On Tuesday, May 15, 2007, school districts across New York will be holding their annual budget vote and school board member elections. At Lake Shore, there are four candidates running for three positions on the Board. Each position is a three year term beginning on July 1, 2007. The seats are currently held by Cindy Latimore, Matt Smith and LeeAnn Cyphert. School Board members are not paid for their service. The position is volunteer and takes up considerably more time then going to a meeting once a month. The board members shoulder tremendous responsibility. According to the New York State School Boards Association web site, one of the most important duties of a School Board Member is to help set goals and establish policy for the school system. “A board member must remember decisions are to be made only by the board acting as a whole in a public meeting. Individual members’ opinions on board matters can and should be defended vigorously, but once the board has made a decision as a unit, its members should accept it gracefully and help implement it wholeheartedly. No individual board member may bind the board of education to a particular course of action. Effective board members establish good working relationships with the superintendent of schools. The board should refrain from becoming involved in the day-to-day operation of the school, but it should follow up on the administration and operation of the school and require periodic reports for purposes of evaluation. Perhaps the most important work a board member can do is to help build the community’s support and understanding of public education. This means serving as a link between the school and the public and interpreting the schools to the public and the public to the schools. Members also can help establish a climate for change when change is necessary. ” Board members are to inspire and nurture the highest level of ethics and integrity. This year’s School Board Candidates, in the order they will appear on the ballot, are: Dennis Feldman, Cynthia Latimore, Joesph LoGalbo and Carla Thompson. Each candidate is running with the sincere desire to help to improve our school system in the best interests of the students and the community. We, in the Lake Shore District, are fortunate we have the caliber of candidates running that we do becaues we cannot lose. With that in mind, following are pictures and brief statement from each of the candidates. (Mr. Feldman was unable to have a current picture taken prior to press time.)

Dennis Feldman

Cindy Latimore

Joseph LoGalbo

Carla Thompson

     Carla Thompson, a National Board Certified teacher, has been teaching in the Lake Shore Central School District since January, 1975. She has taught Middle School and High School, was Senior Class Advisor for 10 years, and choreographed 27 high school musicals, including BYE BYE BIRDIE in 1998, which won the Kenny Award for best High School Musical. Currently, she chairs the English Department, and has decided to retire as of June 30 of this year. Mrs. Thompson earned a BA in Secondary Education, Grades 7-12, and an MA in Teaching English as a Second Language from Fredonia State College. She has attended many in-service workshops and seminars on ELA tests for Grades 3 through 8, and 11, as well as workshops, seminars and conferences on Educational Practice, classroom teaching strategies, NYS Standards in all academic areas, Technology in the Classroom, and the Writing Process. Mrs. Thompson has been a member of Executive Board of the Western NY Writing Project, based at Canisius College for 10 years, and has served as the Project’s Outreach Coordinator and In-service Provider. She has also taught at Canisius College, teaching methods to Graduate students. Among her many accomplishments, Mrs. Thomspon has presented a project for on-line discussion forums for high school students at the National Council of Teachers of English Conference in 2003, and has written and implemented curricula for 8 new courses at the High School level, including the Honors English 10 Program. As well as earning National Board Certification, Mrs. Thompson has also earned Advanced Placement Certification. Most recently, Mrs. Thompson has worked with ELA teachers to align curriculum with the NYS Curriculum mandates. Mrs. Thompson has lived in the Evans community for 31 years with her husband, Douglas. Her two children, Matthew and Dawn, are both Lake Shore graduates. Her community involvement includes helping Mr. Jim Swinnerton organize the Lake Shore Community Players. She also created and implemented LORINDA 2004, a group dedicated to supporting Lorinda Cohen, a Lake Shore graduate, in her quest for the Olympics, and she coordinated and implemented a community-wide Fantasy Faire, a day of family activities, for the Town of Evans. Mrs. Thompson is also a member of St. Anthony’s Church in Farnham. Mrs. Thompson has extensive experience working with the NYS Standards, with curriculum in grades K-12, and with NYS Assessments in grades 3-12. She also has affiliations with National and local educational organizations. “I believe that I can provide an educator’s perspective on the issues that come before the Board. This perspective would be one more view to understanding all sides of any issue. And a more complete understanding can only help in making a more informed decision.”