Cecil H. Parker School students and staff celebrate their school

Cecil H. Parker School held a Parker Day celebration Wednesday for its students, who bid farewell to each other with food, music and games – as several former students and retired staffers joined to honor the school for the last time before the school closes at the end of the school year.

Jaani Gordon, a third grader at Cecil H. Parker School, won first place in his division during the annual spelling bee on Friday morning. Scholars marched into the auditorium chanting “The spelling bee is here, the spelling bee is here, at Cecil H. Parker School the spelling bee is here.” The room was buzzing with excitement as loved ones gathered to watch scholars put their knowledge to the test.

Scholars in Julia Gomes-Arias’ fourth-grade classroom at Cecil H. Parker School are currently conducting a research project on different species of animals. Students are working in groups to discover facts about the animals and assemble information to piece together a well-written research report. Ms. Gomes’ students are extremely excited to be working together to write about animals such as harp seals, frogs, sea lions, and cheetahs.

Students at Cecil H. Parker School celebrated National School Counseling Week (NSCW) with class visits from School Counselor Nikia Jones and Mercy HEART (Helping Evidence-Based Advocates with Responsive Training) Grant interns. The HEART Grant is a partnership with Mercy University that allows counseling students to intern and train in the District. 

“Who’s a good reader?” asked the Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. President Eddie Campbell to students in Ebony Cooper-Williams fourth grade class on Friday, January 24, 2025, at Cecil H. Parker School during their reading celebration. Students shot their hands up in excitement before diving into their read-a-loud session with members of the New Rochelle-White Plains Alumni Chapter. 

The gymnasium was filled with clamor and delight as students and parents walked around reading the student writing displayed on the wall and speaking with the authors about their works. On Thursday, December 19, 2024, Cecil H. Parker School held a Winter Literacy Ball where fourth, fifth ,and sixth-grade students got to show off the writing skills they’ve learned and the multiple writing exercises that they’ve completed since the beginning of the year. 

On Wednesday, October 30, 2024, as part of their unit on community, pre-K classes at Cecil H. Parker School were visited by Juan Almonte, welding instructor and supervisor with the NYC Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). Mr. Almonte has been welding with the MTA for 25 years. He brought in parts of his safety equipment for scholars to engage with, including his welding helmet, gloves, jacket and apron. Scholars were excited to learn that welders use fire as hot as lightning to melt and repair train tracks for the community.

On Friday, October 25, 2024, students in Ms. Cioffi’s kindergarten class at Cecil H. Parker School were introduced to a variety of different critters from the Greenburgh Nature Center. The center visited Parker to give students an unforgettable hands-on experience. Students interacted with animals such as ferrets, bearded dragons and snakes!