“Great things are coming. All of the buildings have a variety of new programs and initiatives beginning this year. Our students are going to receive an incredible experience” at the East Hampton School District this year, the superintendent, Adam Fine, said.
Mr. Fine was smiling during his first week back at the high school, hardly looking like someone who was dreading the end of summer or all the work ahead. And there is a lot of it. The district is already making progress on the $128 million bond projects that voters approved last May, which include structural improvements to all three of its schools, plus an eight-lane indoor pool and indoor athletic facility with a basketball court and turf field, both at the high school.
While the pool and the indoor athletic facility projects will take some time, several others were completed over the summer. High schoolers will be greeted by a new sign and a new gym floor when they return to the building next week. A new science lab and greenhouse are under construction and will hopefully be completed by December or January. A new turf field is coming soon. The John M. Marshall Elementary School has a new cafeteria floor and a brand-new playground that was unveiled in June. The middle school has a refinished gym floor and a new boiler on the way.
Academically, there is even more to look forward to. “A new school year brings so many new things, including new opportunities to grow,” said Karen Kuneth, the principal of John Marshall. This year the elementary school is piloting a new personal finance curriculum based on new state requirements.
“These lessons will connect financial literacy to the learning already happening in our classrooms,” she said. “Topics like what money is, the difference between needs and wants, saving versus spending, and borrowing. The lessons are flexible and, most importantly, will support our students in learning to make real-world decisions.”
Over at East Hampton Middle School, “Believe in Yourself” is the theme of the 2026-27 school year. Charles Soriano, the principal, says this will serve as an academic throughline and social-emotional centerpiece.
“You will see it reflected not only in classroom discussions, but also in the ways we help students develop confidence, self-trust, and a growing sense of agency. We expect progress, not perfection,” he said. “As a faculty, we use this shared language strategically — to strengthen our building’s sense of community while supporting our middle schoolers’ social, emotional, intellectual, and physical development.”
The high school is introducing several new courses this year, including Advanced Placement business and personal finance, Advanced Placement cybersecurity, and Italian.
“So many of our students have such an interest in the business world and the finance world,” said Sara Smith, the high school principal. “Italian came about through the growth of the dual-language program. So many of our students are coming up bilingual with Spanish and would like an opportunity to learn another language.”
The high school is continuing to expand its A.P. program to match students’ interests and help them earn college credits that may lower tuition costs and let them bypass introductory courses.
“We had one student who came back a couple of years ago and said she went into college as a junior because of all of her college courses in high school,” Ms. Smith said. “For her family, that was necessary and she was able to finish college in a shorter amount of time.”
Students also received MacBooks instead of Chromebooks for instructional use this year. Ms. Smith said the high schoolers were thrilled when they picked up their new computers before the start of classes.
“While we’re cognizant of screen time, we also want them to have access to the most up-to-date technology and learn how to use it effectively and ethically,” she said.
A new community service app called Track It Forward, will eliminate all of the paperwork connected to students’ volunteer work this school year.
“Everything is on the community service app, so it makes it easier for the students to account for all of the worthwhile and incredible community service that they’re doing. We had a student last year who graduated with over 800 hours,” Ms. Smith said. “Our students continue to impress me with how invested they are in the community and it’s so important that we teach them what it means to be part of a community and give back. It’s not just checking that community service box, but it’s fostering that sense of giving back.”
There is also a new academic vocabulary initiative designed to help students achieve better success on their New York State Regents exams and other assessments by improving their literacy and reading comprehension using an all-star vocabulary list.
“These are the most commonly used words in professional circles, in the world of business, in academia,” Ms. Smith said. “We’re going to have a monthly list and all of our teachers are going to weave them into their instruction for that month so that our students learn those words more fully.”
Students return to the classroom districtwide on Tuesday.
Tuesday is also the first day of classes at the Springs, Montauk, Amagansett, and Wainscott Schools. Sag Harbor’s first day of classes is on Wednesday and Sagaponack students returned to the classroom today.