The Zonta Club of Batavia - Genesee County is pleased to announce that they are now accepting applications for their annual Scholarship Awards. 

They encourage all high school seniors in Genesee County to apply. 

Applications can be obtained through your school's guidance office, career center office, or online by emailing zontabatavia@gmail.com.

All applicants will be asked to schedule an in-person interview with our scholarship committee. Submission deadline for applications is April 12.

Of the 235 representatives from various areas in the healthcare field at a four-county event, student Rylee Serusa-Herndon connected with someone in particular during her visit with BOCES Health Dimensions classmates to Genesee Community College Friday.

“I came to the GLOW With Your Hands field trip to be a neurosurgeon, I’m interested in that, and I came to kind of understand, to know what I have to do to be able to be that,” she said. “I did go to a booth, and one of the girls was actually a neurosurgeon, and she told me it is very difficult; you have to do a lot of schooling. But she said ‘you know, there’s not many girl neurosurgeons,’ and that kind helped me out. I definitely want to do it.”

Rylee was one of more than 500 students in grades eight through 12 from 31 schools in Genesee, Livingston, Orleans, and Wyoming counties. The event was to help connect interested students to a couple hundred representatives from 57 companies, municipal agencies, nonprofits, and educational institutions and further excite, educate, and empower them to seek success in the healthcare field of study after high school.

Educational providers and employers were on hand to demonstrate in the fields of emergency medical services, healthy living, healthcare, nursing, occupational and physical therapy, pharmacy, and the various sciences.

There were mannequins stationed so that students could get some CPR lessons, a physical therapy demonstration, and a virtual reality program to offer more high-tech ways to explore careers, “which is cool,” said Chris Suozzi, Vice President of Workforce Development for Genesee County Economic Development Center. 

“The whole reason that we do these events and career exploration in high school is so kids can really expand their horizons. It's so difficult for someone to really know what they want to do for a career. It's taken me 30-some years to figure out what I wanted to do … but for kids, the more they see the, the better. So they're seeing careers that they would never see in a classroom and in a textbook,” Suozzi said. “And then there's careers that they may look at and say, ‘Oh, I definitely don't want to do that.' And I know it's a good thing. But when you look at the opportunities for what are possibilities, it's almost endless here. 

“So, you know, when you hear about healthcare, you think a doctor or nurse, but then when you look here, there's a lot more than doctors and nurses,” he said. “There's all these technicians and EMTs, physical therapy, and the list goes on and on. So that's the whole idea. Explore their mind, explore opportunities for a great career.”

To view or purchase photos, click here.

Skimmer cars, robotics, SUMO bots, battle soccer bots, and a dozen other events designed to stretch area school students' STEM skills were among the activities during the 15th annual Tech Wars on Thursday at Genesee Community College.

The Genesee County Retired Educators’ Association (GCREA) awards at least one $500 scholarship each year. 

This scholarship will be awarded either to a graduating Genesee County High School Senior who intends to enter, in some capacity, the field of education OR to an individual who is currently enrolled in an education program at an institution of higher learning.

Applications are available at Genesee County schools or from cmbonacquisti@gmail.com. Applications are due on April 1. The announcement of the winner will be made in May.

Congresswoman Claudia Tenney (NY-24) today announced that her office is accepting submissions for the 2024 Congressional Art Competition from high school students in New York's 24th District.  

Since 1982, high school students from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories have been invited by members of the U.S. House of Representatives to participate in this esteemed nationwide art competition. Over the years, this competition has provided a platform for over 10,000 works of art to be exhibited and celebrated.

The contest winner will have their artwork displayed in the prestigious halls of the United States Capitol for an entire year. Additionally, they will be given the exciting opportunity to travel to Washington, D.C., to witness their masterpiece showcased at the Capitol. Southwest Airlines is donating two round-trip tickets for the winner and a guest to attend this year’s celebration on June 27.

