16 September 2010
I want to personally assure you that we take the job of supervising and mentoring our cadets very seriously and will work hard both with and for you to help each cadet make this school year a successful one. As tough as it may be on some of the cadets and the parents, we have asked all of you to try to limit your contact with the cadets over the four weeks unless it is extremely necessary. Believe it or not, this will make it much easier for the transition into their new life away from home. Before they know it, the four weeks of new cadet training will be over and many of them will be headed home for a couple of days during their first open weekend.
A reminder to parents that no old or new boarding cadets will be allowed to leave campus for the next four weeks as we try to re-acclimate them back into cadet life and get them focused on their academics. We ask that parents not schedule any appointments or events during this time that will require your cadet to leave school. They will have several mandatory events over the next couple of weekends, and in the case of new cadets, they also have several training requirements to accomplish during the week and over the weekend. We do realize the Jewish Holiday “Yom Kippur” is this weekend and provisions are in place to insure our Jewish students attend service at the Synagogue at West Point both Friday evening and Saturday, and that they have the full opportunity to fast through Saturday evening.
Remember if you have any questions concerning your son/daughter’s health, safety or welfare during their stay here at NYMA please feel free to contact their individual TAC Officers, at 845-534-3710 and the following extensions:
Jones Barracks – (All Male
Cadets) ext. 4274 – Staff SGT Brockington
Pattillo Hall – (All Female
Cadets) ext. 4243 – SGT Gutierrez
Parents remember this is a closed weekend
and selected cadets will be going bowling Friday evening and white water
rafting Sunday.
The 2010-2011 school year has begun with great expectations and exciting opportunities for your son or daughter.
CURRICULUM: First, over the summer we re-engineered the curriculum and the faculty to specifically address the academic rigor, global perspective and personal resilience that colleges and universities and national workforce/business leaders are asking for out of top high scholars (see article below).
We have reworked our schedule to provide the maximum amount of substantive instructional time per week (205 minutes/week per class), frequency of class meetings (4x) and yet also a longer block period built into the schedule for each class (70 minutes) that can be used for expeditionary activity such as science labs, guest speakers, movies, integrated curriculum and other academic needs.
On the academic front, beginning this year, all cadets (other than graduating seniors) will be required to take one year of Latin. (We highly recommend Latin for the Class of 2011 but are not requiring it for them this year.) We are bringing to campus an excellent introductory Latin curriculum that ties study in the language closely to benefits students can gain in English language and grammar, SAT vocabulary, critical thinking skills, classical Western history, and literary connections.
Our new Applied Arts & Technologies program allows cadets an experiential approach to building skills and content fluency, as well as other key tenets such as teamwork, self motivation and organizational skills. Our schedule also allows us to use this period to provide special instruction in Studio Art, SAT Prep, and college application development on certain days of the week. 9th and 10th graders will be working at the beginning of the year in small groups on environmental technology solutions and business innovation projects, 11th graders will be working this fall on beginning their NYMA Thesis (see below) and on preparation for the PSAT (which is where they will compete for National Merit Scholarships), and 12th graders are working this semester on SAT preparation in anticipation of the October and November exam dates.
The NYMA Thesis program launches this year for juniors. To
graduate, every cadet will need to complete and defend a comprehensive thesis
on a subject of their choosing beginning with the Class of 2012. Working on their thesis from the fall of
their junior year until their presentation to a faculty committee at the end of
the first quarter of their senior year, Cadets will be guided in this effort by
their Applied Arts mentor, a faculty advisor, and a thesis advisor from outside
the Academy who is an expert or practitioner in the area of their topic
Our monthly “Saturday Classes” academic enrichment days begin next weekend with a variety of exciting experiential opportunities targeted to different grade groups in the school. This semester, 8th graders and freshmen will be working on field studies and research techniques in forests and streams in the area, sophomores will be learning about Constitutional Law while conducting their own “mock trial” program, while juniors and seniors will be do explorations in the humanities including Public Speaking exercises, improv and acting experiences, and a trip to see Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice.
In addition to several other innovations we will share with you in future editions of the Weekly Express, NYMA faculty will be focusing in on the art of expression in 2010-11. Frequent drilling in grammar, written work expected nearly every day in most classes, and a school-wide vocabulary initiative beginning in September called “Word of the Day” will help us to ensure we are graduating students who are not only capable but highly articulate as well.
From the Admissions Director:
New York Military Academy has been very active out in our community lately. Saturday, September 11, several cadets helped recruit at the Monroe Cheese Festival. Then, on Wednesday, September 15, NYMA had an admissions booth at the Orange County Expo, held at Anthony’s Pier 9.
There
are a couple of upcoming events.
Monday, September 20, NYMA will be represented at the Parent League
School Fair in New York City, at The Loyola School. Then on Sunday, October 3, NYMA will have a booth at the Warwick
Applefest. If you are in the area at
either of these two events, please be sure to stop by and say hello.
Remember, there is incentive to recommend new families to
New York Military Academy so if you know someone who may be interested in NYMA,
be sure to have them contact Mrs.
Southwell at (845) 534-3710 ext. 4272.
Positive word of mouth is our greatest advertiser.
From the Athletic Director:
Welcome back to a great 2010 school year. Here are the upcoming athletic events. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to call or e-mail me at 845-534-3710 ext. 4253 or jmcmillen@nyma.org
Upcoming
Events:
Cross Country – away – Oakwood Friends School
(Poughkeepsie, NY) – 2:30 p.m.
Boys’ Soccer – away – The Master School (West
Simsbury, CT) – 4:00 p.m.
Cross Country –home – Wooster School – 4:00 p.m.
September 24
Boys’ Soccer – away – Forman School (Litchfield,
CT) – 4:00 p.m.
Girls’ Volleyball – home – The Master School –
2:00 p.m.
Football – home – Horace Mann School – 2:30 p.m.
Cross Country –
away – Canterbury School (New Milford, CT) – 2:30 p.m.
From the Cadet
Store Manager:
The Cadet Store
continues to get settled in its new location.
We look forward to serving both the cadets and their families with
quality merchandise at reasonable prices.
Coming soon will be a retail portion of the store for families to
purchase NYMA "gear" when visiting the campus for parades and other
events. The Cadet Store is always open
to suggestions and anyone having any questions or suggestions should feel free
to contact Charlie Williams, Cadet Store Manager at 845-534-3710 ext 4818 or
email cwilliams@nyma.org
From the Senior Army Instructor:
Our new team of cadet leaders are doing great at bringing the
cadet Battalion forward. Small in size
the cadet leaders all have to realize that they will still have to perform all
the tasks of leadership regardless of the size of the Corps. We have focused on building a strong
leadership model focused on each leader having no more than 5-7 cadets as their
span of control. This is key as we strive for the cadet leaders to be truly the
leadership base of the Corps. If
executed right, adult supervision should be one of maximum observation and
minimum direct involvement. This then
should allow for even greater adult mentoring for those cadets that may need
the occasional words of encouragement.