Great Neck 2019_03_29

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Serving Great Neck, G.N. Plaza, G.N. Estates, Kensington, Kings Point, Lake Success, Russell Gardens, Saddle Rock and Thomaston

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Friday, March 29, 2019

Vol. 94, No. 13

HEALTH & WELLNESS

ANTI-SEMITIC INCIDENT AT SCHOOL

SUOZZI, KING PRESENT IMMIGRATION COMPROMISE

PAGES 37-52

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Concerns over staffing raised at budget talk

TRAILBLAZER

Growing number of English as a New Language students cited BY JA N E LL E CL AUSEN The Great Neck Public Schools’ proposed $233.64 million budget is likely to change, school officials said at a budget review session Saturday morning, in response to staffing concerns and increasing numbers of higher need students. Great Neck Board of Education President Barbara Berkowitz said the preliminary budget, which is almost $3.8 million higher than the current $229.84 million budget, fulfills a number of promises like maintaining staff levels and programs, adding a nurse, keeping class sizes small and “thinking of our ever increasing [English as a New Language] population.” At the same time, Berkowitz said the board honors its “responsibility to be fiscally responsible” and think about taxpayers, who are now seeing their properties reassessed and perhaps feeling the pinch of their state and local tax deductions being capped at

$10,000. “It’s a very delicate tightrope to figure out how high we can go and still be supported,” Berkowitz said. “I think that if you would’ve spoken to us three years ago, it was a different feeling in the community.” Berkowitz also said the budget could still change. The currently proposed tax levy increase is 1.94 percent, less than half the allowed 4.09 percent, due to a high growth factor and borrowing for capital projects related to the $68.3 million bond approved in 2017, John Powell, the assistant superintendent for business, previously said.# This translates to an expected property tax levy revenue increase from $203.57 million to almost $207.52 million. Stephen Lando, the assistant superintendent for secondary education, said there has been an increased demand for business and math courses at the two high Continued on Page 73

PHOTO COURTESY OF LEGISLATOR ELLEN BIRNBAUM’S OFFICE

Betty Leong, former co-president and current board member of the Great Neck Chinese Association, was honored as a woman trailblazer by Nassau County Legislator Ellen Birnbaum (D-Great Neck) on Monday. See story on page 73.

Celebration of Persian New Year draws crowd BY JA N E LL E CL AUSEN Hundreds of people from around Great Neck attended a celebration of Persian culture at Temple Beth-El for Nowruz

Saturday night, experiencing a showcase of emotional music, artwork and culture. The concert and art exhibit, hosted by the Sephardic Heritage Alliance Inc. and the UJA Federation, was the culmination

of a# series of SHAI events in March, exactly 40 years after the 1979 Iranian Revolution that led to an influx of Persian Jews to Great Neck. SHAI President Rebecca Continued on Page 74

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