Three candidates will be vying for two open seats on the Manhasset Board of Education, and board President Steven Panzik will not be seeking re-election.
Trustee Nadia Giannopoulos is running for re-election. She is joined by two newcomers, Allison O’Brien Silva and Desiree Woodson.
All three candidates will be running at large, meaning the two candidates who receive the most votes will be elected to the two seats.
Panzik did not file to run for re-election, and his first and only term will end on June 30.
Panzik and Giannopoulos were both elected to the board of education in 2022 when they defeated incumbent Christine Monterosso and newcomer O’Brien Silva.
Panzik, a physical therapist and business owner, has lived in Manhasset for more than 22 years and has served as a crew coach at Manhasset Secondary School for two decades.
Giannopoulos, a Manhasset resident of eight years, has served as an administrator to a statewide educational program. She is seeking to be elected to her second term.
On the board of education, Giannopoulos serves as a liaison to the Parent Association for Special Education, the Coalition Against Substance Abuse, the Economic Opportunity Council and the Policy Committee.
O’Brien Silva ran previously for the Manhasset Board of Education in 2022. She is a graduate of the Columbia Business School and has worked as a management consultant at McKinsey & Company.
Woodson has served as the chairman of the board of directors of the Manhasset/Great Neck Economic Opportunity Council and as a board member of the Manhasset School District’s Teacher Resource Center. She has also served as the commissioner for the Town of North Hempstead Housing Authority as a tenant commissioner/secretary and as the vice president of the North Shore chapter of the NAACP.
The three candidates will be featured on the district’s May 20 ballot, but other individuals can also be voted for via write-ins.
The district’s $115,043,231 budget for the 2025-2026 school year will also be on the ballot. The budget is rising by about $3.7 million from year to year, a 3.38% increase. It also includes a 3.11% tax increase, which falls within the district’s allowable tax levy.
