Press release:

For two decades, Jeff Helenbrook has been the go-to guy when it comes to maintenance, repairs and related responsibilities at UConnectCare (formerly Genesee/Orleans Council on Alcoholism and Substance Abuse).

Helenbrook was honored for his 20 years of employment at the nonprofit agency this week -- receiving a standing ovation from his fellow employees at a reception at Terry Hills Restaurant.

He and 10 other employees were recognized with longevity awards by UConnectCare Chief Executive Officer John Bennett.

“Jeff started with the agency on a part-time, temporary basis after his antique store was hit by a semi and destroyed,” Bennett said. “He came to work at Atwater (Community Residence) and was only going to stay on until he got the insurance money.”

As it turned out, the settlement took about eight years so Helenbrook stayed on at the agency, keeping the buildings, according to Bennett, “in tip-top shape.” Helenbrook’s job title today is facilities director.

An antique car buff, Helenbrook received the original catalogs of the 1930 Franklin and 1936 Pierce Arrow, two of the several vintage autos that he owns.

Others recognized at the luncheon:

15 years – MaryLou Szewczyk, counselor; Peter Whyman, residential tech.

5 years – Allison Parry-Gurak, director of Residential Services; Barb Bowman, counselor; Jocelynn Congdon, grant/data coordinator; Judy Pratt, counselor; Lauren Swimline, intake coordinator; Nicole Anderson, counselor; Sheila Rolle Smith, case manager; Trisha Allen, Reentry Project director.

The Byron-Bergen Bees improved to 7-1 on Thursday night by rolling past host Kendall, 71-46, in Genesee Region League varsity boys’ basketball.

Senior forward-center Braedyn Chambry poured in 24 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead the way for Coach Roxanne Noeth’s squad.

Senior guard-forward Brody Baubie tallied 19 points and senior guard Colin Martin chipped in with 10 points eight steals and three assists.

For Kendall, 2-4, Louis Conte had 12 points and five rebounds.

In other boys’ basketball action:

-- Host Notre Dame withstood a furious fourth-quarter rally by Wheatland-Chili in a 63-62 victory.

Leighton Williams scored 34 points for W-C, including a three-pointer to give the Wildcats a one-point lead in the final minute. Mavrik Hall responded for the Irish, however, and ND thwarted W-C’s final possession to improve to 4-0.

Jaden Sherwood led the Irish with 23 points and eight rebounds while Jay Antinore scored 13 and Hall tallied eight points and 10 rebounds.

In girls’ basketball:

-- Le Roy, 5-3, defeated Greece Athena/Odyssey, 55-49, behind Abby Allen’s 16 points and six assists; Gabby Zitz’s 10 points and 14 rebounds, and Kenna MacKenzie’s 10 points and six rebounds.

-- Pembroke downed Holley, 61-37, to raise its record to 6-2. Elle Peterson scored 22 points – hitting six three-pointers – to lead the visiting Dragons.  Jayden Hootman had 13 points, Seneca Calderon 12 and Morgan Coniber grabbed 10 rebounds while blocking six shots.

-- Eastridge topped Batavia, 52-37, behind Liv Green’s 22 points. Batavia, 4-3, got 11 points and 14 rebounds from Jamin Macdonald and 10 points, six rebounds and five steals from Isabella Walsh.

Two special meetings, a few pointed questions about contractor obligations, and nine votes solidified a move that City Council members, management and members of the police department celebrated Thursday at City Hall.

Council unanimously approved contracts worth $11,185,898 for the construction portion of the new police station to go up on the corner of Bank Street and Alva Place in downtown Batavia. 

“I’ve just gotta say this, going out after 12 years. This has now become probably one of the major accomplishments of my career in government,” Councilman John Canale said during the specially scheduled business meeting. “And I am just so very, very happy to finally see this happen.  Unless you go through that building, you have no idea what our police department has worked under, the types of conditions that they have worked under.”

Canale opted not to run for reelection to his Third Ward seat during this year's general election, and this was likely his last official piece of business for his term. He was one of nine yes votes for the following bids:

• Building Innovation Group was chosen as the lowest of seven bidders for the general contracting portion of the police facility with a bid of $5,468,698.
• Kaplan Schmidt Electric, Inc. was lowest of five bidders for electrical work with a bid of $1,365,500.
• HVAC mechanical contracting went to Crosby-Brownlie, Inc. out of four bidders, with a bid of $1,897,200.
• MKS Plumbing Corp. was the low bidder out of three proposals for plumbing and fire contracting, with a bid of $895,000.
• Seven bidders pitched for site contracting, and Ingalls Development was the low bidder with $1,559,500.

