Rochester City School District
Location
Rochester, New York
District information
TypePublic
MottoEvery child is a work of art. Create a masterpiece.[4]
GradesPre-kindergarten, K-12, Incarcerated Youth High School, Adult Evening High School
Established1841; 183 years ago (1841)
SuperintendentDr. Carmine Peluso (interim)[1]
AccreditationNew York State Board of Regents
Schools60 pre-K sites
40 elementary
19 secondary
1 Montessori
1 program for young mothers
1 family/adult learning center[2]
BudgetDecrease US$693.7 million (2010–2011)[3]
Students and staff
Students26,057 children
10,000 adults[5]
Teachers3,900 (2010–2011)[6]
Staff300 administrators
2,300 support personnel (2010–2011)[6]
Student–teacher ratio8.1:1 (2011)[2]
Other information
UnionsNYSUT, Rochester Teachers Association
Websitercsdk12.org

The Rochester City School District is a public school district that serves approximately 24,900 students in the city of Rochester, New York. It is currently operating with a budget of $983 million, which comes out to approximately $39,500 per student.[7] This is, according to Census Bureau data, $14,000 more than the New York State average of $25,500 per student, and two and a half times the national average of $14,500 per student.[8]

Organization

The school district is run by a board of education that sets school policy and approves school spending. The board hires a superintendent under contract to carry out its policies.

Board of education

The board of education consists of seven members, elected biennially, who serve staggered four-year terms.

The current board members are:[9]

Superintendent and supporting team

Past superintendents
Name Tenure Name Tenure
Isaac F. Mack 1841–1845 John M. Franco March 1, 1971 – June 16, 1971 (acting)
June 17, 1971 – 1980
Samuel L. Selden January 1, 1846 – November 1, 1846 Laval Wilson 1980 – 1985
Belden R. McAlpine November 2, 1846 – 1847 Peter J. McWalters 1985 (acting)
1986–1992
Daniel Holbrook 1847–1850
1857–1858
1862–1864		 Manuel J. Rivera 1992–1994
September 1, 2002 – April 30, 2007
Reuben D. Jones 1850–1856 Loretta Johnson 1994–1995 (acting)
Isaac S. Hobbie 1856–1857 Clifford B. Janey 1995 – August 31, 2002
Philip H. Curtis 1858–1861 William C. Cala 2007 – December 31, 2007 (interim)
Charles N. Simmons 1864–1869
1876–1878
1881–1882		 Jean-Claude Brizard[10][11] January 1, 2008 – May 13, 2011
Sylvanus A. Ellis 1869–1875
1882–1892		 Bolgen T. Vargas May 16, 2011 – December 31, 2015 [12]
Alonzo L. Mabbett 1878–1881 Daniel G. Lowengard January 1 – 15, 2016 (interim)
Milton Noyes 1892–1900 Linda L. Cimusz January 18, 2016 – July 2016 (interim)
Charles B. Gilbert 1901–1909 Barbara Deane Williams August 8, 2016 – January 31, 2019[13]
Clarence F. Carroll 1903–1911 Daniel G. Lowengard February 1, 2019 – June 2019 (interim)
Herbert S. Weet 1911–1933 Terry J. Dade July 2019 – May 2020[14]
James M. Spinning 1934 – November 1, 1954 Lesli C. Myers-Small May 2020 – September 2022
Howard C. Seymour November 1, 1954 – December 31, 1960 Carmine Peluso September 2022 - January 2023 (interim)
January 2023[15] - present
James S. Wishart January 1, 1961 – August 31, 1961 (acting)
Robert L. Springer September 1, 1961 – May 31, 1963
Herman R. Goldberg June 1, 1963 – July 31, 1963 (acting)
August 1, 1963 – March 1, 1971

Facilities

Schools

Pre-Kindergarten Centers

Elementary schools

Secondary schools

School and alternative programs

Former schools

This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (May 2022)

Gallery

Performance

In 2019, the Rochester City School District was ranked the 3rd worst school district in upstate New York,[16] and in 2017 it was ranked the 8th worst in New York State.[17]

In 2007, the New York State Education Department named 14 Rochester elementary schools among the state's "most improved" schools in English language arts and/or math. Newsweek ranked Wilson Magnet High School 49th among the nation's top 100 high schools based on advanced curriculum.

