GLOVERSVILLE - Gloversville Enlarged School District Board of Education member Pete Semione, previously vice president of the board, was elected president at a reorganizational meeting of the board Monday.
Returning board member Betsy Simek was elected vice president.
Semione succeeds Perry Paul, who left the board last month along with Katherine Hillock. Both had served nine years as board members.
Board member Jean LaPorta nominated longtime board member Harry Wiggins for president, but that motion failed to garner a second. E. Lynn Brown nominated Semione, and every board member except Wiggins voted in favor of the appointment.
Semione said he's looking forward to building on the progress the board has made over the past few years. He said his work as vice president has uniquely prepared him to serve as president.
"I think as vice president the board has learned a lot about me," he said. "They have gotten to the point where they trust me, and I'm very pleased and very honored they gave me this opportunity."
He said he hopes as president he will continue to build on the progress the district has made over the past several years in areas such as employee health-care and contracts.
"I just look forward to continuing to move in the right direction," he said.
Semione said he is pleased Simek was elected vice president. Simek has previously served as board president and brings with her a wealth of information on a variety of issues, including state Department of Education policies, Semione said.
"She's a very bright individual," Semione said. "I actually asked her if she would consider being vice president if I were elected president."
Semione, who was re-elected to a second term in May, and newcomers Sarah Pike and Polly Young, took the oath of office Monday, officially beginning their three-year terms as unpaid board members.
In other business, the board designated The Leader-Herald as the school district's official newspaper again after a year with The Daily Gazette as its official newspaper.
Kayleigh Karutis covers Gloversville news. She can be reached at gloversville@leaderherald.com.
