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Huntington Union Free School District

Huntington High School. File photo

By Rokah Sejour

Huntington Union Free School District Board of Education focused their second budget presentation Monday, Feb. 26, for the 2024-25 school year that highlighted the 1000/5000 series analysis and capital expenditures. 

The current budget draft totals $152,828,294, a 4.43 present change from last year’s adopted budget. However, due to tax levy limits the budget is expected to decrease 3.83 percent and would total a budget of $151,955,866.

The transportation budget amounted to a total of $12,916,093, seeing an increase of 4.06 percent. The transportation or the 5000 series portion of the meeting discussed the three-year term with Beacon Mobility/Huntington Coach is set to expire in June of this year. The company is also planning to equip all buses and vans with video recording systems.

Though recording equipment is already in place on all the buses, the company is working with the district to test their parent app, which is a pilot program that would allow parents to be privy to the exact location of their child’s bus at all times by accessing a software through their phones. Parents would be able to see their child’s bus on the way and how far the bus is from their existing bus stop.

This program when implemented will be done via a slow rollout and is not expected to be launched by September of the 2024-25 school year.

The board also gave an update on a few of the summer 2023 projects like the completion of the Washington boiler room replacement, the Finley partial parking lot reconstruction, the Jack Abrams STEM partial roof replacement and the newly completed high school turf field.

Capital reserve funds

The district’s capital reserve balance is at a total of $5,014,347. This current budget proposal is anticipating a building aid ratio for the 2024-25 school year to be 0.398, which would be extracted from the capital reserve balance. The voter-approved cap for the capital expenditure is expected to be finalized by March 25.

The capital project proposals from the district five-year plan were on display in order of priority with the phase 3 of the Jack Abrams STEM building roof replacement due for implementation. 

The cafeteria air conditioning, Huntington high school auditorium and visitor bathrooms, and Huntington primary schools window replacements were also among the priority list.

The Board of Education meeting can be accessed via the school district’s website, www.hufsd.edu/leadership/board.html. 

Despite a few job openings, local school districts are ready for the new school year. Stock photo

With schools across the nation facing issues filling positions, including vital teaching jobs, local school districts, for the most part, are looking toward the new academic year in a good position with staffing.

While COVID-19 created severe obstacles for schools in the last couple of years, local districts are moving past them.

Some difficulties

Kevin Scanlon, the new Three Village Central School District superintendent, said the district is among those well staffed regarding teachers. Slight shortages involve jobs such as teaching assistants and monitor positions. Substitutes for teaching and various openings, including custodial, are also hard to find. Scanlon said that with more than 500 teachers in the district, 30 to 50 of them could be out on any given day.

Neil Katz, Smithtown Central School District assistant superintendent for personnel; Jim Polansky, Huntington school district superintendent; and Roberta Gerold, Middle Country Central School District superintendent, all said their districts are in the same position with permanent teaching positions being filled, but there are small issues finding noncertified employees.

Routinely, it can be challenging also to find candidates in the fields of English as a New Language, family and consumer sciences, technology and language classes. Scanlon added that it’s difficult to find certified American Sign Language educators. 

“Also, business teachers, which is unusual because 25 years ago you probably had your choice of teachers,” he said. “Some of the local colleges in New York also used to produce 120 candidates a year in tech teachers, now they’re producing maybe 12 to18. So, the numbers are quite short of where they were years ago in those specialized areas.” 

Scanlon added finding such teachers is even more difficult than finding math and science teachers.

“We are all competing against each other trying to find them,” he said.

Polansky said, from time to time, there can be last-minute resignations at the end of the summer.

“Those can present issues, but those are few and far between, and sometimes if you have an added aide position that comes up due to class formation, that doesn’t take place until late in the summer,” he said.

Gerold said, “One of the many byproducts of the pandemic has been a smaller pool of applicants, which has impacted the Middle Country school district’s ability — as it has school districts across Long Island and the country — to hire talented educators.”

Like other districts, Middle Country found ways to ensure it was properly staffed.

“While the hiring process has been particularly challenging heading into this school year, our human resources and personnel teams have worked hard to creatively find new solutions to attract the next generation of educators to lead our community into the future,” she said. 

There has also been a need to stay proactive regarding teacher retirements. While student enrollment has declined in some local districts, the number of teachers retiring has increased.

