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Post by 78ptownpower on May 20, 2007 19:34:43 GMT -5
Patriot, I thought that that was what BOCES is supposed to do. All the districts are to pool their purchases through BOCES if I'm not mistaken.
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Post by patriot2415 on May 20, 2007 20:20:11 GMT -5
78,
I think you are correct as far as supplies are concerned. But I don't think for maint contracts.
In any event, I sent an email last Wed to the BOE asking what contracts if any do we enter into with multiple districts. No answer.
Seems to be a pattern. I must have ticked them off because they don't answer me anymore ( very professional !!!). But I won't give up!
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Post by Go Plainedge! on May 20, 2007 22:32:07 GMT -5
78, I think you are correct as far as supplies are concerned. But I don't think for maint contracts. In any event, I sent an email last Wed to the BOE asking what contracts if any do we enter into with multiple districts. No answer. Seems to be a pattern. I must have ticked them off because they don't answer me anymore ( very professional !!!). But I won't give up! Several years ago the district had a lawn cutting contract with Bud Daubman. I asked Dr. Spin why....wouldn't it be more cost effective to have one central department for the district to cut all of our building's lawns and do the landscaping? Of course he said "No". However, thinking even bigger, several neighboring districts would benefit from ONE central service that ONLY cut and maintained fields all week long.
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Post by patriot2415 on Jun 6, 2007 8:26:40 GMT -5
All as promised I will keep you updated as to my communications with the BOE. You will see all the responses and I will ask you to decide if the President of the BOE truly wants to help:
sent by me on 5/05
hello all, I'm sure with all the budget frenzy this email was lost. What are the plans now with packard/picken? What do you need the community to do? will you be setting up meetings with the town? On another note, can you provide information as to what operational contracts we are sharing with other districts to reduce costs? I think we are all aware now that next year will be a tough year budget wise. The residents are going to demand a lower tax levy. Cost sharing with other districts, not just on supplies, but maint contracts could be an avenue where we can realize additional savings. Also, I am requesting that you reach out to surrounding district and inquire if that have some community organizations like we have in Plainedge. We would like to start meeting with them, you and other BOE, and come up with a plan on the state aid issue. If you could do this ASAP it would be a great help. We want to make our reps in Albany VERY aware that we are gaining momentum and joining forces throughout LI. thanks Phil
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Post by patriot2415 on Jun 6, 2007 8:27:27 GMT -5
Sent by the BOE president on 5/22
Phil, The Pic/Pak meetings will be scheduled when the TOB feels it is appropriate. The school district is ready to move forward and meet with the community but as this is a joint venture, we need the town to be ready as well. As I know you are well aware of, when the town heard from some members of our community that they did not want the pic/pak vote the same day as the budget vote, they also had the impression this community was not solidly behind the proposal. My guess is that until they hear from the community that we want this, the process will continue to move at a very slow pace. As to your second point, the district uses state contracts and BOCES contracts for goods and services when it is financially to our advantage. (All our contracts are part of the BOE minutes as the board votes on them.) Cost-sharing with other districts is an area that needs further exploration, however The Commissioner of Education has taken a very clear stance on segregation of duties and it is unclear as to how he will respond to one company/individual servicing several districts under one contract. This is a suggestion I have heard many politicians use, to consolidate services to save money, but state ed is not clear on this as yet. As to your third point, I am not aware of another district which has an organized vote yes/tax pac group. As I have contact with my colleagues from other districts, I will ask them. Might I suggest those groups in our community that have interactions with other school districts/parents inquire as well (athletic groups, pta, etc.). Pat Zinke President Plainedge Board of Education
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Post by patriot2415 on Jun 6, 2007 8:29:00 GMT -5
Sent by me on 6/4 Dear, Pat Zinke President Plainedge Board of Education I find it troubling that there seems to be a disconnect on Packard/Picken project. The Town understands perfectly that putting it to a vote with the budget was not a good idea. They are VERY interested in moving forward. What are the next steps? Cost-sharing - We have done some research ( thanks Anne Weeks!) and we have found this: Under the provision of ยง119- of the General Municipal Law, school districts and BOCES have the power to enter into agreements among themselves to do jointly all that which they are empowered to do individually. It is located at: www.emsc.nysed.gov/mgtserv/purchasing/coopurch.htm Not knowing all the rules and regulations, I truly believe every operational/maintenance contract that can possibly be shared with other districts must be investigated. We need to find ways to reduce further the operational side of the budget. Will the BOE be following up on this and reporting back to the community? Community groups - I wasn't assuming that you knew of community groups in other districts. I was asking if the Plainedge BOE could pro-actively reach out to surrounding districts and inquire for us if there are ANY community groups or community leaders we could reach out to. We would also look to have joint BOE meeting to discuss state aid and what we ( multiple districts) jointly could do. Can the BOE reach out for us? Pat, I cannot stress enough how important the contract issue and the state aid is for next years budget. I believe now after 2 years of program restoration and a combined 23% tax levy, the residents of Plainedge want to see more movement on contract reductions across the board. We also need to join other districts and put pressure on local and state government representatives to fix the state aid formula. We in the community stand ready to help.
