ESF Auditorium Ribbon Cutting Huge Success
On Wednesday, September 10th, the Edgemont School Foundation (ESF) hosted a ribbon cutting event in the newly renovated and upgraded EHS auditorium for district families and community members. Please enjoy photos from the event and if able, donate to help support future efforts.
ESF Funds Standing Desk Pilot in 2nd Grade at Seely Place
The Edgemont School Foundation is proud to have funded a standing desk pilot program in Ms. Lim’s 2nd grade classroom at Seely Place.
Ms. Lim outlines how she plans to incorporate the standing desks in her classroom: “We are using them to create small partnership or group work areas. At the start of independent work, students check in with how they are feeling and have the opportunity to request a standing desk. We maintain a daily checklist to track which students have used the desks, as part of our flexible seating options.
Since we began using the standing desks, we’ve noticed significant improvements in both handwriting quality and overall focus. Students seem more engaged with their work, and the flexibility of the standing desks appears to support their learning and concentration. Students have also taken ownership of their learning and understanding their needs.”
The students have noted the benefits from the new desks as well, stating: “They make me have better handwriting” and “It helps me come closer to the board and see the board better. I am able to focus better.”
Please help us continue to fund projects like this by donating. DONATE HERE!
Yearly Support of the District bond that supports Blanford Field
Each year the Edgemont School Foundation (ESF) donates $33,333 to the district in support of the Bond that renovated and upgraded Blanford Field at EHS. Blanford is used by many sports teams, PE classes at EHS, and the community as a whole.
6th grade hydroponics unit in action!
In June 2023 the Edgemont School Foundation awarded a grant to Mrs. Lugo, the Seely Place 6th grade science teacher, to start a hydroponics unit in her classroom. The students have been working on the classroom garden all year and when the year-long project came to an end, they were able to eat their science projects with a “salad party!” ESF is so thankful to be able to fund projects like this, impacting whole grades at one time.
Seely Place Library/PE/Health Book Refresh and Chess Sets
As the curriculum needs change, our schools must have the most up to date and current books for teaching. The ESF is proud to be able to update the Seely books used in the library, health classes and PE.
How State Aid Impacts Edgemont and Why Ours Has Decreased
The state provides aid under a number of categories, but by far the most important and material bucket is Foundation Aid. The state’s allocations of Foundation Aid to school districts is intended to ensure that all districts in the state have the necessary resources to ensure all students receive a “sound basic education” as required by the state constitution. The formula for calculating Foundation Aid is overly complex; however, what is important to note that the two primary drivers of the differences in aid received amongst schools are:
- Expected Minimum Local Contribution (i.e., the relative wealth of the community), based on a computed tax rate or local share formula that utilizes an income wealth index and a local tax factor.
- Total Aidable Foundation Pupil Units (i.e., enrollment).
In short, the higher the income wealth index the lower the proportional share of the Foundation Aid pot. Conversely, the lower the enrollment, the lower the proportional share of the Foundation Aid pot. Edgemont has a high income wealth index and a mid to low enrollment total. As a result, we receive less aid than neighboring districts who rate differently on these metrics.
Up through the 2023-24 academic year, we saw an increase in the percentage of our revenue budget stemming from state aid. Namely, an increase from 6% of the budget in 2014-15 to 12% of the budget in 2023-24. This is most closely attributed to the state’s commitment to fully fund districts based on the approved Foundation Aid formula. As a result, we saw a 56% increase in our Foundation Aid allocations in two years. That was the last significant increase as we are now “fully funded.” As you can see from the table below, we have now dropped to 10% of our yearly operating budget coming from state aid.
| Year | Budget | Foundation Aid | Total State Aid | Aid as % of Budget |
| 2026 | $ 73, 994,549 | $ 5,040,231 | $ 7,642,718 | 10% |
| 2025 | $ 72,118,709 | $ 4,941,403 | $ 7,319,762 | 10% |
| 2024 | $ 69,374,373 | $ 4,869,652 | $ 8,076,495 | 12% |
| 2023 | $ 67,026,024 | $ 3,541,218 | $ 6,587,323 | 10% |
| 2022 | $ 65,251,389 | $ 2,546,644 | $ 5,163,310 | 8% |
| 2021 | $ 63,616,332 | $ 2,103,877 | $ 4,563,118 | 7% |
| 2020 | $ 61,048,737 | $ 2,104,103 | $ 4,378,532 | 7% |
| 2019 | $ 59,129,371 | $ 2,078,729 | $ 4,571,279 | 8% |
| 2018 | $ 57,092,835 | $ 2,028,138 | $ 4,479,340 | 8% |
| 2017 | $ 55,512,470 | $ 1,960,263 | $ 4,059,081 | 7% |
| 2016 | $ 54,104,349 | $ 1,960,259 | $ 3,669,817 | 7% |
| 2015 | $ 53,149,102 | $ 1,944,439 | $ 3,354,471 | 6% |
Neighboring districts like Ardsley, White Plains, Hastings, and Elmsford receive between 14% and 17.2% of their budget from State Aid. Every dollar counts!
http://WWW.EDGEMONTSCHOOLFOUNDATION.ORG/DONATE
DONATE TODAY!
7th Grade Math PBL Classroom Redesign
Groups of 7th grade math students presented their classroom redesigns in May to administrators, teachers and the Edgemont School Foundation board members. The redesign the best represented a modern Edgemont classroom given mathematical parameters was selected and the classroom furniture was ordered! Please see below for images and quotes from teachers using the new innovative teaching space in D5.
“I would say that having chairs with wheels is a big help even though I was worried about the kids rolling around. It is easy for them to turn and see the white board or the promethean, as well as to turn and face anyone who is speaking. The desks are a little larger than the old desks. It’s helpful for the students to have a little extra space for a textbook or chromebook. And everybody loves to work at a whiteboard table. We’ve gone through more than our share of Expo markers!” – From the teacher of the D5
Quotes from students:
“The furniture allows for group work, and chairs with wheels help a lot because moving a little and fidgeting a little allows you to think better. The whiteboard tables are especially my favorite, because you are able to write on them and do math problems on them. The shape of the regular desks is also really nice, because contrary to a regular square desk, these allow for a better way of placing things and more space.”
“The whiteboard tables allow for a space to write and interact with the surroundings of the classroom. It gives a break from boring seatings and makes it more fun to learn in my opinion.”
“The quality of the new furniture helps me to stay focused, I’m my other classes I’m playing with how wobbly the desks are. But these desks are adjustable so I don’t have that problem.”
“Having flexible furniture makes me happier because I enjoy the learning environment.”
What do the students like about D5 now:
“It is spacious and allows for everyone to move around.”
“I enjoy the color of the tables/chairs and the moving chairs.”
“I like the whiteboard tables.”
“The colors. The pastel green and beige match well and also the chairs and desks are so comfortable. Also, Mrs. Reinmuths plants make the classroom look so bright and relaxed.”
“Flexible and creative seating.”
“I like the fact that there are multiple whiteboard tables”
“I enjoy the whiteboard tables because I could write down notes and other thoughts that I don’t need to write down on my paper.”
“I really like the flexibility of the room.”