It is my belief that students do well when they can, not simply when they want to.  Furthermore, students learn best when their physical, mental and emotional needs are met.  This type of scenario is ideal for schools, but it is not the reality.  What does it look like when a student’s needs are not met?  Avoidance, distraction, disengagement, defiance, disrespect, aggression, truancy, anger and the list goes on.  Educators have seen the impact of unmet student needs within their classrooms and report, that the impact is greater than ever. 
 
The rural landscape of the Cattaraugus-Allegany Region presents a unique set of barriers that increase the complexity of existing systemic barriers for school districts, educators, students, families and communities when it comes to ensuring that all students have access to necessary resources.  Despite the pressure, barriers and growing scope of student needs, is it possible to create conditions that enable every child to succeed?
 
Not only is it possible to create such conditions, it is necessary.  This school year, with the help of 17 of our component school districts, Cattaraugus-Allegany BOCES has begun the work of building the brand new Community Schools CoSer within their Instructional Support Services Division.  The community schools strategy, is an exceptional, evidence-based school improvement tool that enables schools to create supportive conditions for students by sustaining an integrated focus on student support services, expanded learning opportunities, family and community engagement and collaborative leadership. 
 
Each community school is unique and defined based upon needs and assets specific to the respective local context and community.  Therefore, the Community Schools CoSer will also be unique as it grows and develops to fit the needs within the local context of our rural, regional area.  In an effort to influence the region in a meaningful way, we are working collaboratively to complete a thorough assessment of needs and assets, at the district level, as well as at the regional level. 
 
Simultaneously, while working directly with school leaders within each district, there have been ongoing opportunities to meet directly with community partners that provide supports and services to students and families.  The Community Schools CoSer hosted the first Service Showcase in September, bringing community partners and school leaders together to learn about specific services available to districts.  School leaders were provided more information about school based dental care, substance abuse prevention curriculum and a mentoring program.  As a result, six additional districts have school-based dental services available to students and four additional districts have begun preparing to implement a mentoring program for students. 
 
Students do well when they can.  Period.  Through continued collaborative work and problem solving, our region can provide all students with equitable access to resources that allow them to exceed our highest expectations.   
​
By: Kathryn Mendell, CA BOCES Community Schools 

On October 19th, 2018, Cuba-Rushford staff welcomed Mollie Lapi, behavioral specialist from C-A BOCES.  Mollie presented the staff with an overview of brain research on trauma, how the brain works after a student experiences a traumatic event, and trauma informed interventions   A brief overview of the biology of the brain and how it reacts to trauma was addressed.  “This “fight or flight” response is a natural response to stress”, she said.  Mollie also addressed Adverse Childhood Experiences, also known as A.C.E.S.  (Adverse Childhood Experiences) can dramatically affect the quality of health and wellness.  Trauma is toxic to the body, and we can do something about it. 

Mollie, then talked about strategies to help support the students.  She said, “Educators can make a difference; believe your students can grow, change, and succeed?  The common denominator could be YOU!  Help promote resiliency within your classroom.”  Mollie also talked about the “sweet spot”, which means being able to provide emotional nurturance and still expect our students to perform and own, but not judge, their shortcomings.  It is a PROCESS.  There has to be a balance between availability and accountability with the students. 

​The staff was also challenged to make sure to take care of themselves. Mollie stated, “it is so important for the adults working with any students to make sure to manage their own stress.  Health, and wellness are not to be forgotten, especially to help regulate the body and mind.”  The morning was filled with fantastic learning, and the staff was thankful for Mollie’s presentation. 

By:  Kathleen Agnello, CA BOCES Professional Development

This month’s spotlight as we dig a little deeper into the resources we have available to our component school districts in our warehouse is…..our Real Care Baby Simulators!
 
RealCare Baby® 3 (formerly known as Baby Think It Over® or BTIO®) is the world’s most advanced infant simulator. Educators around the world use this unique learning aid to add meaning and accountability to teach early childhood, parenting, infant health lessons and sex education. This smart baby uses wireless programming to track and report on caregiver behaviors, including care events, mishandling actions, time in a car seat and clothing changes. Baby includes four sets of curriculum and activities to help instructors create learning experiences that are relevant and career-driven. 

