Lindenhurst district braces for more cutbacks

Over the past 15 months, the Lindenhurst district has cut bus rides for 2,000 students, laid off 37 teachers and moved to shutter an elementary school. And that could be just the beginning.

Already, officials in this 6,600-student district in Babylon Town are ticking off services that could be hit next fall: classes for the intellectually gifted, music, dance, sports.

"Everybody's braced for it," said Jean Gustavson, a nurse practitioner with two daughters attending local schools. "I hope they won't cut the arts program or athletics. We're a very sports-oriented town."

The reason for these jitters: The prospect of dwindling state and federal aid, combined with potential tax caps, is forcing schools to re-evaluate priorities - not only in Lindenhurst, but also in many other districts across Long Island.

Despite the Island's affluent image, a surprising number of the 124 local school districts - 29 in all, including Lindenhurst - fall below the state average in taxable wealth. All these districts depend heavily on state and federal assistance, and they include systems such as Brentwood and Sachem with the area's biggest enrollments.

Analysts say it's inevitable, therefore, that any cutbacks in state and federal assistance will hurt not just students in inner cities, but thousands on the Island as well. "There is a perception of wealth on Long Island, and it's just not something that's universally true," said Gary Bixhorn, chief operating officer for Eastern Suffolk BOCES, which serves many low-wealth districts.

Combine cutbacks in aid with any cap on property taxes and the impact on schools could be painful. Richard Nathan, Lindenhurst's superintendent, sees no way his district will be able to make up for expected aid losses next year through higher local taxation - especially if Albany imposes new caps.

"So the bottom line is, there's no way to go but programs," Nathan said. "I don't want to cut any of these things. But everything has to be on the table."

Pressures to economize have touched off a districtwide debate among Lindenhurst residents. David Woods, acting president of a coalition of local civic associations, notes that local enrollments are declining.

"You've got a much older society here saying, 'You know what, why should we pay more for this?' " said Woods, 53, whose two grown children have already graduated.

In contrast, many parents of children currently enrolled wonder how their schools can successfully prep students for an increasing number of federally required tests if staffing cuts continue.

"I know something has to give," said Christine DePetris, 39, who has three children in the district. "But you know, it's like we're going to create a bigger problem in the long run."