Utica City School District elections (2015)
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One seat on the Utica City School District Board of Education was up for general election on May 19, 2015. The election shared the ballot with the school district's annual budget vote, which was passed.[1][2]
Incumbent Evon Ervin was the only candidate who filed to run in this election. She ran unopposed and won re-election.[3]
In April 2015, a lawsuit was filed against the district alleging it had discriminated against refugee students by segregating them into alternative programs rather than admitting them into normal high schools.
- See also: Issues in the district
About the district
- See also: Utica City School District, New York
Utica City School District is located in Oneida County in central New York. The county seat is Utica. Oneida County was home to 233,585 residents in 2013, according to the United States Census Bureau.[4] During the 2012-2013 school year, Utica City was the 17th-largest school district in New York and served 9,714 students.[5]
Demographics
Oneida County underperformed in comparison to the rest of New York in terms of higher education achievement in 2013. The United States Census Bureau found that 22.4 percent of county residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree, compared to 33.2 percent for New York as a whole. The median household income in Oneida County was $48,729, compared to $58,003 statewide. The poverty rate was 15.9 percent, compared to 15.3 percent for the entire state.[4]
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Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.
Voter and candidate information
The Utica City Board of Education consists of seven members elected at large to five-year terms on a staggered basis every year in May.[7] Two seats were up for election in 2013, one seat was up for election in 2014, and one seat was up for election in 2015.[8][9] There was no primary election, and the general election was held on May 19, 2015.[1]
School board candidates must be at least 18 years old, U.S. citizens and legal residents of the district for a minimum of one uninterrupted year prior to the election. They must also be also to read and write, cannot be employees of the district and cannot have been removed from another school board office within a year of the election. There can only be one member of a household serving a position on the board at a time, and school board members may not serve in incompatible offices at the same time they serve on the board. This includes all city offices except police officer or firefighter.[10] To get on the 2015 ballot, candidates had to file nominating petitions containing signatures of 100 qualified voters in the district with the district clerk by April 29, 2015.[11]
Elections
2015
Candidates
At-large
- Evon Ervin
- Incumbent
Election results
| Utica City School District, At-Large General Election, 5-year term, 2015 |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Nonpartisan |  Evon Ervin Incumbent |
100% | 1,259 | |
| Total Votes | 1,259 | |||
| Source: Abbey Smith, "Phone communication with the Utica City School District," July 1, 2015 | ||||
Endorsements
No candidate received an official endorsement for this election.
Campaign finance
No contributions or expenditures were reported in the election, according to the New York State Board of Elections.[12][13]
Candidates had to file finance statements if they spent more than $500 on their campaign. The statements had to be filed with the clerk of the school district as well as the New York Commissioner of Education on April 20, 2015, May 14, 2015, and June 8, 2015. Candidates who did not spend more than $500 on their campaign had to file a signed statement to that effect with the clerk of the school district.[14]
Past elections
Information about earlier elections can be found by clicking [show] at the right. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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2014
2013Incumbent Donald Dawes and newcomer Michael Paul defeated incumbent Barry Goodwin and challengers Robert Jenkins, Carmen Sonia Martinez and Asma Mohammed for two seats on the board.[8] 2012
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What was at stake?
