The following is a board of education candidate statement from Susan Hendler. What do you think of Susan Hendler as a candidate? Please leave your comments below.
It is very important to me that the Board of Education makes quality decisions that will have a positive impact on my children. Our community wants board members who will listen carefully, understand the implications of budget decisions as well as program decisions and act in a responsible manner. We need BOE members who are working for the best future interests of Rye. I possess all of these qualities. I have been an elementary teacher for the past 17 years. I have been teaching in the Scarsdale Public School System since 1994. I have a Bachelor of Arts in Communications as well as a Bachelor of Arts in
Education, both from the University of Michigan. I also have a Masters degree in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Illinois. I am a mother of four boys ages 11, 8, 6 and 3. As a board member, I will bring fair-mindedness, a commitment to represent everyone in the community, an understanding of education and a willingness to make tough decisions. As a board member I will always remember that budget and quality education are not mutually exclusively. I look forward to working with all of you!
Has anyone actually thought through Susan Hendler’s recommendations for reducing costs in the district? I have and they make 0 sense.
#1 – take a two week break at the end of December. Implied savings due to letting staff take off and not having to have the building’s open. As there’s a mandated minimum number of days of instruction, this idea would have 0 savings because the school year would need to be extended to match make up for the added days off in December/January. Strike 1
#2 – add full day kindergarten and reap the benefits of state funding for so doing. Given that the state does not come even close to fully reimburse for the costs of full day kindergarten, this suggestion is guaranteed to actually increase costs. Strike 2
#3 – close the schools over the summer to save on air conditioning and operational costs. I believe that the schools are already largely closed over the summer and for the most part, they are not air conditioned. So again, 0 save here. Strike 3.
I think Mrs. Hendler crossed the line when she attempted to involve our police department after the fact with her silly and implausible tale of trampled bushes & missing signs. My friend in Sanitation said that Mrs. Hendler’s signs on lawns remain, but they have removed those she has her housekeeper place on public property. The area outside the sidewalk does not belong to the homeowner.
Additionally I understand the reporter for the paper did some further digging and none of these “incidents” have been reported to the police.
I don’t know that we’ve ever had a candidate pressured to leave a race, but maybe Mrs. Hendler is trying to spin it that she is more of a threat than she truly is.
I understand she did poorly in the newspaper’s endorsement as the last of seven possible choices.
A realtor’s sign at a local home was knocked down and damaged this week. In the past, local youths have been observed engaging in this type of vandalism and the realtor assumed that this is “more of the same”. She did not leap to the conclusion that a competitor, or their supporters, had mounted a campaign to undermine her efforts.
Just because some voters do not agree with her platform, it does not seem reasonable to assume there is a “plot” against Ms.Hendler-and her signs.