Our School

Message to Students and Families:

It is my honor to welcome you to Lakewood Elementary School in the beautiful town of Congers!  

I began my career almost 30 years ago as an elementary school teacher in Yonkers, NY where I was also born and raised. Life took me up to Putnam County, where I continued teaching in Carmel. After 18 years in the classroom, I made the leap to school administration and served as both a tenured assistant principal and tenured principal at Dows Lane Elementary School in the Irvington Union Free School District in Westchester.  

The desire to be closer to my family and young children continued my journey to Lakewood Elementary School in the Clarkstown Central School District. I was truly blessed to be welcomed by, and become a part of, this school community. Lakewood is a truly special school that serves its community with a dedication to high academic standards, a strong system of academic and social emotional support, and a daily commitment to kindness, love and acceptance. 

Our school's motto is "Pride in Excellence," and all of our Lakewood Lions are provided a safe, loving environment every day so that they can learn, be their best selves and demonstrate valuable habits of mind. As the principal, I take the safety and well-being of each and every student very seriously. Please be assured that our dedicated staff works as a collaborative team to ensure your child will reach their potential on a daily basis. 

All K-5 students are presented with a robust and differentiated curriculum inclusive of reading, writing, phonics (K-2), math, science and social studies. We believe in hands-on/minds-on learning that is designed to engage learners in the knowledge and skills needed to create meaning. Teaching students how to think and explore optimizes their desire to learn and grow each and every day. As I say to students every morning:

You will be smarter today than you were yesterday
because you are at Lakewood! 

In addition to core instruction, students will engage in foreign language instruction (FLES) to foster a love of language and culture in Spanish, a cutting-edge enrichment program that offers rotations of STEM units in all classrooms K-5, a band/orchestra and chorus program for grades 3-5, D.A.R.E (Grade 5) and many other programming designed to not only enrich, but enhance the academic school year. Students also engage in weekly special area instruction including: library media, art, music and physical education.

At the heart of our social-emotional learning (SEL) is the Yale RULER approach – incorporating valuable tools to help our K-5 children learn strong emotion-based vocabulary and strategies to regulate their feelings and be their best selves. Every class creates a charter which serves as an agreement between peers to support one another through positive interactions. All of this work promotes a positive school climate and a strong culture for learning.

The Lakewood PTA is a dedicated group of volunteer parents who work closely with our school community to support cultural arts assemblies, class trips, curriculum-based programs and so much more. Lakewood also offers a morning program through the Clarkstown Learning Center and an aftercare program through the YMCA. Having these programs directly in our school provides parents with a safe and convenient option for early arrival and/or later pick up.

Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions or concerns. You can also visit our District and school website for more information.