Last week was the first week of "Change for Change," the Genesee County high schools' fundraising project for the United Way. Batavia High and Pavilion Central were the only two schools to deposit money with the Tonawanda Valley Federal Credit Union on Friday. The project's representative at TVFCU said that the other schools were busy with testing.

Right now, Batavia is in the lead with $224.84. Pavilion's earnings total $97.71.

Stay posted for further updates in the coming weeks.

Batavia High School's 2010 musical performance will be 'Once Upon a Mattress."

It is a Broadway musical/comedy adaptation of Hans Christian Anderson's "The Princess and the Pea."

Showtimes are March 5 at 7 p.m. and March 6 at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. in the BHS auditorium, 260 State St. Tickets are $7 for adults and $6 for students and seniors.

Tickets for reserved seating can be purchased in the BHS main office between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.

Please contact BHS at 343-2480, Ext. 2000 for more information.

Batavia High School will host the nationally acclaimed "Rachel's Challenge" on Wednesday.

It is a program that was founded by the parents of Rachel Scott, the first victim of the Columbine High School shootings over a decade ago.

Morning and afternoon assemblies will be held for the students, faculty and staff of Batavia High School and Batavia Middle School, respectively. An assembly for parents and community leaders will be held at 6:30 p.m. in the BHS auditorium, located at 260 State St.

RC student assemblies feature video footage of the Columbine tragedy and of Rachel's life -- with emphasis on her compassion and her desire to make a difference in the world. That is followed by 45-minute leadership-training sessions.

The public, evening presentation focuses on teaching parents and civic leaders ways to support, encourage and affirm postive attitudes and behavior in their children, for the good of the community and school environment.

Please contact BHS at 343-2480, ext. 2000 for more information. To learn more about the assembly, please visit the RC website.

It was a battle of the Devils on Wednesday night at the Tuttle Ice Arena at SUNY Brockport, where Victor came up victorious 3-0 and earned a trip to the Section V Class B high school hockey finals.

Victor's Zeb Clarke recorded 20 saves to earn the shutout. Adam Kurek made 22 saves for Batavia.

6th seeded Batavia, who finished the season at 10-10-1, had lost twice to 2nd seeded Victor (14-4-2-1) in league play this season.

Batavia ended the season and will lose three seniors to graduation, Will Mulcahy, Corey Kocent and Rob Henning.

Victor will play the 1st seeded Webster Thomas in the finals on Sunday at the Tuttle Ice Arena. Thomas who is currently ranked #1 in the state, has not allowed a goal in the first two games of sectionals as they defeteaded Geneva/Waterloo 9-0 and Spencerport 5-0.

File photo: BHS's Adam Kurek prepares to save a shot by ND's Kyle Gannon in the last matchup on January 19, 2010.

Almost exactly a month after the last time the Notre Dame Fighting Irish hosted cross town rival Batavia Ice Devils, the two teams will meet again. This time, there is more at stake. Saturday at 1:00pm the rivalry will continue into sectional play in front of what is sure to be a packed house at the Falleti Ice Arena, as the third seeded Irish will host the sixth seeded Ice Devils.

"I'm not sure if I sure be nervous or excited to play Batavia again", says Notre Dame senior Ivan Madafferi. "It's going to be one of the biggest things I will have a chance to be a part of."

The two teams have already faced off twice this season and split the pair of games. Notre Dame defeted the Devils in Batavia's David M. McCarthy Memorial Tournament 4-1, and Batavia took revenge during the second game and was victorioious 2-1.

"We'll prepare for the game just like we would for any other sectional game", says Batavia senior Will Mulcahy. "For us it helps playing Notre Dame because we always play our best hockey against them, so playing them in sectionals is just a plus". Mulcahy lead the Ice Devils in points during the regular season with 21 goals and 6 assists.

Both Notre Dame and Batavia played in the same division for the season where Notre Dame finished in second and Batavia followed in third. The way the seedings work, more teams join into the bracket for sectionals which gave the two teams the seeding differential and the opportunity to play again.

