Sweet Home Source Magazine

Sweet Home Source Current Edition
(Fall/Winter 2024)
Message from Dr. Michael V. Ginestre, Superintendent of Schools:

Dear Sweet Home Community,

Sweet Home will always be a District that takes pride in our academic and extracurricular programming while continually working to improve outcomes for our students, now and in the future. As 2025 rapidly approaches, work in the areas of our Strategic Plan, DEI, and planning for our next major capital project is ongoing and showing positive results.

In progressing toward a more rigorous academic program, we are pleased to announce that all students at Sweet Home will have 15 more minutes of instructional time in the 2025-2026 school year. In working with our teachers, we are currently developing the schedule that will result in changes to start and stop times next year. While we are excited to offer more academic time during the school day for our students, we realize that any change in the schedule takes planning on the part of our families. Our goal is to make an announcement in January that will give our families ample time to plan for any change that will occur. 

The bus driver shortage and its impact on transportation services continues to be an issue at Sweet Home. Our transportation department, particularly our drivers, are doing an outstanding job of being extremely flexible while dealing with a depleted workforce. We truly appreciate their service and willingness to go above and beyond everyday to get our students to and from school and provide extracurricular transportation so every student at Sweet Home has a chance to participate. Due to the shortage, we are constantly reviewing transportation plans to see if we can improve route times and provide more before- and after-school transportation.

With that said, we are studying the impact of moving the Middle School start time  approximately 15 minutes after the High School start time starting in the 2025-2026 school year. This would allow students in grades 6-12 to ride the bus together to maximize the space on the bus. Elementary runs would then be the last runs of the day. This would be very beneficial for several reasons. First, Middle School students would have more time in the afternoon to participate in extracurricular activities. They could also be at home in the afternoon to care for their younger siblings. Since the elementary runs would be the last runs of the day, it would give drivers more time for door-to-door stops and pickups. Finally, we are studying whether this would free more drivers for after-school transportation of students. Please note that if we do recommend this change, we will ensure there is as little impact as possible on current elementary start and stop times.

The Building Use Committee has also recommended to the Board that Sweet Home look to build additions at three of our four elementary buildings to accommodate for growing enrollment and student support services. We have begun a process with the New York State Office of Facilities Planning called Preliminary Review. This process is necessary to obtain approval for building additions. During the coming year, our Building Use Committee will work to finalize the actual scope of the project to meet the needs of our entire Panther Family. This will keep us on track for a late 2025 vote by our community.

We recognize that our facilities play a crucial role in shaping the educational experience of our students, and we are committed to investing in infrastructure that is in line with our Strategic Plan and supports our mission and vision at Sweet Home. Please stay tuned for more updates as the year progresses.

Dr. Michael V. Ginestre
Superintendent of Schools