The New York State School Boards Association recognizes Oct. 17-21 as School Board Recognition Week. This is a time to promote awareness and understanding of the important work performed by local school boards.
Public schools form the bedrock of our communities and our country. Democracy thrives with educated citizens capable of critical thinking and civil discourse. And it is our local school boards who are ultimately responsible for student success.
“It takes strong schools to build a strong community, and these men and women devote countless hours to making sure our schools are helping every child learn at a higher level,” Michael Hynes, superintendent of schools said. “They make the tough decisions every month and spend many hours studying education issues and regulations in order to provide the kind of accountability our community stakeholders expect.”
Hynes said the key work of school boards is to raise student achievement by:
• Collaborating a shared vision and goals for the district
• Ensuring strategies, resources, policies and programs align with district goals
• Assessing and providing accountability for student achievement
• Supporting a healthy school district culture in which to work and learn
• Evaluating the superintendent to ensure continuous improvement
• And much more
“School board members give the Port Washington citizens a voice in education decision-making. Even though we make a special effort to show our appreciation in October, their contribution is a year-round commitment,” Hynes said.
The members serving our district are as follows: Adam Smith (President),
Deborah Brooks (Vice President), Emily Beys, Adam Block, Julie Epstein, Rachel Gilliar, and Nanette Melkonian.
