New principal adds ‘wow’ factor to P.S. 201

Sitting in his office surrounded by Shell Silverstein and Dr. Seuss books, Brett Gallini eagerly plugs away anticipating the day when he gets to open the school’s doors for the first time.
“School is a happy place,” Gallini said. “There aren’t always happy days depending on what happens.”
Gallini first walked through P.S. 201’s doors in early July and has been preparing for the last month-and-a-half for the first day. This will be his first opportunity to be a principal, but he already is trying to change the culture in the Flushing school located on 155th Street near Kissena Boulevard.
“I want to change the school to a wonderful place,” said Gallini. “Where parents want to send their children, where teachers want to work.”
P.S. 201 PTA President Jennifer Jeudy said now that Gallini is in charge she could see the “wow” factor added to the school.
Jeudy said she likes that Gallini is very open with the parents and is eager to get them involved with the school. She added he wants to turn the school’s old library into a place where parents can work on class assignments with their child.
“More parents should be involved in education,” she said.
One of the first changes Gallini has instituted is a school pledge that the kids will read each morning before class. Gallini said he created the pledge so the students know what to expect when they come to school.
One of the main reasons Gallini said he applied to be principal at P.S. 201 is the large special education population at the school.
About one-quarter of the students qualify as “special needs” and in the next school year there are at least four special education classes and another four inclusion classes - which mix special needs and regular students, but have two teachers in the classroom.
“I welcome more special education classes,” Gallini said. “This school jumped out at me because of the special education needs.”
Spending time in a school has not always been one of Gallini’s favorite pastimes. As a lad, he struggled to read and admitted he fell behind the other students and became “embarrassed.”
Gallini said his first grade teacher took extra time to get to know him and cared about his progress. Gallini said this helped her find a way to help him that he would enjoy and provided a springboard for the rest of his education.
P.S. 201 is a school Gallini said he could see himself staying at for a long time. He added he chose the school because he felt it complemented his interests and desires.
“Until every child is reading at the appropriate level my work is not done,” Gallini said.