Selection Committee Survey in Westchester LWV Issues Survey of School Board Candidate Nominating Practices Across Westchester County As school districts across the county gear up for their school board elections in May, the Larchmont-Mamaroneck League of Women Voters has just issued its 2004 survey of the candidate nominating process in Westchester County. Questionnaires were sent to the superintendents and the district clerks in 39 school districts, with 33 responding, a return rate of 85%. Nina Cuddy, who organized the project, described the work as "an effort to survey how the various school districts in the community secure or encourage individuals to run for school board." The project was first contemplated by the Larchmont-Mamaroneck LWV following a divisive campaign in 2001 when the community was split over one of the nominees of the Mamaroneck Committee for the Selection of School Board Candidates (commonly referred to as the Selection Committee). Who has a Selection Committee? Selection committees are few and far between, according to the results of the survey. Only five communities - Bronxville, Edgemont, Pelham, Mamaroneck and Scarsdale -- reported having a selection committee; in addition, Chappaqua has a committee that endorses, but does not select candidates. For the 28 school districts without a selection committee, candidates are self-nominated, a process that also is practiced in three of the five communities with selection committees, including Mamaroneck. Of the 28 districts without a selection committee, only Hastings-on-Hudson reported having such a group in the past, which was disbanded several years ago For the most part, money plays a small role in the school board elections. Candidates in 29 of the 33 districts responding spent less than $500 in the 2004 election. (Candidates spending less than $500 on their campaigns are not required to file an expense report with their school district.) Four districts reported campaign expenses ranging from $900 to $2,000/per candidate last year. Are most elections contested? Districts were fairly evenly divided on whether elections were contested or not. In May 2004, 16 districts had elections with more candidates running for office than there were positions available; the remaining 17 communities had uncontested elections. When asked what the norm for their district was, 18 schools responded that their elections were "usually not contested." Nine reported that they normally did have contested elections. The remaining four districts were either unsure or indicated both were common. Of the five communities with selection committees, only Pelham reported that elections were usually contested; Scarsdale's response was "none in decades." Of the 18 districts whose elections were "usually not contested," seven had a contested election within the last 3 years. Ms Cuddy cautioned that "we cannot guarantee the accuracy of the information, only affirm that this is how the information was reported to us." But, she added, "Whether or not a citizen selection or nominating committee exists, the issue remains as to how best to encourage community members to serve on the school board at a time when so many citizens have so little time to devote to so enormous a task." Click here for the Survey Data     April 4, 2005 Volume I, Issue 4