Forest Park Elementary School kicked off the new school year with a message about responsibility during their first morning program assembly. This week’s assembly took place in the school’s cafeteria, where students and staff gathered to explore the theme of responsibility.

ENL teacher Briana Gualtieri opened the assembly with a warm welcome, emphasizing the vital role these assemblies play in creating a sense of community and shared values among students. This month’s theme, responsibility, was chosen to instill in the students the importance of taking ownership of their actions.

“Character development, also known as character education, plays a vital role in shaping our students and fostering a positive school community, “said Forest Park Principal William Luke. “Research has shown that character building initiatives can have a range of positive effects on students and their educational experience including higher academic performance, improved overall attendance, and enhanced self-esteem.”

During the event, students engaged in trivia, celebrated September birthdays, and delved into this month’s Mindful Life Lesson Bulletin Board project.

The assembly concluded with the entire school reciting Forest Park’s mission statement: Forest Park citizens will demonstrate good character and work together to achieve our personal best.

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With a rich history of educational excellence and community spirit, the South Colonie School District is now adding an inspiring chapter to its legacy by fostering a culture of kindness that resonates far beyond the classroom walls.

The campaign, conceived to honor the district’s 75 year legacy, is an invitation for students, teachers, parents, and community members to collectively engage in acts of kindness that make a positive impact. The campaign’s design is strategic – focusing on simple acts that collectively create a substantial positive change.

“More than celebrating the passage of time, this campaign is about celebrating the power of kindness that unites us all,” said Superintendent of Schools Dr. David Perry.  “Our building level activities committee led by Sand Creek principal Michael Marohn developed this idea with the  aim to inspire not only our students but the entire community to embrace the beauty of giving back.”

South Colonie’s commitment to the campaign is echoed in its curriculum. 

“Community is one of our four pillars,” Perry added. “From having the opportunity for students to support the larger community through activities like our Toys for Tots campaign or iCare students at the high school raising money year round for a cause, community involvement and support is at the heart of what we do.”

Community members can also join the cause, pledging to participate and share their own acts of kindness using the campaign’s official hashtag,  #ProudlyColonie75Acts or by emailing photos to ProudlyColonie@scolonie.org.

As the school year unfolds, South Colonie is set to showcase the impact of these acts through regular updates, demonstrating the positive change that arises from collective kindness.

For more information on our 75th Anniversary and related activities please visit https://www.southcolonieschools.org/proudly-colonie-celebrating-75-years/.  For suggestions and ideas on daily act of kindness, please view our Kindness Calendar here. 

Embrace Kindness: 10 Sample Suggestions

• Ask someone how they are feeling today.
• Tell a friend why you are proud of them.
• Listen to someone and offer encouragement.
• Validate someone’s feelings.
• Use positive self- talk today.
• Apologize to someone.
• Offer to help a classmate or teacher.
• Forgive a mistake.
• Say thank you to a custodian.
• Leave a kind post-it in a library book.

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Luke’s career in education includes most recently serving as the assistant principal at Acadia Middle School in Shenendehowa Central School District since July 2018. During his tenure, he demonstrated instructional leadership and a deep understanding of child and adolescent development, empowering students to achieve academic growth. Luke played a key role in facilitating Acadia’s Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) and provided valuable support to the special education department, overseeing three special education programs—8:1:3, 12:1:4 and 12:1:2. Additionally, he served as a lead and independent evaluator extending his impact to teachers at the K-5 level.

Prior to his role at Acadia Middle School, Luke served as a 6th grade teacher at Sand Creek Middle School for 11 years and following a successful administrative internship there, Luke assumed the role of associate principal for the South Colonie summer school program in 2017. This experience allowed him to further develop his leadership skills and gain valuable insights into school administration. The following academic year, Luke served as the administrative dean at Sand Creek.

”We are delighted to welcome Bill back to South Colonie as building principal for Forest Park,” said Superintendent of Schools Dr. David Perry.  “His impressive educational background coupled with his experience at both South Colonie and Shen make him an exceptional addition to our leadership team. His ability to promote academic achievement, positive student behavior, and a strong sense of community aligns perfectly with South Colonie’s values and mission.”

Luke’s educational journey reflects his dedication to continuous learning and professional growth. He holds a B.A. in Music from SUNY Oswego and an M.S. in Childhood Education from The College of Saint Rose.  Additionally,  Luke holds his certification in School Building Leadership from Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts.