Katz said the number of employees currently retiring makes sense as the population was growing in the area 25 to 30 years ago and schools were expanding, which led to the need to hire more teachers at the time. Those employees are now meeting their retirement requirements.

“We’re hitting that point that there’s this balloon of the number of teachers that are eligible for retirement,” Katz said, adding COVID-19 exacerbated the problem in recent years.

Polansky agreed.

“You’re going to see more in the next couple of years because it is kind of generational,” he said. “That’s another thing that we need to take into account.”

According to New York State Teachers’ Retirement System, 33% of active members could potentially retire in the next few years.

Solutions

Some news outlets have reported states such as Florida dropping the requirements for people to secure a teaching position such as having a bachelor’s degree. Polansky said, “There’s a fine line between helping your teacher availability and compromising quality. You don’t want to be in a situation where actions are being taken that actually lessen the quality of the educator that’s in front of your children in the classroom.”

He added that such a move could cause more problems in the long run.

“We have to make teaching a desirable profession,” he said. “There are a couple of ways to do that, and it’s incumbent upon states and local school districts to make that happen.” 

Administrators said their districts always start the hiring process early in the calendar year to prepare for the first day of school, attending recruitment events at colleges in New York state, hosting their own career fairs and placing ads in papers.

Scanlon said the Three Village school district will run an ad in The New York Times at the end of January or early February. He added that advertising in the paper is something many high-caliber schools do. Looking toward the future, the superintendent said there are talks about bringing back a Future Teachers of America club to the high school to encourage students to choose teaching as a career.

Gerold said one of the Middle Country school district’s “initiatives has been our successful partnership with Stony Brook University to fortify our roster of substitute teachers. During the pandemic, the district partnered with Stony Brook University to place student-teacher substitutes in schools. Through this, we’ve been able to satisfy the substitute teacher needs throughout the district and identify strong educators who are poised to excel in leading classrooms.”

Katz said the Smithtown Central school district tries to reach out to different associations and offer more competitive salaries. However, even using various hiring methods and starting early, sometimes a new hire will get a better offer right before the academic year begins.

“We’re getting into bidding wars,” he said. “Candidates are pushing one district against the other in bidding wars. Kind of like the housing market.”

Despite a few job openings, local school districts are ready for the new school year. Stock photo

North Shore residents stopped by their local polling places throughout the day May 17 to vote on school budgets and for board of education members.

Winning candidates are in bold.

This story will be updated as more results come in. Last updated May 18 at 11:33 a.m.

Commack Union Free School District

$ 214,645,326 budget passed

Yes – 2,392

No – 815

Proposition 2 to decrease transportation limits in grades 3 through 5 from ½ mile to a ¼ mile, passed

Yes – 2,376

No – 814

Candidates, two seats 

Steven Hartman – 2,277

Pauline Fidalgo – 877

Justin Varughese – 2,247

Christopher Jurkovic – 893

Comsewogue Union Free School District

The budget passed.

Yes – 998

No – 427

Robert DeStefano and Francisca Alabau-Blatter both elected for three-year terms. 

Cold Spring Harbor Central School District

$73,420,423 budget passed

Yes – 817

No – 276

Candidates, two seats

Amelia Walsh Brogan – 496

Alex Whelehan – 888

Bruce Sullivan – 648

Elwood Union Free School District

$69,181,071 budget passed

Yes – 804

No – 396

Candidates, one seat

Deborah Weiss – 965

Sean Camas – 183

Harborfields Central School District

$92,895,995 budget passed

Yes – 1,655

No – 353

Candidates, two seats

Hansen Lee – 1,490 votes

Colleen Wolcott – 1,530

David Balistreri – 603

Hauppauge Union Free School District

$123,913,904 budget passed

Yes – 639

No – 300

Candidates, three candidates

Rob Scarito – 624

Michael Buscarino -651

David Barshay- 617

Huntington Union Free School District

$142,968,343 budget passed

Yes – 834

No – 150

Candidates, two seats, incumbents unopposed

Bill Dwyer- 823

Michele Kustera- 838

Kings Park Central School District

$102.24 million budget passed

Yes – 2,229

No – 1,125

Candidates, two seats

Patrick Hanley – 1,879

Shala Pascucci – 1,737

Jaime Lelle – 1,529

Douglas Cerrato- 1,490.

Middle Country Central School District

The budget passed.

