The Saratoga school board is going to face hard decisions about how to maintain the excellent quality of our schools in the face of unprecedented financial challenges. Tony Krackeler is an ideal candidate for the board.
After graduating from Stanford, he worked as a teacher and high school volleyball coach for 10 years. He knows how important both the classroom and sports are to children and their families. For the past 20 years, he has worked as the President and CEO of Krackeler Scientific Inc, a global distributor of scientific equipment, including facemasks and protective equipment, used in pharmaceutical, biomedical, environmental and industrial laboratories. He will bring his operations, finance, personnel management, and contracts expertise to help manage the $130 million school district budget and over 1,100 employees.
He is committed to Saratoga Springs schools. He has three kids in the public schools and has served on the Lake Ave Building Leadership Team, the Superintendent-Parent Forum, and the Maple Avenue Middle School Principal Search. I encourage you to vote for Tony Krackeler in Saratoga School Board election when you receive your ballot in the mail on June 1 or 2.
Many people in our community have lost their jobs and may be wondering how they will feed themselves and their families.If you or someone you know needs help buying food, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) may be able to help.
SNAP can help people who are struggling to afford enough food.SNAP provides monthly benefits on a debit card that can be used to purchase food at grocery stores and many farmers markets.You can apply for SNAP and use SNAP benefits while keeping a safe distance from others.Your SNAP application and other requirements can be fulfilled online, by phone or by email.You can also use SNAP benefits to shop online and have groceries delivered from Amazon, or in some areas, from Walmart or Shoprite.
Many people who have recently lost their income may be eligible for SNAP now. SNAP may be the relief you and your family needs to keep food on the table during this difficult time.
The Nutrition Outreach and Education Program (NOEP) can help you apply for SNAP and answer any questions you have.These services are free and confidential.Contact your Saratoga County NOEP coordinator today at 518-587-5188, ext. 412
– Deborah DeLosa, Saratoga County NOEP Coordinator, Legal Aid Society of NNY
I regularly have the opportunity to walk downtown with my dog. These last several days I have noticed that there are fewer people walking with me, and as I looked into the restaurant windows saw that virtually nobody was there. I began paying attention and realized that in our efforts to socially distance ourselves we are hurting our downtown. The Skidmore students are home for an extended period, conferences in the City Center have been cancelled, and we are staying away from each other and town.
One of the greatest things about being a Saratoga resident is the access to the unique stores and restaurants downtown. They are small businesses being crushed by forces outside of their control but I think we have the opportunity to help them out. We can order a meal or two from our favorite restaurants for pick up, or even purchase a gift card for future use. Spring seems to be bearing down on us and perhaps you could use some new clothes so think about buying a gift card from one of the boutiques in town if you don’t feel comfortable shopping in person. If we are careful we can continue to shop in town, I know that the salespeople would love to have someone to talk to and you might enjoy the fact that they have the time to really help you.
Downtown is one of the things that makes this place so special and the business owners do so much to make Saratoga a welcoming place for everyone. We can show them that we appreciate all that they do by spending a bit of money right now when they need it most. Who knows when this will pass, and if we don’t step up now recovering from this may not be possible. I know that sounds dire but for small businesses it is.
A school in Saratoga Springs has a safety problem, again.
Lake Avenue Elementary is the closest school to our urban downtown and the city can make kids and parents much safer with some simple changes in traffic patterns surrounding the building. But change does not come easy in this town and some neighbors fought two parallel streets, Marion Place and Regent, from becoming one-way during school days.
Our community came upon a decent compromise two months ago: Signs were installed on these streets denoting temporary half-hour one-way traffic during student drop offs and pick-ups. Walking my 7-year-old to his first day back to school after Spring break last week, I was flabbergasted to notice all signs were gone.
It seems that without warning or public input, they were ripped down by the city— not unlike when, in 2010, the city filled our famous skateboard “bowl” with dirt rendering a perfectly good exercise facility useless. — that epic battle took a year and a half to reverse.