Apart from his teaching and administrative duties, Luke has been actively involved in various coaching roles and committees that reflect his commitment to community engagement and youth development. 

“I am delighted and honored to rejoin the South Colonie Central School District and become part of the Forest Park Elementary school community,” said Luke. “South Colonie holds a special place in my heart, and I am genuinely excited to meet and collaborate with Forest Park’s dedicated faculty, staff, parents, and, above all, our exceptional students.”

Luke will be working closely with the administrative team and staff on the transition. He will be replacing Jill Penn who has accepted a new role as building principal of Lisha Kill Middle School.

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Supply list by grade

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After McElligott presented to the school, about a dozen students were about to participate in “Cookies and Conversation”. Participants were able to ask McElligott questions that came to their minds while in a small group. 

McElligott has been a published, working writer for over 25 years. McElligott is the author and illustrator of many children’s books including the Mad Scientist Academy series, Even Aliens Need Snacks, Benjamin Franklinstein Lives!, Even Monsters Need Haircuts, The Lion’s Share, and Bean Thirteen.

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“A total of 18 boxes of food were donated from Forest Park Elementary,” said Forest Park principal Jill Penn. “To make sure the donations had something for everyone, each grade level focused on a few items. Some of the foods gathered included pasta, rice, lentils, peanut butter, jelly, canned beans, fruits, vegetables, cereal, and granola bars. Students helped to sort and package up the food boxes for delivery as the donations were collected.”

The donations were delivered to the Islamic Center of the Capital District and received by Mr. Ayman Akari, the Center’s Executive Director. The donations from the Forest Park Falcons will go to visitors of the food pantry who are in need. 

Thank you to everyone in our Forest Park community that helped to make this food drive a success!

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Fox and DiBernardo work with students in grades K-4 in a small group setting. Their main objective is to help students understand the fundamental concepts of reading such as comprehension, fluency and vocabulary. This allows struggling students to not just read words on a page but understand and enjoy the literature. 

The small group setting allows Fox and DiBernardo to create a learning environment where their students feel safe and supported. Their room is a breath of fresh air with colorful art, plush stuffed animals and a whole wall filled with books. This creates a cozy and welcoming classroom for the students to grow their skills. 

During the class period students are reading around three books each day. Times that number by five days a week and 36 weeks in the school year—and the students have the opportunity to read over 500 books!

DiBernardo said her favorite part of being a reading teacher is when her students use a skill she taught them to pronounce a word or sentence. “It makes me so happy when I hear my students use a strategy from class and I love it even more when they can explain how they used the strategy to solve a tricky word.” She added, “It unlocks a whole new level of understanding and learning and really empowers them.” 

Fox feels similarly, “As reading teachers our ultimate goal is comprehension and when our students can self-identify a problem they have and monitor their own reading it makes me so happy. It shows me that we are getting through to them.” 

Fox and DiBernardo show their students reading can be joyful and an important avenue for learning. “The skills we teach our students are important because it allows them to continue as readers and writers without us,” Fox said. 

Fox has been with South Colonie for over twenty years and this is DiBernardo’s first official year as a teacher in the district. DiBernardo is a Colonie graduate and her mother is also a literacy specialist working for the district at Veeder Elementary. This year her mother is retiring, passing the torch to her daughter who will continue to support South Colonie students. 

When asked what has kept Fox here for over twenty years she said the support from other teachers and administrators. “At South Colonie we have always been very proactive in looking at new learning materials for our students. We focus on what works best and have support when we want to try something new,” she said. 

Being a first year teacher, DiBernardo also feels the love. She said, “I feel so supported and welcome here. I can see why people stay in South Colonie!”

They are both travel enthusiasts. DiBernardo even works for United Airlines one night a week at their gate at Albany International Airport. Fox longs to return to France and DiBernardo’s dream destination is Cape Town, South Africa.

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South Colonie elementary schools are set to receive new school playground equipment this year—thanks in part to donations from several school PTA groups and a grant from Assemblymember Phil Steck (D-Colonie).

Several elementary PTAs announced donations last year to offset the cost for the district to enhance or replace each respective school’s existing playground.  With the arrival of the new equipment, the crews were onsite this week at Forest Park Elementary beginning installation. 

“A heartfelt thank you to our PTA for their generous donation to enhance our playground,” said Jill Penn, Forest Park Elementary Principal. “The PTA’s donation along with the grant from Assemblyman Steck, and district support through stimulus funds enabled us to offer our students an upgraded playground experience this year. It is an exciting time at Forest Park for our students.”

