By Anthony Rifilato
Thus was Board of Education Appreciation Week observed at the Baldwin School District. About 100 members of the community came together last Wednesday night for a Community Input Meeting and to show their gratitude to Baldwin's five Board of Education members.
The audience was treated to a musical segment from "Mame," a high school production which premieres this month. Four high school students, Jenna DeRovira, Diana Wangerin, Jonathan Ledee and Matthew Hickey performed an ebullient rendition of "We Need a Little Christmas." DeRovira also received some good news -- she was chosen as this year's high school valedictorian.
Afterwards, two students from the middle school and two from the high school took the podium and thanked the board.
"These citizens have strived for nothing less than excellence," said Michael Coley from Baldwin High School. "The budget provides for extra teachers and allows students to enjoy stress-relieving activities after school."
Members of the district's PTAs came before the board armed with gifts and expressed their appreciation. "Serving on the board is the epitome of volunteerism," said Barbara Cohen, a member of the Meadow PTA.
Board President James Scannell said that serving as board president has been a labor of love and that the meeting is a great vehicle to hear from the community. "We want to make sure the priorities of the community are reflected in the school district," Scannell said.
Down-to-business
If the first chapter of the evening was a sincere display of appreciation, the second was steeped in serious discussions. As part of the district's twice-yearly Community Input Meeting, the floor was open for parents and others to voice various concerns within the district.
Some middle school parents expressed wariness about the safety of their children at school. One, Fran Berg, acknowledged the school's wonderful staff, but expressed alarm about what she said was insufficient security on the premises. Berg asked the board for more security at the school after she said her son was assaulted in the school locker room.
"There should be someone there at all times," Berg said.
Another middle school parent, Pamela Barnett, said her son also had been assaulted on middle school grounds in what she described as a fist fight and urged the board to look into the safety issue.
"My son should not be afraid to go to school," Barnett said. "You have to do something."
One parent inquired about gang violence, and referred to a recent drive-by shooting at nearby Roosevelt High School on Oct. 24 where one student was killed.
"It's pretty close to us geographically. Are there any gang problems here?" asked Mary Beth Downe.
School Superintendent Kathy Weiss assured parents that Baldwin does not have a gang epidemic. "Neither the middle school nor the high school have had any fallout from Roosevelt," Weiss said.
Weiss also noted various workshops at the high school pertaining to gang violence and that a student was quickly suspended at BSHS for flashing a gang sign. She also suggested that parents familiarize themselves with gang colors and other aspects of the culture and to become more adept at detecting hints of gang activity in order to help eliminate any possible threats.
One parent suggested that security be placed at every entrance to the high school, but Scannell said that was not feasible.
"There are over 60 doors at the high school that would have to be staffed," Scannell said.
Giving parents more say in hiring
Several parents inquired about the recent suggestions made by the school board that would increase parental involvement in the hiring of new school administrators.
At Wednesday's meeting, Scannell said that the board is examining hiring practices and trying to develop a system in which staff, faculty and parents would be given a greater role in the interview process and the subsequent hiring of an educator. The board would like to get a new system in place by December, as they begin the interview process for a new Brookside Elementary School principal.
Ronald Oriani, a PTA officer at Lenox who was part of an ad-hoc committee of parents, faculty and teachers which interviewed candidates for a new Lenox Elementary School principal last year, expressed his displeasure with the interview process. Parents, he said, were only allowed to review three resumes culled from a stack of almost 100.
Oriani said all the resumes should have been reviewed by his group and felt as if he had been a useless "rubber stamp" in the process. He said he is pleased with the new principal, Bernice Acevedo, but cautioned the board about any future activity involving parents.
"Is there some way to do this easier?" Oriani asked. He also asked the board if it was possible to hold talks on the topic outside of the time-limited board meetings.
Scannell encouraged a discussion of the issue, although he supported discussing the issue in a public forum. "We've told people that board meetings are the perfect venue," he said.
