Rockland County, NY – Following a highly contentious election season, voters in the East Ramapo school district Tuesday voted down a 2010-11 budget proposal of $198 million, rejecting a potential 10 percent tax increase and leaving the district with the option of accepting an austerity budget.
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In voting for the one contested seat on the school board, residents elected Moses Friedman of Spring Valley over Antonio Luciano of Chestnut Ridge, padding an already solid majority of Orthodox and Hasidic Jewish men on the board.
Vote count Moses Friedman, 7,851 Antonio Luciano, 7,500
The vote occurred a week before other school district votes to accommodate those celebrating Shavuot, the Jewish holiday commemorating the giving of the Torah to Moses, which will begin Tuesday.
If the district were to move toward an austerity budget, additional staffing, programs and other cuts totaling about $5.6 million will be necessary, further depleting the resources of the already-strapped East Ramapo schools.
is this good or bad for the jews?
Now the goyim up there will hate the Jews even more cvs
Let see now if the taxes will go down
The contentious election season was because the can defeated by Friedman was unapologetic about comparing the frum board members to nazis. It was because of that attitude that there was a drive to have him defeated by a frum candidate. There was no opposition for the other two seats which had public school parents running for.
Its about time! Property taxes in monsey are sky high and most of the money goes to the schools that we don’t benefit from. Hopefully they will start shutting down public schools in monsey and all the ilegals and out of county kids will stop being bussed in to fill them up, and taxes will go down. Thanks to Mr Kalman Weber who has been working for years to reach this point!
As a Monsey resident and a parent who is very familiar with both the public school and yeshiva environments I have several questions.
(1) why was it that the private school constituency found it necessary to take control of a seventh seat on the board. If taxes, buses, and special education funding are the purposes to controlling the board wasn’t a 6-3 majority enough. I would think its only fair that the public school constituency at least be allowed to maintain its 33% non controlling share of the board. What exactly did a seventh private school seat add?
(2) I thought it was off that the newest board member, Moses Friedman did not campaign at all. He did not see fit to do an interview with the local paper or even release a photo of himself. I am wondering why we as a community are so trusting that the frum guy will do what we want when we want.
(3) I am wondering who is it who decides who gets to run on the private school parent ticket – Who are these faceless, anonymous askanim who make the decisions of who gets to represent us. I would think we would want to know who they are and what there motives are – You can be sure there are motivations they dont want os to know.
(4) This past year the board was run by 6 private school parents. This is their budget. If they were elected overwhelmingly by the frum – why are the faceless, anonymous askonim saying that the budget should be rejected. Don’t they have faith in the representative that they chose to represent their interests.
All in all – I like everyone else want to pay less in tax. That being said the reckless actions of the school board cause chillul hashem after chilul hashem. I would prefer a non frum school board. While I might pay more in taxes, basis emunah and bitachon says that hashem will ensure that I get every penny I need even if my tax bill goes up.
In a day and age when our kehillah is in such financial straits and people are losing there homes, we have an obligation to stop this out of control spending. We are not obligated to carry the burden for a public school population whose parents are not homeowners and many not even in this country legally and are not paying in to the pot. Perhaps the fair deal would be to tax those students whose parents are illegals or non home owners to make up for the differences.
#7 Are you familiar with the opponent Antonio Luciano? He was unacceptable.
While there is no choice that taxes have to go down
While its not fair that the minority over spends in the school system on behalf of the majority who has no children in the system
Its also clear that it has to be done with a brain
No wild actions
I find it interesting that here in Monsey there are as many anti semites as there were in pre-war Germany in the 1930’s. At least that is what “they” want you to believe. everyone who opposes “them” is labeled an anti semite.
If you opposes the school board you are an anti semite, if you run against Christopher St Lawrence you are an anti semite, if you dont want a yeshiva in your back yard you are an anti semite. Odd isn’t it.
I am not sure what harm this Hitler like candidate could have done other than be outvoted 6-3 on every item before the board. I guess one of the frum members will agree to retire next year so that the public school parents can have a 33% say.
Who elected these askonim as my representative – Did I miss that election – I am sure whoever opposed the chosen head askon candidate was also a rabid anti semite.
Where is saul in monsey sitting shivah over this tragic news?
They have aprox. 8,000 students and we have 17,800 students, our students are using a small portion of the tax money (like $6,000 a year for me), on their side we all know that half of their kids parents don’t pay taxes bc they are not legal citizens but they get most of my tax $$, why?
I am a Monsey resident of almost 40 years. I have been saying for a long time that we have to be very careful how we exercise our political power. These last few years, since our numbers have grown, B”H, and we have the ability to get our way on many issues, I am not been convinced that our askanim have been careful about staying on friendly terms with the rest of the population.
Rabboisai, we are in golus, even in Monsey. That means, we will always be just guests in this country, regardless of how comfortable we feel. It should be a high priority to keep good terms with our non-Jewish (and non-frum) neighbors, because it is in our best interests to do this and because that would be a Kiddush HaShem.
