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April 14, 2008
Enrollment Projections
Dear Community Members:
There appears to be much confusion regarding the
enrollment projections for the Central Square School District. Monitoring
current enrollment figures and making decisions based on facts is an
inherent responsibility of school district administration. While it is true
that we are the largest school district and the third largest employer in
Oswego County, the student population throughout all of Oswego County has
been steadily declining for the last eight years. As this declining
enrollment was on the cusp of entering the middle school, a four house
autonomous concept was adopted. The staffing grew to accommodate this new
configuration which included an additional administrator, an additional
guidance counselor, additional clerical staff and of course, many new
teachers.
The population at the Central Square Middle School has
steadily decreased since 2005. The population for the 2008-09 school year
is anticipated to be 1,070 students (6th grade 339, 7th
grade 362 and 8th grade 369). We currently have 321 4th
grade students and 321 3rd grade students therefore, we
anticipate that over the next two years the student enrollment at the Middle
School will continue to decline. In an effort to be fiscally responsible we
have reviewed the population projections for the Central Square Middle
School and have decided to take proactive measures to address the declining
enrollment by collapsing the current four house structure into a three house
structure.
Significant student support has been maintained at the
6th grade level so that our students will receive additional
support as they transition into the Middle School. Class sizes will remain
the same at 6th grade with approximately 23 students; in some
cases this is actually fewer students than our current 5th grade
classes.
Although at this time of year we are immersed in budget
development, there are a number of activities that our students have been
involved in that bring a sense of pride to all of us. At the end of year
long competitions with schools throughout Oswego County, our Oswego County
Academic Youth League (O.C.A.Y.) team, under the leadership of Jim Petrella,
High School Guidance Counselor has taken first place for the third
consecutive year. Our Paul V. Moore High School Mock Trial team has made it
to the final round and will compete against Sandy Creek on Saturday, April
26 at the Oswego County Court House at 9 a.m. Three teams of students that
participate in the Paul V. Moore High School DECA chapter under the
leadership of advisors Michelle Adams and Nicole Heath have been selected to
participate in the International Career Conference in Atlanta, GA. The
following students will represent Central Square at the conference: Tim
Prichard, Evan Vacarr, Tyler Lobdell, Alex Forsyth, Kathie Todd, Jessica
Beardsley, Matt O’Connor, Sabastian Notaro, Austin Mead, and Zachery Badger.
The County Battle of the Books
was held on April 9 at the Oswego High School. Our
Central Square Middle School team took first place and our High School team
came in second place after a nerve wracking tie breaker. The Middle School
team members were Morgan Heyden, Benjamin Lindsay, and Kelsey Thibault; High
School team members were Cassie Bell, Treavor Gallup and Chelsey Taylor.
Congratulations to all the students that participated in the building,
district and county wide Battle of the Books competitions. These students
all worked very hard to represent Central Square in this literary
competition. We can all be proud of the many successes of our
Central Square students, please join me in congratulating them on their fine
accomplishments.
Carolyn F. Costello
Superintendent of Schools
 since 4/15/2008
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