NorthStar Lights

Hello North Syracuse Central School District Parents, Guardians, Teachers and Staff,

Last Saturday, I attended the Cicero-North Syracuse High School Marching Band's Home Show, "Starburst" at the Michael J. Bragman Stadium. I just have to say - what an amazing event! And it wasn't just the performances that were outstanding, it was the overall sense of camaraderie and the genuine appreciation of music and art coming together.

During the show, there was a special alumni performance recognizing the 40th anniversary of our marching bands: the Northmen, Golden Eagles and Northstars. Karen Seamans, the current band director and a member of the Class of 1992, organized the event with the help of some other dedicated band alumni. The alumni had taken their time to get together for rehearsals and practice sessions and they bravely and joyfully performed for a large crowd that night. When someone has a passion for something, it truly shows.

The participation of band alumni in this event speaks volumes about this group, and the support they’ve received from each other over the years. That is a unique and wonderful thing.

Above, I'm pictured with Karen Seamans at Starburst. I look at this photo and see true pride on her face. In turn, it makes me proud of the passion she has for what she does. Thank you to Karen and all our teachers who share their passions with our students every day. You make the NSCSD a better place.

I also want to extend my thanks to our families for trusting us with your children every day. While their safety and educational success are our greatest jobs, we also take on the responsibility of helping them discover their passions by sharing our own. Thank you! #NSBrighterTogether

Sincerely,

Daniel D. Bowles, Superintendent of Schools

The North Syracuse Central School District is hiring! There are a variety of positions available, both full and part-time. The District is holding its first-ever substitute teacher/teaching assistant job fair on Wednesday, September 28 from 3 to 6 p.m. The event will take place at the Jerome F. Melvin Administrative Office Building (5355 West Taft Rd.) in North Syracuse.

Congratulations to the Cicero-North Syracuse High School Marching Band for earning top honors with their performance of "Zodiac" at the Sept. 17 Starburst Home Show. Band director Karen Seamans shares that the show is based on the constellations of the Zodiac with pieces the highlight Sagittarius, Gemini, Scorpio and Libra.

The band is scheduled to perform "Zodiac" again this Saturday, September 24 at the Baldwinsville Home Show. The schedule of events for that show is as follows:

National Anthem 4:55 p.m.
Jordan-Elbridge 5:00 p.m.
Greece 5:13 p.m.
Auburn 5:26 p.m.
Norwich 5:39 p.m.
Phoenix 5:52 p.m.
Intermission 6:05 p.m.
East Irondequoit 6:18 p.m.
Central Square 6:31 p.m.
ESM 6:44 p.m.
West Genesee 6:57 p.m.
C-NS 7:10 p.m.
Liverpool 7:23 p.m.
Baldwinsville 7:36 p.m.
Bees Senior Recognition 8:00 p.m.
Awards 8:20 p.m.

The band's performance schedule for the remainder of the 2022 season is:

9/24 at Baldwinsville

10/1 at Oswego

10/8 at Phoenix

10/15 at Liverpool

10/22 at Central Square

10/30 NYS Field Band Championships at JMA Wireless Dome

11/5 US Bands National Championship at Met Life Stadium

Students in Pam Woznica’s School Age Education Experience class are helping get the word out about suicide awareness as part of their course. Mrs. Woznica says that one of the requirements for the course is for the students to work together to create meaningful, engaging bulletin boards throughout the school’s hallways. With the month of September being Suicide Awareness Month, the class focused their work on creating boards around that theme.

For the project, each student had to first conceptualize and design a bulletin board on paper. Their designs were posted around the classroom for students to consider and vote upon. Each student was given three votes and the board with the most votes was selected to be created in the hallway.

Click here to read the complete article online.

School breakfast and lunch meals are offered to all students in the North Syracuse Central School District through the District’s Food Service Program. Meal prices are set according to by the United States Department of Agriculture program guidelines. The North Syracuse Central School District offers healthy meals at reasonable prices every school day.

