Adult Literacy Celebrations being held in May

Be sure to mark your calendars now for two upcoming events honoring the accomplishments of OCM BOCES adult education program students. 

On Wednesday, May 15 at 6:30 p.m., the OCM BOCES Center for New Careers (in Cortland) will hold their Adult Literacy Celebration and program graduation at the McEvoy Educational Campus (1710 NYS Route 13) in Cortland.
On Wednesday, May 22 at 7:00 p.m., OCM BOCES will hold its 30^th Annual (Syracuse-area) Adult Literacy Celebration and program graduation at the Palace Theatre (2384 James Street) in Syracuse. 

Hundreds of graduates from the OCM BOCES GED, External Diploma and other literacy programs will be invited to attend and be recognized for their accomplishments. 

Several student testimonials, illustrating personal and educational struggles prior to coming to OCM BOCES, will be given during the ceremonies. OCM BOCES will also recognize their 2013 Partners in Literacy.

The public and media are asked to mark their calendars and plan to attend these celebrations. For more information on  OCM BOCES adult education programs, call 315-453-4466 (in Liverpool) or 607-758-1111 (in Cortland.)

Cazenovia High School Principal to be honored by OCM BOCES

On Wednesday, May 8, 2013, OCM BOCES will present Eric Schnabl, Principal of Cazenovia High School with their 2013 School Library System’s Administrator/Advocate of the Year award. The ceremony honoring Schnabl will take place at the OCM BOCES Henry Campus Rodax 8 Conference Room at 12:00 noon. 

The intention of the award is to honor an educational administrator or library advocate in the OCM (Onondaga, Cortland, Madison) region who has made significant contributions to school librarianship. 2013 is the first year that the award will be presented to a school building principal. Mr. Schnabl has demonstrated innovative administrative initiatives in the area of school libraries and the importance of the library connection to instruction.

Schnabl was nominated for the award by Vicki Reutter, a librarian for Cazenovia High School. In her nomination letter, she commended Mr. Schnabl for not only advancing the high school’s library program, but also the school’s educational standing.

With Mr. Schnabl at the helm, Cazenovia was ranked third for academics in Upstate New York by Business News and was awarded the 2012 NAAE Outstanding Secondary Agriculture Program, named the 2011 Model School for Project Lead the Way, ranked 154 in New York state high schools by U.S. News & World Report, and named an Outstanding Secondary School by the U.S. Department of Education, Mrs. Reutter writes.

In her letter, Reutter also highlights Mr. Schnabl’s ability to recognize the importance of a library media specialist in helping a school adjust to the curricular demands created by the new Common Core Standards. “Basically, I feel he has been a strong literacy advocate for our school, and has definitely supported my program on a daily basis,” Mrs. Reutter said. “We've had budget cuts and staff cuts, and I know he has taken these to heart and tried to come up with creative solutions.”

As an example, Mrs. Reutter cited the principal’s decision to approach teachers’ aides with an innovative idea for library staffing.

"His interpersonal skills paid off when we had staff cuts and there was no one to staff the library after school," Mrs. Reutter wrote in her nomination letter. "Mr Schnabl went literally door to door asking staff members to adjust their hours to cover the library, and was successful finding an aide to agree."

When Cazenovia High School English teacher Christie Brenneck needed additional copies of a novel that was added to the curriculumn, Mr. Schnabl came to the rescue. "Previously, the 12th grade teachers had taught different units at different times in order to share books, but we were still short," Mrs. Brenneck said. "As we had no funds for additional books that year, Eric went to Barnes & Noble and came in the next day with two bags filled with books for my students."

OCM BOCES Superintendent J. Francis Manning will present the award to Mr. Schnabl during the May 8 award ceremony. 

“His program support, moral support and respectful treatment of students, staff and teachers are just a part of his hopeful and positive nature, making it a pleasure to work with him,” Mrs. Reutter said.

For more information about the OCM BOCES School Library System or their Administrator/Advocate of the Year Award, contact Marcie Mann, Interim School Library System Coordinator at 315/433-2665. 

