Today was the monthly meeting of the New Paltz Government Efficiency and Effectiveness Study Working Group. I read this statement during public comment:
This statement is respectfully submitted to the New Paltz Government Efficiency and Effectiveness Study Working Group (WG) (renamed during the project as the Steering Committee) and the Community Advisory Committee (CAC) co-chairs, signed by seven CAC members.
We, the undersigned, have grave concerns about the study process and product to date. Concerning process, the WG rejected the CAC’s request to hold evening meetings, to provide detailed meeting minutes, including rationales for major decisions, and to abide by the Core Values for Public Participation1 guidelines (International Association for Public Participation; http://www.iap2.org).*
The study proposal, which was submitted to the New York State High Priority Planning Grant program as part of the grant application, clearly states, “Concrete processes and strategies will be incorporated into the process in order to communicate facts and promote a dialogue that will facilitate a high level of civic engagement.” The RFP for the project also states, in bold, “An enhanced public involvement plan to promote wide scale participation in the process is required.”
Despite these guidelines, from the start, there has been a lack of public participation and clarity about the CAC’s role in that public process. One CAC member asked, “Is the CAC expected to merely inform the public of decisions, or will the public be invited to engage in meaningful participation?” Another said, “I thought our job was to gather public input [in order to] inform the process of the study, not to just garner support for its conclusions.”
To further the goal of public participation, the grant application specifically required the creation of a project website to facilitate information-sharing between the WG, CAC, and community at large. In addition, the application stated, “Dedicated pages on both municipalities’ websites will provide a record of the study progress and include links to all relevant documents.” The website, through the members-only Ning site, failed to meet the basic access needs of many members, continues to have multiple outstanding and unanswered questions, and supplies limited, unclear documentation to outline the process as it has unfolded. Requests from the CAC for additional information and better explanations have also been denied. The Village and Town were complicit in these obstacles to public access, failing to even link to the site until the project had been underway for months, and never providing additional resources. While the consultants have repeatedly suggested that questions, comments, and suggestions be funneled through the website, their responses have been exceedingly slow or, more frequently, absent altogether.
Whether deliberate or unintentional, this failure to engage the public has led us to feel that the WG is secretive and disinterested in process. These concerns were reinforced when the WG chose not to release the draft report to the public. Perhaps as a result of this decision, not one CAC member commented on the substance of the draft report, either due to stated issues with the lack of disclosure (at least four members voiced this concern), or speculatively, disengagement due to lack of clear process and transparency. One CAC member stated, “I hardly think it's fair to presume that this relatively small group can adequately represent the diverse perspectives of all of New Paltz, when all of New Paltz has not had any opportunity to review such a document.” Another member said, “How can there be such a recommendation when the information leading up to this conclusion has not been disclosed to the CAC, let alone the public? This whole report is lacking public input. There should not have even been a draft without public input.”
In terms of product, while the work to date has included a thorough analysis of dollars (efficiency), there has been barely any discussion about governance (effectiveness). We refer again to the study proposal, which states, “[T]his project will not only review opportunities for efficiency, it will also consider all potential governance models.”
Although the WG has discussed some governance models, none of these discussions included or even considered public feedback. The draft report rejects many possibilities (e.g., city, village dissolution, a model of our own design, status quo) without any public discussion. This process and the conclusions concerning possible governance models fly in the face of the study proposal, which states, “[t]his neutral feasibility study will not presume any preconceived outcome, and instead will consider all options, including the prospect of alternatives not currently defined by law and the option of continuation of the existing structure(s).”
The proposal also says, “Dissent will be an acknowledged component of the discourse and will not be an impediment to the process.” We feel strongly that our dissent and our concerns (which have been expressed repeatedly to you) have been ignored. Furthermore, we deeply hope that the WG will recognize our commitment to this project, and will listen to and act on our constructive criticisms. We want to be ambassadors for this project, but as one member noted, “the CAC can only act as translators if they are informed. Information on the process thus far and decisions that have been made are not readily accessible in its entirety.”