While school meals are reasonably priced, some families may still need assistance. Families are encouraged to fill out an application for free/reduced price meals. Applications can be completed at any time during the school year. Click here for an application.

Students at the following schools will receive free meals regardless of family income, through the USDA’s CEP program:

• Roxboro Road Elementary
• Roxboro Middle School
• Smith Road Elementary
• North Syracuse Early Education Program at Main Street
• OCM BOCES Thompson Road Campus

Onondaga County will again be offering asymptomatic COVID testing for NSCSD students, families and staff. Anyone that was signed up last year will only need to make sure that the school listed as where their child attends is current. Directions to follow can be found here.

Those who did not participate last year but would like to be tested this year, will need to create an account and a testing profile for their child on https://app.clarifi-covid-19.com/register

If you are no longer interested in asymptomatic covid testing, please change your child’s testing profile to "Opt Out Of Onondaga School Testing" so that their name no longer appears on the school's list. Direction for opting out can be found here.

We love to share photos and videos from our students, families and teachers. If you're willing to share, please do! We'll be using your photos in this newsletter and other publications throughout the school year. Additionally, high resolution, horizontal photos will be considered for the District website. If you'd like to share pictures, please email them to our Communications Officer, Laurie Cook at lcook@nscsd.org.

Pictured above: Staff at Roxboro Road Elementary School shared a photo with their words of thanks to ProAct for the donation of school supplies for their students. Maryanne Nash, a secretary in the main office, sent the picture and added her own thanks to ProAct saying, "They are wonderful at supporting our school!" Many thanks to our amazing community partners! #NSBrighterTogether

On Saturday, September 17, the TRAID on the Trails event was held at the Syracuse Inner Harbor Creekwalk to promote awareness of inclusive fitness recreation opportunities in Onondaga County. The event, which is sponsored by the Golisano Center for Special Needs at Upstate Medical University, is a fun, family event allowing participants to try out various adaptive physical fitness opportunities.

TRAID stands for Technology Related Assistance for Individuals with Disabilities. The event is organized by James Peyton Sefick, who is a 1995 graduate of NSEEP.

Several staff of the North Syracuse Early Education Program participated in the event in an effort to promote the cause. Pictured above along with James Peyton Sefick (far left) are representatives of NSEEP: Denise Aloi, Erin Lynn and Cheri Rotelli. Other NSEEP staff at the event were Kristin Radigan, Jennifer Fetterman and Erica Jones-Griffin.

Pictured above, to the left and below: Cicero Elementary School Counselor Molly Murphy shared photos of some 4th grade students from the school participating in the District-wide Chalk The Walk activity on Tuesday. Individual schools held their own Chalk-The-Walk events in between raindrops this past (RAINY) week. Thank you to everyone who shared their pictures!

Pictured to the right and below: Danielle Preville's 2nd grade students at Smith Road Elementary School had fun working together to create some awesome chalk art outside the school. #NSBrighterTogether

Pictured to the left and below: NSCSD District-Wide Mental Health and Wellness Coordinator Kristen Stanton shared photos of Cicero-North Syracuse High School students showing off their chalk art.

Pictured to the right and below: Carey Pomietlasz, a school psychologist at Gillette Road Middle School, shared photos of students at Gillette creating colorful messages and art outside the school.

Did you know that the North Syracuse Central School District's Athletics Department has a weekly email newsletter? If you'd like to subscribe to the newsletter, click here to learn more.

The North Syracuse Central School District produces a weekly digital newsletter, "NorthStar Lights," to share important information and good news with NSCSD families and staff. Parents and staff members automatically receive the newsletter through ParentSquare. Grandparents, community members and all friends of the NSCSD are also welcome to subscribe. Newsletters are emailed each Friday when school is in session. Help us share the good news and the great things happening in the NSCSD! Click here to learn more.

Email: webmaster@nscsd.org
Website: www.nscsd.org
Location: 5355 West Taft Road, Syracuse, NY, USA
Phone: (315) 218-2100
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Twitter: @NSyracuseCSD