001for their help at the embaker fall social. Thank you. Uh next, uh item number five, the student delegates. At this time, I'd like to introduce the newly elected student delegates to the board of education. The following students have been chosen by the faculty and the students at the secondary level to represent their building at the student as student delegates. Reports will be provided by these students at different board meetings throughout the school year as we did last. And we welcome these students and thank them for their time. Uh please stand when your name is called. uh from North Middle School, grade six. Uh Jinxen Rue, [Applause] uh North Middle School, grade seven, Lahi Johnny. [Applause] Oh, sorry. Joseph Lahi Johnny, I apologize. Uh from North Middle School, grade 8. Samuel Caya [Applause] from South Middle
002School, grade six. Dove Ada [Applause] [Music] from South Middle School, grade seven. Winston Chen [Music] from South Middle School, grade 8. Uh, Yotang Zing uh from North High School, grade nine. Leil Oad [Applause] from North High School, grade 10. Vivian Adoot uh from North High School, grade 11. Leticia Kaya [Music] from South High School, grade nine. Duvie Kumar from South High School, grade 10. Olivia Chen [Applause] uh from South High School, grade 11. Cassandra Zing [Applause] [Music] from South High School, grade 12. Dalia Castillo and from village uh from village school grave 12wend Hart. [Applause] And at this time there's no rest uh there's no rest for you. Get started right away from North Middle School. We'd like to uh welcome North Middle School to give their monthly report. So thank you. Uh, hi. My
003name is Noah Kaya and I have a report from South High School. Congratulations to Arnav Premaraju, a 12th grader who worked with his classmate Shaun Sod on a research project titled Oxydock, Optimizing Cancer Targeted Therapy through Oxygen Responsive Molecular Docking. Arnav will be presenting at the World Conference on Lung Cancer held in Barcelona, Spain. Austin Jyn, 11th grader, traveled to Chicago for the Association for Diagnostics and Laboratory Medicine 2025 annual meeting and presented a research project on medicine GPT as anformational tool for adolescence. Out of more than 800 abstracts submitted, he was one of the hundred selected to present and was awarded second place in the competition. 11th grader Maren Bai will not be in school this semester as she's going to Washington DC to participate in the US Senate page program. From this from
004the US Senate website, pages play an important role in the daily operation of the Senate. Their shared responsibil their their shared responsibilities consist primarily of delivering correspondence and legislative material within the capital and senate office buildings and working on the Senate floor where they provide assistance. We are proud to announce that in 2025 Great Neck South High has 10 music students selected into the NISMA Allstate Ensemble. Avery Chen, Joanna Juan, Cedric Kai, Caitlyn Chu, Elaine Su, Shanglin Tang, Ashley Zang, Mason Cardonal, um, David Kagan, and Sophia Woo. That's it. [Applause] [Music] >> Hi, my name is Joseph and I have a report from North High School. Pep rally and homecoming were a huge success and promoted a strong sense of school spirit through the halls and fields of North High. The added accumulation of battle
005of the classes points provided an enhanced incentive for all to participate in the spirit week festivals. Um, no festivity, sorry. Our girls varsity soccer team recently won a 3 to one shootout victory against our cross town rivals to earn the spring season Great Neck Cup. Congratulations to all of our student athletes on this accomplishment. Congratulations to Shira Crispen for earning the silver award in the Cornell Cooperative Art Competition, Michelle Chang for earning the coveted piano showcase at the upcoming NISMA Allstate Conference, and to Keon Solommani for being selected as a finalist in the Junior Scientist and Young Explorers Meta Competition. Congratulations to Yija Chen as the recipient of a merit award for visual a for visual arts through the 2026 Long Island Scholar Artist Awards program. Lastly, a special congratulations to all of North High's
006National Merit com students national merit semi finalist as well as to all of the NISMA allstate and alternative honores. Thank you. >> Hi, my name is Jinxen Rue. I am the sixth grade delegate for North Middle School and I have a report from North Middle. The North Middle School club fair held on September 26th for North Middle School students has resulted in a record-breaking participation across all club programs. Club advisors report the highest enrollment and engaging numbers in school history, demonstrating that our students are actively taking advantage of opportunities to connect with North Middle School beyond the classroom and showing strong enthusiasm for extracurricular involvement in our school community. North Middle social studies students commemorated September 11th through classroom discussions and courtyard memor memoral activities. learning about President Bush's speech and community losses while reflecting
007on rebuilding efforts. Students also celebrated Constitution Day on September 11th with grade level activities, including an eighth grade reconstruction trial, seventh grade daily life connections, and a sixth grade constitutional trivia competition. Several eighth grade classes have completed their first research project comparing North American tribal groups in the 1800s. Thank you. [Applause] It's me again and I have a report and we all have a report from South Middle School. The World Language Department celebrated Hispanic Heritage Month by hosting its annual scavenger hunt. Posted around the school were images and fun facts about influential Hispanic men and women. Students were tasked with finding these posters and learning information about these individuals for a chance at winning a prize. In health, our students have enjoyed wellness walks on our beautiful South Campus. Many students report how these walks
