WINTER 2006 - Taconic Hills Central School District

Vol. 19 No.2 TACONIC HILLS CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICTWINTER 2006

2Superintendent’s MessageDear Parents and Friends:Normally, this is the time of year when we begin looking forward toApril showers. However, this winter seems to have given us plenty ofshowers while alternating rain with snow. As I write this, we have hadto close school on four occasions due to the bad weather. If we usemore than two more days, we will need to begin to make those daysup during the April break. Let’s hope this does not happen.We are very deeply into the development of next year’s proposedbudget. Although the vote does not occur until the third Tuesday ofMay, we are reviewing every cost from the current year in order to lookat efficient use for every dollar. The state’s initial aid figures did notlook favorable. However, we are working with our legislators to try toget those figures to have a more positive impact for us for next year.(See page 8 for Board of Education meeting information.)Our Board of Education continues to conduct several budget workshopsso that all of us can work together toward reaching a responsibleand appropriate budget proposal that will meet the needs of all childrenin the school district. Testing data is a big topic this year. This isthe first year of testing for grades 3 through 8—a federal requirementunder NCLB (No Child Left Behind). The data we collect will point ustoward the programs of greatest need. As you have seen in the localnewspapers, these discussions have been very open ones at our publicBoard of Education meetings. Lastly on this budget topic, we have anew audit committee formed this year, and our district will take its turnhaving a state audit committee visit our district this spring. We welcomethe scrutiny this brings to our total process.You may have noticed that the majority of the original contractorshave been continuing their work as they address the various waterleaks in the new building. They have been very diligent about gettingthis job done. However, the constant rain and snow throughout thewinter months has made their work very difficult. Also, the fence youapproved last year, around the outdoor track to help preserve the rubberizedsurface, has been installed.Please be sure to mark your calendars at home so you won’t missour upcoming events at the Performing Arts Center on campus. OnMarch 24 and 25, the Earth Angels performing group will here for yourenjoyment. On April 6, the U.S. Air Force Liberty Pops Band willperform here for you. The Air Force Band is a free concert. Pleaseplan to attend these outstanding events.Thank you for continued support of our students and our school programs.It was a great pleasure to see our Performing Arts Center totallypacked for the recent Elementary School Winter Concert.Sincerely,David PacienciaSuperintendentTACONIC HILLS IS FOR ADULT LEARNING, TOO!The TH adult education program offers new classes in computers,volleyball, aqua aerobics, basket-weaving, yoga and even a caninegood citizen workshop. Call the school for information aboutthese and other classes: 325-0315.BOARD OF EDUCATIONRobert Garon, President (2008)Paul B. Robertson, Vice President (2009)Tom Bailey (2010)John Mastropolo (2006)Bruce Meyers (2007)John Mullins, Jr. (2006)Hansel Schober (2007)P-L Schroeppel (2008)Richard J. Viebrock (2009)BOARD MEETINGS — The Board of Educationmeets on Wednesday evenings once a monthas noted in the annual school calendar. Themeetings are held in the Board Room at theschool and begin at 7:00 p.m. The Board welcomesand encourages the public to attendthese meetings.PUBLIC FORUM — Two 10-minute “PublicForum” sessions are scheduled at eachBoard meeting, at the beginning and nearthe end. These times are set aside so that residentsmay address the Board directly onissues of importance. Because the Board hasa great deal of business which it mustattend to during its meetings, the public isasked to confine its participation to thesepublic forum sessions.DISTRICT OFFICE(518) 325-0310 or (toll-free) 1-877-359-5393David Paciencia . . . . . . . . .SuperintendentThomas Buccino, Jr. . . . . . . . . . .Director of. . . . . . . . . . .Organizational DevelopmentMary Grden . . . . .School Business OfficialDavid Paciencia . . . . . . . . . .District ClerkCatherine Drumm . . .Cafeteria CoordinatorOtto Meilick . . . . . . . . . .Facility ManagerRobert McGhee (325-0335) . . .Transportation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .SupervisorHarriett Kane . . . . . . . . . . . . .Tax CollectorPLEASE ADDRESS MAIL TO:Taconic Hills Central School DistrictDistrict OfficeP.O. Box 482Craryville, NY 12521BUILDING ADMINISTRATION• 9–12 High School: 325-0390John V. Gulisane, Jr. – Principal• 5–8 Middle School: 325-0420Steven Drescher – Principal• K-4 Elementary School: 325-0370Anthony Marchesano – Principal• 9–12 Dean of Students: 325-0400Kelli Campionwww.TaconicHills.k12.ny.us

