Details

Written by: Joanne Wallenstein

Published: 25 August 2026

Created: 25 August 2026

Last Updated: 25 August 2026

Hits: 837

School Board Leaders Colleen Brown and Suzie HahnThis is not the first time Scarsdale’s School Board President and Vice President have worked together. In fact, the two have been in lockstep for years, since they chaired the PTA Calendar Committee in 2016-17. When School Board President Suzie Hahn was PTA President at Quaker Ridge, Colleen Brown was Vice President. Fast forward, they were both elected to the Scarsdale School Board in 2022, re-elected in 2025 and are now both serving for their fifth year. Their boys are both SHS juniors – and two of their children share a birthday. They say that even their kids are similar in many ways.

It was clear that they’re in tune on many key issues during a recent conversation we had at Scarsdale Library to open the school year.

Hahn is now doing her second year as Board President – with Brown as a second year Vice President. They explained that the majority of the board is serving their first terms, and by taking on another year of leadership, Hahn and Brown were giving newer members time to learn the rules and gain some experience in order to ensure a succession plan for future years.

In addition to serving as President of the Scarsdale School Board, this year Hahn is also the President of the Westchester Putnam School Board Association, a group that provides training and networking for school board members and advocates for public education.

What’s top of mind for the two? Following a tumultuous spring, their goal is to focus on “bringing the community together so that we are one Scarsdale … that celebrates our differences.”

They discussed a partnership with a group called “Common Circles” that gathers personal profiles and artwork from community members and creates an interactive exhibit specific to Scarsdale that will be displayed in the Great Hall of the Scarsdale Middle School in February. In addition to the exhibition, the program includes an AI component which allows users to interact with those portrayed, asking questions and sharing stories. A classroom curriculum is built around it as well. The program is funded by the Scarsdale Education Foundation.

Turning to dollars and sense we discussed the tax cap and the limitations it has placed on school spending. Asked if she thought the tax cap might be repealed, Hahn said, “I think it is here to stay. As a community we might decide to go beyond it.” She noted that the 2026-27 school budget was able to preserve elementary class sizes and the house system at the middle school but some requests had to be put aside. Extra social workers at the elementary schools, the expansion of the ICT program at the middle school and an additional math teacher at the high school all had to be omitted from the budget in order to come in below the state mandated tax cap.

Hahn noted that some were questioning proposed additions to the staff at a time of flat or decreasing enrollment. She said, “We are actually cutting staff through attrition due to retirements. But people should also know that students are taking more courses. Some students sign up for multiple STEM classes such as engineering, AT statistics and computer science. Some kids have no free periods.” The school needs the staff to teach these courses.

On the other hand, Brown and Hahn were happy to say that the new common lunch program at the high school, where the entire school has the same lunchtime, has been a big success. The longer lunch hour allows club meetings, meetings with teachers and works for those who are busy with athletic practices after school. Given the longer time period, there is not a mad rush for food and upper classman have the chance to go out for lunch if they like.

Funds from the 2026 bond referendum will be used to renovate the Little Theater into more flexible space with flexible furniture that can also be used for a lunch venue.

Speaking just a few days before the first School Board meeting, we asked what they hoped for the coming year.

Brown had a ready reply: She said, “We would like to encourage the community to engage with the Board, to attend Board coffees, attend Board of Education meetings, talk to your PTA liaisons and email us.

They also asked everyone to sign up to receive emails from the district here Scarsdale Schools Emails Signup so that you won't miss future school community communications.

Details

Written by: Joanne Wallenstein

Published: 06 August 2026

Created: 06 August 2026

Last Updated: 06 August 2026

Hits: 771

Scarsdale author Barbara Josselsohn will conduct a workshop on the art of letter-writing, inspired by her book The Paper House, on Friday September 25 at 1 pm at the JCC Mid-Westchester.

Rediscover the beauty and meaning of putting pen to paper, this creative writing workshop invites you to slow down, reflect, and explore the power of a handwritten letter.