Yes – 2,036

No – 946

Robert Hallock – 1,500
Kristopher Oliva (Incumbent) – 1,452
Denise Haggerty (Incumbent) – 1,518
Leah Fitzpatrick – 1,440
Robert Feeney (Incumbent) – 1,513
Tifanny Lorusso – 1,434
Dawn Sharrock (Incumbent) – 1,481
Kimberly Crawford-Arbocus – 1,471

Miller Place School District

The budget passed. 

Yes – 1,394

No – 503

Proposition 2 (library budget) passed.

Yes – 1,590

No – 310

CORRECTION: It was originally misreported that Andrea Spaniolas received 628 votes. Spaniolas actually received 924 votes. 

Keith Frank – 830

Johanna Testa – 990

Andrea Spaniolas – 924

Jennifer Andersen-Oldenskov – 616

Kenneth Conway – 743

John Galligan – 625

Jenna Stingo – 782

Mount Sinai School District

 

Northport-East Northport Union Free School District

$177,856,084, budget passed

Yes – 2,285

 No- 1,674

 Proposition #2: Capital Expenditures: Passed

Candidates, three seats

Larry Licopoli – 2,528

Allison Noonan – 2,676

Thomas Loughran – 2,729

Frank Labate – 1,754

Port Jefferson School District

Budget passed: Yes – 642; No – 165
Proposition #2: Yes 673; No 130

Ellen Boehm – 550
Randi DeWitt – 563

Paul Ryan – 267

Rocky Point Union Free School District

Budget passed.

Yes – 1,017
No – 322

Proposition 2 – Capital Reserve
– 1,063 Yes
– 267 No

Susan Sullivan – 595 –  3yr term
Erin Walsh – 515 –  1yr term
Nick Contes – 514
Nicole Kelly – 485
Jason Ford – 221
Susan Wilson – 258

Shoreham-Wading River Central School District

Budget passed. 

Yes – 625

No – 167

Proposition #2

Yes – 652

No – 139

Tom Sheridan – 659

Meghan Tepfenhardt – 638

14 Write-in candidates received less than five votes each

Smithtown Central School District

$267,786,882 budget passed

Yes – 5,250

No – 2,241

Candidates, two seats

Michael Catalanotto – 4,582

Michael Saidens – 4,590

Charles Fisher – 3,201 votes

Angela Kouvel – 3,157.

Three Village Central School District

$224,060,618 budget passed

Yes – 2,584

No – 2,518

Candidates, two seats

Vincent Vizzo – 2,715

Jennifer Solomon – 2,650  

Reanna Fulton – 2,283

Evan Proios –2,122

 

Stock photo

Voters on the North Shore of the Town of Huntington will have the opportunity to vote for school budgets and board of education candidates Tuesday, May 17.

Below is a summary of the budgets and BOE races in the Huntington, Harborfields, Elwood and Cold Spring Harbor school districts.

For information on the Commack school district, see page A4. For the Northport school district, see the May 5 edition of The Times of Huntington & Northport or visit tbrnewsmedia.com and search for the article “Northport BOE budget vote, trustee elections set for May 17.”

Huntington Union Free School District

Budget

Those in the Huntington school district will be voting on a school budget that includes no increase in the tax levy.

The proposed budget of $142,968,343 will be an increase of 2.62% over the current spending plan. However, it will not raise the tax levy if approved by residents. According to the district’s website, the lack of an increase to the tax levy is due to a $4,087,007 increase in state aid to $26,253,748, low debt and the district lessening expenditures.

Residents will also be asked to vote “yes” or “no” on a proposition to authorize the expenditure of $6.6 million from building improvement capital reserves. The district aims to complete various projects, including electrical work at two primary schools as well as three gas/carbon monoxide detectors at three primary schools. Funds would also be used to renovate the parking lot and replace tiles at Finley Middle School. A second field is also planned for the high school to be used for sports such as soccer, lacrosse, field hockey and football, and it would also be used for physical education classes and marching band rehearsals.

Candidate information

Trustees Bill Dwyer and Michele Kustera will be running again for three-year terms and will run unopposed.

An account executive for an educational technology company, Dwyer works with school districts throughout the Northeast. He was elected to the board of ed for the first time in 2008. After his first term, he left the board for two years, and then was reelected in 2013, 2016 and 2019.

