Rome Free Academy is losing its principal three weeks before school starts. The board accepted the resignation of RFA Principal Andrew Barton, effective August 3, along with that of Assistant Principal David Itzo, effective July 31. Assistant Principal Kristie Boisen was appointed interim principal beginning August 4, with an extra $79.13 a day added to her pay until a permanent principal is hired and takes over. That leaves the high school short an assistant principal as well. The district said it would post an interim opening immediately, that interviews for a separate assistant principal vacancy were already scheduled, and that the principal's job would be advertised once the timeline was settled. Also on the night's list of departures was Dana Ely, the district's coordinator of special education, effective July 31.

A board member asked what happens if these jobs don't get filled. With interim appointments stacking up across the district, one member pressed the administration for a concrete plan if positions are still open when students return, and whether the people covering them would get any additional help. The answer was that interim staff will remain in place as long as necessary, and that when an interim's own job comes open, the district back-fills it with another interim.

Denti got a permanent principal and a board member questioned her pay. Karen Peek, Denti Elementary's assistant principal, had been carrying principal-level duties since April 14, when the school's principal position became vacant. The board approved a one-time $2,000 stipend for that stretch of extra work, added $55 a day for the interim role she took on June 27, and then appointed her probationary principal at a salary of $111,842 through July 2030. Before that vote, one member asked whether the board could table it until they had a chance to review the salary, noting it appeared higher than what the previous principal earned despite the previous principal having more experience. Dr. Shaun Carney, the district's human resources chief, explained that salaries are set by comparing length of service and regional pay rates, in consultation with the union. The motion passed. Peek, who was in the room, thanked the board and said she was committed to building on what Denti already has.

The district still can't hire a treasurer. Jeffrey Sessions, the deputy treasurer, was formally appointed acting district treasurer as of June 29, with an additional $176.58 a day for taking on the work. Asked how the search is going, Dr. Georgia Gonzalez said the district is posting the position for a third time. There have been several candidates and the district made offers to a couple of them. However, all had been turned down. She hopes to have someone in place by the beginning of September. Until then, Sessions continues in the role.

A teacher asked the board to reverse a cut. Tracy Malone, who coordinates the district's business department, used public comment to ask the board to restore a third business teacher at RFA. She argued the cut wasn't driven by enrollment, since her department's numbers this year were higher than in years when it had three teachers. She also said that the decision was made before students had a chance to sign up for courses. According to Malone, some business classes are being moved into the math and English departments, some MVCC dual-credit courses won't run, and the school store that anchors the business ownership class can't stay open across all three lunch periods with only two teachers. She also noted that students pursuing an advanced Regents diploma with a distinction in business need five credits in the department to earn it. With a new financial literacy requirement coming, she told the board, the department should be growing rather than shrinking.

A mother said it took a lawyer to get her son the services he's owed. A parent of four children, three of them in Rome schools, told the board that securing services for her non-verbal autistic son has been a three-year struggle. She said her family spent thousands of dollars on legal representation before their concerns were taken seriously, and that before that point they were told by district employees to move to another district if they wanted their son to receive services. An individualized education plan is a legally binding document, she said, and no child's level of support should depend on whether their parents can afford an attorney. She asked that families be treated as partners, so that concerns get resolved before they become legal disputes.

A parent said the board ignored her son, and the NAACP asked everyone to lower the temperature. Jennifer Roth, a Denti parent, told the board that her son had waited through the June 2 meeting for his turn to speak, that no one acknowledged him afterward, and that despite her leaving an email address requesting follow-up, she never heard from anyone. She said her son left that night telling her some of the people at the table were rude, and that she was not sure any of them deserved their seats. Jacqueline Nelson, president of the Rome NAACP and education chair for the organization's western region in New York, followed with a call for partnership. She urged the board, families and community groups to review data, address disparities, and move past name-calling. She reminded the room that children are watching how adults treat one another.

