Batavia Middle School

Costs are going up with unexpected elevator repairs at Batavia Middle School, as city Board of Education members voted Thursday to approve a transfer of $212,000 from the repair reserve fund. 

Business Administrator Scott Rozanski had reviewed the issues and scope of work at the Sept. 19 board meeting, with the vote to occur this month. Members unanimously and without discussion agreed to the transfer for what Rozanski deemed “the worst-case scenario.” 

The elevator stopped working in March. Board members had approved an initial transfer of $65,000 for anticipated repairs by Otis Elevator Company in May, Rozanski said. A hydraulic cylinder had ceased to operate and work was to begin then, he said, but supply chain issues delayed it for a while. Work eventually began to repair the cylinder, however, there was an obstruction that prevented anything to continue. 

Otis Elevator proposed three phases to be used as needed: Phase I would involve cleaning out the hole, removing the pipe, and continuing the necessary work. If the cylinder casing is good, the issue should be resolved, Rozanski said, and the repair could be completed. The price tag for this first phase would be $35,000.

If it is determined that the casing is bad, then they will move on to Phase II for a new casing and another $26,000. Phase III is the “worst-case scenario” of the first two solutions failing, he said. Work will expand to include redrilling the hole, removing all of the debris, and putting in a hoisting beam, all for an extra $86,000 on top of the other two-phase costs. All totaled, it would be an additional $147,495.

The board’s vote on Thursday changed the original transfer from $65,000 to $212,000 to cover all three options if necessary, Rozanski said. That would leave an available balance of $86,703 in the repair reserve, he said. 

At that September meeting, Interim Superintendent Scott Bischoping added that the district’s construction manager obtained second opinions on the recommended work and didn’t just go with Otis Elevator’s proposal.

“This isn’t just a one-company idea,” he said.

The board also approved Campus Construction Management’s proposed cost of $3,875 to conduct a feasibility study on the potential renovation expenses of Batavia Middle School. 

In other matters, School board members received some good news during the district’s annual audit Thursday. Christian Townes of Freed Maxick CPAs said the firm issued an “unmodified opinion” for the school district. 

 “Which is the highest level of assurance that we can provide,” she said.

The overall rating, having no significant deficiencies and having no material misstatements is “a testament” to the hard work the district invests into its financial-related statements, she said. 

“Financially, the district is in good shape,” she said. “Overall, you had a really great audit this year. It went smoothly and there are no negative matters to report to you.”

The board voted to accept and approve the final audited report, basic financial statements, and audited extra classroom activity financial statements ending June 30, 2021. 

Nine years after closing Robert Morris Elementary, city school officials are mulling the idea of resuming it as a school once again.

The idea is in tandem with recommending Request for Proposals of completely renovating the well-used Batavia Middle School. The Board of Education unanimously agreed to move forward with the school’s construction assessment and a cost estimate during Thursday’s board meeting.  

Board member John Reigle spoke on behalf of the Buildings and Grounds Committee, which has been conducting a district facilities review. 

His mission was to ask the board “to direct our contractors” to conduct a complete review of the middle school to find out how much work and money it would take to renovate and abate the site, he said, and the cost to “bring Robert Morris up to date to facilitate student use.”

Interim Superintendent Scott Bischoping added that it would be ideal to do this site study before any discussions about the next capital project take place. 

“Just to get an idea of the cost and what the community would like to do,” Bischoping said. “Eventually you’re not going to be able to put Band-Aids on that building. Many districts have totally gutted and rehabbed their buildings, but there’s a price tag to that.”

The middle school building has been around for quite a while, tucked into the residential neighborhood along Ross Street. It was initially built in 1926 to be used as a high school until Batavia High School was built in 1961 on State Street. Wear and tear and an estimated “significant amount of abatement” would be part of the renovation, which has become clear to the board, Benedict said.

“There’s a lot of dealing with abatement, and it puts a lot of expense on the project,” she said. “Probably in the future, we’re going to have to get some kids back to Robert Morris.”

Abatement, a word commonly used for cleaning up toxic materials such as asbestos, has been identified for the middle school. Bischoping said that it has been very difficult to do any work in the building without disturbing those materials. After the scope and costs have been determined for construction and abatement of the middle school, and any work necessary to get Robert Morris up to speed for full use, the Buildings and Grounds Committee will put forward a recommendation for board vote, Benedict said. 

