Schools Host Forums Wednesday Tuckahoe-Southampton Merger

The Tuckahoe School District will host a community forum Wednesday, October 29, at 7 p.m. to address the proposed merger with Southampton School District, in advance of a November 18 straw vote to gauge district residents’ willingness to go forward.

Southampton School District will too host a meeting Wednesday at 7 p.m., this one at Southampton Cultural Center on Pond Lane in Southampton Village.

A straw vote was held once before, in October 2013. While Tuckahoe residents approved the measure, Southampton voters rejected it. The new attempt at annexation is backed by state support for consolidating the districts.

“The potential merger between Tuckahoe and Southampton reflects new state legislation specifically designed to support our merger,” Tuckahoe Superintendent Chris Dyer wrote in a letter to residents. “The forum is reflective of new financial data.”

Dyer said the Tuckahoe forum will address why the merger is proposed, the benefits to children and the community, and the path forward.  “The evening is designed to discuss the educational aspects of our school and the efficient financial benefit of a potential merger,” he said. “We will reaffirm the nurturing quality of Southampton Community life and our high expectations for all children in the Tuckahoe Common School District.”

The straw vote is set for November 18 in the Tuckahoe School library and the Southampton Intermediate School music room between 10 a.m. and 8 p.m. If both districts vote to support the annexation, a binding vote will be held in May 2015 and the merger would take place in July 2015.