In the News

“Overall, very very positive results,” said Robert Vecchio, executive director of the Nassau-Suffolk School Boards Association, in a phone interview. He described the results as evidence of public support for what he called high-quality education on Long Island.

Advocacy groups gathered Monday at the food bank’s warehouse in Melville with Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) to warn of potential cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program that provides food to about 150,000 Long Islanders and 1.7 million people in New York City, Schumer said.

On Long Island, social service agencies are already bracing for cuts or the outright elimination of some programs, said Lawrence Levy, executive dean of Hofstra University’s National Center for Suburban Studies.

All children deserve to attend welcoming and well-funded schools where they can learn and grow, regardless of race, disability, or income. But funding for public schools, where nearly 90% of all U.S. students learn, is at a near crisis point.

On Long Island, the share of the new funding is $37 million, the SUNY system said Tuesday in a news release.

The state budget allocates $1 billion for a "Sustainable Future Program," including $450 million to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in buildings, make schools and homes more energy efficient and build out zero-emission thermal energy projects on state and city university campuses.