BOE Candidate Profile: Ann Donaldson

Ann Donaldson, a Babylon resident and high school social studies teacher, is running for one of the three empty Babylon BOE seats. The other two candidates, Lisa McKeown and Roger Katz, are incumbents seeking re-election. Thomas Melito has resigned from the board, adding a third seat up for grabs.

Patch asked Donaldson why she decided to run for the board and what she sees as the biggest challenges Babylon faces in the coming years.

Donaldson has three children in Babylon schools, in the fourth, seventh, and tenth grades. She teaches 10th and 12th-grade social studies in the Bellmore-Merrick school district and believes her experience as a teacher would serve a unique need as a link between parents, the community, and the school district.

"I've wanted to run for years and decided now was the time. The current bard has set such a professional tone, and I want to be part of the conversation. In this economic climate and with so many changes, especially with the mandated testing I believe children are at risk. I want to use my background in education to make sure we don't rush through these important decisions," she said.

Besides the new tax cap and economic realities contributing to budget squeezes, Donaldson sees Babylon's small size as presenting unique challenges.

"We need more of a creative approach so that kids have as many opportunities as they would in a larger district," she noted. "I'd like to also see more articulation between grade levels, so students are well prepared coming from the grade school to the junior high level and beyond."

Donaldson hopes the community will see her experience as a teacher as a valuable asset, and she sees herself as being able to balance her knowledge of what students need educationally with the concerns of parents and residents.

"We need a moderate approach to addressing the issues of testing. We can't only be teaching to the test. I would like to bring a big picture approach to the table."