Dear members of the Broadalbin-Perth community,
I always knew that B-P was a special place, but everyone in this community really proved that today.
When we lost power at the Perth campus early this morning, I knew we would face some challenges as we discussed what steps we needed to take to keep our students safe. I couldn’t have imagined then how well every person in our school district would work together to make the day run smoothly despite the difficult circumstances.
There were dozens of individuals who went above and beyond to be helpful throughout the day today. Together, we proved that we are prepared and capable of handling an emergency that requires the evacuation of one of our buildings. That is something we can all be incredibly proud of.
With that in mind, there are many groups of people who deserve a heartfelt “thank you” for all they did today:
- Thank you to our BPIS and BPMS faculty and staff who worked quickly and efficiently to make sure our grade 3-8 students got on the buses to the Broadalbin campus, and who, with patience and grace, made sure our students were safe and engaged throughout their very unusual school day.
- Thank you to our TLC and BPHS faculty and staff for graciously hosting the students and staff from the Perth campus, and for their flexibility in making all the necessary accommodations that come with such a large influx of people into the building.
- Thank you to our food service staff, who quickly and efficiently prepared breakfast for the visiting students in the TLC kitchen, and who came together to feed nearly 2,000 individuals – students and staff – out of one kitchen over the course of three hours at lunch time.
- Thank you to our main office staff at all four schools and the district office for helping to keep parents informed and for keeping up with decisions that were being made quickly.
- Thank you to our transportation staff, who safely transported our Perth students to Broadalbin this morning and made sure everyone arrived home safely this afternoon.
- Thank you to our custodial staff, who not only kept the building clean and in good working order throughout the day, but who helped direct traffic during a challenging student dismissal time to ensure everyone got where they needed to go.
- Thank you to all of our parents for being understanding and patient throughout the day, and for recognizing and respecting that our top priority was keeping all students safe.
- And last, but certainly not least, thank you to our students — ALL of our students — for being safe, respectful and responsible all day.
All of you are the reason why I am so proud to be a Patriot — today more than ever.
Sincerely,
Stephen M. Tomlinson
Superintendent of Schools