Calendar
12/11 -12/18: Hanukkah
12/21: Randall PTO Mtg. 6:00pm
12/24 - 1/1: December Recess
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Superintendent's Budget Message
On December 2nd, Superintendent Robert Edwards addressed the Cortland community live via videostream, explaining how COVID-19 has made our tight financial situation even tighter. Forecasts for the year, when considering potential cuts in state aid, are gloomy. Therefore, an immediate spending freeze was announced. Contractual obligations will continue to be met; all other general fund spending will require the superintendent’s approval. Think of these belt-tightening measures as similar to the decisions many people have had to make in their households during the pandemic.
Superintendent Edwards concluded the message with reminders that the work, collectively, of each Cortland employee is the most important thing for the development and success of our students. No shifts in revenues and expenses will change the impact that we can have, each day, on the lives of the students. Together we will work together like we always do and weather this storm.
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The Button Project
Have you seen a teacher’s smile recently? Due to masks and PPE as a result of precautions for COVID-19, most students can’t see their teachers’ smiles underneath the masks. At Barry Primary School, teachers have taken advantage of an idea inspired by the Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt in Nashville, TN. The goal of the Button Project at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital was to eliminate or reduce a level of fear and anxiety for patients who find comfort in seeing the smiling faces of their providers and health care team members. Once the Barry Primary staff heard about the Button Project at the Children’s Hospital, it soon became “The Button Project: Barry Primary Version.” School staff are able to submit a Google Form with a picture, and a Barry Primary School volunteer creates the button for the staff member to wear. Once the Barry Primary staff members wishing for a button were outfitted with buttons, the Button Project was opened up to staff members in other buildings. Despite the challenge of having their teachers wearing masks, now students can see smiling faces even without masks!
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Flower Bed at Randall
Last year Randall Middle School started a partnership with the Cortland Cooperative Extension (CCE) with the hopes of engaging students in farm to school programming. It provides a unique opportunity for students to learn about how food is grown, the importance of healthy eating, and provides a deeper appreciation for food and sustainable agriculture. Members of the farming community visited classrooms to teach students about the process of farming and did a tasting of fresh produce during a few lunch periods. This year, the partnership has continued! The CCE has provided videos featuring some of the farming in Cortland County. On Thursday, December 3rd, a first garden bed was set at Randall Middle School. This will provide a hands on experience for students as they will have the chance to plant and help maintain the garden. In the future we hope to set additional garden beds to allow many students to appreciate growing fresh food through a hands on experience. Thank you to Emily Fusco, Claudia Hitt, and Dana Havas from the CCE for helping to make this garden bed possible through donations from the community.
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Winter Concert Series
The Music and Video Departments at Cortland Schools are very excited to offer the public a wide variety of past student concerts to wipe away those winter blues. The series starts with a recording from 2008 from the now closed Virgil School. Every grade is represented and some of those students are seniors this year at the high school. On 12/2 the concert was from 2009 and featured all of the students from Parker.
One concert will come out every weekday during the month of December. Concerts will be loaded onto the Cortland Tiger Videos page every day of the week so that people can watch the performances at their leisure. Not only will viewers be able to see the shows on their computers or internet connected devices but they can also see the performances on Spectrum local channel 17 at 9 a.m., 12 p.m., 3 p.m., and 6 p.m. On the weekend, the shows will be re-aired.
To access all of the many videos offered to the public go to the Cortland website at www.cortlandschools.org and then click on the circle PLAY button at the top right hand side of the main page.
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Randall Student March
for the UDHR
At Randall Middle School, fifth grade students learned about the Articles from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) as a multi day lesson. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is a milestone document in the history of human rights. Drafted by representatives with different legal and cultural backgrounds from all regions of the world, the Declaration was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in Paris on 10 December 1948 (General Assembly resolution 217 A) as a common standard of achievements for all peoples and all nations. It sets out, for the first time, fundamental human rights to be universally protected and it has been translated into over 500 languages.
Students read stories about people from around the world who have encountered or currently face human rights challenges. Students researched and then wrote about the Articles that were violated or upheld. As a culminating activity, students from Ms. Terwilliger's and Miss Mitchell/Mrs. Hendrik's classes made posters that contained the Articles from the UDHR and information about them. Students then used their "right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association" (#20) and walked through town carrying their posters to educate the community about human rights and what they have been studying in school.
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SCHOLAR-ATHLETE TEAM NOMINATIONS
The New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA), Inc. believes that the athletic participation of students enhances their academic performances. To support this belief, the Scholar/Athlete Team Award Program began in 1991. Varsity teams who have 75% of their team earn a 90.0% or higher GPA during their season qualify for the NYSPHSAA award. Individuals can also qualify, if the team does not, with an average of 90% or better.
Team nominations from the Cortland Senior High School for the Fall 2020 season are: Boys Cross Country, Field Hockey, Golf, Boys Soccer, Girls Soccer, Girls Tennis and an individual honor from the Girls Cross Country team Alexis Brown.
Cortland Schools is very proud of their student athletes. Any student who works hard on and off the field no matter what he/she is doing whether it be sports, music or academic clubs becomes a well rounded young adult who will succeed at whatever endeavor they choose in life. Congratulations to all of our athletes who have been nominated as Scholar Athletes.
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Cortland Free Library
There is always something fun happening at the library!
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Get Social With Us!
Follow Us On Twitter @CECSDistrict
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