Kustera is running for her second term. She has been involved in the district on the long-range planning and food allergy committees and as a member of the district’s PTA organizations. 

Voting information

Residents of Huntington school district can vote from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. on May 17 at Huntington High School lobby.

Harborfields Central School District

Budget

Residents in the Harborfields school district will vote on a $92,895,995 proposed budget for the 2022-23 school year. The amount is $2,579,731 more than the 2021-22 budget of $90,316,264, which comes to a 2.86% increase. The budget is within the district’s allowed tax levy increase of 2.28%.

Candidate information

Current trustees Hansen Lee and Colleen Wolcott and newcomer David Balistreri will be vying for two at-large seats.

Lee has spent nine years on the board and is a director at Enzo Biochem where he oversees laboratory operations. On his profile in the district’s meet the candidates page, Lee listed “creating an inclusive and welcoming community” as being important to him.

“I currently serve on the Town of Huntington’s Asian American Task Force and was also fortunate enough to be a part of the recognition of the two Muslim holy days as official school holidays, the first district in Suffolk County to do so,” he said.

Wolcott has been a board member since 2016, and she is a case manager with the not-for–profit Angela’s House and owner/graphic designer at Gold Coast Impressions, Centerport.

Wolcott’s past experiences include working as a special education teacher with a dual certification in early education and special education up to age 21. In her candidate profile, she said, “Today’s students need more.”

“Success is no longer solely defined by strong academic achievement, but by life skills learned in a well-rounded, diverse atmosphere with a focus on mental wellness, enriched academics, the arts, elective and athletic opportunities,” she said. “It’s not enough to keep Harborfields among the best academic school districts on Long Island. We must prepare all of our children for life after school and in our competitive world.”

Balistreri works in the financial industry, in his candidate profile he said he is a concerned father who is running for various reasons. He is looking for more fiscal responsibility in the district.

He aims to “improve communication between the board and stakeholders.” Balistreri also listed working “with other school boards to stand up against Albany’s unconstitutional and nonsensical edicts.” In his profile, he said “parents are the best advocates for their children.”

Voting information

Voting will be held at Oldfield Middle School on May 17 from 2 to 9 p.m.

Elwood Union Free School District

Budget

Elwood school district’s proposed budget is $69,181,071. The dollar amount reflects a $2,267,492 increase and 3.39% increase over the previous budget of $66,913,579.

The proposed budget represents a tax levy increase of 2.9% which is under the district’s allowable tax levy of 3.4%.

Candidate information

Incumbent Deborah Weiss is being challenged for her seat by Sean Camas. There is only one three-year term up for grabs.

In his profile for the Elwood Septa meet the candidates event, Camas is listed as a local student “who wishes to bring a new youthful dynamic” to the board. The lifelong resident of Elwood served as a student council vice president when he was in middle school. He has worked part-time as a dishwasher while maintaining a 3.8 GPA and achieving cum laude honors for three years in a row. In the fall, he will attend SUNY Old Westbury and major in political science.

Weiss has served on the board of ed since 2016. In her candidate profile, she said in order to ensure educational equity for all students “while being fiscally accountable” to taxpayers the board must “streamline expenses whenever possible.”

“The last place cuts should be made and felt is in the classroom,” she wrote. “We must continue to provide an exceptional education while pursuing real legislative relief to address the state’s unfunded mandates and restrictions on district finances. I will work hard to ensure that all our budget decisions remain student focused and fiscally responsible.”

 Voting information

Voting will take place May 17 from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. at Elwood Middle School cafeteria.

Cold Spring Harbor Central School District

Budget

Cold Spring Harbor school district is asking residents to vote on a $73,420,423 proposed budget for the 2022-23 academic year. This is a $1,403,005 change from the 2021-22 budget of $72,017,418. The proposed budget reflects a 1.64% tax levy which is below the cap.

Candidate information

Voters will choose among three candidates, incumbent and current president Amelia Walsh Brogan, Alex Whelehan and Bruce Sullivan, for two at-large board of education positions. Incumbent Julie Starrett is not seeking reelection.

Voting information

Voting will take place May 17 from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. at Ralph Whitney Field House of Cold Spring Harbor Jr./Sr. High School.

District Attorney Tim Sini (D). File photo by Victoria Espinoza

A Queens man is facing charges in Suffolk County after allegedly failing to pay $104,000 to workers.

