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Post by forthekids on Jun 18, 2008 13:26:38 GMT -5
to dotherightthing1, I believe the following information is what you were looking for regarding adding trustees to the BOE. I rec'd the information after speaking to an employee of the Office of Education Management for the NYS BOE. I'm not an attorney, so if anyone out there is, and feels like I'm not presenting this information fairly, please do not hesitate to speak-up.
This section of NYS Education Law can be found on the NYS Government website:
ยง 1703. Change in number of members of board of education. 1. The number of members of the board of education of a union free school district may be increased or decreased at an annual meeting by a majority vote of the qualified voters present and voting to be ascertained by taking and recording the ayes and noes or by ballot. The number of members of such board shall not be increased to more than nine nor decreased to less than three. 2. No vote shall be taken upon the proposition to increase or decrease the number of members of such board of education unless the notice of the annual meeting shall contain a statement to the effect that the voters of such district will vote upon such proposition. The board of education of any such district shall, upon the application of at least twenty-five voters or five percent of the number of voters who voted in the previous annual election of the members of the board of education, whichever is greater, such number to be determined by the number of persons recorded on the poll list as having voted at such election, include in the notice of the annual meeting a statement that the proposition to increase or decrease such board will be presented to the annual meeting for determination. If the board refuses or fails to give such notice, the notice may be given in such manner as the commissioner of education may direct. 3. The additional members first elected shall be elected at a special meeting which shall be called by the board and be held not less than thirty nor more than sixty days following the annual meeting at which the number was increased, and pending the first election of such additional members no vacancy shall be deemed to exist in the offices thereof except for the purpose of filling the same by election, notwithstanding any inconsistent provision of any law.
The gentleman that I spoke to said it his belief that the term "annual meeting" would refer to the 3rd Tuesday in May, which is when we vote on our budget. But he advised if there was any doubt to contact an attorney. So if he is correct in his interpretation, no additions could be made to the BOE until next year's budget vote.
As far as an earlier post on one of the threads regarding replacing the members that didn't vote a certain way. The only way an elected trustee can be removed from his or her position is by an appeal to the Commissioner of Education, there are various reasons you can make your appeal, but they would only be applicable if the trustee legally did not perform their duties. Making cuts to a budget which are permitted by law (whether you agree with them or not) would probably not fall under this category. This is covered under sections 306 and 310 of NYS Education Law found on New York Board of Education website.
So going forward, which is something we have to do no matter how we voted, I believe that under the law this is the board that we have to work with, and their decisions are the ones that we will all have to live with.
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Post by taxed2death on Jun 18, 2008 13:46:58 GMT -5
Everyone should go back and read Lilly's posting on page 3. This is not taking sides, just stating the issue at hand that we are all dealing with as taxpayers and parents. We need leadership so that we can get back to basics and focus on having a school district that provides a high level of education with opportunities for all kinds of kids to explore and grow to their potential. We need to have a productive forum where people feel that they can speak up, and get involved, and not feel like they are not loud enough and its easier to just cast a "no vote". At the same time, these meetings need to be productive, and breaking out in small groups or task forces with goals, and results compiled and discussed as a group. This will be a give and take, can't make everyone happy with everything or we will be in the same place next year. This will be an ongoing process of working meetings, with research assignments in between, so that we can re-build the budget from the ground up, while working to change laws if need be. We need a goal oriented leader who can manage with common sense and not emotion. We have lots of people willing to step up to the plate, just need some direction to get going, and a time and place.
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Post by forthekids on Jun 18, 2008 13:52:19 GMT -5
taxed2death - another great post. Thanks for clearing up the confusion with "taxedtodeath", I didn't think it sounded like one of your posts.
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Post by taxed2death on Jun 18, 2008 14:03:11 GMT -5
forthekids: Thank you for acknowledging that we are different voices. AND Thank you for your research on govenment law. Exactly my concerns, not alot we can do with a no vote this year, but can work in Sept and throughout the year for next year, and absolutely must identify key timelines to be met for major decision changes. Contract dates, Albany dates, etc.. We need a timeline of all, one of the projects that I mentioned above.
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Post by dotherightthing1 on Jun 18, 2008 14:16:25 GMT -5
taxed2death, While I don't disagree with your points about needing leadership and getting more community members involved, I do disagree with your opinion that people voted no because it was easier. In any budget vote there are those that vote no or yes every year regardless of any real facts. The rest of us vote based on facts or opinions. I only hope that your enthusiasm for effecting change in next years budget process is realized, but if past history is any indication, the community has little effect on where and what the BOE and admin. spend. I back this up with over 9 years BAC and bond committee participation, with many recommendations ignored or otherwise not acted on.
