By Anthony Rifilato and Jonann Brady
He has recruited 10 parents to be team leaders, sending e-mails and distributing fliers to parents and local PTAs in order to help get his name out. He held a rally with well over 100 participants at the Second Baptist Church, encouraging people to vote for him.
At the May 5 rally, Woodside said, residents also came to address a number of issues, at least 10 of them from the Middle School, where he explained that concerns ran the gamut from gang violence to low test scores.
"The idea was for people to voice their concerns and views about the present state of our schools," said Woodside.
Those supporting him said the current board has not adequately addressed the concerns of minority parents or the entire Baldwin community. "What motivated me was that I felt the present board didn't address our concerns," said Sabrina Fearon, the parent of a Brookside student who attended a strategy and information session for Woodside at the Second Baptist Church on May 12.
Valerie Edwards, president of Concerned Parents of Baldwin Schools, also attended Monday's meeting, and said it was the first time she knew of Woodside's bid for the board. Edwards asked Woodside how he would serve on the board. "I need someone who can be a part of their process," said Edwards. "Parents always hear things after the fact."
There is no doubt that challengers face an uphill battle against long-serving and well-known incumbents for any office, and this school board race is no exception. "You're running for a board that's safe and comfortable," said Edwards.
Though the incumbents might not agree with that sentiment, one, B.A. Schoen, says he's concerned that the change in election day from May 20 to June 3 might depress voter turnout. "I hope it doesn't," said Schoen "[The board] is trying to get the word out."
Both Schoen and another challenger, Russell Martinez, said their campaign strategies are very simple: They are going to talk to their friends and connections in the community and encourage them to vote.
"It's the buddy system," said Martinez. "Working with so many organizations, I have name recognition. So many people know me as involved in the community and schools."
Schoen added that his work on the board should speak for itself. "If you want to see me campaigning, come down to [a board meeting]," he said. "I'm not happy about high taxes, but nobody works harder on that than I do."
Woodside is not taking anything for granted in his campaigning. Outside of encouraging people to vote for him, he said he also is holding informal information sessions to get feedback from the community. "Many of the things we're campaiging on will be coming from the people," said Woodside. "These gatherings are not just for me to talk to people but to hear the concerns of the community."
That's what Freeport resident Matthew Rhoden has been helping Woodside with, making calls and sending e-mails. "One of the most important things he's doing is developing a community voice," Rhoden said.
Some of Woodside's campaign strategies include contacting parents in the district in order to help get his name out. "What he's tried to do is identify one or two parents to spearhead efforts in that area," said Woodside's wife, Patricia, adding that some parents from Brookside, Lenox, Plaza, Steele and Meadow have been helping. "They're trying to help get the word out."
Woodside supporters are doing this by keeping two lists of residents and potential supporters. One of the lists was begun last year after Brookside Principal Cheryl McBeth was fired. Other campaign intitiatives include handing out fliers at grocery stores, train stations and school events.
Woodside has also formed Baldwin United, a "think tank" that he said was created to gather ideas and community concerns, and that meets at places like Second Baptist Church.
"We view it as a think tank and a parent-community advocacy group," said Woodside, addingd that it's "not just for education, but for quality of life in general in the Baldwin and surrounding communities."
box off or sidebar at end of story:
H: Not taking anything for granted
sub: Library trustee, running unopposed, still knocking on doors
photo: 90468B (guy on left only, crop other two)
cap: Kevin Kamen, who has served on the library board for 25 years, is running unopposed this year.
Kevin Kamen, though running unopposed for library board trustee, says that since he began campaigning for the seat in March, he has knocked on 2,090 doors. "I feel very strongly about personal contact even after 25 years," said Kamen.
Kamen, 45, a lifelong Baldwin resident and president of
the library's board of trustees, was elected to the board in 1978, at age twenty.
Kamen is active in several other community groups, including serving on the board of directors of the Baldwin Council Against Drug Abuse on the advisory committee to the South Nassau Communities Hospital's Baldwin Counseling Center and is a member of the Baldwin Chamber of Commerce. He is also a Nassau County Auxiliary Police Inspector and chief of the Baldwin unit.
In 1978, Mr. Kamen's first assignment as a library trustee was to
research a materials theft detection system. That system is the Checkpoint system the library still uses today. During Kame's tenure, the library has gone through four automation systems and two major
library expansions. The first expansion (1986-1989) saw the creation of a new children's wing from the former European American Bank building/ In 2001, Kamen spearheaded the campaign to once again expand the library, this time doubling its service area to include a 180-seat community room, a children's amphitheater, a permanent After-School Homework Center, a computer training lab and an expanded Baldwin History Center.
Kamen is married to Cheryl Kamen, CSW, executive director of the
Bay Ridge Center for Older Adults in Brooklyn. He is president and owner of a print-media valuation and management firm that appraises publications on a worldwide basis.
Though his campaigning has slowed down at this point, Kamen said that "people appreciate that I'll take the time to meet them at their front door and I've had the chance to answer their questions about the library construction and the budget."
Voting information
School and library board budget and election vote is Tuesday, June 3 from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. at the Senior High School.
To vote in the election, you must first register at the District Office, 960 Hastings St. between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. The last day to register is Thursday, April 29.
