At its first meeting of the new year, held Tuesday, Jan. 8, the Guilderland Board of Education got an update from a district student attending Tech Valley High.
Logan O’Neil a student from Guilderland who was selected to attend Tech Valley High School told the board about her experience at the school, which operates as a joint venture of Questar III and Capital Region BOCES to prepare students for the area’s growing high-tech economy by focusing on math, science ad technology.
`Tech Valley High School focuses on project-based learning and 21st century learning skills,` said O’Neil. `We routinely collaborate with Hudson Valley Community College and the schools of East Greenbush.`
`I like all the opportunities we get to speak and present,` she added, noting that her school often allows in-depth collaboration with local businesses as well.
Parents independently send applications for their children to attend Tech Valley High. The application process is underway for the fall 2008 school year.
`Each district that sends a student to Tech Valley High School has to pay for that student’s tuition,` said board President Richard Weisz.
Following the presentation, the board went over district news regarding student successes in the Geography Bee, the Math Counts competition, and the NYS Honor Bands. The district also received the Suburban Council’s top athletic award for the fifth year in a row.
A policy designed to prevent cyber-bullying and cyber-threats within the district was passed unanimously.
`This policy is a way to give the district the tools to deal with this type of bullying above our standard policy,` said board member Cathy Barber.
The board of education also took time to encourage citizens of Guilderland to participate in the upcoming budget input committees.
`It is to be one of the most worthwhile processes to undertake. If you want to learn more about the district and what makes it tick, I encourage [you] to sign up,` said board member John Dornbush.
`Our goal is to provide full, transparent information,` added Superintendent John McGuire. “
