To enhance its commitment to keeping its constituents well-informed, the Niagara Falls City School District Board of Education is providing summaries of its bi-weekly board meetings. Here are the notes from its Feb. 26 meeting.
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Niagara Falls City School District Administrator for Information Services Ray Granieri and NFCD Technology Integrator Ed Maynard presented the district’s technology plan to run from July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2029. To summarize, the planned technology purchases for the next school year: all teachers in the district will receive new laptops, as will students in grades 7 and 8. And five new special education classes will be given new devices. In the 2027-28 school year, students in grades 9-12 will receive new computers.
The computers will be funded through the Smart Schools Bond Act. The district has $2.83 million of bond money remaining.
The district has also developed a plan for the safe and ethical use of artificial intelligence (AI).
Administrator for School Business Services Julie Jacklin reviewed the latest version of the 2026-27 school budget. An update on the budget will be presented at every board meeting until the board budget vote on May 19. The proposed spending plan has increased by 4.29% over the 2025-26 budget. The district has a current budget gap of $6.7 million; this figure has decreased from $7.2 million in the NFCSD’s last budget presentation on Feb. 12. The total budget as of this writing is $211,115,337 and does not include any cuts to services currently offered.
Recommended Actions from the Superintendent of Schools
The board approved 17 short-term contracts, including four contracts for Black History Month activities:
• Vibrant Strings Performance for Black History Month Celebration at Gaskill Prep School
• She Drums – the organization will work with students on rhythm, coordination, and self-expression. She Drums will visit two district schools
The board also approved seven short-term contracts for Say Yes Niagara Falls Saturday Academies, including:
• Families Armed Toward Excellence (FATE) for STEM learning experiences
• Mini Books – participants create personal books
• Buffalo Zoo — animal ambassadors
• SPCA – Educational programming with animals
• Thera-Pony, LLC – interaction with miniature horses
Superintendent’s Report
• The district recognizes Ramadan, one of the holiest times of the year for those of the Muslim faith
• In conjunction with the Sleep in Heavenly Peace organization, the Family Support Center has donated 101 beds to district students
• Thank you to the Buffalo Bills and Feedmore for announcing that they will continue the Pantries and Backpacks program next school year
• Students in grades 7-12 will take the Youth Risk Behavior Survey in March
• To date, 1,296 parents and students have attended Say Yes Niagara Falls Saturday Academies
• KeyBank has donated $500,000 to Say Yes Niagara Falls
• The graduation rate for Niagara Falls High School is 86%, rising from 67% over the last eight years
• Congratulations to Gaskill Prep School for its significant academic increases this year
• Congratulations to 79th Street Elementary School for being removed from the New York State Education Department’s Schools in Need of Improvement list
• Congratulations to the NFHS Wolverines Girls Basketball Team for being co-league champions this season with a 14-3 record
• Congratulations to the NFHS Wolverines Boys Basketball team for earning their sectional berth
• NFHS’s own Cam Crumpler and Kayden Faegin heading to the New York State Wrestling Championships
The next meeting of the Niagara Falls City School District Board of Education will be at 5:30 p.m. on March 12.