Students Speak Up; Math Students Acknowledged

By Journalist Dr. Ms. Jones

NEWBURGH – The Bible says, “and a little child shall lead them.” That is exactly what occurred at Newburgh Enlarged City School District’s (NECSD) School Board Meeting on Tuesday, April 22nd at 124 Grand Street. First, second, and third-place winning teams of the Fifth-Grade Math Meet were celebrated for their collaboration and critical thinking skills during the competition held at The Newburgh Armory Community Unity Center. Math Scholars selected the slogan of “Math Gives Us Hope That Every Problem has a Solution.”

“Students from each of the nine elementary buildings were placed on teams, one student from each building on each team, that represented the district and competed by working collaboratively to solve Next Generation Standards-based word problems. Our first meeting together included icebreakers, math puzzles, brain teasers, and a full practice problem to give the students a chance to see the level of difficulty of the problems that they present and how the scoring system would work. Our second, third, and fourth meets were the actual competitions where they were accumulating points. In each week over the course of two hours at The Armory, teams worked together to work through three high level math problems that included many steps…. Finally, during our fifth meet, our final, culminating gathering, we planned an elaborate Escape Room… surrounding solving math problems,” said Jesse Goodglass, Math AIS Specialist, who facilitated the competitions with Zoe Matthews and wanted to emphasize the relevancy of math in real-life. “In between each of the problems, we showed videos of Newburgh graduates who introduced themselves to the kids and how they applied math to their careers. We showcased NFA grads who are professionals in medicine, in law, sports, technology, music, and other professions.”

Other board meeting highlights included The Budget Consultant’s Report from Nawrocki Smith LLP which reviewed the 2025-2026 Proposed Budget. The report revealed a $15.8 million increase for 2025-2026. The report showed 65% revenue from state sources and 30% from real property taxes. Several concerns were mentioned about the firing or demotion of 14-17 administrators, since the appointment of Dr. Lisa Buon as Acting Superintendent, and its impact on students. Another issue was the suspension of Superintendent Dr. Jackielyn Manning Campbell over mismanagement of funds, especially after hearing about a stellar audit, which was deemed reckless and without proper consideration. Community members at the meeting criticized the school board stating that Board Members ignore community input and use policies to silence dissent, particularly against people of color. Many adult community members addressed their displeasure during public comment. A group of students from Newburgh Free Academy (NFA) also made their voices heard as they sat with signs that read, “LISTEN TO STUDENTS” and vocalized their observations and requests.

“As students, we have several questions for you, most of which we’ve asked before, and you’ve left unanswered. There has been no more information on the potential firing of 17 district employees. Firings which will almost certainly result in more lawsuits being filed against this district, which already has several pending. The board majority ran as a coalition, votes together on almost every issue. They talked about the need for transparency, and yet none of us know why these administrators are being targeted. The Acting Superintendent just recently got her job, and the only board members asking why these people are going to lose their jobs are being ignored by this Acting Superintendent. This goes back to the point I keep making about the image of this district and how this board is a detriment to that. None of this is normal. The fact that the majority of the board refuse to even look up and acknowledge the community members who speak during public comment is not normal, neither is the fact that the Acting Superintendent is making these kinds of drastic decisions that have a huge, huge impact on the lives of students and teachers in this district… This toxic environment is just perpetuated by some members of this board’s majority and their endless negativity about our school district and the terrible example they set with their behavior on social media. This is not the image a school board should have, not on the news, not on social media, not at all,” said Riley Maida, a senior at NFA, who pleaded with the board to put aside their personal grievances and agendas, consider the statements of her and her peers, and meet with students.

Starting July 1st, all school boards in New York will be required to have at least one non-voting student member. They will attend public meetings, but not executive sessions.

Make your voice heard. Vote for who will fill the three available school board seats and serve a 3-year term on the Newburgh Enlarged City School District Board of Education as a Board Member in the upcoming election on Tuesday, May 20th, 2025, from 12-9 pm. The community can also vote on the district and library budgets as well.

Journalist Ms. Jones