There is no good time for the arrest of an assistant superintendent and chief financial officer on charges of larceny, but for the Mineola School District, the timing could not be worse. On Feb. 15, the district will go before the public and ask for the approval of a $23 million bond referendum for capital improvements to the schools.

At Thursday's board of education meeting, some couldn't help wonder if the arrest of John Jackson may cause such a distrust in the eyes of the public that the bond would be doomed.

"We have no chance now," said one resident.

It could be that Jackson will be exonerated from the charges. However, the district will still be asking the public for more money even in the midst of an issue that has grabbed the public's attention.

Still, the district will be going ahead with the bond referendum. "The things that were in the bond, the things that need to be done aren't going away," said Board President RoseAnn Buglione.

The administration and board will focus on educating the public about the bond referendum in the next month during this time when the district must lick its wounds. The message will be that the needs of the district and accusations against a district official aren't a function of one another.

"We have to show a lot of strength to continue on the path we're on," said Superintendent of Schools Dr. Lorenzo Licopoli.

The board and Dr. Licopoli have made an effort to make the district more open to the public. "We want everything to be completely transparent," said Buglione, although the board president acknowledged the arrest could erode some of the confidence the district began to earn. However, Buglione said the district will not stop building the trust.

Board of education member John McGrath believes the public needs to make a decision on whether it can financially support the capital plans the district needs. The public, he said, needs to determine if one potential theft is representative of the district.

It would appear that board members and the administration hope the voters will not let the allegations against an official prevent the district from moving forward.

The next two board of education meetings will be on Thursday, Jan. 20 at 8 p.m. and Thursday, Feb. 3 at 8 p.m. at the Willis Avenue School.

Among the items in the bond referendum is the construction of a football/track facility at Mineola High School, 10 Armstrong Road in Garden City Park, as well as improvements to the fine arts facilities and security measures for the schools and other maintenance improvements.

The district was in need of some good news. Dr. Licopoli announced the district has entered into an agreement with Nextel for the use of an antenna the district has on top of the Empire State Building. The district will get an initial lease signup of $250,000 with an annual leasing fee of $846,000, according to the superintendent who said the Mineola School District has beachfront property on top of the Empire State Building. Dr. Licopoli said that the money would be used for debt service to lessen the impact of the bond. If the bond doesn't pass, the district would have to find another use for the money.