Fighting for change on the Malverne BOE

The Malverne school district does not have the “right” Board of Education — or so say close to 400 people who voted for a last-minute write-in candidate in last week’s election.

While the votes weren’t enough to launch the candidate, Malverne resident and private-school parent Don Pupke, to victory on May 17, they certainly made a statement.

The campaign
Pupke challenged board President Dr. Patrick Coonan, who ran unopposed for his seat, to show school officials and board trustees that many in the Malverne and Lakeview communities are ready for change and unwilling to accept the status quo.

“The current Board of Education is dysfunctional, insular and remote,” Pupke wrote prior to the election on a Facebook page dedicated to his run. “We need to bring transparency and openness to the board and administration.”

Speaking at the Lakeview Public Library the night before election day, Pupke reiterated his stance, saying Malverne’s board is “autocratic” and has for years fostered “waste, confusion, nepotism, ego and incompetence.” He told the taxpayers in attendance that the board is not transparent and that it caters to district administrators’ every whim. Coonan was invited to speak at the forum, but, due to a scheduling conflict, was unable to attend.

Some 385 of the 1,015 people who voted in the May 17 election either agreed with and supported Pupke or saw him as a fit replacement for Coonan. Many who did not support Pupke took issue with his status as a parent who sends his children to public schools.

“Why should people elect a man to our school board when his own children don’t even utilize the schools?” wrote Margaret Delligatti in a Facebook post.

Laura Casini, who attended the forum at the library, said she didn’t trust Pupke. Casini worried that as a private-school parent, his interest would be in saving his own tax dollars.