Sotomayor School in Yonkers topped off; Quezada to retire

Slightly more than a year after the March 25, 2022 groundbreaking for the new school at 73 Lawrence St. in Yonkers named after U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, the final beam for the school’s steel structure was hoisted into place. The topping up ceremony took place April 4, with Mayor Mike Spano, Yonkers School Superintendent Edwin M. Quezada and Board of Education President Rev. Steve Lopez among those attending.

The day after the event it was announced that Quezada will be retiring as superintendent effective July 3 of this year.

“His passion and dedication to the educational and emotional development of our students have been evident throughout his tenure,” Spano said. “From a vocal and adamant advocate to rebuild and fund our schools to ushering in nationally-recognized mentorship programs to overseeing unprecedented academic achievements such as the District”™s 90% graduation rate, Dr. Quezada”™s 25-years of service have left an indelible impact on the students and families of Yonkers.”

The new school is the first to be constructed in Yonkers in 20 years and is planned to serve 675 students from pre-kindergarten to the 8th grade. The site is where the St. Denis Catholic School had been located. In addition to classroom space, the Sotomayor School will feature multifunctional spaces that will be available evenings and weekends for community use. There will be a multipurpose gym and meeting room with a stage. The cafeteria design enables it to also be used as a meeting room and the school will have a health suite with space for two exam rooms and a separate room for dental examinations.

The school will use solar cells, green roofs, high efficiency electric heat pumps, LED lighting, low-flow plumbing fixtures and highly-effective MERV 13 air filters. Volatile organic compounds will be minimized in the interior finishes and furnishings.

“This school will become the heart of this neighborhood and will be accessible not only for educational enrichment but also be the benefit of all the people that live here and everyone in Yonkers,” Spano said. “We are even more fortunate for the opportunity to dedicate this school in recognition for the positive change Justice Sotomayor represents to our district and our students.”

Yonkers City Council Majority Leader Tasha Diaz, who represents the district where the school is located, said, “I attended Yonkers public schools and I think I came out pretty good. I’m OK. That’s what I want to give to our children.”

Lopez referred to Spano as the “education mayor” and pointed out that the Sotomayor School is one of three new ones soon to be become part of the school system.

Quezada said, “I just wish that the principles of Sonia Sotomayor, what she believes in, continue to be alive for generations to come in this incredible school.” Sotomayor has been described as the liberal conscience of the conservative Supreme Court, and a strong defender of individual rights and liberty.

The officials attending the event used marking pens to sign their names on a beam that was then lifted to the top of the structure and set into place by a construction crew.

Spano mused that perhaps in 200 years the beam would be exposed and the people who signed it would be remembered as having been visionaries.