By Samuel Glasser
Money wasn’t the only topic on the minds of many attending the Sewanhaka Central High School Board of Education’s budget meeting Tuesday as school security was largely the focus of the public comment period, while the board presented its proposed budget for the 2018-19 school year.
Phyllis Falco, the parent of a student at H. Frank Carey High School, told the board, “I have the utmost confidence in the district, but in view of [events in] Florida, we haven’t heard from you. I know it’s only been 13 days, but we need better communication.”
Superintendent Ralph Ferrie noted that “we were away for a week” for the February recess but the district is taking school security seriously.
He said that in looking at past shooting incidents, “there were clear warning signs” regarding the individuals who committed them.
Sewanhaka, he said, has a “strong network” for intervening when students and teachers see postings on social media that could be construed as threats.
The interventions include liaison with the Nassau County and local police departments. Ferrie also said he did not want to get too specific – “we don’t want to telegraph what we are doing.”
Another parent asked if the board had given any thought to armed security guards. Ferrie answered, “not yet,” but added that “we are very in tune with what happened.”
A moment of silence was observed for the students killed in Florida and for Leah Kuczinski, a 10th grader at New Hyde Park Memorial High School, who died in an accident during the recess.
“It has been a challenging two weeks,” Ferrie said.
In a security-related issue, Ferrie said that the locks on all exterior doors of every building are being changed under a previously budgeted project. Too many keys have been put in circulation over the years, but keys for the new locks can only be made by the school district and each key will be tied to the individual user. The installation should be completed by the end of the school year, and interior door locks will be changed in the next phase of the work.
As for the budget, “we are in good condition … we are fortunate that we can maintain all of our programs,” Ferrie said, noting that there will be no cuts to academic or extracurricular activities.
The review of the budget showed that enrollment for the coming school year is projected at 8,405 students, down 87 from the current roster.
He said the final construction work under the 2014 capital improvement bond issue – the Floral Park Memorial High School auditorium — was completed Tuesday and will be available for student use on March 5.
The total proposed budget is $197.9 million, up 2.5 percent. The projected tax levy of $144.2 million accounts for most of the revenue and reflects an increase of 0.99 percent. Total revenue from local sources is $157.5 million.
State aid will make up the remainder, projected at $40.4 million, according to Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s proposed state budget, a 6.8 percent increase over the current year.
The board also introduced this year’s valedictorians and salutatorians.
Elmont Memorial’s valedictorian is Dominique Browne, and the salutatorian is Laila Choudhry.
Floral Park Memorial’s valedictorian is Sammy Huang, and the salutatorian is Italia Gorski.
Frank Carey’s valedictorian is Dean Macchia, and the salutatorian is Alyssa Cassese.
New Hyde Park Memorial’s valedictorian is Arianna Ragusa, and the salutatorian is Saumya Sharma.
Sewanhaka’s valedictorian is Arianna Vandezande, and the salutatorian is Adrian-James Gevero.
