By Carol P. Bartold

May 18, 2016:  Bronxville voters went to the polls May 17 for the annual election of school trustees and budget referendum. A total of 252 votes were cast.

The proposed 2016-2017 budget of $46,582,858 passed with 184 votes for and 62 against. The tax levy to fund the budget, $40,887,858, falls within the allowable 0.24 percent tax levy cap rate for the Bronxville school district. The levy represents a tax rate of $13.33583 per $1,000 of assessed property value. The board of education approved the use of $585,000 of appropriated fund balances to fully fund the budget.

Non-Partisan Committee candidates Jack Bierwirth, Tom Curran, and Arleen Thomas were elected school trustees to fill the seats vacated by David Brashear, Tom Nichols, and Denise Tormey, respectively. Brashear, Tormey, and Nichols and will complete their terms at the board of education’s June 16 meeting.

Jack Bierwirth received 202 votes with 8 write-ins, Tom Curran received 212 votes with 5 write-ins, and Arleen Thomas received 213 votes with 6 write-ins. The count does not include affidavit ballots. There were no write-in candidates.

Bierwirth, current co-chair of The Bronxville Historical Conservancy, brings strong career experience as an educator to the Bronxville Board of Education. He has held positions as a teacher, district administrator, and superintendent. His professional activities include service on boards at the New York State Education Department, New York State Council of School Superintendents, and the New York State Board of Regents Distinguished Educators Program.

Curran, an attorney and partner at the firm Peckar & Abramson, has practiced law in the areas of internal investigations, securities litigation (regulatory and compliance), white collar criminal defense, corporate compliance and integrity, and commercial litigation. He served as assistant district attorney under Robert M. Morgenthau, district attorney of New York County. Curran is a member of the New York State White Collar Crime Task Force, the former chair of the New York City Bar Association Commission on Criminal Advocacy, and is counsel to the Harlem Studio for the Arts.

Thomas is the current senior vice president of management accounting and global markets at the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. In her position, she has assisted in developing the strategic plan for the organization. She has worked in accounting and consulting at KMPG, a global network of professional firms that provide audit, tax, and advisory services. She has served as treasurer for the Financial Accounting Standards Board’s Accounting Standards and Advisory Council; The Reformed Church of Bronxville, where she is currently an elder; and Staging Our Future, the Bronxville School PTA benefit held to help fund the refurbishment of the Bronxville School auditorium.

The new board will hold a reorganization meeting in July.

Pictured here:  School board trustees Jack Bierwirth, Tom Curran, and Arleen Thomas (photos courtesy candidates).

Photo of Bronxville logo by A. Warner