Cosmetology Students Hit the Runway for Beautiful Me Hair Show

The “Beautiful Me” competitive hair show was recently held at Barbagallo’s Restaurant in East Syracuse. OCM BOCES senior cosmetology students from the Irvin E. Henry Campus hosted and participated in the show as runway models. 

Senior cosmetology students competed in four categories and were judged by members of the Cosmetology Community Advisory Board. The competition categories were Fantasy, Generations, Exotic Jungle and Romance. Students competed by designing and creating hairstyles, makeup and clothing choices using their fellow students as models.

At the show, the students presented their designs by walking a runway in front of a live audience in order for the designs to be judged.

Congratulations to the following students for placing in the competition:

Katelyn Graham (Chittenango High School) - first place in the Fantasy category
Amber Holdsworth (Liverpool High School) - first place in the Exotic Jungle category

Carra Morre (West Genesee High School) - first place in the Romance category

Elisabeth Thomas (Fayetteville-Manlius High School) - first place in the Generations category

Maya Bey (Jamesville-DeWitt High School) - second place in the Romance category
Scott Jordan (Baker High School) - second place in the Generations category
Courtney Spraker (Baker High School) - second place in the Fantasy category
Kayla Valenza (Westhill High School) - second place in the Exotic Jungle category

Cara Jordan (Cicero-North Syracuse High School) - third place in the Romance category
Rachel Knapp (Baker High School) - third place in the Exotic Jungle category
Marina Locastro (Cicero-North Syracuse High School) - third place in the Generations category
Daisia Noboa (Solvay High School) - third place in the Fantasy category

Stephanie Azocar (Liverpool High School) - fourth place in the Romance category
Danaysia Rucker (Cicero-North Syracuse High School) - fourth place in the Exotic Jungle category

Courtney Bevard (Fayetteville-Manlius High School) - fifth place in the Exotic Jungle category
Alisa DiMaria (Cicero-North Syracuse High School) - fifth place in the Romance category

For more information, please contact Annemarie Morabito, OCM BOCES Cosmetology Instructor at 431-8508. 

Recognizing OCM BOCES graduates who have gone above and beyond

OCM BOCES is currently seeking nominations for their Career and Technical Education (CTE) Alumni Hall of Fame. Nomination forms are available in the main offices of OCM BOCES’ CTE buildings and are available for download by clicking here. In order for candidates to be considered for induction in 2013, nomination forms and all supplemental materials must be received by OCM BOCES Director of Career, Technical and Adult Education, Robert Leslie, no later than Friday, April 19, 2013.

One graduate from the OCM BOCES McEvoy Campus in Cortland and one graduate from their Henry Campus in Syracuse will be selected by the CTE Advisory Committee to be honored at their respective campus’ completion ceremony in June. The winners will also have a commemorative plaque placed in the "Hall of Fame" at their respective campus of graduation.

The purpose of the Hall of Fame is to recognize individuals who have graduated from OCM BOCES programs and who demonstrate leadership in their field. By identifying successful graduates, the hope is to provide positive role models for current students, while making the public aware of the accomplishments of former OCM BOCES students and the potential for success through the high quality programs offered by the organization. 

OCM BOCES District Superintendent Jody Manning said, “As school districts across the United States work to align their curricula with Common Core Learning Standards (CCLS,) it is becoming essential to provide lesson content connected to the real world. Career and technical education programs provide an ideal opportunity for that relationship to occur.”

Manning added, “CTE programming provides students with a Regents high school diploma, backed by the academic proficiency, technical skills, knowledge and training they need to succeed in college and future careers. The hands-on work that CTE students complete, provides them opportunities to directly apply problem-solving, reasoning, communication and mathematical skills that they will use throughout their lives.”

Each year, thousands of CTE students graduate from high school with their career goals at the forefront of their minds, equipped with the academic, leadership and job skills to help them down their chosen career path. These students know exactly where they are and where they will go next to further their academic and hands-on education and training. The OCM BOCES CTE Alumni Hall of Fame was established to honor such individuals who graduated from OCM BOCES and who demonstrate leadership in their field.

Alumni Hall of Fame nominations are solicited and reviewed by a subcommittee made up of members from the OCM BOCES CTE Advisory Committee. In order to be considered for the award, nominees must have graduated from an OCM BOCES CTE program, they must be engaged in an occupation related to their program of completion at OCM BOCES, they must demonstrate leadership in their field and they must exercise civic responsibility.

