Principal's Roundtable a success

On Saturday, Oct. 13, 2007, the Cohoes Middle School held its first Principal's Roundtable. The Roundtable discussion is a way for Mr. Perry, Mr. Martinelli and Mr. Kolakowski to discuss issues with the community in a small setting. The discussions are held once a quarter and include a short agenda from Mr. Perry, as well as time to discuss any topics that community members would like to discuss regarding the middle school.

The sessions last approximately 90 minutes and the administrators supply bagels and coffee for those who stop by.

On Oct. 13, the discussion started with a brief history of the roundtable discussions as well as the protocol, which includes no discussions regarding specific students. Follow-up on topics from last year included suggestions about Open House that were imposed. Based on parent input, one Open House was held in September, instead of one for sixth-grade parents in early September and one for seventh- and eighth-grade parents in mid-October. This year's Open House was well-attended by the more than 400 parents who visited CMS.

ELA and Math New York State Assessment results from last year were discussed with a Power Point presentation that included all grades and each subject area.

Our new programs were discussed--the In-School Program as well as the seventh- and eighth-grade Enrichment classes. The In-School Program has been a success because it keeps students that would otherwise be in Out-of-School Suspension in school and learning. Our teacher Mr. Tommasino helps the students stay on top of their studies.

The Enrichment program has been expanded to both seventh and eighth grades and offers students the opportunity to receive extra support in order to achieve the New York State Standards. Participants are identified by NYS Assessments and their teachers. Parents may call the administrative office and suggest that their child participate in the program.

Tech Valley High was discussed and it was announced that the principal Mr. Leibert would once again be invited to speak to eighth-grade parents about the opportunity for one Cohoes eighth grader to attend Tech Valley High next year.

Please let Mr. Perry know if you have any questions about this meeting and make suggestions for topics for our next Principal's Roundtable, scheduled to be held on Saturday, Jan. 12 at 9 a.m. in the CMS library. We hope to see you then!