Voters in the Roslyn and East Williston school districts will take to the polls for contested school board elections on May 20, while other districts in the area will see incumbents and newcomers running in other unopposed races.
In addition to voting for each district’s Board of Education trustees, voters in each neighborhood will vote on their district’s budget for the 2025-2026 school year.
Roslyn:
In the Roslyn School District, incumbent trustees Robert Koonin and Alison Gilbert are running for re-election to three-year terms, while Qiana Hobdy, president of the North Shore Chapter of the NAACP, will also be running for the board’s two open seats.
East Williston:
East Williston’s school district’s voters will see four new names on their ballot – and two new faces on their school board – this year.
The board’s two incumbent trustees up for election, Tasneem Meghji and David Keefe, are both not seeking re-election after serving the district since 2020 and 2010, respectively.
Nadia Afridi and Eswar Sivaraman are running for Meghji’s seat. Borcheng Hsu, who goes by Bo, and R. Alina Uzilova are running for Keefe’s seat.
Sivaraman has been an active attendee of East Williston’s school board and village meetings. Recently, he was named by East Williston Mayor Bonnie Parente as a liaison between the village and a yet-to-be-announced engineering firm to work to review Williston Park’s water filtration system plans, which are currently being funded by a recent 33% water rate increase to residents of both villages.
Nadia Afridi, a local doctor, has served on the school board’s financial advisory committee.
Uzilova has been active in the school district, serving on the school board’s educational advisory committee and the Roslyn Country Club Civic Association.
Hsu, a village resident, is seeking his first term on the board.
North Shore:
In the North Shore School District, four trustee positions are open on the Board of Education, and incumbent trustees Lisa Cashman, Jessica Dillon and James Svendsen will be running for re-election, while newcomer Brian Hanley will be running for the first time to fill the open seat left by Richard Galati who previously left the board.
Jericho:
The Jericho Board of Education has one open seat, currently held by board president Christopher Foresto, who is not running for re-election.
Jennifer Camhi will run for the open three-year seat Foresto has occupied this May.
Camhi, a physical therapist, ran for election last year against incumbents Samuel Perlman and Jennifer Vartanov.
According to her campaign Instagram, @Jenncamhiforboe, she has served in numerous capacities on the Parent-Teacher Association, including as president, and is a member of the West Birchwood Civic Association board.
She is also an educator and professional lecturer, and her educational experience brings a “unique and fresh perspective,” Camhi said in a post during her last election cycle.
Last year, the Jericho Teachers Association took to Facebook to announce their support for Camhi and Shewar Khan, who ran alongside her.
“The Jericho Teachers Association is proud to support the candidacy of Jennifer Camhi and Shewar Khan for the Jericho Board of Education. These two candidates best represent what the JTA believes are important qualities in Board of Education trustees for the students and staff of our schools,” the Facebook post said.
“I am privileged to have had the support of the community and the amazing building members that support our children,” Camhi said in an Instagram post last May.
Mineola:
In Mineola, incumbent board Vice President Cheryl Lampasona is seeking re-election unopposed to her board seat. Lampasona has served on the board since 2009.
Lampasona, a long-time New York City public school teacher, said she has two sons in the district and first got involved in the school community by serving on their elementary PTA. She said she looks forward to continuing to serve her community and being involved with her children’s education.
Herricks:
In Herricks, current board President Juleigh Chin is running uncontested for re-election.
Juleigh Chin began her current term as board president in 2022. She has served on the board since 2013, having also held the positions of president and vice president. Off the school board, Chin serves as a member of the Board of Directors for the Asian Institute of Research and Engagement and an associate program manager at North Shore University Hospital.
Westbury:
In Westbury, where three seats are up for election, two incumbents will be seeking re-election.
Current board President Robert Troiano is running for another term. He has been serving on the board since 2018, but also served from 1991 to 1994 and from 1996 to 2002.
“As a graduate of the Class of 1971, serving on the board gives me the opportunity to give back to the community that has given so much to me,” Troiano said.
In addition to serving on the Westbury board, he is also a North Hempstead council member and works at the Nassau County Board of Elections.
Running alongside Troiano is the board’s vice president, Floyd Ewing, who has been a Westbury resident for over 50 years and graduated from Westbury High School in 1987. His two children are also graduates of Westbury High School.
