Category: High School News
Sports schedule, and results, for the week of Sept. 1-7, 2025
Our student-athletes kick off the season this week (really this time) with soccer and football. The girls varsity game originally scheduled for Friday, Aug. 29, was canceled.
Here are the schedule and results, if available. Livestream links are included where available.
The schedule is subject to change. Check the Liberty schedule on the Section IX website for the latest.
Monday, Sept. 1
No events scheduled.
Tuesday, Sept. 2
2 p.m.: Girls Varsity Soccer vs. Sidney, Jane Flannery Soccer Tournament, Downsville Central School
2 p.m.: Boys Varsity Soccer vs. Sidney, James Campbell Soccer Tournament, Downsville Central School
Results: Liberty 5, Sidney 0. Ryan Romero Bello earned Man of the Game with 1 goal and 1 assist. Shout out to Justin Simon as well with the clean sheet.
Wednesday, Sept. 3
4:30 or 7 p.m.: Girls Varsity Soccer, Jane Flannery Soccer Tournament, Downsville Central School (4:30 p.m. if Liberty loses game 1, 7 p.m. if wins)
Thursday, Sept. 4
7 p.m.: Boys Varsity Soccer, James Campbell Soccer Tournament, Downsville Central School
4:30 p.m.: Boys JV Soccer vs. Chapel Field Christian Schools at Liberty High School
Friday, Sept. 5
4 p.m.: Girls JV Soccer vs. Monticello at Monticello High School.
Results: Liberty 3, Monticello 0. Against Monticello the girls played a great game maintaining space and ball control. Liberty spent most of the game pressuring the Monticello team in their half consistently building up and attacking. Counter attacks were consistently denied by Sophia Duarte, Bristol Misner and Carla Perez Perez. The mid field dominated play led by Adriana Gavilan Leon and Yarel Diaz Lopez winning balls and closing down passing lanes. Alexandra Galeas Osorio denied any counter attacks on the wings and consistently fed balls up line to forwards Olivia Corrigan, Katherine Panama, and Quinn Santiago. Yarel Diaz Lopez opened the scoring with a great shot off a pass from Quinn Santiago. Alyssa Padilla entered the game and wreaked havoc for the Monticello midfield and defense following up with Liberty’s second goal. Quinn Santiago closed out the scoring with the third and final goal for Liberty. Goal Keeper Montgomery Allen finished the game with 6 saves and a clean sheet in her first start in goal. Middletown will be our next opponent.
4:30 p.m.: Boys JV Soccer vs. James I. O’Neill at Liberty High School
4:30 or 7 p.m.: Girls Varsity Soccer, Jane Flannery Soccer Tournament, Downsville Central School (4:30 p.m. if Liberty loses game 1-fifth or seventh place game, 7 p.m. if wins-consolation or final)
Saturday, Sept. 6
Noon: Varsity football vs. Walton at Walton High School
noon, 2, 4:30 or 7: Boys Varsity Soccer, James Campbell Soccer Tournament, Downsville Central School (noon if Liberty loses both games-seventh place game; 2 p.m. if loses game 1 and wins game 2-fifth place game; 4:30 if wins game 1 and loses game 2-consolation; 7 p.m. if wins both games-championship)
Sunday, Sept. 7
No events scheduled.
Liberty administration offers updates for school year at community forum
Liberty administration offers updates for school year at community forum
About two dozen community members and several more faculty and staff gathered outside the main entrance to Liberty High School on Tuesday, Aug. 26, to hear an overview of updates and changes for the 2025-26 school year at Liberty Central School District.
“It’s important for our community to be informed before the start of the school year,” LCSD Superintendent Dr. Patrick Sullivan said. “We appreciate the families who attended and asked questions.”
District administration has held these forums annually as a way to better communicate and interact with the LCSD community, in accordance with the district’s five-year strategic plan.
The plan, now in its fourth year, is the district’s roadmap for improvement across the district.
Dr. Sullivan and Assistant Superintendent Derek Adams led the presentation, with translation by Ms. Vanessa Olivo.
The school year begins for students on Thursday, Sept. 4.
Besides the traditional updates on programming and reminders of procedures, district officials also reviewed the new state-mandated policy on student use of internet-enabled devices during the school day.
Plan updates
The forum began with a review of the strategic plan and each pillar — Coherence, Multi-Tiered Systems of Support, Curriculum and Culture — and an overview of what the district is doing to move forward this year. The plan, along with the District Comprehensive Improvement Plan and related building and program plans, informed changes for the 2025-26 school year.
Curricular changes and updates
Dr. Adams reviewed current curricular programs and highlighted changes, including the addition of the Siena College Computer Science course for high schoolers, agricultural courses at the middle school and a new Universal Pre-Kindergarten classroom at the elementary school. The district is also in the second year of Algebra for all eighth graders as well as Syracuse University Project Advance programming for high schoolers.
