BOCES Employee Newsletter

Welcome back! Thank you for joining us for Opening Day and helping us begin the new school year together. Please take a few minutes to watch the latest edition of BOCES Now using the link below. I also encourage you to visit the BOCES Academy to watch the NY Inspires presentation and revisit the inspiring message from our guest speaker, Joe Sanfelippo.

Dr. Rebecca Stone

The O&M Building is in the final stages! The Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) has been completed, and contractors are working through the remaining items as we wrap up.

Great progress continues at the Education Center. The project is really starting to take shape, with
major demolition and structural work moving forward and crews making noticeable progress
throughout the building.

Demolition is complete in the West (Auto-Tech) area, while work in the East (Autobody) area has continued throughout the summer. Underpinning and concrete infills are complete, and the existing roof structure has been removed. New roofing is now underway, along with mechanical, electrical, and plumbing work. Inside the building, painting and finishing work is progressing, and masonry walls are approximately 80% complete.

The courtyard area near hospitality and cosmetology is also coming together. Foundations and
slabs are complete, along with the structural steel and roofing. Framing, mechanical, electrical,
plumbing, and interior finish work are now underway.

In August, contractors completed the steel work. Ironworkers have a tradition known as “Tree-Topping Day,” more commonly referred to as a “Topping Out” or “Topping Off” ceremony. This tradition marks the moment when the final, highest piece of structural steel is hoisted and secured into place, signifying that the building or bridge has reached its maximum height.

A picture of this special tradition is included below.

It’s exciting to see the vision for the CTE addition becoming a reality. We appreciate everyone’s
continued patience and flexibility as construction progresses. We’ll keep sharing updates as we reach new milestones and watch this exciting project take shape.

Welcome back! We hope you had an enjoyable and relaxing summer. As we begin the new school year, we would like to provide a reminder regarding the “DO NOT USE FOR DRINKING” water stickers posted at certain water outlets throughout our buildings.

Under the New York State Department of Health regulations, these signs are required to be posted at any water outlet that is not used for drinking or cooking purposes.

As part of our ongoing commitment to water safety, lead-in-drinking-water testing is conducted every three years to ensure that drinking water meets the required standard of 0.005 parts per billion (PPB). Only water outlets designated for drinking or cooking are required to be tested.

If you see a “DO NOT USE FOR DRINKING” sign posted on or above a water outlet, this means that the outlet was not tested because it is not designated for drinking or cooking purposes. The sign does not necessarily indicate that the water does not meet the required standards; rather, the outlet was not tested and therefore should not be used for drinking or cooking. We ask that if you see a sign missing at any point in the year you please contact our O&M team or the Health and Safety Office.

Broome-Tioga BOCES conducted its most recent water testing on May 2, 2026. The test results are available on our district website for your review.

If you have any questions or would like additional information, please feel free to reach out to the Health and Safety Department at any time.

We wish everyone a safe, healthy, and successful start to the new school year!

At the beginning of the 2026-27 school year, employees will receive a new emergency quick reference card designed to be kept with their BOCES ID badge.

The card provides condensed guidance on the standard response protocol and the actions employees should take during an emergency. It does not attach directly to the badge but fits behind the ID badge in a lanyard holder. Keeping the card with your badge will ensure that important information is readily available when needed.

The cards will be highlighted during the start of school presentation and distributed to departments once they are available. Employees who need a Spanish-language card should reach out to their supervisor, who can order them directly through Document Services.

Please keep the card with your BOCES ID badge throughout the school year and review the information so you are familiar with the appropriate response during an emergency.

To improve efficiency and support our organization's ongoing efforts to go digital, the Operations and Maintenance team has integrated student transportation requests into the Q-Ware work order system.

This new process streamlines all transportation requests into a single location, making it easier to:

• Submit transportation requests
• Track the status of your trips
• Receive timely updates
• Improve communication and overall service

We understand that transitioning to a new process can take time. To make this change as seamless as possible, we have incorporated the student transportation module into the same Q-Ware system you are already familiar with.

The student transportation module is now live, and we encourage everyone to begin submitting transportation requests through Q-Ware and become familiar with the new process.

Our goal is to fully transition to digital transportation requests by Oct. 1, 2026.

• Now through Sept. 30, 2026: We will continue to accept transportation requests through our current methods, including mail, email, and other existing submission processes.
• Beginning Oct. 1, 2026: All student transportation requests must be submitted through the Q-Ware Work Order System. Requests submitted through other methods will no longer be accepted.

If you would like a refresher on using the Q-Ware Work Order System, don't worry O&M's very own AI assistant, Aria, is here to help. Aria provides a quick, easy-to-follow tutorial that walks you through the process of submitting a Student Transportation Request in under four minutes.

Please watch the tutorial video below to learn how to submit your requests through Q-Ware.

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As BOCES welcomes back our 10-month staff, the Business Office has been hard at work preparing for the new school year while simultaneously collaborating with auditors to successfully close out the previous fiscal year. While much of this work takes place behind the scenes, summer is one of the busiest times of the year for the Business Office team.

