tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-61783306619689220562024-03-18T11:08:16.120-04:00NYC Rubber Room Reporter and ATR CONNECTA close-up look at NYC education policy, politics,and the people who have been, are now, or will be affected by these actions and programs. ATR CONNECT assists individuals who suddenly find themselves in the ATR ("Absent Teacher Reserve") pool and are the "new" rubber roomers, people who have been re-assigned from their life and career. A "Rubber Room" is not a place, but a process.Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.comBlogger2348125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-64619378074941433262024-03-02T10:59:00.001-05:002024-03-02T10:59:25.650-05:00Hire Back the Unvaccinated NYC Department of Education Employees To Lower Class Size<p> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8gTciP0RrfeFRNa1al4coVQjGBaKdGDpvwhkyVfOB1k69Y22wSC7S13XVjdRBNKbBlxbDk4OZqRs0I7VWT9TgrDUKkZZcEzuDboyGH0oc8W3nrOCLbVwUetGHZdp58Pe1alKW18Fh9tHhaP9NTxld3ZbCGKJJjS2yO_r6aVfRacp-pZF0WQYRklXbY0E/s855/Class%20size%20law.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="481" data-original-width="855" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8gTciP0RrfeFRNa1al4coVQjGBaKdGDpvwhkyVfOB1k69Y22wSC7S13XVjdRBNKbBlxbDk4OZqRs0I7VWT9TgrDUKkZZcEzuDboyGH0oc8W3nrOCLbVwUetGHZdp58Pe1alKW18Fh9tHhaP9NTxld3ZbCGKJJjS2yO_r6aVfRacp-pZF0WQYRklXbY0E/w400-h225/Class%20size%20law.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="c-media-item__caption" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: var(--font-1); font-size: 15px; font-style: italic; text-align: left;">Advocates gather outside of City Hall in advance of a City Council hearing on the efforts to comply with the state’s class size law on Thursday, Feb. 29, 2024 in New York City. </span><span class="c-media-item__credit" style="box-sizing: inherit; display: inline-block; font-family: var(--font-3); font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.6; text-align: left;">(Michael Elsen-Rooney / Chalkbeat)</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></p><p><span style="color: #393939; font-family: var(--font, var(--font-1)); font-size: 18px;">From Betsy Combier:</span></p><p><span style="color: #393939; font-family: var(--font, var(--font-1)); font-size: 18px;">I have a couple of suggestions on how to reduce class size in NYC:</span></p><p><span style="color: #393939; font-family: var(--font, var(--font-1)); font-size: 18px;"> Step 1: hire back all the NYC Department of Education employees who were terminated during the COVID Mandate for not getting the COVID vaccine, and give them their backpay so the City taxpayer doesn't have to pay the salaries of City Law department attorneys for the next 10 years;</span></p><p><span style="color: #393939; font-family: var(--font, var(--font-1)); font-size: 18px;">Step 2: get rid of the way too high overhead costs at Tweed for "Deputy Superintendents" and others who do little work (we know who they are);</span></p><p><span style="color: #393939; font-family: var(--font, var(--font-1)); font-size: 18px;">Step 3: set up a business expert/CEO who can have the last word on expenditures before any program is implemented (fix the procurement process);</span></p><p><span style="color: #393939; font-family: var(--font, var(--font-1)); font-size: 18px;">Step 4: Address the <a href="https://www.nyc.gov/assets/doi/press-releases/2023/May/19AntiCorrRpt.Release.05.01.2023.docx.pdf">NYC Department of Investigation's Anti-Corruption Report</a> with immediate action, and make it a <b>law</b> to do that - even if there is one now...cause it ain't working.</span></p><p><span style="color: #393939; font-family: var(--font, var(--font-1)); font-size: 18px;"><i>Just sayin...</i></span></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif">Betsy Combier</span></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"></span></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; padding: 0px;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;">betsy.combier@gmail.com</span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: quot;">Editor, </span><span style="color: #582995;"><a href="http://advocatz.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">ADVOCATZ.com</span></a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;">Editor, <span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="https://advocatz.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;">ADVOCATZ Blog</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot; font-size: 16px;"><span style="color: #1a222a; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Rubber Room Reporter</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot; font-size: 16px;"><span style="color: #1a222a; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://www.parentadvocates.org/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Parentadvocates.org</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot; font-size: 16px;"><span style="color: #1a222a; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://newyorkcourtcorruption.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">New York Court Corruption</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot; font-size: 16px;"><span style="color: #1a222a; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nationalpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">National Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot; font-size: 16px;"><span style="color: #1a222a; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot; font-size: 16px;"><span style="color: #1a222a; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials</a></span></b></div></span></div><p><a href="https://www.chalkbeat.org/newyork/2024/02/29/class-size-law-might-affect-principal-decisions-on-teacher-hiring/" style="font-family: var(--font, var(--font-1)); font-size: x-large;">NYC may encourage principals to hire teachers over other roles to reduce class sizes</a></p><p><span class="author" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; border-bottom: 0px none !important; box-sizing: inherit; color: #393939; display: inline-flex; font-family: "Barlow Condensed"; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 1.33; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;">By </span><a href="https://www.chalkbeat.org/authors/michael-elsen-rooney" style="box-sizing: inherit; display: inline !important; text-decoration-line: none; transition: color 0.3s ease 0s;">Michael Elsen-Rooney</a>, Chalkbeat, </p><p><span class="separator" style="border-left: 1px solid; box-sizing: inherit; color: #393939; content: ""; display: inline-block; font-family: "Barlow Condensed"; font-size: 15px; height: 14px; margin: 0px 5px; text-indent: -999em; vertical-align: middle; width: 2px;"> | </span><span class="date" style="border-bottom: 0px none !important; box-sizing: inherit; color: #393939; display: inline-flex; font-family: "Barlow Condensed"; font-size: 15px; line-height: 1.33;">February 29, 2024, 6:28pm EST</span></p><p>Principals with vacant positions next year might start feeling more pressure from the city to hire teachers over other roles to comply with the state’s class size law, officials said Thursday at a New York City Council hearing.</p>The law, <a href="https://www.chalkbeat.org/newyork/2022/9/8/23343774/nyc-class-size-bill-hochul-adams-budget-union/">passed by the state legislature in 2022</a>, requires that kindergarten to third grade classrooms have 20 or fewer students, fourth to eighth grade classes have no more than 23 students, and high schools classes have 25 or fewer. The law takes effect in phases – requiring that 20% of classrooms across the city meet the mandates by this September, and 40% satisfy the requirements by September 2025. The entire city will have to be in compliance by September 2028.<br /><br />So far, the city’s Education Department hasn’t had much trouble complying. Roughly 40% of classrooms across the city are currently at or below the caps, officials testified Thursday.<br /><br />But to make sure the city is still in compliance by next September, and begin preparing for the stricter requirements in coming years, the department is considering some policy changes next school year, Deputy Chancellor for Operations Emma Vadehra testified on Thursday.<br /><br />One of those changes may be “asking schools to prioritize hiring teachers over other positions” when they have vacancies, Vadehra said.<br /><br />That could mark a significant shift in a system where principals have traditionally had wide latitude to manage their hiring decisions and decide how to distribute their dollars among classroom teachers and other positions including aides, administrators, deans, and counselors and social workers.<br /><br />First Deputy Chancellor Dan Weisberg said, pushing school hiring decisions “top-down” would be “overrid[ing] the judgment of the people we want making those judgments.”<br /><br />Officials didn’t offer many details on how that directive would work. Schools already have some hiring restrictions unrelated to the new class size law, such as maintaining the mandated number of teachers and paraprofessionals for students with disabilities and ensuring they have teachers for required subjects.<br /><br />The plan will need to be approved by the teachers and principals unions, and officials aim to communicate plans to principals by this spring before they have to begin hiring for next year, Vadehra said.<br /><br />Henry Rubio, the president of the Council of School Supervisors and Administrators, the union representing principals, expressed concerns about the idea, calling it “tremendously short-sighted.”<div><br /></div>In addition to more teachers, schools also need “support staff, paraprofessionals, and supervisors to maintain effective instruction and provide the adequate professional development that a school’s staff needs,” he said. “Otherwise, the academic gains from smaller class sizes may be eroded since new teachers and other staff will require more support given their lack of experience.”<br /><br />Mike Sill, the assistant secretary at the United Federation of Teachers, said the union “like[s] the concept in general,” but there are “caveats.”<br /><br />Some schools might need more counselors or deans, he said. “It’s a half-baked plan at this point.”Education Department previews other potential changes next year<br /><br />Officials said they are considering a recommendation from a <a href="https://www.chalkbeat.org/newyork/2023/9/26/23891718/nyc-class-size-law-working-group-recommendations/">recently-convened working group</a> to restrict how schools can spend $215 million in funding through a state program called Contracts for Excellence, or C4E.<br /><br />C4E money is distributed by the city, based on the level of student need at a school, measured by the number of low-income and academically struggling students, as well as English Language Learners and kids with disabilities.<br /><br />Currently, schools that receive C4E money can use it for reducing class sizes, launching professional development programs to improve teacher quality, offering full-day pre-Kindergarten classes, and running programs for English Language Learners, among other things.<br /><br />Officials on Thursday said they’re considering restricting that funding so it can only be used to lower class sizes.<br /><br />More than 1,500 schools got C4E money this year, with an average of nearly $141,000 per school.Bigger changes are ahead<br /><br />The challenges facing the Education Department are going to grow as the class size law continues to phase in.<br /><br />Officials estimate that the city will need to increase its teaching force, which currently stands at around 77,000, by between 10,000 and 12,000 to fully comply with the law. That will cost between $1.4 to $1.9 billion a year, according to the Education Department’s estimates, and require a significant boost in hiring at a time when <a href="https://www.chalkbeat.org/newyork/2024/02/28/ny-board-of-regents-discuss-teacher-certification/">the number of new teachers entering the workforce is shrinking</a>. The Education Department also estimates that there are about 500 schools that will need more classrooms than they currently have in their buildings to meet the class size standards. Some schools that only need one or two extra classrooms might be able to shift around existing space. But other schools need as many as 78 additional classrooms, Vadehra said.<br /><br />The <a href="https://www.nycsca.org/">School Construction Authority,</a> which is in charge of building new facilities, estimated that it will cost between $22 and $27 billion to build all the new facilities needed to meet the class size mandates – a budget far greater than is currently slotted in the SCA’s capital plan.<br /><br />State legislators have argued that the Education Department doesn’t need any additional funding to comply with the law because <a href="https://www.chalkbeat.org/newyork/2021/4/7/22372087/nyc-schools-to-get-billions-of-new-dollars-under-state-budget-deal/">Foundation Aid from the state increased by more than $1 billion</a> in recent years. But Education Department officials say they’ve already committed that money to bolstering school budgets, increasing funding for low-income and homeless students, and paying for increasing mandated costs for charter schools and special education.<br /><br />Adding to the complexity, the <a href="https://www.chalkbeat.org/newyork/2023/8/17/23835065/nyc-class-size-law-equity-high-need-schools/">schools with the largest class sizes currently are more likely to have larger concentrations of students from affluent families</a>, creating concerns that the city could have to shift resources away from schools with needier populations to those with lower levels of student need.<br /><br />One of the city’s cheapest options for reducing class sizes citywide would be capping enrollment at the most overcrowded schools, and redirecting students to schools with more room and lower class sizes. But that policy would likely <a href="https://nypost.com/2024/02/18/us-news/nyc-parents-worry-students-will-be-turned-away-from-high-performing-district-under-call-to-cut-class-sizes/">spur significant pushback from parents</a>, since many of the schools with the largest class sizes are among the city’s most in-demand, especially at the high school level, where students have the greatest freedom to apply to schools across the city.<br /><br /><i>Michael Elsen-Rooney is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Michael at <a href="mailto:melsen-rooney@chalkbeat.org">melsen-rooney@chalkbeat.org</a>.</i>Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-92134804010973317182024-02-24T10:58:00.009-05:002024-03-02T11:19:18.948-05:00NYC Department of Education Radicalizes 5-Year Olds as 'Restorative Justice'<p> </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdT1pwNhkVPcCT7atONEYAjhjfnpPf__k4fsFNjXHaJpliAl8wl9V0TGNCkYuOd_g2puZ4d8t_Rt7LA2om0D59ydINvqPdrOoR6q0g8xTgGZ7YDCyzNeSpUbceAakkVthkNm_Q0qYEJa8QLI6N8oHObSkXx01e2wl-HOFrlfgKRCoO1e6Qse495FSExpw/s849/PS%20321.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="583" data-original-width="849" height="275" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdT1pwNhkVPcCT7atONEYAjhjfnpPf__k4fsFNjXHaJpliAl8wl9V0TGNCkYuOd_g2puZ4d8t_Rt7LA2om0D59ydINvqPdrOoR6q0g8xTgGZ7YDCyzNeSpUbceAakkVthkNm_Q0qYEJa8QLI6N8oHObSkXx01e2wl-HOFrlfgKRCoO1e6Qse495FSExpw/w400-h275/PS%20321.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #585858; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.14px; text-align: left;">Students at PS 321 — which teaches kids from kindergarten through fifth grade — in Brooklyn’s Park Slope were handed the woke coloring book last week as part of a Black History Month lesson.</span><span class="credit" face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #585858; display: block; font-size: 0.75rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.17; margin: 0px; padding: 0.5rem 0px 0px; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;"> Paul Martinka</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p></p><p><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; letter-spacing: -0.16px;">My dad was Assistant Attorney General for the State of New York for more than 20 years. His boss: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_J._Lefkowitz">Louis Lefkowitz</a>, who my dad held in high esteem, was an amazing jurist. The building in downtown Manhattan, 80 Centre Street, has his name above the door. (I always say hi when I use the law library there or go to a Judge's Courtroom).</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; letter-spacing: -0.16px;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXFjnto_3kziK1jjo01syrD9jFDEdVM_mEvmDSS8TDMWwX5kyHchYnbsvObceokmBDkGN2DD_uVKaa5qPL3GmX8fQUvLH2DooWeWzhbEMovdJd8G51oGrEMaOM0xR5qVNm6DQoPbAVr1aiVOzlLwiilMj44ChI0u8Kc3ul1pnTvGCXevG89LKP8d2eLbI/s734/P.%20Hodges%20Combier%20wedding.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="651" data-original-width="734" height="284" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXFjnto_3kziK1jjo01syrD9jFDEdVM_mEvmDSS8TDMWwX5kyHchYnbsvObceokmBDkGN2DD_uVKaa5qPL3GmX8fQUvLH2DooWeWzhbEMovdJd8G51oGrEMaOM0xR5qVNm6DQoPbAVr1aiVOzlLwiilMj44ChI0u8Kc3ul1pnTvGCXevG89LKP8d2eLbI/s320/P.%20Hodges%20Combier%20wedding.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; letter-spacing: -0.16px;"><br /><span style="letter-spacing: -0.16px;">One of my family's closest friends (and </span>my dad's best man at his wedding, see my parents' wedding announcement above) as I grew up was <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_W._Peck">David Peck</a>, a stellar jurist as well, who was appointed Presiding Justice of the First Department, Appellate Division, in 1947. When appointed, he was 44 years old, the youngest judge to serve as presiding justice of the First Department.</span><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; letter-spacing: -0.16px;"> <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/here-ten-lessons-from-book-road-less-traveled-m-scott-jack-kelly/">Scott Peck</a>, his son, wrote one of my favorite books <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/347852.The_Road_Less_Traveled">"The Road Less Traveled"</a>. See <a href="https://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/search?q=Synchronicity">my article on Synchronicity</a>. That's me. Who are you? Do you know?</span><p></p><p><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; letter-spacing: -0.16px;">Ok, now you are asking, "Why am I boring you with all of this?"</span></p><p><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; letter-spacing: -0.16px;">Because in my opinion, the militant "Restorative Justice" stuff is wrong. Yes, black lives matter, and so do white lives, Asian lives, Hispanic lives, etc. <i>Humans</i> matter - and it isn't important what race, religion, gender, or any other sub-category every human subscribes to during their lifetime, as long as they do not deliberately harm a person or animal or force someone to subscribe to a belief or action against their will which may be contrary to accepted social norms. </span></p><p><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; letter-spacing: -0.16px;">That is why I believe no person or group should decide for one individual who or what to believe. Every person should make that decision for him or herself. Certainly, public schools should not teach radicalism but guide children in critical thinking and creativity. Not conclusions. Kids need to write their own stories and discover who they are. Children should be taught how to socialize, have empathy, be kind, and value every human being as another individual, a unique and equal soul, traveling on the same road through life as we - you - are. Everyone is equal in being human. I didn't teach my kids empathy, but I told them often what I believed, and they had the right to reject my spirituality and love, or not. They did not reject it, but I certainly did not force anything on them. </span></p><p><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; letter-spacing: -0.16px;">Then, when they were 2,5,7, and 9 years of age, I brought them in as volunteers at the <a href="https://www.rmh-newyork.org/">Ronald McDonald House</a> for kids with cancer, where I was a volunteer helping to run the program. Empathy and love for all humans happened.</span></p><p><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; letter-spacing: -0.16px;">But life happens, and school is mandatory. In school, we should learn how to read, do complex math problems, and enjoy the many adventures of scientific research and history. And we need to teach kids how to write and express themselves through art and music. Two of my children started singing Opera professionally at Lincoln Center, aged 5 and 9. They wanted to sing, so I gave them the opportunity to use their talents on a big stage by getting them both auditions. After that, they were on their own. I spent more than 11 years getting them out of school early so we could get to Lincoln Center on time for rehearsals and performances because that's what <i>they</i> wanted. I planned my time according to their schedules, to support them.</span></p><p><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; letter-spacing: -0.16px;">I have four children, now amazingly wonderful adults. We survived the NYC public school system- in one case, barely - but <i>their</i> visions drove their path. </span></p><p><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; letter-spacing: -0.16px;">Notice in my background above I didn't say anything about race. That's because I never heard the word in my apartment while growing up. My dad and the various politicians and television/Broadway stars who came to dinner (my mom was a Broadway angel and trustee of the Neighborhood Playhouse) talked politics, rights, due process, and the law. It's in my bones. My mom was the daughter of German Jews, my dad's family were Christians from France, and I grew up going to a Presbyterian Church every Sunday, where my mom ran the music program as a volunteer for 49 years. I moved to Cairo, Egypt, for 5 years, etc., etc. </span><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; letter-spacing: -0.16px;">See </span><a href="https://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/search?q=Synchronicity" style="font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing: -0.16px;">my article on Synchronicity</a><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; letter-spacing: -0.16px;">. That's me. </span></p><p><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; letter-spacing: -0.16px;">Who are you? </span></p><p><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; letter-spacing: -0.16px;">Do you know?</span></p><p><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; letter-spacing: -0.16px;">Do not let others decide for you.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif">Betsy Combier</span></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"></span></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; padding: 0px;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;">betsy.combier@gmail.com</span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: quot;">Editor, </span><span style="color: #582995;"><a href="http://advocatz.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">ADVOCATZ.com</span></a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;">Editor, <span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="https://advocatz.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;">ADVOCATZ Blog</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot; font-size: 16px;"><span style="color: #1a222a; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Rubber Room Reporter</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot; font-size: 16px;"><span style="color: #1a222a; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://www.parentadvocates.org/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Parentadvocates.org</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot; font-size: 16px;"><span style="color: #1a222a; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://newyorkcourtcorruption.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">New York Court Corruption</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot; font-size: 16px;"><span style="color: #1a222a; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nationalpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">National Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot; font-size: 16px;"><span style="color: #1a222a; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot; font-size: 16px;"><span style="color: #1a222a; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials</a></span></b></div></span></div><p><a href="https://nypost.com/2024/02/22/us-news/nyc-school-gives-kids-woke-blm-coloring-book-with-queer-trans-affirming-lessons/" style="font-size: x-large;">BLM movement’s social justice politics and ‘queer, trans-affirming’ lessons delivered to kids as young as 5 in NYC school</a></p><p><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.14px;">By </span><span aria-controls="flyout-aneeta-bhole" aria-haspopup="true" class="meta__link" color="var(--wp--custom--color--link)" face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" id="author-flyout-label" role="button" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.14px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" tabindex="0">Aneeta Bhole</span><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.14px;">, </span><span aria-controls="flyout-susan-edelman" aria-haspopup="true" class="meta__link" color="var(--wp--custom--color--link)" face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" id="author-flyout-label" role="button" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.14px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" tabindex="0">Susan Edelman </span><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.14px;">and </span><span color="var(--wp--custom--color--link)" face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.14px;">Emily Crane</span></p><p><span color="var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g)" face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em;">A New York City elementary school is giving kids as young as 5 a woke Black Lives Matter coloring book that focuses on “queer and transgender affirming” lessons, revolutionary politics and demands to “fund counselors not cops” to teach them about Black History Month.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Students at PS 321 in Brooklyn’s Park Slope — which teaches children from kindergarten through fifth grade — were handed the “What We Believe: A Black Lives Matter Principles Activity Book” coloring book last week as part of a Black History Month lesson.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The book, which is based on the 13 “guiding principles” of the national Black Lives Matter at School curriculum, was reportedly assigned as coursework for the young kids. It includes dedicated pages with headlines like “transgender affirming” and “queer affirming.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“When a person is born, their grown-ups generally decide whether to call them a girl or a boy. Sometimes that decision doesn’t match who the person really is, and that person is transgender,” a description on the trans page reads.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The book also lists off a slew of the BLM’s national demands and ways children can support the movement — including a push to “have counsellors in schools instead of police.” “use restorative justice” and “teach black history and ethnic studies.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Some parents, however, insisted the coloring book didn’t actually teach their kids about black history and instead presented controversial ideas “as fact.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“It’s not necessarily true. It’s not like every black person believes in these principles,” the mom of a fourth grader <a href="https://www.thefp.com/p/kids-get-schooled-on-radical-politics" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: baseline;">told The Free Press</a>, which first reported on the woke coloring book Thursday.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">She added the book doesn’t go “into enough detail and there is no mention of specific people. It just feels very vague.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Other parents expressed outrage over the movement’s guiding principles, which are splashed across the website for Black Lives Matter at School, the Seattle-based group behind the coloring book. The woke org offers resources for schools across the country, including for “early childhood” lessons.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Under the “Transgender Affirming” section of the Black Lives Matter at School site, for example, the group spells out that “we are self-reflexive and consistently do the work required to dismantle cisgender privilege.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Some parents at the school also took issue with a section titled Empathy and its use of the word “comrades” — with some interpreting it as a political term and push to promote communist propaganda.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“Using the word comrades comes from communist times,” the mom of the fourth grader, whose grandparents fled China for the US, told The Free Press. “They are using words that I don’t think are appropriate for elementary school.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">PS 321, with 1,217 students, has a reputation as one of the best elementary schools in the city. It also has one of the highest portions of white kids — 67%. Only 3% of students are black, city records show.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">While parents acknowledged that some of the lessons from the coloring book — and wider BLM curriculum — appeared harmless, such as the importance of forgiveness, they argued that others were rooted in revolutionary politics.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The “Black Villages” principle, for example, describes disrupting “the narrow Western prescribed nuclear family structure requirement.” And the “Intergenerational” section calls for a “communal network free from ageism and adultism.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Robert Pondiscio, a teaching expert and senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, weighed in on the backlash, saying he wasn’t convinced the book was an attempt to indoctrinate kids.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“But the poor judgment and lack of common sense among educators in selecting material is sometimes jaw-dropping and inexcusable,” the ex-Big Apple teacher wrote on X.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Meanwhile, Phil Wong, a parent and former president of Community Education Council 24 in Queens, ripped the racial justice element associated with the coloring book.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“If schools really want to teach racial justice, then the materials should be about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Frederick Douglas or Harriet Tubman. Recent movements have erased these names from history classes,” Wong told The Post.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">It wasn’t immediately clear how many PS 321 students were given the coloring book last week. One mom said she only learned of its existence when students were sent home for remote learning due to a winter storm last week.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Park Slope parents seemed in short supply in the neighborhood on Thursday, with schools closed for midwinter break. The kids who were out and about were mostly accompanied by nannies.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">PS 321 on Thursday refused to comment on the distribution of the BLM coloring book until school resumes.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The city’s Department of Education confirmed the existence of the book, but declined to answer questions about whether officials knew of its dissemination – or if it was being taught in any other Big Apple public schools.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Instead, a DOE spokesperson only said: “Anytime parents have a concern about resources used in school, we encourage them to share their concerns to the school principal or district superintendent.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Additional reporting by Georgett Roberts</em></p>Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-59134777195646502532024-02-09T23:07:00.006-05:002024-02-09T23:08:58.293-05:00Justice Brendan Landry Slams Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg For Prosecuting Fake Vaccination Cards While Letting Violent Criminals To Go Free<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheCwpz-IbzPJ3oCndrkhpiNVJhn6QoH0GxCh6ox_hN2_q6CZYG_yESXDSneLTRTvlLKGuFfZ2EYRQS30dK6eFJixUq6u7z967xdRDzDHOUOL36WZkhDUI2NxTbmyTeA9Y-tz66rDlRwa3NFXw3GOZBc0z-kTQU9n2ZFM5N1dpkrl8AOO-SWL61An4LlMk/s807/Joseph%20Borelli%202024.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="568" data-original-width="807" height="281" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheCwpz-IbzPJ3oCndrkhpiNVJhn6QoH0GxCh6ox_hN2_q6CZYG_yESXDSneLTRTvlLKGuFfZ2EYRQS30dK6eFJixUq6u7z967xdRDzDHOUOL36WZkhDUI2NxTbmyTeA9Y-tz66rDlRwa3NFXw3GOZBc0z-kTQU9n2ZFM5N1dpkrl8AOO-SWL61An4LlMk/w400-h281/Joseph%20Borelli%202024.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #585858; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.14px; text-align: left;">City Council Minority Leader Joseph Borelli lashed out at Bragg for prosecuting the nursing student even though she never used the fake vaccination card.</span><span class="credit" face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #585858; display: block; font-size: 0.75rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.17; margin: 0px; padding: 0.5rem 0px 0px; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;">Paul Martinka</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Thank you Justice Brendan T. Landry! <p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc3ZPEtPVcfyH7S3SKXIkcdxdwh-T_b7z2O5OIw2mPQ37ZmKn9R71D5nUv6lOq6MyLwBQnHWjIb9n-vOkseIx-0zwiT0_ArqYLixH1ptyVnte_SyYBsshCrbviw2BOQHXL0TNLSEX4MgnHTCQh4i-nkJjdX-O-ae7-Cjp6P8PfNkGy5oQ58jrCaLNBy4E/s690/Justice%20Brendan%20T.%20%20Lantry.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="690" data-original-width="441" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc3ZPEtPVcfyH7S3SKXIkcdxdwh-T_b7z2O5OIw2mPQ37ZmKn9R71D5nUv6lOq6MyLwBQnHWjIb9n-vOkseIx-0zwiT0_ArqYLixH1ptyVnte_SyYBsshCrbviw2BOQHXL0TNLSEX4MgnHTCQh4i-nkJjdX-O-ae7-Cjp6P8PfNkGy5oQ58jrCaLNBy4E/w256-h400/Justice%20Brendan%20T.%20%20Lantry.jpg" width="256" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #585858; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.14px; text-align: left;">State Supreme Court Justice Brendan T. Lantry dismissed felony charges against a nursing student and city DEP employee that were charged for fake COVID-19 vaccine cards.</span><span class="credit" face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #585858; display: block; font-size: 0.75rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.17; margin: 0px; padding: 0.5rem 0px 0px; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;">Linkedin Brendan Lantry</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p>Sometimes it takes a State Judge to force Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg to get it right.</p><p>Oh, wait. Bragg is not getting it right, now or ever. Begin impeachment of this guy Bragg!! He needs to go to a place where he can think about priorities.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYcy1Ia3uBSVy18DjqPsLFNYRLcsXiUWB4ly2UISmWDUOkPAYTaxqstJh-AyuuyYYdO0Dh_yO1qASnPhyEH09Ku8nDJzjbap0P8K02PnBTM1xwoPmIvREIYBXPY5v5LWeZNVobl6kj_5OoCFSyEMdzgUv0t1_DqQuhtvwx25AEArfdjpYFu-3spIm3Eew/s559/Alvin%20Bragg.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="529" data-original-width="559" height="379" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYcy1Ia3uBSVy18DjqPsLFNYRLcsXiUWB4ly2UISmWDUOkPAYTaxqstJh-AyuuyYYdO0Dh_yO1qASnPhyEH09Ku8nDJzjbap0P8K02PnBTM1xwoPmIvREIYBXPY5v5LWeZNVobl6kj_5OoCFSyEMdzgUv0t1_DqQuhtvwx25AEArfdjpYFu-3spIm3Eew/w400-h379/Alvin%20Bragg.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #585858; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.14px; text-align: left;">Manhattan DA Alvin was blasted for trying to throw the book at two New Yorkers who bought fake COVID-19 vaccine cards.</span><span class="credit" face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #585858; display: block; font-size: 0.75rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.17; margin: 0px; padding: 0.5rem 0px 0px; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;">REUTERS</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><i>Just sayin.....</i></p><p>Betsy Combier</p><p style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><span face="verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif" style="font-size: medium;">betsy@advocatz.com</span></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; padding: 0px;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;"><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: quot;">Editor, </span><span style="color: #582995;"><a href="http://advocatz.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">ADVOCATZ.com</span></a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;">Editor, <span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="https://advocatz.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;">ADVOCATZ Blog</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; 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font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">National Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><br /></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><br /></b></div></span></span></div><h1 class="headline headline--single-fallback" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--black); font-family: neue-haas-grotesk-display, sans-serif; font-size: 2.625rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.05; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://nypost.com/2024/02/03/metro/manhattan-da-alvin-bragg-slammed-for-letting-violent-perps-walk/">Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg slammed for prosecuting fake vax cards while letting ‘violent’ perps walk</a></h1><div><div class="byline meta meta--byline" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--black); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 0.875rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.14; margin: 0px 0px 0.5rem; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline;">By <div class="byline__author" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline;"><span aria-controls="flyout-rich-calder" aria-haspopup="true" class="meta__link" color="var(--wp--custom--color--link)" id="author-flyout-label" role="button" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" tabindex="0"><span class="screen-reader-text" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; clip-path: inset(50%); clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px); height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow-wrap: normal; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1px;">Social Links for</span>Rich Calder </span>and</div> <div class="byline__author" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline;"><span aria-controls="flyout-matthew-sedacca" aria-haspopup="true" class="meta__link" color="var(--wp--custom--color--link)" id="author-flyout-label" role="button" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" tabindex="0"><span class="screen-reader-text" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; clip-path: inset(50%); clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px); height: 1px; margin: -1px; overflow-wrap: normal; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px; position: absolute; vertical-align: baseline; width: 1px;">Social Links for</span>Matthew Sedacca</span></div></div><div aria-label="Date published/updated" class="date meta meta--byline" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--black); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 0.875rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.14; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; text-wrap: nowrap; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="date--updated__item" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Published </span><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Feb. 3, 2024, 9:49 a.m. ET</span></div><div class="date--updated__item" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></div></div></div><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">A judge blasted Manhattan <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/11/12/opinion/alvin-braggs-agenda-is-still-irrelevant-to-citys-real-needs/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: baseline;">District Attorney Alvin Bragg</a> for trying to throw the book at two New Yorkers who bought fake COVID-19 vaccine cards — despite routinely going easy on others charged with far more serious crimes. </p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In a ruling issued this week, state Supreme Court Justice Brendan T. Lantry dismissed felony charges against the pair, who were not publicly identified, calling the case overkill.