Dansville and Wayland-Cohocton school districts have begun the necessary steps for relocating students into other buildings next year.
The shift is in response to the districts having to make due with an enormous amount of state aid losses.
Dansville
The Dansville Central School District started vacating the middle school by moving library books, textbooks and various other supplies over to the high school and elementary school before school was out.
Next year’s sixth graders will be occupying the second floor of Ellis B. Hyde, along with the fifth graders; and next year’s seventh and eighth graders will be moved into a first-floor location in the high school building, behind the gym.
The installation of lockers into the high school to accommodate the incoming middle school students is expected to be completed over the summer.
The district is using remaining EXCEL funds from a 2007 state grant to purchase and install the lockers.
Parent and student orientations to acclimate incoming middle schoolers into the high school is tentatively scheduled for August.
Making changes in the High School to accommodate middle school office staff has been made, as well as changes in administrative roles.
Former high school vice Principal Tom Roote will become director of curriculum for grades 7 through 12 and discipline director for grades 9 and 10; former middle school principal Amy Schiavi will become the director of pupil personnel services and 7 and 8th grade discipline director; and Mike Falzoi will remain as building principal and discipline director for grades 11 and 12.
The increased number of students occupying one campus creates a concern for drop-off and pick-up safety.
Already, the Main Street traffic flow is backed up to the business district, and adding more buses and cars can increase that traffic, as well as in the school’s busy parking lot.
The district is therefore returning to a staggered schedule to alleviate congestion and risks.
The Pre-K through sixth grade school day will be from 7:45 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.; and the seventh through 12th day will be from 8:25 a.m. to 3:10 p.m.
Wayland-Cohocton
In an effort to balance class sizes at the elementary level after state aid losses forced staff lay-offs, Wayland-Cohocton recently adopted a new boundary line for Cohocton Elementary students.
Cohocton has two sections in each grade level; Wayland will drop from four to three, with the exception of kindergarten.
“It certainly wasn’t reasonable to lower Cohocton...because you’d have class sizes in the mid 30s,” Superintendent Mike Wetherbee said about adjusting sections.
With redistricting, the average class size will now be around 20 in both schools.
In trying to find the right boundaries, “We knew we needed to try to capture roughly five to eight kids per grade level,” Wetherbee said.
Several scenarios were plugged into a transportation computer program to get to final, reasonable boundary lines.
The new boundary for Cohocton will now include up to County Road 90 and all of 415, County Road 36 (east of Sawdust Road) and Route 21 N. (east of Sawdust Road).
Letters and mass phone calls were sent to all effected families, letting them know of the change.
Dansville and Wayland-Cohocton school districts have begun the necessary steps for relocating students into other buildings next year.
The shift is in response to the districts having to make due with an enormous amount of state aid losses.
Dansville
The Dansville Central School District started vacating the middle school by moving library books, textbooks and various other supplies over to the high school and elementary school before school was out.
Next year’s sixth graders will be occupying the second floor of Ellis B. Hyde, along with the fifth graders; and next year’s seventh and eighth graders will be moved into a first-floor location in the high school building, behind the gym.
The installation of lockers into the high school to accommodate the incoming middle school students is expected to be completed over the summer.
The district is using remaining EXCEL funds from a 2007 state grant to purchase and install the lockers.
Parent and student orientations to acclimate incoming middle schoolers into the high school is tentatively scheduled for August.
Making changes in the High School to accommodate middle school office staff has been made, as well as changes in administrative roles.
Former high school vice Principal Tom Roote will become director of curriculum for grades 7 through 12 and discipline director for grades 9 and 10; former middle school principal Amy Schiavi will become the director of pupil personnel services and 7 and 8th grade discipline director; and Mike Falzoi will remain as building principal and discipline director for grades 11 and 12.
The increased number of students occupying one campus creates a concern for drop-off and pick-up safety.
Already, the Main Street traffic flow is backed up to the business district, and adding more buses and cars can increase that traffic, as well as in the school’s busy parking lot.
The district is therefore returning to a staggered schedule to alleviate congestion and risks.
The Pre-K through sixth grade school day will be from 7:45 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.; and the seventh through 12th day will be from 8:25 a.m. to 3:10 p.m.
Wayland-Cohocton
In an effort to balance class sizes at the elementary level after state aid losses forced staff lay-offs, Wayland-Cohocton recently adopted a new boundary line for Cohocton Elementary students.
Cohocton has two sections in each grade level; Wayland will drop from four to three, with the exception of kindergarten.
“It certainly wasn’t reasonable to lower Cohocton...because you’d have class sizes in the mid 30s,” Superintendent Mike Wetherbee said about adjusting sections.
With redistricting, the average class size will now be around 20 in both schools.
In trying to find the right boundaries, “We knew we needed to try to capture roughly five to eight kids per grade level,” Wetherbee said.
Several scenarios were plugged into a transportation computer program to get to final, reasonable boundary lines.
The new boundary for Cohocton will now include up to County Road 90 and all of 415, County Road 36 (east of Sawdust Road) and Route 21 N. (east of Sawdust Road).
Letters and mass phone calls were sent to all effected families, letting them know of the change.
