Baldwin board honors retirees and grants tenure to dozens of staff

At a meeting of the Baldwin Union Free School District Board of Education, the board held a recognition ceremony that honored dozens of retirees and granted tenure to numerous teachers, aides and administrators across the district.

The event, which district Superintendent Dr. Shari Kamie introduced as “a very special night,” combined formal citations of service, brief remarks from building leaders and presentations of tenure certificates and commemorative books.

District leaders said the evening celebrated long careers and the relationships staff built with students. Dr. Kamie noted recent district initiatives alongside the recognitions, including two school wellness centers and student exhibits placed in local courthouses. “Baldwin has two wellness centers — one at the middle school and the new high‑school center — and it does not cost the district anything,” Kamie said.

The board read formal “Whereas” statements for individual retirees and presented each with public recognition. Cited retirees included Sandra Gomez (21 years as a school monitor at Baldwin Middle School), Judy Valente (district service beginning in 2003 as a teacher aide), Martha Kropolinski (Spanish teacher and multilingual contributions), Ronald Ventura (34 years in public education, including 29 years as a social studies teacher at Baldwin High School) and Scott Peretz (39 years in education, including 26 years as a technology teacher at Baldwin High School). Speakers repeatedly thanked retirees for their dedication to students, curricular programs and extracurricular activities including athletics and performing arts.

After the retiree citations, the meeting proceeded to tenure recognitions. School leaders introduced and described the work of each newly tenured staff member. Tenure recipients called out on the record included Joanne Eterno, Michelle Victoria, Tom Catapano, Priya Das, Rebecca Vassalo, Amanda DeBell, Joseph (Joe) Denninger, Vincent Fredericks, Matthew Joseph, Ariana Miller, Karen Monaco and others who were presented that evening. Principal Neil Tester, introducing Joseph Denninger, said of Denninger’s commitment to students and activities: “That moment says everything you need to know about Mr. Denninger.”

Presenters highlighted the range of roles among tenure recipients — classroom teachers from elementary through high school, special education staff, performing arts and technology teachers — and noted specific programs several had led, such as Adaptive Physical Education, Science Olympiad advising and extracurricular clubs.

The board also used the meeting to introduce two newly appointed administrators: Denise Fisher, who will serve as assistant superintendent for human resources, and Craig Hnahn, who will serve as high‑school special education supervisor. Both were introduced and welcomed to the district during the meeting.

The recognitions concluded with routine procedural business later on the agenda, including approval of the personnel actions report; that approval was recorded separately in the meeting minutes.

Speakers on the record during the recognitions included Superintendent Dr. Shari Kamie; Dr. Sheila Jefferson Isaac (principal, Lenox School); Neil Tester (principal, Baldwin High School); Drew Cronin (administrator); Pamela Green (trustee, vice president); and several principals and supervisors who introduced specific tenure candidates.

The board did not adopt new personnel policy during the recognition portion; tenure and retiree presentations were ceremonial and informational, while formal personnel approvals (the personnel actions report) were taken later in the business portion of the meeting.

The board closed the recognition segment by asking attendees to remain for one additional personnel item on the agenda and to join the reception planned after the meeting.