Scarsdale Residents Respond to Revised Budget Proposal
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The mood of the audience was decidedly mixed at the June 3rd meeting of the Scarsdale School Board when the Board was assembled to propose a revised budget. In attendance were representatives from the "no" camp who brought in over 1,700 votes to defeat the first budget as well as representatives from the PTA's, interested community members, leaders of Maroon and White, school administrators and faculty. Despite the limited timeframe, Board President Liz Guggenheimer invited community comments and the level of anger expressed by some was surprising in light of the considerable cuts in the proposed budget.
First to take the mike was Mitchell Gross with a statement condemning the district for holding a health insurance reserve fund. He said that the reserve was a "fictitious account" in violation of NYS law and charged the district with violating reserve policies which dictate that a district hold no more than 4% in reserve. He claimed the district had "failed to disclose these reserves" and called it a "material and serious violation" made by the district to "mislead and misrepresent the public to obtain a positive outcome on the budget." He conjectured that this "may constitute securities fraud" and "jeopardize the district's credit rating." He then asked for Dr. McGill's resignation, called for new auditors and asked the district to consider the consequences of a budget that is not in compliance with the law.
Matt Callahan said "we're in a tight spot" and questioned the funding for the Teen Center. He told the Board that they "completely ignored Dr. McGill's recommendation not to fund it" and questioned "how many use it."
Middle School PTA President Pam Fuehrer spoke in defense of funding for the Center for Innovation and said that two center projects, service learning and time block management, directly impact student learning. She also mentioned the enthusiastic response to the food bank and said "the projects that came out of the Center were fantastic." She asked the board to put back another $25,000 into the budget for the Center for Innovation and added, "I think the helping teacher is important as well."
PT Council President Gail Hutcher appreciated the Board's response to the defeat and said, "the Community wants more transparency and greater fiscal restraint." She urged that "Savings should not come from class size or core curriculum," and warned that "quick cuts could impact education." She asked for the Board to "look for cuts that can be reinstated."
Marian Green ,a past President of CHILD, asked the Board to consider requiring tuition for the 85-95 staff children who attend the Scarsdale schools and also requested more information about the number of district cars and who drives them.
Bob Berg, who had led the opposition to the first budget, vowed to vote in favor of this second proposed budget" and "to urge fellow Scarsdale voters to come to the polls on June 18 and vote for the budget as well." He called the budget process a "tough slog" and said, the "messy budget vote is a watershed and cathartic event in Scarsdale's history. For the first time ... the voters of Scarsdale could no longer be hornswoggled into blindly rubber-stamping yet another spendthrift budget with platitudes that "it's for the children." "This year, the budget process and its aftermath have revealed a dysfunctional school board, brow-beaten by a domineering superintendent into quiet acquiescence." He urged the Board to "take control and fulfill their fiduciary duties to the voters by asking the hard questions and not be belittled or marginalized for doing so." He ended by saying, "While I support the proposed budget and will vote for it in order to avoid Armageddon, the time has come for accountability, transparency, and new leadership."
Former School Board member Mitchell Otten said that some good ideas had come out of the process including, "zero based views, broader categories of consultancies and contractors, the need to understand levers that you do have and for more views backwards and forwards for implications of decisions made today." He told the Board that the "need to find a way to demonstrate our excellence with metrics."
Alice of Catherine Road also discussed the impact of staff children on the budget. She said, "Over 85 kids are here whose parents are teachers in the school. At $20,000 per kid that's $1.7 million in total cost. In tough times we should ask for tuition. We don't want to keep seeing our taxes going up."
In response, Dr. McGill offered an explanation of the policy on staff children. He clarified that faculty and employee children attend district schools and the Board has felt "that these children added economic diversity to our student body. This is a way of attracting faculty and telling them they are appreciated." He also said, "They earn us per pupil aid from Albany" and that the "financial burden to Scarsdale taxpayer is not significant." Linda Purvis explained that employee's children are placed where they will fit in, and additional teachers are not added to accommodate them.
