President
Sarah Fitzgerald
sfitzgeraldboe@fmschools.org
Board term expires: 2025
Presidential term expires: 2025
Vice President
Rebecca Cohen
rcohenboe@fmschools.org
Board term expires: 2026
Vice presidential term expires: 2025
Members
Ann Bersani
abersaniboe@fmschools.org
Term expires: 2027
Jason Catalino
jcatalinoboe@fmschools.org
Term expires: 2026
Cynthia Hefti
cheftiboe@fmschools.org
Term expires: 2025
Marissa Joy Mims
mmimsboe@fmschools.org
Term expires: 2027
Kristen Purcell
kpurcellboe@fmschools.org
Term expires: 2026
Daniel Seidberg
dseidbergboe@fmschools.org
Term expires: 2027
Daryll Fitch Wheeler
dwheelerboe@fmschools.org
Term expires: 2025
Board member biographies
Ann Bersani
Ann Bersani, of Fayetteville, is serving her first term on the Board of Education. She and her husband Tom have two children in the district.
Bersani received a Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology from SUNY Fredonia, and a Master of Science degree in higher education and student affairs administration from Canisius University.
Bersani is the Director of Residence Life and Housing at SUNY Cortland and is responsible for managing multiple facilities and fostering a community of belonging for residential students by providing a safe, civil, and vibrant environment that supports the university’s academic mission. She is currently a volunteer for Fayetteville Elementary School’s and Wellwood Middle School’s Home and School Associations, and a member of the Fayetteville Recreation Department Committee.
Jason Catalino
Jason Catalino, of Fayetteville, is serving his second term on the Board of Education. He and his wife Karrie have three children in the district.
Catalino is an accounting manager with National Grid and has more than 20 years of experience as a certified public accountant. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting from SUNY Geneseo and a master’s degree in business administration from LeMoyne College.
Catalino previously served as an assistant coach for F-M Little League and is a member of the board for the Syracuse Chapter of the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants. He is an active volunteer for various Wellwood Home and School Association events and actively supports the Immaculate Conception Church youth ministry.
Rebecca Cohen
Rebecca Cohen, of Fayetteville, is serving her third term on the board of education. She and her husband Brendan McGinn have three children in the district. Cohen is a Fayetteville-Manlius High School graduate.
She attended Brown University where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in history. She earned her Juris Doctor from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law. Cohen is an attorney with Bousquet Holstein PLLC, where she practices immigration law.
She currently serves on the InterFaith Works of Central New York Board of Directors and is an active pro bono immigration attorney with the Volunteer Lawyers Project of CNY, Inc.
Sarah Fitzgerald
Sarah Fitzgerald (she/her), of Manlius, is serving her first term on the board of education. She and her spouse Patrick have four children who attend Fayetteville-Manlius schools.
She volunteers in support of Enders Road and Eagle Hill’s home and school associations and she also serves as Chair of the Vera House Foundation.
Fitzgerald graduated from LeRoy High School and received a Bachelor of Science degree from LeMoyne College. She is also a graduate of Leadership Greater Syracuse. She is a former human resource manager and program manager for Sensis & Saab Corporation, and is currently a stay-at-home parent.
Cynthia Hefti
Cynthia Hefti, of Manlius, is serving her first term on the board of education. She and her husband Jonathan have two children who are Fayetteville-Manlius High School graduates.
Hefti is an Oneonta High School graduate, received a Bachelor of Science degree from SUNY Oneonta, and a Masters in the Art of Teaching degree from Colgate University. Before retiring in 2020, Hefti was an F-M English teacher for 24 years. During this time, she was the pilot teacher for the high school’s former ILEX program, which is now called ACCESS, and received a Teacher of Excellence award from the New York State English Council. She also served as advisor for two high school student groups: an animal shelter assistance club, and a club focusing on supporting the LGBTQ+ community.
Hefti is a member of the Fayetteville-Owahgena Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR).
Marissa Joy Mims
Marissa Joy Mims has lived in Manlius since 2006. Her twin son and daughter are 2019 alumni of the district. She was first elected to the board of education in 2009. Mims initiated the creation of the student board member position. She currently serves as board president and is a member of the Policy, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, and Audit Committees.
