Harrison Central School District board approves consent items, outlines QR-code pickup for emergency early‑dismissal drill

The Harrison Central School District Board of Education on Nov. 18 approved a slate of routine consent items and heard updates on student achievements, an international visitor, and new safety procedures for an emergency early‑dismissal drill.

The board voted unanimously by voice to approve minutes of the Nov. 5 meeting and to adopt the personnel, administrative and finance reports on consent, which included acceptance of a donation from the Harrison High School PTA, approval of a Harrison High School debate team field trip to Minneapolis, and authorization of an intermunicipal agreement with the Town/Village of Harrison. Board members offered the motions and those present responded “Aye,” with no roll-call tally of individual votes recorded in the meeting transcript.

Why it matters: The consent approvals clear routine personnel and program actions and preserve the board’s ability to focus meetings on district priorities. The board also used the meeting to inform parents about an operational change that affects elementary pickup procedures.

District staff told the board the Wednesday before Thanksgiving will include an emergency early‑dismissal drill intended to practice dismissing roughly 3,800 students and verifying that each child is released only to an approved adult. The district official leading the explanation said the district will not provide K–5 bus transportation that day and will distribute QR codes to every guardian and emergency contact. "So the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, we hold an emergency early dismissal drill," the official said. Parents will be asked to present the QR code and photo identification at pickup; the district asked families to update emergency contact lists in advance if they need to add an authorized adult.

The district also plans to test its communications systems during the drill, pushing email, phone and text messages to more than 40,000 points of contact to ensure the notification systems are working. The district thanked the Harrison Police Department for agreeing to maintain a visible presence on campuses to help facilitate the drill.

In other business, the board spotlighted student achievements. LMK Drama Club students gave a short performance of selections from Roald Dahl’s James and the Giant Peach Jr., with roughly 60 cast members and about 30 students on the tech crew participating. The board also noted that seniors Mary Grace Crozier and Sofia Campos were selected for the All‑State Treble Chorus and recognized students honored for Italian American Heritage month. A district representative said a team from the University of Tokyo visited to study the district’s digital curricular resources and praised teachers for practices that make curriculum more accessible.

What’s next: The board scheduled its next regular business meeting for Dec. 10, 2025 at Lewis M Klein Middle School. No further formal votes or policy adoptions were taken at this meeting beyond the consent approvals.

Votes at a glance: Opening the meeting (motion approved by voice; SEG 001–009); recess into executive session to discuss teacher personnel and contractual matters (motion approved by voice; SEG 032–042); reopen meeting (motion approved by voice; SEG 044–051); approve minutes (motion approved by voice; SEG 060–070); approve personnel report (motion approved by voice; SEG 664–683); approve administrative report including trip and PTA donation (motion approved by voice; SEG 688–714); approve finance and facilities report including treasurer’s report and intermunicipal agreement (motion approved by voice; SEG 715–730); adjourn (motion approved by voice; SEG 731–737). Meeting transcript records attendees saying "Aye" for approvals but does not provide a named, itemized roll‑call tally for each consent motion.

Sources: Board meeting transcript, Nov. 18, 2025.