By —Artie Barnett, President, Mineola Board of Education
Note: The above opinion is my own and not necessarily that of the school district.
As I am stepping down from the Board of Education after my three year term, I want to thank the community for its support of our schools. Without this support our budgets would fail and our programs would suffer. During my time on the board, there have been two constants. First is Christine Napolitano’s attention to every detail and frugal approach to every project and the second has been the watchful eye of Brian Widman at nearly every one of our meetings.
It is with this in mind I must endorse both of them in this year’s board of education election. As the sitting president of the board, I try to make decisions that are in the best interest of our school community. I cannot, in good conscience, endorse the other candidates. Between them, they have endorsed the construction of tax exempt apartment Buildings, which will have a devastating impact on the school budget and opting students out of state mandated assessments. These positions are counter to the vast majority of this community.
Over 90 percent of people who have spoken at the Mineola Village hearings on the new high-rise apartment proposal, have voiced their objections, yet Mr. Swensen spoke in favor of the plan. Over 80 percent of our students sat for and completed the mandated testing, yet Ms. Renner supports opting children out of these tests and at the same time, complains about the district’s test results. You can’t have it both ways.
This community needs leadership, dedication and knowledge of what it takes to be successful and fiscally sound. For the good of the Mineola School District, I whole heartedly endorse Christine Napolitano and Brian Widman. There is no other logical choice.
