From left, Frewsburg Central School Board of Education President Polly Hanson, Interim Superintendent Lynda Quick, and President Mike LeBaron conduct business at a Dec. 17 meeting. P-J photo by Michael Zabrodsky

FREWSBURG – The Frewsburg Central School Board of Education has hired an interim middle/high school assistant principal.

Daniel Bracey, a retired principal who served in the Jamestown Public Schools district, was approved Dec. 17 and began his position Dec. 4.

According to Board President Mike LeBaron, the district was in need of some help.

“We’re down an administrator in the middle/high school. We have (Principal) Jen Armella, who is doing everything right.”

In a related matter, LeBaron said the investigation with Joshua Gilevski is continuing.

The school board placed Gilevski on administrative leave in September. According to frewsburgcsd.org, Gilevski serves as the coordinator of student affairs.

LeBaron said at the board’s Oct. 10 meeting that Gilevski was not charged with anything, but the district is investigating something that pertains to his position.

In other business, board members heard an update by interim Superintendent Lynda Quick about the district’s educational performance.

“A typical situation for a small rural district is you would see high graduation rates, and really high Regents (exams) performance rates in districts that are doing well,” Quick noted. “And we are no exception.”

For the 2024-2025 school year, 48 percent of the district students were economically disadvantaged. Quick said that did have a slight impact on grades three through eight the New York State English Language Arts proficiency assessment and the math proficiency assessment.

She said in both assessments the district was just below the state average.

“I think that’s in part because of our economic disadvantaged numbers in our rural area,” Quick said. “It takes us a while, I say, to get the steam rolling, to really build the capacity in our kids to do well at the high school.”

Quick noted that for the ELA and math Regents exams, the district was well above the state average in 2024-2025.

The interim superintendent added that not only did the district exceed the state averages in ELA in math, but it also exceeded the averages in Chautauqua and Erie counties.

“As we get that head of steam going, by the time we are in high school, you start to see how much progress we’ve made. And it’s a really positive thing,” Quick noted.

Student Board Member Lily Harvey also gave an update about the Bearly Worn Thrifting Closet which is part of the Giving Tree.

She said items that can be donated are winter gear, adult and teen clothing items, and new personal hygiene products.

She added that winter gear includes hats, coats, boots, gloves and mittens; clothing items (new or gently-used condition) include all adult and teen sizes, pajamas, socks, jeans, hoodies, and sweats; personal hygiene items that include deodorant, body wash and body spray, shampoo, lotion, dental care, and feminine products.

For more information, visit frewsburgcsd.org or call (716) 569-7000.

The board also approved authorization to place an order for two 77-passenger buses not to exceed a total of $400,000 pending voter approval on May 19, 2026. The proposition for the voters would be worded to give FCD the option to fund the purchase from budget or to finance depending on the state aid and other budget considerations when payment is required.