Re-elect Ryan and Vrona to the school board

With two seats on the Board of Education contested by three candidates, the Herald urges residents to re-elect incumbents Dr. Dennis Ryan and Maureen Vrona.

Ryan, who has served on the board for nine years, has emphasized a need for the district to maintain its reserve funds in case of another emergency like Hurricane Sandy.

Ryan attends many district events and makes himself accessible to residents. As a former educator and administrator, he knows what children need in the classroom, and advocates for students and teachers facing controversial new testing standards and the Common Core curriculum. He can put emotions aside and be pragmatic when evaluating programs that could be trimmed or eliminated.

Ryan was perhaps the most vocal of the trustees who opposed signing an agreement with the developer iStar expressing the district’s support for the developer’s request for a 20-year tax break from the Nassau County Industrial Development Agency to build on the Superblock. Ryan drove back to Long Beach from Boston to vote against the deal at a special meeting last year — held while both he and Vrona were on vacation — and criticized his fellow board members for scheduling the meeting with little notice, saying that it was “irresponsible” of the board to “rush to judgment.” The deal was ultimately voted down, and we have no doubt that was due in large part to Ryan’s opposition.

He has also called for the reopening of a hospital in Long Beach after Hurricane Sandy shuttered the Long Beach Medical Center, and has opposed the construction of a luxury condominium development on the former Hebrew Academy of Long Beach property.

Amid an ongoing disciplinary hearing of a former middle school teacher accused of abusing her students — not to mention several lawsuits filed against the district — the board and school administrators have much work to do to restore the confidence of parents and residents, which Ryan and Vrona both pledged to do. And we hope that they live up to their promise of working toward a fair contract with the Long Beach School Employees Association.

Vrona also opposed iStar’s request for tax abatements, and we believe she has been a valuable member of the school board. As the only trustee with a child attending school in the district, she has a feel for what’s going on in the buildings.

Both incumbents frequently raise questions to the board and press school administrators for answers during meetings. They are also vocal about issues that directly affect students, like the Common Core curriculum. Vrona has said that in today’s educational climate, it is important to address the concerns of parents, teachers and students about the state-imposed curriculum, and we agree.

Although their challenger, Lori Montgomery, offered good ideas about improving students’ physical and mental health, the incumbents’ experience will benefit both students and taxpayers in the long run. We encourage voters to choose Ryan and Vrona on Tuesday.

For library board, Pinto, Dwyer

The Herald endorses library board candidates Sam Pinto — an education and outreach ambassador at SunPower by EmPower Solar, a local career firefighter, a public safety educator and the president of the Eastholme Civic Association — and Kathleen Dwyer, associate director of event management systems at Hofstra University and a temporary trustee who was appointed to the board last year after Alan Greenberg resigned due to illness.

We agree with Pinto’s goals of bringing fresh perspective to the board and encouraging residents to use the library as a valuable community resource. The Herald also supports Dwyer — who previously served on the board from 2005 to 2015 — because of her pledge to keep residents informed and involved.