Table of Contents
- Asbestos
- Attendance
- Board of Education Policies
- Child Abuse Hotline Notification
- Child Find
- Code of Conduct
- Continuity of Operations
- Disclosure to the Military
- District-wide School Safety Plan
- Dignity for All Students Act
- Emergency Closing Notification
- Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)
- Fire Inspection
- FOIL Requests
- Hand Sanitizer Use
- Homeless Liaison/McKinney-Vento
- Meal Charge Policy
- Notice of Nondiscrimination/Title IX/Equal Opportunity
- Pesticides
- Prohibition Against Meal Shaming
- Parents’ Bill of Rights for Data Privacy and Security
- Release of Student Directory Information
- Smart Schools Investment Plan
- Storm Water Management
- Title I / Parents’ Right to Know
District Office
21 Page Avenue
Cohoes, NY 12047
Superintendent: Peggy O’Shea
Phone: (518) 237-0100
Fax: (518) 233-1878
Board Policies
The district is required by to adopt policies related to many aspects of school operations and state and federal law. It is also required to provide notifications related to a variety of topics and policies. Please use this page as a resource for the areas listed below.
Asbestos
The Asbestos Hazard Emergency Response Act (AHERA) requires all schools, K-12, to be inspected to identify any asbestos-containing building materials. The law further requires the development of a Management Plan based upon the results of the inspection, which outlines our intent in controlling the potential for exposure to asbestos fibers in our facilities.
In the past, asbestos was used extensively in building materials because of its insulating and fire retarding capabilities. Virtually any building built before the late 1970s contains some form of asbestos insulation or structural materials. We, too, have buildings within the Cohoes City School District that contain some asbestos-containing materials.
An initial Asbestos Management Plan was submitted to the governor’s office in 1989. The plan outlines in detail the methods that our trained maintenance and custodial staff will use to maintain the asbestos-containing materials in a safe and proper manner.
In addition, the required re-inspection has been completed and the Management Plan updated accordingly. A copy of the Management Plan for individual buildings is on file in each building administrator’s office.
Attendance
We strongly encourage students to be in attendance every day. Our goal is to have students participate in their education for the mandated 180 days a year. All children of compulsory age must attend school on a regular basis.
When a student is absent, parents are required to provide notification. Parents should contact the main office or school nurse at their child’s school as close to the start of the school day as possible to provide a reason for the absence. The school will make every reasonable attempt to contact the parents regarding the student’s absence.
Excused Absences:
Absences, tardiness and early departures may be recorded as excused if the parent provides a written and/or verbal explanation for one of the following reasons:
- Personal illness/medical necessity (may require verification)
- Significant family matters
- Religious observance
- Legal and/or criminal matters directly involving the student
- School/BOCES sponsored activities for which the student has permission to participate.
Unexcused Absences:
Absences from classes for reasons not recognized by the State Education Department and Board of Education and/or with the permission of the parent are referred to as “unexcused absences”. Examples of this are: vacation trips, visiting relatives, working, etc. The school district does not provide advance homework for students going on vacation with their family. Our procedure is that students are responsible for making up the work themselves if they have an unexcused absence (i.e., on vacation with their family). District staff are not responsible for writing out assignments for a student’s unexcused absence. Students absent from classes because of scheduled activities are expected to obtain assignments from their teachers and complete such assignments after returning to school. If the work is not completed within one week from the time that the student returns to school, the student will receive zeros for missed work.
View the complete Board Policy 5100 Attendance.
Board of Education Policies
Our policies are a set of guidelines that establish the procedures, standards, and direction for the district.
Visit the Board of Education Policies page to view all district policies.
Child Abuse Hotline Notification
If you suspect a child is being abused or maltreated (neglected), report it by calling 1-800-342-3720, a toll-free 24-hour hotline operated by the New York State Office of Children and Family Services. If you believe a child is in immediate danger, call 911 or your local police department.
Child Find
If you suspect your child has a disability that adversely affects his/her educational performance and he/she may require special education, please contact the District’s Office of Special Programs at (518) 237-0990 for more information.
Code of Conduct
The Board of Education, in accordance with Project SAVE Legislation, has adopted a district Code of Conduct. The code governs the conduct of all students, teachers, staff and visitors, and is meant to help maintain safe, orderly schools. A plain language summary is distributed to parents each fall.
View the District Code of Conduct.
Continuity of Operations
The Continuity of Operations is a plan housed in the District-wide Safety Plan’s Appendix 4 – Communicable Disease – Pandemic Continuity of Operations Plan. It is a plan for continuing essential functions in the event of an emergency, such as a natural disaster, power outage, or infectious disease outbreak.
