Happy Holidays to all!

As we approach the holiday break and the end of another calendar year, we also approach the half way point in our school calendar. I have spent much of the time this school year discussing student achievement and academic issues, which are at the core of our district mission statement.

But another part of our mission is community support. Both of our school buildings have been doing a great deal in our community this year and this holiday season.

At WJSHS, the Character Education program has been working to feed the hungry: In the past, Character Ed. Has worked at the Equinox Shelter to assist with Thanksgiving dinners. Community service in this area has expanded to include assisting with the St. Patrick's Soup kitchen every Monday evening, the St .Patrick's Food Pantry for Thanksgiving, and one trip per month to the Regional Food Bank in Latham to prepare shipments of food to numerous local food pantries. They also expanded their work with the City of Watervliet to include assistance with the Christmas Tree lighting ceremony and the flower planting through the housing authority.

WES students and staff give back through the Giving Tree which benefits families in need. Staff and community members purchase needed items to brighten the holiday for families that are struggling. In addition, the WES food drive collected well over 1000 pounds of food which was donated to the Watervliet St. Patrick's food drive.

The WHS Student Council conducted a food drive as well, which collected over 260 items and $370 in cash contributions.

Through efforts such as these throughout the year, the students and staff of the Watervliet City School District show a spirit of giving and commitment to the people of the community in which they live.

I am very proud and quite pleased that we are able to live up to this piece of our mission.

Happy Holidays to all.

I LOVE THIS SCHOOL!

As many of you have probably seen, our new playgrounds are just about ready for our WES students. The play areas have been completely renovated and are brand new, safe and most importantly of all - full of exciting and challenging new equipment.

Earlier this week I visited our students playing on the new kindergarten playground and they were very excited to finally be able to swing on the swings and climb on the monkey bars, (even though it was a little chilly out) after several weeks of watching the construction through their classroom windows. It was great to see their smiling faces as they tried out the new equipment.

Yesterday, as I watched students using the new equipment on the other playground behind the school, I was excited by what I saw, but I was most impressed by what I heard. A student was running from one new piece of equipment to another screaming, “I LOVE THIS SCHOOL!” Normally, we educators are supposed to frown at screaming, but I think I can make an exception this one time!

I would like to thank Kate Smith and all of the members of our Playground Committee - Shannon Quinlivan, Kelly Webster, Don Stevens, Toni DeFilippo, Katrina Davis, Kelly Gilchrist, Stacey Clermont and Ben Roberts - for all of the hard work that they have done to make these new playgrounds a reality. I know our students appreciate it.

There are still a few more details and other renovations (including our new softball fields) that remain at WES, but we are in the final stretch (which I know will make Mrs. O’Brien very happy!)

The comprehensive capital improvement of our schools and facilities is ongoing and the main focus will now move to the WJSHS campus. It is the work of groups like the playground committee and our facilities task force that make these projects fully inclusive and true community endeavors.

As soon as the final touches are completed at WES we will be holding a ribbon cutting and public tours. We want everyone in the community to echo the sentiments of the excited student that I watched yesterday in saying, “WE LOVE THIS SCHOOL!”

Please watch our web site and WVLT for information about this event.

Appreciating our unsung heroes

Two separate groups of unsung heroes are being celebrated at Watervliet City Schools. This week is both Bus Driver Appreciation Week and Board of Education Appreciation Week. Both of these groups are integral to the day-to-day operations and the overall vision and mission of our school district.

Bus Driver Appreciation Week

Our school bus drivers are very important members of our team here in Watervliet. While by New York State definition, the majority of our students live within walking distance to our schools, the Board of Education chooses every year to put safety first and offer a generous transportation program to our elementary school students. This program includes our three buses and district employed bus drivers (Dave Capitula, Mike Motkowicz, Mike Carroll) and several contract buses from Star and Strand and Folmsbee Transportation Company. Every one of these drivers happily takes on the responsibility for delivering our students safely to and from school every day. They also transport our students to special programs, field trips and sporting events. These men and women provide an important service to our students and community. This is sometimes a thankless job and I would like to thank them personally for all that they do. You can read more about our celebration on the district's website.

Board of Education Appreciation Week

The Board of Education of the Watervliet City School District is made up of five elected volunteers who truly are committed to the continued success of our school district: Mark Scully, President; Christine Chartrand, Vice President; Jennifer Donovan; Frank McGrouty; and Virginia Mullaney. Many people do not realize the time and effort that is put in by these people. Many also do not realize that there is no pay or benefits provided for School Board Members. They are true volunteers. Knowing that they are serving the children of our school district and the occasional, while be it too seldom, “thank yous” are all the compensation they receive. Happily for us, that is all they need.

