Batavia City School District

Of all the things that BHS grad James DiLullo has done in his storied life so far, perhaps one of the bravest has been to occupy 20 high school seniors for 80 minutes — a fleeting thought that came to the film writer and director 12 minutes into his visit Friday afternoon.

He soon learned there was nothing to worry about as Laura Tenebruso’s creative writing class began to glean tidbits of a business major-turned-writing enthusiast’s career and watch his locally produced film, “Kitty,” while discovering some realities of their own class.

“Mostly, the writing is the basis for all of the things we see in life, communicating ideas for the written word; it's pretty much the greatest advancement in technology, right? And we shouldn't take that for granted,” DiLullo said. “And no, you're not a writer now; maybe you hate this class; maybe you're only here because you have to be here. But there's advantages to paying attention to this class in particular.”

He shared his own varied path to get where he is today, living in Los Angeles with film studio Beauty View Ranch in the Southern Tier, four movies under his belt as producer — two penned by him — and has acted in several.

“I never expected to necessarily be a writer. I was a business person, and still am a business person, but I found something I enjoyed and was good at, and I like pursuing and thusly studied it,” he said. “Don't be afraid to keep educating yourself. The opposite of writing is reading. If you want to be strong in one, you participate in the other.”

He talked about a few books that inspired him, including “Write for Life” by Julia Cameron; a practical, holistic approach to writing; “Screenplay” by Syd Field, a master screenwriter from the 1930s and 40s; and Joseph Campbell’s “The Hero with a Thousand Faces,” an anthropology book at its core, he said, but “is really about storytelling” and basis for the hero’s journey of Luke Skywalker in “Star Wars.”

Tenebruso appreciated hearing about his personal and professional background, and that he offered up a scenario of taking imperfect steps while reaching the appropriate location for him -- from going to college as a business major, working at Microsoft and being involved in other aspects of business before finding his way back to writing.

“I was really most interested in him sharing his journey as a writer because he said that he used to write in high school, but it had kind of fallen by the wayside, and his path was, is pretty interesting,” Tenebruso said. “And so I really appreciated that he shared that journey with the kids and that he talked about how he didn't know when he was their age that this was what he was destined to do, and it's just a great story about how through networking and being in the right place and meeting the right people, can just completely change your life.”

His central message — no surprise here — was the idea that “everything is story,” she said, and what he's been able to accomplish has developed from an idea into that fleshed out story. Even his mother, who has found her way to writing later in life, gives him a lot of great ideas for writing, he said.

Superintendent Jason Smith, who helped to set up DiLullo’s visit, stopped in to visit for awhile.

“I did see the film and found it to be creative and imaginative — and of course, I loved all the Batavia shots!  James’ enthusiasm is contagious, and we loved his passion for his career,” Smith said. “We are proud of our fellow BHS grad, James, on his well-earned accomplishments. James’ message was one of persistence and setting goals and working hard to attain them. He is proud of his Batavia roots and it’s awesome for our students to hear from a successful Batavian. It was our honor to be part of this project.”

Part of DiLullo’s visit included a contest for students to guess the number of pages in the film’s script. The film itself is six minutes and 40 seconds long. There were two winners guessing a script of six and a half pages, so they ended up having a tie-breaker of guessing the number of lines on the last page.

“Screenplays are not as big as you think. It's not as many words as you think. It's a visual medium. The words are just there to guide the visual sense. So I got numbers from 70 to 80, 100. It’s an exercise to kind of incorporate, what does it look like in the industry, in time and in money? Because that's how everything's measured by us … how many scenes is that? And how many times per day can you do that, and how many shots?” he said. “It all relates back to the written word, 100% it's all measured in written words.”

So what was the final answer? There were 14 lines. Senior Makayla Balonek gave the correct answer and won a “Kitty” sweater. The movie was filmed at John Kennedy Intermediate School earlier this year and featured one superstar feline and both adult and child actors. It showed the class how to build suspense, create a soundtrack and do product placement within a movie, which was done, for example, when a refrigerator door closed and flyers on the front door displayed local business names. 

“I do think they are encouraged by his story,” Tenebruso said. “A kid from Batavia who’s not just a writer … but can inspire other people.”

About Kitty
Local band GumShoe, featuring Tim McJury, Todd Townsend and Dan Eick, plays the song “Psycho Kitty” in the movie.

There will be a special showing after the Christmas in the City parade at approximately 6:45 p.m. Saturday at GO ART!, 201 E. Main St., Batavia, and possibly a second one later on during an open house from 6 to 9 p.m. 

During the 6 p.m. parade, DiLullo’s team will be pulling a cart and handing out free hot chocolate.

Back at GO ART! after the parade, DiLullo and members of the cast and crew will be on hand to answer questions and mingle, plus Volunteers For Animals members will be available to collect donations of pet food and supplies and answer questions about dogs and cats at Genesee County Animal Shelter. 

Watch the trailer HERE.

Press Release:

Once again, we find ourselves in the season of late autumn, when it almost feels like something new, and yet there is also a sense of nostalgia as we prepare for the seasons of thanksgiving, peace, and hope. It is also our custom at this time of year, that the Twenty-five Neediest Children’s Fund, Inc. makes its annual appeal. 

For it is during this special time of giving and sharing that we come to you for your compassion and financial support, which enables us to assist children in the Batavia City School District throughout the year.

It was in 1933, during the dark days of the Great Depression, that the Twenty-five Neediest Children’s Fund, Inc., was originated. At that time, many students were in need of
tonsillectomies. While the physicians waived their fee, the surgery required an overnight hospital stay. The cost of the overnight stay was $7.50, which proved too much for some
families. So, Batavia City School District physician, Dr. Dexter Pierce saw this need, and it inspired the founding of the Twenty-five Neediest Children’s Fund, Inc. 

The initial intent of the fund was to help the 25 most needy children in the Batavia School District. Yet there has never been a numerical limit on the number who are assisted, as the only purpose is to serve the children in need.

Now, as has been the case through the past ninety years, there continue to be children who are in need of everyday clothing, a warm coat, eyeglasses and eye exams, sneakers, shoes, school supplies, doctor and dental visits, counseling, prescriptions, medical supplies, and other needs. The teachers, nurses, counselors, and social workers through the Batavia schools identify children in need. These needs and concerns are conveyed to Mr. Justin Saraceni, FNP-BC, the Medical Director for the Batavia City School District. 

Mr. Saraceni contacts the child’s parents and if it is determined that they aren’t able to provide what it is that their child needs and if the family does not qualify for special services or assistance that is available, the Twenty-five Neediest Children’s Fund, Inc. steps in to help. The parents then select what care is to be provided, and by whom, in order to provide a remedy. Most of the families in need are the working poor. They are getting along, but they cannot withstand a bump in the highway of life.

The fund focuses on providing the necessities of life. As the needs are addressed, bills are submitted to the Twenty-five Neediest Fund for payment. There is no red tape, no publicity, and there are no strings attached. Our only desire is to help the child in need. It is only through the generous giving of our many contributors that the Twenty-five Neediest Children’s Fund, Inc. is able to provide this support. 

This is all done with anonymity, as the identity of the of the child and the family remain confidential and are unknown to the committee.

Over the years we additionally became known as the “Quiet Fund”.  We received this moniker by the dear late Dan Winegar of The Daily News, who championed our cause from the 1960s to the 1980s. The “Quiet Fund” title evolved due to the fact that we only make one annual appeal to our community, at this time of giving. We exist solely on the generosity of others in our community, and beyond. It clearly remains evident that many of you believe that a contribution to our fund is an affirmation that no child should go without and furthermore that you wish to reduce a parent’s anguish as they agonize over how they are going to provide
what their child needs. 

Since our inception, this fund operates as a true and complete charity, without any administrative costs. All donations are turned into benefits. Every cent received is spent on the children. We continue to believe that to assist a child, and their parent, in this way is a gracious and immeasurable gift.

So, as we look to the promise of this season of hope and peace, we also look forward to hearing from friends, old and new, who share our desire to assist the children. Checks made payable to the Twenty-five Neediest Children’s Fund, Inc., may be sent to Nann K. Zorn, 12 River Street, Batavia, NY 14020. 

We continue to be grateful to those who are ever faithful to remember our fund at the holiday season and throughout the year. On behalf of the children, and their parents, helped by your generosity and gifts of love, we extend to you a most sincere thank you and warm wishes for the holiday season, and blessings to you and yours for the New Year.

Twenty-five Neediest Children’s Fund, Inc. Committee,
Nancy Arras
Benjamin J. Bonarigo, Jr, Esq.
Nancy Haitz
Justin Saraceni
Sara Zorn Schroeder
Virginia H. Tiede
Nann K. Zorn, Chairperson

Press Release:

The Batavia City School District (BCSD) is proud to announce that our state-of-the-art facility at VanDetta Stadium will once again be hosting athletic events during the 2024-25 school year.

We continue to make safety our number one priority for students, staff, and community members attending events at VanDetta Stadium. We’re anticipating large crowds throughout the season, and we want to make you aware of the enhanced safety protocols, guidelines, and expectations when attending our Varsity Football games:

• All attendees will be wand-checked by our security team to ensure no prohibited items are brought into the facility.
• VanDetta Stadium is located in a neighborhood, so please be courteous and do not block driveways, throw trash on the ground, or use foul language. Please be a good neighbor. Parking regulations will be strictly enforced by the Batavia Police Department.
• All students ages 12 and under should be accompanied by an adult.
• We will charge adults a $2 admission fee for all Varsity Football games. Students and seniors aged 62 and over will have free admission.
• We suggest you arrive early to avoid security delays upon entry.