Lastly, since the CAC, to date, has provided no feedback to the WG on the substance—only on process—of the report, we respectfully request that the language that the CAC provided “input and involvement” on the draft report be deleted. Perhaps if the process improves, then the final report can properly acknowledge the contribution of the CAC. The CAC has been eager and prepared to contribute, however it is impossible to do so when the group has not been given the authority, autonomy, or information necessary to fulfill the expectations outlined in the original proposal.
In closing, we wish to make clear that we have a desire to provide the citizens of New Paltz with the information necessary to make sound, reasoned, and informed decisions about improving the efficiency and effectiveness of our government. We have made it clear that to do so, we must engage the public early and often. Failure to do so will almost surely result in rancor, discontent, and mistrust. In this regard the CAC accurately reflects the sentiments of the community.
Signed,
John Logan
Ira Margolis
Amanda Sisenstein
Caryn Sobel
KT Tobin
Brittany Turner
Michael Zierler
* Core Values for the Practice of Public Participation
1. Public participation is based on the belief that those who are affected by a decision have a right to be involved in the decision-making process.
2. Public participation includes the promise that the public's contribution will influence the decision.
3. Public participation promotes sustainable decisions by recognizing and communicating the needs and interests of all participants, including decision makers.
4. Public participation seeks out and facilitates the involvement of those potentially affected by or interested in a decision.
5. Public participation seeks input from participants in designing how they participate.
6. Public participation provides participants with the information they need to participate in a meaningful way.
7. Public participation communicates to participants how their input affected the decision.
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Monday, April 11, 2011
Village Ballot Lottery Complete, Maybe
Today was the lottery drawing for the ballot order in the upcoming Village of New Paltz elections. Here are the results, in order of how they will appear in the voting booth:
1 Positive Party - Ariana Basco, Trustee (4 year seat)
2 One Community Party - Pete Healey, Mayor; Sally Rhoads, Trustee (4 year seat); Martin Sherow, Trustee (4 year seat); Stuart Glenn, Trustee (2 year seat)
3 New Paltz Party - Kip Ruger, Trustee (4 year seat)
4 Village Unity Party - Jean Gallucci, Mayor
5 Cooperative Party - Jason West, Mayor
6 Balance Party - Rick Bunt, Trustee (4 year seat)
7 Groovy Blueberry Party - Jon Cohen, Mayor; Amy Cohen, Trustee (4 year seat); Emily Crocetti, Trustee (4 year seat)
8 Community Connection Party - Shari Osborn, Trustee (2 year seat)
According to mayoral candidate Pete Healey, there is some concern/confusion about a few issues:
1 - Whether or not the ballot has room for 8 separate parties and if the last 2 or 3 may need to "share" a ballot line (and whether or not there is room for that)
2 - Whether or not it is legal to use the municipality name, "New Paltz", in a party name
3 - Whether or not more than one party can use the same word, in this case, "Community" in their name
1 Positive Party - Ariana Basco, Trustee (4 year seat)
2 One Community Party - Pete Healey, Mayor; Sally Rhoads, Trustee (4 year seat); Martin Sherow, Trustee (4 year seat); Stuart Glenn, Trustee (2 year seat)
3 New Paltz Party - Kip Ruger, Trustee (4 year seat)
4 Village Unity Party - Jean Gallucci, Mayor
5 Cooperative Party - Jason West, Mayor
6 Balance Party - Rick Bunt, Trustee (4 year seat)
7 Groovy Blueberry Party - Jon Cohen, Mayor; Amy Cohen, Trustee (4 year seat); Emily Crocetti, Trustee (4 year seat)
8 Community Connection Party - Shari Osborn, Trustee (2 year seat)
According to mayoral candidate Pete Healey, there is some concern/confusion about a few issues:
1 - Whether or not the ballot has room for 8 separate parties and if the last 2 or 3 may need to "share" a ballot line (and whether or not there is room for that)
2 - Whether or not it is legal to use the municipality name, "New Paltz", in a party name
3 - Whether or not more than one party can use the same word, in this case, "Community" in their name
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Village of New Paltz Candidates for the May 3rd Elections
Mayor
Jon Cohen
Jean Gallucci
Pete Healey
Jason West
4 Year Trustee (two seats)
Ariana Basco
Rick Bundt
Amy Cohen
Emily Crocetti
Sally Rhoads
Kip Ruger
Martin Sherow
2 Year Trustee (one seat)
Stewart Glenn
Shari Osborn
Jon Cohen
Jean Gallucci
Pete Healey
Jason West
4 Year Trustee (two seats)
Ariana Basco
Rick Bundt
Amy Cohen
Emily Crocetti
Sally Rhoads
Kip Ruger
Martin Sherow
2 Year Trustee (one seat)
Stewart Glenn
Shari Osborn
Sunday, March 20, 2011
A three-point position
- Fact: there is no problem that can't be made worse by introducing competitiveness among the stakeholders.