Purchasing and accounts payable work diligently throughout the summer to establish purchase orders for the upcoming year and ensure that vendors are paid, so programs have the resources they need when students and staff return. Payroll partners closely with human resources to onboard seasonal and part-time employees, ensuring staff are hired into summer positions and compensated for their work.

Contracts and purchasing collaborate to ensure that agreements and service contracts are in place for the new year, while billing and accounts receivable prepare and issue invoices for services provided to component districts, other BOCES, and students participating in adult education programs.

These efforts represent only a portion of the work completed each summer. Countless tasks, large and small, are carried out by dedicated professionals whose work helps keep the organization running smoothly and supports the essential services we provide to students.

With sincere appreciation for the dedication, expertise, and commitment of the entire Business Office team, we thank them for their contributions and look forward to another successful school year together.

September is all about wrapping up and starting new. As one school year closes, another begins - and there’s no shortage of work happening behind the scenes to make that transition as smooth as possible.

The accounting department is wrapping up external audits and has finished the ST3 filing for our components, while payroll is in high gear making sure everything is in place to get staff paid smoothly as the new school year begins.

Our budget and financial analysts are already diving into preparations for budget season (yes, it’s that time again!). Purchasing, accounts payable and the internal claims audit team are working through the flood of summer ordering.

Document Services continues to support both our component districts and BOCES programs with a variety of print, signage, branding, and wide-format projects. Recent work has included custom graphics and installations at the West Learning Center, Deposit Middle-High School, and Vestal, as well as projects throughout BOCES.

We have also been working on new signage, graphics, and other visual elements for spaces at the Education Center and the new Adult LPN Nursing building. These projects are a great example of how Document Services can work with our own BOCES programs from concept through production and installation to help create professional, welcoming spaces that reflect each program’s identity.

At the same time, our production teams continue to manage the significant volume of day-to-day printing needed by districts and BOCES programs as the new school year gets underway.

Document Services has had an extremely busy start to the school year. Since Sept. 1, our black & white production area has completed 11,798 jobs. During the month of August, our color production team completed 37,401 jobs, with a total copy count of approximately 2.1 million.

These numbers represent the tremendous amount of work moving through the department and the continued demand for Document Services from our districts and BOCES programs.

Over the summer, Document Services participated in the 2026 Broome-Tioga BOCES Leadership Academy, where we had the opportunity to showcase the wide variety of products and services available through our department. Our display included examples of printed publications, spiral-bound materials, specialty products, signage, and other custom pieces.

The event provided a great opportunity to connect with BOCES and district leaders, share ideas, and demonstrate how Document Services can support projects well beyond traditional printing.

Summer is a busy season for the Broome-Tioga BOCES Communications and Public Relations team. While students and educators prepared to return to the classroom, CPR worked behind the scenes to ensure districts, programs, employees and families were informed and ready for the 2026-27 school year.

Throughout the summer, the team produced videos, newsletters, website updates and family communications. Staff developed and updated calendars, handbooks, transportation information, supply lists, construction updates, employee introductions and other materials needed for a successful opening.

CPR also worked with district and BOCES leaders to develop communications roadmaps for the year ahead. These roadmaps connect communication efforts with organizational priorities, establish clear goals and identify campaigns, stories and projects for the school year. This planning allows CPR staff to focus available time and resources on work that provides the greatest value to each district or department.

The team’s summer planning was also informed by a comprehensive department review conducted by Capital Region BOCES in spring 2026. The review examined the services, projects, workflows, customer satisfaction, and organizational structures of CPR and Document Services.

The review was an intentional step in our commitment to continuous improvement. Both CPR and Document Services have experienced significant growth and change, making it important to pause, examine our work from a broader perspective, and consider how services should evolve.

Following the review, staff from both departments met to discuss the findings, ask questions, and offer additional perspectives. Work is now underway to turn that feedback into action.

Recommendations include reviewing job descriptions, developing career pathways, refining CPR’s service model and more clearly defining creative services within CPR and Document Services. The departments are also working toward a shared intake and project-status system to improve the way creative projects are submitted, assigned, and tracked.

The review will serve as a long-term guide rather than a list of changes to complete all at once. Its findings will help BOCES establish priorities and determine how improvements can be implemented thoughtfully over time.

Much of CPR’s summer work happens outside the public view, but its impact can be seen across the region. Every video, newsletter, webpage, communication plan, and family message helps students, employees, and families feel informed, prepared, and connected.

As the 2026-27 school year begins, CPR is ready to continue telling the stories of our schools, supporting organizational priorities and strengthening connections with the communities we serve. This was well documented through our coordinated media coverage from the first day of school. We even hosted reporters from WBNG for LIVE cut ins as students arrived.

As keynote speaker Joe Sanfelippo’s presentation played out at The Forum in downtown Binghamton on September 8, he drew us in with his encouragement to help tell stories of our work, as well as that of others each day. He also reminded us to be cognizant of the fact that we can make a positive impact on someone’s life at any moment, any day, with a simple 30-second interaction.

It was a terrific talk, one that resonates with us all and propels us into a wonderful new school year.

On Wednesday, Sept. 9, we welcomed a full classroom to our Practical Nursing program for the 2026-27 academic year, but perhaps just as exciting was the venue.