All submissions must be delivered to one of Tenney’s district offices by the close of business on Friday, April 19. Additional information about the competition, including guidelines and student release forms required to participate, can be found here or by calling Tenney’s District office at (716) 514-5130.

Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R,C-Batavia) was joined by his colleagues in the state Senate and Assembly to unveil a proposal to delay the requirement for school districts to purchase all-electric school buses from 2027 to 2045.

 The group also called for a cost-benefit analysis to assess this policy's impact on schools and taxpayers. While the state has set aside roughly $500 million to help with this transition, the cost of these new school buses would come out far higher, with a nearly $20 billion price tag for school districts across the state. 

Rural schools have also raised concerns that these zero-emission buses would not be reliable enough to handle long commutes and challenging weather. Hawley believes this mandate must be pushed back so that school districts can properly address these concerns.

“The Majority in Albany is at it again,” said Hawley. “This zero-emission busing mandate for school districts is unworkable, unreasonable and unattainable. Not only are these new electric buses not reliable enough for rural areas but they also cost triple the price of a standard school bus. This is why the Majority refuses to do any kind of study on the effectiveness of the policy because they know this regulation will not work and come straight out of the pockets of local school property taxpayers. Our children should not be guinea pigs for these extreme climate policies. We need to slow this process down to assess the effectiveness of this policy so we keep our students safe and don’t deprive schools of their much-needed resources.”

GO ART! is hosting a Creative Arts Camp during February Break (Feb. 19 - 23). This camp is tailored to students in grades K-6. 

Grade school students will create and maintain positive connections while enjoying hands-on exploration of various disciplines including culinary arts, visual arts, performing arts, and literary arts. 

Participants will build upon problem-solving and critical thinking skills while increasing their knowledge about different mediums and forms of art in a safe, inclusive, and structured environment. 

In the past, we have done visual arts projects while learning about famous artists and art movements, created puppets and put on plays, played in the musical garden, learned about different styles of dance, as well as various arts and crafts projects.

Please drop off your camper between 8:45 and 9 a.m. and pick them up between 2:45 and 3 p.m. GO ART! will provide snacks and water but don’t forget to send your camper with lunch. Registration is required to attend Creative Arts Camp and spots are limited. https://goart.org/programming/exlporeart/exlporeart-children/, call (585) 343-9313 or email Jodi at jfisher@goart.org.

Republican members of the New York Senate and Assembly were joined by officials from New York’s education community in calling on Governor Hochul and the Legislature’s Democratic majorities to pause the 2027 statewide implementation of the electric school bus mandate to allow for the completion of a pilot program, cost-benefit analysis, and other feasibility assessments.

The electric school bus mandate, enacted in 2022, requires new school bus purchases to be zero emission by 2027 and all school buses in operation to be electric by 2035. There is no provision made for the geographical disparities, diverse weather conditions, or unique travel demands of the state’s school districts. In addition, this is another mandate from Albany that burdens cash-strapped school districts and taxpayers.

“As the 2027 implementation date of New York’s electric bus mandate approaches, school officials in my district and around the state are becoming increasingly concerned about the tremendous financial and operational challenges associated with this one-size-fits-all requirement,” said Senator George Borrello, SD57.

“This mandated conversion will have a price tag in the billions, with New York State taxpayers simply expected to foot the bill. said Sen. Borrello. “Like so much of the state’s climate agenda, there is no cost-benefit analysis of this mandate or any realistic plan for how to pay for it.”

“Electric buses cost up to three times as much as conventional buses -- it’s a difference of $130,000 versus $400,000-$450,000.  Additionally, electrical infrastructure and distribution line upgrades can add hundreds of thousands of dollars or more. The conversion cost has been conservatively estimated at between $8 billion and $15.25 billion more than the cost of replacing them with new diesel buses. However, the multi-million dollar estimates utilities are now providing to some school districts just for the electrical upgrades suggests the total costs will be much higher than $15 billion,” said Sen. Borrello.

