Category: District News
Two LHS wrestlers earn girls sectional titles
Liberty Central School District has two 2024 Section 9 Girls Wrestling Champions — Cheynne Graham and Zoe Kip.
Cheynne defended her title from 2023 with a headlock for the pin in the 185 class. She finished her season with a record of 12-6. She also earned a third place medal in the 2024 Girls Eastern States tournament and has a career record so far of 17-6.
In her third Section 9 championship finals appearance Zoe pinned her opponent for the 152 class title. She closed out her senior season with a record of 19-9. She was also a two time New York State Girls Invitational Placewinner finishing fourth and six, a two-time Girls Eastern States Medalist, with third place finishes both times and has a career record of 31-16 record against girls.
The Section IX Division II Boys and Girls Wrestling championships were held Sunday, Feb. 11, at F.D. Roosevelt High School.
Asbestos abatement underway at LES
Asbestos abatement is underway for a damaged vinyl asbestos tile found under a rug on an uneven floor in a Liberty Elementary School classroom on Jan. 24.
The work is being done after school hours and other days when school is not in session. Because of the remediation, no activities will take place in the building after school hours. School is closed for students Friday, Feb. 16, for a Conference Day, as well as Monday and Tuesday, Feb. 19-20, for Presidents’ Day break. The project is expected to be completed by Feb. 20
The work presents no danger to the staff or students in the elementary school. To remove the asbestos, the district is following New York State regulations that require us to seal the room off from the rest of the building. The district will conduct air monitoring throughout the project.
Safety of the staff and students is of the utmost importance to the district.
If you have any questions, please contact Assistant Superintendent for Business Laurene McKenna at lmmckenna@libertyk12.org.
LES students complete winter reading challenge at Liberty Library
Ten Liberty Elementary Students completed the Winter Reading Challenge at the Liberty Library and earned their tickets to make a “Build a Buddy,” a stuffed polar bear, on Feb. 3.
To complete the challenge, students had to read 20 picture books by themselves or with a grown-up’s help, or read four chapter books by themselves between Dec. 18 and Jan. 31.
Congratulations to Athena Dailey, Parker Gissentaner, Kyra Magie, Anastasia Honcharenko, Sevyn Straker, Nova Keating, Lillian Keating, Emily Marques, Jayden Thomas and James Crandall.
Liberty student photographers earn honors at regional event
Liberty High School student photographers were honored Friday, Feb. 2, for their award-winning work at the Mid Hudson Region Scholastic Art & Writing Awards ceremony at SUNY New Paltz.
Liberty photo students and Liberty Photo Club members earned eight Gold Keys,14 Silver Keys and 18 Honorable Mentions. The ceremony was followed by the opening of the show containing all Key winners’ work. Seven of Liberty’s Key winners were able to attend the ceremony.
Gold Key winners, the top 5% of all photographs, were Kaitlyn Bodolosky, who won two, and Endya Alvarez, Maria Quintanilla Bonilla, Joaquin Isler Diaz, Allison Vasko, Leonel Malaga Ventura and Rachel Yaun, who each won one.
Silver Key winners, the top 10%, were Leonel Malaga Ventura with four, Jill Baumander, Kaitlyn Bodolosky, Allison Vasko and Rachel Yaun, each with two, and Endya Alvarez and Giovanni Flores Leon each with one.
Honorable mentions, top 11% and 12%, were awarded to Leonel Malaga Ventura with four, Joaquin Isler Diaz, Madelline Kelly and Rachel Yaun, each with three, Allison Vasko with two, and Endya Alvarez, Kaitlyn Bodolosky and Maria Quintanilla Bonilla, each with one.
Asbestos remediation work planned at LES
After school hours on Wednesday, Jan. 24, staff discovered a damaged vinyl asbestos tile under a rug on an uneven floor in a Liberty Elementary School classroom. The class was relocated the next morning to another space in the building to allow for inspection and remediation of the flooring.
Asbestos remediation work is expected to begin Feb. 15. The work will present no danger to the staff or students in the elementary school. To remove the asbestos, the district will follow New York State regulations that require the district to seal the room off from the rest of the building. The district will conduct air monitoring throughout the project. The asbestos work will be done after school hours and other days when the building will not be occupied and should be completed by Feb. 20.
Additional work may be required following the abatement. After the project is complete and the room is deemed safe for occupation, the displaced class will return to its classroom.
Safety of district staff and students is of the utmost importance.
Those who have questions may contact Assistant Superintendent for Business Laurene McKenna at lmmckenna@libertyk12.org.
LMS band to join Pennsylvania bands in exhibition concert
The Liberty Middle School Band will travel to Pennsylvania on Tuesday, Feb. 6, to join with the Western Wayne Middle School and Western Wayne High School for a one-of-a-kind clinic and exhibition concert sponsored by the KHS America Academic Alliance.
After working on the festival music in their own schools, band students from the two districts will meet for the first time as a band early in the morning and spend the day getting to know one another through music. Under the baton of clinician Dr. Peter L. Boonshaft, the students will have the opportunity to collaborate and learn festival rehearsal techniques to take back to their schools.
