What people are talking about in 24 hours of LoHud.com: Solutions and the lack of them for the East Ramapo school district after The Journal News published a series of articles Sunday and Monday on the district’s financial and management troubles. This series was also Monday’s Morning Conversation topic.
School boards. Where is it written on tablets of stone that education must be organized at such a local level? Where is it mandated that the provision of education must be such an intensely political process? Why is a small community like East Ramapo even trying to run an education system? This entire conflict — and much inefficiency — could be got rid of at a stroke if education was made the responsibility of nothing smaller than a county — exactly as is the normal practice in most other countries. Much savings to be had through economies of scale, lower taxes to pay for it, and none of this petty community bickering with amateur elected school boards. How’s that for reframing the problem?”
— Michael Ross
I’ve got the answer: Move out of Rockland. It’s a decaying county anyway. Or at least out of towns where your kids would go to ERCSD. Horrible public transportation system to and from the largest city in the country and it’s less than 30 miles away. Not to mention there are no jobs, the [Tappan Zee Bridge] is falling apart and the replacement isn’t going to be any better. [The George Washington Bridge] is $12 cash. Leave Rockland. That county is a trap. There’s a reason why there aren’t many successful people from there. Get a head start on your kids and leave.”
— Raymond Padilla
It breaks my heart to continue reading what has become of the East Ramapo Central School District. I am a retired employee of 31 years.”
— Patricia Allen
What are you talking about today? Leave your answer in the comments below.
1 Comment
- Michael: organizing at the county would be great if all parts of the County pay the same rate, if zoning codes are the same, etc etc. Remember when they tried to do a County wide reasssessm years ago? Rememeber who kicked up the objection (Ramapo). Want to guess why?
– Raymond: when are you leaving? You are living the fallacy that our Parents did when they ran from the problems of the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens etc. Where is you nirvana? Those who ran to South Carolina are now seeing the same old issues showing up.