BALLSTON SPA — Two Ballston Spa Central School District FFL Challenge Teams competed at the Hudson Valley Qualifying Tournament on March 27. The Golden Creators and Motors in Action teams consisted of 4th, 5th, and 6th graders, while other teams at the tournament were made up of 7th and 8th graders. 

The teams were given the opportunity to share their innovation projects, robot design, and teamwork during a presentation with judges. For their innovation projects, the Golden Creators proposed a phone app to help people exercise more by presenting challenges that requires movement to collect coins. Motors in Action designed a sensor mat and wristband to track exercise movements. 

Feedback from the judges was very positive. They were impressed with the challenges the teams overcame this year to be able to compete in the tournament – they had been meeting virtually since October due to the pandemic – and encouraged them to continue as a team, noting that they would be very successful in future years. Although, neither of the teams won awards in the core judged areas, the Golden Creators were recognized with a Head Referee award for showing the most excitement and fun while learning. 

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Come see Saratoga’s top-rated independent school, Saratoga Independent School (S.I.S.). S.I.S. provides an excellent education to students in Pre-K through Eighth Grade, and enrollment has begun for the 2021-22 school year. 

On Tuesday, April 13 at 6:30 p.m., S.I.S. will host a Virtual Information Session for prospective families. During the Virtual Information Session, families will hear from Lisa Brown, Head of School, Colleen Fortune, Admissions Liaison, and a faculty member from each division of the school – Pre-K, Elementary, and Middle School. The team will discuss the S.I.S. curriculum and programs, and answer questions about the school. For more information and to register, please visit www.siskids.org/admissions/open-house.cfm.

Advanced registration for the Virtual Information Session is required. Upon registration, you will be emailed the Zoom link. Registrations can be made online or by contacting Colleen Fortune, Admissions Liaison, directly at cfortune@siskids.org or 518-583-0841. S.I.S. is also happy to schedule private tours with families at any time. 

SARATOGA SPRINGS — The New York Racing Association this week installed the sign for the forthcoming Belmont Child Care Association, Inc. (BCCA) childcare center at Saratoga Race Course, which is set to begin serving families and children of the backstretch community in summer 2021.

Located on the Oklahoma side of the Saratoga backstretch, the colorful sign for the 4,300-square-foot childcare center features the BCCA logo underneath the facility’s official name: Faith’s House. Funded by Michael and Lee Dubb, the center is named in honor of Faith Dubb, mother of BCCA founder and board chairman Michael Dubb.

Faith’s House will provide child care and early education programs for infants, toddlers and preschool-aged children. The center will be open seven days a week from 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. to accommodate the schedules of backstretch workers and horsemen. 

The anticipated summer 2021 opening coincides with the annual summer meet at Saratoga Race Course, which brings approximately 950 backstretch workers and their families to the Spa. The opening of the new center is contingent upon licensing approval from New York State and the New York State Office of Children and Family Services.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — A Skidmore College faculty member and recent Skidmore graduate have collaborated with 28 scientists from across the globe to publish the first study to suggest that the Amazon rainforest is most likely having a net warming effect on global climate.

Lead author Kris Covey, visiting assistant professor of environmental studies and sciences at Skidmore, and 2020 Skidmore graduate Zoe Pagliaro have co-authored the study “Carbon and Beyond: The biogeochemistry of climate in a rapidly changing Amazon” which was published March 11 in Frontiers in Forests and Global Change. 

Covey and Pagliaro attended the National Geographic Society’s special convening of 30 scientists in Manaus, Brazil in July 2019, from which this paper resulted. Pagliaro was the only undergraduate student to attend, and played a key role in compiling into a single table the majority of studies that have explored forest biophysical climate feedbacks in the Amazon over the past 10 years. The table was used to seed discussions among the scientists for this first-of-its-kind assessment of the Amazon rainforest’s cumulative climate impact.

The study is the most comprehensive assessment to date of the myriad human and natural causes that contribute to the Amazon’s complex interactions with climate.   

The findings have already received national and international attention in outlets including Fast Company and National Geographic and by environmental activists such as Greta Thunberg.

For additional information about Covey and Pagliaro’s work or collaborative research at Skidmore College contact smiga@skidmore.edu.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — The Saratoga Springs Rotary Education Foundation welcomes Janice White and Sara Miga to its board of directors. The Foundation raises funds to support the post-secondary education and vocational training of graduates from public and private high schools in the greater Saratoga community. 

Janice White is Associate Professor in the Educational Leadership Doctoral Program at Russell Sage College, where she has served as department chair following her retirement as the Superintendent of Schools for the Saratoga Springs City School District in June 2012. White holds a Master of Science degree from the State University of New York at Albany and a Doctorate in Educational Leadership from Russell Sage College. She also currently serves on the board of directors of the New York State Association of Women in Administration as well as Albany Med and Saratoga Hospital. White is a founding board member of Saratoga Sponsor-A-Scholar. 

