Chappaqua Says Goodbye to Outgoing BOE members, Interim Superintendent

The last Chappaqua Board of Education meeting for the 2010-11 school year was a time for honoring outgoing top officials, three are leaving at the end of the month.

Board President Janet Benton, first elected in 1999, will step down after a long tenure, while board Vice President Gregg Bresner, first elected in 2008, will leave after a single term. Interim Superintendent John Chambers will leave, too, after having served for the school year while the board conducted a search for a permanent superintendent. He is being replacing by Lyn McKay, who is the current Deputy Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction.

A room filled with community members and former board members came to pay tribute to the work that the three did.

Michael Kirsch, principal at Douglas G. Grafflin Elementary School, who has known Benton since she was a Grafflin parent in the 1990s, said she is "one of the most amazing parents that I ever worked with."

Former Chappaqua board members Lisa Davis and Susan Habermann came back to give thanks, spending a time in particular on thanking Benton for her service, who they served with for nine and six years, respectively. They recounted anecdotes of what it was like to work with her during the years they spent on the board as colleagues, and even put together a light-hearted presentation on why she makes a good board member.

"She has such a no-nonsense demeanor," said Habermann, adding that Benton has an ability to understand different viewpoints.

In honoring Benton for her work, current board member Jeffrey Mester noted how much has changed since she joined, juxtaposing the school district's state in 1999 with that of national news.

"Twelve years is a long time. It's 84 years in dog years," Mester said, to which people laughted.

Bresner, who was known as a fiscal conservative talking about issues such as employee pensions, was lauded for his work in the community.

"It's been such a tremendous opportunity to for me," he said about serving.

Chambers, who said in an interview that he will next "teach my grandchildren to sail," praised the community, staff and local volunteers who serve on the board and PTA.

Lisa Davis described Chambers as "such a wonderful asset" to the district.

Words of praise at the meeting also included support from the PTA, the Chappaqua School Foundation, and letters from the Supervisor Barbara Gerrard (with the New Castle Town Board) and former Superintendent David Fleishman.