"We have been preparing for this all season" says Batavia senior Corey Kocent. "Sectionals is a true test to see how far your team has come by season end. At the beginning of the year, we made it clear that we wanted to win a sectional title."

The two teams have not faced each other in sectional play since the 2003 playoffs, where Batavia came away victorious and eventually moved on to the state championship game.

The Irish finished this season with a 12-5-2-1 (W-L-T-OTL) record and Batavia finished at 10-9-1.

Notre Dame has found much success this season with junior goaltender Tom Dehr, who is ranked one of the top goalies in Section V. He finished the season with a save percentage of 91.9% and just 1.92 goals allowed per game.

Although he may be an advantage for the Irish, their tendency to take penalties may be the advantage for Batavia, who was the least penalized team with only 109 penalty minutes, compared to the Irish who had 234.5 this season. To overcome this ND senior Jerod Adams says "we just have to worry about what's going on on the ice and keep focused on not take any bad penalties". "It's going to be key for us to not let the emotions of the building get to us", added Madafferi.

The winner of the game will move on to face the winner of  (2)Victor  vs (7)Canandaigua.

The following video was taken at Batavia High School on Friday, Jan. 8, before and after the Encore Theatre Arts performance of Disney's "High School Musical." There is another performance tonight at 7:30 and at 2 p.m. on Sunday at the BHS auditorium.

Video: www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvrrisCIuSs

Jocks. Brainiacs. Skaters. Cheerleaders. It may sound like a typical high school experience, but this weekend the spectacle won't be in the Batavia High cafeteria, it'll be on the stage. 

Starting Thursday night, Encore Theatre Arts will be performing "Disney's High School Musical." The play, which is based on the smash-hit movie, follows nerdy Gabriella and jock Troy as they sing and dance their way through falling in love and discovering their place in high school.

Director Lynda Hodgins says that the play is very similar to the movie, with only a few changes, such as a new character and a slightly different setting. Some of the original characters were cut out completely, and others' parts were slightly adjusted.

"The Taylor in the musical has a bigger part than in the movie," says Maureen Edwards, 12, of her role as Gabriella's best friend. "You see her friendship with Gabriella more."

The show will also differ from the movie when it comes to dancing, says choreographer Tara Kaczorowski, who also has the part of mean-girl diva Sharpay Evans. 

"The only dance that's the same as in the movie is for 'We're All in This Together,' because we thought kids would be expecting that. Surprisingly, this has been one of the easiest shows I've choreographed so far, because the music has a good beat and it's fun to dance to," says Kaczorowski.

So is it difficult taking on the roles of some of the most beloved actors in recent 'tween media? 

"Well, I based some of my character off of Zac Efron's," says Brian Bodgan, who plays jock-turned-actor Troy Bolton. "I try to give him the same passion and pizzazz that Zac did, but I'm definitely a different Troy."

Bogdan, 24, says he was attracted to the role right away because of similarities between him and his character. 

"I was a lot like Troy in high school. I grew up playing sports year-round, and also doing theater. They always went hand-in-hand for me, and Troy is trying to find the balance between them. So I see a lot of myself in the character."

Justin Ryan, 22, who plays Sharpay's equally attention-loving sidekick, brother Ryan Evans, also has no trouble getting into his role.

"I basically am Ryan in real life," he laughs. "You know, theater geek, classy dresser. I actually used a lot of stuff from my own closet for my costumes." 

The cast, which is mostly composed of high school and college students as well as twenty-somethings, is proof that the story is popular among all ages, not just children.

"I love the movie," Edwards confesses. "I used to listen to the soundtrack every day."

"When it first came out, I thought it was fantastic, and I was in college!" says Ryan.  "There was so much hype for it, and I thought it was really great."

When asked if it was his favorite movie, Paul Teresi, 16, replies, "Duh!"

And Bogdan said "It's a story I think everyone can relate to. The characters are going through this journey of discovering themselves, and everyone goes through that in high school. It's a time for finding who you are. I think that's what makes the show so successful and recognizable."

"Encore is a new company," says Hodgins, "and they wanted to do something with a wide appeal that's a big ticket seller."

Sell tickets it surely will. After all, everybody loves a high school musical.

