Raider Report March 2024

Expanded access to school-based mental health professionals and other programs, services and supports for mental health and wellness is on its way for Red Hook students thanks to a state grant.

Red Hook Central School District (RHCSD) has been awarded a $786,400 New York State Recover from COVID School grant (RECOVS) to add services. The NYS RECOVS Grant Program helps school districts counter the negative consequences of the pandemic on school-age children. The district will use the grant to expand existing efforts to support students for the 2023-24 school year and develop new programs for 2024-2025. The main initiatives are:

• Providing new professional development for school staff to help them identify and address mental health concerns and receive certification as Mental Health First Aid trainers, to train every ninth grader in mental health first aid and expand students' capacity to recognize their own and their peers' mental health needs.
• Creating a targeted support program at the high school for students with mental health issues. The program is an alternative method of supporting our students on campus.
• Expanding our time allotment with our behaviorist who is contracted through BOCES, which will enable us to offer a greater level of support for our students and families.

Jack Costello, the Director of Pupil Personnel Services, said, “I am very excited about receiving the grant and the increased opportunities it will bring for RHCSD to expand its support of its students’ social-emotional needs exacerbated by a post-COVID world, the negative impacts of social media, and the lack of community resources to adequately support our students and families.”

Two options were available to school districts. The Mental Health RECOVS Grant Program and the Learning Loss RECOVS Grant Program. Funding for RHCSD was awarded under the Mental Health RECOVS Grant Program for two years and covers expenses incurred from Nov. 1, 2023 to Oc. 31, 2025.

The Red Hook Central School District will put forth a capital project proposal that would improve the lighting, air conditioning and safety of several of its schools, and renovate its athletic facilities to expand access.

Separately, the district is looking to purchase electric vehicles in its annual bus proposition and take advantage of grant programs in preparation of meeting a state mandate.

The projects, detailed at the Feb. 21 Board of Education meeting, would appear as propositions on voters’ ballots for the annual budget vote and school board elections May 21.

"The projects slated for this proposition would increase the safety and access of our facilities for our students and members of the community,” said Superintendent Dr. Janet Warden. “A new athletic field would expand on opportunities for our teams, physical education classes and local sports organizations, while utilizing recyclable materials to limit environmental impact."

Capital improvement project

An estimated $14.95 million capital project proposition would include:

• New LED lighting for Red Hook High School and Mill Road elementary school
• Air conditioning at Mill Road
• Bolstering the boiler system at Linden Avenue Middle School
• Expanding ease of access to the lockdown system in each school
• Repairs to the four front columns of the Linden Avenue building

The lighting upgrades are projected to save $30,486 annually at the middle school and $22,349 at the high school, with the savings projected to pay for the cost of the upgrades in six and eight years, respectively.

The project would also include upgrades to athletic and physical education facilities:

• Installation of a multipurpose educational and athletic field
• Installation of new field lighting
• Resurfacing of the outdoor track
• Improvements to the athletic fields’ drainage system
• New fencing for the track
• Replacement of the high school’s gymnasium bleachers and wall padding, and renovation of its floor

The gym’s bleachers and floor are original to the building, installed in 1963, and the bleachers need to be brought into ADA compliance. The track was last resurfaced in 2010 and is visibly cracked. The new athletic field is projected to last roughly 15 years. It would be constructed mainly of recycled materials, and include recyclable turf with reusable infill - the substance that acts as the substitute for dirt between the blades of artificial grass. The field would be lined for use by multiple outdoor sports, including soccer, football, lacrosse, field hockey, and surrounded by the track.

An analysis of typical expenses found while the estimated installation cost of a multipurpose artificial field is higher than that of a new natural field – roughly $2.5 million compared to $1.875 million – the annual maintenance cost is roughly $58,000 less per year. The analysis also showed students could get more than twice as many hours of use out of an artificial field with lighting each year (3,600 hours versus 1,600) as artificial surfaces are often more likely to be usable in inclement weather, reducing cancellations, and can withstand heavier use. That includes use from physical education classes and from community organizations, including youth football and soccer.

Athletic Director Tom Cassata said the district’s teams are often at a competitive disadvantage practicing on grass when artificial surfaces are almost uniformly used for postseason games. “The game is much faster, it’s very different,” Cassata said, calling the improvements a “necessity” rather than a “luxury” for students. “Having that field, we can run more practices, longer, later if we have lights, when we have rain we can play games, we don’t have to move games.” Cassata said many elements of the proposal, including fixing the gym’s floor and resurfacing the track, add to the safety of students.

