Massena Central presenting voters with $74.4 million budget, no tax levy increase
Superintendent Ronald P. Burke said that, as projected, they'll be presenting district residents with a 0% tax levy increase when they head to the polls on May 20.
"This spending plan is a $2,079,638 increase over the prior year. Despite this increase, the local taxpayer share of the budget will have a 0% increase. The increases are going to be covered by our additional state aid funding," he said.
The district's property tax cap this year was calculated at 4.49%.
"Again, we do not need additional money from our taxpayers. Therefore, the tax that we're asking for is an increase of zero dollars," Burke said.
Projected expenses include $30,309,090 for salaries, $20,700,475 for employee benefits, $3,951,150 for principal and interest, $1,810,068 for buses and equipment, $11,429,759 for Board of Cooperative Educational Services, and $6,202,397 for others, which includes textbooks and other requests.
"Because we are an educational agency, most of our expenses are related to people. It's our employees, salaries and benefits," Burke said.
The bulk of the revenue comes from state and federal aid, which accounts for $51,418,033. That's followed by $15,158,005 from taxes, $3,137,000 from use of money, $1,517,170 from miscellaneous, and $300,000 from interfund transfers. The district is using $2,872,731 from its appropriated fund balance to balance the budget.
Based on Gov. Kathleen C. Hochul's budget proposal, they had anticipated receiving $37,787,070 in foundation aid, an increase of $1.978,480.
"Based on the enacted budget, that number is going to increase by a little over $800,000 on our foundation aid to $38.6 million. Last year we saw a $1.4 million increase, and this year that increase doubled. So we have some really positive news there," Burke said. "Most of the other line items on the state aid side remain the same. So, again, we know we're getting some more money on the state side for next year."
He said, among the "major cost drivers" are health insurance ($463,265), new salaries ($300,000), BOCES Career and Technical Education ($225,794), and BOCES administrative services ($207,341).
The new salaries include speech, school psychologist, and a combination of art and academic intervention services, all positions that he said are needed.
"Speech is one of the biggest needs that we face, and it's also a need for our children that attend UPK (universal pre-kindergarten)," he said.
Also included among the major cost drivers are a fifth bus ($180,000) and a new vehicle lease program with Enterprise ($106,000).
"We have a number of vehicles that are truly at or beyond their life expectancy. That includes pickup trucks with plows. It includes some of our maintenance vans that are used by our maintenance folks. To go out and replace all of these in one year is not cost-effective. We've been looking at a lease program through Enterprise, and this lease program would in the first year have a price tag of $106,000. That's the maximum. That's without the trades. So, once we do our trades, we know that number is going to come in lower. We just don't know how much lower," Burke said.
He said they would realize a savings of approximately $250,000 over a 10-year period by switching to the lease program.
The district is also seeing additional costs for the village to provide a school resource officer from the Massena Police Department. That increase is $80,000.
"The village of Massena was arbitrarily charging us around $70,000 to $80,000. That's not the true cost of our SRO, and the village is basically requiring that if we want to maintain that relationship, we do need to pay the full cost of the individual. There are still other costs that are associated with the SRO that the village is still picking up," Burke said. "We need to keep in mind that there is a little bit of give and take on this, that we're not paying for the police vehicle, we are not paying for the equipment that the police officer has, we're not paying for the training."