CHARLES DICKENS IN THE PAC In December, a cast and crew of morethan 40 TH middle school students performed a drama based on theDickens classic, “David Copperfield.” The students rehearsed for eightweeks. The show’s director, TH science teacher Kevin Vallee, praised thestudents for the amount of hard work and long hours they put in.“It was astounding,” he said. “There were 35 acting roles in theproduction, and some of the most demanding roles were played byyounger students.”Mr. Vallee said that he chose the play both to expose the students to thewriting of Charles Dickens and because of his own affection for Dickens’semi-autobiographical novel and the portrait it paints of a boy’s roughand-tumbleadventure from childhood into adulthood.“The story is so full of characters, melodrama and fateful twists and turns,”he said. “It gave our actors a chance to stretch out inside their roles.” At left,Keenan Goretsky and Ian Rasweiler performed a scene between the grownupDavid Copperfield and his erstwhile friend, James Steerforth.MAKING IT WORK In Mr. Craig Halvorsen’smiddle school technology class, students areintroduced to basic engineering principlessuch as compression, tension, sheer, hydraulicsand pneumatics. Students put those principlesinto practice in design and constructionprojects. At the far right, Patrick Hyneshelped Colton Maher put together ahydraulically-driven forklift made of woodenblocks, hardwood sticks and other materials.Dustin Van Alphen was building a bridge.TRY THIS AT HOME The ParentConnection, located in Room 121of the Elementary School, loans outeducational PlayStation games to schoolfamilies or any resident of the schooldistrict. The games feature fun mathand language challenges for children.Parent Connection coordinators DonnaRich and Jessica Miller can help parentschoose the right games for their children.They can even loan outPlayStation hardware, includingscreens. The Parent Connection can bereached by calling 325-0603. ▲3rd grade student Dylan Coonstries out one of the games at anopen house at the school.3

TACONICHILLS.K12.NY.US...During the first half of theschool year, a team ofadministrators, facultymembers, a community member andone un-retired former TH teacherhave been hard at work on theTaconic Hills home page on the web.The team’s goal is to make the websitemore current, more informativeand more complete. By going towww.taconichills.k12.ny.us, you canjudge the fruit of these labors. Butplease note: the work has only begun.“It’s an ongoing process,” saidbusiness official Mary Grden, who isoverseeing the website developmentprocess. “We started by listening topeople who were in on the originalwebsite design and we heard commentsfrom the community. I thinkit’s exciting to see what we’ve doneso far and to think about what canbe done in the future.”Galen Rueckwald, a formercomputer instructor at TaconicHills, returned to the district thisfall to serve part-time as theschool’s webmaster. Mrs. Grdencredits him for implementing manychanges to the website. But Mr.Rueckwald said that he is just thepoint-man on an extended team.“It’s very much a broad-basedeffort. I happen to be the person4A WINDOW ON THE (TH) WORLDGalen Rueckwald now serves as theTaconic Hills website webmaster.Recently, he worked with Mary Grden(right), transportation supervisorRobert McGhee and assistant transportationsupervisor Ann MarieBurlarley on their department’s newlink on the site.

TACONIC HILLS UPDATES WEBSITEwho sits down and executes theideas we come up with. But theessence of the redesign is comingfrom the department heads and thecommittee.”The new website looks like theold one—the design has provenpopular with the public, Mrs. Grdensaid. The difference is that eachdepartment is now in the process ofcreating their own web pages thatcan be accessed through the site. Sofar, several departments have alreadyredesigned and updated their pages:■ The art department has postedrecent work done by studentswho made a visit to Olana.■ The guidance department nowposts college open-house datesand scholarship information.■ The Dollars for Scholars pagecontains updated recipient informationand application forms.■ The K-8 PTO site is new andcontains a series of links.■ The K-12 special educationdepartment has posted a wealthof new information.■ The library media department,which already has a highlyinteractive site, is planningimprovements.■ The building and grounds departmentis also working to makemore information available tothe public through the site.A moving scroll across the top ofthe district’s home page highlightscoming events and important dates,and the school district’s “EventsCalendar” link features the schoolyear schedule and updated information.But the process of keeping thesite updated is a challenge the committeehas been wrestling with.“To update the site every dayor even every week isn’t feasible,”HOW DO I FIND OUT…If school is closed due to weather?Click on “Closings” in the blue box on the right. A page will open withradio and television station listings as well as hypertext that will take youdirectly to a school closings web page for this area.When the pool is open to the community?In the blue box on the left, click on “Community,” then “Pool/FitnessCenter” for schedule and information.How to apply for financial aid for my college-bound student?In the blue box on the left, click on “Students” and then “Financial Aid.”What’s going on in a teacher’s classroom?In the blue box on the left, click on “Schools,” the name of the schooland then “Faculty & Staff.” Teachers whose names are in hypertext havehomepages.The date of my high school student’s next standardized test?In the blue box on the left, click on “Schools,” then “High School.” Laterthis spring, June exam information will be posted here, as it was in January.Mary Grden said. Instead, the information on the site will be reviewedaccording to an established schedule, and out-of-date information will beremoved. Rather than being a news site, Mrs. Grden hopes the website willnow function as an internally driven, information-laden picture of what isgoing on in the school system.“With the changes we’ve made and the way we’re executing them,department heads can send me updates when they want to,” Mr. Rueckwaldsaid. “And of course, the teachers can use their individual websites the waythey want to through the IBM Learning Village software we use.”“It’s really an open-ended process,” Mrs. Grden said. “We’re learning aswe go. With Galen serving as webmaster and the school community feedinginformation into the system, I am just a facilitator in the process.”Mr. Rueckwald said that he is enjoying his unexpected new role back atTaconic Hills.“It’s really very rewarding to play a role in this,” he said. ▲ON THE COVER TH swimmers Mike Scharvella, TaraBelcher and Dustin Bessette took a breather duringa practice in January. The boys and girls swim teamsenjoyed an outstanding season, with the girls notchingtheir most wins ever and the boys going undefeated inleague competition. Coached by former college teammatesTom Russo and Ryan Kendrick, the team is thefruit of a vibrant aquatics program at Taconic Hills.5

