OCM BOCES Sponsoring NYS Academic Decathlon Section III Competition at Westhill High School –Saturday, January 25, 2014

On Saturday, January 25, 2014, approximately 70-80 students from the Cazenovia, Liverpool, North Syracuse, Tully, West Genesee and Westhill school districts will compete in the 2014 New York State Academic Decathlon (USAD) Section III Competition at Westhill High School (4501 Onondaga Boulevard) in Syracuse.

The theme of this year’s event is World War I. The Decathlon will begin at 8:30 AM, with students engaging in a series of paper and pencil tests through 1:00 PM. At 1:40PM, the “Super Quiz” (oral relay) portion of the Decathlon will commence, with students responding to questions in front of an audience. The Awards Ceremony will be held following the Super Quiz.

The three highest scoring teams will advance to the New York State Competition on Feb 28-March 1 at SUNY Brockport. The state winner will go on to represent New York State at the national USAD competition, which is scheduled for April 24-26 in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Since it began as a local academic competition in California in 1968, the United State Academic Decathlon has grown to become an international event. The local Academic Decathlon is coordinated by the Onondaga-Cortland-Madison BOCES. Students in ninth through twelfth grades will comprise district teams of three “A” students (Honors), three “B” students (Scholastic), and three “C” students (Varsity). The Academic Decathlon promotes well roundedness by providing competition for each team in several events.  The students will take objective tests in art, music, language and literature, science, social science, mathematics, and economics. They will also participate in a “Super Quiz”, team oral relay conducted before an audience.

For more information about the 2014 sectional level Academic Decathlon at Westhill High School, call Elaina Renfrew, OCM BOCES’ Coordinator of Educational Services and Academic Decathlon Sectional Coordinator, at 315/431-8598.

Participants and coaches are:

Cazenovia – Coaches: Barb Axelson and Ben Wightman
Contestants: Danielle Axelson, Remi Boissonnas, Katherine Boone, Emma Dudley, Brock Houghton, Riley Lloyd, Robert Louis, Joseph Mevec, Piper McKinnon
Alternates: Chase Matteson and Lars Ohlsen

Cicero-North Syracuse – Coach: Matt Harbinger
Contestants: Hayley Bermel, Craig Blume, Demitri Dana, Paul Dehm, Meghan Geary, Caitlin Hernandez, Elena Iaconis, Jacob Mekker and Julie Osborne
Alternates: Zachary Allard, Sierra Ciciarelli, Graham Dittler, Brian Emigohls, Ian Loy, Zachary Winnewisser and Sarah Ziobro

Liverpool – Coach: Daryl Burrer
Contestants: Ziad Abougoash, Garrett Clarke, Matthew Collins, Austin Fedor, Cassandra LaGrange, Shuting “Susie” Lu, Jason Mai, Kazmira Pitzrick and Ronald Wilson
Alternates: Grace Traino, Thomas Williams, Justin Wiszniewski and Eugeen Yoon

Tully – Coaches: Kim Cameron and Pat Votra
Contestants: Peter Barletta, Marshal Clemens, Elsa Gauss, Kurt Gauss, Julie Kunnumpurath, Sarah Reppenhagen, Katie Warner and Matthew Wood
Alternates: Megan Hafler, Kiara Lee, Brendan McGinn, Cassidy McGinn and Bradley Phelps

West Genesee – Coach: Scott Duda
Contestants: Jared Bivens, Callie Campbell, Luke Faulkner, Nathan Gillette, James Hickey, Evan Janes­Rouse, John Lisi, Nicholas Serrao and Vadim Shakhov
Alternates: Dylan Casolare, Rachel Gdula, Jenna Hickey, William Krueger, Joshua Mattice, Megan Petty, Matthew Romano and Eric Wolfe

Westhill – Coach: Sarah Fleming
Contestants: Stephen Burgay, Aidan Kelly, Elizabeth Meluni, Nathan Mevec, Aden Orzell, Madeline Pierce, Jordan Roach, Jennifer Root and Anastasija Useva
Alternates: Kaitlin Cash and Molly Spinek

Financial Aid Night at McEvoy - Wednesday, February

On Wednesday, February 12, 2014, OCM BOCES will host a financial aid night at their McEvoy Education Center (1710 State Route 13) in Cortland. There will be a financial aid overview in the center's auditorium from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. and college financial aid officers will be available (in the testing lab) from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. to help complete the FAFSA forms.

Families may attend one or both sessions.

OCM BOCES Facilities Referendum - January 23, 2014

The Onondaga-Cortland-Madison BOCES has an opportunity to purchase the former Nationwide
Building in the Town of Salina. This acquisition means no additional cost to our districts.

Currently, OCM BOCES owns two facilities and leases eight more. A building purchase reallocates some of the current rental budget and allows those funds to be used to buy this building.

There is a Referendum Vote on this purchase on January 23, 2014 from 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Voting locations are:

Lee G. Peters Career Training Center (4500 Crown Road) in Liverpool,
Henry Campus Administration Building (6820 Thompson Road) in Syracuse, and
McEvoy Education Campus (1710 NYS Route 13) in Cortland.