Suffolk County District Attorney Tim Sini (D) announced Aug. 19 the arrest of contractor Young Jae Kim, 67. Kim allegedly didn’t pay wages owed to workers on a capital project for the Huntington Union Free School District. The contractor and his company Tri-State Construction of New York Corp are each being charged with offering a false instrument for filing in the first degree and willful failure to pay the minimum rate of wage and supplement, a violation of New York State Labor Law. 

“People deserve to be paid for the work they do; it’s that simple,” Sini said. “Not only were these defendants allegedly shortchanging their employees, but they were doing so on the public’s payroll. This is unacceptable. I thank the members of my office’s Financial Investigations & Money Laundering Bureau for continuing to investigate and prosecute labor crimes like these and to make sure Suffolk County workers are being paid their fair share.”

According to the district attorney’s office, approximately from late June 2018 to Aug. 11 in the same year, the defendants were employed on a District-wide Capital Improvement Project for the Huntington Union Free School District. During this time, the defendants allegedly submitted certified payrolls to the school district that indicated a failure to pay workers any supplement benefits and overtime as required for working more than 40 hours in a workweek. An investigation revealed evidence that the defendants allegedly failed to pay 11 employees a total of $104,000 in prevailing wage supplements and overtime.

The defendants also allegedly filed false NYS-45 quarterly wage reporting forms to the New York State Department of Labor, underreporting wages to avoid paying Unemployment Insurance Fund contributions.

Kim surrendered to the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office Aug. 19 and was given a desk appearance ticket. He will be arraigned Sept. 8. If convicted of the top count, the defendants each face a maximum sentence of one 1/3 to four years in prison.

Requests for comments from Kim’s Bayside-based attorney Patrick McIlwain were not returned.

Huntington High School. File photo

Many students in Huntington’s North Shore school districts will experience a mix of in-person and online learning to start off the school year.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) gave the green light for schools to reopen come September during a media call Aug. 7.

“You look at the infection rate — we are probably in the best situation in the country,” Cuomo said.

The governor recommended that school districts offer community discussion to find common ground for families and teachers. School districts in New York state were required to submit reopening plans by July 31 unless administrators filed for an extension. 

Huntington Union Free School District

In a July 31 letter to Huntington school district families, Superintendent James Polansky said the 2020-21 academic year would begin with a hybrid model where students would be assigned to cohorts in each school. Each cohort will have days when they attend school in person and when they study remotely. Kindergarteners, however, will attend every day.

“The plan is set to work in ‘phases,’ which will support the incremental shift to more frequent in-school learning for a greater number of students at times when it is safe to do so,” Polansky said in the letter. “Recognizing the concern on the part of some families regarding those medically at risk or experiencing anxiety in the household, we will also offer the option of a full remote (distance learning) program.”

Out of 1,692 parents surveyed earlier this summer, in-school learning was slightly more preferred than a hybrid model, and more than 20% preferred in-school over remote learning.

According to the district’s reopening plan, students in grades 1-6 will be separated alphabetically into two groups. Those with last names starting with A to K will attend school Tuesdays and Wednesdays, while those with last names L through Z will go to classes in person Thursdays and Fridays. The cohorts will alternate attending school on Mondays.

Finley Middle School and Huntington High School students will return to school one or two days per week in four separate cohorts. When not physically in school, students will learn virtually with teachers livestreaming their instruction and mirroring the same in-school, period-by-period schedule. 

The superintendent added in the July letter that classrooms and other spaces were set up to maintain the required 6 feet of social distancing. Students will be required to wear masks but will have mask breaks during the day. Learning spaces will also include translucent barriers to help prevent the spread of aerosol particles.

Families are required to take their child’s temperature before the student leaves home, according to the reopening plan, and the parent or guardian will also be required to answer screening questions on an electronic application. Staff members will be required to do the same before they report to their buildings.

Northport-East Northport Union Free School District

Superintendent Rob Banzer wrote in an Aug. 2 letter to the community that a team of administrators and teachers created plans for three different possible scenarios. The plans included an in-person option, the continuation of 100% remote learning and a hybrid approach. The district was given an extension by the state to submit its recommended plan by Aug. 7 instead of the original deadline of July 31.

