Voters approved 'tightly controlled spending' in this year's school budgets

lohud.com:  School districts are crediting their strong communication efforts, detailed budget breakdowns and, above all else, tightly controlled spending for Tuesday's many one-sided votes for school budgets....
Overall, voters approved 48 out of 53 budget proposals in Westchester , Rockland and Putnam counties — the same number as last year. Budgets were defeated in Mahopac, North Rockland, Greenburgh Central 7 and, by overwhelming numbers, in Mount Vernon and East Ramapo.
Many spending plans for 2012-13 were approved by better than 2-to-1, signaling strong voter satisfaction with most districts' efforts to minimize tax increases during tough economic times.
Local districts proposed an average spending increase of 1.97 percent for next year and an average tax-levy increase of 2.6 percent....
Many districts have tried to make clear at what points spending cuts will require larger class sizes and compromise the quality of education that people have come to expect....
Jeff Diamond, who was elected Tuesday to the Blind Brook school board after offering detailed criticisms of school spending, said voters have little incentive to vote against budgets with small spending increases because school boards can adopt contingency budgets that are not much different.
"Voters need to recognize that the greatest impact they can have on budgets is to elect school board members who will do a good job," he said. 

I generally agree, although I'd like to see stronger communication efforts and more detailed budget breakdowns, as well as more advocacy for fundamental changes.

School budgets overwhelming approved in Westchester County

I think voters sent a message that they support the public schools and were pleased with this year's attempts to rein in costs.  Mount Vernon is one sad exception, a district with serious problems that transcend one budget being voted down.

Source:  The Journal News

New Rochelle school district budget analysis shows skyrocketing costs and deficit projection

Adam D. Egelberg, CFA, a resident of the New Rochelle School District, has taken a close look at district finances and is writing a series of blog posts with important information that voters should review before going to the polls next week.  He has done an amazing job uncovering details and trends, something that I'd like to see done in my own school district.

(As a side note, it's noteworthy that  the school charged Egelberg $489.79 for budgets going back to 2000-01 that he requested through the FOIL (Freedom of Information Law) process.  He was charged for photocopying even though nine of the ten budgets he received were "left-over bounded copies from prior years" that had already been paid for by his property taxes.)

Spending in New Rochelle has skyrocketed in comparison to inflation and enrollment.  (Adding a student achievement measure to this chart would show if more money has resulted in better-educated students.)

In a nutshell, expenses are out of control. Over the past 10 years our health care and general welfare benefit costs have gone up by 138%. It is a shocking increase when compared with an 8% rise in student enrollment.

This chart confirms for me that the real choice area school districts have is either to cut student programs or cut compensation costs.  The reason I believe this is that since Westchester property taxes are already the highest in the country, I doubt taxes can be raised much more.

School districts should share historical and projected budget data with residents, preparing charts similar to those created by Mr. Egelberg.  How hard can it be?

More to come from Talk of the Sound.

Local school budget estimated to increase taxes by 7%

Our local school is one of only two among 11 area districts that are not giving voters an estimate of the tax rate increase associated with the proposed budget.

As voters head to the polls in less than two weeks to decide whether to approve their school districts’ 2011-2012 budget proposals, some voters will have more information than others. For voters in Tuckahoe and Eastchester, they’ll be making a decision without an estimate from the districts on how much their taxes will go up if they vote “yes.”

According to the school, it does not give an estimate because "that information is out of its control".  Declining property values and the related tax certiori filings mean estimating can be especially tricky these days.  The school doesn't even request the information needed to make an estimate.

Assistant Superintendent of Business Mary Ellen Melnyk said in an email that the district had not requested any information on the assessment level from the town assessor during the recent budget process.

But the town assessor gives helpful information.

According to Town Assessor Todd Huttunen, both the Eastchester and Tuckahoe school districts are looking at an estimated drop in assessment of around 2.3 percent. Though the actual formula used to calculate the final tax rate is more complicated, Huttunen said that a solid estimate of where the tax rate currently sits can be obtained by adding the percentage of tax levy increase to the percentage of the drop in assessment.
In Tuckahoe, that would put a tax rate estimate at around 4.77 percent, within the range estimated by Watkins. Eastchester’s tax rate estimate, based on those numbers, would come in at about 7 percent.

