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.