Fall 2010 District Newsletter

St. Regis Mohawk School Health & Safety Documents

August 2010

It is hard to believe that the halls of Salmon River Schools will be filled with teachers and staff on September 2, 2010.  Where did the summer go! The school year begins with two days of professional development, and the students return on Tuesday, September 7, 2010. Are we ready? Yes!!!

It is my pleasure to announce that the Board of Education appointed Angela Robert as the Junior-Senior High School Principal. The Board approved a reorganization of the secondary school from two principals to a principal, an assistant principal and two half-time Dean of Students to help support the improvement of student achievement.

With the appointment of Mrs. Robert, the Board seeks to strengthen the Junior-Senior High School program with a strong leader with significant instructional experience who will lend continuity and stability to the district administration. In her new position, Mrs. Robert will work with an assistant junior-senior high school principal, Mrs. Alison Benedict, and two Deans of Students, Mrs. Tammy Russell and Mr. Shawn Miller, who will lead grades 7-12. Mrs. Robert and her team will work closely with Mrs. Annemarie Fitzrandolph, the Director of Instruction, to develop the new Middle School Program, strengthen the 9-12 programs, lead the graduation rate initiative and expand and enhance course offerings for our college bound students. The staffing of the Deans is covered within the original 2010-2011 budget. We are pleased with the additional support that our Deans will provide for students through increased assistance and encouragement during the school day!

In our elementary schools, Mr. Walbridge, the Salmon River Elementary Principal, has the school ready for students and staff. And, at the St. Regis Mohawk School, Principal Sharlee Thomas has been supervising the completion of capital improvements that include new interactive whiteboards for every classroom, a new primary playground, as well as improvements in our sidewalks and replacement of roofs.

The capital project is progressing on schedule. The high school has 14 new classrooms and a number of renovated rooms that will be completed for September. The new technology wing, which will house three new learning areas for the Salmon River Technology Programs, will also be completed for the opening of school.

We are pleased to announce that we are bringing Agricultural Science back to Salmon River through a collaboration with the FEH BOCES that will offer a 21^st Century Agricultural Science Program for junior and senior high school pupils. Mr. David Russell, a Salmon River parent, graduate and member of our school community, is the new Agriculture teacher! The Ag program will be located in the new Technology Wing.

The new cafeteria and kitchen will be completed by January 1, 2011 and the students will continue to dine in the existing areas until that time. The play gymnasium is slated to be completed for the opening of school. Significant renovations have been done to the walls, ventilation and floors. The elementary and middle school additions are slated to open in the 2011-2012 school year.

The Board of Education created a long-range goal in 2007 to create a Middle School for grades 6, 7 and 8 to address students’ academic, social, emotional and cultural needs. We are on schedule with accomplishing this goal by September 2011. This year’s fifth grade students will be the first sixth grade class in the new school. Throughout this school year, we will keep parents informed about the plan for the opening of the new Middle School.

There are additional renovations that need to be designed and planned for in the next phase of our capital improvements. As you may recall, the initial project in 2007 had a significant amount of work that needed to be done totaling some $70 million. The Board focused on completing only that portion that was covered by state aid. The referendum passed by the voters was for $49.8 million. The district has received permission from the New York State Education Department to proceed with planning the design phase of the additional capital renovations that need to be done. Health and safety will be our number one priority. There will be a series of communications with the community in the fall and next winter with the details. It is anticipated this will go to a vote in February 2011.

We congratulate Renee Durant on her decision to retire and appreciate her many years of service as the Cafeteria Cook Manager for Salmon River. We also would like to congratulate Ann Hulse, Secretary to the Superintendent, on her retirement. Both persons’ retirements will be effective August 30, 2010. We wish them many happy years of retirement. Maureen Dustin will be transferred to the position of Secretary to the Superintendent and the payroll duties will be handled through the FEH BOCES which will be a significant savings to the district.

Many thanks to Mr. Treptow and his staff for all the hard work they performed over this summer in bus maintenance. We are ready to roll out the fleet on September 7, 2010! And a special “Thank you” to Mr. Mayville and his crew for getting our schools cleaned and ready for our students and staff!

