1 Golden Bomber Dr.
Ilion, NY 13357
Phone: 315.894.9934
Fax: 315.894.2716
Superintendent
Opening day: Educating in a time of change
“Remember back to what inspired you to become an educator and use that to help inspire your students,” said Ilion Board of Education President Dan LaLonde to school staff at the district’s Superintendent’s Conference Day on Thursday, Sept. 1.
LaLonde mentioned the many things that can sidetrack teachers from that original mission to be educators—the tax cap, state aid cuts, the need for mandate relief, renovation of the Philip St. bridge, lack of or too much parental involvement in their children’s education, and the full range of student issues.
“Let your administrators deal with the big things,” he said encouraging everyone to remain focused on teaching.
Superintendent Cosimo Tangorra, Jr. tackled the big issue on everyone’s mind, the possible school merger.
“One of two things will happen next year. We will merge or we will not,” he said.
He emphasized that regardless of what happens with the merger, he remains committed to the task of making sure opportunities for kids do not diminish any more than they already have. That effort is made difficult by a state end funding formula that discriminates against the poor and minorities he said.
“I want to ensure that the children of this valley don’t receive less of an education than those children who ‘count.’,” he said referring to children from more affluent communities on Long Island and suburban areas.
He outlined the merger decision timeline:
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Mid-September, 2011—The Community Advisory Committee addresses the financial implications of a merger during its final meeting
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Mid-October—Consultants present the final document to the NYS Education Department (NYSED)
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November 2011—NYSED approves the report. Consultants present the final document to the four boards of education and the public
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December 2011—Boards of education vote. All four must vote to move forward with the merger. If not, the merger process ends. If just one board votes no, that district drops out of the merger.
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January 2012—Advisory referendum or “straw vote” in those communities whose boards voted to proceed. All four districts must approve or the merger process ends.
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February-March 2012—Binding referendum or “final vote.” If all four districts approve, the merger becomes official.
He urged staff “to get all of the information.”
“If one person walks into the voting booth and pulls the lever—either yes or no— because of some misunderstanding or because they were uniformed, then something terrible has happened,” he said.
Adding
to school pressures is the introduction of a new national curriculum
for all subjects beginning with grades 3-8 math and English language
arts. Schools must also implement a new statewide performance review
process for teachers and principals.
“All of these changes are sure to cause some anxiety,” Mr. Tangorra said.
“But, we must move through this year like it’s no different than any other. Our students cannot feel our anxiety. Heighten your focus. This is not their problem. These are adult issues that kids have no business being concerned with.”
He concluded by charging everyone to focus on the goals of student achievement, improved graduation rates and improved assessment results.
Afterward, he said, “I believe my message to our faculty and staff is best summed up by the quote I used in the beginning of my talk. Viktor Frankl was an Austrian Jew who was interned in a Nazi prison camp. He understood what it meant to survive in the face of adversity. He said, ‘When we can no longer change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.’"
