Tag Archives: boe

BOE Candidate Forum at Lakeview NAACP Chapter

Malverne School District Community Posted on by

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.

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My Blog Is Two Years Old

Malverne School District Community Posted on by

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 →

You May Suggest …Now

Malverne School District Community Posted on by

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 →

Why I Refuse

Malverne School District Community Posted on by

#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 →

Stakeholder Proposes A Search Committee

Malverne School District Community Posted on by

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 →

The Tribe Has Spoken

Malverne School District Community Posted on by

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.

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Community Engagement Outline

Malverne School District Community Posted on by

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 →

Malverne SD Budget and CCSS Costs

Malverne School District Community Posted on by

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 →

Letter to Malverne BOE, Capital Reserve Fund II

Malverne School District Community Posted on by

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.

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A Tidbit of My Portfolio

Malverne School District Community Posted on by

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 →