Great Neck school staff granted tenure

The Island Now

The Great Neck Board of Education, upon the recommendation of the school superintendent, recently granted tenure to 35 teachers and two administrators in the Great Neck Public Schools.

Board President Barbara Berkowitz called the granting of tenure a “very big deal here in Great Neck,” and that the candidates had “exceeded the toughest standards.” The Board of Education joined with the candidates’ gathered families and friends to acknowledge, celebrate, and applaud their accomplishments.

Superintendent Teresa Prendergast strongly recommended each candidate having first met individually with each of them.

Over the course of two Board of Education meetings in June, principals spoke on behalf of the candidates they were recommending for tenure, expressing common themes: candidates are passionate about their work, they bring out the best in their students, they engage their students and help them to love to learn.

At the Board meeting on June 3, tenure was granted to 16 teachers at the high school level: Joseph Lipani, Christine McCarthy, Daniel Moriarty, Yamit Nassiri, Ilana Meredith Schikler, Alison Silk, and Hao Wu at North High; Neel Chugh, Vanessa Cum, Lauren Fiore, Laura Kesselman, Nicholas Sepe, Nicole Spinelli, and Brooke Zaiff at South High; Megan Wilvert at Village School; and Tara Jacobs at the SEAL program.

At the Board meeting on June 20, tenure was granted to 19 teachers at the elementary and middle school levels: Madeline Dressner, Lindsey Glad, Cori Pahl, and Helen Primrose at Baker; Christine Ahl and Gabrielle Levy at Kennedy; Jennifer Brenner, Adrienne Frey, and Eugenie Kim at Lakeville; Fernanda Bravo and Evan Chen at Saddle Rock; Paul Reilly, Trina Rice, Tracey Segal-Nachamie, Christine Sposito, and Qianyun Wang at North Middle; and Jessica Chase, Diane Hodgson, and Kristin Smith at South Middle. Additionally, North Middle School Principal Gerald Cozine and Assistant Principal Jennifer Andersen were awarded tenure as administrators.

Submitted by Great Neck Public Schools.

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