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Post by patriot2415 on Jun 6, 2007 8:57:10 GMT -5
Sent by the BOE president on 6/4
Phil, Thank you for sharing your thoughts and suggestions with us. In terms of the Pic/Pak transaction, as I stated earlier, the district is prepared to have the community informational meetings. We are waiting for the TOB to decide to move forward and begin this next step. If community members would like to see this occur, I suggest they contact the town and ask them to schedule these meetings. (Also, may I ask how you know they are VERY interested in moving forward?) In terms of cost-sharing and community groups, the board has not discussed this so I cannot speak on this for the board. I would anticipate some of these items will be discussed over the summer. Pat Zinke President Plainedge Board of Education
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Post by patriot2415 on Jun 6, 2007 8:57:52 GMT -5
Sent by me on 6/5
Pat, thank you for your in depth replies. Community members have spoke to the town, that is how we know they are VERY interested. Can you explain why the board is not aggressively pursuing this with the town? It's difficult to tell what the other BOE members think since you have become the spokes person for all of them. As for the cost sharing, it a very important topic. I look forward to the boards recommendation. On the topic of state aid and joining up with other communities to pressure our local and state officials, does your non answer mean you have no interest in this and will not help us contact other BOE or community leaders in surrounding districts? Again the silence of the other BOE members is deafening, so it is difficult to gage the thoughts of the entire BOE.
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Post by patriot2415 on Jun 6, 2007 8:58:36 GMT -5
sent by Anne weeks on 6/6
I would like to suggest that the BOE develop a plan of action regarding state aid and cooperative purchasing with other districts. Some thoughts I have are:
1. For the state aid issue, I would recommend that the BOE reach out to other school district BOEs. I would also request that the teachers, administrators and Superintendent reach out to other school districts through their respective associations/contacts. Regarding those community members who have no formal affiliations, we should all contact people we know in other school districts to see what is out there. I have a contact in Rockville Center who has expressed interest in the past that I can recharge and see if they would work to organize their community (which to me is an important community as Dean Skelos of the Assembly represents them) Even if there are no formal tax pac organizations, all that is needed is a few dedicated people to lead.
2. Regarding the cooperative purchasing, which is likely a more long term planning process, I would suggest the BOE review the contacts currently in place to determine which ones can be renewed and when as well as determine the costs associated with each. I would recommend that the BOE/School Administration reach out to neighboring school districts to inquire/meet on this desire to pool purchasing power. I do not know all the beaurocratic challenges to this, but I think starting with one or two other school districts is probably the way to go to ensure success. And then move on to invite other districts in as the program is successful. And I imagine that approaching Island Trees/Farmingdale/Bethpage is the most logical as they are of similar size to us. I would like to see a plan of action be developed showing what steps are being taken in what timeframes.
As people begin to discuss these topics, and see that movement is happening, I do believe we will get more people involved and have continued and sustained success/improvement.
Thanks!
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Post by patriot2415 on Jun 6, 2007 8:59:29 GMT -5
sent by the BOE president on 6/6 Good Morning Ann, Thank you for your suggestions. They will certainly be part of our discussions on this topic over the summer. I would also like to thank you for the tone and manner in which you delivered your message. It demonstrated a true willingness to work with the BOE for the benefit of our entire district. Sincerely, Pat Zinke President Plainedge Board of Education ( Hey..is that a dig???)
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Post by patriot2415 on Jun 6, 2007 9:00:19 GMT -5
sent by me on 6/6
Anne, excellent job on your email. Informative and direct. I know there is a TRUE willingness on your part and the communities to work with the BOE. We will see if your kinder email spurs those on the BOE who talk about cooperation, but seem to not able to do so.
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Post by patriot2415 on Jun 6, 2007 9:00:49 GMT -5
if you are reading this.. please start with my post from today at 8:26
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Post by Go Plainedge! on Jun 6, 2007 21:46:04 GMT -5
Phil: One of these days I would like to buy you a well deserved beer! Your persistence is second to none. The challenges, IMO, continue in the area of communication. There is NO way the Pack/Pic deal would have been approved on May 15. There was no substantial and concrete information given to the community by either the TOB OR the district. We were told at that first meeting at the Middle School, that we would be kept in the loop by both parties. Both parties have essentially failed in the communication. It's all quite simple. If the TOB and District are interested in making this happen, then they need to start communicating with the community, sharing the exact figures and information and hold further meetings as promised. Otherwise this will fade away and never happen. My gut tells me there is more to the story than we are being told. Perhaps thats just my cynical side taking over.
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Post by 1plainedge on Jun 10, 2007 21:30:18 GMT -5
IF we get the information we need and it appears to be acceptable, the athletic clubs alone should be able to push a yes vote through. Separating this vote from the budget was clearly the right thing to do. Look how the East Plain expansion sailed through when you just had the concerned EP parents out voting. It will probably be the same thing with the P - P swap but the clubs will have to endorse and push their members to go out and vote. And if you think the clubs can't carry the day, remember that Doug was re-elected. Enough said.
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Post by plaintalker on Jun 11, 2007 7:25:18 GMT -5
I'm not a sports parent but I do know how important sports are to this community. I have been worried about this from the beginning, because I feel we have never really been fed all of the correct info about Packard. Keep in mind that this is a town field and all surrounding communiities have a right to use them. I know it has been said that Plainedge has the first shot at the fields. You better have it in writing fully explaining the distribution process for the fields. Does Plainedge have a right to use the fields 100% 7 days a week if their feild needs require it or does each surrounding community have a percentage of time that they are allowed to use the fileds since they also pay for them in their taxes? We've come a long way in this community in making this a great district but I have also seen many times of the last 13 years I have been a part of this district, us being told something and then as time goes by, the promises that were made, seem to change and eventually you get the answer, "That was never promised that way, or that was never said like that". It's amazing how stories and promises change when time goes by and dullens our recolections. Better cover your bases on getting it in writing on how the feild distribution will be done. I'm not comfortabe with the words "Plainedge will have first shot" Once this beatiful complex is built you better believe Bethpage, Famingdal, Massapequa, etc. will start to put pressure on the town to get some feild time. What do you think?
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