In 2012, city school district officials closed Robert Morris Elementary in an effort to consolidate students and merge the west side school’s population into Jackson Primary and John Kennedy Intermediate. The defunct building at Richmond Avenue and Union Street then became host of a childcare facility and Genesee Valley Educational Partnership (BOCES) classes. The childcare facility has since moved out to another location and Covid ceased the other activities, Benedict said, rendering the site “an empty building.”

Students at Batavia Middle School who have been accepted in to the Honor Society were celebrated in a ceremony at Van Detta Stadium on Wednesday afternoon.

Mayers has been a school counselor for 16 years and worked at BMS for eight years.  

Currently, her focus is on school attendance, academic achievement, and providing social-emotional skills to students.

She was instrumental, according to information released by the school district, in implementing a daily social-emotional learning program for middle school students. Students are given daily SEL prompts that officials say have been beneficial during the coronavirus pandemic.

She is a certified trauma illness and grief responder.

The annual Polar Plunge at Lake Ontario was canceled this year due to the coronavirus pandemic, but staff at Batavia Middle School didn't want to see Special Olympics lose out on such a vital part of their annual fundraising campaign.

So they came together today, at the prompting of Eric and Krista Knapp, who organized everything, for their own polar plunge with the help of City fire and Batavia PD.

Press release:

This Thursday, Nov. 19, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m., Batavia Middle School and John Kennedy Intermediate are hosting a COVID-19 friendly event for all Batavia City School District families.

The annual Warm the Night will be held at Batavia Middle School at 96 Ross St.

Families are invited to come and pick out gently used and new winter clothing (including coats, hats, gloves, scarves and boots) for members of their family.

In addition, representatives from many community agencies will be available with information about their programs and services. The growing list of agencies includes:

• Community Action of Genesee and Orleans
• Catholic Charities
• Blue Cross Blue Shield
• AmeriCorps
• Liberty Center
• Neighborhood Legal Services
• Connect 2-1-1
• Batavia City Fire Department  

Also, Christina Kulesz, DC, a Batavia chiropractor, will be there for free chair massages. There will be other free giveaways as well, including free Timbits and hot chocolate.

Students and staff have adjusted well to very stressful circumstances, Batavia Middle School Principal Ashley John Grillo told trustees Monday night at the Batavia City Schools board meeting.

Grillo provided the board with a regularly scheduled report about the status of his school concentrating on adjustments caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Students are wearing masks, not complaining about guidelines," Grillo said. "They've really done an outstanding job of adapting to the new guidelines for this year. I'm really proud of that. They deserve the biggest round of applause because they're really the ones most affected the most by the whole thing."

Grillo gave his report before two staff members tested positive for COVID-19 requiring 50 students who had close contact into mandatory quarantine for two weeks.

There are 127 students whose parents chose 100-percent virtual learning for this school year, Grillo said. 

In the cohorts that are splitting time between virtual learning and attending classes, with 246 in the first cohort and 208 in the second. There are also 78 students who are on campus every day.

Teachers conduct online classes that are dedicated to that role, Grillo said, with none doing both online learning and in-class learning.

"We decided to do that at the middle school level," Grillo said. "We didn't want to overwhelm the kids or overwhelm the teachers."

During the first two weeks of school, the emphasis was on getting students accustomed to being back in school after six months away from the classroom environment and getting them familiar with the new routines.

Homeroom has also been extended. In the past, homeroom has lasted 10 to 15 minutes before the first period. It's been extended to accommodate a video stream into the classrooms for morning announcements. The students get help getting their assignments and schedules organized for the day. They turn in their lunch orders. And there is some theme that primes them for learning. In the first weeks, it was Hispanic culture, then anti-bullying, and now veterans are being highlighted with students and staff providing photos of veterans from their families for the video stream.

"It helps them get their day organized and start on the right foot," Grillo said.

There is a team of teachers dedicated to social and emotional learning who meet regularly to review the school's progress and needs. There are also activities on campus for staff, such as yoga and meditation and team-building activities.

"This is not an easy job and we're trying to find ways to balance that," Grillo said.

There are also regular faculty meetings and training that focuses on professional learning. They're also working on better ways to track student progress and identify students who need extra attention.

"We do that every year," Grillo said, "But we're not letting this year hinder us. We're continuing to improve our process."

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Press release:

Dear Batavia Blue Devils Community:

I am writing to provide you an important update regarding COVID-19 and Batavia Middle School.  

