Lost and Found Headquarters:
The transportation department at Cortland Enlarged City School District is home to a large lost and found collection. Items such as sweaters, books, footwear, water bottles and the occasional piece of sports equipment are all housed in the bus garage and waiting to be taken home.
Transportation Supervisor, Jordon Lilley said, “we are ankle deep in lost gloves, hats, sweaters, books and scarfs. We know that many of the items that are in the lost are new and parents would like the items back.”
If you or you know someone that has lost an item on the bus please contact our Transportation Supervisor, Jordon Lilley to set up a time to come in and look for the item.
The photo to the right is of some of the items that are currently in the lost and found.
|
2020 Spelling Bee Contestants Head to Regional Bee:
The Cortland Enlarged City School District's 2019-20 Spell Off was recently held. Students were quizzed on words such as parachute, coincidence, and suffuse.
The top four Randall Middle School finalists and top four Junior High finalists (listed below) will represent the District and compete in the 2020 Post-Standard Spelling Bee. Contestants must not have passed beyond eighth grade before Feb. 1, 2020 or reached their 16th birthday on or before May 25, 2020 to be eligible. All students will compete at the same grade level.
The first level of competition in Syracuse is a written spell off exam at Christian Brothers Academy on Saturday, January 25. The top thirty-five spellers from the written bee will compete in an oral bee on Saturday, February 29, at WCNY Studios ...
|
Third Grade Instrument Recruitment January 2020:
The 3rd grade instrumental recruitment process has started! It is an exciting time for our 3rd graders to pick their instrument. Our elementary instrumental teachers have been very busy getting started with the 3rd Grade Recruitment! Here is some information about the process:
Recruitment Assemblies
First, Mrs. Allen (Band) and Mrs. Capano (Orchestra) will have a recruitment assembly for all 3rd Graders in early January. We will demonstrate each instrument the students can choose from. We let the students ask questions about the instruments and the process. Each student will bring home the sign up sheets for both band and orchestra. Please return the sign up sheets with parent signature. Please remember to check the boxes for your first three choices.
Hands ...
|
Mr. Hoose's Submits Letter of Intent to Retire:
Superintendent Michael Hoose has submitted his official letter of intent to retire from the Cortland Enlarged C ity School District. Mr. Hoose has served as Superintendent since 2012 and is intending to retire no later than June 30th.
The search for a replacement will begin shortly. “We will solicit input from all stakeholders as we move through the process,” Janet Griffin, Board of Education president said. “That includes students, staff, and community members,” she continued. Griffin anticipates that the search will be led by Dr. Jeffery Matteson, District Superintendent of TST BOCES.
After graduating from SUNY Oswego, Mr. Hoose began his teaching career as a technology education teacher in Fredericksburg, Virginia. He later became a mechanical designer ...
|
Expanding Wifi Beyond the Classroom:
The Cortland Enlarged City School District provides a number of technology resources for its students and staff. In addition to all of our classrooms being outfitted with wireless access points and one to one devices, we now have wireless access points in the exteriors of all of our buildings.
Information Systems Administrator Denise Fox said, “In early January the cable was pulled and the wireless access points have been installed. We ensured that the stadium at the High School was included so fans, coaches, and athletes can access wifi while at practice or watching a game. Some other benefits include: physical education teachers will be able to take attendance on their devices during classes that take place outside and students that are waiting for the bus can use their ...
|
January 2020 Auditorium Project Update:
Despite the frigid temperatures outside, work has been continuing on the outside and inside of our new auditorium at the high school. Steady progress is being made -- things are proceeding according to schedule. The auditorium is still on track to be finished by May this year!
Director of Facilities Bob Martin has been working as a liaison between the contractors and the school district. Bob noted that the progress is “right on track. The duct work is being completed by the HVAC contractor. Once that is done, the auditorium will have proper heating, ventilation and air conditioning. The auditorium features custom made acoustical “clouds” that were hung the week of January 6th. The clouds can drastically diminish noisy room environments and reverberations.” ...
|
Schools Collect PB&J for Kiwanis Club:
Peanut butter and jelly, a staple in many pantries, can be in short supply at local food pantries. Knowing that many peop le are struggling to make ends meet, the Smith Intermediate Student Council and Barry Primary School decided to partner with the Cortland Kiwanis Club to collect new and unopened jars of PB & J.
