Support Oceanside budget, Garrity and Blau

Oceanside School District officials have put together a reasonable, measured budget. It takes into account the changes being forced on districts by the state (such as the new Core Curriculum standards), the increased use of technology in schools and the need for new programming — and it manages to stay within the state-imposed 2 percent tax levy cap.

Keeping the budget increase to $2.8 million was no small feat. Many would wish, understandably so, that there be no tax increase at all, or a much smaller one, but that just isn’t realistic. The district will have to pay $500,000 more next year just for employee benefits.

In this day and age, tax increases are, unfortunately, the norm. The real skill is keeping them manageable, which the school district has done for several years in a row. We encourage the community to support the spending plan on Tuesday.

We also endorse incumbent school board Trustee Kim Garrity. She has proven her worth time and again during her 15 years on the board, bringing new programs and ideas to the district, including full-day kindergarten and the Buildings and Grounds Committee. Garrity has such a thorough knowledge of the workings of the district that if she weren’t on the board, you’d wonder why.

Her opponent, Henry Luft, is a strong candidate in his own right. His decades of teaching experience give him insight into the inner workings of the classroom. However, he seems to lack the administrative knowledge that befits a trustee — the knowledge not just about what goes on in the classroom, but in every facet of the district.

Luft has become, and no doubt will continue to be, a fixture at Board of Education meetings. It’s important for the board to get insight from people with resumes as extensive as his. We also hope that trustees will be more accepting of suggestions from Luft and others rather than being dismissive, as it sometimes is now.

While he is running uncontested to fill Allenby Lyson’s seat, the Herald also wholeheartedly endorses Seth Blau for trustee. A community-minded man with two children in the district, Blau is a worthy replacement for Lyson and will be an asset to the board.

Finally, we urge residents to support the Oceanside Public Library budget. It accounts for a fraction of your taxes, but it’s impossible to put a price on the services the library provides.