View the Continuity of Operations Plan.
District-wide School Safety Plan
School districts are required to develop a District-wide School Safety Plan designed to prevent or minimize the effects of serious, violent incidents, declared state disaster emergency involving a communicable disease or local public health emergency declaration and other emergencies and to facilitate the coordination of schools with local and county resources in the event of such incidents or emergencies.
View the District-wide School Safety Plan.
Dignity for All Students Act
The Dignity for All Students Act (DASA) ensures that all elementary and secondary public school students have the right to attend school in an environment that is free of discrimination, harassment, and bullying.
Learn more about DASA and how to report bullying/harassing behavior.
Disclosure to the Military
Pursuant to federal law, Cohoes City School District must disclose to military recruiters, upon request, the names, addresses and telephone numbers of high school students. Parents/guardians or students age 18 or older who do not want this information released to military recruiters should contact the high school counseling office.
Emergency Closing Notification
As the weather gets colder, we would like to remind our students and their families of the many ways we communicate weather-related announcements, whether it is a closing, delay or early dismissal.
Cancellations, delays or early dismissals will be sent out to parents via ParentSquare and also posted to the district website. If there is an announcement, it will display in the website’s alert bar and in the district’s news section.
School closings and delays are also announced by the local media:
- Channel 6 (WRGB)
- Channel 9 (YNN)
- Channel 10 (WTEN)
- Channel 13 (WNYT)
- Channel 8 (WXXA)
- WFLY (92.3 FM)
- WGNA (107.7 FM)
- WGY (810 AM)
- WYJB (B95.5)
- WRVE (99.5 FM)
- The Times Union
It is best to rely on more than one source of information when it comes to weather-related announcements. This is particularly true in situations that involve power outages, which can affect the district’s ability to send electronic notifications. Emergency preparedness agencies have advised that residents have access to a battery-powered radio so that they can receive information if other communication channels are unavailable.
CDTA buses during school closings: The CDTA bus shuttle routes do not run if school is closed. If there is a delay or early dismissal, the district notice from the superintendent will include whether or not buses will be running.
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)
School officials may release to the media, for public relations purposes, a variety of student information, including: a student’s name, address, telephone number, academic interest, participation in sports or other activities, awards received, future educational plans, names of parent(s) and student photo. By law, officials must also release secondary school students’ names, addresses and telephone numbers to military recruiters or institutions of higher education.
Parents must notify their child’s school principal annually in writing if they do not want such information released to the entities noted above. Unless notification is put in writing by a parent, the same information may also be used in district publications, including the district newsletter and on the district website.
Fire Inspection
An annual inspection of fire and safety hazards will be conducted in accordance with a schedule established by the Commissioner of Education. The inspection will be conducted by a qualified fire inspector and the report will be kept in the district office and made available to the public. Any violation of the State Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code shall be corrected immediately or within a time frame approved by the Commissioner.
Notice is hereby given that the annual inspection for 2024 of the school buildings of Cohoes City School District for fire hazards which might endanger the lives of students, teachers, employees therein, has been completed and the report thereof is available at the district office of Cohoes City School District for inspection by all interested persons.
Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) and FOIL Requests
Under the Freedom of Information Law (FOIL), the public is entitled to inspect certain school district records. The Committee on Open Government is responsible for overseeing and advising with regard to the Freedom of Information, Open Meetings and Personal Privacy Protection Laws.
The district’s Records Officer is Ashley Simmons.
Hand Sanitizer Use
The Cohoes City School District will be making alcohol-based hand sanitizers available in its school buildings during the school year. If parents wish to opt their child out of using it, they should send a written notice to their school principal.
Homeless Liaison/McKinney-Vento
The McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Assistance Act is a federal law that ensures immediate enrollment and educational stability for homeless children and youth. Under McKinney-Vento and state law, students are considered homeless if they lack a nighttime residence that is fixed, regular, and adequate. If you believe you may qualify for services under the McKinney-Vento Act please contact:
Mayra Thomas
7 Bevan Street
Cohoes, New York 12047
(518) 237-4131 ext. 2230
Meal Charge Policy
The purpose of this policy is to ensure the District is in compliance with federal requirements for the USDA Child Nutrition Program and, and to provide oversight and accountability for the collection of outstanding student meal balances.
View the full Meal Charge Policy.
Notice of Nondiscrimination/Title IX/Equal Opportunity
The Cohoes City School District hereby advises students, parents, employees and the general public that it offers equal employment and educational opportunities, without regard to sex, race, color, national origin, religion, disability or other minority groups. Equality of opportunity in employment includes hiring, firing, wages and salaries, promotion or any terms, conditions or privileges of employment.
