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Old 05-16-2018, 10:23 AM
 
Location: NYPD"s 30th Precinct
2,565 posts, read 5,485,872 times
Reputation: 2690

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Quote:
Originally Posted by mm3846 View Post
you don't need a driveway, grass, or sprinklers are your house either.
My driveway, grass, and sprinklers aren't installed and maintained with taxpayer dollars.
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Old 05-16-2018, 11:08 AM
 
2,589 posts, read 1,806,375 times
Reputation: 3402
Takes a while for decreased enrollments to matter. Dropping a class size from 22 to 21 doesn't change costs. Close a school and rezone kids?! Holy moly, the stampede of angry parents (ie "taxpayers) would shake the earth! Cutting some classes altogether and excessing teachers saves money but the union has palpitations and goes into a war dance and then the Nimby parents go beserkers that 5th grade Spanish is being eliminated (5th grade foreign language seems like a bit of an extravagance to me, but hey, what do I know)!? lol Bottom line is always going to be salaries. Landscaping i.e. Facilities is barely 2-3% of the budget and is responsible for every part of safety, energy, cleanliness and functionality of the district. Ever hear a teacher whine when a lightbulb is out in a closet?! "Stop the presses, I can't work under these conditions!" Then the parents call in screaming about "I pay blah blah taxes and can't get a light bulb!?!"

Moral: The fancy turf fields and ipads are all borrowed money, grants and state aid. The schools are running lean as hell on every front except...you guessed it...teacher and admin salaries, benefits and pension obligations...that's 78% of the budget right there.

Ok, cue the union shills/apologists in 5...4...3...2...1...
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Old 05-16-2018, 12:26 PM
 
Location: Stony Brook
2,897 posts, read 4,379,629 times
Reputation: 2752
I have been voting NO for the last 15 yrs. It doesn't matter. All the sheep just keep passing it. 10 or 11 more years I'm out of here. My job keeps me here, but once I hit retirement age, I'm gone. Who could actually retire here?
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Old 05-16-2018, 12:41 PM
 
Location: under the beautiful Carolina blue
22,615 posts, read 36,521,804 times
Reputation: 19819
Quote:
Originally Posted by monstermagnet View Post
TNimby parents go beserkers that 5th grade Spanish is being eliminated (5th grade foreign language seems like a bit of an extravagance to me, but hey, what do I know)!.
Try grades 2-5 in Garden City, my kids did two years and did not learn a blessed thing. But the teacher got a nice 45 minute break 3x/week AND the parents wanted to add French, German, Italian and Chinese....in a 2-5 school.

Vicious cycle....we pay a lot of taxes, we want our money's worth.....it costs more money, well we're paying this much anyway....
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Old 05-16-2018, 03:46 PM
 
Location: Long Island
9,918 posts, read 23,027,109 times
Reputation: 5871
Quote:
Originally Posted by monstermagnet View Post
(5th grade foreign language seems like a bit of an extravagance to me, but hey, what do I know)!?
Speaking from personal experience, starting a foreign language early is helpful IMHO!

It's a lot easier to not only master different pronunciations, but students are more likely to accept the differences in grammar, etc. plus rules and exceptions to rules (perfect example for the latter is the English language - the joke was that there were more exceptions than rules!). When growing up, I was fortunate to be exposed to English early on, in 5th grade--a good foundation for subsequent school years. French was added in 7th grade, and I felt the difference already. Little did I know at the time, that English would become my "primary" language

But I also have to give credit to my teacher from 7th grade on - he was exceptional! He always said "when you can think in a foreign language (without translating everything), you've mastered it"; how true!
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Old 05-16-2018, 04:56 PM
 
653 posts, read 1,050,731 times
Reputation: 707
Only 2 budgets failed and the North Bellmore one actually passed but didn't meet the 60% threshold but I want to focus a bit on Uniondale.

The Uniondale budget is interesting. It failed by a pretty wide margin and voter turnout was way up YOY. Both incumbents on the school board also lost by a wide margin.
2017 - PASS; 451 YES, 447 NO
2018 - FAIL; 847 YES, 1009 NO.

Uniondale also had a 200M bond referendum this year that failed on Round 1, but was passed on the 2nd go round after a reduction. Residents (homeowners) are clearly sending a message that they are unhappy.

Uniondale has been in a steady decline as a community for several years now, but the bond referendum to fund school expansion was strictly due to the large influx of illegal Central Americans that have basically taken that town over, crowding multiple families into a single family home and forcing the schools to deal with large enrollment increases at a time when enrollment is down across the Island. And many of these newcomers lack basic skills when they are put into the middle or high schools forcing the district to spend more to address their needs.

The district consistently ranks at the bottom in all metrics and none of these plans/funds addressed improving scores, etc.

It could be a lesson/wake up call for other majority minority districts to step up documentation necessary for student registration and the residents (homeowners mainly) start reporting these illegal dwellings. Homeowners there were now being asked to fund the education of illegals all the while being unable to utilize the very same schools for their own kids (because they are crappy).

It's one thing to pay/be taxed up the wazoo and have a good quality of life and schools but another thing to deal with that (albeit on a lower level compared to say, Garden City) and then be forced to use private schools & deal with overcrowding, bad retail, etc. Uniondale's problems didn't start with Central American illegals, but now homeowners are being asked to foot the bill for them. Folks were hopeful of the Coliseum redevelopment plans, but are only getting a Sloan Kettering center (relocating from Rockville Centre).

Hempstead (who also voted out both incumbents but passed the budget), Freeport, Westbury, etc., could be next in line.

Folks were saying if there's a prime case study for Trump's agenda (not getting into P&C) this would be it.
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Old 05-17-2018, 02:20 PM
exm
 
3,699 posts, read 1,746,820 times
Reputation: 2823
Quote:
Originally Posted by bubbathedog View Post
Same with Smithtown and Kings Park is over 4%. I believe the school districts are just getting warmed up Wait until the union can defeat Gov. Fredo's 2% tax cap, Long Island will be back to the days of 6%-8% budget increases per annum. And they're only deductible up to $10k.
Even if you hate Trump, make sure to not vote for Democrats for the NY State Senate. That's our only hope to keep the cap in place.
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Old 05-18-2018, 01:49 PM
 
3,852 posts, read 4,492,465 times
Reputation: 4516
OP, how should the budgets be spent more “on education”? Paying teachers more? Buying iPads for the students? New textbooks? Most districts on LI are already doing all that. The only way to “improve education” in the “bad” places is to replace the bad students. In the interim, grass has to be mowed and watered unless you want kids inside all day because hobos and teenagers have taken over the forests now adjacent to the schools.
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Old 05-19-2018, 09:16 AM
 
19,585 posts, read 20,412,309 times
Reputation: 16238
There is no legitimate reason for any school district employee to make 200 or 300 grand a year.
None whatsoever. Stop paying these supers the ridiculous salaries.
And salary caps for the teachers.
Just maybe, maybe if the teacher salaries were a little more realisitic it would weed out the gold diggers and get people that really want to "teach" and make a difference.
Whatever. #deadhorse
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Old 05-19-2018, 09:31 AM
 
14,394 posts, read 11,090,579 times
Reputation: 14163
Quote:
Originally Posted by hotkarl View Post
There is no legitimate reason for any school district employee to make 200 or 300 grand a year.
None whatsoever. Stop paying these supers the ridiculous salaries.
And salary caps for the teachers.
Just maybe, maybe if the teacher salaries were a little more realisitic it would weed out the gold diggers and get people that really want to "teach" and make a difference.
Whatever. #deadhorse
If Nassau had a single school district that would justify having a super making $300K. But not when there are dozens.
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