008have made an impact on their mental and physical well-being. Our students shared how their stress levels were down and their moods were up. Sixth grade classes have spent time in our wonderful library where they learn how to access books, use our space to their advantage, and choose independent novels to dig into. Our librarian reports that our sixth graders have already checked out 800 physical books already this year. >> The music department has enjoyed extremely productive rehearsals for our December concerts. We are very proud to announce that we had six Friday in the front concerts so far this year. General music students have been working diligently on their music compositions. Thank you. [Applause] This is uh typically my favorite portion of the agenda as this board of education has really done a wonderful job in allowing
009us to highlight recognitions each month. Outstanding students, outstanding staff members, members of our school community. Um this this month it gives me great pleasure to recognize our board of education. Each year during New York State School Boards Association Board Recognition Week, we take time to honor and express our deep gratitude to the members of the board of education. Serving as unpaid volunteers, our trustees dedicate countless hours to ensuring that every decision made reflects what is best for our students, staff, and this community. Their work extends far beyond the walls of this beautiful room, balancing policy, budget, and vision with care, compassion, and integrity. On behalf of the entire great a public school community, I thank each of you for your steadfast leadership, advocacy, and commitment to excellence in education. Your thoughtful guidance helps preserve the
010district's proud traditions while propelling us forward towards continued innovation and opportunities for all of our learners. Student focused leadership starts at the top and sets a positive tone for all to follow. Thank you for providing the opportunities and resources that help our students not only to achieve, but to excel. We recognize that your service is both demanding and deeply impactful. And tonight we pause to acknowledge and celebrate our invaluable contribution, your invaluable contributions to the success of our schools. I would now like to welcome our assistant superintendent for secondary education, Dr. Holtzman. [Applause] President Tac, Dr. Baser, members of the board, colleagues, community members, it is my pleasure and honor to be a part of the board of rec board of education recognition. It's an opportunity to recognize and appreciate the value you add, the
011value added, your volunteerism, dedication brings to the Great Neck School District and community. Just as we should not wait for special occasions to share our gratitude with others, this is a moment where all else can be put aside and you can bask in the moment of unequivocal appreciation and thanks to you. Now that I have stolen Mr. McNamera and Mr. Depal's thunder, I would like to welcome them for to give you the board of recognition um from North High and South High Schools. [Applause] Good evening, distinguished members of the board of education. It is an honor and privilege uh to be here to honor your great dedication to this amazing community. I'm sure it's no coincidence that the two firstear principles um were tasked with providing the gift for for this evening, but we were
012more than happy to collaborate and work together and do so. Um not only because you approved our positions, but um also because we greatly notice and see from day one how dedicated, how committed you all are with your volunteerism. um and and thankless job at times for what you do for this community um our students, our staff, all for the better betterment of this great community. So, thank you. Thank you for all that you do for for everyone and we're looking forward to many more thanks in in the future. I believe we have a video. Is it ready to go or do we should All right. So, um we're going to do a short Oh, sorry. And then we have a few few other words to share and I'll tell you what's in the in
013the gift bag after that. Okay. Yes. [Music] Heat. [Music] Heat. [Music] Heat up here. [Music] Heat. Heat. Heat up here. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. [Music] Steal my heart. Break my phone. This is all I've ever wanted. I know you got it all. I'll follow you. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Applause] [Music] Yeah. [Music] Heat. Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat up here. Heat. Heat. Thank you board of education. Thank you. >> Thank you. Board of Education. [Music] [Applause] [Music] special thank you to Mr. Robzan and the crew at GMPS TV for their wonderful work. Um, there sure were a lot of thank yous there at the end, but in all honesty, there aren't enough thanks that can be given. So, once again, we do appreciate it. And I know we had a few words that our student delegates
014although um part of the board now just wanted to share as well. >> We would like to express our heartfelt and immense gratitude and appreciation for the distinguished members of the Grey Neck Public Schools Board of Education for your unwavering commitment and leadership. Your continued support of our district's exceptional academic programs, extracurricular opportunities, athletics, and fine and performing arts allows each and every student to grow, explore, and succeed. And because of your vision and your commitment, our schools remain places where curiosity is encouraged and talents are nurtured and excellence is celebrated. On behalf of all Great Neck students, we thank you for your steadfast guidance and for ensuring that our district continues to shine as a model of educational achievement and community pride. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Very well said. Very well said.