Performances are at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 7-9 and 2 p.m. Jan. 10 at Batavia High School. Tickets are $10 when purchased at Adam Miller Toy & Bicycles and $12 at the door.

Batavia High School students Casey Herman, left, and Maryssa Peirick practice the flute for "Musical Interludes for Trey." BHS' holiday concert was held to benefit Trey Filbert, a ninth-grader battling brain cancer.

If you were to ask any members of the BHS community about Trey Filbert, they would all probably tell you the same kind of things. Here are some comments, just to give you an idea:

"There's not a mean bone in his body," Freshman Nick Mungillo said.

"Trey's a dedicated athlete and a very sensitive and caring person," said Buddy Brasky, Trey's basketball coach. "He's a hard worker, is dependable and truly cares about each member of his team."

"His peers regard him as a kind, generous, fun young man," Principal Christopher Dailey said.

"Many of my students know him," Band Director Jane Haggett said. "They all talk about his positive attitude. He smiles a lot, is very happy, and has a gift for taking a serious situation and minimizing it."

Naturally, the BHS community responded as soon as the news arrived that Trey had been diagnosed with brain cancer.

"Multiple people came forward to help his family," Dailey said.

The largest-scale effort to help Trey and his family took place in the auditorium on Monday. The school's holiday concert was dedicated to Trey and helped raise money for his medical bills and treatment. Donations were collected at the doors, and a basket of goods donated by the Michael Napoleone Memorial Foundation was raffled off.

It was a great night for the local goaltenders as both Brandon Corcoran of Batavia and Tom Dehr of Notre Dame posted shut outs in high school hockey matchups.

Notre Dame hosted Bishop Kearney at the Falletti Ice Arena and was able to post their sixth victory of the season by a score of 2-0. Freshman Tyler Kessler had a big night for the Irish as he registered both goals.

His first came with 1:59 remaining in the first period off of an assist from Brett Perfitt.

Kessler then gave Notre Dame the insurance goal with 9:45 remaining in the game with the assists being credited to Perfitt and Jack Nenni.

Dehr ended the game with 13 saves for the Irish (6-2) and his first shutout of the season. Brett Marrapese  had 39 saves for Bishop Kearny (1-6).

In the other matchup, Batavia traveled to Geneva where they skated to a scoreless tie.

Brandon Corcoran recorded his first shutout of the season by stopping all of the 23 shots he faced. Zach Koczent made 37 saves for Geneva. Batavia is now 3-3-1 while Geneva is 2-5-1.

Trey Filbert, a freshman at Batavia High, is battling brain cancer and is undergoing multiple treatments to help battle his illness.

Classmates have organized a concert tonight at the school's auditorium. The 7 p.m. show will feature the school's band.

Funds raised will help the family with medical costs. Donations are accepted at the door. The high school is located at 260 State St. in the City of Batavia.

The Ice Devils failed to make it into the championship game of their David M. McCarthy Memorial Tournament but that didn't stop them from playing full speed.

In the consolation game, Batavia's Phil Boyd put the Devils (3-3) onto the score board early as he recorded his first career high school goal on an unassisted play to start off the Batavia scoring drive. Junior forward Tim Finnell added Batavia's second goal halfway through the period on a play set up by junior defenseman Trevor Powers.

The Ice Devils weren't going to let down there. Senior forward Corey Kocent took advantage of a Batavia 5-on-3 powerplay by firing a rocket slapshot from the point to give his team the three goal lead. As the powerplay continued with Oswego skating a man down, Will Mulcahy made it a complete success by scoring again just seconds later. Finnell and Conor Holvey got credit for the assists on both goals.

Sophomore defensemen Blake Polito registered his first career goal just 1:30 seconds later to put the Devils up 5-0 and continue the scoring streak.

With under eight minutes remaining in the game, Oswego forward Tyler Grimshaw, took away the Brandon Corcoran potential shut-out by scoring Oswego's only goal of the game on the powerplay.

Freshman Nate Palmer decided it was his time to join Polito and Boyd and score his first career high school goal as well, as he netted Batavia's sixth goal to cap off the score at 6-1.

