HUDSON–A departing principal, a new student representative, new teachers and on-going construction work received attention at the Hudson City School District (HCSD) Board of Education meeting September 3.
Antonio Abitabile, principal of Hudson High School, will leave December 21 to become Superintendent of the Lansingburgh Central School District near Troy. His departure was confirmed by HCSD Superintendent Maria L. Suttmeier at the meeting. Dr. Suttmeier said that the search for his successor will take place during the fall.
Piper Nayowith came to her first meeting as this year’s student representative to the board. Piper, a senior at Hudson High School, is president of the Student Council. She said that her favorite subjects are English, art, and science, and that she is on the swim team. When asked if she had goals for her term as student representative, she answered, “To make sure everybody has a good school year and that there’s open communication.”
Dr. Suttmeier welcomed two new teachers, for special education at the Montgomery C. Smith Elementary School (MCSES): Kristen Morano and Lynn Paradowski. Ms. Morano said she was happy to be at MCSES, “It looks like there are a lot of positive changes going on there.” Ms. Paradowski said she had taught special education for 12 years, most recently in a charter school, and that “I feel my charter school experience will help me with Hudson’s diverse population.”
Dr. Suttmeier’s progress report on on-going construction projects included:
• Asbestos abatement is complete at the MCS auditorium and at the Junior/Senior High School
• New audiovisual equipment has been ordered for both MCS and the Junior/ Senior High School
• The Board’s Facilities Committee will view paint samples and decide which color to paint the MCS auditorium. The stage curtain is undergoing evaluation to see if it can be made more fireproof. If not, the stage will get a new curtain of the same type as the current one, Dr. Suttmeier said. Until the MCS auditorium is ready for use again, activities and events that have taken place in the auditorium will take place in other locations, including the big gym
• The old back stairs to MCS have been removed, and new stairs “should be complete” the second week of September. The new stairs will be heated.
• Old sidewalks by MCS have been removed and are being replaced
• The boys’ locker room is under repair, and its finish date is presently unavailable
• The weight room is undergoing upgrades
• A football practice field has been designated and a soccer practice field is under preparation. The practice fields will make it unnecessary for football and soccer players to preempt girls’ sports fields for practice
• The softball field’s new drain pipes are in. The District has applied for a building permit for its dugouts
• Demolition of the bleachers by the MCS baseball field is slated to begin the second week of September. Light poles on that field are tilting and will be removed. There will be no night baseball games.
Also at the meeting, the board approved a contract with Questar III BOCES for Questar to rent a room of MCS to conduct a pre-kindergarten class. The lease runs from September 1, 2019 through June 30, 2020. Under the terms of this agreement, Questar is to pay the HCSD $7,000 a month and $4,500 for ancillary services.
The next meeting of the HCSD Board of Education will be Tuesday, September 17 at the Hudson High School. It will start with a curriculum workshop at 6 p.m. followed by the regular meeting at 7 p.m.