Nomination forms for the OCM BOCES Alumni Hall of Fame are available in the main offices of OCM BOCES’ CTE buildings and online at www.ocmboces.org. In order for candidates to be considered for induction in 2013, nomination forms and all supplemental materials must be received by OCM BOCES Director of CTE and Adult Education, Robert Leslie, no later than Friday, April 19, 2013. For more information, please contact Robert Leslie at 315/431-8406.

Following is a listing of CTE Programs at OCM BOCES:

Thompson Road Campus in Syracuse

Automotive Body Collision Technology 

Automotive Technology 

Certified Nurse Assistant 

Computer Technology 

Construction Technology 

Cosmetology 

Criminal Justice/Police Science 

Culinary Arts 

Early Childhood Education 

Floral Arts 

Graphic Communications 

Health Occupations 

Medical Laboratory Technician 

Pastry Arts 

McEvoy Campus in Cortland

Automotive Collision Technology

Automotive Technology

Construction Technology

Graphic Communications 

Cosmetology 

Computer Technology 

Culinary Arts 

Criminal Justice 

Health Occupations 

OCM BOCES students among millions from across the world to participate in World Education Games

On Tuesday, March 5, 2013 and Wednesday, March 6, 2013, more than 100 OCM BOCES Career and Technical Education (CTE) students at the Irvin E. Henry Education Campus in Syracuse, are participating in online World Math Day activities with millions of others from across the world. This is the first year that OCM BOCES students have participated in the event, which is part of 3P Learning’s World Education Games. 

The games allow students to compete online with others from across the world. According to a press release, students from 236 countries and territories are expected to compete in the 2013 World Education Games. 

Each student registered receives a unique username and password allowing them to play whenever they are available during the official game period. When students sign-in, the program picks real opponents from around the world for them to compete against. Each game lasts just 60 seconds with the goal of answering as many math questions correctly as possible. 

The actual Math Day competition takes place whenever the date anywhere in the world is March 6. For students at OCM BOCES, that means competition can begin at 5:00 AM on Tuesday, March 5 and will continue through 5:00 AM on Thursday, March 7. OCM BOCES CTE students will compete as part of their applied math classes on Tuesday, March 5, and Wednesday, March 6, 2013 from 9:30 AM to 10:15 AM and from 1:30 PM to 2:15 PM each day. 

Teachers at OCM BOCES are excited about participating in the games this year saying, “Participating allows students to have fun doing math and helps address the need for mental math practice so students aren’t always reaching for their calculator to do basic math computations.”

During the competition on March 5, students from OCM BOCES answered almost 12,000 questions correctly, which is more than all the questions they answered correctly during the previous two weeks of practice! Great job!

OCM BOCES students compete in the World Math Day competition on March 5, 2013.

Students use a map to select their opponents from around the world.

Each competition lasts for 60 seconds with students answering as many questions as possible before selecting new opponents. 

Students are able to see their progress in comparison to their opponents as they answer questions. 

OCM BOCES Students Participate and Place in Regional SkillsUSA Competition

More than 55 students from the OCM BOCES McEvoy Campus in Cortland, NY and the OCM BOCES Henry Campus in Syracuse, NY recently competed in the SkillsUSA (Area II) regional competition at Morrisville State College. A great number of OCM BOCES students placed in the competition, giving OCM BOCES more medals than any other school in attendance!

Photo: Alexa Mentel, an OCM BOCES Pastry Arts senior from the Liverpool Central School District, is pictured in class practicing for the regional SkillsUSA competition. Alexa entered and placed first in the Commercial Baking competition, which challenges contestants to meet production and quality standards expected by the baking industry. Students must scale, mix, prepare and bake three or four products (including breads, rolls, Danish, cookies and pies) and demonstrate cake-decorating skills. They are expected to deliver a quality, salable product while working efficiently and under job-like conditions.