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">J.O., a nursing student, and R.V., an employee with the city Department of Environmental Protection, were among hundreds accused of buying fake vaccination cards <a href="https://nypost.com/2021/08/31/bogus-covid-vaccine-card-scam-busted-by-manhattan-da/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: baseline;">from a New Jersey stripper, Jasmine Clifford</a>. </p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The two were among just 16 people Bragg’s office “cherry-picked” to prosecute and charge with felony criminal possession of a forged instrument, the judge said. </p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Fourteen pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor, but J.O. and R.V. moved to dismiss the charges, prompting the DA’s office to contest the effort — and sparking outrage from the jurist.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“These motions submitted [by Bragg and his prosecutors] are made months or even years after the 45-day period has expired to dismiss . . . sexual assaults, drug sales, robbery, burglary, and other violent and non-violent serious felony offenses.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">City Council Minority Leader Joseph Borelli (R-Staten Island) cheered the judge, who is the former chairman of Staten Island’s Republican Party, while pointing out that one of the defendants got the forged card to maintain her nursing school enrollment only to get the jab anyway.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“This is what Alvin Bragg is — a clown,” Borelli told The Post. “Imagine prosecuting a scared woman for this, even though she didn’t even use the fake card, while at the same time letting violent perps go. I’m glad the judge called him out for the world to see.”</p><p><span color="var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g)" face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em;">Since taking office in 2022, Bragg has come under attack for not seeking prison time for various charges and downgrading felony charges in a slew of cases, including armed robbery and drug offenses.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">On Wednesday, the DA’s office <a href="https://nypost.com/2024/01/31/metro/migrant-cowards-who-ganged-up-on-cops-should-be-at-rikers-as-three-more-sought-nypd-chief-says/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: baseline;">declined to ask for bail</a> for five migrant men who allegedly beat a pair of cops in Times Square.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Doug Cohen, a spokesman for the Manhattan DA, declined to address Lantry’s remarks, but said major crimes in Manhattan were down 5% overall in 2023, and during Bragg’s first two years in office, shootings were down 38% and homicides down 24%.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; letter-spacing: -0.16px;">Bragg’s office “routinely — nearly daily — move[s] to dismiss significantly more serious counts or entire indictments” to avoid harsher penalties for previously convicted felons or to avoid jeopardizing people’s immigration status, the judge wrote in an opinion issued Tuesday.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“These motions submitted [by Bragg and his prosecutors] are made months or even years after the 45-day period has expired to dismiss . . . sexual assaults, drug sales, robbery, burglary, and other violent and non-violent serious felony offenses.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">City Council Minority Leader Joseph Borelli (R-Staten Island) cheered the judge, who is the former chairman of Staten Island’s Republican Party, while pointing out that one of the defendants got the forged card to maintain her nursing school enrollment only to get the jab anyway.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“This is what Alvin Bragg is — a clown,” Borelli told The Post. “Imagine prosecuting a scared woman for this, even though she didn’t even use the fake card, while at the same time letting violent perps go. I’m glad the judge called him out for the world to see.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Since taking office in 2022, Bragg has come under attack for not seeking prison time for various charges and downgrading felony charges in a slew of cases, including armed robbery and drug offenses.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">On Wednesday, the DA’s office <a href="https://nypost.com/2024/01/31/metro/migrant-cowards-who-ganged-up-on-cops-should-be-at-rikers-as-three-more-sought-nypd-chief-says/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: baseline;">declined to ask for bail</a> for five migrant men who allegedly beat a pair of cops in Times Square.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Doug Cohen, a spokesman for the Manhattan DA, declined to address Lantry’s remarks, but said major crimes in Manhattan were down 5% overall in 2023, and during Bragg’s first two years in office, shootings were down 38% and homicides down 24%.</p>Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-89444870499949380762024-02-09T11:50:00.004-05:002024-02-09T14:14:29.666-05:00Senator Andrew Lanza Introduces S7466-A To Reinstate All City Employees Terminated by COVID-19 Requirements<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw_S77HH9LZMuOKz6w8wnwPDAkULWowGJomCttr7hn_WnWTjav9WNQi4oC6LB4AeWmduzE7JiWzlbgRae0D7frnTctppCa5fzOcFFaVDt5rXJpYTKKzt3RNYm4UWnUEmHv3OmlZ-n53Itk9AtuZ23Hc3h-ref6dGKSl6flupJEQg_jrUxrhTZnQX6hlY4/s1356/Andrew%20Lanza.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="620" data-original-width="1356" height="183" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw_S77HH9LZMuOKz6w8wnwPDAkULWowGJomCttr7hn_WnWTjav9WNQi4oC6LB4AeWmduzE7JiWzlbgRae0D7frnTctppCa5fzOcFFaVDt5rXJpYTKKzt3RNYm4UWnUEmHv3OmlZ-n53Itk9AtuZ23Hc3h-ref6dGKSl6flupJEQg_jrUxrhTZnQX6hlY4/w400-h183/Andrew%20Lanza.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p>re-posted from <a href="https://advocatz.com/2024/02/09/senate-bill-s7466-a-in-committeeto-reinstate-all-municipal-employees-terminated-due-to-covid-19-vaccine/">ADVOCATZ.com</a></p><p>Betsy Combier</p><p>Editor, <a href="https://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/">NYC Rubber Room Reporter</a>, and ADVOCATZ.com </p><p><br /></p><p><a href="https://www.nysenate.gov/senators/andrew-j-lanza/about" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Senator Andrew J. Lanza</a><span face=""Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px;">, Republican representing District 24 Staten Island, has introduced a Bill to</span><span face=""Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px;"> </span><a href="https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/bills/2023/S7466/amendment/A" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">reinstate any officer and employee</a><span face=""Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px;"> </span><span face=""Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px;">who worked for the City of New York and was dismissed because of the COVID-19 Mandate.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">We all need to support him in this effort!</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;">STATE OF NEW YORK</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;">7466–A</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;">2023-2024 Regular Sessions</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;">IN SENATE</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;">May 30, 2023</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> ______________________</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Introduced by Sen. LANZA — read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Cities 1 — recommitted to the Committee on Cities 1 in accordance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 – committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">AN ACT to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to the reinstatement of certain officers and employees who were dismissed from employment due to a COVID-19 vaccine requirement</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Section 1. <a href="https://codelibrary.amlegal.com/codes/newyorkcity/latest/NYCadmin/0-0-0-1" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">The administrative code of the city of New York</a> is amended by adding a new section 12-141 to read as follows:</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">§ 12-141 Reinstatement of employees dismissed for COVID-19 vaccination requirements. Any officer or employee of the city or of any agency thereof who was dismissed from employment due to failure of such officer or employee to comply with a COVID-19 vaccine requirement, shall be reinstated to their former position, in the same position or title and at the same salary and benefits, with retention of seniority and service time accrued, as such employee was receiving immediately prior to their 10 dismissal. Such officer or employee seeking reinstatement shall also be exempt from any waiver of civil service rights.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">§ 2. This act shall take effect immediately.</p><h2 class="nys-title contact-block__title contact-form__title" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 1.5rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: 1.3; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Contact Senator Andrew J. Lanza’s Office</h2><div class="c-block c-block--senator-office" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="field-content" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="location vcard" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="adr" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><p style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="fn" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">ALBANY OFFICE</span></p><div class="street-address" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Room 413 Senate Capitol Building<span class="additional" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">172 State Street</span></div><p style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="locality" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Albany, </span> <span class="region" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">NY</span> <span class="postal-code" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">12247</span></p><div class="tel value" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Phone: (518) 455-3215</div><div class="tel" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Fax: (518) 426-6852</div><div class="tel fn" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Office Hours: Albany Office</div><p style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a class="c-office-location-link" href="https://www.google.com/maps/place/172+State+Street+%2C+Albany%2C+NY%2C+12247" rel="noopener" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank"> map</a></p></div></div><div class="location vcard" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="adr" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><p style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="fn" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">DISTRICT OFFICE</span></p><div class="street-address" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">3845 Richmond Ave. Suite 2A</div><p style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="locality" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Staten Island, </span> <span class="region" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">NY</span> <span class="postal-code" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">10312</span></p><div class="tel value" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Phone: (718) 984-4073</div><div class="tel" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Fax: (718) 984-4455</div><div class="tel fn" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Office Hours: District Office</div><p style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a class="c-office-location-link" href="https://www.google.com/maps/place/3845+Richmond+Ave.+Suite+2A%2C+Staten+Island%2C+NY%2C+10312" rel="noopener" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank"> map</a></p></div></div></div><div class="c-block--senator-email" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><h3 class="c-office-info--title" style="border: 0px; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: 1.3; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">EMAIL ADDRESS:</h3><div class="field-content" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="mailto:lanza@nysenate.gov" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">lanza@nysenate.gov</a></div></div></div>Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-60877022519915748782023-12-05T12:41:00.003-05:002024-03-18T11:07:44.670-04:00PS 398Q Principal Erica Urena is Removed From the School<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2K5u5l1SVmxnoot9XAeUKp9rAjXH8V1RCJu4pG9fm27yiLrqnnlI9vvnfB1FXnPTfgzJa-7lB4TmB9XJf-Tc3aNaNVjnt8xn_DeMx7bk-rcL2VASr7vnt90jooHmxPyiLc3o_L26PCAPS9FzFPoNGtQ3qVexEwWK8Dcijh39DOoiP202Y0ADtD8ANqJM/s808/Erica%20Urena-Thus.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="727" data-original-width="808" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2K5u5l1SVmxnoot9XAeUKp9rAjXH8V1RCJu4pG9fm27yiLrqnnlI9vvnfB1FXnPTfgzJa-7lB4TmB9XJf-Tc3aNaNVjnt8xn_DeMx7bk-rcL2VASr7vnt90jooHmxPyiLc3o_L26PCAPS9FzFPoNGtQ3qVexEwWK8Dcijh39DOoiP202Y0ADtD8ANqJM/w400-h360/Erica%20Urena-Thus.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face=""Sharp Grotesk 20", sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #515151; font-size: 14px; text-align: left;">P.S. 398Q principal Erica Ureña poses for a portait in her office. </span><span class="image-credit" face=""Sharp Grotesk 20", sans-serif" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #515151; font-size: 14px; text-align: left;"><span class="credit-label-wrapper" style="box-sizing: inherit;">Credit:</span> ps398queens.org<br /><br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: medium;">Thanks to the parents of students at PS398Q, Principal Erica Urena leaves the school on December 6, 2023.</span><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">The issue is safety of all students. From the news, it appears that a second-grader brought a knife to school and threatened to harm a classmate. The news reports have cited several student witnesses to this little boy saying what he was going to do, but at this point no one knows what actually happened.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">Nevertheless, Principal Urena did not explain anything to parents for several days, while rumors flew through PS 398Q. This was not a proper way to deal with the situation, and Urena has to leave her post. This incident is not the first time she has done something that angered parents and staff, but it will be her last.</span></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://www.thecity.nyc/2023/09/01/jackson-heights-hector-figueroa-school/">‘Hostile’ Environment in Jackson Heights School Prompts Teacher Exodus and Parent Concern</a></span></div><div><span style="background-color: white; color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, "serif"; font-size: 17px; font-style: italic;">PS 398, named after the late labor leader Hector Figueroa, is roiled by a battle between its staff and principal.</span></div><div><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div><div><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: 17px;">When staff are united and choose facts to remove a principal, all benefit. See my post on this blog and on ADVOCATZ.com about Heather Jansen and her Student Rat Pack:</span></span></div><div><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div><h3 class="post-title entry-title" itemprop="name" style="background-color: white; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; position: relative;"><a href="https://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/2023/09/former-principal-of-ps-46-heather.html" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: black; font-size: medium;">Former Principal of PS 46 Heather Jansen and Her Student Rat Pack</span></a></h3><div>NYC Rubber Room Reporter, Sept. 4, 2023</div><div><br /></div><div><h4 style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: 1.3; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0.625rem; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://advocatz.com/2023/08/19/the-student-rat-pack-of-ps-46/">The Student Rat Pack of PS 46</a></h4></div><div>Advocatz.com</div><div><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><i> </i><br /></span></span><p style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><i><span style="font-size: medium;">Betsy Combier</span></i></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><span face="verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif" style="font-size: medium;">betsy@advocatz.com</span></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; padding: 0px;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;"><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: quot;">Editor, </span><span style="color: #582995;"><a href="http://advocatz.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">ADVOCATZ.com</span></a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;">Editor, <span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="https://advocatz.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;">ADVOCATZ Blog</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Rubber Room Reporter</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://www.parentadvocates.org/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Parentadvocates.org</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://newyorkcourtcorruption.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">New York Court Corruption</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nationalpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">National Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials</a></span></b></div></span></span></div><p style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, "serif"; font-size: 0.9rem; margin: 20px 0px; max-width: 100%; overflow-wrap: break-word;"><a href="https://www.thecity.nyc/2023/12/04/knife-ps-398q-hector-figueroa-school-erica-urena-thus-steps-down/" style="background-color: transparent; font-size: x-large;">Elementary School Principal Who ‘Covered Up’ After Student Brought Knife to Attack a Classmate Steps Down</a></p><div><span style="background-color: white; color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, "serif"; font-size: 17px; font-style: italic;">Teachers had been complaining since last summer about the “hostile” environment founding principal Erica Ureña-Thus had created at the public school in Jackson Heights.</span></div><div><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: 17px;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div><div><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: 17px;">by Claudia Irizarry Aponte, The City, December 4, 2023<br /></span></span><p style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, "serif"; font-size: 0.9rem; margin: 20px 0px; max-width: 100%; overflow-wrap: break-word;">The embattled principal of P.S. 398Q in Jackson Heights announced on Friday she would step down, weeks after parents mounted a campaign for her ouster over her botched handling of an incident where a second-grader brought a knife to school allegedly with a plan to attack a fellow student.</p><p style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, "serif"; font-size: 0.9rem; margin: 20px 0px; max-width: 100%; overflow-wrap: break-word;">Erica Ureña-Thus, founding principal of The Héctor Figueroa School, wrote in a letter to the school community on Friday that “it is with mixed emotions that I announce my decision to leave PS 398Q.” She added that her departure would be effective December 6.</p><p style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, "serif"; font-size: 0.9rem; margin: 20px 0px; max-width: 100%; overflow-wrap: break-word;">Ureña-Thus did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and neither did her union, the Council of School Supervisors and Administrators. A spokesperson for the Department of Education did not immediately respond to a request for comment. </p><p style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, "serif"; font-size: 0.9rem; margin: 20px 0px; max-width: 100%; overflow-wrap: break-word;">Parent and <a href="https://www.thecity.nyc/2023/09/01/jackson-heights-hector-figueroa-school/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #028bbc; transition: color 110ms ease-in-out 0s;">teacher</a> concerns about Ureña-Thus had already been percolating for months before multiple students said a second-grader brought <a href="https://www.thecity.nyc/2023/11/14/queens-principal-covered-up-second-grader-brought-knife/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #028bbc; transition: color 110ms ease-in-out 0s;">a knife</a> to school Nov. 1, telling students he intended to use it on another second-grader at lunch time.</p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, "serif"; font-size: 0.9rem;">Parents were only informed about that on Nov. 4, in an online post from Ureña-Thus reporting “nothing untoward was found.” In the days that followed, DOE higher-ups privately discussed in a series of email exchanges keeping additional “detail/context” about the incident private,</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, "serif"; font-size: 0.9rem;"> </span><a href="https://www.thecity.nyc/2023/11/14/queens-principal-covered-up-second-grader-brought-knife/" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #028bbc; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, "serif"; font-size: 0.9rem; transition: color 110ms ease-in-out 0s;">THE CITY first reported</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, "serif"; font-size: 0.9rem;">.</span> </p><p style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, "serif"; font-size: 0.9rem; margin: 20px 0px; max-width: 100%; overflow-wrap: break-word;">“It was covered up, no one knew,” the aunt of the boy who was allegedly targeted told THE CITY last month, which previously reported that the boy, who’d remained in the school, later threatened students who’d witnessed him with the knife.</p><p style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, "serif"; font-size: 0.9rem; margin: 20px 0px; max-width: 100%; overflow-wrap: break-word;">(THE CITY is withholding the names of the students, who are all second graders, to respect their privacy. THE CITY was not able to contact the parents of the boy who allegedly brought the knife and made the threats, because he has not been named by the school.)</p><p style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, "serif"; font-size: 0.9rem; margin: 20px 0px; max-width: 100%; overflow-wrap: break-word;">In a note to parents on Nov. 10, District 30 superintendent Lisa Hidalgo finally acknowledged “a lack of timely communication to families from the school” that she said “resulted in speculation that led to fear and misinformation circulating within the school community.”</p><p style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, "serif"; font-size: 0.9rem; margin: 20px 0px; max-width: 100%; overflow-wrap: break-word;">By the following week, hundreds of parents had signed a <a href="https://www.change.org/p/remove-the-principal-from-ps398q?original_footer_petition_id=37124908&algorithm=promoted&source_location=petition_footer&grid_position=5&pt=AVBldGl0aW9uABZvPwIAAAAAZT2x9lktqhQ5MzgzNmE0Yw%3D%3D" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #028bbc; transition: color 110ms ease-in-out 0s;">petition</a> calling for Ureña-Thus’ removal.</p><p style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, "serif"; font-size: 0.9rem; margin: 20px 0px; max-width: 100%; overflow-wrap: break-word;">This summer, teachers had also spoken out about the <a href="https://www.thecity.nyc/2023/09/01/jackson-heights-hector-figueroa-school/" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #028bbc; transition: color 110ms ease-in-out 0s;">‘hostile’</a> environment at the school, including allegedly retaliating against teachers who signed on to a grievance complaint alleging anti-union actions by Ureña-Thus.</p><p style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, "serif"; font-size: 0.9rem; margin: 20px 0px; max-width: 100%; overflow-wrap: break-word;">Last Wednesday, parents testifying before the Panel for Education Policy pleaded with city officials to remove and replace her, <a href="https://gothamist.com/news/embattled-principal-steps-down-at-queens-elementary-school-following-parent-uprising" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #028bbc; transition: color 110ms ease-in-out 0s;">Gothamist reported</a>. Deputy Chancellor Dan Weisberg told parents that investigations were underway, and he expected them “to be resolved soon.”</p><p style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, "serif"; font-size: 0.9rem; margin: 20px 0px; max-width: 100%; overflow-wrap: break-word;">“It was heartbreaking to watch,” panel member Tom Sheppard told <a href="https://gothamist.com/news/embattled-principal-steps-down-at-queens-elementary-school-following-parent-uprising" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: inherit; color: #028bbc; transition: color 110ms ease-in-out 0s;">Gothamist</a>. “These people have been shouting from the rooftops … and nobody’s been listening to them.”</p><p style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, "serif"; font-size: 0.9rem; margin: 20px 0px; max-width: 100%; overflow-wrap: break-word;">In her note to the school community on Friday, Ureña-Thus referenced the challenges of founding a brand-new school during the pandemic and her own health struggles after surviving a stroke in 2021. </p><p style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, "serif"; font-size: 0.9rem; margin: 20px 0px; max-width: 100%; overflow-wrap: break-word;">“From our modest beginnings with a mere nine staff members to navigating a two-year pandemic and teacher shortages, our close-knit community ensured our children never bore the brunt of these adversities,” she wrote, adding that “[d]espite grappling with health conditions, I returned to continue fostering our exceptional staff and striving to provide a safe and quality education.”</p><p style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, "serif"; font-size: 0.9rem; margin: 20px 0px; max-width: 100%; overflow-wrap: break-word;">“Serving in the community where I grew up has been an endless source of gratitude, and I am thankful for the opportunity to have nurtured your children.”</p><p style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #111111; font-family: Georgia, Georgia, "serif"; font-size: 0.9rem; margin: 20px 0px; max-width: 100%; overflow-wrap: break-word;">Ureña-Thus wrote that she would “transition to a new role” effective her departure, but did not specify what it would be.</p></div></div>Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-9680613196234234422023-10-11T21:59:00.007-04:002024-02-12T09:26:39.779-05:00A Freedom of Information Request That Could Have Gone Very Wrong - But Didn't (2006)<p> The post below is not new, but I love it for the sheer audacity of <a href="https://www.nyc.gov/office-of-the-mayor/news/123-12/mayor-bloomberg-that-department-education-general-counsel-michael-best-will-return-to">former NYC DOE General Counsel Michael Best</a> for allowing two pages of my personal notes to be ripped out of my notebook and taken away because they had "information I was not supposed to see". I was determined to get those two pages back. Read and find out what happened!</p><p>Enjoy the best show in town - the New York City Department of Education. Lol</p><p><i>just sayin'...</i></p><p><i>Betsy Combier</i></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><span face="verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif" style="font-size: medium;">betsy@advocatz.com</span></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; padding: 0px;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;"><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: quot;">Editor, </span><span style="color: #582995;"><a href="http://advocatz.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">ADVOCATZ.com</span></a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;">Editor, <span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="https://advocatz.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;">ADVOCATZ Blog</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Rubber Room Reporter</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://www.parentadvocates.org/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Parentadvocates.org</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://newyorkcourtcorruption.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">New York Court Corruption</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nationalpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">National Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="https://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/2015/10/a-look-back-my-birthday-card-from.html">A Look Back: My Birthday Card From the Rubber Roomers at 25 Chapel Street, and a FOIL Incident With Former General Counsel Michael Best</a></b></div></span></span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">I found my birthday card from the rubber roomers at 25 Chapel Street (2006?)!!!<br /><br />So happy. Thanks, people!!! See below.<br /><br />The UFT members at 25 Chapel street were my first connection to the rubber room saga that would change my life, alter the life of my children and allow me to start my company <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/2013/10/advocatz.html&source=gmail&ust=1697160464219000&usg=AOvVaw0FXic-O0nhRFbC52mBpNJW" href="http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/2013/10/advocatz.html" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">ADVOCATZ</a>. (Current Website is <a href="https://ADVOCATZ.com">ADVOCATZ.com</a>)<br /><br />I will forever be grateful to David Pakter, Polo Colon, Steve Ostrin, and all the wonderful people who talked with me about their troubles. I was then, and continue to be, honored with your trust.<br /><br />By the way, my birthday is 7-11. July 11, not October (I'm re-posting the birthday card now because I just found it)..<br /><br />Betsy Combier<br />President, <a href="https://advocatz.com/">ADVOCATZ</a><br />Editor, NYC Rubber Room Reporter<br /><div style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiITy4_399onTCFLcJYfSI3tZjKyWQECi0H16iJm32Sd5nEv9BWOgYKT_tz3gAbxBIwN41vBGcOCnSQ-2zt8d2CKRNHVQFRn3iPk8Ym0kAaSWthWqL7KaC8C26bUgBaBBEj_nQmGsJ5u6U/s1600/RR-birthday-wishes.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1697160464219000&usg=AOvVaw13NBX4lOY68X04hxcwC1B3" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiITy4_399onTCFLcJYfSI3tZjKyWQECi0H16iJm32Sd5nEv9BWOgYKT_tz3gAbxBIwN41vBGcOCnSQ-2zt8d2CKRNHVQFRn3iPk8Ym0kAaSWthWqL7KaC8C26bUgBaBBEj_nQmGsJ5u6U/s1600/RR-birthday-wishes.jpg" style="color: #1155cc; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" target="_blank"><img border="0" class="CToWUd" crossorigin="" data-bit="iit" height="308" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiITy4_399onTCFLcJYfSI3tZjKyWQECi0H16iJm32Sd5nEv9BWOgYKT_tz3gAbxBIwN41vBGcOCnSQ-2zt8d2CKRNHVQFRn3iPk8Ym0kAaSWthWqL7KaC8C26bUgBaBBEj_nQmGsJ5u6U/s400/RR-birthday-wishes.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><br /><b>Strange things happen when you try to get information from the New York City Board of Education</b><br />by Betsy Combier<br />June 2009<br /><br /><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-wlT79j3HP-nh6t7kQO3Af-fqMAn6HB205L2cil0cdFKzOiPAUMj63ReDcOxhmzQCfg2vzQ-5FZUlxApNQtGEAlm4L9xVGV4oc7SD0hyphenhyphenZw8b_R7E8OovqZEsTKxklQCqoQyyrkKlncb5j/s1600-h/Courtney+and+Nicole+Ross.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1697160464220000&usg=AOvVaw2shfb4bnKPNW3UKArZRRgm" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-wlT79j3HP-nh6t7kQO3Af-fqMAn6HB205L2cil0cdFKzOiPAUMj63ReDcOxhmzQCfg2vzQ-5FZUlxApNQtGEAlm4L9xVGV4oc7SD0hyphenhyphenZw8b_R7E8OovqZEsTKxklQCqoQyyrkKlncb5j/s1600-h/Courtney+and+Nicole+Ross.jpg" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank"><img alt="" border="0" class="CToWUd" crossorigin="" data-bit="iit" id="m_7840234891556917580BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5349048612242469650" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-wlT79j3HP-nh6t7kQO3Af-fqMAn6HB205L2cil0cdFKzOiPAUMj63ReDcOxhmzQCfg2vzQ-5FZUlxApNQtGEAlm4L9xVGV4oc7SD0hyphenhyphenZw8b_R7E8OovqZEsTKxklQCqoQyyrkKlncb5j/s400/Courtney+and+Nicole+Ross.jpg" style="float: right; height: 170px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 113px;" /></a>Under the Bloomberg/Klein administration, public school buildings are "plants" (as in factories) and every inch must be used for the assembly line workers (teachers) to complete the widgets (children) for the marketplace (graduation, technical jobs, etc). This may sound rather harsh, but try as hard as I can to find another picture that fits the pattern and practice of the people at Tweed over the past 7 years, I cant come up with any other scenario.<br /><br />Company business must be protected at all times, of course, and this means that workers always must be present and willing and able to work, at all times. Sickness and family obligations that take you away from your job for any amount of time are simply weaknesses that you must be punished for. If you are a child with special needs and you have a parent who knows what to do to protect you, and does not bend with the threats, barrage of wrong information couched in "the law" as seen by the managers (ISC and Superintendents, the CEO Klein and his vice-president Michael Best) and other such deviations from the facts, then you may be fine. Similarly, if you are a parent or teacher, and you have the evidence necessary to prove what you are saying if true, JUST SAY NO to the NYC BOE when they try to allege anything about you, your actions, your character, family, or rules.<br /><br />I'm a parent of four daughters who are and have been in the public schools of New York City, and I and all of them have been harmed by administrators of the New York City BOE. Nonetheless I can, and obviously do, speak out about what I see and hear in my children's factories...oops, schools. Alot aint right.<br /><br />Anyway, in 2006 Joel Klein decided to place the Ross Global Academy Charter School inside of <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://nestmk12.net/&source=gmail&ust=1697160464220000&usg=AOvVaw3ReEc68EmBXxASir9XoV__" href="http://nestmk12.net/" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">NEST+M</a>, one of my daughters' schools. The NYC BOE insisted that our capacity was half empty - by changing the capacity number on a daily basis. As I wrote in a <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/2009/06/garth-harries-leaves-new-york-city-and.html&source=gmail&ust=1697160464220000&usg=AOvVaw2uOsBntjbehnoRtE2NgGPM" href="http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/2009/06/garth-harries-leaves-new-york-city-and.html" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">previous article</a>, Garth Harries, the recently departed manager of the BOE plant capacity and assessment, came to NEST+m in April of 2006 with several other people to measure rooms that "they" liked at NEST for the Ross classrooms. Parents were outraged. (We sued twice, first the City of New York, Joel Klein, et al., and then <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://parentadvocates.org/nicemedia/documents/nest_lawsuit.pdf&source=gmail&ust=1697160464220000&usg=AOvVaw3XObL7pcOqutGVx7knhrdc" href="http://parentadvocates.org/nicemedia/documents/nest_lawsuit.pdf" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">the Board of Regents of the State University of New York</a>; we won our lawsuits).<br /><br />The next day I called Ms. Mashea Ashton, Garth's boss at Tweed, to ask if I could read the Ross Global Charter application, a public document. I also filed a freedom of information request with the New York State Ed Dept. Ms. AShton said, "Sure, when do you want to come to Tweed to review it?"<br /><br />That is how I ended up at Tweed on April 18, 2006 at 2PM. I was given a desk on the third floor on which were four huge volumes, all 1900+ pages of the application for a charter filed with the Regents to set up a charter school in New York City. The location was never given, but the charter school would be in the NYU "education park" on the lower east side of Manhattan (there was a map).<br /><br />From 2PM until about 5PM I read the documents and wrote notes. Suddenly at 5PM Ms. Ashton came over to me and said, "I'm so sorry, but someone at legal just called me and told me that I should review your notes because we may have left some information in the documents that you should not have seen."<br /><br />I thought, wow, this is interesting! I knew that "they" had no right whatsoever under any law to seize my personal notes, but as a reporter, I thought there might be a great story if I let Ms. Ashton take my property. I wanted to know what she might do with it.<br /><br />I reluctantly said something like, "Gee, I'm not sure that you have any right to look at my notes, but I guess you could look at them". Ms. AShton took my pad and, a few feet away, started reading my notes. Then, she ripped two pages out of my pad. I said, "What are you doing". Ms. AShton said, "Well, you have some private information here that we forgot to take out of the documents you are reviewing, and I have to take these pages. But I'll xerox them for you and give you the left half ".<br /><br />These pages had the names and addresses of the Board of Trustees of the Ross Global Charter Academy. My protests fell on deaf ears, and she answered my question "Who told you to do this" by saying "someone in the legal department".<br /><br />She then left me to read/copy/write notes on the entire documents all over again, until 6PM when I left.