A Look at Activities in the Tri-Valley Central School District
A special section of the Sullivan
County Democrat
• February, 2014 • Section T • Callicoon, NY
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TRI-VALLEY SCHOOL SCENE
SULLIVAN COUNTY DEMOCRAT
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From brick and mortar to new personnel, TVCS greets change
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ri-Valley Superintendent of Schools Thomas Palmer has good reason to smile. The 1,140-student school district that fits snugly at the southern end of the Catskill Park benefits this year from a dynamic new twosome at the Elementary School – Principal Jacqueline Harris and Assistant Principal Jennifer Ruston – who are drawing raves from students and parents. Ruston‘s position is a new one for Tri-Valley, but by juggling funds and staff, no new expense was incurred, noted Palmer. Then there’s a popular new afterschool program for students in need of extra academic time. In small groups and with time for snacks and homework help, children are excited about the program that keeps them on track in the classroom. Teachers themselves are embracing the Common Core, incorporating its rigorous teaching and learning methods into their work as they gain support through training sessions. Then, noted Palmer, there are the new softball and soccer fields, set for a ribbon cutting ceremony this spring. In partnership with the District’s Building and Grounds Department, students designed and constructed the fields, led by teachers Bob Hayes, Phil Pompeii and Todd Heubsch. Currently, students play softball games at the
Superintendent Thomas Palmer says Tri-Valley is working on ‘staying transparent’ and on parental communication as it moves forward on many fronts.
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Grahamsville Fairgrounds; a home field will cut down on the cost and lost time in busing. Students from Tri-Valley agriculture classes completed work on another project, a “Patriots Garden.” Complete with stepping stones and stone benches, the quiet garden features a new flagpole and a U.S. flag donated by the Class of 2013. The flag was flown over the U.S. Capitol on June 22, graduation day, as part of a program by U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand. With a Board of Education goal to improve and increase communication, Tri-Valley has unveiled a new Facebook page. The District has also purchased software that allows parents to learn instantly about school closings and changes in sports schedules through their smartphones and other mobile devices. Finally, there’s the much-awaited $5.7 million building project approved by voters in May. Starting this summer, the project will replace the 25-year-old running track, create more spaces in a newly repaved main parking lot and design a more efficient traffic pattern for school buses and visitors. The original part of the school, which faces Route 55 and opened in 1953, will see restoration of its masonry and windows. The project will also upgrade the school’s mechanical systems, includ-
Fred W. Stabbert III Dan Hust Frank Rizzo Ken Cohen Kathy Daley, Jeanne Sager, Eli Ruiz, Kaitlin Carney, Anya Tikka Liz Tucker Sandy Schrader Katie Peake, Cecilia Lamy, Janice Yeomans Laura Stabbert Susan Owens Patricia Biedinger, Joanna Blanchard Michelle Reynolds Janet Will Ruth Huggler, Rosalie Mycka, Tracy Swendsen, Kellee Thelman Elizabeth Finnegan, Petra Duffy Richard Conroy
SULLIVAN COUNTY DEMOCRAT
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ing piping, ventilation, electric univents and fans. “We are continuing with our heating initiative that has reduced our fuel consumption by 50 percent, changing our fossil fuel footprint,� Palmer added. One of the serious concerns on the horizon is Governor Andrew Cuomo’s proposed property tax freeze. Homeowners in municipalities and school districts that meet certain conditions, such as keeping the overall tax levy within the state’s two percent tax cap program, would get rebates. The Cuomo proposal would have to be adopted into law by the legisla-
All photographs and stories for this special School Scene are by Sullivan County Democrat Photographer/Reporter Kathy Daley. The Democrat would also like to thank the Tri-Valley Central School District for all its cooperation in this project.
TRI-VALLEY SCHOOL SCENE
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“At Tri-Valley, we are planning three years out. This is so we can analyze our status and what we need to do as a district in our spending practices to remain responsible to the students and taxpayers we serve.� Thomas Palmer Tri-Valley School Superintendent | ture. But it has officials across New York jittery about just how to fund localities and schools. “If the Governor’s proposed freeze comes to fruition, it could be devastating to the financial well-being of the districts in New York State,� Palmer said. “At Tri-Valley, we are planning three years out. This is so we can analyze our status and what we need to do as a district in our spending practices to remain responsible to the students and taxpayers we serve.�
Tri-Valley Central School does well not only academically but also athletically, boasting the fourth best girls basketball team in New York State. Here “The Bear� gives them a hand.
