Great Neck Public School Board of Education Vice President Lawrence Gross is the recipient of the Nassau-Suffolk School Boards Association (N-SSBA) 2017 Outstanding School Board Service Award, which recognizes extraordinary contributions by school board members to local school boards and communities.
In her speech at the award presentation ceremony, Board of Education President Barbara Berkowitz characterized Gross as the “consummate school board trustee who works collaboratively with the board, administrators, staff and community.”
She went on to say, “He is, without question, the quintessential school board trustee. He has served the Great Neck Board of Education for 36 years, 10 as president and another 13 as vice president. He promotes cohesiveness and has been a mentor to all who follow in his path. Larry Gross is famous for listening to all sides of an issue, contemplating his decisions with precision and fairness, and isn’t averse to changing his mind after listening to another point of view. He has always been available for anything asked of him, be it to present a topic at a meeting or chair a committee. The public has tremendous confidence in the issues he presents, as he does so with immersed and complete knowledge. Larry Gross exemplifies the adage that there is no ‘i’ in ‘team.’”
Due to a move out of the district, Gross will be retiring from the Board of Education on June 30, at the conclusion of his 12th term as a board trustee.
A Farewell For Larry Gross
A small farewell celebration is scheduled for longtime Board of Education Trustee Lawrence “Larry” Gross at the regularly scheduled school board meeting on Monday, June 19, at 8 p.m.
At Gross’s request, the acknowledgment will be a simple one—he wishes neither a retirement party nor a formal send-off.
Those teachers and administrators who will be receiving tenure will also be celebrated at the meeting. A dessert reception will follow.
This past March, Gross announced that he and his wife would be moving to New York City. Since Board of Education members must be residents of the school district, he said he would not be running for reelection in May.
Gross was first elected to the Board of Education in 1981, following on the heels of a contentious decision to close schools in Great Neck. During his 36 years on the board, he has served as its president three times, from 1982–85, 1991–95 and 2003–06, and as vice president, the position he now holds, from 1987–91, 1998–2000 and 2012–present.
