Assemblywoman Addie A.E. Jenne, D-Theresa, has announced over half a million dollars of supplemental school aid is headed to North Country school districts.

The Ogdensburg City School District has been awarded an additional $300,000 in state aid. Six schools –Canton, Hammond, Heuvelton, Massena, Morristown and Norwood-Norfolk – will each receive $25,000.

"The Ogdensburg school district has a large percentage of tax-exempt property and high levels of poverty. OFA Superintendent Tim Vernsey has told me in the past that without the nearly $1.5 million in supplemental aid I have secured for his district in recent years, district officials would have been forced to make deep cuts to the district's music and art programs and to reduce AP class offerings," Jenne said.

Vernsey said he was grateful for Jenne's advocacy in getting additional state aid appropriated to the district.

"Assemblywoman Jenne's support of the Ogdensburg City School District is longstanding and very much appreciated. Her financial assistance over the years has helped Ogdensburg maintain several key programs that allow our students to get the most out of an excellent liberal arts education," he said. "Her work on behalf of the entire North Country has been positive throughout her tenure as our representative in the Assembly," the OFA school superintendent stressed.

"I have always fought to make sure our schools in the North Country get their fair share of state aid so they have the resources necessary to provide students with a quality education," Jenne said.

"Our North Country schools did well with state aid in this budget, but many of our school districts are still recovering from years of fiscal challenges. That's why I have continued to work to secure additional funding for schools in St. Lawrence and Jefferson counties after the budget negotiations were completed," she added.

"We know that small city schools are traditionally underfunded. There are also a number of other districts in the region that have challenges ranging from high percentages of tax-exempt property to schools classified as average-needs districts that have their state aid revenues skewed due to valuable waterfront property values that don't take into account the high levels of poverty in those same communities," Jenne continued.

Massena Central School Superintendent Patrick Brady said the funding will be utilized to help pay for a study as well as to aid the district's community schools effort.

"We appreciate Addie’s continued support of our students and staff in Massena. She has been a great friend to our school," he said. "We plan to use some of the funding to support a school consolidation feasibility study, which is examining our programs and operations to enhance quality and efficiency. This work will begin this summer and include a host of school and community members to provide input."

"We would also use funding to support our Community Schools initiative to provide additional supports to our students and families. This may include afterschool programming, mental health services and educational resources," Brady added.

Former Heuvelton Central School Superintendent Susan Todd, who received news of the additional funding on the day before her retirement from the district, said the allocation will be utilized to purchase new tables and chairs for the high school section of the school cafeteria as well as for equipment for classrooms.

Todd said Assemblywoman Jenne had asked her about needs that might have been delayed due to budget constraints.

"I explained that an area that continued to be put on the back burner for districts like mine was the replacement of furniture, since there is no state aid revenue source allotted for items such as the cafeteria tables that are in really bad shape and are in need of being replaced at Heuvelton," Todd said.

The outgoing superintendent added she was appreciative of Assemblywoman Jenne's advocacy for providing the necessary resources to public schools so districts such as Heuvelton can provide a quality education to their students.

The funding for supplemental aid was passed in a resolution at the close of this year’s legislative session, after Jenne successfully advocated on behalf of schools in St. Lawrence and Jefferson counties.