The Board and I are very focused on student achievement. This year’s number one goal is to enhance student learning opportunities. We will keep you updated through a series of reports throughout the year. I am confident that the new leadership team will make a significant difference in student outcomes!

Go Shamrocks!

Salmon River Ground Breaking – September 25, 2009

On behalf of the Board of Education, I am pleased to announce that today officially marks the beginning of the second phase of the capital project that will involve new construction to the elementary school, the junior high school and the high school, as well as, renovation work in all three schools.

During the 2008-09 school year, the Salmon River District completed the first phase of the 21^st Century Instructional, Health and Safety Capital Improvement Project with renovations that were completed at the Salmon River Ice Arena.

This phase will address some significant instructional goals that Salmon River has been moving toward.

1. Middle School - The construction will also create a facility that will house the sixth grade at which time Salmon River Junior High wing will convert to the Salmon River Middle School which is slated to be open in September 2011. Mrs. Robert and Mrs. Fitz Randolph are in the process of designing a program with staff that will bring the sixth grade students from the St. Regis Mohawk School and Salmon River Elementary School together in the sixth grade. The principal and the teachers have successfully implemented a seventh and eight grade middle school model this year and we are looking forward to implementing a 6-8 program. The Middle school is slated to open in Fall 2011.

2.  The first leg of the project includes the construction of a technology wing which will house the three technology classrooms. This center will focus on the development of construction trades in carpentry, electrical wiring, mechanics, welding, drafting, robotics, and Salmon River Technology courses.  Our Technology teachers and Mrs. FitzRandolph have designed 21^st century courses of study.

3. New York State’s 1^st BOCES Satellite Career and Technical Program – The project will create classrooms that will house two Franklin-Essex-Hamilton BOCES Career and Technical Programs at Salmon River.

      a.  One program is Plumbing-Heating-Air Conditioning-Ventilation that will be located at Salmon. This is a trade that our region is in drastic need of trained individuals.
 

      b. And, the District is thrilled to announce that the second Career and Technical Program will be a 21^st Century Agricultural Program. The district is happy to bring an emphasis in agriculture back to Salmon River.

      c. Mr. Steve Shafer, the BOCES Superintendent and Mrs. Nancy Montavego are working closely with Mrs. Fitz Randolph and other Salmon River Staff in the design and development of these two programs. We are very proud to be leading the State in the implementation of these programs.

4. Additional HS Classrooms – There will be 17 additional classrooms in the HS along with a new cafeteria that will be shared with the middle school. Additional renovations will enhance our art, music, school counseling and student support offices. Many of these classrooms will be done by Fall 2010 and play a key role in overcrowding in the HS.

5. The Elementary will have 14 additional classrooms that will be completed by Fall 2011. These classrooms will be shared FEH BOCES to create a Pre-K-12 continuum of BOCES Special Education Classrooms so that Salmon River students do not have to bused to other school districts.

6. Shamrocks Go Green! - Another expectation that the Board has defined for this project is that the district follow Green Standards. The contractors are beginning to mobilize and the work will begin in the rear of the facilities with a geothermal well field which will entail the development of a rear access road and the drilling of 160 wells. The wells will be 450 feet deep and will provide the ground source heating system to heat the additions that are part of the new construction. The geothermal renewable energy is in accordance with the New York State Collaborative for High Performance Schools (CHPS) which supports the Salmon River Board of Education directive to focus on green energy initiatives.

7. Technology – Final Goal – We will have 21^st Century Classrooms that will be equipped with sound enhancement systems and interactive white Boards. These state of the art instructional tools will support our teachers with the development of modern lesson plans.

The Board of Education awarded six contracts bids for the project on September 14. The District is pleased that Randy Collins, Bryan Manning, John Dortch and the CS Arch Firm will be guiding the District through the construction phase of the project. We anticipate that this project will be employing a number of local construction workers. And we are pleased with the progress of the project to date.

The voters approved this project in February 2008. At that time, the district planned the scope of this project according to a plan that would maximize state aid and prevent the use of local tax dollars. More work will need to be done in a future project.  The planning for the next phase will begin shortly. The budget for this project is on target!  No local tax dollars will be used for the project!

Go Shamrocks!