We are very lucky here in Watervliet to have a BOE that is as committed, interested and dedicated to our schools as these folks are As you watch our test scores rise, our graduation rate climb and our new facilities come to life, you should know that it is your neighbor, the school board member, who had the vision and fortitude to bring these initiatives to reality. I am truly grateful to have the opportunity to work with the WCSD BOE and thank them for guiding our school district to fulfillment of our mission of inspiring, educating and challenging every student, every day.

So, I ask you - next time you see your child’s bus driver or one of the members of our board of education, please remember to thank them for all they do for our students.

We're off the list!

I frequently blog about our need to raise the bar for our students and ourselves. One the ways to do this is to take a long look at our practices and determine what is working and what needs to be improved. Our School Improvement Team has spent the last two years doing this and it has definitely paid high dividends.

We have seen great results from this work.

• First and foremost, as per the most recent accountability list issued by the state education department, we have been removed from New York State’s list of "Schools Needing Improvement."

• Watervliet City School District students in grades 3-8 demonstrated significant progress on the New York state math exam this year, with 15 percent more achieving the two highest levels over previous years.

• District-wide, 86 percent achieved Level 3 or Level 4 on the test administered in March, up from 71 percent in 2007-08, according to results the State Education Department released June 1. Measured over two years, the district has seen a 33 percent increase in the number of students scoring at the top two levels.

• The most significant gains this year were in grade seven, where 41 percent more students scored Level 3 or Level 4.

• Every grade posted achievement gains and met the state benchmark, with significant gains at each grade level. Additionally, students in all subgroups made strong progress in 2009 as the district continues its efforts to eliminate the achievement gap.

• The strong gains in math followed similar results district-wide on this year’s English language arts exam. Overall, 69 percent of the district’s students in grades 3-8 achieved proficiency in ELA this year, a 9 percent gain over 2008 and a 20 percent increase over 2007.

• The most significant ELA gains this year were again seen in grade seven, where 20 percent more students scored Level 3 or Level 4.

• Every grade posted ELA achievement gains and met the state benchmark, with significant gains at each grade level. Additionally, students in all subgroups made strong progress in 2009.

Just because we have been removed from the list of school’s needing improvement, the work of our School Improvement team will not stop. It is my firm belief that all schools should be working to be better at all times. So this year we will be looking even more deeply at our academic program and our practices.

To do this, we need to ask ourselves three essential questions: What are we teaching, why are we teaching it and how will we know our students have learned and mastered the material. Asking ourselves these questions on a daily basis, along with our more formalized school improvement initiatives, will allow us to continue our forward momentum and fulfill the mission of the Watervliet City School District.

I have never looked forward to a school year as much as I am looking forward to this one!

Welcome back!

It is with great excitement that I welcome everyone, students and staff alike, back to school this fall. The progress that we have made as a district in recent years and the prospect of what lies ahead is so exciting and inspiring that I can say without hesitation that I have never looked forward to a school year as much as I do this year.

The mission of the Watervliet City School District is to inspire, educate and challenge every student, every day. And our staff is truly living up to this mission. Our school improvement team and sub-committees have provided us with new and more effective ways to ensure that our students are learning what they need. We made great strides in aligning our curriculum to ensure we are in line with New York State Standards. And as a result, we have seen unprecedented improvement in student performance.

I am very pleased and proud to announce that last year, our students achieved the annual yearly progress goal, as set by the State Education Department, on every test, in every grade level and in every sub group. We have been removed from the School In Need of Improvement list for the 2009-2010 school year.

Now we must continue to improve. Our goal is to not only be proficient but to achieve mastery. We must continue our forward momentum, raise the bar and challenge our students to even greater feats. As educators, our expectations of our students must be limitless and we must back these expectations with support and a commitment that just as we are asking for their best, we will give them our best each and every day.

Setting higher expectations for our students

It is hard to believe that it has been over a month since I watched the class of 2009 walk across the stage here at Watervliet Junior Senior High School.

As I read the names of each graduate as they crossed the stage, I could not help but think of our district’s mission and our community’s shared value of high expectations.

Each of the students who graduated in June met these high expectations and I have confidence that they will go out into the world and become highly successful individuals.

But even as we handed out diplomas that night the world moved forward, and the expectations of the class of 2009 were no longer high enough to meet the needs of a world that is changing and advancing at a rate that we can’t even begin to comprehend.

