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About Joseph M. Barry
 Joseph M. Barry, who championed career and technical education for more than two decades, was a highly regarded spokesperson for public education, whose contributions were acknowledged on local, state and national levels.Barry, who died in February 2002, a year after retiring as clerk and member of the board of Nassau BOCES, had served from 1970 to 1980 as a member of the Boards of Education of Valley Stream District Thirty and Valley Stream High School. In 1980, he began his two decades of service as a member of the Nassau BOCES Board. He subsequently served as vice clerk of the Board from 1987 to 1995 and district clerk from 1996 until his retirement in 2001. "I've never met a better board member," said Nassau BOCES Board president George Farber, commenting on Barry's contribution. A resident of Lattingtown, Barry maintained ongoing contact with legislators and Governor George Pataki. His vision: maintaining student access to career and technical education in an era when new standards require additional classwork just to earn a high school diploma. "He was always fighting for kids," said Farber. A former chairman of the Hofstra School Board Forum, Barry was president from 1991-1993 of the Nassau-Suffolk School Boards Association, which presented him with the Distinguished Service Award in 1989 and the Presidential Award in 1993. He held various positions with the New York State School Boards Association and in 1994 received the association's Everett R. Dyer Award for Distinguished School Board Service. In 2002, he received a Special Award from the New York State Association of Career and Technical Administrators for his support of career and technical education and his commitment to providing students access to these programs. Among major position papers he wrote for the Nassau-Suffolk School Boards Association were those on special education reform, learning-centered curriculum and assessment, issues facing public education on Long Island, and education of homeless children. Barry made his last official appearance in December 2001 at the groundbreaking for the new building that bears his name. |
Copyright Nassau BOCES Department of Career and Technical Education
Joseph M. Barry Career and Technical Educational Center 1196 Prospect Avenue, Westbury, NY 11590 Telephone: (516) 622-6800 Fax: (516) 333-9384  |