The HFM BOCES Board of Education held its annual reorganizational meeting July 3, 2024, electing new officers and swearing in one new board member.
Board members elected Matthew Sullivan to serve as president. Sullivan, who is the current board president of the Fonda-Fultonville Central School District Board of Education, was first elected to the HFM BOCES board in 2021 and most recently served as vice-president. He replaces Dr. Harry Brooks, a longtime leader in the HFM region, who did not run for re-election as president, but will remain a member of the board.
The board also elected Kathryn Zajicek to the role of vice-president. Zajicek, representing the Greater Johnstown School District, was first elected to the HFM board in 2021. Prior to her time on the HFM board, she served as a member of the Johnstown board and was the board president for a short time.
Board member Rebecca Cozzocrea was sworn in for a second term. Cozzocrea represents the Greater Amsterdam School District.
New board member Vanessa DiNitto was also sworn in after being elected this past April. DiNitto has served on the Mayfield Central School board for six years and is the current vice president.
Earlier this year it was announced that board member Carmen Caraco would retire from the board at the end of the 2023-24 school year. At the June 26 board of education meeting, HFM BOCES District Superintendent David Ziskin thanked Caraco for his exceptional service to the school districts and students of the region. He also presented Caraco with a plaque to mark the special occasion. Caraco served for seven years.
Members of the HFM BOCES Board of Education are volunteers who are elected by members of the boards of education of the HFM component school districts to serve for three-years terms.