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Boro schools cast vote in participatory budgeting

Boro schools cast vote in participatory budgeting
Courtesy of the Office of Council Member Elizabeth Crowley
By Patrick Donachie

The votes have been cast in the schools of Council District 30, which includes parts of Glendale, Maspeth, Middle Village and Ridgewood, as part of a pilot program for educational participatory budgeting, the first program of its kind in the city.

Like the annual participatory budgeting process, members of each school were able to cast votes on how a capital funding allocation of $100,000 would be spent in their school. The total funding to the district’s 21 schools was $2.2 million, with Councilwoman Elizabeth Crowley (D-Glendale) announcing that three schools received additional funding due to their high levels of student participation in the voting.

“The project not only provides needed upgrades for local schools, but also gives students an opportunity to be engaged in a meaningful democratic process,” Crowley said. “This project empowers the school community in a new way. And when students and parents participate, they witness firsthand how their vote can make a difference.”

The winning projects ran the gamut of capital improvements, with 11 of the 21 schools opting to use the funding to increase their supplies of laptops and/or smartboards for educational use. Additionally, PS 97 in Woodhaven will upgrade the sound system in the auditorium and Queens Metro High School will be using the money to improve the bleachers in its gymnasium.

The three schools that received additional funding were PS/IS 113 in Glendale, which got $50,000 for 93 percent participation; PS 91 in Glendale, $30,000 for 81 percent participation; and PS 290 in Ridgewood, $20,000 for 78 percent participation.

Reach reporter Patrick Donachie by e-mail at pdonachie@cnglocal.com or by phone at (718) 260–4573.