Sunday, May 20, 2012
North Fork Patch readers voted in Oysterponds Elementary School poll.
Oysterponds Elementary School was the only district on the North Fork to fail in passing its 2012-13 budget Tuesday night. Voters spoke out 192 yes to 253 no to vote down the $5,353,894 budget — a plan to reduce spending by $270,000 this year, but the tax levy increase is estimated at 2.5 percent. Though Oysterponds Elementary School board incumbent members Linda Goldsmith and Krista de Kerillis won their bids for re-election Tuesday night after polls closed, the victory was bittersweet. To de Kerillis, the failure to pass what seemed like a reasonable budget is the result of an ongoing distrust the Orient community feels toward their board of education. Recently, the issue of whether or not Oysterponds should allow parents the option of …
41.148254
-72.286726
Oysterponds Elementary School
23405 Route 25, Orient, NY
/articles/poll-results-drop-the-idea-of-sending-oysterponds-kids-to-mattituck
1398109
/locations/7060327
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Let us know what you think can be done to improve the lives of board members, administrators and children (of course) at the little elementary school full of political strife.
Now that the dust has settled a bit two days after Oysterpond Elementary School’s proposed budget for 2012-13 failed to pass, we want to hear from you — the voters who decided against the budget, the parents of children in the Oysterponds School District, and the observers who have seen years of political strife amongst board members and administrators at the tiny school of less than 100 kids. The proposed $5,353,894 budget for 2012-13, which is $272,750 less than the 2011-2012 budget that stood at $5,626,644, failed by a vote of 192 yes, 253 no Tuesday night. The proposed tax levy increase of 2.5 percent falls right in between the tax levy increases of Southold and Mattituck-Cutchogue’s proposed budgets — and those districts passed by …
41.148254
-72.286726
Oysterponds Elementary School
23405 Route 25, Orient, NY
/articles/poll-how-can-politics-improve-at-oysterponds-elementary
1398109
/locations/7040303
Allstate Foundation awards grant for safe driving awareness.
Southold Junior-Senior High School was a recent recipient of a $1000 Safe Teen Drive Long Island grant given by the Allstate Foundation on May 16. The school will use this grant to fund activism work that encourages responsible and smart driving by students. Motor vehicle crashes are a leading cause of death among teens, according to the New York State Department of Health. Crash rates are the highest for drivers who are 16-19 years old. The Allstate Foundation’s Safe Teen Drive LI program aims to reduce teen crashes in Nassau and Suffolk counties. “We believe activism projects and events in every high school on Long Island will increase public awareness on this social epidemic,” said Allstate spokesperson Jaclyn Darrohn in a statement. “…
41.06085
-72.4312
Southold Junior-Senior High School
420 Oaklawn Ave, Southold, NY
/articles/southold-high-school-receives-1-000-safe-teen-drive-grant
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/locations/7038832
Wednesday, May 16, 2012
Board members say community does not trust the board of education but hope a contingency budget will not be needed after budget fails to pass.
Though Oysterponds Elementary School board incumbent members Linda Goldsmith and Krista de Kerillis won their bids for re-election Tuesday night after polls closed, the victory was bittersweet. The proposed $5,353,894 budget for 2012-13, which is $272,750 less than the 2011-2012 budget that stood at $5,626,644, failed by a vote of 192 yes, 253 no. The proposed tax levy increase of 2.5 percent falls right in between the tax levy increases of Southold and Mattituck-Cutchogue’s proposed budgets — and those districts passed by wide margins even with spending increases. To de Kerillis, the failure to pass what seemed like a reasonable budget is the result of an ongoing distrust the Orient community feels toward their board of education. “It …
41.148254
-72.286726
Oysterponds Elementary School
23405 Route 25, Orient, NY
/articles/oysterponds-officials-stand-behind-budget-want-to-rebuild-trust
1398109
/locations/7043244
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
A Long Island conservative watch-dog group sent out a mailer urging voters to vote down the budget.