Questions about this nondiscrimination policy may be directed to Equal Opportunity Compliance Officer Stacey Mackey at:
Cohoes City School District Administrative Offices
21 Page Ave.
Cohoes, NY 12047
(518) 237-0100
The compliance officer has information related to grievance procedures.
Pesticides
Pesticide products may be applied periodically throughout the school year at schools in the Cohoes City School District. Under State Education Department law, the district must maintain a list of parents/guardians and school staff who wish to receive 48-hour advance written notice of a pesticide application in the facilities or on school grounds. For more information or to request 48-hour notification, contact Stacy Mackey at (518) 237-0100 ext. 2360. Applications to receive pesticide notifications are also available in the main offices of our schools.
Prohibition Against Meal Shaming
The Board of Education recognizes that on occasion students may not have enough funds for a meal.
View the district Prohibition Against Meal Shaming policy.
Parents’ Bill of Rights for Data Privacy and Security
The Cohoes City School District is committed to ensuring student privacy in accordance with local, state and federal regulations and district policies. To this end and pursuant to U.S. Department of Education regulations, the district is providing the following Parents’ Bill of Rights for Data Privacy and Security:
- A student’s personally identifiable information cannot be sold or released for any commercial or marketing purposes.
- Parents have the right to inspect and review the complete contents of their child’s education record, including any student data maintained by the Cohoes City School District. This right of inspection of records is consistent with the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Under the more recently adopted regulations (Education Law §2-d), the rights of inspection are extended to include data, meaning parents have the right to inspect or receive copies of any data in their child’s educational record. The New York State Education Department (SED) will develop further policies and procedures related to these rights in the future.
- State and federal laws protect the confidentiality of personally identifiable information and safeguards associated with industry standards and best practices, including but not limited to, encryption, firewalls and password protection, must be in place when data is stored or transferred.
- A complete list of all student data elements collected by the state is available for public review. Parents may also obtain a copy of the list by writing to:
Office of Information & Reporting Services, New York State Education Department
89 Washington Avenue – Room 863 EBA
Albany, NY 12234.
- Parents have the right to have complaints about possible breaches of student data addressed. Complaints should be directed to Superintendent Peggy O’Shea by email or by phone at (518) 237-0100.
- Complaints to SED should be directed to the Chief Privacy Officer by emailing cpo@mail.nysed.gov or in writing to:
New York State Education Department
89 Washington Avenue
Albany, NY 12234
This bill of rights is subject to change based on regulations of the commissioner of education and the SED chief privacy officer, as well as emerging guidance documents from SED.
Release of Student Directory Information
Parents have the right to ask for records about their child unless the district has been legally notified in writing that their rights as a parent have been terminated or otherwise limited by court order. Upon parental request, the district must make a child’s records available within a reasonable time (in no case more than 45 calendar days after requested); before any meeting about their child’s individualized education program (IEP); and before any due process hearing about their child’s special education needs.
The rights of parents concerning educational records are given to the student at age 18. Personal data about a child may not be released without parental consent unless it is given to school officials or teachers with a legitimate educational interest, state/local educational authorities or certain individuals designated under federal law; or used to meet a federal law requirement. Records which are deemed “directory information” may be disclosed, without parental consent, unless parents have expressly opted out by notifying the principal of their child’s school in writing.
Smart Schools Investment Plan
The Cohoes City School District’s Smart Schools Investment Plan was produced in accordance with the New York State Smart Schools Bond Act, approved by voters in November 2014. The $2 billion bond act is intended to provide school districts with funding for new educational technology and infrastructure improvements to enhance learning opportunities for all students across the state.
Learn more about the Cohoes City School District Smart Schools Investment Plan.
Storm Water Management
The Cohoes City School District has a Storm Water Management Plan in order to protect New York State’s lakes, rivers, and tributaries from pollutants carried by rain, snow melt run-off, or storm water run-off.
As part of the school’s program, the school has construction standards to prevent run-off, engages in public education and outreach, identifies and eliminates unnecessary sources of storm water run-off and reviews pollution prevention and good housekeeping practices in the district.
More information can be obtained from the New York State Department of Conservation website on Storm Water. The district’s Storm Water Coordinator is Stacy Mackey: (518) 237-0100 ext. 2360.
Title I / Parents’ Right to Know
As a parent of a student in the Cohoes City School District, you have the right to know the professional qualifications of the classroom teacher(s) who instructs your child.