Cortland Enlarged City Schools
District Newsletter, February 2022
Superintendent's Video Blast
Last week our Superintendent visited Smith Intermediate School to cheer on our 4th Graders as they participated in the gymnastics unit in Physical Education class.
One Book, One Community - Wishtree by Katherine Applegate
The "One Book, One Community" initiative began in Seattle in 1998 and the phenomenon of One Book, One Community reading programs has been growing steadily across the country. Students, staff and community members will all read the same book throughout the 2021-2022 school year.
The book we chose for our community is "Wishtree" by Katherine Applegate. Red is the neighborhood “wishtree”—people write their wishes on pieces of cloth and tie them to Red's branches. Along with her crow friend Bongo and other animals who seek refuge in Red's hollows, this “wishtree” watches over the neighborhood. You might say Red has seen it all. Until a new family moves in. Not everyone is welcoming, and Red’s experiences as a wishtree are more important than ever.
Families, friends and neighbors can build a sense of community through a shared reading experience. There will be activities related to the book going on during the school year in all our schools, culminating with a wishtree at each building for our wishes. For more information contact a district librarian at any of our school buildings.
CHS Boys Basketball Dishes an Assist to the American Cancer Society
Every year, the American Cancer Society partners with the NCAA and high school basketball programs throughout the country for a week-long program called Coaches vs. Cancer. The goal of this week is to raise funds for the American Cancer Society and to bring awareness to athletes about various cancers and to celebrate the strength it takes to battle cancer. This year, all funds raised target childhood cancer.
The CHS Boys Basketball team participated again this season and hosted a Coaches vs. Cancer game on Monday, January 24th vs. Fowler. Despite an exciting victory for the Purple Tigers on the court, the biggest celebration came off the court. Each player was able to celebrate someone special in their life that has been impacted by cancer by writing a heartfelt paragraph in the program. Three players were able to invite that special guest to our game and those guests were honored in a pregame ceremony. All players wore pink laces and a pink armband to honor those impacted by cancer. Funds were raised two ways. At halftime, fans participated in a 3-point shooting challenge to help raise funds, and district faculty members were given the opportunity to purchase raffle tickets. A dozen local restaurants generously donated $25 gift certificates to help us in our efforts for this game. A big shout to the following restaurants: A Pizza & More, BRIX, Bru 64, Domino's Pizza, Doug's Fish Fry, Friendly's, Garcia's, Hairy Tony's, Hollywood, M&D Deli, Pontillo's, and Pudgie's. Fans that made a 3-pointer, and faculty members that had a raffle ticket selected won the gift certificates. When all fundraising efforts concluded, $510 was raised to donate to the American Cancer Society. A job well done to the Purple Tigers boys basketball team.
Area-All State
Universal Pre-K Program (UPK) Registration
In-person registration will be conducted at the Kaufman Center beginning March 21st. This process will not be by appointment and the UPK spots will go to families on a first-come, first-serve basis. Many years, the spots do fill up, so it is best to come on March 21 or very close afterwards.
To be eligible your child must reside in the Cortland Enlarged City School District and have a birth date between 12/2/17 and 12/1/18. For more information on programs locations and the registration process, call (607) 758-4125.
Kindergarten Registration
It is now time to register your child for Kindergarten if they are eligible. You can register by calling (607)-758-4106, to make a registration appointment and to receive a pre-registration packet.
In order to register for Kindergarten, your child must be 5 on or before December 1, 2022. Children who turn 6 before December 1, 2022 must attend school. All students must have a registration appointment prior to April 18, 2022.
Once your child is registered you will be contacted by Cheryl Loope, Secretary at Barry Primary, to schedule another appointment which will be a screening appointment. The screening appointment will be in-person at the school and your child will come with you. More information about this appointment will be shared at your registration appointment.
Give My Regards to Broadway
The month of January is always a busy one for Cortland High Theatre with all hands on deck as we produce our yearly Junior High Musical. While putting on a show is the ultimate goal, the overall focus is theatre education as students in all grades are given an opportunity to learn the skills needed to excel on stage and behind the scenes in the field. Auditions at the end of December brought out some fresh and exciting talent from our 7th and 8th Graders. While some of these students may have been involved with the CRT Youth Program or the Youth Bureau Summer Drama Program, for many students, it was the first opportunity to put on a show. Mr. Wells and his staff of high school student directors were ready for this challenge and they were excited to train the next generation of our beloved theatre program. Actors such as Story Pszczolkowski, Bridget Madden and Camarianna Inman anchored the cast with their experience which nurtured newcomers such as Amelia Fischer, Braxton Towle and Serenity Wolf as they grew and found their own voices as actors on stage.
The musical "Give My Regards to Broadway", a spin on the popular "42nd Street" featuring well-known music by George M. Cohen, featured a cast of 16 Junior High performers and was fully staged and choreographed by 7 student Senior High student directors along with Mr. Wells who acted as music director and mentor. Amanda Hopko, well known for her various lead roles in High School Musicals took on a great deal of staging, offering acting and character development tips throughout. Senior Jenna Diescher took on the responsibility of head choreographer, Matt Honan designed the sets and programmed the lights, while Nick DeRado led up graphic design and publicity.
Rounding out those involved was a pit orchestra of instrumentalists. Like many of the actors, this was the first time our young musicians had the opportunity to learn a full score for a musical.
The production was an overall success and Cortland High Theatre sends a heartfelt "Thank You" to all who attended and everyone who has been a support to our program and the young performers, directors, technicians and musicians who commit so much of their time to make shows like this possible.
Purple Pantry Continues
There is enough food for every child in the household to have a breakfast, dinner, and snack throughout the weekend. Most foods included are peanut butter and jelly, soups, pastas and sauces, crackers, and a few treats.
If you would like to request to be on the list, please contact Mrs. Whelan, Mrs.Catalano, or your student's guidance counselor at the JSHS.
If you would like to donate foods, please feel free to leave a donation at the high school office addressed to Kelly Chapman or the Purple Pantry. Your donation will go a long way to helping several families in our school community.
In the photo below Senior Madelyn Guido stocking some of our pantry items.
Notes from the Board
Notes from the Board
The CECSD Board of Education meetings are posted on the district website and are open to the public. Because we know not everyone can make it to the meetings, we’d like to share some of the topics that have been discussed most recently:
2022-2023 Budget Presentation... Kristopher Williamson, Business Administrator for the district, continued his presentations related to the budget, highlighting debt service projections, projected state aid, reserve updates and tax cap calculations. Budget presentations can be found on the Business Office Page of the district website.
Tiger Paw Recipients.... At the January 25th Board of Education meeting, our school nurses, Lorie Greenwood, Kellie Lamoreau, Vickie Myers, Julie Neuman, Jody Prezioso and Kim Rowland were all recognized for significant commitment to our schools especially in the face of the pandemic. At the February meeting, 8th grade Science teacher Theresa Johnson, was honored for her commitment and dedication to embodying the #AllMeansAll approach with each of her students every day.
Upcoming Smith School Presentation.... In January and February, Principals Kaup and Quinn offered an overview of student learning and staff collaboration at Barry Primary and Randall Middle Schools. At the March 8th Board Meeting, Principal Wanish will offer highlights from Smith Intermediate School. Mr. Wells from the high school music department will also have a special presentation to share.
Community Engagement.... The subcommittee of the Board of Education focused on community engagement will be holding their March 1st meeting at the Cortland Free Library at 10am. The focus of the meeting will be to get community ideas about a new Vision and Mission statement for the school district. RSVP for the meeting with this link.
Don't miss the next Board of Education meeting scheduled for Tuesday, March 8, at 6:30pm.