Readers Write: Sassouni needed on ed board facing challenges

The Island Now

I am endorsing Rebecca Sassouni for re-election to the Board of Education for the Great Neck School District with ‘eyes wide open’ regarding the challenges facing our schools, the growing discontent of voters for budgets, taxes, and government in general.

Rebecca knows this and has the temerity to address the elephant(s) in the room at meetings of the board, articles in our local press and in long conversations with constituents like myself.

Increased home assessments, limits on tax deductions due to SALT legislation, the COVID virus causing widespread death and illness, but equally, negatively impacting wages, business, state and local revenue has Ms. Sassouni looking ahead to fall and beyond thinking about public school enrollment, the ability for households to continue to pay private school tuition and physical building readiness for the possible increased student population.

She doesn’t have ready answers, but Rebecca Sassouni is the experienced, smart, energetic advocate Great Neck needs going forward. Having served only one term, she deserves the chance to make a real mark on our future.

Let’s us address another issue just under the surface, more diversity (read Asian, Persian) in local government.

Notwithstanding that I am proud we have both populations currently on the school board, the library board and a sitting state senator. I understand the sentiment and believe more representation and diversity should be pursued.

We need qualified candidates from every ethnicity to run for office. Qualified means the candidate plans to attend meetings for a year, ask questions and make comments where appropriate, request more information and documents from the institutions involved. Submit an op-ed piece outlining your vision.

Let those in attendance and the community get to ‘know’ you.

Then, I ask you to run against and unseat one of these 15-, 20-, 30-year incumbents so we could benefit from new ideas and energy.

Yes, I said it. Board members, town councilman/woman officials were not intended to be lifetime positions. Cap your lifetime of service by retiring, a dignified, generous act of humility.

Steven M Walk

Great Neck

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