McKenzie challenges Cummings in District 30

Kenneth Cummings, a one-term incumbent in District 30, is being challenged by Margo McKenzie for his seat on the Board of Education. The term is for five years.

Kenneth Cummings

With 5 1/2 years experience, Kenneth Cummings is the senior member of the District 30 Board of Education. After he was appointed to fill a vacancy, Cummings won a full term and is seeking re-election for another five years.

“I wanted to make a difference,” Cummings said about his initial interest in joining the board. “I was very grateful for all the work prior boards did for my kids.”

His four children all attended Shaw Avenue School. He has two daughters at Central High School and currently is serving as president of the high school district Board of Education.

During his tenure on the District 30 board, Superintendent Dr. Elaine Kanas was hired. Cummings said she has done a remarkable job, implementing a strategic plan and open the lines of communication with the community. He said the biggest responsibility of a school board is picking the superintendent, a process Cummings is leading now at the high school district.

Cummings said he wants children to receive a well-rounded education, which includes music and art. He said the District 30 board has been supportive of these programs. “We’ve seen them become great programs,” he said. “The academics are great, but you need the other pieces.”

He wants to continue working with other board members to move District 30 forward, and said that the test scores have been steadily improving.

Cummings says he also wants to help lead the district through the financial challenges it is facing. School districts have to learn how to do more with less, he said. Budgets do pass each year in District 30, he noted, a sign that the community has faith in the school board’s leadership.

The board listens to the community, Cummings said, noting the forum held earlier this year to identify the priorities in planning the 2011-12 budget. People said they wanted the same programs, but for less money, and Cummings said the board achieved that.

Cummings said in his two years as high school board president, and two years as District 30’s president, he has grown as both a leader and a board member. He said he brings compassion for children, the ability to listen and clear decision-making skills to the role.

As for criticism of the board’s decision not to tenure the Shaw Avenue School principal at the recommendation of the superintendent, Cummings said the board’s hands were tied. “You can’t share someone’s personnel file,” he said. “From a legal perspective, there’s not a lot as an employer you can do.”

Cummings said he hopes that voters acknowledge his record of service to both the District 30 and high school boards when they make their decision on May 17.

First elected: Appointed December 2005, re-elected May 2006
Age: 53
Lives in: Valley Stream village
Family: Wife, Rosemary; daughters Katie, a cable news reporter for Time Warner, Jennie, working on her master’s degree at Adelphi University, and twins Colleen and Julia, 10th-graders at Central High School.
Career: Human resources associate director for Trinity Church in Manhattan
Other: Religious education teacher at St. Bonafice Church in Elmont; former cookie manager for Girl Scout Troop 2286; extraordinary minister of Holy Communion at St. Bonafice Church

Margo McKenzie

After serving on the Shaw Avenue School PTA Executive Board for the past five years, Margo McKenzie decided she wanted to take her involvement in District 30 to the next level. McKenzie is challenging Kenneth Cummings for the lone seat up on the Board of Education this year.

McKenzie said she has been attending Board of Education meetings on and off for the past six years, since her son began school. “This year is probably the most involved I’ve been,” she said.

She said she believes as a parent of a District 30 student, the community could benefit from her presence on the board.

McKenzie, Shaw Avenue’s PTA president for the past two years, said her leadership skills would make her an asset to the Board of Education. She said that she always thinks about what’s right for the students and the community, and is an advocate for parents. McKenzie says she wants to be their voice on the board, and make sure that their concerns are addressed. “They speak for the children,” she said of the district’s parents.

Her goal, if elected, would be to make sure that qualified teachers and administrators are retained. She noted that Clear Stream Avenue School has had three principals in the last four years, which she describes as a problem. McKenzie organized parents to try and keep the Shaw Avenue School principal for next year when word got out she wasn’t getting tenure. Although she said that is not the direct reason she is running for the Board of Education, McKenzie said it brought other issues to light.