As we approach teacher appreciation week, I’d like to thank the teachers, staff, and our principal, Mrs. Fitzgerald, at St. Mary’s school in Ballston Spa. St. Mary’s provides our children with superior academics, wholesome friendships, and spiritual growth.
On their last field trip of the year, our daughter’s third grade class went on a hike. Their teacher, Mrs. Eddy, led the students and chaperones along a rocky path, which opened to a clearing next to a serene lake. The scene was reminiscent of a modern-day Norman Rockwell painting: The girls chatted and admired the view, while the boys picked up snakeskins and jumped along the rocks. As we unpacked our lunches, one of the students suggested we say a prayer. The students said a Hail Mary followed by prayers for those who had sick family members in need of God’s healing.
As I observed the scene, I was struck by the beauty of God’s creation, and the students’ genuine belief in prayer and their care for each other. It was an experience I’ll never forget and one that can only happen at St. Mary’s.
I would encourage parents to call St. Mary’s in Ballston Spa to schedule a tour. Our school works with families by offering scholarships and tuition assistance. We don’t want anyone to feel left out. St. Mary’s has blessed our lives and it will bless yours too.
We are Marianne Barker and Maddy Zanetti, of Impressions of Saratoga located on Broadway since 1980 and the Dark Horse Mercantile, just opened in 2018. Maddy is a native Saratogian and Marianne and her husband Dave have lived here since 1980 with no plans of leaving. We are all concerned over the future of our community events traditionally held in our very special downtown. They include the Fireworks held for the 4th of July celebration and First Night which are not very likely to happen going forward, the Hats Off festival which was cancelled several years ago and though not in immediate jeopardy, the Victorian Streetwalk, Fall Festival and Chowderfest. There are other examples like pond hockey and the many horse shows that have moved out of the city. Today it is increasingly difficult to coordinate the events, pay the new fees to hold them, and raise the sponsorship dollars to fund them. If these things are important enough to us, we need to show our support. This started out for us as a concern for the fireworks but it’s much bigger than that.
Impressions began its history in Saratoga Springs, January of 1980 just as the renaissance of downtown started in the 1970’s was gaining momentum. There were still a lot of open storefronts but Saratoga was well on its way to our current enviable position as one of the best downtowns in America. It was the hard work of so many people that you may or may not remember, who had the vision and ability to see what needed doing and making it happen. The festivals were a big part in getting our town back on the map as a destination for shopping, dining and playing. Many of us, big and small businesses saw the value in supporting these events in any way we could with donations of dollars, support and time. They were one of many pieces that has led to our current success. Over the years the population and businesses have changed and many of our valued partners are no longer here with the memories of what was. Many do not remember Saratoga when there wasn’t much going on and we truly depended on the summer racing season for our town to make ends meet. Though the races surely add a lot to our town, they are no longer the sole reason we exist. The thing that worries us is that without the continual re-investment into our town, big or small, things can change in the blink of an eye. We all have a vested interest in keeping our community the best it can be. The gradual erosion of the things that have made us so special may not impact us today but it’s the future we have to look out for. It’s easy to think that a little piece of support isn’t that important but when too many think this, it has a huge impact. We live in a very special place and have a responsibility to preserve, protect and nurture it for the days to come.
We recognize that every event may not benefit each of us personally or financially but as a whole they help to create opportunities to expose folks to all that Saratoga Springs has to offer. It’s a perfect marketing opportunity to show folks why they should come back to support our businesses which in turn creates more tax dollars to fund our city. Sometimes we have to look beyond ourselves for the greater good.
With that said we plead with our community, businesses and residents alike, let’s help support the things that make us a gem of a destination and to keep it that way. Supporting the Chamber of Commerce who has stepped up to try to save the fireworks, the Convention Bureau who works hard to bring groups to town and the Downtown Business Association that orchestrates lots of special events and all of our organizations and groups that make this such a special place to live, work and play.
