Administrative Team
PRINCIPAL
On behalf of our entire school community, we would like to welcome you to the 2023-2024 school year at P396K, The Sid Miller Academy!
The best way to become familiar with our school is to become involved in our activities and programs, both in and out of the school. The education process is a partnership between educators, parents, and the community.
We welcome your involvement and look forward to a productive school year filled with engaging instruction and promotion of student academic and social-emotional success, with an emphasis on literacy, and math computation.
Some programs to look forward to are our visual and performing arts programs and productions, social emotional learning - miracle morning SEL program, comfort dog program, SOARing eagles clubs, stations-based multi-skilled model, Sid's daily news broadcast, HMH curriculums, Fountas & Pinnell levelled libraries, inclusion program, multicultural celebrations and our inclusive model throughout all Sid Miller Sites.
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Sid Miller students have a Safe environment, filled with many Opportunities, while engaging in Accelerated learning and Reaching the community.
Together, we can continue to keep our school a wonderful place where each child has a positive and successful learning experience.
At Sid Miller, we are always SOARing and Striving to Greater Heights because.... "We Care!"
Dr. Keisha McCoy-Dailey
ASSISTANT PRINCIPALS
AP Chana Max
With a deep passion for teaching and learning, I embarked on a journey to pursue a degree in education. Along the way, I came to realization that acquiring information and learning new skills encompassed so much more than what we see. This inspired me to pursue my doctoral degree in educational psychology and continue learning and exploring the pathways students take when they acquire new knowledge and what teaching methodologies were most effective in paving the roads for diverse learners.
Ever since I joined The Sid Miller Academy, I felt the passion and drive of the staff members who felt that same eagerness to improve student learning. As a classroom teacher, followed by curriculum coordinator, I was afforded the opportunity to work with students on discovering their strengths and building upon them to make real-life connections. With our independently designed, SOARing Through the Thematic Learning Units curriculum, we get to synthesize best practices, research, data, and experience to develop systems and structures which allowed us to witness exceptional progress in student performance.
Now as Assistant Principal, I look forward to continue working collaboratively to implement our instructional focus and best practices, observing the improved assessment scores and student performance on a daily basis!! I look forward to continue supporting our students and staff, as we travel the road where every student is given the opportunity to SOAR to Greater Heights!
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AP Tiali Kyte
It is indeed a privilege and honor to serve as one of the assistant principals at P396K, the Sid Miller Academy. This position may be new for me, but being a member of this school community is not. I started my educational journey at P396K in 2015, where I began teaching for the first time in a 6:1:1 classroom. The students have always been, and will forever be, my motivation. As an educator, I pushed my students to meet their greatest potential and ensured that they could do so by acquiring the necessary tools through various platforms such as Donors Choose. My teaching philosophy is grounded in the theory that each child learns by doing. Children should be exposed to, and given, opportunities to learn a skill for mastery to be obtained. This belief is deeply rooted in all that I do, for I come from a family of educators, including the late Dr. Walter Kyte, an education pioneer who made a great impact in the field.
At P396K, I had the pleasure of working under the leadership of Dr. Keisha McCoy-Dailey in many capacities. I served as a teacher and then transitioned to a school-based coach. Throughout the years, I collaborated with various stakeholders in order to successfully manage the after-school program, in person and remotely, facilitate professional learning communities, provide professional development sessions, and train teaching assistants. The programs I am most proud of is "Sid Miller Authors", where students wrote and published their own books. As well as the "5th Grade Recognition Ceremony", which I advocated for and facilitated in 2018. The event celebrates our 5th grade students who were moving to the 6th grade. Finally, I served as Dr. Dailey’s Ally in 2021 for the Cahn Fellows Program, where we engaged in a problem of practice to support the growth of P396K. With all these past endeavors, I can only imagine how I will continue to grow and am so excited to see how our children will continue to SOAR.
AP Odessa Branche
It is a pleasure and honor to be the newest member of the administration team. I am extremely proud and excited to join the team and provide support to our students and family at the Main site, P396K@181, and P396K@289. I am here to make every effort to ensure our students SOAR. I come to P396K with a wealth of experience and expertise in instruction and curriculum. I have 10 years of experience working in Special Education in NYC DOE community school and 8 years of experience working in a residential School for children with disabilities. My personal mission as an educator is to provide our students with the necessary tools to become critical thinkers and help them develop to their full potential. At its absolute best, I see P396K as a place where everyone’s expectations are high for themselves and for others, where the responsibility for meeting those expectations is shared, where everything that we do comes back to enabling quality teaching and learning so that every child can SOAR to Greater Heights!
AP Jovia Bowes-Duncan (IA)
I am a dedicated and experienced educator with a passion to foster a positive and inclusive learning environment, as I bring a wealth of knowledge and expertise to my new position as Assistant Principal. Before joining the Sid Miller Academy family, I served as a teacher leader for 4 years, a new teacher mentor and a classroom teacher for 11 years both internationally and locally. I taught special education and general education classes to elementary, middle school and high school students. Throughout my career in education, I have been fortunate to witness the transformative power of learning. I firmly believe that education is the cornerstone of personal growth and societal progress. It is my passion to create an environment where students can thrive academically, socially, and emotionally. As Assistant Principal, my commitment to student success and creating opportunities for growth and achievement aligns perfectly with our school's mission, where students will continue to SOAR to Greater Heights. I firmly believe in the power of collaboration and open communication, and I am excited to work alongside Dr.Dailey, my colleagues, teachers, and support staff to develop and implement strategies that meet the unique needs of our students. I believe in the importance of building strong relationships, not only with our students, but also with their families and the wider community. Together, we can create a supportive network that nurtures the holistic development of our students, equipping them with the skills and knowledge they need to succeed in an ever-changing world. Outside of my professional endeavors, I enjoy spending time with my family, reading books, and participating in community service activities, such as PSAL cross country, indoor and outdoor track and field events, where I served as a coach for 3 years. I believe in leading by example and actively engage in ongoing professional development to stay abreast of the latest research and best practices in education.
I am genuinely excited to embark on this journey with all of you, and I am confident that by working together, we will continue to make a positive difference in the lives of our students, where all of our students will continue to SOAR to Greater Heights!
AP Tamika Guggisberg (IA)
I am honored to be an Assistant Principal at The Sid Miller Academy. I strongly believe in education, learning and growing and I greatly enjoy my occupation. With over 13 years as an educator, I have served different roles in different school settings. I began as a teacher in a day care and preschool setting and then transitioned to P396K- The Sid Miller Academy, as a classroom teacher. At Sid Miller, I facilitated professional learning communities, collaborated on the school curriculum, lead professional development sessions, mentored teachers, and participated in many schoolwide events. I enjoyed working with my K-2 students because they motivated me to be a great teacher and leader in my school community.
As a Unit Teacher at P396K@323 my knowledge, skills and passion as an educator and administrator continued to grow tremendously. Through various collaborations within the building campus, the site was managed successfully for a number of years, and we became a SOARing "family." The site grew to include two ( 2) inclusion classrooms, an additional 6th-8th grade classroom and a vocational program. I lead by example and was engaged in every aspect of this offsite under the direct supervision of Assistant Principal, Ms. Junie Louis Jean and Principal Dr. Keisha McCoy-Dailey.
My philosophy is that children are capable of learning and should be given opportunities to learn in different ways. I also believe in fostering relationships with the school and the community and collaborating to promote student learning. My goal is to create a safe, engaging, rigorous learning environment for all students to become independent members of our society.
I look forward to working together with all stakeholders of our school community as we create positive opportunities to help our students and their families SOAR to Greater Heights.