Seaford School Board Leadership Team Re-Elected

luvmykids July 6, 2012 at 02:00 pm

also discussed at this meeting was the issue of having only 3 kindergarten classes with an enrollment of 78 children... (as was done last year..but only 56 were enrolled)...several parents voiced their concerns (as well as myself) about the overcrowding in the classrooms..especially with children that are only 5 and have never been to school full time....in my opinion it will be total chaos and some children will just be lost in the shuffle....hopefully they can come up with a better plan to make the first year of school for these little ones as stress free as possible (and while they have an aide in each class....note that this is only for half the day).....and while I know we have fabulous teachers....in my opinion even the BEST of the best will have a hard time with a class of 26 or 27 five year olds.

Lorraine DeVita July 6, 2012 at 02:24 pm

26 kids in a kindergarten class !!! and for this you ALL passed a budget to receive QUALITY? nice work ! Perhpas they should abolish CHEERLEADING COACHES assign them as CLUB advisors and downgrade them as they are supposed to be from SPORT to ACTIVITY- Perhpas they EXCESS the Atheltic Director Downgrade The IT Director to IT Manager(which is what he really is ) and cut 50k from the salary line as the IT Advisory committe is doing a FANTASTIC job, Seems SPORTs and the good ol boys are MORE important to The Board of Ed and Mr Conboy then EDUCATION. Oh and hey guys perhpas you should also CHARGE for BAND CAMP. Seaford CAN afford QUAILTY Education if they decide to actualy DO something PROACTIVE and put EDUCATION FIRST! but hey thats only a logical opinion form someone who thinks the educational foundation of students is more important then making sure old friends,mentors and buddies are securely employed ...even if we throw the kids in front of the bus carrying the AD and the cheerleaders to a competition.. And i Guarantee if ANY of the Sports parents kids were in a 27 kindergarten class trying to learn how to read they would be the FIRSt ones screaming. HOW QUICK you ALL forget and how QUICK you all are to throw someone elses kids under the bus for your own NON EDUCATIONAL WANTS>

Lorraine DeVita July 6, 2012 at 02:32 pm

For all the parents who were deathly afraid if the budget didnt pass they would do away with full day kindergarten, you PROBABLY would have been better OFF with half day smaller classes then full day overcrowed classes. Nice work Board of Ed. talk about bait and switch! .This Seaford is Seaford PRIDE MR Conboy? This is QUALITy Education? This is For the kids? This is a kick in the TEETH to all parents who actually beleive the BS because they WANT to beleive the BS.. NAIVE

Andrew Coen (Editor) July 6, 2012 at 02:35 pm

@Luvmykids- There will be a separate story posted soon about the kindergarten class size issue.

Lorraine DeVita July 6, 2012 at 02:49 pm

And yes i am aware cheerleaders are athletes HOWEVER the STATE does NOT recognize Cheerleading as a SPORT nor are we as TAXPAYERS obliged to reclassify It as a sport . Yes they work hard HOWEVER can you honestly say they are MORE important classified as a sport then Learning to READ in kindergarten, Is having an AD more important then smaller manageable Kindergarten class sizes (legally we dont NEED nor are mandated by the State to have an AD)
IF the POSITION of IT director was so needed then why an IT advisory committee that is DEFERRED to for EVERY it decision? One that collectively is infinitely MORe qualified individual and collectively then the current IT Director? Why ALLOW the business sup to retire in OCT/nov rather then now, to reap the increase he was given and to increase his pension payout? Wouldnt it be more advantagous to downgrade the title to BUSINESS MANAGER hire one over the summer hopefully thru an QUALIFIED agency and AFTER a FULL AUDIT is done of the books before ANY retirement of the business asst sup is accepted and approved so we DONT have any clean up or surprises left for the NEW person? or am i just being LOGICALLY picky and obnoxious?

Wayne Smith July 6, 2012 at 02:58 pm

The problem hasn't changed in a couple of years now: an unaffordable labor agreement that has made it difficult and in some cases impossible to accommodate other priorities. The teachers may be "fabulous" but they cost too much.

