Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the School Board Reorganization topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Wallkill Valley board elects Elmo president, Kabatra vice president; approves appointments and student placements
Summary
At its Jan. 6 reorganization meeting, the Wallkill Valley Regional High School Board elected Jacqueline Elmo president and Thomas Kabatra vice president, approved committee and administrative appointments, reauthorized policy and curriculum, set the 2025 meeting schedule, and approved two Child Study Team placements with combined tuition costs totaling $114,874.50.
The Wallkill Valley Regional High School Board of Education on Jan. 6 elected Jacqueline Elmo as board president and Thomas Kabatra as vice president during its annual reorganization meeting at the high school media center.
The board, convened and presided over by School Business Administrator and Board Secretary Joseph P. Hurley Jr., swore in Gina DeSino, Cynthia Rock and Michael Davina before recording a roll call of nine members and announcing certified vote totals for the November election: Gina DeSino (Hamburg) — 725; Cynthia Rock (Hardyston) — 2,548; Michael Davina (Hardyston) — 2,122.
In nominations handled by Mr. Hurley, Thomas Kabatra nominated Jacqueline Elmo and Michael Davina nominated Ralph Bonard for president. The roll call elected Elmo by a 6–3 vote (Yes: Elmo, Carlson, Kabatra, DeSino, Rock, Dressner; No: Bonard, Jones, Davina). For vice president, Robert Carlson nominated Thomas Kabatra and Michael Davina nominated Ralph Bonard; the board elected Kabatra by the same 6–3 margin.
After the leadership votes, President Elmo announced standing committee assignments, which the board approved unanimously. Appointments included Traci Dressner as finance committee chair with Michael Davina as co-chair; Thomas Kabatra as negotiations committee chair with Traci Dressner as co-chair; and specific chairs and members for Building & Grounds, Curriculum, Personnel, Technology and Policy committees.
The board also approved a slate of district officers and professional service contracts for 2025. Among administrative appointments, David Carr was named Superintendent of Schools/Principal and Integrated Pest Management coordinator; Joseph P. Hurley Jr. was reaffirmed as Business Administrator/Board Secretary and purchasing agent (authorized to award contracts up to a $44,000 bid threshold and set a quote threshold at $6,600); Taryn Geuther was named ADA/Title IX/504/RTI coordinator; Grant VanGorden was designated asbestos/PEOSHA and indoor air quality designee; and Barbara Decker was named Treasurer of School Monies. The board appointed Nisivoccia, LLP (John Mooney) as school auditor, Brown and Brown Benefit Advisors (James Finn) as insurance agent, Parette Somjen Architects (Greg Somjen) as district architect, Scarinci and Hollenbeck as district attorney/negotiator and Acrisure LLC (d/b/a Polaris Galaxy Group) as insurance broker of record. Dr. Nadira Fernandez was approved as school physician.
Financial and procedural authorizations adopted by unanimous vote included establishing a $750 petty cash account (checks not to exceed $100), authorizing the School Business Administrator and Superintendent to make payments between meetings per Board Policy #6470, and permitting the Superintendent to approve budget transfers between meetings per Board Policy #6422. The board readopted the district policy manual and bylaws and readopted the curriculum and textbooks previously in place.
The board designated the New Jersey Herald and the Sunday New Jersey Herald as the official newspapers and named Provident Bank as the district’s legal depository, approving account signatories and required signers for General Fund, Payroll Agency, Payroll, Petty Cash, Scholarship, Cafeteria, Capital Reserve, Student Activity and Athletic accounts for 2025.
On finance matters, the board approved two Child Study Team placement requests: student #2425019 from High Point Regional to the ERI program at a tuition cost of $38,672 (related services billed separately; prorated; classes Jan. 6–June 2025) and student #2425020 to the Northern Hills regular program at a prorated total cost of $76,202.50 (tuition $61,385; paraprofessional $14,817.50; classes Jan. 2–June 2025). Both placement motions were approved by unanimous roll call.
The board adopted its schedule of regular meetings for the period Jan. 28, 2025 through Jan. 6, 2026 and authorized the Board Secretary/Business Administrator to publish the schedule in the New Jersey Herald. No old business or new business items were raised. The meeting adjourned at 7:26 p.m.
The meeting referenced the Open Public Meeting Act, Chapter 231, P.L. 1985, and acknowledged Title 18A:12-24.1, the Code of Ethics for School Board Members.
