Valley Stream high school meetings could be televised

Telecasting the Board of Education meetings and school events in the Valley Stream Central High School District has been a topic of interest for several years, said Trustee Bill Stris.

And lately, the issue has been gaining steam. “I brought it up recently because of the nice things, like American Education Week,” said Stris, who has been advocating for the use of more technology to broadcast the district’s happenings. “There is no reason it should not be taped.”

Board members and the community will receive an update from Superintendent Dr. Bill Heidenreich on the issue at the board’s committee and business meetings on Jan. 3 and 10. Community members can sit in on the committee meeting, and comment on the issue during the Jan. 10 public meeting.

The update will outline the cost, feasibility and overall acceptability of utilizing technology for broadcasting purposes, explained board President Jeanne Greco Jacobs. “The main thing is to look into the municipal stations that exist,” she said. “Not sure what exists because there are so many different municipalities in the district with the [different] villages and different incorporated areas.”

Greco Jacobs said she wants to wait for the facts to make an informed decision about whether the district should do this or not. “I want to wait for the information,” she said.

However, Stris’ mind is already made up. “We are in the 21st Century, so lets do it,” he said.

It is overdue, he said, as the board has been talking about the idea for a decade now. A few years ago, Stris asked the district’s communications officer to research the issue. At the time, it was difficult to do it because the district is not just made up of residents of Valley Stream, but incorporates other villages including Malverne and Lynbrook, he said.

But some success came in 2010 when then-Superintendent Dr. Marc Bernstein made broadcasting district events one of his goals, Stris added.

Under the Telecommunications Act, municipalities have the right to use public access channels, which other districts like Malverne take advantage of, he said. He stated his reasons why he believes this would benefit community members. “People have lives to live, no time to go to meetings and events,” he said. “With technology, they get involved in what goes on in the school district.”

He added that it is a “win-win,” no matter the cost.

The board could vote on broadcasting high school events and meetings at the upcoming public meeting. If they do vote “yes,” Stris said, he does not see a reason why the idea cannot be implemented in a few weeks. It would be easier to set up computers for broadcasting over the Internet, as opposed to getting on a television channel, which requires drafting a proposal.