We’ll also continue to have a security presence around the stadium during events. We’re once again collaborating with Armor Security this year to help support our administrators, athletic event workers, and the Batavia Police Department to make sure safety remains a priority at our events. We’ll also have additional security in our parking lots.

We cannot wait to welcome you back to VanDetta Stadium for another exciting season of Blue Devil events and cheer on our wonderful student-athletes. Let’s all do our part to keep our school grounds, students, faculty, staff, and community safe. 

School’s back in session, and while a cell phone ban in schools might seem like one simple answer to cyberbullying and unnecessary distractions, at least five Genesee County superintendents are against it, according to questions sent to all eight public school district administrators by The Batavian.

Gov. Kathy Hochul went on a listening tour this summer as she has considered a phone ban for students in New York State schools. Such measures at the district level have been rare so far, with Bethlehem Central School cited as one of only a few of the 4,411 state schools to implement such a ban, and not just on phones at that school, but on all electronics, including earbuds and smartwatches.

Questions included the school district’s current phone policy, thoughts about an outright ban on phones in the school/classroom, how the school community would likely respond, benefits and drawbacks of a ban, and whether it’s worth the potential uphill battle and other logistical and financial considerations.

Elba Central School Superintendent Gretchen Rosales listed several reasons for why a ban is not a great idea, from organizational to financial burdens.

“An outright ban would be difficult to enforce and a problematic interruption to the organization of education.  I am much more in support of teaching students how to effectively use cell phones within a system.  This includes educating students on the dangers of social media and how a lack of personal communication affects relationships,” Rosales said. “We model what we want our children to learn; this is also true of cell phone use.  When something is banned outright, we lose the opportunity to teach students how to effectively manage it.

“Right now, this has not been considered, as the legislation has not been passed.  I can see it creating a financial burden on schools to implement another mandate - monitoring for use and detecting possession can be a costly distraction,” she said. “I would not want to speculate on how the entire school community would react to such a ban without having conversations first. This is a topic with varied opinions.  Whenever faced with a large-scale policy shift, having an open dialogue with all stakeholders proves to be most effective.”

Elba’s current policy is that cell phones are not allowed at elementary school and that there’s a limited-use phone policy at junior-senior high school. Phone use for “educational purposes,” such as using a calculator or accessing educational sites, is up to teacher discretion, she said. Per the district’s code of conduct, students are “prohibited from taking pictures of or recording others, or using phones in a way that may disrupt the educational process,” she said.

Officials at one of those few schools with a full ban had been quoted as saying it made a difference in students’ interactions with one another and that an “enjoyable noise” could be heard of kids laughing and talking in the hallways versus focused on the phone screen.

Rosales was one of several superintendents who has experienced this, she said, regardless of whether a phone ban is in place.

“I find that students interacting with each other still happens more frequently than we might believe.  I would also state that any battle we believe in is worthy of fighting.  The crux of the argument lies in a) a balance of providing safe boundaries for children to navigate the world and b) allowing local school districts to decide how best to educate the children in their communities based on the school's specific needs,” she said. “Every school is different — so our approach to the cell phone issue should be as varied as the needs of our individual communities.” 

Pembroke Central School Superintendent Matthew Calderón shared the socialization he observed on Wednesday, even with cell phones in hand.

“Today was the first day of school in Pembroke, and I experienced the common and enjoyable sound of kids interacting with one another in the hallways despite many of them having cell phones.  We have amazing students, strong families, and wonderful employees, and if the state chooses to ban cell phones, I have full confidence we can navigate it in a way that helps everyone overcome their angst.  Is it a battle worth fighting?  Good question.  The fight to nurture and care for the hearts and minds of our young people is a noble and necessary fight, and at the same time, I believe an all-out ban on cell phones will greatly miss the mark in that regard,” he said. “If we want to help young people learn how to interact with each other in real and authentic ways, there are better ways to do that.  I'm also not sure that our academic performance on numerous measures, including state tests, indicates that cell phones are hindering learning here in our small rural school district.”

As for his stance on a cell phone ban, “I believe in local autonomy, and I generally don't support state-wide one-size-fits-all approaches,” he said. “We do not intend to move toward an all-out ban. If it becomes yet another mandate for schools, we will assess what we need to do at that time.”

That being said, Calderón feels that there are advantages and disadvantages to allowing cell phones in schools and to banning them.

“I would need to survey my community to know for sure, but my sense is that the majority of parents, employees and students would be opposed to an outright ban on cell phones,” he said.

Current policy at Pembroke is that cell phone use is permitted during non-instructional time, such as lunch, and during class for instructional purposes in the junior-senior high school, per teacher discretion. 

“While some elementary students may have phones, it's not really an issue at the two elementary buildings,” he said. “School districts already have the autonomy to ban phones if they so choose, and I believe it is a decision that should be left to each school district and its community.”  

Over at Oakfield-Alabama Central School, the question of banning phones isn’t really the point, Superintendent John Fisgus said.

Students at OA are allowed to carry their cell phones with them at all times and are instructed and taught when they are allowed to use them or not. Our students, who show great respect for these limitations, understand that it is not about banning cell phones, but about teaching them the proper use and time to use them,” Fisgus said. “This understanding and respect from our students is a testament to the effectiveness of our approach. I do not support the banning of cell phones. 

"It's important to remember that media literacy is not just a buzzword, but a critical skill for our students who are born and live in a rapidly evolving digital society, of which cell phones are a common denominator,” he said. “Parents and students also find safety in having access to their phones, especially communicating (texting) during emergencies.”

He also cited an important medical reason for keeping one’s phone nearby: apps that work as blood-level monitors.

“I, for one, am a diabetic who utilizes a sensor and a cell phone app to constantly monitor my glucose levels,” he said. “My cell phone provides me with alerts and real-time glucose readings. I certainly know we have students in our district who do the same.

“Outright banning cell phones is an extreme measure in my eyes. Teaching this generation how/when to use cell phones during school hours provides a healthy balance for our staff, students, and their families,” he said. “Again, let's ‘teach’ about and role model when to use cell phones, not ban them.” 

Likewise, Batavia City and Le Roy Central school district superintendents Jason Smith and Merritt Holly oppose a phone ban and believe that it’s a district's responsibility to teach about cell phone use rather than merely banish it from the classroom.

“Our District does not have an outright ban, and I believe we need to teach students how to properly manage their devices' responsibility, as opposed to a total ban, Superintendent Jason Smith said about the Batavia City Schools’ students. “There are cell phone rules on airplanes, concerts, movie theaters, etc., and I believe schools should operate under a similar premise:  use the technology responsibly and appropriately.”

The Batavian must note that, in September 2023, the district’s Board of Education joined a consortium formed to sue social media giants — TikTok, Snapchat, and Facebook, for example — for creating “a youth mental health crisis caused by social media addiction” via their cell phones. So, while the district is against banning cell phones during school time, it is also suing social media for bombarding kids through those phones. 

So, The Batavian asked Smith why not remove those opportunities for social media during the school day. 

"At our schools, we have procedures in classrooms that provide structure and guidelines for cell phone use, and we are continually refining and updating these procedures, as well as providing reminders to our students," Smith said. "When used properly, cell phones have a myriad of teaching opportunities, too, as I have seen teachers use apps and programs that enhance lessons.  If we are required to institute a total ban, then we will do so, but again, we have procedures in place at our schools that govern cell phone use.  Completely removing cell phones does nothing to teach students proper use--that is precisely why we have rules and procedures in our schools."   

And is the district educating kids about the dangers of social media on their cell phones since you speak about teaching responsibility to them?

"We have provided training to our library media specialists over the years on digital citizenship, and they have subsequently written a curriculum on this topic.  We have two digital citizenship classes at the Batavia Middle School in grades 5 and 8," he said. "Finally, at every opportunity we have, our principals and assistant principals, along with our counselors,  always remind and teach our students proper cell phone use.  I would continue to encourage families to continue to do the same with their children."

When asked if he thought his school community — parents, staff, faculty, students — would benefit and get on board with a phone ban, Smith replied:

“There would likely be a wide range of opinions on this matter, with some strongly in favor and some strongly opposed, and many views in the middle,” he said. “Regardless, we are educators first and foremost and need to teach students how to use devices properly, just as we teach 16-year-olds how to drive a car properly – both can be dangerous if used improperly.

“Should the governor be successful in gaining legislative support for this measure, we will work with our school community and staff on how to best implement such a policy,” Smith said. “An outright and full ban does not teach students how to properly manage their devices. In addition, cell phones have become an integral part of society and often serve as a measure of safety for parents and students.”

He said the district’s current policy has cell phones off and put away,  but it depends on the school. Each school has its own special guidelines based on the age of students. 

“We do not have a complete cell phone ban at any of our schools, and phones are allowed in schools,” he said.

That policy has not seemed to deter students from interacting with one another, something that may go against one’s belief that devices are isolating, according to Smith’s daily walks through school.

