I hope that you are enjoying the start of spring! The LWVS had a very active March filled with advocacy and civic engagement. We held our School Budget and Village Budget Information Sessions and Consensus Meetings and participated in voter registration drives at local colleges.

On Tuesday, April 1 at 7pm, we will hold a general membership and consensus meeting to discuss the LWVUS federal judiciary study, the LWVNYS ranked choice voting study, and the LWVNYS voting systems approval process study. Coming up on April 24, we look forward to our book discussion about Master Slave Husband Wife, by Ilyon Woo. We will enjoy light refreshments, good company, and a great discussion, all in the comfort of a private home. Please register to attend–all are welcome and we look forward to seeing you.

Congratulations to Dylan Lemberg who will be joining our elected officials for Students Inside Albany in May.

This issue of the bulletin includes the agenda for our Annual Meeting on Friday, May 9, at 10:30 a.m. at the Scarsdale Golf Club. Our featured speaker will be U.S. Congressman George Latimer, representing New York's 16th Congressional District. We will have a discussion about the state of democracy. Please join us!

I encourage you to be active and engaged in our League as well as the community!

Upcoming LWVS Events:

• Tuesday, April 1, at 7:00 p.m., General Membership/Consensus Meeting on LWVUS and LWVNYS Studies, Zoom
• Friday, April 24 at 12:00 p.m., Book Discussion, Private Home
• Friday, May 9 at 10:30 a.m., Annual Meeting, Scarsdale Golf Club

Best wishes,

Heedan Chung

SCHOOL BUDGET VOTE and SCHOOL BOARD ELECTION 

Tuesday, May 20, 2025

In-person voting from 7:00 a.m. - 9:00 p.m. 

Scarsdale Middle School 

134 Mamaroneck Road 

The proposed 2025-26 school budget will be subject to a vote (see LWVS Consensus Statement on the 2025-26 Proposed School Budget) and the names of all individuals who have successfully filed timely completed candidate petitions will be on the ballot for election to the School Board. The election will be for the three seats currently occupied by Colleen Brown, Suzie Hahn, and Ron Schulhof. Ms. Brown and Ms. Hahn are finishing their first terms this year, while Mr. Schulhof completes his second.

The LWVS supports the proposed 2025-26 school budget and encourages the community to vote YES.

VOTER REGISTRATION INFORMATION

To be qualified to register to vote in this election, you must:

• be at least 18 years of age by the date of the election,
• be a United States citizen,
• have continuously resided in the Scarsdale Public School District for a period of at least 30 days immediately preceding the date of the election,
• not be in prison for a felony conviction,
• not be adjudged mentally incompetent by a court, and
• not claim the right to vote elsewhere.

You are already eligible to vote if you meet either of the following criteria:

• You are registered with the Westchester County Board of Elections to vote in general elections, or
• You are registered to vote in the Scarsdale Public School District and have voted in a school election within the past four years.

Enter your information in the SUFSD Poll Place Finder/Am I Registered form to find out if you are already registered to vote in this election.

For more information, visit the LWVS School Budget Vote and School Board Election page or contact the LWVS Voter Service Chairs.

April 2025

• 4/1, Tuesday
• 7:00pm Gen Membership/Consensus Mtg (National and State Studies), Zoom
• 4/21, Monday:
• 8:00pm Board Meeting, Zoom
• 4/25, Friday:
• 12:00 - 1:30pm Book Discussion, Private Home

May 2025

• 5/9, Friday:
• 10:30am LWVS Annual Mtg and Luncheon, Scarsdale Golf Club
• 5/20, Tuesday:
• 7am - 9pm School Budget Vote and BOE Election, Scarsdale Middle School Gym

June 2025

• 6/9, Monday
• 10am Joint Old/New Board Meeting, Private Home
• 6/14, Saturday - 6/22, Sunday
• Early Voting for June Primary
• 6/24, Tuesday
• Primary Election

LWVS General Membership and Consensus Meeting:

National and State Studies

 Tuesday, April 1, 2025

7:00 p.m. via Zoom

Meeting ID 858 9283 6580

Passcode 152110

On Tuesday, April 1 at 7:00 p.m. via Zoom, LWVS will hold a general membership and consensus meeting to discuss the LWVUS federal judiciary study, the LWVNYS ranked choice voting study, and the LWVNYS voting systems approval process study.

Attendees will be asked whether to concur with the proposed position statements set forth in the Agenda and Consensus Questions for the meeting.

In preparation for the discussion, participants are encouraged to review the following materials that have been provided by the national and state leagues:

• LWVUS Federal Judiciary Study Materials
• LWVNYS Ranked Choice Voting and Nonpartisan Primaries Study Materials
• LWVNYS Voting Systems Approval Process Study Materials

For more information, please contact Abigail Ruane, LWVS Advocacy Portfolio Chair.