After Cuomo’s Aug. 7 announcement that school buildings could open, the district decided to go ahead with its hybrid plan. According to the reopening plan, all students will be divided into two cohorts, blue and gold. Students in the blue group will attend school in person on Mondays and Thursdays, while the gold group will report to buildings Tuesdays and Fridays. Remote learning will take place when they are not in school. Special education classes and English language learners will attend school every day but Wednesday.

“I cannot emphasize enough the importance of flexibility, adaptability and resiliency as we move towards the opening of school,” Banzer wrote.

All students and staff members will be required to complete a daily health-screening questionnaire, according to the plan. In addition to students and staff members being asked to distance at least 6 feet, there will be physical barriers in some cases. The plan also includes that masks will be worn on buses and when 6 feet of distance cannot be maintained. In addition to meals, students will not have to wear masks when sitting 6 feet apart in classrooms.

Commack Union Free School District

While elementary school students will attend school every day in person, secondary students will be in buildings every other day. The recommended plan depended on the district resolving transportation issues, which according to the Commack schools’ website, was accomplished recently.

The district offered families to opt out of transportation for the upcoming school year. The number of riders needed to be reduced was 50% to allow all elementary students to attend school daily, according to the district’s reopening plans.

“The Commack School District is committed to bringing all elementary students back into their school buildings this fall,” the plan read. “Therefore, it is necessary to reduce the number of elementary school riders by 50%. If we fail to reduce our elementary ridership by 50%, elementary students will not be able to attend ‘brick and mortar school’ daily, and students would attend every other day engaging in remote learning on the days they are not in a school building.” 

Currently, buses that usually seat 64 can only transport 22 to allow for social distancing.

Elementary school students in Commack will be divided into groups A and B, with A taking core classes in the morning and then lunch and gym, art and other enrichment classes in the afternoon. The B group’s schedule will be the opposite.

High school and middle school students will have capacity in the building reduced to 50% and students will attend schools on alternating days. There is also a plan for teachers to change classrooms instead of students to minimize traffic in hallways. An every other day school schedule will be applied where the A group will attend school Monday, Wednesday and Friday on the first week and Tuesday and Thursday the next week. Students in the B group will attend Tuesday and Thursday the first week and Monday, Wednesday and Friday the second week. 

Students will be required to wear masks when not seated at their desks and every desk will have a plastic sneeze guard. According to the district’s Q&A on its website, parents and guardians are encouraged to take children’s temperatures at home and will complete an attestation on a COVID app confirming that their child does not have a temperature above 100 degrees. Students’ temperatures will also be taken upon arrival at school with a temperature scanner.

Huntington High School. File Photo

School districts in Huntington canvassed ballots June 16 for hours before reporting results.

Elwood Union Free School District

The district passed its 2020-21 budget, 2,921 to 1,064. Its budget is set at $64,443,174, a 2.73 percent increase from last year’s figure. The district will see a tax levy increase of 2.89 percent, which is below its allowable tax levy cap of 7.22 percent.

The proposed increase of 2.89 percent is less than what is needed to fully cover the increase to capital debt, so as a result the district has planned targeted reductions. Those will include elimination of one full-time administrative position, reduction in staffing due to attrition, reduction to athletics for materials and supplies, reduction to certain co-curricular activities with minimal student enrollment and reduction in security hours to eliminate redundancy in buildings.

Voters elected two candidates to the board of education. Newcomer Sara Siddiqui secured the most votes of 2,489 and will be elected to fill the balance of an unexpired term from June 9, 2020, through June 30, 2020, to be followed by a full three-year term. Challenger Thomas Scarola, who received the second highest number of votes with 2,281, will serve a full three-year term beginning in July. Incumbent Becky Marcus failed to secure reelection with 1,775, as did George Neofitos with 755 votes.

Northport-East Northport Union Free School District

Voters passed the 2020-21 budget 5,241 to 1,545. Its budget is set at $172,752,759, a $1.6 million increase from last year’s total. The budget package supports  K-12 instructional programs, funds the purchase of 1,500 Chromebooks to complete the final phase of the 1:1 computing initiative so that all students K-12 have their own device, preserves the district’s art, music and athletic programs, maintains class sizes within district guidelines, preserves staffing and programming to support the social-emotional needs of students and supports the district’s professional development initiatives for staff.

In the event of future foundation aid reductions, the district will look to defer a number of expenditures. The total would come out to over $1.8 million. In a worst-case scenario, the district could eliminate late bus runs, eliminate/reduce school trips, reduce athletic opportunities (games, teams), and reduce full-time equivalent employee hours, among other things.

