Vote ‘yes’ on Glen Cove’s school budget

The Glen Cove School District has gone above and beyond to show taxpayers what their money is being spent on. Each month, members of the public, and the press, are invited to hear the head of an academic or administrative department explain their role in the district’s ecosystem. So far, we’ve liked what we’ve seen and for that and several other reasons, we support the $68 million adopted budget for the 2018-19 school year.

We are pleased that the spending plan —2.6 percent larger than the current budget, with an increase in the tax levy of 1.9 percent — has a clear emphasis on self-directed learning, and includes an extra salary for a new science, technology, research, engineering, arts and math — STREAM — librarian, which will help students apply those skills outside the classroom, of their own volition and on topics that inspire them.

The history curriculum shows tremendous depth. Students are asked to analyze primary sources to decide whether prevailing narratives could be wrong. The science curriculum calls on teachers to step back and let students’ hands-on, minimally guided experimentation lead to insight.

We are also excited about the district’s initiative to replace one social worker with a psychologist. The factors that impact the developing emotions of our children are growing more complex every year, and more support to help them cope will go a long way toward teaching those students who most need it to be kind to themselves, and to one another.

Acknowledging the demands of district parents — and students themselves — to shore up the security of Glen Cove’s school buildings, the Board of Education and the district administration have acted quickly to begin the process of upgrading them. The $250,000 in security measures in the budget will fund necessary improvements, like screening vestibules, to be put in place at all of the schools by the start of the next academic year.

In addition, the board’s bond committee is moving quickly to determine what facilities improvements the district needs. Members were expected to present their findings and suggestions at a public meeting on Wednesday, after the Herald Gazette went to press. Bond repayments could cut into future years’ budgets, and voters should raise their concerns at upcoming school board meetings. In the meantime, we urge them to approve the budget.