Lowville Academy and Central School District

Photo of Mrs. Rebecca Dunckel-King

Ms. Rebecca Dunckel

7668 N. State Street
Lowville, NY 13367
(315)-376-9000

Letter from the Superintendent

Dear Lowville Families and Community,

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all of our family and friends throughout the Lowville Academy and Central School District!

As we approach the holiday season, I want to take a moment to express my heartfelt appreciation for the continued support and spirit of resilience that defines our school community. The upcoming holidays bring a welcome opportunity to reflect on all we’ve accomplished together over the past year.

First and foremost, I want to acknowledge the hard work and dedication of our students, staff, and families as we navigate the effects of this summer's historic flood. While the damage to our facilities, particularly our main gym, has created some temporary obstacles, I’m proud to say that we are making great strides in our recovery efforts. The renovation of the main gym is in full swing, with work progressing steadily to restore it to its full glory.

In the meantime, we are committed to ensuring that our sports teams, clubs, and community organizations continue to thrive. We have been working tirelessly to reschedule practices and events, ensuring that our student-athletes and community members can still gather and grow, even without the use of our main gym. Our athletic programs, in particular, have shown tremendous flexibility as they make use of other available spaces, to continue training and preparing for their seasons.

As you can imagine, coordinating this requires careful planning, and I am incredibly grateful to our athletic director, Rob Goss, our coaches, physical education teachers, and community partners who have been instrumental in organizing practices without disrupting our academic schedule. We are committed to providing our student-athletes with the best possible experience and ensuring they have the resources they need, even in the face of these unforeseen challenges.

Our clubs are active, our musicians are readying for upcoming concerts, and our students are working hard to finish out the first semester strong. Our community organizations also continue to rely on our facilities, and we are pleased to accommodate their needs wherever possible. We know that our school serves as a vital hub for connection and support for our neighbors, and we remain dedicated to supporting these essential programs during this busy season.

As we head into the winter break, I encourage everyone to take some time to rest and recharge. Whether you’re celebrating with family, volunteering in the community, or simply enjoying the beauty of the season, I hope this time brings you peace and joy. Let’s continue to carry forward the strength and unity that has seen us through this year’s challenges.

Thank you again for your continued support and partnership. Wishing you all a wonderful holiday season and a bright new year ahead.

Financial Outlook and Budget Design

While district residents have enjoyed an offset to the tax levy for almost two decades, we have been planning for a reduction in PILOT revenue and an increase in our tax levy. Last year was the fourth year in our long range plan of becoming less reliant on PILOT revenues and to close the gap between our expenditures and expenses. Without PILOT revenues over the last 19 years, our tax levy would have been much higher than what we have experienced as a community had we not enjoyed the offset of the windmill project.

The Board of Education will meet this month to review the District’s goals as well as to review the District’s long-range financial plan. They will continue to meet in the upcoming months to find ways to reduce spending while being mindful of the programmatic effects to our students. It is important to continue our tradition of strong academics. We will make it a priority to maintain the excellent academic experience that is provided to the students at Lowville Academy.

Thank You to the Northern New York Community Foundation and Dyson Foundation!

As a result of funding from the Operation Snowstorm program, Lowville Academy and Central School was able to use the $7,250.00 award for winter gear for our students who need it most. We have always enjoyed a great relationship with the Foundation and we continue to be grateful for their support in, what can be, the most difficult of seasons for Upstate New York.

Safety Procedures: Drop Off And Pick Up

Parents and caretakers are reminded to exercise extreme caution when dropping off or picking up children at school. The safety of our students is our most important priority. In addition to heightened awareness, drivers will need to observe all school speed zones which exist on adjacent streets as well as in the school driveways and parking areas. There will be a crossing guard on North State Street to help students and other pedestrians safely cross in front of the school at the beginning and end of the school day. Please pay attention to the following traffic directives for the 2024-2025 school year and beyond.

Parents who wish to drop off and/or pick up their children should do so in the State Street/Davenport Place loop. The Trinity Avenue loop will be used strictly for bus traffic. Please only park in designated parking spots when visiting the school. This is very important for traffic flow and safety when crossing the road.

The Safe Schools Endeavor of the Northern New York Community Foundation recently awarded Lowville Academy a pair of grants that will help strengthen building safety and student culture in the district.
A generous award of $2,380 will help with the purchase of radios for emergency communications. These radios will improve communication and response to safety concerns, incidents and emergencies. We are excited to be able to purchase these radios to help create a safe environment for students, faculty and staff members, as well as community members visiting our school. This project was proposed by our School Safety Officer, Skyler Tuttle, with assistance from our first student school safety committee member, Garrett Phelps.
A second award of $975 will allow for the creation of Calm Down Corners in a Box for all classrooms pre-K through fifth grade. Providing each classroom in the elementary school with a Calm Down Corner in a Box will give students the tools needed to self-regulate within the classroom environment. Each box will contain sensory tools (i.e., assorted quiet fidgets), mindfulness prompts (laminated and put on a key ring so that students can flip through pictured strategies, positive statements, calming pictures, etc.), and a five-minute sand timer. Teachers will receive training by the counseling staff in how to utilize the box in their classrooms, and students will also receive initial instruction from the counseling staff, as well as continuing instruction from the classroom teacher. This project was proposed by the Elementary School Psychologist, Jill Ortlieb.
We are very appreciative of the Safe Schools Endeavor grant funding and commitment to keeping schools in Lewis and Jefferson counties focused on student success, growth, and safety.
Please consider donating and supporting this initiative so they may continue to help keep schools safe. You can follow them on Facebook at Safe Schools Endeavor or online at Northern New York Community Foundation.