I despise the high taxes just like you do. In fact, since our frum School Board took over, they have continued to rise anyhow! But are we only interested in the money? Should’nt we also worry about antagonzing others? And it is a cop-out to simply say that “they are all anti-Semites.” That is the easy answer people use to avoid answering the tough questions.
Just something to think about.
I just want to clarify my opinion (before everyone starts calling me names). I AM in favor of cutting costs. I fully support making sure the School Board removes wasteful spending and fighting the unions to keep the taxes down as much as possible. It is true that the school taxes are giving us an unsustainable burden, especially in hard times and with out-of-control s’char limud that keeps going up.
But the point is that we must cut the costs with ANIVUS! We must be humble, and present our best panim-yofos to the rest of the world. When the local newspaper calls, even if they have an agenda against us, we must answer and give our side, without rancor, and in a way that is with respect and kovod habriyos. Not with yelling, not with tone-deafness. We cannot stoop to a low level. We must be mamleches kohanim v’goy kodosh.
Lets be good citizens in this medina shel chesed. (If some of us don’t think this is a medina shel chesed, please learn Jewish history, and quickly.)
To all those geniuses who are unhappy with the outcome of the vote:
1) none is stopping you from running yourself !!
2) the reason why there is a majority of frum jews on the board is because a majority of people voted for them
3) not that many people voted based on any “askanim” as you belive, they voted because they were fed up with paying for other people’s kids to go to school
4) the schools in east ramapo are not so great that they can claim they are succeeding
5) maybe it’s time for the frum MAJORITY to stand up for themselves
6) if the school district wouldn’t have so much waste in their system (classes of 10 kids, entire buildings for a few grades, ect..) they wouldn’t need to raise the budget at all
Rabosai, Lets tell it like it is here.
Affordable Jewish education is a matter of survival for Jews. Nowhere in our Torah are we required to pay for the education of the hordes of third world illegal alien children pouring into this country.
Many Jews and non-Jews struggle to pay their children’s private school tuition in states that spend billions on public education for illegal aliens, yet provide almost nothing to American born children in private schools. The US Supreme Court has declared school voucher programs to be constitutional, yet the PC politicians ignore the needs of the large religious minority in this country, both Jewish and non-Jewish.
Its time to oppose the insane, racist tax enslavement being imposed upon Jewish and European Americans by the Democrap party and their illegal alien constituents. As a minority, we have rights and needs which are being blatantly ignored by the politically correct, race pandering gangsters running America. We must aggressively stand up for our rights or we will be forced out of this country.
i dont think its to our benefit having a school board deciding issues regarding public schools where the board members dont even have children attending the schools
any vote will be critisized which ever way they vote
always kiday to have lo mishelunu vote in a way that will benefit unzere and not come out and be seen as we currently have by being a majority on the board
Rabosai, Lets tell it like it is here.
We have nothing to apologize for here. Affordable Jewish education is a matter of survival for Jews. Nowhere in the Torah are Jews required to pay millions of dollars for the education of the hordes of third world illegal alien children pouring into this country.
Many Jews and non-Jews struggle to pay their children’s private school tuition in states that spend billions on public education for illegal aliens, yet provide almost nothing to American born children in private schools. The US Supreme Court has declared school voucher programs to be constitutional, yet the PC politicians ignore the needs of the large religious minority in this country, both Jewish and non-Jewish.
Its time to oppose the ever increasing, racist tax enslavement being imposed upon Jewish and European Americans by the Democrat party and their illegal alien constituents. As a true minority within the state and country, we have rights and needs which are being blatantly ignored by the politically correct, race pandering gangsters running America. We must aggressively stand up for our rights or we will be forced out of this country.
They have aprox. 8,000 students and we have 17,800 students, our students are using a small portion of the tax money (like $6,000 a year for me), on their side we all know that half of their kids parents don’t pay taxes bc they are not legal citizens but they get most of my tax $$, why?
Did anyone realized that when you divide $200,000,000 dollars for each of the 8000 public school children . It amounts to $25,000 per child!!!!! It can NOT go on like this! Can you think what a private school would do with $25,000 ? Every child would of been a Einstein…. Or a SHAS YID
No wonder nobody wants Hasidic Jews to move into their area. Taking over the school board to vote down the budget. Who cares about the people in the community, it’s all about US! Except if the schools are terrible in the area your property values go down and you see more people dropping out and doing things that aren’t very good.
But hey, you made a point. And everyone will hate you for it, as they should.
can some one explain that private school has the majority why are the taxes exactly as it was looks like there is no gains just some noise from vichtig machers that realy need attention as seen on photo
The question remains: Why does cost almost 13K to educate a student in East ramapo and 8700 in neighboring Clarkstown?
Want to make it fair, give out school vouchers. Youll see how quickly kids leave public school and enter private schools.