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Yahoo
02-08-2025
- Yahoo
Former Gov. George Nigh, Oklahoma's elder political statesman, dies at 98
Former Oklahoma Gov. George P. Nigh, a legendary politician who served in the state's highest office four times and guided it through the early stages of the 1980s oil bust before becoming president of one of the state's largest universities, has died. He was 98. Oklahoma historian Bob Burke, a family friend who once wrote Nigh's biography, confirmed Nigh's death on Wednesday, July 30. Burke said Nigh died at home, surrounded by family members. Every living former Oklahoma governor – two Democrats and two Republicans – issued statements upon Nigh's death, showing the bipartisan love for a man who'd been Oklahoma's unofficial elder statesman for nearly 40 years. 'George Nigh captured his age,' former Gov. Frank Keating, a Republican, said. 'He loved Oklahoma. Totally. He loved his family. Totally. The 'state of his State was great.' He believed. He was a man of love, humility and goodness. We loved him for who he was and what he was. We shall miss him terribly.' Added former Gov. Brad Henry, a Democrat: 'If I compiled a list of the top five people who had the greatest impact and influence on my life, George Nigh, along with my parents, would be on it. George was a longtime dear friend, a mentor and a true public servant. He was a great man, but, perhaps more importantly, he was a really good guy. Few, if any, have had as significant of an impact on our state for as long as George did.' The family will announce a public memorial service later, Burke said. George Nigh's early years focused on politics, service Nigh was born in McAlester to Wilber and Irene Nigh on June 9, 1927, the fourth of five children. As a child, George Nigh worked in his parents' neighborhood grocery store. According to Burke, when Nigh's teacher asked students in an eighth-grade vocations class what they wanted to be in life, 14-year-old George answered, 'I wanna be governor!' After graduating from McAlester High School in 1945, Nigh served in the U.S. Navy in 1945 and 1946 as a 'plane handler' on the USS Ranger, a pilot-training ship, before attending college. He graduated from what's now Eastern Oklahoma State College in Wilburton in 1948, then from what's now East Central University in Ada in 1950. While a student at East Central, Nigh began a campaign in 1950 for a seat in the Oklahoma House of Representatives. He did not own a car, so he hitchhiked from Ada to McAlester every weekend to campaign, Burke said. Nigh won the election, beginning a 32-year career in public office by first serving four terms as a Democrat in the state House. Among his top legislative accomplishments was introducing a bill that designated the song 'Oklahoma,' from the famed musical of the same name, as Oklahoma's state song. While serving in the Legislature, Nigh taught social studies at McAlester High School from 1952 to 1958. In 1958, the 31-year-old Nigh became the youngest lieutenant governor in Oklahoma history and he was elected to that office again in 1966, serving through January 5, 1979. He also served four different times as governor, earning election in 1978 and 1982 to that office — making him the first Oklahoma governor to be reelected. He served out the brief unexpired terms for then-Gov. J. Howard Edmondson (for nine days in January 1963) and then-Gov. David Boren (for five days in January 1979). Both Edmondson and Boren resigned early to go to the U.S. Senate. When Nigh took the oath of office for his first full, four-year term later in January 1979, it actually was the third time he'd been governor. After pushing through record tax cuts in his first full term, Nigh earned reelection in 1982 and became the first gubernatorial candidate to win in all 77 counties in Oklahoma. At his reelection celebration, he told supporters, "The best thing I can do is be the type of governor you expect me to be." Nigh shepherded Oklahoma through the oil bust that followed the collapse of Penn Square Bank in July 1982. With sales tax and gross production revenues plunging that fall, Nigh ordered a 13% cut in state agency budgets. The financial situation was so dire, Nigh said in 2016, 'We were pulling highway patrol cars over to the side of the road to save gas. … I kept thinking, 'It will come back. It will come back.'' It eventually did, but not until years after Night left office. In Nigh's last year as governor, the state budget was cut by more than $300 million, a huge amount at the time. 'If I could have switched my two terms, I would have,' Nigh said. 'But the challenges that came had to be addressed.' Notable moments in Nigh's later career As governor, his notable appointments included the first women named to serve as Oklahoma Supreme Court justices, Alma Wilson and Yvonne Kauger. Kauger, appointed in 1984, served as a justice until 2024. A consummate politician, Nigh referenced both his youth, and later his age, while running for office in different decades, something former Oklahoma Supreme Court Chief Justice Steven Taylor – who's also from McAlester – wryly noted. 'One thing to keep in mind, back in 1950 when he ran for state representative, his campaign slogan was 'Give a young man a chance.' He used that all through the state representative time and actually when he ran for lieutenant governor,' Taylor said in 2013. 