Teacher Appreciation Week...

-
Every year, the first full week of May marks TEACHER APPRECIATION WEEK across our country. This year, it seems even more prudent to acknowledge the work of teachers in our community and throughout the country. Educators everywhere have been thrown into an entire new reality and many have worked harder than ever to ensure that their students are taken care of and have what they need to be successful. Teaching has always been a 24/7 profession, but the past 7 weeks have just reminded us all just how much work goes into our profession. Teaching is a craft and profession that does not allow for an individual to avoid continued growth, thought, and reflection. Beyond just our classroom teachers, we need to recognize our entire community, as we are all teachers in some way, shape or form. We all do this together for our children and that is what breeds success. Finally, I thank all our children's first teachers, the parents and family members. Having a foundation of learning at home is a tremendous benefit to our children and we thank our community, family members, and parents for partnering with us on this educational journey. Please take a moment this week to recognize your child's teacher(s) and on behalf of the entire District Administration, I thank our faculty for everything that they continue to do on a daily basis for the betterment of our schools, community, and lives of children!!

COVID-19 Update


By now, you may have heard that Governor Cuomo has announced that schools will remain physically closed and instruction will be completed virtually for the remainder of the 2019-2020 school year. This news is certainly not the uplifting message that many students and adults in our community were hoping for, but it is nonetheless the directive we need to follow. We expect that many students will be going through various emotions as everyone copes with this new reality. If you need support for your child, please visit our website on social/emotional health here: https://sites.google.com/romecsd.org/rcsdcovid-19updates/family-health-mental-health-resources or contact your child's counselor directly. In the coming weeks we will be developing plans for our graduation ceremony, methods for students/staff to obtain any remaining personal belongings from the buildings, and begin the preparations for what September may look like as directed by the Governor. At this time, it remains a very real possibility that schools will not be open in full swing come the Fall. Please stay tuned for further updates on all items related to the end of the school year.

Budget/BOE Elections Update


 The Governor has also released an Executive Order that outlines the school budget vote and Board of Education elections process. All school budget votes will now happen on June 9, 2020 and will occur through absentee ballot only. The school district is required to mail all ballots to qualified voters, and include a stamped return envelope for the vote. The order also postponed the annual budget hearing, however no details have yet been announced as to what this means. Board of Education seats will also be voted on during the June 9 vote and will also be absentee ballot. Any person interested in running for one of the open Board of Education seats should contact our business office at least 30 days prior to the election. There is no requirement to obtain qualified signatures this year, so anyone that wants to run, can run. All candidates must be listed on the ballot in alphabetical order. Finally, we anticipate the draft budget to be prepared and presented to the community via video, as we have done for the past several years. When the presentation is available, we will make an announcement.

Can You Pass a Bill Challenge


As a former Educator, Assemblywoman Marianne Buttenschon understands the struggle and demands that schools and teachers are facing during this uncertain time. Therefore, in an effort to help encourage home education, the Assemblywoman is inviting all students to take part of a virtual challenge. 'Can You Pass A Bill Challenge' welcomes students to create a bill for New York State and submit it directly to the Assemblywoman. Every student who submits their bill will receive a letter and certificate from the 119th Assembly District office. The Assemblywoman hopes these awards will serves as a reminder that hard work and perseverance, even through the toughest times, can come with great rewards. For more information, please visit her website here: https://nyassembly.gov/mem/Marianne-Buttenschon/story/92065




Popular posts from this blog

It Takes A Village...

-
Image
 We all know the old phrase, "it takes a village to raise a child." One can reflect on the phrase and find a few different ways to interpret its meaning, however, it cannot be argued that when groups of people work together to help their children grow, success is more likely. To me, I view this phrase as referencing that there is someone within every community that a child can connect with to help them feel a part of their school and/or community. It may not be their classroom teacher or their principal. It may be a bus driver, a coach, a teaching assistant, secretary, custodian, food service worker, music teacher, art teacher, computer specialist, monitor, etc. The list can go on and on. Why mention this? Well, currently, one of the largest and most important educational research projects in our nation's history is occurring with some of the leading educational experts researching what education needs to be by the year 2025. Education 2025 is producing information that m
Read more

Finish Strong...

-
Image
It is that time of year where many schools, teachers, and students want to "coast" to the finish line. A lot like that NFL team that has their playoff birth locked up weeks before the end of the season so they start resting players to avoid potential injury as the regular season comes to an end; some schools have traditionally modeled this mentality. Difference being is that we are in a race, not a season. In a race, if you let up at the end, your final outcome/product will suffer. Even if you are in first place in the race, you don't slow down as you approach the finish line do you? You don't see the jockey on the thoroughbred pulling on the reins so that the team doesn't set a time record. Those thoughts would be unthinkable. So why do we pull up the flaps at the end of the school year on our kids' learning opportunities. Yes, the weather is nice. Yes, it's been a long year. Yes, we've just made it through State testing and AP testing. But, we only
Read more

I Had A Dream...

-
Image
Once upon a time, when we all began our careers or started a new position/school, we had dreams. Dreams of what we wanted to accomplish, dreams we wanted to see our students accomplish, dreams we wanted to see our school communities achieve. Throughout my travels though, I have seen more adults tell students that should lower their expectations and downsize their dreams. Unfortunately, I would say that the ratio of adults encouraging students and adults discouraging students is close to 1:1 in my career. I ask, would you be where you are today without someone throughout your educational life encouraging you to pursue your dreams? As with many things in our schools, we need to focus on the positives that are happening and capitalize on them. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had a dream for our country, and while his dream was related to equal rights and oppression, his intended message of having a dream and working tirelessly to achieve it can be applied universally in society. Recently,
Read more