New Roots in the News

Click the links below to download a sampling of articles and view videos of news coverage about New Roots from our first three years:

2011-2012 SCHOOL YEAR

A Day With the Mayor. The Ithaca Times. 2/29/12. A framed letter addressed to Ithaca mayor Svante Myrick from New Roots students is one of the few decorations on the walls of his office.

8th Annual Sister Friends Luncheon Set for Mid-March. The Ithaca Times. 2/29/12. New Roots Charter School's Young Women's Chorus performed for a luncheon for over 350 women of all ethnicities and cultures.

From the Board of Education. Ithaca City School District. 2/26/12. New Roots students Niaome Hickman and Rocky Bellinger spoke of positive and life-changing experiences at New Roots, citing internship opportunities, lessons in sustainability, promotion of community activism, and an underlying culture of acceptance and encouragement as characteristics of our school.

Community Talent Takes Center Stage at GIAC Show. The Ithaca Journal. 2/20/12. The New Roots Jazz Trio and Dance Crew shined at the Greater Ithaca Activities Center's Black History Month Talent Show.

Despite Snow, Chili Cook-Off Heats Up Downtown. The Cornell Daily Sun. 2/20/12. New Roots students and staff served up 15 gallons of our "Three Chile Chili" made with local, grass-fed beef, local organic kidney beans and hickory-roasted ancho chiles. New Roots Operations Assistant Jeff McCall is interviewed. 

Instant Message: Local Youth Speak Out: Sierra Hardy. The Ithaca Journal. 2/18/12. A New Roots student talks with Ithaca Journal correspondent Anne Marie Cummings about living in a house with ghosts.

Mild Winter Heats Up at Annual Chili Cook-Off. The Ithaca Journal. 2/16/12. New Roots is highlighted as one of this year's first-time participants.

Young Newfield Residents Recognized for Achievements. The Ithaca Journal. 2/16/12. New Roots student Jacob Gelber's achievements are highlighted in the "Danby Town Talk."

Tribute to Joni Mitchell Announced. Tompkins Weekly. 2/13/12. The NRCS Chorus performed Joni Mitchell's song "River" at this annual benefit for the Community School of Music and Art.

WCB Landmark to Close. Tompkins Weekly. 2/13/12. New Roots, one of the historic Women's Community Building's anchor tenants, will lose our beloved kitchen and lunchroom.

Two New Roots Students Honored During Ithaca College MLK Week. Ithaca Alliance. 2/11/12. NRCS students participated in an essay contest honoring the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Awards were presented by Mayor Svante Myrick.

College Bound. The Ithaca Journal. 2/8/12. The achievements of horse-loving NRCS seniors Siera Ellis and Nicole Wetterer are highlighted in this edition of "Groton Town Talk."

2012 MLK Writing Contest: New Roots Students Defining Greatness. Ithaca College. 1/30/12. Ithaca College announces a new collaboration with New Roots Charter School.

New Roots Charter School. Blink Digital Graphics. 1/30/12. New Roots' beautiful and earth-friendly outreach materials are highlighted on our graphic designer's website.

New Roots Charter School Workshop: Education for Sustainability, Beyond “Going Green”. Ithacalovesteachers.com. 1/27/12. New Roots offered a professional development workshop for teachers in town for their February break.

Instant Message: Local Youth Speak Out: Indigo Holohan.  The Ithaca Journal. 1/21/12 A New Roots student talks with Ithaca Journal correspondent Anne Marie Cummings about teen independence.

Students Offer Geology Lesson. The Ithaca Journal. 1/21/12 New Roots Earth Systems Science students spent two periods teaching geology to 6th-grade students at Boynton Middle School.

Instant Message: Local Teens Speak Out: Kai Haskins. The Ithaca Journal. 12/3/11 A New Roots student speaks to Ithaca Journal correspondent Anne Marie Cummings on the subjects of theater and sexuality.

Instant Message: Local Teens Speak Out: Niaome Hickman. The Ithaca Journal. 11/19/11 A New Roots student speaks to Ithaca Journal correspondent Anne Marie Cummings about teen smoking.

Food Justice Summit. GreenLeaf. 11/11 New Roots students participated in the Food Justice Summit.

Instant Message: Local Teens Speak Out: Korin Carpenter.  The Ithaca Journal. 10/29/11 A New Roots student speaks to Ithaca Journal correspondent Anne Marie Cummings about accepting the beliefs of others.

Students Back Wall Street Protesters.  The Ithaca Journal. 10/29/11 New Roots students join students from the Lehman Alternative Community School for a protest in support of the Occupy Wall Street movement.

Iron Chef Jr. Competition Steals the Show at Ithaca’s Food Justice Summit. Ithaca Food Web. 10/27/11 New Roots students participate in the Iron Chef, Jr. competition sponsored by Greenstar Community Programs and Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County.

Campaign Fights Domestic Abuse. The Ithaca Journal. 10/24/11 A group of New Roots students were invited to represent local youth at a press conference promoting the NY State Coalition Against Domestic Violence's new campaign to prevent teen relationship violence.