Sara Miga is the Director of External Relations and Strategic Communications in the Department of Communications and Marketing at Skidmore College, where she previously held positions as Associate Director of Media Relations, Advancement Marketing Manager and Leadership Gift Officer. Miga holds a Bachelor of Arts from Skidmore College and a Master of Arts from The Ohio State University. She previously served as the President of the Central Ohio Grant Professionals Association and volunteered as a member of Skidmore’s Creating our Future campus campaign committee. 

The Foundation awards funds each year to the Saratoga Springs Rotary Club for the Club’s scholarship program. Today, the value of individual scholarships ranges from $2,500 to $20,000. Having surpassed its initial goal of raising $1 million in endowed funds, in recent years, the Foundation has provided over $70,000 in scholarships annually. 

Scholarship applications are currently being accepted online or by mail until April 1. High school seniors attending private or public school within the Saratoga Springs City School District who plan to pursue a degree at an accredited 2-year or 4-year college or post-secondary vocational educational institution may apply. 

The Foundation’s annual brunch, which serves as its largest fundraising, is scheduled for June. Scholarship awards will be announced then. 

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Skidmore’s Pre-College program will be offered as a virtual experience this summer, allowing high school students and their families flexibility and ease of access as they get a head start on college. 

Through the program, which runs July 5 through Aug. 6, students will immerse themselves in college-level academics, earn college credit and an official transcript, learn skills for navigating life as a future college student, and make connections with peers from around the world. 

In addition to enrolling in one course for up to four credits, participants receive access to virtual Skidmore Admissions workshops on choosing a college, applying to college, writing an admissions essay and other tips and insights into college life. They can also attend virtual extracurricular events and campus tours and get full access to College resources such as academic advising and tutors in Skidmore’s Philip Boshoff Writing Center.

Skidmore Pre-College course offerings span the humanities, social and natural sciences, studio art, and a diverse range of special topics that allow students to explore their interests or get ahead in a particular academic area. Faculty mentorship and small class sizes provide additional opportunities for support and feedback that are unique to the Skidmore experience. Skidmore Pre-College students are one of 100 or fewer students. 

Current high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors can now apply to the Skidmore Pre-College program, and decisions will be made on a rolling basis. The scholarship application deadline is April 1, and all other applicants should apply by June 1. 

Partial scholarships are awarded based on need and merit. To be considered, students must submit a completed program application and the scholarship application, available online.

To learn more, apply, or request additional information, visit the Skidmore Pre-College website at www.skidmore.edu/precollege.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — In a letter dated March 18, 2021, 31 Washington-Saratoga-Warren-Hamilton-Essex (WSWHE) Chief School Officers urged Dr. Howard Zucker, Commissioner, New York Department of Health, to revise the New York State Department of Health’s position on requirements for in-person learning in relation to COVID-19. 

They stated that “students are struggling and need to attend school on a daily basis.” The school leaders requested that districts be allowed “to work with local county health departments to develop revised minimum requirements/protocols, in classrooms, in cafeterias, and for transportation, that would allow all students back to school on a daily basis. This would include use of facial coverings, physical distancing, and ventilation.” 

The WSWHE school leaders are seeking clarity from NYSDOH so they can determine the next best steps in defining how to fully reopen area schools. 

SARATOGA SPRINGS — In this digital age, has cursive writing disappeared from the curriculum at our local schools?

In Jan. of 2011, the NYS Board of Regents approved and adopted the NYS P-12 CCLS – Common Core Learning Standards. Schools across the state began implementing the standards at the beginning of the 2012-2013 school year. This school year was seemingly the end of cursive writing lessons, which are generally taught in elementary school, as Common Core does not require children to learn how to read or write in cursive. According to one specific standard (W. 4.6) listed on the Common Core Standards Initiative website (www.corestandards.org), by the end of fourth grade students should be able to do the following, replacing the learning of cursive: 

“With some guidance and support from adults, use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing as well as to interact and collaborate with others; demonstrate a sufficient command of keyboarding skills to type a minimum of one page in a single sitting.”

Contrary to the myth that cursive writing is no longer taught, at least one local school has teachers who have kept it in their lesson plans. Maura Manny, Director of Community Outreach and Communications for the Saratoga Springs City School District, gave a statement on the school district’s approach when it comes to teaching the writing style.

“Our teachers support all students developing writing skills whether they use cursive, keyboarding, or printing. Although cursive writing is not required as part of the New York State Learning Standards, many elementary teachers do spend time teaching cursive writing in third grade and beyond.”

