Tuesday, June 17, 2025
A controversy over a Board of Education candidate’s campaign and subsequent election has sparked a discourse in the Elmont Union Free School District Board over charter schools.
As Stephanie Douglas, principal of the Academy Charter Middle School in Uniondale, was running and then elected to be an Elmont trustee, residents of that community voiced concerns over the possible impact to their district.
Douglas was legally permitted to run as state eligibility requirements note that a candidate can work for a school board in a district which they do not work in. But Trecia Wong, the incumbent Elmont trustee whom Douglas defeated, has raised ethical concerns about her candidacy and its broader implications.
“I am worried that we have a board with a charter school principal who has children from our district that go to her charter school,” Wong said. “It’s a glaring conflict of interest.”
Wong claims that Douglas’s campaign violated the intention of New York State Education Law 2103(2), which prohibits public school employees from serving on boards in communities where they live, and General Municipal Law 800-806, which bars those with potential financial conflicts of interest from holding board seats.
Rachel Connors, a public information officer at the New York State Education Department, said that Douglas’s campaign and election did not break any state laws.
Douglas had not responded to requests for comment as the Herald went to press.
Charter schools, which are publicly funded, do not operate within the public school system, but rather negotiate contracts with the school district they are in or a state education agency. Charter schools are funded by local tax dollars on a cost-per-pupil basis, matching that of the public school district the individual student comes from.
The Academy Charter School currently has three school networks—Uniondale, Hempstead and Wyandanch—which operate out of different school buildings.
The Uniondale and Hempstead locations are in contract with the Town of Hempstead Local Development Corporation, which approved a $58 million tax-exempt bond sale to the charter school in 2020, according to reporting by Long Island Business News in April of that year. Funds were split between the two locations for expansions to buildings and new technical programs.
The Academy Charter School is also in contract with the State University of New York Charter Schools Institute. The contract with the Academy Charter, which lasts a maximum of five years, was renewed in March 2024, according to the SUNY website.
At an Elmont school board meeting on April 8, Superintendent Marlon Small had reported that more than $800,000 in district funds was directed to charter schools this year, to support over 50 students. Ten years ago, in the 2014-15 school year, that amount was $146,000.
Wong, a public school educator for over 27 years, said the rising number of students opting to attend charter schools has financially strained the district, and the loss of that money harms the majority of students who remain.
Although charter schools like Academy receive nearly $24,000 per student — matching the per-pupil cost in Elmont — the departure of even a few students from a public school can result in the loss of a teacher’s salary. That teacher might otherwise serve dozens of students, so the loss could lead to larger classes and stretched resources.
“I feel strongly, because we can use those resources for our children to strengthen public schools,” Wong said. “We are losing critical resources.”
She said the funds directed to charter schools could instead reduce class sizes in public schools and allow the hiring of more teachers, specialists and support staff.
She also noted that in California, charter school employees are barred from serving on public school boards. “We need to catch up with states like California,” Wong said.
Shobha Narine, an Elmont resident and teacher with over 20 years of experience in the New York City school system, expressed similar concerns after the election. She teaches math at Brooklyn Environmental Exploration School, and previously worked at Beginning with Children Charter School.
“I think that having new visions and ideas are great,” Narine said. “But I feel this is a major conflict of interest.”
She said that taxpayers in the Elmont district are essentially paying the charter school Douglas leads so Elmont students can attend — a result of its public funding using local tax dollars.
Narine also criticized the lack of oversight in charter school spending. Though funded publicly based on enrollment, charter schools are private entities and are not required to publicly disclose how funds are used.
The State Education Department states on its website that charter schools can create their own policies and curriculums, and manage resources independently. Public schools are subject to more state oversight.
While many parents believe that charter schools offer higher-quality education — citing uniforms, homework loads and strong test scores — Narine argued that these features don’t guarantee long-term academic success. She said both students and teachers are often overexerted and experience burnout.
The Academy Charter School has a 96 percent graduation rate but ranks 590th in college readiness compared to other high schools in New York. Elmont Memorial High School’s graduation rate is slightly lower, at 93 percent, but it ranks significantly higher, at 231st, in college readiness.
Academic scorecard ratings — which reflect Advanced Placement exam performance, graduation rates, and subject proficiency — are 71.25 for the Academy and 75.04 for Elmont Memorial.
Some parents say they believe the Elmont district should better promote its strengths to families considering charter options.
Rachelle Lewis, an Elmont resident, said she supports a parent’s right to choose but worries that growing charter enrollment reflects a negative perception of Elmont’s schools.
“I want more families to know the gem that we have in this school district,” Lewis said. “Our school district is phenomenal.”
She added that having a charter school employee on the school board could weaken the district’s efforts to retain students.
“I want to see people on the board who care about the community,” Lewis said. “We need to put in more people who can actually look at the facts, whether they agree with it or not, and do what’s really best for Elmont.”
Narine said she’d like to see the school district ramp up its curriculum to better challenge students and prepare them for college and careers.
Wong added that Elmont schools serve all students, including those with disabilities, behavioral challenges, and language barriers — students that charter schools may decline.
“When they enter our building,” Wong said of Elmont students, “they’re ours. We educate all children. Not some children.”
Have an opinion on the issues presented in this story? Send a letter to rdelorenzo@liherald.com.