“I am in our schools every day, and not a day goes by when I do not hear the enjoyable noise of students interacting with one another and our staff – with or without a cell phone,” he said. 

Le Roy has a color-coded policy, where the Red Zone at Wolcott Street School for grades kindergarten through grade six signals that phones are to be off and in one’s backpack or locker during the school day, versus a Yellow Zone in the Junior/Senior High School for grades seven through 12 is for the hallway, cafeteria, classrooms, and library. 

The zones were created to guide students in properly using their electronic devices, Le Roy Central School Superintendent Merritt Holly said. The teacher communicates if using a cell phone is allowed in these areas. Red Zones at the high school are in the bathrooms, locker rooms and auditorium. 

He would not support an outright ban of phones in the classroom and believes it should remain a local school decision. Implementing a ban would also eliminate the opportunity to do what schools are supposed to do, he said and ignores the main issues about phone usage.

“Our cell phone procedures function in both buildings and allow teachers and administrators to educate our students on properly using their electronic devices.  The cell phone procedures also allow for flexibility, especially at the Jr/Sr High School.  If a Jr/Sr High School teacher wants to make their classroom a red zone for the day, week, month, or year, they have the option to do so.  Another teacher may have the student use their phone for instructional purposes.  Building principals could also limit cell phone use for a particular student if a student violated the Code of Conduct or had a zone violation,” he said. “Instructing students in and on digital literacy is essential in education.  Students need to learn how to use technology safely, effectively, and responsibly to communicate effectively. Instituting a ban does not address root causes or concerns around cell phone use.” 

The Batavian did not receive responses from Alexander, Byron-Bergen and Pavilion school districts.

Hochul seemed fairly confident in her decision to move toward a ban after her tour of school districts earlier this year. If she approves a state law, New York will join Florida, Louisiana, Indiana, South Carolina and Los Angeles County with similar restrictions. New York City is also reportedly considering its own ban ahead of the potential state-wide mandate.

“I pretty much know where I’m going. I believe people will come along because I know what I’ve heard, that this is probably the one bipartisan — I want to say nonpartisan — issue that really is having a breakthrough,” Hochul said in a recent interview with The NY Times. “I want to go big on this one. We’re going big.”

Hochul also visited a Syracuse-area school on Thursday and answered some questions about a potential ban.

Although Bob Trombley, a parent of two children in the Batavia City School District, has made requests to be able to communicate with teachers in ways other than the popular and standard ParentSquare app, he’s not certain his appeals are going anywhere.

Trombley addressed the school board during Monday’s meeting, and Superintendent Jason Smith responded that teachers can communicate with him via telephone and not just through the app as he said he's been told. 

"My hope is that this will be taken very seriously by Jason and the board, and that action on this will be done in a quick manner. I’ve had discussions with Jason previously about the app; I have not been satisfied with the outcome of those conversations. I think overall Jason is an approachable person, who generally does take action when he feels it’s required, I’m just not sure what they will decide with this,” Trombley said Tuesday to The Batavian. “I currently have two students in the district, and all throughout last year I was unable to get any communications from the app. I have called the schools individually and asked to speak with teachers and have absolutely been denied that ability and told all communication is through the app. I have requested paper copies of forms and so on, and have also been denied those from time to time with the statement ‘it’s on the app, you have to do it on the app.’”

The Batavian also reached out to Smith with followup questions about the matter.

You said that teachers should be responding to parents wanting to talk to them, so why was (Trombley) complaining, and why do you think the breakdown is that he and apparently others may believe it's only to be done via the parent app?

“Our admin and teachers are always available to speak to our families and community members individually — ParentSquare has not changed that. ParentSquare does provide a single communication tool for our families, schools, and district, but that is not the only means,” Smith said. “All staff members still utilize email, while ParentSquare is another option for direct communication via its messaging tool based on a parent’s preference. ParentSquare is used to post messages, urgent alerts, and general updates, and has been well-received by our families and staff. 

“No system is perfect and we are continually looking for ways to refine our use of this tool. We just completed our first year as a district using ParentSquare, and while I'm thrilled with the progress, of course there are always ways we can improve, and we intend to do so,” Smith said. “Our newly hired Director of Educational Technology Wendy Villone has prior experience with ParentSquare, and we look forward to her expertise as well. I want to point out a few other positive elements about ParentSquare that we’ve experienced during our first year of use.”

Those elements include: 

Unified Communication Platform: ParentSquare has streamlined our communication process by consolidating various channels into one platform. This integration has reduced confusion and improved efficiency for both staff and families.

Increased Reach: We're able to connect with 97% of our parents and guardians district-wide through ParentSquare. This level of reach was previously unattainable with traditional communication methods. For the remaining 3%, we've identified alternative ways to ensure they receive important information.

Enhanced Equity: The platform's automatic translation feature, supporting more than 100 languages, has significantly improved our ability to communicate with non-English speaking families. This feature ensures that all parents, regardless of their primary language, can access and understand important school information.

Real-Time Updates: The platform's immediate notification system ensures that parents receive timely information about school events, sports practices, emergencies, and other critical matters.

Customization: Parents appreciate the flexibility to customize how they receive notifications, allowing them to stay informed in a way that suits their preferences and schedules.

Enhanced Engagement Tools: Features like appointment scheduling, event sign-ups, and surveys have increased parent participation and engagement.

Improved Staff Experience: This past school year, we did a survey of our staff to find out how their experience with ParentSquare was going. We received a lot of helpful ( anonymous) feedback, but here are some quotes that stood out to me: "Parents who do not answer the phone for calls will message through ParentSquare all the time. I am able to send quick responses and communicate with parents so much easier than trying to contact them by phone.

“I appreciated Mr. Trombley’s public feedback and intend to continue our discussion on this topic,” Smith said. “I appreciate these comments as we seek to enhance and improve how we interact with families across BCSD.”

Trombley emphasized that he knows “without a shadow of a doubt” that he’s not the only one who has struggled to successfully use ParentSquare, and there are even parents who are “way more comfortable and well versed in technology who are having the same difficulties as I am,” he said.

He reiterated his Monday talking points (a video recorded by Trombley) about the district trampling his and others’ First Amendment rights of free speech and believes this setup is "the most restrictive form of communication with our school, not the least restrictive.”

“I do not intend to drop this at all. I am hoping for a hasty response from the district, and a hasty change to this policy,” he said. “I don’t think getting rid of the forced nature of this app is unreasonable. I do plan on pursuing this issue in a peaceful legal way to see it through. Ligation is not out of the question, however, I would hope we don’t get to that point.” 

The Batavian asked Smith if this was the first complaint of this type made in the district. 

Given Trombley’s complaints, and apparent experience with his child's teachers, do you plan to respond with your teaching faculty with any communication about using the app? Can or will you clarify how the app is to be used and how faculty can also communicate with parents that wish to communicate another way, especially for those that want to opt out of the app and who may have a learning disability, as he suggested?

“This is the first formal complaint we have received, however, we appreciate the feedback. We have surveyed our staff on their use of ParentSquare and will launch a similar survey to our families.,” Smith said. “With a new school year approaching, we always look to review, reassess, and refresh our communication expectations and guidelines across the district and school levels, and intend to do so again this year.  

“ParentSquare is fully compliant with all educational laws and regulations, and is widely used throughout our region and the state. You can find ParentSquare’s Privacy Policy here. To address Mr. Trombley’s comment about how ParentSquare uses our District’s data, please see the following.”

Sharing and Disclosure of Information

ParentSquare uses the data received from the School for the sole purpose of delivering products and services to the School. We do not rent, trade, or sell or otherwise distribute your information to any third parties and will only disclose information when allowed by FERPA and required a) by applicable laws or government orders or b) to maintain and operate our service or c) when authorized by the School.

No Advertising

ParentSquare does not use student or user records or data collected for targeted advertising, and no student profile is built by ParentSquare for reasons other than furthering School purposes.

After just about a year in his new role as technology director at Batavia City Schools, Brian Sutton has left for a similar job at another district, and the city’s board has appointed a new director to fill the gap.

The board approved Wendy Villone to a four-year probationary position as director of educational technology during Monday’s meeting. 

She is to begin Sept. 12, bringing with her more than two decades of experience in education and technology  at the Caledonia-Mumford Central School District and at EduTech RIC - Wayne-Finger Lakes BOCES, a district press release states.

Villone was hired at a prorated salary of $88,000, with her full salary to be $110,000, per negotiated collective bargaining agreement. She will fill the vacancy left by Sutton, who was formerly a principal at John Kennedy Intermediate since 2020 before taking on the technology role and charging ahead to deal with a state Comptroller’s audit in July of 2023. 

Right off the bat, Sutton was faced with key findings from the audit that he needed to address while aligning with the district’s Strategic Plan. He gave his first report of findings and suggested solutions to the board in October 2023.

The Batavian asked Superintendent Jason Smith about the circumstances of Sutton’s departure, and if Villone would continue with the work already completed to address the Comptroller’s audit.

Sutton left his position for a technology director position at Rush Henrietta School District, Smith said. 

“During his tenure with us, he successfully achieved several initiatives, including addressing both the Comptroller’s audit and the technology functional review,” Smith said Tuesday.

