{"id":183648,"date":"2026-04-02T18:37:46","date_gmt":"2026-04-02T18:37:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/183648\/"},"modified":"2026-04-02T18:37:46","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T18:37:46","slug":"wynantskill-voters-back-merger-with-troy-city-school-district","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/183648\/","title":{"rendered":"Wynantskill voters back merger with Troy City School District"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Signs<\/p>\n

Signs for and against merging the Wynantskill Union Free School District with the Troy City School District sit at the intersection of Winter Street Extension and Farrington Avenue on Tuesday in Troy.<\/p>\n

Jim Franco\/Times Union\"Heather<\/p>\n

Heather Nadoraski, left, and Katrina Dinan hold signs urging residents to vote against merging the Wynantskill Union Free School District with the Troy City School District at the intersection of Main Avenue and West Sand Lake Road on Tuesday in North Greenbush.<\/p>\n

Jim Franco\/Times Union\"Katrina<\/p>\n

Katrina Dinan holds a sign urging residents to vote against merging the Wynantskill Union Free School District with the Troy City School District at the intersection of Main Avenue and West Sand Lake Road on Tuesday in North Greenbush.<\/p>\n

Jim Franco\/Times Union\"People<\/p>\n

People wait outside the Gardner-Dickinson School library to vote on whether the Wynantskill Union Free School District should merge with the Troy City School District on Tuesday in North Greenbush.<\/p>\n

Jim Franco\/Times Union\"A<\/p>\n

A one-question ballot in front of Wynantskill Union Free School District residents on whether to merge with the Troy City School District on Tuesday in North Greenbush.<\/p>\n

Jim Franco\/Times Union\"Kyle<\/p>\n

Kyle Barber, communications specialist and Wynantskill Union Free School District clerk, signs in a voter during an election to determine if the district will merge with the Troy City School District at the Gardner-Dickinson School library on Tuesday in North Greenbush.<\/p>\n

Jim Franco\/Times Union\"A<\/p>\n

A table set up at the Gardner-Dickinson School library where residents can sign in to vote on whether the Wynantskill Union Free School District should merge with the Troy City School District on Tuesday in North Greenbush.<\/p>\n

Jim Franco\/Times Union\"Kyle<\/p>\n

Kyle Barber, standing, communications specialist and Wynantskill Union Free School District clerk, watches as voters are signed in during an election to determine if the district will merge with the Troy City School District at the Gardner-Dickinson School library on Tuesday in North Greenbush.<\/p>\n

Jim Franco\/Times Union\"Nancy<\/p>\n

Nancy McKenna casts her ballot on whether the Wynantskill Union Free School District will merge with the Troy City School District on Tuesday at the Gardner-Dickinson School in North Greenbush.<\/p>\n

Jim Franco\/Times Union\"All<\/p>\n

All four voting booths were occupied during an election to determine if the Wynantskill Union Free School District will merge with the Troy City School District on Tuesday at the Gardner-Dickinson School in North Greenbush.<\/p>\n

Jim Franco\/Times Union\"The<\/p>\n

The Gardner-Dickinson School while voters determine if the Wynantskill Union Free School District will merge with the Troy City School District on Tuesday in North Greenbush.<\/p>\n

Jim Franco\/Times Union\"Wynantskill<\/p>\n

Wynantskill Union Free School District Superintendent Mary Yodis during an election to determine if the district will merge with the Troy City School District at the Gardner-Dickinson School on Tuesday in North Greenbush.<\/p>\n

Jim Franco\/Times Union\"Heather<\/p>\n

Heather Nadoraski holds a sign urging residents to vote against merging the Wynantskill Union Free School District with the Troy City School District at the intersection of Main Avenue and West Sand Lake Road on Tuesday in North Greenbush.<\/p>\n

Jim Franco\/Times Union\"A<\/p>\n

A table set up at the Gardner-Dickinson School library where residents can sign in to vote on whether the Wynantskill Union Free School District should merge with the Troy City School District on Tuesday in North Greenbush.<\/p>\n

Jim Franco\/Times Union<\/p>\n

NORTH GREENBUSH\u00a0\u2014 The vote on whether to dissolve the Wynantskill school district<\/a> turned into a referendum on the Troy schools Tuesday with voters backing Wynantskill\u2019s merger with the city district.<\/p>\n

