Announcement Letter

My announcement letter, New Paltz Times, 4/1 edition:

My name is KT Tobin Flusser. Last winter, I led the “Save the Middle School” petition drive which was effective in not only raising public awareness of an effort to vacate the current building and build new on the periphery of our town, but it also served to convey the desire to save the middle school to our school board and district administration. Since January 2008, I have chaired the “Save the New Paltz Middle School” committee and have regularly attended school board meetings. I serve on the New Paltz GreenWorks steering committee and the Village Environmental Conservation Commission (EnCC). With three children in our public schools- one in Duzine, one in Lenape, and one in the Middle School, and as a strong believer in public service, I would now like to formalize my commitment to district activities by seeking a seat on the New Paltz Central School District board on May 19th.

As the recent March 18th school board debate and resulting resolution approving the process to renovate the middle school demonstrated, renovation on-site is by no means secure. The first thing I will provide as a member of our school board is an unwavering vote to commit the district to this project, and to then see that it proceeds in a timely fashion with a fiscally sound plan. We need to get to the design phase as quickly as possible for two very important reasons: the sooner we have a design and a plan, the less expensive this project will be; and, the probability of attaining funding from federal stimulus dollars increases the earlier we get to “shovel-ready” status.

What else do I support?

* I am a strong proponent of educational programming, curriculum, and facilities that prepare our children for success in their 21st century lives and careers.

* I support a critical look at how we fund public education. We desperately need property tax relief and reform, not only out of fairness to lower- and fixed-income property owners, but also so state budget crises don't create educational and tax crises here at home.

* I believe we need to focus on the continued greening of our classrooms, buildings, and buses with an eye on conservation and cost savings.

* I am an advocate for increased transparency in our district which includes an open flow of information, more detail during the budget process, greater opportunities for the public to participate, and a wider incorporation of community and local business involvement.

* I believe we need healthier food in our cafeterias. We absolutely need to implement the Nutrition Task Force recommendations and to purchase more local food.

* Lastly, with grade sizes fluctuating as much as they have in recent years, we need to keep at least one unencumbered teacher in the school budget as this would ensure smaller class sizes at the elementary level and varied course choices at our middle and high schools.

Of course, there are many issues, and I invite the community to meet with me to talk about the upcoming election, my candidacy, and the challenges our district will be facing in the next few years at a campaign kick-off on Monday, April 13th, 6pm to 8pm at the Mudd Puddle at the Water Street Market. For more information, please email kt4schoolboard@gmail.com or visit www.kt4schoolboard.blogspot.com.