<br /><br />I went home and wrote Joel Klein's attorney Michael Best, and asked him for my notes back.<br /><br />I started a log of the emails:<br /><br /><strong>April 28, 2006</strong><br /><br />Now, the NYC BOE is informing me that I will get my notes back, but in an altered form. I do not believe that I wrote down any personal addresses.<br /><br /><strong>From: Best Michael<br />Sent: Friday, April 28, 2006 6:18 PM<br />To: '<a href="mailto:Solarmedia@aol.com" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">Solarmedia@aol.com</a>'</strong><br />Subject: Your request regarding notes taken about the Ross Charter School Application<br /><br />Ms. Combier,<br /><br />I have considered the situation regarding the notes you took while examining paperwork related to the Ross Global Charter School ("Ross').<br /><br />There are two pages of notes at issue. My understanding is that Ms. Mashea Ashton of the DOE asked to see your notes and realized that you had copied down the addresses of various people associated with Ross. Realizing belatedly that information pertaining to the home addresses of these individuals should not have been provided to any member of the public because of the need to protect the individuals' personal privacy, Ms. Ashton asked to see your notes. She then made a redacted copy of your notes, i.e., a photocopy of your notes with the addresses redacted, and she gave you that redacted copy of your notes. Thus, although Ms. Ashton kept the original, unredacted version of your notes, you were not actually deprived of your notes or of any pertinent information concerning Ross.<br /><br />Upon reviewing the matter, however, I have determined that, with one exception, the redacted addresses are not personal addresses. Instead, they are business addresses, which should not have been redacted. It appears that Ms. Ashton redacted the business addresses in an excess of caution to preserve the privacy rights of the individuals associated with Ross, but at this time, we will provide those business addresses to you. There is, however, one address that appears to be a home address, and it would be inappropriate to release that home address publicly.<br /><br />Therefore, we will return the original version of your notes to you, but we will redact the one home address before we do so.<br /><br />Please contact me via email on Monday to let me know the best way to return the notes, with the one item redacted as mentioned, to you. Thank you.<br /><br />Michael Best<br /><br /><strong>From: Best Michael [mailto:<a href="mailto:MBest2@nycboe.net" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">MBest2@nycboe.net</a>]<br />Sent: Friday, April 28, 2006 6:22 PM<br />To: Betsy</strong><br />Subject: FW: Your request regarding notes taken about the Ross Charter School Application<br /><br />Please see below. It appears that the attempt to send this email to your other email address was not successful.<br /><br />>>> <u></u>4/20/2006 9:40:56 AM >>><br /><br />Dear Mr. Freeman,<br /><br />I request an expedited verbal opinion on the following Freedom of Information request and incident. Please call me at 212-794-8902 as soon as possible.<br /><br />On Friday, April 14, 2006 I made an appointment with Ms. Mashea Ashton of the NYC DOE Office of New Schools, to go over the charter application of the Ross Global Academy Charter School at Tweed at 2 o'clock on April 18.<br /><br />On Tuesday, April 18, 2006 at 2PM I arrived at Tweed, ms. Ashton met me downstairs, and subsequently took me upstairs to her office. She gave me a table in the corner, upon which she placed the 1919 pages she had received back from NYSED of the Ross charter application, and told me that all charter applications were that long and to please let me know if there was anything that I needed, and she went to her desk.<br /><br />I looked over the documents and jotted down on my pad the names of the Board of Trustees as well as relevant sections of the Charter School Act of 1998 and other information on the 501 (C) 3 (Ross Institute and Ross Global Academy Charter School).<br /><br />At approximately 5PM Ms. Ashton came over to me and told me that she had to take all my notes and look at them. I asked why. She told me that there was private information in the documents and she had to make sure I had not copied any information down. as a long-time admirerer of your work, and the FOIL law, I have some knowledge of what is private information and what is not, and I believed that I had no private information in my notes, so I gave her my pad. I did not want to dispute her assessment at the time, and she told me that I had to give all my notes to her. She removed two pages: the list of the Board of Trustees' names with their affiliations (no addresses).<br /><br />She told me that she had "checked with legal" and had been told that I could not have my notes back, because the Board of Trustees' affiliations were private information. Again, my notes had no addresses or telephone numbers.<br /><br />Ms. Ashton xeroxed my notes and gave me the left half with the names of the Trustees. She then left me to look at all the documents for another 1/2 hour, and I had to leave at 6PM, which I did.<br /><br />Was she correct in taking my notes?<br /><br />Thank you for your reply as soon as possible.<br /><br />Respectfully,<br />Betsy Combier<br /><br />On Monday, April 24, 2006, I tried calling Ms Holtzman to ask if I could pick up my notes that day. Ms. Holtzman returned my call on Tuesday, April 25, and told me that “Mike” [Best] would get back to me. I still have not heard from Ms. Best, nor do I have my notes.<br /><br />I consider this a very serious violation of my 4th and 14th Amendment rights, and I demand my personal property back immediately. On Monday morning May 1, 2006, at 9:30AM, I will expect to have my two pages returned to me. Please let me know where I can pick them up. My telephone number is 212-794-8902.<br /><br />Betsy Combier<br />Editor,Parentadvocates.org<br /><br />We wondered why Mr. Best did not want us to have the home address of <span class="il">Robert</span> <span class="il">Torres</span>, the only home address on the two pages of notes. Perhaps he did not want us to contact him, although he is listed on <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://zabasearch.com&source=gmail&ust=1697160464220000&usg=AOvVaw3-yI2qEPgm_eenq4ZV6xKO" href="http://zabasearch.com/" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">zabasearch.com</a>. We called him, and he told us that “…if the NEST parents don’t stop their protests and think that we will not protect our children, they are very wrong;” and, “if you do not stop the NEST parents your principal will be sorry”.<br /><br /><span class="il">Robert</span> Durkin, well-known in New York City for changing the grades of 19 students at Washington Irving High School when he was Principal, and for being fired, told us that he “would make NEST+M a better school, just like the Julia Richman High School Complex”. We know the Julia Richman Educational Complex very well, and comparing NEST, a very small school, with a complex of 6 schools is like comparing apples to spinach.<br /><br />Kunle Abodunde has resigned from the Board, we were told, and has presumably left the country, as <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://zabasearch.com&source=gmail&ust=1697160464220000&usg=AOvVaw3-yI2qEPgm_eenq4ZV6xKO" href="http://zabasearch.com/" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">zabasearch.com</a> has no record of him, even though he supposedly started The Posse Group (he is not on their website, but we called a few colleges).<br /><br />Richard Halperin, Principal of <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid%3D20601087%26sid%3DaMJ3DEEqllZE%26refer%3Dhome&source=gmail&ust=1697160464220000&usg=AOvVaw2kfbq8epqZ14b9X7PGRIct" href="http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aMJ3DEEqllZE&refer=home" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">Quellos LLP</a>, had no comment about Ross/NEST, and we located more than 80 pages on his involvement with the Clinton Administration and the Monica Lewinsky coverup, but no data on his knowledge of elementary school teaching/curricula/education. (From Betsy Combier: Mr. Halperin died suddenly on June 19, 2008, and here is his obituary tribute from the New York Times, June 21, 2008:<br />" HALPERIN--Richard E., sadly on June 19, 2008 at age 53. Born December 7, 1954 in New York, NY to Alvin and Anne Halperin. Richard was the former Chief Operating Officer of the Quellos Group. Prior to joining Quellos, Mr. Halperin was Executive Vice President and Special Counsel to the Chairman of MacAndrews & Forbes Holdings, Inc. He also served as President of the Revlon Foundation, The MacAndrew & Forbes Foundation, and the Perelman Family Foundation. Previous to joining MacAndrews, Richard was Administrative Assistant to the Attorney General of New York State. He served on the Board of Trustees of the Rye Country Day School, The Ross Global Academy Charter School and The Citizens Budget Commission. He was also an Executive Advisory Board Member of the Boston University College of Communication and was a member of the Zoning Board of the Town of Harrison, New York. He held a B.S. cum laude in Communications from Boston University and a J.D. from the New England School of Law. Survived by his beloved wife Lucy, cherished children Ross, <span class="il">Robert</span>, Kenneth and Steven, and adoring sister Marsha (Martin) Epstein. Funeral service Sunday 12 noon at The Jewish Community Center of Harrison. Interment to follow at Sharon Gardens Cemetery. For information, Zion Memorial Chapel 914-381-1809."<br /><br />We have concluded from all of our telephone calls to Ms. Jennifer Chidsey Pizzo (no comment), Martin Payson (no comment), and Dr. Mark English (no comment) that there is no strategy currently in place to establish a positive partnership between Ross Global staff, parents and children, and NEST+m. This foretells doom for all.<br /><br />We have information on Ms. Ross’ legal troubles with her taxes. It seems that in the rush for tax exempt properties, NYU and the NYC DOE have forgotten that the environment for the Ross kids has been poisoned irrevocably. The only solution is to change the location of the Ross Global Academy Charter before children’s lives are changed and the promises you have made to your new students shown to be false.<br /><br />Second reason. We will publicize the new study by City Project, “Fatal Subtraction”. This shocking report may convince New Yorkers that New York University has ulterior motives for placing the Ross Global Charter in NEST+m that have nothing to do with putting “children first”. We have received comments from parents not connected with the NEST+M community that the Ross Global Academy Charter may be a good idea, but one that cannot succeed with NYU behind it, despite the massive power and wealth connected with this University. You will not have the best wishes of New York City residents behind you in your desire to be in partnership with NYU as small, excellent schools such as NEST+m are destroyed and minority parents are lied to.<br /><br />If you have plans for franchising the “Ross Model” – and we are still unclear exactly what that is – then we suggest (audaciously, we admit), that you separate your charter school from NYU as quickly as possible, despite the ridicule of the NY State Regents to this suggestion, especially Regent Meryl Tisch, who had so much to do with the approval of your charter application, and works with Mr. Richard Halperin at The Citizen’s Budget Commission. At minimum, you should not continue to jeopardize the success of NEST+M to suit your own needs. It looks to us that you will not succeed in realizing your goals within the NEST building. We know that the general public no longer trusts that Mayor Bloomberg and Chancellor Klein are doing a good job in the area of public school education reform. This sentiment will prevail after Mayor Bloomberg’s term of office is over and the media in NYC hopefully will be more open to covering all views and honestly reporting all data. Public opinion seems to be turning against your benefactors right now, and will only continue to grow, and harm your potential for success.<br /><br />Third reason. The NYC DOE has not been in favor of Gifted and Talented education for many years, at least since the 1980’s. However, this opinion is not shared by the public especially in New York City, where right now there is immense pressure from parents to encourage highly gifted students. There is also the matter of what seems to be Joel Klein’s dislike of Celenia Chevere. His attacks against NEST+m have always been personal and this will become his legacy: using his personal feelings as weapons. We suggest that no foundation built upon this kind of attack will succeed.<br /><br />Our summary above will be elaborately explained on our website, but we hope that you will re-consider the disastrous destruction of NEST+m. Your Charter school would thrive at another location, and you should pursue establishing an independent school, at a new site. You should leave NEST+M to the parents, staff and administration who have built and maintained it. The Ross Global Academy Charter School will not succeed at 111 Columbia Street, because the general public and those who care about the children most affected by this terrible attack on our nation’s public school system by the rich and powerful wont let you.<br /><br />Thank you for your consideration of our issues, and we look forward to promoting your charter and your “Ross model” at a location other than 111 Columbia Street.<br /><br />P. Wilder<br />Ajamo Kamau<br />Betsy Combier<br /><a href="mailto:betsy@parentadvocates.org" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">betsy@parentadvocates.org</a><br /><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPivEANM111wHkjE03bdNvd0WKDAJfw9z_7LdaQBq8BnCDbk9rWzOZ4PhUuCTUX75DHYfrjCbFYgFoYUrMXaJJAs9q2pWqFFEIJn7CGbNAaIZ08RPng-awXPxYj4kdg03u3VAaZgK5Kx66/s1600-h/RFreeman.jpg&source=gmail&ust=1697160464220000&usg=AOvVaw1qmQ-UDLGekeh8RKnmEH2N" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPivEANM111wHkjE03bdNvd0WKDAJfw9z_7LdaQBq8BnCDbk9rWzOZ4PhUuCTUX75DHYfrjCbFYgFoYUrMXaJJAs9q2pWqFFEIJn7CGbNAaIZ08RPng-awXPxYj4kdg03u3VAaZgK5Kx66/s1600-h/RFreeman.jpg" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank"><img alt="" border="0" class="CToWUd" crossorigin="" data-bit="iit" id="m_7840234891556917580BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5349822444869561314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPivEANM111wHkjE03bdNvd0WKDAJfw9z_7LdaQBq8BnCDbk9rWzOZ4PhUuCTUX75DHYfrjCbFYgFoYUrMXaJJAs9q2pWqFFEIJn7CGbNAaIZ08RPng-awXPxYj4kdg03u3VAaZgK5Kx66/s400/RFreeman.jpg" style="float: right; height: 139px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; width: 121px;" /></a><br /><em><strong>From: <span class="il">Robert</span> Freeman [mailto:<a href="mailto:RFreeman@dos.state.ny.us" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">RFreeman@dos.state.ny.<wbr></wbr>us</a>] (pictured at right)<br />Sent: Thursday, April 20, 2006 11:15 AM<br />To: <a href="mailto:Solarmedia@aol.com" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">Solarmedia@aol.com</a></strong><br /><br />Subject: Re: Fwd: FOIL Request From The E-Accountability Foundation<br /><br />I have received your letter concerning the ability of the New York City Department of Education to review and/or confiscate personal notes that you prepared while reviewing records made available to you pursuant to the Freedom of Information Law.<br /><br />In short, government agencies are subject to the Freedom of Information Law; private individuals are not government agencies and are not required to comply with that law. Further, from my perspective, your notes are your personal property, and the Department would have no right either to review or take possession of your property.<br /><br />I hope that I have been of assistance.<br /><br /><span class="il">Robert</span> J. Freeman<br />Executive Director<br />NYS Committee on Open Government<br />41 State Street<br />Albany, NY 12231<br />(518) 474-2518 - Phone<br />(518) 474-1927 - Fax<br />Website - <a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.dos.state.ny.us/coog/coogwww.html&source=gmail&ust=1697160464220000&usg=AOvVaw28y7uQPmUe8hO9UMZ-VDDQ" href="http://www.dos.state.ny.us/coog/coogwww.html" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">www.dos.state.ny.us/coog/<wbr></wbr>coogwww.html</a> </em><br /><br /><strong>From: Betsy [mailto:<a href="mailto:betsy@parentadvocates.org" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">betsy@parentadvocates.<wbr></wbr>org</a>]<br />Sent: Saturday, April 29, 2006 1:59 AM<br />To: 'Best Michael'<br />Cc: 'Betsy'</strong><br />Subject: RE: Your request regarding notes taken about the Ross Charter School Application<br /><br />Dear Mr. Best,<br /><br />I will pick up my notes at approximately 10 AM May 1 at Tweed. I suggest that you read Mr. Freeman’s opinion, which is also mine, that my notes are not subject to the freedom of Information Act/Law, and any change in my notes by your agency or officers is actionable.<br /><br />Please have my notes in the original form at the front desk on Monday morning, or have the law that covers your statement that you may redact my notes without my permission.<br />Betsy Combier<br /><br /><strong>From: Betsy [mailto:<a href="mailto:betsy@parentadvocates.org" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">betsy@parentadvocates.<wbr></wbr>org</a>]<br />Sent: Saturday, April 29, 2006 2:10 AM<br />To: '<span class="il">Robert</span> Freeman'; 'Best Michael'; <a href="mailto:jklein@nycboe.net" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">jklein@nycboe.net</a>;<br />Cc: 'Betsy'</strong><br />Subject: FW: Your request regarding notes taken about the Ross Charter School Application<br /><br />Dear Mr. Freeman,<br /><br />I request an expedited opinion on the matter outlined below.<br /><br />On April 18, 2006 at approximately 5PM, , while sitting at a desk at Tweed, Ms. Mashea Ashton, the employee of the NYC DOE with whom I spoke about viewing the Ross Charter Application under FOIL, and the person who gave me the time 2-6PM to read the charter and gave me the 1010 pages to read, told me that I had to give her my notes so she could read them. I unwillingly gave my notes to her, and she told me that she had to seize two pages.<br /><br />Now, the NYC BOE is informing me that I will get my notes back, but in an altered form. I do not believe that I wrote down any personal addresses.<br /><br />Please reply as soon as possible, by telephone if necessary: 212-794-8902, or by return email, about the NYC BOE giving me back my personal notes, redacted by them.<br /><br />Thank you!!<br /><br />Betsy Combier<br /><a href="mailto:betsy@parentadvocates.org" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">betsy@parentadvocates.org</a><br /><br /><strong>From: Best Michael [mailto:<a href="mailto:MBest2@nycboe.net" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">MBest2@nycboe.net</a>]<br />Sent: Monday, May 01, 2006 8:14 AM<br />To: Betsy</strong><br />Subject: RE: Your request regarding notes taken about the Ross Charter School Application<br /><br />Ms. Combier,<br /><br />I am afraid that 10 AM this morning will not work for me. Please propose another time tomorow. Thank you.<br /><br />Michael Best<br /><br /><strong>From: Betsy [mailto:<a href="mailto:betsy@parentadvocates.org" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">betsy@parentadvocates.<wbr></wbr>org</a>]<br />Sent: Monday, May 01, 2006 8:36 AM<br />To: 'Best Michael'<br />Cc: 'Betsy'</strong><br />Subject: RE: Your request regarding notes taken about the Ross Charter School Application<br /><br />Dear Mr. Best,<br /><br />I hope that 11AM tomorrow morning will be convenient for you.<br /><br />Additionally, I request that you give me, in writing, the name of the person in your office who told Ms. Ashton to seize my notes. If you do not give me a name, I will assume that you told Ms. Ashton.<br /><br />Thank you,<br /><br />Betsy Combier<br /><br /><strong>From: Best Michael [mailto:<a href="mailto:MBest2@nycboe.net" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">MBest2@nycboe.net</a>]<br />Sent: Tuesday, May 02, 2006 10:46 AM<br />To: Betsy</strong><br />Subject: RE: Your request regarding notes taken about the Ross Charter School Application<br /><br />Ms. Combier,<br /><br />This will confirm our conversation of a few minutes ago. I explained to you that I am obliged to protect the privacy concern of the person whose personal address you wrote on your notes. I told you that I was trying to reach that person on the telephone but had been unable to do so as yet. I told you that I wanted to find out if this person would consent to release of his personal address. And I asked for a bit more time to try to get a hold of him before you picked up your original notes, because if he consented, i would not have to redact his address on your original notes.<br /><br />You told me that you were coming to get the notes in 20 minutes, and you said "I should do what I have to do." I told you that you were putting me in a position where I have no choice but to redact your notes in order to protect this individual's privacy interests, and you reiterated that I should do what I have to do, but you were coming to get your notes.<br /><br />Michael Best<br /><br />On May 2, 2006 I went to Tweed's front desk and asked for an envelope with my name on it. There was none. I asked the security to buzz Mr. Best. Michael Best came downstairs, and asked me to sit with him for a few minutes. I said, "Sure!" Mr. Best tried to convince me that he must redact my personal notes, and he encouraged me to agree with him. I finally said, "Mr. Best, you are the Attorney here, I am not. So why dont you go to your office and get my two pages from my pad, and bring them to me? If you feel that you must redact my notes, then you do what you feel you must do as an attorney."<br /><br />He went upstairs and brought me my two pages, unredacted.<br /><br />I thanked him, and as I turned around to leave, he said, "I enjoyed speaking with you very much."</div>Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-79499266051498237632023-09-16T14:16:00.000-04:002023-09-16T14:16:10.805-04:00The NYC Department of Education Salary Scam<p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8eD92pdGml4CfeAi7QEnDXsGXVNZHus9eqTz6G8BEvY_3k4laek_vHhGobqGOdpatICjGQKXbrWL6qcPgGo4gPNoZy52THbzLqMXtbYNq20Bwx7GVoL_WpymFkG5mfjunAIrkXuYKc_2Z9qKugzN9WjO6JhgC7bVc2I111OkM767L_vhrXWqfWI-Wx10/s700/Quintana.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="700" data-original-width="502" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8eD92pdGml4CfeAi7QEnDXsGXVNZHus9eqTz6G8BEvY_3k4laek_vHhGobqGOdpatICjGQKXbrWL6qcPgGo4gPNoZy52THbzLqMXtbYNq20Bwx7GVoL_WpymFkG5mfjunAIrkXuYKc_2Z9qKugzN9WjO6JhgC7bVc2I111OkM767L_vhrXWqfWI-Wx10/w286-h400/Quintana.jpg" width="286" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">DOE Deputy Chancellor Caroline Quintana</td></tr></tbody></table>From Betsy Combier:</p><p>I am very sure that we, members of the public who read about the lack of transparency in the salary payments made to NYC Department of Education "VIPs", wish that the City of New York would rein in this outrageous scam that uses our taxpayer money.</p><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8nMtV3Z7-Va7_o-cYa2OLYDNdhH6kKDXI7xef9q21VsFzX2g1TZim8XjaxSP5oCU0bIPQIXk_Q7lq-1NMTQajqNfAkyAmNsQkE4_f3SSJtpnokwK-idBDJg5cfJ6gZm-J709ixU6TRW2RWhVpDzIztS6Sn4yDuFv7CWaptvTFZAuhKF6f_JyvD59C8Lg/s603/Brad%20Lander.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="603" data-original-width="405" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8nMtV3Z7-Va7_o-cYa2OLYDNdhH6kKDXI7xef9q21VsFzX2g1TZim8XjaxSP5oCU0bIPQIXk_Q7lq-1NMTQajqNfAkyAmNsQkE4_f3SSJtpnokwK-idBDJg5cfJ6gZm-J709ixU6TRW2RWhVpDzIztS6Sn4yDuFv7CWaptvTFZAuhKF6f_JyvD59C8Lg/s320/Brad%20Lander.jpg" width="215" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">NYC Comptroller Brad Lander</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><a href="https://comptroller.nyc.gov/about/about-brad-lander/">NYC Comptroller Brad Lander</a> - where are you?</p><p>Let's fire the Chancellor, and all Deputy Chancellors, and pay a reasonable salary with accountability steps imbedded in the payment, to the school Districts and the students and families.</p><p>This will allow kids to move to private schools if they need to, which I have always supported and will continue to do so. Yay for school choice!!!</p><p>See also:</p><h3 class="post-title entry-title" itemprop="name" style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; position: relative;"><a href="https://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/2023/09/professor-david-bloomfield-on-toxic.html">Professor David Bloomfield on the Toxic State of New York City's Public Schools</a></h3><div><br /></div><h3 class="post-title entry-title" itemprop="name" style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; position: relative;"><a href="https://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/2023/09/the-new-york-city-department-of.html">The New York City Department of Education and the High-salary-No-work Jobs Given To "Friends"</a></h3><p>and an article I posted on this blog in February 2011:</p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-size: 16px;"><a href="https://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/2011/02/steve-ostrin-and-nyc-rubber-room-scam.html">Steve Ostrin And The NYC Rubber Room Scam</a></span></p><p>I have written many times about the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/money/topic/robber-baron">robber barons</a> at the NYC DOE, and over the past 20 years.</p><p>I'm still hoping this pattern and practice can be stopped.</p><p><i>Just sayin'...</i></p><p><i>Betsy</i></p><h1 class="headline headline--single" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--black); font-family: neue-haas-grotesk-display, sans-serif; font-size: 2.625rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.05; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://nypost.com/2023/09/16/nyc-doe-blasted-for-pay-hikes-to-deputies-accused-of-misconduct/">NYC DOE blasted for pay hikes to deputies accused of misconduct</a></h1><div><br /></div><div>by Susan Edelman, NY POST, September 16, 2023</div><div><br /></div><div><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Some city education leaders are fuming about fat raises given to two educrats after an internal probe found they had committed misconduct — and blasting the secretive way Chancellor David Banks and First Deputy Chancellor Dan Weisberg dole out salary increases.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“There’s anger towards Banks and Weisberg, and questions about how they shell out raises,” said a source familiar with city Department of Education personnel decisions.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Among those offended is Carolyn Quintana, the deputy chancellor of teaching and learning, the insider said.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Quintana leads Banks’ top initiative, to improve how kids are taught reading — and had complained that his former deputy chancellor for leadership, Desmond Blackburn, was getting $265,000 a year, while her salary is $241,000.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); letter-spacing: -0.01em;">Two other female deputy chancellors also get $241,000.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://nypost.com/2023/09/09/nyc-budget-cuts-could-gut-sanitation-routes-school-programs/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: baseline;">Blackburn, a Florida recruit with no NYC experience, quit his gig</a> after one year.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Banks <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/08/26/nyc-doe-hires-husband-of-deputy-chancellor-in-secret-deal/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: baseline;">replaced him with Danika Rux</a> — and hired her husband, Shawn Rux, for another top spot after he agreed to drop his work as an education consultant.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; letter-spacing: -0.16px;">Quintana’s request for equal pay was “ignored,” the source said.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Her ire heightened when <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/08/19/nyc-doe-lawyers-grill-deputy-chancellor-on-cover-up/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: baseline;">The Post revealed</a> Weisberg gave big raises to Chief Enrollment Officer Sarah Kleinhandler and her senior executive soon after a DOE investigation substantiated misconduct allegations against them.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“They denied Carolyn Quintana, but decided to give raises to two people accused of wrongdoing,” the insider said.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Amanda Lurie, senior executive director in the Office of Student Enrollment, was a chronic no-show, barely visited the “family welcome centers” she supervised, and peddled apparel on Poshmark during DOE hours, the agency’s Office of Special Investigations concluded in late February, according to former OSI investigator Jonathan May, who <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/08/12/nyc-doe-exec-amanda-lurie-cited-for-misconduct-got-raise/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: baseline;">conducted the probe.</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Kleinhandler failed to supervise Lurie or address longstanding complaints about her, the probe found.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Weeks later, inexplicably, Weisberg named Lurie a “senior advisor” in his office, and granted her a pay hike from $199,118 to $208,000 a year.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); letter-spacing: -0.01em;">Kleinhandler got a raise from $204,106 to $220,000.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The Post report led DOE lawyers to question Weisberg about his handling of the OSI report. Lurie was then terminated.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Currently, some 95 DOE employees in central and district offices make more than $200,000 a year, records obtained by The Post show.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Banks gets $363,346,</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Experts call for more transparency in the awarding of pay hikes.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“This is public money and taxpayers have a right to know what the criteria are for leadership spending at the DOE, especially at a time of <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/09/09/nyc-budget-cuts-could-gut-sanitation-routes-school-programs/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: baseline;">budget tightening,</a>” said <a href="https://citylimits.org/2023/09/05/opinion-a-leadership-perspective-on-the-toxic-state-of-our-schools/" rel="noreferrer noopener" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">David Bloomfield,</a> a Brooklyn College and CUNY Grad Center education professor.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> “This kind of jockeying at central only adds to distractions and confusion, with leadership arguing over salaries rather than student matters,” he added.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“Before I’d pay either of them $241,000 or $265,000, I’d want to know what exactly they feel accountable for,” said Eric Nadelstern, the deputy chancellor of school support and instruction under ex-Mayor Michael Bloomberg.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“The argument for a raise,” he said, “should be here’s what I’ve done to improve the performance of kids.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Quintana did not reply to a request for comment.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">DOE spokesman Nathaniel Styer said, “Salaries of senior leadership were set based on portfolios of work and represent the hard work our senior leadership team puts into supporting schools every day.” </p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Styer claimed the raises for Kleinhandler and Lurie “occurred prior to the OSI report.” But internal records show Lurie’<span style="color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); letter-spacing: -0.01em;">s raise was approved on March 28 — months after the OSI report was sent to Weisberg. Kleinhandler’s raise was finalized last December 22, near the end of the probe.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Both raises were backdated to September 1, 2022.</p><p style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">betsy@advocatz.com</span></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; padding: 0px;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;"><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: quot;">Editor, </span><span style="color: #582995;"><a href="http://advocatz.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">ADVOCATZ.com</span></a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;">Editor, <span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="https://advocatz.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;">ADVOCATZ Blog</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Rubber Room Reporter</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://www.parentadvocates.org/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Parentadvocates.org</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://newyorkcourtcorruption.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">New York Court Corruption</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nationalpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">National Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials</a></span></b></div></span></span></div><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; letter-spacing: -0.16px;"><br /></span></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></p></div>Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-24308350561034930192023-09-06T12:37:00.004-04:002023-09-06T12:37:39.444-04:00Professor David Bloomfield on the Toxic State of New York City's Public Schools<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIiSb78PSu1OyCUfL2DbrZxgSMW9BBPsQUJLbXt-H1FJSwEKHddhh0IqarD2IiciR46KCp6gv6HAw570E9ofKhyCBu6xA8J-g_aaN9912jOyqg4jMZc2rzGdtcRAO1KR8yrBqm0HuifupXvsSzNRTw-I4Lg6QDU_izv1cQj19HZNaaxRrWn7HvbCJin4I/s364/David%20Bloomfield.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="278" data-original-width="364" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIiSb78PSu1OyCUfL2DbrZxgSMW9BBPsQUJLbXt-H1FJSwEKHddhh0IqarD2IiciR46KCp6gv6HAw570E9ofKhyCBu6xA8J-g_aaN9912jOyqg4jMZc2rzGdtcRAO1KR8yrBqm0HuifupXvsSzNRTw-I4Lg6QDU_izv1cQj19HZNaaxRrWn7HvbCJin4I/s320/David%20Bloomfield.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">David Bloomfield [Photo Credit: Paula Vlodkowsky]</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><a href="https://www.davidcbloomfield.com/about">David Bloomfield</a> has been a widely-known speaker on the NYC Department of Education for many years, and his opinions are, in my opinion, well worth reading.<div><br /></div><div>Betsy Combier</div><div>Editor, NYC Rubber Room Reporter</div><div> <br /><h2 class="elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: var( --e-global-color-primary ); font-family: "Tablet Gothic Compressed", sans-serif; font-size: 44px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"><a href="https://citylimits.org/2023/09/05/opinion-a-leadership-perspective-on-the-toxic-state-of-our-schools/">Opinion: A Leadership Perspective on the ‘Toxic’ State of Our Schools</a></h2><div><br /></div><div><div class="elementor-element elementor-element-0756978 elementor-widget__width-auto elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading" data-element_type="widget" data-id="0756978" data-widget_type="heading.default" style="--align-content: initial; --align-items: initial; --align-self: initial; --flex-basis: initial; --flex-direction: initial; --flex-grow: initial; --flex-shrink: initial; --flex-wrap: initial; --gap: initial; --justify-content: initial; --order: initial; --swiper-navigation-size: 44px; --swiper-pagination-bullet-horizontal-gap: 6px; --swiper-pagination-bullet-size: 6px; --swiper-theme-color: #000; --widgets-spacing: 20px; align-content: var(--align-content); align-items: var(--align-items); align-self: var(--align-self); background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #484848; flex-basis: var(--flex-basis); flex-direction: var(--flex-direction); flex-grow: var(--flex-grow); flex-shrink: var(--flex-shrink); flex-wrap: var(--flex-wrap); font-family: "IBM Plex Serif", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; gap: var(--gap); justify-content: var(--justify-content); margin-bottom: 0px; max-width: 100%; order: var(--order); position: relative; width: auto;"><div class="elementor-widget-container" style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 6px 5px 0px 0px; transition: background .3s,border .3s,border-radius .3s,box-shadow .3s,transform var(--e-transform-transition-duration,.4s);"><h2 class="elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: var( --e-global-color-primary ); font-family: "Tablet Gothic Condensed", sans-serif; font-size: 24px; font-weight: 400; line-height: 1; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;">By <a class="url fn n" href="https://citylimits.org/author/david-bloomfield/" rel="author" style="box-shadow: none; box-sizing: border-box; font-size: inherit; line-height: inherit; outline-offset: -2px; outline: 0px; text-decoration: inherit !important;" title="Read All Posts By David Bloomfield">David Bloomfield</a>, City Limits, September 5, 2023.</h2></div></div><div class="elementor-element elementor-element-65cb32c5 elementor-widget__width-auto elementor-widget elementor-widget-post-info" data-element_type="widget" data-id="65cb32c5" data-widget_type="post-info.default" style="--align-content: initial; --align-items: initial; --align-self: initial; --flex-basis: initial; --flex-direction: initial; --flex-grow: initial; --flex-shrink: initial; --flex-wrap: initial; --gap: initial; --justify-content: initial; --order: initial; --swiper-navigation-size: 44px; --swiper-pagination-bullet-horizontal-gap: 6px; --swiper-pagination-bullet-size: 6px; --swiper-theme-color: #000; --widgets-spacing: 20px; align-content: var(--align-content); align-items: var(--align-items); align-self: var(--align-self); background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #484848; flex-basis: var(--flex-basis); flex-direction: var(--flex-direction); flex-grow: var(--flex-grow); flex-shrink: var(--flex-shrink); flex-wrap: var(--flex-wrap); font-family: "IBM Plex Serif", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; gap: var(--gap); justify-content: var(--justify-content); max-width: 100%; order: var(--order); position: relative; width: auto;"><div class="elementor-widget-container" style="box-sizing: border-box; transition: background .3s,border .3s,border-radius .3s,box-shadow .3s,transform var(--e-transform-transition-duration,.4s);"><ul class="elementor-inline-items elementor-icon-list-items elementor-post-info" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: flex; flex-wrap: wrap; list-style: none; margin: 0px -8px; padding: 0px;"><li class="elementor-icon-list-item elementor-repeater-item-131fb22 elementor-inline-item" itemprop="datePublished" style="align-items: var(--icon-vertical-align,center); box-sizing: border-box; display: flex; font-family: "Tablet Gothic Condensed", sans-serif; font-size: 24px; margin: 0px 8px; padding: 0px; position: relative; word-break: break-word;"><br /></li></ul></div></div></div><div>I have been teaching educational leadership in the CUNY system for almost 25 years. My former students are now peppered throughout the New York City Public Schools and often honor me by reporting back about their current experiences. As would be expected, they have a broad range of opinions about the state of our schools, but recently, many of these stories coalesce into a perceived environment that one ex-student summarizes as “toxic.”