Candidate for
Member, Board of Education; Croton-Harmon Union Free School District

It is our responsibility to prepare Croton's students to succeed in today's increasingly complex, global society by providing a technologically sophisticated education that includes strong offerings in math and science. Not only must we provide high-quality courses and upgraded lab facilities; we will also need to re-examine the science and math curriculum to ensure that students are working up to their full ability and potential from the elementary grades through high school. When they get to college, our students must be prepared to hold their own with their peers from around the world.

Like many other school districts, Croton faces the challenge of continuing to expand its educational program while keeping costs under control. Despite our small size, we have been able to offer opportunities in a wide range of disciplines. Our students are encouraged to follow their interests and develop their individual strengths; this is a pathway to success that we must safeguard at a time of budgetary constraints. To accomplish this, we need to identify areas where we can maximize efficiency and rigorously evaluate administrative operations and educational programs.

We are also challenged to extend enriched educational opportunities to all our students. In order to maximize achievement, we need to raise expectations across the board and provide strong foundation work in all academic areas. We need to foster a culture of learning at every level. At the same time, we have to raise expectations for our students on a personal level, teaching tolerance and empathy, unity and community values, and self-discipline and mutual respect.

I would suggest that we consider hiring an independent internal auditor to examine our operations with a fresh eye to see where we can streamline functions, combine purchasing, and change practices to cut costs going forward.

We already have some beneficial partnerships in place with a few of our neighboring districts that combine programs and services to our mutual benefit. We currently share transportation services for out of district students and have collaborated on funding for sports programs that serve small numbers of students, such as gymnastics and swimming; during the 2007-08 school year, we shared a Mandarin teacher with Briarcliff. Looking forward, we will need to explore further ways to reduce costs by sharing functions with other small districts if we are to expand our educational program without overburdening the taxpayers.

In evaluating each aspect of Croton's educational program, we need to make a rigorous assessment based on the best available research, a clear-eyed look at the results, and, most important of all, common sense.