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'Girls on the Run' program at Batavia Middle School aims to have positive impact on community

By Howard B. Owens

Girls on the Run, a group of students at Batavia Middle School, are holding a shoe drive as one of their charitable projects in the community. 

Teacher Sarah Gahagan, along with a friend, introduced Girls on the Run to the middle school and is looking to spread the word about the program. They're looking for a community project that the girls can take on.

"This is solely based on what the girls want to do in order for them to feel a sense of ownership and empowerment as they work toward their goal," Gahagan said.

The 12-week program culminates in a 5K in Buffalo.

"The girls set running goals every week in order to gear up for the final event," Gahagan said. "Each girl will cross the finish line with one of their coaches, a parent or a running buddy that they have asked to run with them from the school."

Gahagan described the program as a physical-activity-based youth-development program designed to inspire girls in the sixth, seventh and eighth grades to be joyful, healthy and confident.

In the photo, starting with the front row on the left: Sarah Gahagan, Breeann Wilcox, Juliana Branche, Tiffany Brown, Courtney Lougheed, Aliza Green, Riley Macdonough, Destiny Griffin, Andrea Merchant, Meghan Houseknect, Madison Dedman and Lindsey Mathis.

Proposed Elba schools budget cuts teaching positions

By Jess Wheeler

On Monday, members of the Elba community met in the crowded auditorium of Elba Central School to discuss a controversial cost-cutting budget that will reduce the positions of seven teachers and staff members.

The proposed budget for 2015-2016 will eliminate a guidance counselor, librarian, academic intervention service (AIS) math teacher, and an English Language Learner (ELL) teacher. It will also eliminate three teaching positions in Spanish, social studies and gym.

Elba has seen a $1.5 million budget reduction since 2013.

The new program at the high school would assign one guidance counselor at the high school and use a school psychologist to assist with counseling. Some students in Spanish would have to take a French class to earn an Advanced Regents Diploma. Staff members would supervise students in the library and students would no longer be permitted to use it during Study Hall. Gym class would increase from 17 students to 25.

At the elementary level, AIS math and English would be taught by homeroom teachers and teaching assistants. The focus at the elementary school was to maintain 15 students in each class, thereby keeping class size small.

“These are hard times and we have to make some tough decisions,” Scott Kaperman, principal of Elba Elementary, said. “The budget has been developed to put the focus on your child.”

Some parents, teachers and members of the community did not agree with Kaperman’s statement.

“I thought our motto here at Elba was, ‘students first,’ ” guidance counselor Chad Agen said when he addressed the Board of Education.

Agen and the other guidance counselor, Kelly Carlie, voiced just how important their jobs are at the schools. The two of them expressed concerns about bullying, suicide threats and other mental issues that some students have. Together, they help students apply for colleges and write letters of recommendation. They are worried that one guidance counselor would not be sufficient for the needs of all the students.

One of the biggest concerns expressed on Monday was the loss of AIS teachers.

“Why do we continue to cut our support for our remedial students?” asked Julie Maderer, K-12 reading teacher at Elba. “All students do not have the same problem and AIS is not a one-size-fits-all solution.”

Parents echoed Maderer’s concerns. They also expressed fear for how the 37 ELL students will do with only one teacher to help them. Nineteen percent of Elba students are Latino or Hispanic.

Christopher Salinas, principal of the secondary school, argued that students who have special needs will always coexist with their peers and it is the school's job to prepare them for life. Parents, however, said they feel the students are all being lumped together and it isn’t necessarily fostering success.

“If you ask the parents of the kids who need help, if you ask the parents of kids who are in the middle, if you ask the parents of the kids who excel, they would all agree that something is being taken away from all of the students,” parent Lori McClurg said.

Jordan Fluker wins 2015 Mr. Batavia contest at BHS

By Howard B. Owens

Jordan Fluker was named 2015 Mr. Batavia in the third annual competition at Batavia High School on Friday night.

Proceeds from the event -- $3,000 this year, a new record -- goes to the charity of Fluker's choice, which was Genesee Cancer Assistance.