015Uh and finally for the gifts. So what you'll find in there is a collaborative a collaborative effort between myself and Mr. Depalo and and our teams. Um if you would like to open them, please feel free. In there you will have a special mug that I think will go with another gift you might have. Um that was made um with Maya Learner and the library crew at North in our maker space. Um you know the the new Rebel Blazer, if you will. And then Mr. Apolla this great idea. Apples are very significant in education. Um so with again my learners help in our maker space as well as our um South High School Mr. Match his crew. That platform on underneath the Apple is made was made by student um Michael Melamemed with a 3D
016printer. So, it was designed and created with a with a 3D printer at at South High School. So, we hope you enjoy um the least we can do. And thank you once again. I'd also like to thank our partner in crime, uh Mr. McNamera, uh because he picked out the blue bags and the orange as he was driving here. He stopped at CVS and uh he uh he has skills that I I did not know. Thank you very much. [Applause] >> Now, I have learned um throughout my career to never follow student speakers because they are always far more eloquent. So, to do that, I'm going to call upon our UPTC co-president and the artist who gave us the Rebel Blazer, Mr. Doug Briner. [Applause] Thank you very much. I don't know how we followed
017that video. Uh, so we actually brought along a live perform. No, I'm just kidding. There's nothing here. Uh, my name is Doug Brener. I'm the co-president of UTC along with uh, Marissa Cranian who is a hockey mom and is on her way back from a hockey game right now. So, she'll be joining us shortly. We wanted to say on behalf of the entire UBTC, the board, presidents, all of us, uh, how much we appreciate the board of education. We're in the process of rebuilding, reshaping, reorganizing the UP, UBTC, and your support has been invaluable. Your encouragement has been invaluable. We really appreciate that. Uh, everyone has mentioned your incredible amount of unwavering support for the entire district. the incredible amount of hours unpaid hours that you spend at this job and it is truly truly
018appreciated not just by the UPTC but by the entire district. So again on behalf of all of us thank you for helping make uh great nectar the extraordinary lighthouse district that it is and uh we wish you all continued success. Thank you very much. [Applause] But wait, there's more. No. Um, so for each member of the board of education, uh, Suzanne Malanzi, our district clerk, helped to put together a packet that you will find behind you, and I will tell you the contents. Um, we were very fortunate to hear from so many of our elected officials and organizations who recognize the efforts and contributions of our board trustees. From Congressman Tom Suis, there's a certificate of special congressional recognition from the members of the Great Neck Board of Education for the role they play in
019shaping the learning experience of students in the community. from New York State Senator Jack Martins's proclamations for each board member honoring and commending these individuals whose steadfast commitment to public education, civil service, and community leadership strengthens the fabric of New York State education institutions and enriches the lives of our citizens. From New York State Assemblyman Daniel Norber, individual citations for each board member expressing gratitude and appreciation for their public service and to further acknowledge their important contributions to the well-being of public schools. From Nassau legislator Mazi Phillip, citations for each board member who demonstrate dedication, commitment, and leadership and service to our community. From town of North Hemstead Councilwoman Christine Louu, proclamations for each board member recognizing outstanding citizens whose visions, benevolence, and dedication strengthening our community. from the New York State School Boards Association's
020certificates of appreciation for each school board member. And from myself and members of the cabinet, I we also have a small gesture in reflection of your commitment to Rebel Blazer Pride. Let me hand them out. the citations inside from the elected officials in the envelope, but if you'd like to open the CVS um blue bags >> for the cameras, >> for those who aren't aware of the story, um it was a a a May or a June board meeting where we're recognizing our Long Island champion women's golf team. And our golf team is a combination of North High and South High Rebels and Blazers. So, I jokingly said, "Congratulations, Rebel Blazers." And then I just quipped, "Wouldn't it be cool if we had a logo um that matched the Rebel Blazers?" So UBT's co-president Doug
021Brener um just went to ChachiBT um dropped in the Blazer logo, the Rebel logo and out popped this design that we have now replicated on many many different um uh articles of clothing and hats and everything else. Um we actually sent it to BSN Sports who makes all of our uniforms and they made them professionally embroidered for us. And these are some of the prototypes of the Rebel Blazard. It's very difficult as a member of central administration and the board of education to go to sporting events and act neutral. So now we could just root for both teams. Um so it's really great. So um board members, uh we hope that you feel the appreciation that everyone in this room has for your service. This is unpaid um volunteerism that is often thankless. So we
022wanted to make sure we took a moment to just say thank you. And further um the deputy superintendent, Mr. O'Keeffe has authorized us to double each of your salaries effective tomorrow. Um, so you have that to look forward to as well. Um, and and thus concludes a board recognition portion of our of our program. Congratulations to all. [Applause] >> Well, thank you very much. I am really looking forward to wearing my Rebel Blazer shirt. Um, those of us who those of you who've seen me at the homecoming games know I wear my uh baseball jersey, which just says Great Neck Public School District on the front. Now I have a second item to wear. So, I'm very excited. Um, and all I can say is um it's a privilege to serve and um watching that
023video, seeing all the students, the activities that they're in, smiles on their faces. Um, that's why we do this. Um it's a real privilege as I said and I uh and I treasure it every single day and I from the students to the administrators to the teachers um it's really been an unforgettable experience. Um and again I just feel privileged to do it. So thank you very much. As many of you know, I have been a parent, a parent volunteer, you a PTA president, a UPTC president, a teacher in the district, and now a board member. And nothing gives me greater pleasure than seeing the students of this district excel in whatever it is that they choose for themselves. And I was very proud tonight to have one of the speakers at the transportation forum
024was a former student of mine and one of our board delegates over there was a former student of mine and to see them achieving gives me the greatest pleasure in the world and I am so happy to have been able to be a part of this district for over 40 years. I echo Mr. Tuck's sentiment. It's a privilege to sit here and serve the community. I want to take this opportunity to thank the students, the faculty, the administration, the cabinet for all your hard work. And I want to give a special thanks to um the community at large, all the taxpayer for entrusting us um being the steward and the fiduciary to the school district. And we will continue to do our very best for the community. So, thank you all. [Applause] I would like
025to echo what was said by my colleagues and really um we don't serve for thanks. I don't serve for thanks but I would like to thank everyone who was involved in putting together this recognition. It's the little gestures, the gestures that our teachers make for our children in the schools. the gestures that our administrators make to make the schools run as well as they do daytoday and the gestures that were made this evening to make our board feel so gratified. Um I very much appreciate all of that. Um I especially appreciate that UPTC acknowledged us this year. I don't take that for granted having I don't take that for granted. I will just say that I do not take for granted Rob's work with his team to make such a beautiful video and all of
026those children being coordinated to thank us and to see them just respplendant with all that is available um here in our buildings and um it is a joy, it is a privilege. There are hard decisions that we make and nights like this make it feel um very gratifying. So, thank you very much. >> Um, it's a privilege to serve and I'm humbled by what everything that has been said and I just want to take the time to thank all the faculty and the cabinet um, administrators, teachers, parents. It does take a village and I'm proud to be your partner. [Applause] Now I get to hand it back to you Dr. Boser. You can follow yourself. >> Well, in the interest of time, I have a 92 point slide I'd like to go through. Um, no.