Sutton's first task was to review the existing structure and services offered through BOCES, including database management, the physical inventory process, technology leadership and how assets are identified and tagged. 

Then he had to reestablish a formal leadership in the technology department and implement a formal Technology Committee, with a data protection privacy officer and reviews of data privacy law to ensure that all requirements are being met, he had said during the presentation.

He had been working with Edutech to ensure that tags were provided on all “products” that come from them, which is a restructuring of Batavia’s inventory system and prices to ensure accountability for all hardware, he said, including district-owned devices, per board policy.

He was implementing a software program to track software inventory product purchases and related expiration dates. He had also been rearranging and organizing the physical workspace of the technology department and at the storage room at Robert Morris. 

All of these tasks have been items to enforce the existing board policies on inventory control based on the Comptroller’s audit. Not only were hundreds of devices discovered missing from inventory, but the district had been paying their annual fees.

Stepping into his own role to provide technology leadership, Sutton is using the functional review audit as a roadmap to prioritize and address issues that were uncovered, he said.

As a result, he was having weekly technology department meetings with tech aides at the middle and high schools, providing guidance and support to the creation of the digital fluency class at the middle school, and re-establishing the district technology committee with a focus on staff development and learning, he said.

Smith and the board feel confident that Villone will be up to the task at hand. At Caledonia-Mumford Central School District, she managed technology infrastructure, implemented instructional software, and oversaw data security compliance, and prior to that as coordinator of Data Governance she provided training and guidance on cybersecurity and data protection to 47 school districts, the release states.

The Batavian also asked Smith if he was concerned about a recent rash of departures of administrators, including several assistant principals, the athletic director and Sutton, at the district.

“It's common and expected for assistant principals to transition to principal positions after a few years. For example, I served as an assistant principal for three years before becoming principal at Elba in 2004.  Mr. Hussain, Mrs. Torrey, and Dr. McCarthy were all assistant principals at Batavia for approximately three years each, and they have successfully moved on to principal roles, and we are proud of their accomplishments,” Smith said. “As the largest district in the region with a substantial staff, Batavia typically experiences personnel changes during the summer months leading up to a new school year. 

"I'm pleased to report that we've attracted a diverse and experienced pool of applicants, including current administrators from other districts, to fill our open positions," he said. "We're excited to welcome our newest hires to BCSD. I'm confident they'll be a great fit within our community, and I'm encouraged by their enthusiasm, wealth of educational experience, and desire to make a positive impact here in Batavia.”

Press Release:

On Monday, August 12, upon recommendation from Superintendent Jason Smith, the Batavia City School District Board of Education approved the appointment of Wendy Villone as the Director of Educational Technology, effective September 12, 2024.

"We are excited to welcome Wendy Villone to the Batavia City School District as our new Director of Educational Technology," said Superintendent Jason Smith. "Wendy's extensive experience in educational technology leadership, coupled with her impressive background in data governance and cybersecurity, makes her an ideal fit for this critical role. Her expertise will be invaluable as we continue to enhance our technology initiatives and ensure the highest standards of data protection for our students and staff."

Wendy Villone brings over two decades of experience in education and technology to her new role at Batavia City School District. Most recently, she served as the Director of Technology and Data Protection Officer at the Caledonia-Mumford Central School District, where she managed technology infrastructure, implemented instructional software, and oversaw data security compliance. Previously, Villone was the Coordinator of Data Governance at EduTech RIC - Wayne-Finger Lakes BOCES, providing training and guidance on cybersecurity and data protection to 47 school districts.

Villone holds multiple New York State certifications, including School District Leader, Educational Technology Specialist, and is a New York State Master Teacher. She earned her Master's degree in Educational Technology from Nazareth College and completed the Leadership Academy at Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts.

Throughout her career, Villone has demonstrated a strong commitment to integrating innovative technologies into education, with a focus on STEAM and STEM initiatives. She has extensive experience in strategic planning, budget management, and professional development in educational technology.

"I am honored to join the Batavia City School District as the Director of Educational Technology," said Wendy Villone. "In today's rapidly evolving digital landscape, it's crucial that we not only leverage technology to enhance learning but also ensure the highest standards of data security and privacy. I look forward to collaborating with the talented staff, students, and families of BCSD to create innovative, technology-rich learning environments that prepare our students for the challenges and opportunities of the 21st century while maintaining the integrity and security of our digital infrastructure."

Press Release:

On Monday, July 15, upon recommendation from Superintendent Jason Smith, the Batavia City School District Board of Education approved the appointment of Dr. Megan Crine as Principal of Batavia Middle School and Joel Reed as Director of Health, Physical Education and Athletics. Dr. Crine will start on July 16, and Mr. Reed will join the District on August 19.

Dr. Megan Crine has served as the principal of Ellis B. Hyde Elementary School in the Dansville Central School District since July 2023. Previously, she was the Middle School Red House Administrator at Churchville-Chili Central School District for twelve years, where she led committees focused on equity, student culture, and school improvement. Dr. Crine began her administrative career with internships at Marcus Whitman Central School District. She holds a Doctorate of Education in Educational Leadership from the University of Rochester, along with a Master of Science in Literacy Education from Nazareth College and a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education with a Concentration in History from SUNY Cortland. Additionally, she earned Reading Recovery Certification from SUNY Brockport. Dr. Crine is certified in Elementary Education, Literacy Education, and School Building Leadership.

Joel Reed has 14 years of administrative experience, currently serving as the Assistant Principal and Director of Athletics at Medina Central School District. In this role, he manages student supervision, enforces school policies, oversees budget development, and supervises staff and coaches. Previously, Reed was the Director of Athletics, Physical Education, and Health at the Charter School for Applied Technologies. He holds a Certificate of Advanced Study in Educational Leadership from Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, a Master of Science in Interdisciplinary Studies with a concentration in Health Education from SUNY Buffalo State, and a Bachelor of Science in Physical Education and Sport from SUNY Brockport. Reed is certified as a Professional School District Leader, Professional School Building Leader, and holds permanent NYS certificates in Health and Physical Education.

“I am thrilled to welcome both Dr. Megan Crine and Joel Reed to the Batavia City School District,” said Superintendent Jason Smith. “With decades of combined experience in education and leadership, Megan and Joel are passionate about helping students thrive and making our schools great places to learn and grow. They have come highly recommended, and I am confident they will be valuable additions to our leadership team. I also want to extend my heartfelt thanks to the parents, staff, and community members who participated in both of the interview processes. Your input was invaluable, and we appreciate your dedication and support. We can’t wait for Megan and Joel to hit the ground running.”

“I am delighted to join the Batavia City School District as the newest Principal of Batavia Middle School,” said Dr. Megan Crine. “I am excited for the challenge and look forward to working with the exceptional students and staff. I cannot wait to become a part of the BMS family and Batavia community, and I am eagerly anticipating the start of the new school year.”

“I am honored to become the new Director of Health, Physical Education and Athletics for the Batavia City School District,” said Joel Reed. “Batavia has a strong athletics program with a track record of incredible success, driven by our talented student-athletes and exceptional coaching staff. I see tremendous potential in BCSD's health and physical education program and am excited to build upon its successes. I am proud to be the newest Blue Devil and look forward to contributing to Batavia’s legacy of excellence.”

Also at Monday’s meeting, the Board of Education approved a contract extension for Jason Smith through 2029. With his extension, he receives seven additional vacation days and increases his sick day bank by ten days, with the ability to buy back ten additional days upon retirement from BCSD.

“The Board was unanimous in approving the contract extension for Superintendent Jason Smith,” said Board of Education President John Marucci. “We are proud of the work Jason has done since he joined the district in 2022. Consistency in our leadership and vision for the district is important, and Jason's commitment to BCSD remains steadfast. We look forward to our continued work with him and are excited about the future of our district under his leadership.”

Gone are the days of simple newsletters and notes sent home in kids’ backpacks as the means of communication for a school district’s community, as communication has become an entity all its own.

Batavia City Schools’ Board of Education approved a contract renewal with Emily Benedict of ESB Media this week for such services that include public and media relations to disseminate news, updates, highlights and positive stories about the city school district.

The agreement for 15 hours per week at a $5,000 a month retainer, or $60,000 per year, begins July 1 and runs through June 30, 2025. 

District expectations include spending more quality time on “value-added projects,” focusing on strategy, “empowering colleagues to take the lead using brand/PR guidelines,” and adopting a more proactive and less reactive strategy.

Board member Alice Benedict said that one thing that's happened "for years and years and years" is that, despite getting information out into the public about upcoming budget and board election votes, that doesn't often evoke a great turnout, and this year, seemed especially dismal.

She asked if Benedict had any suggestions to help boost voter enthusiasm for the polls.

Contrary to what's been the trend for many organizations to get the word out about events, Benedict said that "we cannot just depend on social media," adding that information needs to go out via local press, postcards, newsletters and "other options we could explore."

Board member Barbara Bowman pointed to Batavia's large senior population and suggested that the school district could work with the county's Office for the Aging to assist older folks in getting to their polling sites. 

"It would be nice if we could make a concerted effort," she said.  