'Then in 1978, when he ran for governor, he changed that slogan to 'Experience counts.'' In 1987, he founded the Nigh Institute of State Government at what's now known as the University of Central Oklahoma in Edmond. He also served as a 'distinguished statesman-in-residence' at UCO until 1992, when he was named as the university's 18th president. He held that position until 1997, when he retired. Former Gov. Mary Fallin, a Republican, remembered Nigh as setting the standard for public leadership in Oklahoma. 'He devoted his life not just to governing, but to elevating our state's spirit – whether through promoting Oklahoma tourism, supporting education or simply being a good neighbor," Fallin said. "He was the kind of statesman every generation hopes for.' According to the National Governors Association, during his career, Nigh chaired the National Conference of Lieutenant Governors, co-chaired the Interstate Oil Compact Commission, served on the Executive Committee of the Southern States Energy Board, chaired the southern Growth Policies Board, and presided over the Council of State Governments. Nigh was also a popular graduation speaker at schools throughout Oklahoma. When he gave the commencement speech in 2024 at East Central, it extended his streak of giving at least one such speech to 75 years. In some years, he delivered as many as 20 graduation addresses. He delivered recorded remarks for Epic Charter School's online ceremony during the COVID-19 pandemic graduation of 2020. His first such speech came in 1950 at a rural two-room, eighth-grade schoolhouse known as Plainview, located north of Arpelar in Pittsburg County. Nigh, then a senior at East Central, was running for the state Legislature but didn't have a car, so he hitchhiked to the ceremony. While the speeches differed from year to year, Nigh said in 2015 they maintained a consistent theme. He wanted graduates to know, 'You can do it from here. … Wherever you are in Oklahoma, you can become successful.' Nigh married the former Donna Mashburn, who was an airline ticket agent, on Oct. 19, 1963. She had a 10-year-old son, Berry Mashburn, and together, George and Donna had a daughter, Georgeann. Both George (in 1989) and Donna Nigh (in 2008) earned induction into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame, considered the highest honor that can be given to an Oklahoman. Burke said George assisted Donna in establishing and maintaining the Donna Nigh Foundation, which provides services to Oklahoma's developmentally disabled. In addition to the Oklahoma Hall of Fame, George Nigh was a member of the Oklahoma Higher Education Hall of Fame, the Oklahoma Conservation Hall of Fame, McAlester High School Hall of Fame, Eastern Oklahoma State College Hall of Fame, the Oklahoma CareerTech Hall of Fame and was an East Central University Distinguished Alumnus and the recipient of the Jim Thorpe Lifetime Achievement Award, among other honors. Former Gov. David Walters, a Democrat, recalled Nigh's final public speech, delivered to a packed house of 950 people in Tulsa on June 28, two days after Nigh was checked out of an Oklahoma City hospital after being treated for pneumonia. During the event – in which he was presented with the first Albert Nigh Award for lifetime public service – Walters said Nigh, after he was seated, led the crowd in a raucous singing of 'Oklahoma.' 'I can say without exaggeration that a great man has left this life … a great, great man,' Walters said. 'He believed in public service and devoted his life to it as a legislator, lieutenant governor, and served as governor longer than any other. But the elected positions paled to who he was, a devout Oklahoman, always encouraging others to work together for the common good.' In 2000, Burke published his biography of Nigh, 'Good Guys Wear White Hats: The Life of George Nigh.' The title was a nod to Nigh's political trademark. "What I want the history books to say... is that the state prospered, the people prospered and the state grew,' Nigh said in 1982 after winning re-election. 'I hope history records this was a good period for Oklahoma. I pledge that I will always wear the white hat." Nigh is survived by his wife of 61 years, Donna; daughter Georgeann Duty and husband Steve; his younger sister, Mary Cargill; and grandchildren Macy, Ayla, Chase, Berry and Gray. 'I'm saddened to hear of the loss of a true Oklahoma statesman and public servant," said current Gov. Kevin Stitt, a Republican. "George Nigh guided Oklahoma through difficult times and led with kindness and humility. Sarah and I are praying for his wife Donna and their family and friends as they remember and honor a life well lived.' This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: George Nigh, former Oklahoma governor, longtime politician, dies at 98 Solve the daily Crossword
Chicago Tribune
01-08-2025
- Chicago Tribune
David Greising: Chicago aldermanic privilege raises its stubborn head again. This time against granny flats
