Shelter Island School and its role in the community: Community Forum asks residents to weigh in  

Researching his landmark 1932 “The History of Shelter Island,” author Ralph G. Duvall could find no records of a Shelter Island School before 1828, except for some meager references in Town archives. 

The author speculates that definitive reports went up in flames when the schoolhouse burned to the ground in the winter of 1827, destroying not just the structure, but all the books and every piece of paper.

But there’s ample evidence that there’s been a school on Shelter Island as early as 1791, and Mr. Duvall believes one even earlier than that, citing the enactment of a law establishing public education in New York State earlier in the 18th Century.

Digging through the records, the author unearthed this: “At a meeting of the inhabitants of the School District including the whole of the Town of Shelter Island, duly warned according to law held at the Meeting House on Shelter Island on the 27th September 1813 … Voted: To raise by tax to build or purchase a District School House & Three Hundred Dollars. Voted: That the Annual School Meetings be on the first Tuesday of April, at the place where the Town Meeting is held.” (In a witty aside, Mr. Duvall, writing in the late 1920’s, noted: “That was in the good old days when a schoolhouse could be built for what it costs now to build a very plain one car garage.”)

Supporting a school on Shelter Island has always been a priority, as with most communities. The Island’s school building saw improvements and enlargements through the years, especially in 1884 and 1900. The large brick building was added in 1925. And in 1951, after further renovations and additions, the present building was dedicated.

Always one of the central institutions on Shelter Island, the school, its administration, its role in Island life, and its future is the subject of the seventh Reporter Community Forum, sponsored by Dime Bank and Suffolk Security Systems, titled: “The State of Shelter Island School and its Role in the Community.” 

The free event is scheduled for Thursday, April 30 in the Fellowship Hall of the Presbyterian Church from 5:30 to 7 p.m.

In August 2024 the Reporter’s publisher and editorial staff decided, after committing to continue publishing print and digital editions of the paper, to do even more to keep their connection to the community it serves solid and engaged. It instituted the Reporter Forums, where Islanders are invited to attend public sessions of panels of distinguished experts in particular fields taking questions from a moderator, and exchange ideas and opinions. The staff has noted that they have been successful far beyond their expectations, packing Fellowship Hall for each event.

The upcoming Forum on the school will discuss issues such as the debate — circulating for years — over the very existence of the school. Some residents have asked: With fine schools just short ferry rides away, and a declining enrollment, is it worth it to taxpayers to continue funding the school? 

Other questions to be posed will be: What transition — if any —  is occurring when close to 30% of students now are Latino; how do students themselves feel about attending a school with such a small enrollment, progressing from kindergarten to 12th grade with the same fellow students, with few new faces over that period; is the role the school plays in the life of the Island overrated; if it were to close, would it have any major impact on the everyday day life of Islanders; and what improvements are necessary for the education of young people in a fast-changing business and social landscape of 21st-Century America?

The panel assembled for the Forum, to be mediated by the Reporter’s Charity Robey, includes Superintendent of Schools Brian Doelger, Ed.D.; student Jackson Rohrer; PTSA member Laurene Silvani; and East Hampton Superintendent of Schools Adam Fine and East Hampton School District Superintendent of Business Sam Schneider.

The Forum, again, is scheduled for Thursday, April 30, from 5:30 to 7 p.m. It’s free and all are welcome.