Board president David Badanes secured reelection with 5,119 votes. Incumbent Donna McNaughton was reelected with 4,463 votes. Challenger Victoria Bento fell short in her bid with 2,762 votes.

Harborfields Central School District

The 2020-21 budget passed by an overwhelming 3,609 to 1,472. Its total budget figure will be $88,843,177. The district will see a tax levy increase of 2.80 percent. The tax levy amount is $68,465,006 compared to last year’s amount of $66,600,280. State aid is down from $16,466,214 to $14,526,584, which is an over $1.9 million decrease.

Incumbents Christopher Kelly and David Steinberg were reelected to the board. Kelly received 3,477 votes, while Steinberg garnered 2,855 votes. Challenger Freda Manuel came up short with 2,174 votes.

Cold Spring Harbor Central School District

Voters passed the 2020-21 budget 944 to 373. Its budget is set at $71,092,749, which is an $817,932 increase from its 2019-20 figure. The district’s tax levy amount will be $66,819,125. The overall budget is about $1 million under the tax levy limit.

District officials are expecting further aid reductions from the state. However, the current budget maintains all programs. The district will continue its Chromebook initiative for all students at the middle and high school, extensive professional development for teachers, continue the partnership with the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory and DNA Learning Center, fund arts programming, including a partnership with the Huntington Arts Council and Lincoln Center Education.

In addition, the budget will facilitate the approval for new three-year transportation contracts, appropriates $900,000 in capital construction funds for the following projects: Field House locker room reconstruction, grounds storage building construction at the middle and high school, performing arts center house lighting replacement.

Proposition 2 was passed by voters, 911 to 451. It would transfer an amount not to exceed $750,000 from the district’s unassigned fund balance to replace existing faucets and the upper synthetic turf field at Cold Spring Harbor Jr./Sr. High School.

Proposition 3 was also passed by voters, 916 to 448. It will authorize the creation of a capital reserve with a limit of $15,000,000 in deposits plus applicable interest over a 15-year term to complete future capital construction projects.

Four candidates ran for three seats with three-year terms, beginning July 1, 2020. Incumbents Janice Elkin and Mark Freidberg secured reelection while challenger Tara Belfi was elected to her first term.

Huntington Union Free School District

Voters passed the 2020-21 budget, 3,696 to 1249. Its budget is set at $135,938,167 with a 1.77 percent increase. Its tax levy amount comes out to $112,350,000.

Its second proposition also passed 3,976 to 924. It will approve the release of monies for state-approved projects that will total over $3.6 million. Southdown Primary School: $340,000 would be used for rooftop solar panels; Huntington High School: Partial roof replacement costing $1 million; Finley Middle School: Science/prep rooms reconstruction and boiler replacements would cost $2 million; and Jack Abrams STEM Magnet School: New auditorium seating and flooring would cost $300,000. Costs of repairs of Finley Middle School lockers will also be included in the total.

Residents elected two individuals to the BOE to a three-year term commencing July 1, 2020, and expiring June 30, 2023. Longtime trustee member Xavier Palacios secured reelection with 2,494 votes, challenger Kelly Donovan was elected to her first term with 3,061 votes. Board president Jennifer Hebert decided to not run for reelection this year.

Commack School District

Commack School District’s 2020-21 budget of $199,759,525 was approved by residents, 5,332 to 2,128.

Trustee Susan Hermer retained her seat with 3,401 votes. Her challenger Mike Weisberg garnered 3,021. Incumbent William Hender ran unopposed and received 5,157 votes.

The 2020-2021 school budget has a tax cap levy increase of 1.99 percent with a budget-to-budget increase of 1.37 percent.

Huntington High School. File photo.

Since schools officially closed in March due to the coronavirus, many school districts were forced to revisit tentative budget proposals for the 2020-21 academic year. With the anticipation of reductions in state aid and other areas, districts like Huntington and many others are left in a tough spot.

Budget

At a May 11 board of education meeting, the school district detailed changes to the budget. School officials expect a 15 percent reduction in state aid from the previously enacted state budget. The district would stand to lose close to $3 million in aid going from receiving $18.6 million to 16 million.

The district’s current proposal would see an overall budget total of $135,938,167 with a 1.77 percent increase. Its tax levy amount comes out to 112,350,000.