OCM BOCES students who placed at the regional competition are:

• Emily Arthur (1st place Job Demo) – OCM Laboratory Tech senior from Baldwinsville CSD
• Christine Beckhusen (2nd place Commercial Baking) – OCM Pastry Arts senior from North Syracuse CSD
• Paige Bell (1st place Occupational Health & Safety) – OCM Laboratory Tech senior from Baldwinsville CSD
• Maya Bey (1st place Nail Care) – OCM Cosmetology senior from Jamesville-DeWitt CSD
• Sarah Brown (3rd place Related Technical Math) – OCM Laboratory Tech junior from Baldwinsville CSD
• Dylan Cochran (2nd place Food Prep Assistant) – OCM Culinary Arts senior from Homer CSD
• John Flanagan (1st place First Aid/CPR) – OCM Medical Professions senior from North Syracuse CSD
• Jenna Griffo (3rd place Job Interview) – OCM Pastry Arts senior from Baldwinsville CSD
• Kevin Hernandez (1st place Customer Service) – OCM Laboratory Tech senior from Syracuse City SD
• David Hines (2nd place Auto Service Tech) – OCM Auto Tech senior from Cortland Enlarged City SD
• Kaylie LaFlair (2nd place Job Demo Open) – OCM Laboratory Tech/Career Academy senior from North Syracuse CSD
• Alexa Mentel (1st place Commercial Baking) – OCM Pastry Arts senior from Liverpool CSD
• Tyler Shepard (1st place Auto Tech Service) – OCM Automotive Tech senior from Cazenovia CSD
• Leah Simon (3rd place Job Demo) – OCM Pastry Arts/Career Academy senior from Tully CSD
• Noelle Webster (3rd place Customer Service) – OCM Pastry Arts senior from West Genesee CSD

SkillsUSA is a national organization serving high school and college students preparing for careers in technical and service occupations. The organization provides quality educational experiences for students in leadership, teamwork, citizenship and character development. SkillsUSA offers annual regional, state and national competitions through which CTE students vie against each other for the competition’s top honors, scholarships and prizes of tools for their trades.

Following is the complete list of OCM BOCES students that participated in the regional SkillsUSA competition, by home district, and the programs in which the students are enrolled at BOCES:

Baldwinsville Central School District: Emily Arthur (Laboratory Technology senior), Daniel Belair (Computer Technology senior), Paige Bell (Laboratory Technology senior), Sarah Brown (Laboratory Technology junior), Jenna Griffo (Pastry Arts senior), Tyler Myers (Automotive Collision Technology senior)

Cazenovia Central School District: Tyler Shepard (Automotive Technology senior)

Chittenango Central School District: Drew Atkinson (Automotive Technology senior), Kaleen Cole (Cosmetology senior), Duncan Preeman (Computer Technology senior)

Cincinnatus Central School District: Anthony Allen (Culinary Arts senior), Alexia Cavanagh (Health Occupations Technology senior), Kasey Price (Health Occupations Technology senior)

Cortland Enlarged City School District: Julie Dellow (Culinary Arts senior), Bethany Hall (Culinary Arts senior), David Hines (Automotive Technology senior), Megan Howard (Health Occupations Technology senior), Irina Khrushch (Cosmetology senior), Darien Ostrander (Culinary Arts senior)

DeRuyter Central School District: Brad DeGroff (Culinary Arts junior)
East Syracuse Minoa Central School District: Karly Kwasigroch (New Vision Medical Professions senior)

Fabius-Pompey Central School District: Lucas Volo (Welding junior)

Homer Central School District: Chaylyn Cleveland (Culinary Arts senior), Dylan Cochran (Culinary Arts senior), Connor Munn (Computer Technology senior)

Jamesville-DeWitt Central School District: Maya Bey (Cosmetology senior)

Liverpool Central School District: Alexa Mentel (Pastry Arts senior)

Marathon Central School District: Marjorie Torres (Cosmetology senior), Timothy Wilmarth (Automotive Technology junior)

McGraw Central School District: Colby Barnhart (Automotive Collision Technology senior)

North Syracuse Central School District: Christine Beckhusen (Pastry Arts senior), Michelle Cross (New Vision Medical Professions senior), John Flanagan (New Vision Medical Professions senior), Samantha Holzapfel (New Vision Medical Professions senior), Kaylie LaFlair (OCM BOCES Career Academy Laboratory Technology senior), Danaysia Rucker (Cosmetology senior), Joshua Sackett (Computer Technology senior), Koty Schwenn (Automotive Collision Technology senior), Matthew Stone (Computer Technology junior), Jessica Wanke (New Vision Medical Professions senior), Nicolette Wing (Cosmetology senior)

