Veronica Levitan said she decided to challenge Mineola School Board incumbents Terrence and William Hornberger because she has been following the district school consolidation proposals from the start, and now sees an opportunity to help contribute.
“I’ve been following this since the very first surveys on school consolidation went out years ago,” Levitan said. “I think I would make a good contribution to the board we have now.”
Levitan said she believes the district has been “torn apart” by the consolidation process, and wants to help bring the community back together.
“I understand what the board has done in dealing with our current economic situation,” Levitan said. “They have had to make some difficult decisions, and I credit them with moving the community forward.” I do think there needs to be more of a focus on the educational and financials of the plan.”
The district’s proposed lease of the Cross Street School in Williston Park to Solomon Schechter Day School of Glen Cove as part of the consolidation process has touched off a heated controversy in Williston Park where residents have raised questions about traffic, safety and use of the school’s ball fields. In response, the Mineola School District recently hired a consultant to study the lease’s impact on traffic.
Levitan is joined in challenging the two incumbents by Gerald Magaldi, an executive with Signature Bank from Albertson, and Jospeh Manopella, a Franklin Hospital executive from Williston Park.
Levitan has been a school teacher in the New York City public school district for the last 14 years. She has a teachers certificate and a professional diploma in administration and supervision.
She is on child care leave, and tutors at the Long Island Conservatory of Music.
Levitan said her children were also another reason for her entering the election, since they will be going into the district’s middle schools in a few years. Levitan’s two children, Jake and Samuel, attend the Willis Avenue and Meadow Drive schools.
As the Mineola school district prepares to vote on its $84 million budget next month, it will also include the first phase of the school consolidation plan, which includes a $2.6 million commitment to upgrade the Hampton Street School. The consolidation plan has become one of the main focal points of the election.
The Mineola District Council of PTAs will present a “Meet the Candidate Night” on Monday, May 2 at 8 p.m. in the Mineola High School auditorium.
