Click here for a PDF of the Elective Update letter.

February 9, 2024

Dear Parents and Guardians of Centereach and Newfield High School Students,

Each year, beginning in January, high school students in the Middle Country Central School District are given the opportunity to choose from a vast array of elective course offerings, that are in addition to courses required for graduation.  Elective courses, for the most part, are non-required and are designed to allow students opportunities to explore interests outside of the core curriculum. 

The Course Offering Book initially contained 109 electives, not including Cosmetology I and II and BOCES CTE offerings.  When we began to tighten up programs as part of our financial recovery plan, we studied the elective offerings carefully to minimize the impact of any change on our students.  

Thirty electives, out of 109, will not be offered during the 2024/25 school year, though they are not being removed from our overall course offerings permanently and may be rotated back in, starting in the 2025/26 school year, if there is student interest and staff availability.  Of the 30 electives, 9 have not run in the past due to a lack of enrollment.  These 9 electives include Finite Math which hasn’t run for at least six years, Creative Writing 2 (last ran in 2019-20), and Anthropology (last ran in 2022-23).  Several of the other electives in this group have had limited student interest. The number of courses that had run during the 2023/24 school year but will not be offered in the 2024/25 school year is actually 21.

Despite the reduction in elective offerings, all students will continue to have strong pathways to graduation, full of opportunities to explore interests.  Extra-curricular programs will remain intact (including sports, musicals and drama productions) as no reductions have been made in any of these areas.

Sincerely,                                                                                Sincerely,

Roberta A. Gerold, Ed.D.                                                       Francine McMahon

Superintendent of Schools                                                      Deputy Superintendent for Instruction