The 11 contestants were Bryce Rogers, Andrew Maniace, Samir Jain, Dylan Beckman, Brandon Smart, Josh Franks, Adam Taylor, Eric DiLaura, Nick Bauer, Jordan Fluker and Ben Demare.

Tuxedos for the event were provided by Charles Men's Shop and Reed Eye Associations donated sunglasses to the 11 young men.

The competition included a talent show, swimsuits, and question-and-answer and the tuxedo walk. 

To purchase prints, click here.

School board looking at offering bus rides to city students who live further from schools

By Jess Wheeler

The 157 city school students who live more than a mile and a half from their schools could soon have the option of riding a bus.

Currently, bus transportation isn't offered to students who live within the city boundaries, but the proposal should change the policy.

The district contracts with Student Transportation of America for bus transportation. Under the proposal, BTA will conduct two pick-ups and two drop-offs at designated locations in the city.

Currently, the buses only do one run and pick-up all of the kids on the first pass. 

“We’re paying for time that we aren’t using,” Business Administrator Scott Rozanski said.

The Board was hopeful that the change for transportation would solve concerns that have been raised.

“This would limit the number of students who have to walk well over two miles,” Rozanski said. “They could just walk to their pick-up and then come directly to the high school."

“Ideally, no student will have to walk more than half of a mile to their pick-up destination,” Superintendent Christopher J. Dailey added.

Safety would increase due to less traffic on State Street. Attendance at the high school is expected to improve during the winter when parents might keep their kids at home in bad weather.

The transportation change will be conducted within the parameters of the current contract with Student Transportation of America. There will be no additional cost to the budget or the taxpayers.

The Board of Education thanked Rozanski for his effort to solve the transportation issue Batavia High School has had for several years.

The proposed increased transportation will be added to the ballot which goes to voters on May 19.

Parents meet, discuss pulling students from Common Core test

By Jess Wheeler

The Batavia City School district is not expected to meet the 95-percent mandated participation rate for the Common Core standardized tests that started today and continue into next week. A letter released from the office of Superintendent Christopher J. Dailey said the district could lose local control of the schools and the funding for teaching positions as a result.

“No one wants to see funding stripped from our schools,” said Brian Odachowski, a father of two daughters. “No one wants to lose teachers. But there is an obvious growing number of parents who are not buying into these standardized tests and Common Core as a whole.”

On Monday Night, Loy Gross, math tutor and co-founder of United to Counter the Core, met with a group of nine parents and three students to talk about testing refusal. The parents agreed that their kids are stressed out about the tests and none are participating.

Gross's 15-year-old daughter was taking college-level math classes and getting a 4.0 when she took the Common Core Regents math test last year. She only just passed. Gross pulled both of her kids out of school to homeschool them in September. “These tests are no good. They are designed for the kids to fail,” she said.

Eighth-grader Gabrielle Crespo said she doesn’t understand the material and doesn’t think she will do well on the exam.

“2x + dog = kitty poop. That’s what math is like in my head,” she said.

Crespo’s mother, Julie Bolas-Carasone, is frustrated that she can’t help her daughter do her homework.

“There is no material given to the parents to help,” she said. “The staff just tells us to ‘Google it.’ Google is great, but what about those of us who don’t have Internet access at home?”

Parents are not only frustrated because they can’t help their children, they are concerned that their children may not have reached the targeted cognitive level of the test. Common Core testing is also used to evaluate teachers across New York State and some people believe the educators are teaching in fear for their jobs.

“The kids can sense the fear from the teachers and it’s stressing them out,” Bolas-Carasone said. “Teachers are not teaching because they’re passionate.”

The Common Core tests are graded as a cut-score on the level of one through four. Three and four are considered passing grades. The school receives the results for each student, but according to parents, they do not receive the tests back. Parents voiced concerns of not knowing how to help their children succeed when they don't know where they struggled on the tests.

According to the New York State Education Department Web site, 2014 saw an improvement from the previous year. Statewide, math scores rose in levels three and four from 31.2 percent to 35.8 percent. English Language Arts went from 66.9 percent to 69.6 percent. The scoring represents proficiency level.

Parents at the United to Counter the Core meeting last night said they do not believe the test results accurately reflect their child’s proficiency.

“The only way to win this game, is not to play,” Gross said.

