Interviews Under Way for School Chief Candidates

The Peekskill school board has begun interviewing applicants in its quest for a permanent successor to Schools Superintendent Judith Johnson.

“We are very pleased with the quality and the passion of the candidates,” President Michael Simpkins told the Board of Education on Tuesday, March 15. The next round of candidate interviews is scheduled Friday, March 18.

Johnson retired in early January. The district is headed by Interim Superintendent Dr. Larry Licopoli.

In other developments Tuesday:

• Peekskill’s Parent Teacher Organizations are continuing to develop a new structure for themselves, featuring one PTO for all district elementary schools instead of one for each building. The biggest challenges, Marcela Bobe told her fellow board members, are bank account arrangements and getting enough parent volunteers.
• The board delayed approval of an additional payment of $47,840 to Superior Abatement for asbestos removal at the old Peekskill Middle School pending determination of whether the work was within or beyond the scope of the original contract.
• Proposed energy performance renovations in district buildings took a step forward as the board determined that the work would not impact the environment and therefore would not require environmental review or an impact statement under the State Environmental Quality Review Act. The project involves rehabilitation and replacement of such things as lighting, mechanical systems, controls and finishes.
• At the suggestion of board member Joseph Urbanowicz, the board added a second hearing of citizens, for agenda items, near the end of meetings. The second session supplements a slot for citizens at the beginning of meetings. Simpkins encouraged people to speak up. “We will address your concerns,” he said.
• Lisbeth Bock, board liaison to the Community Budget Advisory Committee, said the video of the March 12 budget forum is expected to be available this week on local Channel 77.
• The board authorized an agreement with Sheryl Goffman of Great Neck, N.Y., to conduct a comprehensive reading evaluation and needs assessment at a cost not to exceed $10,000.
• The board accepted a gift of $100 from Yorktown-based North County News to the Gifts and Donations Account.
• In quest of lower prices, the board agreed to join participating school districts of the Southern Westchester Board of Cooperative Educational Services in joint bidding for a variety of art, office, paper, audio-visual and custodial supplies, microcomputer hardware, office and classroom furniture and graphing calculators.
• The board approved appropriation of $781,197.48 from reserve funds to settle a tax certiorari case with Crossroads Associates LLC.
• The board accepted federal grants totaling $1.2 million for the general fund and $1.9 million for the special aid fund.