CROTON-ON-HUDSON — The Croton-Harmon Board of Education is facing a challenging time, candidates agreed Tuesday night, but they offered different visions for how the district should navigate issues ranging from classroom technology to student mental health and academic accountability. Five candidates—three incumbents and two challengers—gathered at Croton-Harmon High School for a forum sponsored by the League of Women Voters. With three seats up for grabs in the May 19 election, the discussion highlighted a divide between the current board’s emphasis on student-centered strategic planning and the challengers’ push for quantitative metrics, curriculum auditing, and tighter financial controls. "We know that students cannot learn when they do not feel safe," said Betsy Laird, a challenger and clinical psychologist, when asked about the role of the board in addressing discrimination. "Draft policies that have not been implemented protect no one." {{quote:3017}} **Incumbents Defend Record, Challengers Call for Oversight** The forum featured incumbents Sarah Carrier, Anamika Bhatnagar, and Neal Haber, who are seeking reelection. They were joined on stage by challengers Jake Day, a parent who recently organized a community effort to save the district's Universal Pre-K program, and Betsy Laird. Incumbents pointed to the district's high performance on state metrics and the development of the district's "Vision Map," a strategic plan designed to align with state initiatives. "My name is Sarah Carrier, and I'm proud to have served on the Croton-Harmon board for nine years," Carrier said in her opening statement. "I'm seeking reelection so that I may continue serving this community to make sure our schools remain strong, welcoming, and forward looking." {{quote:560}} Neal Haber, a longtime board member often referred to as a policy "wonk," emphasized the district's innovative learning experiences. "What I think is working well in the district is the fact that we are working very diligently to provide innovative education... to all our students in grade K through 12," Haber said. {{quote:939}} However, challengers argued that innovation without clear accountability measures risks falling short. "I think that to Anamika's points about being willing to see what can be done better, I think there's a real opportunity to strengthen the vision map through those clear metrics and objectives," Laird said. "I've not been able to find a theory of change, a clear work plan or clear metrics that go along with it." {{quote:1332}} **Technology: A Budgetary Debate** One of the sharpest divisions emerged over the use of educational technology. The debate comes as the district weighs spending on devices like iPads. Jake Day, a challenger with a background in municipal finance, criticized the rapid growth of the technology budget. "Our computer assisted instruction budget has grown 45% in the past five years, and that's in the budget," Day said. "I've looked at that. That's a lot... We don't have an AI policy in place." {{quote:1921}} Day argued that the district should prioritize direct instruction over hardware purchases. "I think that the best use of resources in that case... would be to take the iPads from the kindergartners and give them to the fifth graders, and then use the money that was going to be spent on those iPads on an additional instruction," he said. {{quote:2116}} Incumbent Anamika Bhatnagar acknowledged that technology use, particularly in lower grades, warrants scrutiny. "I think the evidence really shows right now that most of the technology that we're using in our schools is not additive or really supporting student achievement," Bhatnagar said. {{quote:1976}} She expressed concern about data privacy, noting, "Are the appropriate data privacy standards in place? Are they being applied?... I think the answer to all those questions is no. We don't know." {{quote:2026}} Haber defended the board's approach, noting that technology is a "moving target." "We cannot have a static policy or static approach to technology in the classroom or otherwise," Haber said. "We have to rely on our professionals to adopt or to follow the policies that we set and we have to oversee them." {{quote:2134}} **Defining "Rigor" and Success** When asked about addressing concerns regarding academic rigor and test scores relative to neighboring districts, the candidates clashed over the definition of success. Day cited a recent report from the Tri-State Consortium, a group of school districts that conduct peer reviews. He argued the district's strategic plan lacks teeth. "They said that the vision map has no names, timelines, or outcomes attached to it and it's left with an intentionally undefined future," Day said. "That to me is really concerning. I would as a board member, you know, insist upon regular reporting out regular metrics." {{quote:2807}} Bhatnagar, who works in educational publishing, pushed back against the idea that the district