Hicksville School Budget Preview, Race For Candidacy For 2026-2027

HICKSVILLE, NY — Hicksville residents are set to head to the polls on Tuesday, May 19, to vote on the budget, tax increase, and candidates.

The 2026-2027 proposed budget is $186,315,191, an increase of 3.04 percent, as compared to the current 2025-2026 budget of $180,811,423. This is a proposed increase of $5,503,767.

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The budget carries a proposed tax levy increase of $121,514,425, which equals an increase of 2.58 percent from the current 2025-2026 tax levy of $118,463,674. This amount remains in the district's allowable tax levy cap.

Folks can vote from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. at various locations based on district:

• Burns Avenue School for District No. 1
• East Street School for District No. 2
• Woodland School for District No. 3
• Lee Avenue School for District No. 4
• Fork Lane School for District No. 5
• Dutch Lane School for District No. 6
• Old Country Road School for District No. 7.

Proposition II on the ballot will call to vote on the Hicksville Public Library budget and the election of public library trustees. This is a separate entity from the school district, but both district and public library voting will be on the same ballot as a way to be cost-effective and provide convenience to residents, the district said.

Voters will elect three candidates to the Trustees of the Board of Education. The terms will run for three years from July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2029.

Sunita Manjrekar, Irene Carlomusto, and Danielle Fotopoulos all hold a current seat on the board, and each seat is contested.

The incumbent Sunita Manjrekar is running again for her seat against challenger Mary Dwyer-Johnson.

Irene Carlomusto is not seeking re-election. There are two challengers for her seat: Carolina Sanchez-Molina and Kim Rastanti.

Danielle Fotopoulos is seeking re-election against challenger Ryan Chaplin.

The district said they are all strong candidates.

The district shared that Hicksville Public School is facing a decline in enrollment from 5,323 to 5,166 from 2024 to 2026. They said they are also facing increased costs related to transportation, insurance, benefits, and more. The district said that although they are facing financial pressures, they are still looking "for opportunities to increase efficiencies and be mindful of the taxpayer."

Breaking down its budget, the district shared where they are looking to allocate funds.

• $153,093,682 or 82.17 percent to Program.
• $18,882,708 or 10.13 percent to Capital.
• $14,338,801 or 7.7 percent to Administrative.

More information can be found in the district's budget information online.