The Board of Education determined the district would move forward combining the projects into one proposition for voters in the May vote, which will be presented at the March 20 board meeting. The district intends to bond the project over 15 years, with state aid expected to pay for 64.4 percent of the project. The average cost to a district taxpayer is projected at 1.4 percent on the tax levy for the first year, but would decline over the course of project.

Electric vehicle purchase

The district is preparing to request voters approve funding to purchase electric vehicles as the beginning of a long-range plan to satisfy a New York State Education Department mandate. The state has announced it will require all districts to operate only zero-emissions vehicles in their school bus fleets beginning in 2035. The state has also said school districts will only be allowed to purchase zero-emission vehicles beginning in 2027. The state believes the shift will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, decrease negative environmental impacts and reduce noise. That, the district believes, makes it necessary to begin purchases early and make use of current grant programs to prevent a larger burden on residents as the deadlines approach.

Red Hook’s bus fleet encompasses 44 total vehicles, including 29 buses and 15 SUVs, vans and sedans. The district has traditionally requested voters approve the purchase of two to three busses per year, putting the district on a roughly 12-year cycle to replace the entire fleet. The estimated cost of a 65-passenger unleaded fuel bus is roughly $157,000, compared to roughly $450,000 for a comparable electric bus. A variety of rebate programs and incentives could lower the cost of an electric bus below $250,000 and as low as $150,000 for this round of purchases.

Due to a variety of variables, including deadlines for the grants and uncertainty over how they would interact, the district is working through exactly what it will propose for voters to approve. A district analysis shows it would stand to save $1,600 per year, per bus on fuel costs, and the shift to electric would not require immediate infrastructure improvements.

As February ends with warmer weather, I am hopeful that the warmth lingers into March. Thus far, the district has utilized only two snow days, and we will communicate the arrangements for any "give back" days prior to Spring Break.

Amidst our budget season, I am pleased to announce our fourth annual Community Conversations, slated for Wednesday, March 6th, at 6:00 PM at the Linden Avenue Middle School Cafeteria. These conversations will include discussions on our areas of strength and areas for growth within our district, topics include teaching and learning, mental health considerations, long-term capital and facilities planning, and communication strategies. Your attendance is encouraged as we collectively plan for our school community's future and our commitment to growth and excellence in our schools.

Additionally, I am delighted to share that we have the privilege of hosting the Dutchess County Executive, Sue Serino, for her annual State of the County address on Thursday, March 14th at 5:30 PM, to be held within our Performing Arts Center. This event holds special significance as we showcase our magnificent venue. I will begin the event with introductory remarks, while Mr. Roddey shall serve as the master of ceremonies. Your presence at this event would be most welcomed.

As March ends, it will usher in the much-anticipated Spring Break, I extend my heartfelt wishes for a wonderful time spent with your families and friends, embracing the sense of rejuvenation that comes with the onset of spring.

From the first number, Brian Goldhirsch thinks the audience that comes to see “Chicago” will be hooked. “I won’t give anything away,” the Red Hook High School junior said, “but we have a lot going on. … It’s going to be very interactive, people coming down from the stage and interacting with audience members, bringing everyone into the action that’s happening.”

The high school’s Hardscrabble Players are preparing to put on a “Teen Edition” of the famous Bob Fosse and Fred Ebb musical, with three shows March 8-10 at the school’s Performing Arts Center.

The performances mark the culmination of more than three months of work for more than 65 students, which began with auditions the week after Thanksgiving. “It’s pretty incredible how much work actually goes into this,” said Brendan Fix, producer of the play and a ninth-grade ELA teacher at the school. “Some of the kids are in multiple numbers. There are a couple of kids in the show who have to remember 20 songs.”

The cast is led by Nora Callaghan-Jurgens as Velma Kelly, Violet McMillen as Roxie Hart, Ben Ostfeld as Billy Flynn and Goldhirsch as Amos Hart. There are also the musicians in the pit, who have had to learn dozens of numbers and are composed mostly of students, and the crew, who need to know where everyone goes in each scene and what scenery must come down from the auditorium’s fly system.

Morgan Forte, the stage manager, relishes that responsibility. The senior said she has been a part of a stage crew for two shows a year since seventh grade. “It’s putting everything together and making sure the cast knows where to be and the crew knows where to be,” Forte said of her role. “During the show I call all the light and sound queues. Telling everyone else when to do things. I’m bossy. But I’m not that bossy. I’m a good bossy.” Forte aims to go to school for stage management and is eyeing a future behind the scenes on Broadway or a television show. She said getting to use the high school’s state-of-the-art auditorium, which opened in spring 2021, makes her feel more prepared for that. “I get to use technology I get to use in the real world,” she said. “It’s not going to be this huge jump.”

