League of Women Voters of White Plains to hold School Board Candidates Forum on May 10th

On Tuesday, May 17, voters in White Plains will be able to vote on the school budget and elect two members of the Board of Education. The League, with the White Plains Council of Neighborhood Associations (WPCNA) will hold a Candidates Forum on Tuesday, May 10 at 7:00pm in the Assembly room of Education House, 5 Homeside Lane.

This year the League and WPCNA are co-sponsoring the Forum and a Budget meeting which will immediately follow the Forum. (We expect that the budget part will begin around 8pm.) It will also be co-sponsored by the White Plains-Greenburgh NAACP. Since petitions are not due until the 27th of April, we will not know until then if there is a contested election. (Candidates for the board must be qualified voters of the district and have lived in White Plains for one year. Petitions must be signed by at least 100 qualified voters and are available from the District Clerk.)

The Forum will take place whether or not the election is contested and will give voters the opportunity to hear from candidates, question them and learn about issues facing the District and the candidates’ position on those issues. The Budget meeting which will follow will allow community members to learn about the 2016-2017 budget and ask questions of Dr. Fred Seiler, the Assistant Superintendent for Business.

Schools across our region continue to face many challenges this year, widely reported in the press. The continuing property tax cap and other funding issues, changes in teacher evaluation, charter schools, continued controversy about implementation of the Common Core Standards, student testing and procedures surrounding data collection, all continue to be contentious issues. A new Commissioner of Education and changes in the Board of Regents have impacted the direction of education in the state. Privatization trends challenge fundamental notions of the locus of control and purposes of public education. Districts like White Plains face many unfunded mandates which impact on budget development and must balance mandates and community desires as they develop their plans.

Underlying these issues is the question of what purpose education serves in a democratic society. Different answers to that question drive different initiatives and policy decisions and those differences are visible in communities across the nation. The Candidates Forum gives our community a chance to hear about different perspectives on these and other issues and the Budget discussion allows us to see the priorities established by the district and how they are supported.

We are eager to have many questions for our candidates as possible. We urge you to attend the forum in person. If you are unable to attend, we are initiating a way for you to ask questions by emailing them ahead of time to Beth Kava, at bethkava@gmail.com. The subject line should say “Candidates Forum Questions” and the email should include your full name and address. Only questions from White Plains residents will be accepted and must be sent by 6pm on Friday, May 6. We will use as many as time allows. Those in attendance at the Candidate Forum part of the meeting will submit questions in writing.

We look forward to seeing you at the Candidates Forum and Budget Meeting on May 10. The meeting will be recorded and aired on the School District channel.