Student council adviser Melissa Holl said, “The student council has a long history of service to others. Now that we are learning about the Positivity Project, and #OtherPeopleMatter, peanut butter and jelly drive really blended in well with what the student council wanted to accomplish this year. The Kiwanis Club explained that February break is coming up and they wanted to restock their food pantries in Cortland County since kids will not be able to get ...
|
Journalism Class Prints First Paper Copy of CHS Voice:
Students in Ms. Sam Gifford’s Journalism class at CHS recently published their first printed edition of the CHS Voice. This school newspaper looks, feels and reads like a real newspaper thanks to our partnership with the Cortland Standard.
Back in July, Ms. Gifford and colleague Dan Devlen met with Evan Geibel, the publisher of our local daily paper, the Cortland Standard. Evan Geibel explained that the process of getting the paper to look similar to the Cortland Standard would include using a new program, adobe indesign, and formatting the dimensions to be 12.5 inches wide by 22.75 inches long. The Cortland Standard even offered to print the paper for a minimal fee.
Come September, Brian Bosch, special projects editor at the Cortland Standard and CHS alumnus, ...
|
Cortland Students Honored in National Technical Honor Society:
OCM BOCES recently inducted students into the National Technical Honor Society (NTHS). Students who qualify for induction into the NTHS represent the top-performing students in a wide variety of Career & Technical Education programs.
To be inducted, students must have an 85 grade-point average or higher, 12 or fewer absences, and a teacher recommendation. Students must also demonstrate attributes that include respect, honesty, skill, responsibility, leadership, service and citizenship. Sixteen students from Cortland received this honor.
Principal John Zarcone said, “It is great to see these students being recognized for their efforts. We have so many talented young people in this school, and each of them present their talents and aptitude for success in a variety of ways. ...
|
Public Speaking Class Hosts "Ted Talks":
Seniors in Melissa DaCosta’s Public Speaking classes hosted an event, modeled after TED talks, on D ecember 18th and 19th in the Junior Senior High School Library. The popular, non-profit organization, TED, is best known for their short (18 minutes or less) and inspirational talks.
The students in the public speaking class presented their inspiration talks to an audience of students and faculty members. Talks ranged from students own experiences overcoming diversity, to the impact of social media.
Melissa DaCosta said, “each student was able to pick a topic that was meaningful to them. I wanted students to do some thinking and speak about what they are passionate about. Once students decided on a topic, we worked on stage presence, body language, and voice ...
|
Junior High Students Perform at Randall and Smith 12/20/2019:
Students from the Junior High School Band spent Friday, December 20th at Smith Intermediate School and Randall Middle School as part of the instrumental music recruitment effort. At Smith, Junior high band students demonstrated the different instruments and shared what they enjoyed about playing those instruments. At Randall, the band students shared about their current Junior High band experience and the benefit of being part of that performing ensemble. Smith students and Randall students were invited to play along with the Junior high band at both performances.
Band director, Sharon Phetteplace said, “The purpose of this visit is to assist in the recruitment and retention for the band program. At Randall Middle School our main message to the students was that band is ...
|
New Math Electives Offered at CHS:
We are excited to announce that two new math courses have been approved by the Board of Education to run for 2020-2021. Students will be able to enroll in Technical Math which is designed to meet the needs of seniors and juniors who are interested in technology programs. This course is a study of fundamental algebraic operations, linear equations, functions, applied geometry, trigonometry, and vector analysis.
The second new math elective will be titled Algebra 2R Honors and will fulfill the New York State course of Algebra 2 as well as cover TC3’s course MATH 120 College Algebra. Students will be able to earn college credit. Topics include linear, quadratic, absolute value, polynomial, rational, exponential, and logarithmic expressions/equations/functions, function notation, ...
|
Varsity Basketball Team Makes Blankets:
After school on December 18th, instead of hitting the courts and practicing their free throws, the Varsity basketball team was in the library making blankets out of fleece cloth to donate to the Child Advocacy Center.
Coach Jeremy Milligan said, “part of our basketball team’s mission statement is to provide service to our community. We wanted to take on this project along with serving food at Loaves and Fishes, and bell ringing at WalMart for the Salvation Army. The blankets will be donated to the Child Advocacy Center in Cortland. I think it’s important for teens to understand how good it feels to give back to the community they live in, and for many, have grown up in.”
Senior captain Ethan Myers has a special connection to this project. ...
|
Harmony Bridge Program Continues for Third Year:
The Cortland High School Band is once again embarking on an exciting community outreach program
titled Harmony Bridge! According to the Harmony Bridge website , the program’s mission is for band students to take their musical skills to the community, as well as bring joy to the elderly population in senior care centers and other places of need.
