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While Thursday’s Board of Education meeting was overshadowed by the plan to annex BANC for New Lebanon School kindergarteners in 2014-2015 school year, other items of business were discussed, including an update on the progress on the MISA project at GHS. Building committee member Laura Erickson reported that steel has been erected in the southeast area of the footprint for the galleria and the restrooms and that steel for the auditorium itself is scheduled to go up immediately on completion of the orchestra pit. Erickson, a new member of the MISA building committee, said the general consensus of the committee, following a lengthy review, is to request additional funding of $2.27 to$ 2.57 million to replenish the contingency, which she said would include approximately $1.77 million for environmental issues she described as “the result of  the soil excavation and disposal costs, as well as general conditions due to the delays.” Erickson said the committee looked at the overall $3.2 million contingency for the auditorium portion of MISA which she said is about 20% complete, but that 40% of the contingency has already been consumed. “We’d like to shore up the contingency, which is probably about $600,000,” Erickson said. Continue Reading →

At Thursday night’s Board of Education meeting, New Lebanon School principal, Barbara Riccio delivered a welcome to what she described as a “tiny place” where students bring vibrant culture and traditions to the community despite many of their parents’ struggles to make ends meet. Student government president of GHS, Guillermo Perez, who himself attended New Lebanon School, addressed the board and audience in Spanish before switching to English. “This school seemed a lot bigger,” Perez said describing the hallways as so small compared to his memories. Going out of his way to express gratitude for his former teachers, Perez added, “This school is where I learned to make friends, to be compassionate.  … This school is really something special.”

Superintendent McKersie later praised Perez and his fellow GHS senior, Henry Ricciardi, mentioning that Riccardi has been accepted to Boston College and Perez has been awarded a full scholarship to Syracuse University. BANC Satellite Campus for Kindergarten in 2014-2015
Once the GHS students delivered their remarks, there was discussion of options to make up snow days and an update on MISA, before focus turned to the issue of the day: annexing space at the Byram Archibald Neighborhood Center (BANC) to house New Lebanon School’s kindergarten in 2014-2015 school year in order to ameliorate overcrowding. Continue Reading →

The Board of Education announced in a press release Thursday morning that New Lebanon School’s (NLS) Kindergarten will be held at the Byram Archibald Neighborhood Center (BANC) for at least the 2014-2015 school year. Kindergarteners will start the school day at BANC for their academic classes. Then they will take a school bus to New Lebanon for the second half of the day. That means they’ll be at New Leb for lunch, recess and specials including FLES, art, music, physical education, and media. This solution ensures  that current students in grades K-4 will “maintain their elementary school experience” at the New Lebanon School facility according to the BOE press release. Continue Reading →