Still to be determined are cost estimates for reconfiguring the remaining buildings. Its starting to feel like they just want to jam this down peoples throats, Osmond said. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. We are facing a COVID-19 education crisis. Its not like a business where you just stop making products, said Laurie Osmond, who was part of the school board for 14 years. Skip Leighton - Hudson Valley One In response to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, 107 countries had implemented national school closures by March 18, 2020. The Woodstock and Bennett schools will house grades k-5 beginning with the 2024-25 school year. We use cookies. A national teacher shortage was creating difficulties in a district where 30 percent of the teachers will reach retirement age by 2028. As this report finds, schools for more than 168 million children globally have been closed for almost a full year. The next two alternative models looked at closing both Phoenicia and Woodstock Elementary schools and reassigning its students to Bennett. With every day that goes by, these children will fall further behind and the most vulnerable will pay the heaviest price. In January, the Onteora School Board unanimously voted to transfer sixth graders from Bennett to the adjacent middle school starting in the 2024-25 school year. Join us to see how students followed their dreams at the Onteora High School Community Mentor Program Presentation Evening, held at the High School on June 8 at 7 PM. Schools are considered fully closed when the closures affect most or all of the schoolchildren enrolled at pre-primary, primary, lower and upper secondary levels. Out of 127 students attending Phoenicia, only 55 live in the Town of Shandaken, Bishop said, while 72 live in Bearsville, Boiceville, Glenford, Hurley, Olivebridge, Shokan, Stone Ridge, West Hurley, West Shokan and Willow. Certainly, instructionally, it helps for students to be in less different locations so that the faculty can also be together and can collaborate more easily, McLaren said. There were 887 in-person ballots cast in Woodstock, 497 from Olive and Marbletown, and 306 from Shandaken and Lexington. Big win for OPEN is confirmed, group is opposed to Onteora closings. School Closings and Remote Instruction | News - Story - Onteora Middle School < Back to News January 26, 2023 Dear Parents/Guardians, As you are aware, the District had allocated six (6) snow days as part of the 2022-2023 school calendar and our plan was to use these days if needed. Additionally, an online survey was open for a month asking peoples preferences, and a community forum was held on March 30 to share the results. The Woodstock Elementary School could be one of the next schools to close as part of Onteora Central School District to fight declining enrollment. Onteora Central School District is a school district in Boiceville, New York, United States. May 5, 2021 in Education 0 Onteora voters will choose two school board trustees for two-year terms among four candidates and decide on a $58.78 million budget when they go to the polls on May 18. We have class size guidelines in place. Resident Melissa Thongs asked the board to consider how the sequence of planned transitions would impact some of the students who will first move from Phoenicia to another elementary school and then possibly a third elementary building before reaching the middle school. Quarter 1 High Honors = 95-100, Honors = 90-94, Merit = 85-89. We tried very hard not to reach this moment. They (the board) ignored the results of the public survey they commissioned which overwhelmingly favored keeping both schools open refused to cost out necessary renovations to consolidate into one building, and turned a blind eye to the dozens of community members who showed up and gave impassioned pleas, anOnteora Parents Engaged Now Facebook post reads. Home - Onteora Central School District Faced with steadily declining enrollment and a loss of 1000 students, or more than half its total over the last decade, district officials have said that maintaining all schools was not sustainable. Declining student numbers have led the district to consider drastic solutions. We have 120 public school districts in the Hudson Valley, but 97 of them are shrinking, he said. Brenner also said the parent organization has offered to help survey the area, but the district has not been open to it. 30. The report, which OCSD commissioned from education planning consultant Dr. Kevin Baughman, listed six different options, which have been narrowed to three: Closing Bennett Elementary and making the other schools K-4 or K-5; closing Phoenicia and Woodstock and adding more capacity Bennett; or closing one school. He spent four years as City Hall reporter for Fosters Daily Democrat in Dover, NH, then moved back to Woodstock in 2003 and worked on the Daily Freeman copy desk until 2013. But now, they worry what the impact of closing those schools will have on their children and the community. I know cabins in Woodland Valley selling close to that price. The Phoenicia Elementary School was a large factor in where we choose to live, he said. After the meeting, board president Sherry said the decision was not taken lightly. Projected enrollment is expected to decline another 38 percent over the next two