The Roslyn Public School District will see one of its most competitive races in years this spring as five candidates will vie for three seats on the board of education. One candidate, Rona Niederman, is up for re-election. However, two BOE members, Alvin Silverman and Carol Margilitis, are not running for re-election. As reported in last week's Roslyn News, Mr. Silverman is retiring from the BOE after a 36-year long tenure. Ms. Margilitis, who like Ms. Niederman has served one term, has resigned following the opening of a learning center that she will help to operate.

The election will be held Tuesday, May 15. That day, local residents will also vote on a school budget. In addition to Ms. Niederman, the other candidates for the three seats are Maryanne Combs, Karen Bodner, Jill Studley, and Linda Rosero. Two of the open seats are for three-year terms. Ms. Margilitis' seat will be open for a two-year and two-month term.

Ms. Niederman listed infrastructure improvements as a top priority for the new BOE. A "happy problem" for the district, namely increasing enrollment, makes the infrastructure issue an important one. Enrollment in the district has increased over the past five years, even the past decade. People are coming to Roslyn, said Ms. Niederman, because of the district's reputation for educational excellence. This has entailed some "growing pains" for the district. And so, what is needed, she said, is more money for staff development, the purpose of which is to keep teacher/student ratios in the classroom at current low levels. Enrollment will continue to be a "huge issue" for the district, even though it is impossible to know what both short-term and long-term trends will be.

Ms. Niederman also noted that 96 percent of all funding for the district comes from local property taxes. Only 4 percent comes from the state coffers. The challenge for BOE members, she said, is how to spend the money. Infrastructure is one issue; another is a special program for students with "certain needs." The state's new All-Regents testing program, Ms. Niederman observed, has increased standards for participating students. As such, there are many students in the Roslyn district who will need earlier support programs to help with the testing.

A major challenge for any BOE member is how to spend the money at the district's disposal. When it comes to bond issues, they need to get the necessary information to the public, often by hiring professionals, such as architects, to explain the specifics of such issues. Ms. Niederman expressed her gratification that a recent $24 million bond issue, one dealing with middle school renovations, passed by a healthy margin.

When asked why she was running for re-election, Ms. Niederman said that after one term, she is just beginning to learn what it means to serve on the BOE. She also mentioned public service, claiming she "wants to do good for the community in which I live." Ms. Niederman said that while the BOE is lucky to have a supportive community, it is also a community that BOE members can't take for granted. "Communication is important," she said. "The BOE must reflect what the community wants."

Ms. Niederman was elected to the BOE in 1998. Before that, she served on both the Roslyn Middle School, the East Hills School and the Heights School PTAs. She has also served as a committee member for the Adult and Continuing Education Citizens' Advisory Board for the Roslyn School District. In future issues, The Roslyn News will run profiles of other BOE candidates.