Boonshaft, director of education for KHS America, is the author of “Teaching Music with Passion, Teaching Music with Purpose, and Teaching Music with Promise.” He was honored
by the National Association for Music Education and Music For All as the first recipient of the “George M. Parks Award for Leadership in Music Education,” and was selected for the Center for Scholarly Research and Academic Excellence at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York, where is professor emeritus of music.
The culminating exhibition concert is free and open to the public. The concert will begin at 4 p.m. at Western Wayne High School Veterans Memorial Auditorium, at 1970 Easton Turnpike, Lake Ariel, Pennsylvania. Doors will open at 3:30 p.m.
For more information on KHS America and the Academic Alliance, visit https://academicalliance.com/
District asks families to review remote learning plan
On Tuesday, Jan. 30, Liberty Central School District Superintendent of Schools Dr. Patrick Sullivan sent the following message to students’ families.
Dear Liberty families,
With more than a month left of winter weather, I wanted to remind you of our district’s plan for remote learning should we exceed our seven allotted emergency closure days, which are used for inclement weather or another situation that requires the closing of school, such as a power failure. As of today, Jan. 30, we have used four of our seven emergency closure days.
Because the state Education Department requires school districts to remain in session for at least 180 days, using a remote learning day in the event that we exceed our allotted emergency days would reduce the need for the district to meet that requirement by extending the regular school year or taking away already planned days off, such as Memorial Day.
While we still have emergency days left to use, we are asking all parents and guardians to please review the Emergency Closing Remote Learning Plan now so you are familiar with the expectations of your student on a remote learning day so you and they are prepared if there is a need for one. If you have questions or concerns about the activities on a remote learning day, please contact the main office of your student’s school. If you have technology concerns, contact Director of Technology Patrick Killian at 845-292-5400, ext. 2068 or pkillian@libertyk12.org.
I understand that a remote learning day may pose challenges for some families, and I appreciate your flexibility as we work together to fulfill our district’s mission of empowering each student to contribute and thrive in a diverse community by pursuing their potential.
Sincerely,
Dr. Patrick Sullivan
Superintendent of Schools
Two Liberty athletes to compete at state girls wrestling event
Cheyenne Graham and Zoe Kip were chosen to compete in the NYSPHSAA girls’ wrestling invitational on Friday, Jan. 26, at Onondaga Community College. The two have been wrestling on the boys varsity team this season. Cheyenne, who was last year’s girls sectional champion, will compete in the 185 pound class. She has a record of 8-3 this season. Zoe, who will be competing in the 152 class, will make her second appearance in the state invitational. Her record is 12-6.
Snack Pack program gets donation from church
Susan Hamlin of the First Presbyterian Church in Liberty recently presented a check for $445 to Liberty Central School District Community School Coordinator Stacy Feasel to benefit the Snack Pack Food Program. The program provides meals over weekends and long breaks to students who are experiencing food insecurity.
“Our church members have chosen this as an important community need, and we will continue to support it as part of our local outreach missions,” Hamlin said.
Middle schoolers learn “Real Food Rules”
Students in sixth grade at Liberty Middle School spent two Fridays in the fall learning — and singing — about food.
STEAM Fund (Siegel Trust Enriching Arts & Music) at CFOS (Community Foundation of Orange and Sullivan) brought its Real Food Song Program to LMS on Oct.13 and 24.
There, the students learned about where food comes from and how it is delivered, with the goal of helping create a generational change in the choices they make.
“We were happy to welcome the Real Food Song Program to Liberty Middle School,” Principal Heather Cheh said. “With Sullivan County being near the bottom in statewide health rankings, we want to do our part to help change that statistic for the positive.”
Facilitated through the STEAM fund at CFOS, the program is supported educationally in collaboration with the not-for-profit, A Single Bite, whose mission is to feed — and educate — Sullivan County residents with real, local food.
“It was great to witness the excitement and enthusiasm the LMS students exhibited,” STEAM Founder Gary Siegel said.. “As part of STEAM’s Healthy Habits Initiative, the Real Food Song Program is one of many local programs designed to improve the health of the children, teens and adults in our schools and communities, providing them with tools to make healthier choices while having fun.”
The songwriting program presents the students with the opportunity to ponder questions such as “What does food mean to you? Where does it come from? What does it do? What are your favorites … are they real? How does food make you feel?”
“The experience was so cool. I was grateful to be able to do that,” student Madison Allen said. “I learned the importance of eating real food.”
In the interactive songwriting workshops, the singer-songwriter teaching artists, Scott Bierko and Beth Bierko, introduced the concepts of real vs. processed food to the students and taught about songwriting and musical concepts such as rhythm and form. Under the guidance of Bierkos, the students collectively wrote their own lyrics to the song “Real Food Rules” and then recorded their own version.
“I think that real food is good and healthy,” student Atticus Macnimara said. As for the song? “The best part is the chorus.”
A video was created with the participating students, shared in recent assemblies at LMS and can be seen below: