The New York State School Boards Association recognizes October 16-20 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, and it is our local school boards who play a huge role in setting students up for 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 high level,” Dr. James Franchini 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.”
Dr. Franchini noted the key work of school boards is to raise student achievement by:
- Developing 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 Averill Park community members a voice in education decision-making. Even though we make a special effort to show our appreciation, their contribution is a year-round commitment,” Dr. Franchini said.
The members serving our district and are as follows: Jessica DiFiore, Michelle Garofolo, Jacqueline Geraci, Samantha Hicks (President), Meghan McGarry, Adam Stewart and Jessica Zweig (Vice President).