Through music performances, conversation and interaction, the students will experience the power of caring and sharing, while developing an understanding of their own abilities to make their community and the world a more loving place.
Cortland High School was the eighth school in the nation to take part in the Harmony Bridge Project. This is the third year of the program at Cortland.
Students will ...
|
The Importance of Substitutes:
Securing substitutes, or, as we call them in Cortland, Guest Teachers, is becoming increasingly difficult for a variety of reasons. Many school districts are scrambling to cover for teachers who are either out sick, have to stay home for a sick child or family member, or attending professional development.
Superintendent Mike Hoose said, “the ability to attract and retain quality substitutes is a major issue for nearly all school districts and BOCES in New York State. We need substitutes regularly for the health of our school district. For many reasons there are times that coverage is needed not only in our classrooms but for our offices, buses and more. In addition to the traditional reason teachers can be out for family and personal reasons, professional development ...
|
Stream Athletic Events LIVE with NFHS:
We are excited to announce that all of the sporting events that take place in our gymnasium and on ou r turf field will be available for online viewing. Contests will be streamed live and will be recorded for viewing after through the National Federation of High Schools (NFHS).
Athletic Director Tim Wagoner said, “This will allow our parents, grandparents, and family members that are unable to make the games access to watch live or afterwards. With a membership cost of $69 for unlimited access all year (or $10.99 monthly) you can get access to all of the games that take place in our upper gym or on our turf field. We wanted to bring this to Cortland because we have heard feedback that for example, grandparents that live far away expressed interest in watching their ...
|
Winter 2019-2020 Concert Season is Here!:
December is a busy month for the music department! Music department chair, Jen Rafferty said, “We are excited to try ne w things this concert season. With the auditorium under construction, the music staff have been creative in connecting even more with our community to perform in tandem with events going on throughout Cortland. We are also looking forward to our first concerts in our new schools, Barry Primary, Smith Intermediate, and Randall Middle School.”
The concert season opens on December 12th with the high school musical, “The World Goes ‘Round” which will be performed at SUNY Cortland. The show has four performances (Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday) because seating is limited in SUNY Cortland’s venue. It is encouraged to ...
|
Winter Weather and School Closures/Delay Information:
The winter season is upon us and it is time to think about possible closures and delays due to weather conditions. Our district ’s automated calling system will notify families if school is closed or delayed. Please be certain that your phone number is current in our database.
Local news stations will continue to provide weather updates. Stations that carry information about Cortland Schools include: WSYR-9, WTVH-5, WSTM-3, News 10 Now, WBNG, WXHC/101.5, WIII/I-100, AND WNTQ/93Q. We also maintain the latest information on our District website: http://www.cortlandschools.org .
In the event of a 2-hour delay, please be advised of the following information
Barry, Smith, and Randall will open to students at 10:00 a.m.
The Junior High and High School ...
|
2019-2020 Winter Sports Season Preview:
The leaves have fallen off and the weather is getting colder, which means that the winter sports season is about to get underw ay! Cortland student-athletes are in the gyms, at the ice rink or bowling alley practicing over the past few weeks to get prepared for the rapidly approaching year. It’s an exciting time of year as we transition from the outside to indoor sports. Close to 400 winter student-athletes participate in our programs at either the modified, JV or Varsity levels! We sat down with all of our varsity head coaches to discuss the upcoming winter season:
Boys Basketball - Jeremy Milligan, Head Coach
Coach Milligan said, “the 2019-20 squad is very young and inexperienced with only two underclassmen on the roster from last season. With that being said, we ...
|
Fall Sports 2019 Season Wrap Up:
Now that the fall season has come to a close, we want t o give a shout out to our fall athletes for all of their hard work this year. Athletic Director Tim Wagoner said, “The Cortland athletics program had a strong fall season overall. In addition to being dedicated to trying their best on the field and court, many excelled in the classroom. From our girls soccer team finishing with 12 wins, to our cross country team finishing 3rd at the Tully invitational, we had many reasons to be proud to be a purple tiger!”
Below is a list of recaps from our coaches highlighting important events and athletes in each of their respective seasons.
Girls Soccer- Ilona Ryon, Head Coach
The varsity girls soccer team had a great season finishing with 12 wins and 6 losses. ...
|
|
