. It includes all testing & key calendar dates. 
• Please make a copy before editing & share to your coteachers & Kelly, Annie, and Rosie by EOD 09SEP!

• The 2026 NYSESLAT data was released. The NYSESLAT is New York State's annual assessment that measures English Language Learners' proficiency across Listening, Speaking, Reading, and Writing. It places students into five proficiency levels—from Entering to Commanding. Once a student reaches commanding or scores a 3 on the MS ELA exam or a 65%+ on the ELA Regents, they are officially considered a Former ELL. This year, we had HUGE gains!
• 74% of ELLs improved by at least one proficiency level
• 20 ELLs reached proficiency!!!! 13 by scoring Commanding on the NYSESLAT and 7 by earning a 65% or higher on the ELA Regents Exam. These students will still receive ELL support services for 2 years but this is HUGE and the result of a coordinated, multi-year effort to support our kids with language needs. Excellent work all!

Operational Updates.

• Please see here for our 2026-27 Staff Directory.
• All staff who need will receive technology, keys and elevator passes on the first day of PD.
• Teachers will also receive general classroom supplies on September 8th.
• Purchases are paused for now - until more money is released in our budget we are unable to complete purchases deemed non-essential. 
• All purchase requests must be made through this form for this year! 

Family and Community Updates.

• Our PTA/SLT calendar for the year is complete, please see here for more info. Our goal this year is to drastically increase family involvement and attendance at school events!
• Our first PTA meeting is scheduled for September 25th - 9am breakfast with Admin. 

Persession Postings: Please Use this FORM to apply.

• Senior Activities Coordinator: Organize and plan all senior activities for the full year including: hoodie design, yearbook, senior trip, senior BBQ, prom, graduation. 
• 40 hours of persession.