Profile: McEnroy Wants More Community Input on Important Decisions

Joanne McEnroy, a former educator within the Smithtown Central School District, is seeking election to the Board of Education for the first time, running opposed to current board member Neil Carlin. In a phone interview, McEnroy spoke on the importance in community involvement in decision-making, possible school closings and more.

What is your relationship with the school district?

My relationship with the school district is life long – ­I was a student here from as far back as Landing Elementary and immediately out of high school I was a teacher aide in special education while I went to school full time. Immediately thereafter I became a special education teacher and taught in my hometown for 37 years … then I retired in July last year [2010], and I am now presently an adjunct professor for Brooklyn College and a professional developer for a corporation that presents nationally, workshops and seminars for teachers.

What are the core issues you are most concerned about?

I think the one that bothers me the most is the closing of a school without allowing access to the community to voice their opinions on that. I have no figures about the cost effectiveness of that right now – the community hasn’t been privy to that. When I have those figures and I don’t know that that’s a bad choice, I just know that the community was not invited, in fact in a vote was forbidden to have a community committee and then subsequently they changed their minds and the vote changed but initially it was no community involvement. I didn’t like that.

These committees have always been advisory in nature and clearly the Board of Education has always had the vote but it has been advised. I think that there are a lot of good ideas out there and I think that sometimes when people look at things only from the one perspective they become myopic they may not make the best decision. You need to listen to a lot of opinions and a lot of ideas. The other thing is that when difficult decisions have to be made and when communities face difficult times the way that we are we have to bring that community to consensus, we have to that by presentations from board members, acting in a way that is honorable, transparent and dignified, and I think that’s the way that we can build trust and the community can trust in some of the most difficult decisions that we have to make. If they’re part of it and if they feel like they were represented in the decision even hard decisions are easier to get people to concede to.

As a board member, what will you provide to the board and the district?

One of the things I’ve been reading is how upset my opponent [Neil Carlin] is about the fact that I’m an educator and quite honestly I can’t imagine how a Board of Education should not have an educator on it, why that would be a bad thing. What I can bring is my understanding of the process, a little bit of understanding about the school district, and be a voice for the needs of the children … My union membership comes with being a teacher, every teacher in the Smithtown school district … you are a member of the association. You are not a member of clearly the negotiating committee, the finance committee, the political action committee, those are all different – I was never a part of those. My role was secretary in the association and as secretary the bylaws state my job is Editor in Chief of the newsletter … that was the extent of my role as an executive officer in the Smithtown Teachers Association. I also had to split meetings when others could not attend so I attend PTA council meetings, board meetings, [and] things like that … but I was never involved with, nor am I privy to, any thing that has to do with negotiations.

Why should you be elected?

I understand the educational process, the educational system. It would be similar to having the corporation and the insurance company deciding what’s allowable and what’s not allowed rather than have the doctor decide. You need a lot of opinions and I would like to be the opinion of educating 10,803 kids.

Check back Monday for the final candidate profile, Gladys Waldron, a Board of Education member for 33 years.