- Fact: there is no political process that doesn't make the participants automatically see the world as a big strategy map which details where "us" and "them" are located.
- Fact: New Paltz loses every single election because of the two above facts.
Friday, March 11, 2011
In a recent letter to the editor, the writer started their letter by stating “..this is not an attack on any one teacher.” They then proceeded to attack the entire New Paltz teaching staff by sharing some of the contractual language of their contract. The first two paragraphs stated the minimum amount of time that teachers are required to work. While these numbers are correct, they do not accurately reflect what happens in real life. Many, if not most teachers are at school well before or well after the official “start and end” times on a regular basis. During that time, they prepare the classroom for the day. Others continue the work they did at home the night before, marking papers. Some are meeting with parents who need an early morning meeting. Other are providing enrichment for students who can come early or stay late, either in groups or individually. Others stay to meet with their colleagues on an informal basis, planning how to work together collectively, discussing practice, sharing resources. Some are taking in-service courses. At night, teachers are marking papers, developing assignments, researching lessons and talking on the phone with parents.
During those summers off, most teachers further their education with ongoing professional development, engaging in programs and projects to increase their skill, expand their knowledge base and help to make them better teachers. To maintain a teaching license in NYS, all teachers must take 175 hours of coursework over a five-year period, one week a year. For at least one week prior to school, many teachers, especially but not exclusively those at the elementary level, come in to prepare the classroom for the student’s arrival. They put their room back together after it has been serviced by maintenance, unpack their supplies, do massive amounts of paperwork to get ready as well as be available to meet students who always come in so see who is their new teacher(s).
The writer then goes on to examine the benefits teacher’s receive. This is the local echo of the now national mood to incite people against public employees. This has resulted in a review of this compensation. Studies have shown that when accounting for level of education, public employees, including teachers, make less than their counterparts in the private sector when salary and benefits are considered. In NYS, all teacher must have a Master’s degree in Education.
But this outrage belies a more troubling trend in our public discussion. It is true that public employees, workers who are about the only group left with powerful unions, have a decent wage, for which they work hard by the way!
It is more of a concern that others wish to pull them down rather than say, “Why don’t I have good health insurance, more vacation time, better retirement options, and the ability to have a say in my work rather than be dictated to?” Why do we not seek to aspire to all of us having a better economic life? There is enough money out there. But we don’t have it. Guess who does!
This shift of wealth upwards coincides with the decline of unions since the early 70’s. What has happened in our society is a massive transfer of wealth to the top 2% and within that, the big winners by far are the top one-tenth of one percent. Over the last 30 years, this vast accumulation of wealth--how many mansions can you own?--has led to vast amounts of money being used to legally bribe and buy politicians of both parties. What has resulted is an abandonment of a middle class society. What is now clear, although it has been happening over time, is the creation of an oligarchy, a society that is being run for the benefit of the wealthy. In NYS, since 1990, the top 1% of earners, those earning over % 633,000 in today’s dollars with the average income being 2.3 million, have doubled their share of income, from 17% to 35.3%. The top 5% of all earners, those with incomes from $209,000 up, take home 49.4% of all NYS incomes. The rest of us now share the remaining 50.6%. The bottom 50% of all earners in NYS take home only 9.1% of all income, down from 13.9% in 1990. Moreover, that top 1% pays only 8.4% of their income in NYS taxes while those with incomes from $33,000 to 209,000 pay between 10.7% and 11.0% of our income in taxes.
