GERMANTOWN–The June Board of Education meeting in the Germantown Central School District isoften a time of congratulations and best wishes, as faculty and staff retire, faculty are granted tenure and school board members may attend the final meeting of their term.
That was the scene at the June 8 board meeting. It began with Rowan DuBois thanking board members for their support of his Eagle Scout project, building a greenhouse for the school. The project took 378 hours, from start to finish. Rowan dedicated the greenhouse to the school with a plaque thanking all who had helped him with it.
Thanked for their service upon their retirement were: Nancy DelPozzo, library aide, after 32 years, to whom the 2016 yearbook is dedicated; Cathy Dancy, library assistant and substitute teacher, after 26 years; Carol Clements, teaching assistant, after 25 years; and George Almstead, maintenance staff, after 36 years.
The board conferred tenure on: Michael O’Brien, a science teacher in the Junior / Senior High School; Megan Phelan, a computer teacher in the Elementary School; and Lyndsey Fink, special education teacher for K-2.
The board thanked Faydra Geraghty for her four years of board service.
The voice of reason, said board president Tammi Kellenbenz. “I hope you run again.”
In other business, the board:
•Certified the results of the May 17 vote: for the budget, 277 Yes votes to 116 No votes; for walk-in
voter registration, 286 Yes votes to 98 No votes; for school board, Ralph DelPozzo, 274 votes; Lester Olsson, 250 votes; and George Sharpe Sr., 202 votes
•Approved the Smart Schools Investment Plan, which pays for new computer equipment for students
•Noted that Germantown students had the best SAT scores in Columbia County and ranked 43 out of 414 districts in that test’s results
•Approved the lowest bid, from A. Colarusso & Son, Inc., of $4,418 for the district’s portion of the town’s sidewalk project
•Decided that the topic for discussion at the August board meeting will address the question, “What can GCS do to advance the opportunities of students at both ends of the learning spectrum?”
•Agreed to ask Dr. Gladys Cruz, district superintendent of QUESTAR, to speak on the topic of
transportation during her 2016-17 board visit.
All board members except Teresa Repko, and an audience of about a dozen attended the
meeting. The next board meeting is Wednesday, June 22 at 6:30 p.m.
