by Thaddeus Flint
The September meeting of the Berlin School Board, Tuesday, September 16, was a swift one, with only continuing construction in the District and transportation to Tech Valley High School demanding any discussion.
To the delight of probably a few young students, the Berlin Elementary School did not open when it was supposed to open on September 4 due to continuing construction in the building. The District decided to extend summer a few more days in the interest of safety, and BES opened for business on September 8.
[private]Both the School District Superintendent, Dr. Stephen Young, and School Board President, Frank Zwack, made it a point to thank the District’s Superintendent of Buildings and Grounds, Cyril Grant, and his staff for all the hard work they showed in getting the schools – especially the elementary school – ready for the new fall year.
“It was a smooth transition,” said Young of the Elementary School building opening. And the transition continues, as flooring and other work continue in the third grade classroom, the music room and the library. Once everything is more or less complete at BES there will be a public grand opening of the facility in October.
“When you see it, you will be amazed,” said Dr. Young. Those who can’t wait to see what their old high school now looks like, or who just want to see where their tax dollars are going, can see a slide show of work on the District’s website at berlincentral.org (click on Construction Upgrades at Berlin CSD).
Grant is working to make sure that the remaining construction will be completed on schedule. “It’s slower than what I’m pleased with,” conceded Grant, “but continuing none the less.”
School Board Member Gina Goodermote said she might conduct a surprise visit on third shift construction workers to make sure they are actually working. “I’m having no slacking off,” she said more than once. Slackers be warned.
The High School will not be slacking when it comes to the SATs this November. According to Principal Dr. Cathy Allain, students will be able to take an SAT preparedness course after school on Wednesdays in October. If there is room, students from New Lebanon will be invited to come north for the sessions as well.
The Berlin High School actually scores pretty well already when compared to other schools in the Capital Region. According to the Albany Business Review, BCS was #17 of 82 area schools in 2013, with a combined mean score (reading, writing and math) of 1555. The State average was 1463. As a comparison, New Lebanon was #58 with 1463, Tamarac was #36 with 1508, Hoosick Falls was #68 with 413 and Averill Park was #34 with 1511.
And that was without the prep classes. “We hope it will be highly successful,” said Allain.
To raise achievement in English and Language Arts for all students, not just those taking the SATs, Superintendent Young is working on a plan to help initiate ELA learning across disciplines. On that note, an expert on ELA development from the Sage Colleges will be invited to attend the Superintendent’s Conference Day to help formulate such a program. This might involve re-scheduling the Superintendent’s Conference Day, a half day of school, from October 10 to October 24. The District will confirm this with parents once it’s official.
Tech Valley Busing
Busing to Tech Valley High School was also discussed. Tech Valley used to be located in Rensselaer, but it has now moved to Albany, and the commute is rather long. The District’s Business Manager, Karen Capozzi, has researched the matter and estimates that it will cost around $62 a day to run a bus from the bus garage to Tamarac where students would share a bus out to Albany. At least one parent thought that the commute would be too long what with the distance and sharing of bus services. She felt that a run straight out to Albany could be provided “without undue hardship to the District.” The Board, though, decided to go with the route sharing option, lest, as Goodermote put it, they open up “a whole can of worms for one student.”
“Let’s see if we can make it work,” said Zwack. “If it doesn’t we can revisit it again later.”
Another idea that Goodermote would like to see work is some kind of community activity night, to “get the community to come out and hang out,” maybe by watching a movie together. This will be considered, perhaps along with the PTO, and added to a later agenda. Board Member Jeff Paine did note that the District would need a license to show movies publicly. He thought it would cost around $100, which nobody seemed to have a problem with. Suggestions from the public would also be entertained. As Zwack pointed out at the beginning of the meeting, the Board is working toward “improving communication throughout the District.” And communication goes two ways.
“Your input,” said Zwack, “will help make this a better school.”
The next monthly Board meeting will be held Tuesday, October 24, at 7 pm.
The Berlin Elementary School PTO sponsored Scholastic Book Fair will be held next week from September 22 to September 26 in the gym from 9 am to 2:30 pm.[/private]