Mims has represent the Jamesville-Dewitt Central School District and Fayetteville-Manlius as member of the Onondaga-Cortland-Madison (OCM) BOCES Board of Education since 2020. She is a member of the OCM BOCES Policy and Superintendent Evaluation Committees in addition to serving as a member of the Career Technical Education Advisory Committee. She previously served on the New York State School Board Association Resolutions Committee and as the Area 4 director for the Caucus of Black School Board Members. Ms. Mims has served on all board committees during her tenure on the board and is a prior board legislative liaison.
In 2016, Mims was appointed to the Onondaga County Justice Center Oversight Committee (JCOC) by the Onondaga County Legislature. She is chair of the JCOC which issues policy recommendations to the sheriff and legislature regarding operations at the Justice Center. Mims is a member of the Town of Manlius Comprehensive Planning Committee. She is an alumni of Leadership Greater Syracuse.
Mims received a BA from Syracuse University in Political Science. She is currently working on a Masters degree in STEM Education from Grand Canyon University. As a Career Technical Education teacher for the Syracuse City School District, she teaches Design at JT Roberts K-8 School. Mims is the Community Project Coordinator for the International Baccalaureate Middle Years Program at Roberts. She is the building Diversity, Equity and Belonging Lead Teacher. Mims is a member of the School Climate Equity Plan Committee and Scheduling Committee. She was elected to the building Strategic Leadership Team by her peers and to serve as a building labor relations representative. Mims is a 2023-24 SyraFuse Fellow in Personalized Learning. She is the faculty advisor for student council, yearbook, VEX Robotics and Kidwind. Mims was a member of the Superintendent’s Teacher Advisory Council for the 2023-2024 school year.
Kristen Purcell
Kristen Purcell, of Fayetteville, is serving her first term on the board of education. She and her husband Eric Boye have one child in the district.
A Jamesville-DeWitt High School graduate, Purcell received a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology, a Master of Science degree in elementary education and a Certificate of Advanced Study in school building and district administration from Syracuse University. Purcell is the Director of CNY/Oswego County Teacher Center.
Prior to her current role, she served in various educational roles, including Coordinator of Social Emotional Learning, Community Partnerships and Family Engagement for Solvay Union Free School District; assistant principal of Eagle Hill Middle School; Assistant Coordinator of Innovative Teaching and Learning at Onondaga-Cortland-Madison Board of Cooperative Educational Services; and elementary teacher for Jamesville-DeWitt Central School District. She is currently a member of New York State Association for Women in Administration – Central New York Chapter and is involved in Wellwood Middle School’s Home and School Association, and Site-Based Team.
Daniel Seidberg
Daniel Seidberg, of Manlius, is serving his third term on the board of education. He has lived in the F-M district his entire life, having attended Mott Road Elementary School and Wellwood Middle School before graduating from F-M High School. He and his wife Jenée, also an F-M graduate, have two children: one who is a 2021 F-M graduate and one who attends F-M High School. He volunteered as a trustee of the FM Education Foundation, served as a youth soccer coach for 14 seasons, co-chaired the Cavalry Club swim program, served as a member of the F-M Community Facility Task Force and has been involved in other F-M programming.
Seidberg received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Colgate University and earned his Juris Doctor degree from Boston University School of Law. Seidberg is an attorney and also the president and co-founder of an international company that provides emergency technology and communication tools to fire departments, emergency medical services agencies, police departments and other first responder entities throughout North America.
Daryll Fitch Wheeler
Daryll Fitch Wheeler, of Fayetteville, is serving her third term on the board of education. She has been a district resident since 1950 and attended F-M from kindergarten through grade 12. She and her husband David M. Wheeler Sr., also an F-M alumnus and former principal of Wellwood Middle School, have seven children, all of whom are F-M graduates. They currently have three grandchildren attending F-M schools and three who graduated in 2017, 2021 and 2023.
She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in English literature from Nazareth College of Rochester, a Master of Science degree in Reading and Language Arts from Syracuse University, and a Certificate of Advanced Study in School Administration from LeMoyne College.
Before retiring in 2011, she taught English at Fayetteville-Manlius High School and English and reading in the Jamesville-DeWitt Central School District at Jamesville-DeWitt Middle School and Moses DeWitt Elementary School. She finished her career at OCM BOCES in the Regional School Support Center and the Curriculum, Instruction & Assessment department, working directly with teachers and administrators in a three-county region. A member of the parish of The Immaculate Conception in Fayetteville, Wheeler serves as a lector and Eucharistic minister and recently co-chaired the parish’s celebration of its 150th anniversary.