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Board of Education candidates

File photo by Rachel Shapiro

By Leah Chiappino

The Smithtown Central School District 2023-24 proposed budget of $280,642,272, is an increase of 4.8% from this year’s budget of $267,786,882 with a proposed tax levy of 2.83% which is within the district’s allowable limit.

There are three seats open on the board, with incumbent Matthew Gribbin as well as challengers Vlad Pean and Nicholas De Bello running on one ticket, and incumbent John Savoretti along with Elena Guttieri and Kevin Craine on another. They are competing for three-year terms from July 1 through June 30, 2026. Trustee Jerry Martusciello is not seeking reelection.

The school budget vote and election will be held Tuesday, May 16, from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. For polling places, visit the district website at www.smithtown.k12.ny.us and use the “Budget Information” tab.

The candidates discussed the issues at a meet-the-candidates night May 4 moderated by the Suffolk PTA.

Kevin Craine

Craine is a sixth-grade teacher at Lloyd Harbor Elementary School in the Cold Spring Harbor school district, and father of three children who attend St. James Elementary. He has also served as a youth sports coach, emergency medical technician and PTA volunteer.

According to his biography, he has taught at the elementary, middle and high school levels, and holds a school district administrative certificate from Stony Brook University. A Smithtown graduate himself, he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in biology/education from SUNY Geneseo and a Master of Science in liberal studies/coaching from SBU.

“While I am very proud of all these accomplishments, it all pales in comparison to the pride that I have for this community,” he said.

If elected, he pledged to make his constituents’ voices heard and feel as though they matter through “increased transparency, administrative accountability and collaboration.”

Nicholas De Bello

De Bello said his father was a social studies teacher at Nesaquake Middle School and Smithtown High School East, and his mother was a social worker for the Sachem school district. 

 “I was growing up with that inspiration from my parents about the value of schools and how educators can make first-hand differences in the lives of children,” he said.

A former caseworker for Suffolk County Department of Social Services, he is currently a vice president for the Association of Municipal Employees. He noted that several school employees, such as crossing guards and early intervention specialists, are members of the union.

He pledged to fight for small class sizes if elected. 

Matthew Gribbin

Gribbin, the current board president and a gym teacher in the Half Hollow Hills school district, graduated from The University of Maine in 2000 with a bachelor’s degree in kinesiology and physical education. He then earned a M.S. in educational technology from Long Island University. Gribbin’s three children attend Smithtown schools, and he said it is important for him and his family to give back.

“My wife and I love raising our children in this great community,” he said. “There’s so much to offer. With that comes responsibility. We feel that it’s important to be active contributors to make this community and district what it is.”

As such, Gribbin serves as a soccer coach with the Smithtown Kickers, basketball coach with St. Patrick’s R.C. Church of Smithtown, has coached lacrosse and baseball, and also assists with PTA events. He has previously served as a board member and division coordinator with the Kickers. 

Gribbin has frequently sparred with fellow trustees Stacy Ann Murphy, Karen Wontrobski-Ricciardi and Savoretti.

A particularly contentious moment occurred at the Oct. 25 meeting, when Wontrobski-Ricciardi questioned the athletic placement process which allows skilled middle school athletes to participate at the high school level. At the same time, trustee Michael Catalanotto’s son was up for consideration. Subsequent events led Wontrobski-Ricciardi to seek the removal of Catalanotto and Gribbin from the board through the New York State Education Department.

The complaint was dismissed, but in the decision NYS Commissioner of Education Betty Rosa encouraged Gribbin “to comport himself in the future in a manner befitting a holder of public office.”

Gribbin acknowledged that there had been challenges during his tenure. “Many people have thanked me for running for reelection this year knowing all that I’ve dealt with over the past three years as board president,” he said.

He chose to run again “because there is still work to be done.” Gribbin counted his chief accomplishments as board president as decreasing class sizes, increasing programming, adding mental health support, improving district security and building partnerships among the community, such as with the Town of Smithtown and Suffolk County Police Department among others.

“Over the past several years we’ve seen an unfortunate divide in our great community,” Gribbin said. “I’ve worked diligently to build relationships with many members of the community in order to return to a place of civility and respect.”

Elena Guttieri

Guttieri is a middle school English teacher in the Syosset school district. She has a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in English from Dowling College, along with a professional certificate in literacy from grades 5-12. She is trained in nonviolent crisis intervention and has earned the SEPTA distinguished service award.

