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Port Washington Board awards tenure to 36 staff members, honors 18 retirees
Summary
The Port Washington Board of Education voted 7-0 to grant tenure to teachers, administrators and teaching assistants and recognized 16 teachers and two school nurses who will retire this year.
The Port Washington Union Free School District Board of Education voted 7-0 to approve the award of tenure to district staff and held a reception to honor retirees.
The board approved item 8.1 — the award of tenure — after a motion and second; the vote was announced as "All in favor? 7-0. The tenure is awarded." The board then began a public presentation to call up recipients and present boutonnieres and plaques.
The presentation, led at the podium by a district staff member, listed tenure recipients by school and role. The administration said the State Education Department recognizes tenure as a status earned after completion of a probationary period; the district identified 23 teachers, six teaching assistants and seven administrators who received tenure either that evening or earlier in the school year. Among those named were Dr. Sean Feeney (assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction), Dr. Katharine Baer (Schreiber High School principal), Nicholas Schratweiser (director, health/PE/athletics), Dr. Casey Lomangino (assistant principal), Dr. Jerry Weinstein (assistant principal), Matthew DeCarlo (assistant principal), and several classroom teachers and specialists across the district.
Public commenters and community organizations also used the tenure portion of the meeting to congratulate recipients. Pia Ferrante and Kim Licato, co-presidents of APSA, read a congratulatory statement. Linda Kala, co-president of the Schreiber HSA, praised Schreiber principal Dr. Baer and described her presence at school events and her relationships with students: "She waits out front of the school almost every day ... Doctor Baer makes it her business to know every student and their story." Another community speaker, who identified herself as an early HSA president under Dr. Baer, noted Baer’s emphasis on connecting with students and on initiatives such as executive functioning and restorative justice.
The board and administration also recognized 18 retirees — 16 teachers and two registered nurses — and said the group represented a combined 431 years of service to the community. The district called each retiree forward to receive a plaque and flowers; retirees named in the presentation included Dr. Ira Pernick (administrator), Barbara O'Donnell (guidance counselor), Kathleen Costello (nurse), Andrew Apikos (science teacher), Nori Cerny (guidance counselor), Dr. Eric Klaus (school psychologist), James Fallon (physical education teacher), Joy Grasso Krebs (science teacher), Tom Johnson (science teacher), Anthony Panelli (music teacher), Lehi Eason (elementary teacher), Judith Laval Carroll (school nurse), Stephen Moore (art teacher), Kevin Baudo (physical education), Wanda Burgess (sixth grade), Mary Anne Horanteda (speech teacher) and Maria Shapiro (science teacher). The board thanked the Ed Foundation for co‑sponsoring the post‑presentation reception.
The board recessed to the Schreiber cafeteria for the reception and reconvened the meeting later for remaining business.
The board’s motion to approve tenure and the announced 7-0 vote were the only formal actions recorded in the transcript related to tenure. The recognitions and retiree remarks were presented as ceremonial acknowledgements and no additional formal actions were recorded during those presentations.
