A lifelong resident of Levittown, Daniel Donahue is wrapping up his first year as an Island Trees Board of Education trustee.
Donahue, who is unopposed in this year's election, has called Island Trees home since his elementary days and found it important to become involved with the board as his children entered the school system.
"I have four kids, two in the system right now, and I felt it was important to know more of what's going on and help the district as much as I could," said Donahue. "It's been a real eye-opener. I learned a lot from being on the board,"
For the 2012-13 school year, Donahue feels there are a few key issues facing the district that the board must continue to tackle head on.
One of those issues is the state-wide 2 percent tax cap implemented this year. Donahue said the board will continue to struggle with maintaining both a top-notch education and feasible costs for the students of Island Trees, but he and his fellow trustees are dedicated in doing so.
Despite the cap, Donahue stressed the need for better performance on exams.
"We really need to stay on top of our testing this year to remain competitive and bring the scores up," he said. "Keeping costs low and education services high is our main priority. We were presented with a huge challenge [this year], but we were able to keep our services up to par. The board and administration did a great job."
Donahue also mentioned the board's efforts to combat drug use in the district.
"We've been brought to light on a lot of drug issues going on in the community," he added. "We've conducted locker searches and brought in search dogs. We want to continue to take steps to address that."
The budget's total expenditures for the upcoming term amounted to $57,925,136 with a 1.99 percent tax levy increase. The 2012-13 budget vote will be held on Tuesday, May 15.
