Floral Park-Bellerose voters got their last look at the elementary district’s $40.4 million budget proposal Thursday night before the election.
The district’s Board of Education presented the 25-26 budget, up $820,036, or 2.07%, from this year’s $39.5 million budget for the final time. If approved by voters on May 20, the budget will be partially funded by a 1.94% tax levy increase, which will be felt as a $156 annual tax increase for the average district family.
According to calculations by Schneps Media LI, the district spends $25,788 per student.
Linda Macias, the district’s assistant superintendent for business, presented the community with budget highlights, which include upgrades to the district’s security and cybersecurity system, additional teachers and curriculum updates.
“We’re happy to report this budget includes the addition of one teacher for our primary grades, an addition of one full-time integrated co-teaching position [for special needs students] and one additional full-time mental health position, so each school will have its own dedicated school counselor,” Macias said. “It also includes the addition of two occupational therapy positions and one physical therapy position.”
She added that the district will also transition its current part-time speech and orchestra teachers to full-time, add a new science curriculum, update the social studies curriculum and add additional security cameras throughout the district.
Under the budget, voters will be asked to weigh in on a second proposition, which asks whether they think the district should establish a capital reserve to save and allocate money toward capital improvement projects, including renovations and upgrades to school buildings and facilities. It would be able to hold at most roughly $9 million over the course of 10 years.
“Capital reserves are essentially our savings account,” Macias said. “They’re separate and apart from the operating budget, and really are at no additional cost to the taxpayers.”
She said the reserve would help the district make facility improvements outlined in its five-year capital improvement plan.
No members of the public had questions on the budget.
After the budget hearing concluded, Interim Superintendent Lisa Ruiz announced tenure appointments for three district teachers and staff members, including teachers Kelly Carey and Emily Meslin and school psychologist Kerry Michel.
“This is a major milestone in one’s teaching career in our school district. This evaluation system in our district is a rigorous process,” Ruiz said. “By achieving tenure, your supervisors have determined that you have the knowledge, the skills and the work habits and commitment that are needed to successfully impact the academic achievement and social, emotional well-being of our students.”
John DeKams, the principal of Floral Park-Bellerose School, introduced the two teachers up for tenure, reading kind words their colleagues had written about them. All three newly tenured faculty members received warm applause, flowers and hugs from colleagues, family and friends.
The meeting concluded with public comment from a set of parents who were pushing for increased bus safety protocols after their kindergarten-aged daughter was temporarily lost earlier in the year when she got off at the wrong stop.
“The incident was especially traumatic for us in our family, and to this day we still feel uneasy about letting our child ride the bus,” the father said. “Safety should never be treated as optional. We need to stay proactive and address issues before they become problems.”
He added that a similar incident occurred in 2021 with his other daughter when her bus broke down and the driver had all the students walk home.
Ruiz said that the district had already put additional measures in place to prevent incidents of that nature from happening again, including retraining the bus drivers and providing and drivers with a list of children who should be on the bus and where they should exit.
“It’s absolutely unacceptable and egregious that this happened,” Ruiz said. “It should never have happened. And we believe that the procedures that are in place now will make sure that it doesn’t happen again.”
She emphasized that this was a very abnormal incident for the district and that nothing like it had happened previously or since during her tenure as interim superintendent.
Ruiz said she would call the parents the next day to schedule a meeting regarding the updated policies to ensure they felt comfortable with the changes and safe with their daughter on the bus.
District voters will have the opportunity to vote on the budget, Proposition Two and the school board trustee race on May 20 between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. In the trustee race, voters will have their pick between two first-time candidates, Lauren Persic and Victor Ferrante, for one open seat, as well as whether to vote for incumbent Rosemarie Peltonen, who is running uncontested.
Community members can cast their ballots at Floral-Park Bellerose School and John Lewis Childs School.