Batavia got to the consolation after being defeated by Notre Dame Friday by a score of 4-1. Oswego was defeated by Fronteir out of Section 6 by a score of 10-2.

Photo: Batavia's Josh Marr (9), battles with ND's Beau Richter

It was a packed house for the Batavia Ice Devil's David M. McCarthy Memorial tournament at the Falleti Ice Arena Friday night, as Notre Dame came up victorious in one of the biggest cross-town games of the year.

The first period was full of hard hits and scoring chances for Batavia as they outshot Notre Dame 12-4, but the score remained as it started with neither team being able to capitalize on any chances. The second period was Notre Dame leading the shot board 8-7 and it looked as though the second period score would remain the same until Notre Dame was able to put the first score on the board. Forward Josh Johnson set up linemate Jack Nenni as he ripped the puck through the five-hole of Batavia goalie Adam Kurek with 1:50 remaining in the second period.

Notre Dame back out in the third period the same way they ended the second, with a goal, as Nenni and Tyler Kessler set up Brett Perfitt to give Notre Dame the 2-0 lead.

Batavia was not going to let down easy as forward Conor Holvey scored his second goal of the season off a Corey Kocent pass to put Batavia within a goal of ND with just over 8 minutes reamaining in the game but that would remain their only goal. "We came in knowing that one of the factors to beating Notre Dame is we had to beat their goalie (Tom Dehr)," says Holvey. He's a great goalie and contributes positively to his team every game.

Former Batavia forward, Dylan Versage gave Notre Dame the insurance goal with just over two minutes remaining. "It feels good to score against my old team. I am good friends with some of them and we have played together our whole careers so it was really fun," Versage says.

With about a minute left in the game, Batavia pulled their goalie in hopes to capitalize on the score board. Notre Dame forward Jason Harasimowicz had other plans as he scored from his own zone on a dump shot to secure the victory by the final score of 4-1.

"We came into this game the same as we always do and we look at this just like any other win," Versage says. "It definitely makes it more interesting being against our friends and rival but its still just another game and we have to play how we always do."

Notre Dame (5-1) will play against Fronteir in the Championship game tomorrow at 3:30pm at the Falleti Ice Arena, while Batavia (2-3) will play in the consolation game at 1pm against Oswego.

Fronteir (Section 6) beat Oswego (Section 3) to advance to the championship game by a score of 10-2.

Photo: ND's Tom Dehr, stops a shot from Batavia's Will Mulcahy

 (Photos courtesy of Scott Grefrath)

The Ice Devils came out strong on Monday night at the Falletti Ice Arena in Batavia, for a Monroe County High School Hockey matchup, but couldn't hold on, as Brighton/East/HFL came up victorious. Brighton forward Andrew Schwingel scored the game winner late in the game to spoil Batavia's early 2-0 lead and to give Brighton their first victory of the season.

After an extended warm up due to referees failing to initailly show, Batavia came out flying and lit the lamp early. Batavia freshman forward Conor Holvey set up senior Will Mulcahy for his third goal of the season. Keeping the pressure on throughout the period resulted in many scoring opportunities for the Ice Devils, and eventually lead to Holvey scoring his first career high school goal. Senior Rob Henning was credited with the assist.

After finding themselves behind 2-0 in the third period, Brighton came back with a fight as forward James Spencer put Brighton on the board. The pressure didn't stop there as Brighton forward Jack Beers, tied the game at 2-2, only to be followed by Schwingel's game winner, giving Brighton the 3-2 victory off a Kevin Holly pass. Holly finished with two assists for the Barons (1-4-0-1). Batavia falls to 2-2 and faces cross-town rival Notre Dame High School Friday at 5pm at the Falletti Ice Arena. The matchup is the first game of Batavia's annual David M. McCarthy Memorial Tournament.

(Photos courtesy of Scott Grefrath)

The perenially popular fairy tale of "Cinderella" comes to life beginning 7:30 p.m. Thursday, the opening of the 61st annual Rotary Club of Batavia Musical.

The Rodgers and Hammerstein classic will also be performed Friday and Saturday night at 7:30 and there's a matinee at 2 on Sunday, Nov. 8.