Some residents would like the schools to give voters more information.

To some in the community, though, not making any projection of the tax rate is even more misleading.
“You’re going to be voting on practically 5 percent [of a tax rate increase],” said Tuckahoe School District resident Joe Pregiato. “If people knew they’d be voting to jack up their taxes 5 percent again, a lot of people might vote no.”
Loretta Dalton, a resident of the Eastchester School District, noted that the 3.22 percent tax levy increase advertised by the Eastchester School District last year ended up translating into a roughly 7 percent tax rate increase for herself and several of her neighbors.
She said she felt the tax rate projection, even preliminary, is key to understanding the actual budget impact.
“I believe in transparency all across the board,” she said. “There is no reason for them not to be releasing it … We should be understanding what we’re voting for.”

Local school districts won’t publicly release tax rate estimates

"Planners base prison cells on pupils' math scores"

Lohud.com reports from a panel discussion on the importance of math:

Smikle gave the parents in the room a sobering statistic: people who build prisons determine the number of cells on math scores from local fourth- and fifth-graders. If your child is failing math, he said, "there is already a cell being built for them."

Planners should also use reading scores, since the level of reading skills children develop by third grade may indicate their likelihood of graduating high school.

Wanda Foy-Burroughs, who spent 28 years teaching algebra in Newark, said training math teachers how to incorporate hands-on learning into their lessons is key to students' success.

Hands-on learning can be good, but the overuse of manipulatives can be very inefficient and impede the learning of abstract math concepts.

April is Mathematics Awareness Month.

"The reality is you can't do more with less, only less with less,"

"The reality is you can't do more with less, only less with less,"

These are the words of Jeanne-Claire Cotnoir, president of the Briarcliff Teachers Association.  Their community is divided over plans to trim school spending, with passionate sentiments on both sides of the issue.  Former school board member Joan Austin voices an opposing view.

"A leaner school system might just be a better one."

Per pupil spending is $29,964, but proposed budget cuts will trim that slightly.  Plans include teacher layoffs as well as downsized music programs and AP classes.

The teachers union says taxpayers need to increase education spending, but some taxpayers believe that more money does not necessarily lead to better schools.

You can read the entire article after the jump.

Informative Q & A about school budget issues - tenure is mandated by New York State

These FAQ are posted at the Mamaroneck school district website.  It appears they are from last year's budget period, but many are relevant today.  Here are some selected questions explaining tenure.  I previously posted about compensation and benefits Q&A.

Q:  Why do we have tenure in our school district?

 

A:  Tenure is governed by New York State Education Law (Sections 2509, 2573, 3012 and 3014) and is not optional for NYS public schools.  Teachers are eligible for tenure in their third year of employment, unless they have been granted tenure in a previous district, in which case the probationary period is two, instead of three, years.  A tenured teacher has a legal right to his or her job unless a school district can prove just cause for dismissal or discipline in a due process hearing. 

 

Q:  If we have to lay off teachers, how do seniority rules apply?

   

A:  Seniority rights are based upon appointment in a particular tenure area and apply to both tenured and probationary teachers.  Should a teaching position be abolished, districts must use seniority to determine the order in which teachers are dismissed.  Thus, within the tenure area in which the position was abolished, the teacher with the least seniority would be laid off, even if there are other teachers with less seniority in other tenure areas.

Tenure areas are defined by the NYS Education Department and include Elementary (Pre-K through sixth grade), academic subject areas for grades 7-12 (English, social studies, mathematics, science and foreign language), as well as 15 other special subject areas.  In the case of elementary school teachers, teachers from all four elementary schools are in the same tenure area; thus, seniority is looked at district-wide, and not by school or particular grade level.

 

Q:  Can we stop awarding tenure?  What happens if we do?

 

A:  Tenure is mandated by NYS law and is not optional.  We are not permitted to hire teachers on a year-to-year contract past the state-defined probationary period. If we continued employing a teacher past the probationary period, the teacher could be considered by law to have been granted tenure "by estoppel" anyway, even without board approval.  It is also not legal for a board simply to dismiss all teachers after their three-year probation is over.