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Post by taxed2death on Jun 18, 2008 14:32:59 GMT -5
dotherightthing1 -- just to clarify, I believe you misinterpreted what I was saying. I understand why people voted no and particularly how the revote of the same budget was a bad decision. Believe me this was the toughest vote decision that I ever made. My point was that we do not have a forum where people can speak openly without feeling ridiculed, therefore many "no" voters decided not to attend the hearings or not to speak in an environment that would not listen. We need to have a forum that listens and "processes" the concerns. This is where a large forum just doesn't work, particularly when people are concerned about being judged in their community where their kids go to school.
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Post by dotherightthing1 on Jun 18, 2008 14:46:59 GMT -5
taxed2death, Thanks for clarifying your earlier post. I agree that it was difficult for some who supported a no vote to express their beliefs in public forums.
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Post by rationality on Jun 18, 2008 16:58:31 GMT -5
The budget's defeat was sad but more then well deserved. A revote for a unchanged budget with staggering increases was arrogant and utterly dismissive of its collateral impact on both taxpayers and the children. We all want the best for our children and that requires full disclosure and accountability for spending priorities. We should adopt a zero based budgeting discipline to assess and rejustify all spending requirements ( fixed, variable, imposed) to ensure a balanced educational infrastructive while recognizing our collective responsibility to acknowledge the reality of the available resources to pay for it. Wantagh needs leadership!!
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Post by taxed2death on Jun 18, 2008 18:07:36 GMT -5
Rationality: I agree with you on most of your statement, with exception of the "deserved". Who deserved? The BOE? Yes, perhaps. But at the end of the day, its the kids and homeowners that pay the price, and this is not deserved. So who are we punishing, ourselves to make a point?
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fedup
New Member
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Post by fedup on Jun 18, 2008 18:33:22 GMT -5
the hardest thing i have ever had to do as a parent was to tell my 96 average well rounded scholar athlete son that his community failed him.. in my heart of hearts i hope no parent ever has to see that pain in his childs eyes.. lets pleaseeee get together and stop the madness starting with next years budget. lets get our pride BACK!! THAT was the hardest thing you have ever had to do as a parent? If THAT is the biggest "pain" you have to see in your childs eyes consider yourself lucky!!
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fedup
New Member
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Post by fedup on Jun 18, 2008 19:01:52 GMT -5
As an educator, I find it hard to really understand both sides. Teaching is one of the hardest jobs around, yet it is the most rewarding. I am so tired of hearing about *teacher's salaries* and how much we make. Do you know that we are required, in order to keep our license, to take many hours of professional development each year? Guess who pays for that? Teachers do...not taxpayers...teachers, from their own pockets. Teachers MUST get a Master's Degree in order to hold a permanent license. Who pays for the Master's Degree? Teachers do...not taxpayers...teachers, from their own pockets. Teachers work VERY hard to educate your children. A lot of what I do I did not learn in school. Besides being a teacher, I am also a mother, friend, social worker, psychologist, care-taker....I could go on...to the kids in my class. I don't just teach them how to read and write. It goes way beyond that. Society needs to get over the fact that teachers *make so much money*....because we don't! Look at the salaries of professional athletes! They are the ones making ridiculous salaries, not teachers! No one, NO ONE is worth 3 million dollars a year to play baseball! That is insane. Teacher's salaries are no where near what they should be in many districts. I get really annoyed when everyone thinks that just because the budget has failed, now teacher's salaries will go down. They won't! Salaries are part of a contract, and that contract won't be broken. By failing this budget, we will now have to pay out of pocket much more than $240 in order to have sports/clubs for our kids. How smart is that? Not very. What a mess! Like someone said earlier, we need to come together, attend meetings, voice opinions before it is too late, and come up with a decent budget for 2009-2010 so this won't happen again. I, too, am sick to my stomach. Teahcers do have a very hard job. Nights off, Weekends off, Holidays off, Winter Break off, Spring Break off and the entire Summer off! As for you having to pay for your OWN masters degree?? Are you kidding me? You had to pay for your own degree? What is this world coming to? I personally think you should have used Actors salaries instead of Professional athletes but thats just my opinion. I mean 10 to 20 million a film??? How crazy. A vote of "No" on this budget was not a vote for "No" against the children. We all care about our children and their future. What about all the "Yes" votes in the past? Still the kids have old books, broken bathrooms, broken PA systems, etc etc etc.
