Wood sworn in; football will merge

Feb 17, 2015 at 11:42 pm by Observer-Review


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Wood sworn in; football will merge

ODESSA--Christopher Wood was sworn in as superintendent for the Odessa-Montour Central School District at the district's monthly school board meeting Thursday, Feb. 12. Wood is currently the principal of the O-M junior senior high school where he has served since 2012. He will start as superintendent April 1.
"I look forward to meeting with district leadership as we work together to create a comprehensive entry plan," Wood said. "Our first priority is the education of our students and delivering innovative programs and services that will enhance our students' academic achievement."
Robert Halpin, Odessa-Montour Central School District's board president, stated, "The board is pleased to introduce Chris Wood as the district's next superintendent. The search process narrowed the field to three excellent candidates. The board values and appreciates input it received from the district's stakeholders and community members. With his dedication, enthusiasm, knowledge and background, the board feels that Chris has all the capacities and attributes necessary to lead the district as we continue to strive to make Odessa-Montour the best possible school district for our students and community."
Wood began teaching in the district in 2005 as an instructional support teacher. Wood continued his career as a social studies and history teacher. In 2011, he was selected as the Odessa-Montour athletic manager and dean of students. Wood earned a bachelor of science in history and education from SUNY Buffalo, and a master of science in education from Elmira College. He also holds certifications as both a New York State school district leader and building leader.
The school board also voted to merge their football teams with Watkins Glen for the upcoming season during the meeting. This measure was already approved by the Watkins Glen school board earlier this month. The districts will now begin working out the details as far as coaches, team name, mascot, colors, etc. for the new team, which will serve as a basis for joined teams between the two districts in the future.
The school boards had previously met in a joint session to discuss the issue in January in order to move in time to have a team prepared for the coming football season. While merger discussion was previously opposed by members of the public prior to last season, the Odessa-Montour football season was forfeited due to their inability to field a minimum roster.
At the Thursday board meeting, Roni Lewis, O-M director of special services, gave a report to the board about special education, and distributed an informational packet to the board members. She described some of the challenges special education faced, including how to discipline students with special needs, forming Individualized Education Programs for students, and meeting state standards concerning issues such as classifying children with disabilities.
"Every child is individual," Lewis said. "We do not have a cookie cutter system, we make sure that the testing accommodations, program accommodations, the services they are provided, the related services are specific and unique to every child and deemed appropriate for their plan."
Lewis encouraged the board to ask her questions, which she would answer at the board's next meeting, March 12.
Peter Punzo, interim district superintendent, spoke to the rest of the board about the special education budget, saying that while the New York State Report Card data for the last three years is not yet available, the cost per child in special education was going down. He said that while the number of children the district had in special education increased from 103 in the 2013-14 academic year, to 106 in 2014-15 to 109 in 2015-16 due to changing state standards, the budget decreasing meant the cost per student was $20,758, $19,800 and $18,847 in those respective years.
Punzo said he hoped the report card numbers would confirm the decreasing costs per student, but suggested even one or two more special education students being enrolled would likely negate this development.
"I would like to think that if we have reduced instructional costs and we have increased enrollment, that this kind of number is going to go down," he said.
The board discussed a proposal to authorize a capital project to replace the track and bus garage roof, mentioning it would be under discussion in a future board workshop. The project's cost has not been officially determined, but estimates range from $750,000 to $1 million, which would come from the capital reserve.
"We need to make sure it's consistent with the long-term strategic plan we've been talking about the last couple years, and it's a good use for a million dollars or 750 or whatever it is," Robert Halpin, president of the board, said.
The board discussed the recent building condition survey. Robert Tuttle, a member of the board, mentioned issues such as possible vulnerabilities in building security, cast iron pipes that are 50 to 60 years old and cannot be turned off easily, and the need for a new speaker system.
Shortly after the meeting began, the board had an executive session to discuss CSE recommendations, collective negotiations and personnel matters. The meeting adjourned at 7:53 p.m.

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