Dog Days of Summer

I hope you had a great Fourth of July weekend and thank you to all of our service men and women for giving us the freedoms we have; it is truly appreciated!

Construction Progress:  Since graduation, the construction contractors have been working diligently to get the additions at Onondaga Road and East Hill Elementary Schools completed. They are also working feverishly at West Genesee Middle School, Split Rock Elementary School, and West Genesee High School to get work completed at those locations as well. 

Things look good, and I continue to be pleased with the professionalism of the workers and the care they take to make sure that the jobs are done right and completed successfully. I will be posting some pictures to my Twitter feed (@cbrownwgcsd) this week so you can see the progress.  

A Busy Summer: We have also been getting ready for our summer retreat, hiring replacements for our retirees, preparing sports schedules for the fall, ramping up for Marching Band season, and going through our year-end statistics. 

Update on High School Completion Rate: We have been working to increase our high school completion rate each year, which is already far above the state average (71%) but until it is one hundred percent (currently at 91%) we will not be completely satisfied.

Community Partners: I have also been working with some of our community partners from the McMahon Ryan Child Advocacy Center, Ronald McDonald House, and SUNY Medical University, where Dr. Stephen Glatt and Stephen Faraone are studying families and children between the ages of 6 and 12 to try to identify how genes influence reward behaviors such as working hard towards goals, taking chances or risk, and delayed gratification. It is fascinating. 

If you are looking for something to do this summer and make a little money in the process, they are looking for families to participate in the study and are giving each family member $50 to do so. If you have a family with a child between the ages of 6 and 12 and are interested in participating, please call Pat Forken at 315-464-5619 for more details.


Time Off: Despite all of this work, I have been able to take a day off here and there. I got to attend the Dave Matthews concert which was the first time I had visited the new Lakeview Amphitheater. I thought it was great! 

In my Tuesday night "old man's" softball league I actually turned a double play by myself (I play shortstop), and went four for five from the plate without getting hurt! The burned out grass has also made for some long drives on the golf course, and my wife and I have had some wonderful evenings to take in Syracuse Chiefs games. I am a big believer in making every day count!

Summer School Starts: OCM BOCES summer school starts next week at Camillus Middle School, and all of the Town of Camillus Parks and Recreation camps are in full swing as well. It will be nice to have some kids around.

Enjoy the week, and I will write again in a couple of weeks.

Chris