Dear Parents, Guardians, and Staff,
Today marks the final Friday of the 2024-2025 school year and I could not be more proud of our Bees this school year! The last day of classes for pre-kindergarten to seventh grade students is Thursday, June 26th. Thursday is also a half day of school. I hope all our elementary and Ray Middle School students enjoy the final week of classes and best of luck to our secondary students who will be finishing up exams next week.
Also, with warmer temperatures anticipated on Monday and Tuesday of next week, I want to share that our priority is always to provide a comfortable learning environment. Please make sure your child is wearing loose fitting and light clothing. As you likely know, not all of our elementary classrooms are air conditioned; however, every building does have some dedicated spaces with air conditioning that will be used as cooling spaces. Our staff will be prepared to implement accommodations as needed.
Please know as a parent or guardian you have the right to make decisions regarding your child’s attendance and/or early release from school next week. As Superintendent, I recognize not all students and families have air conditioned spaces at home or the ability for work schedules to be adjusted to accommodate school cancellations or early releases. I appreciate your understanding and respect the individual decisions you make for your own child(ren). We will do our best to be prepared to implement accommodations as needed so that the final week of school is safe and enjoyable for all of our students and staff.
I also want to take this opportunity to say congratulations to the Class of 2025! I’m so excited to celebrate with you and your loved ones tomorrow at graduation! The graduation ceremony will take place at 1 p.m. on Saturday at the NYS Fairgrounds Expo Center. No tickets are needed and there are no guest limits. The venue offers free parking. The ceremony will be live streamed on YouTube.
I will send a final email to families and staff on Thursday, June 26th as we officially end the fourth marking period and close out the 2024-2025 school year. I will discontinue my weekly emails during July and August, but I will keep you posted as updates become available regarding the 2025-26 school year. Please feel free to contact your school or the district office over the summer with any questions, and check ParentSquare, your email and our website for important updates.
Congratulations to the Class of 2025! Have a wonderful summer! Go Bees!
I have a few announcements to share with you today:
NYS High School Film Festival:
Our C.W. Baker High students performed exceedingly well at the inaugural NYS High School Film Festival sponsored by the Academy at American High. The festival was held last Saturday at Baker High School. Our Bees took home 12 first place wins and many second and third place finishes. A panel from American High served as the judges. Congratulations, Bees. Check out all the winners on our website.
Request 2025-2026 School Supplies:
If you are in need of school supplies for the 2025-2026 school year, please fill out this form to request supplies. Distribution is planned for August 20th and August 21st at the Student Services building on the main campus. Requests will be filled using building supply lists based on what we have in inventory and what we receive through this year's drive to fulfill requests. Also, if you are interested in a "free" new school year haircut for your student(s), please also indicate on this form. If you are interested in donating supplies, information will be posted on our website soon and supplies will be collected in August!
State Track & Field Championships:
Members of our Boys and Girls Outdoor Track & Field teams competed last weekend in the New York State Track and Field Championship. They made us proud! Congratulations to all!
Leah Bahamonde competed in the Girls Discus and placed 4th. She also set a new school record: 117-4.
Kamryn Barton ran the Girls 800m. Placing both 6th in NYS and 7th in Federation. She also set a new school record: 2:10.40.
Our Girls 4x4 placed 15th! Great job, Aaniya Johnson, Emerson Clavijo, Emmy Buchanan and Mariah LeGrow.
Dominic Dottolo competed in the Boys 1600m and placed 17th in NYS Class A and 54th in Federation.
In the Boys Pentathlon London Premo was 6th in NYS Class A with 3101 points and 14th in Federation.
Doug Clark vaulted 12-6 placing 14th in NYS Class A and 33rd in Federation.
Have a great weekend. Go Bees!
Sincerely,
Dr. Joseph M. DeBarbieri
Superintendent of Schools
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