The Albion Board of Education declared an emergency at its May 11 meeting over a failed elevator at the High School, adopting a resolution that clears the way for immediate repairs by exempting the work from New York's standard environmental review process. According to the minutes, the district's architect, CPL Architects, Engineers, Landscape Architect and Surveyor, D.P.C., assessed the elevator and found it in a severely damaged state posing a health and safety risk to students, staff and other building users. The resolution directs the district to pursue the "Emergency Capital Project" with approval from the State Education Department's Facilities Planning Unit, to reconstruct or replace the mechanical equipment and restore the elevator "to its proper condition." The resolution declares the project a "Type II action" under the State Environmental Quality Review Act, citing SEQRA provisions covering emergency actions, routine institutional maintenance and in-kind replacement on the same site — meaning the repair will not undergo further environmental review. The measure passed on a motion by Mr. Schmitt, seconded by Mr. Kast, with all present members voting yes; Trellis Pore was recorded absent. The elevator failure surfaces as the district is already partway through a separate, state-required review of the same building. Facilities Committee member Mr. Kast reported that the committee met with Superintendent Mickey Edwards, Mr. Recckio and representatives from CPL and the Campus crew to discuss the Building Condition Survey, which the state requires every five years to examine the roofs, drainage, plumbing and other systems. Edwards said the survey results will go to subcommittees of teachers, parents, staff, students and community members, who will rank items on a one-to-five priority scale to help determine what goes into the district's next capital project. That work is expected to reach the full Board in August. The rest of the meeting moved through a lengthy but largely routine business agenda. The Board approved a $10,000 budget transfer for JV and modified football uniforms, while a separate $650 transfer for a Middle School end-of-year event was presented for information only. Members approved a memorandum of agreement with the ATA, terms and conditions for 2026-2027 school monitors, a contract with Batavia City School District, and the creation of a new full-time special education teacher position. Eight staff members were granted tenure: Sarah Gedraitis, Katie Badura, Sharah Demena, Margaret Gabalski, Gabrielle Daly, Alexandra Bradshaw, Evan Steier and Shawn Haseley. The Board also approved an extensive slate of appointments for the 2026-2027 school year, including new teachers, coaches, and stipended positions — department chairpersons at $2,000 each, elementary team leaders at $1,000 each, and mentor teachers at $500 for formal mentors and $250 for informal mentors. Among new hires, Noah Martin was appointed computer specialist at a $34,000 salary, and Eric Christiansen was appointed High School psychologist at a rate of $388 per day for 90 days. The Board moved into executive session to discuss a personnel matter before returning to open session; both actions were approved. Separately, the Board approved a 30-day public comment period, beginning May 1, for the 2026-2027 Professional Development Plan and Code of Conduct, ahead of a full set of Annual Plans — including the Comprehensive Counseling Plan, Special Education Plan and Instructional Technology Plan — scheduled to come before the Board for approval June 1. During the public forum, Tim McMurray asked the Board for a letter of support for an effort to make the village's pocket parks, including St. Joseph's Park, ADA-compliant; the minutes record no board action on the request. The Board's next public dates include a budget hearing May 12 in the High School LGI and the district budget vote May 19, from noon to 8 p.m. at Hoag Library.