An internationally recognized leader in educational reform is urging the future board of education of newly merged Oppenheim-Ephratah-St. Johnsville Central School District to focus the majority of its time on student achievement.

Speaking at the St. Johnsville High School auditorium on Wednesday, April 10, Dr. Bill Daggett, the founder and chairman of the International Center for Leadership in Education, encouraged board members to focus 75 percent of each of their board meetings on student achievement.

Voters in Oppenheim-Ephratah and St. Johnsville will elect members to the merged district’s first board of education on Tuesday, April 16.

The Ilion village board voted 3-1 Wednesday to adopt a $6.2 million budget for the 2013-14 fiscal year.

Trustee Barbara Collea cast the lone negative vote. Trustee Joanne Moore was absent.

The board acted on the $6,222,746 general fund budget during a regular meeting, which followed a public hearing on the tentative budget. The spending plan shows an increase of $152,695 over the current year’s budget.

Following several months of review and discussion, the Little Falls Board of Education adopted a $21,555,664 budget for the 2013-14 school year Wednesday with an increase in appropriations of 2 percent.

The plan will go before school district voters next month.

Kathleen A. Carney, principal of Herkimer Elementary School in the Herkimer Central School District, has been selected as the 2013 New York State Elementary School Principal of the Year by the School Administrators Association of New York State.

A high school English teacher could face disciplinary action for giving a writing assignment that asked students to make a persuasive argument blaming Jews for the problems of Nazi Germany, Albany school district officials said Friday.

The seven Ilion and Mohawk residents who were voted to serve on the new Ilion-Mohawk Central School District school board Wednesday will get right to work in preparation to merge.

William Lennox, Vicki Judd, Stephen Coupe, Fred Schell, Daniel LaLonde, Matthew Shedd and Walt Roginski were elected Wednesday.

Nineteen of the 21 candidates for the new Ilion-Mohawk School District Board of Education were on hand for Thursday’s forum at Herkimer County Community College and nearly 200 residents turned out to hear what they had to say.

The forum, sponsored jointly by the Mohawk and Ilion teachers associations, gave each candidate two minutes to introduce him or herself and offer a few remarks. Then Mohawk Teachers Association President Shelly McCarthy, who served as moderator for the forum, invited questions from the audience. The candidates were presented in the order in which they will appear on the ballot for the March 27 election.School board candidates speak at forum

Herkimer County Community College students and members of the community had a chance to see an unusual visitor to the campus Tuesday afternoon.

The Wolf Conservation Center, from South Salem, N.Y., brought Atka, an Arctic gray wolf that serves as a traveling ambassador for the organization, along as part of the program the group presented at HCCC.

The Herkimer school board has begun its search for a new school superintendent and is looking for input from the community.

The board met Monday with Herkimer-Fulton-Hamilton-Otsego BOCES District Superintendent Mark Vivacqua, who is serving as the search consultant, and agreed to a process and timeline for the search.

The Herkimer school board took action Monday that may help the Ilion and Mohawk school districts to move ahead with a two-school merger.

During a special meeting, the board voted 5-0 to approve a resolution asking the state education commissioner to set aside the order to establish a Herkimer-Ilion-Mohawk Central School District.

Voters in the Oppenheim-Ephratah Central School District will go to the polls Dec. 11 to reconsider a merger with the St. Johnsville Central School District.

State Education Commissioner John B. King Jr. this week announced the revote on the binding merger referendum in response to a petition submitted by Oppenheim-Ephratah residents earlier this month.

Since the adoption of new federal nutrition standards for school lunches nationwide, schools have been forced to offer fresh fruits and vegetables to students. Calories and fat now must be counted, too. Area school districts have had to revise their menus — significantly in some cases.

The annual Barringer Road Elementary School Apple Fest brought many visitors to the school to enjoy ames and crafts, but to also support the students at the school.
“The PTO puts it on for the kids in school. It provides for field trips, or any extra help the kids need,” said Winona Reed, treasurer for the school’s PTO and an organizer for the event.

Instead of pasting snapshots in an album like other tourists to North Korea, Jora Frantzis and Rashida Taher surreptitiously made a 13-minute video, "One Night in Nampho,’’ which won an award for best short documentary at the Action on Film International Film Festival in Monrovia, Calif.

“The reason so many girls become addicted to tanning is because when you tan, hormones called endorphins are released from the body, giving you a sensation of utter happiness,” Knox said. “There is no health benefit from tanning. It just can lead to cancer.”

Mohawk Valley school districts have announced the free and reduced-price meal policy for the 2012 - 2013 school year.

School officials have adopted family eligibility criteria.

The Herkimer School Board of Education adopted the Dignity for All Students Act during its regular board meeting Wednesday night after some discussion on the new federal law.

Interim Superintendent of Schools Gary Tutty presented the act during a public hearing Wednesday night. While no members of the public commented at the hearing, there was plenty of discussion about it among the board members.

Mount Markham Board of Education held a public hearing on Tuesday evening, regarding the new Dignity For All Students Act. During the hearing, the district introduced the new state wide legislation which prohibits all forms of bullying, discrimination and or harassment of students.

Superintendent Casey Barduhn said the policy gives instruction in civility, citizenship and character education.

Children ran in excitement as the gates to the new Benton Hall Academy playground opened on Wednesday at noon.

During elementary orientation on Tuesday, Principal Joe Long announced the playground would finally be ready the next day and invited the children to come out and play.

“The children have been without a playground for 18 months and they really missed it,” said Long.

Young readers throughout the valley explored the world of reading this summer by visiting their local libraries and opening up some books.

Nancy Stowell, children’s librarian at Frank J. Basloe Library in Herkimer, said 43 readers participated in their program this year with a total of 1,050 books read.
“It went really well. It was better than in the past few years,” she said.