Archive: Around Town

Mark S. LewisMy last article focused on looking back on 2006, especially in terms of accomplishments and setbacks. Looking forward to 2007, we see a number of important initiatives that will require our attention. Some of these include the following:

Capital Project Information: On February 6 between the hours of 7am and 9pm, district voters will consider two propositions seeking authorization for the Lansing Central School District Board of Education to move forward with a renovation/expansion project designed to upgrade all three schools and the bus garage and expand the high school. Much work will be completed during the first month of the year in an effort to get information to the public regarding any and all aspects of that initiative.

Communication: The strengthening of communication between and among the various constituent groups within the Lansing Central School District will continue to be a priority of both the board and administration in 2007. In Lansing, as in most other districts, the schools are the central to the life of the community. Everyone has a stake in what occurs in the buildings and on the grounds of the schools. It is critical that efforts be made to inform the public to the greatest extent possible of the status of the schools, their programs, challenges, plans, and events on an ongoing basis. Effective communication, however, is a two-way process. It is the responsibility of both school and community members alike. In other words, it is everyone’s responsibility. It is hoped that during 2007 a greater level of mutual support will be witnessed by virtue of redoubled efforts to enhance school / community communications.

Technology: Diffusion of technology into the instructional and administrative aspects of the district operation will require a greater amount of human and fiscal resources throughout 2007 and beyond. It became clear in 2006 that the school district’s technological infrastructure was in dire need of upgrading, lest the entire system fail. The board of education, administration, and district technology committee redoubled their efforts to develop a process to upgrade the infrastructure to ensure that it was able to meet the increasing demands placed upon it. With the assistance of the Regional Information Center at Onondaga-Cortland-Madison BOCES, the district is poised to improve the technology backbone early on in 2007. In addition, the district technology committee is researching the most cost effective method of putting into place an organizational structure that provides the leadership necessary to assist teachers in their efforts to integrate ever-increasing levels of technology into the classroom and to assist administrators responsible for processing ever-greater levels of student, staff, and fiscal data.

District Safety Plan: School safety has always been a priority. However, given the tragic events this past year in schools across the country, school safety planning in Lansing will be reviewed. The board of education has approved the creation of a District Safety Committee charged with reviewing and upgrading the district’s safety plan. The safety committee will commence its work early in 2007.

Curriculum Review: The board of education, along with members of the teaching and administrative staff will review the status of individual curricula throughout 2007. Focus will be on the current state of each curriculum, its goals and objectives, and anticipated programmatic needs in the near future and beyond. The first review (mathematics) will be conducted at the January 11, 2007 board of education meeting, with special education to follow on January 25th and February 8th. A complete list of curricula scheduled for review will be published at a later date.

Annual Budget: In recent years, taxpayers have voiced increasing frustration regarding the property tax. More than ever, schools are required to perform services that were once the responsibility of the family, the community, the government, or all three. It has become politically expedient to heap mandate upon mandate on top of already burdensome responsibilities that school must shoulder. No Child Left Behind is a perfect example of policy makers in Washington mandating costly programs for implementation by public schools with funding schemes that fall far short of what is needed, thereby forcing local taxpayers to foot a large portion of the costs. In 2007, the local taxpayer must be provided with the insight necessary to comprehend how legislation has contributed to the added pressure on the school budget, and thereby on the property tax as well. The LCSD board and administration look forward to engaging the community in a dialogue regarding this most consequential of topics.

2006 was a year of change in the Lansing school and community. 2007 promises to hold more of the same. I look forward to working with all members of the school community in an effort to ensure that the change process, going forward, yields significant benefit for all who have a stake in the goals and operation of the Lansing Central School District.

----
v3i1