The district is also implementing Eduplanet, a curriculum management system to aid in curriculum mapping, and LinkIt, a data warehouse system designed to help more efficiently analyze and support students’ academic, social and emotional growth, which will also help inform MTSS procedures.
Communications
The forum also offered the opportunity to review items related to the culture pillar, which includes better communicating the mission and vision of the district. Dr. Sullivan highlighted ParentSquare, introduced last year, which helps streamline two-way communication between Liberty families and the district and schools. He also reminded attendees about the district’s chain of command calling guide.
DASA and safety
Safety is always of utmost importance. Dr. Sullivan reviewed the district’s safety measures and visitor procedures, hitting both the coherence and culture pillars. He also reminded attendees about Anonymous Alerts, where students and families can report concerns about safety or bullying, and Gaggle, a program that monitors student usage of the internet and will alert officials of concern searches or messages. Both programs assist the district in its commitment to the Dignity for All Students Act and safety.
Construction projects
Dr. Sullivan reported that work is nearing completion on culvert replacement at the elementary school, and the district expects traffic patterns to return to normal in time for the start of the school year. Work is progressing on the athletic field, part of the capital project approved by voters in January 2024, with the hope that the field will be completed in time to play at least one game on the field this fall. Full completion of the track, bleachers and press box is expected by the spring.
Cellphone policy
Liberty Central School District has implemented a policy in accordance with Education Law §2803, also known as the bell-to-bell cellphone free policy. Dr. Sullivan reviewed the district’s cellphone free policy. A policy FAQ is available here.
Only one question was asked publicly at the end of the forum—regarding student storage of cellphones during sports practices. However, administrators answered several questions one-on-one with families after the forum.
“We are always happy to answer questions and offer support to our families and students,” Dr. Sullivan said at the end of the forum. He also reminded those in attendance that any questions could be emailed to questions@libertyk12.org.
Because of technical difficulties, the planned livestream of the event was unable to take place. A slideshow of the presentation can be found here.
Liberty names high school assistant principal
Liberty High School will have a new assistant principal when school starts on Sept. 4.
On Aug. 19, the Liberty Central School District Board of Education appointed Ms. Destiny Matos to the role, which became vacant with the promotion of Mr. Stephen Matuszak to principal at the end of the 2024-25 school year.
“As a dedicated educator and leader, I am excited to bring my experience and values to Liberty and make a positive impact on the school community,” she said.
She has a master’s degree in school building leadership from Molloy University and a Master of Science degree in general and special education from Manhattan College. She had nine years of experience in the New York City Department of Education, including roles as a special education/early childhood teacher, science content teacher, and a United Federation of Teachers Paraprofessional, before coming to Liberty.
She said she hopes to provide “a supportive and inclusive learning environment that fosters academic excellence, creativity, and social growth.”
As a “proud New Yorker” and mother of two, she said her values are consistency, coherency and accountability, and she is committed to building strong partnerships between home and school.
“I chose Liberty because I too believe in the mission of helping graduate lifelong learners who have been empowered through the collaborative efforts of the school, parents and community,” she said. “This sense of belonging helps graduates feel safe and ready to take on new challenges.”
A message from Student Services on special education services
Dear Parent/Guardian,
The Liberty Central School District (the “District”) is committed to ensuring that all students receive the supports and services they need to succeed academically, socially, and emotionally. The District recognizes its obligation of providing a Free Appropriate Public Education (“FAPE”) to all eligible students and continues to align its practices with the requirements set forth by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (“IDEA”) and New York State Education Law.
Recently, the New York State Education Department (“SED”) released guidance and a New York State appellate court issued a decision concerning New York State public schools’ obligation to provide special education and related services to resident students with disabilities up until the student’s 22nd birthday. Effective with the 2026–2027 school year, the District will provide special education and related services to students with disabilities only to the extent required by applicable federal and New York State law.
If you have any questions regarding your child’s special education services, or how this notice may affect your child’s Individualized Education Program (IEP), please do not hesitate to contact the Office of Student Services.
We remain committed to collaborating with families to ensure the success of all students.
Sincerely,
Deborah DeGraw
Director of Student Services
Superintendent reminds families information on registered sex offenders available
Dear Parents and Guardians,
In accordance with New York State’s Sex Offender Registration Act, local law enforcement agencies will, at their discretion, notify school administrators of sex offenders living or working in this district. Such information may include the offender’s address or zip code, photograph, crime of conviction, modus of operation, type of victim targeted and the description of any special conditions imposed on the offender.
