Kim Parahus broke a glass ceiling in Nassau County — but don’t worry, she can probably fix it.
Parahus became the first-ever female director of facilities in Nassau County, and possibly Long Island, after being named to the position in the Bethpage School District about 10 years ago. She then served in the position in Plainview. She’s now the first woman, and the first new person in 27 years, to assume the role in the Hewlett-Woodmere School District.
The Plainview resident said she was attracted to the position because of Hewlett-Woodmere’s “prestigious” reputation and is excited to start in summertime — the busiest season of the year for the facilities crew.
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“Summers are a very short window where you don't have the students and staff, so it's on your mark, get set, go! You've got seven weeks, make it happen,” she said. “So, to try and get a sense as to what we have to do, what are the critical issues and prioritize.”
Some of Hewlett-Woodmere’s buildings are several decades old, which leads to old and new issues. For example, the district this year seeks to install climate control in Hewlett Elementary School. Due to the age of the building, the power grid has to be accounted for, because the building wasn’t originally designed for modern cooling and heating systems, Parahus said.
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Parahus said that she enjoys the challenge of the work and looks at it like a puzzle.
“It's different every single day,” she said. “You never know what challenges you're going to face walking in.”
Parahus didn’t intend to go into her profession. She had been interested in studying equestrian science, and got a job working in the New York City Schools system fixing elevators.
“It was a good paying job to get me through college,” she said. “That was it.”
She worked in the city for 21 years with things such as coal and oil boilers, refrigeration and furnace systems, sprinklers and air compressors. Parahus then made the jump to her first director position.
“It was really good because it gave me a true sense of all the different pieces of the job, so this way, if someone came to me with a problem, I actually understood what they were talking about,” she said.
Parahus succeeds Dennis Sheridan, who recently retired after 27 years as the district’s director of facilities.
“I actually looked at it as a challenge to try and fill his shoes, because he was well respected,” she said. “He has a phenomenal crew. He built a great reputation for himself and hopefully I can live up to that reputation.”Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
