Board approves personnel slate; discussion highlights retirement recognitions and change to longevity payment timing

The Hawthorne board on Feb. 18 approved the personnel agenda covering P1 through P36, which included new hires, retirements and volunteer coaching appointments.

“Pursuant to the recommendation of the superintendent of schools, the Committee on Personnel recommends the following resolutions,” said the personnel committee chair before the board voted to approve the slate. The motion passed by roll call.

Board members used the discussion period to ask that future personnel listings include years of service for retirees so the board can publicly thank long-serving staff. One member singled out a retiring employee, asking whether the agenda could note years served when appropriate and when employees consented to that recognition.

The meeting also included a clarification about changes to how longevity pay is distributed under the district’s new contract. Under the new arrangement, staff who hit a longevity milestone will receive that payment in the month after they reach the milestone instead of waiting until September, a change described as retroactive for amounts owed from the prior September through the present contract year.

The board welcomed one new hire by name at the meeting and thanked volunteer coaches named on the agenda, including Frank Thomasini (golf) and George Krichner (baseball). Members also noted a new hire coincidentally named Lisa Fleming is a different person than an existing Washington School teacher of the same name.

The personnel slate included multiple retirements; members sought direction on adding years-of-service detail to the public agenda in future months so the board could acknowledge long-tenured staff at meetings.