After 18 years of dedicated service, Board of Education (BOE) President William Belmont has decided to retire from his position on the board. He is a dedicated civic servant who has devoted nearly two decades of his life giving back to the community in which he was born and raised.
Belmont, along with his three brothers, attended Lynbrook Public Schools. He has been married to his wife, Allyson, for 25 years, and he described her as his “most favorite person in all the world.” His son, Jake, an LHS Class of 2020 graduate, is now in law school, and his daughter Rachel, Class of 2022, is on the pre-med track at Cornell University.
Belmont first thought of becoming a board member 25 years ago when former Superintendent of Schools Santo Barbarino asked him to get involved in the district. Belmont began coaching many youth sports teams such as soccer, football, basketball, lacrosse, and baseball. He soon became an assistant varsity football coach as well. He then began serving on the Lynbrook Safety and Security Committee. “A few years later, Barbarino asked me to run for the School Board,” Belmont shared.
Outside of being a board member, Belmont is an investigative attorney and operates a nationwide investigation firm. He also spends his time beating opponents on the pickleball courts.
Belmont is now heading into retirement from the BOE, excited for what the future holds. His time on the BOE will always stick with him and hold a place in his heart. “I’m going to miss working with my fellow board members and the administration,” he said. Belmont has devoted his time on the BOE to supporting the Lynbrook community, helping many people, and making the district the best it could be.
“My favorite part of being on the [BOE] is working with a team of dedicated people in helping to make Lynbrook the best school district possible for our kids. I enjoyed helping the district deal with the constantly changing political environment that was impacting our policies. It is important to make sure that we maintain local control of our district as much as possible,” he remarked.
Belmont is very fond of his fellow board members and is so happy to be able to work with them. “The most rewarding part of being on the [BOE] was being selected as president by my fellow board members and having them entrust me to lead us through some difficult times,” he expressed.
The Covid-19 pandemic made his journey on the BOE difficult, but he still made every effort to put the needs of the school district first. “I am most proud of how I was able to handle the various issues that came up during Covid. That was the most challenging time during my 18 years, and I think we did a great job of making sure we continued to educate our students, even though the politicians in Albany made it very difficult,” he said.
Now that his time on the BOE is ending, Belmont hopes to pass on information to the newcomers and the people who have been with him for this time. “I hope that I will be remembered as a board member who dedicated himself to our community and did everything he could to give our kids every opportunity to be successful,” he shared. When asked about any advice he would like to pass on to incoming BOE members, Belmont replied, “My advice to any new board members would be to listen more often than talk. Make sure you put yourself in the shoes of the students, teachers, and parents who bring their issues to the board of education. Additionally, you are never going to make everyone happy. You must make your decisions based upon what is best for the community as a whole and not in trying to appease any one particular group.”
Belmont is also proud of the students interviewing for the student board position. When asked what he would like to say to the chosen member, he said, “For our student board member, it is very important to understand as much as you can about the different segments in the student population regarding their wants and desires and opinions, and try to convey that as accurately as possible to your fellow board members.”
Principal Matthew Sarosy worked with Belmont during his time on the BOE, and knows him as an advocate. “Mr. Belmont helped our district navigate some very difficult times, most notably the pandemic. I was always impressed by Mr. Belmont’s dedication to our community and consistency in making decisions that were right for students. He is also passionate about setting our students up for success after graduating LHS,” Sarosy shared. “Mr. Belmont shows that people who feel strongly about something can disagree with each other in a civil way and work towards a compromise,” Sarosy commended.
Assistant Principal Sal Brescia is close with Belmont as well. “We are both LHS alumni, but he is much older–can’t you tell? He graduated two years before I got to LHS, so I didn’t know him, but I knew OF him. He was a student athlete and a leader in the high school, so his name and his persona lived on after he graduated,” Brescia recounted.
It was not until Brescia returned to LHS as a guidance counselor that he reconnected with Belmont. “He stayed here to raise his family, so our paths began to cross more and more. He was an active parent member in the community from the very first day at the Kindergarten Center and continued to be involved at every level. During his time on the board, he and I have had many opportunities to work together, and the end result was always something that benefited the students,” Brescia shared.
Brescia described Belmont as a passionate and humorous person who carries those qualities into everything he does. “He cares very deeply for our community–especially our schools. As Board president, he is open-minded and listens to all points of view, but in the end, it will always be about what’s best for kids. We have been very fortunate to have his passion on our side for all these years,” Brescia commended. Brescia also admired Belmont’s ability to bring levity to any situation: “He may not take himself too seriously, but he takes his role and his responsibility to our schools very seriously.”
Belmont shared his last remarks about being on the BOE: “I would conclude by indicating that having spent the last 18 years on the Board has been extremely rewarding. I hope that my efforts have contributed to making Lynbrook one of the best school districts on Long Island.”