A mother of four, she expressed concerns about aspects of the curriculum in the district.

“As a classroom teacher for over 20 years, I feel qualified to tell you what the goal of education should be — prepare our students with basic truths,” she said. “We must always teach English and traditional literature. We must always teach American history and patriotism while admitting our mistakes but always emphasize the accomplishments that have made us the greatest nation in the history of the world. We must teach mathematics in a way that is comprehensible so that even parents can help their children with their homework.”

Vlad Pean

The son of Haitian immigrants, Pean is a graduate of CUNY Baruch College, and has been in the information technology field for over 25 years. He said he hopes to bring his technological experience to the board. A father of three, Pean has spoken at Board of Education meetings about his daughter being bullied and subject to racial slurs.

“If I got on the school board I would never let what happened to her happen to her brother or sister or any other student,” Pean said.

“There have been a few bumps in the road but the one thing I learned is that Smithtown is full of compassionate people,” he added. 

John Savoretti

Savoretti earned a degree in marketing and finance from Adelphi University, and owns a real estate office in Nassau County and in Smithtown.

He has been active in the PTA, Little League, and was a Cub Scout leader. He said his strength on the board has been his community involvement. He counted security as one of his chief accomplishments 

“I don’t know why it took so long but we finally have security on the table for Smithtown,” he said. “It’s something that needs to be done. It’s scary but it’s true, and my goal now is education.”

Security 

When asked about security, Craine said he thinks the district needs to take further precautions for open events such as Field Day and the Halloween Parade, and institute safety drills. De Bello said that the district should ensure everyone is on the same page as to armed security, as well as combat bullying and ensure students feel welcome. 

Gribbin pointed to the security booths outside of the secondary schools and improvements to the vestibules enter the buildings, as well as the implementation of armed guards and improvements to district mental health services. Guttieri said cameras should be increased in the schools, and there should be an anonymous reporting app. She also noted a wellness room leadership students are implementing. 

Pean agreed that there should be improvements to technology, and that there should be drills for students, while making is clear the school is there to protect them. Savoretti said some improvements could be made to cameras, and that it’s important to teach students to respect each other.

Civility on the board 

When the complaint filed by Wontrobski-Ricciardi was referenced, De Bello said it’s important to bring respect and build consensus, also talking out disagreements while acknowledging politics has made its way to the board.

Gribbin said that “disagreements and disrespect” are two different things. The accusations against him were “an unsuccessful coordinated attempt to really try to discredit my character.” Guttieri said she was concerned about the treatment of female board members and
encouraged respectful discourse.

Pean said that even now at board meetings, he goes up to members with whom he disagrees to try to understand where they are coming from.

Savoretti said the board has been “a boys’ club” for too long, and he would like to
see more women elected.

The district’s 2023-24 budget is also up for approval

Ward Melville High School. Photo by Greg Catalano

By Mallie Kim

The Three Village Board of Education has three seats up for grabs this year and six candidates looking to fill them, including three newcomers, one incumbent and two making repeat bids for seats.

The board candidates, profiled below in ballot order, faced an audience of more than 100 online and a large gathering in person at the Setauket firehouse on Main Street during a Three Village Civic Association meet-the-candidates session Monday, May 1. Questions posed on behalf of the civic by Herb Mones were answered by the candidates about a variety of topics, including the district’s strengths and weaknesses, school security, diversity, equity and inclusion, along with district transparency, communication and their own resumes. 

The candidates were due to face questions from the community once again Monday, May 8, but the event was postponed for reasons not provided to the public. The meet the candidates night hosted by the PTA is rescheduled to Friday, May 12 and will be live-streamed on the district’s website.

Voting for board trustees will take place at Ward Melville High School Tuesday, May 16, together with the vote to approve next year’s $230.9 million budget from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. 

A short budget presentation at the civic meeting was made by Jeffrey Carlson, deputy superintendent. In order to stay within the district’s 2.65% tax levy increase cap mandated by the state, the district is cutting 30 full-time positions. 

Superintendent Kevin Scanlon said at the board’s budget hearing May 3 that at least half of those positions will likely be at the elementary level, and he added by email that though every school will see teaching positions cut, the district can’t provide specifics at present as the adjustments are ongoing. 

