BP Oddo announced that he will host a free thyroid cancer screening day at Borough Hall. The screenings will take place on Thursday, July 20th from 11:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. in Conference Room 125. The screenings are sponsored by HeartScan Services.
 
The rate of diagnosis of thyroid cancer has increased in recent years due to improvements to technology. In many cases, physicians cannot feel a nodule, but cancer can be detected through ultrasound screenings. The survival rate of thyroid cancer is very high when the cancer is found in early stages.
 
“I encourage all Staten Islanders to take advantage of these free screenings,” said Borough President Oddo. “We are providing these services to encourage Staten Islanders to engage in preventative measures and take charge of their health. The earlier cancer is found, the easier it is to treat.”
 
An appointment must be made to be screened. Contact Renee Sarno at 718-816-2133 to reserve your appointment. 

​On Friday, June 23rd, Borough President James Oddo joined with members of the Department of Education to host a training session for teachers in iCivics. Through a partnership between the Borough President and the DOE, teachers from Staten Island public schools were trained in how to use this educational tool as part of their curriculum. Teachers will use the program as part of their Social Studies curriculum beginning in 3rd grade and continuing through the high school level. Previously, civics was only taught briefly in high school.
 
At the training session, teachers received an orientation from iCivics representatives on how to implement the game-based learning program in the classroom. Participants were able to explore the site, create accounts and start their virtual classrooms. The workshop put an emphasis on the train-the-trainer model, encouraging teachers to return to their schools and train other teachers. Teacher guides were also distributed to participants.
 
“This is a priority of ours,” noted BP Oddo. “We live in an era where we have more access to information than ever before, yet people still don’t understand how our government and country works. We want to reemphasize the teaching of civics, and iCivics is a great tool to do this. It draws students in through games and creates better informed citizens, who will be the true leaders of tomorrow. Focusing on teaching civics in our schools is a great way to get at society’s challenges. The more students learn about civics, the more likely they are to be positive agents of change in the future.”
 
“iCivics allows us to grow better civic-minded students,” said Christine Zapata of the DOE’s Staten Island Borough Field Support Center. “It allows kids to get deeper into topics they normally wouldn’t have learned about so early in their careers. Why wait until kids are 17 or 18 years old to make them better civic-minded citizens?”
 
“Students love iCivics,” said Amber Coleman-Mortley, Digital Media Manager for iCivics. “It puts them in the driver’s seat, where they can get firsthand experience in civics. We support the games with a curriculum for teachers to make sure that students understand the concepts fully.”
 
iCivics is a not-for-profit program founded by former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor in 2009. The program teaches students how government works by having them experience it directly through a series of interactive games. iCivics offers 19 free interactive games that focus on different aspects of civics education. It is used by over 150,000 teachers in all 50 states, reaching over 5 million students every year.

On Thursday, June 22nd, BP Oddo invited the Farrell and Petrides Baseball Teams and the Wagner Softball Team to Borough Hall to congratulate the players and coaches on winning their respective championships.

Msgr. Farrell High School had an undefeated regular season (18-0), winning two championships in the past three years. The Petrides School won their school’s first baseball championship after an undefeated season (20-0). Susan Wagner High School also won their school’s first softball title, with a season record of 20-6.

“Whether you’re learning the importance of chemistry or the importance of leadership, the things you learn on and off the field will help you later in life,” BP Oddo told the students. “You all should be proud of your accomplishments.”

After chatting with the teams and showing them around Borough Hall, BP Oddo faced off against the players in a quick wiffleball game. 

On Wednesday, June 21st, BP Oddo joined with representatives of the Department of Education, as well as Borough Student Advisory Council (BSAC) student representatives, to announce the allocation of $21,189,000 in capital funding for educational purposes in Fiscal Year 18.

The students—who represented CSI High School for International Studies, Gaynor McCown Expeditionary Learning School, New Dorp High School, Susan Wagner High School and Tottenville High School—were invited back to Borough Hall to see firsthand how their voices can make a difference. At the end of April, these same representatives brought their school’s concerns to the BP in hopes that he would listen and take their ideas into consideration when allocating taxpayer money the following year. BP Oddo did just that, and their proposals represent five of the projects put forward in the allocated budget for educational funding.

