Thursday, January 9th, 2025
Dear Wayland-Cohocton Families and Members of the Community:
I wanted to take this opportunity to wish you all a Happy New Year. We are nearing the beginning of the second semester of the school year and are proud of all of the wonderful activities and learning that have occurred during the first few months. We are even more inspired by all of the learning possibilities ahead.
Also, I would like to thank you for your support during the recent capital improvement project vote which passed 214-71. Thank you to all of the volunteer poll workers who make the vote possible. Also, the district is so appreciative of our local public libraries, E.J. Cottrell Library in Atlanta, the Cohocton Public Library and the Wayland Free Library; for displaying the project information banners for a month; and to the Wayland Food Mart which was also willing to display a banner, helping us reach a broad cross-section of the community. There were also numerous students who participated in our informational video and advertisement clips which aired on the school’s website and across social media. If you didn’t see the video - check it out on the Wayland-Cohocton YouTube channel.
Over the last year, the District has had representatives from the New York State Comptroller’s Office conducting two audits. Building access and lead water testing practices were the focus of those two audits. You may see these audit reports, and the district’s response to them, appear in local media outlets in the upcoming weeks. During its review, the State looked at who is given access to the district’s facilities, and the auditors noted that there were non-employee individuals with access passes to the facilities, who had not been background screened via the Raptor system.
In looking at the State’s data, in addition to our own data, the District can attest that these individuals fell into the following categories:
Service providers such as third party contractors or facilities management personnel who worked through other companies to maintain our buildings and grounds;
Individuals who are familiar members of the community and who participated in continuing education programs held before or after regular school hours;
Emergency response personnel who require 24/7 access to the facility in order to improve response time in the event of an emergency.
Individuals working for partnering agencies like Center for Youth and ProAction that work with our youth during the day and are screened through their own agencies.
I want to reassure you that these individuals were known to district personnel and their partnering companies. There was only one access card that was found to have not been turned off that belonged to a former individual who while on maternity leave, found employment with another company and did not return. Wayland-Cohocton works hard to provide a safe and secure environment for staff and students and we have altered our practices to make sure that these groups are also screened through the raptor system or we have an established arrangement securing similar screening with organizations and businesses we work with, that have screened individuals who may hold access card.
The second audit also evaluated district practices related to safe water and lead testing in the district. None of the locations where individuals can access water for consumption were found to contain lead although there is room for improvement in identifying and testing ALL of the water. Our lead testing results, completed in 2021, were posted to the website. The district was informed that a communication should also have been mailed/emailed to all families, which the district will be certain to do moving forward. Over the holiday recess, bubblers were added to our water filling stations and some of the filling stations replaced to ensure the health of the water. Likewise, the district is working to create a comprehensive written plan to solidify facility practices and the consistency of those practices.
These audits serve as a valuable tool to continually evaluate and improve our practices. While I am extremely proud of the work we have done as a learning community to provide a safe and healthy environment for our students, staff and community, there is always room for improvement. It is vital we maintain our vigilance in keeping our facilities secure and our systems operating at peak performance.
If you have any questions about these audit results or anything else, please feel free to reach out to me so that I can answer your concerns. I can be reached by email (efeinman@wccks12.org), or by phone (585) 213-4303. In the weeks going forward, you may see coverage of the audits in newspapers and media. Submitting the audit and the District’s response to our legal newspaper is part of the audit process to ensure that our community is well-informed. If you are a senior citizen in the community, the next gathering of Golden Talons will be held on Monday, January 13th at 11 a.m. at the Wayland Free Library. This is a time for senior citizens to bring their questions to district representatives and to hear about Wayland-Cohocton programs.
I hope the winter months are kind to you and we look forward to possibly seeing you at the upcoming circus (Monday, January 13th) or at the upcoming High School Band and Chorus Concert (Thursday, January 16th). Also, please join us for our winter athletic season competitions. Check our athletic schedule for times. Thank you for your continued support.
Respectfully,
Dr. Eileen Feinman
Superintendent of Schools