05-06-08
#6
Superintendent Sawyer attends community "Cottage
Party" in his honor
On
Monday, May 5, nearly 75 Mount Vernon residents
turned out for a community "Cottage Party" in
honor of Dr. W. L. "Tony" Sawyer at Harmony
Designs, located at 115 South Fourth Avenue, in
downtown Mount Vernon. The event was hosted by
Robin and Floyd Myers, and included a sumptuous
buffet, wine, along with coffee and Italian
pastries.
Those who attended the party were concerned citizens
interested in hearing what Dr. Sawyer had to say
about the School District budget vote, but most
importantly, about his overall strategy and plan
to propel the School District in a more positive
direction. The School District has been in a
tailspin for several years, and administrators
have failed to meet their targets academically,
and questions remain on what will be done to
improve the alarming situation.
After the retirement of Superintendent Brenda Smith,
the School District took some bold steps and
elected to contract the services of Dr. Sawyer.
Born in Harlem, Dr. Sawyer spent most of his career as
a teacher and administrator in New York. From
1999 to 2003, he oversaw 41 schools with 46,000
students as the superintendent of Manhattan high
schools. He handled crises including the
aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist
attacks, which he said forced him to instantly
reorganize two schools.
Sawyer then moved to lead the public schools in a city
that was central to the seminal Brown v.
Board of Education desegregation case a
half-century ago. In Topeka, Kansas he ran
schools with about 13,400 students, slightly
more than half of them members of ethnic or
racial minorities.
He said it was a "pivotal experience" to be an
African-American educator in Topeka in 2004 on
the 50th anniversary of the Supreme Court's
decision in Brown. He said that would benefit
him in a majority-black Mount Vernon School
District.
Dr. Sawyer faced some tough questions at the May 5
event, but all the questions were answered in a
professional and satisfactory manner by Dr.
Sawyer.
"I am proud to say that our accomplishments have been
many during my short time as your
Superintendent, thanks to the wonderful and
talented individuals I have working with me,"
said Dr. Sawyer.
Accompanying Dr. Sawyer to the event was the Deputy
Superintendent of Schools, Maureen Gonzalez and
Joe Costello, Assistant Superintendent for
Business, who spoke about the importance of
supporting EXCEL during the budget vote and
numerous other School District endeavors.
One resident asked Dr. Sawyer if he was planning to
hire from within Mount Vernon, since in the past
the School District has hired mostly outsiders
on projects. "I will make sure that the most
qualified individuals are hired, regardless of
where they reside. If the person lives in Mount
Vernon and he is totally qualified - he will be
hired. I can't hire an unqualified individual
for a job simply because he lives in Mount
Vernon," said Dr. Sawyer.
The Q&A session lasted nearly two hours and the
attendees left feeling very satisfied concerning
the answers they received from Dr. Sawyer and
Costello.
The guests asking Dr. Sawyer questions during
the Q&A session
Robin
Meyers (standing) with some of her guests
Another view of the many guests who participated in the
"Cottage Party"
