NYSSBA recognizes Liverpool’s Education 2020 initiative

The New York State School Boards Association will present the Liverpool Central School District with its Champions of Change award in recognition of the district’s Education 2020 initiative.

The Champions of Change award recognizes innovative programs in school districts across the state and pays tribute to the people who create them.

As part of the Education 2020 initiative, the Liverpool Central School District reconfigured grades and buildings to allow the district to provide more opportunities for students and staff, including mental health support, reading support, English as a New Language (ENL) support, instructional resources, Science, Technology,

Engineering, Art, Math (STEAM) opportunities, Career Technical Education (CTE) opportunities and Professional Development. Overall, the adjustments were made so that the district can best meet the needs of its students.

At the middle school level, the district has provided new pathway electives that include Food Tech (FACS), En -

Students bring ‘Oliver’ to the stage

Lionel Bart’s “Oliver” sets to music the classic Charles Dickens’ tale “Oliver Twist.”

It tells the story of an orphaned boy named Oliver who experiences many trials in life before discovering his true heritage. His journey involves orphanage life, hunger, pickpockets, and caring adults.

“Oliver Jr.,” a condensed version of “Oliver,” is filled with the same memorable music, such as “Consider Yourself,” “Food Glorious Food,” “Oom Pah Pah,” “As Long As He Needs Me” and others.

This musical features comical and dramatic acting and valuable life lessons.

“Oliver!” was the first musical adaptation of a famous Charles Dickens work to become a stage hit. said. She said alumni from Louisiana State University and people who moved to the Syracuse area from the south have told her that the festival’s offerings remind them of home. One man, Flanagan says, is almost always the first person in line, and he makes sure to buy 11 pounds of crawfish every time to fill a cooler he brings.

The show will be performed by Gillette Road Middle School’s Theater Department and features over 100 students and adults.

The show will be running March 23, 24 and 25 at 7 p.m. in the school’s auditorium at 6150 South Bay Road Cicero.

Tickets are $6 presale and $8 at the door. They may be purchased at the school Monday through Friday from 10:30 to 1 p.m.

For questions or orders contact Linda Hurn at lhurn2@aol. com or call 315-218-3000 during school hours 8:15-4:00 pm Monday through Friday.

“To get that kind of endorsement from somebody who obviously loves to eat crawfish is amazing,” Flanagan said. “We know how to do it right.” trepreneurship (FACS), Future Educators, Studio Arts (Fine Arts), Theatre (Fine Arts), Music Production (Fine Arts), Material Processing (Technology), Robotics (Technology) and Media Arts (Technology). At the high school level, new CTE programs and/ or post-secondary opportunities are now offered in Drone Technology, Business Administration,

After this year’s festival, ONC will turn its attention to Buffalo and Watertown to repair pipes caused by an excess of snow this winter.

Media Arts, Early Childhood Education, Hospitality & International Foods, and Pre-Apprenticeship for Trades.

“Liverpool Central School District teachers, staff, administrators and parents worked tirelessly over the last several years to plan and implement the changes that were a part of the Education 2020 initiative,” said Superintendent of Schools

Daniel G. Henner. “We are honored to be recognized by NYSSBA and we will continue to implement innovative student educational opportunities into the future.” A representative from NYSSBA will attend an upcoming Liverpool CSD Board of Education meeting to present a banner recognizing the district’s accomplishments.

Submitted photo

Gillette Road Middle School students will bring “Oliver Jr.” to the stage March 23, 24 and 25.

Locally and elsewhere, ONC’s efforts have included home and building modifications for senior citizens, veterans, local food pantries and other people having trouble getting around. They’ve built ramps where permitted as well as railings, grab bars, sliding doors, widened doorways, platform lifts, safer staircases and shelving units.

Though the labor remains free, they ask the recipients of their assistance for financial contributions to cover materials if possible, even in installments, but it’s never a deal-breaker, Flanagan said.

Seeing that some kids were using inhome surfaces like ironing boards to do their homework during quarantine while others were clustered around the kitchen table with their siblings and distracted as a result, ONC built over 1,500 desks for PGR Foundation, Inc., a mentorship program for girls ages six to 18 that stands for “Poised, Gifted and Ready.” From there, ONC branched off to build more than 200 bookshelves for kids to encourage literacy.

With the second journey to Fort Myers on March 19 marking Flanagan’s first-ever service trip for ONC, she said it’s been something she’s waited on but wanted to do for a while now.