Eligible voters must be U.S. citizens, age 18 and older, who have resided within the OCM BOCES region at least 30 days prior to the vote.

Click here to download an application for an absentee ballot.

OCM BOCES is presenting information about the referendum to component district Boards of Education on the following dates:
January 6, 2014 - Baldwinsville Central School District
January 7, 2014 - Homer Central School District
January 8, 2014 - DeRuyter Central School District

Download the OCM BOCES Facilities Referendum fact sheet here for vote and project details.

2012-2013 Annual Report available online

The OCM BOCES 2012-2013 Annual Report is available online. Click here to view/download a PDF version of the publication.

State Education Department looks at OCM BOCES collaboration with Le Moyne College on leadership development

Good schools depend on good teacher leaders and good administrators. Through its Division of Instructional Support Services, OCM BOCES has begun the Central New York Leadership Development Program (CNYLDP), a joint initiative with Le Moyne College, as part of efforts to support existing leaders and encourage and develop future leaders.

On Monday, December 9, 2013, Dr. Stephanie Wood-Garnett, New York State Education Department (SED) Assistant Commissioner for Teacher and Leader Effectiveness and SED Project Coordinator Melissa Greene, will visit the area to learn about OCM BOCES and Le Moyne College’s CNYLDP collaboration.

The CNYLDP provides a combination of instruction and coaching/mentoring for three different audiences: teacher leadership, building leadership, and district leadership. Participants engage in initiatives with colleagues from other school districts, bringing richer ideas that will impact their analysis and problem solving. The format allows weekly feedback from mentors and monthly presentations by adjunct professors who are current practitioners in the field. CNYLDP is designed to complement and integrate ongoing professional development initiatives while providing a sustained focus on leadership development.

OCM BOCES District Superintendent Jody Manning is pleased the SED is looking at the collaboration as a model. He said, “BOCES is about success…not just the success of students, but of teachers and administrators as well. We believe that this collaborative endeavor will strengthen our area’s existing leadership as will nurture future leadership. We are excited to have SED here looking at the program as a model for others.”

Cosmetology students participate in Veteran's Day Expo

OCM BOCES senior cosmetology program students from the Irvin E. Henry campus were recently invited to participate in the November 9 Veteran's Day Expo at the New York State Fairgrounds. A booth was set up for the nine students who attended to do face-painting for the event's attendees. The students were excited to participate and even wrote literacy reflection papers citing some of their thoughts.

One student, Tori, met two young refugee twin brothers who came to America just a year ago and were accompanied to the event by a veteran. After the boys had their faces painted, Tori learned that it was the first time they had ever been able to have it done. Tori said, "They were so excited as [I] finished an American Flag on their faces. It was the most memorable part of the day."

She also said, "I had a great time meeting many veterans, who have done their job to keep our country safe."

Another student named Kayleigh met a six year boy who asked to have an American Flag painted on his face. He told Kayleigh that although his father was on active duty and " I know daddy can't see me, but now I can match him."

Marissa, another student, wrote "When I was at the expo I thought about how my grandpa who was in the coast guard, and how he was on a ship headed to Cuba during the Cuban Missile Crisis. When he talks about it he gets teary eyed and chokes up."

The students did a great job face-painting and learned a great deal about American History at the same time. They came away with an appreciation for their country and for those who served.

Many thanks to the students who participated: Micala Wittherbee, Emily Keller, Mckenzie Gransbury, Kayleigh Nett, Talia Iglesias, Tori Galizia, Vi Ngugen ,Marissa Beradi and Vivian Bakowski.

WCNY to host first Common Core program with N.Y. education commissioner Nov. 7

WCNY news
by HALEY DUBNOFF
November 1, 2013

WCNY will host the first of four scheduled televised public forums on new New York Common Core education standards at 8 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 7. The forum will be broadcast on WCNY-TV and streamed online at wcny.org as it happens live before a studio audience at WCNY’s Broadcast and Education Center in Syracuse.

New York State Education Commissioner Dr. John B. King Jr. and Anthony Bottar of the New York State Board of Regents will answer questions from parents, teachers, administrators and others who will make up the studio audience. Susan Arbetter, WCNY’s news and public affairs director and host of WCNY’s weekday “Capitol Pressroom” radio program, will moderate the discussion.

The initial hour-long program will be followed by an additional half-hour discussion with King and Bottar that will continue live on www.wcny.org. That half-hour discussion will be televised on WCNY’s “Insight” news and public affairs show at 9 p.m. Friday, Nov. 8.

Individuals interested in attending the forum in the WCNY studio should complete the online form available at www.wcny.org/television/common-core-forum. Seating is limited, and online registration is not a guarantee of a seat.

Common Core standards and the educational reforms that have followed since their implementation in 2012 have divided educators. The standards emphasize critical thinking and so-called deep learning. New York is one of the first states to begin testing on the benchmarks.

When the state education department fielded complaints about poor communication related to Common Core, King scheduled a series of town hall meetings for this school year. When angry parents and professionals disrupted the first event in Poughkeepsie in mid-October, King cancelled the series. The state responded by scheduling four televised public forums on Common Core.