Councilwoman implies that school board president is biased

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Poughkeepsie High School. MHNN file photo.

POUGHKEEPSIE – The Poughkeepsie City School District Board of Education held its reorganizational meeting on Friday, July 1, and named attorney Tom O’Neill to serve as its president.  Outgoing President Felicia Watson will remain on the board.

Tom O’Neill

O’Neill is a former police officer who went on to become a criminal defense attorney and member of the Poughkeepsie Common Council.  He also served as a Poughkeepsie City Court Judge before being elected to the school board.

“Although I did not seek the position, I am honored to have been elected to serve as president of the Poughkeepsie City School District Board of Education,” O’Neill said. “I am serving with an extraordinary group of citizens who are most anxious to work with our superintendent to address the myriad of issues that need immediate attention.”

Former board member Debra Long, who now represents the First Ward on the Poughkeepsie Common Council, is not pleased with O’Neill being named president.  Long, while serving on the school board, had a few instances of outbursts including one in September of 2021 in which she said, “I’m pulling back from the common council because I’m going to sit here until my term is done.”  Long continued, banging on her desk, and said, “I’m staying because the board don’t want me!”  Long did not pull out of the council race and she did resign from the board.

On Tuesday, Long took to social media to criticize O’Neill and imply that he is biased.  “Thomas O’Neill reports he has been a part of changing the culture or shall I say a shifting culture,” and followed by saying, “He was never been a part of this shift because he spent several years locking up brown and black parents. He spent several years sending Hispanic, Latino parents to jail, and now you want to sit on the board and talk about changing the culture when you were part of the problem.”




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