We, the bottom 95%, are being squeezed. We are being pitted against each other. Who benefits?
David Dukler
Gardiner
During those summers off, most teachers further their education with ongoing professional development, engaging in programs and projects to increase their skill, expand their knowledge base and help to make them better teachers. To maintain a teaching license in NYS, all teachers must take 175 hours of coursework over a five-year period, one week a year. For at least one week prior to school, many teachers, especially but not exclusively those at the elementary level, come in to prepare the classroom for the student’s arrival. They put their room back together after it has been serviced by maintenance, unpack their supplies, do massive amounts of paperwork to get ready as well as be available to meet students who always come in so see who is their new teacher(s).
The writer then goes on to examine the benefits teacher’s receive. This is the local echo of the now national mood to incite people against public employees. This has resulted in a review of this compensation. Studies have shown that when accounting for level of education, public employees, including teachers, make less than their counterparts in the private sector when salary and benefits are considered. In NYS, all teacher must have a Master’s degree in Education.
But this outrage belies a more troubling trend in our public discussion. It is true that public employees, workers who are about the only group left with powerful unions, have a decent wage, for which they work hard by the way!
It is more of a concern that others wish to pull them down rather than say, “Why don’t I have good health insurance, more vacation time, better retirement options, and the ability to have a say in my work rather than be dictated to?” Why do we not seek to aspire to all of us having a better economic life? There is enough money out there. But we don’t have it. Guess who does!
This shift of wealth upwards coincides with the decline of unions since the early 70’s. What has happened in our society is a massive transfer of wealth to the top 2% and within that, the big winners by far are the top one-tenth of one percent. Over the last 30 years, this vast accumulation of wealth--how many mansions can you own?--has led to vast amounts of money being used to legally bribe and buy politicians of both parties. What has resulted is an abandonment of a middle class society. What is now clear, although it has been happening over time, is the creation of an oligarchy, a society that is being run for the benefit of the wealthy. In NYS, since 1990, the top 1% of earners, those earning over % 633,000 in today’s dollars with the average income being 2.3 million, have doubled their share of income, from 17% to 35.3%. The top 5% of all earners, those with incomes from $209,000 up, take home 49.4% of all NYS incomes. The rest of us now share the remaining 50.6%. The bottom 50% of all earners in NYS take home only 9.1% of all income, down from 13.9% in 1990. Moreover, that top 1% pays only 8.4% of their income in NYS taxes while those with incomes from $33,000 to 209,000 pay between 10.7% and 11.0% of our income in taxes.
We, the bottom 95%, are being squeezed. We are being pitted against each other. Who benefits?
David Dukler
Gardiner
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Every Week Should Be No Name Calling Week
Just sayin'
No Name Calling Week
Ulster Launches Anti-Bullying Effort
School District Policy - as in, what we expect of our children and should model:
Policy 3420: POLICY ON HARASSMENT/HAZING/BULLYING
The Board of Education is committed to providing a safe, productive and positive learning environment, free of harassment and intimidation. The Board condemns all forms of harassment on the basis of race, color, creed, religion, national origin, political affiliation, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, marital status, military status, veteran status, or disability, weight, or the use of a recognized service animal. The Board condemns all forms of hazing and bullying. The Board specifically prohibits harassment, hazing, and bullying on school grounds and at all school-sponsored events, programs and activities, including those that take place at locations off school premises.
It is the policy of the New Paltz Central School District that no member of the school community - board members, students, faculty, administrators, or staff, parents/guardians, vendors/contractors and others who do business with the School District, as well as school district volunteers, visitors, guests and other third parties - may harass or intimidate any other member of the community.
What is Harassment?