Goldhirsch, who is in his second year with the Hardscrabble Players, likewise said the auditorium creates an atmosphere that adds to the excitement as a performer. “I can’t imagine theater without it,” he said. “It’s a very high-tech auditorium for a high school to have.”

For his own role, Goldhirsch called Amos Heart a “really sad person,” to which he can relate. He said he began high school as more “quiet and reserved,” but he's come out of his shell, with joining the drama club one reason for it. “I get to dive back into that in a really fun way,” he said. “I think it’s most fun to be able to take that part of my life that I did live and make that connection to the character.”

The group will put on 7 p.m. shows on Friday, March 8, and Saturday, March 9, and a 2 p.m. show Sunday, March 10, at the high school, 103 West Market St. Tickets are available online at showtix4u.com/event-details/81456, and are available at the door.

Forte said the magic is created when everything comes together. “It’s when there’s like this little moment where it all clicks together perfectly,” the senior said of her hope for the shows. “It’s very important for people to see that and that’s when you get those jaw-dropping moments. I hope that happens with some of our numbers, because they’re so amazing and we’ve worked so hard on them. I hope it just clicks.”

Students paused their morning walk to class and crowded a Mill Road Intermediate School library window. With coats and backpacks still on, they surveyed 16 colorful bookmarks adorning the glass, pointing out and discussing their favorites. Then they dispersed, only for another crowd to form. The students created the decorations as part of the library’s annual Bookmark Design Showcase, which invited the Red Hook Central School District’s third-, fourth- and fifth-grade students to put their artistic skills on display while celebrating reading.

This year’s showcase saw 183 students create bookmarks, all of which were on display for two weeks before teachers and students picked their favorites. The bookmark selected for each grade is then sent to a printer to be professionally produced and distributed among the students, said Jennifer Quinn-Carl, the library media specialist who initiated the showcase nearly a decade ago. The design themes ranged from well-known characters Spider-Man and Disney’s Stitch, to school spirit slogans like “Red Hook Readers,” and drawings of ice cream and animals with captions encouraging reading. One depicted a sleeping fox with a caption “Snuggle up and read a tail.” “They try really hard,” said Ms. Quinn-Carl, who initiated the annual showcase eight years ago. “Everybody gathers and sees them. My favorite part is filling the windows,” she said. “It’s the showcase piece that I love.”

Teachers selected five finalists from each of the three grade groups; there were six finalists for the third grade as there was a tie. From there, students cast votes during library classes through a Google form Quinn-Carl created.

The list of finalists included:

Third grade: Olivia Lozito, Grace McLaughlin, Ruth McLaughlin, James Fackler, Juliet Degraff, Blakeley Waz.

Fourth grade: John Haines, Edith Hedges, Tessa Martin, Layla Shumen, Sophia Degraff.

Fifth grade: Litzy Castillejos Bolanos, Jean Peterson, Yuliana Mena Godinez, Maria Barr, Elliot Tseng.

Olivia Lozito’s “Read Wild” design, which included plants, animals and tropical colors, was favored in the third grade; in the fourth grade it was Sophia’s Degraff’s “Grow a Love of Reading” design, featuring a tree branching into different educational subjects; and in the fifth, Jean Peterson’s “Books are so Fire” design with a cartoon hot sauce bottle, and Maria Barr’s “Read” design featuring animals and a pink background, tied as favorite.

Ms. Quinn-Carl said 350 copies of each grade’s favored bookmark will be created and will be available at the library until they run out. There were other students, whose bookmarks did not make the final group, who were given the option of having color copies printed at the school to be kept in the library. And every student is given the option of having their bookmark laminated before it is returned to them. “Some kids make their own copies and swap and trade with friends,” the librarian said. “We try to celebrate all of them.”

Ms. Quinn-Carl has a collection in the library of some past bookmarks that were either especially creative or she was given by proud creators. One featured a Taylor Swift theme; another depicted a book reading a book with a caption “Even books read books.” While the showcase lasts only a handful of weeks each year, the bookmarks themselves have a long life in the school and with the students.

“Kids will forget bookmarks in their books all the time,” Quinn-Carl said. “Occasionally, a kid will check out a book that hasn’t gone out in a year or two and they’ll find a vintage bookmark. ‘I found the Dragon!’ You know, which is fun.”