Emergency State Funds to Fix E. Ramapo School Roof

“A leaking roof at Ramapo High School can be replaced using $1 million in emergency state funds, but critics of the troubled East Ramapo school district say the fix is a short-term solution to a bigger problem.Parents and students have been complaining for years about the deteriorating condition of district buildings. The district has not allocated funds for preventive maintenance and the Board of Education has been criticized for spending reserve funds so there is no money available to pay for repairs. Pictures were shared on social media last week of water leaking into classrooms and hallways at Ramapo High, one of the district’s two high schools. The photos were accompanied by reports that the leaking roof was accompanied by mold and foul odors. Parent David Curry, whose daughter took pictures a year ago of water leaking into classrooms at the high school, said he will be happy to see the roof fixed. But the issue is bigger than one roof at one school, he said. “It’s fixing the symptom, not the problem,” he said. He criticized the school board for eliminating maintenance funds.”When you don’t fix small problems, they turn into larger problems,” he said. Read the complete Journal News story here.