Hawley calls on State Ed Dept. to clarify Common Core opt-out rules

By Howard B. Owens

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R,C,I-Batavia) today called on the New York State Education Department (SED) to provide guidance to parents and school districts about the consequences of opting out of Common Core tests and what it could mean for future funding. Hawley said school districts are operating in the dark about what will happen as a result of a large number of students opting out of the upcoming Common Core tests, and that State Ed should provide more information so parents can make informed decisions.  

“I realize that Common Core is an increasingly controversial issue and thousands of students have already opted out of the tests,” Hawley said. “While I respect parents’ rights to opt their children out of the Common Core tests, I do not want them to make a decision that will negatively impact the funding received by their school districts. This is why I am calling on SED to clarify how opting out will impact schools’ funding. At this point, SED has created a complex situation where many factors are still undetermined. It is their obligation to provide direction to schools. SED has an equal responsibility to provide us with accurate information as to how funding will be impacted if a large number of students chose to forgo the state assessments this year.”

Common Core tests for English Language Arts begin tomorrow and Math Assessments begin later this month. In 2014, more than 100,000 students opted out of both the English and Math tests. Schools are required to maintain adequate yearly progress and show 95 percent participation in state assessments for grades three through eight to remain eligible for full Federal funding.

City Schools superintendent addresses opt-out issue on Common Core tests

By Howard B. Owens

Open letter from Chris Dailey, superintendent of Batavia City Schools:

We are writing today to share your district’s perspective on the New York State Assessments in grades 3-8 that will be taking place April 14-16 and April 22-24, 2015.

Pursuant to New York State Education Department (NYSED) Regulations and subsequent guidance, all students in public and charter schools in Grades 3-8 are required to take all State assessments administered for their grade level, in accordance with both Federal and State laws. NYSED has made clear that, with very limited exceptions (such as with regard to certain students with disabilities), “there is no provision in the statute or regulation that allow parents to opt their children out of State Assessments.” Further, all public schools in New York State are mandated by NYSED to require all students in attendance in school or in attendance on the assessment days or make-up days, to take the assessment scheduled for that day.

Batavia joins many other districts in calling for an end to using these assessments in the administrator and teacher evaluation process. We believe that great teaching is not always reflected in the results of any single assessment. We also believe that state assessments are just one indicator that can help us analyze student growth and school performance. As far as the opt out/refusal movement that has taken place this spring, we would like to share how having your child refuse the test could impact BCSD through these four points:

1. We do not use the assessment results to punish or terminate teachers. Rather, we work collaboratively with the BOE, administrators and teacher union to ensure that we keep perspective over this one piece of data for student achievement. It is not used in BCSD to hurt our administrators, teachers or students.

2. The assessment data allows us to analyze and reflect on Batavia’s curriculum and instruction practices while also comparing our students to other students across the state with similar population demographics. In general, we do very well compared to other small city school districts with populations like BCSD.

3. We are a Focus District. We were identified in the summer of 2012 for a subgroup of students at Robert Morris in 2009-10 that struggled with the NYS assessments. We were told it would be a three year process of working with NYSED to improve incrementally each year. Since Robert Morris was closing due to the consolidation, we were required to have the school with the largest population of that subgroup take its place. Thus, the Middle School became our Focus School. We have had to submit education improvement plans for both the District and Middle School each year that must then be approved by NYSED. Thus far, we have shown incremental growth each year. If we do not make our participation rate of 95% on the exams, we potentially could lose more local control for our district. We have regularly made this participation target. This year we are in jeopardy of not reaching our participation rate due to the number of refusals being submitted by parents. Two or more years of not making the participation goal could lead to us being deemed a Priority District which would have even more ramifications than being a Focus District.

4. If our participation rate dips below 95% we can also potentially lose a portion or the entire Title I federal grant, which impacts 26 teaching positions and professional development opportunities for our staff. It would be the equivalent of losing funding for 12 full-time teaching positions.

We hope this information is helpful and thank you for providing us with outstanding children to work, learn and grow with every day. Take Care of BCSD!

