Should New Paltz graduation ceremony move back to high school?
New Paltz High School seniors want to walk the stage on their own turf, Jacob Patel told members of the New Paltz School Board last week.
All posts by Terence P. Ward
New Paltz proposed school budget increases taxes 2.8%
New Paltz school Board trustees and members of the public got a broad-brush look at the budget proposed for the 2019-20 school year at their March 4 meeting. Coming in at $62,255,505, it’s a 2.54% increase over last year, which would result in a 2.84% hike to the tax levy itself due to a challenging state aid environment, which could well get bleaker if proposals in this year’s state budget get passed.
New Paltz schools seek to set policy limiting cell-phone use
New Paltz School Board trustees are going to try to beef up their support for administrators and teachers who wish to control the use of cell phones in their classrooms, but they want to use their authority rather than taxpayer money to make that happen. Teachers, particularly in the high school, have expressed frustration over the proliferation of the devices and the lack of clear policy guidance that would allow them to exercise some control over their use.
New Paltz students get a lesson in the price of protest
Students who participated in a previous climate-change strike had their absences excused, but future absences won’t be.
New Paltz cell tower balloon test scheduled
The test will demonstrate the visual impact of a new tower proposed for Jansen Rd.
New Paltz School Board members hear pitch for “restorative justice”
The concept of restorative justice is that, by empowering people to work through challenges together, problems can be resolved in a less punitive manner that results in fewer issues overall. In theory, successfully implementing restorative justice in the schools would mean fewer suspensions (in school or out), fewer referrals to administrators, fewer fights and conflicts and less time spent in detention. The primary practices involve securing consent and agreement from all participants (adult and child alike) in processes that involve “circles” in which all voices are heard.
Dominick Profaci appointed to the New Paltz School Board, district clerk Dusti Callo resigns
At their February 19 meeting, New Paltz School Board trustees appointed Dominick Profaci to replace Kathy Preston, who resigned suddenly prior to the February 5 meeting. Profaci, a former trustee, will serve until the school board election on May 19 when the highest vote-getter among candidates will be immediately seated in his stead.
Circus helps raise funds for New Paltz playground
Words cannot capture the feeling in one’s gut as an acrobat steps climbs onto a board that teeters atop a stack of blocks and cylinders that wiggle in all directions, nor can they fully convey the joy of watching a dog leap over his tumbling master or ride a scooter like a biped. Circuses are designed to invoke emotions and stimulate all the senses, down to the hair raising on the back of the neck and the tongue salivating for cotton candy. None of the children admitted free to this circus have ever attended one in New Paltz before, but given the welcome it received, organizers seem hopeful that it won’t be that long a wait to see one again.
New Paltz board offers diversity of views on plan to map environmentally sensitive areas
The information would be factored in for any future developments proposed for the areas. Six different areas are proposed for the designation, representing riparian, wetland and forested areas. They trace the Wallkill and Kleine Kill, the Swarte Kill and Plutarch wetlands and the large forest tracts of Plutarch, Clearwater and Stony Kill. The Shawangunk Ridge is also included.
New Paltz School Board discusses ways to deal with student cell phone use during the school day
During last week’s New Paltz School Board meeting, board members agreed to hear a presentation about a product designed to keep kids off their phones without confiscating them.
