P.C. school board has a change of the guard
July 4, 2024 at 1:13 a.m.
Following an unusually straightforward election in May, the Port Chester Board of Education has officially kicked off the start of the 2024-25 school year. But their first session of the year was not as smooth sailing as the uncontested election.
The annual reorganization meeting on Tuesday, July 2, wherein new members are sworn in, contracts are renewed and appointments are made, also saw first and foremost the determining of new board leadership for the upcoming year.
Though the board moved through most matters smoothly that night, the decision of who would lead the group saw a complication and some early signs of division.
Winners of the uncontested election, incumbent Sharon Burke and newcomer JoAnne Ferrara, started the meeting by taking their oaths of office. Once they were settled into the board, District Clerk Cathy Maggi called for nominations for board president.
In her initial act as a trustee, Ferrara was quick to bring the first nomination of the night to the table, recommending Chrissie Onofrio for the leadership position. Though she didn’t offer her thoughts at the time, she said after the meeting she did so because of observations she’s made from watching meetings over the last several months.
“From what I’ve seen in previous meetings, (Onofrio) really impressed me,” Ferrara said during a phone call on July 3. “I’ve been impressed with the leadership she’s shown. She’s very measured and level-headed.”
Onofrio was the sole nominee for the position and the board voted unanimously in her favor.
“I am honored to serve as president,” she said at the meeting. “My hope is to lead this board in a way that enables us to continue to keep this school district moving forward.”
The process of selecting a vice president was much less straightforward.
Dr. JoAnne Ferrara takes her oath as she begins her first term as a member of the Port Chester Board of Education.By David Tapia
A contested election for vice president stretched over 15 minutes, as a botched vote forced the board to enter an executive session to discuss how to redo the roll call. Additionally, the newly elected board president stated her reservations over whether or not she could trust other members.
Ferrara nominated Rob Dominguez, a trustee entering his second year of service, while Trustee George Ford nominated Burke. Though Ferrara didn’t say it at the time, she explained that her reasoning was because of Dominguez’s background in education.
“Rob is an educator,” she said. “He has knowledge of student needs because he’s in the guidance field. I think he has a lot to contribute and it’s time to give someone new a shot at a leadership position.”
For his part, Ford said he nominated Burke for two reasons.
“One, and no disrespect to Mr. Dominguez, seniority. She’s been on the board. She played a role last year as vice president,” he said. “And two, she’s very active in the schools. She attends most of our events for our students and I think that’s important to the community.”
Prior to the vote, Onofrio discussed her views on important qualities needed for the leadership position.
“Last year, I know I spoke about a balance in our leadership team and I was ignored,” she said. In the 2023-24 year, former board member Lou Russo and Burke, who often aligned themselves in votes, served as president and vice president.
During a phone interview on Wednesday, Onofrio expanded her thoughts.
“When I first got on the board five years ago, my goal was to get rid of the idea of sides,” she said, referring to the idea that the school board to many is seen as political. “Last year, I made the argument with Lou (Russo) that someone from the other perceived side should be represented as vice president, and I was ignored.”
This year, Onofrio made a motion to nominate Ford, who is often perceived as her ally, but the bid didn’t receive support.
At the meeting, she also expressed her apprehensions regarding her confidence in other members of the board.
“I also think that trust is paramount to being an effective leader,” she said. “And I do have concerns regarding my ability to trust certain board members at this point, as demonstrated by recent personnel discussion.”
Onofrio later said her comment was made in response to recent votes regarding contracts, referring to Superintendent Dr. Aurelia Henriquez’s contract enhancements which passed in a divided 3-2 decision on June 24. Burke and Dominguez were the trustees who voted against her 6% raise and one-year extension, which pushed her commitment to June 2027.
“I’m not implying that everyone isn’t entitled to their individual vote,” she said. “But negotiations work differently. I think it’s imperative when it comes to contracts for the board to act as one.”
Boards of Education are government agencies democratically elected by their communities to represent the constituents. Though Onofrio agreed that members are within their rights to disagree with each other, she maintained that the school board should act as a unit when negotiating contracts.
The initial vote on whether Dominguez should be in the vice president position failed 2-3. Onofrio, Ford and Ferrara, who had nominated him, voted against it.
As the trustees moved on to the Burke vote, Ferrara vocalized that she had made a mistake.
“I thought it was Mrs. Burke first and I was going for Mr. Dominguez,” she said, expressing her wish to resubmit her previous vote.
The board, unsure of how to properly move forward in accordance with New York State Education Law guidelines, entered executive session to discuss the matter with their legal counsel.
Around 15 minutes later, they returned to public session and announced it was determined that the vote could be redone once votes for Burke were finalized. “The attorneys came to our rescue,” Onofrio said. “So, we didn’t break any procedures.”
Burke was then voted down 2-3, with Onofrio, Ferrara and Ford voting against.
Ford said that while he had nominated her, he ultimately voted against Burke because she had notified him that she did not want to be vice president.
“She didn’t want it,” he said. “She gave me her decision and I didn’t want to do something she didn’t want.”
The second round of voting for Dominguez secured his position. He received four votes in favor, with Onofrio as the sole dissenter. “I will stand by my earlier statements and vote no,” she said.
Once leadership was decided, all other resolutions during the reorganization meeting passed unanimously.
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