Batavia High leaders outline instructional, safety and social-emotional priorities

Jenny West, Batavia High School principal, told the Batavia City School District Board of Education that the high school’s priorities this year are strengthening instructional practice through Professional Learning Communities, expanding social-emotional learning and maintaining a safer, more orderly building.

West said the high school has worked to increase common-course planning time for teachers and to embed collaborative structures that make classroom instruction more consistent across sections. "Everything we do in school is for learning," West said, describing a focus on academic rigor alongside social-emotional learning and inclusivity.

West described the rollout of a universal screener (ISL) to create an additional data point teachers can use for differentiation and progress monitoring. The tool, she said, is aligned to the New York State curriculum and national standards and can be used to tailor instruction or extend students who demonstrate higher levels of mastery.

Social-emotional work includes a new SEL liaison position and a set of practices the school calls "mental health Mondays," classroom circles and student-led facilitator training. West said student facilitators trained by an organization named Peery have helped expand circle practices and restorative meetings in the building.

On safety, West said the school has stood up a regular threat-assessment team made up of administrators, teachers, mental-health professionals, security personnel and the school resource officer. The team conducts ongoing safety assessments and follows them with action plans to address real or potential risk.

Assistant principal Trisha Jordan described several operational changes tied to safety and instruction. She explained a digital hall-pass system launched in January that issues passes students can create on devices or via teacher pins and allows staff to view pass status on a phone or tablet. "It's green while they're out, and if it turns yellow, we know they've been out for, like, maybe eight minutes or more," Jordan said, explaining the system flags extended time out of class and helps the school monitor lost instructional minutes.

Jordan also described recent changes to locker/backpack expectations after a security incident at another school: backpacks and larger items are now expected to be stored in lockers. She said the school has seen "an overwhelmingly positive response" and that students are using lockers to reduce hallway congestion.

Jordan said the school has maintained the current cell-phone policy and is watching pending guidance from New York State for any required adjustments. She described classroom caddies, structured phone breaks and teacher-built natural breaks to balance independence and reduced phone use during instruction.

The principals closed by noting upcoming and ongoing student-centered programs, including a March presentation called "Ryan’s story" and a student wellness fair designed to promote connection and supports across the student body. They presented these updates as informational items to the board; the transcript records no board directive or vote tied to these program descriptions.