Eligible voters in the Pine Plains Central School District go to the polls on May 16 with an opportunity to cast ballots on school budgets, busing, and two seats on the Board of Education.
At a May 4 public meeting at Stissing Mountain high school, PPCSD budget officer Laura Rafferty outlined the three items that will appear on the public ballot.
Proposition One is voting on the district’s proposed $36,415,211 budget for 2023-2024, a 3.3% increase over the previous year. Proposition Two is to approve the purchase of two 71-passenger school buses for a total of $303,994.
Voters will also have an opportunity to vote for Heidi Johnson and James Griffin, both school board incumbents who are running unopposed to renew their terms.
Nearly 80% of the district budget — $28,992,194 — is allocated for school programs in the district’s three constituent schools: Cold Spring Early Learning Center, Seymour Smith Intermediate Learning Center and Stissing Mountain Junior/Senior High School.
The remaining 20% is roughly split between administrative expenses ($3,906,222, a decrease from last year) and capital costs ($3,716,805, a slight increase from last year because a bond for a capital project is being paid down in the fall).
Rafferty also noted that New York state aid to the district has been reduced by $18,000, but said she was confident the decrease could be absorbed in the budget. Budget information is available online and binders are available for review at the Pine Plains, Stanfordville, Northeast-Millerton and Clinton libraries.
In-person voting on May 16 will be held at the high school cafeteria, from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Absentee ballots can be obtained through the district website, at the school or by calling (518) 398-7181 x1408. They must be received by 5 p.m. on May 16.
To be eligible to vote, individuals must be permanent residents of the PPCSD region for at least 30 days prior to the election and must also be registered with either the school district or with the Dutchess or Columbia county board of elections, depending on their county of residence.
Residents are reminded and encouraged to vote on or before May 16th on the ballot measures put forward by the Board of Education.
In other school board business, Rafferty reported that the principal of Seymour Smith Intermediate School, Julie Roberts, is continuing the ROARS program there, which acknowledges 12 students twice a year for the qualities of respect, open-mindedness, achievement, responsibility and success, and invites their parents to the school for a breakfast.
Among other news at Seymour Smith, Rafferty noted the success of the composting project initiated by teacher Nelson Zayas, in which students are learning how to reduce food waste from breakfasts at the school. So much topsoil has been created by the program that some of it is being offered to the Pine Plains Community Garden and other town residents.
At the high school, there are 37 members of the National Honor Society, with 17 new inductees. In August 2022, Stissing Mountain was designated a “school of distinction” by the New York State Public High School Athletic Association, because more than three-fourths of student athletes participating on sports teams had grade averages of 90% and higher. Sixty-three seniors are slated to graduate in June.
John Bopp, the student liaison to the Board of Education, noted that prom is this weekend and that more than 100 guests are expected at the May 11 senior-to-senior breakfast, where district residents aged 55 and older can join high school seniors at the school for a free hot breakfast. Stissing Mountain high school will also hold a Club Fair on May 19 to encourage students to join the many clubs available at the school.