Aversano resigns from North Salem Board of Ed

NORTH SALEM, N.Y. - The North Salem Board of Education is trying to figure out its next move in the wake of the resignation of one of its trustees.

Carolyn Aversano had one year remaining in her three-year term. She had previously served on the board from 2013 to 2015 and had been its president during that time.

The announcement was made at the board’s Wednesday, June 18 meeting. Her resignation had become effective the day before.

Board president Kurt Guldan issued the following statement two days later:

"The board thanks Carolyn for her years of service to the district. She brought a lot to the table that will be missed. I am working with our superintendent and our attorney on next steps."

Aversano told Halston Media that she’d decided to step down “due to personal reasons.”

“It has been a privilege to serve our school community, and I am grateful for the opportunity to have contributed to the important work of supporting our North Salem students and educators,” she said in a written statement, adding that she wished “the board continued success moving forward."

(Aversano had also formerly served on the Putnam-Northern Westchester BOCES Board of Education and on the North Salem Foundation for Learning.)

Schools Superintendent Dr. Adam VanDerStuyf remarked at the meeting that he’d worked with Aversano twice, once earlier in his “career” and “again in these past two years.”

“I just wanted to thank her for her service and her thoughtfulness in each round of her work on the board,” he said.

Other administrators had nice things to say about their colleague as well.

Noting Aversano’s “partnership” and “collaboration,” Dr. Julio Vazquez, the district’s director of instruction and human resources, praised her for “always trying to make us a better school district.”

“We’re deeply grateful,” he added.

Denise Kiernan, director of health, physical education, and athletics, said it had been “a pleasure working with her, her family, and her children.”

Trustee Frances Havard, who was just re-elected to the board, was also saddened by the news about Aversano, who she called “a good friend.”

“I just want to acknowledge all the work she has put into the district as a trustee, not only on this term but (in) previous terms. She’s smart. She’s attentive. I’ve learned SO much from her,” Havard said, adding that for the past two years Aversano had “been an incredible thought partner to both the district and myself (by) pushing dialogue and inviting reflection that might otherwise get lost in the shuffle.”

Saying she will especially miss Aversano’s “questions” and “attentiveness to detail,” Havard thanked her “for her principled research approach to being a board trustee.”

Reflecting on the past year, Havard expressed gratitude to the parents, guardians, and students who’ve participated in board meetings by sharing their thoughts and using their “voices.”

She was looking forward to having “a student lead” on the school board.

(A newly enacted state law now requires all school districts to appoint at least one student as an “ex officio” non-voting member of their boards of education. This means students will have input into board decisions, although they can’t vote or take part in executive sessions.)

Havard was also, she said, “grateful to the administrative council for having handled all of our questions with grace and a thoughtfulness that highlights mutual respect.”

Looking forward to “another three-year term,” Havard thanked “the public for placing their trust in me.”

Trustee Elizabeth Malvino said she will also miss Aversano.

“I really want to thank her for her mentorship. When I first joined the board, she really kind of jumped in and helped me, you know, put me under her wing, and so I really just want to thank her for that,” she said.

Other Business

The board also held a public hearing on June 18 on the districtwide “school emergency response” plan.

There were no comments from the public. The plan can be found on the district’s website, www.northsalemschools.org.

Extreme Heat

It adopted a policy on “extreme heat condition days,” as required by state Education Law.

Those are defined as days when temperatures in “occupiable educational and support services spaces” are 82 degrees or higher.

“Support services spaces” do not include kitchen areas used in the preparation of food for consumption by students.  The law requires room temperature to be measured at a shaded location, three feet above the floor near the center of the room.

According to the policy, actions that must be taken when temperatures reach 82 degrees include turning off the overhead lights, pulling down shades/blinds, turning on fans, opening classroom doors and windows to increase circulation, not using electronic equipment “to the extent practicable,” and providing water breaks.

The superintendent, facilities director, and building principals determine which actions to take, when to take them, and in what order.

When the heat rises to 88 degrees, students and staff will be evacuated from the affected areas at the schools superintendent’s direction.

They will be moved to cooler locations and/or school will be closed early and students and staff sent home.

During exams, if the temperature reaches 88 degrees in spaces where exams are being administered, students and staff will be removed from the exam room and testing will resume at "a time and place when it is safe to do so," according to the policy.

The policy states that on exam days when the outside temperature “is expected to be high enough that the temperatures in spaces where exams are being administered are likely to reach 88 degrees, even with the heat mitigation measures taken, the district will attempt to find alternate locations to administer exams.”

Cell Phone Plan

The district is also working on its policy regarding students and the use of smartphones or other internet-enabled devices.

New York state’s new “bell-to-bell” restrictions – part of its budget agreement- applies to all K-12 public, charter, and BOCES schools and include lunch times and study halls. It takes effect in the 2025-2026 school year.

The new law is somewhat flexible in that it allows districts to determine how to implement the policy, including how to store the devices. They must also provide a way for parents to contact their children when necessary.

The ban includes exemptions for students with medical needs, those with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) that require device access, and those who use devices for translation, family caregiving, or emergencies. 

Schools may also allow device use for academic purposes or other legitimate needs. 

Because of the “quick turnaround,” it was important to engage “community stakeholders” as soon as possible, VanDerStuyf pointed out.

Middle/High School Principal Vince DiGrandi and Pequenakonck Elementary School Principal Dr. Roy Martin have been gathering feedback from students and teachers about the new law.

The district wanted to hear from parents as well, VanDerStuyf said.

It recently sent out a survey to families via the Blackboard Connect notification system and had, as of June 18, received 220 responses.

He shared “some interesting statistics,” with the board.

Of the 220 respondents, half were PQ families. Seventy-six, or 34 percent were families that had a middle school student and 94, or 42 percent, had a child in high school.

“Those numbers add up to 134 percent, which sounds impossible, but you (the survey takers) could click more than one,” VanDerStuyf explained.

Ninety-two percent of those surveyed were aware of the new law.

This was helpful to the survey because it “wasn’t a surprise to most folks,” VanDerStuyf said.

About 81 percent said they supported the ban; 19 percent did not.

Cited as the main reasons for supporting the restriction was “increased face-to-face communication.” Coming in second was “increased academic focus.” This was followed by “improved mental health” and the potential for a “reduction in cyber-bullying.”

Those who weren’t for the ban cited “emergency contact” as a primary concern.

Among the comments were, he said: “In the event of an emergency, I want direct access to my child.”

VanDerStuyf called that “interesting” because “all the feedback we get from our training is, it’s exactly what we don’t want.”

That’s for “a variety of different reasons, one just making sure we can control information, that the information that’s going both ways is the most accurate,” he explained, adding that it’s also important to “reduce the volume on the airwaves.”

“We don’t want to find ourselves in a situation where systems are bogged down because everyone’s trying … you know,” VanDerStuyf said.

The survey also asked if there were concerns about the storage of the devices.

Seventy percent of respondents did not. For those who did, the primary worry was “theft."

The plan, as outlined in the policy (in its first reading), is that students at PQ will put them in their backpacks and keep them in their cubbies in the classroom.

At the middle/high school, students will keep them in their lockers.

The data has been shared with DiGrandi and Martin. The policy discussions will include how procedures and process might look like, VanDerStuyf said.

The policy currently under review “mirrors the law to a close degree,” he added.

School districts have until Aug. 1 to adopt a written policy. It must be published on each school’s or district’s website.