Fun Times at Marist College

"We Live In A Beautiful World"

I was walking through the Old Dutch Church in Kingston on Monday afternoon. As planned, I left work an hour early and by this point I had changed into jeans and a t-shirt that read “YES WE CAN.” I was carrying nothing but my red work folder and a yellow plastic bag with my “work wear” in it. I felt almost like Superman in a telephone booth at this point, going from my dress clothing to a t-shirt and jeans. I felt like a thousand pounds had been lifted from my shoulders, and I really felt like a different person.

The sun was shinning (a rarity during this summer) and I just felt happy. I was about a hundred yards from getting into my car and heading up to SPAC to see my favorite band Coldplay perform live. I had tried so hard to win tickets, I had entered multiple contests. The most promising came after I was interviewed by WDST the day before my election. As I left the airwaves, I requested the song Shiver by Coldplay, shortly after they decided to give away tickets. All I had to do was answer this simple question, “The year Jimmy Carter took office is the same year Chris Martin of Coldplay was born. What year was it?”

I was so excited when I heard this, my heart immediately started to race. I realized I still had the number to WDST in my phone. I quickly called up and I was even caller number one! In a moment of overconfidence I replied “1976!”…I was so happy, my heart was racing faster then ever, and then I heard the response, “nope” click…

As some of you may know Jimmy Carter won the 1976 election, but he didn’t take office until 1977. This kind of ruined my whole school day actually. I was still determined to get to SPAC though. I ended up hearing about a special opportunity that appealed to me on many levels. I filled out an application to actually volunteer with Oxfam for the show, this seemed perfect to me as I could help out a worthy cause and still somehow manage to see Coldplay for free! As fate would have it I got selected as one of twenty volunteers, and that meant I also got to go see Coldplay on the lawn at SPAC for free.

As I floated walking through the Church courtyard my eyes caught a man waiting at the gate. I see this same man nearly every day in the morning as I head into my internship. During my brief journey from the Court House to the County Office Building this same man always seems to find me to wish me a good morning, or ask how I am doing. Today I could read the stress right off of his face, he wasn’t smiling like he usually was and he had a lit cigarette in his hand. He asked me if I could spare a few dollars, as I reached for my wallet he said, “Please be generous sir.”

I handed the man a few singles and went on my way, I have to be honest I hesitated before I went to grab my wallet. In fact for a split second I thought maybe I should keep walking and pretend to have never heard the man. You see I had been paranoid the whole morning about how much money I was going to bring, with no paying summer job I really didn’t have too much. As I turned on the ignition and typed in my destination on my borrowed GPS, all I could think of was that man. When I walked towards him I knew something was wrong, and even with that I had to still think before I gave him a few dollars. I really felt bad about myself for hesitating, to be honest. To think I was worried about having enough money to go buy overpriced food, or if I was really lucky an expensive Coldplay shirt (because I don’t have enough shirts with musicians on them already…ha).

As I traveled down the highway I still couldn’t shake my brief encounter with the man. His face had been planted in my mind, but after a while, my personal disappointment turned into relief. I realized I had done the right thing. I may not have had a lot of money, but that man had nothing, and I had to wonder how many people did just walk past him that day. How many people saw that man and lost sight of the fact that he was human, that he was someone son, that he is maybe someone’s father, and maybe even a grandfather? I think we often lose sight of that fact when it comes to people. Here he was wearing tattered clothing and beaten by life and maybe, just maybe, my few dollars helped him out for the moment.

I remember a story that Manny Straus a congregant at my Synagogue and Holocaust survivor once told me while I was preparing for my Bar Mitzvah. Manny had been blessed enough to get out of Europe and into America. He had landed from Europe into New York City. He was about my age now, and all he wanted was enough money so he could join the army and head back to Europe in hopes of liberating his parents from the camp that he had just departed. He told me how he asked people for change, and how one man replied, “Get away from me you bum.” Manny said this with tears in his eyes. You see that man had no clue what Manny had gone through, and he really did just think Manny was a “bum.”

As I voyaged up to SPAC I kept thinking about this man and I felt pretty good about giving the man what I could spare. It was a relief very similar to what I had right before I saw him, the feeling of getting to take off my clothing that made me look creepily similar to Jim Halpert from The Office and put on my Obama t-shirt in its place.

