Liverpool community shares expectations for school board as September approaches

LIVERPOOL, New York — With the start of the school year just a few weeks away, community members in Liverpool are sharing some of their expectations for the new school board going forward.

They want to see a major change in what has been the norm for — in their opinion — far too long.

Transparency and open dialogue are two of the top requests the Liverpool community has for the school board and district leaders.

Parents raise concerns over transparency and money at Liverpool school board meeting

Alex Gyder, who wants her 2-year-old daughter to attend schools in this district — just as her husband and family did — attends every school board meeting she can.

“I shouldn’t say the community as a whole, but there was a large number of us who actually showed up in the high school auditorium in opposition to the hiring of this new superintendent,” Gyder said. “Six board members approved of that decision, so we as a community were pretty committed to trying to find board members who really reflected the desires of our community.”

Now, two years later, community members say new faces on the school board are exactly the change they’ve been asking for.

There is still much work to be done to address the many concerns that still linger, from a lack of transparency to how money is being spent in the district.

“I think my hope would be that we can restore some trust between the community and the school district,” Gyder. “To know that we have representatives who are actually listening, asking questions on our behalf, fighting to get those answers on our behalf and therefore for our students.”

Liverpool council member accuses superintendent of violating financial district policy

At a school board meeting on August 6, the board’s vice president shared with those in attendance that she felt she had to immediately fly out of Florida to be present for a vote on the school’s capital project after not being given enough information beforehand. At the same board meeting, Superintendent Henner responded to these allegations by stating that he provided a document with the requested information to the board president on July 25 — before the original vote in question.

Liverpool school board faces backlash over capital project cuts

Not everyone involved will always agree on what should be done in the Liverpool Central School District.

But neighbors say some recent decisions by board members, such as inviting county and state comptrollers to meet with the board to discuss a possible audit of district-related finances, are a big step toward unity.

“I’m very optimistic that we’re going to get to where we need to be,” said Charles Lentz, a parent in the district. “It may take a little bit more time, a little bit of time, but we’re on the right track with these board members.”