PTA's new focus is "advocating for funds"

Not your mom's PTA: Fun fundraisers yield to advocating for funds

That's the headline of a lohud.com article spelling out out why the PTA's new focus is on defending against education spending cuts during these tough economic times.  Although this new priority is understandable, I wish PTAs would spend more energy helping schools learn how to do more with less, since increasing productivity may be the best way to advocate for our children as government funding continues to feel the pressure of a faltering economy and crippling deficits.

Several straight years of budget crises that threaten to change the nature of public education have inspired the venerable PTA to modernize its approach to defending schools and students. Local and regional PTAs across the state are now trolling through legislation and contracts, fighting state-aid cuts, and meeting with lawmakers in an effort to get a seat at the lobbying table....
The cuts are devastating and coming at the wrong time, said Lex Kessler, a member of the Somers PTA Council. He said American kids are falling behind their peers in other countries, especially in math and science.

PTA members should be reminded that higher education spending has not correlated with higher student achievement levels.

Somewhat surprisingly, an ex-PTA president serving as a state legislator is advocating for the tax cap.

Even Sen. Suzi Oppenheimer, a Democrat from the Sound shore who started out as a PTA president decades ago, changed her position and said she is backing a cap this year so she "can be at the table" and push for mandate relief.
Any discussion of a tax cap must address ballooning debt payments and pension and health-care costs, she said.
"I'm trying to offer some simple, but necessary changes to it," she said.

I agree with the sentiments expressed by this comment:

I do applaud all the PTA volunteers for their time & effort. However, their mission should not be a lobbying effort for the teachers & union.
The PTA should be asking the teachers how to do more with less.

Read the entire article after the jump.

Should an AP Chemistry teacher be paid the same as a second grade gym teacher?

From an article about the downsized New York State budget, a comment critical of public education's teacher compensation structure raises a sometimes controversial point.

...an insane and indefensible compensation philosophy that pairs a 2nd grade gym teacher as an equal of an AP chemistry teacher...

It's hard for me to accept that both teachers should be compensated the same.  Market conditions should play a factor in teacher pay; otherwise, excellent math and science teachers are difficult to recruit.  On the other hand, some argue that early elementary teachers are performing such an important job that they should be compensated at the same level as the AP chemistry teacher is.
 
Here's the complete comment:

"It is not enough to solve all of our problems," said Kim Foskew, president of the East Ramapo PTA Council." How apt.
Yup, it's your problem ... not the problem of the taxpayers. And the problems? Unrealistic salary schedules, unreformed pension programs, pro-level athletic facilities and sport expenses, idiotic elective classes, nonsense phys ed programs, social engineering efforts of all sorts, out-of-control special education expenses, total addiction to every asinine educational whimsy, relentless waste of technology of all sorts, teacher union domination of the entire institution, waste of all sorts ... from textbooks to paper to talent, an insane and indefensible compensation philosophy that pairs a 2nd grade gym teacher as an equal of an AP chemistry teacher, palatial educational plants, meal give-aways, a school calendar that hasn't changed since Rip Van Winkle, and a total, never-ending "screw you" to taxpayers year after year.
Yup. You do have problems.

"I think the employees have to become part of the solution."

The Port Chester school district:

"I don't really believe that a tax levy of over 6 percent will pass," board member James Dreves said of the proposed increase. "We run a really lean ship in Port Chester. I think the employees have to become part of the solution."...

Like other districts, Port Chester is coping with declining property values and increased pension costs.

Sounds familiar.

And this is just kicking the can down the road, shifting the burden onto future students.

On the spending side, the district expects to save $1.1 million next year as a result of a retirement incentive taken by 26 teachers and three administrative employees.

Pension reform is desperately needed.

Port Chester district aims for lower tax increase - lohud, 3/20/11

The entire article:

Rachel's Challenge

Rachel's Challenge is a national anti-bullying program named after the first person killed during the Columbine High School massacre in 1999, Rachel Scott. Her journal, found after her death, was filled with words of hope and understanding. In particular, Scott wrote: "I have this theory that if one person can go out of their way to show compassion then it will start a chain reaction of the same."

Rachel's Challenge's mssion:

We exist to inspire, equip and empower every person to create a permanent positive culture change in their school, business and community by starting a chain reaction of kindness and compassion.