▲ ▲ ▲ ▲ ▲ ▲ ▲ ▲ ▲ ▲ ▲ ▲ ▲ ▲ ▲ ▲ ▲A DAY IN THE LIFE OF...And then there are days when nothing much out ofthe ordinary happens, when Mr. Meilick’s crew of morethan 30 men and women function like a well-drilledteam: At 7:00 a.m., the first shift arrives. At 3:00 p.m.,it is replaced by the second, with the third shift arrivingat 11:00 p.m. During school hours, the staff meets outsideMr. Meilick’s office, everyone knowing their joband how to do it. Most of all: everyone treated withrespect. Mr. Meilick says simply, “People deserve to berespected for what they do.”Most people probably don’t recognize the THfacility manager when they pass him in the hallway.His small office is in a far distant corner of the building,and his primary responsibility is to direct and support ateam of cleaners, maintenance and grounds people thatkeeps the building up and running day-in and day-out.The staff does everything. Plows snow, prunes bushes,cleans classrooms and stairways, tests the pool water(three times a day, as mandated by the Department ofHealth), replaces broken light bulbs and maintainsWhile he himself may pass unnoticedin the hallways, he wants his menand women to be recognized forthe vital role they play in thebuilding and the community.6Some days are like this. Overnight, a pipe froze inthe elementary wing of the building. Otto Meilick’sradio is going off every few minutes.“Is someone going to clean up this mess?” a somewhatirate voice asks over the radio.Mr. Meilick takes a moment before pressing the buttonon his walkie-talkie. “Yes,” he says, and thenchecks with one of his staff members to make sure thejob is being done. It is. Not a problem. Mr. Meilickremains seated calmly in his meeting with a visitor.everything from the heating system to the floorbuffers—a computer program generates a regular maintenanceschedule.In a somewhat unusual twist on the traditional roleof a building supervisor, Mr. Meilick is not an employeeof the school district, but of a Fortune 500 company,ARAMARK, which has its headquarters in Philadelphiaand provides food service and maintenance to businesses,colleges, sports arenas, hospitals and other institutionsaround the world. Otto Meilick is one of approximately240,000 ARAMARK employees. He’s the onlyARAMARK manager working here.“You’re thinking a “Dances With Wolves” kind ofthing, aren’t you?” he asks with a laugh, when askedwhat it’s like to be a huge company’s only employee onthe Columbia County frontier.

Facility Manager OTTO MEILICK“I love it here. Because of thepeople in the school and NewEngland and its seasons. I hope I’mhere for the rest of my career.”Mr. Meilick and his wife, Lynn,have moved 16 times in the last 18years. Before Taconic Hills hiredARAMARK to supervise its buildingsand grounds department —thecompany offers increased efficiencyand lower costs to the district—Mr.Meilick was working and living inColorado, supervising more than16 buildings and 1 million squarefeet of space in a school districtdominated by the Fort Carson militarybase. When he got the chanceto move east, where most of hisfamily is, Mr. Meilick leapt at it—and came to his interview withTaconic Hills wearing his brotherin-law’sclothes because his luggagehad been lost during his flight thenight before.“My brother-in-law is 5 feet 8inches. I’m 6 feet,” he says.“It madefor a good ice-breaker at least.”Mr. Meilick’s life has been anadventure. His father died when hewas young. His mother struggled toraise four children. As a young mangrowing up on Long Island, hebegan working as a janitor in thesame high school from which he hadrecently graduated. Then he metLynn, who was working for FidelityInvestments in Manhattan and wassomewhat shocked when she wasfinally told that the man she wasdating was a night-shift janitor.Eventually, he found his way toARAMARK and took a series ofprogressively more challenging positions,including one in Mt. SinaiHospital in New York City.“I made mistakes,” he says.“But I’ve learned along the way,and I think I’ve become a bettermanager because of it.”Mr. Meilick and his wife are nowsettled in a house they built inValatie. Their 11-year-old son OttoHorace plays the trombone and isa Boy Scout and snowboarder. Ayellow lab named Daisy is also anactive member of the family.One of Mr. Meilick’s goals atTaconic Hills is to integrate thebuilding crew with the larger staff.He arranges shifts and assignmentsso that teachers can get to know thecleaners who work in their rooms.While he himself may pass unnoticedin the hallways, he wants hismen and women to be recognizedfor the vital role they play in thebuilding and the community.“If there’s a community event, aperformance or a meeting—we planfor it and help make it happen.”A snowstorm or a buildingemergency will bring Mr. Meilickto the building at odd hours, as thebroken pipe did this morning. Butwhat he strives for is an even keel.To achieve this, he counts on theassistance of secretary Lisa Mahar,and on his buildings and groundscrew and the computer-generatedmaintenance program that ARA-MARK provides. Most of all,though, he is a man who draws onhis own experience—the experienceof a boy on welfare, of a night-shiftjanitor dating a Manhattan whitecollarworker, of a first-time managerfacing a room full of experiencedworkers—to say the right thingand make the right move the rightway. ▲7

RAISING DOLLARS FOR SCHOLARS: EARTH ANGELS RETURN TO TACONIC HILLSMarking ten years of singing, dancing and giving,the performance company Earth Angels returns toTaconic Hills on March 24 and 25 as part of its tenthanniversary celebration. This year’s show ranges fromoldies to pop classics performed in distinctive EarthAngels’ style. Both shows start at 7:25 p.m., with doorsopening at 6:30. Tickets are $12 and are available at theHillsdale Supermarket, Dutch Treat in Craryville, SharperImage in Philmont, K.D. Hallmark in Hudson, StewartsShop in Hillsdale, Copake Veterinary Hospital, TheCopake Pharmacy, Whippoorwill Gallery of Lace inLivingston and at Harland B. Foster’s hardware store inGreat Barrington. Tickets are also available by phone at(413) 274-6098, via the website www.theearthangels.org,at the TH district office or by credit card by callingTaconic Hills at 325-0314.DOLLARS FOR SCHOLARS In the past nine years, EarthAngels has donated $118,000 in proceeds to the TaconicHills chapter of Dollars for Scholars. In 2005, TaconicHills DFS gave $95,000 in scholarship and tuition assistanceto graduating TH seniors. DFS also supports avariety of programs for younger and non-college boundstudents. DFS student applications for scholarshipmoney are due to the guidance department on March 7.March 3March 7March 10March 17March 17March 21DATES TO REMEMBERAll County Music Festival Rehearsaland Concert, 3:30 p.m. and 7 p.m.Winter Athletic Awards Banquet, 6:30 p.m.High School Rock ‘n Roll Show, 7 p.m.No School, Superintendent’s Conference DayMiddle School Dance, 7–9 p.m.High School Freshman Orientation, 6 p.m.March 24 Middle School Career DayMarch 24, 25 Earth Angels Tenth Anniversary Celebration,7:25 p.m.March 29 Spring National Honor Society Dinnerand Ceremony, 6 p.m.March 30March 31April 6Middle School Science FairElementary Drama Production“Jungle Book Jr.,” 7 p.m.U.S. Air Force Liberty Pops Band, 7 p.m.PLEASE NOTE The TH Board of Education is meeting four times in March. Beside the regularly-scheduled BOEmeeting on Wednesday, March 22, the Board will be holding special budget workshops on March 8, 15 and 29to discuss the next proposed school budget. As always, these meetings are open to the public and are heldin the board room at 7 p.m.8THE TITAN HERALDis published by theTaconic Hills Board of EducationEditor: John SlotePhotographers: David LeeDesign: Toelke AssociatesPlease address correspondence to:The Titan Heraldc/o Taconic Hills School DistrictP.O. Box 482Craryville, NY 12521TACONIC HILLSCENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICTP.O. BOX 482Craryville, NY 12521Please deliver to…BOXHOLDER—ORRURAL ROUTE RESIDENTof the Taconic Hills Central School DistrictNON-PROFITORGANIZATION U.S.POSTAGE PAIDHUDSON, NY 12534PERMIT #211