Please join us for our



LWVS Book Discussion

Master Slave Husband Wife

by Ilyon Woo

Friday, April 25, 2025

12:00 - 1:30pm

Private Home

We look forward to meeting in person for a lively discussion about Master Slave Husband Wife by Ilyon Woo on Friday, April 25 at 12pm. 

Winner of the 2024 Pulitzer Prize in biography, and named one of the best books of the year by The New York Times, The New Yorker, Time, NPR, Smithsonian Magazine and Oprah Daily, this book is about “an enslaved couple who escaped from Georgia in 1848, with light-skinned Ellen disguised as a disabled white gentleman and William as her manservant, exploiting assumptions about race, class, and disability to hide in public on their journey to the North, where they became famous abolitionists while evading bounty hunters.” - The Pulitzer Prizes

Bronx River Books in Scarsdale Village is offering a 10% discount on the purchase of the book when you mention you are participating in the League of Women Voters of Scarsdale Book Club.

Please RSVP using the form below to let us know you will be participating. The address for the meeting location will be sent via email.

We look forward to seeing you on April 25!

League of Women Voters of Scarsdale

Annual Meeting and Luncheon

 Friday, May 9, 2025

10:30 am to 2 pm

(luncheon and speaker portion of event begins at noon)

Scarsdale Golf Club

Featured Speaker:

Congressman George Latimer

Agenda

I. Call to Order and Welcome to All: Heedan Chung

• Introduction of Parliamentarian
• Introduction of Secretary
• Adoption of Order of Business
• Motion for Annual Meeting Minutes to Be Adopted by the LWVS Board

II. President’s Report: Heedan Chung

III. Treasurer’s Report and YTD Budget and Actuals: Trish Chen

IV. Presentation of Proposed LWVS Budget 2025-26: Nancy Michaels

• Proposed LWVS Budget 2025-26
• Budget Adoption

V. Presentation of Proposed LWVS Local Program 2025-26: Anne Lyons

• Proposed LWVS Local Program with Outlook for Work
• Adoption of LWVS Local Program 2025-26

VI. Report of the Nominating Committee: Amber Yusuf

• Presentation of Proposed LWVS Slate for 2025-26
• Nominations from the Floor
• Election and Installation of 2025-26 LWVS Officers, Directors, and Nominating Committee

VII. Directions to the Board

VIII. Other Business Announcements

IX. Upcoming Events

• Sunday, May 18, 2025 to Wednesday, May 21, 2025 in Albany: LWVNYS Students Inside Albany
• Tuesday, May 20, 2025, 7am to 9pm at SMS: School Budget Vote and BOE Election
• Thursday, June 5, 2025, 5pm at Manhattanville University: LWVW Annual Convention
• Monday, June 9, 2025, 10am at private home: LWVS Joint Old/New Board Meeting
• Saturday, June 14, 2025 through Sunday, June 22, 2025: Early Voting for June Primary
• Tuesday, June 24, 2025: June Primary
• Friday, June 20, 2025 to Sunday, June 22, 2025 in Albany, NY: LWVNYS Biennial Convention

X. Adjournment

Featured Speaker:

Congressman George Latimer

George Latimer, a third generation Westchester native, attended Mount Vernon public schools, graduated with a B.A. from Fordham University in the Bronx in 1974 and a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from New York University’s Wagner School in 1976. His public service career began in 1987 on the Rye City Council. In 1991, he was elected to the Westchester County Board of Legislators, where he served for 13 years. In 2004, he was elected to the NYS Assembly, where he authored more than 20 new laws. Latimer was then elected to the NYS Senate in 2012, representing the 37th District.

Latimer took office as Westchester County Executive in January 2018 as the ninth County Executive. He was then re-elected to a second term as County Executive in November 2021, never losing an election after over three decades in public office. During his tenure as County Executive, Latimer upheld an impressive record of achievements, including three consecutive County property tax cuts and credit rating stabilization. He was also responsible for bringing several long-standing infrastructure projects to fruition, including the historic Elijah J. Miller House, Sprain Ridge Pool, New Rochelle Family Court and the North and South County Trailways. Latimer also worked to electrify the County’s Bee-Line Bus Fleet and modernize all County facilities for a green future.



In November 2024, Latimer was elected to represent Congressional District 16 in the U.S. House of Representatives and began serving his two-year term in January 2025.

We are honored to have Congressman Latimer speak at our annual meeting. He will discuss the state of our democracy during these changing times, followed by Q & A. 

Tickets are $60/adult and $30/student

Adult price increases by $10 after May 2, 2025

LWVS General Membership and Consensus Meeting:

2025-26 Programming for our

Local, County, and State Leagues

On Monday, February 10, LWVS held a general membership and consensus meeting about its Local Program for 2025-26. The proposed program will be voted on at the LWVS Annual Membership Meeting and Luncheon on Friday, May 9, 2025.

