Bay Shore Superintendent Announces Retirement

BAY SHORE, NY — After six years on the job, Bay Shore Superintendent Joseph Bond announced on Thursday that he will be retiring this year.

Bond, who first joined the Bay Shore School District in 2015, said in a statement that he will be retiring on June 30.

"After three decades of serving, educating and leading others, the time has come for me to spend more time with loved ones," he stated. "I have taken great pride in watching our students grow and learn in our classrooms. I have enjoyed cheering for our athletes while our teams excelled in competition. For all of these reasons, and many more, this decision was not an easy one to arrive at, but was the one that was best for me and my family."

Bond began his career as a teacher at South Middle School in the Brentwood School District, where he also served as Chief Building Delegate for the Brentwood Teachers Association. He was also a dedicated coach for the middle school basketball and baseball teams.

He then served as superintendent for the Brentwood School District from 2010 until 2015, when he became superintendent of Bay Shore schools.

Read his message to the community below:

We have taken steps to ensure our English Language Learner families feel welcomed in our District. The Family Engagement Program has helped these families better understand our school structure and how they can help their children succeed. More than that, it has helped to build a greater sense of community for them, bringing together families who have already gone through the program to help newer families who are just beginning their journey.

We have expanded opportunities for our students to excel. Through additions to our Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) course offerings, we have given more students a chance to find their passion and challenge themselves academically. We have also expanded access to additional STEM education at all levels, introducing robotics clubs at the elementary schools and growing the program at the High School.

We opened a dedicated Pre-Kindergarten Center to house our youngest Marauders. This facility, housed in the former Bay Shore Armory, helps to make our community a destination location for families looking for the best education for their children. It provides a head start to all children in the District that will help us to overcome the achievement gap that has historically existed.

We also opened three new rooms at the high school and added two new teams for our students. The new technology center will provide a space for our robotics program to grow. The new dance studio and the new Jumper Leggio Auxiliary Gymnasium provide spaces for our students to explore their artistic and athletic talents. Our girls wrestling team provides an opportunity for our female scholar-athletes to challenge themselves during the winter season. Our esports team meets students where they are and creates a community and scholarship opportunities for students who are interested in gaming.

Our cultural arts programs have continued to thrive, with our students putting on professional quality shows and releasing music they have recorded in our recording studio. Our students have continued to receive awards for their writing and speaking acumen.

We have worked together to make sure that we leave our community a better place for our students. Our energy conservation program has led to not only cost-savings for the District, but the reduction of its carbon footprint. Together, we helped to encourage lawmakers to pass legislation for stop arm cameras to be placed on school buses. The addition of these cameras will ensure that drivers are held accountable for their actions and will help keep our kids safe.

We faced the challenge of COVID-19 and an unexpected shutdown of schools head-on. By working together, we were able to finish out the school year strong and return our students to in-person learning in September. While we will continue to face this unprecedented situation for the remainder of the 2020-2021 school year, I know that we will be able to endure by maintaining our focus on providing the best possible experience for our students.

I would like to thank our Board of Education for placing its trust in me to run this exemplary school district. Working with them over the last six years to serve our students has been one of the highlights of my professional life. The Bay Shore community can rest easy at night knowing that the future of their children is in the capable hands of these five individuals.

I would like to thank the leadership team I was blessed to serve with. Over the last six years, the wisdom and collegiality these individuals have shared with me has been invaluable.

I would also like to thank each and every staff member I have had the pleasure of working with at the Bay Shore School District. We say it all the time, but it does not make it any less true - the administrators, teachers, secretaries, custodians, food service workers, social workers, security guards, psychologists, coaches and technology staff at Bay Shore are the best in the business. I have seen countless examples of individuals going above and beyond for our students - and each other - in ways that do not necessarily happen everywhere. But they happen here. Because Bay Shore is truly a special place filled with special people.

I look forward to continuing the work of the District over the next four months as we continue to meet the educational challenges related to this pandemic. I know that we will finish this school year strong. Bay Shore strong.