PetZotics came into the High School HUB with a fun array of animals that students and teachers were able to engage in. Among friends that visited included a ferret, snake, tarantula, and crested gecko. What a hit in the HUB! We can’t wait for them to return.
Mount Markham Connected hosted another successful Haircuts for the Holidays event— made even more special with a visit from Santa! Families enjoyed fresh haircuts, festive treats, and holiday activities while they waited, and many captured special moments with Santa through photos. It was a joyful day filled with smiles, holiday cheer, and fun for everyone who attended.
Pre K teacher Mrs. Bunce asked Project Manager Leslie Nevills to help bring back The Great Swamp Conservancy to present on their December topic of Birds with both PreK groups- specifically those who live in New York, how they build their nests and what they are for, what a real bird egg looks like, and explore a real bird skull. They ended their visit with a fun craft activity on birds.
Zoey Smith’s Kindergarten class celebrated the last few days before holiday break with a Silent Dance Party. Mrs. Humphrey was our music DJ while Ms. Nevills, Ms. Baker, and our intern Samantha Skottke all joined in on the fun. Even School Superintendent Lauren Crisman stopped in to try it out!
Marina Brigham, from Cornell Cooperative Extension in Oneida County, visited the Elementary HUB for a little classroom programming. Students were assigned a partner. One student in each pair received an object drawn on a sheet of paper. It was the students job to describe to their partner how to draw this item without telling their partner what it actually is to see how well they communicate. The students really enjoyed this activity and were amazed to see the finished products.
This month, Marina worked with students to create calm-down jars and affirmation pages, offering creative tools to support mindfulness and positive self-reflection. HUB Huddle also continued to be a strong space for productive learning—blending meaningful engagement with a little fun along the way.
Connected Mount Markham district families were invited to attend Open HUB prior to the school break, providing an opportunity to stock up on pantry items at no cost. This support helped ensure families had access to essential food items as they prepared for time away from school.
HUB HUDDLES HUB HUDDLES
Our HUB Huddles at Mount Markham Elementary are a favorite lunch time spot with the second, third, and fourth grade students. This month, the students talked with each other about their own families' holiday traditions. They also were excited to create their own holiday decorations…. making some old fashioned paper snowflakes!!
HUB Huddle continues to consist of free time, games, and getting to know peers in a quiet, and relaxed setting. In December, Marina Bridgham with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Oneida County came in and did calm down jars along with affirmation pages. Students love when there is an activity happening during our times.
HUB Huddle continues to consist of free time, games, and getting to know peers in a quiet, and relaxed setting. In December, Marina Bridgham with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Oneida County came in and did calm down jars along with affirmation pages. Students love when there is an activity happening during our times.
CONNECTED CONNECTEDPartners Partners
The Neighborhood Center is currently providing counseling services to 15 students across the district, including 6 students at the Elementary School, 3 students at the Middle School, and 6 students at the High School. These services continue to support students’ well-being and social-emotional growth at every level
The Liberty Partnerships Program was established in 1988 under Section 612 Subdivision 6 of Education Law to address the significant dropout rate and promote positive outcomes of post-graduation among New York State Youth.
One of 52 collegiate programs, SUNY Polytechnic Institute was awarded the Liberty Partnership Program Grant in Fall of 2022. The SUNY Poly Liberty Partnership Program team strives to provide academic support, career and employment preparation as well as social emotional skill building for 5th - 12th grade students within six Herkimer County school districts: Central Valley, Dolgeville, Frankfort-Schuyler, Herkimer, Little Falls, and Mount Markham.
The SUNY Polytechnic Institute Liberty Partnerships Program currently serves over 200 students providing a series of engaging and supportive programs to aid in individual goal achievement and positive outcomes. Supports and Services include:
Individual Academic Support Meetings
Social Emotional Assessments
Personalized Learning Plans
Career Exploration
Employment Preparation
School-based academic support programs
Summer Programs
TrendsTrends
Our Connected Team continues to work with many families in the Mount Markham School District. As costs of food and necessities continue to rise, families continue to struggle, especially during the holiday season. We have seen more and more families attend Open HUB, reach out for food boxes, holiday assistance, and basic necessities that we have been able to assist with. Transportation continues to be a struggle for some families; for these families we take the necessary steps to deliver to them what they need. We were able to take some of the economic strain off of the families at holiday time by providing free haircuts to any students/ families in need by local barbers and stylists. They were even able to take their own photos with Santa at this event.
While meeting with families this last month, we have discovered more and more families with Medicaid who are finding it difficult to find a dentist. Our team will help to address these barriers to finding adequate dental care locally as many providers that accept medicaid are a distance away which creates more frustration for those who do not have reliable transportation.
