Huntington school district voters will choose Tuesday from three candidates to fill two spots on the Board of Education as well as decide on a $146,347,091 proposed budget, and a capital reserve proposition.
If approved, the budget would increase 2.36 percent or $3,378,748 over this year’s budget, while raising the tax levy by 0.69 percent.
The three board candidates are:
Incumbent Kelly Donovan, who was active in the PT A in the district, holding numerous executive board positions from corresponding secretary to co-president, and has chaired countless PTA events before her election as a trustee in 2020.
Incumbent Xavier Palacios, an attorney and vice president of the board, who has served for four terms, helped guide the high school’s mock trial team to regional and state-level success, and been active in numerous community activities in Huntington Station.
Challenger Amaru Jones is a Huntington High School class of 2016 graduate, and taught sixth and seventh grade world history at Success Academy charter school in Queens.
Palacios and Jones have both been endorsed by Long Island Strong Schools Alliance, a nonprofit organization that supports diversity, equity and inclusion.
Voters will also be asked to decide on spending $5.935 in capital reserve funds on various captial improvement projects. The vote will not increase spending, the district noted; the funds are already set aside for capital project use.
Some of the projects covered by the proposal are:
Huntington High School
• Lighting on new turf field: $985,000
J. Taylor Finley Middle School
• Reconstruction of two science rooms and a science prep room: $800,000
Jack Abrams STEM Magnet School
• Phase II of roof replacement: $1,200,000
• Pressure boost system: $200,000
Flower Hill Primary School
• Install two new boilers: $800,000
Southdown Primary School
• Install two new boilers: $800,000
Washington Primary School
• Update electrical service and switchgear: $350,000
• Install rooftop solar energy system and transformer: $450,000