At a glance
Hudson City School District voters said yes to all three ballot propositions, and the Board of Education stayed in session until 11:08 p.m. to read the numbers out loud. The 2025-26 budget passed 566 to 371, a bond resolution passed 623 to 300, and an energy performance contract passed 730 to 204. Results for three board member seats were also read: 577 votes for Diana Howard, 515 for Maureen Sheridan, and 471 for Mark DePace. Before the polls closed, the board heard a long presentation on the district's Smart Schools investment plan, a draft that would spend Hudson's state technology allocation on new wireless, 58 new security cameras, door access upgrades, a cloud phone system, cabling, and combined clock and PA units. The board also adopted a policy on the ex officio student member of the board and recognized three of its own members for state school boards association awards.
Roll Call, the Agenda, and the Student Report
The board opened with the Pledge of Allegiance and a roll call, then heard the student representative's report on a busy stretch at the high school.
Key points
- Seven board members answered the roll call, and a motion to present the agenda as presented was seconded and put to a voice vote
- The student representative apologized for not having a written list from classmates and spoke from memory
- The high school's international festival, run by the multicultural club, filled half a day with performances by the band and the choir, dances, and a staff group performance
- Students volunteered to run tables and booths in the cafeteria with information, food, and activities based on different countries and cultures, with games in the hallways
- AP exams were wrapping up, and the student representative said they would leave the meeting early to study for the AP biology test the next day
- The National Honor Society induction went well, with new inductees and a sendoff for seniors
- Five tennis players competed at sectionals the day before, and the student council's meet the board candidate night drew a good response
YouTube auto-captions do not identify speakers by name. Attributions are omitted unless a name was clearly spoken aloud.
Audit, Facilities, and Policy Committee Reports
Three committee chairs reported. The facilities update ran longest, covering the energy audit work now under way across the district's buildings.
Key points
- The audit committee met May 9 and reviewed the internal auditor's risk assessment, the external auditor's comment letter, and the district's corrective action plans, which were recommended for board approval and were on the evening's agenda
- An audit committee follow-up will be scheduled in June, before the next board meeting
- Two public informational sessions were held April 29 and May 13, and the comprehensive energy audit kickoff meeting was held April 25 with Energia and Johnson Controls
- Johnson Controls is sending a contract to the superintendent for legal review, and the current power purchase agreement is being reviewed; the bond will go out after State Education Department approval
- The lighting audit was completed May 5, the HVAC audit is set for June 10 and 11, the water conservation survey is set for the next day, and follow-up meetings for all parties are set for May 30
- New wireless microphones are installed in the press box at the turf field ahead of graduation ceremonies, and the water meter replacement at MC Smith will happen at the end of the school year and will require the water to be shut off
- The policy committee met that day, finished attorney review on several items, revised the ex officio student member policy after feedback, made changes to the promotion and retention policy, and said the org chart still needs transportation added
Smart Schools Investment Plan: The Case for the Upgrade
The district's instructional technology manager opened a presentation on the draft Smart Schools investment plan, joined by the director of facilities and two vendor partners.
Key points
- The presenting team included the instructional technology manager, Tyler, the director of facilities, Joe from Core BTS, and Casey from Day Automation
- The Smart Schools Bond Act was approved by New York State voters and authorized $2 billion in general obligation bonds to finance technology in schools
- Hudson's allocation is roughly $1.77 million, and a board member later described it as the district's money for this work, paid by the bond rather than the district budget
- The plan covers two of the state's five focus areas: high tech security features and school connectivity
- The district's wireless is 10 to 12 years old and reliable but aging, and the phone system is original to the building, described as 30 or 40 years old or higher
- The plan draws on the technology committee, the smart bond committee, vendor presentations scored against rubrics, an IT audit, digital equity surveys, and BOCES partners
- The plan is a draft, will be posted on the district website, and includes a link detailing how many access points, routers, cameras, and phones are involved
The captions render the district's Smart Schools allocation as "$1,771,000, $233", which is not a readable number. A board member later referred to it as "the 1,700,000 and change." The exact allocation is not recoverable from this transcript.
What the Plan Would Buy
The director of facilities and the Core BTS representative walked through the equipment: cameras, door access, cabling, phones, and a combined clock and public address system.