Solvay Union Free School District: William (Buddy) Chasteen (Culinary Arts senior), Karen Harris (Early Childhood Education senior), Cody McCarthy (Automotive Collision Technology), Da’Shawn Procks (Pastry Arts senior)

Syracuse City School District: Kevin Hernandez (Laboratory Technology senior)

Tully Central School District: Kara Catherman (Culinary Arts junior), Samantha Crawford (Culinary Arts senior), Jessica King (Early Childhood Education senior), Leah Simon (OCM BOCES Career Academy Pastry Arts senior), Michael Spain (Automotive Collision Technology senior)

Westhill Central School District: Travis Lomberk (Automotive Technology senior), Aaron Negus (Computer Technology junior)

West Genesee Central School District: Roman Hevko (Culinary Arts senior), Noelle Webster (Pastry Arts senior)

Congratulations to all OCM BOCES students!

The New York State SkillsUSA competition will take place at the Syracuse Fairgrounds on April 25, with OCM BOCES students competing with nearly 2,000 others from across the state. Students and their advisors will join over 1,000 industry and education partners from across the northeast participating as industry advisory members and judges for the skills contests.

For more information about OCM BOCES Career and Technical Education Programs, contact Robert Leslie at 315/431-8407.

OCM BOCES students and Parkrose Estates residents partner for intergenerational art show

On Thursday, February 28, 2013, the collaborative artwork of students from the OCM BOCES REACH program (grades 7 & 8) and senior residents of Parkrose Estates Retirement Community was on display at the senior living facility in Liverpool. The intergenerational art exhibit, “Freedom of the Arts,” was open for two public viewings that day; one from 1:00 to 3:00 PM and one from 5:30 to 7:30 PM.

For two months leading up to the exhibit, the senior living facility and the school had been working together to present a truly intergenerational and unique art exhibit. On multiple occasions, students visited the facility and worked with residents to create shared pieces of art. Those joint creations were displayed at the show, along with a variety of artwork in various other media and photographs of the student/resident teams.

Earlier this year, Carolyn Lincoln, the Director of Fun at Parkrose Estates, sought out Renae Montroy, a School Social Worker at OCM BOCES, about the project. The school and retirement community have successfully worked together in the past and Lincoln thought the art show collaboration would be a good fit between the two. She said, “Spectrum [Retirement Communities, LLC.,] who owns Parkrose, hosted art exhibits at all 25 of their facilities across the United States this February. At Parkrose, we wanted our intergenerational art show to include students from OCM BOCES.”

Montroy was excited about the idea of the students’ collaborating with Parkrose residents. She said, “We’ve done a lot of things with Parkrose in the past where the kids were able to interact with and learn from residents. I think this project has been the best collaboration so far. The students really had a chance to spend time with residents as they created artwork together. Even when some students appeared unsure about participating in the event, they truly enjoyed the time they spent with the residents. As one student talked about his apprehension, he said that he thought it wouldn’t be fun or interesting but in the end he didn’t want to leave. He connected well with the ladies he worked with and he really enjoyed his experience.”

Students in other OCM BOCES programs have also contributed to Parkrose Estates’ Freedom of the Arts show and had their works displayed along with their peers. Many of these students were guided and supported by their OCM BOCES art teachers, Leah LaChausse from the Career Academy in Liverpool and Pamela Macnabb from the STARS Alternative High School in Solvay. Additionally, artwork from residents, family members and also preschool students from the Child Time day care facility in Liverpool was exhibited at the show.

Carolyn Lincoln extended an invitation to the community to attend the special event. She said, “We really wanted the kids to be able to come to the event and to have their families present also so we decided to offer two viewings. We’re very excited about this and can’t wait to see the reactions of everyone involved when they see the awesome work!”

For more information about OCM BOCES alternative education programs, contact Karen Clark, Director of Alternative Education at 315/952-7847 or kclark@ocmboces.org.