By Nick Buglione
A small crowd of concerned parents stood anxiously outside the East Meadow High School classroom where district officials and school board members tallied the final numbers from the polls. The budget, which will go into effect on July 1, passed with 2,656 yes votes to 2,564 no votes.
"It's an important thing for the community, and we're happy about the result," said Leon Campo, assistant superintendent for finance and administration. "We knew this would be difficult. We wish it was not as close as it was."
Looking on the bright side, Campo said he was glad to see that about 30 percent more people participated in this year's vote compared to last year.
"We are committed to providing the best education we possibly can," said East Meadow School Superintendent Robert Dillon. "We are going to do a lot more with less for the time being. We have to weather this."
Under the recently passed budget, property taxes will increase by $6.93 per every $100 of assessed value, meaning homeowners with houses assessed at $6,000 will pay about $4,600 in school taxes. The hike will bring in $7.4 million in additional revenue.
Meanwhile, the budget will also see $5.9 million in cuts, including an 8-percent reduction in instructional and support staff, to help offset rising expenditures and a shortfall in state aid.
"I'd like to say that this is a temporary issue," Dillon added. "Unfortunately, it's likely to be more than one year."
Furious over proposed cuts to school staff and programs, hundreds of angry parents turned out for recent meetings to voice their disapproval of the district's budget.
"I can't believe this budget passed," said a disgusted Kathy Volpe when she learned of the results. Volpe, who is vice president of the Parkway Elementary School PTA, has been one of the budget's most outspoken critics.
Reactions among other parents, civic leaders and community members over the budget's recent passing were mixed.
"I'm not really happy with the way this budget is laid out," said Lauren Lev, mother of two McVey Elementary School students. "I cannot tell you how many parents I spoke with that were unhappy."
However, considering the closeness of the vote, Lev believes the parents nevertheless sent a strong message to the school board.
"It clearly indicates that this community wants answers and that they need communication," Lev said. "I think it sends a clear message to the board members on the way they create the proposal for a budget and present it to the community."
Yet, even some who initially reproached the fiscal plan were content that the public inevitably approved it.
"I'm very pleased that the budget passed," said Richard Bivone, vice president of the Council of East Meadow Civic Organizations and father of two children attending East Meadow schools. "Now what we have to do is work with the administration and the board to move forward and see where we're going to be next year."
Bivone was one of the many community members who criticized district officials in the last few weeks for overly blaming insufficient state funding as the reason for their financial problems.
However, he said voting the budget down would actually create more problems than it would solve. "When you disapprove a budget, basically the school board has to see what else they can cut to lower the taxes," he said.
Both Dillon and Campo previously said that if the budget did not pass, the board would have the option of either putting it before the community for another vote or putting in place a contingency budget.
The contingency budget, they said, would have been essentially the same as the proposed budget, only with extra cuts to equipment and student supplies.
Some residents that did vote in favor expressed they were not necessarily approve of the budget, but rather were afraid of the prospect of more cuts under a contingency plan.
Looking forward to the drafting of the 2003-2004 budget, parents said without a question that the district has to establish a better line of communication with the community.
"What happened this year should have never happened," Bivone said. "We do not want to see this happen again. The residents need to know how their money is being spent."
Campo acknowledged the criticism, saying, "We need to start earlier in communicating with the public so they understand the challenges we face."
In a previous interview with the Herald, Dillon said he planned on setting aside more time for public comment earlier in the drafting process next year.
Also on May 21, the East Meadow community voted down Proposition 3, the referendum that sought to scale back bus transportation in exchange for a decrease in property taxes. The proposal received 2,631 no votes to 2,384 yes.
Looking to increase the distances third-, fourth- and fifth-graders would have to live from their given schools in order to be eligible for bus transportation, the proposition would have saved the financially hurting district $500,000.
If it had passed, residents would have received a 45-cent decrease per every $100 of assessed value in property taxes since the scale back would have allowed for 18 buses and roughly 1,000 previously eligible children to be cut from the district's transportation program.
2002-2003 East Meadow School District budget vote breakdown by polling district.
Schools Yes No
Barnum Woods 973 501
Bowling Green 615 540
McVey 422 765
Meadowbrook 358 281
Parkway 288 477
Total 2,656 2,564
