The Hudson County School Boards Association (HCSBA) held its final meeting of the school year on May 27 at The Chandelier Restaurant in Bayonne. HCSBA President Jose Soares from Kearny called the meeting to order and welcomed both in-person and virtual attendees.
A video introduced Kelly Carroll, named the Hudson County Teacher of the Year for 2024-25. Carroll is currently the vice principal at William Shemin Community School in Bayonne and previously served as a Multi-Sensory Reading Specialist at the Mary J. Donohoe Community School. Carroll shared an inspiring message: “I am not the best teacher in the world, but I am the Hudson County Teacher of the Year because I have worked with some of the best teachers in the world.”
In one of his first acts as an officer of the New Jersey School Boards Association (NJSBA), Barry Walker, vice president for county activities, extended greetings to the Hudson County SBA members on behalf of the NJSBA officers for 2025-27.
Harrison Silver, NJSBA’s legislative advocate, provided an update. Jeanne Cleary, an NJSBA field services representative, shared insights from the field service team, while Hector Gonzalez, Jr., a delegate on the NJSBA Board of Directors, updated attendees on the recent NJSBA board meeting.
Robert Acerra, the county activities coordinator at NJSBA, presented milestone awards recognizing the achievements of board of education members in Hudson County. This year, seventeen board members were honored for their collective 195 years of service to their communities.
The following board members were recognized:
New Board Member Boardsmanship Certification
- Elizabeth A. Burke, Kearny
- Afaf Muhammad, Jersey City
- Leslie Norwood, Hoboken
10-Year Milestone Awards
- Sharon Angley, Hoboken
- John Minella, Adam Parkinson, Dr. Geraldine Perez, & Hector Zulueta, Hudson County Schools of Technology
- Samantha Paris, Kearny
- Sai Rao, North Bergen
- Lance Bartletta and Joseph Lewis, Secaucus
- Kennedy Ng & Alejandro Velazquez, Union City
- Julian Mera, Weehawken Township
- Jonathan Castaneda, West New York
15-Year Milestone Awards
- John Cannata, Weehawken Township
- Alicia Morejon, Union City
- Arthur Pettigrew, Harrison
20-Year Milestone Awards
- Ruth Shaw, North Bergen
Afaf Muhammad, a member of the Hudson County SBA Nominating Committee, presented the slate for the 2025-27 Hudson County SBA officers, which includes:
- Jose Soares, President (Kearny)
- Hector Gonzalez, Jr., 1st Vice President (Bayonne)
- Dr. Christopher Tisdale, 2nd Vice President for Legislation (Jersey City)
Robert Acerra conducted the elections and administered the oath of office for Soares, Gonzalez, and Tisdale. President Soares closed the meeting by sharing final remarks and inviting Ray Pinney, chief membership engagement officer at NJSBA, to speak to the attendees.