It is with this in mind that I turn my attention to setting new, higher expectations for our students, faculty and administration. Not too long ago a high school diploma was all someone needed to be ready for a fulfilling and prosperous career and life. This is no longer the case. Research shows us that post-secondary education is now the key to success in life. College and/or technical school is a necessity and the same old high school expectations will not prepare our students for the challenges they will meet at these institutions. We must set the expectation that every student who enters our school district, regardless of when they enter, will graduate on time and with an ADVANCED REGENTS DIPLOMA. An advanced Regents Diploma requires that students meet more rigorous standards than a regular Regents Diploma. Next year’s freshman (students entering WHS in fall 2009) will need to pass 8 Regents exams to qualify for an Advanced Diploma as opposed to passing five exams to obtain a regular Regents Diploma.


The most recent school report published by the Capital Region Business Review ranks our school district 76 out of 85. While there can be many excuses and “yeah buts” used to rationalize this ranking, the truth is the methodology used to calculate this score is logical and actually a valid measure of school success with students. The overall score is a weighted tabulation that takes into account data from five categories: scores on state tests in ELA/Reading, social studies, science and math; and the total number of students who graduated with either Regents Diplomas or Advanced Regents Diplomas. After much analysis of this report, it is clear that despite impressive gains in our NYS assessments, the number of students graduating on time and with advanced Regents diplomas (the sign of a truly rigorous high school curriculum) is an area of weakness that we must address.

I find this ranking unacceptable and have begun conversations with our administrators and board of education to address this area of weakness immediately. Our job as educators, is to set the bar high for our students. To that end, it is my intention to present the BOE with a proposal to adopt graduation requirements that mirror those of the NYS advanced regents diploma as our district requirements for graduation.

Our graduates deserve to leave us prepared not just to survive in the world but to excel. With Board of Education, faculty, community and student support I am confident that our students will meet this new expectation handily.

The end of the year is also the end of an era...

As an administrator, the end of another school year is always a time of reflection for me. I think back on all the things that went well over the past year and look ahead to the things I would like to work on improving next year. For all of us, it is a time to say goodbye to many people who have been important parts of our lives here at the Watervliet City School District. WHS seniors will cross the stage on June 26th and graduate, thus closing this chapter of their K-12 lives. We are so very proud of their achievements and wish them only the best as they move on to college or careers – whatever they have planned for the next stage of their lives. (Of course saying goodbye to our senior class requires a blog posting all of its own, so stay tuned!)

What I would really like to talk about today is saying goodbye to staff. Commencement is the most public of our goodbyes, but there are always the goodbyes that do not have the pomp and circumstance of a graduation ceremony. This is the time of year we also say goodbye to colleagues and friends from our instructional staff. This year Watervliet is losing two very committed educators, Mrs. Kathy Terpening and Mrs. Carolyn Proctor. Between the two of them, these educators have more than sixty years of service to the students of Watervliet.

Mrs. Proctor has served as a Teacher Assistant in the district for more than thirty years. During her time here she has always been someone who went above and beyond the contractual responsibilities of her position to help our students. Mrs. Proctor has been known to spend hours after school tutoring students in whatever subject necessary. Her own background and abilities aided her in being a tireless supporter of our students for whom English is a second language. Mrs. Proctor has been a true asset to our district and will be greatly missed by staff and students alike.

I first came to know and respect Mrs. Kathy Terpening through her role as Union President. As many of you know, the relationship between a union president and superintendent can sometimes be filled with conflict and, in the worst cases, contempt. This was not the case with Mrs. Terpening and I. I found Mrs. Terpening to be both honest and ethical as a union president. The more I have gotten to know her, I’ve realized she brings these qualities to everything else that she does. Over the years countless people have come to me to compliment Mrs. Terpening on what a great teacher she is and what a positive influence she has had on her students and her colleagues. As we start the process of looking for a teacher to occupy Mrs. Terpening’s classroom (I will not say replace Mrs. Terpening, because that could never happen!) I can’t help but feel that whomever we choose will have very big shoes to fill.

We wish both of these fine educators a long and happy retirement. You will both be missed.

Thanks for your support!

Once again, our community has overwhelmingly approved our school district budget. The faith and trust that our community has shown our schools and our mission is truly inspiring. This district could not succeed in our work to inspire educate and challenge every student, every day without them.
I would like to personally thank this community for its unwavering support. Since I came to this district 4 years ago, our voters have approved each of our annual
budgets, two capital projects totaling more than 30 million dollars and a transportation proposition that allowed us to acquire three brand new school buses.

We're 7 and 0, and that's a nice place to be!

The Great Flip Flop Debate

Every year as the weather gets warmer our district’s dress code becomes a matter of debate with students and some parents.

