Two weeks ago, I submitted a letter to the editor that was published, questioning the Great Neck Public Schools proposed budget cuts affecting student services – in contrast to the raises being proposed for administrators, at this difficult fiscal time.
There was no further response to my letter in the newspaper, by other parents, teachers, but most noticeably, by any member of Administration or the actual Board of Education.
I mention this because several weeks earlier, a letter writer questioned whether teacher unions were friends of the taxpayers. That letter received a response by Sheila Scimone, head of the Great Neck Teachers Union.
Though I have not seen any response to my letter in the newspaper, I did receive two anonymous letters in my mailbox.
I was not sure how to respond when I got the first letter. But, after I received the second letter, I feel compelled to share with you the gist of the content of these letters.
Both must have been written by one or two people who have had a long history with the Great Neck school system. They quote inequities of positions held at different schools within Great Neck.
Both letters indicated that I did not know the half of what goes on in the Great Neck schools in terms of “nepotism, cronyism and outright patronage.”
The writer is correct – I do not.
What I found most disturbing was that both letters pointed to departments in schools that my friends’ children attend. I did verify that many of these anonymous tips were correct. Why do we have three assistant principals at one high school while there are only two at the high school with higher enrollment? Why are certain positions filled from within, without conducting searches for staff out of the system? Why are consultants paid in addition to faculty?
Sometimes, lack of response implies agreement.
Perhaps, administration is aware of these inequities but chooses to look the other way.
They may be taking advantage of the fact that parents of students in the school fear retribution towards their children if they speak up to complain, and teachers who report on this may fear losing their jobs. Who then is left to report, but an anonymous letter writer?
Dr. Paul Brody
Great Neck