027Uh, I will be very brief tonight because I do want to yield time to a very uh important presentation about to be made by members of our uh curriculum team. Uh but I do want to remind the board and the community that we have two upcoming superintendent conference days on Monday. School will be closed for students in recognition of Dvali. Um but our stu but our faculty and staff will be in for some important building based workshops. Um the focus of Monday is really to continue our efforts regarding consistency not uniformity. Um we are doing purpose we are making purposeful attempts to bring our buildings together to bring our high school teams together to bring our middle school teams together the departments grade levels um so that um our teachers have a chance to articulate
028and collaborate with one another on the best learning resources within great neck is from each other. we have so many internal experts um to really learn and gain so much valuable insight from that we wanted to make sure that we provide an opportunity for our teachers to interact with one another. Um and I really appreciate the purposeful attempts being made um by Dr. Dr. Holtzman and Miss Henratz to make sure that time is provided um for the faculty to get together and I thank our building leaders for planning structured activities throughout the day that will ensure the valuable time being spent on November 20th election day for those who were present for the uh presentation made by the Brandeise team in September. That very same team and two of them are three of them are
029represented here tonight. Um they'll be presenting to the entirety of the secondary faculty of the high school faculty at secondary. Thank you. Secondary faculty at the election day conference because we found that work to be so profound and so meaningful and so valuable, we wanted to make sure that all secondary educators received a universal message directly from the sources who who had the benefit from um the Brandeise work. Um so those are the next two conference days. We'll give you a wonderful report following the conference days so we can tell you about the successes we gained and the specific topics that we covered. Um but we do look to look forward to those two days of profound learning opportunity. And with that, if I may, uh Mr. Talk, u we will move on to our
030presentation scheduled this evening. And I'd like to welcome Dr. Holtzman back to the microphone who will introduce the team. Thank you, Dr. Boser. Good evening again. Um while I will not be sharing more appreciation for you, I need to direct my appreciation uh towards Maya Learner and Frank Buof. My apologies. When I first learned of the phrase professional capital about 15 years ago, um to me it was this sort of esoteric concept found only in leadership books not found in practice or professional circles enter Great Neck Public Schools. I've never seen in my career the level of collaboration and the want to learn from one another anywhere else. Maya and Frank's passion for media literacy is beyond reproach. This initiative brought to us by Dr. Boser when he first arrived here at Great Neck Public
031Schools ignited a fire in inside each of them that is unable to be contained and is only limited by their imagination. This past summer they spent well allocated time on developing a K12 curriculum framework for media literacy. It is one of the most insightful, nuanced, far-reaching projects I've had the pleasure of reviewing. To share in more detail, I would like to welcome the authors of this work, Miss Maya Learner and Mr. Frank B. [Applause] If cold could put out a fire, it might be out. Thank you, Cindy, for that. Media literacy is about surviving and thriving in a world where every click, every scroll, and every share is a battle for your attention and a tug-of-war over the truth. Um, the research for the importance of media literacy couldn't be more compelling. 96% of high
032school students struggle to identify reliable digital sources. False information spreads faster than the truth online. Or as Michael Jackson once reminded us, be careful what you do because the lie becomes the truth. Most teens now spend more time each day on their screens than they actually do sleeping. The constant exposure has real consequences. shortened attention spans, distorted perceptions of reality, and a reduced ability to analyze, decode, and process information. Meter literacy is the singular most powerful tool that we have to confront these issues. The rise of misinformation and disinformation, the influence of algorithms and AI generated content, the erosion of respectful discourse, growing polarization and manipulation, and the emotional toll of digital life. When May and I began this project, we didn't want to just react to the problem. We set out to develop a
033response that reflects Great Neck's role as a lighthouse district and models what thoughtful forward-thinking meter leadership can look like. And while there's still plenty of heavy lifting ahead, we're not starting from scratch. As mentioned previously, Dr. Dr. Bosard's leadership over the past few years, our district has made meaningful progress in supporting media literacy, uh, including dedicating past and future superintendents conference days to this topic, supporting faculty part participation in summer institutes, creating new media literacy electives for students, and inservice opportunities for educators and allowing us to present this proposal today. We've also seen firsthand how deeply committed our educators are to this work. However, when we looked across buildings and grade levels, we found significant variation in students experiences. As department chairs, we are both regularly um approached by educators seeking guidance, asking questions like,
034"Where do I start with media literacy? What's appropriate for my grade level? How do I build on what my students have done before?" And our framework is designed to address these questions by offering research-based, developmentally appropriate model for integrating media and information literacy across all content areas so students can build the skills they need to navigate an increasingly complex world. It also responds to something that we've heard consistently from teacher, the need for a shared approach that supports collaboration across disciplines and scaffolding skills across grade levels. Meter literacy cannot be effective if it's confined to one subject matter. It spans ELA, social studies, science, health, the arts, and it shapes how students make sense of the world around them. So we before we started building our framework, we wanted to look at the national landscape.
