Owego Apalachin Central School District

Happy Teacher Appreciation Week! Thank you for all that you do for our students. #OARiverHawks #sOArTogether #OACommunity #OAPride #OATradition

OA School Community, If you missed the OES Green Team textile drop-off day, you are in luck! Extended drop off days: May 5th - 9th and May 12th - 16th Time: 8:30 am - 3:00 pm (bags can also be sent in with an OES student) Where: Owego Elementary School (OES) - bags will need to be walked into the building. Just let the office know what the bags are for:) What: We are collecting: used clothes, towels, hats, bedding, outerwear, cloth bags, belts, and shoes (rubber band them and bag separately if possible). These items are items you wouldn’t take to the mission. They can be any shape, size, or condition (they can even have holes:) they just can’t be moldy or wet!! Please bring items in bags if possible:) Why: We want to RECYCLE instead of filling the landfill and save you MONEY!!! Contact Information: For any questions, please reach out to either: Jessie Barnes: Barnesj@oacsd.org Stephen Ferraro: Ferraros@oacsd.org Thank you, The Green Team Click here for the PDF letter: https://5il.co/3f7o7 #OARiverHawks #sOArTogether #OACommunity #OAPride

Behind-the-Scenes: Lockheed Martin Robotics Lesson “It’s pretty cool because they’ve been doing this for decades, and I’m just learning about it now. So it’s just cool to see all of their experiences they went through throughout the years.” Students got the chance to learn from some engineers from Lockheed Martin. Get a behind-the-scenes look at their robotics lesson on Showcase Classroom TV. https://youtu.be/1xW2ob-QZTM

New month means new great opportunities for students here at OFA. Here are some of our upcoming events. This information is also located throughout our building on various TV’s and bulletin boards. If interested, scan the QR code and register today! #OACareerCenter #OARiverHawks #oacsd #hawkpride #SchoolCommunityOne #SOAR

Coach Profile: Emily Crawford “Just continuing to foster that love of the game and the fun. I say that the winning will come, but we need to make good fundamentals happen every day.” Softball Coach Emily Crawford played softball in college and is now enjoying the unique opportunity of coaching her children. Learn more about Emily Crawford and her goals for the program in this Coach Profile on Showcase Sports TV. https://youtu.be/UJ60I-evqrk

Good Afternoon, OA School Community, The last day of instruction for the 2024-2025 school year will be as follows: Owego Free Academy (Grades 9-12) - Monday, June 16, 2025 (Full-Day) Regents Exams and Local Exams will be held on June 10th and 11th, and from June 17th through June 27th (Regents Letter - https://5il.co/3786i) Owego Apalachin Middle School (Grades 6-8) - Friday, June 20, 2025 (Half-Day) OAMS will dismiss students at 12:00 pm Owego and Apalachin Elementary Schools (Grades PreK-5) - Friday, June 20, 2025 (Half-Day) OES & AES will dismiss students at 11:00 am. There will not be any after-school programs. Wednesday, June 18th, will be the last day of the After-School Program. Monday, June 23rd, will be a Superintendent’s Conference Day. All local and Regents testing will follow the schedule listed in the Regents Letter - https://5il.co/3786i. Other Upcoming Dates School Budget Vote - Tuesday, May 20th No School - Friday, May 23rd, and Monday, May 26th No School - Thursday, June 19th (Juneteenth) OFA Graduation - Friday, June 20th Please contact your child’s building directly with any questions. Or reach out using Let’s Talk! - https://www.oacsd.org/page/lets-talk. Click here for a PDF version of the letter: https://5il.co/3f5vc #OARiverHawks #sOArTogether

Kindergarten Registration is Open - Register as soon as possible! Screening for OES is on May 20th, and AES is on May 28th. Children are eligible for Kindergarten if his/her birth date is ON or BEFORE 12/1/2020. Contact the building directly with questions. #OARiverHawks