The production is directed by Patrick D. Burk and takes place in the Batavia High School Auditorium, located at 260 State St., in the City of Batavia.

Tickets are $16, available online at <bataviarotary dot com> or at Hawley & Associates Insurance Center, 260 State St. in downtown Batavia, Lawley Genesee in Jefferson Square, or at the door.

More than 40 friends, students, associates, neighbors, citizens, Americans and so forth have put countless hours and great effort into bringing the community this enchanting story. Ditto dozens more in the orchestra and production crew.

It's very much a family show and little ones are welcome -- encouraged -- to come dressed in a befitting costume.

This stage performance of "Cinderella" is one-hour-45-minutes long and has a happy ending, but there's soooo much to keep you entertained until then!

"Once upon a time there was a young maiden named Cinderella, who lived with her wicked stepmother and two wicked stepsisters..."

You are cordially invited to come reimagine the magic, timeless tale of romance-against-the-odds. And invite someone you care about.

Both photos were taken during rehearsals and provided by the Batavia Rotary Club.

Although there has been a decrease in teenage pregnancy rates from 1991-2004 new data shows teenage pregnancy is now rising.

Each year almost 750,000 teenage women aged 15-19 become pregnant. Fifty percent or more of teenage pregnancies end in abortion in New York State, according to the National and Statewide statistics.

Stephanie Loranty, nurse at Batavia High School, said last year there were ten students who were pregnant. Four dropped out, one graduated, and five are still continuing on. Currently, two students are pregnant at the high school and one at the middle school.

27 percent of ninth graders in New York are sexually experienced and 17.4 percent are sexually active.  As seniors 62.6 percent are sexually experienced and 49.1 percent are sexually active.

“It’s scary,” said Loranty on the statistics of sexually active teens, “It’s hard because you are around the kids every day and you know their emotional and insecure at times and you know the choices they make can have consequences on their whole life.”

7.1 percent of ninth graders had four or more partners in New York and 20.1 percent of seniors had four or more partners.

Loranty said she feels students do not understand the seriousness of STDs and there are not many educational opportunities for students besides what they learn in their health class.

When asked about how safe sex is promoted or talked about she said it really isn’t, mostly abstinence is.

 Loranty said she wants to see more programs informing students of the risks of unprotected sex, and the importance of abstinence and safe sex, but it is a sensitive topic. She said this is where it gets hard because the line can easily be crossed with parents.

Loranty thinks a way to help teenagers make the right choice would be to start the health class at the freshman level.

She hopes one day the school budget will be able to afford electronic computer babies (mimics all the behaviors of a real life baby), instead of using flour babies.

Loranty nodded her head and sighed as she said, “It is not effective for them at all, and it just teaches them to be responsible for carrying an extra item around.”
Although these electronic babies would be much more effective, they are too costly.

“They are somewhere around $10, 000,” said Loranty.

Teenage pregnancy is also costly, from a press release teen childbearing in
New York cost taxpayers (federal, state, and local) at least $421 million in 2004.

Loranty’s advice for students who are pressured to be sexually active is, “Talk to someone and really think about your decisions.”

Her advice for parents, “Be involved, there are so many kids out there who don’t have any support.” She said even the little things matter. Just talking to them can create change. She hopes to see more programs implemented into the curriculum that are self-sufficient and involve parents. 

Batavia High School is one of ten schools in the state studied by the University at Albany in a report entitled: What makes high schools work: How higher-performing high schools in New York adapt and thrive. In it, the high school is commended for its "state-of-the-art technology."

Facuty are encouraged to use thattechnology to enhance instruction and to take advantage of other professional development opportunties, as well. Collaborative goal setting and use of data to determine progress lead to further refinements in instruction. Teachers examine state standards to find the "power standards"—those concepts that are most important for success in life after school or are the foundation for the next grade level.

Batavia students "consistently outperform" other students in similar demographics, and the school is noted for its "proactive" approach to identifying "at-risk students" and working out programs that can help them succeed.

Download the complete report: What makes high schools work.

