CV-S Students Travel to Howe Caverns, Catskill Symphony

By Morgan Nichols

First on the agenda for the Cherry Valley-Springfield Board of Education meeting on November 16th was a recap of the events since the previous October meeting. The Veterans Day breakfast on November 9th was a great success with many veterans and their families in attendance. Discussions have begun on possibly selecting a new mascot for the school; the talks are only in the preliminary stage with future talks to happen in subsequent meetings. Third and Fifth grade classes attended events at Howe Caverns and the Catskill Symphony respectively, and both classes received positive feedback regarding their behavior.

A member of the transportation team, Mr. Collins, masterfully delivered a presentation on the status of various buses that are a part of the fleet. Annual mileage has increased by over 20,000 miles compared to the previous year, totaling over 200,000 miles. The school is looking to replace one large and one small bus by 2024 or 2025, due to the high mileage of some members of the current fleet.

Members of the social studies department, Ms. Waterman and Mrs. Schecter, delivered a presentation regarding the progress made by their department over the years. Students are required to complete United States and Global history classes to graduate, and a vast array of electives are open to students, including women’s history and the history of war. The updated Regents exams for Global and US history have seen considerable increases in passing rates and in increase of mastery merits for each exam. Students will also be eligible to receive a Seal of Civic Readiness from New York State on completion of various exams and extracurriculars. The new School-Based Health Center has been inspected by the Department of Health and is still set for its grand opening on December 7th. Concerns raised during the public comments phase of the meeting are certainly going to be the subject of future meetings. Two parents raised concerns over student usage of electronic cigarettes and dab/wax pens that allow for the consumption of cannabis concentrates. The parents pleaded with the board of education to take their concerns into consideration and to take charge of creating a safer and drug-free environment for everyone at Cherry Valley-Springfield School.