Lake Shore Central School District

As the 2024-25 school year winds down, I wanted to take the chance to say "Thank You" to everyone.  As you're probably aware, I am retiring at the end of June after almost 23 years at Lake Shore.  My time here at Lake Shore has been enjoyable and memorable, and it's been an honor to be a part of such a wonderful school district.

Looking back on my career and thinking about what I'll remember most from my many years here, I think it will be how we have been able to make things happen for our students.  As a district, we move along from day to day, week to week, month to month and school year to school year, doing whatever is necessary to keep instruction happening for our students.  We've weathered some pretty tough storms - from difficult State budgets that included large State Aid cuts, to that bizarre year when we shut down in-person instruction for the covid-19 pandemic.  Through those and many other difficult times, we kept our instructional programs and the learning process for our students going.  We flipped the switch almost overnight and moved from the in-person model of instruction that schools have followed for generations to remote instruction, helping to try to shorten the pandemic period by limiting exposure and the spread of the disease.  We also supplied thousands of meals to children in the District and in the Seneca Nation Territory during the pandemic.  That sort of thing doesn't happen without dedicated staff members pulling in the same direction, working toward the common goal.

I've been fortunate to work for some wonderful Boards of Education over the years, too.  Board members have a tough, sometimes thankless job that they take on for no compensation.  Lake Shore has been lucky to always have dedicated people who step forward to serve on the board of education for the right reasons.  I'd also add that I've never in my career seen the level of community support for other school districts that I've witnessed here at Lake Shore.  The Board and Administration have worked well together, always with the goal of providing the best instructional program and facilities for our students that we can within the level of the resources that we have available.  During my undergraduate degree coursework in business, I remember one of my professors telling us that in order to successfully run an organization, you need to pay attention to two things - your finances and your people, and you should never concentrate on one at the expense of the other.  Looking back, I think Lake Shore has done a good job of following that practice.  I will be forever grateful to the first board of education that hired me, and trusted me with the District's financial management.  I'm also thankful to the board that appointed me to an interim high school principal position a number of years ago, giving me the ability to work closely with teachers and students for five months while the District completed a search for a new principal.  But the board that I'm most appreciative of is the board that appointed me to the position of Superintendent of Schools at Lake Shore.  They helped me fulfill a 30-year dream of becoming a superintendent, and made it happen in the district where I wanted to be above any and all others.

The District has also supported and welcomed innovation throughout my time here.  Adding courses like the Academy of Business and Finance, the Freshman Academy, eSports and many of the various elective courses that are offered to our students invigorates our instructional program.   We have endeavored to offer as many athletic teams as possible, and the clubs and other organizations that are available to our students are wide-ranging.  We really offer something for everybody.  That's a strong, inclusive culture that supports students' growth and learning in a healthy way.  The District is also leading the way in Western New York in making the State's required transition to zero-emission school buses.  The District has ignored the political white noise surrounding the issue of electric school buses, concentrating instead on how to meet the mandate and make the change work for us.  We have taken advantage of available grants, rebates and tax credits to accomplish as much as we can for the lowest possible cost for our residents.  As of today, the District has converted almost half of its bus fleet (23 out of 50 school buses) from diesel or gasoline power to electric.  We projected that the District would save money by operating electric buses, but what we didn't anticipate was that our students would benefit from a quieter bus ride with cleaner air.

It has also been exciting being a part of the District's various building projects.  Updating our classrooms and technology along with our athletic facilities and our music/performance spaces has been fulfilling.  Work will begin soon on our new turf baseball and softball fields, and on the new stadium seating and announcing booth for our football and soccer/lacrosse fields.  The following year will see new turf installed on the soccer/lacrosse fields too.  The addition of air conditioning to our school buildings will help keep our students and staff comfortable during warmer weather while maintaining building security, and the addition of a new rooftop solar array system at the high school will provide the District with energy savings for many years to come.

I will look back proudly on all of this, but what I will remember most are the people that I've had the pleasure of knowing here at Lake Shore.  I am confident that everyone here will welcome Lake Shore's new superintendent, Mr. Phil Johnson as he takes over the role as the leader of this fine school district in July.  I know that everyone will support him and his family as Lake Shore earns a special place in his heart, like it did in mine.  Go Eagles!

Sincerely,

Daniel Pacos

Superintendent of Schools