Massapequa Schools Restores Programs

Increased state aid and an administrative reorganization has allowed the Massapequa School District to add to their reserves and restore some programs they were planning to cut.

Early in Thursday's school board meeting Deputy Superintendent Alan Adcock made an announcement about the extra funds. 

"The state budget has restored all of the high tax aid money," he said. High tax aid are funds given mostly to downstate districts to make up for the higher costs of operating in the area.

Massapequa officials had complained after receiving a cut in high tax aid compared with the previous year's budget. But the money was restored giving area schools more discretion in the funds they can spend.

"What it means for Massapequa is more more than $1 millon in state aid next year," Adcock said.

The district recommended that the state funds be set aside as fund balance, accounts they keep aside as a type of "rainy day" account.

But the district announced they had also found money through a shuffle of administrators.

With Lucille Iconis set to take over as superintendent in July, retiring superintendent Charles Sulc said that the district has been discussing how to find replacements to fill her dual role as Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction and head of the district's special education program.

"As an outgrowth of some of those discussions, we believe there will be some savings associated with that," he said.

Board president Maryanne Fisher then announced the district was recommending the restoration of several programs that had previously been facing cuts.

They include:

• Restoration of 9th grade junior varsity teams.
• Restoring the Seventh and Eighth grade hybrid baseball team.
• Reinstating partial funding for the varsity hockey team.
• Restoring funding to elementary schools that were scheduled to be cut.

During the public comment session several residents argued that too much of the restored fudning went to sports, especially considering the district's plan to eliminate the summer stars program.

"How many professional baseball players has Massapequa produced?" one parent fumed.

Sulc said the elementary school program only met for a total of 19 days and he acknowledged, "It was not really as successful as we'd like."

He was also quick to point out the district, "Didn't eliminate secondary summer school."