Ringing in the New Year: Happy New Year! I hope that you were able to find some time to enjoy with your family and friends over the holidays. I promise to stay positive in 2015.
So I will tell you with a smile on my face that during the break I have been recovering from surgery and it has taken me longer to get back to full strength than I had hoped. As a bonus, my son broke his foot in a West Genny basketball game and will miss the rest of his senior season. Fun! The power of being positive (I keep telling myself).
Much to Accomplish: I am looking forward to the remainder of this school year. We still have things to accomplish, and the challenges that this half of the school year always brings (the middle of winter, assessments, and budget building to name a few) remind me to be thankful for experience, great employees, and a supportive community.
The State of Education in New York: In a new twist, Governor Cuomo spent his holiday bad-mouthing the profession of education from many angles. Unfortunately his father, a former Governor himself, passed away. No one really listens over the holidays, so we will have to see how fired up he is once all of the dust settles. Not quite sure why he is taking such a strong aim at all aspects of education (there is a reason for everything in politics), but I would encourage all state organizations related to K-12 education to cross aisles and band together if the Governor really starts making fire instead of blowing smoke. Education, in my humble opinion, is not in the dire straits he portrays it to be in. We will see.
Testing the Parentlink Phone System: We have not yet used phone calls from the Parentlink system for any form of communication. However, we believe we have worked out the main concerns in the system, and
we will be testing the phone system this week on Wednesday, January 7. So be on the lookout for an email announcing the test along with the actual phone call. The call should be received on the primary call number listed in Schooltool.
I am really glad to have everyone back at school. It gets lonely when the buildings are empty. Take care and see you around the community!
Chris