The Children's Institute, a non-profit children's advocacy organization, has ranked the district's pre-K program one of the best in the nation.

Configuration redesign

In 2003, a plan to redesign the grade-level configuration was approved by the board of education. It changed the district from one of elementary schools (preK–5), middle schools (6–8) and high schools (9–12) to one of elementary schools (pre-K–6) and secondary schools (7–12). The plan was implemented in stages over four years.

Media coverage

Given the district's continued struggles there has been much local media coverage analyzing the district from varying perspectives, and most recently this has been done through the Democrat and Chronicle's Time to Educate Series. The motto of this media initiative is "Something. Must. Change."[18] In 2018 the editorial board of that paper wrote "It is time to declare an emergency".[19]

References

  1. ^ "Superintendent / Dr. Carmine Peluso, Interim Superintendent of Schools". www.rcsdk12.org. Retrieved September 7, 2022.
  2. ^ a b Facts & Figures on Monroe County School Districts, Penfield, New York: Monroe County School Boards Association, p. 32, 2011, OCLC 4891330 ((citation)): External link in |publisher= (help); Missing or empty |title= (help)
  3. ^ "1" (PDF), 2010-2011 Budget Book and District Profile, Rochester, New York: Rochester City School District, May 13, 2010, p. 3, archived from the original (PDF) on July 23, 2011, retrieved May 3, 2011, On April 29, 2010, the Board of Education unanimously passed a budget of $693.7 million for the Rochester City School District for 2010-11 that focuses on the district's core work of teaching and learning. It represents a 3.1% decrease from the amended budget for 2009-10
  4. ^ "About our District / Our Vision and Mission".
  5. ^ "A Look Inside the RCSD". District Profile. Rochester, New York: Rochester City School District. 2011. Archived from the original on May 14, 2011. Retrieved May 3, 2011. Our schools provide a quality education for approximately 32,000 students in pre-K through grade 12 and 10,000 adults.
  6. ^ a b "General Information". District Profile. Rochester, New York: Rochester City School District. 2011. Archived from the original on July 23, 2011. Retrieved May 3, 2011. Has approximately 6,500 employees, including: 3,900 teachers, 300 administrators, 2,300 support personnel
  7. ^ "Board of Education / Board of Education" (PDF). www.rcsdk12.org. Retrieved July 6, 2022.
  8. ^ "Census Bureau".
  9. ^ "Board of Education / Board of Education". www.rcsdk12.org. Retrieved October 4, 2018.
  10. ^ "Rochester City Schools name new Superintendent". WHEC-TV. November 14, 2007. Archived from the original on August 15, 2016. Retrieved November 29, 2007.
  11. ^ "Board, Brizard sign; he will begin work in January". Rochester City School District. November 30, 2007. Archived from the original on September 23, 2007. Retrieved December 1, 2007.
  12. ^ "Bolgen Vargas Resigns as Superintendent of Rochester City School District". www.twcnews.com/nys/rochester.html. Tara Grimes. October 27, 2015. Retrieved October 28, 2015.
  13. ^ "What she promised, what she delivered: A closer look at Barbara Deane-Williams' tenure". Democrat and Chronicle. Rochester, New York. January 20, 2019. p. 1A.
  14. ^ "Dade asks to arrange departure from RCSD: Superintendent wants out at end of school year". Democrat and Chronicle. Rochester, New York. April 23, 2020. p. 1A.
  15. ^ "Peluso named permanent RCSD superintendent at $255K". Democrat and Chronicle. Rochester, New York. December 24, 2022. p. 1A.
  16. ^ "The 53 worst-graded school districts in Upstate NY for 2019". March 2019.
  17. ^ "Why are Rochester schools America's worst? Study Kodak Park School 41".
  18. ^ "Time to Educate – Fixing Rochester, NY, schools – Democrat and Chronicle". www.democratandchronicle.com. Retrieved October 5, 2018.
  19. ^ "Editorial Board: It is time to declare an emergency". The Journal News. Rochester Democrat and Chronicle. October 22, 2018. Retrieved January 28, 2020.

External links

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