School board reelects McCarthy as president

WATKINS GLEN (7/13/16)--The Watkins Glen school board held their annual reorganizational meeting Tuesday, July 5, in the district's board of education room. During this meeting, current School Board President Kelly McCarthy was reelected to her post. Board member Gloria Brubaker was also reelected as vice president during the meeting. The board of education meeting was pushed back to Tuesday due to the July 4 holiday.
Other appointments were also made during the meeting, which included the swearing in of board members Kristin Hazlitt and Mark Franzese. Hazlitt and Franzese were recently reelected during the May 17 school board and budget vote. The two ran unopposed for their seats. Their terms now extend through June 30, 2019.
In other business:
• Superintendent Tom Phillips commended Kaz Popovich and the committee who applied and was approved with the state education department for a Career and Technical Education Program this school year. This will allow students to earn a technical endorsement to be affixed with their high school diploma. Watkins Glen is the first school district in the BOCES component to have been approved for this program.
• Phillips introduced the new Elementary Principal Rebecca Trank to the board members during the Tuesday meeting. Former elementary principal Kristine Somerville was later appointed as director of student services.
• The board held a discussion on the possibly of hiring a full-time physical therapist for services in the school district. In the past, the services were contracted through Schuyler Hospital.