Letter to the Editor: Parrino Running for Reelection to Mineola School Board

The following letter was submitted by Mineola Board of Education Trustee Irene Parrino:

I am running for re-election to the Mineola School Board. I am deeply committed to public schools and educational excellence. I am an independent and critical thinker and an outcome focused.

To me, it is important to be active in one’s community. This is value I instill in my children. When you are an active participant in the community, you see its needs and you are able to respond and become part of the solution.  It shows an openness and willingness to address the challenges we face. Serving the community as a school board member is vital.  Focusing on children’s education and their academic achievement is essential to fostering a stronger community. Being a young mother of two children in the school district, a daughter at Jackson Avenue and a son at Meadow, I know how critical our children’s education is to our community and our global society.

On a personal level, I have been married to Joe Parrino for over twenty years. My husband was a Lieutenant for the New York City Fire Department. I received my B.A. from John Jay College of Criminal Justice and my law degree from New York Law School.

I have always been an active member in the community both as a professional and as a resident. Once I become an attorney in 1993, I began to provide pro bono services to those in need. After moving to Albertson in 1996, I became a member of the Albertson Civic Association then later I was elected an officer of that Association. For years, I volunteered at the Clark Botanic Garden.

In 2004, I was named Trailblazer of the New Millennium by the Nassau County Legislature. I was inducted into the Town of North Hempstead Honor Roll of Women in 2007. I served the community as a member of the Mineola School District’s pre-k committee.

Presently, I volunteer at St. Aidan’s Church teaching religion to neighborhood first graders.  I am member of both the Jackson Avenue and Meadow Drive PTAs and I also serve on numerous committees for each of the PTAs. In 2011-2012, I co-chaired the Jackson Avenue third grade cultural arts committee. Since 2011, I have chaired the Mad Science committee at Jackson Avenue and this year I chair the Mad Science committee at Meadow Drive. Being active in my children’s education has included being a co-class parent of each of their classes since they have started school.

While a member of the school board, I was the recipient of the 2011 School Board Achievement Award.  This school year I am honored to be a recipient of the School Board Leadership Award. Both awards were presented to me by the New York School Board Association. These awards honor and recognize the extensive time and effort I have shown in expanding my governance skill and knowledge. Presently, I serve as the Mineola school board’s BOCES District Representative, and I am member of Auditing Committee and the Strategic Planning Committee.

While there are many educational issues important to residents, I feel a key issue facing the community is how to maintain an excellent educational program in today’s economy. Funding the school district’s budget and working within the property tax cap is not easy or certain these days as New York State’s aid to our district is low compared to years past. The district also faces state mandates that are unfunded, including the implementation of the NYS common core standards and APPR. But I am committed to putting forth a budget that takes into consideration the taxpayer and the students’ educational needs. This year, like last year, the District is working to present a budget that is well within the allowable tax cap and meets all of the students’ educational requirements.

In the area of collective bargaining I participated with the other members of the Board and the Superintendent in formulating the contract proposals that led to greater value to the community while being fair to our employees. As a consequence of that participation we were able to conclude our contract negotiations with our two of our unions.

During my term, I have sought to challenge all of our children and as such have supported new initiatives and technology.  The District has provided our students with new tools in which to learn - providing ipads to our middle school students, and put computers, net books and smart boards in classrooms across the district. I have supported new initiatives that support student achievement and excellence such as the construction of a new science laboratory at Jackson Avenue and implementing a new science program and foreign language program for our elementary students. I supported the initiation of NWEA testing to monitor students’ performance and progress throughout the school year, and the institution of Espark and Compass Learning to challenge each student at their level and abilities.

Last year, our elementary schools received from the USDA the Bronze Award in the Healthier US School Challenge for providing healthy lunches to our students and enacted resolutions to keep our children save from bullies and harassment. After the tragedy of Sandy Hook, the district undertook an evaluation of the safety risks and reviewed policy protocols for student supervision, access control and safety plans to ensure the safety of our children. As a mother of two children, a first grader at Meadow Drive and a fourth grader at Jackson Avenue, and a friend and neighbor to parents who also have children attending schools in the district educating and keeping our children safe is paramount.

Science must continue to be a district focus and our science program should be enhanced. This focus will help make our students intelligent science consumers. Children are naturally drawn to science. Students, of all ages, love learning how things work and experiment. We should enhance are science program with these naturally tendencies in mind.

I am passionate about ensuring that educational excellence is measured and reported. The district must continue with the review and monitoring of our students’ academic progress to ascertain our programs and initiatives are as successful as they can be.

I believe my reelection would bring my wealth of experience to bear on the issues of concern to the community. Moreover, upon reelection, I will be the only board member with all of my children in the school system when the new term begins on July 1, 2013. The community would be placing its public schools in the hands of a Board whose members have no stake in the educational progress of its children. This would be a mistake. I am again running for the Board and in that regard I am asking for your support and your vote on May 21, 2013.

Irene Parrino
Member of, and candidate for the Mineola School Board

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