I arrived just in time to hear Coldplay play a few numbers during sound check. I met up with the redt of the volunteers at the Oxfam table and I was really impressed there is just something amazing about getting inspired people all together to do a worthwhile task. Ours today was to collect signatures for Oxfam. Soha (the wonderful woman in charge of Oxfam on Coldplay’s Tour) set a goal of sixty signatures per person. It was a little funny collecting signatures for Oxfam. I realized I had been doing this type of thing on and off for about a year straight now, and I have no problem saying I have gotten pretty good at it. From the time the gate opened at six till right before Coldplay walked on the stage three hours later, I had amassed one hundred and sixty signatures! That means I wasn’t too far off from a signature a minute.

Before Coldplay took the stage I had collected more signatures then anyone else during a Coldplay show. In fact we ended with almost 1,400 signatures more then any other show during Coldplay’s tour! Being the compulsive Coldplay fan I am, I knew Coldplay would play a few songs on the lawn, so I asked Soha where on the lawn should I sit (I really meant where will Coldplay be playing on the lawn). Because of the number of signatures we got, Soha told me I didn’t have to worry about that, and she handed me a ticket. It was for the pit, I thanked her and she said, “Don’t thank me, thank Coldplay.”

The introduction music started playing, and I ran towards my seat. I got stopped maybe five times by the various ushers to view my ticket. Upon the ticket hitting my hand, and as the brother of a 10-year old sister, I am not embarrassed to say that I instantaneously became a “little girl.” I was screaming, running, and jumping, it was all just so surreal. I made it just as the band walked on stage and started playing the first of what would ultimately be two hours worth of songs. I was only a few feet away from the band!

As the night ended I walked only a few seconds away from SPAC to the Gideon Putnam where I had been invited by some friends to stay the night. Just by mere coincidence they had booked the hotel for a conference they were attending that was running the same time I was there. As I laid down at nearly one in the morning I couldn’t have been any more awake. I had to think about the whole experience. How different things would have been had I answered 1977?” How I got upgraded from lawn seats to the best seats in a sold out venue of nearly 25,000, or how I was now lying in a hotel room that was only a few hundred yards from SPAC, and of course I thought of the man.

In the end though I realized how important it was that I gave that man some money. I have always believed coincidences are rare and far between. Things happen for a reason, and as long as you have your eyes and your mind open you will see that.

In my mind it was no coincidence that I requested a Coldplay song on WDST, it was no coincidence that I was one year off, it was no coincidence that I ran into that man or that he ran into me, it was no coincidence I would be asked to collect signatures after doing it for about a year, and it was no coincidence that I got to stay in a suite steps away from the show. Life has a different meaning if you decided to not just always write things off as coincidences, doesn’t it?

Here are some pictures I took from the show...

http://www.oxfam.com/

Simple Twist of Fate

“….Great!” that well worded statement is the answer I gave to the question, “So how does it feel to be the youngest elected person in the history of New Paltz.” I guess I really just didn't know what to say. It feels like a lifetime ago I walked into that gym to hear the election results. I had nothing but a rose in my hand that I was given at my choir concert that had ended mere moments before. In such a short time I feel like my life has already changed so much. The graduation “high” as I have heard it described has well worn off. I have already been sworn into office, and I am currently interning in the Ulster County Comptroller’s office.

It may be summer time, but now all the real work has started. I think sometimes you just have to stop. You need to look at yourself and evaluate what is happening; I think doing this keeps people sane…for the most part. That is why I decided to write today. You see on Sunday I was invited to a fundraiser for Congressman Maurice Hinchey. It was held at the Steel House in Kingston. As I sat there with people who were probably all around twenty years older then me, I couldn’t help but think of the last time I was at the Steel House.

It was May 29, 2009 and it was also Senior Ball. The events in comparison had very different music, and let me tell you it certainly had very different dancing (I think that was for the better though). I had to ask myself how did I do this, how did I go from Senior Ball only a few weeks before to sitting at a table with a woman who felt the need to tell me all that she disliked about public schools and the Teachers Union. That discussion promptly ended with the question, “So Dan, do you want to run for office someday?”

It certainly has been an interesting calendar year to say the least. I realize only a year a go I was just coming home from American Legions Boy State, a place where I decided I didn’t want to run for any office. Instead I sat back and watched other people duke it out. I am very excited to watch and see how the rest of 2009 plays out as the first part has been pretty good to me. I can’t wait to go to Marist, I can’t wait till the Board of Education gets into full swing, I can’t wait to start working on the next campaign, and I just can’t wait to see what is around the corner!

During my relatively short time being involved in the uncharted world of politics I have received a lot of advice, some solicited but most not. I probably have received the best advice from a good friend of mine by the name of Jon Sennett, he once told me, “Do what you think is right…you don’t owe anyone anything.” I certainly have taken that to heart, and I couldn’t help but think of that piece of advice on Saturday.

I sat in a sea of people all focused on one person. That person never acknowledged the crowd, sat in the back of the stage, and wailed into the microphone. He rearranged his songs that everyone had come to know and love to a point where they became nearly unrecognizable. He is 68 and still touring, of course I am talking about Bob Dylan. I have to imagine Dylan has amounted more then enough money that he no longer needs to play dozens of shows scattered throughout the country, and yet he does.

I did notice that through the whole show Dylan seemed to smile, he seemed very comfortable and happy. To me that said it all, he played and performed the way he wanted to because he loves it, he really doesn’t care what any blog or Rolling Stone magazine has to say about it, at the end of the day he is just being himself and that’s all that really matters.

Dylan once wrote, “I try my best to be just like I am, but everyone wants you to be just like them.” I hope that when I am 68 I can still see the beauty in the way he performs. I hope as the next days, weeks, months, and years pass I can picture Dylan singing Maggie's Farm in just the way that only he can, and always keep in mind that small but ever so important piece of advice that Mr. Sennett gave me.

Graduation Speech

As Don McLean once said, “there we were all in one place, a generation lost in space. With no time left to start again.” He wrote that song to describe the events of the 1960’s, and yet that line seems so appropriate for today. You see it’s no secret that the class of 2009 is the final class to graduate in this decade. We have been lucky enough to watch this decade grow and unfold, much like we have done through our time in New Paltz schools.

It’s amazing to think that we were only Elementary School students when September 11th happened, and we were just Middle School students when the Iraq war started. In our time from Elementary School to now, our vocabulary has greatly expanded, we have learned new phrases, like dimpled chad, Taliban, green house gases, water boarding, and yes, even wardrobe malfunction.

Our generation is very much like the one Don McLean describes, and yet we are also very different. We haven’t protested like they did in the 1960s. We didn’t storm the Democratic National Convention, or riot on the campus of Columbia University. Some times people confuse this for laziness, but I would have to disagree. You see our youth has been defined by the events of this decade in more ways then we will ever know. Our generation sees what’s wrong in the world and like so many generations before us we don’t like it! The difference is we know we can fit more people on a Facebook group against the war then we could ever fit on the campus of Columbia University.

There are many things we will surely come to miss at New Paltz High School. Pickleball, NPZTV, and Ms. Randolph on the PA system saying, “You know who you are…Detention is in room 101” I just wanted to say, yes Mrs. Randolph I do know who I am, in fact we all know who we are, and a lot of that has to do with the building over there. I certainly found who I want to be in those halls, and I know a lot of people here could say the same.

So I stand here today as someone who never won a section title, I am not the President of my class, I wasn’t a pickle ball champion and I certainly don’t have a GPA of 100. But I am very proud to be a member of the class of 2009. You see guys, we have amazing potential. We are a school that has a swim team with no pool…and somehow we have a State Champion All-American relay swim team. The next few years won’t be easy, but I can’t imagine a better group of people to tackle these challenges. So here we are, “all in one place” probably for the last time. But I do have to disagree with one thing Mr. McLean said, by no means are we a lost generation. Look around you, we are anything but lost, we have so much to offer to our world, and we are finally ready show that, and believe me, no one here needs MTV to make them into anything, you all have the power to do that on your own.

So class of 2009 as you will hear all through today, congratulations, I know each and every one of you will do amazing things in our world, and make us all very proud to say we were a member of the graduating class of 2009.

