Editor's Notebook: Week in Review

Rye Patch began the week with coverage of local librarians protesting state budget cuts to the Westchester Library System. The cuts are the state's fifth budget reduction since 2008 and could slash 18 percent of the system's funds if legislators in Albany ever get around to approving the state budget. The libraries have lost $18 million in funds in the last two years. The numbers don't bode well for the Rye Free Reading Room, which is also facing a potential 16.5 percent budget reduction in Rye City's 2011 budget.

This week also saw the conclusion of the nearly three-year long battle between the Rye City School District and the teachers union. The Rye Teachers Association agreed to a new six-year contract, which expires in 2013 and includes pay raises that fluctuate between one and two percent during the length of the contract. In return, the school district received some concessions from the teachers union in the form of greater employee contributions to health insurance premiums. The union said economic challenges facing the school district caused it to make concessions, but that its members are still some of the lowest paid teachers in Westchester. 

On Tuesday, we wrote about Blind Brook's college acceptances. Ninety-six percent of this year's senior class will be headed to four-year colleges. Members of the Class of 2010 will attend some of the most competitive schools, including Boston College, Boston University, University of California Berkley, Connecticut College, New York University, Northwestern University, Brown University, University of Virginia, John Hopkins University, Cornell, and University of Pennsylvania.

Blind Brook's Class of 2010 graduated on Thursday and we had extensive coverage of the ceremony. Because the school does not designate a valedictorian, two students--Justin Starr and Jackie Mamorsky--gave speeches, both of which touched upon the lessons they've learned at Blind Brook. Browse our photo gallery to see the graduates and read our story to hear about all the inspirational speeches and interesting moments from the graduation ceremony.

This week, we also told you that the Rye Town/Harrison Titans ice hockey team would be back for another season. Hockey parents raised $40,000 to fund the sport after the Blind Brook school district cut its funding in this year's budget. 

Lovers of Shakespeare should rejoice because Shakespeare on the Sound is coming to the Rye area. On Tuesday, Rye resident and Yale professor Mark Schenker gave a lecture at the Rye Free Reading Room about "Othello," one of Shakespeare's most well-regarded plays. The lecture was a precursor to performances in Greenwich and Stamford in the next few weeks, so if you are a lover of comedies and tragedies, grab your blanket and head out to Baldwin Park.

We also covered the Rye 350th anniversary celebrations, from Friday's Clam Bake to Saturday's Colonial Re-Enactment Day at Rye Town Park. Enjoy our photos, videos and stories of these events. You can see more coverage of Rye's 350th anniversary by clicking our new Rye 350 link on the top of this page.

We've covered lots more this weekend, so feel free to search the site for other engaging stories from the past week. Rye Patch will be your source for everything that is happening in the Rye area---from local government and school board meetings to sports and arts and entertainment.

We'll be doing a "Week in Review" every Sunday, so if you missed anything during the week, we've got you covered.