Albion Schools' Building-Goals Review Shows Reading Gains, Zero Algebra I Mastery Scores
At the Board of Education's June 1 meeting, principals presented the district's annual building-goals data, showing broad growth in elementary reading fluency and most middle-school writing and math proficiency, alongside a flat result in seventh-grade writing and zero students reaching the mastery level on the Algebra I Regents.
Chimney Bluffs on Lake Ontario, NY — photo:
Andre Carrotflower
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▶Key Actions & Decisions
●• High School Principal Jennifer Ashbery, Middle School Principal Brad Pritchard and Elementary Principal Angela Conway presented the district's 2025-2026 building-goals data on academic proficiency (detailed in the article).
●• Board approved a $3,000 budget transfer for Albion marketing materials (flags/banners), presented for information only.
●• Board approved personnel actions including the resignation of Cleaner Joshua Gross effective 06/11/26 pending his appointment as full-time Custodian at $33,743 plus a $1,800 stipend; the elimination of David Reamsnyder's temporary Director of Facilities II position; out-of-title pay for Reamsnyder as Building Maintenance Worker at $40,232 plus an $8,000 stipend; and new appointments including Jennifer Frasier as District Treasurer at $51,500 and Kylie Ames and Colleen Usselman as General Ed. Teachers, Grades 1-6.
●• Board approved 2026-2027 extra-curricular athletic appointments, including Wesley Bedford as Modified Football Head Coach and Jeremy DiMatteo as Modified Football Assistant Coach, each at $1,350, pending completion of certifications.
●• The 2026-2027 District-Wide Safety Plan was presented for Board review and will be posted on the district website for a thirty-day public comment period before returning to the Board for approval.
●• Superintendent Mickey Edwards said Building Condition Survey stakeholder meetings with architectural firm CPL begin the Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday after the meeting, at the Middle School, High School and Elementary School respectively, to review Priority 1 findings from the survey, which is conducted every five years.
●• Following executive session, the Board approved an amendment to the Superintendent's contract; the minutes do not detail its terms.
●• Six high school students were recognized for placing at state career-and-technical competitions; two, Abigail Kincaid and Elliot Beyrle, advance to compete at Nationals in Atlanta, Georgia, June 1-5, 2026.
●• Athletic Director Lauren Kinard reported the Boys' Track and Field team won the N-O League for the seventh year in a row, and thanked retiring coach Jay Kovaleski.
●• Board approved donations to the district's SOAR Day, the Class of 2027, and the Band Club.
Of the 23 Albion High School students who took the Algebra I Regents exam in January, 17 passed with a score of 65 or above, a 74% passing rate, but according to the minutes of the Board of Education's June 1 meeting, none reached the mastery level of 85 or above. High School Principal Jennifer Ashbery presented the figure as part of the district's annual review of its 2025-2026 building goals, one of three building-level academic updates the Board heard that night, alongside reports from Middle School Principal Brad Pritchard and Elementary Principal Angela Conway.
The contrast sharpened elsewhere in Ashbery's report. Of 82 students who took the January English Language Arts Regents, 64 passed with a 65 or above (78%) and 31 reached mastery; among 65 students taking the English 3 Regents, 55 passed (85%) and 30 reached mastery. Ashbery said 111 students are currently enrolled in Algebra I and scheduled to take the Regents exam in June.
Pritchard's middle-school data, tracked through fall, mid-year and spring assessments, showed uneven progress across grades on two building goals: writing proficiency and math short-response proficiency. Sixth-grade ELA writing proficiency rose from 80% to 86% over the year, for what the minutes describe as overall growth of 6%, and eighth grade rose from 75% to 87%, for overall growth of 12%. Seventh grade, by contrast, moved from 73% to 75% at mid-year, then held at 75% by spring, for overall growth of 2%. Math short-response proficiency showed similar unevenness: sixth grade rose 9 points, from 60% to 69%; seventh grade dipped to 61% at mid-year before finishing at 77%, for overall growth of 5%; and eighth grade posted the largest gain, from 63% to 82%, for overall growth of 19%.
Conway's elementary report tracked oral reading fluency, in words read correctly per minute, for students in grades 1 through 5 who were performing below or well below grade level. In four of the five grades, the district recorded 100% of students showing growth: first graders' average rose from 10.64 to 50.52 words per minute over the year; second graders' from 38.36 to 91.74; third graders' from 70.66 to 115.1; and fifth graders' from 101.02 to 140.95. Fourth grade was the exception on both counts. The district recorded 94.5% of fourth-graders showing growth, and the grade's average reading speed, after climbing to 124.3 words per minute at mid-year, fell to 110.44 by spring — still above where students started the year, but below the mid-year mark. The minutes do not explain the drop.
