2008/09 Tax Levy Drops $50,000 from April Projections
At its August 14, 2008 business meeting, the Board of Education adopted a tax levy of $6,990,887 for the 2008/09 school year, down $50,000 from the April projections. Per Superintendent Katherine Sullivan, "The $50,000 decrease in the approved levy reflects a grant secured in May through Senator Farley, funds from which District officials announced would be used to reduce the tax levy." To read more about how this impacts 2008/09 school tax rates in the Greater Johnstown School District, click here.

School Meals Program Price Increases
Due to rising costs in operating the Food Service Program, the Greater Johnstown School District finds it necessary to raise the price of the food service program meals and milk.

The new costs for school meals effective September 2008 are as follows:
Elementary:      Breakfast $1.00          Lunch $1.75
Knox/JHS:        Breakfast $1.50          Lunch $2.00
Milk will be $ .50 in all school buildings
 
All families are encouraged to fill out a free/reduced school meal/milk application and submit it to the food service office as soon as possible. Children of qualified families can begin receiving the benefit on the first day of school if a form has been submitted and processed. Families already receiving free or reduced price meals have until September 30, 2008 to submit a new application for the 2008/09 school year. 

Free/Reduced School Meal Application

Download a free/reduced school meal/milk Application for the 08-09 school year, and/or a Free and Reduced Price Meal Application  Fact Sheet. Please fill out one form per family, listing all children on one form, as well as what school they attend and their grade level. Completed applications should be returned to the attention of School Food Service, 2 Wright Drive, Johnstown, NY 12095, or your child's school building. Please call 762-1875 if you have any questions.

2008-09 School Year One Page Calendar

View or download the one page 2008-09 School Calendar

Get the Most Up-To-Date Johnstown Sports Schedules
For the most up-to-date Johnstown sports schedules, visit HighSchoolSports.net and then simply select your sport, grade level and gender. You can also view Johnstown's current sports schedule. Should you have any problems or need further information in accessing the particular Johnstown sports schedule you're looking for, please contact Patti St. Peter in the Athletics Department at 762-7636.

New York State Report Cards
Each spring, the New York State Department of Education releases various statistics and information about NYS school districts (e.g., enrollment figures; annual results on Regents examinations, Regents Competency Tests and ELA, math and science state test results, etc.) from the previous school year, to help to keep the public informed about the performance of public schools. To view current and past NYS school report cards for Johnstown (or any other school district), please visit  www.nystart.gov/publicweb/

2008-09 Budget Approved by Voters
Residents of the Greater Johnstown School District approved the $29,061,903 budget for the 2008-09 school year on May 20, 2008 by vote of 268 in favor and 225 opposed. Re-elected to serve three year terms on the Board of Education were incumbents Leslie Buggeln-Bosworth (378), Scott Miller (375) and Robert Curtis (369). Learn more about the budget here.

Universal Pre-Kindergarten
The Greater Johnstown School District Universal Pre-kindergarten program is accepting applications for the 2008-09 school year for children who will be four years old on or before December 1, 2008 and who reside in the district (when all sessions are full, we maintain a waiting list for placement in the event of a vacancy). The Universal  Pre-kindergarten program addresses instructional components, cognitive skills, social and emotional development, and physical skills of youngsters. The program does not require income eligibility. For more information on the Johnstown Universal Pre-kindergarten program or to receive an application, contact Warren Street School’s main office at 762-3715. You may also download a 2008-09 Pre-K Application Packet. Applications, together with appropriate documents, must be returned to the GJSD Pre-kindergarten Office at Warren Street School.