New Roots Celebrates Expansion.  The Ithaca Journal. 10/01/11 New Roots celebrated its expansion to a full 9-12th grade program, as well as renovations and upgrades made to classrooms, with a Chamber of Commerce ribbon-cutting ceremony and performance by the New Roots Jazz Ensemble.

2010-2011 SCHOOL YEAR

New Roots Charter School Hires Dean of Students. Tompkins Weekly. 6/27/11 Timothy J. Turecek joined the New Roots Charter School's staff as Dean of Students.

Turecek Joins New Roots Charter School. The Lansing Star. 6/24/11 Timothy J. Turecek joined the New Roots Charter School's staff as Dean of Students.

Consider New Roots for Your Children. The Ithaca Journal. 5/23/11 NRCS parent Kelly Doolittle encourages families with teens to learn more about New Roots, and discusses her son's experience at the school.

New Roots Spreads to State Theatre. The Ithaca Journal. 5/21/11 The New Roots Board of Trustees approved a lease agreement to rent space to house their senior year program in the State Theater.

Research-Extension Project Teaches CU Students and Teens. Human Development Today, Cornell University. 4/11/11 To promote healthy decisions in the areas of nutrition, fitness, and sexuality, students from Valerie Reyna's Laboratory for Rational Decision Making at Cornell University work in collaboration with New Roots Charter School.

Schoolkids Walkout and March in Ithaca NY. Libcom.org. 3/30/11 Students from New Roots joined Lehman Alternative Community School students in solidarity with Wisconsin teachers.

Local Student Participates in D.C. Conference. The Ithaca Journal. 3/26/11 "Ulysses Town Talk" highlights ninth-grader Sierra Hardy who joined seven other students and two teachers from New Roots in attending PowerShift 2011 in Washington.

Internships Benefit Students, Community. New Roots Staff. 3/16/11 Internships with local businesses and nonprofit organizations are a graduation requirement at the New Roots Charter School.

New Roots a Good Choice for Student Learning. The Ithaca Journal. 3/4/2011 In a Letter to the Editor, parent Tracy Herman expresses her positive impression of New Roots Charter School.

New Roots Charter School Is Growing! The Ithaca Journal. 3/2/11 New Roots expands to include a senior year experience for students.  This transitional year will emphasize internships, team projects, and concurrent enrollment courses. 

Learning From the Young. Prime Times - Finger Lakes Community Newspapers. 2/23/11 Helping participants from Lifelong is one of the many service-learning options available to New Roots students.

Future Farmers Explore Organics at Conference.  The Ithaca Journal. 2/18/11 "Danby Town Talk" highlights Dylan Hollenbeck, along with five other members of the New Roots Urban Gardening and Farm to School Clubs who participated in the Northeast Organic Farming Association Winter Conference.

Compost Stars.  The Ithaca Journal. 2/16/2011 11th grade New Roots students explained their composting system to 3rd-grade students at Northeast Elementary School.  Two composting systems were donated to classrooms at the elementary school.

New Roots Grow in GreenStar’s Bakery.  Green Leaf. 2/2011 New Roots students who have completed internships in the GreenStar Bakery are interviewed.

New Roots Students Participate at Organic Farming Conference.  Lansing Star. 1/28/11 A group of five New Roots Charter School students participated in the Northeast Organic Farming Association Winter Conference.

Vendetta Against New Roots Must Stop. The Ithaca Journal. 1/20/11 In a Letter to the Editor, parent Kelly Doolittle shows her support for New Roots.

Event Gave Out Energy-Saving Lightbulbs. The Ithaca Journal. 12/20/10 New Roots students and faculty helped stuff bags with compact-fluorescent light bulbs and energy-saving educational materials to be distributed to 5,000 homes in Tompkins County.

New Roots Gains Living Wage Certificate. The Ithaca Journal. 12/18/10 Now one of 72 employers in the county whose pay scale meets Living Wage standards, New Roots Charter School completed the Tompkins County Workers' Center Living Wage Employer Certification process.

Design Students Help Improve Spaces in Local Schools.  Cornell Chronicle. 12/15/10 Cornell students at the College of Human Ecology assisted New Roots in developing their expansion plans by focusing on economical, research-based interior design strategies to create optimal learning environments.

Five Students Honored with Smith Awards for Innovation. Cornell Chronicle. 12/10/10 The Smith Award supports partnerships between grassroots community leaders and area college students to jointly plan and carry out innovative community-building projects. In collaboration with the Village at Ithaca, Cornell Student Xochil "Chili" Cruz wrote a winning proposal to purchase graphing calculators for New Roots students.

Students’ Designs Help Others Sit Up and Take Notice. Ezramagazine.12/10 Cornell students at the College of Human Ecology assisted New Roots in developing their expansion plans by focusing on economical, research-based interior design strategies to create optimal learning environments.

Spooky Theatre. Ithaca Times. 10/20/10 The Ithaca Times Entertainment section highlighted the New Roots Charter School Theater Troupe fall production "The Shadow of Dracula."

