South Colonie wants to support all students and their parents, which is why all district schools offer a variety of resources from counseling and health services to safety and wellness. Below are a few areas that might be a good place to start.
Alternative Education
The commitment more than a decade ago by the South Colonie educational community to introduce and develop Alternative Educational programs continues to successfully reach a growing population of students who bring challenge and often disruption to the day-to-day school environment. These programs are tailored to students' individual needs so they get the academic support necessary to meet the demands of earning a Regents diploma. For more, please visit the Alternative Education Programs page.
Central Avenue Learning Center (CALC)
The Central Avenue Learning Center, better known as CALC, was established in the fall of 1997 to meet the needs of seventh and eighth graders from Lisha Kill and Sand Creek Middle Schools who were not academically successful. For more information, please visit the CALC page.
Counseling Services
The South Colonie Counseling Department consists of guidance counselors and social workers that serve throughout the entire school district. These individuals work toward the common goal of helping students to be the best they can be. For more information, please visit the Colonie Central High School Counseling Center page or contact your child's middle school counseling department. For more information, visit the Colonie Central High School Counseling Center page.
English as a Second Language (ESL)
The South Colonie's English as a Second Language (ESL) program provides instructional support to English Language Learners (ELLs) or students whose primary language is a language other than English and who are eligible for ESL services. The district's two ESL instructors - one serving elementary students in grades K-4 and the other serving middle and high school students in grade 5-12 - provide instructional support to about 55 students from some 15 different countries each year. These students' native languages include Chinese, Spanish, Urdu, Albanian, Arabic, Bosnian, French, Vietnamese, Portuguese, Pashto, Telegu, Tagalog, Kannada, Lithuanian and Banela. The goal of the ESL program is to develop the English proficiency skills of English Language Learners and to support them in meeting the South Colonie curricula and New York State Learning Standards. For more information, please visit the ESL Program page.
Health and Wellness Services
South Colonie offers a variety of Health and Wellness services for its students and their families including annual screenings, sports physicals, first aid and illness prevention, maintenance of immunization records and more. For more information, please visit the Health and Wellness page.
Pupil Services Office
The Office of Pupil Services provides system-wide services in school psychology, social work and counseling. Pupil Services staff members provide assessments of students being referred for special education services, reevaluate identified students with disabilities in accordance with Federal and state regulations, and serve as consultants to schools for instructional issues, behavior management, and social/emotional development. Pupil services staff members also work collaboratively with community agencies to provide assistance to students when needed. School psychologists and social workers/visiting teachers are assigned to schools as itinerant personnel. Contact the Pupil Services Office at (518) 869-6759.
Student Resource Officer (SRO)
The SRO is a police officer with the Colonie Police Department who is assigned to the school district. The concept of having a School Resource Officer (SRO) has been around since the 1950's. The idea is to place a law enforcement officer in a school for three reasons. First, the officer is there to provide a law enforcement presence. By being visible to prevent problems and to be available to handle police related functions, such as crime investigation, the officer provides a safe learning environment. The second part of the SRO's job is to be a teacher. By working with classroom teachers and other faculty members the SRO can present information and answer questions on a variety of topics including the law, drugs, safety, crime prevention, violence prevention and community awareness of these issues. The third part of the triangle is counseling. Police officers can offer advice, mediation and direction to students, parents and faculty in various matters . As part of this counseling they can also offer direction to other resources in the community. For more on the SRO and other helpful safety resources, please visit the district's School Safety page.