While national and global issues dominate headlines and conversations, Chappaqua is home to its own political news and developments. On Tuesday May 19th, Chappaqua voters headed to the polls to vote on approving the proposed district budget for the 2026-2027 school year. The budget ultimately passed by a large majority, with 693 votes in favor and 213 opposed. Voters also approved the Chappaqua Library budget and selected members of the Board of Education.

The district budget is a large decision, with public planning starting well before voters marked their ballots with a preview of the budget in January at a Board of Education meeting. Superintendent Dr. Christine Ackerman then introduced her budget proposal in early March. This proposal was followed by budget hearings and Q&A sessions before the formal adoption of the budget in April and last month’s vote.

The final proposal was a $150,125,516 budget for the Chappaqua Central School District. The budget “reflects a responsible and forward-looking approach—supporting our schools and programs while strengthening long-term financial stability,” per the Superintendent’s message on the district website. The budget included investments in technology, funding for new classes at Greeley, and increased allocations for the district’s athletics department and extracurriculars.

I sat down with Dr. Ackerman to discuss the budget process in detail, and she stressed how “the majority of the budget is an investment in faculty and our staff. And then, there’s a slice of the budget that pays for all other aspects of helping our programs run.” While the budget may seem incredibly complex and detailed, many of its aspects are consistent over time.

“How we spend the money that is not dedicated to staff can differ based on what our needs are,” but the general allocations and percentages to each department remain the same, mentioned Dr. Ackerman.

However, this does not mean the budget lacks space for changes based on student opinion. As an example, Dr. Ackerman highlighted the successful implementation of AP Economics classes at Greeley. This would not have been possible without both student feedback and changes to the district budget. “People have to have professional development. You have to get materials. You [have to] make sure that you allocate people to teach those things, but without student voice in that, we may not have moved in that direction,” she said.

Although students at Greeley are ultimately not the ones with the final say on the budget, they are certainly not powerless during the process. Dr. Ackerman emphasized that student voices are crucial for the development of the budget. “The more student voice[s] we have in conversations around how we are spending our finances to support students, the better we will match our allocation to what students actually need,” she stated. Through student government or reaching out to school and district administrators, students at Greeley have avenues to raise their opinions. “That advocacy leads to action,” Dr. Ackerman mentioned.

It is also never too early to start raising student voices. While over the summer, the primary focus is to close out the current budget and implement the newly adopted one, planning for the next one starts at the start of next school year. “It’s fluid, but he [Assistant Superintendent for Business Mr. Culwell-Block] really will begin conversations with our colleagues around planning for next year in early fall,” Dr. Ackerman said.

While the school budget appears to be a far-removed process for Greeley’s students, it holds significant influence over the student experience and certainly does not lack avenues for students to insert their own voices. For students looking to make change in the community, this is how. As Dr. Ackerman emphasizes, “there’s [an] opportunity for you to advocate for what you need and get the resources that you need through conversations with the people who work here. And so we welcome that.”