In Josselsohn's book The Paper House, Kayla returns to the island home of her Great Aunt Tilly and reopens the magical stationery shop where people once wrote letters to those they had lost, missed, or needed to forgive. As Kayla reconnects with the shop and its history, she discovers that putting words on paper can be a way to remember, heal, and find yourself again.

Drawing inspiration from the themes of the novel, you’ll be guided through thoughtful prompts and creative exercises designed to inspire authentic connection. Write a note of gratitude, a message to a loved one, a reflection for your future self, or simply rediscover the joy of handwritten correspondence.

Each participant will leave with a beautifully handwritten letter, a copy of The Paper House, and a packet of stationery to continue the practice of meaningful letter writing long after the workshop ends.

Tea, coffee, and light snacks will be served.

Sign up here.

About the Author

Barbara Josselsohn is a best-selling author of nine historical and contemporary novels, including her newest, The Secret Orphanage, a multigenerational story about an American schoolteacher who becomes embroiled in the French Resistance and a present-day librarian intent on discovering her grandfather’s wartime secrets.

Barbara is a member of the Women’s Fiction Writers Association and teaches writing workshops at the Writing Institute at Sarah Lawrence College, Westport Writers Workshop, Scarsdale Library, and privately. She has published hundreds of articles and essays in major and regional publications about family, home, and relationships.

Details

Written by: Joanne Wallenstein

Published: 28 July 2026

Created: 28 July 2026

Last Updated: 28 July 2026

Hits: 1135

Marian Green with Elizabeth LawrenceThe following letter was written by Lena Crandall

Letter to the Community

Please join me in honoring the late Marian Green. In your own heart determine what would have pleased Marian. Think about how you met her, how she might have helped you or your loved one, what she was passionate about. Then, do something that would have made Marian happy. She was so creative and caring it could be just about anything.

- Be kind to a child who is struggling.

- Stop, listen, show interest and be nice to whoever you meet.

- Invite someone you think might be on their own to join you to do something.

- Try to find some love and compassion in your heart for Marian’s son Chester. Marian was his advocate and protector. If she were here she would want him to receive proper care.

- Nurture nature: Marian was a Master Gardener; based on my friendship with her and the informal design of her front yard, I’m quite confident that she set supporting the ecosystem as her number one priority.

- Make a donation to one of the many causes Marian cared about. Please provide suggestions in the comments below.

After a lot of thought, I’ve decided to make my donation in memory of Marian to The Friends of Weinberg Nature Center. Weinberg is a place that was originally donated to the Village of Scarsdale for the community to creatively come together in a positive way. [I’ve read the deed.] It’s a local haven for people to relax in nature, learn about the environment and more. See www.weinbergnaturecenter.org. It reminds me of my special friend…

Marian would most likely just want you to be nice to someone, including yourself. This selfless woman never looked for applause or attention; she did whatever she could to be a positive force in other’s lives.

And let’s get together to celebrate Marian’s life. Let me know if something is already in the works or give me a call to discuss ideas. Kindly text first. My cell number is 914-874-3779. Or I can infrequently be reached by email at Lena.crandall@verizon.net.

Thank you for your random act of kindness in memory of Marian.

Lena Crandall

Details

Written by: Joanne Wallenstein

Published: 15 July 2026

Created: 15 July 2026

Last Updated: 15 July 2026

Hits: 2025

Marian Green, Joe Lawrence, Tim Foley and Elizabeth LawrenceThe absence of a familiar presence at Village Board meetings was noted at the July 14, 2026 meeting. Mayor Justin Arest opened the meeting with the following comments about Marian Green who was killed in a disturbing assault in her home over July 4th weekend. Green was the Chair of the Advisory Council for People with Disabilities and members of the council came to Village Hall to honor her.

Arest said the following about Green:

“I want to take a moment to acknowledge the profound loss our community suffered this past week.

