Correction: A previous version of this story incorrectly referred to Barbara Krieger as the immediate past president of the Birchwood Civic Association. Krieger is a member of the Birchwood Civic Association Board of Directors, but has never held an office with the organization; Barbara served as president of the Jericho Board of Education for five years.
On Tuesday, April 29th, the Birchwood Civic Association held a “Meet the Candidates” forum for both the Jericho and Syosset Board of Education candidates. After interviewing each candidate, the BCA board voted to endorse April Neuendorf and Bill Weiner for Syosset Board of Ed, and Barbara Krieger for Jericho Board of Ed. After being informed of the endorsements, Ms. Neuendorf responded that she “regretfully cannot accept an endorsement that excludes my fellow board members.” BCA president Roy Chipkin expressed surprise at this response stating, “Prior to this, we respected April’s independence from a board that was often viewed as a rubber stamp. I’m disappointed that she is not open to a new mix on the Syosset Board.”
The BCA board cited, as its reason for endorsing Bill Weiner, his long history of attending Syosset School Board meetings, asking questions, studying materials shared with the public, learning about neighboring school district policies and procedures, and participating in a wide range of district committees. Mr. Weiner is the chairman of the Syosset Board of Education Citizens Advisory Committee for Finance, co-chair of the Robbins Lane PTA Budget Committee, and the chairman of the South Woods PTA School and Community Committee. He is also an active member of Syosset SEPTA. Bill Weiner is in position 4 on the ballot, after a random drawing.
In endorsing Barbara Krieger for Jericho Board of Education, BCA board members cited her fifteen years of exemplary board of education service, five of those years as president and two as vice president. During that time, she has been responsive to the constantly changing needs of the community, promoting leading edge academic programs while simultaneously demonstrating fiscal responsibility. She encouraged increased breadth of course offerings including elementary foreign language and computer coding, as well as middle and high school art, music, engineering and computer electives. In addition, she pushed for an improved system of communication with both the parent and non-parent community, paperless board meetings, and a meeting calendar that ensures that the board and public are kept abreast of new developments in every department. Importantly, Barbara Krieger has demonstrated an ability to ask challenging questions and vote independently in the best interest of the district.
After budget presentations and question answer sessions from Dr. Friedman and Dr. Rogers of Syosset, and Mr. Grishman and Mr. Manuel of Jericho, the BCA board also voted to endorse both the Syosset and the Jericho School District budgets. Both are within the tax levy cap and demonstrate sound fiscal planning, while ensuring the continuation of all current programs.
The Birchwood Civic Association encourages all Syosset and Jericho School District residents to vote on May 20th. Check your district website for details. Absentee ballots are available online. While Syosset requires pre-registration, Jericho is a non-registration district. Detailed budget information is available on the district websites. Candidate information is available on the candidates’ Facebook pages, Bill Weiner for Syosset Board of Education, and Barbara 2014.
Syosset Budget Vote Page
http://www.syossetschools.org/board_of_education/budget_information
Jericho Budget Vote Page
http://www.jerichoschools.org/departments/business_and_finance/2014-2015_budget_process/