More specific goals related to the new contract, according to Benedict, are to:

• Continue the great work we’ve executed over the last four years with public relations, media relations, social media, executive communications, and strategy.
• Develop a comprehensive feature editorial strategy to unearth and highlight more positive stories about the district, its programs, students, and staff.
• Successfully transition web presence to a new platform and create a seamless content system that allows for clarity, transparency, and ease of use for all stakeholders.
• Find new and innovative ways to tell the BCSD story.
• Develop a community outreach strategy that better informs Batavia about the great work happening across BCSD.
• Continue working on a comprehensive crisis communication plan and messaging and develop additional communication opportunities to foster a stronger BCSD community for families, staff, etc.
• Improve the Annual Report with more educational statistics and brand stories.
• Professional photography of schools/faculty/students to enhance the website, social media, and materials.
• More video-focused interviews/news packages/social posts.
• Serve as webmaster for bataviacsd.org.

In other financial-related news, the board also approved a contract for blacktop sealing of 250,000 square feet of the district’s parking lots and driveways during the summer. 

This includes painting lines, crack filling and a $5,000 allowance for milling and repair. The RFP was publicly advertised and sent to various companies. Two proposals were returned from the following companies in the amounts indicated:

Get Sealed submitted a bid of $72,800, and Baughman Magic Seal of Amherst submitted a lower bid of $46,950.

Chad Bliss, Director of Facilities III and Business Administrator Andrew Lang recommended that the board approve Baughman Magic Seal, which received final approval.

Appropriations for this work were budgeted for in the 2024-25 general fund budget, Lang said.

With 15 retirements and 10 resignations, including the newly hired director of health, physical education and athletics and Batavia Middle School’s principal, the city school district has a hefty to-do list this summer to replace some posts.

Middle School Principal Nate Korzelius, who was hired for the position in April 2022, after working as interim principal since July 1, 2021, and also worked at the district as a science teacher for 23 years and assistant principal of Batavia High School for five years, will resign effective June 30. He has accepted a familiar position as assistant principal at BHS effective July 1, Superintendent Jason Smith said.

“We are appointing an interim principal tonight at BMS effective July 1, which will be announced tonight to our staff and tomorrow to our families,” Smith said Monday. “Applications closed today for BMS principal, an interim principal is being appointed tonight and the interview process will start shortly.”

Mike Davis, the district’s interim assistant principal at Robert Morris appointed to replace Jessica Torrey, who left for an elementary principal job at Alexander Central, will temporarily fill in for Korzelius’ absence as interim principal while the district conducts a search.

"I have been pleased with both the quality and quantity of administrator applications and look forward to the next steps in the process. We hope to have the hiring process completed by early to mid August,” Smith said.

Ryan Winchip, who was hired last fall to replace Michael Bromley as the district’s athletic director, will be leaving for a principal position at Warsaw Central School.  Timm Slade, who stepped in when Bromley announced he was leaving prior to Winchip’s hiring, will be returning as interim AD, effective Monday. The recruitment process has been in place for this position, as well as other personnel vacancies, Smith said.

“We have been pleased with the applicants so far, and are currently interviewing for art teacher, several clerical positions, and the admin position I already mentioned,” he said. “We also hope to have the AD position filled by early to mid August.”

Meanwhile, the role of full-time community coordinator is to be cut in half as of July 1, and former coordinator Julia Rogers will be moving back into an assistant principal role, but not at the high school where she formerly was stationed, but at the middle school, Smith said.

Trisha Jordan was hired during Monday’s board meeting to fill an open assistant principal slot at the high school, as assistant principal Omar Hussein is moving on to take a middle school principal position at Rush Henrietta School District.

Most of the assistant principal salaries are listed as "per the BAA (Batavia Administrators Association) contract" versus an actual number. The newest assistant principal hire's salary was listed as $80,000. 

Travis Byrnes has resigned as assistant principal of the middle school to return as a health teacher at BHS for $66,750.

Batavia's Board of Education bid a warm farewell during Monday's meeting to several people who retired from the district this past year. They represented a collective 300 years of experience at Batavia, and included:

• Karen Barber - Secretary, Batavia High School Health Office
• Mike Bromley - Director of Health, Physical Education and Athletics
• Jennifer Corbelli - English Language Arts Teacher, Batavia High School
• Gail DiGregorio - Secretary, School Counseling Office, Batavia High School
• Jeff Donahue - Custodial Worker, Batavia High School 
• Nancy Haitz - School Nurse Practitioner, Batavia High School 
• Mary Hall - Counseling Center, Batavia Middle School 
• Susan Lukaszewicz - Physical Therapist, John Kennedy Intermediate 
• Paula Mosman - Teacher, John Kennedy Intermediate 
• Frank Panepento - Intro to Technology Teacher, Batavia Middle School 
• Wayde Scott Pickert - Maintenance Staff, Batavia Middle School 
• Sharon Reigle - Customer Support Technician, BCSD IT 
• Scott Rozanski - Business Administrator 
• Jackie Schumacher - Special Education, Batavia High School 
• Deborah Tourville - Custodial Worker, Robert Morris

A community schools program at Batavia City School District initially promoted as a strategy to help with each child’s well-being, success and educational equality is being realigned with a reduced coordinator position that will be responsible “for the most critical elements of the program,” Superintendent Jason Smith says.

The program that was implemented in 2021 by district social worker Julie Wasilewski and then-Batavia High School Assistant Principal Julia Rogers was centralized at Robert Morris, where Rogers was later relocated and made full-time community schools coordinator. 

The adopted $60,294,755 million 2024-25 budget — which will go up for a vote on May 21 — includes some staff changes, including making the coordinator a part-time position. One of the job’s responsibilities has been to forge relationships with outside agencies and organizations to serve as resources for students and families and have a presence at vendor fairs that were held at Robert Morris and other public sites. 

Smith said that other staff will be there to help fill the gap.

“BCSD currently employs five social workers who will continue to foster positive relationships with our families and community providers/agencies,” he said.

During a presentation to the school board in 2021, Wasilewski and Rogers talked about how Robert Morris was converted into a community center for children and parents to obtain assistance for school work and many additional other life needs, from laundry to filling the gaps of clothing, school supplies, hygiene products, toys, bedding, food and other missing items in their households. 

The Batavian asked Smith if community schools offerings would remain or how they might shift with the staffing change. Those life needs resources have been collected and provided at Robert Morris through a community closet in the Heart of Kindness Center. 

“At this point, the district intends to maintain the critical elements of the Community Schools program, which could include things like the Heart of Kindness Center,” Smith said. “All BCSD schools and programs have strong connections to our community. Schools host programs throughout the year, such as Family Fun Nights and Reading Nights, which are well attended. 

“We are exploring different ways to integrate community vendors into these robust school-based activities to provide the most value and assistance to our families and partners,” he said. “Given the budget challenges this year, it was imperative for the Board of Education and district to focus on the core elements of our academic, extracurricular, and social-emotional programs.”

During this week’s budget presentation, which drew even less than the one attendee who asked questions last year, Smith referred to his teeter-totter scenario of how trying to balance out the budget to serve the needs of both sides. 

“As you know, this was a particularly challenging budget year for many school districts, we were not the exception,” he said. “There were several extenuating circumstances, issues with state aid, foundation aid, COVID funding. So all of those are taken into account.”

He emphasized that foundation aid remained flat. It did not increase, though it also did not decrease; that aid remained at $24,191,855. The transportation contract calls for a $556,263 increase of $3.3 million, a 20 percent increase, a general support increase of $514,943, and an employee benefits increase of $313,405 for a total hike in expenses of $1,323,981.

The budget also includes a tax levy increase of $450,345, for a total levy of about $20.3 million. District voters will be asked to consider a property tax increase of 39 cents per $1,000 assessed value, or $48.75 more per year on a home assessed at $125,000. 

Other personnel changes include reducing seven grant-funded positions due to a nearly $6 million COVID-related grant drying up by this fall and five more through attrition but retaining seven other positions by moving them out of the general fund and into other ongoing grants. 

While that’s the good news for those seven, it’s “going to be challenging next year,” to figure out how to continue funding those, Smith said. A mental health grant will reestablish three social-emotional learning positions and three instructional coaching positions, he said. 

He pointed out the nonmandated items that made the list — those things that really make “a school a school” but aren’t required to be offered — such as music lessons, social workers, drama club, the technology program, art shows and exhibits, interscholastic activities, school resource officers, girls flag football, Link Crew, Advanced Placement and college credit courses, and summer programs.

There is a capital project for $100,000 at Robert Morris tucked into the budget for door security work, which is state reimbursed at a 92% rate, he said. He referred to a small city comparison review for how the district has held up in grades three through eight in math, numbers that administrators take pride in, he said. The graduation rate took a dip from 2021’s 95% to 2023, at 87%, and the average class size was 19.

There are 21 public schools serving 7,900 students in Genesee County and, according to Public School Review for 2024, Batavia High School ranks third place, with math in the 85 to 89 percentile, and reading at or greater than 50%.

John Kennedy Intermediate comes in at No. 14, with math at 35% and reading 50%, with Batavia Middle School at 17, with math at 23% and reading at 50%, followed by Jackson Primary, with math at 50 to 54% and reading at 40 to 44%, making those at the bottom 50 percent. (Pembroke Intermediate School came in first, with math scores at 68% and reading at 66%.)

The ballot includes Proposition #1 to approve a general budget of $60,294,755 and to vote for three board members with candidates Michael Bromley, Korinne Anderson, Jen Lendvay and John Reigle running. 

