Bogota Awarded Grant for $150,000 for Food Service Upgrades
Our District was awarded approximately $150,000 in grant funding through the USDA's Healthy Meals Incentives Grant. This grant is targeted toward small or rural school districts with, Bogota qualifying as a small school district. Each small and/or rural school district can receive up to $150,000 to support them in improving the nutritional quality of their meals and modernizing their operations through efforts that could include innovative staff training programs, kitchen updates and renovations, redesigning food preparation and service spaces; other school-district led efforts to support school meals and school nutrition professionals. Bogota is using most of the money to upgrade our primary meal prep kitchen at the high school to include replacement of a walk-in freezer, replacement of an oven and stove top, replacement of freezers and fridges, and additions of mobile heating units and food warms. All these kitchen upgrades will allow improved from scratch cooking, storage of fresh food, and an overall improved food experience for both the preparers and our students. The district has also allotted $25,000 of the grant funding towards the purchase of four hydroponic gardening units. These units will allow our students to be a part of the food preparation process as they will be able to grow leafy greens year-round. Each hydroponic unit will grow approximately 25+ lbs of leafy greens every 28 days. With four units, our district should be able to produce approximately 100 lbs of salad each month, which is enough for the entire district. Our plan is to include our science, 18-21 year old students, and our garden clubs to assist with the growing, maintenance, harvesting, and processing of the food. We believe this grant will provide innovative and concrete improvements to our food service and food education.
The Association of School Business Officials International (ASBO) is pleased to award Bogota Board of Education the Certificate of Excellence in Financial Reporting (COE). ASBO International’s COE recognizes districts that have met the program’s high standards for financial reporting and transparency. The school district earned the Certificate of Excellence for its Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR) for the fiscal year ended 2022. “The COE’s mission is to promote and recognize excellence in financial reporting,” ASBO International Chief Operations Officer/Interim Executive Director Siobhan McMahon says. “The Annual Comprehensive Financial Report informs stakeholders about the financial and economic state of the district, making it an important communications tool for building trust and engaging with the school community.” By participating in the COE program, school districts demonstrate their commitment to financial transparency. Applicants submit their ACFR for review by a team of financial professionals who provide feedback to improve future documents. If the report meets the requirements of the program, it may receive the Certificate of Excellence. A district’s participation in the COE program can facilitate bond rating and continuing bond disclosure processes. The COE is proudly sponsored by ASBO International Strategic Partner American Fidelity.
Bogota will be replacing its 54 passenger diesel bus with a brand new electric school bus. This was made possible through the Regional Greenhouse Gas Grant Project. The grant awarded Bogota $252,307 to help purchase an all electric, zero emission brand new 54 passenger school bus, including a charging station. The new school bus should be on the road in the near future, providing a quieter, healthier and more sustainable means of transportation to our students.
Bogota Public Schools is proud to announce the opening of our 18-21 transition program located at 320 Palisade Avenue. This program focuses on providing education to students after high school to help transition them into adulthood. Life skills are a primary focus of our students curriculum. They will also have the opportunity to build resumes and sample jobs within the community, set up through internships developed by our 18 - 21 program. Districts are required to provide services to identified students ages 18 - 21. In the past these identified students attended Out of District placements at major cost to the District. Now students will remain within the Bogota community and saving on tuition and transportation costs. This program is lead by former Steen School Teacher, Dan Limone who is excited to continue to work with administrators to grow and develop our new program. Bogota School District is excited to have opened this program and looking forward to seeing its growth during its first school year.
The intent of the School-Based Mental Health Services (SBMH) Grant Program is to support eligible schools in the recruitment, placement, hiring, and retention of school-based mental health professionals. The grant program is seeking to increase the number of diverse school-based mental health service providers who are recruited, placed, hired, and retained in schools. Bogota was one of eleven districts in NJ who were awarded the grant. Bogota’s focus will be to recruit and provide placement of graduate students enrolled in Fairleigh Dickinson University’s School Psychology program into practicum and internship roles at all of the buildings here within the district. They will provide additional mental health services while meeting their School Psychology coursework requirements for our students who may be struggling with mental health issues. This grant will assist with student tuition, provide a work stipend, and provide supervision to the FDU interns during their coursework. There are five project periods in this grant, ending June of 2027. Currently, Bogota has a project grant budget of approximately $926,000 and will assist in the anticipated training and tuition assistance of a total of 8 FDU future school psychologists.
September has arrived and our students and staff are settling into a brand new exciting year! As we approach our 5 Year Anniversary in January, Bogota Preschool is celebrating additional exciting developments. Over the summer, we saw the installation of a new Preschool playground at Bixby School, and we are anxious for the ribbon cutting ceremony once the poured rubber flooring is in place. Our administrative team is now located at our new Preschool Office location at 320 Palisade Ave, and we look forward to inviting the community to our grand opening in the next couple of weeks. Our new Preschool Social Worker, Ms. Lucy Zaragoza, is working on our first annual Preschool Information Fair, coming this October! Keep an eye out for your invitation. We also welcomed our new fiscal specialist, who is also a former Preschool Teacher Aide. Our team is growing and we are working hard for our preschool families. The year is off to a great start!
UNDERSTANDING MY CHILD'S IEP
SBJC UPCOMING PARENT WORKSHOP
Join us for an informative and free workshop designed to help parents understand and engage with their child's IEP. We'll delve into the IEP process, decoding goals and objectives, and discuss practical ways to support your child's learning journey a home and in school. Walk away with the knowledge and tools you need to be an active partner in your child's education.
September 28, 2023
6:30 PM- 8:00 PM
Bogota Bucs win in the Bronx: The Bogota Football team opened their season with a 21-6 victory over Capital Prep of Harlem, NY. They are currently 4-0.
Steen School is filled with history! 113 years to be exact! Here our third graders explored some of that history. They even made a crayon rubbing of our building's cornerstone from 1910!
Kindergarten students at Steen had a great time with their Spring Math peer learning enrichment activities! They even got to use pop-its to demonstrate numbers up to 10.
So much learning has been going on here at Bixby. We are so excited to be back at school with our friends.
