Board approves amended transfer to fund robotics team travel to world championship

The South Orangetown Central School District Board of Education approved an amended budget transfer to expedite travel arrangements for the district robotics team to the world championship in Houston, administrators said.

A district staff member thanked the board for approving the transfer, saying officials secured travel after receiving necessary details and that the purchase required airline tickets "totaling more than $25,000." "Fortunately, we did get that information to the board, and we were able to secure travel for the team," the staff member said.

A board member apologized to families for confusion at the previous meeting and said the delay reflected a breakdown in communication, not a lack of support for the team. "It was never our intention to have any of the parents think we weren't supportive of the bots. That was completely contrary to how we felt," a board member said, adding that the board supports the team and its upcoming championship demonstration at SOMS.

The board also approved the business-office agenda earlier in the meeting; that routine motion passed with four members voting in favor and one member absent. The transcript identifies the absent member as "Katie." Specific mover and seconder names for the transfer approval were not recorded in the public portion of the transcript.

Board members said they would work to make the purchasing process more efficient for unique, time-sensitive situations in the future.

The board adjourned the public meeting and moved into a budget workshop following the approvals.