About Us

Located in the historic Mohawk Valley between Albany and Utica, the Fort Plain Central School District is home to a dynamic community that is supportive of its schools.

The district serves approximately 700 students in pre-kindergarten through 12th grade. Students in grades pre-K through 6 attend the Harry Hoag Elementary School, and students in grades 7-12 attend the Fort Plain Jr./Sr. High School. The schools are located less than a half mile from each other in the village of Fort Plain.

Fort Plain offers a comprehensive educational program responding to the needs of all students by building a foundation of essential skills and emphasizing academic achievement. The community is proud of the district’s excellent student performance, which can be attributed to up-to-date programs and the district’s capable staff, who are dedicated to the belief that all students should be given the opportunity to learn and become productive citizens. The Fort Plain Jr./Sr. High School has been recognized in U.S. News and World Report’s Best U.S. High Schools for several years, achieving silver medal status and honored as being among the top 30 percent of schools nationally.

The district offers a large number of extracurricular activities to students both through its own staff and facilities and through merged activities with its neighboring school district, Canajoharie Central School.

The school district covers approximately 57 square miles and serves parts of the towns of Minden, Palatine, and Canajoharie in Montgomery County; part of the town of Danube in Herkimer County; and part of the town of Ephratah in Fulton County.

The community is centered around a small village, which is home to approximately 2,300 residents as well as small businesses, shops, restaurants and a recently renovated public library. A strong agricultural sector, characterized by family-owned and run farms, surrounds the village. Fort Plain also enjoys close proximity to the New York State Thruway, the historic Erie Canal, and Lock 15 of the present-day state Barge Canal. Parallel to the Mohawk River, the 365-mile long New York Canalway Trail passes through Fort Plain offering a view of one of the most beautiful landscapes in the Northeast.

Fort Plain is less than an hour’s drive from the cities of Albany and Utica, 40 minutes from Cooperstown and a quick drive to the Adirondack State Park.

The Fort Plain community is committed to a holistic approach to academic excellence by relying on the district to develop multi-dimensional individuals – people of reason, responsibility, compassion and character. Our community has demonstrated this commitment by passing referendums for new construction and renovation, thereby ensuring that our students can achieve academic success in technologically current, safe facilities.

We hope you will visit our school to see the wonderful accomplishments of our students and staff. The meaning of partnership in our educational community is evident every day to those to live and raise families here. It’s woven into the fabric of the Fort Plain community and has enhanced the education of our students.

Mission Statement

The Fort Plain Central School District will provide each student with the opportunity to develop intellectually, socially, emotionally and physically in a safe, orderly and positive environment.

Alma Mater (Original)

Words by Robert Minnich
Sung to the tune of Cornell’s Alma Mater

In the valley of the Mohawk,
Stands the school we love;
Royally she greets our coming
From her hill above.

When the sun’s replaced by darkness
And the shadows fall;
Proudly do the stars salute her,
Answering her call.

Years will go, but we’ll remember
Pleasures had while here;
And we will be always loyal,
Alma Mater dear.

In the version sung today, the third verse is omitted and the following refrain is sung after the first and second verses:

Flag we love, float for aye,
Old Fort Plain o’er thee,
We will fight to earn thy blessing,
Till Eternity.