Trio Vie for Incumbent’s School Board Seat

Three first-time candidates look to unseat a three-term trustee on the Long Beach Board of Education next month.

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Challengers Matthew Adler, Elizabeth Treston and Jes Bellsey are vying for the seat of incumbent Roy Lester, the board’s president and a real estate attorney and lifelong Long Beach resident.

The Long Beach School District proposes a $123 million budget for 2013-14, which represents a 1.3 percent increase over the current spending plan in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, which caused an estimated $250 million in damages to the city. Lester said the board’s greatest struggle remains balancing the needs of students and those of taxpayers. Lester told the Long Beach Herald that both sides always have something to complain about:

“It’s never enough for the kids, and it’s always too costly for the taxpayer. But you do what you think is right.”
Adler, a 38-year-old math teacher at Seaford High School and a parent of two young children enrolled in the district, was the first candidate to officially throw his hat in the race. He told Patch last month that he is running in order to provide a quality education to the community, and that, if elected to the board, his top priorities would be to streamline administrative costs and improve teacher training.

“We need to give teachers the proper training so they know how to implement exciting lessons and not just to teach to the test,” Adler said. “We have some wonderful teachers in this district and I want to give them the proper training to succeed so they could prepare our students for the future.”

Candidate Elizabeth Treston, 53, a long-time West End resident, told the Herald that as a project director for 10 years at TRAID, a state grant program that offers technology for people with disabilities, she never exceeded her budget, and was able examine what works and doesn’t while observing different school systems across Long Island.

Treston said she decided to enter the race after parents told her that she would be a good candidate. “It’s time for some fresh eyes, new questions and common sense. We’re all in this together,” she said.

The third newcomer, Bellsey, is a former substitute teacher in the district who now works as a trade show and special projects coordinator. The 33-year-old candidate told the Herald that she believes her age group deserves better representation on the board.

“We are the ones who are buying the houses and having children,” said Bellsey, a Long Beach High School junior varsity cheerleading coach for the last seven years. “I think it is important that we have a voice.”

The deadline for filing to run in the school board race is May 1. The vote is May 21.

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