Already the Last Week of March!

It is hard to believe that this is the last week of March. For all the basketball fans, this is the highlight of the season and a great time to enjoy watching college basketball at it's best. March also signals the beginning of spring; hopefully we have turned the corner with the weather and we can begin to enjoy warmer days.

Providing Professional Development: This has been another busy week here at West Genesee. Last Wednesday we had a Superintendent’s Workshop Day with the focus of providing professional development to our staff on literacy in the classroom.

I am very impressed with the continuous learning that our teachers go through on these workshop days. They are able to take the information they have learned and incorporate that back into the classrooms; which of course benefits our students.

Recognizing our Students: Last Friday night the West Genesee Boys Varsity Basketball team fought a hard battle against the Christ The King team, a school with Division I players. Although they came up short of winning the Federation semi-final game, they played their best and stayed competitive. They should be very proud of a completing a great season; one for the record books!

Congratulations also goes out to the WGHS Chorale, composer Edmund Joliffe, and Tony Alvaro for taking first place at the Ithaca College Composition Contest with Mr. Joliffe’s piece “Gold! Gold! Gold! Gold!”

The National Honor Society Induction ceremony was held last night at the high school. The students inducted were recognized for meeting high standards of scholarship, service, leadership, and character. Congratulations on this great honor!

Students Learn about Finances: The Annual Mad City Money event was held last Friday in the high school gymnasium for all sophomores. This is an in-school simulation city wherein students were assigned roles including jobs, spouses, children, and debt. This allows them to experience the possible trials and tribulations of their financial futures.

Westar Credit Union sponsored this valuable event which teaches our students how to manage an adult budget at all levels. Thank you to Westar and all of the wonderful volunteers who manned the tables and made this a successful learning opportunity for our students. (Be on the lookout in the next District e-Newsletter for more information and photos from this event.)

I am looking forward to a another week of concerts, sporting events, and other activities happening in our schools!

~Mike

A Weekend of Firsts

I hope that you all had a great weekend. As St. Patrick’s Day celebrations were going on over the weekend, the wearing of the green was everywhere!

National Recognition: Sophomore Gabrielle (Gabby) Mitchell has received a Silver Medal for her piece Iron and Ichor in the National Scholastics Art and Writing Award Competition. This award demonstrates high honors and achievement on the national level. We are all very proud of her as she is the first West Genesee student to receive this honor. Great job! Click here to read the web article on this topic. 

Helping Fight Childhood Cancer: We are so proud of the staff and students in the District who #BravedTheShave for St. Baldrick's Day to raise awareness and money to help fight childhood cancer. The staff and students at West Genesee Middle School raised $18,000 this year with a little help from a couple of teachers from CMS and Stonehedge Elementary Schools. Thank you to WGMS administrators, staff, and students for their leadership with this event every year!

Basketball Teams Have Unprecedented Seasons: Congratulations to the Boys Basketball team for winning the NYS Class AA Championship for the first time in school history! The team now moves on to the Federation Championship this coming weekend in Glens Falls.

Also, congratulations to the Girls Basketball team as they competed this past weekend in their second trip to the NYS Final Four and their first time in the finals. They are now the NYS Class AA Championship Runner-Up team! Click here to read an article about this topic.

Over the weekend, I was able to attend games for both teams. The competition was exciting to watch, and the teams showed great sportsmanship.We have a lot of Wildcat pride for our teams. #WildcatPride #GoWildcats

Half-Day of School: Just a reminder that tomorrow, Wednesday, March 20, is a half-day for students who will attend in the morning. The dismissal times for the buildings will be as follows: high school: 9:55 a.m.; CMS/WGMS: 10:10 a.m.; all elementary buildings: 11:30 a.m.

I am looking forward to a week of concerts, sporting events, and other activities happening in our schools!

~Mike

Spring is in the Air!

Spring is in the air and hopefully we are heading into some warmer days. I actually heard birds chirping, so I know the good weather cannot be far behind.

