BOCES leader named NY’s top superintendent

Dr. Clark J. Godshall

Press release, New York State Council of School Superintendents

ALBANY – The leader of the Orleans/Niagara Board of Cooperative Educational Services, Dr. Clark Godshall, has been named the 2014 New York State School Superintendent of the Year.

Godshall was honored by the New York State Council of School Superintendents.

“Dr. Godshall is a nationally recognized school leader and an international advocate for students,” said Council President Mary Beth R. Fiore, superintendent of Elmira Heights Central School. “He is an experienced and involved leader on the local, state and national level, always keeping children’s interests at the center of his decision-making while seeking optimum efficiencies for his component school districts.”

She praised Godshall, calling him a recognized expert on educational service agencies, school finance and effective school district governance.

As the NY Superintendent of the Year, Godshall now becomes New York’s candidate for national superintendent of the year, to be awarded at the American Association of School Administrators’ National Conference on Education in Nashville, Tenn. in February 2014.

“I am immensely honored and humbled by this award,” Godshall said. “To be named New York Superintendent of the Year is a direct reflection of the dedication and hard work by the local school boards, staff, teachers and support teams across the Orleans/Niagara BOCES service area. The Orleans/Niagara BOCES, our component school districts and the communities we serve strongly support what it takes to make a difference in providing quality public schools. I’m honored to represent all of them and my superintendent colleagues in New York State who have dedicated their lives to this work.”

Dr. Godshall was nominated for the New York Superintendent of the Year by Orleans/Niagara BOCES School Board President Becky Albright.

“Dr. Godshall is a role model for all educational leaders,” Albright said. “His expertise, talent and creativity are examples to other educators, parents, community members and students.”

Godshall has served as the District Superintendent of the Orleans/Niagara Board of Cooperative Educational Services for the past 14 years. He started with the local BOCES 24 years ago and served as assistant superintendent for 10 years. He started his career as a science teacher at Hilton.

The Orleans/Niagara BOCES serves 38,000 students. It is consistently ranked as one of the top BOCES in the state.

In honoring Godshall, the Council of Superintendents noted these details about the Orleans/Niagara BOCES:

Operates the third largest career and technical education BOCES and regional summer school in New York State;

Career and technical education graduation rate is consistently more than 93 percent and the BOCES exceeds the state and national average student performance with over 161 students receiving their Technical Endorsement Seal;

Orleans/Niagara BOCES is the only BOCES in New York State to receive frequent national recognition for their fiscal management from ASBO International and Government Finance Officers’ Association;

The current LPN program had a 100 percent passing rate for the Test of Essential Academic Skills;

Their Adult Literacy Program is ranked number one in New York State.It is had grown from 500 to 3,000 and served over 2,000 people this year alone.

While at the Orleans/Niagara BOCES, Godshall has worked with his team to:

Standardize programs against state and national benchmarks to align with state and federal standards while using data to effectively monitor students’ progress and success.

Develop an effective continuum of services for students with special needs focused on main-streaming, integrated classrooms and ensuring that service follows needs.

Expand program offerings to include new programs – Baking, Fashion Design/Interior Design, Certified Personal Trainer and Heavy Equipment/Diesel/Agricultural Mechanical programs.

Offer over 80 collegiate articulation agreements for high school students to gain higher education credit prior to graduation.

Supports a high school alternative education program enabling at-risk students to graduate with a Regents and Advanced Regents diplomas.

Promote the importance of shared services to maximize local school districts capacity to offer shared administrators, employee benefits’ consortiums, energy and purchasing co-ops, shared media and printing services, along with safety services to both schools and other agencies.

Broaden the eco-friendly focus through an increase in energy savings programs; installation of systems to shut down all computers and control building temperatures.

Conducted and facilitated over 50 professional administrator searches on behalf of regional districts.

Broaden communication to reach more people through an enhanced website and the use of Social Media such as Facebook and Twitter.

Facilitate a variety of partnerships with businesses, civic organizations, hospitals, and governmental organizations to collaborate on the provision of services and supports for students.

Develop fiscally responsible budgets, yielding one of the lowest average budget increases over the past four years, while preserving or enhancing programs in the face of spiraling reductions in state aid. Continually recognized as a state model of financial management for a school entity.

Construct and renovate facilities, all on schedule and under budget, including new component district special educational space in centralized locations.