The latest news ...
Albany High girls' basketball
team
remains
unbeaten, rising in state rankings
 They
are unbeaten, No. 14 and climbing in the New York state Class AA
rankings, and one road win away from a second consecutive Big 10
championship. They are eager for the playoffs to begin later this month
and even daring to look all the way to March.
Yet, throughout what has been the best winter in 14
years for the Albany High School girls' varsity basketball team, coach
Kelly Haggerty-MacNabb and her players often have been motivated by a
memory. And they know there is only one way to shake it. (MORE)
Junior nets top Model UN prize
... again
 For
the second year in a row, Albany High School junior June Criscione
took the top prize for her section at the Vancouver Model United
Nations.
The 2012 Vancouver Model UN was held Jan. 20-22.
Model UN is a student simulation of the real UN;
each participating student is assigned to represent
a country and debate issues facing it and the global
community.
Criscione,
representing Portugal, served as a delegate to the
model World Trade Organization committee, a group of
countries seeking to supervise international trade
and remove barriers to free trade. She is pictured
above with sophomore Zilpa Oduor, who was named
outstanding delegate in her group. (MORE)
Applications available for
2012-13
magnet
elementary school lotteries
 Families
now can complete applications for the lottery that will
assign their kindergarten-grade 5/6 child to a magnet elementary school
for the 2012-13 school year.
The City School District of Albany offers families a
choice of three themed magnet elementary schools
that are open to children citywide and enrolled by
two random lotteries: one for prekindergarteners and
one for older students. Families need to apply for
the lotteries, which will be held April 17. (MORE)
Help our students receive
the state aid they need and deserve
Gov. Cuomo’s focus on providing more aid to high-needs school
districts for the 2012-13 school year has missed the City School
District of Albany, where seven out of 10 students qualify for free
and reduced-price meals.
The governor has proposed
a $1.4
million cut when all aid factors are counted.
Only three of the 41 school districts serving
students K-12 in the four-county Albany area
received harsher blows in his Jan. 17 proposal.
If the governor’s proposal
doesn’t change, the impact will be devastating – on
our students, staff, programs and the entire Albany
community.
Please help us avoid this harmful outcome for the
City School District of Albany’s 8,700 students and
their families.
Visit our District News section for more
information and to find out how you can help. The
future of our children and our community depend on
it.
Final superintendent search forums
slated for Thursday, Feb. 9
The City School District of Albany Board of Education's last public
forums seeking input on the search for the next superintendent will be
held Thursday, Feb. 9.
The district has invited
all community members to participate in the search for the district’s
next superintendent through public forums and a survey designed to
understand what the community is looking for in its next school leader.
A Spanish interpreter will be available at the Feb. 9 forums, which are
scheduled from 3-4:30 p.m. at Sheridan Preparatory Academy and 7-8:30 p.m.
at William S. Hackett Middle School.
The survey
will available online through the end of February
and also will be distributed throughout the
community.
Sign up for JV, varsity
spring sports through Feb. 10
Students can sign up through Friday, Feb. 10
to play JV and varsity spring sports at Albany High
School.
Students should sign up with
their physical-education teacher and see the school
nurse for mandatory paperwork.
Visit
the Athletics section for more information or to
download the required forms. All forms must be
returned to the school nurse by Feb. 10.
District employee and students
earn human rights kudos
The Albany Human Rights
Commission recognized three district students
and a district employee on Wednesday, Feb. 1 at a
special public ceremony at City Hall.
Receiving kudos were Albany High School
psychologist Liz Gialanella, Ph.D., Jamie Curcio, an
eighth-grader at William S. Hackett Middle School,
Jaden Tesch, a third-grader at New Scotland
Elementary School and Tamera Thomas, a sixth-grader
at Stephen and Harriet Myers Middle School. (MORE)
Winter guard catches a first
The Albany Falcons winter guard took first place on Jan. 28 at the
team's first formal competition of the season.
Winter guard is an indoor activity based on color
guard – the flag-twirling brigades that accompany
marching bands in parades during warmer weather.
When the parades stop, color guard brings the
activity inside and winter guard comes into its own.
Teams design unique routines set to music and their
performance is judged on artistic flair, precision
and coordination. (MORE)
Arbor Hill Elementary
Junior Achievement gets boost
 Thanks
to a grant from the National Grid Foundation, the 13
Junior Achievement programs at Arbor Hill Elementary
School will continue through the end of the school
year.
For first-graders in Joanne Meagher's class, Junior
Achievement means a 40-minute session once a week
with community volunteer Willie Mae Spencer. There,
students learn how jobs provide for a family's needs
and wants, how each person contributes to the
well-being of a family and the types of jobs each
family member has.
(In the photo above,
the class poses with Ms. Spencer, left, National
Grid Foundation President Robert Keller, Principal
Rosalind Gaines-Harrell and
Junior Achievement of Northeastern New York
President Ed Murray). (MORE)
District excited by college presidents'
new vision for the future of Albany High
Mayor Gerald D. Jennings' announcement Jan. 19 that local college
presidents will bring the community's higher-education resources to the
forefront in planning for the future of Albany High School is an
exciting development for the City School District of Albany, said
Superintendent Raymond Colucciello, Ed.D.
"We are grateful to Mayor Jennings for his continued
partnership with our school district and his
leadership in helping to build a bright future for
public education in our community," Dr. Colucciello
said.
Visit our District News section to read more.
Annual Founders Day
celebration planned for March 23
Mark your calendars for Friday, March 23 and plan
to join us at the beautiful, historic State Room in Albany for the
annual Founders Day celebration!