Program elements generally include school assemblies, student/staff training and community presentations.  It was recently implemented in our local middle school.

Eastchester Middle School's main corridor and cafeteria have been given over to colorful chains, kindness slogans and life-size silhouettes of students, all carefully limned on what had been cream-colored walls and old bulletin boards.

The mural project drew dozens of teen volunteers who stood on ladders and sat on floors, carefully filling in outlines of slogans and classmates. Their team effort paralleled the anti-bullying messages the students were illuminating: When people work together in harmony, anything is possible.

Does Rachel's Challenge really work?  What results have been measured?  Is a mural a meaningful measure of results?  From the Rachel's Challenge website FAQs:

Q: Do you have any data that supports your program?
A: We are currently working on an efficiency study for the near future. So far, most of our data is anecdotal.

Related:  Tuckahoe schools to host Rachel's Challenge
“We’ve heard from other school’s who’ve used Rachel’s Challenge and it has gotten great reactions from students and parents,” Moschetta explained, “everyone is encouraged to come.”

To read the entire article:

Follow-up: results of New Rochelle schools survey

I previously posted about this survey designed to gauge voter sentiment regarding school priorities to be considered in developing next year's budget.  No surprise about the results, but the choices offered to respondents were limited.  For example, there were no questions about whether taxpayers wanted union contracts reopened and renegotiated to rein in the cost of benefits.

More than half of the respondents to an online survey by school district officials said maintaining small class sizes was their most important priority.

New Rochelle school district administrators had posted the six-question survey to the district's website for a week last month.

Their aim was to learn what parents, residents and taxpayers thought they, the administrators, ought to be focusing on as they crafted the budget for the 2011-12 school year.

Of the 528 respondents, two-thirds said they are parents or guardians of school-age children.

Keeping class sizes from ballooning was the top concern, with 53.2 percent of the respondents selecting it.

After that, 44.4 percent said preserving advanced placement and other honors classes was most important.

About one-third of the respondents cited having the latest technology in classrooms as their top priority.

"I am not surprised to learn that class size is of critical importance to most people (who) responded to the survey," Superintendent of Schools Richard Organisciak said. "That has historically been the case in this district."

Also, 57.2 percent of the people who answered the survey said it was concerns for programs being added, reduced or eliminated that drove them to the polls to vote on the budget.

A bit less than a quarter of the respondents said it was the prospect of their taxes increasing or decreasing that motivated them to vote.

This assessment of the community's education priorities comes as school officials face daunting challenges in crafting their budgets.

As costs continue to rise, Gov. Andrew Cuomo has proposed cutting $1.5 billion in state aid to schools.

New Rochelle stands to lose $4.3 million if the cuts are enacted.

Discussing the governor's proposal recently, Organisciak said the loss of state aid, combined with other factors, could cost the district some jobs.

"We're going to lose good people," he said.

http://www.lohud.com/article/20110310/NEWS02/103100325/1024/NEWS08/New-Rochelle-parents-rate-small-class-size-AP-courses-technology-priorities 

33 local school districts have joined in calling for mandate relief from New York State

Our local district approved this resolution that Legislative and Unfunded Mandate Relief Must be Included in any NY State Property Tax Cap Proposal.

Be it Resolved by the Westchester-Putnam School Boards Association that Legislative and Unfunded Mandate Relief Must be Included in any NY State Property Tax Cap Proposal.

WHEREAS, New York State leads the nation in local property taxes, in large part because New York leads the nation in imposing unfunded state mandates upon our local municipalities and school districts; and

WHEREAS, state mandated pension fund contributions are one of the largest components of every school district and municipal budget over which local officials have little control, and are increasing at exorbitant rates annually such that bills from the State Retirement System (ERS) will increase 40% and bills from the Teachers Retirement System (TRS) will increase 33% in the 2011-12 school year; and

WHEREAS, state laws such as the Triborough Amendment, pertaining to the collective bargaining of contracts between school districts and employee unions, impede the ability of local officials to reasonably control the costs that such contracts impose upon local property taxpayers; and

WHEREAS, as a solution to New York’s property tax crisis, the Governor of New York and members of the New York State Legislature have pledged to consider enactment of legislation imposing a cap on the annual growth in local property taxes; and

