Schenectady City School District

Issue No. 8, October 11, 2024

Good afternoon,

I hope you had a great week. Before you begin the long weekend, I hope you'll take a few minutes to read this update.

On Wednesday evening, at the Board of Education work session, members of our team including Joe DiCaprio and Carmella Parente, provided an update on the grading policy that was adopted about a year ago. The update included work that has been done to align our practices with the policy and how the policy is connected to each of the pillars in our strategic plan. The presentation also included feedback on a variety of topics from students, teachers, and administrators. Among other things, middle and high school students who were interviewed expressed that they want the opportunity for retakes. They also suggested that teachers be open with how and what they are grading. These are just examples of the long list of feedback collected. Through the interviews, our team also learned about some of the grading practice problems. Teachers expressed that they want the report card more closely aligned with the grading policy. The team talked about what is to come and how to keep the work moving in a direction that aligns practice to policy. You can see the presentation here. The recording of the meeting is also available here.

Tyrone O'Meally spoke briefly about grades 3-8 assessments and the high school graduation rate for the last three cohorts. We will take a deeper dive into this data at the next board meeting, October 23, including grade level and subgroup performance. Overall, especially considering the impact of COVID, we continue to move in the right direction.

School Board Recognition Week

Next week is School Board Recognition Week. Please join me by offering gratitude to our school board members. School board members are volunteers who devote countless hours of their time. In addition to the time they spend at school board meetings, they also attend important trainings, study and learn. They learn about and develop policies, lead and participate on committees, visit schools and attend events, listen to community stakeholders, and they advocate and represent our district. The Board of Education is responsible for creating a shared vision that sets the direction of the district, develops district policies and approves the budget ensuring that resources are aligned with goals. We have a thoughtful board in which every member truly cares about every student, family, staff member and the well-being of our community. Please join me in thanking each of them for their dedication and service.

Left to Right: Cathy Lewis, Alexandria Carver, Amanda Sponable-Pantalone, Nohelani Etienne (Vice President), Superintendent Carlos Cotto, Bernice Rivera (President), Vivian Parsons, Joyce Akhelume (Student Representative), Jamaica Miles

Safety Fair

We will be holding a Safety Fair on October 24 from 3 - 6 p.m. in the Schenectady High School Cafeteria. Everyone is welcome to attend. Before we we begin the bidding process for a weapons screening device, we want the school community to have an opportunity to learn about the various devices and share your opinion. We posted online videos produced by some of the vendors on our website here. Vendors will be demonstrating how the various devices operate and answer any questions. Our target date to implement a system is in early winter over the holiday recess.

Also related to safety ... many of you ask what the different safety measures mean. Here is a video from the "i love you u guys foundation" which explains the different measures. These are reviewed with staff and students in school regularly. When a safety measure is implemented during the school day, we always try to let parents know and include what the measure entails. Look for that in any safety communication that we send to you. Please make sure we have the correct phone number and email address on file so we can email and send a text message to you.

Mont Pleasant Ribbon Cutting Ceremony

Approximately one year ago we held a ground-breaking ceremony for the Mont Pleasant Athletic Center which includes a new turf field, track, bleachers, concession stand, and expansion of the parking lot and driveway. With the exception of the concession stand and some fencing on the exterior, that work is done and looks fantastic. We held a ribbon cutting ceremony yesterday to officially announce the opening of the field. This is exciting for Mont Pleasant, our entire district, and the community. This work and the new Schenectady High School Tennis Courts kicked off the Schenectady Revitalization Plan. Work is now underway at Van Corlaer Elementary School and the Steinmetz Career and Leadership Academy building which will be the home of the Freshman Leadership Academy targeted to open next year.

School Visits

I spent much of this week visiting schools. I stopped by Woodlawn, Zoller, Center City Campus, Proctors, Yates, Hamilton.

Parent University

Parent University was held this week at Paige. The topic was the first session of the School Board Member Info Session Series with Board President Bernice Rivera. Board President Rivera spoke with parents about "understanding the connections between to school board, community, school, and you."

Hispanic Heritage Celebration at Mont Pleasant

Mont Pleasant held a festive Hispanic Heritage celebration last week with Alex Torres and his band providing music. It was a lot of fun. Below is a photo with the band and one with some students who were enjoying themselves. Hispanic Heritage Month runs through October 15.

Class Election/Register to Vote

Last week students in the Government class at Schenectady High School held an election in which each senior voted for the Class of 2024 President and Vice President. After watching the candidates debate, they cast their votes in the library. They also had the opportunity to register to vote at school.

You can register to vote today here.

Athletic Events

I did attend several Athletic Events this week including the Grout Run last weekend. Thank you to everyone who volunteered their time and helped make that event possible. Here are some photos from sporting events and the run. If you can, please come out and support our athletes. The schedule of events is available online here. I hope to see you at some of them.

Apply to SUNY for Free

SUNY is offering Free Application Week beginning October 21 and ending November 3. Students can apply to up to five SUNY campuses with no application fee. Details are available here: www.suny.edu/app. How to apply to SUNY

National School Lunch Week

Next week is National School Lunch Week which is designed to draw attention to the importance of the health and well-being of all public school students. We recognize this and continue to provide free breakfast and lunch to all students in the Schenectady City School District. We have a variety of nutritional options each day. If you haven't looked at our menus, you can take a look at October's selections here. Let's also take next week as an opportunity to thank our cafeteria workers who help prepare meals and serve our students each day.

Teacher of the Year Feature

News10 will be running a feature on Colleen Keough, the SCSD and New York State Teacher of the Year. The story will run at 6 p.m., 10 p.m. and 11 p.m. Tune in and watch her shine. We are extremely proud of her.

Yom Kippur

Yom Kippur begins at sunset tonight. Known as the holiest day of the Jewish year, Yom Kippur is a 25-hour period of reflection, repentance and reconnection. I wish those of you who observe the holiday, a meaningful Yom Kippur. "Gmar Chatimah Tovah."

Job Fair

The October job fair is scheduled for Wednesday, October 16 from 2- 4 p.m. at 530 Liberty St. We have several openings. If you think you might be interested in joining our team, take a look at the employment opportunities and apply online here.

No School Monday

There is no school and district offices are closed on Monday in observance of Indigenous Peoples/Columbus Day. For those who are wondering why Columbus Day is, in many places, replaced by Indigenous Peoples Day, here's a brief explanation. For many Indigenous peoples, Columbus Day is a controversial holiday. This is because Columbus is not viewed as a discoverer but rather as a colonizer. His arrival led to the forceful taking of land and set the stage for widespread death and loss of Indigenous ways of life.

It was brought to my attention that quite a few years back, a political action community of elementary school students in one of our schools wrote a letter requesting that we recognize Indigenous Peoples Day in our district. Since that time, we have been recognizing it on our school calendar. Another example of how student voice matters in our district.

I wish you a restful and enjoyable weekend and look forward to seeing you on Tuesday.

Sincerely,

Dr. Carlos M. Cotto, Jr.
Superintendent of Schools

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