At a glance
The Hudson City School District Board of Education spent most of this meeting on state test data, and the picture the presenter laid out was blunt: elementary reading and math results have been flat before and after the pandemic, science scores have dropped, and students with disabilities and English language learners posted zeros in several grades. The same presentation showed only a handful of students sitting for AP exams, and none of the district's Hispanic students took one. Teachers, parents and staff used two public comment periods to argue about what the numbers do and do not capture, to press the district over a drama club grant, and to make a case for the arts and for stronger relationships with students. The board also heard about a new junior high art club and a Saturday STEM pilot called The Flying Classroom, recognized three retiring teacher aides, and met the district's new executive director of human resources. Motions on the agenda, a records policy, personnel items and the consent agenda were each put to a voice vote, and the captions do not record the responses.
Pledge, Roll Call and the Agenda
The meeting opened with the Pledge of Allegiance and a roll call, followed by a motion to accept the agenda with the club presentation added back in.
Key points
- The roll call named Mark, Amanda, Kjirsten Gustavson, Willette Jones, Calvin Lewis, Matthew Mackerer and Mia Walker
- The captions record a 'here' after Mark, Kjirsten Gustavson, Willette Jones, Matthew Mackerer and Mia Walker, and no response after Amanda or Calvin Lewis
- Someone moved to accept the agenda as presented and the motion was seconded
- The agenda was changed to add the club presentation back in
This is a YouTube auto-caption transcript with no speaker labels. It does not say which of the people who answered the roll are board members and which is the board's student representative, and it may have missed responses. Surnames are also garbled in places, so first names are used here where the surname did not come through.
The first five and a half minutes of the recording carry no speech at all, only single stray letters, and the captions pick up at 06:22 with the Pledge of Allegiance. Anything said before that is not in the record this summary was written from.
Student Representative on Clubs, Buses and Academic Teams
The board's student representative reported on school events and raised a funding problem for the academic teams, which struggle to pay for buses to competitions.
Key points
- The juniors won field day over the seniors
- The Powderpuff football game between senior and junior girls is confirmed for October 30, and everyone is invited
- Model UN, mock trial and another competitive academic team have all started up, and the board's approval of the Model UN trip to New York City in early November was thanked
- Funding for buses has always been hard for the academic teams, and Model UN has struggled the most because its conferences are in New York City twice a year
- Varsity Club will hold a walk for breast cancer awareness, with the date not yet known, and will run its annual volleyball tournament with National Honor Society in November
- The student tech crew has begun work in the IT office and will complete Dell certification
Three Teacher Aides Honored for Long Service
The board and the superintendent recognized three retiring teacher aides and thanked them for their years of service to the district.
Key points
- Gil was recognized for 23 years of service
- Joan was recognized for 27 years of service
- Katherine was recognized for 25 plus years of service
- The board wished all three good health and happiness in the years ahead
The captions render the three retirees' last names as 'bueri', 'Van duen' and 'Fus'. Only their first names came through clearly, so only first names are used here.
Who the District Serves: Enrollment and Subgroups
Part two of the teaching and learning report opened with a presentation of state assessment data, starting with a portrait of the district's enrollment and student subgroups.
Key points
- Total enrollment was 1,651 students as of about four days before the meeting
- By race and ethnicity, the presenter gave 39% white, 21% Hispanic, 18% black and 9% Asian or Pacific Islander students
- 65% of students are economically disadvantaged and 35% are not
- 21% of students are students with disabilities and 79% are general education students
- 8% of students are English language learners, and 3% are in temporary housing
- The presenter said she would show results by school building and by subgroup, with a gap in the charts because there is no data for 2019-20 or 2020-21
- She asked the board and the public to look for patterns and trends rather than single numbers
The share of multi-racial students came through the captions as '133%', which cannot be right, so it is left out here rather than repaired.
Elementary and Junior High Scores: Flat, and Wide Gaps
The presenter walked through ELA, math and science results at Montgomery C. Smith Elementary and Hudson Junior High, then broke each one down by disability status, language, gender, income and ethnicity.
Key points
- In grade five ELA, 15% of students were proficient in the most recent year, down from the prior year
- No elementary grade has exceeded 35% proficiency in ELA across the years shown, with the highest bar at 34% in grade three in 2018-19
- In grade five math, 21% of students scored proficient this past year, a drop from 30% the year before, and math proficiency has never topped 35%
- In science, no fifth graders scored proficient last year, and grade eight dropped from 40% to 23%
- Students with disabilities scored zero in several grades and years in both ELA and math, and English language learners showed zeros as well
- Sixth graders in 2023-24, the same students who were fifth graders the year before, scored 51% in ELA, and the presenter said she could not say why without digging deeper into the data
- Asian or Pacific Islander and white students outscored their black, Hispanic and multi-racial peers in most grades shown
The presenter repeatedly warned that these are percentages of small groups. She gave the example of a bar showing 45% that might rest on ten students who tested, and a 100% geometry bar that rested on two students with disabilities who both did well.