035We wanted to get a clear picture of what's happening across the 50 states and what place each state was at when it came to um different state efforts, standards, legislation, and curriculum work. And one of our uh framework tabs is actually dedicated to that 50 state overview. Some states are doing great work. We were really impressed with states like Delaware and Ohio. But overall, what we found is that most states, including New York, are still either getting started or have barely began this work. What stood out most was that even though most states had even the strongest of states that had efforts um that they already started doing, some of them were already outdated. AI, algorithms, platforms, they're all evolving at breakneck speeds and standards and legislations can take years to develop and by the
036time that they're in place, they can sometimes feel outdated and feel like they're catching up to what students are actually experiencing. And that's why we felt it was important to make a framework that was flexible that was able to evolve and grow with our needs and as the world kept changing. So alongside policy, we also took a look at namely Stamford Education Group, um Stonybrook, uh the AASL News Literacy Project, UNESCO, Common Sense Media, so that we were building a strong solid foundation. And once we had a broad understanding of the national landscape, we brought our attention to Great Neck and we took everything that we learned and we built out something that we believed to be more comprehensive and more vertically aligned and more cross-disciplinary than anything that we were able to see. What
037emerged were 22 competencies that are um spread across five domains. Those domains include evaluating information, media and messages, content creation and engagement, personal and social dimensions, and civic and societal impact. Some pieces of the framework are what you might expect. So they include evaluating credibility, identifying bias, but others were built on areas that were often missing. things like AI, algorithmic awareness, persuasion, emotionally manipulative language, um media and mental health, which has been a hot topic lately, ethical content creation, and we were really intentional about including those nuances. What's important to recognize is that these skills, they aren't tied to a single department or a single content area. They're relevant everywhere and they're foundational skills for life. Our students are living in a media saturated world as are the adults that are helping them navigate this
038world and they need the skills to be able to get through it. Now, this slide is not intended to overwhelm you, but I wanted to give you a sense of the amount of planning and thought that went into this framework. So, each competency, it's hard to see, but it includes a competency skill statement. It includes essential questions as well as rationale and our goal was to make sure that we're building deeper and more connected understanding over time. Once the competencies were in place, our next challenge was figuring out how do we scaffold these over time? How might you introduce something like bias to a sixth grader and then how does it evolve over time by the time they get to 12th grade? And that's where Spark, Expand, and Advance come in. So we created three
039tabs in the framework, each focused on a specific grade band. So there's the Spark grade band focused on grades six through eight. And students in that grade band are introduced to foundational concepts across all 22 of the competency areas. As we move into the expand framework, grades nine and 10, we have them apply those skills in deeper and more complex ways. And once we get to the advanced framework in grades 11 and 12, students are at that point synthesizing information across multiple sources. They're critiquing systems. They're creating content ethically. And they're reflecting on their role as digital citizens. This progression was designed to not just be linear, but to also scaffold and be layered. And one of my favorite parts of the framework um because this is one of my favorite parts of the framework
040because I think it really captures the long-term vision that our students are growing year after year and they're growing into thoughtful, critical, ethical media users. >> Um the framework that Maya and I developed is u researchbased and aligned to meet the needs of today's students. But even the most robust framework means little if we don't know where we're starting from. And so we propose that the district start with an inventory, a snapshot of what's already happening in our schools, asking the questions, what are teachers already doing in the space? To what extent? What's missing? Where are the natural entry points? And just as importantly, who's already leading in this work? We don't want to be duplicative. Uh we don't want to be dismissive of any efforts that are happening. We want to meet people where
041they are and develop a coordinated uh response. Um this to us is a chance to surface to the incredible work that's already happening often in isolation and create patterns and pathways for collaboration and sharing. The framework gives us a shared language. The inventory will help us uncover the stories, the strategies, and the innovations behind that language. It will also ensure that every teacher has a voice in shaping what comes next because we know respectfully that real change doesn't often happen from the top down. It happens with educators, not to them. And we want to develop their buyin. What we envision really is a state of media literacy and greatneck report. not just a checklist to complete, but a living story. Where we are now, where the energy is building, and where to go next. From
042there, we'll ask the district to pilot implementation and professional learning offered not just as a one-sizefits-all training checkbox, but as a responsive support that meets educators where they are and grows from there. And we'll have some additional suggestions to implement that as well in our report. The thing about media literacy is that it doesn't fit in that box and it's not going to be effective as that one-off or an annual showcase. Every subject offers opportunities to help students think critically about the media shaping their world. We may teach different subjects, but ultimately we all teach skills and media literacy is the thread that connects our disciplines, turning content into context, information into insight, and students into thoughtful, informed citizens. Um, even the bestlaid plans need support and that's why we're so grateful for the board
043of education and Dr. Bosard's leadership on this. So, alongside the skills and progressions, we've included a curated collection of resources, books, and articles that both we've used to develop this plan and that other people could take a look at to see um where we came from. and Maya mentioned earlier some of the leaders in the field that we used um as um springboards and starting points namely the news lead uh literacy project etc. I I guess we really see this more as more than just a framework. It's a full spectrum toolkit that can grow and evolve as our needs grow and evolve. And finally to close up, thank you. Um the work is just getting started and we were excited to be a small part of the process moving forward. If discovery does indeed lead