6/26/09

Letters to the New Paltz Times 4/16 Issue

Torres is a leader for our generation

My name is Matthew R.C. Evans and I am a trustee on the Elmsford Board of Education in Elmsford, NY in Westchester County. In 2007, I was elected at the age of 19, making me one of the youngest serving Board of Education members in our great state. The people of New Paltz have a great opportunity on their hands. They have an opportunity to elect someone with passion, drive, desire and connection with the community to help lead their school district into the future. To have been in the district on a daily basis means to know what the district needs to move forward, where progress can be made, and above all else what the students need to succeed. It is with that, that I endorse and urge the citizens of New Paltz to elect Daniel Torres to the New Paltz Board of Education.

Though this may be the first elected position Mr. Torres is seeking, he is certainly no rookie to leadership or volunteerism. He has campaigned, organized and volunteered for scores of campaigns, including being the New Paltz coordinator for the Barack Obama for President campaign. Outside of politics, Daniel has given himself up to his community, volunteering as a softball assistant coach and a teaching assistant at his place of worship. Mr. Torres is dedicated to his community, dedicated to his school and has a track record of being dedicated to doing the right thing.

Let us not ignore the obvious: Mr. Torres is 18 years old. However, age cannot teach you the true attributes necessary to serve your community and serve it well: heart, passion, will power, motivation and aspiration to ensure that a New Paltz education is an education of excellence. The true qualities of a leader are innate, and Daniel showcases them on the outside. He has an atypical, yet necessary insight on the district. He can personally attest to what works, what does not, where improvements need to be made, and what the students need most to succeed both academically and socially. I can say from personal experience that being younger than your board of education colleagues will allow for you to offer different perspectives at the table, thus yielding the appropriate actions being taken.

My generation is making a stand, proclaiming that we are ready to serve. With leaders like Daniel Torres, the future is bright. For wise insight, true integrity, new perspective, and a drive for excellence above all else, I strongly urge you to cast your vote for Daniel Torres for the New Paltz Board of Education.

Matthew R.C. Evans, Trustee

Elmsford Board of Education


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KT and Torres deserve your voteI don't know whose seats are up or who the other candidates for school board are, but I do know that I will be voting for KT Tobin Flusser and Dan Torres.

KT Flusser is an active, engaged community resident who regularly attends GreenWorks, town, village, school board and a myriad of other meetings. And she doesn't just sit there -- she always contributes thoughtful, reasoned data.

Good data leads to good decisions and KT's professional training in research and personal passion for education will help our school board deal with the challenges ahead.

And as for Dan Torres -- what better testament to its effectiveness could a school district hope for than to have educated such an outstanding young man? I like his enthusiasm and his practical ideas on how to "green" the district.

Let's give both Torres and Flusser a chance to serve on our school board.

Kitty Brown

New Paltz

Classroom to Boardroom

New Paltz teen to run for school board seat

New Paltz High School senior Daniel Torres Photo by Lauren Thomas

By Mike Townshend
New Paltz Times
April 09, 2009

Daniel Torres thinks he knows a little bit about the New Paltz schools. And the 18-year-old high school senior wants to parlay that insider knowledge into a run for the Board of Education.

“I did a lot with the Barack Obama campaign. I was one of the youngest volunteers,” explained Torres, who served as the New Paltz coordinator of Hudson Valley for Obama.

“I realized that even at such a young age I could make a difference. I’ve always been very interested in school politics.”

He still has a lot more campaigning to do, but if Torres wins, he’d be the youngest person to ever sit on the Board of Education. That would beat out Pete Fairweather, who won a school board seat as a 20-year-old college student in 1976. That possible distinction doesn’t much bother Torres.

“I think that my age is to my advantage. I have an insight that many people don’t have,” he said.

Candidates don’t have to return their petitions to be on the ballot until April 20 at 5 p.m. So far, no one has turned in their signatures early, schools district Clerk Beverly Sickler said.

Torres has more than the mandated 30 signatures already, and that first hurdle to Election Day wasn’t so rough.

“I needed 50 signatures to run for senior class vice president – I need 30 for the school board,” he joked.