Jim Labick, another leader of the opposition campaign also vowed to vote yes this time. He said, "I have lived here for 36 years and never voted no. I voted no this time because I wanted to send a message to the union that we don't have a blank check. Keep the contract to two years. I believe that the Board of Ed has listened and heard. Let's get real – I am voting yes and I am going to ask everyone I know to vote yes. I trust the Board of Ed to do the right thing and that's why I am voting yes."
Following the meeting, the Coalition for Scarsdale Schools sent Scarsdale10583 the following statement: "The Coalition for Scarsdale Schools thanks the Board and Administration for their hard work in developing a revised budget for 2013-14 that excludes the Center for Health, Fitness and Learning that had been proposed, and reduces the Budget by over $1 million. The revised Budget reflects difficult decisions, and now deserves voters' full support in the vote on Tuesday, June 18th. We urge ALL registered voters in Scarsdale and the Mamaroneck Strip to VOTE YES June 18th at the Middle School. We cannot risk a defeat of this second Budget, which would result in a state-mandated contingency budget with draconian cuts to educational programs, and would be disastrous for the entire Scarsdale community. It is imperative that we now come together to sustain a community institution of which we are justly proud. The stakes for the Scarsdale community are too high for voters to stay home."
Board Cuts Wellness Center and Vows to Bring In Budget Under Tax Cap
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With the June 3rd budget deadline just days away, the Board got down to business on Wednesday night May 29 for frank discussion with the community at an open budget forum. Filling in for Board President Liz Guggenheimer was V.P. Suzanne Seiden who said, "we got a strong message from the community on May 21," and we "understand we need to do a better job." She thanked the community for their feedback via email, letters and phone calls and said they identified three themes from the communications:
- Lower taxes
- Eliminate the Wellness Center
- Make structural changes to control long-term costs
Before discussion began, the Board signaled their willingness to adopt a budget that critics could embrace by unanimously passing a resolution to eliminate the proposed wellness center and to put forth a revised budget that falls below the tax cap.
Seiden asked the group to be open to looking at the issues from all sides and rally around the second proposed budget. She also raised issues about the development of the budget in the future and the role of the Board of Education in the process, suggesting that the board might play a more proactive role i in governance and mediation between the school administration and the community.
In response to community requests, the Board asked Superintendent McGill to provide options for the new budget to bring it in under the cap.
On his list were the following:
- Take an additional $100,000 from reserves
- Reduce the special education budget by $100,000 as costs are running lower than originally estimated
- Realize a savings of $136,500 due to negotiations on life insurance
- Reduce the proposed full time drama teacher at the high school to a .6 position ($40,000 in savings)
- Save $100,000 by eliminating the new position of District Network Administrator
- Eliminate some or all of the funding for the Center for Innovation – currently budgeted at $90,000
- Eliminate the $25,000 in funds planned to upgrade the district website
- Cancel asbestos tile abatement project at the high school as well as two concrete boiler pads for a total savings of $160,000
- Eliminate $65,000 in funding for the Teen Center
- Eliminate $131,000 for security "greeters" at the high school and the middle school
- Eliminate the full time secretary in the Athletic Office and replace the AV department's secretary with an aide ($60,000 in savings)
- Eliminate additional high school librarian ($100,000 in savings)
- Eliminate unassigned funds in the budget that could be used for an additional teacher if needed ($100,000 in savings)
- Eliminate a District Helping Teacher, reducing the number of District Helping Teachers to only two, math and science ($100,000 in savings)
- Eliminate funding for a Special Ed Psychologist who was formerly funded through a grant ($150,000 in savings)
After Dr. McGill presented these options for cost savings, Board members weighed in the reductions. While many members agreed with Dr. McGill's proposals, several members advocated to maintain funding for security, the Teen Center, the librarian, the District Helping Teacher, and the Special Education Psychologist.
