Scarsdale Administration and Board Answer Questions About the Proposed 2013-14 School Budget
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Scarsdale School Superintendents and the leadership of the Scarsdale School Board came before the membership of the Scarsdale League of Women Voters on Monday March 18 for a frank discussion of the proposed $146 mm school budget for 2013-14. Led by LWVS School Budget Chair Pam Rubin, the panel reviewed the fund balance and the use of reserve funds, the proposed Wellness Center, long-term district plans, capital improvements, school security and staffing.
Superintendent McGill emphasized the challenge faced by the district, saying, "Everyone wants everything and low taxes too," and told the group that in the past five years "all of the easy savings have been wrung out" of the school budget. With 80% of the proposed budget increase mandated by the state to cover pension and retirement costs, the district has little leeway to invest in new initiatives and improve the school plant.
Assistant Superintendent Linda Purvis reviewed the district's fund balance and the use of reserves to 
fund the budget. She distributed numbers showing that the total fund balance peaked at $18.9 million in 2009-10, allowing the Board to use approximately $6 million a year, from 2008 – 2012 to fund the following year's budgets. Last year the Board made a decision to reduce their reliance on fund balances and draw down these funds. Consequently the 2012-13 budget includes $4,200,000 in reserved funds and for 2013-14 the Board is proposing to include $2,550,000 of reserves. Purvis explained that this reduction in the inclusion of reserves in the 2013-14 budget is the reason why the district's tax levy growth is 4.78% which is larger than the budget-to-budget increase of 3.11%.
Dr. McGill offered background on the proposal for a new Wellness Center to be built underneath the high school gym and explained how this fits into the district's long range planes. Though the Board included $350,000 in funds to renovate the existing fitness center in the 2012-13 budget, meetings with architect Peter Gisolfi convinced the administration that this was not in the best interest of the school. McGill explained that the space now occupied by the fitness center abuts both the high school cafeteria and the library and could later be used to increase the size of these overcrowded resources. Furthermore, the configuration of the current fitness center is tight and dark and would never be an optimal space for the placement and use of large fitness equipment. (Tours of the space are available through the Scarsdale High School P.T.A.)
According to McGill, moving the fitness center to the space underneath the gym answers many of the school's needs:
- Removes the fitness center from an undersized area
- Moves it to a larger, user friendly, open space
- Moves it to a more logical space near the lockers rooms and the gym.
- Creates a new space that is currently not in use.
- Opens up the space now occupied by the fitness center for future renovation
- Provides room for more flexible learning space, additional library space, additional cafeteria space, or a "makers space" for innovation.
Questions also arose about how students' dining needs would be met when 90 additional students enter the high school next year. According to Purvis, the high school will address crowding in the cafeteria by doing the following:
- Creating a third lunch period so that some students will eat during fourth period
- Adding additional seating to the cafeteria
- Adding seating and perhaps food service to the commons area
- Remove an existing office to accommodate more dining near the commons
Purvis explained that the construction of the new fitness center was the first piece of a long term, $22 million plan proposed by architect Peter Gisolfi in a review of the high school and all of the district's buildings. With interest rates at historic lows, Purvis said that the district might consider funding plant repairs and improvements with a bond – however this is not currently on the table.
Purvis distributed a list of proposed plant improvements that have not been included in this year's budget, but will need to be done sooner or later. Among the biggest ticket items were replacement of half of the flat roofs at Quaker Ridge School at $400,000, the renovation of Dean Field at $500,000 and the replacement of the turf field at the high school at $700,000.
Assistant Superintendent Joan Weber reviewed proposed staffing changes for the district including an increase of 3.4 civil service positions and a decrease in 4 teaching positions. Here are some notable items:
-There is one unassigned teacher in the budget – this position could be used at the high school pending student's class enrollment choices for next year.
-An English teacher has been added at the high school to accommodate increased enrollment
-A full time performing arts teacher will be added at the high school to replace the part-time teacher who is retiring.
-In response to increased use of technology in the schools two tech support positions have been added. The new staffers will free up the computer teachers to offer instruction rather than support. More students will be using personal devices and tech repair and support will be necessary, One of these positions is for a network administrator to accommodate increased use technology in the schools.
-Also proposed is a more controversial addition to the staff. The administration would like to hire a Communications Officer to update the website and maintain communication with students, teachers, parents and the community at large. They believe they need a person with greater skills and abilities to communicate with the public in a 
timely manner and maintain transparency.
-Three security officers are budgeted for the high school where an open campus makes it difficult to monitor traffic in and out of the school. The district is also considering outsourcing this function by using personnel from a security company.
-Two librarians will be eliminated – one at the middle school and the other at the high school. According to Weber there are many high quality library aids who can fill in, some whom are currently pursuing masters in library science.
-At the middle school, one Family and Consumer Science (formerly home economics) position will be eliminated through attrition. Both Maureen Ball and Dawn Rivellini have announced their retirements and only one will be replaced.
-A middle school math teacher will be reassigned to the high school.
-At the elementary schools, the district wide kindergarten dance teacher position will be eliminated and a half-time learning resources teacher will be eliminated in response to a decrease in the need for services.
Overall, there will be 21 staff retirements this year and the district is considering changes to personnel needs as these retirements occur.
School Board President Liz Guggenheimer reiterated that this is a period for dialogue on the preliminary budget and that she looks forward to receiving feedback on the budget at subsequent School Board meetings on April 8 and April 22.
Movie Review: Burt's So Good
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Abra-Carell-Dabra! In The Incredible Burt Wonderstone, our favorite Office-mate Steve Carell has been transformed from a middle manager into a middling magician, with equally hilarious results.
Together with his longtime BFF Anton Marvelton, who's played by Steve Buscemi, Burt (Carell) headlines a nightly illusion show in Vegas. The act, which has them dancing to cheesy 80s music in sequined velvet unitards, has turned the duo into big stars. But as we learn in the movie's opening scenes, they'd been outcasts as children—Burt a bully magnet; Anton a sunken-eyed asthmatic. ("Aren't you the kid who's always in the nurse's office?" Burt asks when they meet in grade school. "No, sometimes they take me to the hospital," Anton blithely replies, just one of the fun throwaway lines this flick's chockablock with.) Only when the boys learned magic tricks did their social lives take off.
Smug about his escape from dweebdom, Burt's grown up to be a narcissistic jerk. His assistants take flight more often than his collection of hat-trick doves. He's due to be taken down a notch, and fate is happy to oblige. A new magician (Jim Carey) billed as "The Brain Rapist" shows up on the Strip, with tricks that are literally cutting-edge. Burt and Anton suddenly seem more like Burt and Ernie, unable to match Grey's physically punishing brand of flair. Their act—which includes their latest assistant, Jane (Olivia Wilde)—breaks up. Since Burt's powers don't extend to money management, he's soon down and out.
The movie then settles in to its central plot: Burt's struggle to reinvent his act and himself, repairing old relationships and forging new ones. Yet the journey to redemption, so often a yawn-fest in similar movies, is a delight. There are awesome magic tricks, but also great supporting characters, most notably Alan Arkin as Burt's idol-turned-reluctant-mentor. You'll do popcorn spit-takes during their exchanges, some of which consist solely of screamingly funny facial expressions. Far weaker are the scenes with Olivia Wilde, whose emotions run the gamut from concern to consternation. (Yeah, that's, like, one emotion.)
Still, Jane, Bert and Anton make loveable underdogs, and you'll be rooting for them to have their day. Do they succeed? A true movie reviewer never reveals a film's secrets. See for yourself! You'll leave feeling surprised that nearly 2 hours of your life have mysteriously vanished—without you checking your watch a single time.
Note: This film has a bit of violence and a few squeamish moments. And a romantic scene in which Burt's about to make a certain body part of his, ahem, magically hide somewhere may yield a few uncomfortable questions from the young'uns. I'd only take a savvier kid to this flick, which has a PG-13 rating.
Author Abra-ca-Deborah Skolnik is a senior editor at Parenting magazine, the Scarsdale mother of two, and a former sunken-eyed childhood asthmatic.
Should you go off to see the Wizard? Oz The Great and Powerful offers thrills—and chills....
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(Here's a Mom and kid review of Oz the Great - in theaters now!) The Wizard of Oz proved that you could take the story of a girl looking for her home and make it into a huge movie. Oz The Great and Powerful, its brand-new prequel, proves you can make a huge movie, and it can still have trouble finding a home. Is it a kiddie flick? Only kinda. Grown-up fare? I can't imagine heading there without a kid in tow. If you have a crush on Mila Kunis, you'll only enjoy half the show, till she becomes an ugly green witch. And if you have a crush on James Franco, our Wizard, stop buying movie tickets and save your money for therapy. Don't you remember how smarmy he was at the Oscars?
Which is not to say that this Wizard isn't wonderful at times. Its briskly funny opening introduces us to Oscar ("Oz"), a rascally magician with a traveling circus in Kansas. Between shows, he passes time seducing every gal in sight. When one of then turns out to be a strongman's girlfriend, Oscar leaps into a hot-air balloon to escape a well-deserved beatdown. Just as he floats away, though, a tornado strikes. We're right with him as he endures a (literally) whirlwind journey. When he touches down again, he's clearly not in Kansas anymore.
The land of Oz is more magical than ever in this 3D extravaganza. You'll be picking your jaw back up off the sticky theater floor after seeing crystal flowers and glittering, translucent rainbows. But this beautiful world soon reveals its dark size: A wicked witch is menacing Oz, and the two good-witch sisters who've been guarding the Emerald City have been waiting for a Wizard to rescue them all.
Lured by the promise of a huge reward, Oscar pretends to be their man, setting off on the witch-hunt with two sidekicks. The first is a flying monkey who, unlike his scary cousins in the original Oz movie, is as winsome as a Webkinz. Oscar's other pal is a living china doll. She's meant to be cute, but, as my older daughter whispered, "that's the creepiest thing I've ever seen."
The plot that unfolds is part adventure, part romance (Oscar and Glinda? Who knew?) , and a tale of personal growth as our Wizard realizes his true potential. It's all punctuated by capable if not exceptional performances: Mila Kunis, as a good-witch-gone-bad, holds her own, sweet and vulnerable till, well, she isn't. Michelle Williams, as Glinda, thankfully keeps the sappiness at bay.
The ending is uplifting, and happily no one dies. There's even a moral—that you can't be great without being good first—though neither of my girls, aged 12 and 9, got it. (My hint was when they asked, "But mommy, is there any lesson?"). Both gushed about the film, though. At least till nighttime. Then my 9-year-old insisted on sleeping with me because she was spooked. Gee wiz, Disney, thanks.
Note: This PG movie is rarely violent, but has startling moments and spooky Dark Forest creatures. Unless you don't mind co-sleeping, I'd recommend it for the 10-and-up crowd.
Deborah Skolnik is a senior editor at Parenting magazine and the sleep-deprived mother of two.
Review by daughter Clara Enders
If you like the original Wizard of Oz movie, you've probably heard of the new Disney remake, Oz The Great and Powerful. Oscar Diggs was a circus magician until he got caught up in a tornado while riding a hot air balloon. After the whirlwind ride, he finds himself in the magical and beautiful land of Oz. He lands in a river and after he wades around for a few minutes, "good" witch Theodora sees him and mistakes him for the wizard, someone who is supposed to come and fulfill Oz's prophecy. The next day, she takes him to the Emerald City and along the way he meets a monkey named Finley who promises to be his lifelong servant. When they reach the Emerald City, Oz quickly learns that in order to be king he must defeat the Wicked Witch. Oz and Finely travel down the yellow brick road until they reach China Town, a place where all the little china people live in teapots and teacups. They find a small girl, referred to as China Girl, whose family was killed in a fight with the Wicked Witch. The pair becomes a trio as they travel to the Dark Forest. As the movie progresses, they pick up new friends and come up with creative and brave ways to outsmart the Wicked Witch. Oz also starts to believe that even though he is not THE Wizard, he could still defeat the witch.
I enjoyed all the special effects in this movie. They helped to make it scarier and more imaginative. I thought all the actors were very good, and they played their parts in believable ways. Even all the extras, like the munchkins and tinkers, added more to the film. I think this movie could appeal to everyone, but some little kids could be scared of some intense parts. For instance, the flying monkeys look more like flying beasts, and the fight between Oz and the Wicked Witch is a little bit frightening. I enjoyed this movie and think a lot of other people will too.
Clara Enders is a seventh grader at Scarsdale Middle School.
LWVS School Budget Q&A
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Members of the Scarsdale Board of Education, Superintendent of Schools Dr. Michael McGill, and Assistant Superintendent for Business and Facilities Linda Purvis will discuss the proposed 2013-14 Scarsdale school budget at a meeting to be held by the League of Women Voters of Scarsdale on Monday, March 18th at 9AM at Village Hall. After a question and answer period, League members will come to a consensus on recommendations to the Board of Education on the proposed budget. Members of the community are welcome to attend the presentation and the question and answer period. Only League members may participate in the consensus discussion. Visit www.lwvs.org to join the League, or pay $60 to join at the meeting. For more information, contact Pam Rubin at 914-723-8137.
Scarsdale Police Capture Eastchester Burglars
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A rapid response by Scarsdale Police officers on Friday evening 2/22 resulted in the arrest of three fleeing burglary suspects who had just robbed an Eastchester home. According to Scarsdale Lieutenant Thomas Altizio, an off-duty Eastchester Police Officer, Richard Natoli, spotted a suspect leaving the backyard of an Eastchester home. When the man was questioned, he jumped into a car with two other men and drove north on Scarsdale Avenue. The driver of the escape car then made a left turn onto the Popham Road Bridge and was spotted by Scarsdale Police officers on traffic duty on the bridge. They notified headquarters that the getaway car had turned south on Garth Road. Scarsdale Police officers rushed to Garth Road and stopped the car containing the three men at Garth Road near Harney Road at 7:00 pm on Friday night. The men were taken into custody and held until they could be turned over to the Eastchester Police.
Stolen items from the home were found in the car.
The three men were identified as: Anderson B. Moncada, 24, of 39 Thomas St. in Brentwood; , 29, of 46-08 74th St. in Elmhurst; Juan D. Hernandez-Moncada and Fabian Idarraga, 29, of 21-22 30th St. in Astoria. They were charged with robbing two homes in Eastchester – one on Vernon Drive and the other on Hilburn Road, a second-degree burglary. They are now being held on $150,000 in Westchester County Jail.
