Hampton Bays district highlights $50,000 hospitality grant, trauma‑informed pilot and cellphone rule change; consent agenda approved

HAMPTON BAYS, N.Y. — The Hampton Bays Union Free School District Board of Education heard a series of district updates at its regular business meeting, including a $50,000 Suffolk County employer‑related services grant for the district’s 2025 Hospitality Academy, the early rollout of a trauma‑informed “Handle With Care” pilot with the Southampton Town Police Department, and an expected state “bell‑to‑bell” cellphone restriction the superintendent said would likely affect the 2025–26 school year. The board approved its consent agenda during the meeting.

Superintendent (name not specified) said the Suffolk County Department of Labor awarded a $50,000 employer‑related services grant for the 2025 Hospitality Academy. “That's the jobs development grant for the 2025 Hospitality Academy. That's a $50,000 grant,” the superintendent said. The Hospitality Academy schedule discussed in the meeting included an open house at Canoe Place Inn, an orientation beginning Feb. 27 and a job fair on April 5.

The superintendent described playground improvements at the elementary and pre‑K sites as complete and ready for use when weather allows, and reported district enrollment at about 1,998 students, “just about 2,000 K through 12.”

On student supports, the superintendent said district staff, led by Mr. Ferraro, has been coordinating with the Southampton Town Police Department and Chief Kiernan to implement Handle With Care, a trauma‑informed notification and response program. “We are now in early implementation stages with training the police department on trauma informed care inside the school,” the superintendent said. The district plans staff training and a faculty rollout in February, followed by a pilot, and discussed having small groups of teachers and officers debrief together as part of the rollout.

The superintendent also noted the governor had released an executive budget that includes proposed cellphone restrictions in schools. “In today's budget, we've been expecting this. The governor is putting cellphone restrictions in place,” the superintendent said, adding the district had not yet received the bill language. He described the expected restriction as “bell to bell,” and said the district would likely need to develop formal policy to implement it for the 2025–26 school year while preserving limited exceptions for after‑school activities, athletics and individual parental needs.

Officials discussed the district’s dual and early college enrollment arrangements with local colleges, including SUNY Farmingdale, Stony Brook and other campuses. The superintendent said the current model requires separate agreements with each college and that staffing constraints in a small district—“we have 1 statistics teacher, for example. 1 environmental science teacher, for example”—can put students at risk of losing college credit opportunities when a credentialed teacher is absent. Mr. Carlson was identified as working with Suffolk County and Farmingdale on those arrangements.

The board passed a motion to approve the consent agenda covering items labeled 4a through 7g; no individual roll‑call votes were read aloud on the record. The meeting also included routine business motions to open and adjourn the meeting, all approved by voice vote.

District announcements included the ongoing Regents midterms, the district’s participation in the state of the state address in Albany and plans to co‑host a candidate debate for a March 18 special election for a town board seat; students will serve as ushers at a debate scheduled for Monday, Feb. 24, at 7 p.m. The superintendent thanked local elected officials and partners for advocacy on state funding and infrastructure matters.

The meeting closed after public comment procedures were explained and a motion to adjourn was approved.

Ending: The board did not take additional formal votes on calendar adoption or cellphone policy at the meeting; those items were discussed as upcoming work tied to state actions and will return for further consideration as specifics are clarified.