Community Update: 1/24/25
Dear RCSD Community,
This coming Wednesday, January 29, is Lunar New Year. Schools are closed and school and district offices are open for reduced hours: 8:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. Lunar New Year is a new holiday for us here in the school world. Governor Kathy Hochul signed legislation in September 2023 mandating school closures to mark the occasion. Last year, the holiday was on Saturday, so students did not have the day off. This year, they do, and I’m pretty sure they will be delighted to welcome in the Year of the Snake at home, rather than at school. I look forward to celebrating with a healthy helping of delicious soup dumplings. Gung Hay Fat Choy!
Cell Phones In Schools
Speaking of Governor Hochul and mandates, you may have heard in the news that the Governor intends to ban cell phones in schools from “bell to bell” next year. She has said that this is the case, however, she has also said that there will be some flexibility given to school districts around how they implement this mandate. Nothing is set in stone yet, and we will keep you posted as we learn more. Any legislation will require agreement from the State Legislature and will be part of the State budget process over the next few months.
Cell phones are already not allowed at our elementary schools. Beginning this past fall, at RMS and RHS, we’ve made a concerted effort to enforce our existing policies around cell phone use in schools. Our teachers are reporting a significant reduction in cell phone-related distractions during class time and our students have been very compliant. Middle School students are required to keep their cell phones in their lockers during the school day, and High Schoolers are asked to place their phones in specially designed holders during class, unless they are being used as educational tools (to access apps, etc.). We feel like we are a bit ahead of the curve on this one, so hopefully whatever mandate comes our way won’t mean a sudden change for our students and teachers.
2025-2026 RCSD Calendar
We’ve been receiving some requests for next year’s school calendar. I am happy to report that it is almost finalized. It should be presented in draft form to the Board of Education at Tuesday night’s meeting, and (most likely) approved at the February 11 meeting, and immediately thereafter I will share it with the community. Spoiler alert: we may well be looking at another two week winter recess!
Elementary Literacy
I came across a great article in EducationWeek recently that has an excellent description of the UFLI phonics program we use with our youngest (K-2) students in the elementary schools. It has a quote from Devin Kearns, who is affiliated with the Haskins Laboratory at Yale and who we have worked with for a number of years. It is very confirming to see researchers finding the program to have such incredible results. To read it, click here.
Stay toasty - I believe warmer weather lies ahead!
Sincerely,
Eric Byrne, Ed.D.
Superintendent of Schools