Board candidate defends criticism of public schools
A candidate for a Rondout Valley Board of Education seat is defending a comment she made on Facebook that “all public education is garbage.” Natalysse Stein said Friday that the comment was intended to be private — part of an online conversation she was having with a person she went to high school with — and that she is seeking a board seat in Tuesday’s election because she wants to support all students.
“It was a conversation with a former graduate that I went to school with . ... We have very polarized views on politics and things,” Stein said.
Screenshots of parts of the conversation were emailed to the Freeman. In them were comments by Stein that “public education is a failing system” and “dumping more money into it isn’t the solution.”
“Their should be school choice,” Stein also wrote, misspelling the word “there.” “If public school was so great, the 1% would send their children. Oh that’s right they don’t.”
Stein said by telephone Friday that the online conversation dealt with whether some policies promoted by U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos were good for the education system.
“One of the things she (DeVos) was trying to do was public vouchers,” Stein said. “I do support public vouchers to choose a school. If you think your school is not handling your child’s needs, then you should be able to take the designated tax dollars ... which I think should be increased.”
In the post where Stein
Stein said by telephone Friday that the online conversation dealt with whether some policies promoted by U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos were good for the education system.
wrote that “all public education is garbage,” she also wrote that the “public education system does nothing to teach students about real life situations.”
Stein said in the phone interview that the current New York state system is mislabeled as “public” because it limits students to attending classes in a specific district. She used the example of someone who would like to place their child in a specific location.
“When the ... principal at Kerhonkson Elementary wants to put her daughter [in the school], she doesn’t have to pay $50,000 tuition to go to Rondout,” Stein said. “She can’t put her daughter into our school, and that, to me, makes our school a private school. If it was a true public school, anybody could go.”
Stein is one of 10 candidates running for three seats on the Rondout Valley school board. The others are David Bendell, Kimberly Cohen, Stephanie Diak-Salmonsen, Gerald Fornino, incumbent Gail Hutchins, Elissa Jury, Brian Martin, incumbent Nicole Parete and incumbent Rebecca Versace.
The top three vote-getters in Tuesday’s election winners will serve threeyear terms.
Voting will be from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the district offices, next to Rondout Valley High School, on Kyserike Road.