At the same budget hearing, Scanlon dismissed what he called “false rumors” that class sizes will skyrocket to over 30 in elementary classes, and referred to a chart in the budget presentation that lays out the maximum allowable averages for class sizes in each elementary grade. He compared next year’s projected averages to those of this year and the pre-COVID 2018-19 school year. The biggest projected jump is in fifth grade, which should see an average of 23 students in each section across the schools. There were 21 fifth graders per class on average in 2018-19, and 20 this year.

The superintendent also mentioned some high school classes currently have 15 or fewer students. “We can’t afford to do that anymore,” he said. “That is not fiscally responsible, and we must tighten the belt in those areas.”

All of the board candidates at the civic meeting raised concerns over the budget, an issue of community interest as the district has been working to recalibrate to account for declining enrollment and increasing costs. The candidates also agreed increased transparency from the board would benefit Three Village residents.

Karen Roughley

Roughley, mom of two teens in the district, said she wants to maintain the current quality of staff and student experience for the future. To do that, she said, “we must be taking a close look at the budget to ensure that the district will be financially sustainable for years to come.”

Roughley spent her career working in corporate communications, business continuity and crisis management for an investment bank. Since staying home with her children, she has served in many volunteer positions in the district, including as president for multiple-campus parent teacher associations as well as for the Special Education PTA. She was on the reopening task force during the COVID-19 pandemic and the districtwide Diversity, Equality & Inclusion Committee, among others. At present, she sits on New York State’s parent advisory committee for the Blue Ribbon Commission on Graduation Measures.

She has publicly advocated on many issues she feels are important for Three Village students, including later secondary start times and the policy nicknamed “do no harm,” which only allows state Regents exam scores to be factored into classroom grades if the scores do not lower the grades. The board recently extended this policy for an additional year and is planning to look into whether or not to make the change permanent.

Roughley, whose two children have received special education services, is passionate about inclusion and diversity, and believes the DEI committee could do more to include the special education population, and also to prevent bullying on district campuses.

As an independent candidate, Roughly said she supports community involvement in major decisions, especially divisive decisions.

When asked about the idea of putting armed guards on school campuses, Roughley made it clear she believes all stakeholders should be part of any discussion — teachers, parents and the community at large. “Part of being a board member is you’re an extension of the community,” she said. “It should not be a decision from anyone from the board without having community input first.”

Roughley also ran for a board seat in 2021 and is running on the same ticket as David McKinnon. 

David McKinnon

McKinnon, father of three and a 30-year-plus resident of Three Village, has a “longstanding interest in public education,” and indicated he is passionate about providing an independent voice on the school board. He made clear at the event that he, like Roughley, was not taking endorsements or campaign support from any lobbying group, referring to the fact that all the current board members won their elections supported by the Three Village Teachers Association.

McKinnon, a professor of neurobiology and behavior at Stony Brook University, has served on the districtwide DEI and budget advisory committees, and is a founding member of the Three Village Parents Alliance, through which he has advocated to improve Three Village schools in light of what he called “remarkably bad statewide education outcomes” in New York education, generally. He expressed specific concern about elementary math and literacy education.

“The community — us — deserves an independent voice on how our district is run,” he said. 

“This is not a partisan issue, this is solely about effective management. My goal in running is to create a school board that represents everyone.”McKinnon said he believes the board should rely heavily on the community for decisions about curriculum and running the schools. One of McKinnon’s concerns, though, is bullying. “I don’t feel that the DEI committee was serious in its approach to bullying,” he said. “You can’t learn if you don’t feel safe, you can’t learn if you’re scared.”

On the topic of armed security guards, McKinnon worried that a large-presence, visible security also takes a toll. “There is a downside to all this security in the kids’ lives,” he said. “It makes them less willing to take risks, more likely to have emotional problems, and so this has to be balanced.”

He said school shootings are a tricky issue to address due to the suicidal motivations of the shooters themselves, one that armed guards alone won’t solve. He suggested reintroducing ethics education at the elementary level and gave a vote of confidence to the district’s security and safety coordinator, Jack Blaum, and his efforts over the years to make school buildings secure.

This is McKinnon’s third bid for a seat on the board, after running in 2020 and 2021.

Kristen Gironda

Gironda, who grew up in the Three Village district, said serving on the board would be a way to give back to the community for the quality of her education — a quality she said she wants to help uphold as she is raising her two children here as well. She is a middle school teacher in the Shoreham-Wading River school district, though she has also taught several elementary school grades, and has worked with special education students and English language learners over her 23 years as a teacher.

Gironda and fellow first-time candidate Michele Siegel are sisters, and both are endorsed by the Three Village Teachers Association.

