Retiring Board Members Leave Legacy of Service to SWBOCES

The Southern Westchester BOCES Board of Education bid farewell and offered heartfelt thanks to two retiring members whose years of dedicated service have contributed greatly to public education in our region.

John DeSantis of Hastings-on-Hudson and Georgia Riedel of Harrison have served as board members for 24 years and 12 years, respectively. They retired June 30. Incumbent Sheryl Brady of White Plains and new member Valarie D. Williams of New Rochelle were sworn in at the board's reorganization meeting July 1.

Mr. DeSantis was elected to the SWBOCES Board in 1996, after serving for 18 years on the Hastings-on-Hudson Board of Education, including two terms as President. He received an Award of Excellence for School Board Service from the Mid-Hudson School Study Council. Mr. DeSantis is currently the Senior Director of Technical Services and Special Projects for the School of Arts & Sciences at New York University. He has also served on the Executive Board of the Greenburgh Council of Civic Organizations.

Ms. Riedel served for 12 years on the Harrison Board of Education, and previously served on the BOCES Board of Education. Ms. Riedel has been a member of the Westchester Putnam School Boards Association and was its president from 2003-2005. She is a member of the New York State School Boards Association's Federal Relations Network and a liaison to Rep. Nita Lowey. She is also a member of NYSSBA's State Legislative Network and a liaison to State Sen. Suzi Oppenheimer. When not volunteering, Ms. Riedel is a physical therapist at New York Presbyterian Hospital's Columbia campus.