The Great Neck Public Schools are in good financial health, according to a report from the district’s external auditor provided at the board of trustees meeting Wednesday night.

External auditor Jill Sanders presented the district’s annual audit report, which looks at the financial statements of the district from July 1, 2022 through June 30, 2023.

Sanders said the school district is “in a good financial condition.” She delivered an unmodified opinion of the general purpose financial statement, which she said is the highest level of financial assurance.

She said there are no material weaknesses nor significant deficiencies in the district.

The auditor said there were no difficulties in obtaining financial documents from the district, and no noted activities that don’t abide by generally accepted accounting principles and auditing standards.

Sanders proposed some audit adjustments, which she said are expected to be offered. She also said some suggestions were made, not say what those suggestions were, but that those would be discussed with Assistant Superintendent for Business John O’Keefe.

“So we think that that internal control structure that’s already strong will become even stronger,” Sanders said.

The board did not ask any further questions of Sanders.

“The clean audit report is always wonderful,” Superintendent Kenneth Bossert said. “The financial oversight of the district is something that we take very seriously, so the report from the auditors being immaculate is great to see and always an area for target improvement moving forward. And I have every confidence that John and his team will do so.”

In other news, Bossert said that many members of the public inquired about the feasibility of installing turf fields in the district at the board’s last meeting.

Bossert said O’Keefe is researching information about installing a turf field, or even multiple turf fields, in the district. This includes working with architects and engineers to identify spaces and modifications needed to the space.

He said once that initial inquiry by O’Keefe is completed, then all the information will be presented to the board for discussion.

“So this is not an overnight conversation,” Bossert said. “…But the beginning of the process is to do the investigation of what necessary work would be done and the associated cost.”

In tandem with the community’s request for turf fields, the district’s student delegate Letizia Kaya from Great Neck North High School said that she has garnered student feedback of a desire for a football team. Kaya said the team was disbanded seven years ago due to a lack of interest.

She said the students have talked to her about a lack of traditions at the high school that are “integral to the high school experience,” including the absence of a football team.

Kaya said that 98 students have expressed to her a desire to play football, and an additional 333 students support the establishment of the team.

“If students at Great Neck North High School have a passion for football, the school should cater to them with the opportunity to pursue it,” Kaya said.

Kaya said that if funding is a concern of the district, the high school could potentially merge with another local high school football team like Herricks. She said the combining of the schools would also benefit the team’s ranking while reducing costs.

“However it would be awfully cruel if we penalize kids, stripping them from the opportunity to play their passion to serve ours,” Kaya said.

Bossert said that the elimination of the football team was based on enrollment, not finances. He said that if there is interest then the district will look further into the implementation of it.

The board also held a second reading of its newly revised school safety policy, which updates protocols for responding to declared New York State disaster emergencies involving a communicable disease.

The proposed policy also includes a new section describing the district’s current emergency procedures or fire, evacuation and safety drills, and an annual review of building and district plans.

No action was taken on the policy, which will continue at the board’s next meeting.

The meeting Wednesday evening began with individual recognitions, starting with security officer Ray Woods who Board President Rebecca Sassouni called a “local hero.”

On Oct. 25, a staff member at the Cumberland Adult Center had a medical emergency where students were calling for help and requesting an AED. Woods, a retired police officer, came to aid in the situation.

When he arrived, Woods found the staff member was having a seizure and lowered them to the floor to prevent further injury. Woods then checked the staff member’s breathing and pulse, monitoring them until first responders arrived.

Woods was honored with a certificate of recognition by the district and board of education for his efforts in aiding the medical emergency.

“A phrase I like to use with children, but really with everyone and with adults, is ‘try to catch people doing something good,’” Sassouni said. “So how wonderful to have heroes among us.”

A group of Lakeville Elementary students was also honored at the meeting for their involvement in the school’s student council, along with staff member Lois Lipschitz.

Lipschitz, who has been a staff member at Lakeville Elementary since 1990, has worked to supervise students and ‘nurtured relationships with students and staff members alike for 22 years,” Principal Emily Zucal said.

“To know Lois is to know that she takes a great deal of pride in her generations of family, and that she sincerely enjoys the company of children,” Zucal said. “She’ll tell you that children for the most part haven’t changed, and she looks after them today just as she did in 1990. She looks after them as if they were her own.”

Lipschitz will turn 93 on Jan. 5, which Zucal said they are looking forward to celebrating with her.

The district honored Lipschitz with a plaque celebrating her 33 years working at the school and her commitment to the district.

The board also delivered a statement on the Israel-Hamas war and its impact on district community members, which Trustee Donna Peirez read during the meeting.

“Even more, the worldwide anti-semitic demonstrations targeting one of our largest ethnic and religious groups continue to inflict unquantifiable damage,” Peirez said.

Peirez said the board is “horrified” by the events, condemning Hamas, other terrorist groups, antisemitism and Islamaphobia.

She said the events remind the board of the district’s educational philosophy to ensure students are educated on history, appreciate the nation’s heritage and have respect and acceptance.

“It is our hope that our children will become empathetic, compassionate, productive members of a diverse, global society after receiving the full complement of our inclusive and historically accurate academic education,” Peirez said.