This week’s Board of Education meeting had higher attendance than usual due to the deliberations on the subject of armed guards being nearly complete, and they only needed to decide when the fateful vote would take place.

Many of the attendees had very strong opinions on the subject, and those on both sides of the issue spoke up to make their opinions heard. One of them was Northport High School student James Connor, who presented an essay to the board. He talked about how armed guards have a history of dangerous mishaps. He mentions an instance of a sheriff leaving his gun unprotected in a middle school locker, where a 6th grader found it. In a Virginia school, an armed guard ’s holstered firearm accidentally discharged into a classroom. Although the classroom was empty, this example still goes to show how these weapons are, in his opinion, unsafe.

Other speakers had different opinions on the subject of armed guards. Nicole Raganella was firmly in support of armed guards. Denise Schwartz believed that some students would be happy to have armed guards, though she neglected to mention any specifics. However, Haley Brenner-Holmes is against armed guards and finds the school’s perceived lack of an inclusive environment to blame.

However, not all of the public commenters were talking about the armed guards debate. Michael Sordi is a parent of a middle school student wishing to apply for a sport in 8th grade. The student had to get an account for a third party program called Family ID. He was perturbed by some of the questions the program asks the user during application. He also noted that any litigation involving the company would have to go to a Massachusetts court. He did not feel it fair that, if for any reason, his son’s information was hacked and he took legal action against the company, they would have to be tried under Massachusetts law.

The Board then went on to vote through items, such as approving the district’s current sexual harassment policy, the education of homeless students policy, and the school food service program, all of which was approved. All of the above policies are described in detail on the Board of Education section on the district website.

Trustee Badanes then moved to discuss the placement of the final armed guard vote now instead of later. Noonan seconds and the motion passes. Trustee Noonan then suggested the discussion of a task force of students, parents, and teachers discussing social and emotional health at the schools. After much deliberation, the board decided to vote on the armed guards issue at the November 28th board meeting, and to discuss Noonan’s task force idea at the December 13th board meeting.

The Board finished up the meeting by approving some budgets and spending. They then discuss Trustee Badane’s idea of live streaming the board meetings for more immediate access to video footage of the board meeting. Trustee McNaughton and others were curious, and Superintendent Banzer agreed to find out how much the endeavor would cost. The board also wanted to get an update on the NYSSBA convention Trustee Noonan attended. However, no dates were formally set for this, and the meeting adjourned.

Stay tuned for more ImPORTant updates!