Taxpayers in Syosset will head to the polls on May 19 to fill three open seats on the Central School District Board of Education, after two longtime trustees declined to seek re-election and left a ballot line crowded with mostly first-time candidates.
Carol Cheng won’t be on it. She spent nine years on the board, the last three as its president, before the Monday, April 20, filing deadline closed without her name attached to any paperwork. Cheng’s original election was in 2017. She stepped into the board presidency in 2023. Nine years is a long run for a volunteer position, and she’s done.
Trustee Anna Levitan isn’t returning either. She also put in nine years, bringing a background that included serving as a PTA executive officer and founding a local tutoring prep service. She didn’t file for another term.
That leaves Susan Falkove as the single incumbent on the May 19 ballot. She’s seeking a third term and will share the race with five challengers: Inna Choi, Lisa Li, Rahul Nabe, Bran Tvedt, and Corey Witt. Six candidates. Three seats. Each seat carries a three-year term running through 2027. The math isn’t comfortable for everyone running.
Cheng’s tenure drew scrutiny more than once. In December 2023, the Nassau County Police Department was called to a board meeting after public comment descended into resident complaints touching on both antisemitism and Islamophobia. That’s not a routine night on the dais. The district also moved away from its “Braves” name and associated imagery while Cheng served as president, a change mandated after New York State prohibited school districts from continuing to use Native American symbols and names. Neither episode was low-stakes, and Cheng was presiding over both.
“The board addressed some genuinely difficult situations during that period,” a district spokesperson said, in describing the transitions under Cheng’s leadership.
New York State Education Department data shows Syosset among the Long Island districts that complied with the Native American name prohibition, a policy that triggered varying levels of community friction across Nassau and Suffolk counties.
Syosset’s May 19 election is one stop in a much larger Nassau County exercise. Dozens of districts are holding simultaneous votes that day on both board candidates and proposed 2026-2027 school budgets. The Nassau County school district election calendar tracks every district participating. Budget votes carry real dollar consequences for homeowners, and the school election cycle is one of the few places local tax rates get a direct referendum.
Over in Jericho, a neighboring Nassau County district, there’s a similar story of incumbents stepping back. Trustee Jill Citron isn’t seeking re-election after nine years, which included a stretch as board president. Two seats are open there, with incumbent Divya Balachanler running alongside candidate Ira Checkla.
Citron’s departure doesn’t come without complications. Her name got pulled into a controversy surrounding former Jericho Superintendent Hank Grishman, who floated a proposal to rename Cantiague Elementary School after himself ahead of his 2025 retirement. The community’s response was fast and unfriendly. A petition carrying 33 signatures called for Citron to resign, with signers alleging she didn’t act transparently as board vice president when she publicly backed the naming proposal.
The petition, as reported by Long Island Press, accused Citron of showing “a blatant” disregard for what the community actually wanted. The petition drive didn’t succeed in removing her, but it’s the backdrop she’s leaving against.
Back in Syosset, the race now comes down to whether voters trust five newcomers enough to hand any of them a seat alongside Falkove. School board elections on Long Island don’t generate heavy turnout, and that can cut either way. Organized parent networks matter. Name recognition matters. In a field of 04 declared challengers running against one familiar face, Falkove’s incumbency is a real advantage.
Election day is May 19. Three seats. Six names. The outcome sets the board composition through at least 2027, and whoever wins will deal with whatever budget pressures, policy fights, and community controversies the district generates between now and then.