044to greatness, then media media literacy is the map that ensures our students won't get lost along the way. Thank you so much for your time. [Applause] Well, thank you very much for that presentation. Um, I know my daughter is taking a news media lit literacy class in North High School. I think it's a brand new class, actually, and I know she's enjoying it very much. So, thank you. Um, with that, uh, we will move to agenda item nine. Uh, may I have a motion to accept agenda items 9A and B, which are donations? >> So moved. >> May I have a second? >> Second. >> Any discussion? >> Thank you for the donations. >> Yes. Thank you for the donations. >> Thank you for the donations. >> Uh, all in favor? >> I I motion
045passes 5-0. May I have a motion to ex to approve agenda item 9 C which is the 25 2025 2026 board of education goals. >> So moved. >> May I have a second? >> Second. >> Any discussion? All in favor? >> I >> motion passes 5. Next, uh, may I have a motion to approve agenda item 9D, which is the bienial review committee of the district level shared decision-making plan? >> So move. >> May I have a second? >> Second. >> Any discussion? All in favor? >> I. >> The motion passes 5. May I have a motion to accept agenda item 9E, which are student teachers and/or observers for fall 2025? >> So moved. May I have a second? >> Second. >> All in favor? I >> I. The motion passes 5-0. With that, I'll
046move to agenda item 10, which are policies, and I will introduce our policy committee chair, uh, Miss Chan. >> Thank you. This evening, we have three policies for first read and possible adoption and one policy for um, abolishment. Policy 2371, Student Delegates to the Board of Education. Upon review, the policy committee recommends that the policy language be amended to reflect the change in attendance requirements for student delegates at board meetings. Policy 4311.1, Display of the Flag. The policy committee has reviewed this policy to ensure clarity regarding proper etiquette and guidelines which are to be followed in accordance with federal and New York state laws, regulations, and this policy. Policy 5110, school attendance areas. The policy committee has reviewed this policy and made revisions to clarify the information regarding the schools within the attendance area in
047which students reside. May I have a motion to accept agenda item 10A policies 2371 4311.1 and 5110 for a first read and possible adoption. >> So moved. >> Any second? >> Second. Any discussion? All in favor? >> I I >> I. Motion passes 5-0. >> Policy 8220, grounds care. The policy committee reviewed this policy and at the discretion of the director of facilities recommends that it be abolished as its contents are already addressed in the board's policy on pesticides and pesticide management. May I have a motion to accept agenda item 10B policy 8220 for abolishment? >> So moved. >> May I have a second? >> Second. Any discussion? All in favor? I >> I motion passes 5-0. >> Thank you, Miss Chan. Uh with that, we will move on to the consent agenda, which are
048items 11B through 14B. May I have a motion to accept items 11B through 14B? >> May I have a second? >> Second. >> Any discussion? >> All in favor? I >> I the motion passes 5-0. Then I'll hand it over to Dr. Boser. >> Thank you. Um an item of note on the uh personnel agenda this evening is the board accepted the resignation of Baker Elementary's uh long-erving principal Dr. Michael Grimmaldi. As my letter to the comm Baker community reflected earlier in the week, Dr. Grimmaldi has given notice to the board of his intention to pursue other opportunities outside of Baker. Um at the next board of education meeting held on November 12th uh November 12th. Yes. Um it is anticipated that the board will appoint an interimm principal um to complete the year um
049for Baker ensuring consistency and continuity for our students, faculty and staff. Um we're in the process of identifying the most dynamic and outstanding person to fill that role for the remainder of the year. So, please stay tuned. Um, as soon as that information is finalized, we will communicate it to the community. U, may I go off agenda with one item? Um, we have a special guest with us this evening. Um, the town of North Hemstead Supervisor, the Honorable Jennifer Desenna has arrived. I know you are playing many roles in many hats tonight. Um, but I believe you have something you'd like to share with the board of education. >> Thank you very much. Good evening. Um, Dr. Tacos, school board, parents, teachers, it's wonderful uh to see you here. Yes, I just got out of
050my own board meeting and um glad to see you're all doing well here. Mine was a little tough, but anyway, I'm here to thank you because you do an amazing job. You do it not for yourselves, but for our children and for our future, for for Great Nick now, for Great Nick in the future. So, we're all in this together. We're building for the community together. Um, and you have a tough job. It's hard to be number one. All eyes are on you. And everybody wants um the best for their kids. And and sometimes, you know, I'm a parent as well. We know that we um we just want the best so badly. But I thank you for your many many years of service. and oh I thank you our our student members too. What
051a wonderful thing for you to be learning right now. So um I I just want to say thank you. You make the town of North Hemstead a better place. We have top schools and obviously we have the train but and we have some beaches and beautiful water but it's about the top schools. So I know that's why uh that's why I moved to North Hempstead and that's why a lot of people are here in Great Neck. And hey Jim, it's a it's a wonderful place. You show working together. You show you're giving of yourselves, of your time, so much of your time. So I want to um I want to thank you for inviting me here tonight and um very grateful for your service and really for meeting the challenges. There are always new challenges
052and you just keep on reaching higher and higher. So thank you. >> Thank you. [Applause] Oops. Thank you. Sure. >> Uh, one more offscript moment. You know, we we've had an eventful evening and a long evening, and if I could think of a way to spend a birthday, this would really be it, right, Max? Happy birthday, Maxwell Poor. Ladies and gentlemen, thank you. I appreciate the offscript gesture. Um, this is the way I want to spend it and I only turned 171, so why not be an EM Baker? [Music] [Applause] >> Happy birthday, Max. Um, at this time we'll move to open time. If you've filled out a yellow card and handed it to our district clerk, who's right here, Miss Malazi, we'll ask you to come to the podium when your name is called,