The RealCare curriculum sections are: 
Basic Infant Care – covers child safety, emergency procedures, child abuse prevention, and infant/toddler development.
Life Skills and Healthy Choices for Middle School Students - an abstinence-plus, comprehensive curriculum focused on sexual education and pregnancy prevention for youth 12-14 years of age.
 
Parenting: A Guide to Parenting Skills for Life – focuses on the stages of child development, parenting styles/impact, the costs involved in raising a child, and much more.
 
Healthy Choices: Relationships, Sexuality, and Family Planning – an abstinence-based, comprehensive curriculum focusing on teen pregnancy prevention. It covers relationships, self-esteem, refusal skills, adolescent health, and reproductive issues, among many other topics.
 
All sections are aligned to the National FACS standards and include Crosswalk documents.

So what are you waiting for? Take a look at our warehouse and give our RealCare Babies a try!

By:  Alexandra Freer, CA BOCES Learning Resources

The distance learning team at CA BOCES, including Christina McGee, Justine Lombardi, and Karen Insley, have been busy traveling all over the region getting students enrolled in credit accrual and credit recovery courses. Students have a chance to increase the breadth of their transcripts, develop interests, try out vocational fields, and develop skillsets that can’t be offered within their districts. Further, if students are on medical leave or injured, they can keep up with their curriculum, and even with gym classes, in an online setting. Students also have opportunities to recover lessons, units, quarters, and semesters through the CA BOCES credit recovery program, meaning that students can catch up before they need further interventions. The CA BOCES team offers courses through seven different providers, including courses taught by our own teachers, Christina McGee and Justine Lombardi.

The most popular courses this year are Sociology, Health, Forensic Science, Marine Science, Physical Education, Spanish, Careers in Criminal Justice, English 10, Introduction to Military Careers, Physics, and Psychology. Students are also learning about astronomy, sports marketing, digital art, 3D Modeling and animation, world religions, mythology and folklore, social problems facing the world, and many other notable studies.

For more information please contact Distance Learning at 716-376-8270.

​By:  Christina McGee, CA BOCES Learning Resources

As Pre-kindergarten-2nd grade teachers start the 2018-19 School Year they took a moment to focus on the importance of learning through play and movement. 66 educators from across the Cattaraugus-Allegany BOCES Region attended a professional development opportunity with Lisa Murphy, M.Ed., an Early Childhood Specialist. Lisa Murphy has been involved in early childhood education for over 20 years, teaching and learning with young children. She is the founder and CEO of Ooey Gooey, Inc., and is a nationally recognized presenter and keynote speaker. Lisa’s topics for the workshop sessions included:
 
What if Today Was Their Only Day? (Keynote)
In this motivational keynote address Lisa shared the powerful story of her first day of school. Through active and engaging storytelling Lisa brought participants back to her first day, taking you on a grand tour of Miss Mary’s Nursery School. And, in the style she has become famous for, she shared many observations, lessons and anecdotes about how early childhood has changed along the way. Lisa shared the sights sounds and smells of the place where, at the young age of three, she decided to become a teacher and identified the how, and why, that one day solidified her decision to become an educator. This inspiring keynote encouraged participants to get back in touch with their personal how and why.
 
Identifying and Creating Child Centered Environments
This session provided an in-depth exploration of the 9 points within the framework of Lisa Murphy’s approach to working with children. Via interactive lecture, true-to-life examples, anecdotes and her signature “learning and laughing” style, this session presented what it really means to be a hands-on, play-based, child-centered program. Lisa stated that “Environments that encourage play are environments that are preparing children for kindergarten, future elementary school academics, and a love of life long learning. This foundation then supports the house of higher learning.” Educators must create, move, sing, discuss, observe, read and play with children through daily interactions.  
 
