Residents of the Island Trees School District will be voting on one of the lowest tax levy increases in Nassau County as the district is proposing a 2.65 percent tax levy increase over last year, well below the average for county school districts. Voting on the proposed budget will take place on Tuesday, May 15.

"The board of education, administration and staff of Island Trees have worked very hard to develop a budget that maintains and enhances our educational programs and at the same time is financially sound," said Island Trees Superintendent James Parla.

The issue of property taxes has been receiving much attention on Long Island. While many Long Islanders have been calling for a reduction in taxes, there is still a mandate for school districts to provide students with a solid and enriching educational experience. With this proposed budget, district officials said they feel they have addressed both of these demands. There is an increase in expenditures of 4.7 percent, which translates into an increase in the tax levy of 2.65 percent for the 2007-08 school year.

"We've achieved an excellent balance in not burdening our taxpayers while, at the same time, meeting all of our students' educational needs," said the superintendent.

The proposed budget calls for no reduction in staff. According to district officials, a retirement incentive that was offered allows the district to reduce payroll costs without cutting jobs. Furthermore, the proposed budget also allows for updates and improvements to the school district. Among the additions to this year's budget are new elementary and high school science textbooks, new foreign language textbooks, curriculum mapping of foreign language, updates to the district's library curriculum, an expansion of the athletic program and several technology upgrades. Additionally, the budget allows Island Trees to comply with mandates from New York State and the federal government, which are not funded.

Last year, Island Trees residents passed the proposed budget by a vote of 761 to 350. That budget called for $49,511,234 in expenditures, which represented a tax levy increase of 3.54 percent over the previous school year, a figure that was also among the lowest in Nassau County for the 2006-07 school year.

"We greatly appreciate the support our residents give to our schools," said Superintendent Parla. "The residents of Island Trees place a high value on the quality of education and we work very hard to ensure that the needs of all of our students are met while being fiscally responsible to our residents."

Founded in 1902, the Island Trees School District has two elementary schools for students in kindergarten through grade four. There is one middle school for students in grades five through eight and one high school for students in grades nine through twelve. There are approximately 2,700 students attending Island Trees Schools. The majority of those students reside in eastern Levittown although a small portion of Island Trees' students come from Bethpage and Seaford.

In 2006, 92 percent of Island Trees high school seniors received a Regents Diploma and 96 percent of the graduates went on to post-secondary education. It was a highly successful academic year for the district as 99.5 percent of fifth grade students and 92.8 percent of eighth grade students passed the New York State Social Studies Assessment and 94 percent of eighth grade students passed the New York State Intermediate Level Science Assessment, which complemented the district's high performance on Regents examinations. Athletically, the district had 26 students named as All-County Athletes. Also in 2006, the high school girls' basketball team members were Conference Champions, the high school girls' soccer team members were Nassau County Finalists and the high school boys wrestling team members were Nassau County Class B Champions. The district's highly acclaimed music program also had a fine year as 20 students were selected for the Nassau Music Educators All-County Festival, five students were selected for the Long Island Strings Festival and four students were selected for All-State honors.

The vote on the Island Trees' budget will take place on Tuesday, May 15. Residents may vote at the Michael F. Stokes School on Owl Place from noon until 9 p.m.