053please pronounce your name clearly along with your address. Uh please note, you'll have three minutes to speak and comments regarding individual personnel or students will not be entertained. Uh there'll be no interaction with the board of education unless clarification is required. So the first person is Ivon Zoo Zoo. Good evening, Mr. T and members of the board of education. Tonight, I want to speak about the district's student accommodations process and the responsibility the board has to ensure it works for every student in the community. When I last appeared before you at the start of the school year, I raised three concerns. First, the widespread lack of awareness about 504 accommodations among both families and staff. Second, the insufficient training provided to teachers, administrators, and counselors, leaving them uncertain about how to support students who need
054accommodations or who are in the process of obtaining them. And third, the troubling practice of penalizing students with educational disabilities by denying them the chance to make up work completed during the evaluation period. At that time, I also offered constructive solutions. As to transparency, make district policies clear, accessible, and more visible on the website. As to staff training, ensure every educator understands both the letter and the spirit of the rehabilitation act. And as to fairness, allow students who ultimately receive accommodations to revisit and make up work completed while their evaluations are pending. I also provided a handout with detailed proposals, references to advocacy organizations such as the Long Island Advocacy Center, and a draft amendment to the district's 504 policy. Following that meeting, I was told to expect a response from Dr. Hickeyi, our assistant
055superintendent for special education and pup pupil personnel services. That was 6 weeks ago. Since then, there has been no response from Dr. Hickeyi, no acknowledgement from this board and no visible progress on any of the reforms proposed. This silence speaks volumes. It suggests that the needs of students with disabilities, those whom district policy 5020.3 calls regular students, are still treated as secondary despite our district's claims of excellence and inclusion. Great Neck calls itself a lighthouse district, but a true lighthouse does more than call itself one. Right now, this board has an opportunity to lead to ensure that every student, regardless of ability, is treated with fairness and dignity. Once again, I've provided a short handout outlining concrete steps forward. I urge this board to act, not simply because it is required by law, but because
056it is the right thing to do. Thank you. >> 30 seconds. We would just ask that in the future both you and future speakers pertain to the rules of open time and we refrain from naming specific members of the faculty, staff or the administration. However, I am happy to share that Dr. Hickeyi is here this evening. I am certain he has heard your remarks and will call you tomorrow. Thank you, Dr. Boser. Uh, next up is Judy Lyman. Good evening. My name is Judy Lyman and I live in Great Neck, New York. And uh, u, Mr. talk and the board of education and Dr. Bosard, I just want to congratulate you again. Um, welld deserved in terms of the uh board of ed week. So, thank you very much. It was really a lovely uh
057tribute to you tonight and I echo it as well. Um, I came here to talk about the Brandeise project and you guys answered a lot of my questions actually. So, I have pivoted. So, I would like to know now that you're going to uh speak to that project on one of your uh professional development days. I'd like to know how the community is going to find out about what you're going to do in terms of accountability or consistency. I've modified that word as well. And uh consistency and accountability in both sides of town regarding the Brandeise project. So my question is, how are you going to tell the community what you're going to be doing? I mean, and it's wonderful that you're going to tell the teachers, but I'd like to find out what you're
058going to do. And also October 8th, how are you going to teach that? And the current peace developments. These are very heavy projects, but because of our uh um support for our teachers, I'm sure they'll be able to do that in the way that's in the realm of media literacy. Now, uh, second thing tonight, I wanted to, uh, talk about the National Education Association, and it's it it sent out an eraser map of Israel to three million of its members, which includes NIST, which includes the people that teach our children here in Great Neck. And I'm calling upon the union here to craft some kind of message to the national NEA. And from what I understand when I talk to someone tonight, they are indeed going to do that. But I'd like them to follow
059up and if they are echoing tonight what they're going to do as great necks uh nicit and union representation in terms of standing up and being upstanders regarding the abhorrent NEA uh eraser of Israel on its map. And that's pretty much it. Thank you so much and I'd like to have some kind of followup in terms of what I suggested at the beginning because I I mean you guys are doing great things uh and I'd like to know about them and finally the media literacy I I it was interesting I really f tried to follow all of it >> 15 seconds >> understood but I'd like to know specifically what is it that's good media literacy and bad is the New York Times something that we need to fair it out is the Washington Post.
060What is it that we need to discern? I'd like to know it. And thank you very much. >> Thank you. >> Next is Rob Raphael. Hello. Excuse me. Hello, board. How you doing? Uh, thanks for allowing me the time to speak. Um, it's tough to come up here and see what I saw in the last couple weeks. Uh, in terms of our school rankings, for years, I've been told to vote for the budget because it can't we can't hurt our school our rankings. It'll affect our housing values tremendously. For years, we've been number one and two in the state, much less the county. Recently, I've noticed that we've dropped tremendously. We dropped in the state to 19 and 25 in our high schools. We dropped to seven and eight in our, you know, in Long
061Island. Surprisingly, behind the schools that I was told that we were competitive with, uh, Half Hollow Hills East, Half Hollow Hills West, Sioset, Roslin, Manhassid, and Jericho. These are all school districts I was told that was our main competition and we have to pass our budget accordingly so we compete and stay above these. We've dropped and I, you know, I'd like to know if there could be a followup as to why we feel we've dropped so much. Um, you know, one second. I understand that you're not going to answer me at this meeting because you really, you know, it's not a conversational thing, but Dr. Bosard, if you can please reach back out to me and let me know why we feel we've dropped so much, it would be very helpful. Um, secondly, you know,
062I noticed that South has dropped below North. Now, I don't know if you remember, but I was at a school I was at a school board meeting, you know, complaining about the amount of work that South gets compared to North. And one of the school board members said, "When your kid applies to college, just, you know, just tell them that, you know, our school, you just tell them that South is harder. They'll understand because they're in direct competition." And that was in relation to a the North giving AP points, additional B, pardon me, kids who took AP classes getting additional bumps by the, you know, the score that they got on the AP test where the south kids got absolutely no bumps. So, I'd like to know, you know, from what I understand, that practice