is lacking rigor but agreed that outcomes must be measured. "We do have to continue to look at the performance of our students across a wide variety of metrics," she said. "Test scores tell us something. Evaluating curriculum tells us something." {{quote:2395}} Laird argued that the district needs to better support teachers in the classroom by providing them with strong curricular resources rather than supplementary materials. "The literacy offering in third and fourth grade is Storyworks, which is a scholastic journal that is not an actual curriculum," Laird said. "It doesn't give [teachers] enough time to prepare a lesson... We need to make sure that we have really strong vertical alignment through k from k through 12." {{quote:2526}} **Communication and Community Trust** The topic of communication between the district administration and families elicited strong responses from all candidates. Several parents in the audience have recently voiced frustration over the responsiveness of the district to their concerns. "I don't think the question is how do we better communicate? It's more of how do we respond," Day said. "It's very difficult to get a thorough response... When we were organizing for UPK, there was a real lack of responsiveness. It was just sort of a deferral." {{quote:4123}} Bhatnagar argued that the culture of the district needs to shift to assume positive intent from parents. "We need to change the culture in the school district so that people when they're asking questions, those questions aren't received as criticism or an attack on everything that's going on," she said. {{quote:1235}} Laird suggested the board should implement policy-level fixes for responsiveness. "I think that the board and the district have a responsibility to identify trends and to respond to them," she said. "We have metrics in my organization around response time to clients. We should be doing the same thing." {{quote:1327}} **Balancing Mental Health and Achievement** On the issue of student mental health and the pressure facing students, the candidates sought to find a balance between emotional support and academic standards. Laird used a personal anecdote about her husband, a teacher, to illustrate her view. "He says to his students, I am here to teach you to fail well... when they meet a challenge, that they're not alone in that," Laird said. {{quote:1660}} Carrier emphasized the importance of empowering staff. "It really starts with our faculty and our staff and really supporting them... so that we are providing equitable access to opportunities for all of our kids," Carrier said. {{quote:1430}} Day argued that rigor and emotional well-being are not mutually exclusive. "I think that academic rigor and social emotional learning are two things in one," Day said. "We need to make sure we have academic rigor, social and emotional learning, and supporting our teachers so we can achieve those outcomes." {{quote:1514}} **Holding Leadership Accountable** A recurring theme throughout the night was the board's role in holding the superintendent accountable. "I think that one of the ways we can really hold the superintendent more accountable is by increasing responsiveness," Day said. "We talk a lot about communication... Are we communicating effectively? Are we being heard?" {{quote:3901}} Laird pointed out that the district has not produced a comprehensive annual report since the 2020-2021 school year. "Croton-Harmon has not had an annual report of this type since the twenty twenty, twenty twenty one school year. I would really like to bring that back," she said. {{quote:3977}} Haber outlined the standard mechanisms of control, including the annual evaluation of the superintendent. "There are several ways that we work to hold the superintendent accountable," he said. "One, which is our statutory responsibility is to evaluate the superintendent, which we do annually." {{quote:3488}} **Looking Ahead** As the forum concluded, the candidates laid out their final pitches to the voters. Laird emphasized the need for specific perspectives on the board. "Right now, there is not a single member of the Croton-Harmon Board of Education with a child in the elementary school," she noted. "Full representation is how we will build a deep bench with perspectives from all school ages." {{quote:5138}} Day focused on his commitment to the long haul. "This isn't a one board term for me. It's k through 12 for both him and his little brother," Day said. "Croton families have always shown up for these schools. I'm asking for the chance to show up for you." {{quote:5356}} Carrier thanked the community for their engagement. "It has been an honor and a privilege to represent this community on the board for the last nine years," she said. "I am deeply committed to doing the important work of supporting our district." {{quote:5298}} Voting will take place on Tuesday, May 19, from 6:00 AM to 9:00 PM in the Croton-Harmon High School gymnasium.