The Oyster Bay-East Norwich Board of Education unanimously tabled a resolution amending board procedures and policies at its Tuesday, Sept. 30, meeting.
Former Board President Ann Marie Longo stated that the board did not comply with the open meetings law by tabling the policy resolution prior to discussing it publicly at the meeting.
“You don’t care about what we have to say. You’re going to do whatever you want to do, and this town can do nothing about it until they change this board,” said Longo.
She said the public is not given a chance to contribute to or understand board discussions.
The meeting’s agenda included policy changes to the board’s procedures and membership. Drafted changes, which were posted on the district’s website, indicate that the board president would act as a “spokesperson” for the board and that individual members should not correspond with staff, parents, and teachers without approval from the board.
In his superintendent’s report, Superintendent Francesco Ianni recommended that the policy changes be tabled for a later meeting. He said it would be “good for my team to get additional information regarding the policy” before the board’s vote.
“A board agenda item should be discussed in public, based on the laws of open meetings… between the start of this meeting and right now, you tabled it. You could have only tabled it if you discussed those policies [outside] the open meeting, where everyone has a chance to understand and hear,” Longo said during public comment.
Public meeting law states that “every meeting of a public body shall be open to the general public, except that an executive session,” according to the state website.
Longo said she is not opposed to the policy changes, but would like to hear the board discuss them in public.
“We change policies all the time. But we discuss them in public, so that everyone in the town can hear what you guys are doing,” she said.
Additionally, Longo asked why the board’s public comment statement changed. She said the board’s prior statement said that “school board meetings were school district business will be discussed are open to the public.”
The board’s statement on Tuesday said “it is important to note that while the BOE meets in public, it is not a meeting of the public,” and that “debate between members of the audience and/or board members will not be permitted.”
The board did not respond to her comments.
Prior to public comment, Ianni touted the school district’s recent accomplishments. He said students have excelled both in and outside of the classroom.
He said the school’s “culture of excellence is on full display on the fields.” Ianni said both the girls’ soccer and volleyball teams are undefeated so far, and the girls’ soccer team is No. 1 in its conference.
“This momentum begins in our foundational skills,” he said. Ianni said teachers and parents at Roosevelt and Vernon schools are working together at the elementary levels to foster community engagement.
Ianni said the Oyster Bay was ranked No. 41 best school district in the state, according to Niche.com, a website that provides reviews and ratings for public schools, colleges, and neighborhoods nationwide. Last year, the district ranked No. 42. Notably, in 2021, the district ranked No. 146.
Ianni said the district is among the top 3% in the nation, and that its rise in the rankings over the past few years is “nothing short of remarkable.”
“All of this success… is connected. It is fueled by the environment that we, together, create,” he said.
“Thank you all for all of the support that we have [received] to raise ourselves in these rankings… it takes a community,” said board President Nancy Castrogiovanni.