The vote is from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. May 21 at Batavia High School, 260 State St., and Robert Morris School, 80 Union St., depending on the voter’s residence.

For residents living north of Route 5 (Main Street), vote at Robert Morris, 80 Union Street  (Multi-Purpose Room). Enter on Union Street at the entrance across from Notre Dame.

For residents living south of Route 5 (Main Street), vote at Batavia High School, 260 State Street (High School Library).

If you need clarification on where to vote, check the street-by-street guide on our website or call the Business Office at 585-343-2480, Ext. 1002.

Press Release:

The Batavia City School District is proud to announce it has been honored for the first time with the NAMM Foundation's Best Communities for Music Education designation for its outstanding commitment to music education. 

Now in its 25th year, the designation is awarded to districts that demonstrate outstanding achievement in providing music access and education to all students.

To qualify for the Best Communities designation, the Batavia City School District answered detailed questions about funding, graduation requirements, music class participation, instruction time, facilities, support for the music program, and community music-making programs. 

Responses were verified by school officials and reviewed by The Music Research Institute at the University of Kansas.

“I am deeply honored to see BCSD’s commitment to music education recognized by the NAMM Foundation. This award is a testament to the rich, vibrant opportunities our incredibly talented and dedicated music department staff continue to provide, ensuring every BCSD student can experience the transformative power of music,” said Superintendent Jason Smith. "As a proud product of our district's music program myself, I am beyond thrilled to see BCSD receive this extraordinary recognition.”

“This prestigious award from the NAMM Foundation is a tribute to the dedication of our music department staff, our students' passion, and our families' unwavering support. Together, we have fostered a thriving music education environment that celebrates creativity and collaboration. I am immensely grateful for our community's commitment to keeping music an essential part of our education system,” said Melzie Case, BCSD Music Department Chair.

Research into music education continues to demonstrate educational/cognitive and social skill benefits for children who make music: After two years of music education, researchers found that participants showed more substantial improvements in how the brain processes speech and reading scores than their less-involved peers and that students who are involved in music are not only more likely to graduate high school but also to attend college as well. 

In addition, everyday listening skills are stronger in musically trained children than in those without music training. Significantly, listening skills are closely tied to the ability to: perceive speech in a noisy background, pay attention, and keep sounds in memory. 

Later in life, individuals who took music lessons as children show stronger neural processing of sound: young adults and even older adults who have not played an instrument for up to 50 years show enhanced neural processing compared to their peers. Not to mention, social benefits include conflict resolution, teamwork skills, and how to give and receive constructive criticism.

Weighing out the options of a permissible 2.26 percent tax increase versus going whole hog for a super-majority vote and a 4 percent increase, or having no increase at all and actually tightening the belt and eliminating expenses for a tentative $60.5 million budget, Batavia City School board members covered the gamut of responses to a nearly $1.4 million budget gap during its second review Tuesday evening.

Toward the end of a 90-minute session, Vice President John Reigle posed a question that was perhaps three years too late. 

“Call me crazy, but should we start planning now? Those three years knowing, I mean, I kind of feel like we knew these COVID grants were running out. We should have been proactive and tried to replace that money instead of being in this position now. I think it's very difficult,” Reigle said.

Business Administrator Andy Lang reviewed adjustments made so far since the initial meeting two weeks ago. Those include possibly cutting seven full-time COVID-19 grant-funded positions (three-year grant due to expire in September), four full-time positions that will be reduced based on enrollment, elimination of three full-time teacher positions by not replacing retirements; moving seven full-time positions from the general fund into ongoing grants, and reductions of three bus runs, equipment purchases and school supplies that had previously been provided free for all students.  

That still leaves a gap and the options of increasing the tax levy, pulling more from the appropriated reserve, similar to a district savings account, or further cutting expenses, Lang and Superintendent Jason Smith said.  

Lang had suggested drawing $2.5 million from reserves toward the 2025 budget and said that more could be taken if the board wanted to. 

“How much danger does it put us in the future for next year?” board member Alice Benedict said. “How much would be left?”

Lang said he will calculate the remaining amount later this year, and the reserve is considered a “safety net” for the district. 

“So a lot of it depends on where we end up at the end of this year, how much total fund balance that we have on the site. And then the other factor is how much revenue actually comes in for next year. If status is reinstated to what it should have been, the district will realize additional revenue, we may not have to utilize or actually use that appropriated fund balance, but the safety net, it's a safety net so that we don't put ourselves into a deficit situation,” Lang said. “Just because we appropriate that fund balance does not necessarily mean that we use it; our expenditures could be less than anticipated, and our revenues can be greater than anticipated and the amount that we are appropriating, so it'd be a wash.”

Benedict also proposed finding a way to keep the free school supplies for all students in the budget. That was a perk provided due to the pandemic, and the supplies were purchased with COVID grant money at an expense of about $90,000. Benedict argued that there should be a way to retain those goods in the budget now that the grant funds are drying up. 

Board Vice President John Reigle countered that the money could be better spent, such as on a teacher position—or about 1.5 positions, Lang said—and Reigle preferred putting the funds toward instruction versus supplies. 

Smith pushed for keeping the seven positions in place, and even though they include extracurriculars, he recommends keeping them because they are “robust” programs.

He wouldn’t want to see the board take away drama club, marching band, football, “all the things that make school a school,” he said. 

He suggested that the board wait until the state budget is more firmly in place to get a better idea of how much state aid the district will receive. The board could still work on a general budget, and a “best case scenario” in Foundation aid would add $300,000 to the revenue side, Lang said. 

After a nearly 90-minute session of reviewing numbers and options, Smith asked members who were for a tax increase. Board President John Marucci, who was quiet throughout the meeting, raised his hand. Otherwise, “we’re going to have to make some serious cuts,” he said. 

Lang warned the group that the grants do have an endpoint, just as current COVID grants are coming to an end this September.

“The only other thing I’d just like to mention regarding general fund grants is that some of those grants are finite. They are not perpetual grants. So, there might be, those grant funds would eventually cease after several years, and the mental health grant was three additional years from now,” he said. “So just as kind of a precautionary measure to the board.”

He also added that “there’s only so much you can cut out with those one-time” expenses, such as supplies and equipment. Those expenses will return again next year, he said.

Reigle made a final request to Smith at the close of the meeting.

“We’re basically cutting seven positions, correct? I gotta imagine that's gonna put such a burden on these guys. And we’ve seen such an improvement in our numbers the past few years, and we’ve really harped on it. And I think the coaching positions have helped. If there's things we can try to find, or if there's alternatives, I think we should try some of your alternatives to try and save some of these positions,” he said.  “(In a news article, City Council President) Mr. Eugene Jankowski pointed out in his presentation, ‘we don't want to lose law enforcement or first responders.’ These are our first responders, so I’d like to see some possible options.”

A $3.1 million budget shortfall due to potentially retaining seven positions funded by grants that will end this September, a decrease in state aid, and a transportation contract that’s gone up by more than $500,000 has triggered a tax cap alert for Batavia City School board members.

That is, at least some of them have agreed they would consider overriding the state-mandated tax cap increase, which for the city district is .72 percent. Members had a first go-round of the 2024-25 budget during Monday’s board meeting.

“If it is coming down to it, we’re going to have to look at every option,” Vice President John Reigle said.

Business Administrator Andrew Lang presented projected revenues and expenditures, retaining current staffing, busing and programs. The proposed general support budget would be $6,977,767, or an increase of $505,98; an employee benefits increase of $657,194; transportation, which just received a five-year ok from the board for $3,310,108 for the first year, or a 20.2 percent increase and provides transportation for students from home to school, athletic events, field trips and summer home to school. 

What Lang calls the rollover expenditure budget includes current staffing of seven full-time, long-term substitutes that have been funded through COVID-19 grant money of $5,804,256 that will end in September, five full-time social workers funded through a full-service community schools grant, five full-time instructional staff retirement replacements, all departmental requests for equipment and supplies, and two full-time school resource officers, one of which is funded with those COVID-19 grant funds about to expire in six months. 

Items that also will roll over and cannot budge are salary increases in accordance with collective bargaining agreements and individual contracts and projected employer contribution amounts for employee and teacher retirement systems, he said. There is also a free school supplies for all students program, also purchased with COVID funds. 

All totaled, the 2024-25 budget would be more than $62 million, at $62,052,726, compared to the current year’s budget of $58,875,814, for a difference of an additional $3,176,912. 

As for overall enrollment projections, those are expected to gradually decline, Lang said. Numbers had dipped to 2,006 in 2021-22, and then rose back up to 2,031 in 2022-23, 2,072 in 2023-24, and then slipped back down to 2,047 in 2024-25, and are projected to fall to 2,034 in 2025-26 hover around there in 2026-27, fall again to 2,022 in 2027-28 and bounce back to 2,046 in 2028-29. Numbers have been nowhere close to the all-time high of 2,167 of 2019-20. 

Those extra positions were added three years ago with COVID funds as a measure to deal with the aftermath of shutdowns and what educators believed was an issue of students struggling with social-emotional learning and related academic achievement.