Saratoga TODAY also reached out to the Ballston Spa Central School District to see if they still taught cursive, but no one was available for comment. 

With teenage years and adulthood comes the standard requirement of signing documents. Dori McDannold, PR Manager at Arrow Financial Corporation that represents Saratoga National Bank and Glens Falls National Bank, stated that a cursive signature is not required to cash a paycheck and other banking such as that. However, once you sign certain loans or legal documents that have to be notarized, that signature does become your legal signature. 

For reasons to come later in life, cursive is still a relevant skill for school children to learn. While they are still in school, it can also help them study other subjects besides writing. Learning how to read cursive will help them to decipher original copies of historical documents, such as the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. Cursive also allows for faster notetaking because it does not require the pen or pencil to be raised off the paper. Local schools still see this need for cursive and continue to teach it, challenging the assumption that it is becoming a lost art. 

SARATOGA SPRINGS — A Young Americans for Liberty chapter has been rejected from forming at Skidmore College, and its organizer believes that the decision signifies the already present “cancel culture” on campus. 

Hannah Davis, a junior Political Science major at Skidmore College, began to organize a chapter of Young Americans for Liberty (YAL) over winter break. After starting an Instagram page to raise awareness, opposition towards the group began in the form of negative comments on posts. In addition, an author under the username AC created an anti-YAL Change.org petition. The author lists past events held by other YAL chapters in the description of the petition that show “patterns of racism, homophobia, and transphobia.” The petition has since gained over 1,700 signatures. 

Most of this attention comes after the Club Affairs Committee at the college denied the chapter an 8-week trial period. Which, to Davis’ understanding, was to see if the club had interest and could be allocated funds. A chapter/club is not made official until after the trial period and a SGA (Student Government Association) Senate vote. 

YAL is a student activism organization whose chapters are affiliated with the national political group and Congressman Ron Paul, promoting libertarian ideals such as individual freedoms and small government. However, individual chapters on each college campus are free to create and pursue their own goals, although the organization does advise against certain speakers or events. 

“They don’t believe that government should be involved in people’s personal lives, and in the matters of marriage and other social issues that people on my campus value a lot,” said Davis. “That is where I thought we were going to reach common ground.”

Davis decided to form the club because of the culture existing at Skidmore that she has experienced herself. She describes the lack of political variation and speakers in the classroom, as well as the negative athlete versus non-athlete attitudes that align with the hostility between political viewpoints on campus, as reasons behind her chapter’s goals of reducing polarization, promoting free speech and analytic thinking, and holding the faculty and college accountable to provide students with a nonpartisan learning environment. Davis emphasizes that her chapter is working towards goals that are specific to the campus and vary from other chapters. 

“I’ve gotten a lot of pushback saying that this is in response to something specific and that’s not the case,” said Davis. “This decision was not in response to any other club, any other organization, or any other efforts on campus. This was very much three years of what I considered limited viewpoints on campus being discussed.”

Davis has spoken to the Club Affairs Committee about their decision, and plans to make an appeal to the SGA Senate; the administration of the college is not involved in these decisions. 

Skidmore College President, Marc C. Connor, said in a statement to the Times Union: 

“The student leaders whom our students have elected as their representatives have the right to vote to decide the outcome of this process…I encourage all members of our community to exercise their freedom of speech and freedom of association and to engage with each other with patience, courtesy, and respect for one another.”

Saratoga TODAY reached out to Skidmore College’s SGA for a comment, but received no response. 

SCHUYLERVILLE/TROY — Troy-based community solar farm developer Eden Renewables announced Alexa Rust of Schuylerville Elementary School as the winner of its first annual “Power of the Sun” Poster Contest for her imaginative yet straightforward piece.

Eden’s ‘Power of the Sun’ Poster Contest is designed to challenge children to think creatively about solar energy in celebration of National Solar Appreciation Day (March 12). Students were asked to use any form of media to create an original poster depicting the importance of solar energy, how it benefits our lives today, and how it will power our future.

The contest, which kicked off this year, is offered to 5th grade students throughout the Capital Region. Entries were judged by Eden’s management team according to creativity, originality, artistic quality and overall message. 

Eden’s ‘Power of the Sun’ Poster Contest is a component of Eden Education, which provides students the chance to learn beyond school grounds and gain knowledge and ‘hands on’ and ‘minds on’ experiences in STEM subjects. This program, designed for K-12 and meets New York State education standards, is offered throughout the year to supplement curriculums in a variety of subjects including Science, Mathematics, Social Studies, and English. To learn more about the program visit edenrenewables.com/education 

Eden Renewables is an international developer of solar and energy storage projects. Eden’s US office is based in Troy.  Eden currently has a pipeline of 13 pollinator-friendly community solar projects in the Capital Region and neighboring counties.