Gironda said the biggest challenge in the district now is “resolving these issues with the budget while simultaneously trying to do what is in the best interest of our students’ well-being and health, with initiating a later start time and simultaneously reconfiguring the schools — and doing that in a fiscally responsible way.”

She has held several volunteer positions in the community, including as a trustee on the board of Play Groups School, and as vice president of the PTA at Minnesauke Elementary School. Also, she was on the reopening task force for the district during the COVID-19 pandemic, and served on the DEI committee for Minnesauke. She has coached for Stony Brook Soccer Club and was recently elected to the board of the Three Village Swim Club.

Gironda said she is not opposed to armed guards, but would take into account the expertise of the district safety team and local law enforcement. She said, after reviewing the district’s safety plan and speaking to Blaum, “I felt with full confidence that I was sending my children to school each day and that they were safe — that every precaution was being taken to protect our children and our staff by our security team.” 

She also said that the board could do better to find out what community members are thinking. “One thing that I think we could improve on is seeking out those voices that maybe aren’t being represented, figuring out who those people are,” she said. “We can work to have a more open and transparent and ongoing dialogue so people feel comfortable sharing their opinions, their views, their thoughts.”

Gabriela Alvanos

Alvanos, a 16-year resident of Three Village, said she would like to bring her particular experience to bear in addressing bullying and inclusiveness issues in the district. Her two elementary-aged children both receive special education services. She is the founder of NuPrisma, an organization that empowers individuals with disabilities, and works with businesses and communities to create more accessible and inclusive environments.

“I am here to be in service of all of our students, whether they are part of the English language learners program like I was, or part of special education like my children are, or general education or the gifted program,” she said. “Every student, regardless of their background or ability, should have access to opportunity that builds, supports and challenges them to excel in their learning and that empowers them to live and integrate in society with dignity.”

Alvanos, the third independent candidate, said she believes it is time to move from awareness of DEI issues to practical implementation of inclusion, down to the classroom level. She also cautioned that though many efforts are well meant, sometimes DEI programming can be implemented in a way that unintentionally increases bias.

She mentioned after the event that one issue that spurred her to run this year was concern over sixth graders moving up to middle school — she said she wants to be on the board to make certain the district puts social and emotional supports in place to aid the transition to secondary school for children at that age.

Alvanos said she is in favor of well-trained, vetted armed security only on the perimeter of school campuses — not inside school buildings. She also supports making the “do no harm” policy permanent.

Dr. Jeffrey Kerman

Kerman, the only incumbent in the group, has served 17 years on the board — including two years as president. He said he wants to continue serving to keep the district “as good as it is” and even help make it better. Kerman told the audience, live and online, that he serves out of gratitude for the district educating and preparing his two sons to succeed in society. Both received special education services, he said, and both became honors students in high school and college. “Our district did wonderfully with them,” he said. “I want to pay back how great they did with my sons. It was wonderful.”

Kerman, a dentist, praised the district and spoke of ways the board has served the community. “We’re always planning and always looking forward to making things better,” he said, pointing to this school year’s strategic planning commission that culminated in a survey to narrow down which restructuring plan stakeholders preferred. 

The board recently charged the administration with in-depth research to see what the costs and logistics would be, should the board adopt the plan. “We always try and get information from our community, from our parents, from our teachers, from our administrators, so that we on the board can make the best informed decisions that can help the district,” he said.

On the topic of school safety and armed guards, Kerman pointed out that Three Village has served as a model for Suffolk County in implementing school safety procedures. “We are very, very strong as far as our safety goes for our students,” he said, adding that the board has been discussing the pros and cons of armed guards carefully.

Michele Siegel

Siegel, mother of two elementary-aged students in the district, said she and her firefighter husband are proud to raise their kids in the district where they both grew up. “I feel passionate about giving back to the community that has helped shape the person I am today,” she said. “I’d be incredibly honored to be able to represent the voices of our entire district to make informed decisions.”

She called herself a “numbers and facts individual,” and is the associate director of research for a media company, with experience applying evidence-based strategies and managing budgets, teams and contracts. Siegel, alongside Kerman and her sister Gironda, is supported by the teachers union.Siegel previously served as president of the board at Play Groups School, and has coached for Stony Brook’s intramural soccer teams and is a team manager for the Stony Brook LGN travel soccer program. She also mentors students at her alma mater, Muhlenberg College of Allentown, Pennsylvania.