Regents and AP at the High School
High school Regents scores were stronger than the elementary and junior high results, but the presenter flagged how few students take AP exams and who those students are.
Key points
- Regents scores for the most part surpass 50%, and the presenter said the English Regents offered in 11th grade matters because students need it to graduate
- English language learners and students with disabilities remain the lowest scoring groups on Regents exams, followed by black and Hispanic students
- A zero for US history in one year may reflect the exam not being offered that year after a tragedy in Buffalo, the presenter said
- Enrollment runs 146 ninth graders, 130 tenth graders, 112 eleventh graders and 107 twelfth graders
- The district offered four AP exams, and the presenter's summary put AP participation at between two students for calculus and 17 for US history
- None of the district's Hispanic students took an AP exam, and two multi-racial students took US history while one took environmental science
- Both students who took the AP calculus exam passed it, which the presenter said should be read as two of two rather than as 100%
While walking through the chart the presenter said 'about 15 students' took one of the exams; her written summary at the end of the presentation said the range ran from two for calculus to 17 for US history. The lower number in the chart could not be matched to a subject with confidence.
Board Questions on the Data
Board members and others in the room pressed the presenter on national comparisons, opt-outs, peer districts and the barriers to AP enrollment.
Key points
- A speaker noted the district does not offer AP calculus as a course, and that the two students who took the exam self studied and challenged it
- One member said the data is the true picture of the district's diversity, that the gaps can no longer be ignored, and that continuing to do what has been done before will produce the same results
- Asked how Hudson compares nationally, the presenter said she had not done that comparison and did not want to misinform the board or the public
- She pointed to the state's transition from Common Core to Next Generation standards, phased in from 2017, as one possible factor, while cautioning that nothing can be known without digging deeper
- On opt-outs, she said the state requires roughly 95% of students per grade level to test, and that opting out can put a school in need of improvement even though families have the right to refuse
- Asked whether the state defines a peer group, she suggested districts with similar demographics and size, and said comparisons can be pulled from the state education department website
- The presenter said she has been in the district three months, wants to explore why AP enrollment is low, and believes students sitting in an AP class should all be taking the exam
Junior High Art Club, a Records Policy and a New HR Director
The junior high art teacher presented on her growing art club, and the board then took up a policy amendment, personnel items and an introduction.
Key points
- Katie Rogers, the junior high art teacher, said she started the art club last spring, saw a huge turnout, and expects more students this year
- She hopes to fundraise through ceramics work to pay for buses to field trips and to artists' studios in Hudson and Catskill
- She described the club as a place for students to wind down and build social and emotional skills, including students from the special life class who made new friends there
- A motion was made to approve amended policy 112R, school district records regulation, and put to a voice vote
- A motion was made to accept personnel items A through J and put to a voice vote
- The board was introduced to Shante Brooks, the district's new executive director of human resources, who was not present at the last meeting
- The chair said there was no need for an early executive session
The captions record the motions and the words 'all in favor' but not the responses, so the record here does not show how the board voted on the agenda, the records policy or the personnel items.
Public Comment: Testing, a Drama Grant and What the AP Numbers Miss
Five speakers used the first public comment period to challenge how the test data was framed, to press the administration over a drama club grant, and to add context to the AP figures.
Key points
- The board read its standard preamble: state law does not require a public comment period, the board is there to listen rather than respond, personnel questions cannot be entertained, and each speaker gets three minutes
- Jen, a special education teacher, said hearing 'special ed not proficient' repeated is crushing, asked whether the data breaks out English learners by proficiency level, and urged the district to look at growth rather than a single test score
- Jen also said teachers should not be blamed for results that follow from policies handed down from the state
- Kristen, a Hudson alumna, parent of two elementary students and a board member at a professional theater in Chatham, said the drama club has faced resistance from the administration and that two administrators had not answered requests to meet about a grant due in two days
- Kristen said 70 third to fifth graders took part in last year's production of The Lion King, that the club was created in 2012, and that the grant has been used yearly to support the drama club and the Columbia County Youth Theater
- Rocky, the district's advanced placement coordinator, said the AP data is apples and oranges: students who challenge an exam without the course will always be a small number, and students increasingly choose college courses that carry three credits over AP exams whose credit depends on the college
- Rocky also said Hudson has AP Scholars, students who score three or higher on three AP exams, and that this year the district administered AP exams for students from Scarsdale whose own district would not
- Malachi Walker said low grades often trace back to whether students have an adult they trust, describing a nephew who told him he would do better if he had a relationship with his teachers
Two speakers' surnames came through the captions garbled ('Jen D' and 'Kristen beld' or 'beeld'), so only their first names appear here. Kristen named two administrators by title and surname, but the captions garbled both, so they are described by role instead.