In May, three school board seats will be up for grab. Two of them belong to current incumbents Rod Dressel and Don Kerr. But the final seat had belonged to Laura Walls, who resigned to take a job with the Ulster County Government.

Torres first publicly announced his intentions to run to run for the school board in early March in the opinion section of this paper. Currently, he has only one known challenger – grassroots activist KT Tobin Flusser.

Flusser had been active in rallying the district to renovate New Paltz Middle School instead of repairing or selling the building outright. She also serves on the New Paltz GreenWorks committee.

For his part, Torres wants to see the board take more steps to go green. Report cards should be made a Web-only item to save the district postage costs. New Paltz Middle School should be completely renovated not just “patched up” or repaired.

“The school district is really a reflection of what the community is,” he said. And New Paltz is a green town.

Torres plans to stay local. He plans to start college at Poughkeepsie-based Marist College in the fall.

In the past, Torres has lobbied Olympia Sports store to give part of their high school team merchandising profits to the schools. He was also named one of the Times Herald-Record’s “10 Under 20.” Torres has also written for this paper as a student correspondent.

For more information on Torres’ campaign, head to Facebook and search the phrase “Daniel Torres for Board of Education.” Currently, 260 people had joined the campaign group online.

For information on his probable opponent, visit kt4schoolboard.blogspot.com.

Is 20 the New 40 of Politics?

Tuesday, April 7th, 2009 at 1:00 pm

The face of politics may be getting younger here in the Hudson Valley.

The Village of Walden’s newest and youngest mayor was sworn into office Monday. Brian Maher is 23 years old. And according to his research (not all municipalities have that information readily available since Village Elections were just held March 18), that makes him New York state’s youngest mayor!

While our News 12 camera was at Walden Village Hall for the official swearing-in, I met another young man from the Hudson Valley with similarly lofty ambitions. Mike Coleman, a 22-year-old from New Windsor, told me he’s planning a run for Town Councilman.

And in Monday’s “Times Herald-Record,” an article appeared about Dan Torres from New Paltz. The 18-year-old wants a seat on the school board.

With fresh ideas, plenty of energy, and a seeming open-minded willingness to work with those “more seasoned” public servants…could local politics be doing a Benjamin Button?

We’ll have to see!

http://blogs.news12.com/westchester/2009/04/07/is-20-the-new-40-of-politics/

18-year-old vying for school board seat in New Paltz

At 18, Dan Torres of New Paltz is running for a seat on his school board. The high school senior is seen above at home on Wednesday.
Times Herald-Record/CHET GORDON

By Jeremiah Horrigan
Times Herald-Record
Posted: April 06, 2009 - 6:00 AM

NEW PALTZ — Dan Torres is a veteran of three local and national political campaigns.

Last year, he negotiated a deal that brought unexpected money to New Paltz High School and to 200 other high schools in the northeast. He's got his own public-access TV show. And when he looks at the local school board that governs the district, he discerns what he calls an "age gap."

Meet 18-year-old Dan Torres, high school senior and candidate for that very school board. If elected, he'll be the youngest public official to be elected to office in New Paltz since 23-year-old Jason West became mayor five years ago.

Torres is running for one of three three-year seats on the New Paltz board. The nominating petitions are not due until April 17. Already though, incumbent Rod Dressel Jr. and KT Tobin Flusser, a veteran observer who has been active in the district, have indicated they are running as well.

Torres figures he knows more about today's high school life than any of the other expected candidates. But he also has some other experience. Last year, he persuaded the Olympia sporting goods chain, which has an outlet in New Paltz, to donate to the high school a portion of the proceeds from each item it sells with the New Paltz High logo. The Olympia chain ended up donating about $600 to the school and about $160,000 to schools throughout the region.

Torres was involved in President Barack Obama's campaign, traveling as far away as Pennsylvania to help get out the vote. He was also part of attorney John Sennett's unsuccessful bid for Ulster County district attorney and was also active the county Democrats' get-out-the-vote effort last fall.

When Ulster County Comptroller Elliott Auerbach met him then, he was startled.

"He's a remarkable young man who is wiser than anyone his age — I'd use the phrase 'old soul' to describe him."