Key points
- An assessment found camera blind spots and slow bandwidth at the elementary school, where footage runs back to a server at the high school
- Phase two would add 58 new cameras, replace 113 existing ones, and put a new server at the elementary school
- Door access would move to the same Vigilant software as the cameras, with licenses for 53 doors, three new swipe access doors, and 43 additional doors monitored so an after hours door triggers a text or email
- Phase one in 2023-24 converted the camera software and server, bought licenses for cameras that had none, and added outdoor coverage at Paddock Place plus cameras in the cafeteria and main hallway; it also put a camera and swipe access at junior and senior high front doors that had not been locked
- Cabling would add about 380 new drops, patch panels, J hooks in hallways, and raceways in classrooms, with the elementary school the biggest gap
- Cisco WebEx calling would replace the phone system, moving controllers to the cloud and addressing state and federal mandates for 911 and emergency calls, plus business texting
- Clock and PA would combine into one unit per room with strobe lighting and scrolling messages, and bell schedule changes could be made in house rather than calling a vendor in at prevailing wage
What It Would Cost
The team went through the cost of each piece, and when the recurring costs begin. Most of the ongoing charges start in year four.
Key points
- Wireless upgrade: the district would allocate $52,000 that lasts three years, with no cost for the first three years and costs beginning in year four
- Security cameras: $619,000 to add the new cameras and tie in the server, with firmware recommended every three to five years at about $25, possibly $30, a camera
- Security door access: $100,000 to implement, with no annual cost
- Phone system: about $235,000 installed, $32,000 after year three for licensing, $9,000 for handset maintenance starting in year two, and $600 for maintenance required in year four
- PA systems and clocks: about $202,000 to start, $19,000 in licensing in years four, five, and six, and $11,000 for E911 compliance recurring in year four
- Cabling is a large one time cost, and the goal is the same four drops in every classroom at the elementary school and the high school alike
- Staff cautioned that prices and equipment models are subject to change once the plan is approved, citing tariffs, and noted the district also has E-rate money
Board Questions, Savings, and the State Approval Timeline
Board members asked what the district spends now, whether the plan is a net savings, and how long state approval takes.
Key points
- The district currently pays $58,000 a year for its phone system, driven by servers and equipment the presenter described as older than the presenter is, plus charges every time a vendor is called in for something like changing a voicemail
- The presenter compared that $58,000 against $32,000 plus $9,000, or $41,000, and called it a savings, noting those costs do not start until year four
- A board member confirmed that none of the plan's cost comes out of the district budget, and asked staff to quantify the net savings as the board works on its budget
- The district has submitted a letter of interest and received a project number, and the plan sits in the state portal as a draft that is not yet submitted
- Everything goes on the website the next day, and for 30 days the public can email questions to the technology manager, the facilities director, and the superintendent; a public hearing follows, and the board could then vote on a resolution
- State review takes six months to a year and normally comes back with requests for more information, so purchasing would likely fall in the next budget year, with reimbursement after
- A board member asked how big the hallway PA and clock units are and how readable the scrolling text would be; staff pointed to the unit counts in the plan linked from the website
Consent Items and a Student Member Policy
The board took up consent and personnel items and adopted one policy, tabling the rest of the second read policies after staff feedback prompted changes.
Key points
- The board announced there was no need for an early executive session
- A motion to present consent items A1 through A3 and B1 through B5 was seconded and put to a voice vote, as was a personnel item
- The policy chair said the only second read policy ready was 2245, the ex officio student member of the board, updated to reflect the language about the student council member who serves
- A motion to adopt policy 2245 was seconded and put to a voice vote
- The remaining policies were tabled, since changes were made after feedback from staff and the attorney review
- Later in the meeting a second motion to accept consent items was seconded and put to a voice vote
The captions record the call of "all in favor" but not the responses, so this transcript does not show how any of these motions came out.
Public Forum
One member of the public spoke, in a stretch the captions caught only in fragments.
Key points
- The speaker said they were happy to meet new people, mentioning the superintendent in particular, and to see some old friends
- The speaker said they had not been at a board meeting on school property in quite some time
- The speaker wished the candidates good luck and said they appreciated being there
- No other members of the public came forward
From about 39:30 to 41:45 the captions are nearly empty while the board waited, and the public forum itself, from about 42:15 to 44:20, comes through as scattered phrases with long gaps. Most of what this speaker said is not in the record.
Board Recognition and a Student Scholarship
The superintendent read letters recognizing three board members for state school boards association awards, then acknowledged the board's student representative for a music scholarship.
Key points
- Lia Walker earned a level two board excellence award, which also qualifies her for recognition in the association's newspaper
- Calvin Lewis earned a level one board achievement award
- Matthew Mackerer earned a level one board achievement award
- The program has four achievement levels reached by accumulating points for trainings, workshops, events, and board roles such as president and advocacy liaison, with an annual cutoff for points of March 31
- The letters came from Patrick Longo, member relations and engagement manager for the association
- Thomas, the board's student representative, earned a $3,500 scholarship for a solo musical performance in the 30th year of a music scholarship competition held May 18 at the Spencertown Academy Arts Center, competing against eight other high school students
- Thomas said it was also the first time a saxophonist placed in the top three, and thanked a teacher whose name the captions garbled
The captions render the state school boards association as "NISBA" and the music competition's name unclearly, so neither is spelled out here. Board member surnames were read aloud from the letters; the surname Mackerer appears in several spellings in the captions.
