Owen-Michaane elected school board president, Rowe its vp; new assistant superintendent named

By Bella Caruso, Managing Editor|July 14, 2022

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Dr. Michael Owen-Michaane was elected the new school board president.

Dr. Michael Owen-Michaane and Ian Rowe were unanimously elected school board president and vice president, respectively, for the 2022-23 school year during the board’s reorganization meeting Tuesday. The board also voted 7-0 to appoint Dr. Alice Bowman to the new position of superintendent for teaching and learning.

“I am really looking forward to working closely” with Superintendent Dr. Cheryl Champ and the whole administrative team, said Owen-Michaane.

Owen-Michaane won his seat on the board in 2021 along with Rowe, defeating incumbents Jess Young and Eileen Miller along with Janice Powers, another newcomer. 

In a move late last month that was criticized by some residents, the previous board voted 4-3 to grant Champ a new four-year contract during the last regular meeting of the year—and then had to vote on it again June 30 at a special meeting because of a violation of the New York State Open Meetings Law. Owen-Michaane and Rowe, along with former trustee Vincent Mazzaro, voted against the new contract, with Owen-Michaane saying at the time the trustees should wait until three new board members were sworn in at the reorganization meeting.

In the year that ended June 30, Trustee Jessica DeDomenico served as board president and Trustee Sue Bratone Childs as vice president.

Bowman said of her appointment, “It is truly an honor to join the Pelham district community. Pelham is clearly a place that champions its children, knows the power of community and works tirelessly to ensure that the education provided by Pelham schools is world class.”

New trustees Will Treves, Natalie Marrero and Jackie De Angelis were sworn in following their election to three-year terms in May.

No members of the community spoke during a public hearing of the district’s safety plan. The plan was posted this week and will be up until late August, when the board plans to reconvene to make any needed revisions. 

The board voted 7-0 to approve the amount to be raised by taxes for the current fiscal school year, which is $68.6 million.

The next meeting school board is scheduled for August 24.