«School tips, a trampoline to democracy: what you have to know and how to participate” is the theme of a free round table sponsored by the Lig of Women Voters of the Hamptons, Shelter Island and North Fork.
In a time of national political division, school councils not only help define school policies, but are also one of the few elected positions that are not partisan.
The forum will be broadcast live on Thursday, September 18, at 6:30 pm, in the East Hampton LTV studies, located in 75 industrial RD., Wainscott, NY 11975.
YouTube can also be accessed on the link: https://youtube.com/c/ltveasthampton . Presented in Spanish with interpretation of Leydy Merced.
The meeting will be moderated by Andrea Gabor, a member of the Board of Directors of the League and professor of the Bloomberg cathedral of economic journalism in Baruch College/Cuny, who was also a columnist of Education of Bloomberg Opinion and author of the book “After The Education Wars” (“After the Wars of Education”).
The panelists will be:
-Robert Vecchio, Executive Director of Nassau-Suffolk School Boards Association, which supervises Long Island school boards;
– Assemblyman Tommy John Schiavoni, exprofessor of Social Studies of Secondary School and Member of the Sag Harbor School Board;
– Germain Smith, current councilor of the Southampton School Board and member of the Shinnecock nation; and
-Kate Rossi-Snook, who was recently councilor of the Shelter Island School Board for 6 years.
The organizers invite the members of the East End School Board, leaders of the Association of Parents and Teachers (PTA), parents, residents and students to attend.
“Some of the most influential commentators about democracy have recognized that public education is crucial for the development of a committed and polite citizen Washington to dismantle the Federal Education Department, ”says Professor Gabor by explaining the topic of the forum.
“In the center of these challenges are local school boards, which fulfill two important functions: first, represent the interests of citizens, taxpayers and parents before the school administration; and second, to represent the needs of students and schools before interested citizens. They also usually serve as a springboard to access elected positions of greater hierarchy and, therefore, as the basis of our democracy.”
It is announced that after the “School Boards: The Training Wheels of Democracy” forum there will be a question and answer session. LTV invites everyone to register for this free program on its website www.ltveh.org .
“There will be Spanish interpretation available through Zoom. Please carry a smartphone and headphones to access the translation during the event,” the organizers emphasize.
For those who cannot attend in person, the forum can also be seen live and then on the LTV YouTube channel: https://youtube.com/c/ltveasthamptonand will also be available live and subsequently for Spanish speakers.
