Issue No. 12, November 08, 2024

Good afternoon,

I hope you are doing well. It's been a busy week and I'm sure everyone is looking forward to the weekend and finding some time to relax.

I first want to thank all of our faculty and staff for a great day of teaching and learning on Tuesday. For parents and community members who wonder what a Superintendent's Conference Day is and why students do not have school, it is a full day of hands-on learning for faculty and staff across the district. On Tuesday, our employees participated in a wide menu of training sessions, meetings, and workshops tailored to each person's role in the district. It's a full day dedicated for professional learning and growing. Thank you to those who presented sessions and are committed to helping your colleagues grow. Thank you to our faculty and staff for embracing these opportunities and continuing to learn and grow.

On Wednesday evening, the Board of Education held a work session which included presentations on Grades 3-8 Testing, Artificial Intelligence, and Strategic Planning.

The update on testing included an overview of each school's accountability status including the changes from last year to this year, and steps we are taking to improve. The presentation also included an overview of proficiency rates in English language arts (ELA), mathematics, and grades 5 and 8 science. The good news is that seven of our schools demonstrated an increase in proficiency in ELA. The team spoke about growth opportunities for grades 3 and 8 as well as targeted supports for students with disabilities and English language learners.

Our district also demonstrated an overall improvement in math proficiency for grades 3 through 8. Grades 4 and 7 showed dramatic increases in proficiency with 7% and 17.32% improvement. Eleven out of 14 schools showed growth with Van Corlaer showing a 12.61% and Yates with a 10.03% increase. I am proud of the work we are doing and the trend shows we are moving in the right direction. Our work is to continue this momentum and further increase the number of students demonstrating proficiency.

Our high school graduation cohort dipped slightly from the previous four cohorts. As our team pointed out, the cohort graduation rates for the last year were impacted by the COVID exemptions which helped boost rates slightly for those four years. Those exemptions ended with the Class of 2019 cohort which was the Class of 2023 graduating class. I am happy to say that the graduation rate of the most recent class is slightly higher than the last class (Class of 2019) prior to COVID impact/exemptions. We have many supports and interventions in place to help students earn the credits needed to graduate from high school.

Thank you to our team for the comprehensive report.

End of First Quarter

It seems like school just started but next Tuesday, November 12, will close out the first quarter. While the end of a marking period is a checkpoint on student progress and achievement, it also presents a fresh start for students. Students should know course and class expectations at this point and should work with teachers to strive to meet goals for the next quarter. If you are a parent and haven't attended one of the grading information sessions, there is one coming up on November 13 at 5:15 p.m. at Schenectady High School. You can attend by registering here.

Thank you to Congressman Tonko
Thank you Congressman Paul Tonko who met with members of the Board of Education and me this week. We had the pleasure and opportunity to talk about many of things we are doing in Schenectady to provide access and opportunity to our students, staff, families, and community.

Meeting with Big Picture Students
I had the great pleasure of meeting with students from Big Picture Schenectady this week. We discussed an upcoming project that the students are preparing to present to the Schenectady Foundation. I had a great time talking with the students, hearing about their experiences and how much they enjoy being part of this program.

Visitors on Halloween
Last Thursday we had some special visitors stop by our Central Offices on Liberty St. to do some trick-or-treating. We paused our Executive Leadership Team (ELT) meeting to greet the students as they paraded through dressed in their Halloween costumes. Thank you to central office team members who filled their bowls and baskets in anticipation of our special visitors. It was a fun time.

Reading is Fun
I want to give another shout out and thank you to the Reading is Fun Program. Mr. Magid shared with us a note that was published by the Daily Gazette last Friday and requested that we share with the school community.

In Schenectady, The Reading Is Fun Program (RIF) held its inaugural Fall Into the Alphabet event, during which RIF volunteers distributed 1,092 beautiful alphabet books to every pre-K student and kindergartner in the Schenectady City School District. Each youngster was gifted an alphabet book to take home and enjoy in the family venue. Students were encouraged to begin building a home library and to develop an intimacy with books and a passion for reading. RIF purchased the books with generous donations by Fenimore Asset Management and Brokers Network, among other donors in the Capital District. If you have questions about RIF, wish to be a volunteer RIF reading mentor or donate to RIF, please contact Valerie at rifvolunteer-placements@gmail.com or russo5times@gmail.com.

Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration
We closed out Hispanic Heritage Month with a fun and festive celebration Monday evening. Thank you to Alex Torres for coordinating this event for our famiilies. We had a great turnout. The families were excited when it was unveiled that "Club Latino" will be offered.

