High school board members honored for their service

As part of the New York State School Boards Association’s School Board Recognition Week, students, teachers and principals celebrated each of the Central High School District’s nine Board of Education members for their dedication and service at the Nov. 9 meeting.

Despite a bitter cold evening, things heated up inside the Memorial Junior High School cafeteria with several “tokens of affection” for the board from Memorial Junior High School and Central, North and South high schools. These “tokens” came in many forms from artwork to gifts. Board members, who do not receive any compensation for what they do, provide “double duty” as they serve on the high school board and one of the three elementary school district boards as well.

“These folks by my side put in an awful lot of time, devoted to the community, devoted to the education, the children and the future of Valley Stream schools,” said Superintendent Dr. Marc Bernstein. “This opportunity tonight is where our students in each of our schools and our parent council stop for a moment out in public and show a visible display of recognition for the service of these folks.”

Each of the district’s school principals works with Martha Carney, district public information officer, to come up with a unique form of recognition. In recent years, those visual presentations have appeared in the hallways and board room of the district’s administrative offices at Memorial.

Staring off, Central Principal Dr. Joseph Pompilio and several Advanced Placement art students in teacher Mario Bakalov’s class presented an original piece comprised of individual portraits of each board member. “The students are really excited to meet the board of education members,” Bakalov said. “Their hands are a little sweaty…they have been dying to show you what they have been working on.”

After North High Principal Clifford Odell took to the microphone, he introduced the president of the senior high student council Brenna Sweet, who along with two other students, addressed the board. The students gave a cookbook of different cuisines to the board. It was a collaborative effort between North’s faculty and students containing family recipes.

“This book is a symbol of the tremendous learning experience that was created for everyone involved,” Sweet said. “I take this opportunity to thank the Board of Education for volunteering their time and for maintaining a school district that motivates students to enjoy learning and become well-rounded individuals. Your commitment to providing students with every opportunity to succeed is very much appreciated.

Sweet added these words: “We recognize the decisions you make are not always easy and we thank you for always considering the students first.”

Anthony Mignella, Memorial’s principal, introduced members of the National Junior Honor Society, who had unique gifts to bestow upon the board. The students presented an authentic piece of artwork made by some seventh-grade students. The piece featured a Leonardo Davinci theme of two hands coming together, and within each hand were pictures of the students, faculty and board members. “The underlying theme is making connections between the Board of Education, members of the faculty with the student body,” Mignella said.

In addition, Memorial students also gave key chains with the words, “Shining Star” written on one side and “Memorial” on the other side for board members’ enjoyment.

South High’s senior class President Katerina Kokkoris, Vice President Allison Dash and fellow senior Stefano Flavoni offered kind words. With their principal, Maureen Henry, the students gave individualized photos including a picture of South to the board, titled “South — Day and Night.”

“The class of 2011 and other classes at South are able to be at South day and night thanks to the support you give our schools for so many extracurricular activities,” Dash said.

But the praises did not end there. Co-presidents of the Valley Stream Council of PTAs, Ingrid Wylie and James Lavery came to support board members. “These ladies and gentlemen are people who give freely of their time…all of these members have full-time jobs and have families,” Wylie said. “They are here for us trying to make sure that our children and us have a big voice in the way our school is conducted…As we extend our thanks and gratitude, we also extend our support for them because it is very important we support them as they support us.”

On behalf of the board, President Kenneth Cummings was appreciative. “The board would like to thank like to extend thanks to Ms. Wylie and Mr. Lavery for kind words and support,” he said. “The PTA has always been a strong voice for education, and we value that as well so thank you very much.”