Riverhead BOE accepts member Brian Connelly’s resignation

At the Tuesday, June 10, Riverhead Central School District Board of Education meeting, the board formally accepted the resignation of member Brian Connelly. Mr. Connelly had just been reelected in May. The last regular school board meeting he attended was January 28.

Board President James Scudder read a statement thanking Mr. Connelly for his time on the board, which included overseeing the district’s response to the COVID pandemic:

“On behalf of my colleagues on the board, I would like to thank Brian Connelly for his seven years of invaluable service to our community as a member of this Board of Education, and for his passion and commitment to the students of the Riverhead School District. He served through one of the most difficult times for all of us — the COVID pandemic — and his leadership during that time of president on this board, 
and his always steady and thoughtful consideration of the issues facing this board, have been instrumental in the district’s successful navigation of financial, educational and regional challenges over the past several years. 

“We know that Brian has been facing some personal issues, and that is the reason he decided to step down from the board in the middle of this — his third term as an elected board member. 

“Some questioned why the board did not act sooner regarding Brian’s board seat. In respect for Brian, his contributions to this board and the Riverhead community … we felt it was warranted and the right thing to do was to give Brian as much time as possible to make his decision. 

“We will now move forward, considering an appointment to fill Brian’s board seat until the end until the next trustee election, May 2026. Again, we want to thank Brian for his service to the students of the Riverhead School District and to the Riverhead community.”

Mr. Connelly’s profile was no longer on the BOE website as of June 11.