The Importance of Early Experiences: How play IS Kindergarten Readiness!
During this session Lisa identified the seven things we need to do with children each day. These seven things make up the foundation that supports the house of higher learning. There is nothing wrong with the “academic” expectations within this house: reading, writing, math… the trouble is that many early childhood educators are being pressured to build a house where there is no foundation. Lisa stated, “And you do not need to be an architect to know that if you build where there is no foundation, the house will come crashing down!” Playing is “getting them ready” and through an investigation of each of the “seven things,” Lisa showed us how.
 
Lisa concluded the workshop with encouraging educators across the region to create a 10-day challenge for themselves. She encouraged educators to identify a workshop takeaway after 10 days that they are still thinking about and use that as their baby step for creating engaging experiences in the classroom!
 
By: Jillian Putnam, CA BOCES Professional Development

Deselecting books, also referred to as weeding, is necessary for maintaining a school’s library collection of resources. The process of deselecting includes removing damaged, outdated, or books no longer relevant to the curriculum.  Prior to deciding what should be removed from the library, librarians often use Titlewise by Follett to analyze the collection’s strengths and weaknesses based on industry standards. For example, a book on computers with a copyright date of 2000 will likely be outdated, (perhaps not if the focus is on the historical aspect), and books on robotics, forensics, and artificial intelligence may be recommended for strengthening the sciences.  

​When recently asked to help a librarian ‘weed’ the elementary library, I found a book on New York City with a copyright date of 1998.  Although it appeared to be in new condition, the Twin Towers were pictured, and Governor Pataki has since been replaced.  Some other examples of weeded books include The Lincoln Library of Sports Champions featuring Terry Bradshaw, Peggy Fleming, and other popular athletes at the time this text was printed; and The Chinese in America with a copyright date of 1959.  

When a library has not been ‘weeded’ for many years, the process can be overwhelming. Making room for new materials offers an additional opportunity to make the library attractive and inviting. Similar to marketing strategies used by retailers, displaying products often piques the interests of those who may be visiting for another purpose.

Research studies have shown college students prefer to read materials in print rather than in electronic format (Baron, 2016; Foasberg, 2014; Mizrachi, 2015), and a large percentage of students ages 4-15 enjoy reading print books (Kleeman, 2016).  Although the popularity of Amazon Kindle and Apple’s iPhone beginning in 2007 made reading books electronically convenient, print publishers have remained constant for the past ten years ( Mcilroy, 2017).  Balancing the library collection with print and electronic resources is a necessary duty that not all librarians have time to do. 

Schools needing assistance with the deselection process may contact the school library system coordinator: [email protected]

By:  Cece Fuoco, CA BOCES Learning Resources 
 
 
 
Baron, N. (2015). Words onscreen: The fate of reading in a digital world. New York, NY: Oxford University Press,
Foasberg, N. (2014). Student reading practices in print and electronic media. College & Research Libraries, 75(5), 705-723.
Kleeman, D. (2016). Books and reading are powerful with kids, but content discovery is     challenging. Publishing Research Quarterly, 32(1), 38-43. 
Mizrachi, D. (2015). Undergraduates' academic reading format preferences and behaviors.  Journal of Academic Librarianship, 41(3) 301-311
Mcilroy, T. (2017). Startups within the U.S. book publishing industry. Publishing Research           Quarterly, 33(1), 1-9. 

​A truly successful schooling experience for students starts with a healthy and supportive school climate.  Above all else, when students know they are cared for, they can truly focus on their educational experience and learning all that they can.  Two staff developers and over thirty teachers and administrators from around the region took it upon themselves to collaborate and discuss ways to make positive changes to their school climates to better the learning experience of our students!

In late spring, Tessa Levitt and I had an idea to do a professional book study around a book we were both highly interested in ourselves, Lead with Culture, from author and Principal Jay Billy.  This book is one of the Dave Burgess Publishing Company’s titles, made famous from the Like A Pirate series of books.  We discussed different methods for how we wanted to approach this book study, and we both knew we wanted to try something “unconventional” in the sense of our current professional development opportunities.

