DELMAR-Two board member seats are open for Bethlehem Central school district’s upcoming election after members announced they would not seek re-election last week.
At the April 6 meeting, board members Jonathan Fishbein and Wendy Samson told the board they would not be running in the election. Fishbein has served on the board for six years and Samson for three. Both seats will expire at the end of June.
“The nature of my job has dramatically changed recently and there’s just not enough hours in the day,” Samson said last week. “This board deserves a lot of time because it’s an excellent school system.”
A board member term runs for three years and is a volunteer position. Fishbein served a three year term from 2016 to 2019 before being re-elected in 2019 for the present term. Since Fishbein and Samson are not seeking re-election, two seats remain open for the term years of 2022 to 2025.
Those who wish to run must submit petitions with the signatures of 50 qualified district voters by no later than April 18, at 5 p.m.. The Board will hold a “Meet the BOE Candidates” night on May 11 at 7 p.m. if there are more than two candidates. The election will take place on May 17.
“I said when I was elected that if when I left everyone hated me a little then I’d done a good job,” Fishbein said. “I believe that’s probably where I ended up, so I’m happy with that.”
The finalized budget was also discussed at the April 6 meeting. The budget totals $102,698,000 for the 2022-2023 year. The budget saw a .65 percent increase from the 2021-2022 budget.
The adopted budget is balanced which allows for no increase in school taxes to community members. The budget also does not include a change in bus eligibility as board members agreed to postpone the changes at the March 16 board meeting. Propositions up for vote with the budget include the purchase of one electric school bus and three mid-sized buses, and the proposal to create a 2022 Capital Reserve.
The 2022-2023 budget will be put to vote on May 17 from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. at Bethlehem Central High School.