Council members Paul Viele and Bob Bialkowski asked questions about the contract, including if it was “written in stone,” and whether the city would be hearing months from now that a mistake was made and a vendor needed more money.

“We do have contingency in the overall project budget,” City Manager Rachael Tabelski said. “But these are the contracts that we will be executing for the work that was in the bids.”

Viele also wanted to know about timeline: Is there one and is the contractor made to abide by it?

There is an 18-month time period for the project completion, Tabelski said. 

Bialkowski also wanted some assurances about the contractor — what happens in the event a main or sub contractor stops working or files for bankruptcy? 

“I don’t want to see a building half completed,” Bialkowski said. 

There are provisions in the standard contract for such situations, City Attorney George Van Nest said, though “we’re not sitting here expecting that to happen.”

“Not that it’s never happened, obviously,” he said. 

The public works and architectural team has checked references and feels comfortable with the lowest bidders chosen, Van Nest said, and there are bond claims in case a contractor becomes insolvent, he said. Should a contractor cease working on the job, it goes to another contractor, he said. 

“I understand Mr. Bialkowski’s concerns,” Council President Eugene Jankowski Jr. said, referencing the situation at Ellicott Station, where the contractor walked off the job after closing his company. 

The total police facility project is estimated to be $15.5 million, paid for with a $13 million loan at 3.75 percent interest from the USDA and a $2.5 million grant, Tabelski said. 

“We would love to deliver on budget or under budget,” she said, later adding that “we’re really excited to see these bids awarded today.”

After the vote, which also included members Kathy Briggs, Al McGinnis, David Twichell, Rich Richmond and Tammy Schmidt, the audience with police department staff representation applauded. 

Jankowski, a retired lieutenant, once worked at the current station on Main Street also known as Brisbane Mansion. He said that “it’s been a long road” to get to this point.

“I want to thank you for sticking through this project, it’s been 10 years, probably more,” he said. “Thank you for doing the right thing.”

Bialkowski shared some history that there was a former police station on School Street, and recalled how “you walked up the stairs, and right at the top of the hallway was the desk sergeant."

The Byron-Bergen Bees, behind a balanced attack, turned back Oakfield-Alabama, 65-48, on Wednesday night in a Genesee Region boys’ basketball contest at O-A.

Six players got into the scoring column in the opening half as the visitors jumped out to a 32-15 advantage.

In the second half, Braedyn Chambry scored 14 of his game-high 20 points to keep B-B comfortably on top.

Brandon Pimm and Colin Martin tallied 11 apiece and Brody Baubie added 10 and Craig DiQuattro six for the winners. For the Hornets, Brendan Wescott and Avery Watterson scored 17 and 13, respectively.

Photos by Jennifer DiQuattro.

Press Release:

Congresswoman Claudia Tenney (NY-24), Member of the Ways and Means Committee, sent a letter to New York Governor Kathy Hochul urging her to prioritize repayment of the state’s billions of dollars in outstanding federal Unemployment Insurance (UI) loans.  

The Federal Unemployment Tax Act (FUTA) imposes a 6.0 percent gross federal unemployment tax rate on the first $7,000 paid annually by employers to each employee, resulting in a maximum federal tax of $420 per employee per year. Employers in certain states may credit up to 5.4 percentage points of state unemployment taxes paid against the 6.0 percent tax rate, meaning that the typical FUTA tax is $42 per worker per year.

However, employers in states whose unemployment insurance funds have outstanding federal advances for two or more consecutive years, like New York, could have their FUTA credit reduced by an additional 0.3 percent for each year the outstanding balance is not repaid in full. This means that New York small businesses, through increased employer taxes, will bear the brunt of Governor Hochul’s irresponsibility and inaction in paying back the state’s federal UI loans.

