SBO Perspectives

It’s probably safe to say we are all having to deal with the school bus driver shortage in one way or another. Whether you have your own fleet and you’re trying to retain drivers or your transportation company is struggling to bring your students to school, districts have been having to get creative with their solutions. Join us as we speak to Jim Nestico, Transportation Supervisor at the Kenmore - Town of Tonawanda UFSD as he walks us through how to deal with driver shortages and his techniques on recruitment and retention!

Can you believe it? We’re back in person at ASBO New York’s School Business Management Workshop (SBMW) 2021! We took full advantage of seeing our friends and colleagues; some for the first time in almost two years. On this episode, we take an opportunity to reflect on the conference, our experiences and why it was such a success. We also sit down with our fellow SBO Leadership Academy alumni of 2016 and find out what they’ve been up to for the past five years since we all graduated together.

Did you miss out on SBMW this year? Check out what was on the schedule and get yourself ready for 2022: https://www.asbonewyork.org/page/2021SBMW

Get more info on the SBO Leadership Academy here: https://www.asbonewyork.org/page/sboleadershipacademy

For more information on David Hulings with Hulings and Associates: https://www.hulingsandassociates.com/

What is it like to run an entire organization of school business officials? Find out as we talk to Lisa Ryan, Assistant Superintendent for Finance & Operations at Monroe #1 BOCES and President of ASBO New York. We talk to our dear friend about her incredibly successful career and how she sees ASBO New York evolving in the future.

With Halloween right around the corner, we thought it only appropriate to bring you a “shell”-shocking episode with New York State Senator Shelley Mayer! All kidding aside, tune in as we have an incredible conversation with Senator Mayer about what it means to legislate and advocate for public schools and what she expects out of this year’s State legislative session.

One of the most important dynamics in school administration is that of the Superintendent and the School Business Official. We speak with Dr. Phyllis Harrington, Superintendent at Oceanside UFSD and President of the New York State Council of Superintendents (NYSCOSS) about her years as Superintendent and what it takes to have a successful relationship with the SBO.

Check out what Dr. Harrington is reading! The Life Cycle of Leadership: Surviving and Thriving in Today’s Schools by Stephen Uebbing & Mike Ford can be found here: https://bit.ly/3nbI0mX

Not all of us have the opportunity to literally see one industry from two different vantage points. Today we speak with Mike Vespi, School Business Administrator at South Orangetown Central School District about his 20 years of experience and how moving between both the private and public sectors of education have offered him an incredibly unique perspective on the work we do every day. We also circle back to our fitness competition and are giving away a special prize to those who guess the correct winner! Stay tuned until the end!

Is your district looking at going “green”? Have you considered what your carbon footprint is? Join us as we talk with Mike Ryan of Energy Systems Group (ESG) about what he and his company do to make your schools not only a better learning environment for students, but a cost saving measure in your annual budget.

Find out more about ESG and what they offer to school districts here: https://www.energysystemsgroup.com/

Who do you call when you’re in trouble and need backup? Special Agent: Victor Manuel, Assistant Superintendent for Business at Jericho UFSD. We sit down with this infamous operative of school finance to discuss his history as a School Business Official, what lead him to such a successful career and how he’s seen the profession change over the past 26 years.

It’s not too often we talk about the multiple pathways to becoming a School Business Official but on today’s episode, we speak with Lissa Jilek, School Business Manager at the Catskill Central School District about her journey on the Civil Service pathway to school finance. She talks to us about where she started, her philosophy on the profession and offers sage advice to all of our new and seasoned business officials.

Curious about what it takes to become an SBO? Check out ASBO New York’s “Becoming a School Business Official” pathways site: https://www.asbonewyork.org/page/becomingsbo

We’ve talked about giving back on SBO Perspectives before, but on this episode we take it a step further and reach across the country! John Hutchison, Deputy Superintendent for Business and Operations of Olathe Public Schools, joins us all they way from Kansas. John is on the Board of Directors for ASBO International and is currently running for Vice President. We talk about representing your industry, the unique pathways to becoming a School Business Official and how important it is to build and maintain relationships with your fellow SBOs (even if they’re national!)

If you’re an ASBO International member, please make sure to cast your vote here: https://asbointl.org/