The Great Neck Public Schools Board of Education unanimously approved more than $8.5 million in construction contracts at its Tuesday, May 5, meeting.

The largest award was a $4.575 million sitework contract granted to The Landtek Group Inc., as part of a broader package of capital improvement projects at North Middle School. The project includes the reconstruction of its athletic field, construction of a new field house and press box, and renovation of the toilets.

The board awarded four other contracts for the North Middle School work: $879,000 to JNH Construction Group, Inc. for general construction; $1.36 million to Eldor Contracting Corp. for electrical work; $206,000 to Siba Contracting Corp. for mechanical construction; and $110,000 to Ambrosio & Company Inc. for plumbing.

At Lakeville Elementary School, the board awarded a $686,000 contract to CFF Consulting, Inc., following a re-bid process for roof reconstruction work.

The board also approved $483,116 in contracts for improvements at John F. Kennedy Elementary School, including a $212,000 general construction contract with Stalco Construction Inc., and a $271,116 electrical contract with Symbrant Technologies Inc., covering pedestrian footbridge reconstruction and a public address system replacement.

At the Village School, the board awarded a $224,000 contract to Total Construction Corp. for toilet renovations in the South Building. All construction projects were recommended by district architect BBS Architects, Landscape Architects and Engineers, and construction manager School Construction Consultants Inc.

During the public comment section, the board heard from Josh Forest, a parent and former Great Neck North High School student, who raised concerns about what he characterized as the district’s lack of discernment when it comes to granting tenure.

“At some point, we stopped asking the critical question: are we consistently putting excellent teachers in front of our children? And if we’re honest, the answer is not always yes,” he said.

Forest raised concerns about tenure being granted to a teacher who had been the subject of over 20 parent complaints. Forest said the students in the teacher’s honors class had an average test score of 77 and that the teacher was not interactive in extra help sessions.

“Tenure should be a meaningful achievement tied to sustained excellence, not a rubber stamp,” Forest said.

Source: LI Press