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Cynthia DiMiceli blasted for mailings before West Hempstead budget vote
West Hempstead residents called for the resignation of Board of Education Trustee Cynthia DiMiceli at last week’s board meeting, after hearing that DiMiceli mailed a postcard to community members days before the May 15 budget vote, encouraging them to vote down the spending plan. She was accused of violating the board’s code of ethics.
DiMiceli and fellow Trustee Rudolf Schindler opposed the $55.2 million 2012-13 budget that the board adopted in April and residents passed in May by a vote of 1,027-650. At the June 19 board meeting, several residents read statements saying that DiMiceli’s mailing of postcards before the vote persuaded some people to vote “no.”
“The day of the budget [vote],” said Christine Fennes, a West Hempstead resident, “people met her in town at public places, where she discussed voting ‘no’ on the budget.”
Barbara Keilty, a longtime resident and a retired West Hempstead teacher, blasted DiMiceli, and called for her resignation. “You’re elected to bring forth positive decisions,” Keilty said, “not act in a detrimental manner as to undermine decisions voted on … You clearly do not have the best interest of our educational system as your goal.”
Fennes and others said that DiMiceli’s actions violated several points of the board’s code of ethics and responsibilities, including one that states that a board member should “abide by all board decisions once they are made and assist in carrying them out effectively.” “This was definitely broken by this postcard, and her attempts to get people to vote ‘no’ on the day of the budget,” Fennes said.
In the mailing, which was addressed to residents, DiMiceli wrote, “…We live in a new economy that has placed financial stress upon families, seniors living on fixed income and young graduates who are looking for work.
“Having said this, some residents have criticized my disapproval of the Proposed 2012-13 School Budget. Ever since my children started public school all I heard was ‘…if you do not vote “yes” on the school budget, you will be labeled anti-public education.’ In my opinion, we must change this way of thinking.”
