Farmingdale Faces Proposed Cuts in State Aid

Board Members and District Administrators Meet With State Legislators

Meeting to discuss the impact of the governor's proposal on Farmingdale Schools are Assistant Superintendent for Administration Barbara Horsley, Director of Special Education Patrick Harrigan, President of the Farmingdale Federation of Teachers Kenneth Ulrich, Farmingdale Lobby Committee member Clifford Mackin, Board of Education trustee Dr. Phillip Acinapuro, Board of Education President Anthony Vitale, Senator Charles Fuschillo, Superintendent of Schools Dr. Roberta Gerald, Assemblyman Steve Labriola, Board of Education trustee Tina Diamond, Lobby Committee members Mary Lou Arangio and Barbara J. Brady, and Director of Social Studies Jeffrey Spiro.

The Farmingdale Board of Education, district administrators and the Farmingdale Lobbying Committee recently met with Senator Charles J. Fuschillo Jr. and Assemblyman Steven Labriola to discuss the impact of educational budget cuts on Farmingdale Schools. District and community representatives voiced their concerns about Governor Pataki's proposed budget, which promises significant decreases in state and BOCES aid to school districts in general, and Farmingdale in particular. Under the governor's proposed budget, Farmingdale Schools will lose 17 percent of its state aid, a cut of more than $3 million.

"Cutting this much aid to school districts means the loss of the jobs," was Assistant Superintendent for Business John Lorentz's straightforward observation. Dr. Phillip Acinapuro of the board of education placed the proposed budget cuts into perspective, explaining, "a thousand dollars buys more upstate than it does on Long Island."

Superintendent of Schools Dr. Roberta Gerold told the legislators that the governor's budget proposal obliges the district to "mortgage the future. We must go into our programs and determine what cuts will have the least immediate negative impact."

The state lawmakers were not unsympathetic. "We have come pretty far with educational aid in the last four or five years," Fuschillo said, "and to go back now would be absurd."

Labriola said he understood the importance of individualized aid options to schools.

"What Farmingdale needs is different from what another district might need," he said. Nonetheless, the assemblyman warned that budget cuts were inevitable. "When formulating your budget, remember that we will do all we can to mitigate cuts," he said, "but keep in mind that this will be a lean year."

The Farmingdale Lobby Committee works to persuade government to keep taxes low while maintaining a budget that will support vital school programs. The Committee is currently fighting a number of the governor's budget proposals. One such proposal is the removal of excess cost aid for disabled students from district operating aid, which would cap aid for specific Special Education students, limiting the schools' ability to meet the needs of these students. The Committee is also working to get state aid for unfunded government mandates, such as academic intervention, period-by-period attendance and the New York State Standards. They are also proposing that school districts be exempt from the Wicks Law, thus eliminating the time-consuming and costly bidding process for school construction projects.