I have been a resident of this school district for 22 years.  I have two children currently in the schools, and one who graduated.  It is very rare that we have contested school board elections, and ever rarer that we have two such amazing candidates sadly vying for one seat.

I have known Denise Tercynski since her daughter and my son were at Northside together.  She is a wonderful mother, devoted advocate and terrific friend.  She is always at the forefront helping the kids, advocating for them, and making sure parents are in the loop.  She is intelligent, hardworking and unfailingly kind.  She will make a terrific trustee if elected.

I wish she weren’t running against Mark Kamberg.

I have known Mark since my daughter and his son were in nursery school together.  He was always right in thick of things, completely devoted to his kids, the community, and the schools.  When he first ran for school board 15 years ago, there was a lot of animosity, fighting, and mistrust in the community.  This was reflected in contentious, nonproductive school board meetings.

His opponent was my neighbor and good friend.  The campaign was hard fought and got down and dirty.  I have to admit, after seeing the behaviors and hearing rumors spread by some of his supporters, I unfairly and misguidedly turned against him.  I never gave him a chance to explain, nor did I even ask him if he knew what had been said and done.

I held him responsible for actions he neither knew about nor condoned.  I was unfair, and totally in the wrong.   Even so, I could not help but be impressed with the dedication, the hard work, the competence, and the level of professionalism Mr. Kamberg brought to the school board.  The meetings became much more professional and infinitely more productive.

My children, all three very different learners with unique needs, have received stellar educations.  Anything they needed to thrive, they received.  I knew I had been wrong in the way I treated Mr. Kamberg.  Nonetheless, it took me way too long to muster up the courage to give him the apology I owed.  To his credit, he accepted my apology and turned the other cheek.

I don’t know if I would have done the same in his position.  He behaved with maturity and dignity, even when I did not.  He offered forgiveness that I cannot say I deserved.  More importantly and impressively, both before and after, he was steadfastly there for my children.  He is always willing to hear and address any issue, problem, complaint, or requirement and he goes above and beyond to solve it.  Whatever is best for the students and the school district is what he pursues.  He is not afraid to take unpopular stances and he does hold grudges.  Above all, he never fails to give 100%.

Over the years, Mr. Kamberg has been criticized, insulted, screamed at, harassed, been subjected to a torrent of media criticism, and had his kids tormented.  Yet he continues to serve to the best of his ability and never takes the low road or shirks his duties.  His dedication and perseverance and creativity during the pandemic allowed the schools to remain open while so many others were virtual.  The bottom line is he deserves another term because he has earned it.

Emily Kaye

Roslyn Heights