“The EV school bus mandate is the Mother of all unfunded state mandates. At a time when our state is bleeding billions of dollars because of the migrant crisis and school aid cuts are hitting rural and suburban districts, neither our schools nor our taxpayers can shoulder crushing new costs,” said Assemblyman Phil Palmesano, AD 132.

He noted the state allocated just $500 million in the most recent Environmental Bond Act to assist schools with the conversion costs of the state’s 50,000 buses.

Assemblyman Palmesano and Senator Thomas O’Mara are sponsoring legislation that would, among other things, require the Commissioner of Education to complete a cost-benefit analysis for each school district that takes into account the costs necessary to comply with the zero-emission school bus mandate.

Legislators cited other problems associated with electric vehicles that are gaining increasing attention and adding to concerns about investing taxpayer funds in the conversion. Those problems include:

• Inability to operate or charge in frigid temperatures, as a well-publicized incident in Chicago in mid-January underscored. Designed to operate best in 70-degree temperatures, electric vehicles lose up to 40 percent of their traveling range in extreme cold and the time required to charge them is much longer. A pilot program in Vermont found traveling range decreased by 80 percent in some instances;
• Poor reliability. School districts engaged in pilot programs and agencies operating municipal buses have reported many electric buses are “gathering dust” in bus garages as a result of numerous mechanical problems and hard-to-access parts and technical support. A study by Consumer Reports found that electric vehicles have 80 percent more problems than conventional vehicles.

“While many states around the nation are wisely testing the feasibility of electric buses for their regions through pilot programs, New York Democrats rushed to enact a mandate without any firsthand data on whether it would meet the needs of our districts. This is a movie we’ve seen before in Albany and it never ends well,” said Senator Borrello.

He noted that he is proposing legislation, Senate Bill 8467, that would rescind the mandate and replace it with a state-funded pilot program that would allow schools to test how these buses perform. A condition of the pilot program is that buses be sited in all three types of settings, rural, urban, and suburban so that their performance can be evaluated. At the end of one year, a report on the program would be presented to the executive and legislature.

“The zero-emission bus mandate for schools is at present unworkable and fiscally catastrophic for rural schools.  While the goal is laudable, issues with the feasibility of the vehicles, capacity of the power grid, and fiscal commitment by the state all currently prevent compliance.  The proposed legislation is a common sense approach that will answer the needed questions prior to making promises neither the state nor the industry can keep,” said David Little, Executive Director of the Rural Schools Association.

“The goal of having several clean energy options is a good one, but it’s got to be done with common sense and in a realistic way that’s reasonable and affordable for taxpayers, our local governments, and school districts and not add to the high tax burden faced by New Yorkers.  We’re offering a reasonable proposal to rescind the electric school bus mandate that will cost school districts in New York State billions of dollars, and replace it with a state-funded pilot program that enables school districts to test and evaluate how these electric buses perform,” said Senator Jim Tedisco, Ranking Member on the Senate Education Committee.

“Rural, upstate schools need more funding to focus on educational services, not an expensive mandate that would raise taxes and divert resources away from students,” said Senator Dan Stec, Ranking Member on the Senate Environmental Conservation Committee. “Green initiatives are laudable, but the electric bus mandate runs counter to the realities our schools face. I’ve heard repeatedly from school superintendents that it simply isn’t feasible. Instead of punishing our schools with an expensive mandate for buses that may prove unreliable, let’s take a step back and replace it with a pilot program that would evaluate the efficacy of electric buses statewide.”

“School districts across New York are already struggling under the weight of excessive state mandates, yet Albany Democrats always seem to find new ways to add to their burden.  In my rural senate district, where bus routes can take hours to complete, it is unreasonable to force schools to move forward with untested electric buses that may not be up to the demands.  Add on top of that the cost, at a time when many districts are struggling to stay afloat, and we are looking at an entirely unworkable proposal.  Senator Borrello’s legislation calling for a pilot program, rather than another Albany mandate, is the best solution,” said Senator Peter Oberacker, 51st Senate District.