When Lori Lightfoot was sworn in as mayor, her first executive order aimed to wipe out the impact of aldermanic privilege on the way city government functions. But privilege won out, as it so often does, and the City Council practice of allowing local aldermen to veto city actions in their wards — zoning and permitting changes in particular — remains almost wholly intact. Privilege raised its stubborn head again last month. A move to allow more accessory dwelling units in Chicago, in part to increase affordable housing citywide, seemed headed to passage at the July council meeting. But no — a deference to aldermanic privilege and a neatly executed parliamentary maneuver delayed a vote. Thanks to pushback from self-identified 'Bungalow Belt' aldermen, a yearslong push to allow 'granny flats,' coach houses and basement apartments throughout the city will need to wait until September. The proposal introduced by Ald. Bennett Lawson, 44th, was backed by Mayor Brandon Johnson, but the power of the mayor's office isn't what it once was when this particular mayor squares off against an increasingly independent-minded City Council. The effort to address the city's severe housing shortage — at least 150,000 units are needed, probably more — will have to wait. Homeowners who might have earned extra income will have to wait. Apartment dwellers seeking freshly constructed shelter, possibly in neighborhoods they might normally not be able to afford, will have to wait. Many aldermen claim the power of their privilege is their best bet for protecting their wards from unwelcome changes in city policy. They know what's best for their wards, they say. Besides, voters hold them responsible for everything that happens there. They need the veto power. The arguments may seem sensible at first blush. But the truths about aldermanic privilege, sometimes called aldermanic prerogative, should be enough to make an honest alderman blush. Aldermanic privilege is well known as a contributor to Chicago's culture of corruption. For example, aldermanic privilege lent credibility to then-Ald. Ed Burke's threat to block a Burger King construction project in his ward if the restaurant's owners refused to hire Burke's law firm and make a campaign donation. The extortion attempt helped put Burke in federal prison. A lesser-known attribute of aldermanic privilege is the way it perpetuates racial and economic inequities in Chicago. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development said as much in 2023 after investigating a complaint from Chicago fair housing groups that aldermanic privilege perpetuates racial segregation in housing. 'By limiting the availability of affordable housing, the local veto disproportionately harms Black and Hispanic households,' HUD found. In addition to enabling corruption and exacerbating discrimination, aldermanic privilege also can simply enable bad policy — or block the adoption of good law. That's what is happening with the push to prevent expansion of accessory dwelling units across the city. The move to expand the use of granny flats and other ADUs is long overdue. It has been in the works since before 2021, when a pilot project launched in five test zones began — two each on the North and South sides and one on the West Side. Until then, ADUs were banned citywide, due to 1957 vintage zoning codes designed to reduce the risk of overpopulation. Redlining and blockbusting were the go-to tactics of race-based housing discrimination back then, and academic studies have shown the ban on granny flats was informed by segregationist intent, too. Overpopulation is no longer a concern. Chicago has lost around 800,000 residents since 1957. But rising economic inequity and increased gentrification are making it ever more difficult for many people to find decent, affordable housing. And the lack of affordable housing exacerbates racial and economic segregation, too. The delay by the City Council is all the more confounding because early results from the city's five pilot zones show some promise, but also some lessons that there is more work to do to bring more affordable, accessible housing to neighborhoods across the city. According to a report by my organization, the Better Government Association's Illinois Answers Project, around 300 units have popped up in the zones, but 90% of them are on the North Side. This means the West and South Side zones that could benefit substantially from new housing have not yet seen much impact. A restriction limiting ADU to owner-occupied properties, added only in the West and South Side zones, may have contributed to the limited adoption in those neighborhoods. Most of the new ADUs are in remodeled basements, where both construction costs and occupancy numbers tend to be smaller, not the coach houses that feed concerns among some opponents about population and building density, Illinois Answers reporter Alex Nitkin found. The pilot test, alongside lessons from other cities with more open ADU policies, have informed some of the compromises adopted in order to get the proposal out of the City Council's zoning committee last month. Limiting permits to owner-occupied buildings throughout the city is one of them. So are limits on the number of permits per block, based on zoning. The proposal also limits the use of granny flats for short-term rentals. Other cities have provided further protections that could be worth considering: requiring off-street parking, for example. But an Urban Land Institute study published just before Lightfoot launched the pilot-zone test warned that some such measures can impede the growth and socioeconomic benefit of ADUs. The City Council likely will take up the measure in September. Meanwhile, state Rep. Kam Buckner, D-Chicago, has drafted a bill for the state legislature that would ban prohibitions on ADUs and add measures designed to encourage their construction. The benefits of ADUs and the momentum toward removal of the ban are powerful enough that aldermanic privilege must not be allowed to stand in their way. A city ordinance drafted with appropriate safeguards could help address the city's housing shortage at minimum cost to our cash-strapped city. In other words, ADUs are an idea whose time has come — and the delays caused by the claims of aldermanic privilege are yet another reason why the end to that outdated tradition is long past due.