Thousands of live chickens spilled from their crates onto the state Thruway yesterday when a truck carrying nearly 10,000 of them overturned at the Route 190 off-ramp in Erie County. WBTA's Dan Fischer spoke with state police who said they had never seen anything like it. Dozens Thousands of chickens were killed. Many others were taken to the Erie County Society for the Prevention of Animal Cruelty. The truck driver was ticketed with unsafe lane change.

UPDATE (9:18am): The Buffalo News ran a full story on this sad crash—the photographs and video are unsettling. It turns out that not dozens but thousands of chickens died, either at the scene or later by euthanization. From that article:

Gina Browning, the public relations director of the SPCA in the Town of Tonawanda, described a grim scene of blood and broken eggs inside the SPCA facility.

“In 18 years [working at the SPCA], I can tell you I’ve never seen anything of this magnitude,” Browning said.

The facility closed 2 hours early to make room for the birds. SPCA officials used the auditorium and the garage to fit all the crates.

“It’s mortifying,” employee Julie Ruppel said. “It’s unimaginable what we’re seeing.”

In other news, Batavia's Rotary Club will be holding auditions for its upcoming musical production of Singing in the Rain. Auditions for the November performance will be held on September 3, 4 and 5 in the Batavia High School from 7:00 to 10:00pm.

I met briefly with Christopher Dailey today.  He is the new Principal at Batavia High School.  His first week has been interesting to say the least.  He started off the week with the National School Boards Association Technology Conference and ends it with the Drama Club Production of OUR TOWN....and the Batavia Invitational Track Tournament...interwoven with a myriad of other things.  Tomorrow morning is his first "Coffee with the Principal".... If you want the chance to meet him...stop on in..... I think you will be impressed.  I know I am.

The nice thing about Chris Dailey's job is that he honestly works with some great people.  Our staff at the High School is quite exemplary.  As I walked the halls, I noticed the work that they were doing for individual students and the innovative ways that we teach, not just with technology, but one to one as well.  I always have been proud of our students with disabilities... at Batavia they are allowed to shine and be a part of a wonderful school community.  They participate in clubs, go on field trips, do plays, partipate in music programs and play sports.  You want to see a staff shine? Look at the Batavia High School Group that works with these wonderful students on a daily basis.  They are true heros in my eyes.  From those that work in food service to the adminstration, there is a special way that they nurture and care for our students.....all of our students.

Tonight is opening night for OUR TOWN...expertly staged and directed by my daughters Caryn Leigh and Malloryann.  It starts at 7:30PM at John Kennedy School.  They make Dad so proud.....and son Nick has the Batavia Track Invitational this weekend - VanDetta Stadium at 3PM.  My daughter Sara Jane is participating in here first "Parent of a Child in a Dance Recital" as my granddaughter hits the boards at the age of four.  Since my granddaughter is an already an excellent ice skater .... I am sure she will be a wonderful dancer, with grace and beauty......she is certainly a beauty anyway.

So that is our weekend.....my show (Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean - 7:30PM at GCC Friday and Saturday), thier show (Our Town - 7:30 at JK Friday and Saturday)....the Track Invitational and the Dance Recital..... Busy....Busy...Busy...and on top of that one birthday to celebrate and Mother's Day.....Brunch sounds good... If we all get the chance to all sit down at the same time that is....

Have a good weekend & to all the Mom's...Happy Mother's Day!!!!!!!

Genesee Community College is hosting a conference on instructional technology.

“It is with great pleasure that Genesee welcomes CIT 2008 attendees,” said Dr. Stuart Steiner, President of Genesee Community College. “We are honored to be the first community college ever to host this event and are looking forward to the wealth of ideas and information that are sure to come out of the experience.”

Notre Dame High School holds its annual 500 Club Dinner and Roast on May 29 at the Holiday in.  More information on this PDF.

From the City Schools Web site:

Coffee With The New Principal @BHS
Saturday, May 10th @ 9:00 a.m. - Cafeteria Stop by to Meet & Chat with our new high school principal, Mr. Christopher Dailey. All parents are welcome and there is no special agenda.

While looking for school news, this picture of the 1925-26 Batavia High School basketball team popped up in Google search.