School board surprise

Board of Education Vice President Kathy Horace stunned her colleagues and administrators at the school board meeting on Jan. 20 by announcing that she is resigning the trustee seat she has held for five years, effective Feb. 1.

In a low voice that occasionally broke with emotion, Horace read from a prepared statement and said the reasons for her decision are “purely personal,” and that she made that decision “after long deliberation and with a heavy heart.”

She explained that she is at a point in her life when she simply wants to spend more time with family and friends, lay the groundwork for retirement and be available to support and visit her sons. One son is a Marine stationed in California, and the other is expected to graduate from The Citadel this year and will be commissioned in the Marine Corps. Horace also said her job as an administrator at a Melville law firm has become more demanding and will require more of her time.

“I would like to thank the residents of the community for their support during my years on the board, and for the privilege of serving you and your children,” she said. “I believe I have been instrumental in the success of this school district.”

Horace urged community members who have touted their expertise in recent years to “step up to the plate and put that expertise to work to benefit the community and the education of its children.”

Reflecting on the 19 years during which she served the Rockville Centre school community in one capacity or another, Horace said that even though her work meant many nights and hours away from her family, it was time well spent. “I do believe that the Board of Education is one entity in this village where your opinions are listened to and where your ideas can be implemented and given serious consideration,” she said.

Horace also said she would continue working for the community, but in a different capacity.

With little time to prepare remarks, school Superintendent Dr. William Johnson said he knows what it is like to work with Horace — “sometimes challenging, sometimes interesting.” But he added that there was never any doubt of where her heart was — with the district’s students, a priority Johnson said sometimes gets lost in discussions about the budget and other school issues. He praised Horace for her commitment to children and the educational system. “Thank you very much for the wonderful years of service,” he said. “I wish you the very best.”

School board President Mark Masin described Horace as a “true asset and a valued member” of the school board, and noted her exceptional devotion and loyalty. Masin said the children of the school district had no greater advocate.

Horace’s imminent departure presents the Board of Education with three options. It can leave her seat vacant until the election and budget vote on May 18; it can hold a special election to fill her seat for the remainder of her term, which expires on June 30, 2011; or it can vote to appoint someone to the board until the May election, when the appointee would have to contest the seat in order to keep it.

Because the May election is at-large and Trustee Doreen Cordova’s three-year term is ending, the candidate who receives the most votes will win the full term and, if the board has not held a special election, the second-place finisher would take the seat vacated by Horace for the final 13 months of her term.

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