When asked about armed guards in schools, Siegel said if she were elected, she would request a meeting with Blaum at the district and law enforcement professionals “to understand every factor that would have to be considered and how it may integrate and align with the existing overall emergency plan — the emotional well-being and physical safety of our students and staff is a priority.”

She added that she would come into a trustee position open to learning. “I do not know the answer to every single question,” she said. “It’s for me to reach out and understand the experiences of everyone in this community to make informed decisions.”

Earl L. Vandermeulen High School, above, will serve as the polling site for this year’s board of education election. File photo

By Raymond Janis

As election day approaches, candidates for the Port Jefferson School District Board of Education had an opportunity to share their thoughts on the major issues facing the district.

During a virtual panel on May 9, candidates Ellen Boehm, Randi DeWitt, Paul Ryan and write-in candidate Don Pollard each spoke in turn. The candidates covered a wide range of subjects from declining student enrollment to possible redistricting schemes to infrastructure investments and more.

Ellen Boehm

Boehm has served on the Board of Education for 10 years and is currently president. Commenting on her many family members who graduated from Port Jefferson schools, she said, “The royal blood runs thick in our family.”

Throughout her time on the board, Boehm has maintained active involvement in several clubs and volunteer organizations. She has taught religious classes at the Infant Jesus R.C. Church, planned the centennial celebration of Port Jefferson High School and is a self-proclaimed sports mom, arts mom and class mom.

“Volunteering really has given me enjoyment while connecting with the students and other parents in the community,” she said. “I am running again to continue to serve the students and families of Port Jeff and to help keep our great programs great.”

Boehm said building a consensus among community members will be the biggest obstacle facing the school board in the coming term. Although some have suggested a possible merger with another school district, Boehm sees opportunities for district expansion through redistricting.

“If we can somehow redistrict, we increase the [number of] families and potentially increase our enrollment,” she said, adding, “We have to start thinking bigger than how we are falling apart. There are things that have to be done with the infrastructure … but we have to identify the things we treasure in Port Jeff.”

Boehm favors the redistricting approach over any potential merger with a neighboring district. If Port Jeff were to merge, Boehm believes the district would lose much of its identity. “We all know what happened when Mount Sinai pulled out,” she said. “To me, a merger would be the last thing I would want to do, but I would really like to look into expanding the district.”

Randi DeWitt

DeWitt has been a teacher in the Mount Sinai School District for 24 years, teaching a first grade inclusion class for the bulk of that time. She has been on the Port Jefferson school board for three years. 

DeWitt has served on the policy and curriculum committees of the school board and this year chaired the facilities committee. Currently she serves on the executive board for the Port Jefferson prom, which she said jokingly is “probably more time consuming than anything that I have ever done in my entire life.”

A long-time resident of Port Jefferson, she described the many ways in which she has immersed herself into the community culture. “I enjoy playing softball on Tuesday nights and volleyball and golf … and tennis,” she said. “That’s something that I really enjoy doing and that I love about our community.”

DeWitt considers declining enrollment and aging infrastructure to be the two greatest problems facing the district. 

Declining enrollment is an issue which affects the community as a whole, she said, adding that infrastructure investments are necessary to keep the district competitive.

“We have a school with an outstanding reputation, but I really do think that our facilities are in need of some modernization,” she said. “We have some [Americans with Disabilities Act] compliance needs that have to be met, some safety concerns across our buildings and grounds and … in order to draw those young families we really need to look at the exterior and interior of our schools and we really just need to be appealing.”

On the topic of a possible merger, DeWitt concurred with Boehm. “I went to Port Jeff and have a very strong sense of passion for our district,” she said. “I just couldn’t imagine a Port Jeff student or athlete wearing anything other than Port Jeff. That would be tough.” She added, “I definitely would never want to lose our sense of identity.”

Paul Ryan 

Ryan went to Scraggy Hill Elementary and Port Jefferson Junior High before attending The Stony Brook School. For nearly 20 years, he was away in China studying to become a practitioner of Chinese medicine, then returned to Port Jeff.

While Ryan was in China, he taught English to Chinese students. When he returned to the United States, he filled a vital need during a critical time in the community’s history, serving as polling inspector when some seniors had left their posts in fear of the COVID-19 virus.

“When there’s an opportunity, I do my best to step up and that’s why I’m stepping up for the school board,” he said. 