<br /><br />Mayor Eric Adams, it should be remembered, came into office with a scant record on school policies. His expertise and campaign focused on criminal justice. He chose David Banks as his schools' chancellor, a former principal with no experience even as a district superintendent but who has a long association with Adams, is the partner of now-First Deputy Mayor <a href="https://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/search?q=Sheena+Wright">Sheena Wright,</a> and the brother of <a href="https://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/search?q=Deputy+Mayor+Philip+Banks">Deputy Mayor Philip Banks</a>. <br /><br />As one of his first acts, Banks appointed a Florida superintendent, <a href="https://www.schools.nyc.gov/about-us/news/announcements/2022/01/18/chancellor-banks-announces-streamlined-cabinet">Desmond Blackburn</a>, to a new post, deputy chancellor for school leadership, to supervise the Department of Education’s 45 district superintendents who, in turn, supervise the DOE’s more than 1,500 principals. Banks also demanded the resignation of all district superintendents, at first refusing to let any reapply, then <a href="https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/education/ny-sitting-superintendents-allowed-to-advance-in-rehiring-process-20220516-2dnwtjgjmbbqxfc5l2a4apbeci-story.html">relenting after widespread criticism</a>. But the message was clear: the new cohort of superintendents would be controlled by Banks, Blackburn, and Blackburn’s new special assistant, Tracey Collins, the mayor’s partner. <br /><br />Amid this tight inner-circle and superintendent churn, <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/02/11/desmond-blackburn-dumps-nyc-doe-after-one-year/">Blackburn soon resigned</a>, followed by the DOE’s chief strategy officer, chief technology officer, chief communications officer, and executive director of the Office of Safety and Youth Development, all within the first one and a half years of the Banks’ chancellorship. <br /><br />Before he left, Blackburn instituted what has become known as “<a href="https://ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/news/2023/03/09/an-inside-look-at-meetings-where-superintendents-are-in-the--hot-seat-">the hot seat,</a>” where superintendents are interrogated on their district’s performance. Modeled on the police department’s CompStat system of precinct accountability, the DOE’s version, according to Blackburn, is “supposed to be purposely agitating” as superintendents are grilled in front of peers and supervisors. <br /><br />But the DOE is not—or at least should not be—a paramilitary force like the NYPD. Superintendents, as professional educators, are not generally prone to top-down directives and supervisors’ intentionally-inflicted, semi-public agitation. Rather, in the education context, the idea of a collaborative “learning organization,” in Peter Senge’s phrase, is a preferable, more supportive, and lasting form of supervision for system improvement. <br /><br />As reported by my former students and others, this recipe of cronyism, turnover, and intimidation has produced the toxic culture now facing principals. Faced with myriad, frequently changing Central demands—such as the quickly introduced then as quickly abandoned <a href="https://www.rand.org/education-and-labor/projects/assessments/tool/2008/devereux-student-strengths-assessment-dessa.html">Devereux Student Strengths Assessment (DESSA)</a> screening tool—and overwhelming administrative paperwork, the need to implement new reading curricula dictated by the chancellor, enroll high numbers of new immigrants, reduce high rates of absenteeism and disciplinary problems, address post-pandemic interrupted learning, and care for student mental health issues, principals are not faring well. Many are contemplating retirement before they had planned. <br /><br />Take the reading issue. The profession is designed for principals to serve as schools’ instructional leaders. Yet, in selecting three phonics-based reading curricula for the coming year, Banks—over the principals’ union’s objection—handed the choice of which will be taught to his hand-picked superintendents who almost universally chose a single product, the cheapest. Even if there were apt reasons for Banks’ delegation, the result has been catastrophic for principal morale and the odds of program success. <br /><br />Schools within a district can have high variability. Principals know their staff, students, and families and, attuned to this, curriculum selection is a key professional responsibility. To take away that discretion is an insult and, one long-serving principal told me, was the deciding factor in their quitting. If they were no longer trusted to choose key, system-approved reading texts and attendant professional development, the job had become intolerable. Even waivers from this directive were mishandled. Principals could choose their own curriculum if 85 percent of students met proficiency standards. Reportedly one principal, done in by an over-scrupulous district obsession with numerical data, failed to meet the mark with an 83.5 percent rate because of a high number of students opting-out of state tests. <br /><br />Enrollment of immigrant students is another point of toxicity. Not, as might be assumed, the difficulties of teaching newly arrived students. Those are tasks principals normally handle, even welcome. But the centrally-driven, disproportionate enrollment of immigrant middle and high school students selectively concentrated in our highest needs schools is another breaking point. Our many screened schools are immunized from accepting these students so, instead, <a href="https://www.schools.nyc.gov/enrollment/enrollment-help/family-welcome-centers">Borough Placement Centers</a> repeatedly send immigrant students to the same open-enrollment schools despite resources so stretched that adequate instruction, including special education, and other supports are impossible to provide. But the principal is held accountable, berated for underperformance by a stressed superintendent after their own “hot seat” quiz. And so it goes. <br /><br />These challenges pale compared to the increasing, everyday needs of students. The pandemic has brought a host of student challenges that shrinking budgets fail to address. Principals need more instructional and support staff, but disappearing federal dollars and lower enrollments frequently result in less money. Fixed costs and pressures for improved performance demand the same or greater expenses. Quick and dirty solutions encouraged by central policies, such as <a href="https://ny.chalkbeat.org/2023/7/10/23777035/nyc-schools-pandemic-learning-grading-policy-nx-failing-courses-college-readiness">NX grading </a>to provide students with empty credits, save money but at the price of lower educational quality. The temporary help of district-based coaches and other itinerant personnel fails to adequately solve these problems and adds to managerial confusion because of mixed reporting lines and sudden redeployments.<br /><br />With the start of a new school year, Adams and Banks have a chance to learn from the toxicity now besetting our schools. There is some indication that this is the case. A promise to “reinvent” special education and a new consent decree to improve services for students with disabilities may make a difference. A “Blueprint for Public Safety,” despite its criminal justice focus, includes over $200 million for education, recreation, and mental health services. <br /><br />But these targeted initiatives don’t get to the heart of the problem. Banks needs to show more openness to outside voices, improve staff stability, and demonstrate trust in decentralized decision-making to create a healthier mix of resource and educational strategies at the school level. Most of all, he needs to earn support from principals who have been alienated by insular leadership; frequently changing top-down mandates; burdensome paperwork; brutalized supervisory policies; and inadequate professional delegation. <br /><br />Without the renewed confidence of principals, the administration’s agenda for improved student outcomes cannot be achieved. </div></div><div><br /></div><div><p style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><span style="font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: medium;">betsy@advocatz.com</span></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; padding: 0px;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><span style="font-size: medium;"><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: quot;">Editor, </span><span style="color: #582995;"><a href="http://advocatz.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">ADVOCATZ.com</span></a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;">Editor, <span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="https://advocatz.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;">ADVOCATZ Blog</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Rubber Room Reporter</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://www.parentadvocates.org/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Parentadvocates.org</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://newyorkcourtcorruption.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">New York Court Corruption</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nationalpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">National Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials</a></span></b></div></span></span></div></div>Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-48013808684819236592023-09-04T22:08:00.005-04:002023-09-09T22:39:40.349-04:00Former Principal of PS 46 Heather Jansen and Her Student Rat Pack<p>Re-posted from <a href="https://advocatz.com/2023/08/19/the-student-rat-pack-of-ps-46/">ADVOCATZ.com</a> and <a href="https://www.parentadvocates.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=article&articleID=11005">Parentadvocates.org</a></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjHF8sA8pfnzlQMmJBrhIHxl4azdIN-PkKwCp0DqVNVCyiy3OjQNNO8AT4PjWaP3HgMFhx2ophCCl7sssdBlrYQWzn54swRD2HwgXC_Hytmfdi89LSprrHu8RdWkE8twgzL7n6aLskVZdxEOBLt4qii3zovA5PcticgCJsG0N6SUYL8oi2V3bQJZQ9kA3s" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="381" data-original-width="678" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjHF8sA8pfnzlQMmJBrhIHxl4azdIN-PkKwCp0DqVNVCyiy3OjQNNO8AT4PjWaP3HgMFhx2ophCCl7sssdBlrYQWzn54swRD2HwgXC_Hytmfdi89LSprrHu8RdWkE8twgzL7n6aLskVZdxEOBLt4qii3zovA5PcticgCJsG0N6SUYL8oi2V3bQJZQ9kA3s=w400-h225" width="400" /></a></div><br /><span face=""Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 2rem;"><a href="https://advocatz.com/2023/08/19/the-student-rat-pack-of-ps-46/">The Student Rat Pack of PS 46</a></span><p></p><p>by Betsy Combier, August 19, 2023</p><p>The story I am posting here is the ugly side of the New York City Department of Education, the dark side where administrators target, attack, and discriminate against employees for no reason other than to save a few dollars in the budget or retaliate against a person they do not like.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Indeed, the perpetrator's motives are often hidden beneath layers of denials ("I did not say that" or "I did not do that") hurled at deaf ears. </p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">New York City employees are reassigned to rubber rooms and are seldom told why. <a href="https://www.parentadvocates.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=article&articleID=11005" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Heather Jansen, former principal of PS 46 in Staten Island</a>, knows very well why she was removed May 1, 2023. She used secret tape recorders and very young children to report on teachers in order to get the teachers terminated for no reason or, some suspect, for being “white”. Her Supervisor, Superintendent <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/03/04/nyc-doe-probing-anti-white-texts-tied-to-black-superintendent/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Marion Wilson, has openly attacked white people working in her District, D31.</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://nypost.com/2023/03/11/si-schools-chief-marion-wilson-files-hate-crime-complaint/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Wilson denied the truth of this statement</a> but no one believed her.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Let me give you an overview of the charging process before the actual 3020-a specifications are served on an educator.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The charging of an employee for incompetence starts when a principal gives a teacher two end-of-year “Ineffective” or “Unsatisfactory” ratings. Misconduct charges begin when someone makes a complaint to a member of the school administration. The allegation may not be true. It gets filed with OEO, <a href="https://www.schools.nyc.gov/about-us/leadership/legal#:~:text=File%20a%20fraud%2C%20sexual%20misconduct,at%20intake%40nycsci.org." style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">OSI</a> or <a href="https://nycsci.org/online-complaint-form/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">SCI</a> nonetheless.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Heather Jansen, former principal of PS 46 in Staten Island, put a new twist to this old scheme. Jansen, pictured below, enlisted a group of students in 2nd-4th grades to report on teachers and these children were rewarded for their work as her “little investigators.” What they complained about became charges against the teacher. The process of creating charges used to be under the authority of the adults in the building or parents, so Jansen added a whole new dimension by adding children’s complaints to the mix.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">We call this a “Student Rat Pack”.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnfWKlZzYOASi-v_fUmgILlz4o1iLrd6mTzwIp6rybpCB1IceTeIVdRvkSls3Jb70vq1yK-AembuvDdjEUDm2aOKzMXDu4JN7-JSw6GgItzk5qRref9_SbziIvcpT38WsDfnzrEk8R7aga_FOOk5OA15CZYj7y_Qplst_yOeOPB3tajNwFJZBU6S_xveM/s211/Heather-Jansen.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="211" data-original-width="155" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnfWKlZzYOASi-v_fUmgILlz4o1iLrd6mTzwIp6rybpCB1IceTeIVdRvkSls3Jb70vq1yK-AembuvDdjEUDm2aOKzMXDu4JN7-JSw6GgItzk5qRref9_SbziIvcpT38WsDfnzrEk8R7aga_FOOk5OA15CZYj7y_Qplst_yOeOPB3tajNwFJZBU6S_xveM/s1600/Heather-Jansen.jpg" width="155" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Heather Jansen</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">First, let’s take a look at the charging process. Principals have to balance their budgets and this takes precedence over quality of work. Animosity towards an employee for any reason also becomes a primary reason to target an employee, no matter how good their teaching skills are, and no matter whether the allegation against a person is valid or not. We are, as we all know, in tough times. Students are not enrolling in the numbers needed to fill seats in their building. As funding is tied to “seat time”, or the number of warm bodies (meaning “alive”) that fill the seats available, principals must try to find out what they can do to keep the funding stream coming into their building.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The solution is to reduce the number of teachers in the school who eat up the budget money, and secretly move the money into other areas the principal believes are more important – i.e. test prep, professional development, and his/her pocket. Enlarging classes from 25 to 36+ students is approved, as high achievement is not a priority, and test results can always be altered before filing with the State Education Department.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">I will give you an example. Several years ago one of my clients, a highly respected, excellent general education pedagogue, was given a U (“unsatisfactory”) for her work in an Integrated Co-Teaching Class (ICT). However, a close review of the observation reports showed that whenever the principal came in to observe, the Special Education teacher who helped this teacher with the lesson by adapting it to the students with disabling conditions (IEP-Individualized Education Plan) was not in the classroom. This special education teacher was deliberately assigned by the principal to work in the principal’s office during the class that was to be observed. The general education teacher requested that the principal come back on another day, but the principal said no, gave the excellent teacher an unsatisfactory observation report rating, and then an unsatisfactory rating at the end of the school year.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The next year, the principal gave the teacher a Teacher Improvement Plan (“TIP”) that was, according to the principal, designed to “help” the excellent teacher “improve”, according to a standard that was subjective, random and arbitrary. The teacher was never given any notice of this standard, so she could not – and did not – meet the unknown expectations of the principal in her performance. The excellent teacher was placed into a rubber room to await 3020-a charges which were served about two years later, after the NYC Department of Education created the charges and rounded up the witnesses they needed to terminate her. This is, of course, a setup. See the secret Guide on how to terminate an “incompetent” teacher:</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2023/08/Performance-doc-1-1.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Performance-doc </a>by Joseph Belesi</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The documents and procedures to get rid of a tenured teacher is highly scripted (see p. 12 “Tell the Story of Incompetence”). If the teacher is actually not incompetent, the principal will make up what is not there. More on this in a later post. My point here is that Jansen and all principals can ignore all the rules and alter a person’s rating downward at any time just because they want to, so that the person can be discontinued or terminated.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/search?q=Elentuck+v+Green" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">There are no facts in observations.</a> Observation reports “consist solely of advice, criticisms, evaluations, and recommendations.” <em style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Elentuck v. Green (202 A.D.2d 425, 608 N.Y.S.2d 701, lv denied 84 N.Y.2d 809, rearg denied 85 N.Y.2d 858</em>). Therefore, any principal can get anyone on their staff removed simply by observing wrongdoing in the classroom, lack of professionalism, etc. The rating procedure is only as good as the person making the observation wants it to be.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">My advice: document everything, Grieve and appeal everything, and rebut all observations or reports that make false statements. Don’t fall for the Union reps’ advice not to do anything or the principal will come after you. The principal will do what they want anyway, but you will be left without a defense.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The procedure to charge a teacher with misconduct is the same, where no one investigates properly and a complaint takes precedence over truth. Here is an example:</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">A senior teacher with more than 20 years of excellent work was sent to a reassignment “rubber room” and not told why. Several years later she received 3020-a charges for slapping the face of a kindergartner in her class. She asked me to take her case. The investigator never showed up to testify about the investigation, as he had “retired” (a word the DOE uses lightly). SCI sent another warm body to testify instead. This so-called SCI investigator testified that he could not read the notes of the original investigator, he had been told a few days earlier to show up at the hearing, and he knew nothing about the case other than that the misconduct had been substantiated, even though the teacher charged was not in school that day (she was ill) and the investigators never checked that fact. The teacher we defended was exonerated, and the Arbitrator, Robert Gifford, left the DOE. We were not told why.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Indeed, many arbitrators have told me after they leave/retire/are removed from their positions as 3020-a arbitrators that they were told they were too lenient, and did not terminate to the required degree or extent.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Misconduct complaints are more horrific than observation reports because they could lead to Part 83. <a href="https://www.nysed.gov/educator-integrity/moral-character-actions-part-83" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Part 83</a> is a hearing held in Albany at the New York State Education Department on sustained 3020-a misconduct charges – let’s say a steep fine or termination, or “unethical behavior” – as a determination of moral character. The Part 83 Hearing Officer can – and almost always does – take away the teacher’s State License.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">I have been writing about the <a href="https://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/2009/03/gotcha-squad-and-new-york-city-rubber.html" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">“Gotcha Squad”</a> since 2007, and I have many posts on <a href="https://advocatz.com/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">this website</a> as well as my blog <a href="https://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">NYC Rubber Room Reporter</a> on the rubber rooms, <a href="https://www.parentadvocates.org/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Parentadvocates.org,</a> and <a href="https://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">3020-a Arbitration</a>. I think these posts are well worth reading by anyone working for the NYC Department of Education because the NYC DOE does not want anyone to know any of the information there.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">For instance, the <a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2023/08/TAC-Memos.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">TAC Memos</a> are, according to a Department attorney, “attorney-client information”, and are not to be made public. <a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2023/08/F17887-FOIL-disclosure.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">F17887 FOIL disclosure</a> explains this process. When I filed a Freedom of Information request (“FOIL”) for the “Technical Assistance Conference” (TAC) memos of the DOE legal department in 2007, I was sent 79 pages of emails. I filed a FOIL request of the secret meeting held at DOE headquarters on February 24, 2015 which was mandatory for all arbitrators, DOE attorneys and NYSUT Attorneys who were working on 3020-a cases. I was <a href="https://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/2016/05/the-3020-arbitration-newswire-digging_28.html" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">sent a video and transcript which I posted on my blog in full.</a> Again, the misconduct charge may not be true, but the NYC DOE is not concerned about that, only that the budget doesn’t need to be burdened by a teacher’s salary and that someone in the school and/or a parent made a complaint, and the teacher must go.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGvU5ilxfMbnprXzeQ_TJeRxEFParRsKOmUENLPBmcN4PXDPppL5BFlPEROmbHoLOnpUPK557r8TdPSP1MYy75U3SXtGjBNeU8VP93W3oIWrsZeoGMNQrTD6MezKHt0BmhGCbI9OJX_As6Qwmkxqal5zB7L6aQYlRf6ofv2m8Geg28CSL2xSZgayWff5k/s294/Shawn%20Ramos.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="294" data-original-width="159" height="294" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGvU5ilxfMbnprXzeQ_TJeRxEFParRsKOmUENLPBmcN4PXDPppL5BFlPEROmbHoLOnpUPK557r8TdPSP1MYy75U3SXtGjBNeU8VP93W3oIWrsZeoGMNQrTD6MezKHt0BmhGCbI9OJX_As6Qwmkxqal5zB7L6aQYlRf6ofv2m8Geg28CSL2xSZgayWff5k/s1600/Shawn%20Ramos.jpg" width="159" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Shawn Ramos, UFT</td></tr></tbody></table><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">I gave the background above to give readers some idea of the random and arbitrary actions that clutter the unfair charging process for the NYC Department of Education. Heather Jansen, the former principal at <a href="https://www.greatschools.org/new-york/staten-island/2182-Ps-46-Albert-V-Maniscalco/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">PS 46 in Staten Island</a> altered these unfair practices to add her own. She got away with it, at least until May 1 2023 when she was removed, thanks to the fearless actions of staff and the excellent support of both <a href="https://www.uft.org/your-union/uft-borough-offices/staten-island/staten-island-borough-office-representatives" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">UFT Rep. Shawn Ramos</a>, pictured above, and <a href="https://www.uft.org/your-union/uft-borough-offices/staten-island/staten-island-borough-office-representatives" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Staten Island Borough Representative Sean Rotkowitz</a>, who went above and beyond the normal ‘no response’ from the UFT.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In my previous post on my blog NYC Rubber Room Reporter and ATR Connect about the <a href="https://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/search?q=Marion+Wilson" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">race war going on in District 31 led by Marion Wilson</a>, we believe that Wilson may have allowed Jansen to undermine staff and destroy morale at PS 46 in order to get rid of Jansen (who is white). Last spring the following statement by Marion Wilson was sent to me and others:</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><em style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“During a school visit with colleagues, and children present, Marion Wilson stated, “All I see is white children, no diversity. This needs to change.” Also, during an in-person meeting with colleagues, she stated, “When I said no more white principals, I meant it,” and the last snippet is of the superintendent sharing her feelings that the island is “…still too white” for her. If these comments are not hate crimes, I don’t know what is. Her actions are disgusting, disgraceful, and unbecoming a superintendent.”</em></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span face=""Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif">Heather Jansen created her own tragic end, with destroyed careers and trashed educational opportunities for the PS 46 students. Never in my twenty years of doing the rubber rooms and 3020-a arbitration have I seen any other principal create under-handed, malicious actions similar to those of </span><a href="https://rocketreach.co/heather-jansen-email_99995964" style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Heather Jansen</a><span face=""Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif">. The purpose was to set up anyone on her staff whom she did not like.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Jansen was appointed principal of PS 46 in September 2021. When she started working there she held a staff meeting where she told staff that the school was “racist” because all of the staff were white folk. I did a post already on <a href="https://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/2023/05/former-queens-superintendent-jennifer.html" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Superintendent Marion Wilson</a>, with whom Heather Jansen worked for many years.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Whether Wilson’s motive in appointing Jansen was to get rid of white principals and teachers was true or not, Jansen started a reign of terror on her own that destroyed the morale of the school. On parent-teacher conference day, Jansen called a teacher and told her that she, Jansen, was going to get Jane Doe to retire or be terminated at a 3020-a. When this teacher wanted to take time off for medical reasons, Jansen told her she would not allow this, as she was going to terminate her co-teacher, and she could not have two teachers out of the same class at the same time. Jansen told her, ” <em style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“I’ve got you.</em>” Many staff were fired, or forced out, leaving no professional teachers in their place. Do not bother to try to find a benefit this procedure had for the children in the school, because there is none.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Jansen’s “student rat pack” is similar to what I call <a href="https://parentadvocates.org/nicecontent/dsp_printable.cfm?articleID=7534" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">the “Gotcha Squad”</a>. The selected students, basically those most in need of support and encouragement, were given permission to get up anytime while in class and tell their teacher they had to go to the bathroom when what they really did was go to the office, walk into Principal Jansen’s room, and tell her what the teacher did that they didn’t like. Then the student was rewarded with candy, McDonalds, pizza, little toys, whatever.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">A teacher testified about the select group of students at the 3020-a as follows:</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><em style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“I had, on several occasions, students come to me to tell me that Ms. Jansen asked them to report on teachers. I had children that were uncomfortable with it. I had students that told me they weren’t rats. I had witnessed students telling some of her rat pack that snitches get stitches. I had students that were starting to bully some of her rats, knowing they were part of the rat pack. I felt like it was a very unhealthy, unsafe environment for children. I felt they were being groomed. A lot of them were needy and looking for someone. And it was, at this point, it was like an insidious. It was horrific to me how children were being used, how parents were coming to me and telling me their children wouldn’t talk to them anymore, and that they were being used and groomed by Ms. Jansen…..</em></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><em style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">They were given everything from small pop-its, opportunities to shop on her lap top for pop-its, lunches, McDonald’s.”</em></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><em style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Parents were never told about any of this</em></strong>.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Indeed, the students were told by Principal Jansen not to reveal any information to their parents or anyone, because they were her “little investigators” and the information they gave her was secret. No educator has the authority or right to tell children to keep secrets from their parents. This is outrageous, and the worst part of Jansen’s teacher removal process. NYC has, it seems, <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/09/09/nyc-kids-being-used-to-rob-businesses-and-bars/">accepted the crimes of young children as the "new norm".</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">I know all of this from doing a 3020-a for a teacher who was charged by Jansen with misconduct, which started my digging for the real story. I could not believe what I found. A parent told me that she found out her child belonged to the “Rat Pack” and her daughter told her that she was told never to tell her parent anything, even if asked. Luckily, this student told someone else no longer in the school, and we brought in that person to testify.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">A teacher testified that a student who made frequent visits to Jansen’s office</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><em style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“[would] leave with pencils. If she had — 13 [00:01] in the office, she would give those out regularly to Student A and other students. Whatever prizes she had on hand. Other times she had–she used to keep snacks in the office. Students would leave with that.</em>”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Jansen showed herself to be ready and willing to make up new rules to tarnish the career and reputation of any employee in the school who was not part of her inner circle. She suddenly accused a teacher of erroneously marking a child absent when the child was in the school, a mistake that was always fixed later in the day by the school secretary. Instead, this error led to 3020-a charges, the first time ever seen by anyone who worked at the school. We were told by staff that she put secret tape recorders in every classroom. Everyone was terrified of speaking to anyone about anything. They were also afraid of secret cameras.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In sum, the evidence and testimony in the case of Jane Doe * (name changed to protect her privacy), charged with 3020-a misconduct in December 2022, show a lack of due process in the procedures used to charge her (i.e. improper determination of probable cause), and unprofessional mismanagement of PS 46. Jansen was the mastermind behind a random system using favoritism, cameras, secret tapes and outright lies about staff made by her student rat pack to remove any staff member she wanted to get rid of.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">One 3020-a charge alleged that a student came to the office upset with something Jane Doe said. Then Jansen tried to force her temporary secretary to file it with OSI, the Office of Special Investigations. But the paraprofessional working as the secretary testified at the 3020-a that she refused to validate the student’s lie about Jane Doe and was soon fired by Jansen.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Another teacher who was seen crying as she left the school told us later that she was made to apologize to Student “A”, who was seven years old, for something she didn’t do, at the risk of losing her job. These events show violations of law so outrageous that they are visible to even the most unwilling mind.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">But teachers and staff took action. The UFT arranged for a Vote of No Confidence:</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2023/08/Vote-No-Confidence.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Vote of No Confidence</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">80% of the school personnel voted against Jansen.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Heather Jansen was removed from PS 46 on May 1, 2023, after staff voted no confidence. We have just heard that she has been appointed a teacher at a Staten Island school starting in September 2023.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Stay tuned.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Betsy Combier</p><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">betsy@advocatz.com</div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Editor, <a href="http://advocatz.com/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">ADVOCATZ.com</a></b></div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Editor, <a href="https://advocatz.blogspot.com/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">ADVOCATZ Blog</a></b></div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Editor, <a href="http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">NYC Rubber Room Reporter</a><br />Editor,<a href="http://www.parentadvocates.org/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> Parentadvocates.org</a><br />Editor, <a href="http://newyorkcourtcorruption.blogspot.com/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">New York Court Corruption</a><br />Editor, <a href="http://nationalpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">National Public Voice</a><br />Editor, <a href="http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">NYC Public Voice</a></b></div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Editor,<a href="http://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials</a></b></div><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></p>Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-42882904210752645672023-09-04T01:03:00.002-04:002023-09-06T12:10:40.306-04:00The New York City Department of Education and the High-salary-No-work Jobs Given To "Friends"<p> </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJaw_dgWXo57IBbqT_y55sBXiVtKTbThLUW6xlEEZBkCWnYwh1yhRNScn14o2w8VWN1MQq0kG-HS4jC7x7lc9zFKRgNHx_eh36u0RdIECGP3sYeFKTM_P8-6gXdeBYpLB_7fw5YbI0h-MGdC-BG3U4i8dS18T1AbvWCdisd_WfpPhJ10icnO-a_05KHWw/s575/Amanda%20Lurie.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="573" data-original-width="575" height="399" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJaw_dgWXo57IBbqT_y55sBXiVtKTbThLUW6xlEEZBkCWnYwh1yhRNScn14o2w8VWN1MQq0kG-HS4jC7x7lc9zFKRgNHx_eh36u0RdIECGP3sYeFKTM_P8-6gXdeBYpLB_7fw5YbI0h-MGdC-BG3U4i8dS18T1AbvWCdisd_WfpPhJ10icnO-a_05KHWw/w400-h399/Amanda%20Lurie.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.14px; text-align: left;">Amanda Lurie allegedly sold goods on Poshmark during DOE time.<br /><br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table>The story about Amanda Lurie and her high-salary-no-work job at the NYC Department of Education is outrageous on so many levels, but unique it's not. Nepotism and political appointments are made all the time by those in power with the authority to do so, like <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/live-updates/nyc-schools-chancellor-david-banks-shares-vision/">Chancellor Banks</a>, <a href="https://www.nyc.gov/office-of-the-mayor/index.page">Mayor Eric Adams</a>, and many previous Chancellors and Mayors before him.<div><br /></div><div>See:</div><div><br /></div><div><h3 class="post-title entry-title" itemprop="name" style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; position: relative;"><a href="https://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/2023/08/the-nyc-department-of-education-ignores.html" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The NYC Department of Education Ignores Ethical Rules, Gives High-Paying Jobs to Danika and Shawn Rux</span></a></h3></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://nypost.com/2022/10/08/chancellor-banks-and-mayor-adams-hire-each-others-beaus/">NYC Schools Chancellor David Banks, Eric Adams put each other’s girlfriends in top posts</a></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/nov/21/new-york-mayor-eric-adams-friend-appointment-nypd">New York City mayor’s longtime friend now holds high-paid NYPD job</a></span></div><div><br /></div><div><h3 class="post-title entry-title" itemprop="name" style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal; margin: 0px; position: relative;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/2022/04/monitors-and-special-masters-have-been.html">Monitors and Special Masters Have Been Paid $111 Million In Public Funds To Fix NYC Failing Agencies</a></span></h3></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://nypost.com/2021/09/04/ex-chancellor-carranza-shacking-up-with-staffer-he-hired-for-six-figure-job/">Ex-chancellor Carranza shacking up with staffer he hired for six-figure job</a></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/search?q=Carranza+corruption">Richard Carranza accused of waiving rules to give pals high-paying jobs</a></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">and soooo many more......