Christopher J. Dailey, Superintendent of Schools

Molly Corey, Executive Director of Curriculum and Instruction

City School budget advances with no tax increase and three added teaching positions

By Jess Wheeler

The return of three teaching positions and the lack of a tax increase highlight a 2015-16 budget proposal for Batavia City schools following this week's budget meeting. 

The reinstated teaching positions include a science teacher and a social studies teacher, both at the middle school level. The third position is for a districtwide music teacher.

There are students on a waiting list to take music classes.

The preliminary budget released in January projected a .55-percent increase in the tax levy, but with new state aid numbers that increase was zeroed out.

“The governor has always given budget projections,” Business Administrator Scott Rozanski said. “This year, he did not. So we used the budget numbers from the current year. When the state budget was finalized, we saw an increase of about $427,000. We used that to reduce the tax levy to 0 percent.”

The $427,000 will be coming in New York State Aid.

The proposed budget includes an increase in mileage for transportation at John Kennedy Intermediate School.

“I think the Board has sensed the needs of the taxpayer and has done even better than the governor projected,” Rozanski said.

The board meets again April 14 to finalize the budget proposal.

The public vote is May 19. The election will include the budget, transportation and three open seats on the school board.

Photo: Volunteers present vocabulary booklets to students

By Howard B. Owens

Genesee County AmeriCorps member Steven Kleckler and RSVP of Genesee County Program Director Courtney Iburi presented vocabulary booklets created by volunteers to students at the Agri-Business Child Development Center in commemoration of the Cesar Chavez Day of Service. 

Photo and info submitted by Kathy Frank.

Notre Dame wins business competition

By Howard B. Owens

Press release:

Wednesday, March 25, was the Virtual Business Trade Fair at Genesee Community College. Nine high schools from the G.L.O.W. region competed with 11 businesses created entirely from scratch by students. At Notre Dame, this year-long project is incorporated into the college credit course Principles of Business or BUS 101 through collaboration with GCC’s Accelerated College Enrollment Program (ACE).

This is the first year Notre Dame participated in the event, but that did not stop the eight-member team from receiving multiple recognitions at the fair. Their teacher, Lindsay Warner, says the team has shown incredible commitment to the project since it began in September.

“They have had a contagious enthusiasm for this project that propelled them to a well-deserved victory!” Warner said.

This course is driven by student-centered projects. Each member has developed public speaking, problem-solving, and communication skills. They have learned to work together and value input of others, even if it is different from their own. They have learned that hard work pays in the end and that learning can be valuable and even fun. There are no tests and no quizzes but Drew Morabito, senior and chief financial officer, wants to clear up any confusion, saying “I have never worked harder in any class.”

Students learn because they want to succeed and suceed they did. 

Notre Dame placed in four out of five judged categories at the trade fair. The Cupcakery -- a small bake shop specializing in upscale cupcakes -- received First Place for Salesmanship and Number of Transactions. They also placed 2nd for Transaction Dollar Amount and tied with T&T from Pavilion High School for Best Booth Design.

The teams will also be judged on 20+ page business plans submitted at the event as well as product catalogs and Web sites with results expected in the next few weeks.

Notre Dame’s Bus 101 class and Cupcakery business owners are: Lindsey Bender -- chief marketing officer; Dylan Fix -- financial executive; Joseph Falkowski III -- human resource manager; Chase Hughes -- financial executive; Drew Morabito -- chief financial officer; Caleb Nellis -- human resource executive; Taylor Perzia -- chief executive officer; and Joseph Zickl -- marketing and sales executive.

ND currently offers Economics, Introduction to Careers, Personal Money Management, Accounting 1, and Accounting 101 in addition to Principles of Business. Business-minded students can graduate Notre Dame with 12 college credits, equivalent to one semester of college.

Anyone interested in learning more about this program and the other opportunities Notre Dame is providing its students should contact the school or visit during the upcoming Open House, April 19, from 2 - 4 p.m.

