AP Highlights

The Averill Park Central School District invites residents to hear from the candidates running for the Board of Education during a Meet the Candidates Night on Tuesday, May 7 at 7:00 PM at the APHS LGI. On the same night, the District will hold a Budget Hearing at 6:30 PM and a Board of Education Meeting at 7:45 PM. The community is invited to attend all of these events.

There are three (3) candidates seeking two (2) open seats on the Board of Education this year. Each carries a new three-year term beginning July 1, 2024. Candidate biographies will be posted on the District website in the near future.

Candidates include (in order listed on the ballot as determined by a random drawing):

• Thomas Cooley
• Jessica Zweig
• Lauren Jacobs

The Meet the Candidates Night will include a question-and-answer period. To submit a question, email submitquestions@apcsd.org by 5:00 PM on Friday, May 3. Questions should be general and addressed to all candidates. Due to time constraints, all questions may not be answered. The District may compile and edit questions based on popular themes.

Candidates will each be allowed a two-minute introduction to begin. This will be followed by a series of questions asked by the moderator which each candidate will have a set time to respond. A one-minute closing statement per candidate will end the session.

On the latest episode of the Every Student Every Day Podcast, Superintendent Dr. James Franchini welcomes AP coaches Keith Meissner and Sean Organ; two seniors from the girls varsity basketball team, Taylor Holohan and Tatiana Tune; and two seniors from the varsity wrestling team, Jacob Hanlon and John Welcome IV. The group discusses what drew them to athletics, what it was like playing with roaring crowds, and more. All of the episodes are available here or wherever you listen to podcasts, including Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, and more.

On Friday, April 26, in honor of Arbor Day, MHSL had a guest speaker Mr. Brian Smith, a Certified Arborist (#SW-0039AT), who talked about tree science and how trees can vary. Also, a new tree was planted in recognition of the 2024 MHSL Grade five students (future APHS class of 2031).

Thank you to Mr. Brian Smith and to the MHSL PTA.

At PES, 2nd graders had a visit in April from baby chickens. They learned about the life cycle of chickens as a part of their cycles in nature science unit.

In April, AMS held its first school-wide dance in many years. There was a great turnout of nearly 300 students who enjoyed dancing in the Blue Gym and basketball in the Gold Gym. Thanks go out to the AMS Student Council and advisor Kathy Slyer for organizing this great event.

Congratulations to the Averill Park Athletic Hall of Fame Class of 2024, which included Don Favro (‘98), Kevin Kronau (‘60), Jonathan Rogers Jr (‘13), Rudy Winkler (‘13), Ben Wright (‘96), and the 2009-10 Girls Basketball Team!

Learn more here.

As the main event of APHS's final Wellness Week of the year, students attended a keynote address with speaker Lasada Pippen, who shared his message about persistence, hard work, and following our passions! Afterwards, Lasada spent the lunches connecting with students.

As part of the Capital Project, the new press box was installed.

Three talented APHS art students had work selected for Questar III’s 35th Annual Juried Art Exhibit! For this show, 21 schools participated, and on April 16th, APHS student Mikayla Malenfant took first place at the reception!

Click here to see their art.

Congratulations to the Grounds Department, including Kevin Beale, Scott Shoemaker, and Jesse Shepard, for being named Averill Park CSD Employees of the Month for March 2024! The Grounds Department at AP has done an outstanding job taking care of three elementary schools, a middle school, a high school, and multiple sport fields. Not even harsh weather got in their way.

AP Athletics is hiring for a Girls Modified Soccer Head Coach. If you're interested, please submit a letter of interest and a resume to bubniakm@apcsd.org.

The recent 2024 athletic Hall of Fame induction ceremony was featured in a NewsChannel 13 video. Click here to watch.

APHS students in Mr. Miller's Financial Algebra class had a lengthy discussion on how to file their income taxes. They went through tax forms like a w2 and a w4 and discussed the programs and businesses that could help with filing.