USA Today
29-07-2025
- USA Today
How to rebuild trust after a viral CEO controversy: Advice for leaders, employees
When a CEO makes headlines for the wrong reasons — a viral video, a tone-deaf comment or a scandal that dominates your social media feed — it can damage not only their reputation, but the company's as well. When the chief executive of data software company Astronomer was caught on a concert Kiss Cam this month, cuddling with the company's HR chief — who was not his wife — that viral moment led to their resignations and questions about leadership culture. Nearly 30% of large companies experienced abrupt drops in stakeholder trust during a crisis, and almost all struggled to recover without visible, sustained leadership action, according to BCG's Trust Index. For employees, it can raise an unsettling question: Where do we go from here? While PR teams work to manage the external message, repairing internal trust is far more complex. Rebuilding company trust requires honest leadership, true accountability and a thorough examination of the company's values — and whether they're being lived or merely listed on the company website. To understand how companies can move forward after a CEO controversy and how employees can gauge whether trust can be rebuilt, we asked experts what companies should do after a controversy goes viral. What good leadership looks like after a controversy After a controversy, leadership sets the tone for how trust can be rebuilt. Lisa Burke, an organizational development consultant with Energage, says leaders must do more than tout company values; they need to live them. 'It's so often about leaders walking the talk,' she says. 'Values really set the standard for what our culture looks like and feels like.' When leaders embody those values in their actions and decisions, she says, employees begin to rebuild confidence in the culture. It's also important to reassure employees that their work still matters, despite the controversy. 'Yes, we've been through a challenge,' Burke says. 'Let's all come together and help move this organization forward and become better because of it. What lessons can we learn? And how do we get better?' Burke notes that becoming better starts with rebuilding trust from the top down. After a controversy, companies must begin rebuilding trust with their employees, and that starts with taking ownership of the issue. 'The first thing is to own it,' says Burke. 'People feel when it's performative. They also feel when it's authentic.' Rather than delaying, downplaying or shirking blame, leadership should acknowledge the situation promptly, she says, even with a simple message like, 'This thing has occurred, we're handling it.' She adds that it's essential for the company to reaffirm its core values and acknowledge that the incident may not have aligned with those values, but that they remain important. 'You should be as transparent as possible, because employees are already giving feedback. The way our brain works is we make up stories in the absence of information, and most often, we make up a negative story,' Burke says. After a viral controversy, 'I think the biggest answer is some communication,' says Ashley Herd, who spent 20 years working in human resources before launching her own company, Manager Method. 'That's the biggest gap.' Scandals spread quickly, but companies often hesitate to respond, waiting days while uncertainty festers. But while companies wait to finalize a polished statement, employees are often left with unanswered questions. According to Herd, a lack of transparency can allow underlying issues to simmer. If unaddressed, they can surface publicly through Glassdoor reviews, employee chatter or social media posts. Herd emphasizes: 'What people, especially people at the company, care about most are the things that you're saying to them. Are you talking to them as a human?' she asks. It doesn't have to be perfect. Even simple communication helps, she says. She recommends something like, 'This is really hard. I'm still trying to figure this out. I'm here to support you and the team members, and my focus is on you all as an organization.' She also recommends holding a candid meeting, even if it feels tense, and creating space for open conversation without making it feel like an obligation. The message should be clear, she advises: 'We want to give you the opportunity to talk honestly about this, because this isn't just a news story; this is something that impacts the trust of the organization.' Even though it won't be fun, she says it's best to focus on the outcome. 