Torres has focused his campaign on "bringing the district into the 21st century." That means no more paper report cards when electronic reports are available, more innovative energy alternatives and bridging the "age gap" whenever possible.

Dressel, who is 48, welcomed Torres to the race. "It is great to see a high school student who has been involved actually run for a seat," he said.

Facebook, You Tube, Twitter, Oh My!

I am trying to communicate with as many people as I possibly can before the May 19th election. I think using things like, well this blog, is very important. I truly believe that this is where a lot of our media is going. Newspapers are dying out, while Facebook, You Tube, and similar sites are flourishing.

I decided to set up a You Tube account for my campaign. I currently have only a few videos, but don’t worry I am working on it! My You Tube account is www.youtube.com/Torres4NPschools. Here is one of the videos I have posted right now….


I learned while working for the Obama Campaign that these methods of communication are essential to truly getting out any message. I feel that as a District we should try to further explore this world. In my opinion the budget, and the proposed budget, should always be made available off of our District website. Community input is very important, and I think we need to further push things like blogs or other internet forums to let people voice there opinions on certain issues. We should host more internet surveys, and make our meeting more available to the public. People shouldn’t just have to turn to the “Letters to the Editor” portion of the New Paltz Times when they have an issue or want to see a change.

I am aware that all meetings are viewable off of Public Access, but not everyone gets that channel, I don’t! I think we should explore putting meetings, or parts of them on sites like You Tube, or maybe even live stream the meetings off of our website. This is a relatively simple thing to do, and I think it will spark up more community input in our meetings and decision making.

Cut Loose!

I have been heavily active in a number of clubs and groups during my tenure at New Paltz High School. I am Senior Class Vice President; Treasurer of Student Government, National Honor Society, and the New Paltz Choir; and President of RNP Radio (One of the few on campus radio stations in the state of New York)... just to name a few. I have been in choir since 3rd grade. I have had NYSSMA solos, and I have been selected for All-County Choir on numerous occasions, but I had never done a musical!

Inspired by it being senior year and a series of hit Disney movies; I decided to partake in this year’s musical. We performed the 1980’s hit musical “Footloose.” For my first musical ever I received one of the lead roles. I was cast as Reverend Shaw Moore, and getting to act and sing on stage in front of thousands of people was something I had never done before, and I really enjoyed it.

We just finished our four near sold-out shows, and the reviews from the community were nothing but positive. I would like to thank everyone who came out to support us, I would also like to thank the cast and crew who gave up so much time to make the show as amazing as it was. The musical was an experience I thoroughly enjoyed; my only regret is waiting till senior year to do one.

I do want to address one thing that most people are probably unaware of. In my bio that appeared in the program for Footloose it ended with the sentence, “Daniel will attend Marist College in the fall and is a New Paltz B.O.E candidate.” This is a very innocent and factual statement, which is why I used it. All bios have to be approved by the musical director before they are published; naturally no one had any issue with mine. In fact the whole cast has been very supportive of my candidacy.

After our Thursday night show I was called to the office. I was told by an administrator that they weren’t entirely sure that this sentence was appropriate for a bio, and it may even be conceived as an endorsement by the District. I was then informed that the District Lawyer and our Superintendent were called for further clarification on what really was a non-issue.

This administrator did inform me that both parties had yet to return her calls. In other words, hours before I was to do my second show I was told that my bio warranted further review from a lawyer and the Superintendent, but they had yet to get back to her, meaning that nothing would change for tonight’s show and in all likelihood the rest of our production. This was not the first time I have felt that this person has tried to intimidate me in regards to my candidacy. I was rather appalled by how I was taken out of one of my classes to be informed about essentially nothing. I was so appalled that I sought out legal council of my own.

To make a long story short my bio remained uncensored, as it was in no way, shape, or form, an endorsement, and was well within my rights. I am telling you this story to further show what I can bring to the table as a Board of Education member. I will not be intimidated by others! I think some people may look at my age and think that I can be easily swayed; I certainly know that at least one administrator did. You see, as I did in this case, I stand up for what I believe in. I have no problem speaking my mind, even if it isn’t the most popular thing, if I feel it is right, and it can help people, I will be the first to speak up.