UPCOMING UPCOMING
Herkimer County has teamed up with Connected Community Schools as part of the Herkimer County System of Care Initiative in order to provide Mental Health support and connections to Herkimer County Youth. The Youth Ambassador Coordinator will work with school administration, school staff and Connected Community Schools staff to identify students who could benefit from serving as an ambassador within their school district and community. The Youth Ambassador Coordinator will organize and facilitate Youth Ambassador Councils across Herkimer County School districts and within the community. Monthly meetings will be held in order to organize and implement activities, events and programming related to Mental Health support and awareness. Youth Ambassadors may also have opportunities to coordinate with Youth Ambassador Councils across Herkimer County including the Annual Youth Summit.
In December, Katie Baker, our Youth Ambassador Coordinator, supported Holiday Assistance efforts in Herkimer County and in Rome during our Initiative-wide event. Her dedication helped provide holiday cheer and meaningful support to students and families throughout our communities.
Mother Daughter Circle will begin on Monday, February 2 at the Central Valley Academy Connected HUB and continue for eight Mondays from 4:30–5:30 p.m. We welcome families of Connected Central Valley, Dolgeville, Herkimer, and Mount Markham families to join us. This group offers a welcoming space for mothers and daughters to connect, share, and grow together through meaningful conversations and activities. Please click this link or reach out to Katie to sign up.
Katie can be reached at 315-360-4978 or katieb@connectedcs.org.
Herkimer County System of Care is funded by
Connected Elves Holiday Project 2025
Celebrating 8 Years of Community Impact
December 2025 marked the 8th successful year of the Connected Holiday Assistance Program, supporting students and families across our Connected Districts during the holiday season. What began as a small act of care has grown into a powerful community-wide effort spanning all 13 Connected districts, rooted in generosity, collaboration, and compassion
16 Stone Brewpub th
Affair with Hair
Agway Holland Patent
Alteri's Restaurant
Arizona Tacos
Artani's Pizza
Bassett Medical Offices
Big Jay's Pizzeria - Rome
Bliss Environmental
Boss's General Store
Boyz From Italy
Central NY Academy of Dance
Cianfrocco's Subs & Wings
Collis True Value Hardware
Community Bank, N.A.Camden Community Bank, N.A.Rome
Franco's Pizza - Ilion
Full Lotis
Gehring Tricot
Grande's Pizzeria
Haven Salon and Lash
Studio
Home Outlet Utica
Jervis Library
Joey's Pizza
Kylie's Diner
La Roma Pizzeria
Matteson Hotel
MetLife Insurance
The Power of Community Partnerships
This year, over 40 local businesses partnered with Connected by hosting donation bins for new, unwrapped toys and gifts Their willingness to open their doors and rally their customers played a vital role in making this program possible.
We are grateful to the 40+ local businesses that served as donation sites and helped make Holiday Assistance possible.
Mister Mikes Gyros
NBT - Rome & Utica
New Hartford Public Library
Nola’s of Clinton
Oneida County
Department of Comm.
Family Services
Petzotics
Remington Federal Credit Union
Rome First United Methodist Church
RT Federal Credit Union
Shook 40
Sorrento Pizzeria
Spresso’s Coffeehouse Square One
Coating
State Farm Michael Collea
Stuff the Bus
Style on Main by Nikki Marie Tanners Insurance Agency Toy for TOTS
Tucker Backyard Pools & Spas
Twin Rivers Paper Company
Woolner Family Eye Care
Connected Elves Holiday Project 2025
CONTINUED
Holiday Assistance Shopping by the Numbers & Gratitude
Through the collective efforts of donors, community partners, and dedicated volunteers, the Connected Holiday Assistance Program supported a total of 1,576 children during Holiday Assistance Shopping this season. With an estimated $59,000 in donated toys and gifts, this milestone reflects the generosity and commitment of our community-wide network, working together to ensure students across our Connected districts experienced the joy, care, and support they deserve during the holiday season.
Holiday Assistance would not be possible without the dedication of our volunteers, who generously gave their time to sort donations, support families, and assist throughout Holiday Assistance Shopping. Their compassion and commitment helped bring this program to life.
We extend our heartfelt thanks to every business, donor, volunteer, and community partner who helped make this season brighter. Your generosity continues to strengthen our mission of supporting students and families during the holidays and all year long.
Together, we are Connected.
TRAINING TRAININGHighlights Highlights
Mid York Library
Monthly Connected Partner Highlights are held virtually for staff to discover and build connections with various community partners. In December, Stephanie Markham and Diana Cassulus presented to our staff regarding what the Mid York Library has to offer. They detailed services such as the "Library of Things," through which people can borrow available items including snow shoes, games, and more! Library cards are free to apply for and can give access to the Library of Things as well as discounted museum and park passes, books, magazines, movies, and affordable in-building services like printing. They highlighted that libraries are safe spaces, resource hubs, providers of free, unfiltered computer access and paper tax forms, and hosts of free early literacy programs and events listed on the Mid-York website calendar. The Mid York Library is a great partner to our Connected schools and are eager to attend events with free books and tailored materials in Madison, Oneida, and Herkimer Counties!
