The Ithaca City School District is committed to working with media and other news outlets. First and foremost, we are committed to our mission to engage, educate, and empower all in the ICSD to achieve academic excellence, and these district protocols are in place to guide media inquiries and support our mission.

Media Inquiries 

All news stories should be coordinated through the Communications Office by contacting Public Information Specialist Kaitlyn Hart at (607) 882-1367 or kaitlyn.hart@icsd.k12.ny.us. 

Media on District Property 

• We respect the privacy of students, staff, and community members. 

• Prior approval from the Communications Office must be obtained before any media, including reporters, photographers, or videographers are allowed on district property during school hours. 

• We ask that media who wish to conduct interviews or who wish to get video of district facilities do so away from district property so as not to disrupt the learning environment.

• During school hours, all visitors, including media, are required to check in at a district facility or a school’s main office and present identification. Media are required to wear visitor badges that identify themselves as such. 

• Media are encouraged not to publish photos of any student or school district individual without the permission of the Communications Office. 

• As a general rule, media may take overall/general shots of students without parental consent during public school events (such as athletic games or orchestra concerts) as long as the students are not identified or singled out.

Request for Information

The Ithaca City School District respects the privacy of its teachers and employees, and will not release any personal or personnel-related information unless required by law; not comment on any case that is before the courts; and refer all questions related to police investigations to proper authority. All students who are to be photographed, filmed, or interviewed must have media releases on file in SchoolTool.

Designated Spokespeople 

The Ithaca City School District superintendent and board president are the designated spokespeople for the district. Only the superintendent can designate spokespeople to address issues relating to media inquiries. All requests should first be sent to the Public Information Specialist, Kaitlyn Hart.