The state said no to a building aid transfer. Superintendent Nerlande Anselme reported that the district's request for a one-time transfer of building aid tied to the Staley school was denied by the State Education Department. The state did approve roughly $2.5 million in aid connected to the potential lease of the former Rome Catholic School building, and the district sent a follow-up letter last week asking whether more might be available given what she described as the unique circumstances around Staley's closing. No answer yet. The board will hold a capital improvement workshop on August 3 with its architect, construction manager, fiscal advisers and bond counsel to walk through options and possible phases of the work.

The board approved $93,150 for leadership training. The district contracted with the ILO Group for three things: planning and running a leadership institute ($16,000), an academy for assistant principals and deans ($20,000), and leadership coaching and capacity building ($45,000), plus a $12,150 BOCES coordination fee. The contract runs from late July through June 2027 and is routed through Capital Region BOCES, which means part of the cost comes back to the district as state aid.

Three more contracts, and a note about empty seats. The board approved $58,000 for YMCA of the Greater Tri-Valley programming for students ages 5 through 17. This includes swim lessons, youth sports, school break programs, tumbling, archery and more. The superintendent praised the Y's work, particularly during school breaks when some students have nowhere else to go. One board member, whose own child uses the programs, noted that some schools have 40 available slots and fewer than 10 students showing up, and suggested the district advertise them better to get full value out of the contract. The board also approved a consultant agreement with Wendy Ahles for student data coordination and staff training at $400 a day, two days a week, capped at $42,000 for the year, and a $5,000 annual agreement with Vivienne Taylor, M.D., who serves as the supervising physician for the district's nurse practitioner and athletic trainer. This is a role state law requires.

Six schools now have state improvement plans. The board approved School Comprehensive Education Plans for Bellamy, Gansevoort, Denti, Joy, Stokes and Strough, along with a district-wide improvement plan. The plans lean heavily on the same handful of moves: weekly grade-level meetings with instructional coaches built into every building's schedule, monthly leadership team meetings to review pacing and student data, and classroom walkthroughs focused on whether students are being genuinely challenged. A new instructional coach was appointed at Strough under the state's targeted support program.

The superintendent has a new answer for the transparency complaints. Anselme told the board about "Rome is Home: Progress in Action," a series launched about two weeks ago and built directly on feedback the district received from the community and board members in May and June. Five installments have run so far. They cover topics like academic progress, staff collaboration, recognition, leadership development, and communication, carried on the district website and printed in the Daily Sentinel. She said this year's summer leadership week, at the end of July, carries the theme "Precision in Practice," and pointed to that night's public comment as evidence of why. She also flagged student behavior as a major focus for the coming year, saying the district heard about increased behavioral problems last year from students, staff and board members alike. Final state test scores aren't back yet, and a full end-of-year report will come to a later meeting. The board holds its own retreat July 30 at Strough Middle School, focused on governance and the working relationship between the board and the superintendent.

Graduation got good reviews, with one complaint. Board members opened the meeting reflecting on RFA's commencement, several of them having handed diplomas to their own children or relatives. They praised the reworked, more student-led format and said it should stay that way, and credited district staff and local law enforcement for managing the crowd and keeping sightlines clear for families with disabilities. The one recurring problem was seat-saving. Even with more than 5,000 seats, families found blocks of them held empty. One member suggested giving each family a guaranteed pair of tickets and opening the rest of the house at a set time.

Routine business. The board extended its affiliation agreement with Touro University's Graduate School of Education through June 2031, approved an agreement with the Rome Teachers Association covering school psychologist interns, and signed off on a combined boys varsity swimming and diving team with Vernon-Verona-Sherrill. It also granted Oneida County an easement across district property at 409 Bell Road, for one dollar, so the county can install a sewer line. This is permitted under state education law without a public vote. And it approved the month's special education committee recommendations: roughly 110 placements, evaluations and plan changes in a single meeting, including 44 students classified as learning disabled and 33 Section 504 plans. The board closed the night in executive session on personnel matters and did not return.