Leslie Norwood has lived in Hoboken since 1998 and is a parent of two children in Hoboken Public Schools - one each in Brandt Elementary School and Hoboken Middle School. Ms. Norwood brings her analytic, financial, and advocacy skills to the BOE from almost three decades of experience as a securities attorney and lobbyist focused on infrastructure and municipal finance for capital projects for public purposes.

Ms. Norwood was elected to the BOE in 2022, and has been actively involved in various committees, as well as serving as BOE representative to the Hoboken Public Library Board. She is proud to support the efforts of the students, teachers, and administrators, and she continues to have particular interests in literacy tools, minimizing achievement gaps, and student mental health. In 2024, she earned the New Board Member Boardsmanship certification from the New Jersey School Boards Association. 

Ms. Norwood has been an active volunteer in the community, including serving for 5 years on the Board of the Hoboken Public Education Foundation where she led an initiative to fund teacher training in the Orton-Gillingham method, and many organizations including the Brandt Parent Consortium for Pre-K, Brandt PTO, and Hoboken Special Education Parent Advisory Group.

Antonio  Graña has been a Hoboken resident for over 20  years and is the parent of a freshman at Hoboken High School. After years of advocating for improved parental engagement and upgraded school facilities, Mr. Graña was elected to the Board of Education in 2022. As a Trustee, he remains dedicated to enhancing academic offerings and curriculum throughout the district. The district now proudly boasts recipients of College Board Scholar Awards, Johns Hopkins CTY Math & ELA Honors and Grand Scholars, and the Seal of Biliteracy.

Mr. Graña chairs the Facilities Committee, collaborating with district leadership to develop solutions for new facilities and to identify additional funding strategies for both the district and the city. In his role as district representative to the New Jersey School Boards Association in Trenton, Mr. Graña serves as a vital liaison between the district and state‑level education leaders. Before joining the Board, he held officer positions on the PTOs of Connors Elementary and Hoboken Middle School. He continues to volunteer with numerous community organizations and previously served as a Commissioner on the Hoboken Zoning Board of Adjustment for 10 years.

Bringing a combination of volunteer experience and a deep understanding of local government, Mr. Graña also draws on 25 years of private‑sector business management and governance expertise.

Elizabeth "Lizy" Velez has lived in Hoboken for over ten years and is proud to call the Mile Square City her home. The parent of a child with special needs, Ms. Velez appreciates the importance of a supportive school district. She welcomed the input of educators and staff at Wallace Elementary School, and looks forward to working closely with the team at Hoboken Middle School this school year. 

Ms. Velez is an active participant and proponent of the Special Education Parents Advisory Group, a proud member of Hoboken's special needs parents community, and a firm believer that every child deserves acceptance and access to an appropriate education. She is also fluent in Spanish and has worked closely with the district to provide Spanish-speaking outreach to immigrant families in the school community.

A graduate of Penn Law, Ms. Velez is a commercial litigator who spent over six years in a prominent international law firm and is now a partner in a litigation boutique. Ms. Velez has cultivated - and she brings to the Board - a strong background in analysis and advocacy. Her work spans complex corporate disputes in both state and federal courts, and she also devotes her time to pro bono and public interest cases covering human and civil rights.