The first week in October is when we take time to reflect on every facet of our organization and to do one final check to make sure that everything is running well and will run well for the rest of the school year. Considering that we made over $5M worth of changes for this school year, I am very proud of our staff for making things work with what we have.
Janine Corning, a physical education teacher at West Genesee Middle School, gets the gold star for perseverance. She has been working since I got here in 2008 to secure a grant to help our physical education department purchase some new equipment which will help really move our health, nutrition, and wellness efforts in a positive direction. Her efforts have paid off as we learned on Friday that her grant application was selected to be funded by the United States Education Department to the tune of $508,000. It just goes to show you that ALL of us in this organization are ALWAYS trying to find ways to make things better for our children. Congratulations Mrs. Corning!
I would also like to thank those who participated in the Tournament of Bands on Saturday. This is a major fundraiser for our Marching Band while showcasing the show they have been performing this season. Cold and rain were the descriptors of the day, but if you had a chance to watch the Marching Band you saw that they are nearly ready for the Carrier Dome where the competition should pause and recognize that we have a very determined group ready to compete for the big prize.
Our football team also continues to excel as they showed us on Friday night after being up 21-0 against Baldwinsville, but then they got into a shooting match that went right to the wire. The starting players and many different back-up players had to work together to stay alive in the game, and coach Corley showed how much he respects his players by calling a two-point conversion play to win the game instead of an extra point to send it into overtime.
As you can see, we have created a culture with our staff and students of making things happen, not giving up, and being determined. I am very proud to be a part of it all.
We have obtained all of the necessary paperwork and have the Board of Education approval necessary to move forward and begin to accept proposals to sell the wooded lot we own on West Genesee Street. I will keep you posted on progress in this area.
We are also beginning to receive proposals from different vendors and consultants with regards to our redistricting plans. The hope is to have interviews done and proposals considered by the end of October so that a recommendation can be brought to the Board of Education for a consultant to help us. Once this is done, a public meeting will be held in the beginning of November to outline the process, take comments, and relay any other information relevant to the project. Stay tuned.
I have a very busy week with mandatory training, an out of town commitment, and some reports that are due to the state. I still plan to get around the District as much as possible, and I hope you have a great week.
Chris
This page provides thoughts and commentary from the Superintendent of Schools for the West Genesee Central School District. From time to time, columns from this page will appear in the District printed publication, The Communicator, distributed at no charge to households in the district. (To subscribe to this link as a RSS feed, please click on the link "Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)" located at the bottom of the postings.)
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About Me
- Christopher R. Brown
- Probably not the most traditional superintendent of all time but I have a true love for children and watching them grow and mature. I enjoy speaking to them when they return home from college, job, or service and talking about the "good old days". Definitely keeps me young.
