Westbury School Voters Guide 2010

VOTING

6 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday at Dryden Street School, Drexel Avenue School, Park Avenue School and Westbury Middle School.

THE BUDGET

The district is proposing a budget of $106,215,920 for the 2010-11 school year, an increase of 2.5 percent over the current $103,625,288 budget. The local tax levy would rise from $65,966,936 to $70,504,146 - a 6.88 percent increase.

The average house assessed at $1,042 would pay school taxes of $8,314.79 - an increase of 6.08 percent over the current $7,837.99.

The proposed budget includes a 5.2 percent increase in teacher salaries. Some staff positions districtwide will be eliminated through retirement, but district officials said they did not yet know how many.

Under the spending plan, summer school services will be reduced and offered only to special education students and to those in grades 8 to 12. After-school programs also will be reduced, but officials said they don't yet know to what extent.

In addition to the budget, there will be a referendum on the ballot to decide whether a student can be allowed to served as an ex-officio school board member.

District website:

westburyschools.org

THE CANDIDATES

Incumbent Larry D. Wornum is running as a team with Rod Bailey and Stan J. Ercolano. Siela Bynoe, Leslie F. Davis and Rodney Caines are also running as a team. Pablo Sinclair is running independently. All are vying for three seats with three-year terms. Lawrence F. Zaino and Floyd T. Ewing III are not seeking re-election.

Rod Bailey

BACKGROUND: Bailey, 46, has lived in the district for 14 years. He is a road operations manager for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and is former vice president of the Transport Workers Union. He's a member of the Westbury Zoning Board of Appeals and is a coach for the Westbury Little League. He and his wife, Donna, are members of the Sherwood Civic Association. They have two children who attend district schools.

ISSUES: Bailey said there is a lack of transparency on the board. "For the past 10 years our school board has not functioned properly," he said. He cited money mismanagement and overspending as problems of the board. If elected, he promises to "hold the spending down." He vowed to see to it that outstanding contracts are signed, and he plans to examine the budget line by line to eliminate duplicative services. "As a former union official, I have plenty of experience with negotiating contracts," he said, including experience dealing with pensions and health benefits.

Siela Bynoe

BACKGROUND: Bynoe, 42, has lived in the district for 36 years. Single with no children, Bynoe is executive director of the Town of Huntington Housing Authority. She earned a bachelor of arts degree in psychology from Hofstra University in 2001 and a master's degree in public administration from Long Island University in 2006.

ISSUES: Bynoe cited appointing a new superintendent as the most important decision the trustees will face. She said her public-sector experience will help her identify strong leadership. Bynoe said curbing school taxes is also a big issue for the district. "I believe that proper vetting of financial decisions and policy is necessary to make sure we're not negatively impacting taxpayers," she said.

Rodney Caines

BACKGROUND: Caines, 34, has lived in the district for 29 years. He is the New York operations manager and a senior field engineer for an energy engineering and professional consulting services firm. He earned a bachelor of science degree in marine engineering from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point. He and his wife, Traci, have two children - one enrolled in the district and a 5-month-old.

ISSUES: "As a graduate of the Westbury schools and now as a parent of a student attending those same schools, I am most concerned with restoring the district's educational quality to the levels that existed when I attended," Caines said. "Although great progress has been made in raising performance on standardized tests, I believe more can be done." If elected, he said, he will collaborate with educators to ensure that concerns of parents are addressed and "result in programs that cost-effectively challenge and develop our students." He also plans to work toward improving communication to the community.

Leslie F. Davis

BACKGROUND: Davis, 46, is a lifelong Westbury resident. She teaches cosmetology and technology at Barry Tech, a Nassau BOCES program. She also owns a salon in Westbury. She earned a bachelor of science degree in career and technical education from New York Institute of Technology in 2004 and a master's degree in educational technology from the C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University in 2007. She is divorced with three sons - one who graduated from the district and two who are students in district schools.

ISSUES: Davis wants to make sure the interests of children are "first and foremost," while keeping taxpayers at the forefront. "The proper leadership is very important," she said. "Districts cannot be run on underdeveloped thought processes. We need to take a stand on what is . . . in the best interest of our children and the community, focusing on tax dollars and efficient curriculum." If elected, she plans to examine and assess all programs in the district and look at their success rate. "If they're not successful, we're going to try to see how we can have them removed and replaced with beneficial programs," she said.

Stan J. Ercolano

BACKGROUND: Ercolano, 57, and his wife, Sheryl, have lived in the district for 25 years. He is director of technology for a law firm. He earned a bachelor of science degree in business management from Adelphi University in 1986. He is the father of two, one who is grown and one who is enrolled in a private high school. He has been president of the Poets' Corner Neighborhood Association since 2008. He ran for the board in 2008 and lost. But the election results were later challenged; discrepancies in polling practices were uncovered and led to the removal of two winners. Ercolano opted not to run in a special election.

ISSUES: Ercolano said money is the biggest issue in the district. "There are a lot of people, especially in Westbury, who are out of work or whose hours have been cut," he said. He would like to see all subsets of the community included in the district, such as parents of children who attend private schools. He also wants to see Hispanic members of the community participate in district affairs. "There isn't a single Hispanic on the school board, and I'd like to see that change," he said, adding that if he's elected, he will work toward reaching out to groups that are underrepresented in the district. He also would like to "roll up my sleeves and see alternatively where we can reduce expenditures."

Pablo Sinclair

BACKGROUND: Sinclair, 36, has lived in the district for 10 years. He is a manager for Verizon Fios and currently is pursuing a master's degree in public administration at the C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University. He earned a bachelor of science degree in criminal justice from the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in 1996. He and his wife, Kibret, have three children who attend Westbury schools and an 8-month-old.

ISSUES: Sinclair said he wants to see test scores improve and to enhance math, science and technology classes. He said overcrowded classrooms is a big issue. "We really need to look to see who actually lives in the district," he said. As president of the Westbury Hills Civic Association, he said he has the skills to "bring better communication" to the board. "The school board is kind of dysfunctional right now," he said. "I promise to be transparent, to be accountable to the community." If elected, he also plans to review programs, administrators and consultants to identify "extra fat that we need to cut."

Larry D. Wornum

BACKGROUND: Wornum, 59, has lived in the district for 25 years. He retired in 1997 as a customs inspector for the U.S. Customs Division. He earned a bachelor of science degree from Northeastern University in 1975. He and his wife, Sonia, have three adult children who graduated from Westbury schools.

ISSUES: Wornum, who was first elected to the board in 2007, said he wants Westbury schools to be on a par academically with nearby districts such as Jericho and East Williston. He also wants to see greater transparency in school affairs and would like the high school graduation ceremony returned to campus instead of paying to have it held at the C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University. If re-elected, Wornum plans to put a freeze on administrative salaries and school taxes. "People in Westbury cannot afford spiraling school taxes," he said. He also promises to be more involved with unions and will work toward making more parents involved in the district. He cited accomplishments during his term, including uncovering seasonal flooding at the middle school and the issue of children being left on buses for 10 to 15 minutes while waiting to disembark at school.