“Governor Hochul’s inaction in paying back New York’s outstanding federal UI loans in a timely manner irresponsibly places that burden on our small businesses and hardworking families,” said Congresswoman Tenney. “At a time of skyrocketing inflation due to President Biden and Governor Hochul’s far-left fiscal policies, Main Street businesses across New York are struggling and are now facing even higher taxes as a result of New York failing to repay its outstanding federal UI loans. During the COVID-19 pandemic, far-left officials in New York forced businesses to shut down, causing disastrous effects on our economy. Now, these same businesses will be forced to help repay the state’s federal UI loans despite the fact that the state had other means to repay the debt. This is reckless management from Governor Hochul and only serves to further hurt New York businesses while they’re already reeling from many other pressures. Today, I sent a letter to Governor Hochul urging New York to prioritize repayment of the outstanding federal UI loans to prevent additional harm to our small, local businesses and workers in New York.”

Press Release: 

The Haxton Memorial Library Board of Trustees will hold their monthly Board Meeting for January 2024 on Wednesday, Jan. 10 at 6:30 p.m. at the library. The public is invited to attend.

The Haxton Memorial Library located at 3 North Pearl Street in Oakfield provides residents with a variety of programs, events, and materials that are listed on the library’s website at www.HaxtonLibrary.org.

Press Release:

The Holland Land Office Museum will be closed to the public in January from Tuesday, Jan. 2 through Saturday, Jan 27. The staff and volunteers of the museum will be working on getting the museum ready for a brand-new year in 2024 full of new exhibits, displays, programs, and special events. 

The museum exhibit spaces will be undergoing major facelifts for our new exhibits. The museum will be resuming its regular operating hours of Tuesday - Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 30. 

For further information or questions please contact the museum at 585-343-4727 or hollandlandoffice@gmail.com.

When the museum reopens in February, it will be “Reimagining History”. This project developed by Museum Curator Tyler Angora is the steppingstone into a new era for the Holland Land Office Museum. “Reimagining History” will showcase a redesign of exhibits and exhibit spaces on the bottom level of the original structure of the Holland Land Office.

Our permanent exhibit, “The Land Office,” will be presented with a new flow of story and presentation of artifacts. Also, the opening will showcase the newly revamped and enlarged exhibit, “98 Years Since the Sun Went Out.” In its new location in the old room where The Land Office” used to reside, it will triple in size and truly show what
Genesee County looked like back in 1925 when the last total solar eclipse occurred over this area. 

There will be more history integrated into the exhibit along with many new objects! On Feb. 9 at 6 p.m. the museum welcomes all to view the new edition of “98 Years Since the Sun Went Out” and of “The Land Office.” You won’t want to miss it!

Bethany town residents will be able to fill their water totes for the last time from 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday at the town hall, Supervisor Carl Hyde Jr. says.

The water tanker on loan from the state Office of Emergency Management is being taken back next week, and the town has been given until Tuesday (Dec. 26) to use it, Hyde said.  

“We knew it was on loan. I asked for an extension and we didn’t get it. Everybody knew this might happen. We just need to figure out the next step. I’m not done thinking outside the box,” Hyde said Thursday morning. “We’ve got a lot of bottled drinking water for residents; that’s a good thing. We will continue with the bottled water program until all 24 pallets are handed out to those whose wells have gone gone dry.”

Even with the tanker, it has been a completely flawless operation, he said, given the cold temperatures. There have been several times that the water valve has been frozen and needed to be thawed out. As winter progresses, that would have continued to be a difficulty to contend with, he said.

“The weather’s a huge factor in where we’re going and what we’re able to do. Mother Nature is just being difficult; first she put us in this drought and then she brought all this cold weather,” he said.  The pump housing is aluminum. We can’t heat it up with a torch; aluminum does not like torches and heat, it could expand and crack.  We’ve had to pour warm water on it to thaw it out. It’s not easy.”

He commended the town board and community members for pulling together and working out solutions so far. 

“We are resilient in Bethany, and we will do what we have to, to come through this,” he said. “Everybody has done a great job to get us to this point.”

Having the 6,700 tanker from the state was a temporary fix that was appreciated, and more residents have water totes as a result of it, he said. For now, they will have to travel to Batavia, Pavilion or Stafford to meet their water supplies. He has not heard of any dry wells recharging to the point of being filled on their own, he said.

“We are talking, we are trying to figure something out,” Hyde said. “We did have the hall booked for Christmas parties and New Year’s Eve parties, and those were canceled.”