After discussing their own opinions of the proposed cuts that would bring the budget under the tax cap, Board members gave community members the opportunity to speak on the budget. Unlike the first community budget meeting, the first ten contributions were from people who voted for and are in support of the budget.
Here are excerpts from select speakers:
Gail Hutcher, President of the PT Council urged the Board to focus on class size and extracurricular programs. Dorian Glickenhaus agreed with Hutcher saying "People look at class size when considering the reputation of the district, so I urge the Board to consider maintaining class sizes."
Debbie Rapport said, "We should focus on providing the best education to the most children and we should not throw the baby (our reputation) out with the bathwater." She warned the Board "not be penny wise and pound foolish."
Former Mayor Carolyn Stevens said, "Everybody moved here because of the schools. They want the best public education available. That unites everybody who voted yes and everybody who voted no. Most still want the best education for the children in the community regardless. But that said, they want the best value for the best education. They want more security and transparency so that people don't feel that their money is being wasted."
Diane Greenwald spoke in favor of the elementary school "Teachers in Charge," saying that they "provide tremendous support for teaching staff and should really be called Vice Principals. They manage bussing, dismissal and scheduling and back up the Principal."
David Brodsky spoke in support of the faculty, saying, "Teachers have great influence on kids. I supported the first budget even though I had reservations. I urge the elimination of the first six items totaling $700k but want to keep funding for the Teen Center, librarian and the other items that make Scarsdale the special environment it is. "
Phyllis Perkins, an empty nester whose three daughters attended Scarsdale schools from kindergarten through high school said, "their educations were supported throughout by other empty nesters. Today's empty nesters have a responsibility to give back to help support and maintain the level of education that Scarsdale has provided for this past century."
Heather Gilchrist told the group, "During the 1970's in California, Proposition 13 slowly strangled schools for funds. It took about two decades for schools to recover. I fear that we are setting a precedent that we will always have to be under the cap."
Penny Bauersfeld commented that, "Nobody who voted "no" has come forward tonight so I hope people who voted "no" don't just vote "no", but come out and express their opinions."
Nina Ross said, "I support most of the cuts but not the security one. Pension and health insurance costs are getting out of control and we need to lobby Albany for more local control."
Critics did speak up:
Phillip Sanchez told the group to "deal with short term then the long term. The long term issue is that this document stating what could be cut should have been made available earlier before the public backlash. We should be given more options and transparency for the budget and we need to understand where the money is going."
Jim Labick who said he voted no due to the teacher's contract, suggested that we re-examine the length of the contract and Bob Harrison, spoke about teacher's salaries, saying, "Our teachers are very well paid. $131,239 is the median pay per year. Edgemont voted no on their school budget several years ago and continues to be a good school district."
The Board has only a few days to make revisions before the June 3 deadline for the second proposed budget. From the conversation it appeared that both sides were cooperating and narrowing their differences in an effort to agree on a budget that could garner widespread support on June 18.
Seniors Explore the Work World During Senior Options
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For the past two weeks, seniors at Scarsdale High School (including myself) have gotten a taste of what many of our parents do every day. In the Senior Options Program, students get real-world work experience during the final weeks of senior year. For some, this means grabbing a gardening hoe while for others it means grabbing a movie camera. Students have been able to find interesting internships, community service, and independent projects all over, with many here in Westchester and others in New York City. While each student may have very different experiences and learn about working in different environments, one thing all students have in common is a hands-on learning experience that goes beyond the classroom.
Jose Lamela, the current Senior Options coordinator, is in his first year running the program. I got a chance to interview Sr. Lamela who said: "my favorite part of doing Senior Options is getting to meet senior I've never taught or gotten to know previously. Visiting the seniors and seeing them work is great too, some of them come back and say how much harder it is than being back in school." I also asked him which projects he thought were the coolest and most unique this year to which he responded, "this year there are a few kids working on movie sets who have actually had to sign confidentiality contracts, which is really interesting because they have insight into movies coming out in the future." For Sr. Lamela, Senior Options is a great and important program because of how it opens student's eyes to the world and exposes them to so much more than they would have been in the classroom.
