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Rochester students
Posted inNews & Opinion
Report on city schools is expected today
After several months of anticipation, a report on the Rochester City School District by Distinguished Educator Jaime Aquino is expected to be released today. State education Commissioner MaryElllen Elia, Board of Regents Chancellor Betty Rosa, and Aquino will be holding a press conference at 1:30 p.m. Aquino was appointed by several months ago to observe the district’s operations, […]
Posted inNews & Opinion
Rochester schools Superintendent Barbara Deane-Williams leaving in January
Rochester schools Superintendent Barbara Deane-Williams announced late Thursday evening that she is retiring on January 31, 2019.
Posted inNews & Opinion
Superintendent Vargas needs union help, and more
It’s great that Rochester’s business community leaders are concerned about the academic performance of city school students. Sandy Parker, CEO of the Rochester Business Alliance, and Dutch Summers, chair of Jasco, said in last Sunday’s Democrat and Chronicle that they are disturbed by the Association of Supervisors and Administrators’ recent vote of “no confidence” in Superintendent Bolgen Vargas. […]
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White charts new agenda for Rochester school board and district
Surrounded by nearly two dozen community leaders, newly-elected Rochester school board president Van White laid out an ambitious plan yesterday to improve city schools and to stop the steady loss of students to charter schools.
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Principals may take vote of no confidence against Vargas
Updated at 12:21 p.m. Adam Urbanski, president of the Rochester Teachers Association, says that teachers do not share ASAR’s discontent. Teachers are unhappy, but it has to do with wrong-headed policies coming out of the State Education Department, he said. And teachers do not blame Vargas for those policies, Urbanski said. Urbanski said he is […]
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Powering-up parents
Brenda Coleman says her son LaBronze, 10, is intelligent and has an impressive vocabulary. And there are times when he is extremely talkative, she says. But Coleman says she has to keep LaBronze on a tight, consistent schedule. Any unusual variations can trigger serious behavioral problems, she says. When that happens, she says, “this house […]
Posted inNews & Opinion
Absences add up
Rochester schools Superintendent Bolgen Vargas has successfully brought public attention to the connection between attendance and student achievement. While the district’s low graduation rate has been reported for years, one of its underlying causes — chronic truancy — received less attention. School officials confirm that three months into this school year there are 186 students […]
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Career zone for a high school
Sheldon Cooper, 15, says he’s thinking about following in his mother’s footsteps. He wants to attend Georgia State University to pursue a career in health care, he says, perhaps as a nurse — like his mom. But he also loves cars and boxing. His friend and classmate, Tony Bermudez, 15, says he wants to attend […]
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RCSD: Longer days for an out-of-school culture?
More than a year ago, Rochester schools Superintendent Bolgen Vargas launched a major campaign to improve abysmally low student attendance in the city school district. Now teachers are in the hot seat. Vargas has sent an email to teachers saying that 730 of them were absent last Friday, and he he’s concerned that teacher absenteeism […]
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How do parents feel about the Rochester school district?
The Rochester school district has had a tenuous relationship with parents for years. Almost every superintendent in recent memory has made some kind of an effort to improve relations between parents, teachers, and school administrators. But success has been illusive and varied depending on the school. The district’s Office of Parent Engagement is making a […]