</span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">This story is interesting because of the resignation of Investigator Jonathan May. </span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">And what infuriates me is that the NYC DOE appointees (not elected) folk get away with this fraud and corruption. Also, don't forget that since 2003 NYC parents and taxpayers have been under Mayoral control, which means that the NYC DOE is not accountable to the general public for any expenditures.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: large;">We all can see how power corrupts.</span></div><div><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Who suffers the most? The children, their parents and teachers.</span></p><p><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a;"><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif"> </span><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif">Betsy Combier</span></span></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><i style="color: #202124; font-family: Roboto, arial, sans-serif;"></i></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: justify;"><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;">betsy@advocatz.com</span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;"><br /></span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: quot;">Editor, </span><span style="color: #582995;"><a href="http://advocatz.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">ADVOCATZ.com</span></a></span></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Editor, <span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="https://advocatz.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;">ADVOCATZ Blog</a></span></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Rubber Room Reporter</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://www.parentadvocates.org/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Parentadvocates.org</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://newyorkcourtcorruption.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">New York Court Corruption</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nationalpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">National Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Public Voice</a></span></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials</a></span></b></div></div></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span><p></p><h1 class="headline headline--single" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--black); font-family: neue-haas-grotesk-display, sans-serif; font-size: 2.625rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.05; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://nypost.com/2023/08/19/nyc-doe-lawyers-grill-deputy-chancellor-on-cover-up/">NYC DOE lawyers grill deputy chancellor on ‘cover-up,’ pay hikes</a></h1><div><br /></div><div><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">City Department of Education lawyers grilled First Deputy Chancellor Daniel Weisberg behind closed doors this week amid accusations he covered up misconduct by two top execs, and then rewarded them with hefty pay hikes, The Post has learned.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">On Wednesday, DOE lawyers met with Weisberg and his chief executive, Christopher Groll, asking them to explain why they doled out salary increases to Amanda Lurie and her boss, Chief Enrollment Officer Sarah Kleinhandler, said a source close to the situation.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">They also asked Weisberg whether he shared an explosive Office of Special Investigations report on the misconduct with Chancellor David Banks, the source added.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwtcLPriBnW5j8xysVgUvbXY4Il-JTt_pcyheJUlGAKI3cIKlIAuKt8rspqpq4dJ2RuSMNv1wMjTuQNUc9gpA8RF6JBZtp1CLKJ1M44jrJ1l0eBD9BUdgwQFBprzs6sE3togC4Bvb1okm5jdB1OOHR76i4B8s-VNm2iBIKS8LDSmqL_La-S4OVkGxg5go/s853/Lurie-Linkedin.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="505" data-original-width="853" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwtcLPriBnW5j8xysVgUvbXY4Il-JTt_pcyheJUlGAKI3cIKlIAuKt8rspqpq4dJ2RuSMNv1wMjTuQNUc9gpA8RF6JBZtp1CLKJ1M44jrJ1l0eBD9BUdgwQFBprzs6sE3togC4Bvb1okm5jdB1OOHR76i4B8s-VNm2iBIKS8LDSmqL_La-S4OVkGxg5go/w400-h236/Lurie-Linkedin.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Amanda Lurie's Linkedin page</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="letter-spacing: -0.01em;">The meeting came days after </span><a href="https://nypost.com/2023/08/12/nyc-doe-exec-amanda-lurie-cited-for-misconduct-got-raise/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; letter-spacing: -0.01em; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">The Post revealed the findings </a><span style="letter-spacing: -0.01em;">against Lurie, senior executive director in the Office of Enrollment, and Kleinhandler, who is accused of failing to supervise Lurie.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">That evening, Brooklyn teacher Martina Meijer angrily raised the “elephant in the room” during a meeting of the Panel for Educational Policy, at which Weisberg <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/08/17/two-top-mayor-adams-execs-in-marthas-vineyard-ahead-of-rumored-wedding/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">filled in for the vacationing Banks.</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“I ask you to demand answers, because we are still waiting for them,” she told the panel.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Meijer said the scandal inspired her to coin a new DOE acronym, RISI, for “Rewarding Incompetence and Stonewalling Inquiries.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Weisberg said nothing.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“Is this the type of leadership that Dan Weisberg expects schools to emulate?” the teacher asked after the meeting. “ I hope that the DOE would seek to alleviate public distrust by taking this corruption seriously. Instead, what we see is a cover-up and further lack of responsiveness. How does this build trust?”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Lurie was a chronic no-show, rarely visited the Family Welcome Centers under her watch, and sold clothes on Poshmark during DOE time, while Kleinhandler long ignored complaints about her underling, according to Jonathan May, the OSI investigator who conducted the probe.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Weeks after receiving the report, Weisberg named Lurie a “special adviser” in his office. Groll, who handles finances, raised her salary from $199,118 to $208,000 a year. Kleinhandler also got a raise from $204,106 to $220,000.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“Weisberg sat on the report for months and took no disciplinary action, but gave them promotions and raises,” the source said, calling it unacceptable.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">It’s unclear what role, if any, Chancellor Banks had in the matter. “Where is David Banks on this?” the source said DOE staffers are asking.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Last April, both Weisberg and Banks received emails, obtained by The Post, from an enrollment staffer, who pleaded with them to halt the “retaliation” for cooperating with the investigation. The staffer was assigned to an office much farther from her home. The Special Commissioner of Investigation for city schools is looking into that complaint.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Weisberg, Banks, Groll and a DOE spokesman gave no response to questions.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPnta6ndZj1PzwZhiEdssvNXBiAKGsWgj8Ui0rA06dPf73R8z9xG7BHcBC__SlS27T5C0oMnQPQ1DZr1zp-38ToZJMOo4EZgSGCPHiHMRqscl0Hj3_GM-HxlcQCrSi4iI-AiAOubyM8hgnVbHLM8zL9PGT87AHKRVO_qSQHz9tUbazLWUao7KEorc5gt0/s835/Lurie-poshmark.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="722" data-original-width="835" height="346" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPnta6ndZj1PzwZhiEdssvNXBiAKGsWgj8Ui0rA06dPf73R8z9xG7BHcBC__SlS27T5C0oMnQPQ1DZr1zp-38ToZJMOo4EZgSGCPHiHMRqscl0Hj3_GM-HxlcQCrSi4iI-AiAOubyM8hgnVbHLM8zL9PGT87AHKRVO_qSQHz9tUbazLWUao7KEorc5gt0/w400-h346/Lurie-poshmark.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Amanda Lurie's Poshmark page</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://nypost.com/2023/08/12/nyc-doe-exec-amanda-lurie-cited-for-misconduct-got-raise/" style="font-family: neue-haas-grotesk-display, sans-serif; font-size: 2.625rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em;">NYC DOE exec in ‘cover up’ for repeat hooky given generous raise</a></p></div><div>By Susan Edelman, NY POST, August 12, 2023</div><div><br /></div><div><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">A top enrollment official for the city Department of Education was found to have repeatedly played hooky and sold clothing online during work hours, yet she was rewarded with a promotion and a pay raise just weeks after a misconduct probe, The Post has learned.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">As senior executive director in the Office of Student Enrollment, Amanda Lurie was a chronic no-show, barely visited the “family welcome centers” she was supposed to supervise, took off on work days, and peddled apparel during DOE hours on Poshmark, the DOE’s Office of Special Investigations (OSI) concluded in late February, according to the investigator who conducted the probe.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Lurie was removed from the enrollment office at the end of March, but it was painted as a promotion.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">First Deputy Chancellor Daniel Weisberg named her a “senior advisor” in his office, and that month she received a pay hike from $199,118 to $208,000 a year.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Lurie, 54, boasted to colleagues and friends on Facebook that she had a higher position with “with a very nice raise.”<span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: -0.16px;">“If she was not punished for this, there was a cover up,” said Jonathan May, the OSI investigator. “God knows if that were me, I would have been fired and rightfully so.”</span></span></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">May, a retired federal agent and eight-year DOE investigator who resigned after completing the probe, summarized his findings for The Post because he fears officials are hiding the report.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The nine-month investigation documented that Lurie, who <a href="https://poshmark.com/closet/lillyledbetter" rel="noreferrer noopener nofollow" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">goes by Lilly Ledbetter</a> — the name of a famed women’s equality activist — on Poshmark, ran “Lilly’s Closet” on the website during DOE hours, May said.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></span></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Lurie has gushed on Facebook about her sales prowess — which earned her Poshmark’s “Ambassador” status — and the thousands of dollars she has pocketed from what she calls her “side hustle.” </p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Employees at the DOE’s welcome centers, where families enroll their children in city schools, confirmed that Lurie rarely showed up, May said.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">She attended Zoom meetings in what appeared to be her car or home.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Lurie told May she had no need to visit the centers during the pandemic because they weren’t busy, he said.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">But May cited a “deluge of evidence” that the sites were swamped with phone calls and emails from families and schools.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“We were working around the clock to keep up,” a staffer recalled.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In one case, Lurie’s 2019 timesheet records reflected a full week on duty when she was nowhere to be found, colleagues reported.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Lurie denied taking time off, May said, but other employees shared emails from Lurie telling them what to do “while I’m out this week.” </p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Her boss, Chief Enrollment Officer Sarah Kleinhandler, did not question Lurie’s timesheets, because she “totally trusted” her top staffer, she told May.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">But behind Kleinhandler’s back in a virtual executive meeting caught on audio, and obtained by The Post, Lurie once dissed the chief, snapping, “Sarah doesn’t do s–t” because she delegates all the work to others.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The investigation found Kleinhandler failed to supervise Lurie and ignored complaints from other employees. But she, too, got a raise from $204,106 to $220,000, internal records show.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Instead of facing consequences, Kleinhandler took action against a key witness in the probe — reassigning the worker to an office farther from her home, which added more than an hour to her commute.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">That employee emailed Weisberg three times, pleading for him to intervene, but got no response.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">She then complained to the Special Commissioner of Investigation for city schools, which is probing the matter, a spokesperson confirmed.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The OSI’s damning report on Lurie and Kleinhandler was delivered six months ago to Weisberg, second in command to Chancellor David Banks, but it has been kept under wraps.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The DOE has repeatedly delayed requests for the report under the state Freedom of Information Law.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“It appeared to everybody like nothing happened, and I am livid,” May said. “Nothing happened to them [Lurie and Kleinhandler], and the people who came forward to tell the truth are being retaliated against.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Lurie would not discuss the OSI report. “I have no comment,” she said.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Kleinhandler was on vacation overseas and did not answer an email.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Banks, Weisberg, and a DOE spokesman did not reply to questions.</p></div></div>Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-30362006583723331852023-09-02T23:41:00.003-04:002023-09-08T17:32:35.652-04:00Columbia University's Teachers College Reading and Writing Project is dissolved and the New Advancing Literacy Unit Takes Its Place<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJAvkdNtOzG2efQUMzYVFRczMjXuJrGy-0lasd7FSjN5CXbOa0WG3KJ6lkFMIW2YBktIKTt7bi3whtygALOzqnjcbT1t0lT02YnOhSqk-9HNW_uojB5Y1a9NDavtGSH0nltu03bhpwDWUnpJq8pkHDC-AGYj6-TOafa7TaLWCVP8S_i6ItmCI3ioZ-PJ8/s863/Teacher's%20College.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="495" data-original-width="863" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJAvkdNtOzG2efQUMzYVFRczMjXuJrGy-0lasd7FSjN5CXbOa0WG3KJ6lkFMIW2YBktIKTt7bi3whtygALOzqnjcbT1t0lT02YnOhSqk-9HNW_uojB5Y1a9NDavtGSH0nltu03bhpwDWUnpJq8pkHDC-AGYj6-TOafa7TaLWCVP8S_i6ItmCI3ioZ-PJ8/w400-h230/Teacher's%20College.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div>Teachers for many years have<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/22/us/reading-teaching-curriculum-phonics.html"> criticized the reading program</a> forced upon them by the Department of Education.<div><br /></div><div>The reading program was created by Lucy Calkins and released through the prestigious Teacher's College at Columbia University, and all schools had to follow it's prescribed rules. The politics of education is very powerful. <a href="https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/teachers-criticize-their-colleges-of-ed-for-not-preparing-them-to-teach-reading/2018/10">Many were unhappy about this.</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://ny.chalkbeat.org/2023/2/14/23598611/nyc-schools-reading-instruction-teachers-college-lucy-calkins-balanced-literacy-david-banks">Chancellor Banks is ending this long reign.</a> Finally.</div><div><br /></div><div>See here:</div><div><a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://click.lists.wnyc.org/?qs%3D90619f959c71a0707ea2e8e851ac6e1ad0a633c20a5534054d1bf7d13c6d3aa80ac7ba896090dbb18f7a4b4abbea80dcea5c571b7920ce6a7820b92b8a740f39&source=gmail&ust=1694293720623000&usg=AOvVaw0z4oLS6I_Wasu5Sr9RAkT0" href="https://gothamist.com/news/columbia-university-dissolves-program-behind-literacy-curriculum-used-in-nyc-public-schools" style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: "helvetica neue", helvetica, Inter, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 32px; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><h2 jslog="32272; 1:WyIjdGhyZWFkLWY6MTc3NjUwNDg1MjkwMDMzMDQzNCIsbnVsbCxudWxsLG51bGwsbnVsbCxudWxsLG51bGwsbnVsbCxudWxsLG51bGwsbnVsbCxudWxsLG51bGwsW11d; 4:WyIjbXNnLWY6MTc3NjUwNDg1MjkwMDMzMDQzNCIsbnVsbCxbXSxudWxsLG51bGwsbnVsbCxudWxsLG51bGwsbnVsbCxudWxsLG51bGwsbnVsbCxudWxsLG51bGwsbnVsbCxbXSxbXSxbXV0." style="font-size: 30px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">Columbia University dissolves program behind literacy curriculum used in NYC public schools</h2></a></div><div><br /></div><div>My opinion - it's about time!</div><div><br /></div><div>The news is that Calkins is leaving Teacher's College Reading and Writing Project and is starting a new organization called "Mossflower Reading and Writing Project at <a href="http://Mossflower.com">Mossflower.com</a>.</div><div><br /></div><div>It will be interesting to see the futures of Mossflower.com vs Advancing Literacy as both move forward in 2023-2024. Follow the money.</div><div><br /></div><div><i>just sayin'.....</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a;"> </span><span face="Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a;">Betsy Combier</span></span><p style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><i style="color: #202124; font-family: Roboto, arial, sans-serif;"></i></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; text-align: justify;"><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: start;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;">betsy@advocatz.com</span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: start;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;"><br /></span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: quot;">Editor, </span><span style="color: #582995;"><a href="http://advocatz.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">ADVOCATZ.com</span></a></span></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Editor, <span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="https://advocatz.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;">ADVOCATZ Blog</a></span></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Rubber Room Reporter</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://www.parentadvocates.org/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Parentadvocates.org</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://newyorkcourtcorruption.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">New York Court Corruption</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nationalpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">National Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Public Voice</a></span></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot; font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials</a></span></b></div></div></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><span style="background-color: white; color: #001f63; font-family: Constantia, serif; font-size: 32px; font-weight: 700;"><a href="https://www.tc.columbia.edu/articles/2023/september/advancing-literacy-through-teachers-college-programs-research-and-partnerships/">Advancing Literacy Through Teachers College Programs, Research and Partnerships</a></span></div><div><div><p><span face=""Libre Franklin", sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: medium;">Literacy affects every part of a student’s life and life chances. Communities with high levels of literacy experience less poverty, are healthier, and have greater access to their civil rights and to full participation in our democracy. </span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Libre Franklin", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 12.5px;">Teachers College has a deep bench of scholars studying literacy from multiple angles using different approaches (curriculum and teaching, special education, inclusion, human development, neuroscience). And throughout the College’s academic programs and research agenda, there is an unwavering commitment to inclusion — among students, faculty and staff on campus and in our scholarship. TC faculty, students and staff are national leaders in preparing teachers to support diverse classrooms and are engaged in integrative research, both translational and basic, that is contextualized with respect to marginalized communities across race, culture, ethnicity, language and neurodiversity.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Libre Franklin", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 12.5px;">This diversity of approaches, and TC’s commitment to supporting teachers and schools in different ways (e.g. research, academic programs, professional learning communities and development) has served the College well, but moving forward, TC wants to foster more conversations and collaboration among different evidence-based approaches to literacy, and ensure our programs are aligned with the needs of teachers and school districts looking to partner.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Libre Franklin", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 12.5px;">To support this objective, the work of the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project (TCRWP) and its staff will transition to an Advancing Literacy unit within TC’s <a href="https://www.tc.columbia.edu/continuing-professional-studies/about/" style="background-color: #f3f9fe; box-sizing: border-box; color: #001f63; padding: 2px 0px; text-decoration-line: none; transition: background-color 0.15s ease 0s;">Continuing Professional Studies (CPS)</a> division for the 2023-2024 year, a return to its original professional development roots. The entity TCRWP, founded in 1981, will be dissolved as part of this shift. TC is working to align the work of TC staff with the needs of school districts and changes in reading curriculum locally and nationwide.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Libre Franklin", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 12.5px;"></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj986EpzULYIxsafhE0m36JqZ7zr2IOfIxvTtS5RR7cSEwOW33fT9TQguNuOzPBYbhkacuLbLwzXan18MVHMY7hEoSCT9Rbi0L6VxMNOfAE9pzeD-FEtKRZ6DRu7Xkuzd0sNXFxlLxy5xXgZ1eNAccUuOwv84XL1T2JXY4NIKddb-J9fnbBaD-bloAHzts/s485/Lucy%20Calkins.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="327" data-original-width="485" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj986EpzULYIxsafhE0m36JqZ7zr2IOfIxvTtS5RR7cSEwOW33fT9TQguNuOzPBYbhkacuLbLwzXan18MVHMY7hEoSCT9Rbi0L6VxMNOfAE9pzeD-FEtKRZ6DRu7Xkuzd0sNXFxlLxy5xXgZ1eNAccUuOwv84XL1T2JXY4NIKddb-J9fnbBaD-bloAHzts/w400-h270/Lucy%20Calkins.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lucy Calkins</td></tr></tbody></table><br />For many years, <a href="https://www.tc.columbia.edu/articles/2013/october/lucy-m-calkins/">TCRWP’s founding director Lucy Calkins</a> led efforts to support teachers as they develop students as readers and writers. Dr. Calkins has stepped down as Director of the Reading and Writing Project. She is Robinson Professor in Children's Literature at Teachers College, a tenured faculty member in the Department of Curriculum and Teaching, on sabbatical during the 2023-2024 academic year.<p></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Libre Franklin", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 12.5px;">“Many teachers credit TCRWP for creating communities of practice where teachers gain valuable resources and support,” says KerryAnn O’Meara, Vice President for Academic Affairs, Provost and Dean of the College. “TC is grateful to Dr. Calkins for her service.”</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Libre Franklin", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 12.5px;">Dr. Calkins shares her expertise as a consultant through her own LLC. Teachers College is not involved in the operations or provision of services provided by Dr. Calkins in her LLC.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Libre Franklin", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 12.5px;">As TCRWP transitions to work as part of the College’s Continuing Professional Studies division during the 2023-2024 academic year, Mary Ehrenworth, Beth Neville and Emily Butler Smith — longtime members of the TCRWP staff — will provide leadership. </p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Libre Franklin", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 12.5px;">The new Advancing Literacy unit will offer a variety of curricular support. Across the U.S., some school districts use the Units of Study curriculum and need professional development to support their teachers. Other school districts around the country use different curricula and are looking for professional development. TC staff are poised and ready to support teachers and school districts using different curricula and approaches. Advancing Literacy staff will be enhanced by their placement in CPS, which offers many dynamic noncredit courses and other professional development opportunities annually for thousands of teachers in NYC and beyond — including in areas such as inclusion, education leadership, digital learning and literacy. </p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Libre Franklin", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 12.5px;">As the College looks towards the future, Provost O’Meara highlighted three reasons she is excited about the ways in which Teachers College can advance literacy and reading instruction moving forward. </p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Libre Franklin", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 12.5px;">First, the College can learn and support students and teachers by listening to its partners. TC has many well-established relationships with NYC school-district personnel, teachers and leaders through decades of work together across professional development programs — not only in reading but in teaching about inclusive classrooms, coaching for leaders and early career teachers, arts education, classroom technology, climate change, nutrition and school psychology, among many others. </p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Libre Franklin", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 12.5px;">“As we move forward to align our professional development programs with the greatest needs of our school partners, teachers and community organizations, we will be building from these relationships, and listening to our teachers, and school districts. TCRWP created some powerful communities of practice and those communities of teachers can still find connection in the work of the broadened Advancing Literacy unit,” says Provost O’Meara. </p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Libre Franklin", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 12.5px;">Second, TC will ensure that its professional development programs are informed by the latest research and evidence and that the College continually finds new ways to translate faculty scholarship into timely assessments, interventions, and research-based practices. Provost O’Meara notes several examples of this through certificate programs, coaching and symposiums — and will be able to report more on that soon.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Libre Franklin", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 12.5px;">Third, the national conversation about literacy must include the experiences of students who are multilingual, are enrolled in special education programs, and live in high-poverty and marginalized communities. “TC’s expertise in centering inclusion and equity is unmatched and distinct. Moving forward, we need to integrate these three strengths to make a greater impact in literacy development, and we look forward to sharing our next steps to do so soon.”</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Libre Franklin", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 12.5px;">More information about the Advancing Literacy Network will be forthcoming. </p></div></div>Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-7281907034752132842023-09-02T22:53:00.001-04:002023-09-02T22:53:21.570-04:00After Demanding a Second Vote, UFT President Michael Mulgrew Gets The OT-PT Contract Ratified<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu5dOl8c1kahA29O6HfC02qNmSmlAe_HyrOvhrnXI8OtmLNDYAXNPcBDZrMaJTUo2B5BKsAkqO0Eb1CuOW7-GzTIctM0ne8RpDydKcJghKw71Zwdbbjr3VhIyNUPuDFia-eLyRPTj2Ehg5Z2b9tYqVctzrtqKT1I1vX7TkEB9M9FILFpUcqNu0DO_wZ_Y/s718/Mike%20Mulgrew%20OT%20contract.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="476" data-original-width="718" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu5dOl8c1kahA29O6HfC02qNmSmlAe_HyrOvhrnXI8OtmLNDYAXNPcBDZrMaJTUo2B5BKsAkqO0Eb1CuOW7-GzTIctM0ne8RpDydKcJghKw71Zwdbbjr3VhIyNUPuDFia-eLyRPTj2Ehg5Z2b9tYqVctzrtqKT1I1vX7TkEB9M9FILFpUcqNu0DO_wZ_Y/w400-h265/Mike%20Mulgrew%20OT%20contract.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mike Mulgrew</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><a href="https://www.influencewatch.org/person/michael-mulgrew/">Mike Mulgrew, President of the UFT</a>, did not like the fact that in a vote on a tentative new contract between the City of New York and the bargaining unit which includes Occupational and physical therapists as well as other professional groupings, this unit voted no. Nurses and audiologists, also in the unit, voted yes.</p><div>What did Mulgrew do? Rather than go back to the negotiating table, he demanded that the unit voting no had a revote. No other members had to vote again. </div><div><br /></div><div>Guess what? Mike got the votes he needed the second time around to ratify the new contract he wanted.</div><div><br /></div><div>Gosh, I wonder how that happened? </div><div><br /></div><div>This is the UFT.</div><div><br /></div><div> <span style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">Betsy Combier</span><p style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><i style="color: #202124; font-family: Roboto, arial, sans-serif;"></i></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: justify;"><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;">betsy@advocatz.com</span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;"><br /></span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: quot;">Editor, </span><span style="color: #582995;"><a href="http://advocatz.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">ADVOCATZ.com</span></a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;">Editor, <span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="https://advocatz.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;">ADVOCATZ Blog</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Rubber Room Reporter</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://www.parentadvocates.org/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Parentadvocates.org</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://newyorkcourtcorruption.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">New York Court Corruption</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nationalpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">National Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Public Voice</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials</a></span></b></div></div><h1 style="box-sizing: inherit; line-height: 3rem; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><a href="https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/education/ny-uft-teachers-union-chapter-ratifies-contract-after-backlash-over-revote-20230831-fessowsb35g7jaajcoadlxegee-story.html">NYC teachers union chapter ratifies contract after backlash over “undemocratic” revote</a></h1></div><p>by Cayla Bamberger, NY Daily News, August 31, 2023</p><span style="font-size: medium;">A chapter of school therapists that was directed to revote on a <a href="https://files.uft.org/contract2023/DOE-MOA.pdf">tentative contract agreement</a> has approved the deal <a href="https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/education/ny-uft-revote-contract-occupational-physical-therapists-union-teachers-20230807-tomqiqzyibg45d6a5w6oneipme-story.html">amid criticism the process was anti-democratic</a>.<br /><br />The <a href="https://www.uft.org/your-rights/contracts/contract-2023">contract</a> between the <a href="https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/education/ny-nyc-teachers-union-approve-uft-contract-20230710-d3amhgkzcfbe5n6x7y36ltv6my-story.html">United Federation of Teachers</a> and the city was ratified by 89% of the more than 2,000 occupational and physical therapists who cast ballots, according to the tally of the revote by the independent American Arbitration Association.<br /><br />“I want to thank the [occupational and physical therapists] who participated in the union meetings this summer to discuss your contract,” UFT President Michael Mulgrew said in an email Wednesday to members. “The challenge we faced helped build a stronger union.”<br /><br />Earlier this summer, the bargaining unit that included occupational and physical therapists as well as other professional groupings turned down the agreement. More than two-thirds of therapists who cast ballots rejected the deal, with many citing pay concerns. Others in the unit, including nurses and audiologists, voted it through, the <a href="https://www.uft.org/sites/default/files/attachments/uft-certification-contract-ratified-2023.pdf">initial tally</a> showed.<br /><br />Rather than go back to the negotiating table, the UFT split the therapists from the rest of their bargaining unit and directed them to revote. No other members had to vote again.<br /><br />Mulgrew in announcing the revote cited an “outpouring of opinion” on all sides of the arguments. The UFT received just under 1,500 emails from members in the bargaining unit asking for a revote, according to a spokeswoman for the union.<br /><br />But the directive was met with swift backlash from chapter leadership, prompting the resignation of three chapter executive board members, including chapter leader Melissa Williams.<br /><br />Ballots were mailed on Tuesday, Aug. 8, and due on Tuesday, according to the UFT. They were counted on Wednesday.<br /><br />Roughly 450 more ballots were returned in the second vote than during the initial round, according to figures reviewed by The News. The number of votes against the deal dwindled the second time around from 1,074 to 229, a memo from the UFT showed Thursday.<br /><br />The initial vote to reject the contract was the second time in a row that therapists turned down the first offer from the city. In 2018, <a href="https://www.uft.org/news/news-stories/final-bargaining-unit-ratifies-revised-contract">union reps went back into negotiations with city labor officials</a> — a step that many therapists who voted no expected to happen again.<br /><br />Vice chair of physical therapists Aideen Kwan Dela Cruz told The News she was relieved to no longer be labeled as a “troublemaker,” but saddened to miss out on pay parity and respect.<br /><br />“I understand why people ratified this contract as they do not see how they can change the union leadership’s stance on not supporting our chapter’s demands,” she said. “It is disheartening that we pay union dues to a union who sides with the employer and not the paying members.”<br /><br />The new contract boosts pay 17.58% to 20.42% compounded over the five years of the agreement according to the UFT. It dates back retroactively to last September, and comes with retroactive payments and a $3,000 ratification bonus.<br /><br />By the end of the contract, a therapist with a master’s degree and a decade of experience would max out at a <a href="https://www.uft.org/sites/default/files/attachments/therapists-salary-schedules-2023.pdf">$94,804 annual salary</a>, or approximately $20,000 less per year than a teacher with the same educational attainment and longevity, according to an analysis of <a href="https://www.uft.org/sites/default/files/attachments/teachers-salary-schedules-2023.pdf">salary schedules</a>.<br /><br />An internal survey by the UFT chapter showed more than two-thirds of members currently have a “side-gig,” including part-time jobs and contract work, to supplement their work as full-time school therapists.<br /><br />Therapists were told they could voluntarily work an extra session at 12.5% of their daily rate to earn more money. But the option was largely unpopular as it would entail working longer hours, <a href="https://ny.chalkbeat.org/2023/7/12/23793139/utf-new-york-city-teachers-union-contract-pay-raise-occupational-physical-therapists">only to make less than similarly educated teachers</a>.<br /><br />Mulgrew in the Wednesday email to school therapists touted that the deal “increases control over how you spend your workday.”<br /><br />Mimi Greenberg, an occupational therapist on the contract negotiation committee, said the chapter only found out about the option once it was already in the tentative agreement with the city.<br /><br />Critics of the deal also argue that therapists’ necessary degrees and certifications make for some of the biggest student loan burdens in the city’s public school system.<br /><br />“It is a true shame that union share tactics, and whatever else drove the vote, won out over personal integrity and democracy,” said Greenberg. “I consider this a very sad experience.”</span><p class="default__StyledText-sc-1wxyvyl-0 hnShxL body-paragraph" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; letter-spacing: 0.1px; line-height: 2.5rem; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; padding: 0px;"><br /></p>Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-2431213261331784272023-08-27T14:35:00.001-04:002023-08-27T14:35:18.893-04:00The NYC Department of Education Ignores Ethical Rules, Gives High-Paying Jobs to Danika and Shawn Rux<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinYDuzK7LGhQRB7yWLOiSb0M7uXLWwqXqbBznWnII6O4l__kZlkw39iSpHVKtteRucvsx7NURy0FbB1mNvM1cCt0R6hNSzPoqzZavND0ZoQfPhkv6Kdb1DMsEmzbRh-MGxSzFqnvsKx1JgMfmXTU0akeC96sKmiSE0veR8wtZFgVmBuRlWwvFqUpB57h4/s598/Danika%20Rux.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="314" data-original-width="598" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinYDuzK7LGhQRB7yWLOiSb0M7uXLWwqXqbBznWnII6O4l__kZlkw39iSpHVKtteRucvsx7NURy0FbB1mNvM1cCt0R6hNSzPoqzZavND0ZoQfPhkv6Kdb1DMsEmzbRh-MGxSzFqnvsKx1JgMfmXTU0akeC96sKmiSE0veR8wtZFgVmBuRlWwvFqUpB57h4/w400-h210/Danika%20Rux.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Danika and Shawn Rux</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>Have you ever heard anyone at the New York City Department of Education tell someone "Do as I say not as I do"?</div><div><br /></div><div>Perhaps your parent told you that after they did something that they told you not to do.</div><div><br /></div><div>The NYC DOE has structured its rules of compliance with the laws of New York State so that there is one set of rules for Superintendents, Deputy Chancellors, executive directors, legal, and relatives and/or friends of any of these "officials", and another set for everyone else.