Superintendent's Report: The Hudson Hawk Cafe and a Round of Thanks
The superintendent's report opened with a video about the redone high school cafeteria and went on to recognitions, homecoming and student achievements.
Key points
- The video showed a cafeteria with all new furniture, high top tables and soft seating, now called the Hudson Hawk Cafe rather than the cafeteria
- Staff in the video said students behave as though they are older in the new space, and that students report more choice, better portions and better taste
- The superintendent called the video 'my why' and said it is the reason for being there every day, focused on student learning, happiness and success
- October 2 was National Custodian Appreciation Day, and the report thanked buildings and grounds staff
- October is National Principal Month, and the report thanked the district's principals
- Homecoming festivities recognized senior student athletes and announced the homecoming court king and queen, followed by a Blue Hawks football game
- Montgomery C. Smith fifth graders competed in a MATHCOUNTS meet and went on to the Capital Region event in Albany on October 2, and all students in grades three through five saw the human calculator Scott Flansburg perform on Friday, September 27
Several minutes of the report play as video and are captioned only as [Music], so parts of what was shown to the board are absent from the record.
A Saturday STEM Pilot Called The Flying Classroom
The district's extended day coordinator presented a Saturday STEM pilot, framing it as an equity program because the junior high and high school do not currently offer STEM activities.
Key points
- The program is virtual and built around 16 expeditions, organized as four sessions with four STEM activities each, running 180 minutes at a time
- The coordinator said the program's creator earned the record at 23 for being the youngest person and first African American pilot to fly solo around the world, at 24 challenged students from failing inner city schools to build an airplane that he then flew, became a National Geographic Explorer at 28, and set off on his around the world flight at 30
- Topics include aquaponics, urban farming, bees and pollination, climate change, animal conservation, sustainable cities and food waste, each tied to Next Generation standards
- Each student gets a box with a folder, engagement cards and a packet, learns a topic, builds something and presents it to peers
- The program is for 56 students from the junior high and high schools, chosen to represent every demographic group in the district, including students with IEPs, English learners and non-binary students
- Two classrooms in the junior high and two in the high school will each hold 15 students with one virtual teacher, plus a teacher and an aide or a TA in each room
- Staff hours run 8:30 to 1 and students attend 9:30 to 12:30 with lunch provided, and the coordinator hopes to tie the units to trips to a science center or a zoo
- The coordinator grounded the pilot in the district's diversity, equity and inclusion policy and mission statement, and in a state statement on access and opportunity
The coordinator said the pilot will serve 56 students, and separately described four classrooms of 15 students each. Both figures are given here as spoken, without reconciling them.
Consent Agenda, a Second Public Comment Period and Upcoming Dates
The board took up the consent agenda, heard three more speakers, read the upcoming meeting dates and moved to go into executive session.
Key points
- A motion to approve the consent agenda was made, seconded and put to a voice vote, with the item letters garbled in the captions
- A speaker praised the district's arts programs, said band and art set Hudson apart, and suggested the district's six pillars should weigh the arts alongside data
- Shelly Evans, a former district teacher, summer school principal and one time Board of Education president, said teachers are the district's most important resource, that the district must stop children from falling through the cracks in the earliest grades, and that the current observation system rates teachers rather than improving their performance
- Evans also recounted being asked by a local newspaper about the achievement gap and turning the question back on the paper's own hiring
- Wayne Kenny said the data presentation left out the high school's college credit classes, which he counted at ten, and that scheduling conflicts keep students out of honors and AP seats
- Kenny said chronic absenteeism is the bigger problem, noting that on the 25th day of class one student had already missed 19 days, and that absenteeism has risen across the state
- The board read upcoming dates: a policy committee meeting October 22 from 5 to 6 in the high school library, a Board of Education meeting October 22 at 6 p.m. in the high school library, and a Board of Education meeting November 5 in the high school library
- A motion was made and seconded to go into executive session to review the employment history of particular persons, with no further business after that
The transcript ends with the motion to go into executive session and its second. It does not record the vote, and nothing from the executive session is in the record.
About this page
FUTURE HUDSON is an experiment in civic engagement: every public meeting of the City of Hudson since January 2026, transcribed and made readable, so any resident can follow what the city is deciding without attending every meeting. This page covers one meeting; see the full archive.
How it was made
The meeting video was transcribed automatically; the transcript was then organized into sections and summarized. The raw transcript is above, every claim can be checked against it.
What to be skeptical of
The transcript is automated and contains speech-recognition errors; names and numbers may be wrong. This page has not been reviewed by a human. Nothing here is an official record, the school district's official minutes are authoritative.
About coverage of this body
Board of Education meetings are livestreamed by the Hudson City School District to its own YouTube channel. The school district is a separate government from the City of Hudson. If a meeting is missing from the archive, the recording was likely not posted. See the archive index for the full coverage note.