Reply To: East Ramapo budget should be voted down

1. The district has a lot more Yiddish speaking children than Spanish speaking children.

2. It would cost more to hire many full time Yiddish speaking special ed teachers than sending the kids to KJ where they already have full time Yiddish special ed teachers.

3. If the board cuts back Yiddish speaking services for special ed, the board will also cut back Spanish speaking services for Hispanic public school students.

The public school parents will object very loudly.

4. If the board cuts out school bus transportation for students living within 1 or 2 miles of their school this will be done for both public and private schools.

5. 85% of public school students live within 2 miles of their pubic school, since they are geographically placed. 20% of private school students live within 2 miles of their school, since they can choose a more distant school.

As a result, if nearby school busing is eliminated, 85% of public school students will lose busing but only 20% of private school students will lose the same.

The public school students’ parents will object to this much louder than the private school body.

6. The public schools in the district receive millions and millions of dollars for non-mandated services, curriculum and programs in the public schools. This will be first in line for cuts during an austerity budget.

Additionally, New York State law places no limit on the number of students per class in a public school.