Broome Tioga BOCES Administrator Honored for Leadership in Education

Related Media

Mark Bordeau

ALBANY, NY (03/21/2019) (readMedia)-- Mark Bordeau, senior food service director at Broome Tioga BOCES, has been selected as the 2019 recipient of the Leadership and Support Award by the School Administrators Association of New York State (SAANYS). The SAANYS Leadership and Support Award was established to recognize the outstanding leadership efforts of those members whose responsibilities require leadership through support services to educators and students across and between buildings and districts.

Recognized as a visionary promoting nutrition and healthier meals, Bordeau has been the food service director at BT BOCES for 20 years. Under his leadership, BT BOCES expanded from serving two districts to now operating in 15 districts. One of his team's greatest accomplishments has been the creation of the nationally recognized marketing brand "Rock on Café," the purpose of which is to promote school meals serving more fresh fruits and vegetables, as well as whole grains and low-fat/fat-free milk. His innovative approach has been featured in the Society for Public Health Education's nationally acclaimed research periodical, Journal of Health Promotion Practice.

Bordeau has been at the forefront of the movement to buy local New York State produce and products for use in school meals. He spearheaded an incentive whereby schools would receive an additional reimbursement from the state for school meals in exchange for using local products. Since 2014, he worked tirelessly in conjunction with the New York School Nutrition Association to bring this program to statewide implementation. As a result of his efforts, New York now has one of the most robust farm to school initiatives in the nation.

Working in an area where 62 percent of students experience some form of food insecurity, Bordeau has been instrumental in implementing several community-wide nutrition programs. Together with his team, he was a co-coordinator through 2013 of a community dinner at one of the local high schools that now routinely serves more than 3,000 meals at the annual Thanksgiving Dinner. He also worked with the Food Bank of the Southern Tier to bring a backpack program to his districts as a means of filling the gap for kids who do not have access to meals when school is not in session. The backpack program now fills approximately 2,000 backpacks per week. Under his leadership, the Breakfast After the Bell program has grown from no participation to now serving more than 12,000 breakfasts per day and four of his districts have been recognized by Hunger Solutions NY as having the largest increase for breakfast in the state. Additionally, through his efforts, more than $57K was raised through the Wendy's Walk for Kids for the Southern Tier Food Bank.

Noted Jennifer Martin, executive director of the New York State School Nutrition Association, "Mark has had a tremendous impact on children and families in his community. He truly leads by example, a sign of a great leader. He is honest, ethical, and always conducts himself with the highest level of professionalism."

Bordeau received his associate degree from SUNY Canton and bachelor of arts from Empire State College in Saratoga, NY.

Bordeau will be honored for his accomplishments at an awards ceremony on May 3 at the Century House in Latham, New York.

SAANYS represents nearly 7,200 school administrators, supervisors, and coordinators. As a professional association, SAANYS is committed to providing direction, service, and support to the membership in their efforts to improve the quality of education and leadership in New York State schools. SAANYS is affiliated with the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP) and the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP).