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"As part of Croydon's Long Term Planning committee, I worked
to develop the Resident Survey. The community response was
tremendous, indicating that the public feels strongly about the
direction Croydon should take. From this and discussions with
residents, three common goals consistently crop up.
If
elected, my voice would remain a minority on the school board, so
I cannot make grand promises. Nevertheless, I am committed to
seeing these public demands carried out and not ignored as is so
often the case among government bureaucracies.
Our
area agreement with Newport, due to expire in 2010, must be
revisited to produce terms more favorable to Croydon.
The
new agreement must NOT contain any clause forbidding Croydon from
sending students to other schools. Residents demanded parental
school choice by a 2-to-1 margin.
We
must reevaluate participation in the SAU, as it consumes taxpayer
dollars and provides no education whatsoever. Our SAU costs
increased 54% last year while services were cut back.
Wish
lists from the State Department of Education must be accompanied
by bags of money. This is in our Constitution. Why should
homeowners spend money on programs we neither need nor want?
Spending
in "special education" must be scrutinized and
contained. Public support for these programs should be withdrawn
until they become more transparent.
Per-pupil education spending must not increase faster than the
rate of inflation. No excuses.
At
last year's Town Hall meeting, I proposed a modest $25k budget
reduction designed to hold the line on the property tax rate. The
measure was defeated, thanks in no small part to the efforts of
education workers. Had the school board proposed a leaner budget,
we would be paying lower taxes today.
One
final comment: I believe that the duty of any school board member
does not include putting the district, its employees, or the State
ahead of the community. With this in mind, I ask you to support my
candidacy for the Croydon school board. Jim can be reached at
603-863-7613 or email at jimpeschke@joltmail.com |