Total # of Deposits:
The Cupcakery                  Notre Dame                       256
Vision Vacations               Dansville                              155
Able Sports                         Elba                                        114
Oatkan Outdoors             Le Roy                                    114

Total Amount of Deposits:
Vision Vacations               Dansville                              $378,009.35
The Cupcakery                  Notre Dame                       $330,624.33
Road Trip                             Attica                                    $187,953

Booth Design:
The Cupcakery                  Notre Dame                       770
T & T Services                    Pavilion                                                770
Elite Feet                             Way-Co                                                743
Sugar Shack                        Batavia                                 730

Salesmanship:
The Cupcakery                  Notre Dame                       427
T & T Services                    Pavilion                                                407
Vision Vacations               Dansville                              395

Batavia City Schools looking at reduced budget

By Howard B. Owens

From The Batavian's news partner, WBTA:

Batavia City School District is looking at a reduction in their budget in comparison to last year’s. Benefit costs to retirement systems have decreased, allowing the school to save money in those areas.

Business Manager Scott Rozanski says the school is changing their philosophy on savings since their current reserve is expiring.

"The board has authorized the creation of a new capital reserve and has set the level at a 10-year reserve for $7.5 million. That's the maximum amount of money that can go into it. It's not how much it's going to be funded or funded initially. It will be funded through surplus or future-year budgetary appropriations," says Rozanski.

If the school has a surplus of money, it will be stored in the fund.

Rozanski says the board wants a flat tax levy.

In terms of administration, the school does not anticipate any major changes outside of three expiring board seats.

The budget vote will occur May 19th.

Photos: Family Night at Batavia Middle School

By Howard B. Owens

There was a big turnout for the Mexican-themed Family Night at Batavia Middle School, which featured a Mexican food feast (until the tacos ran out), crafts around Mexican themes, along with a raffle (prizes donated by local businesses) and community group booths and activities.

Photos: Farmers visiting local schools for Ag Literacy Week

By Howard B. Owens

It's Ag Literacy Week and farmers from throughout Genesee County are participating by going to their local schools and sharing about their careers and reading from a book picked especially for the occasion.

The book is "Weaving the Rainbow," by George Ella Lyon and Stephanie Anderson. The picture book is the story of a young woman who raises sheep, shears them, cleans, cards, spins and dyes the wool, using it to create works of woven art. The story is aimed at helping students make the connection between agriculture and its many uses and influences.

Above, Sharon Fuerch reads to a group of second-graders at Byron-Bergen Elementary School this morning.  

Below, Colleen Primm and her daughter Madelynn introduce a pair of their lambs to Byron-Bergen students.

Photos: Jackson School goes wild for reading

By Howard B. Owens

Robin Zanderwers from the Buffalo Zoo shows off a turtle to students at Jackson School on Thursday evening during an event dubbed "Wild About Reading."  

Photos: 2015 Tech Wars at GCC

By Howard B. Owens

GCC is hosting the annual Tech Wars, an engineering competition for students from schools throughout the GLOW region.

Joe Scanlan plans to retire from Notre Dame at end of the school year

By Howard B. Owens

Dr. Joe Scanlan, a man with the steady, gentle temperament of a parish priest, is stepping away from a job he loves in a few months.

Appropriately enough, for the past 11 years, Scanlan has been principal of Notre Dame High School, the private Catholic school on Union Street in Batavia.

"It takes a lot of energy to do this job," Scanlan said. "I pretty much do everything here except business. And you wouldn't want me to be the business manager. Tommy Rapone does a nice job. In addition to being principal, you're talking admissions, recruitment, pubic relations, newsletter and all the rest of the stuff. It's time to give somebody else a chance."

Scanlan's tenure at Notre Dame caps a 47-year career in education, which includes 15 at Byron-Bergen as a history teacher, assistant principal and principal, and 11 years as principal at York Central School.

Scanlan has found it particularly rewarding to shepherd area teens through their preparatory education at his own alma mater.

"I love it here, especially the kids," Scanlan said. "It's a great group of kids here. There's great kids in every school, so it's not just Notre Dame, but the students here are special group. They're pretty gritty. They're competitive, but they're respectful."

There are 170 students in grades 9-12 at Notre Dame. When the seniors graduate this spring, it will be Scanlan's final graduation with the school, it will also be the 50th anniversary year of his own class's graduation.

It's tradition for classes to be invited back for the graduation ceremony on their 50th anniversary, so Scanlan is hoping he'll see a lot of his former classmates.