The volunteer fire company usually has several breakfast fundraisers the first part of the year, and those too have been canceled without water, he said. 

“We don’t know when the water is coming back,” he said. “It really upsets the apple cart. Unfortunately, I have to be the bearer of bad news.”

The good news has been that Bethany was awarded a $5 million grant for Water District 5.  

Of all the locales seen so far — Cooperstown and the beverage trail, Myrtle Beach, Philadelphia, Niagara Falls, the must-see for all international visitors, Amish country in Ohio, and cities from Los Angeles to Boston — Hiroshige Yamabe quickly pinpointed his favorite place in America so far.

“Batavia, of course,” he said. 

Yamabe, whose American friends call Hiro, is getting to know Batavia and Western New York fairly well after his eighth visit this week. His first one was as exchange student from Tokyo, Japan when the Smith family hosted him — from parents Jim and Mary to son Jason — and they have forged a relationship that has endured more than three decades. 

Yamabe is director of procurement and strategic sourcing for Jacques Marie Mage, a luxury eyeglass and sunglass company. His job often takes him to California and Connecticut, which are nice to visit, but they’re not the same, he said, as Batavia’s homey — he needed some help with the phrasing — laudable appeal.

“So I feel, like, more relaxed, and they're something I expect, the ground on the earth's crust — salt of the earth,” he said Monday during his visit to Jason Smith’s Batavia home.

Yamabe has come to regard the Smiths as true friends and a second family, he said. And Batavia as his second home. Jason Smith met him as a fellow student and musician at Batavia High School, after his original host family didn’t work out. The Smiths agreed to take the teenager in, and he lived with them for about seven months. 

Since then, Jason has visited him in Japan, attended his wedding, and Yamabe in turn went to Jason’s wedding, and has made several return trips to a Smith residence — whether it be the parent’s home, Jason’s apartment and now at Jason’s own family home. 

This trip was one of a culinary experience — touring many local haunts, including Eli Fish Brewing Company, Rancho Viejo, Miss Batavia Diner, Cinquino’s, Southside Deli and Avanti Pizza & Wood-Fired Kitchen, which serves up huge slices, Jason said, in Medina.

The reunited classmates also visited the late Jim Smith’s grave, as Yamabe has been kept up to date on all of the family news through the decades, and called Jason once he learned his host dad had died earlier this year.

“They made a decision that they accept me. It was my pleasure to be hosted,” Yamabe said. “So I'm very pleased with that. I always like to think of, like, the family and all the friends here … I always think that's a good experience, is the love from the family here.” 

Mary Smith recalled how Yamabe’s first host family didn’t quite work out. She didn’t share the details but said that the high school principal reached out to Jason, a student at the time,  to see if perhaps his family would be able to help out. They stepped up and offered to host this visitor who eventually grew so close to the family that they didn’t want to see him go back to Japan.

“We had a big party for him and there’s a lot of crying kids, it was very sad when he had to go back,” she said. 

She remembered how he liked the Buffalo Bills, so they gave him a Bills jersey for Christmas — and he was “thrilled,” and how his Christmas cookies had to be bare, with no icing, since he’s not one for sweets. When it snowed, Yamabe would shovel the driveway right down to the nub of the blacktop, which seemed to impress the Smiths, she said. 

“It was like losing a family member,” when he returned to his home, she said.

They have exchanged gifts over the years — Mary has a curio cabinet full of Japanese keepsakes -- and Jason’s table had some goodies from this trip — a hand-crafted knife, one of the Japanese region’s specialties, and some candies, including Kit Kats, which are pronounced kitty katto, and mean triumph, Yamabe said. They are considered a good luck item to give to people, and the tiny wrapped packages even include lines to write messages to the recipient.

Of course, of all the tangible items, there are the memories of spending time together, trying each other’s cuisine — Yamabe enjoyed his first garbage plate — and meeting up with old friends, as Yamabe has done with BHS classmates. And when Jason and Hiro get together, they talk about their jobs (Jason is superintendent of Batavia City Schools), their wives and families and life in general. 

“We became good friends in high school. We're just kind of continuing naturally. And he came back and I've been there twice,” Jason said. “We just pick up where we left off.”

Elba defeated host Notre Dame, 49-44, in Genesee Region girls’ basketball action Wednesday night.