</div><div><br /></div><div>Anyone who is recommended by a person at the Superintendent level or above, or favored "friends with benefits" below the Superintendent level, does not get the mandated vetting by Human Resources (Capital Management, HR, whatever you want to call this office). See <a href="https://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/search?q=David+Hay">the case of David Hay</a>. </div><div><br /></div><div>This hiring process is always kept secret from the public.</div><div><br /></div><div>At no time do any of the privileged prospective employees submit their name or issue to the <a href="https://www.nyc.gov/site/coib/about/about-coib.page">Conflict of Interest Board ("COIB")</a>. COIB ethics rules do not apply to them:</div><div><br /></div><div><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><em>"The main purpose of ethics laws lies not in punishing wrongdoing, but in preventing it, not in catching people, but in teaching them.</em></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">The Conflicts of Interest Board is the independent New York City agency tasked with administering, enforcing and interpreting Chapter 68 of the New York City Charter, the City's Conflicts of Interest Law, and Section 12-110 of the Administrative Code, the City's Annual Disclosure Law. We hope you'll enjoy learning more about this agency, and government ethics in general, by exploring the tabs on the left and the other offerings on our site.</p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">Through a combination of engaging training, confidential advice, and vigorous enforcement, the Board seeks to prevent ethics questions from becoming ethics problems for public servants. Ultimately, however, integrity in City government rests upon all of us, public servant and private citizen alike. Only when each of us plays his or her part will the public trust inherent in public service be ensured."</p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">I am familiar with this disregard for rules of ethics. In 2013 a principal was served 3020-a charges, and her CSA Attorney was Charity Guerra. During the hearings, Ms. Guerra suddenly quit, in order to take the job of <a href="https://www.schools.nyc.gov/about-us/leadership/legal">Deputy General Counsel of the NYC Department of Education</a>. I was shown the email sent from Ms. Guerra to this charged principal. In this email, Charity Guerra informed her that she realized her conflict of interest, yet wished her former client the best of luck. No COIB Complaint was filed and no fine was given.</p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">In 2019, however, Ms. Guerra tried to go around COIB, but COIB filed an enforcement action against her, <a href="https://archive.citylaw.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/coib/ED/arch-19/Guerra-Disposition.pdf">COIB Case No. 2016-932</a>, resulting in a penalty fine of $3,500.</p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">"I acknowledge that, by having the Executive Deputy Counsel for Risk Management and Litigation, who was my subordinate, perform a personal task for me related to the Lawsuit, I used my City position to obtain a private advantage in violation of City Charter§ 2604(b)(3), which states:</p><p style="background-color: white; margin: 0px 0px 10px;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><i>No public servant shall use or attempt to use his or her position as a public servant to obtain any financial gain, contract, license, privilege or other private or personal advantage, direct or indirect, for the public servant or any person or firm associated with the public servant."</i></span></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">We can all see that the rules apply to the NYC DOE VIPs only if or when they get caught.</p><p style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">Thanks to reporter Susan Edelman, Danika and Shawn Rux "got caught". See article in the NY POST below.</p></div><div><p style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">Betsy Combier</p><p style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><i style="color: #202124; font-family: Roboto, arial, sans-serif;"></i></p><div style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: justify;"><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;">betsy@advocatz.com</span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;"><br /></span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: quot;">Editor, </span><span style="color: #582995;"><a href="http://advocatz.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">ADVOCATZ.com</span></a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;">Editor, <span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="https://advocatz.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;">ADVOCATZ Blog</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Rubber Room Reporter</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://www.parentadvocates.org/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Parentadvocates.org</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://newyorkcourtcorruption.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">New York Court Corruption</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nationalpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">National Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Public Voice</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials</a></span></b></div><div><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><br /></b></div></div></div><div><br /></div><div><h1 class="headline headline--single" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--black); font-family: neue-haas-grotesk-display, sans-serif; font-size: 2.625rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.05; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://nypost.com/2023/08/26/nyc-doe-hires-husband-of-deputy-chancellor-in-secret-deal/">NYC DOE hires husband of deputy chancellor in secret promotion deal</a></h1><div>By Susan Edelman, NY POST, </div><p><span color="var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g)" face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em;">The husband of schools Chancellor David Banks’ newly appointed $265,000-a-year deputy chancellor of leadership scored a high-paying job in the city Department of Education as part of a secret deal to ensure his wife’s promotion, insiders told The Post.</span></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_IuEuaWD3NnY43OlHPKrl2w-4mbQyRo-vEcnTvHEvmLFpIdzs9HgEYLs5V7aL0YIoP0y2NNHw94eyBoC1am80WqLgIszBKLgkNsMAHTM-HfVaWOc358vHcwPUZM4Lce2fdFz6qIjOP4uxuDIHxi79-J1wOhy8XYHHPc7VfbS3gUkqTBCwZHjhiPW-HSw/s492/Shawn%20Rux.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="492" data-original-width="404" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_IuEuaWD3NnY43OlHPKrl2w-4mbQyRo-vEcnTvHEvmLFpIdzs9HgEYLs5V7aL0YIoP0y2NNHw94eyBoC1am80WqLgIszBKLgkNsMAHTM-HfVaWOc358vHcwPUZM4Lce2fdFz6qIjOP4uxuDIHxi79-J1wOhy8XYHHPc7VfbS3gUkqTBCwZHjhiPW-HSw/s320/Shawn%20Rux.jpg" width="263" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.14px; text-align: left;">Shawn Rux will be the executive director of the DOE's Office of School Design and Charter Partnerships</span><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #585858; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.14px; text-align: left;">.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span color="var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g)" face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span color="var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g)" face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em;">Shawn Rux, the husband of Danika Rux, landed a gig as executive director of the DOE’s Office of School Design and Charter Partnerships starting on September 5, replacing the retiring Daniella Phillips, whose salary was $195,000 last year, sources said.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“It’s the ‘friends and family’ program,” a DOE staffer said sarcastically.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Danika Rux was a DOE superintendent when her husband founded an educational consulting firm, <a href="https://www.ruxway.education/">Ruxway Inc., </a>in March 2020. The firm has since collected $253,450 in DOE payments, records show.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Under city Conflicts of Interest Board rules, any public servant whose spouse owns a company that does business with the city must obtain an order granting permission to retain a financial interest in it.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“The board has not issued an order to Danica Rux,” said Carolyn Lisa Miller, the COIB’s executive director.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Miller said she cannot comment on any alleged misconduct by a city employee “until such time as the board makes a final finding of a violation of the conflicts of interest law.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Chancellor Banks appointed Danika Rux — whom he previously named a <a href="https://nypost.com/2022/10/08/chancellor-david-banks-pumps-up-doe-bureaucracy-amid-budget-cuts-to-schools/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">“chief of school support”</a> making $222,972 — his <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=danika%20rux%20%40doechancellor&src=typed_query&f=top" rel="noreferrer noopener" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">deputy chancellor of leadership</a> on Aug. 10. She replaced Desmond Blackburn, a Florida import who <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/02/11/desmond-blackburn-dumps-nyc-doe-after-one-year/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">quit after a year</a>. The job involves supervising the DOE’s 45 superintendents.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Before her latest promotion, officials reportedly set a condition: “The deal was: for her to be deputy chancellor, (Shawn Rux) had to give up his business,” said a source close to the arrangement.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In exchange, Shawn Rux was promised a job in the DOE, the source claimed. “It’s the foul stench of nepotism.” </p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The office that Shawn Rux will lead oversees the closing or merging of schools, a rare occurrence in recent years. It also helps schools co-located with charters.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“This is an extremely low-profile gig,” a staffer said.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">DOE spokesman Nathaniel Styer said Friday, “We are still in the process of hiring for this role.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">But insiders said Shawn Rux met with the office staff that morning and introduced himself as their new boss. Styer had no response.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Shawn Rux, the principal of MS 53 in Far Rockaway from 2011 to 2016, was <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/money/2012/12/14/167194092/how-a-middle-school-principal-convinced-students-to-come-to-school" rel="noreferrer noopener" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">featured in news stories </a>for creating “Rux Bux,” vouchers for school supplies or lunches that students earned for good behavior. He also raffled tickets for prizes, like an Xbox, to get kids to come to school.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">He was promoted to deputy superintendent in 2017 and left the DOE in 2021 to <a href="https://www.rockawave.com/articles/principal-turned-politician/" rel="noreferrer noopener" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">run for a City Council seat</a>, unsuccessfully.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">He then founded <a href="https://www.ruxway.education/work-with-us" rel="noreferrer noopener" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">Ruxway Inc</a>. The company offered keynote speaking, leadership coaching, “school turnaround” guidance, and “culture/climate support.” </p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">It’s not the only case in which the school’s chancellor has favored friends, insiders said.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Banks <a href="https://nypost.com/2022/10/08/chancellor-banks-and-mayor-adams-hire-each-others-beaus/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">named Tracey Collins </a>— a DOE administrator and Mayor Adams’ longtime girlfriend – as a “senior advisor to the deputy chancellor of school leadership,” then Blackburn. She started that job in July 2022 with a 23% raise to $221,597.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Banks and Danika Rux would not answer questions. Shawn Rux did not return messages seeking comment.</p></div>Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-19717663589050213752023-08-05T15:58:00.005-04:002023-08-05T16:16:29.973-04:00District 7 Superintendent Roberto Padilla Has Not Responded To the Sexual Harassment Charges Filed Against Him in Federal Court <p> Whenever the NYC Department of Education hires an administrator-level person who has been accused of, or found guilty of, serious misconduct, people in NYC wonder what the heck is up with that?</p><p>I don't. Individuals who are accused of serious wrongdoing need a job, and the NYC Department of Education need high-office individuals who will keep the secrets of the Department safe from public view, including their own.</p><p>Be sure, there are a lot of secret deals behind closed doors within the NYC Department of Education.</p><p><i>Just sayin</i>".......</p><p style="color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; font-style: normal;">Betsy Combier</p><p><i style="background-color: white; color: #202124; font-family: Roboto, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"></i></p><div style="color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; font-style: normal; text-align: justify;"><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;">betsy@advocatz.com</span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;"><br /></span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: quot;">Editor, </span><span style="color: #582995;"><a href="http://advocatz.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration: none;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">ADVOCATZ.com</span></a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;">Editor, <span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="https://advocatz.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration: none;">ADVOCATZ Blog</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration: none;">NYC Rubber Room Reporter</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://www.parentadvocates.org/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration: none;"> Parentadvocates.org</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://newyorkcourtcorruption.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration: none;">New York Court Corruption</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nationalpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration: none;">National Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration: none;">NYC Public Voice</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration: none;"> Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials</a></span></b></div></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO2h0PNJajybCTR5JGiX81Da0NQio-owNxdNrNbM4znyIIlF7xMgGVf-cvaqImIB6ejdAi9TPpu_N8k4A75cytDdJxbS2mDiFYdacTL9kDbiJ6GXAJ8tLby01leTbcOrqeO_hYDuUP6wNlK8bsTl_KDr7mPHP97ZOA2DEb935AdodxaItdoBTpRzzWYVs/s675/Roberto%20Padilla.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="675" data-original-width="582" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO2h0PNJajybCTR5JGiX81Da0NQio-owNxdNrNbM4znyIIlF7xMgGVf-cvaqImIB6ejdAi9TPpu_N8k4A75cytDdJxbS2mDiFYdacTL9kDbiJ6GXAJ8tLby01leTbcOrqeO_hYDuUP6wNlK8bsTl_KDr7mPHP97ZOA2DEb935AdodxaItdoBTpRzzWYVs/w345-h400/Roberto%20Padilla.jpg" width="345" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: "PT Serif", serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: start;">Roberto Padilla </span><span style="font-family: "PT Serif", serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: start;">(Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office)</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><br /></div><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/education/ny-bronx-superintendent-padilla-accused-sexual-harassment-ignored-lawsuit-20230804-yefntz6gh5egdoeku7knrwtou4-story.html">Bronx school superintendent fails to respond to sexual harassment lawsuit as accusers seek default judgment</a></span><div><div style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #767676; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: 600;">By <span style="box-sizing: inherit;"><a class="decoration_none hover_underline color_primary" href="https://www.nydailynews.com/cayla-bamberger-staff.html#nt=byline" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; text-decoration-line: none; transition: color 0.3s ease 0s;">Cayla Bamberger</a>, </span>New York Daily News, August 4, 2023</div><div class="display-dot-separator byline--dot-separator | margin-xxs-left margin-xxs-right" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #767676; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: 600; margin-left: 0.25rem; margin-right: 0.25rem;"><br /></div><div style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: 600;"><p class="default__StyledText-sc-1wxyvyl-0 hnShxL body-paragraph" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: 0.1px; line-height: 2.5rem; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; padding: 0px;">Two former educators <a href="https://www.edweek.org/education/opinion-sexual-harassment-assault-in-schools/2020/06" style="box-sizing: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; transition: color 0.3s ease 0s;" target="_blank">accusing a Bronx superintendent of sexual harassment</a> have asked a state judge to rule in their favor after the school head failed to respond to the complaint, according to court documents. </p><p class="default__StyledText-sc-1wxyvyl-0 hnShxL body-paragraph" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: 0.1px; line-height: 2.5rem; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; padding: 0px;">(Tracy Y. Allen v Roberto Padilla, 22-cv-09523-CS, SDNY)</p><p class="default__StyledText-sc-1wxyvyl-0 hnShxL body-paragraph" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: 0.1px; line-height: 2.5rem; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: black;"><a href="https://ny.chalkbeat.org/2022/6/28/23187274/nycs-pick-for-bronx-superintendent-is-being-sued-for-sexual-harassment" style="box-sizing: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; transition: color 0.3s ease 0s;" target="_blank">Superintendent Roberto Padilla</a> of School District 7 was served last summer with a lawsuit alleging he made inappropriate comments and <a href="https://www.edweek.org/leadership/even-in-a-field-dominated-by-women-25-of-female-educators-say-metoo/2018/06" style="box-sizing: inherit; text-decoration-line: none; transition: color 0.3s ease 0s;" target="_blank">advances toward female employees</a> when he led a public school system in the Hudson Valley.</span></p><p class="default__StyledText-sc-1wxyvyl-0 hnShxL body-paragraph" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: 0.1px; line-height: 2.5rem; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; padding: 0px;">Lawyers for the plaintiffs told the News that Padilla has not appeared in court or responded to the lawsuit, leading them to file <a href="https://iapps.courts.state.ny.us/fbem/DocumentDisplayServlet?documentId=TFXWnZB6nnenoCQ_PLUS_zHAj5w==&system=prod" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2278ce; text-decoration-line: none; transition: color 0.3s ease 0s;" target="_blank">a motion for default judgment Monday in Orange County trial court</a>.</p><p class="default__StyledText-sc-1wxyvyl-0 hnShxL body-paragraph" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: 0.1px; line-height: 2.5rem; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; padding: 0px;">“A year has passed since Defendant Padilla was served, and to date, no appearance, answer or reply has been forthcoming from Defendant Padilla or their representatives,” read court documents.</p><p class="default__StyledText-sc-1wxyvyl-0 hnShxL body-paragraph" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #767676; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: 0.1px; line-height: 2.5rem; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; padding: 0px;"><span style="color: #191919; letter-spacing: 0.1px;">“It is apparent that Defendant Padilla will not proceed with their defense.”</span><br /></p><p class="default__StyledText-sc-1wxyvyl-0 hnShxL body-paragraph" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: 0.1px; line-height: 2.5rem; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; padding: 0px;">Even though the lawsuit was pending, Padilla was hired to lead two dozen schools in the South Bronx last year as part of <a href="https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/education/ny-new-superintendents-bureaucratic-shakeup-david-banks-education-department-20220627-c5loyccvxff4hb2ny6ukpolpra-story.html" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2278ce; text-decoration-line: none; transition: color 0.3s ease 0s;" target="_blank">a broader leadership shakeup ordered by Chancellor David Banks</a> that had the city’s 45 superintendents reapply for their jobs.</p><div id="ad_div_f0fCJZb6sf3YM97" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: 400;"></div><div id="ad_div_f0f3KGkcsf3Y6Q8" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: 400;"></div><p class="default__StyledText-sc-1wxyvyl-0 hnShxL body-paragraph" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: 0.1px; line-height: 2.5rem; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; padding: 0px;">But the selection of Padilla, who has denied the allegations, <a href="https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/education/ny-new-bronx-school-superintendent-fired-newburgh-20220628-kvyf6qcbrrbgvb3hsm4pazeveq-story.html" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2278ce; text-decoration-line: none; transition: color 0.3s ease 0s;" target="_blank">stirred instant controversy</a>.</p><p class="default__StyledText-sc-1wxyvyl-0 hnShxL body-paragraph" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: 0.1px; line-height: 2.5rem; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; padding: 0px;">“There was a civil action that was taken, and that hasn’t been finalized yet,” said City Council Deputy Speaker Diana Ayala (D-Bronx), who has pushed back against Padilla’s hiring with an ongoing lawsuit. “I would’ve imagined that the process would be required to be finalized before you make a hiring decision that could impact hundreds of individuals working under him.”</p><p class="default__StyledText-sc-1wxyvyl-0 hnShxL body-paragraph" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: 0.1px; line-height: 2.5rem; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; padding: 0px;">“The fact that we have a superintendent that has an accusation of this nature, who is not reporting back to court or replying, is even more unsettling.”</p><p class="default__StyledText-sc-1wxyvyl-0 hnShxL body-paragraph" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: 0.1px; line-height: 2.5rem; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; padding: 0px;">Two educators from his former district of Newburgh — Una Miller, a former principal and Elizabeth Walsh, a former teacher — allege Padilla made inappropriate comments and advances towards them during a work trip two summers ago in San Diego. An independent investigator appointed by the local school board substantiated Miller’s claims.</p><div id="ad_div_f0fnfvGgsf3YMj10" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: 400;"></div><p class="default__StyledText-sc-1wxyvyl-0 hnShxL body-paragraph" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: 0.1px; line-height: 2.5rem; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; padding: 0px;">“We live with the consequences of Dr. Padilla’s actions every day, but by ignoring our lawsuit he is attempting to escape responsibility,” Miller and Walsh said in a statement to the Daily News.</p><p class="default__StyledText-sc-1wxyvyl-0 hnShxL body-paragraph" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: 0.1px; line-height: 2.5rem; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; padding: 0px;">“Dr. Padilla continues to be employed as a Superintendent, and was paid severance from Newburgh while receiving his new salary. As educators, we taught our students to take responsibility for their actions,” they added.</p><div id="ad_div_f0f5pLIisf3Yd111" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: 400;"></div><p class="default__StyledText-sc-1wxyvyl-0 hnShxL body-paragraph" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: 0.1px; line-height: 2.5rem; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; padding: 0px;">Padilla <a href="https://www.recordonline.com/story/news/2021/12/30/newburgh-superintendent-agrees-resign-after-sexual-harassment-probe/9055202002/" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2278ce; text-decoration-line: none; transition: color 0.3s ease 0s;">resigned from Newburgh schools</a> that winter after the district agreed to continue paying his $279,000 salary for two years.</p><p class="default__StyledText-sc-1wxyvyl-0 hnShxL body-paragraph" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: 0.1px; line-height: 2.5rem; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; padding: 0px;">In response, Miller and Walsh brought the lawsuit in May 2022. Padilla was served with the summons and complaint last summer but did not respond, starting a one-year clock for the plaintiffs to file a motion for default judgement.</p><p class="default__StyledText-sc-1wxyvyl-0 hnShxL body-paragraph" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: 0.1px; line-height: 2.5rem; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; padding: 0px;">Padilla could not be reached Thursday but has <a href="https://spectrumlocalnews.com/nys/hudson-valley/education/2022/01/04/orange-county-da-to-investigate-payout-to-departing-newburgh-superintendent" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2278ce; text-decoration-line: none; transition: color 0.3s ease 0s;" target="_blank">previously denied wrongdoing</a>, while city education officials would not say if they were denying the allegations.</p><p class="default__StyledText-sc-1wxyvyl-0 hnShxL body-paragraph" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: 0.1px; line-height: 2.5rem; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; padding: 0px;">“We take all claims of harassment seriously and believe that they should be thoroughly investigated,” said public schools spokesman Nathaniel Styer in a statement.</p><div id="ad_div_f0f5pLIisf3Yd112" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 18px; font-weight: 400;"></div><p class="default__StyledText-sc-1wxyvyl-0 hnShxL body-paragraph" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: 0.1px; line-height: 2.5rem; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; padding: 0px;">The Newburgh public schools have denied wrongdoing that contributed to the alleged harassment or women’s resignations from the district, including that it failed to make its sexual harassment prevention training video interactive, according to court documents.</p><p class="default__StyledText-sc-1wxyvyl-0 hnShxL body-paragraph" style="box-sizing: inherit; 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display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 0; flex-shrink: 1; line-height: 1; padding-left: 20px; padding-right: 20px; width: 951.996px;"><cnx class="cnx-ui-ps-nav cnx-ui-ps-video-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: content-box; display: flex; flex-direction: row; flex-shrink: 0; height: 40px; line-height: 1; margin-bottom: 10px; width: 912.001px;"><cnx class="cnx-ui-btn" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; flex-shrink: 0; height: 38.4px; line-height: 1; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px !important; margin-right: 3px; margin-top: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 38.4px;"><cnx aria-label="Unmute (m)" class="cnx-icon-button cnx-ui-btn-hoverable cnx-sound-off" role="button" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: flex; height: 38.3929px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; position: relative; width: 38.3929px;" tabindex="0"><cnx class="cnx-btn-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"><cnx class="cnx-mute-icon" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"><svg class="cnx-color-icon" markup-inline="" viewbox="0 0 24 24" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><path d="M11 2L8.25 4.25 11 7zM0 7v9h5l6 5v-6.5L3.85 7zm17 4.5c0-1.965-1.2-3.735-3-4.5v3l2.8 2.8a3.73 3.73 0 00.2-1.3zm3.4 7.45l-1.85-1.85-2.65-2.6-1.9-1.95-3-3-4.15-4.1-4.95-5L1.45 0 0 1.45 17.15 18.6 19 20.4l3.55 3.6L24 22.55zM14 23a11.83 11.83 0 003.65-1.55l-1.25-1.3c-.747.498-1.553.902-2.4 1.2V23zm9-11.5A11.77 11.77 0 0014 0v1.6A10.53 10.53 0 0120 16l1.45 1.45A11.99 11.99 0 0023 11.5z"></path></svg></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-boom-elem" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-ui-progress-label" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: border-box; color: white; display: flex; flex: 0 0 auto; font-size: 12px; height: 14px; justify-content: center; line-height: 14px; min-width: 40px; padding: 0px 4px; text-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.25) 0px 2px 2px; width: auto;"><cnx-span role="timer" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: content-box; display: flex; line-height: 1; text-wrap: nowrap;">00:39</cnx-span></cnx><cnx class="cnx-slides-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; display: flex; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding: 12px 4px; position: relative; width: 790.625px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; display: flex; height: 3px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 3px; line-height: 1; overflow: hidden; pointer-events: none; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.4); border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 2.9937px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 10;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-fill cnx-color-accent" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: #333333; box-sizing: content-box; color: white; display: block; fill: rgb(51, 51, 51); height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; stroke: rgb(51, 51, 51); transition: none 0s ease 0s; width: 65.218px; z-index: 20;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-follow" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-hitarea" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; padding-top: 18px; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; display: flex; height: 3px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 3px; line-height: 1; overflow: hidden; pointer-events: none; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.4); border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 2.9937px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 10;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-fill cnx-color-accent" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: #333333; box-sizing: content-box; color: white; display: block; fill: rgb(51, 51, 51); height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; stroke: rgb(51, 51, 51); transition: none 0s ease 0s; width: 65.218px; z-index: 20;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-follow" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-hitarea" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; padding-top: 18px; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; display: flex; height: 3px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 3px; line-height: 1; overflow: hidden; pointer-events: none; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.4); border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 2.9937px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 10;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-fill cnx-color-accent" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: #333333; box-sizing: content-box; color: white; display: block; fill: rgb(51, 51, 51); height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; stroke: rgb(51, 51, 51); transition: none 0s ease 0s; width: 65.218px; z-index: 20;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-follow" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-hitarea" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; padding-top: 18px; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; display: flex; height: 3px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 3px; line-height: 1; overflow: hidden; pointer-events: none; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.4); border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 2.9937px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 10;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-fill cnx-color-accent" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: #333333; box-sizing: content-box; color: white; display: block; fill: rgb(51, 51, 51); height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; stroke: rgb(51, 51, 51); transition: none 0s ease 0s; width: 65.218px; z-index: 20;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-follow" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-hitarea" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; padding-top: 18px; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; display: flex; height: 3px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 3px; line-height: 1; overflow: hidden; pointer-events: none; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.4); border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 2.9937px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 10;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-fill cnx-color-accent" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: #333333; box-sizing: content-box; color: white; display: block; fill: rgb(51, 51, 51); height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; stroke: rgb(51, 51, 51); transition: none 0s ease 0s; width: 65.218px; z-index: 20;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-follow" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-hitarea" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; padding-top: 18px; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; display: flex; height: 3px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 3px; line-height: 1; overflow: hidden; pointer-events: none; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.4); border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 2.9937px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 10;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-fill cnx-color-accent" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: #333333; box-sizing: content-box; color: white; display: block; fill: rgb(51, 51, 51); height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; stroke: rgb(51, 51, 51); transition: none 0s ease 0s; width: 65.218px; z-index: 20;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-follow" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-hitarea" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; padding-top: 18px; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; display: flex; height: 3px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 3px; line-height: 1; overflow: hidden; pointer-events: none; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.4); border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 2.9937px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 10;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-fill cnx-color-accent" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: #333333; box-sizing: content-box; color: white; display: block; fill: rgb(51, 51, 51); height: 2.9937px; left: -65.218px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; stroke: rgb(51, 51, 51); transform: translateX(65.218px); transition: transform 6000ms linear 0s; width: 65.218px; z-index: 20;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-follow" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-hitarea" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; padding-top: 18px; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; display: flex; height: 3px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 3px; line-height: 1; overflow: hidden; pointer-events: none; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.4); border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 2.9937px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 10;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-fill cnx-color-accent" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: #333333; box-sizing: content-box; color: white; display: block; fill: rgb(51, 51, 51); height: 2.9937px; left: -65.218px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; stroke: rgb(51, 51, 51); transition: none 0s ease 0s; width: 65.218px; z-index: 20;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-follow" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-hitarea" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; padding-top: 18px; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; display: flex; height: 3px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 3px; line-height: 1; overflow: hidden; pointer-events: none; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.4); border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 2.9937px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 10;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-fill cnx-color-accent" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: #333333; box-sizing: content-box; color: white; display: block; fill: rgb(51, 51, 51); height: 2.9937px; left: -65.218px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; stroke: rgb(51, 51, 51); transition: none 0s ease 0s; width: 65.218px; z-index: 20;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-follow" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-hitarea" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; padding-top: 18px; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; display: flex; height: 3px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 3px; line-height: 1; overflow: hidden; pointer-events: none; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.4); border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 2.9937px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 10;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-fill cnx-color-accent" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); 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transform-origin: left top; transition: color 0.3s ease 0s; width: auto;">Trump lawyer John Lauro makes admission</cnx><cnx class="cnx-inherit-body-font-family cnx-ui__span--text cnx-color-primary cnx-top-title-highlight-text-inner-container cnx-ui-ps-highlight-text" style="--max-title-lines: 2; --min-title-lines: 2; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); animation-delay: 0.4s; animation-duration: 0.6s; animation-fill-mode: both; animation-name: cnxSlideIn; animation-timing-function: ease-in-out; background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; box-sizing: border-box; clear: both; color: black; display: block; float: left; font-family: Georgia, serif !important; font-weight: 700; left: 