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Lively after-school program teaches and captivates kids T wo days each week, 89 students at Tri-Valley Elementary gladly stay after school to work on their knowledge and skills in math and English Language arts. The 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. program, entitled Learning Beyond the Day, was launched on Nov. 6 and is so attractive that students “moan at the last session – they love the program,” the principal said. “We wanted a program that was very hands on, engaging and fun,” said Principal Jacqueline Harris. “It’s every principal’s dream to get every minute you can to instruct kids.” Offered to fourth through sixth graders who are in need of extra help in the two key Common Core subject areas, the after-school program is designed in handy, four-week sections. “The sessions are very targeted to the instruction taking place right now in the classroom,” said Harris. She said that she and Assistant Principal Jennifer Ruston designed the program “not so much for remediation as for depth – by spending more time and intensity on small things.” Learning Beyond the Day takes place in a wing at the elementary school, with 10 to 11 students grouped in each classroom. When the kids arrive, they enjoy a healthy snack and then receive homework help from the teacher in charge. The teacher then delivers a lesson on a math or ELA concept that was taught in class during the school day. The students work on those topics in
Kids like Jasmine Irwin and Brooklyn Porter don’t mind staying after school for fun and academics, says teacher Christine Cox.
fun ways – using iPads, studying together in groups, working at hands-on activities in “stations” set up in the classroom, or playing games that drive home the academics they are studying. “Each teacher in Learning Beyond the Day has different kids than they do during the school day – and for the kids, it’s a different face, too, at the end of the day,” noted Heather Neidert. She is a first grade teacher during the day and then a math teacher for older students in the after-school program. Teacher Christine Cox said she values the “second chance” that chil-
dren receive after school, “and I have the opportunity to re-teach skills for children I’ve assessed as needing that,” she said. Recently, Cox taught a four-week Learning Beyond the Day round in the elements of a novel, emphasizing characterization, plot and inference (the clues in the story that reveal what the author didn’t mention openly). The students had had exposure to the topics during their regular school day. But Cox then went on to jumpstart them in learning about symbolism in a novel, which they will take up in their regular classrooms soon.
Student Brooklyn Porter said she values the lessons learned after school, both academic and social. “It helps me with what I read,” said the fifth grader, “and I get to interact with other people.” After-school teacher Lucretia Gilles, who is a fourth grade instructor during the day, pointed out that a good barometer of how kids perceive the program might be the excellent attendance. At the end of the first session, added colleague Neidert, “the kids were so excited. They said ‘when are we doing this again?’ ”
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SULLIVAN COUNTY DEMOCRAT
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Students find their nook in 12th grade English class
t’s “green.” It’s cheap. And it weighs a lot less. The handheld computer device known as a touch tablet is making its way into the classrooms of students across the nation – and to Tri-Valley students in particular. Kids are using Nooks to access the internet, delve into research, read books, take notes and share what they learn with one another. “The push for the implementation of the Common Core has created a greater need to expose students not only to literary works but to non-fiction,” adds English teacher Keicha Kempsey, whose 12th grade Tri-Valley classes are piloting the Nooks as educational materials. “With Nooks,” Kempsey said, “students can access any number of newspapers – including an abbreviated version of the daily New York Times – and other non-fiction sources.”
They are also downloading and reading the required classics like “Beowulf,” “Frankenstein,” and “1984.” “The Nook is more portable than carrying around a bunch of textbooks,” offered student Josh Froehlich. Touch tablets like the Nook are also proving less expensive for school districts. “Money is always an issue with new technology, and given the monetary restraints of school districts, we had to make sure it was a worthwhile investment,” said Kempsey, who has taught at Tri-Valley for five years. Before that, she worked as an Information Technology (IT) manager for Bank of America in New York City. “Not only does the use of Nooks cut down on copying costs – paper and printer, copier ink – but it’s also less expensive in the long run to purchase electronic books rather than paper copies,” she said.
English teacher Keicha Kempsey, seated, uses a Nook touch tablet to make a point with senior Josh Froehlich.