Scanlan said the school board already has a number of qualified candidates who have expressed interest in the job.

There is also a $5 million capital campaign under way at the school, so the next principal will have plenty to do from the first day on the job.

As for Scanlan's own plans he says, "right now the plan is to have no plan."

He has a son and granddaughter living in Cleveland and more time to travel will mean more time with his family.

He plans to continue living in Le Roy.

Ninth-grader with BHS attending National Young Leaders Conference

By Howard B. Owens

Press release:

Jay Lewis might be only 14 years old but he is full of ambition and has many aspirations. Jay, a ninth-grader who attends Batavia High School, was recently selected to attend the National Young Leaders State Conference. This conference will take place in Boston in April.

During this four-day conference, Jay will come together with students from schools located all throughout the Northeastern United States. These students will focus on a curriculum that is specially designed to develop essential leadership, communication, networking, decision-making, conflict resolution and critical thinking skills.

“I’m looking forward to meeting new people and I hope to learn how work with people in order to become a better leader. These are skills that you need throughout your whole life,” Jay explained.

Eric R. Knapp, an eighth-grade school counselor at Batavia Middle School, nominated Jay.

“Jay is a young person with exceptional character and values,” Knapp said. "During his years at the Middle School he was polite, respectful and was a fantastic role model for other students. He had a quiet demeanor about him yet, according to his teachers, in the classroom, he showed great enthusiasm for education and consistently showed outstanding effort. In addition to his exceptional character and leadership potential, his overall average his eighth-grade year was 96.296 percent."

As a freshman, Jay has earned 11 college credits through the Genesee Community College Math Science Preparation Program. He plans to attend college to earn a degree as an electrical or mechanical engineer and hopes to someday own his own business. Jay has many interests in and outside of school. He serves on the Genesee County Youth Court. He’s a member of the Ski Club, Batavia Middle School Modified Tennis Team, is an avid fisherman and hunter and a Greenwing Member of Ducks Unlimited.

Jay lives in Batavia with his parents, Jennifer and Jim Lewis.

Pictures: Community art displays from Jackson School students

By Howard B. Owens

Ella, Mrs. Shuknecht’s First Grade
My Snowman
My snowman’s name is Krystal. She is fancy and happy.  She likes to wear bows and a hat. Her favorite food is ice cream cake. When it is cold outside she likes to have snowball fights and go snowboarding. 

Parris, Mrs. Bigsby’s First Grade
My Grandma’s House
I went to my grandma’s house. It was a special place. First, I ate dinner with my grandpa and grandma. It was good. I had turkey and mashed potatoes with them. Next, I played at the park with my friend, Emma. We played on the monkey bars. Last, I went to feed the ducks. I fed them bread.  I had a great time at my grandma’s. I hope I can visit them again soon. 

Martha, Mrs. Bigsby’s First Grade
My Papa’s House
I went to my papa’s house and it was a special place. First, I ate dinner with my papa and my grandma. It was delicious. Next, we watched the Croods. It was a funny movie. Last, they took me to the park. I went on the swings. I had fun at the park. I had a great time at my papa’s house. I hope I can visit him again soon. 

Jay’lee, Mrs. Mattice’s Kindergarten
Penguins
Penguins can swim. 
Penguins have blubber. 
They have claws. 
They have beaks. 

Trey, Mrs. Wolff’s Kindergarten
Seasons
My favorite season is summer because I play baseball with my brother, mom and my dad.

Brandon, Mrs. Colvin’s First Grade
How to Build a Snowman
To make a snowman I would first roll three snowballs. One big, one medium and one small. Then, I would stack them. The biggest on the bottom, then the medium and finally the smallest on the top.  I would decorate. My arms would be sticks. My nose would be a carrot. My eyes would be coal.  My mouth would be rocks. I would do a scarf with a zigzag design. I would name my snowman Snowy and give him a hug. 

More after the jump:

Dominic, Mrs. Torrey’s First Grade
I Went to Our Cottage
I went to our cottage. It is a special place. I jumped in the pool and got all wet. We played ice buckets. We got dried off and went inside and watched T.V. I had a great time at the cottage. I hope I can go again. 