The Board of Education has adopted a dress code for the Watervliet City School District that requires students to dress in attire that meets our health and safety standards and does not interfere with the learning process. There are a few very specific items that are cited in this policy (tube tops, bandanas, hats, clothing that promotes violence, drugs or alcohol) but there are items that are not mentioned that the policy leaves up to the discretion of building-level administrators (principals and assistant principals).

It is the job of our building administrators to determine if student dress violates the policy in terms of health, safety and appropriateness. While they dutifully perform this function, I can tell you with certainty that they do not enjoy it. Our District's Mission is to inspire, educate and challenge every student, every day - not to be the fashion police.

The number one issue that comes up throughout the spring is the wearing of flip flops to school. No one will debate the fact that flip flops are a staple in most people's summer wardrobe (I have a pair myself), but this footwear is neither safe nor appropriate for school. Flip flops do not provide appropriate support for every day activities such as playground recess, physical education class or even just navigating our stairs and hallways. How many of us have thrown a flip flop just walking normally? I know I have. The foam sole provides little protection should a student step on something sharp accidentally and in the case of an emergency situation such as a fire drill they do not promote the ability to move quickly.

Lastly, flip flops are not appropriate for school in general. We must prepare our students for the expectations of the real world, and I know of no employer who would look kindly on their employee showing up to work in flip flops(unless your career choice is lifeguard or salesperson at Hollister).

I ask that parents understand the reasoning behind our stand on flip flops and discourage your children from wearing them to school. As a rule of thumb, we ask that you send your student with safe, multi–purpose shoes to school every day. Shoes with the proper support (heel and sole support) that are consistent with what is appropriate for the atmosphere that is our school building.

I thank you for your help with this matter. We would much rather spend our time in productive discussions surrounding the best way to inspire, challenge and educate our students rather than debating the merits of the ever-popular flip flop.

Education needs to be nimble

There is an old saying that changes in education are evolutionary not revolutionary.
There is a great deal of truth to this saying. In today’s world we in education must change this

We must become nimble.

Nimble is defined as quick and light in movement; moving with ease; agile and active.

Do not confuse being nimble with being reactionary or rash. Being nimble means we must have the ability to move quickly, efficiently and effectively to meet the challenges that face education.

As I reflect on our budget development process, I realize how difficult it is for a school district to be nimble. We are planning our spending and programs for next year based on old knowledge, old data and old assumptions. As all of you know, technology that is purchased today is out of date quickly, sometimes even before we purchase it. New best practices in the classroom emerge on a daily basis. It would take a crystal ball to know exactly what new and improved technology and knowledge will be available to us come September, yet we formulate schedules and budgets that reflect what we have done in the past.


Schools face the specter of being under-funded and over-regulated in these very hard times. This adds to our plodding nature and makes becoming nimble seem nearly impossible. The call for greater and greater accountability stifles our desire to take risks of any kind.

But we can’t let these factors become excuses.

To overcome these challenges and become nimble we must build flexibility and calculated risk taking into our budgets, schedules, lesson plans and policies. We must put in place processes to review our actions quickly and, based on current data, take corrective action in a moments notice. We must be quick and light in movement, agile and active.

Throughout the spring our district will be working to align and update our curriculum to ensure rigor and relevance. During this process we will be able to build in opportunities for risk taking, language that allows for the flexibility and emphasis on research and innovation in the class room.

It is steps like these that will put us closer to one of my main goals - helping Watervliet become a nimble school district.

Keeping on mission!

Our mission is to inspire educate and challenge every student, every day. And here in the Watervliet City School District we are living this mission.

I am proud to inform you that in the 2007 – 2008 school year our students met our annual yearly progress goals in every category, in every sub group and at every level. It is the hard work and commitment of our faculty and staff that has made this achievement possible.

While it is important that we take time to celebrate this achievement, we can not rest on our laurels. In an environment of continuous improvement we must ensure that this upward momentum continues.

A key way to do this is to ensure that we have a rigorous and relevant curriculum that is not only aligned with the New York State learning standards, but is aligned with our mission.

Recently, I was at a meeting of the leaders of community groups in our city. At the end of the meeting a line formed in front of me. Almost to a person, these community leaders sought our students for one activity, function or another. It gave me great pride to hear the positive comments about our schools, our teachers and most importantly – our students. But with that pride, came a feeling of great responsibility. This community depends on our ability to prepare our students to be the future of their city, the state and our nation.

They depend on us to deliver rigorous, relevant education with curriculum that is aligned with learning standards and prepares them for the challenges of the 21st century.

