HFCS Capital Project In The Works

by Alex Brooks
Hoosick Falls School Superintendent Ken Facin spoke to the School Board about improvements to the school building embodied in the Capital Project which is now in the planning stages. The administration is working with the architectural firm Clark Patterson Lee on the project. The architects made a presentation to the Board at a special meeting at the end of September.  The Board asked Facin and the architects to prioritize the elements of the project so that it can be brought down to a manageable size.
[private]Facin said the core of the project is addressing deficiencies in the building identified by Clark Patterson Lee when they recently did a building survey that the State Education Department requires once every five years.
The biggest items were lighting systems, heating systems and the bathrooms, which are still the original 1961 bathrooms.
The project plan presented includes replacement of all the bathrooms as well as enlarging and refurbishing the libraries, the art room and the music room and major improvements to the bus garage.  In addition, replacement of antiquated lighting fixtures and heating systems with modern efficient ones holds the potential of reducing energy costs by $50,000 or more annually. Some of the other items recommended for inclusion in the project are replacement of ceiling tiles that have asbestos in them, new generators and a new tech platform, including an upgrade to the network wiring and a new wireless network. The preliminary estimate to do all of this was $10.7 million. The Board asked the administration to aim for a capital project of less than $10 million.
At present, New York State will pay almost 80% of a capital project for this District, so the local share of this project would be less than $2 million. This would be amortized over 15 years, and the annual cost would be mitigated by energy savings from more efficient heating and lighting systems. The Board wanted to hear more detail about the impact of the project on the District’s budget.
There will be a presentation at the November meeting and probably a special workshop meeting in December to refine the project and evaluate its financial impact. The administration is hoping to have the project ready for a public vote in February.
Custodian Suspension
The Board passed a motion to reduce the suspension without pay of Custodian Dennis James from 14 months to two months after being ordered to do so by a decision of the Rensselaer County Supreme Court handed down on September 18, 2012.
The District originally initiated a disciplinary hearing after James was involved in February of 2010 in a domestic violence incident which took place when he was not at work at the school. The hearing officer recommended his dismissal, and the Board terminated his employment in January of 2011. But James challenged his dismissal in court, and the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court ruled in March of 2012 that he be reinstated and a less severe penalty imposed. The School Board then imposed a penalty of 14 months suspension without pay. James challenged this in court, and the recent decision affirmed that the District is bound by Civil Service Law which specifies a maximum suspension of two months. The District accordingly passed a resolution reducing the suspension without pay to two months and agreed to pay James $49,543.76 in back pay. The motion passed by a vote of 6-1, with John Helft voting against it.
Lacrosse
School Superintendent Ken Facin said he received $15,000 in extra funding from the State Education Department last month, and he recommended that he Board use those funds to make lacrosse a varsity sport. Lacrosse began as a club sport at HFCS in 2010, and the team has been both popular and successful. Since Hoosick Falls only plays two varsity sports in the spring, baseball and softball, there is a need for another sports team at the varsity level. The Board liked the idea but had some questions about fields and costs that have not yet been fully worked out, so they tentatively approved making lacrosse a varsity sport starting in the spring of 2013, pending a presentation on all the details at next month’s meeting.
Cultural Exchange
Facin said he is looking into setting up a relationship with the Beijing School System in which 10-20 Chinese students would come here to study at Hoosick Falls. He noted that although Chinese schools are very rigorous, they do not have the emphasis on innovation and creativity that we have here and Chinese students are very interested in studying here. He said the students would live with local families, and they would be tuition paying students. Facin said there will be a formal presentation about this at the November meeting, with more details.
APPR
Facin said the District’s proposal on how its teachers will be evaluated in the Annual Professional Performance Review was approved by the State Education Department in a letter he recently received.
School Board Recognition
Superintendent Facin gave Certificates of Appreciation and boxes of goodies to each of the School Board members, taking the opportunity of “School Board Recognition Week” to draw attention to the dedication of School Board members who spend enormous amounts of time and energy, without pay to make the school the best that it can be and to thank them for their service to the community. The Hoosick Falls Teachers Association also gave presents to each of the School Board members.
The next regular meeting of the School Board will be on November 15 at 7 pm in the High School Library.[/private]