Post by Chris_Wendt on Oct 30, 2013 6:46:19 GMT -5
Two more elementary schools on LI are closing due to declining enrollment. (link)
Businesses moving away from LI. Other businesses demanding--and getting--tax breaks in order to remain on LI. Taxes out of control on LI.
This is a big challenge for LI and NY State. Way too big for any lone school district to solve by itself, but way too important for any school district, for any school board, for any school board member to ignore.
Wantagh's implementing Full-day K was definitely a step in the right direction. One small step taken near the bottom of a long up-hill trek.
The real question for Wantagh is still being kept under the rug, however.
There are a lot of leading-edge educational programs being developed all around the world. Maybe Wantagh could enlist two or three of them and convert one existing elementary school into an educational laboratory or incubator for developing, evaluating, and perfecting some new educational concepts and methods?
But perhaps it would be less painful for the BoE to just let things play-out until declining enrollment takes its toll, and then some future BoE members can deal with the trail of tears as they close Forest Lake and then some developer can convert the land to condos and the school building to an assisted living facility?
It's declining enrollment, not declined enrollment.
Just saying...
Chris Wendt
chriswendt117@gmail.com
Businesses moving away from LI. Other businesses demanding--and getting--tax breaks in order to remain on LI. Taxes out of control on LI.
This is a big challenge for LI and NY State. Way too big for any lone school district to solve by itself, but way too important for any school district, for any school board, for any school board member to ignore.
Wantagh's implementing Full-day K was definitely a step in the right direction. One small step taken near the bottom of a long up-hill trek.
The real question for Wantagh is still being kept under the rug, however.
Will it be Forest Lake or Mandalay that will have to be closed?May I suggest that, instead of keeping this question under the proverbial carpet, that some active, open discussion should take place to better utilize our buildings, before we do have to close one of them?
There are a lot of leading-edge educational programs being developed all around the world. Maybe Wantagh could enlist two or three of them and convert one existing elementary school into an educational laboratory or incubator for developing, evaluating, and perfecting some new educational concepts and methods?
But perhaps it would be less painful for the BoE to just let things play-out until declining enrollment takes its toll, and then some future BoE members can deal with the trail of tears as they close Forest Lake and then some developer can convert the land to condos and the school building to an assisted living facility?
It's declining enrollment, not declined enrollment.
Just saying...
Chris Wendt
chriswendt117@gmail.com