SHS Homecoming
Thank you to Schenectady High School for planning a fun homecoming event for our students and community. Please check out our social media pages for many photos from the Homecoming dance. The students were dressed to impress.

Congratulations
Congrats to Rebekka Henriksen who was recently honored by Assemblyman Angelo Santabarbara at the Women of Distinction ceremony for her work in our school community and Farm-To-School programming. Rebekka is our district farm to school project manager. She works tirelessly with students at all of our schools on their school gardens, brings opportunities and field trips to our students, helps develop and implement garden-based learning and conducts training around the gardens. She partners with the community, supports the Schenectady Greenmarket and local farms and initiatives, works to improve food accessibility and more. We are grateful to Rebekka for all she does. She is definitely a woman of distinction and makes a difference to our students, staff and families.

Students selected for Area All-State Festival
Congratulations to the following Schenectady High School musicians who were selected for the Area All-State Festival taking place on Saturday, 2 p.m. at Proctors. Students are selected based on New York State School Music Association (NYSSMA) solo grades from last year. At this event the top students from across the region perform together. It's an honor to be selected for this. We are proud of these student musicians.

• Alahna Brown, Grade 11, alto

• Zoe Daniels, Grade 10, flute

• Ayan Datt, Grade 9, clarinet

• Ayden Chrisman, Grade 11, violin

• Ian Chrisman, Grade 11, viola

• Ciarra Miller, Grade 12, violin

SHS Counselor and teacher selected for NYS Master Program
Last week Governor Hochul announced the selection of 144 STEM teachers for the New York State Master Teacher Program and 26 counselors for the inaugural Master Counselor Program. Congratulations to Schenectady High School Counselor Jeanne Myers who is one of the counselors selected and Mamudu Wally, a high school math teacher selected for the Master Teacher Program.

Master Counselors are active members of their professional associations serving in leadership roles, and regularly engage with local industries to help students and their families chart a path to student success. Master Teachers support students in grades K-12 in the areas of science, technology, computer science, robotics, coding, engineering, math, and integrated STEM. Both the teachers and counselors are leaders in their professions, serving as mentors for students and early-career teachers and counselors.

Athletic Announcements
I am pleased to share that Jason McFall has been selected to serve as the Director of Health, Physical Education, and Athletics.  He will begin in the district on November 12, 2024.

On Wednesday evening, the board of education approved the appointment of the following new winter coaches for 2024-2025.

• Mark Sausville, Varsity Boys Basketball Head Coach

• Erica Knolhoff, Varsity Girls Basketball Head Coach

• Brianna Forkel, Varsity Girls Indoor Track Coach

You can learn more about Mr. McFall and the coaches here

This month is National Native American Heritage Month, a time to honor Indigenous Peoples, their histories, and advocate for solutions for the struggles they still face today. The U.S. is home to 579 federally recognized sovereign tribal nations. We honor the rich heritage and diverse cultures and traditions of all Native American and indigenous communities and their integral importance to our past, present and future.

While we are all looking for some rest and relaxation with the extra day this weekend, please pause and join me in offering sincere gratitude to all who have served and to those who continue to serve our country. Remember the significance of Veterans Day. It's a special day set aside for our nation to come together to reflect and honor the men and women of the Armed Forces. Let's all do our best to give huge thanks for their courage, sacrifice, dedication and service.

To the Veterans in our schools and community, "thank you." Thank you for your dedication and service. I honor, respect and appreciate you and everything you do for our country.

Have a restful and enjoyable weekend.

Sincerely,

Carlos M. Cotto, Jr.
Superintendent of Schools

No School and District Offices Closed
Monday, November 11
Veterans Day

Winter Sports

Click here to register for winter sports: https://students.arbitersports.com/organizations/schenectady-city-school-district-athletics

Exciting concert coming to Mont Pleasant.

Please join us and welcome Raphaël Feuillâtre to Mont Pleasant Middle School on November 14 at 7:30 p.m. Mr. Feuillâtre is a Djibouti-born, France-raised young artist considered to be one of the finest guitarists in the world and who has an exclusive Deutsche Grammophone recording contract. Admission is pay as you wish. Students are free. For more information visit this website: https://capitalregionclassical.org/product/feuillatre/

MOBILE APP SUPPORT Click here to watch a short video on how to set your school and language preferences on our mobile app: hhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=saNC9ek2Lqg