News

Alleged ‘leaked’ email causes stir at SWR board meeting

JENNIFER GUSTAVSON PHOTO | From left, Shoreham-Wading River School District Superintendent Steven Cohen, school board president Bill McGrath and vice president John Zukowski at Tuesday night's meeting.
JENNIFER GUSTAVSON PHOTO | From left, Shoreham-Wading River School District Superintendent Steven Cohen, school board president Bill McGrath and vice president John Zukowski at Tuesday night’s meeting.

A Wading River resident took to the podium at Tuesday night’s Shoreham-Wading River school board meeting to accuse and chastise a school board member for wrongfully “leaking” an email sent from an unidentified resident to another resident.

Nikko Lavey claimed the email, which the News-Review could not obtain, was addressed to Shoreham-Wading River Superintendent Steven Cohen and contained “unflattering” comments about another person in the community. Apparently, the email got into that person’s hands. Although Mr. Lavey offered no details, he said the email was about the controversy concerning longtime boys varsity lacrosse coach Tom Rotanz, who will not be returning to Shoreham to coach the team in the spring.

Mr. Lavey said the email in question has created an uproar among district lacrosse players.

“The end result, teammates on the lacrosse team are now pointing fingers at each other and there has been no shortage of dissension among families involved,” he said.

Mr. Lavey declined to say which board member he believed had provided the email to the person mentioned in it.

Jeff Hayes of Wading River was the only other person to address the school board on this matter during Tuesday’s meeting.

“How is an email sent to you and only you forwarded on to board members or community members?” Mr. Hayes asked Mr. Cohen. “What is the policy on that? It was an email sent to you and only you and it ended up in a community member’s hands.”

None of the school board members responded to Mr. Lavey and Mr. Hayes.

Mr. Cohen declined comment after the meeting.

Also at the meeting, interim athletic director William Denniston honored several coaches and student athletes from this past fall season.

Some of the accomplishments were the tennis, cross country and football teams’ victories.

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