I caught up with a few fellow students of mine at their Senior Options projects and found out a little bit more about what they are doing.
Jacob Kirschenbaum, who is interning at Westchester Boxing Club, spoke about his experiences there: "At Westchester Boxing Club, I've learned about both boxing as a sport and as a business. I've learned how to train clients in personal training sessions, including various boxing techniques, punches, safety precautions, workout regimens, etc. It's an extremely complex sport that requires a lot of practice and repetition, which we've certainly gotten a lot of in a hands-on sort of way.
On the business side, we've been focusing on the marketing of the gym through social media sites. We've been managing the gym's Facebook and Twitter pages, revamping their marketing approach to try to appeal to a younger demographic."
Eliane Englehard and Mayra De Gouveia are interning at Lulu's bakery and explained how their opinions of the project changed once they started working: "At first it seemed like a dread to go because neither of us wanted to work but surprisingly it's been an unbelievable experience. Everyone who works at Lulu's is very welcoming, funny, and nice. We both look forward to going and sometimes we even go earlier. They have taught us a lot about how to deal with rude people and let us do a lot more than we expected. For example: they let us help make decorations for wedding cakes as well as design cake toppers made of fondant. We would 100% recommend future seniors to consider Lulu's. It's really been a great experience."
I also met with Jono Gruber and Isabel Steckel at their Senior Options site at Stone Barns. 
Both Jono and Isabel are having fun and taking advantage of the farming experience. They explained what they've taken away from the program thus far: "At Stone Barns we have learned farming techniques, how to plant, how to talk to people in the workplace. It's been a great experience because we get to be outside and it's a rare opportunity to get to work on a farm. We've gotten to meet really cool people who we otherwise wouldn't typically meet in Scarsdale. The first week was hard because it was tough physical labor, but we've gotten the hang of it and its gotten better. One thing we have definitely learned through the program is to stick with things until we figure them out."
Unlike many students, Jen Eisler and Caroline Rodman have chosen to pursue an independent project for their senior options. While editing and compiling their photos, they elaborated on their first photojournalism project and what they've learned: "We are doing a photojournalism project and our first project was on the Wonderful Women of Scarsdale. Our first project was to photograph the involved women in the community of Scarsdale and interview them about their role in the community. We wanted to show a diverse group of women within Scarsdale, and learn about what living or working in Scarsdale is like for them. We've learned how to ask people the right questions, how to make them feel comfortable in an interview, how to use lighting in photography, and honed our people skills."
Jake Gibson, who is interning at Macguffin Films in New York City reflected on his time there and what he has learned so far: "I've had a great time interning for Macguffin Films because I'm learning both the foundations of and new creative techniques for film and television. Although I'm only on the set of commercials, everything done here which includes filming, rigging, directing, producing and editing goes into all forms of cinematography and I really enjoy learning what it takes to output professional media."
Jacob Cannon chose to intern at the Shell Gas Station on Weaver Street in order to learn hands on about cars and how they function. He described what a typical day at work is like, his favorite parts of the job, and what he hopes to learn: "On a typical day at the Gas Station I get a chance to learn about and handle several different processes. I do two or three New York State inspections, put the car through the computer, and check the tires, wheels, brakes and lights. On most days I'll get to do an oil change or two, and on some days I get a brake job, where I take out the old brakes, put in new ones, and then take the car out for a test drive, which is awesome. I am also learning how a small business functions through the convenience store. The hardest part is running the register, which can be impossible at times. It's a pretty awesome internship and I'm learning a lot. Not only am I learning the physical stuff and the different processes for the cars but I am also learning vernacular in terms of cars, the differences between different types of cars and how to take care of my own car. In the future I hope to learn a few more complicated jobs, like taking out a motor."