In fact, each student receives a Nook to serve as his or her textbook for the entire year. Unlike the paper textbooks and novels of yore, which were expressly not scribbled in, said Kempsey, “students can interact with the text in an electronic book by highlighting and taking notes.” Software like Nearpod and Socrative help the Nook-using teacher to view in real-time what her students are doing. She can instantly check student recognition and understanding of a concept she is teaching. She can take attendance by means of the touch tablet, and she can quickly see if a student is goofing off by watching YouTube during class time. “The Nook also makes it easier for
me to do individualized instruction,” added Kempsey. “For example, one student might need to see things visually in order to understand – I can touch the screen to make the text larger, rather than run off to the copier. The Nooks also allow an absent student to keep up with classwork.” Student Froehlich is not surprised that touch tablets have become the next best thing for school districts – after all, most college textbooks are strictly on line. “A lot of kids don’t want to look things up in textbooks, but they do like accessing information this way,” Froehlich said. “It’s technology, and kids nowadays are intuitive with technology.”
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TRI-VALLEY SCHOOL SCENE
SULLIVAN COUNTY DEMOCRAT
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Team effort at the top leads elementary school into the future
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ri-Valley’s two newest administrators have found out, to their delight, that their personalities harmonize. Elementary School Principal Jacqueline Harris and Assistant Principal Jennifer Ruston’s clear focus on bettering education for the school’s 586 students is the same,
too. “And we happen to really like each other,” said Harris. “We’re equals. We’re a team.” “We clicked right from the first day,” agreed Ruston. The District is the beneficiary. With Harris an expert in English Language Arts and Ruston in math,
they are strongly working on the implementation of the Common Core and its emphasis on rigorous learning. Getting students to actually think and talk about their thinking is taking place even in the youngest grades. “Children in second grade are learning about ancient civilizations,
about machines – it’s much more content related and less storybookdriven,” Harris said. Some parents in the pre-k through sixth grade school are already praising the difference. Harris said one father told her that, years ago, when he asked his now high school-aged son how school went that day, the boy would answer, “We did math. We did English.” By contrast, the parent’s second grade daughter now excitedly initiates a conversation when she arrives home from school with “Did you know that in Ancient China…?” Still, living out the Common Core requirements is rigorous in itself. Harris and Ruston are spearheading ongoing teacher training at the school, and BOCES also provides professional development. Teachers themselves meet in grade level and school-wide teams. “We’re also providing time after school to examine the state modules (Common Core lessons) and to make grade-level plans,” said Harris. “Like every other district, we’re finding this challenging but we can do it,” she stressed. “It’s a change in the way we present material and instruction to children, but we have very good teachers here and good teaching practices in our toolbox. “This school community is so rich with personality and with passion for the kids,” the principal added. “The children are loving and smart. The teachers are hardworking. We know our kids and we’re going to do what’s right for them.” What’s right for parents is uppermost too, and Ruston and Harris are making themselves as available as possible. “We’ve hosted two Parent Nights so far and there will be four more in the spring,” said Harris. The typical autumn ParentTeacher conference on how students are doing took place, but a springtime follow-up is on the Tri-Valley calendar. “We want to say to parents, ‘this is the progress your child has made toward those goals we told you about in the fall,’ ” Harris said. Tri-Valley’s principal and assistant
principal began this action-packed school year as newcomers to each other but veterans of education. Both hailed from the Monticello School District, where Harris, a former kindergarten teacher in Hancock, had served as reading recovery specialist, math teacher for children in need of extra assistance, and literacy coordinator. Ruston taught at Monticello for nine years. Then she signed on with Sullivan BOCES in Liberty as school improvement coordinator. But she found that one thing was lacking in her professional life – students. “I missed the kids,” she said. “Now, as Assistant Principal, I advocate for kids all day long. What could be better?
SULLIVAN COUNTY DEMOCRAT
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“Working with each student, or groups of students,” says new Assistant Principal Jennifer Ruston, pictured left, “I gain insight into how kids think or perceive the world. And then I get to play a part in teaching them the skills necessary for being successful in life.”
New Elementary School Principal Jacqueline Harris, right, said she values the place of tradition in Tri-Valley. ‘Our goal is to recognize the traditions and connections that families have and to foster them.’
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TRI-VALLEY SCHOOL SCENE TAKE ONE
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