Close to 60 students filled the classroom at our Johnson City health care campus, as the year kicked off with syllabus review, followed by “anatomy and physiology.” This is our very first class of nursing students at this Broome-Tioga BOCES new site.

We are looking forward to our ribbon-cutting and official grand opening later this fall at the facility, which will house our nursing, phlebotomy and sterile processing programs.

#theheartofhealthcareeducation

While school was out for most students in the region, Instructional Programs still provided opportunities for students to continue learning! Communications and Public Relations intern and video production student Devyn Simpkins featured some of these programs in a Summer video series!

Check out the CTE Summer Camp video:

Check out the video on the Extended School Year Summer Program:

Check out the STEAM Camp 2026 video:

As we wrap up this year's Summer Food Service Program (SFSP), we want to extend our sincere thanks to everyone who helped make it a success. From our dedicated food service staff to our community partners and volunteers, your commitment ensured that children in our community had access to nutritious meals throughout the summer.

The Summer Meals Program is about much more than providing breakfast and lunch—it helps children stay healthy, energized, and ready to learn while school is out. Every meal served represents our commitment to supporting families and ensuring that no child goes hungry during the summer months.

This season, our team worked tirelessly to prepare, package, and serve thousands of meals with care, all while providing friendly service and creating a welcoming environment for every child who visited our sites. As we close another successful summer, our focus now shifts to preparing for the upcoming school year. Kitchens are being cleaned, equipment is being readied, menus are being finalized, and staff are preparing to welcome students back with healthy, delicious meals on the first day of school.

Thank you to everyone who supported the Summer Food Service Program. We are proud of what we accomplished together and look forward to another outstanding school year serving our students.

We're excited to share that we have collaborated with Document Services to give one of our serving areas a fresh new look! Together, we have designed and installed a custom vinyl wall wrap that has transformed the space into a more vibrant, welcoming, and engaging environment for our students.

This project is another step in creating inviting cafeterias that enhance the dining experience while showcasing the positive energy of our school nutrition program. We appreciate the creativity and expertise of the Document Services team and look forward to unveiling the finished design to the students when they return this fall.

This week, the Broome-Tioga BOCES Professional Learning and Innovation Center (PLIC) welcomed a new group of educators for the first session of this year's New Teacher Institute.

This program gives teachers in their first year of teaching the opportunity to build their instructional toolkit, learn evidence-based strategies, collaborate with fellow educators, and receive coaching to help them meet the needs of their students.

During the first two sessions this week, participants focused on creating welcoming classroom environments, building strong classroom management practices, engaging students, and designing lessons around explicit teaching strategies.

And this is just the beginning!

These new teachers will continue learning and growing together throughout the 2026-27 school year and for the next two years as the New Teachers Institute continues helping them through the early stages of their careers.

In August, SCRIC team members Sarah Ciz, Allison Nowacki, and Morgan Osborne held a training on Canva for their peers. During this time, they shared valuable ways to turn ideas into impactful visuals. Participants were able to try out what they had learned and create together.

A huge thank you goes out to all the participants and presenters!

Sept. 15 is IT Professionals Day! After the chaotic start of school, this gives us a brief moment to celebrate the contributions of all the staff at the SCRIC. We are incredibly grateful for the over 200 IT Professionals we have here. A goodie bag was created for each staff member to help keep them fueled up during this busy time of year!

As we kick off another school year, we'd like to remind everyone of the best way to receive IT support: submit a ServiceNow ticket.

Who should submit a ticket?

The staff member who is experiencing the technical issue or needs IT support should submit the ticket whenever possible. This helps ensure we receive accurate information and allows us to communicate directly with the person affected.

What is a ServiceNow ticket?

A ServiceNow ticket is a formal request that tracks IT issues and support needs while routing them to the appropriate IT team for assistance.

When should you submit a ticket?

As soon as possible, when an issue occurs. The earlier we know about a problem, the sooner we can begin working toward a resolution.

Where do you submit a ticket?

There are two easy ways to contact IT Support:

· Open MyApps and select the ServiceNow tile.

· Call the Help Desk at 607-766-3800.

Why is this important?

Submitting a ServiceNow ticket helps:

· Ensure requests are tracked and do not get lost.

· Route requests to the appropriate team more quickly.

· Help IT prioritize urgent issues and outages.

· Provide accountability and visibility throughout the support process.

· Improve communication and response times.

The beginning of the school year is one of our busiest times, and submitting a ticket is the fastest and most effective way to get the support you need.

Thank you for helping us keep support requests organized so we can better serve everyone across BOCES.

Have a great start to the school year!

Are you currently paying for Kindle Unlimited or Audible? There's exciting news for you - you can get eBooks and audiobooks for free from your public libraries! Because you live and/or work in New York you are able to get cards from several libraries around the state.

With these cards, and the Libby app, you have access to thousands and thousands of eBooks and audiobooks. You can read/listen to the books right on the Libby app OR you can send the eBooks to your Kindle! Click here for more information on the participating libraries and how to get your cards. If you have any questions, or if you’d like to talk books, feel free to reach out to Alicia Sherman, asherman@btboces.org!