Accounting Team: The Backbone of CVES

When you think of Champlain Valley Educational Services, what do you picture in your mind? Probably teens climbing trees in the CV-TEC conservation program, elementary kids learning through hands-on activities in special education classes at the Rise Center for Success, or teachers training in the latest science of reading in our professional development workshops. You may even picture our IT techs helping with a network issue, our Risk Management professionals consulting about planning for emergencies, or our Print Shop partners producing signs and booklets.

What probably doesn’t pop into your mind is accounting.

Yet the five-member accounting team is at the center of everything CVES. The backbone of the organization, the account team’s work supports and makes possible all the amazing learning, connection and activities that happen throughout CVES.

 

The team

The accounting team is made up of Treasure Christine Myers, Deputy Treasurer Derek Leavine, Accountants Colby Siskavich and Vinny Bondinello, and Junior Accountant Ryan Bone.

Derek, Colby and Vinny are each assigned to a division of CVES. They get to know the goals people have in their assigned division, so they can work together to make sure those goals can be reached. As the treasurer, Christine is the center of the hub, overseeing everything and being accountable to the CVES Board of Education.

Junior Accountant is a newer role for CVES. Ryan helps each of the accountants and learns the details of how to do the job. That way, there’s someone already trained in case of future openings.

The team is tight-knit and collaborates closely. Christine encourages everyone to cross-train and learn about one another’s roles, so there’s always someone to cover if there’s a vacation or emergency.

She also encourages them to learn everything they can about the division they work with, and she sets up tours of various CVES programs to ensure that her team has a clear understanding of how each department works. When plowing through stacks of bills and reports every day, it’s easy to forget that there are people and activities impacted by each task they perform – something Christine doesn’t want her accountants to do.

“It’s important to make sure they always know they’re part of that team,” Christine said.

Between them, they have a wealth of several decades of experience. Most have worked in accounting at CPA firms and nonprofits, and they have each learned a lot over their time with CVES as well.

The team works hard to prevent mistakes, but when they happen, Christine encourages everyone to be honest and open about them so they can be fixed quickly. Each mistake is a lesson to be learned.

 

Working within the rules

Christine says that it can feel like her team often has to say no. The state and federal guidelines that a public entity like a BOCES has to follow can be long, restrictive, and utterly confusing. It can feel like the layers of regulations make it impossible to do anything new or creative.

But the accounting team really strives to make sure that’s not the case. When someone has a great idea, the accountants work hard to figure out how to make it happen within the guidelines from all the state and federal regulatory agencies.

They work with quite a few different types of accounts, including school funds, grant funds, cafeteria funds, scholarships, employee benefit plans, student activity funds and more. Each type of fund comes with a different set of rules. Each set of rules means coming up with procedures and checks and balances to ensure everything is working correctly and within compliance guidelines.

All of the team’s work is regularly checked through approval processes and multiple levels of auditing reporting.

 

Making it all possible

The next time you see students engaged in learning at CV-TEC, families receiving support at the Rise Center, or educators growing through professional development opportunities, remember that behind every program and service is a team of dedicated professionals ensuring the financial foundation is solid.

Christine, Derek, Colby, Vinny, and Ryan may work with spreadsheets and regulations rather than lesson plans and lab equipment, but their careful stewardship of CVES resources makes every educational opportunity possible.

The accounting team embodies the collaborative spirit that defines CVES. They don’t just manage numbers – they support creativity, enable growth, and help build the future of education in the Champlain Valley. And while they may not seek the spotlight, they are truly the backbone that keeps everything strong, steady, and moving forward.