'Having a meeting that doesn't go well is a million times better than having silence that goes worse,' she says. Senior leaders should become more visible, Burke says, especially to help coach managers who feel uneasy addressing tough topics. One way to achieve this is through listening sessions, where groups of employees and managers share their concerns about the organization's future with leadership. 'It's a great opportunity to build trust and relationships,' Burke explains. Another possible approach is role-playing. 'If you're nervous about sharing this with your team, is there an individual you're most nervous about?' she says. 'Let's have a role play, and I'll play that person so the mid-level manager can feel more confident.' Burke also recommends offering open office hours for unstructured conversations. You might say, "Hey, I have open office hours on Friday from three to four," allowing for good discussions about what's going on in the organization and giving employees a chance to see where their role is headed. Even small, informal check-ins signal that leadership is present and paying attention. By showing up consistently and creating space for honest dialogue, leaders prove that rebuilding trust isn't just a message, it's a mindset. However, listening to employees isn't enough; leaders also need to take action. 'If I'm a senior leader and I've just had a listening session where you shared concerns as my employee, my responsibility is now to take action,' Burke explains. That could mean scheduling a follow-up to share potential solutions or progress. 'It isn't always taking action based on what I think would be best,' Burke says, 'but listening to those who are on the front line. You might then ask them, 'What's the solution you see?'' Even small steps toward progress help reinforce that employee feedback matters and that leaders are listening with intention to act. What to do when your company's culture starts to feel broken When a company fails to respond transparently after a controversy, it can reveal deeper cracks in the culture. And for employees, those cracks are often easier to feel than to name. According to Herd, a lack of genuine recognition of human values is something employees should watch out for. Ashley Herd warns that a major red flag is when 'employees are asking for some sort of meeting, and the company just shuts them down across the board and says 'no.' Another red flag, she adds, is if 'you have a meeting, and it's stopped right away.' In those cases, leadership may say things like, 'We're not going to talk about these things. Get back to work.' Lisa Burke notes that poor company culture often becomes tangible to employees over time. 'You will start to feel it if you're not in a great culture,' she said. 'The worst ones are gaslighting or not sharing any information. You're just not hearing anything for a month about something.' These patterns, Burke explains, tend to be strong signals that the culture 'may not be doing what it needs to do in order for us to achieve our mission.' For employees facing these challenges, Burke recommends honest self-reflection. Ask yourself, 'Is this the place I really want to be working? What are my pros and cons?' She encourages looking ahead: 'The next thing would be, let me play the movie to the end. So if I did leave, where would I go? What would that look like? Would the grass be greener or not?' Finally, while it's important to provide honest feedback to your employer, Burke reminds employees to be mindful about maintaining professional relationships. 'Make sure you aren't also burning bridges on the way out,' she said. Leadership that earns trust, not just headlines In the end, rebuilding trust in the wake of a CEO controversy isn't about perfect statements; it's about communication, ownership and transparency. According to these experts, it comes down to four simple, if uncomfortable, steps: According to experts, when companies commit to their values, employees can sense they're not just being heard, they're being led. What is USA TODAY Top Workplaces 2025? Does your company have your trust? Each year, USA TODAY Top Workplaces, a collaboration between Energage and USA TODAY, ranks organizations across the United States that excel at creating a positive work environment for their employees. Employee feedback determines the winners. In 2025, over 1,500 companies earned recognition as top workplaces. Check out our overall U.S. rankings. You can also gain insights into more workplace trends and advice by checking out the links below.