Included in the budget vote is a second proposition that would approve the release of monies for state-approved projects which will total to over $3.6 million.

Southdown Primary School: $340,000 would be used for rooftop solar panels.

Huntington High School: Partial roof replacement costing $1 million.

Finley Middle School: Science/prep rooms reconstruction and boiler replacements would cost $2 million.

Jack Abrams STEM Magnet School: New auditorium seating and flooring would cost $300,000.

Costs of repairs of Finley M.S lockers will also be included in the total.

The next budget meeting will be held May 18 where the district expects to adopt its revised budget. A public budget hearing has been set for June 1, and the budget vote and trustee elections will be June 9. Absentee ballots must be received by 5 p.m.

Trustee Election 

Residents will elect two individuals to the BOE to a three-year term commencing July 1 and expiring June 30, 2023. Board president Jennifer Hebert will be vying for reelection. She has served on the board for the past nine years.

Long time trustee member Xavier Palacios will be seeking reelection as well and looks to secure a fourth three-year term on the board.

Huntington High School. File photo

By David Luces

Northport-East Northport School District

Northport residents overwhelming passed this year’s budget of $171.1 million to a vote of 1,553 to 977. The 2019-20 amount was a $4.2 million and 2.56 percent increase from last year. The district tax levy cap for 2019-20 will be 2.78 percent and the levy amount will increase by over $4 million. 

A $1.8 million from the capital reserve fund will be used for additional asphalt, concrete and drainage repairs as well as traffic reconfiguration at the entrance of Northport High School. 

Three candidates competed for three open seats this year. Allison Noonan, Larry Licopli and Thomas Loughran all ran unopposed and were elected to the board. Noonan received the most votes with 1,864, Licopli followed with 1,796 and Loughran received 1,770.  

Huntington Union Free School District

Huntington residents convincingly passed the $133.5 million budget with a vote of 1,064 to 259. The 2019-20 amount is an increase of 2.83 percent and $3.6 million over the current year’s spending plan. 

A second proposition on the ballot was approved by residents that would fund an estimated $3.9 million worth of projects. 

Three candidates competed for two open board seats this year. Incumbent William Dwyer secured re-election for another term with 804 votes. Michele Kustera received the greatest number of votes with 966 votes and won election to the board. Joesph Mattio fell short with 570 votes. 

Harborfields Central School District

Residents passed the 2019-20 budget of $88 million with a vote 754 to 340. The latest budget amount is an increase of 2.25 percent from 2018-19 and it leads to a tax levy increase of 3.12 percent. Administrative expenditures will cost $9.9 million, programs will cost $64.9 million and capital projects will take up another $13.2 million. 

Hansen Lee and Collen Wolcott won election to the board with 948 and 846 votes, respectively. Lauri Levenberg fell short with 630 votes and Freda Manuel received 248 votes.  

Elwood Union Free School District

In a landslide, residents passed the 2019-20 budget of $62.7 million, 1,223 to 350. The upcoming budget will have a tax levy increase of 2.56 percent. Administrative expenditures took up $7.1 million while programs took $47.1 million; $8.6 million will be used for capital projects. 

Two candidates competed for one 3-year term seat. Incumbent Deborah Weiss won election with 845 votes while Sara Siddiqui fell short with 712.

Cold Spring Harbor Central School District

Residents passed the district’s $70.3 million budget with a vote of 241 to 108. The tax levy for 2019-20 will increase by 2.94 percent. Administrative expenditures will take up $6.2 million; $52.8 million will go to programs; and $11.3 million will be reserved for capital projects. 

Two incumbent candidates ran unopposed. Amelia Brogan secured 282 votes and Julie Starrett received 277.                                                               

Commack Union Free School District

Commack residents passed the district’s $197.1 million budget convincingly 1,797 to 537. The 2019-20 budget will see a 2.95 percent increase in the tax levy. $20.4 million will cover administrative expenditures; $142.3 million will go to district programs; and $29.4 million will be used for future capital projects.  

Four candidates competed for two 3-year term seats: Steve Hartman won election with 1,813 votes as well as Justin Varughese who received 1,543. Pamela Verity fell short with 453 as well as Jennifer Mansi who secured 660. 

Two candidates competed for one 1-year term seat, including Susan Hermer who won election with 1,627 votes while Jennifer Scully only received 565 votes.