“I think it’s an important part of being the CEO of Operation Northern Comfort, and it’s been a long time coming,” she said. “I’ve heard everybody talk about the stories but I wanted to personally experience it. I feel responsibility for our volunteers, and I want to make sure that they’re safe.”

The volunteers have places to stay and make meals together, but they’re expected to cover their own transportation expenses. With each visit, they make as much headway with given projects as they can, leaving the situations better than before.

“There’s some personal investment,” Flanagan said. “It’s not a vacation, but across the board every time, they say they get more out of it than expected. People find it very rewarding.”

Operation Northern Comfort usually ventures as much as an hour outside the city center for more local jobs but will refer people to separate charitable entities that can step in. For more information about this 100% volunteer organization, visit its website operationnc.org.

By Phil BlAcKwEll

Cicero-North Syracuse High School’s 2023 spring sports schedule, with all dates and times subject to change.

Baseball

April 6-7: at Ripken Experience Tourna- ment

April 11: Syracuse City, 4:30

April 14: at Rome Free Academy, 4:30

April 17: at CBA, 4:30

April 20: Baldwinsville, 4:30

April 22: at Ithaca, 11 a.m.

April 24: West Genesee, 4:30

April 25: at West Genesee, 4:30

April 28: Rome Free Academy (at NBT Bank Stadium), 7 p.m.

May 1: Fayetteville-Manlius, 4:30

May 2: at Fayetteville-Manlius, 5 p.m.

May 4: at West Genesee, 4:30

May 8: at Liverpool, 4:30

May 9: Liverpool, 4:30

May 11: Fayetteville-Manlius, 4:30

May 15: at Baldwinsville, 4:30

May 16: Baldwinsville, 4:30

May 18: at Liverpool, 4:30

May 20: Westhill, 4:30

Softball

April 2-5: Spring break trip to Cocoa

Beach, Florida

April 14: CBA, 4:30

April 18: West Genesee, 4:30

April 20: at Baldwinsville, 4:30

April 22: Sandy Creek, 12:30

April 25: Auburn, 4:30

April 27: Fayetteville-Manlius, 4:30

April 28: at Camden, 4:30

May 2: at Liverpool, 5 p.m.

May 3: at West Genesee, 4:30

May 5: at Chittenango, 4:30

May 6: Shenendehowa, 10 a.m.

May 6: Saratoga Springs, noon

May 9: Baldwinsville, 4:30

May 11: at Auburn, 5 p.m.

May 16: at Fayetteville-Manlius, 5 p.m.

May 18: Liverpool, 4:30

Boys Lacrosse

April 1: General Brown, 1 p.m.

April 4: Tully, 1 p.m.

April 13: at Fayetteville-Manlius, 7 p.m.

April 15: New Hartford, noon

April 18: Baldwinsville, 7 p.m.

April 20: at Liverpool, 7 p.m.

April 22: Cazenovia, noon

April 27: at West Genesee, 7 p.m.

April 29; at Syracuse City, noon

May 2: Fayetteville-Manlius, 5 p.m.

May 4: at Baldwinsville, 7 p.m.

May 6: at East Syracuse Minoa, 4 p.m.

May 9: Liverpool, 5 p.m.

May 13: at Ithaca, 1 p.m.

May 17: West Genesee, 7 p.m.

Girls Lacrosse

March 30: at Westhill, 6 p.m.

April 1: at South Jefferson, noon

April 3: Victor, noon

April 5: Penfield, noon

April 8: Bethlehem, 10:30 a.m.

April 15: at Irondequoit, 2:30

April 18: at Liverpool, 7 p.m.

April 20: Baldwinsville, 7 p.m.

April 25: West Genesee, 7 p.m.

April 27: at Fayetteville-Manlius, 7 p.m.

April 29: Brighton, 1 p.m.

May 4: Liverpool, 7 p.m.

May 6: Pittsford, 3 p.m.

May 9: at Baldwinsville, 7 p.m.

May 11: at West Genesee, 7 p.m.

May 15: Fayetteville-Manlius, 7 p.m.

Boys, Girls Track and Field

April 12: at Baldwinsville (w/Nottingham), 5 p.m.

