School budget vote today
$213 million proposal within state
tax limit
Albany residents
are voting Tuesday on a proposed $212.9 million
budget for the 2013-14 school year. The budget includes a proposed 2.95 percent increase in the tax levy,
which is within the district's state-mandated "cap" of 3.36 percent.
The final budget proposal that the City School District of
Albany Board of Education approved unanimously April 11
takes advantage of an increase in state aid to provide additional
classroom support for students, including Albany High School freshmen,
and boost technology resources at all levels. Visit our 2013-14
Budget News section to read more.
Re-Imagining Albany High School
June 10 forum, survey continue planning
steps
The City School District of Albany, in its
continued partnership with the community to develop a vision for the
future of high school education in our city, invites all residents to
participate in a community forum Monday, June 10.
“Re-Imagining
Albany High School: A Town Hall Meeting”
will be held from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at William S.
Hackett Middle School, located at 45 Delaware
Ave. A panel of district
representatives will lead a conversation about
the academic, social-emotional and
extracurricular programs that will best serve
all students in the decades to come.
All community members also are invited to
complete an online survey to provide
additional input that will help guide the
planning for a new or renovated high school.
Visit our Redesigning Albany High School
section to read more.
Albany High senior recognized
among top American scholars
Albany
High School senior June Criscione has been
recognized as one of 141 U.S. Presidential
Scholars nationally and just five in New York
state. U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan
announced the members of the 49th
class of U.S. Presidential Scholars on May 6.
Criscione is the top-ranked student in the
Albany High Class of 2013. Both she and Albany
High’s second-ranked student, Hillel Adler, will
attend Harvard University in the fall.
Visit our District News section
to read
more.
Albany High trio named '2013 Scholars'
Three Albany High School students were honored Wednesday at the 2013
Scholars' Recognition Dinner.
June Criscione, Kayli McTague and Malcolm Porterfield were among high
school seniors from 11 neighboring counties nominated by their schools
for outstanding academic achievement, leadership skills, and service to
the community and their schools.
Besides lauding the students, the Scholars' Recognition Dinner
spotlights the teachers who they say have influenced them most. For
Criscione, that was math teacher Margot Plumadore. For McTague, it was
French teacher Carol DiNovo. And for Porterfield, it was English teacher
Loren Green. (MORE)
Albany High student essay
wins Junior Achievement contest
When
Ed Murray read the first sentence of Shaquilla
Scott’s essay, he knew it was a winner:
“’Go to school. Make something
of yourself. You don’t want to end up like me,
broke and uneducated.’ – my mother”
Murray is president of
Junior Achievement of Northeastern New York.
Scott is an Albany High School senior who took
part in Junior Achievement through her business
explorations program and won the essay contest
entitled “My Quest to Achieve the American
Dream.” (Scott,
holding the pennant, is pictured with, from
left, teacher Diann Scialdo and Junior
Achievement's Ed Murray and Cathy Eliseo.)
(MORE)
Superintendent lauds Mayor Jennings'
partnership, leadership
City
School District of Albany Superintendent Marguerite Vanden Wyngaard,
Ph.D., praised Mayor Gerald D. Jennings as a strong partner to the
school district following the mayor's May 14 announcement that he
will not seek re-election this year.
"In the short time that I have been
here, I have come to appreciate Mayor Jennings’ commitment to working
together with our schools to help us improve opportunities for all of
our students," Dr. Vanden Wyngaard said.
Visit our From the Superintendent section to
read more from Dr. Vanden Wyngaard about Albany High School's former
vice principal.
Spring concert season is here
Music
lovers will have plenty of opportunities to hear talented students
perform this spring at a variety of concerts in the City School District of Albany.
The spring concert season opened May 8 and runs through June 13.
Elementary and middle school concerts will feature performances by
students in band, orchestra and chorus.
At the high school, in three performances, concert-goers will hear from two concert bands, two concert
orchestras, four choirs, a string quartet and a jazz band. (MORE)
Abrookin Spa Day featured on local TV
Check out “Spa Day: A Television Special”
each Saturday in May from 6-7 p.m. on
Channel Albany-Channel 18.
This story highlights Albany High School's
Cosmetology Program at Abrookin Career and
Technical Center. The show is produced and hosted by Donald
"The Soul Man" Hyman, a staff member at the
Alternative Learning Center.
WNYT/Ch. 13 also featured Spa Day earlier
this year.
Students create winning essays,
posters about hunger awareness
City School District of Albany students fared
well in poster and essay contests to raise
awareness about issues of hunger and poverty.
Winning essays were penned by Indian McCain,
Morgan Johnson and Sophia Goldsmith, all
sixth-graders at William S. Hackett Middle
School.
And winning posters were designed by
Neo Gumabay, a sixth-grader at Giffen Memorial
Elementary School, Santos Otero, an
eighth-grader at Hackett, and Damir Oliver, an
eighth-grader at North Albany Academy.
(MORE)
Albany High select choir earns highest
marks
They sang three pieces of extraordinarily
challenging music at the most difficult level. And
the judges gave their performance the highest
possible rating.
