At a board meeting, trustees reviewed a slate of 34 resolutions that will be considered by the New York State school boards’ assembly and discussed which resolutions to ask their representative, Heather Becker, to support or oppose. The board’s approach was to identify a small set of resolutions to give specific direction on and to rely on Becker’s judgment for items where no board consensus was recorded.
Board members expressed concerns about several individual resolutions and about the assembly process, which can run long and includes real‑time amendments and votes: the group described meetings that can extend past midnight as districts drop off or change votes. Board members said the assembly typically includes roughly 700–800 delegates and that a quorum is about 350.
Several resolutions mentioned by number in discussion included: resolution 26 (advocating to restore a religious exemption to vaccine mandates, which the board heard was slated to be sunsetted); resolution 34 (encouraging expanded daily recess, which some members worried would shift local scheduling authority to the state); resolution 8 (proposal to reduce required lockdown drills from four to two annually); resolution 10 (state funding for air conditioning on extreme-heat days); and a resolution about BOCES expansion and support. Trustees debated when to ask Becker for direction and agreed that, absent specific board direction, Becker should generally vote in alignment with the NISBA board of directors’ recommendations.
No formal vote was recorded on any resolution at the meeting; the board agreed to contact Heather Becker directly with specific instructions and to expect the assembly to be held in early October (the date mentioned in discussion was October 9). Board members cautioned that resolutions can be amended on the assembly floor and that delegates must sometimes change votes in response to amendments. The district did not adopt a formal resolution directing a vote at this meeting.