Letter: Tobacco Control Program Should Not Have Been Cut

As a New Yorker I was disheartened to hear that the New York State Tobacco Control Program has been slashed to $41 million. This will no doubt be a disservice to the people of New York.

From the Desk of Dr. Charles Murphy

The 2011-12 budgeting process is coming to a close. From the beginning, the Board’s goal was to develop a budget that continues to support all of the quality educational programs and services in Island Trees, and at the same time, take into account the economic concerns expressed by many residents.   

To balance these objectives was by no means an easy task given the many formidable obstacles the Board faced along the way. In truth, the challenges presented have been the most difficult in decades. The Board labored over every budget line, examined staffing, and sought creative measures to meet the needs of all of their constituents. 

Letters to The Editor: April 1, 2011

Letter to LUT President Therese Rogers and Fellow LUT Members

Due to the economic conditions that our country has been suffering, cutbacks in state aid, increased unfunded mandates, and a tax cap; I would encourage you to fairly negotiate with the Levittown Board of Education to make concessions to your existing contract for the upcoming school year. Without such concessions, continued loss of programs and staff is inevitable for the Levittown School District. 

Letter: Letter to the Residents of the Island Trees Community

I read Dr. Murphy’s column about standardized tests with interest. Your library can also aid students in practicing for standardized exams. All of the libraries in our area subscribe to a service called Learning Express Library. You can access this wonderful resource through your library’s website using your library card.

Once you have entered into the Learning Express Library site, you will see a choice of Elementary, Middle School, High School, or College Preparation. Each segment includes math and reading practice as well as fourth grade, eighth grade, PSAT, AP, and SAT practice tests located in the appropriate section.

From the Desk of Dr. Charles Murphy: March 25, 2011

Several weeks ago, Island Trees High School hosted a Drug Prevention forum with keynote speaker, DEA Agent Charlie Bernard. Mr. Bernard is an outstanding speaker and shares his tremendous knowledge of the drug trade with many communities throughout the Island. In fact, the number of drug arrests that occur in their own neighborhoods surprises many people. Serious drug deals are not isolated to dilapidated slums in the inner city, but take place in almost all suburban towns and villages on Long Island. His presentations have educated many parents and students on what they can do to stay drug-free. He has been involved in hundreds of arrests and unfortunately, has dealt with almost as many tragedies. During the recent forum, he tells a story about a parent who finds out their child is drug involved and how thankful they are to discover “it’s only marijuana.”

Letter: Join the Party

As the chairman of the National Worker’s Party, I’m calling upon our public officials - both Democrat and Republican alike - to “jump ship” and join the NWP in creating a political realignment in the 2012 election.

Consider that, on a national level, the Republican and Democratic parties have become apostates: institutions that no longer represent the values they once espoused. The last four presidential administrations - two Republicans and two Democrats - have wandered far from the parties and office that bequeathed us Franklin Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan. They are globalists and corporatists whose policies have little in common with the fundamental values, philosophies, and interests that all Americans share irrespective of party affiliation. They are as disdainful of the individual rights championed by liberals as they are of the family values emphasized by conservatives. All four have pursued foreign trade policies in India and China’s interests while tens of thousands of Americans have lost their jobs. All four have pursued immigration policies in Mexico’s interests, making poverty and illiteracy and ethnic strife our chief import. All four have pursued Middle East policies in Israel’s interests that have led to thousands of Moslems dead, homeless, and hungry for revenge.

From the Desk of Dr. Charles Murphy: March 11, 2011

As we move toward springtime, our staff and students begin to prepare for the New York State 3-8 assessments, Advanced Placement examinations, and high school Regents exams. In this new era of high stakes testing, the federal and state governments have enacted legislation to hold schools more accountable for student performance. Around the world, countries recognize that there is a strong correlation between well-educated workforce and economic productivity. More and more, economically disadvantaged nations have used their investment in education to advance technology and facilitate economic growth. Clearly, concerns of failing to keep pace with these countries have raised serious issues with the educational programs in the United States. In response, new laws have been the impetus for educational reform, and in turn, placing a greater emphasis on standardized testing to measure student growth.

Although many may question the use of a single assessment as a measure of student progress, it seems these new standards and performance indicators are here to stay. Not surprisingly, the students are well aware of the importance of these examinations. For a good number of students, they experience the pressure to succeed and place a tremendous amount of stress on themselves.

Letter: Mill Neck Manor School for the Deaf Seeks Support Against Proposed Funding Cuts

Governor Cuomo has proposed to eliminate funding for 4201 Schools (for deaf/blind/physically challenged students) for the 2011-12 school year. As a result, Mill Neck Manor School for the Deaf students, and those from 10 other 4201 schools, are in jeopardy! A child who is deaf, blind or physically challenged did not cause the state’s $10 billion deficit. It is wrong to abandon the state’s more than 100-year commitment to these special schools through which these students become productive citizens. It is also wrong to shift these costs to the more than 45 school districts, which send students to Mill Neck Manor!

Letter: Teaching CPR in Schools Makes Sense

EMS treats nearly 300,000 victims of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest each year. Unfortunately, less than eight percent of people who suffer cardiac arrest outside the hospital survive to make it home from the hospital. We can change this if more people simply learned CPR. A victim’s chance of survival doubles or triples if someone in the vicinity knows and administers CPR.

Surprisingly, students don’t learn this lifesaving skill in school. CPR training in schools makes perfect sense if we want to prepare students for health emergencies. They can learn how to recognize cases of sudden cardiac arrest and save lives.

Letter: What’s in a Word?

(Editor’s note: This letter references the editorial column by Robert McMillan, titled “Undocumented Aliens vs. Illegal Aliens” that appeared in the Friday, Feb. 18 edition of the Levittown Tribune.)

Illegal aliens. Undocumented workers. At face value these two terms seem the same. Nevertheless, the Society of Professional Journalists - as reported in these pages by Robert McMillan in his February 18th column - has entreated its membership to jettison the former. It knows, and I agree, that the words we used to describe people and their actions and character affect our perception of them. Monikers have connotations, meanings, and stigmas. But shouldn’t they? Isn‘t that the whole purpose of the written language? Isn’t that what distinguishes language from communication?