Ryan said building a relationship between the community and the school will be essential to keep the school district operating through this period of declining enrollment. He hopes to identify a prospective niche that will help the district draw more families to the district. 

“We know that people move to Port Jefferson for the special needs program,” Ryan said. “So is there a way that we can build off of something like that?” He added that additional language programs would represent another possible niche and could offset some of the diversity and inclusion problems that the district is also facing. 

Ryan considers redistricting unrealistic. “The people that I have talked to about redistricting say it’s very unlikely that it would happen,” he said. “I don’t think there’s another school district around us that is going to give up its student population.” He added, “As far as mergers go, we can avoid a merger if the school and the school board … have strong community support.”

Don Pollard

Relatively new to the district and the area, Pollard has lived in Port Jefferson for six years. His background is in finance and he now runs a small brokerage firm. 

Before he moved to Port Jeff village, Pollard volunteered at Habitat for Humanity. He was active in Caroline Episcopal Church of Setauket, working to grow the parish and its finances. He helped to successfully organize a Halloween dance for the school and has served on the parents advisory board for sports, helping to expand the district’s athletics program. 

For Pollard, the greatest obstacle facing the district is declining enrollment. “In three years, when we have 60 kids in a class, everything else is really secondary because we won’t have a school district, or it’s going to be really difficult to maintain a school district,” he said.

Pollard proposed creating a task force between local government and the school district to map out a course of action which can better address the enrollment dilemma. He said mitigating the enrollment problem will require joint efforts between the school board, local government, village residents and parents. Pollard also suggested that strengthening the athletics department could help to curb declining enrollment as parents would have less incentive to send their children off to private schools with stronger sports programs.

On the question of a possible merger, Pollard said the board must find ways to prevent this scenario. “That should be first and foremost,” he said.

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Kings Park Superintendent Timothy Eagen. File Photo.

The Kings Park Central School district $92 million budget for the 2018-19 school year got the stamp of approval from voters, 1,189 votes to 550 votes. The budget contains a 4.09 percent increase, or approximately $3.6 million more than the current year. It willincrease the tax levy on district homeowners by 2.73 percent.

“This community is very supportive of education and the job that we’ve done here in Kings Park,” Superintendent Timothy Eagen said. “It’s a very supportive budget, and we have some strategic adds and supports in the budget,” “I’m just really happy that we can go forward with the spending plan that the board of education and I have carefully developed over the last couple of months.”

Kings Park budget by the numbers

$92M budget:  1,189 Yes votes to 550 No votes

Board of Education
Kevin Johnston: 1,383 votes
Diane Nally: 1,281 votes
Darryl Valinchus: 530 votes

The adopted budget features plans to increase security measures. These include $100,000 dedicated to the creation of security vestibules in the main entryways of all Kings Park school buildings. It provides funding for additional security cameras and the school administrators plan on having the teachers download an app to their phones called Rave Panic Button, which will enable them to have a direct line to police, fire and emergency medical service at the push of a button.

Eagen said that the new budget maintains all current curriculum, classes, clubs and activities while adding new courses. There will be funding for a new AP Capstone Research program, an exploratory course where students learn to do research in any number of fields and synthesize that research into research papers. Other new courses include an American Sign Language elective for eighth-graders, new math programs, robotics, computer programming and coding.

Kings Park board of education

Kings Park board of education incumbents Kevin Johnston, receiving 1,383 votes, and current Vice President Diane Nally, receiving 1,281 votes, were re-elected to their seats. Challenger Darryl Valinchus fell short with 530 votes in Tuesday’s election.

“This is a $92 million budget we’re talking about and very few people show up for the school board meetings.”

Kevin Johnston

Johnston said the board of education race remained civil throughout the process and hoped he would be able to reach out to Valinchus to tap into his knowledge of security procedures to aid the district.

Valinchus is a 15-year Kings Park resident and is a retired sergeant of the New York Police Department’s intelligence bureau. He currently owns a business as an expert witness providing services to law enforcement agencies and prosecutors’ offices.

Johnston also expressed some disappointment regarding the lack of turnout at the board of education meetings.

“We would like to have more input from people in the community,” he said Tuesday night as polls closed. “This is a $92 million budget we’re talking about and very few people show up for the school board meetings. I think over the last few years with Diane [Nally], we’ve accomplished a great deal providing for the students in Kings Park but we still have a ways to go.”

Pam DeFord, Kings Park’s board of education president wanted to express her gratitude.