Verbal or physical conduct that denigrates or shows hostility or aversion toward an individual because of that person’s race, color, creed, religion, national origin, political affiliation, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity age, marital status, military status, veteran status, disability, weight, or use of a recognized guide dog, hearing dog or service dog animal. Harassment can also occur if conduct is directed toward a person's relatives, friends, or associates. Harassment does one or more of the following:
a) Has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual's work performance or is used as a basis for employment decisions (including terms and conditions of employment) affecting such individual and/or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment;
b) Has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with a student's academic performance or participation in an educational or extracurricular activity; and/or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive academic environment; and/or effectively bars the student's access to an educational opportunity or benefit; or
c) Otherwise adversely affects the employment and/or educational opportunities and benefits provided by the District.
No Name Calling Week
Ulster Launches Anti-Bullying Effort
School District Policy - as in, what we expect of our children and should model:
Policy 3420: POLICY ON HARASSMENT/HAZING/BULLYING
The Board of Education is committed to providing a safe, productive and positive learning environment, free of harassment and intimidation. The Board condemns all forms of harassment on the basis of race, color, creed, religion, national origin, political affiliation, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, marital status, military status, veteran status, or disability, weight, or the use of a recognized service animal. The Board condemns all forms of hazing and bullying. The Board specifically prohibits harassment, hazing, and bullying on school grounds and at all school-sponsored events, programs and activities, including those that take place at locations off school premises.
It is the policy of the New Paltz Central School District that no member of the school community - board members, students, faculty, administrators, or staff, parents/guardians, vendors/contractors and others who do business with the School District, as well as school district volunteers, visitors, guests and other third parties - may harass or intimidate any other member of the community.
What is Harassment?
Verbal or physical conduct that denigrates or shows hostility or aversion toward an individual because of that person’s race, color, creed, religion, national origin, political affiliation, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity age, marital status, military status, veteran status, disability, weight, or use of a recognized guide dog, hearing dog or service dog animal. Harassment can also occur if conduct is directed toward a person's relatives, friends, or associates. Harassment does one or more of the following:
a) Has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual's work performance or is used as a basis for employment decisions (including terms and conditions of employment) affecting such individual and/or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment;
b) Has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with a student's academic performance or participation in an educational or extracurricular activity; and/or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive academic environment; and/or effectively bars the student's access to an educational opportunity or benefit; or
c) Otherwise adversely affects the employment and/or educational opportunities and benefits provided by the District.
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
New Paltz GreenWorks Endorses Complete Streets
(Letter to the Editor, New Paltz Times 01.26.11)
On Tuesday, February 8th, the Town of New Paltz Highway Department will be sponsoring a Complete Streets workshop. Kudos and thank you to the town for making this event free to New Paltz residents. We think it is wonderful that our town and highway department are taking a leadership role in this endeavor, because Complete Streets is a framework that many of us embrace and recognize as a viable path towards creating roadways that are safe and welcoming to everyone: walkers, joggers, bikers, wheelchair users, and motorists.
The Complete Streets (www.CompleteStreets.org) initiative is built upon the premise that roads are not just for automobiles. However, most roads were designed only for cars, and engineers and planners are confronted with the challenge of a) finding ways to retrofit existing roads to safely accommodate other users, and b) designing, planning, and approving any future roads to meet the needs of all users. The challenges are great, but not insurmountable. For example, in parts of our village, we have the legacy of very narrow roads that were built for horse and buggy travel! But that does not mean we should not rise to the challenge of creating a walkable-bikeable community that is safe and can accommodate everyone.
This workshop will give decision makers and policy makers the tools they need to implement the Complete Streets program in their community. It will be held from 8:00am to 3:30pm at the New Paltz Fire House (next to Village Hall). For more information, contact the New Paltz Highway Department at 845/255-5050 or download an application form at www.townofnewpaltz.org (click on Departments, Highway Department).
As proponents of green living and all efforts to reduce our carbon footprint, we wholeheartedly endorse this workshop and encourage a high turnout from our New Paltz elected officials, planning board members, planners, engineers, and activists.
Theresa Fall and KT Tobin, New Paltz GreenWorks
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