Board of Education

The Bethlehem Central Board of Education is composed of seven members who serve three-year terms. Members are elected by the voters in the district to establish policy and direct the administration of our schools. As your representatives, the Board exercises the community's rights to citizen control over public education. Every Board of Education in the State of New York has legal and financial control over local school matters, subject only to limitations imposed by the United States Constitution, federal law, state law, regulations of the Commissioner of Education and, of course, the will of local residents as expressed in local elections.

 

Diane Giacone Stever, president

Term: July 1, 2010-June 30, 2013

Diane Giacone Stever was first elected to the Board of Education in May 2007. A lifelong district resident, she has been a special education teacher for Questar III BOCES for 19 years, and, with her husband Pat, has been a local business owner (Andriano's Pizza) for 12 years. She is a member of the American Legion Ladies Auxiliary, the Bethlehem Chamber of Commerce and a former member of Bethlehem Business Women. Diane has been involved in numerous local fundraisers. She holds a bachelor's degree from SUNY Brockport and a master's degree from The College of St. Rose. Diane has three children: Sean, 19-years-old and a student at the University at Albany; Katie, an eighth grade student at BCMS; and Samantha, who is in sixth grade at BCMS.

 

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Matt Downey, Vice President

Term: July 1, 2011-June 30, 2014

Matt was first elected to the Board in 2008. He and his wife, Debra, have two children, Peter a BC High School student and Laura a BC Middle School student and have lived in Bethlehem since 1991. Matt graduated from Siena College with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree with a major in Accounting.
For the past 20-plus years, Matt has held various positions in New York State agencies. He is currently a member of the executive staff at New York State Higher Education Services Corporation serving as Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Matt is a former board member of Big Brothers, Big Sisters of Albany County and the Bethlehem Soccer Club.

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Laura Ladd Bierman

Term: July 1, 2011-June 30, 2014

Laura Ladd Bierman was first elected to the Board of Education in 2008. Laura grew up in Connecticut and holds a BA in political science from Colgate University and a MA in public administration from the University of Virginia. She currently is the Executive Director of the League of Women Voters of New York State. For over 8 years, Laura served on the school board in a school district in the suburban Chicago area. She first moved to Delmar in 1982, and has lived in the district for a total of 15 years, returning most recently in 2005. She and her husband, Luke, have three children: Becky, a graduate student in CA; Molly, a recent graduate of Connecticut College; and Abbey, a senior at BC High School.

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michael w. Cooper

Term: July 1, 2010-June 30, 2013

Michael Cooper was first elected to the Board of Education in May 2010. He is the director of publications at The Nelson A. Rockefeller Institute of Government. A district resident for 22 years, Michael and his wife, Laura, have two children, Brian, who recently graduated from New York University, and Alex, who graduated in 2010 from BCHS and will be attending the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.

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Lynne L. Lenhardt

Term: July 1, 2012-June 30, 2015

Lynne L. Lenhardt was first elected to the Bethlehem Central Board of Education in 1988 and has served as president and vice president. She has also been a member of the Capital Region BOCES Board since 1997, also leading that board as president and vice president. She is also on the Tech Valley High School Operating Board. Lynne was elected to the New York State School Boards Association (NYSSBA) Board of Directors in 2001 representing about 70 school districts in seven counties in the greater Capital Region. In 2009, she was elected as 2nd Vice President of NYSSBA and is serving her second year in that capacity. Prior to her election to the board, Lynne served as president of the Slingerlands PTA. Lynne received a master’s degree from the Nelson A. Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy and formerly taught high school social studies. She also worked as an adjunct college instructor of mathematics and worked in the New York State Legislature. Presently, she is a substitute teacher and does private math tutoring. Lynne lives in Delmar with her husband George and they have two grown children, Brian and Kimberly. 

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Caitrin Navarro

Term: July 1, 2011-June 30, 2014

Dr. Caitrin Navarro was first elected to the Board of Education in 2011. Dr. Navarro is employed by Schoolhouse Road Pediatric Associates. She and her husband, Brian, have three children, a sixth-grade student at BCMS, and a third-grade student and a kindergarten student at Eagle. She has lived in the district for nine years.

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Charmaine Wijeyesinghe

Term: July 1, 2012-June 30, 2015

Charmaine L. Wijeyesinghe was first elected to the Board in May of 2009. She and her husband, Christian Lietzau, have lived in Delmar for over 15 years and have two children, Andreas entering high school and Rebecca entering middle school. Charmaine received her Bachelor of Science, Master of Education, and Doctorate of Education from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. Her professional background includes several positions at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Dean of Students at Mount Holyoke College, and National Program Consultant for the National Conference for Community and Justice (NYC). Charmaine has been a consultant on issues of social justice and organizational development for over 25 years. She lectures at colleges and universities around the country on issues of race, multiracial identity, and other social issues. Charmaine has published two edited volumes on racial identity and several other book chapters and articles. Before her election to the Board of Education, she served on the Board of the Elsmere PTA for four years.

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