At the end of the six-week program, students will create presentations summarizing their newly acquired skills and work opportunities. Although one downside to the program is that seniors are off working on their own projects and do not get to see everybody in school during the last weeks of senior year, all students seem to be happy with how Senior Options has turned out and are learning every day. Whether working on cars, making artisanal cakes, or creating a photojournalism project, Scarsdale High School seniors are out in the workplace and are learning how to get things done.
This article was contributed by Brian Shabto, a senior at Scarsdale High School.
Scarsdale Budget Vote Aligns With Statewide Trends
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The "no vote" on the Scarsdale school budget on May 21 aligns with statewide trends. In Scarsdale, the proposed 2013-14 school budget exceeded the tax cap by $701,267 which would have meant a 3.93% tax increase, or .55% above the adjusted cap of 3.38%.
According the NYS School Boards Association, 98 percent of proposed school budgets that contained tax increases within the allowable tax cap passed on Tuesday. The relative few districts that tried to override the state's tax cap saw a pass rate Tuesday of just 30 percent.
The New York State School Boards Association says its preliminary analysis shows that more than 630 budgets were approved. On average, they increase the tax levy by 2.8 percent for the next school year while increasing spending by about the same percentage.
Twenty-seven districts asked voters for a tax levy increase exceeding what was allowed under the 2011 tax cap formula. Of them, 70 percent saw their budgets fail.
In Scarsdale, the Board based the proposed budget on "educational goals and fiscal prudence, not on an arbitrary budget or tax limit." However, they may have failed to acknowledge the importance of the tax cap legislation which served to focus voters on this "arbitrary" number. Since 70% of the increase in the budget was due to state-mandated increases in retirement costs, the board and administration had little flexibility to fund programs and new initiatives. They made the decision to exceed the cap and expected voters to override it with a 60% vote of approval. In hindsight, perhaps they did not recognize the symbolism of the state cap or assess the tenor of the community.
Prom Fashion 2013
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It's the beginning of May ... a time when high school girls thoughts stray from schoolwork and finals to the beach and prom. Tis the season for dressing up and Pinterest is currently swarming with weddings, cocktail attire and details of what to wear for all types of party-goers. To give you a better idea of what's in for Prom 2013, Scarsdale resident, stylist and fashion hunter Stephanie Unter enlisted three Scarsdale High School girls who were willing to strut their stuff for photographer Jim D'Angelo. They borrowed dresses from The Look to showcase prom styles for this season.
The fashion shoot features the girls in three different looks and price ranges. Though these young stars never modeled before they posed like pros. It was a day of girly fun beginning at the hair and makeup station at 8AM, getting lost en route to their location and eventually taking the perfect final shots.
Unter asked each girl what prom meant to them and she is happy to report that nothing has changed since the dinosaur age of her prom days. It's all about top 40 remix heaven, the getting ready beforehand, and of course, stashing the heels and enjoying the after party. Take a peek below at the lovely girls and what they have to say. Notice a similar thread running though each of their minds.... "Say yes to the dress, and the date takes second place by far."
Prom girl one, Sarah (pictured above) says, "Getting dressed and looking pretty for the picture is the biggest thing. The date doesn't matter, ... that is just a detail."
Michelle says prom is "glamorous, magical, and fun. Getting dressed up is definitely the best part ... hair, makeup, and nails — it's fun being a girl! It's special, the one night you can let loose!"
For Olivia prom is about "spending the night with a guy that you have a good time with." She says, "You never really get the chance to get all dressed up and really look nice. Even better? Your favorite teachers can come and see you at your best."
Pretty in pink, was the theme of the day because they looked like princesses getting dressed for the ball. And frankly, in the end, it fit their ideal prom look. They lived in the moment and laughed the day away. And then the fun happened. As you can see from the pics below, those sky-high shoes were ditched for bare feet. 
A shout out to intern Carina, for helping out with hair, makeup, and assistance on-set, to Jim D'Angelo for taking fantastic magical pics, and for all the lovely girls for making this day possible.
Photography: Jim D'Angelo
See more style and find out where to buy on Stephanie Unter's blog, New York Fashion Hunter.
