Amityville school board accepts Heller's resignation as trustee

The Amityville school board Wednesday accepted trustee David Heller's resignation.

Heller, who had announced he was stepping down earlier this month, did not attend the Wednesday afternoon board meeting.

At the end of the board's June 14 meeting, Heller said: “I'm sorry, for personal reasons I am not able to complete my tenure."

Neither Heller, nor Amityville schools Superintendent Edward Fale responded to messages seeking comment Wednesday.

Heller had been appointed an Amityville schools trustee in 2020. He was then elected to the volunteer position in 2021 and reelected to a full three-year term in 2022.

In a prepared statement read at Wednesday's meeting, school board President Lisa Johnson said the district clerk had received Heller's letter of resignation. She also said the board will discuss the vacancy with legal counsel and make an announcement about filling it at a future meeting.

Comments Heller made at a February board meeting, where he cited what he said were Spanish-speaking students' difficulties understanding school curriculum as a reason for low test scores overall, led an Amityville woman to file a complaint with the school district.

The complaint accused Heller of violating the state Dignity for All Students Act, signed into law in 2010 and designed to protect students from bullying, discrimination or harassment.

Information about the status of the complaint was not immediately available but at Wednesday's meeting, Johnson said it had no connection to Heller's resignation.

At the June 14 board meeting, Heller, 73, said he had previously discussed his plans to resign with administrators and other trustees.

“As much as I’d like to see my visions come to fruition," Heller said. "It’s something I don’t think I’ll have enough strength to do.”

With Joie Tyrrell