4px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: -1px; max-width: calc(100% - 4px); opacity: 1; overflow: hidden; padding: 4px 10px 6px; position: relative; text-overflow: ellipsis; text-wrap: nowrap; transform-origin: left top; transition: color 0.3s ease 0s; width: auto;">about Jan. 6 case</cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-ui-ps__vertical-line cnx-color-accent" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: #333333; box-sizing: content-box; color: white; display: block; fill: rgb(51, 51, 51); float: left; height: 65.021px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; stroke: rgb(51, 51, 51); top: 0px; transform-origin: center top; transform: scaleY(1); transition: transform 0.2s ease-in 0s; width: 4px; z-index: 2;"></cnx></cnx></a></cnx></cnx></cnx></cnx></cnx></cnx></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><div id="ad_div_f0fkaMi1sf3Y0b1" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #767676;"><div class="ad_wrapper" id="outstream_1_wrapper" style="box-sizing: inherit; min-height: 0px; position: relative; z-index: 4 !important;"><div class="ad_container width_100 bg-color_white flex flex_justify_center display-none" style="background-color: white; 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left: 0px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; top: 0px; width: 951.996px; z-index: 10;"><cnx class="cnx-ui-click-to-play-overlay" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.3); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 607.484px; justify-content: center; left: 0px; line-height: 1; opacity: 0; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.25s ease-in-out 0s; visibility: hidden; width: 951.996px; z-index: 20;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-playspace-content" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; flex-shrink: 0; line-height: 1; position: relative;"><cnx class="cnx-ratio" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 0px; line-height: 1; padding-bottom: 535.491px; position: relative; width: 951.996px; z-index: -1;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-ui-click-to-play-btn" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); border-color: transparent !important; border-radius: 28px; box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: block; fill: none !important; left: 475.998px; line-height: 1; opacity: 0; position: absolute; stroke: none !important; top: 267.739px; transform: translateY(-50%) translateX(-50%); transition: opacity 0.45s ease-in-out 0s; visibility: hidden; z-index: 21;"><cnx class="cnx-ui-click-to-play-btn-content" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border-radius: 42px; box-sizing: content-box; display: flex; flex-direction: row; height: 80px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; width: 80px;"><svg class="cnx-click-to-play-btn-icon cnx-color-accent" markup-inline="" viewbox="0 0 24 24" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><path d="M5 1v22l18-11.083z"></path></svg><cnx class="cnx-onion-ring" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); border-radius: 100px; border: 2px solid rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 79.9895px; left: -2px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; top: -2px; transform-origin: center center; transform: scale(0.8); width: 79.9895px;"></cnx></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-ui-ratio-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex: 1 1 auto; height: 535.491px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; pointer-events: none; position: absolute; top: 0px; width: 951.996px; z-index: 10;"><cnx class="cnx-ui-ps-head" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: border-box; display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex: 0 0 auto; height: auto !important; line-height: 1; padding: 20px; width: 951.996px;"><cnx class="cnx-ui-ps-subhead cnx-ui-ps-side-mg" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: content-box; display: flex; height: 44px; justify-content: space-between; line-height: 1; padding: 0px !important;"><cnx class="cnx-ui-ps-branding" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: content-box; display: flex; justify-content: flex-start; line-height: 1; min-width: 0px;"><cnx class="cnx-top-title" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: content-box; display: flex; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; min-height: 32px; opacity: 1;"><cnx class="cnx-top-title-logo-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: flex; flex-direction: column; height: 44px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; margin-right: 2px; overflow: hidden; pointer-events: all; width: 44px;"><img alt="" class="cnx-top-title-logo cnx-top-title-logo-portrait" src="https://img.connatix.com/pid-7cc63adc-0862-4988-9c5e-874de03b41fd/7cc63adc-0862-4988-9c5e-874de03b41fd/1.png" style="box-sizing: inherit; height: 43.9995px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px;" /></cnx><cnx class="cnx-top-title-text-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: flex; flex-direction: column; line-height: 1; min-width: 0px; opacity: 1 !important; position: relative; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.3s ease-in 2s;"><cnx class="cnx-top-title-story-text cnx-inherit-title-font-family cnx-mod-active" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; font-family: Georgia, serif !important; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 700; line-height: 1;"><cnx class="cnx-top-title-highlight-text-placeholder" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; clear: both; display: block; float: left; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; hyphens: none; line-height: 1; max-width: 100%; overflow: hidden;"><cnx class="cnx-top-title-highlight-text cnx-color-secondary" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; box-sizing: border-box !important; color: black; display: block; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: auto; left: 0px !important; line-height: 1; max-width: 100%; padding: 2px 5px; position: relative;"><cnx class="cnx-top-title-highlight-text-outer-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; height: auto; left: 0px; line-height: 1; opacity: 1 !important; position: relative; width: 93.947px;"><cnx class="cnx-top-title-highlight-text-inner-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 1.2em; overflow: hidden; position: relative; text-overflow: ellipsis; text-wrap: nowrap; width: 93.947px;">Top Stories</cnx></cnx></cnx></cnx></cnx></cnx></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-ui-ps-btns" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: content-box; display: flex; flex-shrink: 0; justify-content: flex-end; line-height: 1; margin-right: -4px;"><cnx class="cnx-ui-btn cnx-context-controller" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; flex-shrink: 0; height: 38.4px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 38.4px;"><cnx aria-controls="cnx-ui-cm-settings" aria-expanded="false" aria-haspopup="true" aria-label="More" class="cnx-icon-button cnx-button-morebutton cnx-ui-btn-hoverable" role="button" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: flex; height: 38.3929px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; position: relative; width: 38.3929px;" tabindex="0"><cnx class="cnx-btn-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"><svg class="cnx-color-icon" viewbox="0 0 22 22" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><path d="M11 7c1.1 0 2-.9 2-2s-.9-2-2-2-2 .9-2 2 .9 2 2 2zm0 2c-1.1 0-2 .9-2 2s.9 2 2 2 2-.9 2-2-.9-2-2-2zm0 6c-1.1 0-2 .9-2 2s.9 2 2 2 2-.9 2-2-.9-2-2-2z"></path></svg></cnx><cnx class="cnx-boom-elem" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-ui-btn cnx-close-button" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-self: flex-end; box-sizing: content-box; display: block; flex-shrink: 0; height: 38.4px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px; pointer-events: auto; position: relative; visibility: hidden; width: 38.4px; z-index: 4;"><cnx aria-label="Close Player" class="cnx-icon-button cnx-button-closebutton cnx-ui-btn-hoverable" role="button" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: flex; height: 38.3929px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; pointer-events: auto; position: relative; width: 38.3929px;" tabindex="0"><cnx class="cnx-btn-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"><svg class="cnx-color-icon" viewbox="0 0 22 22" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><path d="M18 5.4L16.6 4 11 9.6 5.4 4 4 5.4 9.6 11 4 16.6 5.4 18l5.6-5.6 5.6 5.6 1.4-1.4-5.6-5.6z"></path></svg></cnx><cnx class="cnx-boom-elem" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx></cnx></cnx></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-ui-ps-center cnx-ui-ps-side-mg" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; flex-shrink: 1; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding-left: 20px; padding-right: 20px; width: 951.996px;"><cnx class="cnx-ui-ps-controls--wrapper" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: content-box; display: flex; justify-content: left; line-height: 1;"><cnx class="cnx-ui-ps-controls" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: flex; justify-content: space-between; line-height: 1; opacity: 0; transition: opacity 0.25s ease-in-out 2s; width: 150px;"><cnx class="cnx-ui-btn cnx-ui-ps-nav-btn" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: unset !important; flex-shrink: 0; height: 38.4px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 38.4px;"><cnx aria-label="Previous (Shift + P)" class="cnx-icon-button cnx-button-previousbutton cnx-ui-btn-hoverable" role="button" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: flex; height: 38.3929px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; position: relative; width: 38.3929px;" tabindex="0"><cnx class="cnx-btn-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"><svg class="cnx-color-icon" viewbox="0 0 24 24" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><path d="M18 21h3V3h-3v18zM3 21l14-9L3 3v18z" fill-rule="evenodd"></path></svg></cnx><cnx class="cnx-boom-elem" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-ui-btn" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; flex-shrink: 0; height: 38.4px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 38.4px;"><cnx aria-hidden="false" aria-label="Pause (SPACE)" class="cnx-icon-button cnx-ui-btn-hoverable " role="button" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: flex; height: 38.3929px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; position: relative; width: 38.3929px;" tabindex="0"><cnx class="cnx-btn-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"><cnx class="cnx-pause-icon" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"><svg class="cnx-color-icon" viewbox="0 0 24 24" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><path d="M9 21H3V3h6v18zm12 0h-6V3h6v18z" fill-rule="evenodd"></path></svg></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-boom-elem" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-ui-btn cnx-ui-ps-nav-btn" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: unset !important; flex-shrink: 0; height: 38.4px; line-height: 1; margin: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 38.4px;"><cnx aria-label="Next (Shift + N)" class="cnx-icon-button cnx-button-upnextbutton cnx-ui-btn-hoverable" role="button" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: flex; height: 38.3929px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; position: relative; width: 38.3929px;" tabindex="0"><cnx class="cnx-btn-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"><svg class="cnx-color-icon" viewbox="0 0 24 24" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><path d="M18 21h3V3h-3v18zM3 21l14-9L3 3v18z" fill-rule="evenodd"></path></svg></cnx><cnx class="cnx-boom-elem" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx></cnx></cnx></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-ui-ps-footer cnx-ui-ps-side-mg" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: border-box; display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 0; flex-shrink: 1; line-height: 1; padding-left: 20px; padding-right: 20px; width: 951.996px;"><cnx class="cnx-ui-ps-nav cnx-ui-ps-video-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: content-box; display: flex; flex-direction: row; flex-shrink: 0; height: 40px; line-height: 1; margin-bottom: 10px; width: 912.001px;"><cnx class="cnx-ui-btn" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; flex-shrink: 0; height: 38.4px; line-height: 1; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px !important; margin-right: 3px; margin-top: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 38.4px;"><cnx aria-label="Unmute (m)" class="cnx-icon-button cnx-ui-btn-hoverable cnx-sound-off" role="button" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: flex; height: 38.3929px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; position: relative; width: 38.3929px;" tabindex="0"><cnx class="cnx-btn-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"><cnx class="cnx-mute-icon" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"><svg class="cnx-color-icon" markup-inline="" viewbox="0 0 24 24" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><path d="M11 2L8.25 4.25 11 7zM0 7v9h5l6 5v-6.5L3.85 7zm17 4.5c0-1.965-1.2-3.735-3-4.5v3l2.8 2.8a3.73 3.73 0 00.2-1.3zm3.4 7.45l-1.85-1.85-2.65-2.6-1.9-1.95-3-3-4.15-4.1-4.95-5L1.45 0 0 1.45 17.15 18.6 19 20.4l3.55 3.6L24 22.55zM14 23a11.83 11.83 0 003.65-1.55l-1.25-1.3c-.747.498-1.553.902-2.4 1.2V23zm9-11.5A11.77 11.77 0 0014 0v1.6A10.53 10.53 0 0120 16l1.45 1.45A11.99 11.99 0 0023 11.5z"></path></svg></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-boom-elem" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-ui-progress-label" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: border-box; color: white; display: flex; flex: 0 0 auto; font-size: 12px; height: 14px; justify-content: center; line-height: 14px; min-width: 40px; padding: 0px 4px; text-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.25) 0px 2px 2px; width: auto;"><cnx-span role="timer" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: content-box; display: flex; line-height: 1; text-wrap: nowrap;">01:10</cnx-span></cnx><cnx class="cnx-slides-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; display: flex; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding: 12px 4px; position: relative; width: 790.625px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; display: flex; height: 3px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 3px; line-height: 1; overflow: hidden; pointer-events: none; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.4); border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 2.9937px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 10;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-fill cnx-color-accent" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: #333333; box-sizing: content-box; color: white; display: block; fill: rgb(51, 51, 51); height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; stroke: rgb(51, 51, 51); transition: none 0s ease 0s; width: 65.218px; z-index: 20;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-follow" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-hitarea" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; padding-top: 18px; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; display: flex; height: 3px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 3px; line-height: 1; overflow: hidden; pointer-events: none; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.4); border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 2.9937px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 10;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-fill cnx-color-accent" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: #333333; box-sizing: content-box; color: white; display: block; fill: rgb(51, 51, 51); height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; stroke: rgb(51, 51, 51); transition: none 0s ease 0s; width: 65.218px; z-index: 20;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-follow" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-hitarea" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; padding-top: 18px; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; display: flex; height: 3px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 3px; line-height: 1; overflow: hidden; pointer-events: none; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.4); border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 2.9937px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 10;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-fill cnx-color-accent" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: #333333; box-sizing: content-box; color: white; display: block; fill: rgb(51, 51, 51); height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; stroke: rgb(51, 51, 51); transition: none 0s ease 0s; width: 65.218px; z-index: 20;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-follow" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-hitarea" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; padding-top: 18px; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; display: flex; height: 3px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 3px; line-height: 1; overflow: hidden; pointer-events: none; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.4); border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 2.9937px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 10;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-fill cnx-color-accent" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: #333333; box-sizing: content-box; color: white; display: block; fill: rgb(51, 51, 51); height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; stroke: rgb(51, 51, 51); transition: none 0s ease 0s; width: 65.218px; z-index: 20;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-follow" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-hitarea" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; padding-top: 18px; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; display: flex; height: 3px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 3px; line-height: 1; overflow: hidden; pointer-events: none; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.4); border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 2.9937px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 10;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-fill cnx-color-accent" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: #333333; box-sizing: content-box; color: white; display: block; fill: rgb(51, 51, 51); height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; stroke: rgb(51, 51, 51); transition: none 0s ease 0s; width: 65.218px; z-index: 20;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-follow" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-hitarea" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; padding-top: 18px; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; display: flex; height: 3px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 3px; line-height: 1; overflow: hidden; pointer-events: none; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.4); border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 2.9937px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 10;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-fill cnx-color-accent" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: #333333; box-sizing: content-box; color: white; display: block; fill: rgb(51, 51, 51); height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; stroke: rgb(51, 51, 51); transition: none 0s ease 0s; width: 65.218px; z-index: 20;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-follow" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-hitarea" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; padding-top: 18px; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; display: flex; height: 3px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 3px; line-height: 1; overflow: hidden; pointer-events: none; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.4); border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 2.9937px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 10;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-fill cnx-color-accent" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: #333333; box-sizing: content-box; color: white; display: block; fill: rgb(51, 51, 51); height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; stroke: rgb(51, 51, 51); transition: none 0s ease 0s; width: 65.218px; z-index: 20;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-follow" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-hitarea" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; padding-top: 18px; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; display: flex; height: 3px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 3px; line-height: 1; overflow: hidden; pointer-events: none; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.4); border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 2.9937px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 10;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-fill cnx-color-accent" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: #333333; box-sizing: content-box; color: white; display: block; fill: rgb(51, 51, 51); height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; stroke: rgb(51, 51, 51); transition: none 0s ease 0s; width: 65.218px; z-index: 20;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-follow" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-hitarea" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; padding-top: 18px; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; display: flex; height: 3px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 3px; line-height: 1; overflow: hidden; pointer-events: none; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.4); border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 2.9937px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 10;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-fill cnx-color-accent" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: #333333; box-sizing: content-box; color: white; display: block; fill: rgb(51, 51, 51); height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; stroke: rgb(51, 51, 51); transition: none 0s ease 0s; width: 65.218px; z-index: 20;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-follow" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-hitarea" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; padding-top: 18px; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; display: flex; height: 3px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 3px; line-height: 1; overflow: hidden; pointer-events: none; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.4); border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 2.9937px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 10;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-fill cnx-color-accent" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: #333333; box-sizing: content-box; color: white; display: block; fill: rgb(51, 51, 51); height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; stroke: rgb(51, 51, 51); transition: none 0s ease 0s; width: 65.218px; z-index: 20;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-follow" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-hitarea" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; padding-top: 18px; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; display: flex; height: 3px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 3px; line-height: 1; overflow: hidden; pointer-events: none; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.4); border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 2.9937px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 10;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-fill cnx-color-accent" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: #333333; box-sizing: content-box; color: white; display: block; fill: rgb(51, 51, 51); height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; stroke: rgb(51, 51, 51); transition: none 0s ease 0s; width: 65.218px; z-index: 20;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-follow" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-hitarea" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; padding-top: 18px; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-bar" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: default; display: flex; height: 3px; justify-content: center; line-height: 1; padding: 0px; pointer-events: all; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail-container" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 3px; line-height: 1; overflow: hidden; pointer-events: none; position: relative; width: 65.218px;"><cnx class="cnx-progress-rail" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.4); border-radius: 0px; box-sizing: content-box; display: block; height: 2.9937px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 10;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-fill cnx-color-accent" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: #333333; box-sizing: content-box; color: white; display: block; fill: rgb(51, 51, 51); height: 2.9937px; left: -65.218px; line-height: 1; position: absolute; stroke: rgb(51, 51, 51); transform: translateX(65.218px); transition: transform 6000ms linear 0s; width: 65.218px; z-index: 20;"></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-follow" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1;"></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-progress-hitarea" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 2.9937px; left: 0px; line-height: 1; padding-top: 18px; position: absolute; width: 65.218px; z-index: 1;"></cnx></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-ui-progress-label" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: border-box; color: white; display: flex; flex: 0 0 auto; font-size: 12px; height: 14px; justify-content: center; line-height: 14px; min-width: 40px; padding: 0px 4px; text-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.25) 0px 2px 2px; width: auto;"><cnx-span role="timer" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); align-items: center; box-sizing: content-box; display: flex; line-height: 1; text-wrap: nowrap;">01:12</cnx-span></cnx></cnx></cnx><cnx class="cnx-ui-cm cnx-ui-cm-settings cnx-menu-popup cnx-mod-invisible" data-id="cnx-ui-cm-settings" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); background-color: rgba(13, 25, 45, 0.98); box-sizing: content-box; display: flex; flex-direction: column; left: 142.791px; line-height: 1; max-width: calc(100% - 70px); opacity: 0 !important; overflow: hidden; padding: 7px 0px; pointer-events: all; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: opacity 0.2s ease-in-out 0s; visibility: hidden !important; width: 260px; z-index: 100;"><cnx class="cnx-cm-container cnx-context-controller" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: flex; flex-direction: row; height: auto; line-height: 1; 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line-height: 1; padding-left: 20px; padding-right: 20px; width: 951.996px; z-index: 9;"><a class="cnx-ui-ps__wrapper cnx-ui-ps__title--default" href="https://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/ny-montana-otter-attack-montana-women-injured-20230804-2ty6gsjfdfgu3j3diojzooquqe-story.html#ed=rss_www.nydailynews.com/arcio/rss/category/news/?traffic_source=Connatix" style="border: none; bottom: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer !important; display: block; font-size: 21px; font-weight: 700; height: auto; left: 0px; max-width: 590px; outline: 0px; padding: inherit; pointer-events: all !important; position: absolute; text-decoration-line: none; transform: translateY(-10px); transition: color 0.3s ease 0s; width: 589.995px; z-index: 3;" target="_top" title="Vicious otter attack in Montana sends woman to hospital"><cnx class="cnx-ui-ps__sliding--default cnx-title-component cnx-color-title-link cnx-title-slide-in" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; cursor: pointer; display: block; font-weight: 400; line-height: 1; opacity: 1; overflow: hidden; transition: color 0.3s ease 0s;" title="https://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/ny-montana-otter-attack-montana-women-injured-20230804-2ty6gsjfdfgu3j3diojzooquqe-story.html#ed=rss_www.nydailynews.com/arcio/rss/category/news/?traffic_source=Connatix"><cnx class="cnx-ui-lines" data-split="550,21,7,2" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); box-sizing: content-box; display: block; line-height: 1; transition: color 0.3s ease 0s;"><cnx class="cnx-inherit-body-font-family cnx-ui__span--text cnx-color-primary cnx-top-title-highlight-text-inner-container cnx-ui-ps-highlight-text" style="--max-title-lines: 2; --min-title-lines: 2; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); animation-delay: 0.3s; animation-duration: 0.6s; animation-fill-mode: both; animation-name: cnxSlideIn; animation-timing-function: ease-in-out; background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; box-sizing: border-box; clear: both; color: black; display: block; float: left; font-family: Georgia, serif !important; font-weight: 700; left: 4px; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: -1px; max-width: calc(100% - 4px); opacity: 1; overflow: hidden; padding: 4px 10px 6px; position: relative; text-overflow: ellipsis; text-wrap: nowrap; transform-origin: left top; transition: color 0.3s ease 0s; width: auto;">Vicious otter attack in Montana sends woman</cnx><cnx class="cnx-inherit-body-font-family cnx-ui__span--text cnx-color-primary cnx-top-title-highlight-text-inner-container cnx-ui-ps-highlight-text" style="--max-title-lines: 2; --min-title-lines: 2; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0); animation-delay: 0.4s; animation-duration: 0.6s; animation-fill-mode: both; animation-name: cnxSlideIn; animation-timing-function: ease-in-out; background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; 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color: #767676; display: flex; font-family: "Open Sans", sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-weight: 600;"><div style="box-sizing: inherit;"><time datetime="2023-08-04 09:47:00" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: unset; font-size: unset; line-height: unset;"><br /></time></div><div style="box-sizing: inherit;"><time datetime="2023-08-04 09:47:00" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: unset; font-size: unset; line-height: unset;"><br /></time></div><div style="box-sizing: inherit;"><time datetime="2023-08-04 09:47:00" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: unset; font-size: unset; line-height: unset;"><br /></time></div><div style="box-sizing: inherit;"><time datetime="2023-08-04 09:47:00" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: unset; font-size: unset; line-height: unset;"><br /></time></div></div></div>Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-49536027614738785942023-07-30T11:02:00.001-04:002023-08-05T15:30:39.531-04:00Toronto Canada: Principal Commits Suicide After Being Accused of White Supremacy By a DEI Trainer<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS_Zi7DY7CSClBNOJT7rnTmfSVlHb0TmKm_gs4_woQVMP3o5Gz2RZfkmoMCv99qU3QcrYnorWfE01Kqw8ovfU0IBNCQWmBONM2m9frONyMsLJEwanlgBoEzOevYVASnLJkmT0951lc4j_83LZOnD5Ho61abufF6A342gdsieO0w_HZsA3iqPdl83N54Rg/s612/Richard%20Bilkszto.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="558" data-original-width="612" height="365" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS_Zi7DY7CSClBNOJT7rnTmfSVlHb0TmKm_gs4_woQVMP3o5Gz2RZfkmoMCv99qU3QcrYnorWfE01Kqw8ovfU0IBNCQWmBONM2m9frONyMsLJEwanlgBoEzOevYVASnLJkmT0951lc4j_83LZOnD5Ho61abufF6A342gdsieO0w_HZsA3iqPdl83N54Rg/w400-h365/Richard%20Bilkszto.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p></p><h1 class="article-title" id="articleTitle" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: "PT Sans", "PT Sans-fb", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 2rem; line-height: 1.125; margin: 0px 0px 0.5rem;"><a href="https://nationalpost.com/opinion/principal-berated-for-white-supremacy-sues-tdsb-over-equity-training">Jamie Sarkonak: Principal berated for 'white supremacy' sues TDSB over equity training</a></h1><div><span face=""PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif" style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-size: 20px; font-style: italic;">Alleged bullying incident shows why public shouldn't be paying for diversity, equity and inclusion training</span></div><div><span face=""PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif" style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-size: 20px; font-style: italic;"><br /></span></div><div><span face=""PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif" style="background-color: white; color: #555555; font-size: 20px;">Jamie Sarkonak, NationalPost.com, July 6, 2023 </span></div><p><span face=""PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif" style="background-color: white; color: #191919; font-size: 16px;">The problem with workplace diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) training is that it can involve the berating of staff so bad that it leads to workers’ compensation claims — and even lawsuits.</span></p><p><span face=""PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif" style="background-color: white; color: #191919; font-size: 16px;">It’s a lesson that’s currently being learned by Toronto District School Board (TDSB). In April, principal Richard Bilkszto sued TDSB for its failure to defend him in an allegedly hostile DEI training session that took place in 2021, where it was insinuated that he was a white supremacist for defending Canada as a less-racist place than the United States. TDSB has since sued the company that gave the DEI training, the KOJO Institute, for negligence and for breaching contract — asking for damages in the amount it will need to pay Bilkszto if he wins. Late Thursday afternoon, TDSB told the National Post that it plans to discontinue its lawsuit, though the claim is still active.</span></p><p><span face=""PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif" style="background-color: white; color: #191919; font-size: 16px;">The National Post has obtained both statements of claim, which were filed in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in April. While the allegations within haven’t been proven in court, they provide an outline of what supposedly happened. Audio recordings of the training sessions obtained by the Post are consistent with the dialogue quoted in the court filings.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: "PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">It all began with a DEI course for TDSB administrators that started in April 2021. DEI trainer Kike Ojo-Thompson (the CEO of the KOJO Institute) led a series of sessions for TDSB higher-ups in which she made a number of familiar progressive arguments, according to Bilkszto’s court filing: Canada is a more racist place than the U.S., Canada is a “bastion of white supremacy and colonialism,” capitalism and the patriarchy are killing people, etc. (The KOJO Institute did not respond to requests for comment for this story by deadline.)</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: "PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;"></p><p data-async="" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: "PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">For context, the KOJO Institute has many clients in public institutions. <a auto-tracked="true" cmp-ltrk-idx="17" cmp-ltrk="Article body" data-evt-typ="click" data-evt-val="{"control_fields": {"mparticle": {"keys": {"click_source_type": "click_source_type", "anchor_text": "anchor_text", "target_url": "target_url", "layout_section": "layout_section"}, "mp_event_type": "Navigation", "extra_keys": ["click_vertical_position_percentage", "click_vertical_position_pixels"]}}, "click_source_type": "in-page link", "anchor_text": "Listed clients", "target_url": "https://kojoinstitute.com/all-clients/", "layout_section": "in-page-link"}" data-evt="click" data-mrf-link="https://kojoinstitute.com/all-clients/" href="https://kojoinstitute.com/all-clients/" mrfobservableid="3f529057-a060-48ae-8486-5c894c3d3e44" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919;" tabindex="-1">Listed clients</a> include the RCMP, the Ontario government, the CBC, various universities and the federal government (the official records database shows that about $100,000 in federal dollars have been spent on service contracts with KOJO). It’s likely that the public has paid for many of these training sessions.</p><p data-async="" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: "PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">As support for the claim that Canada is more racist than its southern counterpart, Ojo-Thompson allegedly pointed to her own experience of living in both places and a Maclean’s article that “showed how we were more racist on a number of critical indicators than the U.S.” (Such an argument was made in a 2015 Maclean’s article that <a auto-tracked="true" cmp-ltrk-idx="18" cmp-ltrk="Article body" data-evt-typ="click" data-evt-val="{"control_fields": {"mparticle": {"keys": {"click_source_type": "click_source_type", "anchor_text": "anchor_text", "target_url": "target_url", "layout_section": "layout_section"}, "mp_event_type": "Navigation", "extra_keys": ["click_vertical_position_percentage", "click_vertical_position_pixels"]}}, "click_source_type": "in-page link", "anchor_text": "compared", "target_url": "https://macleans.ca/news/canada/out-of-sight-out-of-mind-2/", "layout_section": "in-page-link"}" data-evt="click" data-mrf-link="https://macleans.ca/news/canada/out-of-sight-out-of-mind-2/" href="https://macleans.ca/news/canada/out-of-sight-out-of-mind-2/" mrfobservableid="0757f72a-abf7-464c-aafd-892c5756a1ea" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919;" tabindex="-1">compared</a> Canadian Indigenous statistics on unemployment, income, homicide and such to those of Black Americans.)</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: "PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;"></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: "PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">Ojo-Thompson taught the class that Canada’s status as a monarchy was a marker of racism, according to the court documents: “At least (the U.S.) had a fighting posture against at least the monarchy, here we celebrate the monarchy, the very heart and soul and origins of the colonial structure.” National attitudes of politeness further made Canadians less likely to speak up against racism, she said later on.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: "PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">For the record, the British monarchy was actually pretty good at fighting the scourge of slavery, having outlawed the trade in 1807. It dedicated a good chunk of public resources to dismantling the international slave trade that was driven by Americans (and some African kingdoms). The Brits weren’t perfect, but they were miles ahead of the Americans on the slavery file.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: "PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;"></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: "PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">Bilkszto, who had a 24-year career as a principal and previously taught at an inner-city Buffalo school — and witnessed serious differences in how Black and white students were treated there — didn’t think it was fair to call Canada the greater harbourer of racism, according to his court filing. Citing public health care and a more equal funding system for education, he spoke up.