“So there are some things that we need to be thinking about,” Superintendent Jason Smith said, referring to what he believes was “learning loss” attributed to COVID-19. “So we saw last month our test scores have been competitive. I’m not excusing the damage the pandemic caused, but it’s been four years … at some point, you can say the gap has been closed. Yes, we still want to give services to kids. We have seen some nice improvements across the district, and we still have some more work to do. But we also have to be careful that if we absorb that amount of almost $6 million into the general fund, which is what the plan is now, that may not be the most fiscally prudent thing to do.” 

Lang recommended that the next steps would be to increase the revenue by appropriating additional reserves, increasing the tax levy, and/or continuing to lobby for additional state aid. Expenses can be decreased through attrition and no additional hiring, he said, consider what to do with those grant-funded positions, and there’s an option not to replace the retiring personnel for more savings.

Board member Alice Benedict asked about transportation. 

“We also have flexibility on transportation too, do we not?” she said.

Smith initially said no.

Benedict pursued her line of thinking, adding that busing is not mandated, so the district is not bound to provide it.

“It’s something that can be looked at,” Smith said. “I’m not sure it’s something we would do.”

“Having lived here all my life, transportation has changed quite a bit,” Benedict said.

Smith said he believes there will be more Foundation Aid to come from the state. He turned to the board and asked if members wanted him to return with budget recommendations, and if there was any interest in exceeding the tax cap.

“I would,” Board President John Marucci said as Reigle also weighed in.

“We never want to, but I think it’s an option we have to look at,” Reigle said. 

He wanted to make sure that the SROs and school safety remained in place, and no board member suggested cutting any personnel at this point. Smith said that the administration would return with recommendations at the next meeting.

The group plans to meet at a budget workshop on March 12 at the District Office. A proposed budget is to be adopted by April 22 and be available for public review by May 6 and presented during a budget hearing at 6 p.m. May 14. A district vote will be on May 21.

City of Batavia firefighters are on hand Friday for the dozens of soaking wet people standing outside in the frigid weather at John Kennedy Intermediate School, but it wasn’t due to any unfortunate emergency, school counselor and event Co-Chairman Eric Knapp says.

Quite the contrary, those brave souls were part of what’s become a traditional gathering of Batavia City School, fire department, business and community representatives for a yearly fundraiser to benefit Special Olympics of Western New York.

This event has been so successful, the Special Olympics organization recognized organizers this year with a plaque.

“We are the number one leading school district and we received what was called the Cool School Award for raising the most money. So they're going to present us with a plaque for this year. I'm not sure if we're going to be number one for this year. But last year, we were number one. I think we're going to be a strong number two, which is still pretty good,” Knapp said during the event surrounded by some 150 participants, organizers and supporters. “I’m a school counselor for John Kennedy School, and it's just to get the whole idea of helping people in your community. And it’s also bringing attention to the Special Olympics and the athletes and all the gifts that they have. So bringing awareness to diverse people … it's just the coolest thing to help other people, especially the Special Olympics population.”

The coolest thing? He can say that again: “it’s literally going to be the coolest thing, when it’s like 10-degrees,” he said. “We are all together, some will get wet, some will not get wet, it’s pretty cold.”

Organizations included the fire department and its union, the school’s Varsity football team, Batavia Middle School Honor Society, JK’s fourth grade mentors, New York State Troopers, Batavia Police Department, the district’s students and staff and Jersey Mike’s.

Eric’s wife Krista, a second grade teacher, first began doing a polar plunge at Lake Ontario for Special Olympics before the pandemic hit, and then she and her husband brought the idea of a polar spray to Batavia to continue with the fundraising, he said.

Successful? You bet. They raised $10,000 last year and surpassed that with a total of $10,060 this year. Polar Plunge is the organization’s largest fundraiser for New York State, Senior Director for Development Kelley Ligozio said. When the pandemic and shutdowns happened, the Knapp couple and fellow organizers “wanted to build some spirit amongst our administrators and our students because COVID was really hard on everybody,” she said. 

 “And it's resulted in now 150 people here today to raise money to support people with intellectual differences, from our young athletes to our unified program in the schools, to our traditional competition,” Ligozio said. “The money that we're raising today, and what we raise across the state, goes back into the communities that we serve, and we serve over 3,500 athletes across the greater Rochester area. It is amazing."

To view or purchase photos, click here.

Photos by Steve Ognibene

Empowering students, maximum potential, socially responsible citizens.

Those are some of the words “that popped out to me when I first became a principal when I started to dig into learning a little bit about Batavia,” High School Principal Jennifer Wesp said during Tuesday’s Batavia City Schools Board of Education meeting. “And then things like safe and nurturing environment, high moral character, and successfully meeting life’s challenges. So coming into this, I really was focused on how can we make sure that our culture is helping our students to rise to be the best students that they can be? And how can they take hose steps to really show the independence that they have within themselves?

“So I just wanted to say that I really grounded myself in the mission and vision as I started to think about the work that I was going to do,” she said. “So with that, as you know, our strategic plan as a district is really amazing. And this is really the roadmap that we use in the high school to plan all of the things that we’re doing, some of the policies and procedures that we’ve updated, the messaging we’re giving our students.”

Her journey, as she put it, began in the summer with a three days of four-hour meeting of the minds from across district buildings, to share concerns — “there had been some unrest at the end of the year, lots of things where people were talking about different things that were going on” —and some of the needs that staff wanted to discuss with the district at large, she said.

“And it really gave me my first taste of what is Batavia about, what are we looking at, what are we looking to build upon, what are the great things?” she said. “So this kind of helped, just being in the meeting and meeting people across the district to start to formulate some of the things and actions that we are going to take as we work on our goals together.”

Two specific areas emerged from those meetings for more exploration, she said, which was done with interviews and surveys to obtain direct feedback from the “stakeholders” involved. The two areas led to questions: 

• In what ways might we be able to handle and best manage student behaviors in class?
• How might we help students emotionally regulate in order to avoid and manage conflicts?

Assistant Principals Omar Hussain and Jessica Korzelius took a part of the presentation and piece of the response to create three goals to help students to progress personally and academically.

The goals involve purposeful reading, a safe and orderly environment, and well managed emotions.

More specifically, the goals mandate that students will:

• Learn strategies to develop/manage/execute emotional regulation levels to increase positive student behaviors in the classroom, school and community; 
• Engage in purposeful reading (authentic text), writing and collaborative discussion protocols for 100 minutes a day; and 
• Provide a school environment that is safe and orderly for all.

Just what is authentic text? The New York State Education Department defines it (and other forms of media) as being produced from authentic resources and used as "a tool to promote students’ language and culture learning."

"Through authentic resources, students see how words and structures are used in a given cultural context for real-world communicative purposes. When authentic resources are well-chosen and implemented, they can motivate and support students’ target language use and cultural understanding," the SED website states. 

Hussain touched on the idea of independence in a way that he thought was “pretty sweet,” and seemingly simple.  The school’s co-mayors suggested a program of allowing seniors the option to hang out for a “sunrise/sunset” privilege, captured with fun props in photos at Van Detta Stadium, and done with the assistance of a student parent group. It was an alternative senior study hall that “the underclassmen, they’ll love it too,” he said, and includes a late arrival for seniors and study halls housed in the library, aka the “Senior Lounge.” 

Korzelius talked more about strategies to help students “understand themselves better,” and that use restorative practices. Such strategies can involve family members and counselors, and the work  is focused on repairing the damage done to oneself and relationships with others.

“There’s the alternative to suspension room,” she said as an example of the restorative piece. “For an overall wellness experience for students.”

There’s a strong emphasis on the positive, all three said, and that includes mental health as part of a social and emotional learning component.

“It’s just really empowering our students to see the leaders in themselves … it’s celebrating students,” Korzelius said.  

After two public hearings with only a few Batavia City School District residents in attendance, the majority made their opinions known Thursday by a vote of 315 to 97 in favor of the $45 million capital project, district officials said.

The vote means that the capital project will proceed in 2024 to install two synthetic turf fields for the high school, a baseball and softball field each, and upgrades for every school building within the city school district.

District officials applauded the support, including school board Vice President John Reigle, who said that he was “very pleased and proud” about the results of the district’s Reimagined capital project vote.

“Our leadership team did a great job promoting the project and explaining the many benefits of the project to our community,” Reigle said to The Batavian Thursday night. “This is a great step towards ensuring our district keeps the high standards that our district students and community expect and deserve. I’d like to thank the community for their support in voting to approve this capital project for our district.”

Likewise, board member Alice Ann Benedict was also pleased with the results and thanked the community for its demonstration of support for the project.

“I am thrilled with the overwhelming support of the BCSD Capital Project. The project was well-advertised and explained to the community over the last number of weeks. We’ve had a lot of feedback, mostly positive, from the community,” Benedict said to The Batavian. “I am always pleased when the voting community supports the recommendations of the Superintendent and administrators. Keeping our buildings safe and up-to-date is the most important part of this project because our students and staff are the most important users of these buildings. There are numerous safety improvements included for all of the schools.

“With most of the questions coming because of the artificial turf cost on two fields, our athletes can be out on the fields a lot earlier because this project will improve the drainage issues our district fields suffer with,” she said. “We have also heard  positive feedback about the moving of the grades, especially fifth grade back to John Kennedy.”