April 19: at West Genesee (w/Henninger),

4:30

April 26: Corcoran, 4:30

April 29: at Chittenango Invitational, 4:30

May 3: Liverpool (w/Fayetteville-Manlius), 4:30

May 18: SCAC Metro Championships at Baldwinsville, 4:30

May 19: C-NS Invitational, 4:30

May 24: Section III Class AA Championships, 4:30

May 31: Section III State Qualifying Meet,

4:30

June 8-9: NYSPHSAA Championships at

Middletown HS

Boys Tennis

April 11: Fulton, 4:30

April 13: Liverpool, 4:30

April 20: West Genesee, 4:30

April 21: at Auburn, 4:30

April 24: at Baldwinsville, 4:30

April 28: at Liverpool, 4:30

May 2: Fayetteville-Manlius, 4:30

May 4: at West Genesee, 4:30

May 9: at Fulton, 4:30

May 10: Baldwinsville, 4:30

May 13: at East Syracuse Minoa, 4:30

Girls Golf (Blue)

All home matches at Lakeshore Country Club

April 17: at West Genesee, 3:30

April 19: at Liverpool, 3:30

April 24: Fayetteville-Manlius (White),

3:30

April 26: C-NS Green, 3:30

May 1: at Baldwinsville, 3:30

May 3: Fayetteville-Manlius (Green), 3:30

May 5: West Genesee, 3:30

May 8: Liverpool, 3:30

May 10: at Fayetteville-Manlius (White),

3:30

May 12: C-NS Green, 3:30

May 17: Baldwinsville, 3:30

May 19: at Fayetteville-Manlius (Green),

3:30

May 23: Section III Championships at Kanon Valley, 8 a.m.

Girls Golf (Green)

All home matches at Greens at Beaumont

April 17: Baldwinsville, 3:30

April 24: at Liverpool, 3:30

April 28: at Fayetteville-Manlius (White),

3:30

May 1: at Fayetteville-Manlius (Green),

3:30

May 3: West Genesee, 3:30

May 5: at Baldwinsville, 3:30

May 10: Liverpool, 3:30

May 12: C-NS Blue, 3:30

May 15: Fayetteville-Manlius (White), 3:30

I recently read a wonderful article in Golf Magazine about the di erence between golfers who have a 20 handicap (low 90’s) a 10 handicap (low 80’s) and a scratch golfer (low 70’s). e reason I liked the article is because the conclusions were based on 540 million golf shots that were condensed from 11.5 million rounds of golf played worldwide by Arccos Golf, the golf company that is revolutionizing the entire golf experience by integrating automatic shot tracking with, “Arti cial Intelligence and Stroke Gained Analysis to deliver unparalleled insights that help golfers play smarter and shoot lower scores”. ere is a di erence in the three golfers handicaps highlighted in the article but what can we learn from the di erences and translate the ndings to lower scores.

Let’s start… Obviously, scratch golfers shoot lower scores than 10 or 20 handicap golfers but in order to use the results as a learning experience for us, Golf Magazine started from the tee and analyzed every shot up to the green.

May 17: Fayetteville-Manlius (Green), 3:30

May 19: at West Genesee, 3:30

May 23: Section III Championships at Kanon Valley, 8 a.m.

2. If you are hitting your tee shot, on average, 26 yards farther or more, on every hole you play than everyone else, wouldn’t you be hitting a lower lo ed iron to the green that gives you a better chance to get it closer to the hole?

3. If you are averaging approximately 2.5 fewer putts per round, or more, than everyone else, wouldn’t you expect to have a lower score?

OTHER FACTORS…….

* From within 25 yards, scratch golfers get up-and-down 57% of the time…10 handicaps -37%…20 handicaps -13%.

* From bunker shots inside 25 yards, scratch golfers get up-and-down 39% of the time… 10 handicaps -21%…20 handicaps -13%.

* Scratch players make approximately 1.5 more birdies per round than a 10 handicap and 2 more than a 20 handicap.

* Most scratch golfers devote more practice time to their short game and putting than beating balls at the practice range, which is one of the biggest mistakes made by higher handicappers.

My Final oughts…

So what can those of us who fall into one of the three categories above, learn from the numbers? You should know the answers by now but let’s refresh your memory…

1. If you are hitting your approach shot 5 . closer to the hole on every hole you play than anyone else, you will make more putts.

It is not easy to become a scratch golfer who shoots in the low 70’s for the majority of the rounds they play. It takes a commitment to “PLAY” 4-5 times a week (plus practice) and ”COMPETE” in 8-10 tournaments a season and “WIN”, at least once. In addition, you must become a “STUDENT” of the game in order to gain the “KNOWLEDGE and EXPERIENCE” that is required to “LEARN FROM MISTAKES” that all golfers make. And most important, you “MUST” develop an “ATTITUDE” that is both “HUMBLE and PROUD”. It is a very special feeling to be a “SCRATCH GOLFER”. When are you going to start your journey?