Dr. Kenneth Byalin Honored for his Tireless Work in the Field of Education

Merriam-Webster’s online definition for integrate is to form, coordinate, or blend into a functioning or unified whole.

That’s certainly no easy task to accomplish when it comes to schools, but Dr. Kenneth Byalin is certainly making strides.

As the president of Integrated Charter Schools (ICS), Dr. Byalin carries out the mission of ICS which is “dedicated to providing innovative pathways to college that fully integrate students living with emotional challenges and others with special needs.”

It didn’t come easy in the beginning for Dr. Byalin – who received his bachelor's degree in English literature from Carleton College, his master's in social work from Columbia University, and his doctorate in sociology from New York University – when he created the John W. Lavelle Preparatory Charter School back in 2009.

“We always had a lot of support on Staten Island. All of the elected officials supported starting the school,” said Dr. Byalin. “It was more of a struggle initially with the education bureacracy that we were proposing to create schools that integrated kids with emotional challenges and other disabilities in a college prep program.

“We faced a lot of skepticism – first, with the city, and then with the state – about whether that could be done,” added the West Brighton resident.

Eventually, that school was given the green light to become Staten Island’s first charter school. Fast forward to today as Dr. Byalin is now the head of the education corporation that will have a total of four schools in a few more years.

Dr. Byalin is being honored with a Louis R. Miller Leadership Award, which he will receive in the Not-For-Profit Businessperson category. The awards -- sponsored by M&T Bank and presented by the Staten Island Chamber of Commerce and the Staten Island Advance -- honor the memory of Louis R. Miller, a businessman and West Brighton resident who was also a community leader.

“These are all charter schools that are serving the underserved population as well as the served population. All of the schools have a specific focus where they provide alternatives to the public-school system. What he’s giving to the community is a great gift,” said Ed Wiseman, CEO of Moving Pictures Inc. who nominated Dr. Byalin for the Louis Miller award.

In 2015, ICS opened New Venture Charter School followed by The Lois and Richard Nicotra Early College Charter School this past September. The Richmond Preparatory Charter School will be the fourth ICS venture when it is slated to open for the 2020-21 school year.

 “The revenue has grown as the student population has grown. We started with 75 kids, and I guess revenue was around $1M. We’re at almost 1,000 kids now,” said Dr. Byalin. “In terms of not-for profit and for-profit businesses on Staten Island, we’re a fairly big organization. We have over 200 people on staff.”

Dr. Byalin previously served as the Chief of Service at South Beach Psychiatric Service for 18 years before stops at the Brooklyn Children’s Center (Team Leader) and New Line Inc. (Principal). He then became the founder and president at The Verrazano Foundation, which helped create Lavelle Prep.

This background has enabled Dr. Byalin to find quality staff and mentor them for bigger roles.

“Out of our first six to seven core teachers, five or six of them have gone on to become principals or assistant principals in our schools, the city Department of Education, or other charter schools,” said Dr. Byalin. “We always hate to see good staff leave. But we love to see people succeed and grow.”

“He has an eye for talent. He just knows how to groom people to take on leadership roles. And they’ve all done so well,” said Wiseman.

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Recipients of the Louis R. Miller Awards are recognized as effective business leaders, and for their outstanding contributions to the local community. Awards are given out in four categories: Emerging, Established, Master, and Not-For-Profit. The honorees will be recognized during the annual Louis R. Miller Business Leadership Awards Breakfast on Wednesday, Feb. 13 at the Hilton Garden Inn. For tickets, visit www.sichamber.com or call the Chamber at 718-727-1900.

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Below, Dr. Byalin shares more about his goals, job, and life:

Community involvement: Served on the boards of Historic Richmond Town and the Wagner College Chai Society.

The best part of my job: Supporting the development of our wonderful team.

The most difficult part of my job: Occasionally having to end our relationship with a member of our team.

I am most proud of: Integration Charter Schools and my family.

Something that no one knows about me: I’m pretty transparent, but some people may not know that I am a Buddhist priest and a Zen teacher.

The quality I like best about myself: My integrity and my sense of humor.

Personal interests and hobbies: Reading, writing, and walking.

I laugh at: Myself.

I am really good at: Learning from my mistakes. I’ve had plenty of practice.