2015
Issues in the district
District sued over alleged refugee segregation
The New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) and the Legal Services of Central New York filed a class-action lawsuit against the Utica City School District in April 2015 arguing that the district had wrongfully discriminated against six refugee students and others in similar situations. According to the lawsuit, the district violated the Equal Educational Opportunities Act by segregating refugee students who spoke limited English into alternative schools instead of allowing them to attend normal high school with their peers. Those who filed the lawsuit called the alternative schools "inferior" and said they did not grant students diplomas.[15]
"They come to the United States for the American dream, to become doctors or teachers, and they're being told, 'No, you can't go to school,'" said Phil Desgranges, an attorney with the NYCLU.[15]
Since 2007, the Utica City School District has been putting refugee students aged 16 or older into one of two programs, according to the lawsuit. The Newcomer program teaches refugee students English, but it does not teach them any other subjects and does not grant diplomas. The Alignment of Pathways and Programs for Learners of English (APPLE) program prepares students for a GED but does not offer advanced placement courses or extracurricular activities. More than 50 refugee students attended the alternative programs during the 2014-2015 school year.[15]
Utica Superintendent Bruce Karam said he has been advised that the allegations brought against the district were "totally unfounded and without merit."[16]
"We have never denied any student entry into our schools. We provide a quality education to all our students," said Karam.[16]
According to Donald Gerace, a lawyer for the school district, the district's refugee programs have been recognized by the United Nations. He said the district was proud of its educational programs for refugees and that the district never denied admission to an eligible student.[16]
The city of Utica is called "the second-chance city" due to its high population of refugees. The NYCLU estimated that one in six residents of the city came to the United States as refugees.[15]
Key deadlines
The following dates were key deadlines for the Utica City School District election in 2015:[1][7][14]
| Deadline | Event |
|---|---|
| April 20, 2015 | First campaign finance statement due |
| April 29, 2015 | Last day to file candidate nominating petitions |
| May 5, 2015 | Last day to register to vote in this election |
| May 14, 2015 | Second campaign finance statement due |
| May 19, 2015 | Election Day |
| June 8, 2015 | Final campaign finance statement due |
| July 1, 2015 | First day of term for newly elected board members |
Additional elections on the ballot
- See also: New York elections, 2015
This election shared the ballot with the school district's annual budget vote, which was passed by voters.[1][2] There was also a proposition on the ballot that asked voters to pass the $9,750,000 Kernan Elementary School Capital Project.[17] That proposition was also passed.[18]
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Utica City School District New York. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
| Utica City School District | New York | School Boards |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 New York State School Boards Association, "Timeline - 2015 Annual Budget Vote & School Board Election," accessed April 13, 2015
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Utica Observer-Dispatch, "Thousands of Utica City School ballots going to waste," June 1, 2015
- ↑ Abbey Smith, "Email communication with Kathy Hughes, Board clerk of the Utica City School District," April 30, 2015
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 United States Census Bureau, "Oneida County, New York," accessed January 23, 2015
- ↑ National Central for Education Statistics, "ELSI Table Generator," accessed April 29, 2015
- ↑ New York State Board of Elections, "NYS Voter Enrollment by County, Party Affiliation and Status - Voters Registered as of November 01, 2013," accessed April 11, 2014
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Utica City School District, "District Policies: Number of Board Members and Terms of Office," accessed April 27, 2015
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 WKTV, "Utica City School Budget," May 21, 2013
- ↑ Utica Observer-Dispatch, "School board election results," May 20, 2014
- ↑ Utica City School District, "District Policies: Qualifications of Board Members," accessed April 27, 2015
- ↑ Utica City School District, "District Policies: Nomination and Election of Board Members," accessed April 27, 2015
- ↑ New York State Board of Elections, "Campaign Financial Disclosure: Expenditure Search Page," accessed June 30, 2015
- ↑ New York State Board of Elections, "Campaign Financial Disclosure: Contribution Search Page," accessed June 30, 2015
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Utica City School District, "District Policies: Reporting of Expenditures and Contributions," accessed April 27, 2015
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 Al Jazeera America, "Refugees sue NY district, say it's channeling them into inferior schools," April 24, 2015
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 Syracuse.com, "Refugee students banned from Utica high school and segregated, lawsuit says," April 23, 2015
- ↑ Utica City School District, "Legal Notice," accessed April 30, 2015
- ↑ Utica Observer-Dispatch, "School Election Results," May 20, 2015
| 2015 Utica City School District Elections | |
| Oneida County, New York | |
| Election date: | May 19, 2015 |
| Candidates: | At-large: • Incumbent, Evon Ervin |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
