Reply To: School Board Monitors in Lakewood & East Ramapo

I don’t live in either Monsey or Lakewood but the problem in both cases is a district that is under funded. The state wants non mandated services such as courtesy cut before they will think about additional funds. The board can’t cut busing because that is the one service that ALL parents use and they rely on the public to get elected.

The ratio in both districts are 3 yeshiva students for every public school student, by the time the state gets it act together the ratio will be 6 or more yeshiva students per public school student. Mandated services will take a larger portion of the district’s budget than it does now and it will cost more to fix the public schools.

Another problem is if the state monitor cuts busing as was attempted in Lakewood it alienates both public and private school supporters, whose support is needed to pass the districts budget increases. No one has calculated what the town’s cost will be to provide safe passage for the large number of students who will be denied busing. Lakewood was willing to give the school district $2.5 million just so it wouldn’t have to hire school crossing guards and traffic lights.