Led by Director Brendan Hoffman, Albany High
School's Select Choir earned a "gold with
distinction" rating -- the highest given to any
performing group -- at the
New York State School Music Association's Choral
Festival on May 2.
(MORE)
Albany High video talent
tapped for Proctors festival
After
hard work throughout the year, 12 Albany High
School students are hitting the big screen.
Teacher Mark Sickler has
prepared these students in his video production
class and guided them to a huge event – the
Media Arts Festival at Proctors.
The festival, slated for May 21, reveals the skills of young
local artists working in the media arts:
animation, digital illustration, filmmaking,
interactive journalism and experimental media.
Artists in middle school, high school, and
college were invited to submit their media for
exhibition in this exciting arts festival.
(MORE)
Superintendent, students join
Capital South groundbreaking celebration
City
School District of Albany Superintendent
Marguerite Vanden Wyngaard, Ph.D., and students
from Albany High School and Giffen Memorial
Elementary School joined a large group of
community leaders and residents May 2 to
celebrate the long-awaited start of construction
for the Capital South Campus Center.
When it opens next year, the
Capital South Campus Center will be an education
and training resource for the entire community.
"Collaboration,
cooperation and powerful partnerships are the
essence of strong and vibrant communities," said
Dr. Vanden Wyngaard (pictured above with
members of the Giffen Outreach Community Choir).
"The Capital South Campus Center embodies this
spirit."
Visit our District News section to read
more.
Albany High inducts 54
into National Honor Society
Albany
High School inducted 54 juniors into its Arista
Chapter of the National Honor
Society on April 30.
To be eligible for induction, students must
maintain an overall academic average of 89.5 or
higher. Albany High’s Arista Chapter was formed
in 1957 and admitted 15 students in its first
group of inductees.
Visit our District News section to read more
about the Class of 2014 inductees.
District re-affirms commitment
to diversity training for staff,
students
City School District of Albany Superintendent Marguerite Vanden
Wyngaard, Ph.D., joined representatives from the Jewish Federation of
Northeastern New York and the Anti-Defamation League for a news
conference April 12 to address what she described as “an unacceptable
error in judgment” regarding a writing assignment at Albany High
School.
“This
assignment for some of our students at Albany
High School was completely unacceptable," Dr.
Vanden Wyngaard said. "It displayed a level of
insensitivity that we absolutely will not
tolerate in our school community. I am deeply
apologetic to all of our students, all of our
families and the entire community."
Visit our From the Superintendent section to
read Dr. Vanden Wyngaard's entire statement.
Online payment for school meals now
available
You can pay online for your child’s school meals and
keep track of his or her account balance thanks to a new program being
offered to City School District of Albany families.
Through Parent Account Management Systems – or
PayPAMS – you also can set up automatic payment plans, make single
payments and get e-mail reminders if your child’s account balance is
low.
There is no cost to register, browse the website and
check your child’s account balance in this secure and convenient system.
However, you will be charged a $1.95 service fee each time you make an
online payment. Payments
through PayPAMS go directly into your child’s meal account in the school
cafeteria. (MORE)
The safety of our students is a top priority
in the City School District of Albany. We would like to remind parents of important safety
tips to review with the entire family.
Information about
pesticide use
The City School District of Albany will provide information to parents,
guardians and staff who want to receive advance notice about pesticide
use.
The district uses
pesticides as a last resort. And when pesticides are used, the district
practices Integrated Pest Management (IPM) -- a process for managing,
preventing and suppressing pests with minimal impact on human health and
the environment. The district hires outside pest-control contractors who
are required to follow IPM procedures. IPM is most successful when
teachers, students, employees and contractors work together.
If you would like to
be notified of pesticide use in the district, please contact the Buildings and
Grounds Office at 475-6160 to request a notification form, or
click here to download the form.
Asbestos plan notification
The City School District of Albany has a management plan to identify and
manage asbestos building materials in accordance with the EPA Asbestos
Hazard Emergency Response Act of 1987 (40 CFR Part 763).
Asbestos abatement projects were completed
during the building and renovation of district
elementary and middle schools. Also, asbestos
abatement was undertaken this summer at Albany
High School and Abrookin Career and Technical
Center.
In all cases, the district posted specific
notices in buildings where asbestos abatement
took place.
Periodic inspections are done every six months.
The triennial re-inspection that reviews and
updates the asbestos management plan for all
district buildings will be completed in the
summer of 2013.
The asbestos management plan is kept on file at
the district’s administrative headquarters in
Academy Park. These records are available for
review. For more
information, contact Director of Buildings and
Grounds Anthony Catalfamo at 475-6160.
Building inspection reports available
In
2010 a team of architects conducted a
building-condition inspection of all school
buildings in the City School District of Albany.
This inspection is conducted every five years;
reports for each
building are available for review. To
receive a copy or for additional information,
call the Buildings and Grounds Office at
475-6160.
Community
swimming is back at Stephen and Harriet Myers Middle
School this school year. 