WHEREAS, any property tax cap must be accompanied simultaneously (1) by ending the practice of pushing State costs onto local school districts and municipalities, and (2) by a repeal of current underfunded or unfunded state mandates that require local municipalities and school districts to significantly increase spending and therefore local property taxes; and

WHEREAS, a property tax cap without repeal of costly underfunded and unfunded state mandates will inescapably lead to drastic cuts in essential local school district programs and services, as well as significant layoffs of school district employees;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Westchester-Putnam School Boards Association, which represents 54 school districts serving over 165,000 students and their families, that the Governor of the State of New York and the members of the New York State Senate and New York State Assembly must reform the cost drivers that lead to high property taxes in New York – including mandate relief, pension benefits and the collective bargaining process – as the central element of any effort to provide property tax relief to the residents and businesses of New York State.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this resolution be forwarded to the Governor, Senate Majority and Minority Leaders, Assembly Speaker and Minority Leader, and the members of the State Senate and Assembly representing Westchester and Putnam Counties.

In January, I had posted that Chappaqua had approved a mandate relief resolution.

School Districts that have approved the Resolution as of 3/10/2011:

People are starting to pay more attention to what is "behind the curtain" in our public schools

I caught a few minutes of a school board budget meeting in the school district next to mine.  Residents were complaining about what they considered outrageous compensation packages given to school administrators. Some speakers expressed surprise about the way that school employees are able to carry forward so many personal/sick days and bump up their compensation during their last year of employment. Of course, the incentive to do just that lies in the fact that lifetime pensions are based on the last year or so of pay.

A couple of speakers compared their situation to that of Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz, as they were only now learning what was "behind the curtain".

The quote from the movie is, "Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain." Well, people are certainly starting to pay attention now.

(Cross-posted at Kitchen Table Math)

Trying to keep school costs down, even in wealthy Bronxville

This echos the comments I heard at our local schools community forum last year.

“You hear people say they want Mandarin taught in the sixth grade or they want smaller class size or some other enhancement,” said Julie Meade, president of the Parent Teacher Association and mother of two school-age children. “But they don’t talk about raising taxes to pay for what they advocate. I haven’t heard anyone say raise taxes to pay for quality.”

Some advocate for addressing the compensation issue.

Some residents argue that the town should be more businesslike, cutting other costs to offset the outlay for smaller classes. Peter P. Pulkkinen is one. A 40-year-old investment banker . . . wants small classes . . . But rather than raise taxes, he would restrict the compensation of existing teachers — particularly their benefits.

Displaying a sheaf of charts and projections that he and a friend prepared for a school board meeting, Mr. Pulkkinen said in an interview that if property taxes continued to rise in Bronxville at roughly the trajectory of the last decade, they would double by 2020 — and by 46 percent in the unlikely event the “austerity budgets” of the last two years continued through the decade. “I think it is a false paradigm to have to choose between radically diminished services or exponentially higher taxes,” he said, “without first addressing the structural issue of teacher compensation.”

The choices given to taxpayers are limited, with the compensation issues "off the table".

So far, he said, Dr. Quattrone and the school board have not done so. Instead, they have chosen “soft targets.” One hour a week of Spanish instruction to grade-school students, for example, was eliminated last year.

School employees' compensation has continued to increase, but that doesn't reflect what has happened in the private sector.

“You are looking at a community of people who saw their property taxes go up for years, and now their incomes aren’t going up,”

Even in Wealthy Towns, Schools Feel the Pinch - NYT, 3/8/11

Informative Q & A about school budget issues - compensation and benefits

These FAQ are posted at the Mamaroneck school district website.  It appears they are from last year's budget period, but many are relevant today.  Here are some selected questions from the

Compensation and Benefits section.

Q:  Please explain the teachers' salary structure, including raises and step increases.

 

A:  The teachers salary structure in Mamaroneck, which has been in place since the first contract in the 1960's, is structured similarly to teacher contracts throughout New York State.  The salary chart is a grid, comprised of a series of rows referred to as "steps," which are tied to teaching experience, and a series of columns referred to as "lanes," which represent levels of education.  New teachers are hired onto a "step" within a "lane," based on experience and education level.