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Post by idea2004 on Jun 18, 2008 19:18:10 GMT -5
we should all move on is right while I am not happy with the school district I took the matter into my own hands and I am giving my child what is needed even though the district said no but the real problem lies with the BOE they are voted in by the people for the people they are supposed to listen to the community and make the decisions that we the people want I DO NOT FEEL THEY ARE LISTENING TO THE PEOPLE when the teachers contract was up they went behind closed door to decide how to negotiate the contract they did not ask the community now there will be cuts and again they will go behind CLOSED DOORS TO DECIDE I would like to know what the options are I did not vote for the three old members of the board and only one of the new members so they don't speak for me it's been said the community is not happy with the current BOE or administration it is time for a change of the members let's get some new blood in there so there can be change if we are unhappy don't sit still and complain IMPEACH the current school board it's local government we the people have the right to call a special meeting to make changes that is what AMERICA is all about it's time to REVOLT
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Post by forthekids on Jun 18, 2008 19:27:39 GMT -5
idea2004 - take a look at my post from earlier in the day. You cannot impeach the board members. There are a lot of things we can do moving forward together as a community. But what you advocate is not allowed under the law.
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Post by idea2004 on Jun 18, 2008 19:37:55 GMT -5
while I will admit this is not going to be an easy task maybe we can ask them to resign with a petition from the community also we can help our senator . senator fuschillo has been asking commissioner mills to also resign it may be time for change in Albany also what a year lawyers getting salaries and pensions superintendents retiring come back to work the next day in the same job at the same pay plus there pensions
here is an email I received from the senator
Long Island Senators Call on Resignation of State Education Commissioner Mills
Say rubber stamping of waiver system has wasted taxpayer dollars, Commissioner has a history of ignoring fiscal mismanagement
A group of Long Island Senators called for the resignation of New York State Education Department Commissioner Richard Mills for failure to oversee the waiver system that has allowed hundreds of retired school employees to go back to work with six figure salaries while at the same time collecting state pensions.
Senator Charles J. Fuschillo, Jr., along with Senators Caesar Trunzo, Owen Johnson, Kenneth LaValle, Dean Skelos, Kemp Hannon, Carl Marcellino and John Flanagan, urged Commissioner Mills to step down for again failing to perform his job, saying the Commissioner has a history of ignoring fiscal mismanagement. The Senators also questioned why the Education Commissioner waited until the waiver scandal made headlines before placing a temporary moratorium on the practice.
Senator Fuschillo (8th District) said, "The cavalier way in which the Education Department, under Mills' leadership, issued waivers to retired school administrators is outrageous. Commissioner Mills has a history of ignoring the warning signs. He has failed in his oversight of the waiver system just as he failed in his oversight of the Roosevelt School District. The waste and abuse of taxpayer money must stop. It is time for new leadership at the State Education Department."
The Senators said that last year Commissioner Mills failed to notice that the Roosevelt School District had run up a budget deficit of $8 million despite the fact that the State Education Department is responsible for overseeing the finances of the school district.
government waste it must stop it is up to the people ask the BOE to resign
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Post by forestlakermomof2 on Jun 18, 2008 20:45:35 GMT -5
fedup-
i am fed up with attitudes like yours!
yes, i have summers and holidays off...but that is the nature of my job. if you wanted this schedule, why didn't you go into teaching?
yes, i have to pay for my own masters. i MUST have a masters in order to keep my license. do you need one for your job? i know many of my friends in the business world who have their masters degree paid for by the company they work for. that doesn't happen in the world of education.
i don't just *teach*...i nurture, i listen, i build up self esteem...i could go on. when was the last time that you saw the excitement on a child's face when they learned to read? or the thrill of a child when they sing a solo in the school concert? how about a child helping out their friend who has special needs? that is why i teach...not for summers off. i teach to make a difference.
i am proud of what i do and i will always support the budget. if it weren't for teachers, there wouldn't be doctors, lawyers, accountants, etc. in the world. who would teach them???
i am not here to argue. i am here to understand why anyone would vote *no.* like i said in an earlier post, i don't think you can put a price on education. it is our future. sure, the taxes are high, but find me a place on long island where they aren't.
hopefully we can all put our differences aside and work together for the kids of wantagh.
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