Dear Westmoreland Community:
On behalf of the Board of Education and me, we would like to once again thank you for your endless and tremendous support of our school district and its students. We were forced this year to exceed the tax levy limit of 2.03% and ask that you support an increase of 3.75% and we had the support of over 71% of our community. We can’t thank you enough!
We spend countless hours each year talking about the right balance between an ever-increasing tax burden and the appropriate programs for our kids. What you continue to tell us each year is that you are in support of that process. It is never an easy decision to raise taxes – we are very aware that inflation is real and outpacing wages, that many in our community are on fixed incomes and that even a small increase is sometimes a great burden on many. We never take these decisions lightly. So, thanks for trusting us to do what is right for each child.
We talk often with some very prominent realtors in our area and they continue to tell us that our community is one of the most sought after communities in the tri-county area and that folks are looking to relocate here because of the reputation that our school district has. They tell us that your continued support is proof that you strongly believe in education and the importance of investing in our future. A positive budget vote not only helps us to maintain our current level of programming for kids but also helps to increase the value of each piece of property in our community. So not only are we investing in our kids, we are also continuing to make personal investments. The national data tells us that home values in communities with failing schools, or worse yet with no schools, continue to depreciate while homes in communities with thriving and successful schools continue to appreciate. Positive budget votes are definitely a win – win for all.
As we look forward to the 2024-25 school year we will continue to keep both eyes on the work that is being done in Albany as they rework the school funding formula for next year. As you are all aware, this district received a 0% increase in school aid this year, thus you were asked to shoulder a burden that really belongs with the State of New York. This is unacceptable and can’t be tolerated. As they do less to support public education in the rural communities, you are asked to do more. Collectively, we need to advocate changing this. New York State has a constitutional requirement to fund an equal and appropriate education for all kids. We need to work together over the next 11 months to make sure this message gets to the policy makers in Albany. If you’re willing to get involved with this important advocacy work please send me an email and we can talk about the best path forward.
Lastly, thank you to all who opted to take the post-election poll yesterday. We had 135 people out of a possible 406 voters take the survey, 33%. Typical surveys usually get fewer than 30% participation so this was successful, by those standards. What you told us is that 76% of you would like us to continue with the district budget newsletter as this continues to be the best source of information for many. 75% of those who took this survey were in favor of the budget and 63% of those polled have no kids in the district. This tells us that the community support of our school is widespread. Most who voted in favor of the budget noted that they did so because of trust in the district and wanting to provide the best opportunities for kids. Those not in favor, noted the increased tax burden for those on fixed incomes. And, when asked for suggestions about how best to handle increased financial burdens in the future you told us to think about increasing class sizes before we make cuts to any non-mandated or extracurricular programs. You also suggested that we raise taxes before we ever consider cuts to athletics, clubs, music or theater, AP courses, ZI3 activities, summer programs or campus security. We will continue to interpret and use these results and definitely seek your continued input as we plan for the future.
Once again, we cannot thank you enough for your support and look forward to our continued partnership.
Enjoy the summer.
Sincerely,
Rocco Migliori