 

Each year, ALL teachers receive the contractual cost of living increase; the current contract provides 3.8% for the 2010-11 school year, a rate that was competitive at the time the contract was settled.  In addition, a teacher progresses by a step each year, until s/he reaches the maximum step on the salary schedule.  If a teacher completes enough additional coursework, the teacher is also eligible to move over a lane. There are lanes for each 15 additional units of credit, from a bachelor's degree through a doctorate. Thus, a teacher can receive an increase for the cost of living, for an additional year of experience, and for additional education.

 

Q:  Why does this structure make sense? 

Bronxville union contract limits health insurance* provider choices to two

According to this report, the Bronxville school district union contract allows for only two possible health insurance* providers, with one of those being an excessively costly option according to the state Comptroller's office.  Why limit choices to only two?

The state Comptroller’s office has released its audit of the Bronxville school’s spending during the 2009-10 school year, finding only one place where money could have been saved: health care.
The audit looked at health insurance benefits from July 1, 2005, through July 31, 2010, and determined the district could have saved about $1 million in the past three years if it had pulled out of a statewide consortium and found a cheaper plan on its own.
The district, in its response, said pulling out of the consortium would have cost $1.2 million in unrecoverable fund balance payments over the past three years and would have violated union contracts, which specifically named the consortium as one of two insurance providers.
However, the district said it would continue to monitor the consortium’s fund balances and demand repayment where applicable, and seek a seat on the consortium’s board of directors to increase oversight. The district also said it would continue to monitor its health care options to make sure it chooses the most cost-effective of the appropriate coverage options.

http://reviewpress.lohudblogs.com/2011/02/23/state-audits-bronxville-schools-healthcare-costs-could-be-less/

* Corrected

Some parents oppose Harrison school district's open enrollment policy for AP courses

A group of parents are in opposition to the high school's open enrollment policy for AP courses.  They believe this policy does not serve their children well, contributing to lower achievement levels.

That group is calling for a return to tracking, a process in which students must meet certain grade requirements to take advanced level classes. Harrison's schools abandoned structured tracking years ago, and have seen more students taking advanced classes in each of the last eight years.

It's interesting that the article labels this as "tracking", a term that often raises the ire of many parents and educators.  The more current PC term would be "flexible proficiency grouping".

The board of education, meanwhile, says opening A.P. classes has created a more enriching classroom experience while providing each student with an equal opportunity to succeed. Studies recently cited by the board say that tracking a student into lower-level classes has been shown to stunt their intellectual growth.

Here are two comments that paint a more complete picture of the situation in Harrison.

Following up on your reporting of our conversation, I'm afraid I wasnt clear enough about what our group, the Harrison Parents Educational Partnership, "wants." It does not want a "return to tracking." We do, however, want the BOE to extend its demonstrated commitment of providing educational opportunity to our children so that it benefits all students in the District. The approach the District has been following permits any students to take any class, irrespective of readiness or ability. There is certainly a respectable argument to be made for this "open enrollment" philosophy, and the BOE and Superintendent Wool are effective advocates for it. But because the District has also eliminated all honors classes, this approach results in the grouping of children with greatly varying degrees of abilities and readiness in the same class, with the teacher expected to somehow challenge the children at all levels. We do not want a return to the "bad old days" of tracking. We do, however, want the BOE to recognize their obligations to all the children in the District by retaining the opportunities that now exist, but also affording the children it now ignores with similar opportnities to stretch their minds and enhance their futures. Our teachers do a terrific job under very difficult circumstances. Their desire to help all our kids achieve all they can should not be impeded in the name of an egalitarian philosophy that is anything but egalitarian.

