Schenectady school district leaders to hear community concerns

Schenectady City School District interim Superintendent John Yagielski hopes to rebuild community confidence in the district by holding a series of community forums that will begin next week. The forums will give the community the opportunity to voice their feelings and concerns about the school district so Yagielski can gauge the public’s needs.

“I recognize that the community is upset and angry,” Yagielski said. “I am going to listen to what they have to say and what they think needs to be addressed.”

Yagielski said he thought a community forum would be a good idea even before he came to Schenectady.

“I live in the area and I was following the situation in the press,” Yagielski said. “I want to reach out into the community.”

School board President Cathy Lewis feels that Yagielski’s plan is what the district needs to help heal the rift between the school and the public.

“The forums are an excellent idea and I think the outreach will be helpful in rebuilding confidence in the school district,” Lewis said. “We need to get back to educating the children in the community. I’m very pleased that [Yagielski] is doing this.”

The forums are part of Yagielski’s larger community outreach plan, which will unfold over the next couple of months during which he will speak with school faculty and staff, recent graduates, parents and students, specifically those who recently completed 9th grade.

“Much of the restructuring plan focuses on freshmen,” Yagielski said. “I want to sit down with some students and listen to what they have to say about their experiences.”

Carlita Barnes, a parent with two children in the district, hopes that these forums answer questions about how and when the district will be restructured.

“It’s absolutely a good idea, especially if the discussions tell the community what we need to know about the restructuring,” Lewis said. “[The school district] needs a good rapport with the community to build back the trust we deserve as a community and as taxpayers.”

Barnes isn’t sure if the forums will completely dissolve the tensions between the school district and the community but believes that an open discussion will only help.

Yagielski doesn’t have any specific plans for the forums, only that he wants to hear any and every concern from community members.

“I hope to learn an awful lot and meet a lot of people,” Yagielski said. “I have a sincere interest to openly listen to everyone.”