decades. This Onteora Central School District calendar 2023-2024 academic session posted on this page contains different activities for the session such as Thanksgiving Break, Christmas Break, Fall Break, Sprink and School Closing Date just to mention a few.. Onteora Central School District is located in New York, United States. Onteora High Schools Community Mentor Program offers students in Grades 9-12 the opportunity to pursue their interests and passionsand perhaps their dream careers. District Closed - Memorial Day. We dont want to be a part of any problem that existed before choosing to make this our home. Were trying to do the right thing, but change is hard and its very emotional for people, she said. Based on votes on the budget, including absentees, there were 1846 this year, compared to 686 last year. Onteora High School's production of, "Chicago: Teen Edition," opens this Friday, April 21 st at 7 P.M. with additional shows on Saturday, April 22 nd at 7 P.M., and on Sunday, April 23 rd at 1 P.M. Tickets are available at TicketStage or can be purchased at the door before each performance. He added that the district has apparently not accounted for an anticipated increase in new residents. Updated information is being provided tohigh school students and parents. We are facing a COVID-19 education crisis. The boards ad hoc committee had recommended an April 18 vote at a prior meeting, but no date was confirmed. Born and raised in Spain, Maria first attended the Autonomous University of Barcelona before she transferred to Utica University in 2017. 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While the pandemic put on pause any plans, in January, the Onteora School Board unanimously voted to transfer sixth graders from Bennett to the adjacent middle school starting in the 2024-25 school year, which would align with the state Department of Educations recommendation for middle schools, McLaren said. They say the district seems to prefer closing Woodstock and Phoenicia to create a Bennett central campus an option that would save the district the most funds: $979,000. THE ONTEORA CLUB - The Magazine Antiques Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. He became the news director at college radio station WFNP, where he caught the journalism bug and the rest is history. Her motion failed. You have no idea the amount of machinations and planning and just looking at the other way and trying everything we could. Maria M. Silva is a Hudson Valley news reporter for the Times Union. HS Principal's Update - January 18 | News - Story The board recently approved moving the sixth grade to the middle/high school. School Closings and Remote Instruction | News - Story - Phoenicia Elementary School < Back to News January 26, 2023 Dear Parents/Guardians, As you are aware, the District had allocated six (6) snow days as part of the 2022-2023 school calendar and our plan was to use these days if needed. WOODSTOCK Facing declining student enrollment, the Onteora Central School Districts education board voted Tuesday night to close two elementary schools over the next five years. Onteora district trustees voted Tuesday night to close Phoenicia Elementary in the school board's latest attempt to address decades' long declining enrollment and create a centralized campus.. The sixth option was to do nothing. In Ulster County, the number of children ages 5-19 decreased from 36,764 in 2000 to 29,000 in 2020, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. I think that theres been a lot of misconceptions about the significant number of mystery children who are suddenly going to come to our schools and flood them. With enrollment declining, Onteora considers reshuffling grades The Onteora Athletic Department, Athletic Council, and the Onteora Booster Club are hosting a special Community Night on January 20 from 4pm-8pm in both the Onteora High School and Middle School gymnasiums. They get paid a lot of money it doesnt take a rocket scientist to say, This is the idea, this is what were looking at, PTA member Lindsay Shands said. Closing Phoenicia would allow for improved instructional experiences for students, fewer transitions between school buildings, more efficient transportation, more effective use of faculty and staff, and greater alignment of resources and practices, the May 2 resolution stated. To do transitions so quickly like that and after fifth to go to the middle school would be a lot to ask (of) these students, especially after the difficulties that this group of children have had from COVID, she said. May 23, 2023 - Hudson Valley One It was placed on the May 2 agenda immediately after being approved by the districts attorneys, she explained. Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Sat/Sun. A digital copy of the June 2023 edition can be found under the "Clubs" -> "School Newspaper - The Talon" section of the high school's website or by selecting the following link:The Talon. The boards lone dissenting opinion came from trustee Sarah Hemingway Lynch, who conceded that the ad-hoc committee on restructuring had made a really compelling case for a central campus based on economic impact, fewer transitions between buildings, and more effective use of faculty and staff, but complained there had been no firm cost estimates of the changes. Onteora school board hears more concerns over plans to close elementary The student population went from a peak of 2,470 students in 1998 to 1,101 students currently, the lowest number on record. A second would have closed Bennett and made Phoenicia and Woodstock k-4, and the middle school 5-8. The resolution passed by the board May 2 commits the district to working toward a unified central campus by 2028. The Onteora High School is pleased to announce that the school's newspaper, The Talon, can now be accessed online. Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum & Instruction 2023-2028. Anecdotally, Brenner said shes seen more people arriving in her neighborhood, many of them with young children. Onteora school board votes to close Phoenicia, Woodstock schools Thats not true. So we understand that a lot of people are upset at the prospect.. BOICEVILLE, N.Y. Residents are continuing to express consternation over plans to close Phoenicia Elementary School in 2024 and ultimately Woodstock Elementary School in favor of a central campus using two Boiceville buildings. OCSD says this challenges the current configuration of five schools and requires the most bus runs, provides the least educational advantages and generates greater recurring costs, according to the OCSDs long-term planning information. WOODSTOCK The future of three public elementary schools in rural Ulster County is unclear as Onteora Central School District considers permanently closing one or two schools due to low enrollment. I have said before that there was an agenda and that numerous former school board members have heard the superintendent say over the years that she wanted a central campus, and I was told there was no agenda, Osmond said. CBS6 Albany We have lost 1,000 students and not changed our footprint, said McLaren, who was rehired by the school board in April of 2022. Among residents underscoring that passion was Stephanie Bryant, during a Board of Education meeting Tuesday, when she read a letter from Woodstock town Supervisor Bill McKenna asking the board to change course. Superintendent's Letter December 6, 2021 - Reminder to Register Your Child (ren) for Screening of COVID. Local. At Tuesdays budget hearing, the Board of Education voted, 6-1, on a last-minute agenda item: a reconfiguration plan that will close Phoenicia Elementary after the 2023-24 school year and Woodstock Elementary by the end of the 2027-28 school year. So if they close a school, its not just that they close the building they actually will have to add onto the other building or buildings in order to accommodate those students.. There is not a child in the Phoenicia community that they have not impacted, that they have not touched, they have not gone to their house and dropped off snacks, dropped off school bags, dropped off supplies, she said. Closing Bennett and reassigning its students to one of the two other schools could potentially save the district $500,000 annually. 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We are a small business entrepreneurs in this town, also thinking about making a major investment in this town, and Im reconsidering that right now., Brooks was not thrilled with the idea of her daughter riding the bus for three extra hours per week if Woodstock Elementary eventually closes. The dataset you are about to download is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 IGO license. They criticize relying on a pre-pandemic report that doesnt account for the recent influx of people to their neighborhoods. All these parents are just suddenly being notified of this information that youre voting on closing the school theyre picking their children up from at 3 p.m. The Path is a series of virtual live and on-demand events, hosted by NYS HESC, and designed to help New Yorks students on their path toward a higher education. Reach Maria at [email protected]. Ulster County, NY There are currently no active closings or delays. That was a lie., Osmond told the board they had been elected to represent their constituents, not to do the bidding of the superintendent. School district in the U.S. state of New York. November 3, 2021. in. Partial closures refer to situations in which schools are either closed in some of a countrys administrative units, for some grade levels, or are operating with limited capacity. Some board members at that time noted they voted against closing Phoenicia because the former West Hurley Elementary School has not been sold since it closed in 2004, with that status unchanged in 2023, which was still a point of concern by speakers during Tuesdays session. Beginning with the 2024-25 school year, Woodstock and Bennett will become k-5 schools and the middle/high school will serve grades 6-12. The plan has been met with pushback from parents, the PTA and some community members, who say the process has been rushed, relies on outdated data and that the district hasnt kept the public informed. McLaren said the district included information about the plans in a district newsletter and invited the community to participate in meetings to ask questions and share ideas. 2009 Preliminary Biomass Heating Analysis . Whats happening in Onteora Central School District is representative of declining enrollment in rural schools across large swaths of the Hudson Valley and upstate New York.