BOCES Employee Newsletter

The BTTC building is officially complete! Thank you to everyone who helped make this dream a reality.

Broome-Tioga BOCES officially opened the Broome-Tioga Trades Complex on Thursday, Oct. 9, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Glenwood Road campus. The event marked the completion of a state-of-the-art facility dedicated to preparing students for high-demand careers in the skilled trades.

Superintendent Dr. Rebecca Stone welcomed community leaders, staff, students, and guests, emphasizing the importance of the new center. “This is more than a building, it’s an investment in our region’s workforce and a symbol of what can happen when education, industry, and government work together,” she said.

Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo, who played a key role in securing funding for the project, spoke about the collaborative effort that brought the center to life. Other speakers highlighted the facility’s role in addressing workforce shortages and expanding opportunities for local students.

The BTTC will provide hands-on training in heavy equipment operation and other career and technical fields that are critical to the region’s economy. Following the ceremony, attendees toured the facility and saw demonstrations from students and instructors.

The center is part of a broader initiative to strengthen partnerships between education and industry, ensuring that students gain real-world skills that lead directly to employment.

Exciting progress continues at the O&M site! The building is now fully enclosed, and interior wall

construction will begin in early October. Work remains on track for completion in December, with staff moving in shortly after.

See the progress in action! Here's a short video highlighting the ongoing work at the O&M site - take a look at how far the project has come!

As we prepare for the new addition to the Education Center, contractors will begin demolishing the old Animal Science building, along with a few smaller buildings and the fuel tanks. For safety, fencing will be placed around the area (see below). Once staff have moved into the new O&M Building, the O&M building will be taken down. We anticipate that all demolition will be completed by early January.

If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to your building administrator.

Thank you for your continued support of this project, and please let us know if you have any

questions or concerns.

Team,

Just a quick update on some projects we have going on around the education center campus.

The over 20-year-old gym divider wall has finally been replaced. The new wall is installed and ready to be used.

The single stall bathrooms in the 300 wing are also completed.

Bollards and some paving has been done in front of the new animal science building.

Stay tuned for more.

The Health and Safety Department has been working with districts to ensure updated emergency response plans are submitted on time to the New York State Education Department through the NYSED portal.

The department is also helping districts submit lead-in-drinking-water test results to the state Health Commerce System’s HERDS reporting site. Under new Department of Health regulations, all school districts must test all potable water outlets—any outlet used for drinking or cooking—between December 2022 and December 2025.

Districts must complete the first round of water sampling by Dec. 31, 2025, and report any outlets with lead levels exceeding 5 parts per billion to their local health department. They must also post laboratory results and any remediation actions on their district website. New York state is providing funding to support necessary remediation to ensure students have access to safe drinking water.

In the coming months, the department will conduct fall playground inspections and prepare to move to its new on-campus location.

New Safety Data Sheets (SDS) are now available to all employees and can be easily accessed online using a QR Code. These sheets provide important information about the chemicals and materials used in our buildings, including safe handling, storage, and emergency procedures.

Posters with the QR code are available to have printed through Document Services through their catalog.

Please take time to review them so you know where to find critical safety information when needed.

The BOCES Business Office recently had the pleasure of hosting several board members for an engaging and informative visit. The team was excited to share the essential work they do behind the scenes to support the mission and operations of Broome-Tioga BOCES. From managing budgets and financial reporting to ensuring smooth day-to-day operations, the Business Office plays a critical role in keeping our organization running efficiently. The visit provided a valuable opportunity to highlight the team's dedication, expertise, and the impact of their work on students and staff.

We’re proud of the Business Office team and grateful for their continued commitment to excellence!

We extend our sincere appreciation to Jody Reynolds for generously sharing her time and expertise with two Instructional Program teachers currently enrolled in an Educational Leadership Program. Jody provided a thoughtful and informative overview of the BT BOCES budgeting process, financial reporting, and the fiscal challenges faced by our organization. Her insights not only deepened their understanding of school finance but also helped bridge the gap between classroom leadership and BOCES wide decision-making.

We’ve been making a focused effort to build stronger connections with our component districts. Over the past couple of months, we’ve started visiting buildings, meeting staff, and seeing firsthand the amazing things happening in schools across our region. These face-to-face visits have been a fantastic way to strengthen relationships, spark new ideas, and better understand how we can support the incredible work being done.

During one recent visit, we were inspired to organize a spice collection for the UE Family Support Center food pantry—just one small way for the CBO to give back to a place that gives so much to others. It’s been truly uplifting to connect, collaborate, and contribute in meaningful ways throughout our school communities!

The Document Services team at Broome-Tioga BOCES has been hard at work since the first day of school, making sure districts have what they need to launch a successful year. Since Sept. 1, our black-and-white shop has completed 11,798 jobs. Our Color Production team also had an exceptionally busy month, successfully printing and completing 8,700 jobs for our 15 component school districts—an outstanding achievement. On top of that, our wide format shop produced 418 posters, banners, and signs, delivering bold, eye-catching visuals that make a big impact in schools and at events.

Project Highlights
• Harpursville CSD Capital Project – We provided the finishing touches, including refreshed dugout graphics that give their facilities a bold new look.