In accordance with and following the consensus meeting, LWVS wrote a letter offering input to the LWVW on their 2025-26 Program Planning and submitted its recommendations to LWVNYS.

Links:

• Proposed LWVS Local Program for 2025-26
• 2025 Letter to LWVW re: Annual Program 2025-26
• LWVNYS Program Recommendations for 2025-27

LWVS General Membership and Consensus Meeting:

2025-26 School Budget

On Monday, March 17, 2024, at the Scarsdale Public Library Scott Room and via Zoom, the League convened its General Information and Member Consensus meeting regarding the School District’s 2025-26 Budget. Dalya Khan, the LWVS School Budget Co-Chair, conducted the League Information and Consensus meeting.

The LWVS supports the proposed 2025-26 school budget and encourages the community to vote YES.

The following members of the District Cabinet and Board of Education were present at the Information Session to answer questions: from the Administration, Dr. Drew Patrick, Mr. Andrew Lennon, Dr. Edgar McIntosh, Mr. Eric Rauschenbach, Ms. Meghan Troy, Ms. Jeannie Crowley, and Mr. William Yang; and from the School Board, Ms. Suzie Hahn, Mr. James Dugan, Ms. Amber Yusuf, and Ms. Leah Dembitzer.

The Administration responded to League-prepared and audience questions. They discussed the details of certain portions of the Budget including proposed staffing, fund balance and health reserves, program drivers, high school curriculum, and field improvements.

The League comments regarding the Budget were read during public comment at the Board of Education Community Budget Forum on March 24, 2025.

Upcoming School Budget dates:

• Monday, April 7 at 6:30 p.m., Board of Education adopts the Budget
• Tuesday, May 20, Board of Education Public Budget Vote

Links:

• Video of School Budget Information Session
• LWVS Consensus Statement on the 2025-26 Proposed School Budget
• LWVS 2024-25 Information Sessions page

LWVS General Membership and Consensus Meeting: 

2025-2026 Village Budget 

On Friday, March 21, 2025, the LWVS convened its General Information and Member Consensus meeting regarding the Village’s 2025-26 tentative budget. Debbie Bhatt, LWVS Village Budget Portfolio Chair, conducted the meeting. Mayor Justin Arest, Trustee Karen Brew, and Village Manager Alex Marshall were the panelists. 

Using the League questions as a framework, the panelists provided an overview of this year’s budgeting process. Discussion topics included the current and future needs of the Village, as well as advocacy and other strategic initiatives to increase revenues and decrease expenditures. The panelists provided updates to ongoing and future initiatives including field upgrades resulting from the Field Study and plans for the Pool Complex, Village Hall and Freightway Garage.  

Follow these links for more information: 

• Archives of adopted Village Budgets 
• Village Budget FY 2025-26 files on ClearGov that include the Multi-year Capital Improvement Plan 
• Recordings of the Village Board of Trustee work sessions
• Recording of LWVS General Information Session on the Proposed 2025-26 Village Budget
• LWVS Consensus Statement on the Proposed 2025-26 Village Budget
• LWVS 2024-25 Information Sessions webpage

Village budget sessions are open to the public and public participation is encouraged. Meeting details and Zoom links are available on the Board of Trustees website and on the Village Budget Calendar for FY 2025-26. 

Upcoming Village Budget Dates: 

• Tuesday, April 8, 8PM: Statutory public hearing on Tentative Budget  
• Tuesday, April 29, 8PM: Village Board of Trustees to adopt budget (must be adopted prior to Monday, May 1, 2025) 

Students Inside Albany

One Scarsdale High School student, Dylan Lemberg, has been selected for his inspiring achievement in his school and community to participate in this year’s Students Inside Albany (SIA) Conference. The SIA program generated overwhelming interest at Scarsdale High School, and all applicants had impressive involvement and qualifications. 

This year’s four-day conference will take place in Albany from Sunday, May 18th to Wednesday, May 21st. The agenda will be packed with tools to instruct students on how to influence public policy decision-making at the state level. Additionally, the opportunity to meet in person with legislators, which is always the highlight of the Conference, will continue.

The League of Women Voters of Scarsdale looks forward to offering the opportunity for Scarsdale students to attend the Students Inside Albany Conference again in 2026.

Running & Winning

On April 30, 2025, the League of Women Voters of Westchester (LWVW) and the Association of American University Women (AAUW), with financial support from additional sponsors, will host their unique Running & Winning, a one-day program for female high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors at Manhattanville University. The program goal is to support our young participants’ aspirations to serve in public office, develop their leadership potential, and, at the same time, help our government institutions increase gender parity. 

Visit the LWVS Running & Winning page for more information.