Here is a possible scenario of what the “frum triumphalism” many here advocate will lead to:
The East Ramapo Central School District will be disbanded and folded, with several others, into a larger Rockland County school district. In the larger district the frum community will be marginalized and Yeshivas – and more importantly yeshiva students who need special services – will be cut out in the interest of the perennial budget crisis. School districts are not required to provide services to special needs students on Yeshiva premises and schedules. They can demand that these students enroll in a public school. Similarly busing, textbooks and other services.
A little humility may be in order.
Well, if breeding anti-semitism was the goal….congrats, you were successful! Yesterday, my 11 year old came home from school saying that all of his black friends were saying that they hate Jews! I had to sit my child down and remind him that our neighbors, whom we love and celebrate our holidays with are Jewish. I asked him what he thinks about our neighbors and of course he understood the lesson. But how many black kids went home and got the same lesson? What did the Hasidic community get in return for this so-called win? Hatred and anti-semitism!
And for anyone who is willing to listen to the truth, Luciano did not reference the Nazi’s AT ALL. The person whom Aron Wieder gave his video to made a video and posted it on YouTube with music and pictures of Nazi’s, Jesus Christ being crucified, Auschwitz, the yellow star of David, etc. Go look at it for yourself, just type in East Ramapo School Board and you will find it.
Apparently, that video was successful in smearing Luciano because you all seem to believe the lie that was spread. Too bad, because Luciano is a good guy and he would have uncovered the waste in the district and save us all money.
An Open Letter to the Superintendant and Certain Members of the East Ramapo School District Board
“Shame on You”
America has always prided itself on providing an education for every child. This simple but elegant concept has been the backbone of our nation for generations. This sacred responsibility has been handed down from the founding fathers to all future generations of Americans. We have been entrusted to carry on this tradition, and to care for and to educate all children regardless of race, color, or creed.
Let me remind certain members of the East Ramapo School Board that we are a nation of immigrants. I am the grandson of immigrants, and immigrants have made this country a “shining beacon”, and a beautiful “mosaic” for the world to admire.
Certain members on the East Ramapo School Board, have sadly lost sight of this sacred American trust.
As a thirty-five year resident of East Ramapo, with first hand knowledge of teachers and administrators who have devoted their professional careers to teaching the current generation of the children of immigrants, and as a proud parent whose three sons went through the East Ramapo School District, I say “Shame On You!”, for exploiting and twisting the system for your own interests and benefits. Your children, who by your choice, primarily attend Yeshivas (private religious schools), and to add insult to injury, you further abuse the system, by taking actions as a Board that diverts public funds to support the costs associated with sending your children to private schools.
The Board now has taken action to settle cases with parents who wish to have their “identified” children sent to private religious schools. “Shame On You”! In addition, as a Board of Education (the majority from the private, religious school community), you have allowed funds to go to private, religious schools without regard to issues of health and safety, issues of comparative secular education programs being offered, and issues of separating children by gender for religious purposes. All of these matters bring into question the legitimacy of disbursement of funds to any of the schools that do not adhere to regulation and law pertaining to these issues. And finally, your action as a majority of the Board, has been focused on only one matter: the reduction of taxes without regard to the negative impact it has and will continue to play on the education of the children of East Ramapo.
Before many of you start thinking that the author of this letter is anti-Semitic, let me set the record straight in the clearest possible terms; “I am not”. I am a proud Jew, I am the son of a Rabbi, a product of a Yeshiva education through High School, a member of several synagogues around the world, and a major donor to Jewish schools in Israel, and Jewish organizations and charities in the United States. Many of you have lost your way!
Like me, you have chosen to live in this community where we are able to practice our religion, and just as we expect others to honor and respect us as Jews, we must reciprocate with the same honor and respect in deed, and not mere words. As Americans, we have been blessed with the inalienable rights to practice and educate our children in accordance with our religious beliefs, but certainly not at the expense of others in the community that have the same rights, and are no less important than our children. As Jews, we are all responsible to treat each child with the same respect, dignity, and support that we all expect. Remember, we too were once “strangers in a strange land”.
l wish to thank those members of the School Board who have not lost their compass, and who have tried to bring balance and fair mindedness to an otherwise self- serving Board. My thanks to Mr. Stephen Price, Ms. Mimi Calhoun, and Ms. Suzanne Young-Mercer.
To our School Superintendant, Dr. Oustatcher: It is time for you to stand up for all of the children! You know better than most, what has been happening in East Ramapo, not the least of which has been focused on the closing of schools with limited or no input from the public. “SHAME ON ALL OF YOU”! I urge you to modify your behavior in accordance with your responsibilities to every member of the community.
Paid for by:
Robert H. Book, a concerned citizen says,
“On Behalf of all of the dedicated parents and children who do not have a real voice with the East Ramapo School District Board”
This message was printed as full-page ad in The Journal News on May 10, 2010
Thank goodness, there is a lawsuit in progress against closing Hillcrest school. The board voted in a closed session in the middle of the night and did not follow many of the laws on the books. We’ll let the State decide now. We are all watching every move this board is making as a few of the fellows are under criminal investigation, including the President of the board. His multi million dollar lawsuit by his business partners will be interesting to watch.