Last Thursday, eighteen new teachers went to the Ellenville Central School campus to see their classrooms, meet their co-workers and attend an orientation given by school administrators.

The day consisted of a tour of each building, a discussion session with ECSD school administrators and a bus tour of the area so that, as Ellenville Elementary Principal Holly Eikzsta said, “you can understand where your students are coming from.”

In addition to the new teachers, several veterans were also on hand as part of a teacher-mentoring program designed to provide incoming teachers with a support system.

ECSD Superintendent Lisa Wiles says that the influx of new teachers is due to the fact that the school saw thirteen teachers retire at the end of the last school year as well as the creation of two new pre-kindergarten classes. As of press time, the school was still looking for instructors to teach technology, high school literacy, and family and consumer science.

In addition to all of the new faces, the school will be unveiling some new programs including a new English Language Arts program for the elementary school and 'Project Success', which will assist incoming ninth graders with the transition from middle school to high school.

The high school already rolled out the first installment of what Principal Ron Chiasson hopes to make a tradition: Freshman Experience.

About one-fifth of Ellenville's freshman class showed up to the school on August 23 for over 24 hours of fun and fellowship as teachers Nicole Krom and Bryan Bonitz organized different events on the school's ropes course.

The idea for the event started last year when Chiasson noticed a trapeze in the school's gymnasium and wondered what it was for. His curiosity soon led him elsewhere on the school grounds where he found climbing ropes, low ropes, and high ropes.

The course was built from a grant funding that State Senator John Bonacic had procured seven years ago.

“When I saw all of this stuff I said, 'Great. How can we use it?' Then I found out that every physical education teacher was trained on how to use it,” said Chiasson. Chiasson even got involved in the day's activities when he participated in a 'trust fall', which forces one person to fall backward from a height of a few feet into a crowd of people who catch him or her.

“Oh, my heart was racing!” said Chiasson, with a smile on his face.

Chiasson hopes to increase the Freshman Experience's numbers next year as he wants to make it the first high school experience for Ellenville students.

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