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PVHS Students Add Important Perspective to BOE Deliberations
 | | Left to Right: Regina Pagani and Lee Ann Mazzarisi at a recent PV Board of Education meeting. |
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In the fall of 2006, two Putnam Valley High School (PVHS) seniors, Regina Pagani and Lee Ann Mazzarisi, continued a tradition that began just 3 years ago: they became student representatives to the Putnam Valley Board of Education. The suggestion to include student representatives on the PV Board of Education was first made by longtime Board member and former Board president, Guy Cohen, and was enthusiastically received by other Board members, as well as the PVHS administration.
Current PVCSD Board President Tina Mackay remarked, "The primary role of the Board is to set policy for the Putnam Valley School district. To do this effectively, it is important to get input from the entire PV community which includes parents, other community members who are not parents, teachers & staff, and the student body. The student representatives bring a student's perspective to our deliberations."
Regina Pagani, who lives in Putnam Valley, volunteered to serve on the Putnam Valley BOE as a student representative for the 2006-07 school year. Once she was accepted as a student representative she and her co-student Board member had a meeting with Principal Raymond Cooper and Superintendent of Schools Gary Tutty, to discuss the duties required of the position. She remembered, "I accepted the invitation to do this because I wanted to be more involved in the school and I hope to pursue a career in education. I thought this experience would give me a chance to experience the other side of education that I do not get to see during classes."
Regina plans on becoming a high school English or American History teacher. She has also considered elementary education. Regina is a member of the National Honor Society, the Mu Alpha Theta Math Honor Society, the Spanish Honor Society, Art Club, Make A Difference Club, and GSA/ VOICES. She also volunteers at Putnam Valley Library book fairs and summer reading programs and is one of the literary editors of Illiterature, the high school's literary magazine. She is an accomplished artist who hopes to continue her art studies in college. Meanwhile, she has been taking life portrait classes at the Garrison Art Center for several years and has also participated in their Mentor Program.
"I benefit greatly from the other artists' experience and talent" Regina said. Regina remarked, "I really like working with the members of the Board of Education because it gives me a chance to see a different side (the business side) of education and to witness all the work and consideration that goes into the school I attend every day. It has given me a greater appreciation for my school and education." Regina hopes to attend either SUNY Geneseo or Marist College in the fall.
Lee Ann Mazzarisi also volunteered to be on the Board for the 2006-07 school year. "I love to voice my opinion and have the voice of the students be heard from a real student's point of view," she said. Lee Ann says she wants to be "either a teacher or somehow involved with acting, whether it is my big role in a soap opera or working on costume design and lights for Broadway." She is active in the PVHS National Honor Society, Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD), PVHS TheatreWorks, PV Competition Cheerleading, and the PVHS Mixed Choir.
Said Lee Ann, "I love being on the Board. It has helped me to understand many different things about this school system that I can go and share with my peers. I love that I can bring up issues that students are having so that they can be addressed. I have seen things in a new light by being on the board. I was shocked to see how much really goes into a school system- it's not just about reading and writing!" Lee Ann hopes to attend one of the SUNY colleges next fall
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