I have been notified and in contact with the Genesee County Health Department and the District’s Medical Director that there have been two new positive COVID-19 cases of Batavia Middle School staff members.  The employees were NOT in school with any symptoms and were considered asymptomatic prior to getting tested.

As a result of contact tracing, which focuses on a 48-hour window of time this has caused one additional staff member and 50 students who were deemed as “close contact” to quarantine for 14 days.  Any student and staff member that was identified as a “close contact” has already been contacted by the Batavia Middle School administration. The Genesee County Health Department will also follow up with identified students and staff. 

These cases do not impact our ability to continue to operate Batavia Middle School and the school will remain open for our in-person hybrid learning model. 

New York State has launched the “School COVID Report Card” site, where you can view COVID-19 data associated with all schools in New York.  To protect the privacy of students and staff, we will never release personally identifiable information. 

Please continue to be vigilant in your efforts and help us prevent the spread of COVID-19. For additional reliable information on preventing the spread of COVID-19, please go to www.cdc.gov or www.health.ny.gov

Please also don’t hesitate to contact Batavia High School or the District if you have any questions or concerns. 

Better Together… WE are Batavia!

Anibal Soler Jr.
Superintendent of Schools
Batavia City Schools

Teachers and administrators drove house-to-house in Batavia on Wednesday to deliver awards and presents to the school's 8th graders who are moving onto high school in the fall.

Teachers at Batavia Middle School volunteered to hand deliver end-of-the-year academic awards to their fifth-, sixth-, and seventh-grade students.

Batavia Middle School hosted a Health and Wellness Day for students at the school yesterday. The event was the brainchild of Assistant Principal Brian Sutton.

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More than two dozen Batavia Middle School students visited offices in and around Batavia today for the school's annual "Give Back Day," when students deliver class-made presents to the people and organizations that have supported the school during the school year.

Among the stops pictured above was the State Police Batavia Barracks on West Saile Drive.

Other locations the students visited today included the Sheriff's Office, Batavia PD, the Fire Department, WBTA, DSS, and Family Court. After Family Court, they went to City Court to see Durin Rogers sworn in as the new full-time City Court judge.

Photos and information provided by Sarah Gahagan:

As part of the ongoing kindness project at Batavia Middle School (hashtag #makeKINDNESSloud), Kim Argenta, owner of Art Ah La Carte, followed suit with a random act of kindness.

Argenta volunteered her time and passion for art to help produce a set of wings that will be used as a display in the sixth-grade hallway of BMS.

The BMS kindness group wanted to create a set of wings to remind students to "lift each other up."

The girls' next step is to find inspirational quotes that fit this theme to be used with the wings as a photo background for students/teachers/support staff who participate in random acts of kindness to be displayed in the building proudly.

The Batavia Middle School Kindness Project is an effort by fifth- through eighth-graders at the school, led by teacher Sarah Gahagan, to spread a bit of warmth and joy.

The students look for opportunities to be kind to each other. 

Friday, Gahagan's class sent letters to a fifth-grader in Tennesee who is battling leukemia. The letter-writing effort followed a schoolwide "circle up" meeting on the theme of perseverance.

Gahagan said students discussed different levels of problems we have in our lives and successful coping strategies.

Principal Ashley John Grillo shared these photos from the first day of school this morning at Batavia Middle School.

If you have first-day-of-school photos to share, email them to howard@thebatavian.com.

It's a big step moving from fourth grade to fifth grade when Batavia students enter middle school and find they must now manage getting themselves to multiple classrooms and taking care of their books and belongings in a locker.

To help with the transition, Batavia Middle School hosts Connect Day on the day before classes officially begin, when teachers and eighth-graders help the new kids learn about their new school.

Continuing an annual tradition started by Frank Panepento five years ago, Batavia Middle School students wrote essays about what the American flag means to them and then three winners were chosen to read their essays today, Flag Day, at the VA Center in Batavia.

The winning essay was by Tosh Spillberg, who received a bike and a season pass to Darien Lake Theme Park. Second and third places were Landon Hamilton and Trevor Tryon, who also received season passes to Darien Lake. Panepento purchased the prizes.

Student Transportation of America provided the students with a free bus ride to and from the VA Center.

Students at Batavia Middle School made their annual civil rights presentations today for fellow students, teachers and parents.