New Paltz Central School District is located at 196 Main Street New Paltz, NY serving grades Pk-12 in Ulster County. New Paltz, New York is located about 80 miles north of New York City and is part of the Catskill Mountains known as the "Shawangunks" (see map). Bordered to the east by the Hudson River we are in the apple-growing region of the historic Mid-Hudson Valley. The Village of New Paltz is headed by Mayor Terry Dungan and a Board of Village Trustees. New Paltz began as an almost 40,000 acre settlement, after being sold by the Esopus Indians to a group of twelve Huguenots in 1677. Today, Huguenot Street, the originial home of the twelve settling Huguenot families, is a historic site. It is located on the west side of town on the Wallkill River.

Huguenot Street has been designated a national landmark and tours are conducted regularly. The houses date from 1705 to 1890 and are open to the public for tours. Included in the tours are 6 stone houses, a French Church and burying ground, library, museum, and gift shop and picnic grounds. The Town of New Paltz surrounds the Village. The town government is headed by Supervisor Toni Hokanson and a Town Council. It is a separate government from the Village. The New Paltz Central School District began to develop and map curriculum in the late 1990s in response to new State standards and assessments. Curriculum maps provide outlines of the essential, consensus curriculum – the content, skills, and assessments that all teachers at a particular grade level or subject area agree should be taught in order for students to reach State standards.