Marian Green was a passionate and unwavering advocate for residents with disabilities. She devoted well over a decade to the Village's Council on People with Disabilities, including many years as its Chair, and before that chaired the C.H.I.L.D. committee, Children Having Individual Learning Differences, a network of Scarsdale families supporting students with learning differences. Her passing is a loss for the many residents she advocated for, and for this Village as a whole.

For those who attended our meetings, Marian's voice was a familiar and welcome one at this podium. She spoke up for accessible sidewalks, reminding us that safer walkways serve not only residents with disabilities, but commuters, schoolchildren, parents, joggers, walk-to-worshippers, dog walkers, and anyone else who enjoys the simple pleasure of walking. She advocated for sufficient handicap parking, for inclusive programming for families of children with learning differences, for a library that lived up to the Americans with Disabilities Act, and for a Scarsdale where belonging was not conditional.

Marian did this work with patience, with data, and with precision. At our August work session, she walked the Board through the sidewalk condition assessment and challenged us to think more carefully about accessibility throughout the Village. She closed that discussion by saying, "I am optimistic that we are moving forward." At our November work session on sidewalks and paving, she urged the Board to invest in concrete sidewalks, calling them an investment with, in her words, "immediate ROI and long term" impact, and encouraged us not to let the rebuild become a slow, incremental "drip, drip, drip." That challenge has stayed with me. We share her belief that durable infrastructure is a worthwhile investment, and our goal is to continue making meaningful progress, pursuing grant opportunities wherever possible, and improving accessibility throughout the Village. In December, when the conversation turned to budget line items, she reminded us not to conflate sidewalks with pathways because the distinction mattered for how we allocated resources and set expectations. That precision was Marian: not simply raising concerns, but helping us make better decisions.

Marian's advocacy touched more than one institution in this Village. Our Library Director shared a reflection I want to pass along tonight. Marian reached out to her when she first came to work at the library in 2009, inviting her to a Council on People with Disabilities meeting. From Marian, she learned about the accessibility challenges of the library building, and that early conversation helped inform the thinking behind its eventual renovation. She was a stalwart supporter of accessibility for all, approaching every issue with both a sense of humor and compassion. She loved living in Scarsdale, and she loved the library. She even participated in the library's strategic planning focus group. That is the Marian so many of us knew: not simply raising concerns, but rolling up her sleeves and helping to shape the answers.

The Board of Trustees and I have long appreciated her thoughtful participation and her commitment to making Scarsdale more accessible and inclusive. Her voice helped shape the sidewalks we are rebuilding, contributed to the thinking behind the library's accessibility improvements, and leaves behind a stronger culture of advocacy on our Council on People with Disabilities. We intend to continue building on that work in the years ahead.

I ask that we hold Marian's family, her friends, and everyone she touched through her advocacy in our thoughts.

I now ask everyone here this evening, and those watching from home, to join me in a moment of silence in memory of Marian Green. May her memory be a blessing.

Out of respect for the judicial process now underway, I won't say anything about the pending case. But I want to thank, on behalf of the Board and the entire community, the members of the Scarsdale Police Department. Chief DelBene and his officers responded with professionalism, care, and resolve to a call no community ever wants to receive. They worked through the night and the days that followed, alongside the Westchester County Department of Public Safety and the Westchester County District Attorney's Office, to secure the scene, gather evidence, and bring the matter into the hands of the courts. Their work does not undo this loss, but it reflects the standard of service the residents of Scarsdale can count on. To Chief DelBene and every officer and investigator involved, thank you.”

During Public Comments, Susan Petula, who served on the Advisory Council on People with Disabilities make the following comments on behalf of the council. She said,

“We are shocked and profoundly saddened by the sudden passing of our council chairperson and friend, Marian Green. She lived to serve and advocate throughout the village. This place we all call home is a better community because Marian chose to invest her skills and energy to make a difference in Scarsdale. She will forward by remember as passionate, bright, kind, generous, creative and selfless. Our community has lost a unique gem with Marian’s passing. As her fellow Council on People with Disabilities Committee members, we ask all who read or hear this message to please pause for a moment today to remember Marian and legacy of service."