In the fall of 1952, a 5-year old traveled from Stuyvesant Town to join the Kindergarten, or the Fives, at the Little Red School House. Her mother, Marie, began volunteering at the school, like so many of you do now; eventually she took a job at “Little Red” and would continue to work for the school for over 40 years. In the fall of 1954, Marie Weiss’s son joined the Fours. He would graduate from the school in the class of ’68, following his sister, a member of the class of 1965. Andrew Weiss, ’68, would then go on to work as LREI’s middle and high school psychologist for over 20 years, a tenure that will end with his retirement from his work at LREI next month. All in all, Andrew has spent over 35 years enrolled in and working at LREI. That number is dwarfed by his family’s 62 years of continuous presence in the school. Said another way, when Andrew retires, it will be the first time in over six decades that a member of his family will not have a regular presence at LREI. This time period began during the watch of the school’s legendary second director, Randolph “Rank” Smith, and saw the school through good times and bad, lean and comfortable. Technically, we will have an extension for six weeks this summer when Andrew’s daughter, Ilana, who was a student at LREI from the Kindergarten through the 8th grade, will spend her third summer as a member of the staff of Summers at LREI.
A community benefits greatly from having members with longevity such as Andrew’s. Andrew has several colleagues who have worked at the school for longer than he. In fact, the longest serving employee, at 46 years, is high school history teacher Mark Bledstein. We also benefit from new colleagues joining the school and bringing their ideas and energy. The students’ experience is similar. For example, the current ninth grade has 32 students who came from our middle school, 80% of their 8th grade class, 20 of whom started at LREI in the 4s or K. Thirty-one students, coming from a variety of other schools, joined them this past September. Now they are the ninth grade—not new, not old, but a compelling mix of energies and ideas that create an amazing group.
More important than its length is the depth of the Weiss family’s service to LREI. Andrew’s mother, Marie, was the heart and soul of the school for over forty years—watching over the community and all of the people in it, in ways too numerous to mention. Andrea and Andrew were and are involved members of the community, adding greatly to their peers’ experiences, both then and now. Andrew has been an insightful colleague and source of wisdom and support to two decades worth of middle and high school families and faculty members, as well as to this director. His deep understanding of people, their relationships, and of the school has been essential to the institution and to many members of the community. Thank you, Andrew; we are so grateful for all that you have added to the community since you stepped through the Bleecker Street door at the ripe old age of four.
Andrew, we will forever be grateful for your contributions and will miss you.