I want to thank our faculty and staff for they work they do towards fulfilling this challenge, and all that they do for every Watervliet student, every day.

Cannoneers hit the books, and crush the competition

Our student athletes are getting the job done in the classroom and on the court/field. Earlier this month we were informed that our Girls Bowling, Boys Basketball and Boys Indoor Track teams were named Scholar Athlete Teams by the New York State High School Athletic Association. This follows a fall that saw four other teams also receive this honor; Girls Tennis, Girls Volleyball, Girls Soccer and Varsity Boys Football.

A team must have a combined overall average of 91 or better to qualify as a scholar athlete team.

Not only are Watervliet’s student athletes hitting the books, but they are crushing the competition as well. Section II titles were won in Football, Girl’s Basketball and for the first time ever, wrestling. In fact, our Football and Wrestling teams combined both a sectional championship and a scholar athlete award.

While many argue that athletics have little to do with student achievement, the academic accomplishments of our students clearly show that the two go hand in hand. Cannoneer athletes are held to a high standard and must perform in the classroom or they are not allowed to compete in their chosen sport. Our Athletic Director and all of our coaches share this philosophy and instill this value in each of their team members.

We are very proud that our students have the self discipline and commitment needed to be champions of both academics and athletics.

As an added honor, Varsity Football Coach, Erick Bernard and Wrestling Coach, Dennis Lane were both named Coach of the Year. These two gentlemen happen to be the coaches of our two teams that achieved both a sectional championship and a scholar athlete award. Is this just a coincidence? I think not?

The pressure is on spring coaches and teams. You have big shoes to fill!

Community Budget Forum - February 25, 2009!

There is no doubt our nation is facing difficult times. The words recession, collapse, and bailout have become standard fare on the pages of newspapers and magazines both locally and across the country. According to experts, the current economic crisis will take years to play out. As a result, our district is going to be facing intense competition for limited resources at the state level.

The Watervliet City School District has been fiscally responsible, managing to work our way out of a $1.3 million budget deficit in left by a gap in funding in the 2005-06 school budget. As of the close of the 2007-08 fiscal year, the District has fully recovered from this deficit. However, it appears that the fiscal crisis at the New York State level will lead to reduced state aid this year, meaning that the district must look for ways to save money without affecting the quality of our educational program, or putting too large a financial burden on our taxpayers.

To that end, I would like to personally invite you to join us for an upcoming Community Forum to brainstorm together how best to plan for the 2009-10 school year budget.

The forum will be held on Wednesday, February 25, at 6:30 pm in the WJSHS Media Center and will feature a brief presentation on the current state of the district followed discussion on several essential questions related to the district’s budgeting process.

In times of economic uncertainty, schools can’t take the same approach as a business dealing with lost revenue, which would be to reduce either the quantity or quality of the product we produce. That’s just not an option in education – regardless of the state’s woes, our core mission is to inspire, educate and challenge every student every day.

While WCSD is lucky enough to be in better financial shape than many other local districts, the Board of Education may have to make some difficult decisions over the coming months, in an attempt to preserve our financial stability moving forward. Your input is very important to us. Navigating these rough waters is not something that the district should do in isolation. It is crucial that we work together as a community to find an appropriate balance. We hope that you will be able to join us for the upcoming Community Forum - I look forward to seeing you on February 25!

Planning for the 2009-10 school budget.. we need your input!

As we begin the New Year, our district begins to focus on the school budget for 2009-2010. In doing this, we know that we have two main objectives: to provide a world class education to every student, every day, and to do so without over burdening our local taxpayers. This year, this balancing act is made even more difficult by the economic crisis that we face as a state and a nation. The realities of this crisis have our State officials considering some very deep cuts in the aid to education,

Watervliet relies heavily on state education funding to provide our student programs and keep our local taxes as low as possible. Reduction in this aid leaves us with only two choices; remove student programming or increase local taxes. Neither of which is something that we want to do.

These issues are at the center of the budget conversations that we want to have, not only with the school employees and administration, but also with the citizens of Watervliet.

In years past we have had a budget committee made up of school employees, local business owners, parents, and concerned tax payers. We would like to invite anyone who wants to be part of our solution team to join this budget committee. We will be holding a series of meetings over the coming months, the dates of which will be posted on the district’s website. If you would like to be a member of this committee, please contact Bernadette Boardman, Clerk of the Board, at 629-3201. We need to hear the voices of the people of Watervliet to help us make the right choices in this challenging time.

We will not abandon our students, and regardless of the money lost to state aid cuts we will accept and overcome this challenge together. The future of our students and our city is at stake. We must work together to come out of this crisis a stronger community.