Budget Update: On March 6, Assistant Superintendent for Management Services, Paul Pelton, presented the proposed 2019-2020 budget to the Board of Education. This visual presentation will be given again for the public on April 23 and May 8. For more details about all things budget, just click here to go to the budget section of our website.

West Genesee School Resource Officer is Honored: Our School Resource Officer, Anthony Gucciardi, has been named the 2018 Camillus Police Officer of the Year. He was selected because of his strong work ethic, and the consistent and professional service he provides to our school and community. We are lucky to have Officer Gucciardi with us here at West Genesee. We congratulate him on this well-deserved honor!

US Army Field Band to Perform in Camillus: The US Army Field Band and Soldiers’ Chorus will be performing at the West Genesee High School Auditorium on Saturday, April 6, beginning at 7:30 p.m. and is free to the public. This will be an opportunity for them to connect with our community and tell their story. For more details about this event, click here.

Athletic News: Both our Boys and Girls Basketball teams won exciting games on Saturday. They have each advanced to the Final Four this upcoming weekend. Congratulations!

The boys play next on Friday, March 15,  at 5:00 p.m. vs. Niagara Falls at the Floyd Maines Veterans Memorial Arena in Binghamton. If they win on Friday, they will play in the State Championship game on Saturday evening, March 16,  at 9:00 p.m. at the same site. 

The girls play next on Saturday, March 16, at 2:15 p.m. vs. Bishop Kearney at Hudson Valley Community College in Troy. If they win on Saturday, they will play in the State Championship game on Sunday, March 17, at 11:45 a.m. at the same site. Go Wildcats!!!

I am looking forward to a celebrating Spirit Week at multiple schools this week!

~Mike

March Came in Like a Lion!

March has not disappointed; it came in like a lion, now let’s hope that it goes out like a lamb.

Superintendent’s Conference: This week, from Sunday through Tuesday, I attended the New York State Council of School Superintendent’s (NYSCOSS) Conference in Albany, New York. There were 422 school superintendents in attendance. I attended many different workshop sessions, including one on safety and security in public schools. 

Also, another noteworthy session was in regards to the New York State education budget. It does appear that school districts will not receive any additional aid then originally proposed in January by the governor. We are building our 2019 through 2020 school year budget based on the original proposal from the governor. Fortunately, West Genesee schools will be able to maintain all programs and staffing for next year. Good news!

Celebrating Academics: The Top Ten for the Class of 2019 were announced this past week. The Valedictorian is Philip Martin and the Salutatorian is Stefan Atanasov. Congratulations to all of these students who have worked hard to maintain academic excellence throughout their high school career! Click here to view the web article which lists the remaining top ten students in alphabetical order.

Shopping for a Career: The Annual Camillus Middle School Career Fair was held last Friday. This is always a great opportunity for students to learn about many different career choices that they have as they think about goals for their future. 

Celebrating Diversity: The 11th Annual Culture Fair was a great success! There was a great turnout for this event as we celebrated our community’s diversity. All who attended were treated to dance performances, live music, cultural demonstrations, food samples, and much more. Click here to view photos from the event.

Athletic News: Congratulations to the Boys and Girls Basketball teams who both won Section 3 Class AA Championships this past weekend! They will play in the NYS Regionals on Saturday, March 9, at SRC arena at OCC. The boys will play Saratoga Springs at 3:45 p.m. and the girls play Shenendehowa at 5:30 p.m. Also, please note that the Varsity and Junior Varsity Spring sports began on Monday, March 4.

Board of Education Update: Just a reminder that the Board of Education Meeting will be held this Wednesday, March 6, in the high school library starting at 7:00 p.m. Please note that the initial Budget for 2019-2020 will be presented during the meeting.

Music Festivals: This past week we were serenaded by our choral students in grades 7-12 at the Choral Festival and art show. This week is the Festival of Bands on Thursday, March 7, from 7:30 p.m.to 9:00 p.m. in the high school auditorium. What a great way for our District to celebrate Music in our Schools Month!

Looking forward to a wonderful and productive week!

~Mike