New York names former Pleasantville superintendent to East Ramapo schools monitor post

Recently retired Pleasantville schools Superintendent Mary Fox-Alter has been named to the monitor team that oversees East Ramapo Central School District for New York state.

Fox-Alter will serve as the state’s academic monitor, joining fiscal monitor Bruce Singer. The academic monitor position was vacated last month by Denise Lowe, a Howell, New Jersey, school board member and longtime educational consultant.

"I'm just really honored to do this work on behalf of the East Ramapo Central School District students," Fox-Alter said Tuesday.

East Ramapo first had a state-appointed monitor team installed about five years ago, as fiscal and social turmoil continued to embroil the diverse district. Via state legislation, East Ramapo's monitor team gained more power last year, including the ability to veto board decisions.

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The appointment of Fox-Alter was met with disappointment by former educator and East Ramapo school board member Carole Anderson.

"I don't have anything against her, but I am upset because she doesn't have what we need," said Anderson, who serves on the East Ramapo Community Advisory Board, a 10-member panel mandated by legislation that established the current monitor system.

Anderson also said the state should have met with various groups before the appointment.

"We need someone with experience dealing with a diverse community such as this, a community that's having the problems we've been having," she said.

East Ramapo's four-year public school graduation is 65% with a student population that is 68% Latino or Hispanic; 24% Black or African American; and 4% white. Pleasantville boasts a 93% four-year graduation rate with a student population that is 74% white; 14% Latino or Hispanic; and 2% Black or African American.

"I understand my role is to provide academic oversight, feedback and support," Fox-Alter said. "There are challenges here but I am confident we can work together on behalf of the students to ensure their academic success."

A district divided

East Ramapo serves the greater Spring Valley region, which is home to a large Black and Latino immigrant community and a growing Hasidic and Orthodox Jewish population.

While the public schools serve more than 9,000 students, there are about 30,000 private-school students who live in the district, most of those attending yeshivas.

The school board's majority has been accused of favoring the yeshiva community. Resources are often limited in East Ramapo, with the district forced to operate under austerity budgets as spending plans have been repeatedly rejected by voters.

Transportation costs, mandated for public- and private-school students alike, continue to climb each year. After New York City, East Ramapo’s transportation needs are the largest in the state.

This year, the state comptroller called East Ramapo the most fiscally stressed school district in New York.

In 2021, the NAACP won a federal voting rights challenge against the district. In testimony, plaintiffs asserted that Orthodox Jewish men had dominated school board seats and decisions for more than a decade. The ruling changed the way the school board is elected by setting up "wards" or neighborhoods that elect specific members of the nine-person school board.

Meet the monitor

State Education Commissioner Betty A. Rosa said after Lowe's resignation for personal reasons that the state would name a replacement within weeks.

Fox-Alter is former president of the Lower Hudson Council of School Superintendents. She is highly regarded by her colleagues across the region, both for her knowledge of education policy and her advocacy on behalf of public schools.

Fox-Alter said she has read the district's strategic long-term academic and fiscal plan, a mandate under the monitor legislation. She said her job now is to "provide oversight to that plan to make sure that people follow it."

Fox-Alter said her appointment was for one year.

Board of Regents Chancellor Lester W. Young, Jr. lauded Fox-Alter's appointment.

“Ms. Fox-Alter’s ability to forge meaningful, collaborative relationships with school board leadership while maintaining a productive relationship with the community will allow her to quickly become a valuable asset to the students and families of the East Ramapo community," Young said.

Rosa cited Fox-Alter's long record in public school leadership as well as teaching experience in Catholic schools.

“Her blend of experience in public and private schools coupled with her strong commitment to student success and the community make her an exceptional choice for the East Ramapo Central School District," Rosa said.

Rivkie Feiner, a Monsey resident who serves on East Ramapo's community advisory board said, "I miss Dr. Denise Lowe and appreciate all of her efforts over the past three years in working to move our district forward."

Feiner said she is looking forward to working with Fox-Alter, adding, "I hope NYSED will recognize the uniqueness of our district and support all of our children by giving us the resources that they need."

Nancy Cutler writes about People & Policy. Click here for her latest stories. Follow her on Twitter at @nancyrockland.

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: East Ramapo monitor post filled by former Pleasantville superintendent