“My local schools are raising the alarm about this mandate and we should listen to them. It’s unrealistic, uninformed, and irresponsible. Districts are planning now for how to implement and afford it, with little guidance or funding from the state. We’re talking upwards of $400,000 for just one bus, plus more for the needed infrastructure, not to mention whether our electric grid has the necessary capacity. I want to do everything we can to protect our environment, but this mandate is impractical. Let’s be smart about this and let’s protect our students, schools, and property taxpayers,” said Senator Pam Helming, 54th Senate District.

“These proposals are each common-sense alternatives that would determine if an electric school bus mandate is affordable, reliable, and, most importantly, feasible. Our school children should not be used as the test subjects for this costly and risky mandate,” said Senator Borrello.

Press Release:

Byron-Bergen Elementary School doubled down on its commitment to reducing food waste in landfills and instead producing clean soil for gardening and farming. This was done through a partnership with an earthworm named Lloyd and 1.8 million of his friends. 

Lloyd lives in a compost facility operated by Impact Earth, a not-for-profit organization out of Rochester that works with the community to repurpose food waste and paper products into nutrient-rich soil. The composting program is a school-wide effort under the leadership of the third-grade students.

“Byron-Bergen Elementary is one of the first schools in the area to undertake this kind of project,” said Impact Earth Educational Manager Doug Carney. “Instead of going to the landfill and doing nothing useful, this waste will compost into nutrient-rich soil to grow better food. It’s an investment in the future.”

Each day at lunch, students sort their uneaten food items and disposable paper products into blue buckets next to the garbage cans. 

At the end of all the lunch periods, a rotating group of third-grade students, the Compost Crew, assist Cleaner and Lunch Monitor Nancy Smith in loading the buckets onto a cart and emptying them into Impact Earth dumpster totes behind the cafeteria. 

Smith then washes the buckets, and the Compost Crew dries them and stacks them for the next day.

Every Friday, Impact Earth removes the waste from the dumpster totes to be mixed with wood chips and added to the piles for Lloyd and his friends. 

“It’s something we can do to try to help the environment,” said Smith. “The soil needs the nutrients, and (the students) are going to be the helpers.” 

Byron-Bergen's third-grade student Mackenzie Wilcox is looking forward to participating. “I think (composting) is great! I like it. The best part is that we get to feed our leftover food to the worms at the composting plant.”

The idea for the composting program began at the Earth Day 2023 assembly. Each grade level collected their trash from lunch and discovered that each class produced an average of 15 pounds of landfill waste per lunch. The discussion of how to reduce this amount led to a waste survey carried out by the student council in October of 2023.

Impact Earth Educational Manager Doug Carney helped the students separate their lunch-time waste. According to Carney, 60% of the cafeteria waste assessed from one day of lunch, over 115 pounds, could be composted or eaten later. Carney noted that “anything that is unopened should be taken home or saved for a snack.”

“I’m really excited for kids to use the compost bins and put our waste to better use, especially being in a community affected by waste management,” said Elementary Principal Kristin Loftus. “I think it will be great for us to do our part to reduce what we are sending to the landfill.” 

Part of the Impact Earth partnership includes a soil give-back. Byron-Bergen will receive a delivery of composted soil in May to use in or around the schools or in the greenhouse.

“It’s a great opportunity for the adults and students to work together to have a positive impact on the earth,” said Byron-Bergen Facilities Director Roger Caldwell. 

“The students are very excited about this project. We will continue to reinforce that the priority is for them to eat their lunches,” said Loftus. “Lloyd and his friends will get plenty of food. Only after the students are full should we add their leftovers to the apple cores and napkins in the compost bins.”

The composting program serves as a leadership opportunity for the third grade as well as a chance for all students and staff to take a moment to look at what is in their lunch, how it is packaged, and the best choices for their food waste. The waste assessment and assembly were sponsored by the Byron-Bergen S.T.E.P. Booster Club.