A look back: This week in Shelter Island history
10 YEARS AGO
Crowd inspects school’s ‘time-out’ room
It’s a chapter in Shelter Island School history that many might like to forget and one that created headlines throughout the area when it was disclosed that there was a “time-out room” described by one parent as being “the size of a closet . . . the windows are boarded up with bare plywood and the walls and the rubber floors are padded with rubber mats.” The parent called it “a room you would find in a mental institution or a prison: a padded isolation cell” that was used to deal with disruptive elementary children. Superintendent Kenneth Lanier described the room as covered with wall-to-wall carpeting, said it was 14 by 9 feet and said it was an accepted practice in New York State public elementary schools when there are safety concerns. He called it “the last option in a sequential behavior management system.” He said the room was only used when a student’s behavior became dangerous to himself.
POSTSCRIPT: Today’s open and supportive atmosphere under the direction of Superintendent Michael Hynes may be only 10 years away, but parents, teachers and students would call it eons removed from the thinking that influenced the creation of such a time-out room.
20 YEARS AGO
BOE discusses curriculum changes
At the suggestion of then Board of Education member Patricia Reilly, there was a discussion 20 years ago about enhancing the academic high school career education curriculum by expanding existing programs and using aptitude and interest tests, community resources and internships; encouraging participation in college board achievement tests; using standardized tests in fourth and eighth grades; providing SAT training; and more opportunities for independent study and video courses for college credits.
POSTSCRIPT: This summer, Dr. Hynes is in the process of revamping the school program, creating two major “houses” of study — one focusing on math, science and technology and the other on humanities. The changes will also affect the use of space in the building to enhance the programs.
30 YEARS AGO
Record crowd on Island during holiday weekend
In 1983, merchants and residents were describing record crowds of visitors during the July 4 weekend. Ferry services said crowds were generally typical for a July 4 weekend, although during the weekend, North Ferry described less than usual traffic until Monday night when visitors were leaving to return home. Workers there speculated that the many visitors who had arrived here weren’t going off Island for entertainment as much as they had in previous years.
POSTSCRIPT: Traffic already appeared heavier on Island this year by Tuesday and it’s, no doubt, likely to be very busy through what is a four-day weekend as more visitors have discovered the splendors of Shelter Island in recent years.
50 YEARS AGO
Resident group again seeks building code
The Silver Beach Association 50 years ago continued to pressure the Shelter Island Town Board to adopt a building code similar to that in place in other communities to put a halt to some of the shoddy construction the group charged was resulting from “off-Island” contractors. The group was also working to enlist support from other neighborhood associations for their views.
POSTSCRIPT: Fast forward 50 years and some Islanders are arguing there are already more than enough laws on the books to control property owners and fighting to try to kill a dark skies initiative they insist isn’t needed here.
