Good afternoon,

It was such a joy to welcome students and their families back to school this week. I visited schools and had the pleasure of greeting students on their first days back. It was great to see smiling faces and so much excitement. Many students said they were excited to see their friends and make new ones, get to know their teachers and some said they are excited to learn. Those words are music to my ears.

We also had the great honor of hosting New York State Commissioner of Education Dr. Betty Rosa and Regent Roger Catania on Wednesday. Out of nearly 800 schools in New York State, they chose to visit our district on the first day.

Dr. Rosa began the day at Pleasant Valley Elementary School where she welcomed Pre-K students to their first day of school ever. She also met with 5th graders and asked them what they were thinking about upon their return to the new school year. Dr. Rosa then stopped over to Schenectady High School to meet students and visit the brand-new Freshmen Academy.

It was a pleasure to welcome and host Dr. Rosa and Regent Catania for the morning. I'm quite certain they both enjoyed their visit and were impressed with our students.

We also had some special visitors at Martin Luther King Elementary School. Thank you to Assemblyman Angelo Santabarbara and Congressman Paul Tonko who both came with gifts for our students. Assemblyman Santabarbara toured the school and handed out backpacks filled with supplies. Congressman Tonko read to students, answered their questions, and donated books from the Library of Congress. We appreciate that both the assemblyman and congressman took time from their busy schedules to visit with our students on the first day of school.

During this first week of school, there are two new important things I would like to share. First, we have a team that has been working on a framework and draft of district grading procedures. It has been a collaborative process doing this work. It is still in working form but is in process and in movement to final form. There have been, and we continue to have, some tough conversations but our approach to grading is to ensure equity.

Below is an example of what is included in terms of an outline for how quarterly and final grades are calculated. Grades are based on achievement and not other factors. In elementary school quarterly grades will be reported as 4,3,2 or 1 as follows:

For students in grades 6-12, quarterly grades will be reported four times a year using the following letter grades:

We will be sharing the document with more detail and information soon. This will include the ranges for each letter grade.

We have published a Letter Day Calendar which serves to remind students and parents what letter day schedule it is each day. The same calendar, which is a six day rotation labeled A through F, is being used across all of our schools. For example, today is a "C" schedule day across the district. This document can help parents prepare for school. A secondary student may have half-year courses or full-year courses on specific letter days. Elementary students will have a letter day schedule that includes physical education, art, music, and library.

Congratulations to CDTA manager Rich Cordero and our district transportation supervisor Al Valachovic who were presented with The New York State School Boards Association (NYSSBA) "Champions of Change" award at Wednesday evening's Board of Education meeting. The CDTA-Universal Access Program provides transit cards for 650 Schenectady High School students for transportation to school and activities, as well as, access to internships, jobs and other activities to help develop students as upstanding community members.

In closing, I hope that all of our students, parents, faculty and staff got off to a good start this week. While it's never perfect, by most accounts things have gone well over the first three days There are always things that we can work on improving, but we are committed to doing that, so please be patient. Don't hesitate to contact your child's teacher or principal if you have any questions or concerns. You can always text us at 518-900-7318 or submit a question or concern in Let's Talk.

Thank you for your partnership in education. It's great to see you back.

Have a great weekend.

Sincerely,

Anibal Soler, Jr.
Superintendent of Schools

Phone Numbers

Transportation
518-370-8103

Food Services
518-370-8100. Ext. 36481

Student Registration
518-881-3771

Student Services
518-881-3412

LET'S TALK

You can reach us through Let's Talk by
clicking here or texting 518-900-7318

Assemblyman Angelo Santabarbara stopped by to visit the MLK Lions on their first day. After touring the updates to the school, he handed out backpacks filled with supplies to students.

Our breakfast and lunch menus are being presented in a web-based format so that they can easily be translated to any language.

• Elementary Breakfast Menu

• Elementary Lunch Menu

• Middle School Breakfast Menu

• Middle School Lunch Menu

• High School Breakfast Menu​

• High School Lunch Menu​

All students in the Schenectady City School District receive free breakfast and lunch at school each day.

Reminder to mark your calendar for upcoming back to school nights.

Elementary School
Wednesday, September 21

Middle School
Tuesday, September 20

Schenectady High School
Thursday, September 22

Steinmetz Career & Leadership Academy
Tuesday, September 27

Your child's teacher will provide your school's time and any other school- specific details.