Port Washington resident Christina Nadolne started her career working in lab research and as a dental hygienist, but said her interests shifted to volunteering in the community.
“Besides getting a sense of doing something for the community, I feel good about it. Even if it’s helping for one person,” said Nadolne, who’s running for a second term on the Port Washington Board of Education. “My dad actually jokes that if anyone offers to pay me I won’t do it.”
Nadolne said she’s always been involved in volunteering ever since she was young.
“In high school I volunteered with our church and with soccer and helped coach little kids,” she said.
After graduating with her master’s in education, Nadolne and her husband Mark Nadolne, who’s a dentist, worked to start a clinic in Philadelphia out of a church basement to help homeless people.
“That’s where we worked and homeless people were able to come in once a week and get referrals,” she said.
Nadolne said her family moved to Port Washington after being referred by a friend.
“Someone had suggestion we should take a look at Port said it was a good city,” she said. “So we came up and loved the area.”
Nadolne and her husband made the move to Port Washington after her husband offered a job in Roslyn.
“This worked perfectly and we’re really big Mets fans,” she said.
Nadolne said she started volunteering more frequently in Port Washington after she was pregnant with her second child, Kevin Nadolne, who’s currently in eighth grade.
“I had to stop working and I was bored so I went to the parent resource center and I started teaching an art class,” Nadolne said.
She also began volunteering with St. Peter’s teaching religion and currently sits on the policy committee and said she has been responsible, along with other board members, for rewriting the code of conduct.
Nadolne said she’s running for a second three-year term on the Port Washington school board because she wants to continue contributing to the school district.
“I’m excited to run again,” Nadolne said. “I feel I’ve done a good job addressing concerns, most recently about should teachers be allowed to tutor.”
She said she gives a different perspective.
“I’m here for the benefit of the kids and what works for many and what we can do to make the district better,” Nadolne said.
Nadolne said she believes one of the biggest challenges is people reacting too quickly and not reaching a reasonable conclusion
“I do find that globally there’s too many reactionary responses instead of getting people that know education to look at the problem,” she said. “Instead of really looking at the problem and finding a solution it’s done quickly.”
She said she believes the current members of Board of Education as group offer a lot to the school district.
“Doesn’t mean there can’t be changes. I’ve enjoyed working with them for the past three years,” Nadolne said. “We are great, not that we couldn’t be better but we are great.”
Residents will vote for the 2016-17 budget and two board seats on May 17 from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.