Founders Day is organized by the Albany City Council
PTA to honor and celebrate individuals who have made
a positive difference in the lives of the children
and young people of Albany.
This year’s event will include performances by City
School District of Albany students, an art show, a
silent auction a 50/50 raffle and much more.
Tickets to attend this event will be available soon
through each school's
parent-teacher
organization (PTA/PTSA/MCC). Sponsorship
opportunities also are available.
Visit our District News section for more
information.
Albany High art selected for regional show
Works by
three Albany High School artists will be on display
at the 2012 High School Regional Juried Art
Exhibition starting Feb. 15 at the Esther Massry
Gallery.
Their works were selected from pieces of
art submitted by 20 area high schools. A total of 101
works will
be displayed at the show, which runs through March
15.
(MORE)
V-i-c-t-o-r-y for Delaware speller
 Leah
Gonzalez is a great speller in two languages.
A fourth-grader
in the bilingual Dual-Language Program at Delaware Community School,
she is el campeón de deletreo -- the
spelling champ -- in the City School District of
Albany.
Fluent in Spanish and English, Gonzeles (pictured
with English Language Arts Supervisor Karen Bechdol)
outspelled students from 13 other schools at
the district-wide spelling bee held Jan. 10 at
William S. Hackett Middle School.
(MORE)
New phone numbers at Albany High School
Albany
High School has new phone numbers due to an
upgrade of the school’s phone system. Here are
the new numbers for frequently contacted
offices:
•
Main office -- 475-6200
•
Attendance office -- 475-6210
•
Guidance office -- 475-6260
•
Abrookin
Vocational-Technical Center -- 475-6400
•
Citizenship Academy -- 475-6220
•
Discovery Academy -- 475-6230
•
Innovation Academy -- 475-6240
•
Leadership Academy -- 475-6250
•
Athletics office – 475-6310
Click
here to visit Albany High's website and learn
about the exciting things happening there.
Where to turn for information
about school closings and delays
When the weather is snowy or
the roads are dangerous, the City School District of
Albany sometimes will close school or delay the
start of the school day by two hours.
Visit our School
Closings and Delays section for more
information. We also encourage you to register for
School News Notifier --
click here for more information, or click the
Albany SNN logo at right to register.
Discounted CDTA passes available
to some Albany High, Hackett students
Albany High School and William S. Hackett Middle School students
that live within 1.5 miles of their schools now can get a 10 percent
discount on CDTA bus passes.
The discount would apply on two types of 31-day “swiper” bus passes:
one providing unlimited rides on weekdays and one providing
unlimited rides seven days a week. Price of the discounted weekday
pass is $49.50. Price of the discounted seven-day pass is $58.50. (MORE)
Eight Albany High School students
recognized in national scholars programs
 Eight
Albany High School seniors have been
recognized in the annual National Merit Scholarship and National
Achievement Scholarship programs, ranking them among the top
students nationally.
Kolel Pryor has been recognized as a
semifinalist in the
National Achievement
Scholarship program. His twin brother Jarell has
been recognized
as an Outstanding Participant in the
program (that's
them above; Kolel is in the blue).
Six Albany High students
also have been recognized as National Merit
Scholarship Commended Students -- Seamus Daniels,
Molly Davis, Grant Dias-Carlson, Christopher Hogan,
Maya Kovach and David O'Connor. (MORE)
District calendar lauds exceptional students
 Two
dozen outstanding students in the City School
District of Albany are recognized in the 2011-12
school calendar.
"Great things are happening in Albany's public
schools" is the theme of the calendar, which
features students from the district's 15 elementary,
middle and high schools.
Click here to find out more about each of these
extraordinary young people with big dreams and
bright futures. District families will receive a
copy of the calendar in the mail this week.
Important safety tips
for families
to review with children
The safety of our students is a top priority
in the City School District of Albany. We would like to remind parents of important safety
tips to review with the entire family.
These tips are intended to keep children
safe while they are walking, biking or riding a bus, as well as anytime they are out
in the community without parental supervision. (MORE)
Information about
pesticide use
The City School District of Albany will provide information to parents,
guardians and staff who want to receive advance notice about pesticide
use.
The district uses
pesticides as a last resort. And when pesticides are used, the district
practices Integrated Pest Management (IPM) -- a process for managing,
preventing and suppressing pests with minimal impact on human health and
the environment. The district hires outside pest-control contractors who
are required to follow IPM procedures. IPM is most successful when
teachers, students, employees and contractors work together.
If you would like to
be notified of pesticide use in the district, please contact the Buildings and
Grounds Office at 475-6160 to request a notification form, or
click here to download the form.
Asbestos plan notification
In accordance with the EPA Asbestos Hazard
Emergency Response Act of 1987 (40 CFR Part
763), the City School District of Albany put in
place a management plan to identify and manage
asbestos building materials.
Periodic surveillances are done every six
months. In addition, abatement projects have
been conducted in conjunction with district’s
facilities project. Specific notifications are
posted in the buildings where projects are done
prior to the start of the abatement work.
The Triennial Re-inspection was completed in
June 2010, reviewing and updating the management
plan for all district buildings.
The Asbestos Management Plan for the district is
kept on file at 33 Essex Street. These records
are available for review. For more information,
contact the Buildings and Grounds Office
475-6160.
Building inspection reports available
In
2010 a team of architects conducted a
building-condition inspection of all school
buildings in the City School District of Albany.
This inspection is conducted every five years;
reports for each
building are available for review. To
receive a copy or for additional information,
call the Buildings and Grounds Office at
475-6160.
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