Sophie, Mrs. Colvin’s First Grade
How to Build a Snowman
To build a snowman I would first roll three snowballs. One big, one medium and one small. Then, I would stack them. The biggest one on the bottom, then the medium and finally the smallest on top.  Then, I would decorate my snowman. My arms are sticks. My nose is a carrot. The eyes are coal, my mouth is a banana, my hat is on him. Finally, I would name him Olaf and play with him. 

Payton, Mrs. Radley’s First Grade
How to Train a Dog
First, you give the dog a bath and you play with the dog. Next, you say sit, stay, lay and stay again. Then, you play with the dog and you sit in the house for a little bit. Last, I give the dog to the owner. 

Kyleigh, Mrs. Radley’s First Grade Class
How to Babysit
First, you play with the kids and if they cry rock them slowly. Next, you put them to bed. If they are bad you put them in time out. Then, the two kids that did not go to bed can go outside and play in the snow. Last, you have to take their snow clothes off and wake up the baby and give the kids to their mom. 

Xaviar, Mrs. Colvin’s First Grade
How to Build a Snowman
To make a snowman I would first roll three snowballs. One big, one medium, one small. Then, I would stack them. The biggest one on the bottom, then the medium and finally the smallest on top.  To decorate my snowman, my arms will be sticks. My nose will be rocks. My mouth will be rocks.  My eyes will be rocks. A hat with a zigzag pattern. Finally, I would dance with him. His name is Frosty. 

Lily, Mrs. Torrey’s First Grade
How to Build a Snowman
To make a snowman I would first, pack three snowballs and stack them up. Then, I would put buttons on her tummy. I would put a pink hat and pink mittens on her. Then, I would put two sticks for her arms. Then, I would give her a broom. Finally, I would give her a carrot for the nose and a watermelon for her mouth. Her name is Rosie. We would play Barbies together.

GCC professor shares his father's own 'Unbroken' story as Japanese POW

By Howard B. Owens

Press release:

Although the film "Unbroken" was not nominated for Best Picture for this year's Academy Awards Ceremony scheduled on Feb. 22, the story of an American soldier surviving a World War II Japanese prisoner of war camp resonated with Edward Grabowski. He teaches Introduction to Criminal Justice to students at Genesee Community College.

The Hollywood film captures the extraordinary life and survival of bombardier and world-class runner Louis Zamperini. Like "Louie," Grabowski's father survived the horrors of a Japanese POW camp, and experienced his own hellish encounters with some of the guards. They included the notorious Mutsuhiro Watanabe, the brutal guard known as "The Bird" who tortured and killed many prisoners.

When Grabowski happened to mention this coincidence to his students, they wanted to know more. And when he told them he had a photograph of his father standing behind two Japanese guards, one likely "The Bird" -- his students wanted to see it.

"They found it interesting so I brought in some of the historic materials about my father to share," Grabowski said.

The photograph taken by a French photographer shows Leo Grabowski standing in a doorway unnoticed by the two prison guards who are in the foreground holding their rifles.

"I am 99 percent sure that the guard standing is Watanabe," Grabowski stated. "My father said he would have been brutally beaten by those guards if they had known he was in the photograph."

Sergeant Leo J. Grabowski served in the Army from 1932 through 1945, and was one of the defenders of Bataan and Corregidor as part of the 31st Infantry at Fort Santiago in Manila.

Captured by the Japanese, Grabowski survived the 60-mile Bataan Death March through the Philippine jungles to Camp O'Donnell. From there he was among the thousands transferred in overloaded freight cars, and he was eventually shipped to Mitsushima, a prisoner of war camp northwest of Tokyo where prisoners provided slave labor to construct the Hiraoka Dam.

Like Zamperini in "Unbroken," Grabowski senior made it home bearing the scars of a POW, but he put together a meaningful post-war life with a career and family, including three children. His youngest son, Edward, spent 27 years teaching Criminal Justice at BOCES, and is now adjunct faculty member at GCC.

Upon request, he reflects on his father's military distinctions with quiet pride, sharing a little of that tortured past through books, photos and clippings from decades-old newspapers. In doing so, he is giving his students a sense of world history, not from the Silver Screen or a textbook, but from the connection of family and the bond of father and son.

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