As a member of the Hicksville Board of Education's Bond Advisory Committee, I, along with my fellow committee members, after completing our report, accepted the "charge" of attempting to publicize and promote the bond. Hence, the reason for this letter.

In last week's Illustrated, two letters appeared regarding the bond that raised some important issues as to how and why the money is being appropriated. Ms. Calabrese raised the issue of the middle school awning that was taken down due to its signs of aging and never replaced. To that, I must say I wish her letter had appeared earlier, for I feel she's quite right in wanting it replaced and I would imagine other committee members would have been in favor of such a project. However, I do have to admit that no one raised this issue at any of our meetings. Perhaps this is an issue for the board to consider for the yearly budget - I have no idea what the cost would be to replace such an item, but I certainly agree that the awning did provide much-needed protection from the rain.

As to the issues regarding the teacher "problems" that she raised - unfortunately, staff and salaries cannot be "bonded." But I do feel that this is another reason for all to consider the bond. Maybe we can finally begin to address the teacher salary scale in the near future as the bond may take some of the burden off the maintenance budget. Not that all of these types of problems would completely disappear if our teachers were paid more adequately, but perhaps we would have a better retention rate and a better chance at attracting qualified, certified teachers in all subject areas (a problem compounded by the teacher shortage).

As to Mr. Boxer's letter, I would like to assure him that the entire committee had input as to what items would appear on the bond referendum. There were items that were removed from the original report we received, as well as some other items that were discussed and dismissed. As for the Press Box/Concession stand, there was much discussion as to the "need" for this item. But when you consider that the image of Hicksville schools and the Hicksville community merits some attention, the Press Box/Concession stand was deemed necessary as it adds some much-needed " cosmetic" improvement to the district. The point of an educational component was also raised, as the video classes at the high school would have the opportunity to shoot "action" footage from the vantage point of a Press Box. The price tag for this item, I feel, was a pittance compared to some of the other items. Also, since most of the infrastructure that is addressed in this bond cannot be seen by most, this was a very visible item for the community, especially important when you consider that only approximately 35 percent of the residents of Hicksville have children in district schools.

Mr. Boxer also mentioned the $1.2 million allocated for ceiling tiles (yes, that is a lot of ceiling tiles!). And he makes mention of Lee Avenue and the unfortunate situation that occurred there last year. I seem to recall Mr. Boxer being quite vocal regarding the board and administration's lack of reaction and berated them for not being proactive. Well, in order to be proactive, you need dollars to back it up. Hopefully, this $1.2 million for ceiling tiles will ensure that another "Lee Avenue" is not going to happen again. As my children attend that school and both of them had to have their classes relocated while the problems were addressed, I sincerely hope and pray that no other student in this district will have to go through that type of disruption due to air quality/mold questions. And I also hope and pray that no other parents will have to question the safety of their child's school due to health concerns. This district lost three families (with a fourth resorting to home schooling) due to concerns regarding their children's health - a fact no one in this district should be proud of.

As for the toilets, and I imagine much of the list that Mr. Boxer alluded to, consider perhaps that many of these items are no longer "maintainable" due to the fact that replacement parts are no longer available. It happens to all of us in regard to maintaining our homes.

You may choose to distrust our board and our administration, but please do not distrust our buildings - for it is the buildings that are asking for $41.8 million.

Dolores Garger

This letter is in response to the letter written by Dr. John Jones which appeared in the Feb. 1 issue.

Not once did he mention the welfare of the students of Hicksville. All he seems to be concerned about is doing away with the board and superintendent.

Taxpayers of Hicksville, please don't make this a get-even-with-the-board action. Please, only think about our students and our community and how necessary this bond is.

Let's not make this about who to blame for the condition of our schools. Instead, let's make this about how much it will bring our schools up to par with other school districts in Nassau County. Our main objective in Hicksville should be to give our students and residents a community where our children will get the best education possible. We desperately need new and updated technology in this district to compete with other districts and, at the same time, we need to refurbish our schools and grounds. This bond will do that.

Remember, our school district and community can only excel with new technology and new labs. Please only think of our students and how this will bring our school district into the 21st Century. Don't you think it's about time?

Cathy Inzerelli