Schools

Letter to the Editor: A Vote for Hewlett-Woodmere School Budget is a Vote for the Kids

Central Council PTA Co-President Melissa Gates says members of the community should support proposed budget.

This letter was submitted to the editor by Melissa Gates, Central Council PTA co-president of Hewlett-Woodmere Public Schools.

On Tuesday, May 17, voters of Hewlett-Woodmere School District will be given the opportunity to vote on the proposed school budget with an increase of 2.37 percent. Hewlett-Woodmere Central Council PTA, which includes all five building units and SEPTA, approve of the proposed budget and urge everyone to VOTE YES.

These are very trying economic times for a lot of us individually. We question why our taxes are so high and why they need to increase every year. The budget presented for our approval represents an increase of 2.37 percent, which, once again, is the lowest increase in more than a decade. As well, this number falls within the average increase of many school districts across the county. This is a very low number given the fact that 79 percent of the total budget increase is based on numbers the district has no control over due to state and county costs that have been shifted onto the district and unfunded mandates.

2.37 percent is a very small increase especially considering that this budget:

Find out what's happening in Five Townswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

  • Continues to provide educational opportunities across the 4 A’s.
  • Maintains elementary class size guidelines.
  • Keeps the Discovery Program intact.
  • Retains the 10 period school day at the high school.
  • Maintains and improves several curriculum initiatives.

To sum up, the proposed budget maintains what has been valued most by our community with a minimal increase from budget to budget.

Please be sure to come out and VOTE YES. Not coming out to vote is equal to a “no” vote. Please come out to support our community on Tuesday, May 17, at the at One Johnson Place in Woodmere from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.

Find out what's happening in Five Townswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Vote YES for your kids, our kids, our community! Thank you for your support.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here