The information the district receives from local law enforcement will be posted in an appropriate location in all district buildings, and will be available to you upon request. This information can also be located on the Liberty Central School District website at www.libertyk12.org where the link to the NYS Sex Offender Registry is updated continually and the District policy 5450.1 Notification of Sex Offenders is located. In addition, any information received will be circulated to all staff that might come into contact with the offender in the course of doing their jobs, including Building Principals, staff who issue visitors’ passes, bus drivers, custodians, playground monitors and coaches. All other staff members will be informed of the availability of the information. Staff have been directed to notify their supervisor if they observe any suspicious person(s) in an area where children congregate, and law enforcement officials will be notified in cases where the circumstances warrant it.
We are dedicated to the safety of our children while they’re in school. All of our schools have strict sign-in/sign-out procedures for our students, and all visitors must first report to the school’s main office for a visitor’s pass. In addition, our school curriculum includes teaching personal safety and stranger awareness skills.
We encourage you to talk to your children about personal safety. Books and other resources are available from school counselors, if necessary.
Specific questions about this matter may be directed to Police Officer Christopher Orlando at Liberty Police Department, 159 North Main St., Liberty, NY 12754 – Phone: 845-292-4422 or to any School Resource Officer.
Please be assured that the school district will continue to take responsible and appropriate measures to protect our students.
Sincerely,
Patrick Sullivan
Dr. Patrick Sullivan
A message from the superintendent on the cellphone and internet-enabled device policy
Dear Liberty families,
As you may be aware, New York State passed a law prohibiting students from accessing cellphones and internet-enabled-devices during the school day on school property, with few exceptions.
The law was passed to help reduce distractions and increase student engagement, as well as support student mental health.
We have created a policy and have a plan in place to address this issue. The full policy and plan can be found on our website.
The policy states that, unless there is an approved exception, middle school and high schools students must silence their phones and store them and other prohibited devices in their lockers. We discourage our elementary students from bringing devices to school, but if they do, the devices must be stored in their cubbies.
Students will have access to their school-provided Chromebooks and other devices.
We understand parents and guardians need to be able to reach their students during the school day. Students and their parents and guardians can communicate via the district-provided email or via phone at their schools main office.
If a student is found with a prohibited device, the student will be asked to place the device in their locker or cubby. A second offense will result in the device being stored in the main office, with a parent or guardian notified and the student able to retrieve their device at the end of the school day. A third and subsequent offence will result in the phone being stored at the main office and a parent or guardian must retrieve the device. Further offenses will result in the devices being stored at the office daily for longer periods of time. Administrators will also discuss the goal of the policy with students and their parents or guardians, the benefits of a distraction-free environment, the reasons the student had difficulty following this policy, and how the district can help the student contribute to a distraction-free environment. Students will not be suspended based solely on violation of this policy. However, the district may use consequences under the district’s Code of Conduct, including detention, in-school suspension and exclusion from extracurricular activities. Assignments on the detrimental impact of social media on mental health, smartphones in school, or other relevant topics may also be issued.
The district will also monitor enforcement of the policy and publish an annual report beginning in September 2026.
We appreciate the feedback provided by families earlier this year. To address some of the questions and concerns raised, a FAQ sheet is available on the district website. The issue will also be addressed at our annual back-to-school community forum, which will be held at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 26, outside the High School Library.
If you have questions, please look over the FAQs, attend the forum or email questions@libertyk12.org.
Sincerely,
Dr. Patrick Sullivan
Superintendent
Leadership Week offers chance for administrators to reflect, plan
School may be out for summer, but that doesn’t mean work has slowed down for Liberty Central School District administrators.
The administration team spent this week preparing for the 2025-26 school year.
The annual summer professional development and planning retreat was held Tuesday through Friday, using LCSD’s five-year Strategic Plan and the District Comprehensive Improvement Plan as a focus and guide for the sessions.
Administrators reflected on progress during the 2024-25 school year, heard from speakers, participated in activities, took part in professional development sessions and worked on plans for the upcoming school year.
Teacher facilitators joined sessions on Thursday to learn more about LinkIt, the new data warehouse system designed to help more efficiently analyze and support students’ academic, social and emotional growth. They also worked with administrators on the building and Student Services school comprehensive education and priority plans, which were finalized on Friday.
The week ended with a session for administrators on Leader in Me with Robin Sampson.
“It is important to reflect on our past work while planning for our future,” Superintendent Dr. Patrick Sullivan said. “This week was very successful in doing that. I thank our speakers, administrators and teacher facilitators for their dedication to making Liberty a great place to learn.”
Liberty superintendent visits D.C. to advocate for schools
Liberty Central School District Superintendent Dr. Patrick Sullivan recently spent time in Washington, D.C., to advocate for funding and programs that would help provide a quality education for all students at Liberty and beyond.
He took part in the Legislative Advocacy Conference, sponsored by the AASA The School Superintendents Association and the Association of School Business Officials International, to learn more about and discuss key issues impacting school districts, as well as meet with federal elected officials
Dr. Sullivan and Dr. Dwight Bonk from the Wappingers Central School District advocated for the Hudson Valley schools to ensure that they receive Title funding, IDEA funding, and other federal funding sources to support their students.
