Meet District 24’s new head of finance

District 24’s new director of finance and operations is a former banker and teacher who spent almost a decade working in the corporate finance world before returning to education.

“The district has welcomed me very warmly,” said Jack Mitchell, 40, of Roslyn Heights, at the Board of Education’s Aug. 26 meeting.

He replaced Daniel Onorato, who retired in June from his position as assistant superintendent for business. Onorato was considered a valuable asset to the district, and Superintendent Ed Fale credited him with seeing its finances through the recession’s economic turbulence. The district subsequently hired Onorato for a part-time position analyzing data related to student performance.

Fale said that Mitchell brings his own unique set of skills to his position, which was narrowed to remove the responsibility of supervising the district’s principals. He will be the district’s chief business official and will be involved in making educational and instructional decisions.

“I think we’re very fortunate to attract a person with his background and of his abilities,” Fale said. “He has the experience and the ability to do the job that we need done.”

Mitchell was born in Queens and graduated from Binghamton University with a bachelor’s degree in mathematics. He earned two master’s degrees from C.W. Post, one in mathematics and one in school business district leadership.

He started his career in banking, first as a teller and then as a small upstate bank’s assistant manager for one year before taking a position teaching math at William Cullin Bryant High School in Queens. He taught there for seven years.

Mitchell left teaching for a position with Merrill Lynch, moved to JPMorgan Chase & Co. and ended his nine years in the private sector as a senior banker at HSBC. He left that position for an internship in the Herricks Union Free School District, then worked as a business administrator in the Ossining Union Free School District, in Westchester County, starting in 2013.

Mitchell has a wife, a 4-year-old son and a 2-year-old daughter.

He said that his career has resulted in a coupling of knowledge about budgeting and classroom instruction. His strength, he said, is being accurate with numbers and creative with resources. Mitchell said his teaching experience is an asset, “just being able to relate more to the needs of classroom teachers.”

He said he hoped the community would form an educational foundation like some districts have, to assist in providing resources to bolster District 24’s programs. For his part, Mitchell said he would “push hard” for grants and more revenue.

These are hard times,” he said. “I do know where the most important resources lie, and that is with instruction and classroom experiences.”