“I look forward to the continued work that the board has started and to continue to do [what’s] in the best interest of our students and community,” DeFord said. “Kings Park is in a great place, and we’ll continue to show our Kings Park pride.”

Smithtown school district's administrative Joseph M. Barton building on New York Avenue. Photo by Kyle Barr

Across the Town of Smithtown, voters headed to the polls May 15 to show their overwhelming approval of their school district’s 2018-19 budgets. Many of the districts are planning to use funds to increase their security measures in schools or make critical infrastructure and building repairs.

Yet, threat of hazardous weather and early evening storms made for a light voter turnout, with fewer ballots being cast than in previous years. This disappointed school officials, who rely on their taxpayers’ votes for critical feedback and as a measurement of community involvement.

Proposed 2018-19 budget

Smithtown voters approved Smithtown Central School District’s $244.9 million budget for the 2018-19 school year by 1,873 votes to 800 votes Tuesday night. The budget represents a 2.3 percent increase, or additional $5.5 million more than the current year.


Smithtown budget results

$244.9M budget: 1,873 Yes votes to 800 No votes
Proposition 2: 2,090 Yes votes to 583 No votes

Board of Education
Seat of Christopher Alcure
Mandi Kowalik: 1,618 votes
Christopher Alcure: 935 votes

Seat of Jeremy Thode
Jeremy Thode: 1,790 votes

The school district’s security will receive a funding increase under the approved budget. The planned security upgrades include vestibules in all school entrances that will be constructed over the summer as well as full-time, unarmed security guards for all elementary schools.

“Full-time security guards began on May 1 in all district elementary schools and will continue as part of the budget moving forward,” said James Grossane, district superintendent.

 

In addition, the district is looking to add an additional school psychologist, one
social worker and a guidance counselor to its staffing to address students’ mental health and well-being.

The district’s spending plan maintains all current programs while transitioning to universal elementary school start and end times from 9:20 a.m. to 3:25 p.m. It also allows the district to offer new elective courses at the high school including adding Advanced Placement Capstone Research in addition to the existing AP Capstone program.

The approved budget will impose a 2.95 percent tax levy increase, which is within the district’s state tax levy cap.

Proposition 2

Residents passed Proposition 2 by 2,090 votes to 583 votes. The measure will allow Smithtown school officials to use the district’s capital reserve funds to complete a number of repairs and renovations. The project list includes repairs to the tennis courts at Smithtown High School East and West, window
replacement in the Accompsett Middle School and roof and skylight repairs at the Smithtown Elementary School.

Smithtown board of education

There will be a new face at the table of Smithtown’s board of education come July. Newcomer Mandi Kowalik, receiving 1,618 votes, managed to unseat incumbent trustee Christopher Alcure, who received 935 votes in Tuesday’s race.

“I am thrilled and honored to have been elected to represent the Smithtown Central School District as Board of Education trustee,” she said. “I thank every single one of my supporters, I absolutely could not have held this strong without all of you standing behind me.”

Kowalik is a 14-year Smithtown resident and a published children’s author. She worked as a school teacher for nursery school through sixth grade for 13 years before leaving to raise her three children. Kowalik has one son starting kindergarten this September with two younger daughters she plans to
enroll in the district.

“I am thrilled and honored to have been elected to represent the Smithtown Central School District as Board of Education trustee.”
– Mandi Kowalik

Kowalik said during her campaign for the board seat that she wants to focus on security as well as the mental and physical well-being of students.

“The security of our students and staff are the most important issue that we are
currently facing,” she said. “I am prepared to do whatever it takes to keep our school safe.”

Kowalik said she believes students need time to socialize without adults actively interacting and closely monitoring them. While she said the district has explored this at some levels, she would like to continue to explore further avenues for it.

“I have truly been enjoying all of the meaningful dialogue, and I hope that people will continue to feel comfortable approaching me,” Kowalik said. “Let’s keep engaging in these important conversations, and together we will make a difference.”

Current board President Jeremy Thode ran unopposed for his third term as trustee and was re-elected with 1,790 votes.

Both Kowalik and Thode will serve three-year terms through the 2020-21 school year.

Three candidates vie for two open trustee seats on board of education May 15

Kings Park Superintendent Timothy Eagen. File Photo.

The Kings Park Central School district is asking residents to vote on a proposed $92 million budget that looks to include new course offerings and security projects.