Conway also reported that all K-5 teachers took part in numerical-reasoning training with the University of Rochester and that the district purchased additional math manipulatives for K-5 classrooms. On a separate, social-emotional building goal, 287 fourth- and fifth-graders were surveyed this spring as part of the district's Measurable Results Assessment, which the minutes say showed a small measure of growth in students' reported well-being.
The Board's next major academic marker arrives this month: Regents exams are scheduled for June 9 (ELA), June 17 (Global) and June 23 (U.S. History).
Elsewhere in the meeting, the Board approved a $3,000 budget transfer for Albion marketing materials and heard from Athletic Director Lauren Kinard, who recapped a spring season that included the Boys' Track and Field team's seventh consecutive N-O League title and thanked retiring coach Jay Kovaleski. Six students were recognized for placing at state career-and-technical competitions, with two advancing to Nationals in Atlanta. Superintendent Mickey Edwards told the Board that Building Condition Survey stakeholder meetings with architectural firm CPL begin the Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday after the meeting, at the Middle School, High School and Elementary School in turn, to review the survey's Priority 1 findings. The Board also approved a slate of personnel actions and, following executive session, an amendment to the Superintendent's contract.
This article was drafted by AI (claude-sonnet-agent) from the official meeting transcript and reviewed by a human editor.
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●• Board adopted a resolution declaring the failure of the High School building elevator a Type II action under the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA), exempting the district's planned Emergency Capital Project from further environmental review; passed on a motion by Mr. Schmitt, seconded by Mr. Kast, with all present members voting yes and Trellis Pore recorded absent.
●• The district's architect, CPL Architects, Engineers, Landscape Architect and Surveyor, D.P.C., found the elevator in a severely damaged state posing a health and safety risk; the district will seek approval from the State Education Department's Facilities Planning Unit to reconstruct or replace the equipment.
●• Facilities Committee chair Mr. Kast reported the committee met with Superintendent Mickey Edwards, Mr. Recckio and representatives from CPL and the Campus crew on the state-required, once-every-five-years Building Condition Survey; subcommittees of teachers, parents, staff, students and community members will rank findings on a one-to-five priority scale, with results due to the full Board in August.
●• Board approved a $10,000 budget transfer for JV and modified football uniforms; a separate $650 transfer for a Middle School end-of-year event was presented for information only, with no vote.
●• Board approved a memorandum of agreement with the ATA, 2026-2027 School Monitors terms and conditions, a contract with Batavia City School District, and creation of a 1.0 FTE special education teacher position.
●• Board granted tenure to eight staff members: Sarah Gedraitis, Katie Badura, Sharah Demena, Margaret Gabalski, Gabrielle Daly, Alexandra Bradshaw, Evan Steier and Shawn Haseley.
●• Board approved a large slate of 2026-2027 personnel actions, including hiring Computer Specialist Noah Martin at a $34,000 salary and High School Psychologist Eric Christiansen at $388 per day for 90 days, plus new teachers, coaches, department chairs (each receiving a $2,000 stipend), elementary team leaders ($1,000 stipend each) and mentor teachers ($500 formal/$250 informal stipends).
●• Board moved into executive session to discuss a personnel matter, then approved returning to open session; both actions were approved.
●• Approved a 30-day public comment period, beginning May 1, for the 2026-2027 Professional Development Plan and Code of Conduct, ahead of the full set of Annual Plans coming before the Board June 1.
Albion Board Adopts $39.4M Budget with 1% Tax Levy Decrease; Common Core Concerns Raised
●Safety Plan Approved: The board officially adopted the revised 2025-2026 District-Wide Safety Plan after it was posted online for public comment.
●Staffing Changes Approved: The board accepted the resignations of three teachers (including MS Science and HS Math) and four staff retirements effective July 2026.
●New Hires: Jennifer Frasier was appointed as a Temporary Treasurer ($50,000), and Melissa Dibley was appointed as a Speech Pathologist.
●Tenure Granted: Marcella (Del Plato) Quintana was granted tenure by the Board.
●Financial Audits: The board approved the 2024-2025 Single Audit Report and the Extra Classroom Activities Audit.
●Lease Renewal: The Board renewed a lease agreement with Panek Farms.
●Tax Collection: The board approved the 2025 School Tax Collection and the agreement with Orleans County.
●Student Presentations: Students from the Elementary Leader in Me program and the FFA presented to the board on recent activities and their trip to the National FFA Convention.
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