Just days before the May 15 school budget vote, some Greenport residents received a mailer from the Conservative Society for Action revealing teacher salaries and urging voters to vote "no" on the school budet. On the outside of the mailer, the group, which is a conservative group that asks members to "expose liberals for what they really are" and "fight for freedom," urged voters to defeat the budget, which the group claimed had an increase three times higher than the average Long Island school district. Inside the mailer, the group listed all administrator and teacher salaries in excess of $70,000. The public information included in the mailer, was not from the current year and did not give specific reasons why Greenport pierced the tax …
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Greenport Public Schools
720 Front St, Greenport, NY
/articles/despite-negative-mailer-greenport-school-budget-passes
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/locations/7029263
Write-in candidate in Greenport will take vacant second seat on school board.
Oysterponds Elementary School was the only district on the North Fork to fail in passing its 2012-13 budget Tuesday night. Voters spoke out 192 yes to 253 no to vote down the $5,353,894 budget — a plan to reduce spending by $270,000 this year, but the tax levy increase is estimated at 2.5 percent. Greenport voters passed the 2012-13 budget on Tuesday, picking up the required supermajority vote needed to pass the tax-cap-piercing budget. The budget passed with 69 percent of the vote. With the exception of Greenport and New Suffolk, all North Fork school districts have stayed within the state’s new 2 percent tax cap for the 2012-13 school year budget. As for the only contested race for school board, incumbents Linda Goldsmith and Krista de …
Voter turnout dragged, though voters remained positive.
The expected after-work rush from voters at North Fork school districts didn’t quite happen on Tuesday afternoon into evening for election 2012— the slowest election workers had seen in quite some time. Some workers in Mattituck blamed it on the rain. “When we first opened the doors at 3 p.m. people were waiting in line,” said election volunteer Barbara Jean Smith at about 5:15 p.m. “But now I think the rain is keeping them away.” Smith said about 400 had come through the doors of Mattituck High School by 5 p.m. One of those voters was Debbie Kimmelman of Mattituck, a third-grade teacher in Southold. She said she had no problem voting for a $38,004,156 spending plan for 2012-13, an increase of spending of $640,917 and an estimated 2.19 …
Here are your 2012 school election places and times for voting on Tuesday.
The Mattituck-Cutchogue School District will present a $38,004,156 spending plan to voters. Last year’s budget is $37,363,239 and increase of spending at $640,917. This represents an estimated 2.19 percent increase in the tax levy. Voting takes place on May 15 from 3 to 9 p.m. in the high school gym. In the Southold School District, voters will vote on a $27,024,043 budget for 2012-2013. The district plans to increase spending by $770,000. The budget is up over the $26,254,778 2011-2012 budget and represents a 2.93 estimated tax levy increase. Voting takes place from 3 to 9 p.m. in the high school gym. The Greenport School District will ask voters to approve a $14,914,713 spending plan, up over the $14,100,005 2011-2012 budget. The tax …
Monday, May 14, 2012
How will you cast your ballot Tuesday at North Fork School Districts?
How will you cast your ballot when you perform your civic duty Tuesday and vote on your school district budget? Help us get a sense of how budget proposals will fare by voting in Patch's poll first, below. Please only vote in your respective district. The Mattituck-Cutchogue School District will present a $38,004,156 spending plan to voters. Last year’s budget is $37,363,239 and increase of spending at $640,917. This represents an estimated 2.19 percent increase in the tax levy. Voting takes place on May 15 from 3 to 9 p.m. in the high school gym. In the Southold School District, voters will vote on a $27,024,043 budget for 2012-2013. The district plans to increase spending by $770,000. The budget is up over the $26,254,778 2011-2012 …
Sunday, May 13, 2012
Kids and adults had fun this past Saturday.
Do you have photos from Saturday’s Oysterponds 5K run? Upload them here. Thanks to Deb Kusa for the photos.
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Oysterponds Elementary School
23405 Route 25, Orient, NY
/articles/photos-oysterponds-5k-run
1398109
/locations/7000640
William Swiskey sr
5:58 pm on Sunday, May 20, 2012
Perhaps if they had all Board members who actually were full time Orient residents, they wouldn't have this problem. Some of the things some of these individuals are up to could be considered Malfeasance. It's time for the state to look at this. more ›