NOTICE TO THE OA SCHOOL COMMUNITY Please be advised that the Owego Apalachin Central School District community pool will be shut down starting May 23rd until further notice as part of a scheduled capital improvement project. This work goes beyond routine maintenance and repairs and represents a significant investment in upgrading and improving the facility. At this time, we anticipate the pool will be ready for use in time for Fall sports in August. We appreciate your understanding and support as we work to enhance the long-term safety, functionality, and quality of the pool. Thank you, Owego Apalachin Central School District

ICYMI: The state Education Department released the results of last year’s Regents exams. A total of 114 school districts had proficiency levels of 95% or better. OFA is ranked 27th in the state with a 98% proficiency level. The state had data on history Regents results for a total of 631 districts across New York. https://www.syracuse.com/hslife/2025/04/see-ny-school-districts-ranked-1-to-631-by-us-history-and-government-regents-exams.html View more OFA data here: https://data.nysed.gov/profile.php?instid=800000036527. #OFARiverHawks #sOArTogether

Teacher Spotlight: Sean Carney “The different experiences we are able to give the kids. What we teach in our department is not typical coursework.” Sean Carney has been teaching for six years at Owego, and he shares with us some of the reasons why he enjoys it so much. Learn more about Mr. Carney and what some of his goals as a teacher are in this Teacher Spotlight on Showcase Classroom TV. https://youtu.be/nRRAnVtbQSo

The OES Green Team and North Star Recycling are teaming up for a Fill That Truck Event on Saturday, May 3, 2025. Drop-off will take place at OES from 10 am to Noon. They are collecting: used clothes, towels, hats, bedding, outerwear, cloth bags, belts, and shoes (rubber band them and bag separately if possible). These items are items you wouldn’t take to the mission. They can be any shape, size, or condition (they can even have holes:) they just can’t be moldy or wet!! Please bring items in bags if possible:) Click here for PDF letter: https://5il.co/3essx. #OARiverHawks #sOArTogether

Season Preview: Track and Field “We have 90 kids signed up for outdoor track between the boys and the girls, which is the most that we’ve had in a really long time.” Head Track and Field Coach Scott Senko talks about how the team is looking this season and the unique opportunity of having so many athletes on the team. Learn more about the Track and Field team in this Season Preview on Showcase Sports TV. https://youtu.be/3vAVxHPyeko

OACSD 2025-2026 Proposed School Budget Update At the April 16th Board of Education meeting, the 2025-2026 Proposed School Budget was approved and will go to a vote on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. At the meeting, the BOE also made a change to the Owego polling location, relocating it from the OAMS lobby to the District Office - Board of Education Room. The Apalachin location will remain the same in the cafeteria at Apalachin Elementary School. Your voting location is based on residency. If you have any questions, please contact the District Clerk at (607) 687-6215 or email vote@oacsd.org. Anyone in need of an absentee ballot should also contact the clerk. Proposed Budget At A Glance Total Revenue Budget = $59,769,964 (3.27%) Total Expense Budget = $59,769,964 (3.27%) Total State Aid = $33,283,306 (5.43%) Property Tax Levy = $18,619,730 (1.99%) Reserves/Fund Balance = $40,000 You can review the Final Budget Presentation here: https://5il.co/3ejmo. A proposed budget information session will be on Thursday, May 1, 2025, at Apalachin Elementary School at 6:00 pm. You can watch the AES Budget Info Session livestream here - https://youtube.com/live/lgtcZSDILRE?feature=share. The Official Budget Public hearing will be held on May 5, 2025, at the BOE Room at the District Office at 6:00 pm. You can watch the Public Budget Hearing livestream here - https://youtube.com/live/H407yAoS6sI?feature=share. The School Budget Vote and Board of Education elections will take place on Tuesday, May 20, 2025, from Noon to 8:00 pm. As more budget information becomes available and finalized, you will find it on our website here: https://www.oacsd.org/page/school-budget-information A printed and digital budget newsletter will be made available within the coming weeks. Please reach out with any questions by using Let’s Talk! - https://www.oacsd.org/page/lets-talk. #OARiverHawks #sOArTogether #OACommunity #OAPride #OATradition