The projects that were funded from the BSAC meeting were as follows:

• New Dorp High School - Field Lights - $1,500,000
• CSI High School for International Studies - New Track - $100,000
• Tottenville High School - Track - $250,000
• Susan Wagner High School - Wiring for air conditioning - $600,000
• Gaynor McCown Expeditionary Learning School - Upgrade girls locker room - $250,000

“If you look at any of the challenges we have as a community on Staten Island, across the city, or across the country, the solution and the way to improve those things is investing in young people, making them the best they can be and giving them the tools they need to succeed,” BP Oddo told the students. “Thus, when we have the opportunity to give out taxpayer money to a certain project, we have put an emphasis on educational problems. I hope you, as students, realize you do in fact have a say in what happens in your community.”

“It means so much to know that there are people listening to us. We want to leave a legacy. Knowing that future students are going to enjoy field lights because of this opportunity you gave us is such an amazing feeling,” said a New Dorp High School student.

This year’s funding represents a portion of the $51,928,000 of taxpayer money that BP Oddo has allocated for education since taking office in 2014.

See below for all of this year's educational funding allocations:

On Tuesday, June 20th, BP Oddo joined with representatives of Staten Island University Hospital to unveil five new state-of-the-art ambulances he helped fund. These ambulances function as part of the 911 system, allowing EMTs and Paramedics to respond quickly to dire situations.

The new ambulances run on regular gasoline instead of diesel, which is more environmentally friendly and helps reduce engine noise. The ambulance is equipped with brand new power-load stability, making the job easier for the emergency professionals and giving more comfort to the patients while they are being loaded to the vehicle.

"Last year, Staten Islanders reached out to emergency medical professionals for help 50,000 times,” said BP Oddo, noting that Staten Island is the only borough to hold a ceremony that honors EMS workers. “We want to give these professionals all the tools they need to help, and when we allocate tax dollars, we want it to go to the front line. These ambulances are five concrete examples of accomplishing that."
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Along with BP Oddo, the ambulances were funded by former City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, former Borough President James Molinaro and Council Member Debi Rose. The ambulances will officially join the fleet at the end of June.

On Thursday, June 15, BP Oddo joined with DSNY Commissioner Kathryn Garcia to kick off the “Own the 18” weekend. This program, which was first announced in May, encourages Staten Islanders to help improve the litter problem by simply complying with New York City law to clean the sidewalk and 18 inches into the street in front of their properties.

At the event, BP Oddo and Commissioner Garcia discussed the importance of bringing attention to the 18 inch law in order to make progress with the litter problem facing Staten Island.

“What we’re trying to do is encourage Staten Islanders to be a part of the solution,” BP Oddo noted. “On the weekend of June 18th, we want Staten Island property owners to go out and spend five minutes cleaning up the sidewalk and 18 inches into the street in front of their property. Litter is needless, and we have to change the mindset and the culture around littering. It is not normal, it is not acceptable and it should not be a part of everyday life on Staten Island, and that is an ongoing struggle.”

Commissioner Garcia encouraged community involvement, saying, “We need the public. We can't keep New York City clean by ourselves, especially when we see people littering. We hope that ‘Own the 18’ brings more awareness of the 18 inch law and that people get involved in keeping their community clean.”

You can sign up to "Own the 18" here.

On Wednesday, June 7th, BP Oddo joined with members of the community at the Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex to launch the Staten Island Child Wellness Initiative (CWI). This coalition was created through help of the community along with the partnership of the Borough President James Oddo and the Staten Island Partnership for Community Wellness (SIPCW).
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The idea for CWI was generated from a series of meetings of BP Oddo’s Health and Wellness Advisory Council, in which participants engaged in spirited discussions about how they could have the greatest impact on Staten Island’s health needs, particularly those of young people.

The CWI was created in order to increase the opportunities for healthy living for children and families and to reduce childhood obesity. The aim is to provide accessible options for active living as well as availability of fresh and healthy food, aiming to bring 80 percent of children below high school age to a healthy weight.

An assortment of speakers at the ceremony discussed the issue of childhood obesity, including Deputy Mayor Dr. Herminia Palacio.

“It is clear to see that childhood obesity is a real problem that must be addressed to prevent a lifetime of illness,” said Borough President Oddo. “We are getting to the heart of the matter by addressing child wellness and child health.” 

Adrienne Abbate, Executive Director of the SIPCW, noted the importance of the community member engagement, saying, “By working together with partners across Staten Island to address this urgent issue, we can shape a healthy future for our children, and reverse the rising rates of obesity in our borough. Although this is a borough-wide initiative, the CWI will use data to target communities and neighborhoods that have higher need and poorer health outcomes.”

The CWI’s progress will be measured by changes in BMI over time in Staten Island children