Andrew Coen (Editor) July 6, 2012 at 03:19 pm

@Patrick- Please refrain from personal attacks. Thank you.

luvmykids July 6, 2012 at 03:25 pm

@Lorraine..a few moms (including myself) were saying that last night....half day would have been better under these circumstances....I am very concerned..my son James learned to read in just a few short months in Kindergarten..he had a very positive experience..l do not feel my twins will have the same experience..and of course what they learn in kindergarten will obviously affect them in 1st grade, 2nd grade..and so on...it just starts them off on the wrong foot....@Andrew..thanks for that..I will look for the article!

Lorraine DeVita July 6, 2012 at 03:50 pm

The fact remains Wayne, that we DONT proritize Education over Patronage nepotism,friendships ,SPORTS , Band Camps and yes Contractual labor agreements designed to let the UTS direct the needs of the district rather then the other way around. They are left virtualy unscathed yet we decimate the ONLY thing we are truly LEGALLY obligated to offer Education. If we took the time to truly support education and cut out the WASTE then the SALARY line would and could be justified and reduced becauses we are NOT paying for Positions that are GIVEN due to friendships, falsified needs and the roaring voice of Atheltics and after school activites over education. I have stated numerous times its HOW and WHERE we allocate what little we supposedly spend and how TRADITION holds more water then education in Seaford. Perhaps we should focus on an educationaly superior tradition and repriotize AFTER school activites to where they belong on the bottom not the TOP of the list. and perhpas Mr Conboy can shake his hold on making BAND CAMP a mandatory curriculm item and relegate it to where it belongs as an AFTER SCHOOL ACTIVITY NOT tied to curriculm. .. LET the Kids choose what more important to them band or sports or computer club. Then we would truly see what kind of traditions the kids themselves feel are more important. And if they WANT a CAMP experience let them pay for it..

Andrew Coen (Editor) July 6, 2012 at 03:51 pm

Here is a new separate story on the kindergarten class size issue- http://wantagh.patch.com/articles/kindergarten-class-size-at-manor-school-sparks-parent-concerns

Lorraine DeVita July 6, 2012 at 04:04 pm

I desparatley tried to WARN all of you this was coming, I was shot down numerous times, telling me this WASNT going to happen,I was spreading untruths and rumors. Apparently the Boards whispered behind the scenes tactics as well as the parents and grandparents getting hot and bothered over full vs half day held more credibility then the actual CONCERNS your building principals had voiced at a board meeting and the concerns Mr Striffolino voiced at a board meeting. Those were shoved under the rug by the OMG they are doing away with full day kindergarten hysteria if the budget doesnt pass. . My plea is that from now on ASK pointed detailed SPECIFIC questions because BASIC LOGICAL assumptions with this ADMINISTRATIVE Leadership and Board are ripe for the most inglorious BS being thrown out there. When your SPORTS budget EXCEEDS 600 thousand dollars on the HS level and you cant AFFORD an additional Kindergarten or first grade teacher. then people you have a BIGGER issue then my obnoxious call it as i see it mouth..

Patrick July 6, 2012 at 04:18 pm

Personal attacks? "Seems SPORTs and the good ol boys are MORE important to The Board of Ed and Mr Conboy then EDUCATION" That seems awfully personal. And another directed at Mr Conboy "then making sure old friends,mentors and buddies are securely employed" Another directed at many parents " HOW QUICK you ALL forget and how QUICK you all are to throw someone elses kids under the bus for your own NON EDUCATIONAL WANTS>" And finally "This Seaford is Seaford PRIDE MR Conboy? This is QUALITy Education? This is For the kids? This is a kick in the TEETH to all parents who actually beleive the BS because they WANT to beleive the BS.. NAIVE" All from this string. These are the type of comments that are completely rediculous, but go unchecked. But they are from the person who shall remain nameless, therefore they must be allright.

Lorraine DeVita July 6, 2012 at 06:43 pm

Mr Conboy and the SSB members are big boys and i am sure that they can handle whatever i throw their way and if truly upset they have my home number to discuss ANY and all issues or concerns, rebuttals, remarks or whatever I may bring forth. Do you really feel they need a champion. they have called me in the past to discuss issues and will probably do so in the future.and if they feel i have crossed a line.they can ofcourse correct anything i have posted. I call it as I see it.. I did not direct anything towards you so why the post patrick. if it is SO obvious i am an idiot and feel this burning desire to instigate and have nothing better to do then follow me from topic to topic post to post to make issue & derogartory personal comments then perhaps you are assuming the readers of the patch do not have the wherewithall to determine things from their own perspective and YOU have this burning need and obssession with insuring they arent swayed to even comptemplate that perhaps My observations have some merit or deserve further thought? ? or you have some obssessive personal vendetta you need to promote. have a great day Patrick !