High on the list of proprieties for the conference was communicating the impact the federal government delaying Title funding of more than $6 billion has had on finalizing district budgets for the 2025-26 school year.
The funding cuts and changes in the president’s 2026 budget proposal were also a concern.
The “K-12 Simplified Funding Program” would consolidate 18 formula and competitive grant programs (worth $6.5 billion at fiscal year 2024 levels) into one block grant of $2 billion. It would also eliminate other programs, most notably Title III (English Acquisition) and Title I, Part C (Migrant Education State Grants).
“While I appreciate the intent behind the proposal to provide more flexibility for local decision making, the overall cut in funding would ultimately take away much needed resources for our schools,” Dr. Sullivan said.
The group also advocated for fully funding the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, which is vital to ensuring students with disabilities are provided a quality, robust education. IDEA would also be consolidated under the president’s proposal, with an increase in grants to states, but numerous programs inside IDEA losing all funding.
When IDEA was founded 50 years ago, Congress committed to funding 40% of the additional cost of educating student needs, which it has never done. The federal funding is now around 10%.
“Fully funding IDEA would be a worthwhile investment in our students and their future,” Dr. Sullivan said.
Conference attendees also advocated for the passage of updated student data and privacy legislation as well as reauthorization of the Secure Rural Schools program
“It is important to let our elected officials know how their decisions will impact our schools, our staff and our students,” Dr. Sullivan said. “I am happy to be able to advocate for our students to meet our mission to empower each student to contribute and thrive in a diverse community by pursuing their potential.
Athletic director joins Liberty CSD
Thomas Zehner joined Liberty Central School District as its athletic director on July 1.
Mr. Zehner earned his bachelor’s degree from Sage College of Albany in K-12 physical education, a master’s degree in health, recreation and physical education from Emporia State University and a Certification of Advanced Study in School Leadership from SUNY New Paltz
Before coming to Liberty, Mr. Zehner was an elementary physical education teacher in Beacon City School District since September 2017. While at Beacon he was also the Adapted Physical Education Curriculum coordinator for four years and hosted 10 student teachers at the elementary level as a cooperating teacher for student teachers for six years. He also served as a coach for soccer, basketball, tennis, softball and lacrosse at Beacon.
He said he wants to build upon past successes at Liberty and hopes to increase participation in the Redhawks sports programs.
To do this he said he wants to help support existing youth sports programs in the community, as well as build programs to introduce younger students to sports in the schools, in accordance with the Redhawks Champion Plan introduced last year.
Expanding the Athletes Helping Athletes can be a big part of that, he said.
“Mentoring is great,” Mr. Zehner said, “but if we can get our older athletes to assist more in the elementary and middle schools, we can better build that sense of Redhawk community and Liberty pride.”
He said he could see students helping lead lessons in their sports, or volunteering with sports programs in the community.
“The district as a whole will benefit from promoting the culture of school spirit,” he said.
In his free time, Mr. Zehner, a resident of Wappingers Falls, enjoys golfing, hiking, playing sports and spending time with his family and dog.
Liberty High School graduates 141
One of the, if not the, largest class in Liberty High School history crossed the stage Friday, June 27, during the 128th annual commencement exercises.
The musical talents of the senior class were on display during the ceremony with several seniors singing the national anthem, and Luis Molina Gonzalez playing the alma mater.
With a theme of resilience, perseverance and shaping the future, 141 graduates officially became members of the Liberty alumni following graduation ceremonies held in the Liberty High School gymnasium.
“My good friend once told me that ‘It doesn’t have to be good, it just has to get done,’ and my gosh we have done it, and we deserve to celebrate that,” Class President and Salutatorian Sophia Ferguson said in her welcome.
Now that it is done, it is time to look forward, several speakers said. But the path will lead the class in several different directions.
“As we walk up this stage, we welcome a new chapter in our lives. Each of us stands on a threshold of endless possibilities,” Valedictorian Kaitlyn Bodolosky said. “Each of us has unique talents and dreams that will shape our paths ahead.”
And each individual’s path will probably not be a straight one.
“Most of us don’t know what we want to be when we graduate high school,” Liberty Board of Education Vice President Pamela Teed Fisk said. “Don’t be afraid to change direction.”
But when you choose your path, “choose it boldly,” High School Principal Dr. Derek Adams said.
“Own your direction. Take initiative in your life,” he said. “And when things get hard—and they will—remember that responsibility isn’t a burden; it’s your launchpad.”
It’s a launchpad that started at Liberty.
“Take what you’ve learned here, not just the facts and formulas, but the friendships, the lessons, the challenges, and let it guide you as you step forward,” Superintendent Dr. Patrick Sullivan said. “You are capable. You are needed. And you are just getting started.”
