School board elects new chair, vice chair, Banios selected by Mass. school district

Vermont Standard
By Allan Stein
Standard Staff

Bryce Sammel has been named chair of the Windsor Central Modified Unified Union School District Board and Pamela Fraser vice chair through March 2021.

Both board members represent Barnard in three-year terms. Sammel’s term expires in 2021. Fraser’s ends in 2022.

Monday’s reorganization followed two board resignations: former chair Patti Kuzmickas of Pomfret, and Malena Agin of Woodstock. Their positions will be filled by the Select Board from each of their towns.

Kuzmickas was elected chair on March 9, but stepped down the following day amid claims of a flawed nomination process. On March 11, she resigned from the board. Agin tendered her resignation from the board shortly afterward.

Sammel was elected chair by unanimous vote. Fraser was elected vice chair over fellow nominee Ben Ford,10-5. Ford represents Woodstock.

Fraser said she wanted to serve in the position, since “I care very much about education.”

“It’s a major part of my life and my career.


I care about public institutions and I care about fairness,” Fraser said.

By a majority vote, the board rejected a motion to do away with the vice chair position.

Banios picked by Mass. school district

On Tuesday, March 24, the Hamilton-Wenham Regional School District in Massachusetts announced they had selected Mary Beth Banios as superintendent pending successful negotiations. Banios has been superintendent of the Windsor Central Supervisory Union in Woodstock since 2017. She was among four finalists vying for the Hamilton-Wenham position.