GLENS FALLS — More than 100 students competed in the 2024 Region 6 Odyssey of the Mind competition last weekend in Glens Falls, and both Galway and Ballston Spa students will be advancing to the state tournament. 

Two teams from Ballston Spa School District’s Malta Ave Elementary will head to states, and for the first time ever, Galway will have a team from every division competing.

Galway’s Division 3 team also won an Omer award, which is given in recognition of individuals or teams who demonstrate outstanding sportsmanship, exemplary behavior, or exceptional talent. This team represented Galway last year at the Odyssey of the Mind World Finals in Lansing, Michigan, earning first place for long-term problem, and fourth place overall.

Odyssey of the Mind is a problem-solving competition for students of all ages. At the beginning of the school year, teams are divided by grade level into several divisions and choose to perform one of five long-term problems, which they practice for months. This year’s problems were: Pirates & the Treasure, Because iCan, Classics…The Walls of Troy, Where’s the Structure, The Most Dramatic Problem Ever, and Dinos on Parade. On competition day, every team is asked to solve a secret spontaneous problem. Combined scores are tallied for each team and determine whether or not the teams will advance to the state tournament.

Listed below are the members of the Galway teams that will appear at the state competition in Syracuse on April 13.

Division 3: Shamus Evans, Simon Evans, Eben Perkins, Peregrine Perkins, Aidan Reekie-Mell, Taylor Germain

Division 2: Henry Pasieka, Avery Pasieka, Edmund Perkins, Mari Smith, Ailey Nelson 

Division 1: Jacob Comeau, Liliana Johnson, Lucy Mosher, Stella Mosher, Teddy Perkins

SARATOGA SPRINGS —Skidmore College has announced that Kyle Lancto has been promoted to Associate Director, Athletic Communications and Marketing. Lancto takes over for Bill Jones, who is retiring on March 11. Lancto’s promotion is effective immediately, and he will coordinate a search for an assistant director to fill his vacant position.

 “We are excited to promote Kyle,” said Gail Cummings-Danson, Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs and Athletics Director, in a statement. “This is a well-deserved promotion for someone who has put in countless hours marketing Skidmore Athletics during his 2.5 years of working with our programs.

Lancto was named Skidmore College Athletics Marketing and Communications Manager in September of 2021. Prior to Skidmore, he was an athletic communications graduate assistant at Vermont State University Castleton. He began his career as a sports information intern at SUNY Cortland.

SARATOGA SPRINGS —The Saratoga Springs City School District is expected to spend $1.7 million on buses for the upcoming school year, and the state government’s looming electric bus mandate will likely yield “eye-popping” costs down the road.

At the February 29 Board of Education meeting, Assistant Superintendent for Business Robert “Bobby” Yusko laid out the district’s proposed 2024-2025 bus bond. The purchase is set to include five 66-passenger buses, three 66-passenger buses with luggage compartments, two 35-passenger buses, and one more 25-passenger bus with six wheelchair spots.The total cost will be $1.723 million. 

But those figures will likely be dwarfed by the sums needed to transition the district’s entire fleet to electric vehicles, which the district will need to begin doing in 2027. None of the planned 2024-2025 bus purchases will be electric. 

“A regular electric bus as we know it today is about $400,000, so it’s eye-popping,” Yusko said. “We also know on top of purchasing the vehicles themselves to the tune of $400,000 a piece, there will be significant capital improvement upgrades that will be required as a result of this mandate.”

Yusko said he was hesitant to provide an estimate of the total costs of converting a fleet of more than 100 buses to zero-emission vehicles because “there’s so much more information we still need to uncover.”

“If nothing happens in Albany in terms of any legislative action,” Yuko said, “this is the letter of the law, and we will have to start doing whatever we can to make that transition.”

SCHUYLERVILLE — Schuylerville High School Principal James Ducharme has been appointed Acting Superintendent of Schools. Superintendent Gregg Barthelmas was granted a personal leave of absence beginning February 26. 

“Mr. Ducharme is an established and respected leader in the Schuylerville community, who has spent years cultivating relationships with students, faculty, staff, and families,” said Board of Education President Michael Bodnar in a statement. “The Board has great confidence in Mr. Ducharme as Acting Superintendent. We know and trust he will make decisions in the best interest of all students and the district, which is always our ultimate goal.”

While Ducharme serves as acting superintendent, current High School Assistant Principal Mr. Nate Kocak will serve as co-principal alongside Mr. Todd Gonyeau.

SARATOGA SPRINGS —The Saratoga Hospital Volunteer Guild is offering up to five $2,000 scholarships for high school seniors. Eligible students must be accepted into college for September of 2024, have at least a 3.0 GPA, and complete an application by the March 31 deadline. 

Volunteer Guild Scholarship Chairperson Irma Somich will personally contact recipients upon the decision of the Scholarship Committee. Recipients will be formally announced and honored at a Guild dinner in May.

 Additional information, as well as application forms, are available through high school guidance offices and online at www.saratogahospital.org/classes/volunteering.

SOUTH GLENS FALLS — The 47th annual South High Marathon Dance will be held March 1 and 2 at South Glens Falls Senior High School, 42 Merritt Rd., South Glens Falls.

The South High Marathon Dance is a charitable event that is held the first full weekend of March each year. Students at South Glens Falls High School gather to raise money and dance for an amazing 28 hours. All money raised helps local individuals and charities.

Last year, the dance raised $630,111.07 for 22 beneficiaries, bringing the 46-year total to more than $10.5 million raised for 641 beneficiaries. 

The South High Marathon Dance Inc. is registered with the state of New York as a charitable corporation and has been determined by the IRS to be a public charity under section 501 (c) (3). Accordingly, all donations are tax deductible.

For more information visit shmd.org.