The Great Neck Board of Education welcomed a new Great Neck South Middle School assistant principal Monday night at their monthly board meeting.
Board President Barbara Berkowitz formally introduced Brian McConaghy to the public.
“We wish you much good luck and I know everyone in this room will be supportive and welcoming,” Berkowitz said to McConaghy. “And we wish you a very, very healthy and wonderful career here in Great Neck.”
McConaghy joins the Great Neck school district from the Bayport-Bluepoint school district, where he was assistant principal at Bayport-Bluepoint High School.
“I’m looking forward to joining the outstanding team at Great Neck South Middle School and I’m thrilled to be a member of the Great Neck public school community,” McConaghy said. “This is a community that truly values education and creates outstanding opportunities for our students.”
McConaghy replaces former assistant principal Gerald Cozine.
Cozine was announced as North Middle School Principal in July after former principal Anael Alston accepted the superintendent’s position at the Hamilton School District in Oneida County.
The board also approved a proposal from Nawrocki Smith LLP to become to district’s internal auditor. The district also received a proposal from Cerini & Associates LLP but declined the offer due to Cerini & Associate’s failure to attend a mandatory pre-proposal conference.
“The proposal from Cerini & Associates had to be rejected because they did not attend the mandatory pre-proposal conference,” an administrative affairs document stated.
The approval awards a three-year contract to Nawrocki Smith for $38,020 per year for the 2015-16, 2016-17, and 2017-18 school years. The contract contains an option for the district to renew for two additional years, 2018-19 and 2019-20, if services are satisfactory.
Also at the meeting, the board approved two change orders for projects at two of its schools in which the district saved money.
The first change order concerned the current replacement of the roof at the Village School. Long Island Roofing & Repairs Service Corp. said they discovered that not all of the $132,000 contracted sum originally paid by the district is needed for roof repair.
The board will receive a credit from Long Island Roofing & Repairs for a total of $1,893.77. The amended contracted sum comes to $130,106.28.
The second change order concerned the reconstruction of technology labs in South Middle School. MFL Contracting found that they did not need to paint and sandblast a brick veneer in one the labs or install a metal cover at the existing electrical trough.
The board will receive a $8,444 credit from MFL Contracting, amending the original contract sum of $233,900.00 to $225,456.00.
Berkowitz said she did not expect any disapproval of the district saving money on these projects.
“I didn’t think there would be any nays, seeing as we are actually saving money,” Berkowitz said.
The next board meeting will be Sept. 21 at 8:30 p.m. at the Great Neck South High School library.
