Wallkill, Pine Bush and Valley Central budgets approved

Posted 6/17/20

The results for the school budget votes and board of education elections were finalized Wednesday.

The Wallkill Central School District’s 2020-2021 budget was approved. 2,509 people voted …

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Wallkill, Pine Bush and Valley Central budgets approved

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The results for the school budget votes and board of education elections were finalized Wednesday.

The Wallkill Central School District’s 2020-2021 budget was approved. 2,509 people voted to approve the budget while 1,330 voted against its acceptance. The ballot featured a second proposition, which was also approved. This was in regards to the purchase of a building located at 1500 NYS Route 208 in Wallkill to replace the current administrative building. 2,499 people voted in favor of the purchase and 1,323 were opposed. 

Wallkill’s accepted budget is $77,697,248, a 1.53 percent increase from the 2019-2020 school year. The budget maintains low class sizes for grades K-12 to allow for enhanced learning opportunities, maintains support services to address the social-emotional needs of students and continues the assignment of police officers in all five school buildings. 

Kathryn Anderson, Vincent Petroccelli and David Bartolone were elected to the Wallkill Central School District Board of Education. Four candidates were seeking three open seats. Anderson, a board member since 2002, earned 2,819 votes and Petroccelli, a board member since 2008, garnered 2,563 votes. Bartolone will join the board after earning 2,149 votes. 2,038 votes were cast for candidate Michael Rose. The school budget vote and board of education election results will be certified as official at Thursday night’s board of education meeting.

Superintendent of School Kevin Castle was pleased with the results of the board of education election and school budget vote.

“I was very pleased with the outcome,” he said. “We have such a supportive community and our students, faculty and staff are very lucky to have a supportive community. If it wasn’t for the support of our community, we would not be able to provide the programs for our students.”

The Pine Bush Central School District’s 2020-2021 budget was also approved. 2,876 people voted in favor of the budget while 1,727 voted against it. 

The approved budget was $121,587,157, an increase of 2.37 percent from the 2019-2020 school year. The budget for the upcoming school year maintains current class sizes and reduces out-of-district special education costs by expanding in-district offerings. This accepted budget also begins formal funding of the district’s strategic plan.

Incumbents Cara Robertson and Kristi Kheiralla were once again elected to the Pine Bush Central School District Board of Education. Three candidates were vying for two open seats. Robertson earned 2,956 votes and Kheiralla had 2,786. This will be Robertson’s third term on the school board and Kheiralla’s second. Tasha T. Butler secured 2,180 votes. There were also a handful of votes for several write-in candidates. The school budget vote and board of education election results will be certified as official at the board’s meeting on June 23.

Like Castle, Superintendent of Schools Tim Mains was also happy with his district’s results.

“I’m thrilled with the positive results of our vote on the school budget for school year 2020-2021,” he said. “That support allows us to continue to provide exceptional programs with our exceptional staff.”

The Valley Central School District’s 2020-2021 budget was passed. 3,112 people voted in favor while 2,281 were opposed. 

The passed budget was $108,429,011, a 1.5 percent increase from the 2019-2020 school year. The new budget supports a hands-on Science 21 curriculum for elementary school students and a science, technology, engineering and mathematics lab for students in grades K-5. In addition, the budget includes a middle school technology program. All music, art and sports programs as well as all clubs and extracurricular activities are maintained in the budget for the upcoming school year. 

Katie McKnight and Joseph Bond were elected to the Valley Central School District Board of Education. McKnight received 3,747 votes while Bond earned 3,322. This will be Bond’s second term on the board. This school year was his first as the board’s vice president. Incumbent Sheila Schwartz was unsuccessful in her bid for reelection. The two-term board member earned 1,642 votes. The school budget vote and board of education election results will be certified as official at the board’s meeting on Thursday.

Each elected candidate will serve a three-year term, commencing July 1, 2020 and ending June 30, 2023.