The replacement and enhancement of the district’s five elementary playground facilities will continue in the spring with Veeder and Roessleville next on the schedule. 

“We know that having outdoor playground space for our students to play is vital to their development,” said Superintendent of Schools Dr. David Perry. “In addition to the physical benefit—the space also provides a natural setting for students to interact outside of the classroom where many life skills are learned. As we begin to evaluate the overall needs of the district, rebuilding these outdoor spaces for students has definitely been a priority for us.”

In addition to the donations from the South Colonie PTA groups and a $25,000 grant from Assemblyman Steck, the district is investing approximately $30,000 in equipment to each building in addition to labor and concrete costs associated with installation.  Funding provided by the district will come from the American Rescue Plan Act ESSER grant. 

In addition to the playgrounds, the South Colonie voters recently passed the Next Generation Capital Referendum vote in October which will result in approximately $120 million in additional renovations with the first phase of construction beginning in 2024.

More information about Next Generation Colonie can be found here.
More information about the district’s PTA groups can be found here. 

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A little over a year ago Forest Park teacher Kathleen Tunny came across a viral social media post about an 84-year-old woman named Betty Pettit known as “Mrs. Betty” who was currently battling Alzheimer’s and dementia.

This topic hits close to Tunny as she recently lost a loved one to the same illness.

“It was like I came across this post at just the right time for me,” said Tunny.

According to the Alzheimer’s Association, there are an estimated 55 million people currently living with Alzheimer’s and other dementias worldwide.

Mrs. Betty’s son had started documenting her journey through the stages of her disease.  It all began with a video of Betty talking to her reflection in a full-length mirror, asking the woman her name. When her son told her the woman’s name was Betty, she smiled and said they shared the same name.  Her son posted the video on social media and by the next afternoon, views were in the millions.

The Pettit family has captured the attention of audiences around the world including individuals and families who are directly impacted by Alzheimer’s and dementia—like Tunny. 

The simple and everyday pleasures in Betty’s life continued to be highlighted by her son and husband after they realized the impact of the initial video.  Mrs. Betty has gained a huge following of supporters who send gifts to her P.O. Box regularly.

“It was like she gave the illness a face and a voice,” said Tunny. “People never understand how isolating it is to see someone you love and how they are impacted. It also can be so hard for family members because the relationship with their loved one often changes drastically. I was so inspired by her and her family’s journey that I wanted to show my support.”

Tunny teaches Kindergarten and she decided to share age-appropriate information with her students about the illness and how it can impact memory. 

“We started brainstorming ways we could show our appreciation to her and her family for sharing something so intimate,” said Tunny.  “The students in my class created cards and artwork for Mrs. Betty.  Her son actually documented her receiving the cards at Thanksgiving.”

“It was beautiful to see the joy on her face,” added Tunny. 

And with that, the students became some of Mrs. Betty’s youngest fans and they continued the tradition for the upcoming holiday season. 

Tunny’s Kindergarten classroom turned into the North Pole and her 14 elves got busy making holiday ornaments and drawings for Mrs. Betty and her family.

“My students have continued to learn the valuable lesson of empathy, caring, and kindness,” said Tunny. “They recognize the beauty in this world and for that I am grateful.”

To view the recent delivery of Forest Park cards and artwork to Mrs. Betty, visit: https://www.facebook.com/reel/1291486615039000/

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On Friday, Dec. 9 our Forest Park Falcons took Festive Friday to another level! Students and staff each made a donation of $1.00 in support of the Children at Bernard & Millie Duker Children’s Hospital at Albany Medical Center and in return they got to wear their favorite festive shirts, sweaters, hats, and other attire.

This long-standing tradition started nearly a decade ago when one Forest Park student (Madelyn Zulucky)  wanted to make a difference for those children spending the holidays at the hospital. 

At the time, Zulucky asked the building principal to consider this idea to raise much-needed funds to support the 125-bed facility devoted exclusively to the medical needs of infants, children, and adolescents.

As a result, this special giving opportunity for the Forest Park school community began!

“We want to thank Madelyn for inspiring our school to participate in this program each and every year,” Principal Jill Penn said.  “And for our current students and families that support this great cause!”

More information about the Bernard & Millie Duker Children’s Hospital at Albany Medical Center can be found here. 

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