The Lakeview NAACP chapter invited the Malverne UFSD BOE candidates to their regular meeting. The candidates were the current board member, Mrs. Bottitta and myself. The forum was well moderated by Mrs. Karen Aker with the assistance of Mrs. Phyllis Wright, both former school board members. The NAACP chapter is the only organization in the school district that consistently allocates the time to offer such forum to their members each year.
I launched this blog on March 22nd, 2013. I was inspired by a website launched in spring of 2012 by an anonymous group of Malverne UFSD activists in support of two candidates running for the board of education that year. Their site is now defunct. First, I paid attention to local matters only. My first post was “District 12 Information for 2013 Election.” In my naïveté, I thought that my perception of the school … Continue reading →
After one month hiatus, the Malverne UFSD BOE held its meeting in public on January 13th. Certificates of recognition were awarded to athletes representing the district schools in various disciplines, followed by the music awards. Mr. Gilhuley, HT Herber middle school principal, presented the progress on the “K-12 SAT success”, program the district introduced last year. The presentation is available on the district’s website. The BOE approved an employee termination after a disciplinary hearing, … Continue reading →
#whyirefuse “High-quality assessments are an integral part of teaching and learning,”[1] wrote New York State Education Commissioner John B. King, Jr. “They provide useful feedback to teachers, parents and students. In New York, we haven’t increased the number of tests the state administers, and virtually all of the tests we give are required by federal law. Unfortunately, due to various pressures at the federal, state and local level, local testing has increased in many … Continue reading →
In general, the residents are not engaged in public school issues. They accept matters presented by the board and administration as given facts. They view them as prescribed by a higher authority from Washington, DC, to Albany, NY (in our case), to local districts without room for a debate. When they, eventually, raise a question, they hear easy answers: “It’s a law.” “It’s a mandate.” The reality is different, though. Engaged residents together with … Continue reading →
I lost yet another election. I borrowed the phrase from a popular TV show in which all the tribe members always vote. It’s different in the MUFSD. Out of approx. 9,000 residents 1,200 voted in 2012, 1,000 in 2013, and 900 this year. The others resigned. Low participation in the school budget annual elections is common around the NYS and it’s not a new phenomenon. … Continue reading →
I sent the following email message from my personal account earlier. (I am sorry, some subscribers may overlap). Dear Parents and Residents, I ran for a seat on the Malverne (MUFSD) school board last year and am running this year again. For the past year, I have done lots of research on education and politics in education. I got familiar with the current educational narratives and their representatives. I collaborate with NY educational advocacy … Continue reading →
The series of three sessions dedicated to Malverne SD budget came to the end on March 18. The first session was dedicated to “instructional” expenses (codes 2010-2855), followed by a session on “operational” expenses (codes 1620-1981 and 5000s), and the last session paid attention to “administrative” expenses (codes 1010-1480 and 9000s). In addition to the public sessions, Mr. Caputo, district business administrator, kindly met with me for two extra sessions. It allowed me to … Continue reading →
In light of the fact that the NY 2014–15 state budget allocated more aid for education than the original GEA would provide and that the building aid to the Malverne district increased significantly, I sent the following letter to the Malverne BOE. Feel free to copy the text, edit it and send to boe2@malverne.k12.ny.us. … Continue reading →
After learning about my candidacy for a seat on the Malverne Union Free School District BOE, a friend asked me at the Malverne Facebook group (by invitation) about my platform. I knew the entire portfolio would be too long for the FB comments field, but I wanted him to see my view on just two current topics. I started writing, but realized that just these two related topics were already too long. I decided … Continue reading →
