"Transparency isn't optional," says trio of Freeport school board candidates

In a tightly contested Freeport school board trustee election, candidates Gabriela Castillo, Eddie Gordon and Michael Pomerico, who are campaigning together as one ticket, hope to make the decision simple for Freeport voters ahead of the May 19 election.

The trio says they encouraged to campaign to be elected to school board seats after witnessing what they describe as “a critical time for the district” amidst lawsuits, contentious board of education meetings and public disputes with teachers.

“The community is paying attention, and they’re asking for change,” the candidates said in a joint statement. “The children of Freeport deserve stability, transparency and leadership with their best interests at heart.”

All three candidates have lived in Freeport for most, if not all, of their lives, and expressed a deep sense of commitment to strengthening their community. Additionally, the trio offers a level of experience with administrative work, as Castillo, 46, served on the Freeport school board from 2019 to 2022, and Pomerico served as school board president for 12 years before retiring in 2019. Gordon has served as an athletics coach in Freeport, working directly with and mentoring community youth.

“We reached out to Eddie, as I felt that we had two experienced board members and a brand new board member that would bring new ideas to the board,” Pomerico said.

With transparency and stability key concerns for many of the district’s teachers and families, Castillo, Gordon and Pomerico have made these issues central to their campaign. Responsible and transparent leadership, fiscal accountability and oversight, supporting district employees and “showing up for every child” and family are the values that these candidates hold close.

“Transparency isn’t optional, it’s the foundation of leadership,” Gordon said. “The people of Freeport deserve to know what’s being done and why it’s being done.”

“I have decided to run again because our students, teachers and staff deserve steady leadership, experience and a clear vision for a future that strengthens our district,” Castillo added. “As a parent of current Freeport students and a former board member, I have seen the challenges we face and understand the process we must engage in to steer Freeport schools in the right direction, while restoring trust within the community.”

When asked to identify what they believe is the key issue that needs to be addressed, Gordon quickly pointed to finances and the perceived lack of clarity that they say currently exists around the district’s money.

“There’s a lot of things going on that don’t make sense,” he said. “Money is being wasted. As tax payers, we don’t want to have our taxes to increase…especially in Long Island, since the cost of living is constantly going up.”

Pomerico explained that what he thinks is a simply way to improve financial transparency is to provide more detailed presentations of the district budget to board meeting attendees. He mentioned the recent budget adoption meeting that occurred on April 22, which only featured a PowerPoint presentation that gave what he felt was a surface level overview of the 2026-27 proposed budget.

“I was on the board for 12 years,” he said. “Every year, there was two boxes with budgets. You could take a budget home and look at it, come and ask questions. That’s not happening. What are they hiding?”

Another concern Castillo, Gordon and Pomerico hope to address would be the ongoing lawsuit with reassigned district superintendent Fia Davis and the ever-present iciness between the school board and Patricia Langan, the Freeport Teachers Association president.

“That’s going to be priority one,” Castillo said of the Davis lawsuit. “This investigation has gone on for too long with zero information. This should have been wrapped up, whether there was wrongdoing or no wrongdoing. It’s taken way too long.”

The candidates also suggested that vendettas exist within the district, to the point where they said some teachers were afraid of attending the candidates’ meet and greet rally that occurred at the Bayview on the Water restaurant on April 23, for fear of retribution from current board members.

“The teachers are walking on eggshells,” Pomerico claimed. “If we want our kids to thrive in this district, the teachers got to be comfortable.”

This is a profile and not an endorsement of any candidates. The Freeport school board trustee’s election and budget confirmation will be on May 19. Freeport residents can register to vote Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Freeport Public Schools administration building