It was our pleasure to host Christopher from the Racker Center to help educate our students on the employment and career possibilities that they have. Thank you for being here! #OACareerCenter #OARiverHawks #oacsd #SOAR #hawkpride #SchoolCommunityOne

With over 150 student employment positions we take pride in helping our students complete the application process to become student workers. Pictured here are music department student workers being guided by our expert career center student workers on how to complete the process. #OACareerCenter #OARiverHawks #oacsd #SOAR #hawkpride #SchoolCommunityOne

Practice Makes Perfect: All-out Catch Drill “So this drill is just working on them getting a little bit more comfortable with getting down on the ground and going all out for the ball.” Head Softball Coach Emily Crawford runs through what the girls have been practicing regarding dives and catches. Learn more about what the girls have been up to on Showcase Sports TV. https://youtu.be/hlGs_GBQSXI

OA Update: What’s Happening In Our Community - Check out these great programs, events, and more. The Dance Station - Free Classes: 4/23-5/1 - https://5il.co/3e5gf OA Cheer Camp: 5/3 - https://5il.co/3d21r BRCASD Mindfulness And Yoga: 5/10- https://5il.co/3an1w Tioga County Soil & Water - Stream Cleanup: 5/18 - https://5il.co/3eo4v Tioga County - I Voted Sticker Contest: https://5il.co/3dbw2 Apalachin Library - Book Workshop For Kids: 5/31 - https://5il.co/3eo1p Owego Apalachin Football Club 2025 Registration: 6/14 - https://5il.co/3acsa Waterman Explore Camp 2025: 7/14 - https://5il.co/3aoer Waterman Owego Rec Camp 2025: 7/30 - https://5il.co/3aoeq Kids Bowl Free - Summer 2025 - https://5il.co/3eo52 Binghamton Umpires - Baseball and Softball Umpire Recruitment - https://5il.co/36pw4 Animal Care Sanctuary - Shelter Buddies Reading Program - https://5il.co/2zu34 Join Scouts - Troop 38, Troop 638, Cub Scout Pack 37, and 43 - https://5il.co/2v9y2 Owego Nazarene After School Program - https://5il.co/2u96a Family Enrichment Network Head Start Registration - https://5il.co/2kghn Find more Community Fliers here: https://www.oacsd.org/documents/community-fliers/237411. If you are involved in an organization that would like to share a flier with the OA school community, please submit it through Let’s Talk! for approval. Select ‘Digital Flier Distribution Submission’ under Communications here - https://www.oacsd.org/page/lets-talk. #OARiverHawks #sOArTogether #OACommunity #OAPride #OATradition

In the Classroom: Robotics Lesson “These are little tiny robots that you train. They already have firmware on them installed that basically reads through lines of color.” Seventh-grade students got the chance to learn about firmware and software in robotics from Lockheed Martin engineers. See how they trained their robots before the big race here on Showcase Classroom TV. https://youtu.be/8TIIwXdn66c

Educator Spotlight: Chris Adams “I’m always inspired to see the kids focused and working hard at learning things. Just spending time with kids.” Private drum teacher Chris Adams has been helping the percussion students prepare for their garbage can and bucket drumming performances. Learn more about Chris Adams and how she started drumming when she was just a child, and some of her favorite memories she has made as a teacher along the way, here on Showcase Arts TV. https://youtu.be/2cZxJwnm8tk

Athlete Tip: Throwing a Screwball “I throw the backwards 'c' like this and it’s going to come off my pointer finger.” Carsten Crawford breaks down how to throw a screwball. Learn from her in this week’s athlete tip video on Showcase Sports TV. https://youtu.be/ta47b8T1DOk