The Herricks Board of Education appointed Tony Sinanis as the district’s new superintendent during a special meeting Thursday night.
Sinanis will head the district starting July 1, after current Superintendent Fino Celano retires on June 30 following a 44-year career in education and seven years in Herricks.
“With the appointment of Dr. Sinanis as the superintendent of the Herricks School District, the Board of Education believes we have found an educator with the broad experience and educational outlook to lead an educational community that promotes continuous improvement and concentrates on the success and well-being of its students,” said board President Henry Zanetti. “We believe Dr. Sinanis will enable us to augment the achievements of our recent years and lead the district to yet greater success. We look forward to working with him to keep Herricks strong.”
The Herricks Board of Education appointed Dr. Tony Sinanis as the new superintendent of schools, effective July 1, 2022. Pictured from left to right are: Trustee Jim Gounaris, Trustee Juleigh Chin, Board of Education President Henry Zanetti, Dr. Tony Sinanis, Board of Education Vice President Nancy Feinstein and Trustee Brian Hassan. (Photo courtesy of Herricks Public Schools)
Sinanis joins Herricks with a quarter-century of educational experience under his belt. He most recently served as the assistant superintendent for human resources and leadership development in the Chappaqua Central School District, which serves Chappaqua, Millwood and parts of Pleasantville and Mount Kisco. Sinanis was in his current role since 2018.
Previous stops include superintendent for Hastings-on-Hudson School District, assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction for Plainedge School District and principal in both the Jericho and Valley Stream Central districts.
Herricks Board of Education President Henry Zanetti (left) congratulates Dr. Tony Sinanis (right), the district’s next superintendent of schools. Dr. Sinanis will assume the role of superintendent on July 1, 2022. (Photo courtesy of Herricks Public Schools)
During Sinanis’ eight years as principal at Jericho’s Cantiague Elementary, the school was named a 2012 National Blue Ribbon School and 2015 Model School.
His honors include being named the 2014 New York State Elementary School Principal of the Year, the 2014 National bammy Award Elementary School Principal of the Year and co-authoring three books on branding, development and leadership.
“Dr. Sinanis’ commitment to promoting diversity is evident through his experience. In his previous positions, he facilitated district-wide fellowship focused on promoting racial inclusivity, diversity and equity, as well as planned and facilitated a diversity recruitment and job fair,” the district said in a statement. “Additional district-level leadership experience includes increasing transparency with the community by facilitating meetings with central administration to discuss culture, feedback and branding. In his former districts, Dr. Sinanis worked closely with various stakeholders and established positive and collaborative relationships with staff, parents and local leaders. He has embraced social media to amplify and accelerate a district’s story and has experience creating and using various platforms to regularly communicate with families.”
Sinasis said he is looking forward to returning to Long Island.
“I am excited to officially join the Herricks school community on July 1,” Sinasis said in a statement. “I spent 17 years of my educational career on Long Island, and during that time I came to know Herricks as a dynamic community that centers students and learning with a commitment to excellence. I have always respected and admired Herricks Public Schools from a distance and now am honored to officially be part of the team. I cannot wait to begin our journey together in a few short weeks!”
Sinasis will step into the 4,000-student district that just had its $125.3 million budget passed on May 17. Over the next fiscal year, the district will undergo capital renovations and expansions to social-emotional learning programs and instructional technology.
Since Celano became superintendent in 2015, the district has consistently been highly rated.
In the U.S. News & World Report’s 2022 list of best high schools, Herricks High School placed No. 38 in New York and No. 327 throughout the whole country among public high schools.
As a district, Herricks was ranked No. 7 on Niche.com’s list of best school districts in New York according to their most recent rankings.