Johnstown's Jansen Avenue Elementary Selected as One of the Top 19 Schools in New York State to Make Significant Academic Progress
What does this mean? The U.S. Department of Education has established the “No Child Left Behind Blue Ribbon Schools Program” to honor schools that are academically superior or make dramatic gains in student achievement. “Dramatically improving schools improved the performance of all students to high levels in reading (language arts or English) and mathematics on state assessments.” The Department of Education decides how many schools each state may nominate. For 2008, only 19 NYS schools have been selected to apply for this honor – and the Greater Johnstown School District’s Jansen Avenue Elementary is one of them! Read More

Dan Jones is Wal-Mart State Teacher of the Year!
Congratulations to GJSD music teacher Dan Jones, selected as Wal-Mart’s State Teacher of the Year! Mr. Jones was honored with this prestigious award at a surprise celebration in the Warren Street School gymnasium on October 18, 2007. Wal-Mart presents this award annually to one educator in each of the 50 states. As part of its acknowledgement of Mr. Jones’ dedication to children and teaching, Wal-Mart will present a $10,000 educational grant to the school district. Winners of the state teacher award are selected through a partnership between Wal-Mart and the Phi Delta Kappa international professional education association. Jones became eligible for consideration for the state award after being presented with the local Wal-Mart Teacher of the Year award in a ceremony at Warren Street on May 8, 2007. More Photos.

Johnstown’s Winter Guards are Number One
The Mid-York Color Guard Circuit’s 2008 Championship Color Guard Competition took place on April 5 and 6 at Shenendehowa High School. Johnstown’s winter guards (Gold Dust Elementary Guard, Amethyst Junior Guard and Amethyst Gold Senior Guard) competed in their respective classes before a packed gym of supportive spectators.

On Saturday, April 5, Gold Dust placed first in the Novice class, earning the gold medal and a chance to perform in exhibition that evening as the new champion. On that same day, Amethyst placed first in the Scholastic regional A class, also earning the gold medal and an exhibition performance on April 6. Returning to Shenendehowa on Sunday, Amethyst Gold placed first in the Scholastic Open class, earning the gold medal and stretching its championship title to encompass a fourth straight year.

Currently ranked first in New York State and twenty-first in the country, the Amethyst Gold Senior Guard will be competing in the Winter Guard International (WGI) World Championships in Dayton, Ohio April 10 –12.

View performances of "Lights in a Box" by Amethyst Gold; "He Lives in You" by Amethyst; and "I’ll Be" by Gold Dust. To learn more about the Johnstown Winter Guard season, click here.

Taking Precautions Against Antibiotic Resistant MSRA
Please take a moment to read the attached Letter from the Superintendent regarding precautions everyone can take to reduce their possibility of contact with Methicillin resistant Staphyloccoccus aureus (MRSA).

Safety First
We should always remember to keep our children’s safety in mind and to immediately report to the police department any incident of a stranger approaching a child. Please take a few moments to review these safety tips with your children. (Read more)

Practice Tests Online at Local Libraries
The Johnstown Public Library now has access to online databases that help students practice for a variety of tests, such as Firefighter and Real Estate exams, GED, SAT, ACT and GRE exams, grammar and math skills, and much more. The database is called Practice Tests from Learning Express Library, which can be found by visiting Johnstown Public Library’s public access catalog at www.mvls.info. The practice tests can be found in the “Databases” link under the “Education” section, off of the homepage. The process is so simple — the sample tests can be accessed by using your library card. If you only have a short amount of time to take an online test, you can save your work and revisit it later, what a great resource!

Greater Johnstown School District Helping Parents Realize the Dangers of Blogging and Unsupervised Internet Use
In the past, children used to keep their deepest thoughts and secrets in diaries under lock and key — times have changed. Blogging has become extremely popular among junior high and high school students — and even among elementary children. Students may be posting pictures of themselves and their friends, as well as their full names, their cell phone numbers and even their addresses. (Find out more)

Annual Notification of the availability of the district asbestos management plan
The Greater Johnstown School District submitted in 1989, to the New York State Education Department, the Greater Johnstown School District’s Asbestos Management Plan. In accordance with the EPA Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act of 1987 (40 CFR Part 763), this memo is intended to fulfill annual notification stating that the Asbestos Management plan for this school building is available and kept on file at: Director of Facilities & Operations Office. These records are available for review during these times: 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. For more information, please contact the following persons: E.J. Maye, LEA Designee, 518-762-3212

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