That is the tenacity that helped me create a day for social justice and diversity at New Paltz High School. Yarmulke Day has been written about in the Poughkeepsie Journal, Times Herald-Record, New Paltz Times, Daily Freeman, Las Noticias, and countless National and International internet blogs. Its MySpace page has over 20,000 views and over 3,000 friends.

It’s that same drive that made me ask if the money made on the New Paltz High School merchandise sold at Olympia Sports was going to our District. When I was done asking I then acted, I took it to the top of the company and got the Poughkeepsie Journal involved. In the end almost two hundred high schools now receive quarterly checks from Olympia Sports (New Paltz and Highland included), I received an award from the Board of Education and was named one of the “10 under 20” by the Times Herald-Record.

I know if elected I can use what I have learned in my time at school to help our District. That same courage I used in getting money from Olympia Sports,I will use to try to make our facilities greener which will save us money in the long run. The drive I had in creating and promoting Yarmulke Day, I will use to try and get healthier food for our kids, and hopefully involve local farmers in the process. This is what I want you to consider when you step into the booth on May 19th.

Setting a "Precedent" With Ulster County Executive Mike Hein

Today I had a brief meeting with Ulster County Executive Mike Hein. I am pleased to say I got to know Mike through my many Obama adventures. I even had the opportunity to give a speech with him at an Obama rally in New Paltz. Mike is a wonderful man who certainly has, and is serving Ulster County with the upmost pride and integrity.

Interestingly enough he had come to see me straight from a speaking engagement he had at New Paltz Middle School. Mike is a graduate of New Paltz High School, and by all accounts was a big baseball star, hitting home-runs during high school as well. I was so honored that he took the time out of his very busy schedule to speak with me.

Mike pledged nothing but full support to me and the campaign. He even said that my campaign could set a “precedent” to other Boards of Education. The insight I have as a student who is part of what I will affectionately call the “Obama Generation” is an important part of advancing a good learning environment. Students of my generation have grown up with the internet, computers, and many other forms of technology that have helped us in the classroom and other areas of life. The problem is none of our Board of Education members know what it means to go to school with computers, while we don’t know what it means to go to school without them. I equate this large generational gap to rock and roll of the 50’s generation.

When Mike spoke of precedent he was of course talking about the perspective I have as a young member of our community. He believes that my ideas and visions are important, and if my campaign is successful we may see a ripple effect of youth in school politics. I have lived in New Paltz long enough to know that we like to be different, we like to make changes that we feel help our community, and we like to be among the first to do it, so I say why not start with a young and insightful Board of Education member.

It is very important to have someone who knows what it means to be in a public school in this millennia. Our district is filled with people who know what this truly is like, but as of right now there is no one to represent that, with your help we can change that!

Letter to New Paltz Times

After a great deal of thought and consideration, I have decided to run for a seat on the New Paltz Board of Education. I have been educated by the New Paltz Central School District almost all my life and it has brought me wonderful opportunities. I am and have been an active member of our local community throughout my years in High School. I was selected by the Times Herald-Record as one of “10 under 20” people on the rise in the Hudson Valley, I proudly served as the New Paltz Coordinator for Hudson Valley for Obama, I am Senior class Vice President, I have served as a student representative to the Board of Education and on several committees, and I received an award rarely given to students from the Board for my efforts in securing additional funds for the District.

With all that said, I know that I can lend a hand to make our schools even stronger and more distinct. I have a unique insight into how New Paltz educates its students. From personal experience I see what works, what doesn’t, and what the possibilities for change might be. I want to take this knowledge and make our already wonderful district better and more cost effective. In this era of budget cuts and a shaky economy this district needs someone with my point of view, someone who fully understands what truly impacts students, and someone who knows what it means to be educated in a world that has already changed significantly since our youngest board member graduated from high school. I already have shown the powerful insight I have when I proposed the idea of generating revenue for our school radio station and sports teams by selling advertisement spaces to our local businesses, which was ultimately passed.

If you would like more information on my candidacy or on how you can help, please email me at Torres4NPschools@yahoo.com, or join the rapidly growing Facebook group “Daniel Torres for Board of Education.” I would be honored to receive your vote on May 19th and any help with my campaign.

Daniel Torres
Candidate for New Paltz Central School Districts Board of Education