I am in favor of tracking but only for the purpose of forming learning cohorts made up of children of similar abilities in each discipline. However, the district shouldn't use the tracking data to block access to the A/P programs and there should be merit-based portability between the learning cohorts.
By forming learning cohorts the district will more effectively use the teachers as assets because he/she can focus on a smaller set of student needs and maximize the skills of the children of all abilities. I am concerned about the child who received a two on their A/P tests instead a three. I am also concerned about the child who earned four instead of a five. The objective should be to have high participation rates in advanced classes where children develop superior skills as evidenced by high regents test scores, A.P. scores and SAT Scores which currently don't exist. Then we can be sure that our students are graduating from the district ready for college level work at the college of their choice!!!
I wish the BOE shared my concerns but as a group their ideology has blinded them to the test results that are right in front of them. Instead of directing the Superintendent to take corrective action they have joined him by criticizing the motives of concerned taxpayers and parents.
The taxpayers are paying $30,000 per student. The HCSD has the funding to serve the interest of students of every ability.
Tracking Yes! Exclusion No! No more BOE excuses!

http://harrison.patch.com/articles/school-district-parent-group-at-odds-over-tracking

"many young residents" leaving Westchester County - "taxes are way too high,"

...As the Lower Hudson Valley awaits 2010 census results in the next month, it's clear that many young residents have left in search of lower taxes and a lower cost of living.
Westchester and Rockland counties, along with New York City, have the state's highest population losses due to movers....
The high number of people moving out, without being replaced, is a key reason the state will lose a representative in Congress while several southern states are expected to gain representatives....
Several Rockland residents said high taxes are a major concern that's making them consider a move."Taxes are way too high," said Peter Chavez of Valley Cottage....
Local officials are concerned about the trend, and hope to keep more residents in the state with job opportunities and judicious spending cuts."Growth requires that we become a less-expensive place to live and work," said Ned McCormack, an adviser to Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino. 

http://www.lohud.com/article/2011102210322

For the entire article:

Little Rock in New Rochelle

I don't remember ever learning this until I read about it on a local blog.

"We had Little Rock in New Rochelle and no one was paying attention," said Mark Major, 59, a Lincoln student and lifelong New Rochelle resident.

Today [January 24, 2011] marks the 50th anniversary of the federal court decision that forced the desegregation of public schools in New Rochelle. The landmark 1961 case, Taylor v. Board of Education of City School District of City of New Rochelle — named for Hallie and Kevin Taylor, the lead plaintiffs and parents of Lincoln students — was notable because it was the first court victory for those opposing school segregation in a northern city.

Timeline
• 1898: Winyah Avenue Grammar School (eventually renamed Lincoln School) is built.• 1930: Daniel E. Webster Elementary School is built. Whites in the neighboring Lincoln School district are allowed to transfer their children, an option denied blacks.
• 1939: The first black teacher, Ethel O. Harris, is hired at Lincoln after years of campaigning by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.
• 1947-48: Some parents suggest building a school to replace a deteriorating Lincoln.
• 1949: After a volatile meeting attended by 500 black parents, the Board of Education agrees to study the issue of redrawing the boundaries of elementary schools.
• 1957: A proposal to rebuild Lincoln on the same site is defeated.
• 1960: A referendum to rebuild Lincoln School is passed. Opposition steps up efforts, picketing Lincoln and unsuccessfully attempting to enroll kids in other schools. In October, Paul Zuber files a lawsuit on behalf of 11 families.
• 1961: On Jan. 24, Judge Irving Kaufman rules that the school board intentionally segregated blacks and orders the district to develop a desegregation plan. The district appeals and loses in August and the U.S. Supreme Court declines to review the case, ending litigation. About 300 students are bused from Lincoln to other schools at the start of the school year.
• 1963: Lincoln closes.
• 1964: Lincoln is demolished.
• 1969: Lincoln Park is built on the old school site.
• 1986: New Rochelle residents celebrate the 25th anniversary of the court decision with a gathering at Lincoln Park.
• 2010-11: New Rochelle schools and local residents commemorate the 50th anniversary of the court ruling.

Source: A 1957 report on New Rochelle by Dan Dodson, an expert on integration, and Journal News research

http://www.lohud.com/article/2010101240318

Related:  Segregation persists in NR?

 For the district they do not want people to know that there is today another school that is 94% Latino because that sounds too much like the Lincoln School. They certainly do not want people noticing the racial/ethnic composition of elite programs like PAVE, Kaleidoscope and the AP/Honors program or the abysmal on-time graduation rates for black (55%) and Latinos (51%).

 http://www.newrochelletalk.com/content/notes-jan-25-new-rochelle-boe-meeting-tax-cap-resolution-delayed-opening-snow-days-ignoring-

For the entire article: