April 23, 2021
Dear Lyndonville Families and Community,
I am writing this update on Tuesday, April 20 and there is snow in the forecast for Wednesday! Hopefully by the time you are reading this it will have melted! The challenges of 20-21 continue, even with the weather.
Very soon, our annual Budget Applegram will be released that will contain key information for the 21-22 budget, including information about our Board of Education candidates. I would again remind you that all budget information can be found right here on our website via this link: budget information. Our Board of Education, Business Administrator Joe DiPassio, and myself had several challenges this year to develop a responsible budget that we met head on, and I would encourage you to review this edition of the Applegram carefully.
Our challenges with COVID-19 continue, yet we are not deterred from fulfilling our mission to provide high quality programming for students. This has been recently evidenced by an increase in our literacy achievement at the elementary level, as measured by benchmark assessments. Since the start of the year we have seen a steady increase in students attaining growth in their literacy skills. I would encourage you review the Spring Literacy Report via this link. Thank you to our classroom teachers, literacy specialists, Dr. Smith, and Mrs. Smith for their dedication in prioritizing this important initiative. We look forward to sharing more results this summer as we complete the benchmark testing.
As I write this update, we are in the middle of administering modified 3-8 Math and ELA assessments. Recall these assessments have been reduced to one day from multiple days. We look forward to reviewing the results as they become available later this summer.
I, along with key graduation staff, are earnestly planning with our Senior Class Officers for a meaningful and impactful graduation ceremony for the Class of 2021, which holds a special place in all of our hearts. Both members of the Class of 2021 and their families have received surveys regarding graduation preferences, as the current requirements simply will not allow us to have a traditional indoor ceremony. An announcement and decision will be made by mid-May.
As the month of May approaches, we can look forward to (outdoor and COVID-compliant) spring concerts, our elementary musical, our spring athletics, and the myriad of end of year ceremonies, including moving up days, athletic awards, and our first annual Lyndonville Athletic Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony. Our goal is to make all of these programs as “normal” as possible while following the required guidance, and we thank you in advance for your patience and understanding.
Finally, school will not be in session on Friday, May 28th (Memorial Day weekend), pending the District is on track to meet the required numbers of days for New York State. More information and reminders will be shared, but it is a fairly safe bet to plan on no school on May 28th.
Thank you for your continued support.
Sincerely,
Jason A. Smith
Superintendent of Schools