Thank you

The LWVS thrives with the support and hard work of a community of volunteers. I would like to extend thanks to the volunteers who contributed their valuable time and energy during the month of March.

Thank you to Dalya Khan and Nan Eileen Mead (School Budget) and Debbie Bhatt (Village Budget) for their thorough and detailed work on their respective portfolios.

Thanks to Kathy Gray and Lauren Grossberg for their work on Voter Service.

Thank you to Anne Lyons for her work on Local, County, and State Programs consensus statements. Thanks to Abbi Ruane for planning the LWVUS and LWVNYS Studies consensus meeting.

Thanks to Trish Chen for her work as Treasurer and Beth Cukier for her work as Membership Statistician.

Thanks to Dana Matsushita for her detailed work on the LWVS Bulletin as well as on our eblast communications. Thanks to Diane Baylor for taking thorough minutes at our meetings and for her wise counsel and supportive work.  

Thanks to Kitt Rosenthal for serving as our liaison to the LWVW. 

Thank you to the representatives from the School District and Village Administration who joined us for our March Information Sessions – the LWVS appreciates all of your hard work on behalf of our community.

I look forward to all of the positive work that lies ahead.

All my best,

Heedan Chung

Village of Scarsdale

As of March 31, 2025

Board of Trustees

Justin Arest, Mayor

1st term ends April 2025

Dara Gruenberg, Deputy Mayor

1st term ends April 2025

Sameer Ahuja

  2nd term ends April 2025

Karen Brew

  2nd term ends April 2025

Jeremy Gans

  2nd term ends April 2026

Ken Mazer

 2nd term ends April 2026

Jeremy Wise

1st term ends April 2026

Board of Education

Suzie Hahn, President

  1st term ends June 2025

Jim Dugan, Vice President

  2nd term ends June 2027

Colleen Brown

  1st term ends June 2025

Leah Dembitzer

1st term ends June 2027

Robert Klein

  2nd term ends June 2026

Ronald Schulhof

  2nd term ends June 2025

Amber Yusuf

   2nd term ends June 2026

League of Women Voters of Scarsdale

2024-25

Officers

President: Heedan Chung

LWVSpresident@gmail.com

First Vice President: Susan Lee

Second Vice President: Diksha Mudbhary

Recording Secretary: Diane Baylor

LWVSrecsecretary@gmail.com

Corresponding Secretary: Dana Matsushita

LWVScommunications@gmail.com

Treasurer: Trish Chen

LWVStreasury@gmail.com

2024-25 Elected Board Members

Deborah Bhatt

Kathy Gray

Lauren Grossberg

Rokaya Hassaballa

Dalya Khan

Nan Eileen Mead

Abigail Ruane

Shilpa Spencer

2024-25 Appointed Board Members

May Cowan

Beth Cukier

Anne Lyons

Kitt Rosenthal

Jenny Simon Tabak

Committee Chairs

Advocacy: Abigail Ruane

Audit: Tracy Tang (Off-Board)

Book Group: Dalya Khan

Budget: Nancy Michaels (Off-Board) 

Bylaws, Policies, and Procedures: Diane Baylor

Communications:

• Bulletin Editor: Dana Matsushita 
• Eblast: Dana Matsushita  
• Publicity: Dana Matsushita 
• Social Media: Dana Matsushita 
• Website: Diane Baylor 

Development/Finance Drive: Anne Lyons

Environment/Sustainability: Lauren Grossberg

Hospitality: Kitt Rosenthal

Local Budgets:

• School Budget: Dalya Khan and Nan Eileen Mead
• Village Budget: Deborah Bhatt

Local Election Systems:

• School Election: Seema Jaggi
• Village Election: Diane Baylor and Beth Cukier



Luncheons: Anne Lyons

LWVW Liaison: Kitt Rosenthal

Membership: Diksha Mudbhary 

• Membership Statistician: Beth Cukier

Nominating Chair: Amber Yusuf (Off-Board) 

Planning and Zoning: Deborah Bhatt

Program/Education: Diksha Mudbhary 

Voter Service: Kathy Gray and Lauren Grossberg

• Candidate Forum(s)
• Naturalization Court
• Voter Registration Drive(s)

Youth Engagement:

• Civics Jeopardy: Susan Lee
• Mock Election: Susan Lee
• Students Inside Albany: Nan Eileen Mead

Democracy is Not a Spectator Sport – Get Involved!

The League of Women Voters

Creating A More Perfect Democracy 

For Over 100 Years

The League of Women Voters of Scarsdale (LWVS) is a volunteer nonpartisan political organization which promotes political responsibility through informed and active participation of citizens in government. The League is nonpartisan in that it does not support or oppose any candidate for public office; it is political in that it takes positions on selected governmental issues after serious member study and consensus.