My name is Jennifer Zhang. I’m a college student and recent graduate of Potsdam High School, running to represent our congressional district at the 2020 Democratic National Convention as a delegate pledged to Elizabeth Warren.
One of Warren’s flagship policies is Medicare For All. While some may consider the plan “radical,” we must remember that Americans pay more for health insurance and receive poorer coverage than practically every major developed country—the average US household spends $12,000 annually on healthcare.
Most importantly, Warren has created a dollar-for-dollar financing plan that would pay for Medicare For All without raising taxes on people earning less than $50 million. The vast majority of the program would be funded by employers paying roughly the same amount of money that they currently do for private insurance to the government instead. The rest of the funds would come from raising taxes on large corporations and the wealth of individuals earning over $50 million. Practically all of the North Country will NOT pay more in taxes.
Medicare For All is a practical, long-overdue solution to the intrinsic problems of our current healthcare system. It is a key component of Elizabeth Warren’s platform to bring big, structural change to our government and economy, and one of many reasons why residents of the North Country should support her campaign.
The most recent letter to the editor by a former school board member reads that she “hoped the divisive rhetoric over school safety would abate.” Let’s be clear that the safety of our children, staff, educators and administrators is never an issue to move past, nor is it “rhetoric.” This former BOE member mentioned the myriad of district children facing isolation, bullying and intolerance while at the same time, stating that these are of much more concern to her than the “rare possibility” of a mass shooting. Unfortunately, the perpetrators who commit these heinous acts are by and large, individuals who have suffered from the aforementioned problems. Often times the criminal is someone who has been the victim of bullying, isolation or a known “outcast.” Moving towards another school board election we need to understand that prevention and protection are not the same thing. Continuing with increased mental health services and environments of inclusivity are key. Bullying should be eradicated and met with zero tolerance. However, protection is the only viable solution should a tragedy befall our community. I sincerely hope that our current, and future, BOE members do not see the issue of school safety as “rhetoric,” as that would be at the detriment and peril of our students and community.
When I finished my term on the BOE last summer I hoped that the divisive rhetoric around school safety would abate.We are so fortunate that our kids can walk to and from school safely, there are rarely physical fights in schools, homicides in our community are exceedingly rare, and our kids, for the most part, have teachers and staff who care about them.But I still worry for our children’s safety. Not from an extremely rare mass school shooting but from things like student anxiety, depression, and substance abuse that can be exacerbated by bullying, nastiness, feelings of isolation, and/or intolerance.We need to do better as a community.We all want safe schools.But, how can we expect students to try to understand different perspectives, think critically, and agree to disagree with civility if adults in our community do not?Let’s focus on making sure all of our students feel connected to school, are not experiencing bullying, and have the support to succeed academically and socially.That means assessing the climate of the district and developing an action plan to address areas of concern.
(www.p12.nysed.gov/sss/ssae/schoolsafety/school-climate.html).Let student voices, not a few adult voices, drive our safety related policies, procedures and programming.
On January 3rd, 18-year-old Michael Ross of Malta threatened to shoot students at Maple Avenue Middle School.Thanks to the new bail reform law, Mr. Ross was released upon his own recognizance to be arraigned at a later date. The response of the Saratoga Springs School district was to increase the presence of armed Security on Monday January 6th.Which naturally begs the question, what about every day after that?
Despite the recent threat, the change to NYS law and the expert recommendations around the necessity of armed school guards, the Saratoga Springs Board of Education continues to sit idle. The debate about whether or not active and retired police officers are qualified to carry a firearm on campus is over.That question was settled by Andrew Cuomo and the Democrat Party controlled majority of the legislature last year.
Saratoga Parents for Safer Schools continues to hear from outraged parents, students and educators throughout the district, concerned that the recommendations from law enforcement and experts continue to be ignored by the school board.This spring we will again take on the task of electing new members to the SSCD board of education.Leaders that put the safety of the students and staff ahead of their own political agenda.Please join us in this fight.
– Kara Rosettie, Saratoga Parents for Safer Schools