063didn't continue. But what I'm hearing, it's still continuing. So I'd like to know what we're going to do about that. Somehow I believe in a meritocracy and from what I see, we've fallen in our rankings and there is no meritocracy. So I'd like hopefully somebody to get back to me telling me that. Please don't let don't allow that at this point. We need to have a meritocracy. >> 30 seconds. >> No worries. I appreciate your time. Thank you very much. Uh you're correct that this is not intended to be a a dialogue, but just for a point of clarity for the board of education, um earlier today we received a citation from Congressman Swazi, a a wonderful uh certificate that'll be framed and placed in the um district office at FIPS. Um it was in
064recognition of the most recent niche rankings of public schools um where Great Neck Public Schools ranked number six in New York State and number 20 in the United States of America of 100,000 public school districts in our country. Uh, next Michelle Raphael. >> Hi, good evening. And I apologize it's a little duplicative mainly of Judy Lyman, but I too have to follow up on the implementation of the on the of the curriculum from the Brandeise Anti-semitism Conference. It's imperative that this begins now. I did hear tonight that during the day off on Monday, there will be secondary teacher discussion amongst the teachers on the topic. That's now a month after last month's board of ed presentation about the need to do something in what they learned. What is being done in the schools and in
065conversation with the students? And I ask again as I did last month, will the same curriculum be taught in North and South schools? Sadly, I have to repeatedly ask because from experience, I know there are vast differences between North and South in curriculum and in policies. Last month, a North teacher raised that he wanted to teach Ellie Risel's white knight, sorry, night. And I would like to know if that's going to be going forward and is that going to be in South as well. You know, out of curiosity, the president of the board mentioned a media class his daughter was taking at North. Is that class offered at South as well? It sounds like a great class and imperative for the time being. Rather than having all of my questions, I've said this before, going
066into a black hole, I am requesting answers as to content, time, and consistency of the Brandeise program. I see all the faces looking at me, and I never hear anything back. And as an aside, when I sat here for years at meetings, I listened as Asian students eloquently spoke about how they wanted to have certain curriculum added. And the board was extremely responsive, which I applaud, but you have to be responsive in this instance as well. Thank you and good night. >> Thank you. Um, Jim Dazinski Good evening and thank you for a few minutes of your time. Congratulations on board recognition night. We're very excited and grateful for the work that you all do. So, thank you so much for that. Um, I'd actually like to speak for a moment. Um, my name is
067Jim Denski. I have the incredible honor of being the president of the Great Neck Teachers Association and I just want to speak for a moment about the NEA, the National Education Association. Uh it is the largest labor union and professional organization representing public school teachers in the US. In addition to advocating for educators and promoting public education, the NEA advocates for policies that promote student well-being, equity, and inclusion, including initiatives related to mental health, diversity, and special education. The NEA also offers resources to its members on a wide range of issues. And when it recently came to their attention that an external resource that was linked to on NEA's website contained inappropriate and offensive content related to Israel and Palestine, it was immediately removed. And I just want to make a point uh clear, the
068information was not sent to members. It was a link on the NEA website to an external source. But that doesn't mean the content is acceptable. Quite the opposite. As I said, it is offensive. It is inappropriate. And I'd like to share with you a few sentences from NEA's press release on this from October 10th. And I quote, "We condemn in the strongest of terms the deeply offensive content linked on the website." NEA has opposed anti-semitism throughout its history and is deeply committed to ensuring the safety and inclusion of Jewish educators and students. without equivocation, NEA stands strongly against anti-semitism." End quote. I'm sure we all agree that NEA has a moral imperative to do better. Our students and our educators deserve better and I can assure you that we'll be watching carefully. I have already
069reached out to the leadership of NISET, the New York State United Teachers, because I believe that all of those affiliated, all the organizations affiliated with NEA, from G&TA, NISTIT, AFT, we all need to be united and stand firm in our commitment that this kind of content is inappropriate. It will not be tolerated. And as I said, NEA must do better. Thank you, Chair. Thank you very much. Thank you. And with that, we will move to agenda item 16, which is board discussion. Is there any board discussion? >> Yes. Thank you. >> Um, if I may. >> Uh, first I would really like to thank again members of administration for the um thoughtfulness that went into this year's recognition of the board. It took your time. I would also like to um acknowledge that um that
070same thoughtfulness was then shown for a member of our school community which I think is exactly what was um besp speaks our community and I then want to acknowledge the members of our community who spoke at the open time and as well during the transportation forum. I couldn't be prouder of our community. I want to also thank Mr. Dazinski if I may. Um Mr. Jazinski, you are not responsible for the NEA, but I want to thank you for having the courage to stand up and speak about what you are going to be doing on behalf of GNTA to address them because quite honestly, I have been hearing about NEA's mishap and that's putting it politely and I'm being as polite as I know how to be um for quite a while now and as well
071I have been personally agrieved by it. So to hear that you are going to take onto your shoulders on behalf of your membership and on behalf of the Great Neck Public Schools GNTA division or what of what I should call the association and then ofid on behalf of your membership is very meaningful and I would like to thank you personally um as from my seat I just I wanted to acknowledge that that's very meaningful and to thank you very much. Thank you. And with that, um, our next regular meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, November 12th, uh, here at Ian Baker at 7:30. Uh, may I have a motion to adjourn tonight's regular meeting? May I have a second? >> Second. >> All in favor? I >> I motion passes 5-0. Have a nice evening.