Out and About!

Spring Athletics Season is Close to Coming to a Close: Another week and weekend are in the books as we draw closer to graduation and the end of the school year. Over the weekend our athletic year drew closer to coming to a close and with it a lot of great memories, awards, and titles. Thank you to all of our athletes and coaches who represented us very well once again.

A special thanks also goes out to our Athletic Director Mike Burns. The job of the modern day Athletic Director is not easy. Beyond scheduling, today's Athletic Director must navigate new rules, be in tune with the athletic, operational and academic needs of students, and must always be available for parents and coaches. I believe that Mr. Burns was able to enjoy one complete day off with his newborn son due to demands of the job, and I am thankful that he will get to spend more quality time with the little guy now.

Honoring our Boys Lacrosse Coach: At our Board of Education meeting last week, the Board voted unanimously to name our turf field after retired teacher and current Boys Lacrosse coaching legend Mike Messere. This has been approximately ten years in the making and is a result of Policy 1540 which was developed to guide the Board through a process.

The process includes a community group submitting an application on Mr. Messere's behalf, submission of a petition containing at least 1,000 signatures (the petition has well over 1,000 signatures) of qualified voters in the District, passing through an anonymous review committee, and a full background check of the applicant before being approved by the Board of Education.

Coach Messere will be officially recognized on August 1 or August 2 during the John Pepper Boys Lacrosse Tournament (details are still being worked out). His recognition will be a sign that will hang above the score board on the turf field that will read "Mike Messere Field". Congratulations to Coach Messere.

Student Sings at the Taste of Syracuse: Our musicians pop up where you least expect them. Saturday night was no exception. West Genesee Middle School eighth grader, Payton Bird, sang the national anthem at the Taste of Syracuse just before the rock and reality star Brett Michaels took the stage! How cool is that?

The Science of Rockets: We also had some West Genesee Middle School students, under the direction of Mr. Ramsden, build and launch some large rockets as a larger part of their research into math, science, and technology. These rockets were probably large enough to make it into orbit!

Upcoming Events: This week we have the Fine Arts and Athletic Receptions as well as the Corporate Challenge to look forward to, and the last day of classes for high school students is this Thursday.

Have a great week and I hope to see you at one of our many events.

Chris