AMS Nature Club cleaned up around the school and outside the cafeteria area a few days ago in honor of Earth Day. Club members want to remind others to keep planet Earth clean!

One of the APHS science rooms recently had a local, overwintered nucleus honeybee colony loaded into its observation hive! Students will now be able to watch and learn all about honey bees in a hands on way, seeing all the inner workings of the colony as it goes through the cycles of the upcoming seasons!

The APHS Civic Ecology Club hosted a guest speaker in honor of Earth Day. Jodi Smits Anderson gave a presentation that engaged and encouraged students to explore what can be learned from nature so that they can find opportunities to help our local community and to help the Earth thrive.

The Averill Park Central School District is hiring full-time, part-time and substitute employees for the 2023-24 school year!

Full-time positions offer excellent benefits including health, dental and vision insurance on day 1, membership in the NYS Retirement system, an optional 403b or 457 plan, and paid sick, personal and vacation time. If you or someone you know may be interested in any of the following positions, give us a call at 518-674-7060 or email us at apapplications@apcsd.org. We look forward to hearing from you!

Click here to learn more.

Rayonnette Brock (6th grade) and Tupper Grimard (8th grade) performed at the NYSSMA Piano Solo Festival at SUNY SCCC in March! Rayonnette played a Level 2 piano solo and Tupper played a Level 3 piano solo. They both got scores in the outstanding category! In April, the band and orchestra students also gave great performances for NYSSMA.

Dan Nester, author and professor at St, Rose College came to Mrs. Monroe's Rock and Roll class to teach about the music of Queen in April. He discussed the path of Queen from the 70's until today, Queen's four powerhouse members and their contributions and the music fragmentation that led to many genres of music that we know and love today.

On Tuesday, April 23, Averill Park and many other school districts, and some of their students, across the region participated in the Improving Schools Through Student Empowerment Summit hosted by Questar III BOCES.

It is a pleasure to list the students who qualified for the third quarter honor rolls at Averill Park High School. Click here to read more.

Averill Park Central School District received the Utica National Insurance Group’s “School Safety Excellence Award” for 2024 at the Titanium with Honors level.

The District accepted a certificate to commemorate the District’s safety efforts and a check for $500 to put toward school safety.

The HS Jazz Ensemble participated in the 20th anniversary Shenendehowa Jazz Festival on April 19. They had an opportunity to play three selections for a panel of renowned jazz educators, received a short clinic from international artists and jazz saxophonist Dr. Jimmy Greene, followed by a longer clinic and an opportunity to hear other ensembles.

APHS students who participated in the Wellness Through Nature Immersion programming this year participated in their final session at Valentino Community Forest in Grafton with members of the Rensselaer Plateau Alliance, Inc. They learned about the abundance of life in vernal pools, helped set up bluebird boxes, and reflected on their experiences with journal writing around a campfire.

The APHS Class of 2026 had fun at their Sophomore Soiree!

Recently Anastazia Marcy, a student from APHS and Donald R. Kline Technical School, was featured in an article by General Aviation News. The article goes into detail about her flying achievements and the Questar III aviation program at Donald R. Kline Technical School.

Read the article here.

Building and Grounds renovated the old trainer's room at APHS. Half of the renovated space will be used for the Kindness Closet and half of the space will be used by officials/referees.

The Kindness Closet will be a safe space for students to access any clothing or personal items that they may be in need of. Students and a trusted adult will work together to find a time to visit the space and take what is needed. At this time, the closet is filled thanks to generous donations from HS employees. The Kindness Closet will be ready for use on May 8.

Have something you would like to see covered on the website/social media? Email our Communications Technician at reama@apcsd.org.

Website: averillpark.k12.ny.us
Location: 146 Gettle Road, Averill Park, NY, USA
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AverillParkCentralSchoolDistrict/
Twitter: @AverillParkCSD