The BCSD Reimagined Project's next phase will include engaging in the contractor bid process over the next 12 months, and the district expects the first phase of construction to begin in the spring of 2025. The project is scheduled to be completed by the end of the 2027 calendar year. BCSD will provide additional updates and project details to the Batavia community as they become available, officials said in a press release issued Thursday night.

“Thank you to the Batavia community for your steadfast support in passing our BCSD Reimagined Capital Improvement Project,” Superintendent Jason Smith said in the release. “With this initiative, we will address essential infrastructure needs across all of our buildings. These funds will also help us convert Robert Morris into a modern early childhood education center and enhance our athletic fields for year-round use. Your vote reflects a deep commitment to our students and schools' ongoing improvement and future success.”

Board President John Marucci added, “We are profoundly grateful to the Batavia community for their support, to our Batavia City School District leadership for their visionary guidance in spearheading this important project, and to our collaborative construction partners and Buildings and Grounds Committee, who played an integral role in its conception.” 

“It's a remarkable achievement to bring this project to fruition with a zero percent tax increase, reflecting our shared commitment to fiscal responsibility and educational excellence,” Marucci said. “This collective support and collaboration are invaluable in shaping a brighter future for the Batavia City School District students.”

If you are or know of a Batavia City School alum or retired music educator with musical accomplishments, applications are now being accepted for the Musicians of Note awards.

Recipients need to have been an active performer or music educator, be at least 10 years out of high school, and have had a successful musical career in either performance, composition, education, theater or audio recording.

Nominations may be done posthumously to honor deceased musicians and educators from BCSD as well.

Complete and submit the application by March 28, 2024. 

Of the nine people at Thursday’s Batavia City Schools capital project public hearing, only one was a district resident who came to hear the presentation.

The remaining people in the auditorium were district staff, board members and an architect from the project design team. Although Herb Schroeder was the lone attendee, he came armed with a list of questions about the $45 million district-wide project.

Is this being paid for with a grant?
No. $6.9 million is coming from capital reserves, and the remainder of $38 million from a loan, to be paid back with reimbursement from the state.

What if the state reneges? It’s a lot for the taxpayers to handle if the state reneges. 
None of the presenters had ever heard of the state backing out of its commitment to reimburse a district for a capital project. These projects must be approved by the state Education Department after voter approval.

Have you looked into the price of traditional turf (in addition to the artificial turf that’s part of the capital project)?
No. Superintendent Jason Smith wasn’t saying that he wouldn’t look into it, but from everything that coaches and the Clark Patterson Lee team have advised, artificial is the way to go to help address the drainage issues with the fields at Batavia High School, Smith said.

“Drainage issues are going to be a problem no matter what you do … it’s a lot of money, that’s my biggest pet peeve,” Schroeder said. 

Even professional associations are considering going back to natural turf after some athletes have gotten injured on the artificial material, he said.

The plan calls for two synthetic turf fields for the high school, a baseball and softball field each, for about $7 million of the total cost. A proposed turf field at Van Detta Stadium upset a fair number of people — prospective tax-paying voters — so The Batavian had previously asked Smith why turf for the high school. 

The fields behind the State Street site have been prone to excess water and drainage issues for years, he said, since the school was built on a swamp. “We have received complaints from families,” he said and had to move several games to Genesee Community College as a result. 

Synthetic turf raises the playing field, alleviates pooling water, and provides “a better quality playing field for the kids,” he said. Installing this type of material would permanently fix the swamping issue, he said. 

“Most of us don’t see it as a luxury anymore,” he said. 

Robert Morris was closed in 2011 due to declining enrollment, so what are your projections for the next five years?
Enrollment is flat, with a slight increase at Robert Morris with the universal pre kindergarten, pre-school and pre-school special education programs enrolling kids ages 3 to 5. 

After using the one reserve for this project, are there any reserves left?
Yes and no, Smith said.

“Man, that’s a politician,” Schroeder said with a small chuckle.

Business Administrator Andrew Lang explained that there are some reserves already in place, including a teacher’s and employee’s retirement system reserve, and a reserve that the district created this past budget season to begin building up an account for future needs. This project, however, will drain this one particular reserve of $6,928,000.

A shift from getting a grant to borrowing the money “scares me,” Schroeder said, but he pledged his support.

“I’m going to vote for your project,” he said. 

This was the second presentation in the last two weeks, with the first one drawing only about three or four people. Board President John Marucci isn’t concerned about the low attendance. In fact, he believes it’s a testament to the district’s competence in disseminating the information and answering questions sufficiently before next week's vote. 

“I guess I was a little worried walking in and seeing that there's only one person here. But the more I thought about it, the more I think the community is comfortable with the job that we did. They're happy with what we've done. And I think the vote next week will show that it'll pass with flying colors,” Marucci said. “If this would have been a full auditorium, I would have been real worried. Just because that would tell me that, I think, there might be some people that have some real questions on the job we've done.  I think just seeing the one gentleman here tonight asking some great questions, that just showed that I think the community has paid attention to the flyers that we put out, the videos we put out, and they're happy with what we've done.”

As for what seemed to be one of Schroeder’s biggest sticking points, the artificial turf, not only has that not been a major complaint, but many people have wanted to see more of it installed throughout the district, Smith said.

“When I talk to the teams and the coaches, they’re excited about it. Also, I should have mentioned it will give us more practice area for our soccer team to practice on because our soccer team does play on turf at Van Detta, so they like to practice on turf,” he said. “It's not a full soccer field, but they can still get that turf experience of playing on turf, which they do at Van Detta and other schools, so there's more benefit besides just softball and baseball.”

Board Vice President John Reigle agreed, adding that the artificial field raises up the playing surface and helps to get the players out of a flooded field.

“It’s a great asset for the district,” Reigle said. 

The project will also involve some reconfiguration of grade levels. Kindergarten will move from Jackson Primary to Robert Morris; second grade will move from John Kennedy Intermediate to Jackson and fifth grade will move to John Kennedy from the middle school.

The district performs a building conditions survey every five to seven years, and the architect Clark Patterson Lee recommended a detailed scope of work that was prioritized from one to three, Smith had said in a prior interview, with mostly ones and twos being chosen for the project. Much of the work is being done to shore up 20-year-old infrastructure, such as the high school’s boiler system, roof, and the gym at Robert Morris.

Nothing is on the list to be expanded, such as extra classrooms or other such student space, which makes sense according to enrollment projections. By the district's calculations, total enrollment topped out at 2,383 in 2013 and fluctuated until it peaked for the last time in 2020 at 2,190, declining to 1,978 in 2023. Estimated total enrollment will be 1,933 in 2024, 1,902 in 2025, 1,880 in 2026 and 1,858 by 2027.

All of the schools have many of the same upgrades, including PA/clock and fire alarm replacements, phone system replacement, blue light notification system, information technology infrastructure improvements and pavement replacement for Jackson, John Kennedy, and the middle and high schools.

Jackson is also in line for building-mounted lighting and the replacement of a failing retaining wall on the east side between the school and its neighbors. John Kennedy would also get a new roof, an upgraded gym divider curtain and regraded softball field and other amenities.

Batavia Middle School “is getting the most renovations to the interior space,” Smith had said, “where it’s needed.”

“The whole school really needs a lot of work; it’s a historic, beautiful building, and we're trying to home in on that to give it the attention it needs,” he said. “I think that foundation repairs is an example of that.”

The breakdown of the $45 million is:

• BHS - $16,965,918
• BMS - $9,740,584
• John Kennedy - $6,852,018
• Jackson - $1,779,991
• Robert Morris - $9,537,600
• Richmond Memorial Library - $184,375

The project is to have no additional tax increase for district residents, officials said. 

Voting will take place from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Dec. 14 at designated sites, depending on where you live. 

For residents living north of Route 5 (Main Street), vote at Robert Morris, 80 Union St., in the Multi-Purpose Room.
For residents living south of Route 5, vote at Batavia High School, 260 State St., in the library.

More information about the project:

Click here to view our BCSD Reimagined Project Website 

Click here to view our BCSD Reimagined Project Factsheet

Click here to view our BCSD Reimagined Project Newsletter

Click here to view our BCSD Reimagined Project Video

The first of two public hearings about Batavia City School District’s proposed $45 million capital project will be at 4 p.m. Tuesday at the middle school auditorium, 96 Ross St., Batavia.

The proposed project is designed to modernize the district’s instructional spaces, optimize the building grade-level configurations, and address high-priority facility needs throughout the district, school officials say.

A big selling point is that there will be “no additional tax increase” for district property taxpayers as a result of the project, officials say in the presentation.

The vote for the BCSD Reimagined capital improvement project will be on Dec. 14 for residents of the city school district. These public hearings are your opportunity to hear about the project and ask questions. 

A second public hearing will be at 7 p.m. Dec. 7 at Batavia High School in the auditorium, 260 State St., Batavia. 

Voting will take place from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Dec. 14 at designated sites, depending on where you live. 

For residents living north of Route 5 (Main Street), vote at Robert Morris, 80 Union St., in the Multi-Purpose Room.

For residents living south of Route 5, vote at Batavia High School, 260 State St., in the library.

More information about the project is available below:

Click here to view our BCSD Reimagined Project Website 

Click here to view our BCSD Reimagined Project Factsheet

Click here to view our BCSD Reimagined Project Newsletter

Click here to view our BCSD Reimagined Project Video