The Kings Park school board of education has put forth a proposed budget to the tune of $92,168,700, which represents a 4.09 percent increase, or approximately $3.6 million more than the current year.

The tax levy, which is the amount of money a district needs to raise through property taxes to balance its budget, shows an increase of 2.73 percent from last year, which is below the New York State mandated tax levy cap.

“We were pretty strategic in the adds for next year’s budget,” Superintendent Timothy Eagen said. “I think this year’s budget has some real positive inclusions in it.”

The proposed budget features plans for increased security measures. These include $100,000 dedicated to the creation of security vestibules in the main entryways of all Kings Park school buildings.

I think this year’s budget has some real positive inclusions in it.”
– Timothy Eagan

“What a security vestibule would do is you would come in the first door, and you’d be in a vestibule, but you wouldn’t get clearance or get buzzed into the building until security scanned your license and confirmed your identity,” Eagen said. “Then you are buzzed through the second door.”

Along with additional security cameras, the school plans on having the teachers download an app to their phones called Rave Panic Button, which will enable them to have a direct line to police, fire and emergency medical at the push of a button.

“The whole idea is to shorten the time that emergency services need to get to the school,” the superintendent said.

Eagen said that the new budget maintains all current curriculum, classes, clubs and activities while adding new courses. If approved, the budget will allow funding for a new AP Capstone Research program, an exploratory course where students learn to do research in any number of fields and synthesize that research into research papers.

Other new courses include an American Sign Language elective for eighth-graders, new math programs, robotics, computer programming and coding.

Kings Park board of education

Kevin Johnston. Photo from Kings Park school district

Three people are currently running for two open seats on the Kings Park board of education. Candidates include incumbent trustee Kevin Johnston, incumbent and current board Vice President Diane Nally and newcomer candidate Darryl Valinchus.

Johnston is a 31-year Kings Park resident. He has spent a year on the board and is looking for a second. He said there is still work to do on school renovations, modernization, decreasing class sizes and school security.

“I would like to see the process through,” Johnston said. “I’m a big proponent of education. I would just like to continue in the direction Kings Park is going with education because year by year the number of students going on to secondary education has improved.”

Johnston is a retired educator from the school district where he spent 35 years as an English teacher and coach. His two children are graduates of Kings Park, and he currently works for State University of New York Oneonta as a supervisor of student-teachers. He believes his experience as teacher helps him as trustee, especially when it comes to aiding students and promoting programs for kids with special needs.

“Some of them still feel vulnerable and isolated, and we need to give them the help and attention they need and deserve,” Johnston said. “They need an advocate, and we want to make everyone feel a part of the school.

Nally is a 58-year resident of Kings Park, and she has had three children graduate from the school district. She has been on the school board for the past six years and she is looking to run for another term.

 

Diane Nally. File photo

“My three children are educators, my husband is an educator, so I believe education is really important to me and my family,” she said. “I believe it is a responsibility of all citizens to educate our children. That’s why I feel the job I am doing on the board is really important.”

Nally retired as director of religious education at St. Joseph’s School of Religion program in 2016, and now she spends most of her time baby-sitting her three grandchildren. She said two of the most important things she wants to tackle as member of the board are drug issues and the mental health of students, and that she wants to involve the community in that process.

“There’s been a lot of concern over emotional issues facing some of our children,” she said. “I think that is something that needs to be addressed.”

Valinchus is a 15-year Kings Park resident and is a retired sergeant of the New York Police Department’s intelligence bureau. He currently owns a business as an expert witness providing services to law enforcement agencies and prosecutors’ offices. He has also spent 10 years on the Kings Park Youth Athletic Association’s board. He said he is running to provide his expertise on
security to the district.

Darryl Valinchus. Photo from Kings Park school district

“I think my background in law enforcement will help us with one of the most pressing things right now … securing our students and our schools,” he said. “I feel that diversifying the backgrounds on the school board will help us come [up] with better solutions and better decisions.”

Valinchus said he doesn’t want to wait for the state to give funds before they add extra security to the school.

“There’s things we can do to secure our buildings, without offending people, without making it look like smoke and mirrors, without sending our security too far,” Valinchus said.

Valinchus has had two sons who graduated from the district, one in 2014 and the other in 2017.

Beyond security, Valinchus said he wishes to provide a financially responsible budget that addresses the community’s concerns.

“Education is a priority,” he said. “We need to make sure our students are prepared for college.”

The budget and board of education vote will take place May 15 from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the Kings Park High School rear gymnasium.