Approve District 15 budget, keep incumbents on the board

The proposed Lawrence School District budget of $93.1 million, which includes a $96 reduction in school property taxes should be supported by the community.

District officials have kept the tax levy the same as in the current budget. They have realized savings through layoffs, that helped to retain programs while also adding more clubs for the students.

In these difficult economic times, the district has taken the time and effort to realign administrative positions to save more money, while trying to ensure that academic and extracurricular programs are not cut. This is a fiscally responsible budget and we encourage resident to vote “yes” on Tuesday.

Two District 15 Board of Education seats are being contested. Incumbents Murray Forman and Asher Mansdorf are running for their third and fourth three-year term, respectively. Forman is being challenged by Nicole Di Iorio, and Mansdorf by Gwynn Campbell.

Despite the demographic changes that have roiled the Lawrence School District, officials appear to be putting it back on an even keel. Under a comprehensive capital-improvement program, older building have been renovated, restoring their luster, and students now have state-of-the-art facilities for athletics and performing arts.

The Board of Education sought to stabilize the district by naming longtime educator and Woodmere resident Gary Schall the successor to retiring Superintendent Dr. John Fitzsimons last year. Schall has been accessible and willing to listen to residents’ concerns while seeking to connect with the district’s at-risk youth.

Because of those efforts, the Herald endorses incumbents Forman and Mansdorf. Forman, the board president, is an investor with a head for figures, and has helped the district deal with the challenge of providing services while cutting costs in these harsh economic times.

Mansdorf is a strong leader who has helped implement the necessary changes to cut costs, realize savings and institute the support system that the district’s ever more diverse student population needs to succeed.

We expect Forman, Mansdorf and the other trustees to continue to seek what they describe as the “upward trajectory” of the district, to address the problems of building security and bullying and to connect with and fully represent the interests of all of the district’s diverse groups.

Their challengers, Di Iorio and Campbell, have made valid points during the campaign, and their ideas and enthusiasm were met with respect. Di Iorio demonstrated deep compassion and high energy as she talked about being a bridge between the district and residents. Her valuable work with the youth of the community should continue. Campbell is a parent of two children and a stakeholder in the district, and we hope she stays involved.

Lawrence has been a hotbed of controversy for too long, and that unconstructive stress has a negative effect on the children who attend its schools. By endorsing Forman and Mansdorf, we both urge and hope for a renewed sense of respect and energy for the district and all of its diverse needs, and for an undistracted focus on its students.