BOCES program gives ninth-graders a fresh start in the Adirondacks

On Board Online • June 13, 2016

By Jason Franchuk
Special Correspondent

Ian Byrnes could have an extra hour of sleep if he attended the high school closest to his home in Albany County.

Instead, he gladly wakes up at 5:30 each morning for a 75-minute bus ride. The 14-year-old attends a full-day program at the Southern Adirondack Education Center in Hudson Falls.

Most of the 24 students are beyond the traditional age of freshmen, as many fell behind due to attendance issues. Some have disciplinary records. Most are boys.


Teen doesn't mind being only girl in BOCES heavy equipment program

On Board Online • June 13, 2016

By Elizabeth Wright

"My friends think I'm insane," says Samantha "Sami" Holmes, a junior at Burnt Hills High School. This year, she has been the only girl enrolled in the morning Heavy Equipment class at the F. Donald Myers Education Center in Saratoga Springs.

The other 39 students are all boys in the Heavy Equipment class run by Washington-Saratoga-Warren-Hamilton-Essex BOCES.

"At first, I was a little worried about being the only girl in class, but I got used to it," she said. "They're all nice."


State addresses concerns about CPS visits

On Board Online • June 13, 2016

By Eric D. Randall
Editor-in-Chief

After an article in On Board highlighted legal concerns involving school visits by Child Protective Services (CPS), a state agency has issued emergency regulations that school attorneys say will protect districts from lawsuits alleging violations of families' privacy rights.

The regulation requires schools to give CPS access to "any child named as victim in a report of suspected abuse or maltreatment" as well as "any sibling or other child residing in the same home as the named victim."


Practices, policies key to data security

On Board Online • June 13, 2016

By Jessica Goldstein
Deputy Director of Policy Services

"Data breach!" Does that phrase conjure an image of hackers in a dark room, possibly in another country, infiltrating your computer network using advanced coding skills honed from years of nefarious activities? Or do you picture a disgruntled employee, surreptitiously copying files to be sold or made public?

In reality, however, data breaches typically lack such drama.


Where did I put my tissues?

On Board Online • June 13, 2016

By William Miller
Area 5 Director


We all spend countless hours in board service. Have you ever sat back and wondered why you do it? I know I have. Sometimes I think the compulsion to be a school board member ought to be listed as a psychological disorder in DSM-5 (the latest edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders).

But there is a cure for board member-itis. It's getting reminded about what our students are capable of.


21-year-old board member from Northern NY named winner of Champion for Change award

On Board Online • June 13, 2016

By Archa Wachowicz
Deputy Director of Business Development

The winner of NYSSBA's 2016 Champion for Change Award is a 21-year-old school board member who spearheaded initiatives in the Belleville-Henderson school district while simultaneously earning a bachelor's degree at Cornell University.

John "J.W." Allen has had a perfect attendance record at board meetings, held twice monthly, despite the fact that he had to drive four hours each way from Ithaca to Belleville, located near Watertown.

He ran for the district's school board at the age of 18, as a senior in high school, and won 71 percent of the vote. At Cornell, he was a dual major in agricultural sciences and applied economics & management.


State officials mull more flexibility in graduation requirements

On Board Online Extra • June 3, 2016

By Eric D. Randall, Editor-in-Chief, and Cathy Woodruff, Senior Writer

Should some students be able to graduate this month if they have passed all of their Regents-level courses, even if they did not pass all of the Regents exams currently required for a diploma?

That idea is likely to be considered by the state Board of Regents when the board meets on June 13 and 14.

Regent Roger Tilles of Long Island says changes are needed to ensure high-performing special education students aren't unfairly denied diplomas. He is optimistic that a new approach will be devised in the next two weeks.


NYSSBA Report: Receivership and state takeovers not a panacea for school success

FOR RELEASE: June 2, 2016

CONTACT: David Albert
(518) 783-3716 or (518) 320-2221 cell
@nyschoolboards

Schools subject to receivership or state takeovers have seen mixed and inconclusive results in improving academic achievement, according to an analysis of schools in other states by the New York State School Boards Association (NYSSBA).

A new research report from NYSSBA examines state takeover efforts in Massachusetts and Tennessee. The report points out that while students in the Lawrence Public Schools in Massachusetts made some improvements on state math and English language arts (ELA) exams after three years in receivership, those improvements were not sufficient to remove the schools from receivership.


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