Sofia Falleti recorded a double-double for the Irish, scoring 20 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. Nina Bartz added 12 for ND.

ND Coach Vinny Falleti:

“Our team played hard tonight and made runs to come back but couldn’t put together a complete game against a physical Elba team. The game was back and forth with a lot of intensity. We will see each other again late in the season.”

Statistics from Elba have yet to be submitted.

For more high school sports competition from last night, click on the Sports tab at the top of the home page.

Photos by Debra Reilly

The City Church Activity Night Annual Toy Giveaway, a night to assist those in need during the holiday season, was a huge success on Tuesday, Dec. 19 at St. Anthony’s on Liberty Street in Batavia.

Every child received a gift or two that attended the event, organizers said.  There were even 30 bicycles that were given away to children that needed or wanted a bike. Pastor Ryan Macdonald, the lead pastor of City Church, said that “there was a time when I was a child that we had nothing.; I remember those days.”

“Now that we have the means to help families, that’s what we want to do,” he said.

City Church’s volunteers all came together for a night of fun, joy and community, organizers said.  Approximately 28 businesses, community members, and church members made a difference by making some sort of donation of toys and/or financial support. 

“Our slogan is, ‘we do life together,’ and we certainly did not do this night alone,” Macdonald said
With a stage full of toys, makeup, sports equipment, and games, children were walking away with smiles on their faces, organizers said. There were carriage rides provided by Cherry Grove: The Yohe Family Farm, and chili was given to all in attendance.

And of course, Santa and some of his elves made an appearance for visits and photo ops with the children. 

Next year, City Church plans to continue this tradition of helping and blessing its community, organizers said, and they encourage you to not spend Christmas alone and welcome you to join them on Christmas Eve at 8:30 or 10 a.m. at 210 E. Main St. and/or at 6 p.m. at 114 Liberty St., Batavia. 

Submitted Photos

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Press Release:

The holiday season is a time of joy, celebration, and togetherness. However, amidst the festive decorations and merriment, there are poisoning potentials.

Our number one call last December and this December is for pain medicine mishaps for all ages in the 54 counties we serve. That means an unintentional overdose, taking a double dose of a medicine, or a child getting into the wrong medicine. So far this December, our poison center is seeing a high number of calls for exposure to cleaning products and children who have swallowed something they shouldn’t like a battery or toys.

“One way to safeguard against an unintentional exposure this holiday season is by storing purses and coats up high just in case loved ones bring along any medications that could harm little ones. Offer a safe place to store or a medication lock box,” says Mary Beth Dreyer, Upstate New York Poison Center Health Education Program Manager. “Remember, we are available 24/7, even during holidays, to help in times of need."

Common Poisoning Potentials

Decorative Plants: While visually appealing, certain decorative plants can be toxic if ingested. Keep these out of reach of kids and pets: mistletoe, holly berries, amaryllis, Jerusalem cherry, and yew. Remember to call for any plant ingestions to help keep yourself or a loved one safe.

Alcohol & Cannabis: Secure and keep out of reach of children during holiday parties. 

Decorative Lights: Keep batteries and light bulbs away from small children, as they can be harmful if swallowed.

Medication: Keep suitcases and purses out of reach of children and pets. Designate a safe space for coats, purses, and bags.

Dinner Time: Combat food poisoning by keeping hot food hot and cold food cold. Refrigerate or freeze any perishable food within two hours.

Kids Toys: Many children’s toys contain lithium button batteries (flat, coin-like batteries). If eaten, they can get stuck in the throat or on the way to the stomach and cause a blockage or serious burns. Call our poison center or seek immediate medical attention if you think your child swallowed a button battery.

Household Chemicals: Never mix chemicals, use cleaning products in a well-ventilated area, and store them out of reach from children and pets.

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Photos by Steve Ognibene

Empowering students, maximum potential, socially responsible citizens.

Those are some of the words “that popped out to me when I first became a principal when I started to dig into learning a little bit about Batavia,” High School Principal Jennifer Wesp said during Tuesday’s Batavia City Schools Board of Education meeting. “And then things like safe and nurturing environment, high moral character, and successfully meeting life’s challenges. So coming into this, I really was focused on how can we make sure that our culture is helping our students to rise to be the best students that they can be? And how can they take hose steps to really show the independence that they have within themselves?