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Hundreds of voters lined up in the afternoon and evening to say whether Troy could annex their one-building district.<\/p>\n

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While voters discussed taxes, their main concern was whether Troy would do a good job educating the Wynantskill students.<\/p>\n

On one side: fears of violence at the high school that its students would eventually attend if annexation passed. Residents also worried that Troy students would be moved to Wynantskill\u2019s building, which is partly empty.<\/p>\n

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On the other side: reports of students who excel at Troy High School, its excellent special education department, a wide variety of school sports and the chance to earn dozens of college credits.<\/p>\n

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Some residents suggested that there was a deeper divide on the issue.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think there are a lot of people who don\u2019t want the diversity this brings, and I also think they need to grow up,\u201d voter Ashley\u00a0Wiley said.<\/p>\n

In the end, the yes-to-annex voters had it: 709 in favor to 507 votes opposed.<\/p>\n

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\u201cTonight\u2019s passage of the annexation proposition by\u00a0Wynantskill voters is a significant step toward an exciting new chapter that will bring immense educational benefits and financial stability to our students, staff and taxpayers, as we build a stronger, more sustainable school community,\u201d Troy schools Superintendent John\u00a0Carmello said after the voters were counted.<\/p>\n

Turnout was significant. In the first two hours, 258 people voted, plus 50 absentee ballots filed in advance. That\u2019s more than the entire vote for last year\u2019s budget. There were 2,743 eligible voters, putting the turnout rate at 44%.<\/p>\n

On voting day, some residents wondered how Troy would really spend the $241 million offered by the state to encourage districts to merge.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t really trust Troy so much,\u201d said voter Sean Owens. \u201cI don\u2019t feel the money is going to necessarily go into the schools.\u201d<\/p>\n

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He worried it might be spent disproportionately on administrative salaries. Others worried that none of the money would be used on the\u00a0Wynantskill school.<\/p>\n

And when the school becomes part of Troy, what becomes of the hamlet of Wynantskill? It is a part of North Greenbush, but residents said they saw their neighborhood as a village, holding on partly through the existence of the school.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like we\u2019ll lose our identity,\u201d said voter Sherri Capparello. \u201cIt\u2019s such a community-oriented school.\u201d<\/p>\n

Others said they reluctantly voted for the annexation, despite loving the small school.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIt has to happen,\u201d said voter Joe Spairana. \u201cIt\u2019s only a matter of time before it closes \u2026 there\u2019s less than 300 kids here.\u201d<\/p>\n

There was no way to keep the district going, voter Don Thrash added.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe tax base here can\u2019t support it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Others said the change would be good for the students.<\/p>\n

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\u201cMy kids went to Troy High. They had a totally positive experience,\u201d said voter Jim Doring. \u201cYou read a lot of comments on Facebook about the negative. I think it\u2019s blown (out of proportion). They do a great job.\u201d<\/p>\n

Voter Lucy Stufflebeam said the change would be good for all of the current students, because they would have access to more extracurricular activities, advanced classes and other activities that Wynantskill cannot afford.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s a great opportunity for us and the kids,\u201d she said. \u201cIt only gives them more and it gives the school some stability.\u201d<\/p>\n

But voter Patricia Gray said the school board should have taken longer to carefully weigh the issue. She felt school leaders exaggerated the school\u2019s financial condition, predicting a more than 6% tax levy increase even though the board hasn\u2019t yet set the 2026-2027 budget. She also noted the state comptroller\u2019s office\u2019s annual report did not describe the school as in imminent financial danger.<\/p>\n

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\u201cI feel people have been misled,\u201d she said, adding that there\u2019s no guarantee that Troy will operate the small school forever.<\/p>\n

\u201cTroy has made no promises,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Signs for and against merging the Wynantskill Union Free School District with the Troy City School District sit…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":183649,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[67,844,610,9,11,10,49,51,50,35844],"class_list":{"0":"post-183648","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york","8":"tag-education","9":"tag-latestnews","10":"tag-local","11":"tag-new-york","12":"tag-new-york-headlines","13":"tag-new-york-news","14":"tag-new-york-state","15":"tag-new-york-state-headlines","16":"tag-new-york-state-news","17":"tag-rensco"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/183648","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=183648"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/183648\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/183649"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=183648"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=183648"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=183648"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}