Politics & Government
First Meeting of 2011-2012: Scarsdale Board of Education Welcomes New Members, Discusses Old Business
Last night, the School Board sped through routine and exceptional business, new members took their places and a new president held sway.
When Scarsdale's Board of Education meeting was called to order by Superintendent Michael McGill at a little after 8 p.m. on Wednesday evening, there was no President or Vice President of the Board. The Officers needed to be nominated by a temporary Chairman and then approved by unanimous consent of the board. They were.
The new Board of Education President is Jill Spieler, a graphic artist who served on the board for the previous four years. Elizabeth Guggenheimer will continue to serve as the Board's Vice President.
New members Jonathon Lewis and Sunil Subbakrishna joined Lewis Leone, Jr., Mary Beth Gose and Suzanne Seiden, who are returning to the board. Subbakrishna and Gose were unable to attend the evening event, Subbakrishna reportedly because of delays returning from Turkey, and Gose reportedly because of an injury.
Find out what's happening in Scarsdalefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
The board acted on a ream of motions, including the election of the officers above, appointment of consultants for the Board, designation of which banks to use and how to authorize payments from the district. Advertisment of legal notices will be in the Scarsdale Inquirer or the Journal News, and bids for school services may be read openly.
Linda Purvis continues as the Records Retention and Disposition Officer, District Emergency Coordinator and Assistant Superintendent for Business. She is also now the Administrator for the District's 403-d Plan.
Find out what's happening in Scarsdalefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
After introducing new members, the Board considered a substantial number of Consent Agenda items, including authorization of funds for the Committees on Special Education and Preschool Special Education, appointments to those committees, confirmation of charges for use of District Buildings and Ground and reallocation of a bid for asbestos removal.
Also on the Consent Agenda was continued permission for children of school employees to attend Scarsdale schools. McGill explained that these children are placed in classes in a way that does not incur extra hiring, that they are not given extra travel out of the district and that material costs for the students are negligible to non-existent because books and other supplies are bought in bulk quantities greater than the minimum required for classes.
Tuition for students who either moved into or out of the district after the school year started was set at $18,598 for K-6 and $27,134 for 7-12 grades. In a memorandum describing the tuitions, Linda Purvis was careful to note that Scarsdale, in general, does "not accept non-resident students." Board of Education Policy #5152 describes the exceptions.
The District re-awarded a contract for removal of vinyl asbestos tile from the Middle School auditorium after the winning bidder, Prestige Environmental, failed to secure bonding for the project and withdrew its bid. Prestige was the lowest bidder, and the project was awarded to the next lowest bidder, Degmor Environmental, who bid $135,600.
The Board lauded Scarsdale High School Spanish teacher Karen Brilliant, who is leaving the school after 15 years. She will now teach at the Brearly School in Manhattan.
"It's easier to leave a job you hate," she said with tears in her eyes. "I loved it here. I want to say how much I loved it here."
Leaves of absence without pay were approved for three teachers, Robin Bray, Nicole Meyer and Lauren Mooney.
Fred Goldberg and George Hamm were approved as Acting Co-Principals of the High School.
Other probationary appointments include Gregory Apostle, Mathematics, at the Senior High School; Allison Chiarello, Special Education Teacher at Heathcote School; Alyssa Coleman, FLES Teacher at Fox Meadow School; Wehui Gu, Mandarin teacher at the Senior High School; Nina Kligman, World Language teacher (Spanish) at the Senior High School; and Robert Siracuse as athletic director and physical education teacher at the Senior High School.
Dozens of Professional Staff from all schools were also approved, and emergency conditional appointments were extended 20 days to allow the State Educational Department time to clear them. Several teachers aides resigned at Fox Meadow, Heathcote and Quaker Ridge. Four Teacher Aides at the Quaker Ridge school were terminated.
Appointments to Civil Service staff positions were approved.
Discussion of a $1.4 million budget surplus continued from the previous meeting, with the stipulation that $200,000 would be reserved to avoid greater tax payments through school assessments and the rest would be used for retirement and other accounts.
Scarsdale Gasoline Corp, 999 Post Road, successfully contested tax assessments from the years 2005-2010 and was awarded a refund of $25,495. The board authorized payment of the refund.
A new Safety Plan was adopted. It includes procedures in case of kidnapping or hostage taking.
The Board approved a loan from JPMorgan Chase Bank to finance $920,000 in computer equipment leases at a rate of 1.42 percent. The rate is lower than budgeted, allowing a savings of just over $9,000 a year.
In final actions, the Board approved payments for Stop-Loss Insurance, capping health insurance liabilities for the district at $200,000, and approved revisions to district record keeping and various administrative procedures, including updating financial management to comport with current laws and practices.
The district received gifts at the Alternative School—a tradition of parents of graduating students—and at the High School, prize money won by the Girls' Track Team.
Following the public meeting, the board adjourned to an executive session to discuss "personnel issues".
The next Board Meeting will be held Monday, September 12.