Charter School Grows into its Sophomore Year. The Ithaca Journal. 9/27/10 In its second year, New Roots added a grade level and expanded its athletics program.

New Roots Helped Jewish Students, Too. The Ithaca Journal. 9/23/10 In a Letter to the Editor, Ithaca resident Rebecca Schwed thanked New Roots Charter School for respecting the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashanah.

CERIS Expands Afterschool Language Program. Cornell University. 9/2010 New Roots was added as a location for the CERIS Afterschool Language and Culture Program in spring of 2011.

New Roots Expands Its Lodgings in the Clinton House, Prepares for Second Year. Newsline - Ithaca Times. 8/25/10 After completing its first year, New Roots received a grant from New York State to complete renovations and move to the second floor the Clinton House.

Jazz on the Porch at Clinton House. The Ithaca Journal. 8/23/10 New Roots held its second annual "Jazz on the Porch" event to celebrate its expansion.  Attendees were faculty, staff, students and their families, and community members.

2009-2010 SCHOOL YEAR

New Roots Opens with 107 Students. The Ithaca Journal. 9/13/09 In September, 2009, New Roots opened its doors to area students.

New Roots a Welcome Change. The Ithaca Journal. 8/25/09 In a Letter to the Editor, parent Rebecca Schwed praises New Roots' small-school environment and methodology.

GETTING STARTED

The Benefits of Sustainability Education. Tompkins Weekly. 2/23/09 The Signs of Sustainability series, as published in Tompkins Weekly, stated its support for the sustainability opportunities offered to youth by the New Roots Charter School.

Some Response to Concerns About New Roots. The Ithaca Journal. 2/16/09 In a guest column within the Ithaca Journal, Julia Morgan advocates for New Roots, stating that starting fresh would provide an opportunity to implement changes to teaching methods.

New Roots Is ‘Essential’. The Ithaca Journal. 2/11/09 Ithaca resident Martha Stettinius showed her support for the hands-on projects, small class sizes, and teamwork-oriented structure of New Roots.

New Roots Board Members Defend Idea of Charter School. The Ithaca Journal. 2/10/09 New Roots board members express their support for the charter school.

Let New Roots Open. The Ithaca Journal. 2/6/09 Erika Eckstrom of Burdett thanks the SUNY Board of Trustees for reaffirming its support of the New Roots Charter School, and expresses her own support as well.

Charter School to Open. The Ithacan. 1/29/09 Despite efforts by community members and the Ithaca City School District to suspend funding for New Roots, the board of trustees made its decision, and New Roots plans continued.

Students Will Benefit from New Roots. The Ithaca Journal. 1/26/09 In a guest column, Peter W. Bardaglio stated that New Roots would be firmly grounded in research-based, nationally recognized education models to support high achievement for every student.

New Roots Reaches Out to Recruit. Tompkins Weekly. 1/16/09 New Roots principal Tina Nilsen-Hodges answered the questions of curious teens and their families, Laura Reubel and her daughter in particular.

Taking Root. The Ithaca Times. 1/14/09 The editorial stresses the purpose of public education: to prepare today's youth to fend for themselves in the world.  The author supports New Roots' emphasis on sustainability and "green" systems as one that will best prepare students to go out into today's world.

New Roots Now Enrolling Students. Tompkins Weekly. 1/12/09 For its inaugural year, New Roots offered grades 9 and 10.

Charter School Under Review.  Tompkins Weekly. 1/12/09 The SUNY Board trustees approved an application submitted by New Roots in June of 2009, allowing the school to open its doors in the fall to ninth and tenth grade students.

New Charter School Welcomes Crowd to First Public Meeting. The Ithaca Journal. 1/09/09  New Roots Charter School introduces its plan to the community.

Growing New Roots. Positive News. 2009 New Roots responded to a call issued by the United Nations seeking innovative new models of education addressing social and ecological challenges of the 21st century.

Some Answers to Questions About New Roots. The Ithaca Journal. 2009 A guest column written by current New Roots president Tina Nilsen-Hodges seeks to answer questions regarding the proposed school.

How Are Charter Schools Funded? Ithaca Times. 10/22/08 The article seeks to answer community questions regarding the funding of charter schools.

SUNY Board Approves New Roots School. The Ithaca Journal. 09/17/08 The SUNY Board's approval of the New Roots Charter School is announced.

SUNY Committee Gives Thumbs Up to New Roots School. The Ithaca Journal. 09/10/08 A committee of the State University of New York Board of Trustees enthusiastically approved New Roots Charter School's application to be considered by the full board.

Sustaining a Sustainable Education.  The Ithaca Times. 6/11/08 New Roots Founder Tina Nilsen-Hodges responded to the UN Decade for Education for Sustainable Development's call for a complete "rethinking of education" in developing the idea for the New Roots Charter School.

Planned Charter School Would Teach Sustainability. The Ithaca Journal. 5/29/08 New Roots founder Tina Nilsen-Hodges proposes to combine New York State Regents course requirements with training to develop entrepreneurs with an ecological emphasis in her plans for the New Roots Charter School.