We eventually decided that with it being summer and all, we wanted any participation to be completely voluntary from those interested in the book study.  We also wanted to harness the power of the summer, and conduct the book study from an online platform, where participants wouldn’t need to physically be all in the same place to share ideas, discuss topics, and raise their questions to one another.  In the end, we created a Facebook group, #BOCESLeads Summer Book Study, and anyone that expressed interest in participating in the book study was invited to join the group.

We met in person once, at the beginning of the book study, to distribute copies of the book to the participants, and to outline the dates and the layout of the Facebook page itself:  We would meet online, from 8:00-9:00 on the Facebook page, Tessa and I would post questions from a few chapters at a time, and they could respond and share ideas and questions with one another, with Tessa and I there to help moderate and facilitate discussions. 

The support and discussion from the participants were highly overwhelming!  The amount of ideas shared and questions posited to one another were powerful, and really made this an interesting and unique experience for professional growth.  The response from the participants was also noteworthy, as they liked being able to chime in from wherever they were at the time, and if they missed the discussion window, they could still go to the Facebook page and comment or discuss between the arranged question-posting days.  The flexibility and freedom were lauded from those who took part!

Once the book was completed, we were excited to commence upon the final aspect of the book study:  a live chat hosted on Zoom with author Jay Billy!  Participants were able to take part in an online discussion forum with Jay himself, who answered their questions, shared advice, and helped spur more creative ideas for those who were able to join in.  The session was also recorded and posted on the Facebook group page for those who were unable to make the meeting, so they could view it at a later time.

Overall, this experience was a phenomenal new approach to combating some logistical issues that we all experience:  wanting to take part in something, but time and location not cooperating to allow it to happen.  The discussion was rich and powerful, and multiple great ideas were shared and collaborated upon throughout the course of studying this excellent book.  One of the most impactful results from this book study?  The request to keep the discussion going over the course of this school year through the online group page and with regularly scheduled meet-ups for those that can attend, bringing that flexibility and freedom even further into the process.  We look forward to continue documenting the journey of the region in regards to building and supporting the students of our schools through a positive and caring school climate and culture.  When all else fails, lead with culture!

By:  Ryan McGinnis, CA BOCES Professional Development

​This is what creativity and problem-solving looks like at Seneca/Salamanca Odyssey of the Mind

This is an exciting season for supporters of New York Odyssey of the Mind.  This year marks NYSOMA’s 40th anniversary.  The inaugural NY State Tournament was held in Binghamton, New York in 1979.  The 2019 NY State Tournament, in Binghamton, will be a celebration of 40 years of creative problem solving.

Region 19 is starting the festivities early by launching a 40 in 40th Campaign, meaning that the goal this season is to host 40 teams at the Regional Tournament on March 2, 2019 at Wellsville Middle/High School.   To celebrate NYSOMA’s 40th anniversary, Region 19 will party like it’s 1979 all season long with extra incentives and fun activities.

Opportunities for support and training will be offered to all teams and coaches, as well as additional experiences like buddy teams and Spontaneous Zoom practices.  Training sessions can be scheduled “virtually” and in person at school districts.

Do you know of a school district that:

• wants to strengthen their STEAM initiatives for students in grades 4-12? 
• wants to join Odyssey of the Mind, but doesn’t know how to get started? 

• dropped Odyssey, but wants to get re-established?
• already participates and wants to try a new problem or add another team?
• wants to offer Odyssey of the Mind to younger students, grades K-3?    
• has staff, parents, or community members who could coach an Odyssey team, but need support and training?

This IS the year to make it happen.  Regional Odyssey experts will provide the help needed to meet the school districts’ goals and ensure an unforgettable experience for Region 19’s creative minds.

For more information about Odyssey of the Mind, visit odysseyofthemind.com and nysoma.org.

For more information about getting involved in Odyssey of the Mind in Region 19, email or call  [email protected] or 716-376-8323.

For more information about partying like it’s 1979, you’ll have to show up at Wellsville Middle/High School on Saturday, March 2, 2019 and see for yourself.

By: Jean Oliverio, CA BOCES Student Programs