Superintendent's Report: Bikes, Breaks, and Classroom Visits
The superintendent ran through district news, reminders for families, and visits to classrooms and events.
Key points
- A bike grant written last year now supports a curriculum at the junior high, and students can be seen riding in the mornings after seven
- Berkshire Bank went in with the district on the grant and put all of the bikes together, and was recognized earlier in the year
- There will be no school May 22 through May 28 for Memorial Day and the Giveback Day holiday break
- Pre-K slots are still open and families are asked to register, and district and building calendars are on the district website
- The superintendent visited an eighth grade classroom to watch students write and suggested their pieces be transferred to ninth grade as a baseline for high school teachers, saying some of the essays could be expanded later for a college application
- The superintendent also joined in a dance at the multicultural festival and attended the fifth grade spring concert at MC Smith
Department Updates
Four directors reported on testing, the business office entry plan, technology, and human resources.
Key points
- Teaching and learning reported that computer based New York State assessments finished without a glitch, and thanked the technology department
- The summer scholars program held its first faculty meeting, recommendation notices went to parents that day, and the district needs confirmations back; teachers will be trained through a partnership with the National Summer School Institute
- Leticia Cole of Branching Minds visited and observed MTSS meetings at the elementary and junior high schools, and her feedback will shape plans to implement MTSS with fidelity next year and expand it to the high school
- The business office is in days 30 to 60 of a 90 day entry plan, reviewing financial data and systems, resource allocation, revenue streams and expenditures, financial policies and internal controls, corrective action plans, grants, and state and federal compliance
- Technology met with Johnson Controls performance contract staff about two products and will provide an inventory of district equipment for assessment; student tech crew interviews are the first week of June for a July 1 start
- The technology committee, made up of students, staff, board and community members, is reviewing technology policies and developing an AI plan to bring to the superintendent and the policy committee
- Shante Brooks, executive director of human resources, said her team attended a SchoolFront forum at Capital Region BOCES alongside representatives from over 25 other districts, and described drop in HR huddles that staff are using without an appointment
Upcoming Dates, a Long Break, and the Vote Results
The board read out its June calendar, then suspended the meeting for about two hours to wait for the day's vote counts before coming back to read the results.
Key points
- Upcoming dates: policy committee June 10 until 5:45 p.m. in the high school library, facilities committee June 10 from 4 to 5 p.m. in the district conference room, and a Board of Education meeting June 10 at 6 p.m. in the high school auditorium
- Also announced: policy committee June 24 from 5 to 5:45 p.m. in the high school library, and a Board of Education meeting June 25 at 6 p.m. in the high school library
- The board suspended the meeting to wait for results and resumed at 11:06 p.m.
- Board member election results were read as 577 votes for Diana Howard, 515 votes for Maureen Sheridan, and 471 votes for Mark DePace, and a motion to accept them was seconded and put to a voice vote
- The 2025-26 budget vote came in at 566 yes and 371 no, and the board announced proposition one had passed
- The bond resolution came in at 623 yes and 300 no, and proposition two passed; the energy performance contract came in at 730 yes and 204 no, and proposition three passed
- The board adjourned at 11:08 p.m., thanking everyone for their patience and thanking Leslie Coons, the board clerk, for her work
The captions record nothing between the motion to suspend the meeting at about 66:26 and the motion to resume at 186:10. The time the board suspended is garbled in the transcript, which reads only "96". Anything said during that stretch is not in this record.
About this page
FUTURE HUDSON is an experiment in civic engagement: every public meeting of the City of Hudson since January 2026, transcribed and made readable, so any resident can follow what the city is deciding without attending every meeting. This page covers one meeting; see the full archive.
How it was made
The meeting video was transcribed automatically; the transcript was then organized into sections and summarized. The raw transcript is above, every claim can be checked against it.
What to be skeptical of
The transcript is automated and contains speech-recognition errors; names and numbers may be wrong. This page has not been reviewed by a human. Nothing here is an official record, the school district's official minutes are authoritative.
About coverage of this body
Board of Education meetings are livestreamed by the Hudson City School District to its own YouTube channel. The school district is a separate government from the City of Hudson. If a meeting is missing from the archive, the recording was likely not posted. See the archive index for the full coverage note.