The Verona Board of Education held its first meeting of 2023 on Tuesday night and Diana Ferrera and Denise Verzella, winners of the November election, were sworn in as new members.
The BOE then elected new leadership from among its ranks. Pam Priscoe, who had served as vice president since January 2022, was voted president, succeeding Lisa Freschi. Ferrera, who has no previous BOE leadership experience, was voted vice president. Both women had been nominated by Chris Wacha, who was elected to the BOE with Priscoe in 2021. The vote for Priscoe was unanimous. Verzella voted No on Ferrera, and there were no other nominations.
“I’m very humbled by this,” Priscoe said after the vote. “I really appreciate the nomination Chris and all the vote yesses. I am honored and I will do my best for Verona.”
Freschi was first elected to the BOE in 2014 and re-elected in 2017 and 2020, served as both vice president and, since 2019, as president. She will now sit on the Government & Policy and Buildings & Grounds committees.
Priscoe will sit on the Finance and Athletics/Co-Curriculars committees. Ferrera will have the other seat on Finance and sit on Education/Special Education. Wacha will sit on Buildings & Grounds and Athletics/Co-Curriculars. Verzella’s assignments are Government & Policy and Education/Special Education.
The BOE’s next meeting will be on Tuesday, January 24. That meeting will include a presentation on ethics by the New Jersey School Boards Association.