• Glenwood Campus Wayfinding Signs – As part of an interdepartmental project, our CPR team created the design, Document Services produced the vinyl-wrapped signs, and O&M handled installation. The result is a fresh set of wayfinding signs across campus to help guide and welcome visitors.

Looking Ahead
From essential print runs to large-scale custom work, Document Services continues to deliver high-quality results that support our schools and communities. Thank you for continuing to place your trust in our services—we look forward to supporting you in the months ahead.

This fall, the team planned and coordinated media coverage for the Broome-Tioga Trades Complex ribbon-cutting ceremony, ensuring strong regional visibility for the new facility. They also created a range of materials to support daily operations, including new graphics for the Education Center, signage for Operations and Maintenance, and wayfinding signs across the main campus. In addition, the department produced training videos for the RIC to support staff learning and efficiency and created materials for the upcoming LISC.

Professional development has also been a priority. The team recently completed training with the New York State School Public Relations Association on website accessibility guidelines. With new state regulations set to take effect in April 2027, this knowledge is essential to ensuring that BOCES websites and resources remain accessible to all school communities.

The department’s work reflects its commitment to strengthening communication, improving visibility, and providing high-quality resources that serve both staff and students.

The Rock on Café recipe group recently met to work on some new ideas, including a kale salad.

Chenango Valley MS/HS was recognized as the Rock on Café Kitchen of the Month.

October is Media Literacy Month! With the increase of AI usage in society, media literacy is a civic necessity. Media literacy is the ability to access, analyze, evaluate, create, and act using all forms of media, from traditional news sources to social media. In an era where misinformation, disinformation, and malinformation (MDM) are rampant, our collective focus as educators must be on developing the critical thinking skills that allow students to be active, discerning consumers and creators of content.

Generative AI tools like ChatGPT and Midjourney are making it exponentially easier to create hyper-realistic text, images, and video, thus making it harder to discern between synthetic content and reality. For our students, this means a shift from merely vetting the credibility of a human author to also critically evaluating AI-generated content for bias, accuracy, and ethical implications. Test your abilities with this short quiz from Britannica Education, Real or AI?

To effectively address this challenge, educators and administrators can take some simple steps to integrate media literacy and AI literacy year-round.

• Integrate Critical Analysis: Ask students to critically analyze sources and media they come across in lessons by asking questions such as Who created this? Why was it made? Whose perspectives might be missing?

• Utilize Resources: Leverage age-appropriate lessons from organizations like Common Sense Education and the News Literacy Project to guide instruction for K-12.
  
  

Interested in having your teachers learn more around media literacy? Check out these sessions Alicia Sherman and Marissa McNamara are offering later this year.
Media & AI Literacy for the Elementary Classroom- 1/29 AM
Media & AI Literacy for the Secondary Classroom -1/29 PM

Upcoming Professional Learning and Events

Kyle Verspoor from the Ed Tech Team leads AI pilot work in ME. This work was celebrated in the Spartan back to school edition.

Stacy Ott was promoted to Manager of Regional Professional Development Services for Special Education

October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month, and the SCRIC is proud to be an official Champion of this global initiative: Cybersecurity Awareness Month (link https://www.staysafeonline.org/cybersecurity-awareness-month) This year’s theme, “Stay Safe Online,” reminds us that cybersecurity doesn’t have to be complicated. Small, consistent actions make a big difference. Here are four simple steps everyone can take to strengthen their security.

1. Use strong passwords — Create unique, complex passwords for each account, and use a password manager to keep them safe.

2. Turn on multifactor authentication (MFA) — Add an extra layer of protection to accounts with MFA whenever possible.

3. Keep software up to date — Regular updates patch vulnerabilities and improve security.

4. Recognize and report scams — Stay alert for suspicious emails, links, or messages and report them promptly.

Daniel Wilson was promoted from PT Student Assistant to PT IT Assistant

The Broome-Tioga BOCES Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee continues to advance its mission of fostering belonging and awareness across the organization. During its most recent meeting, members discussed what it means to serve on the committee, emphasizing the importance of acting as liaisons to their departments and sharing information and resources that make inclusion part of everyday work.

Committee members were encouraged to offer their expertise, represent their department’s perspective, and commit to continued learning in support of a more inclusive environment.

The group also reviewed a proposal to relaunch the BOCES Wellness Committee, which would focus on integrating wellness initiatives into the 2025-26 school year. Members expressed strong support for the idea and an interest in learning from organizations with proven success in employee wellness programs.

Looking ahead, the committee identified several priority areas for 2025-26, including:

• Developing mentorship opportunities

• Identifying and addressing areas of underrepresentation

• Improving physical accessibility across campuses

• Gathering staff input through surveys and focus groups

• Supporting inclusion for the neurodivergent community

Through these efforts, the DEI Committee remains committed to creating meaningful and lasting change that ensures every employee feels valued and included at Broome-Tioga BOCES.

Looking to connect with colleagues who share similar interests? Broome-Tioga BOCES offers a variety of affinity groups that bring employees together for fun, connection, and belonging. Current groups include BOCES Runs and Walks, Game Night, LGBTQ+, and Pickleball.

To learn more or view flyers for each group, visit the DEI webpage.

Employees can also sign up to start a new affinity group or explore additional opportunities for involvement.