Bridgehampton

BUDGET

SPENDING $18,689,852, a 14.68 percent increase from the current $16,297,465.

TAX LEVY 10.83 percent increase, from $14,355,231 to $15,910,513. This is equal to the district's 10.83 percent tax-cap limit, so a simple majority vote is required for approval.

TEACHER PAY / PROGRAMS Salary estimates are subject to negotiations, with an estimated contractual increase of 0.75 percent. The proposed budget adds AP courses in math and science and a string music program at the elementary level.

PROPOSITIONS

Proposition 2 seeks authorization to renew leases for up to three years on two land parcels adjacent to Bridgehampton School along Montauk Highway that are used for the district's agricultural education program, with a total combined rental of $3,000 for the first year. Approval of the proposition will not affect the tax levy.

WHEN | WHERE

2 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Bridgehampton School gymnasium. www.bridgehamptonschool.com

CANDIDATES

Five people are vying for two seats, elected at-large. Candidates are incumbents Michael Gomberg and Jennifer Vinski, as well as Angela Torres Chmielewski, Randall Davis and Carla Lillie. Terms are three years.

Angela Torres Chmielewski

BACKGROUND Chmielewski, 39, is a real estate sales agent. She earned her bachelor's degree in English at Wesleyan University. She served on the board of the Children’s Museum of the East End and the Parrish Art Museum’s Business Council. She is active in the PTO, where she is vice president. She has two children attending Bridgehampton School.

KEY ISSUE "With enrollment increasing, making sure that our students continue to have amazing opportunities. The expansion of the school should help us tighten academic rigor and offer more specialty course offerings, particularly in the secondary and upper school."

Randall Davis

BACKGROUND Davis, 49, has been a custodian and landscaper in the Sag Harbor school district since 2006. A lifelong resident, he earned his general diploma. Davis is a basketball coach with Bridgehampton Youth Basketball and director of Southampton Police Athletic League Football. He has two children attending Bridgehampton School.

KEY ISSUE "I want to make sure that every opportunity is available to the kids and will try to bridge gaps. I will keep bringing positivity and new ideas and stand for the children," Davis said. "I understand my community and want to be there to support, help and keep the unity Bridgehampton has had as a small community."

Michael Gomberg

BACKGROUND Gomberg, 46, is a financial adviser for the financial services firm Edward Jones. He earned a dual bachelor's degree in accounting and finance at Washington University in St. Louis. He has two children in Bridgehampton School. Gomberg is seeking his second term on the board, where he has served on the budget and audit committee for the past five years.

KEY ISSUE "We have to build on the curriculum and take it to a higher level. We have a duty to do right by our children, to make sure they're ready after high school. It's important to build on what we have going on right now."

Carla Lillie

BACKGROUND Lillie, 35, is a medical biller and bookkeeper. A lifelong resident, she attended Bridgehampton School through ninth grade and was a member of The Ross School's first graduating class in 2001. She has three children attending Bridgehampton School.

KEY ISSUE "Bridgehampton is such a family community and I want to help keep that small-school, small-classroom feel. I know the values the school stands by and I'd bring that knowledge to the board."

Jennifer Vinski

BACKGROUND Vinski, 45, is a special education teacher in the Southampton school district. She earned a bachelor's degree in psychology and elementary education from Dowling College and a master's degree in special education from LIU Post. She is a member of the Bridgehampton and Southampton PTOs; serves on the Bridgehampton audit committee; and is a Friends of the Library committee member for the Hampton Library. She has three children in Bridgehampton School. She is seeking her third term on the board.

KEY ISSUE Vinski would like to continue on the board to offer consistency for projects such as the building expansion, the transition of the administrative team and upcoming teacher contract negotiations. "I bring an educator's perspective, experience and knowledge to the board, which I think is an important perspective. Everything I do is for and about kids."