Chris Wendt July 7, 2012 at 01:49 am

This article is misleading in that it asserts that there is some aspect of leadership associated with Board officers positions. There really is not. The President chairs the meetings, but that responsibility conveys little power other than to enforce Roberts Rules of Order on the meeting agenda. The President also is the person required to sign contracts and other official documents but only after those documents are authorized by the full Board by majority vote. The Vice President fills-in in the absence of the President at meetings.
Seven years ago, the President and Vice President of the Seaford Board of Education resigned during a financial scandal. In my opinion, part of the scenario that led to the happenings of that scandal could be traced to the fact that Seaford, unlike Wantagh, had and apparently still has a fixation for maintaining the same board members for consecutive terms as President and Vice President. Prior to and at the time of that scandal, there was a sort of joke that the Seaford Board had been headed-up by an officer with the title: "President-for-Life". The Seaford Board should wise-up and get with the program of rotating all board members through the officers chairs (President and Vice President). I should point out that such a decision would be entirely up to them.

Patrick July 7, 2012 at 01:56 pm

Lorraine, derogatory comments? You told everyone who reads the Patch that I am prone to violence. That, my dear, is libelous. Better call your attorney, because I have called mine, and you will need yours. You have not a clue what is going on. I follow your posts because, for the most part, I can't wait to see what you will say next, mostly because it is usually rediculous. You see nothing other than what is in your own crazy world, and while most people decide to do nothing, and just laugh at your imbecilic behavior, I choose to write. You could be one of the most self centered, egotistical people that I have never met, and hope never to meet, except when you are standing at the defendants table, which will happen sooner than later. Have a great day, Lorraine, and don't spend my inheritance!!!

Patrick July 7, 2012 at 03:36 pm

Andrew, please tell everyone why my comments, even after clarification, continue to be deleted. Is it you that is censoring, or others? Lorraine DeVita is allowed to make extremely rediculous comments, but when I call her out and state that she will pay financially for her remarks, it gets deleted. Why? Please do tell everyone who makes these decisions.

mary hayes July 7, 2012 at 09:49 pm

Patrick---you are right----some people on this blog--thread---whatever it is called seem to have the right to say whatever they want at whoever they want!!! While I may not agree with you with all the time, I will agree that the same degree of judgement needs to be applied to everyone!!!

Frank Groman July 8, 2012 at 06:04 pm

This is an extremely bias on-line paper. Newsday on-line rarely censors the postings to their stories and when they do it is generally vulgarity, nothing more; plus you receive a wide variety of posters, not the same 20 or so locals found here. Most of the posts that have been censored/deleted are are generally unnecessary as the oppositions posts remain. Probably the reason more people do not participate in commenting.

Andrew Coen (Editor) July 8, 2012 at 11:39 pm

@Frank Groman- Any comment that has been deleted was because it violated our terms of service, which can be read at this link http://www.patch.com/terms. Comments are also deleted if they are flagged by a certain number of users. Thank you for following Patch.
- Andrew Coen Local Editor Wantagh-Seaford Patch

Patrick July 9, 2012 at 12:06 am

Terms of Sewrvice:
•is defamatory, abusive, obscene, profane or offensive; Lorraine's comment about me being prone to violence •is threatening, harassing or that promotes racism, bigotry, hatred or physical harm of any kind against any group or individual; Lorraine's comments about immigrants •promotes or encourages violence, •is inaccurate, false or misleading in any way; Again, Lorraine's comments about me and my being prone to violence •contains “masked” profanity (e.g., F@&#) Happens on almost every string. Andrew, if a comment is deleted by others, and does not violate your terms, why is it not reposted immediately and the people who flagged the posts told outright that is not their right to flag posts for their own ideals. Also, please explain why my post was removed from this string, as it certainly did not violate the terms, so it must not have been the Patch that deleted it, so who did? You don't want to answer my questions, so I will ask Frank Gorman to cut and paste this post, so that I might get an answer. Thank you for your input.