“So I just wanted to say that I really grounded myself in the mission and vision as I started to think about the work that I was going to do,” she said. “So with that, as you know, our strategic plan as a district is really amazing. And this is really the roadmap that we use in the high school to plan all of the things that we’re doing, some of the policies and procedures that we’ve updated, the messaging we’re giving our students.”

Her journey, as she put it, began in the summer with a three days of four-hour meeting of the minds from across district buildings, to share concerns — “there had been some unrest at the end of the year, lots of things where people were talking about different things that were going on” —and some of the needs that staff wanted to discuss with the district at large, she said.

“And it really gave me my first taste of what is Batavia about, what are we looking at, what are we looking to build upon, what are the great things?” she said. “So this kind of helped, just being in the meeting and meeting people across the district to start to formulate some of the things and actions that we are going to take as we work on our goals together.”

Two specific areas emerged from those meetings for more exploration, she said, which was done with interviews and surveys to obtain direct feedback from the “stakeholders” involved. The two areas led to questions: 

• In what ways might we be able to handle and best manage student behaviors in class?
• How might we help students emotionally regulate in order to avoid and manage conflicts?

Assistant Principals Omar Hussain and Jessica Korzelius took a part of the presentation and piece of the response to create three goals to help students to progress personally and academically.

The goals involve purposeful reading, a safe and orderly environment, and well managed emotions.

More specifically, the goals mandate that students will:

• Learn strategies to develop/manage/execute emotional regulation levels to increase positive student behaviors in the classroom, school and community; 
• Engage in purposeful reading (authentic text), writing and collaborative discussion protocols for 100 minutes a day; and 
• Provide a school environment that is safe and orderly for all.

Just what is authentic text? The New York State Education Department defines it (and other forms of media) as being produced from authentic resources and used as "a tool to promote students’ language and culture learning."

"Through authentic resources, students see how words and structures are used in a given cultural context for real-world communicative purposes. When authentic resources are well-chosen and implemented, they can motivate and support students’ target language use and cultural understanding," the SED website states. 

Hussain touched on the idea of independence in a way that he thought was “pretty sweet,” and seemingly simple.  The school’s co-mayors suggested a program of allowing seniors the option to hang out for a “sunrise/sunset” privilege, captured with fun props in photos at Van Detta Stadium, and done with the assistance of a student parent group. It was an alternative senior study hall that “the underclassmen, they’ll love it too,” he said, and includes a late arrival for seniors and study halls housed in the library, aka the “Senior Lounge.” 

Korzelius talked more about strategies to help students “understand themselves better,” and that use restorative practices. Such strategies can involve family members and counselors, and the work  is focused on repairing the damage done to oneself and relationships with others.

“There’s the alternative to suspension room,” she said as an example of the restorative piece. “For an overall wellness experience for students.”

There’s a strong emphasis on the positive, all three said, and that includes mental health as part of a social and emotional learning component.

“It’s just really empowering our students to see the leaders in themselves … it’s celebrating students,” Korzelius said.  

Press Release:

The New York State Public High School Athletic Association Inc. (NYSPHSAA) announces its Fall 2023 Scholar-Athlete teams and number of Scholar-Athlete individuals per team. This is the 32nd year NYSPHSAA has conducted the Scholar-Athlete program, which is sponsored by Pupil Benefits Plan, Inc.

NYSPHSAA recognized 3,967 Scholar-Athlete teams this Fall. To qualify as a team, 75% of a team’s average GPA for the Fall must be equal to or greater than 90%. Additionally, 51,625 students received individual scholar-athlete recognition by earning an individual average of 90 or above for the fall season, whether their team qualified or not.

“Congratulations to all the teams and student-athletes who continue to work hard day in and day out both on the field/court and in the classroom,” said Dr. Robert Zayas, Executive Director. “NYSPHSAA is thrilled to recognize your dedication to the true meaning of interscholastic athletics.”

649 schools participated in the program, which accounts for 83.4% of the NYSPHSAA membership.

The full list of Scholar-Athlete teams for the Fall 2023 season can be found here.

The number of Scholar-Athlete individuals per team for the Fall 2023 season can be found here.

Each season, schools are responsible for submitting the Scholar-Athlete information on the NYSPHSAA website. The Winter Scholar-Athlete submission opens on Monday, January 29, with a deadline to submit by Monday, March 11, 2024.