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: "PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">“To sit here and talk about facts and figures and then walk into the classroom tomorrow and say ‘Canada is just as bad as the United States,’ I think we are doing an incredible disservice to our learners,” he told the class.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: "PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;"></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: "PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">Ojo-Thompson is described to have reacted with vitriol: “We are here to talk about anti-Black racism, but you in your whiteness think that you can tell me what’s really going on for Black people?” Bilkszto replied that racism is very real, and that there’s plenty of room for improvement — but that the facts still show Canada is a fairer place. Another KOJO training facilitator jumped in, telling Bilkszto that “if you want to be an apologist for the U.S. or Canada, this is really not the forum for that.” Ojo-Thompson concluded the exchange by telling the class that “your job in this work as white people is to believe” — not to question claims of racism.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: "PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">Nobody from TDSB interjected at any point to defend Bilkszto and stop the DEI trainers from berating a staff member, according to the court filing. After the class, a TDSB superintendent even thanked the KOJO Institute in a tweet for “modelling the discomfort administrators may need to experience in order to disrupt (anti-Black racism).” The day after, Bilkszto was given a talking-to by his higher-ups about his “male white privilege” and the “fallout” from the training. Instead of defending him, they berated him further.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: "PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;"></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: "PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">In the next session, Ojo-Thompson is said to have referred to Bilkszto’s comments as an example of “resistance” that upholds white supremacy. She explained that his reference to “facts” was an attempt to derail the conversation and discredit her words, and encouraged everyone to push back when they see others being “accosted by white supremacy.”</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: "PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">After this, Bilkszto went on sick leave for workplace harassment. While TDSB wasn’t helpful, Toronto School Administrators’ Association and the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) supported his claim, the association calling for an investigation into what happened (no investigation was initiated). The worker’s compensation board awarded loss of earnings benefits between May 11 and July 1 of 2021 for chronic mental stress.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: "PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;"></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: "PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">“Based on the information on file, I am satisfied that the conduct of the speaker … was abusive, egregious and vexatious, and rises to the level of workplace harassment and bullying,” wrote the worker’s compensation decision, which was also obtained by the National Post. WSIB’s view was that the DEI trainer intended to “cause reputational damage and to ‘make an example’” of the principal. TDSB didn’t dispute Bilkszto’s recollection of events to the compensation board, nor did it appeal the compensation board’s award (the deadline for disputing the claim has passed).</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: "PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">Despite the school board’s lack of support for its longtime principal, TDSB’s statement of claim against the KOJO Institute seems to take Bilkszto’s side. The school board alleges that the DEI consulting firm was negligent and in breach of contract by making Bilkszto feel harassed, humiliated and defamed.</p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: "PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;"></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: "PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">Bilkszto, a contract principal for the board, returned to work after six weeks of sick leave, but wasn’t reinstated to the position he had been in prior. An additional contract for a principal term was revoked. At the time his statement of claim was filed, he’d only been able to obtain eight weeks of contract work with the school board. Between the alleged defamation and contract breaches, he’s seeking $785,000 in damages.</p><section class="article-content__content-group article-content__content-group--story" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919; font-family: "PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif; grid-column: content-start / content-end;"><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">These lawsuits are in the early stages of the court process, so it’s possible they could settle long before they make it to trial. (Lisa Bildy, Bilkszto’s lawyer, told the National Post that the TDSB has yet to be served with the statement of claim, so the TDSB has not had to file a statement of defence in return.)</p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;"></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;">Still, the court filings launching these lawsuits paint a picture of how workplace DEI training relies on coercion and ridicule to force employees to bend the knee to a certain set of racialist, sometimes ahistorical, beliefs. Those who don’t comply just might end up in a struggle session.</p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;"></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;"><em style="box-sizing: inherit;">National Post</em></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;"></p><p data-async="" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;"><em style="box-sizing: inherit;">• Email: <a auto-tracked="true" data-evt-typ="click" data-evt-val="{"control_fields": {"mparticle": {"keys": {"click_source_type": "click_source_type", "anchor_text": "anchor_text", "layout_section": "layout_section"}, "mp_event_type": "Navigation", "extra_keys": ["click_vertical_position_percentage", "click_vertical_position_pixels"]}}, "click_source_type": "in-page link", "anchor_text": "jsarkonak@postmedia.com", "layout_section": "in-page-link"}" data-evt="click" href="mailto:jsarkonak@postmedia.com" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919;" tabindex="-1">jsarkonak@postmedia.com</a> | Twitter: <a auto-tracked="true" cmp-ltrk-idx="19" cmp-ltrk="Article body" data-evt-typ="click" data-evt-val="{"control_fields": {"mparticle": {"keys": {"click_source_type": "click_source_type", "anchor_text": "anchor_text", "target_url": "target_url", "layout_section": "layout_section"}, "mp_event_type": "Navigation", "extra_keys": ["click_vertical_position_percentage", "click_vertical_position_pixels"]}}, "click_source_type": "in-page link", "anchor_text": "sarkonakj", "target_url": "https://twitter.com/sarkonakj", "layout_section": "in-page-link"}" data-evt="click" data-mrf-link="https://twitter.com/sarkonakj" href="https://twitter.com/sarkonakj" mrfobservableid="84a3f7bc-5bac-4efd-8a64-4bcdeff6aad6" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #191919;" tabindex="-1">sarkonakj</a></em></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;"></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;"><i data-stringify-type="italic" style="box-sizing: inherit;">Editor’s note: This article has been updated to reflect TDSB’s legal plans.</i></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;"><i data-stringify-type="italic" style="box-sizing: inherit;"></i></p><h2 style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: "PT Sans", "PT Sans-fb", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.125; margin: 0px 0px 0.5rem; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://nationalpost.com/opinion/principals-death-is-a-stain-on-the-conscience-of-this-nation">Michael Higgins: School principal's death is a stain on the conscience of this nation</a></span></h2><div><span style="color: #555555;">It's time to stand up against the woke zealots who destroyed Richard Bilkszto</span></div><div><span style="color: #555555;"><br /></span></div><div><h1 class="article-title" id="articleTitle" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: "PT Sans", "PT Sans-fb", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.125; margin: 0px 0px 0.5rem;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://nationalpost.com/opinion/jamie-sarkonak-toronto-principal-bullied-over-false-charge-of-racism-dies-from-suicide">Jamie Sarkonak: Toronto principal bullied over false charge of racism dies from suicide</a></span></h1></div><div>Inquiry needed into the death of Richard Bilkszto</div><div><span style="color: #555555; font-size: 20px; font-style: italic;"><br /></span></div><h2 class="article-card__headline text-size--massive--sm-up text-size--huge--sm-down" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2e4ebf; font-family: "PT Sans", "PT Sans-fb", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.25; margin: 0px 0px 0.5rem;" title="NP View: Richard Bilkszto cherished merit and equality — Canada should, too"><span class="article-card__headline-clamp" style="-webkit-box-orient: vertical; -webkit-line-clamp: 5; box-sizing: inherit; display: -webkit-box; font-weight: 700; overflow: hidden; text-decoration-line: underline; word-break: break-word;"><a href="https://nationalpost.com/opinion/richard-bilkszto-cherished-merit-and-equality-canada-should-too"><span style="font-size: medium;">NP View: Richard Bilkszto cherished merit and equality — Canada should, too</span></a></span><span class="article-card__headline-clamp" style="-webkit-box-orient: vertical; -webkit-line-clamp: 5; box-sizing: inherit; display: -webkit-box; overflow: hidden; word-break: break-word;"><span face=""PT Serif", "PT Serif-fb", Georgia, serif" style="color: #555555; font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">The former principal's beliefs about fairness stand in sharp contrast to the illiberal values being promoted by DEI trainers</span></span></span></h2><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px 0px 1.5rem; max-width: 100%;"><i data-stringify-type="italic" style="box-sizing: inherit;"><a aria-label="NP View: Richard Bilkszto cherished merit and equality — Canada should, too" class="article-card__link" cmp-ltrk-idx="1" cmp-ltrk="Home hero feed" data-mrf-link="https://nationalpost.com/opinion/richard-bilkszto-cherished-merit-and-equality-canada-should-too" href="https://nationalpost.com/opinion/richard-bilkszto-cherished-merit-and-equality-canada-should-too" mrfobservableid="dfa005bd-1890-452d-9e8a-27bad49d2c31" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #2e4ebf; display: block; font-family: Roboto, Roboto-fb, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-style: normal; outline: rgb(46, 78, 191) auto 5px; text-decoration-line: none;"></a></i></p><h1 class="article-title" id="articleTitle" style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: "PT Sans", "PT Sans-fb", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.125; margin: 0px 0px 0.5rem;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://nationalpost.com/opinion/letters-tragic-suicide-of-bullied-school-principal-demands-a-full-inquiry">Letters: Tragic suicide of bullied school principal demands a full inquiry</a></span></h1><div><span style="color: #555555;">Readers decry the death of Richard Bilkszto, along with the GG's outsized spending and suggestions that Toronto is Islamophobic</span></div><div><span style="color: #555555;"><br /></span></div><div><h2 style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: "PT Sans", "PT Sans-fb", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.125; margin: 0px 0px 0.5rem; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://nationalpost.com/opinion/principals-death-shows-that-schools-are-focusing-on-the-wrong-things">Tasha Kheiriddin: Principal's death shows that schools are focusing on the wrong things</a></span></h2></div><div><span style="color: #555555;">Rather than wasting money on DEI training, school boards should be focused on education and improving the lives of disenfranchised students</span></div><div><span style="color: #555555;"><br /></span></div><div><h2 style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: "PT Sans", "PT Sans-fb", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.125; margin: 0px 0px 0.5rem; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://nationalpost.com/news/anti-racism-trainer-accused-of-bullying-principal-who-later-died-welcomes-review">Anti-racism trainer accused of bullying principal who committed suicide welcomes review</a></span></h2></div><div><span style="color: #555555;">The incident, Kike Ojo-Thompson said, had been weaponized to discredit and suppress diversity, equity and inclusion work</span></div><div><span style="color: #555555;"><br /></span></div><div><h2 style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: "PT Sans", "PT Sans-fb", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.125; margin: 0px 0px 0.5rem; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://nationalpost.com/pmn/news-pmn/canada-news-pmn/education-minister-orders-review-into-allegations-of-tdsb-principal-who-died">Education minister orders review into allegations of TDSB principal who died</a></span></h2></div><div><br /></div><div><i style="color: #202124; font-family: Roboto, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><p style="color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-style: normal;">Betsy Combier</p><div style="color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-style: normal; text-align: justify;"><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;">betsy@advocatz.com</span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;"><br /></span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: quot;">Editor, </span><span style="color: #582995;"><a href="http://advocatz.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">ADVOCATZ.com</span></a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;">Editor, <span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="https://advocatz.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;">ADVOCATZ Blog</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Rubber Room Reporter</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://www.parentadvocates.org/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Parentadvocates.org</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://newyorkcourtcorruption.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">New York Court Corruption</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nationalpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">National Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Public Voice</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials</a></span></b></div></div></i></div><div><br /></div></section>Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-44471875184493002682023-07-28T12:46:00.005-04:002023-08-05T15:34:19.917-04:00UFT Pressures School Therapists To Vote Again On Rejected Contract<p> </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3WqnNk3O-qRVYfOjpojPPJs-7cT3Z5spX7V7Y0osusU4TFFTl4IhKmHD-hwrJodNdeuv4m3QDGw1U_LFvrif-gOi9ib4gLS5sroe24DfK3yoXwBcqIHcJoa4wdaJvAf3THeSk2XFCaKVmgbz8rs9ZyNSDYDmQDMVMfnnS7g8QsDKPciFQ8-xXQyRiJ0E/s470/Mike%20Mulgrew%20school%20therapists.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="442" data-original-width="470" height="301" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3WqnNk3O-qRVYfOjpojPPJs-7cT3Z5spX7V7Y0osusU4TFFTl4IhKmHD-hwrJodNdeuv4m3QDGw1U_LFvrif-gOi9ib4gLS5sroe24DfK3yoXwBcqIHcJoa4wdaJvAf3THeSk2XFCaKVmgbz8rs9ZyNSDYDmQDMVMfnnS7g8QsDKPciFQ8-xXQyRiJ0E/s320/Mike%20Mulgrew%20school%20therapists.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><figcaption class="Figure-caption" style="background-color: #ebebeb; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline; font-family: sharp-grotesk; font-size: 13.5px; margin-right: 5px;"><p style="background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline; margin: 0px;">UFT President Michael Mulgrew talks at City Hall about reaching a tentative contract agreement, June 13, 2023.</p></figcaption><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="line" face="sharp-grotesk" style="background-color: #ebebeb; background-repeat: no-repeat; border-left: 1px solid; box-sizing: border-box; content: ""; display: inline-block; font-size: 13.5px; height: 14px; margin-left: 5px; margin-right: 5px; text-align: left; vertical-align: middle; width: 2px;"></span><div class="Figure-credit" style="background-color: #ebebeb; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline; font-family: sharp-grotesk; font-size: 13.5px; margin-right: 5px; opacity: 0.75; text-align: left;"><p style="background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline; margin: 0px;">Ben Fractenberg/THE CITY</p></div></td></tr></tbody></table><p><br /></p><p>Social media has criticized Mike for usurping UFT members' rights, but I don't understand why. He was voted back in as President in the last vote, and since day one has been openly and clearly uninterested in the needs of members</p><p>Just read my blog posts. You'll see what I mean.</p><p><i>Just sayin'</i>....</p><p style="color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; font-style: normal;">Betsy Combier</p><p><i style="background-color: white; color: #202124; font-family: Roboto, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"></i></p><div style="color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; font-style: normal; text-align: justify;"><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;">betsy@advocatz.com</span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;"><br /></span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: quot;">Editor, </span><span style="color: #582995;"><a href="http://advocatz.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration: none;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">ADVOCATZ.com</span></a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;">Editor, <span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="https://advocatz.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration: none;">ADVOCATZ Blog</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration: none;">NYC Rubber Room Reporter</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://www.parentadvocates.org/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration: none;"> Parentadvocates.org</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://newyorkcourtcorruption.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration: none;">New York Court Corruption</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nationalpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration: none;">National Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration: none;">NYC Public Voice</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration: none;"> Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials</a></span></b></div></div><p><a href="https://ny.chalkbeat.org/2023/7/28/23810991/nyc-schools-occupational-physical-therapists-contract-uft-teachers-union-mulgrew-revote" style="font-family: var(--font,var(--font-1)); font-size: 1.35rem; letter-spacing: 1.8px; text-transform: uppercase;">School Therapists Want a Better Contract Deal. The UFT Wants Them to Give Up.</a></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="color: #404040; font-family: "Times","serif"; font-size: 14pt; letter-spacing: 1.35pt; line-height: 115%;">Union president Michael Mulgrew is
pressing occupational and physical therapists to vote again on a deal they
rejected — while some members demand new negotiations with city hall instead<span style="text-transform: uppercase;">.</span></span></i><i><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p style="background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #404040; letter-spacing: 1.8px; line-height: 1.33; margin: 0px 0px 20px; padding-bottom: 0px; text-align: left; text-transform: uppercase;"><span style="font-size: 21.6px;">By </span><span style="font-size: x-small;">Claudia Irizarry Aponte, Chalkbeat</span></p><div class="Page-datePublished" style="background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><span class="line" style="background-repeat: no-repeat; border-left: 1px solid rgb(64, 64, 64); box-sizing: border-box; content: ""; display: inline; height: 14px; margin: 0px 5px; opacity: 0.75; vertical-align: middle; width: 2px;"></span> <bsp-timestamp data-timestamp="1690534800000" style="background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box;"> <span data-date="" style="background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box;">JUL 28, 2023, 5:00AM EDT</span></bsp-timestamp></div><div><div class="Page-datePublished" style="background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><bsp-timestamp data-timestamp="1690534800000" style="background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box;"><span data-date="" style="background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box;"><br /></span></bsp-timestamp></div></div><div><div class="Page-datePublished" style="background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><bsp-timestamp data-timestamp="1690534800000" style="background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box;"><span data-date=""><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 0px 0px 20px;">A United Federation of Teachers chapter representing school therapists stood alone among chapters in rejecting their union’s <a class="Link" data-cms-ai="0" href="https://www.thecity.nyc/2023/6/13/23759795/uft-mulgrew-teacher-salary-raises" style="background-color: transparent; background-repeat: no-repeat; border-bottom: 1px solid var(--color-link-underline); box-sizing: border-box; text-decoration-line: none; touch-action: manipulation;" target="_blank">tentative contract agreement</a> with Mayor Eric Adams earlier this month — and now say UFT leadership is pressuring them to accept the deal in a revote.</p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">In <a class="Link" data-cms-ai="0" href="https://ny.chalkbeat.org/2023/7/12/23793139/utf-new-york-city-teachers-union-contract-pay-raise-occupational-physical-therapists?_amp=true" style="background-color: transparent; background-repeat: no-repeat; border-bottom: 1px solid var(--color-link-underline); box-sizing: border-box; text-decoration-line: none; touch-action: manipulation;" target="_blank">voting down</a> the contract, chapter members expected the next step would be for their bargaining unit — which also includes audiologists, nurses and supervisors — to negotiate with city labor officials for a collective bargaining agreement that addresses their specific concerns, as happened in their last contract. Instead, chapter leaders and members say, UFT President Michael Mulgrew is urging a new vote without further talks or changes. </p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">The 2,900 therapists and nurses are a small unit within the 120,000-member union, whose members include teachers, social workers and other city Department of Education employees. Three-quarters of the UFT membership approved the contract, the union announced earlier this month.</p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">Within the unit, 59% of all members rejected the deal, which guarantees raises of 17.58% to 20.42% by 2026. Most of those <a class="Link" data-cms-ai="0" href="https://www.uft.org/sites/default/files/attachments/uft-certification-contract-ratified-2023.pdf?fbclid=IwAR0KnfWeKQS60_xdmN3kViHX81tFVZHBzQO_OD3MbQWB_3eTN9k8xRAOViA" style="background-color: transparent; background-repeat: no-repeat; border-bottom: 1px solid var(--color-link-underline); box-sizing: border-box; text-decoration-line: none; touch-action: manipulation;" target="_blank">dissenting votes</a> came from occupational and physical therapists, who make up the majority of the unit’s members. Two-thirds of the therapists who returned ballots opposed the tentative agreement.</p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">The independent American Arbitration Association conducted, tabulated and certified the contract vote.</p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">Concerns about salary gaps between therapists and teachers are a major source of contention, according to chapter leaders and rank-and-file members who spoke with THE CITY. The gap is considerable: by January, a therapist with a master’s degree and 10 years of experience would earn $17,463 less annually than a teacher with the same credentials and experience, <a class="Link" data-cms-ai="0" href="https://ny.chalkbeat.org/2023/7/12/23793139/utf-new-york-city-teachers-union-contract-pay-raise-occupational-physical-therapists?_amp=true" style="background-color: transparent; background-repeat: no-repeat; border-bottom: 1px solid var(--color-link-underline); box-sizing: border-box; text-decoration-line: none; touch-action: manipulation;" target="_blank">Chalkbeat reported</a>, citing UFT documents. </p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">By rejecting the agreement, the unit voted to not receive raises, bonuses or other benefits that go into effect for teachers and paraprofessionals this summer, and to instead continue working under their expired contract.</p><div style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: var(--font-rte-heading); line-height: 1.2; margin: 0px 0px 1.08rem; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Vote again?</b></span></div><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">But the unit also represents nurses, audiologists, and nurse and therapist supervisors who are eager to ratify the new contract, according to Mulgrew.</p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">Numerous members are asking for a revote, he wrote in a signed July 21 letter to chapter leadership in which he detailed efforts to split the nurses, audiologists and supervisors into their own unit so that in the future they are no longer tied in with the therapists in contract votes.</p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">“They are pushing hard to separate as soon as possible because they feel it is unfair that, although members of each of their chapters voted overwhelmingly in favor of ratifying the contract, they will not get the new contractual benefits because their particular contract failed to get a majority of the overall votes,” Mulgrew wrote.</p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">“We are trying to get the city and DOE to come back to the bargaining table,” he asserted in the letter even as he highlighted demands from members for an immediate revote.</p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;"> That position puts him at odds with the therapists’ leadership: By a vote of 5-1 with one abstention last week, their executive board decided against a revote.</p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">In a meeting with the therapists’ chapter on Wednesday afternoon, Mulgrew made repeated attempts to persuade members to give up on pursuing a stronger contract and to persuade them to join in a revote, claiming he had heard from 1,200 members who had demanded a new tally. Melissa Williams, the therapists’ chapter leader, asked Mulgrew for guidance on where and how the union’s constitution lays out rules for revotes.</p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">“I’ve never had a chapter with this many people who are adamantly against the decision of their executive board,” Mulgrew said.</p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">He added: “We have to make a decision. If we decide not to do a revote, fine. But everyone needs to understand the consequences of not revoting.”</p><h2 id="LAhzVW" style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: var(--font-rte-heading); line-height: 1.2; margin: 0px 0px 1.08rem;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Or bargain again?</span></h2><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">Mulgrew also urged members to give up on trying to get a better deal. “The city isn’t interested in getting back to the bargaining table right now,” he said, noting that other legal maneuvers could potentially take years. “I can’t express this clear enough to all of you. We don’t have an avenue to get back to the bargaining table right now.”</p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">Rank-and-file workers and union activists who spoke with THE CITY, however, said that union leadership should not entertain the prospect of a revote, but press on in trying to strike a better bargain with Adams.</p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">Pursuing a revote of a certified election, Williams said, “calls into question the integrity of the entire process.</p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">“I just feel bad for the people who took the time to vote,” she said in an interview with THE CITY. “I trusted that this vote had integrity, now I see that it’s wrong. It feels like a moral injury, to be honest.”</p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">UFT spokesperson Alison Gendar said in a statement that “more than 1,000” chapter members “have asked — through emails and phone calls — for the opportunity to hold a revote.”</p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;"> ”The UFT leadership is working with the chapter to figure out next steps,” Gendar added.</p><h2 id="9cTTY1" style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: var(--font-rte-heading); line-height: 1.2; margin: 0px 0px 1.08rem;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Vocal dissent</span></h2><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">This isn’t the first time that UFT occupational and physical therapists bucked the rest of the union in rejecting a tentative contract deal: The chapter also <a class="Link" data-cms-ai="0" href="https://labornotes.org/blogs/2021/10/contract-rejection-union-office-school-therapists-keep-push-fair-deal" style="background-color: transparent; background-repeat: no-repeat; border-bottom: 1px solid var(--color-link-underline); box-sizing: border-box; text-decoration-line: none; touch-action: manipulation;" target="_blank">rejected a tentative agreement in 2018</a> over wage concerns. On that occasion, UFT leadership returned to the bargaining table and notched modest additional raises. </p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">A revote without fresh contract talks was never entertained as an option after the chapter rejected the agreement in 2018, three chapter members and two union activists told THE CITY.</p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">One reason for the standoff now with Mulgrew, activists say, is that the union’s <a class="Link" data-cms-ai="0" href="https://www.uft.org/files/attachments/secure/uft-constitution-2015.pdf" style="background-color: transparent; background-repeat: no-repeat; border-bottom: 1px solid var(--color-link-underline); box-sizing: border-box; text-decoration-line: none; touch-action: manipulation;" target="_blank">constitution</a> does not lay out a procedure for renegotiating rejected contracts. </p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">“The chapter voted, and the chapter voted pretty much 2-to-1 against the contract, and to go to a revote sort of negates that process,” said chapter member and DOE physical therapist Chris Griffin, who noted she’s “not a huge ‘no’ advocate.” </p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">Discussion of a revote “undermines that process, which was done according to established rules,” she added.</p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">Some therapists say they would like to see Mulgrew push harder to get the city back to the bargaining table.</p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">“I believe he’s avoiding doing his job,” said a chapter member who asked to be identified only as “E” out of fear of retaliation from her bosses. “His job is to negotiate on our behalf, not to justify the city’s stance. So I feel like he’s using that to scare us into voting yes.”</p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">Daniel Alicea, a teacher and UFT activist, told THE CITY that the union’s leadership should convene a constitutional convention that clearly lays out a renegotiation process for rejected contracts so that “things aren’t done arbitrarily and haphazardly.”</p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #393939; font-family: "IBM Plex Serif"; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px 0px;">“If we acquiesce here, this can happen in local chapter elections, it can happen in our next general election — that if they’re not happy with the result, they will find some other means.”</p></span><span style="background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://newaction.org/2023/07/19/mulgrew-mia-as-unity-tries-to-disorganize-ot-pts-into-revoting-yes/">Mulgrew MIA as Unity Tries to Disorganize OT/PT Bargaining Unit into Revoting ‘Yes’</a></span></span></bsp-timestamp></div></div>Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-30460993720698131402023-05-27T18:51:00.008-04:002023-05-28T10:17:58.488-04:00PS 145 on the Upper West Side is So Overcrowded With Migrants, Students Are Left Without Programs and Services<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieX48ULt55AxciBhQ5ShEXqQyLGEx1Fr1naEdachwyCtZ8xTJwAtFYr9T5bOOOkJRZMYjhCn3UCpZ2YGU40jU5G4qxhnhCYf3x3MQz83aJKQH5dH0mDKrsQPCJopiWedAwKnZYlITZ1TVP4aHSJdC1ZK4mkziBOCJozTMPfEFQaFS2aGdThynxdp1k/s869/Overcrowding-student%20letter.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="632" data-original-width="869" height="291" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieX48ULt55AxciBhQ5ShEXqQyLGEx1Fr1naEdachwyCtZ8xTJwAtFYr9T5bOOOkJRZMYjhCn3UCpZ2YGU40jU5G4qxhnhCYf3x3MQz83aJKQH5dH0mDKrsQPCJopiWedAwKnZYlITZ1TVP4aHSJdC1ZK4mkziBOCJozTMPfEFQaFS2aGdThynxdp1k/w400-h291/Overcrowding-student%20letter.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p></p><div><span style="font-size: medium;">We all know the argument. NYC is a sanctuary City where we accept any and all migrants who need safety, a warm bed, and services.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">Definition of "Sanctuary City": </span></div><ol class="eQJLDd" style="background-color: white; color: #202124; display: flex; flex-direction: column; font-family: Roboto, arial, sans-serif; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 20px;"><li jsname="gskXhf" style="list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><div class="vmod"><div class="thODed" style="padding-top: 8px;"><div class="LTKOO sY7ric" data-topic="" jsname="cJAsRb" style="line-height: 16px;"><div style="margin-left: 20px;"><div class="LTKOO sY7ric" style="line-height: 16px; margin-left: -20px;"><div data-dobid="dfn" style="display: inline;">(in North America) a city whose municipal laws tend to protect <span class="AraNOb" style="text-decoration-line: underline;"><a class="rMNQNe" data-ved="2ahUKEwj1tYOYs5b_AhXHkokEHcMnC3cQyecJegQIEBAK" href="https://www.google.com/search?sxsrf=APwXEdcLOVSCYC8_7jPbKODkanavRgX70g:1685221468602&q=undocumented&si=AMnBZoFOMBUphduq9VwZxsuReC7YO-T86xpXp9ZIr6io6Zp58XqEwTsOjZjVe_6q2e4C6snVX7pdvMOZF2R9gtzuiVnWgvrQIoBkCS4jCx1RdiL_RJlGU7g%3D&expnd=1" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.1); outline: 0px; text-decoration-line: none;" tabindex="0">undocumented</a></span> immigrants from <span class="AraNOb" style="text-decoration-line: underline;"><a class="rMNQNe" data-ved="2ahUKEwj1tYOYs5b_AhXHkokEHcMnC3cQyecJegQIEBAL" href="https://www.google.com/search?sxsrf=APwXEdcLOVSCYC8_7jPbKODkanavRgX70g:1685221468602&q=deportation&si=AMnBZoG9fGMZkoPgk-g4eVoaZFdE0HMphzPK1W8lzvlfKx47mP5zGgAZdyzsqupD8XIyzwkQi21p9DzhptaWbT1cwbjV-cXeCnO_UROaujx59LIgzSLSoXo%3D&expnd=1" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.1); outline: 0px; text-decoration-line: none;" tabindex="0">deportation</a></span> or <span class="AraNOb" style="text-decoration-line: underline;"><a class="rMNQNe" data-ved="2ahUKEwj1tYOYs5b_AhXHkokEHcMnC3cQyecJegQIEBAM" href="https://www.google.com/search?sxsrf=APwXEdcLOVSCYC8_7jPbKODkanavRgX70g:1685221468602&q=prosecution&si=AMnBZoG9fGMZkoPgk-g4eVoaZFdEKnx6L45HAlr-w4gty2u0bJjYeHd-Rdfy5_8afVTqYONhzzRvJpcZZDkO-fI0FSWaNnEacdcZVmSLT4eDlWzQuNz5Xxg%3D&expnd=1" style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.1); outline: 0px; text-decoration-line: none;" tabindex="0">prosecution</a></span>, despite federal immigration law.</div></div></div></div></div></div></li><li jsname="gskXhf" style="list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><div class="LTKOO sY7ric" style="line-height: 16px; margin-left: -20px;"><br /></div></li><li jsname="gskXhf" style="list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><div class="LTKOO sY7ric" style="line-height: 16px; margin-left: -20px;">But where can citizens draw the line?</div></li><li jsname="gskXhf" style="list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><div class="LTKOO sY7ric" style="line-height: 16px; margin-left: -20px;"><br /></div></li><li jsname="gskXhf" style="list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><div class="LTKOO sY7ric" style="line-height: 16px; margin-left: -20px;">In NYC, which is under one-party control (Democratic Party), there is no discussion allowed. Migrants must be taken care of, no matter what damage is done to people who already live in the City. As a matter of public policy, migrants must come first.</div></li></ol><div><span face="Roboto, arial, sans-serif" style="color: #202124;"><br /></span></div><div><span face="Roboto, arial, sans-serif" style="color: #202124;">At least, that's what seems to be the state of affairs in New York City right now, May 2023. Mayor Adams and Governor Hochul are politically bound to care for the thousands President Biden has allowed into the United States, no matter the cost locally.</span></div><ol class="eQJLDd" style="background-color: white; color: #202124; display: flex; flex-direction: column; font-family: Roboto, arial, sans-serif; margin: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 20px;"><li jsname="gskXhf" style="list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><div class="LTKOO sY7ric" style="line-height: 16px; margin-left: -20px;"><br /></div></li><li jsname="gskXhf" style="list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><div class="LTKOO sY7ric" style="line-height: 16px; margin-left: -20px;">And remember, there is <a href="https://ballotpedia.org/Laws_governing_recall_in_New_York">no recall of any elected official permitted under New York State law.</a></div></li><li jsname="gskXhf" style="list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><div class="LTKOO sY7ric" style="line-height: 16px; margin-left: -20px;"><br /></div></li><li jsname="gskXhf" style="list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><div class="LTKOO sY7ric" style="line-height: 16px; margin-left: -20px;"><a href="https://ballotpedia.org/Recall_overview">Balletopedia Recall overview</a></div></li><li jsname="gskXhf" style="list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><div class="LTKOO sY7ric" style="line-height: 16px; margin-left: -20px;"><br /></div></li><li jsname="gskXhf" style="list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><div class="LTKOO sY7ric" style="line-height: 16px; margin-left: -20px;">Ok, my politics are showing. You don't have to read this blog, move on if you don't like my view. But on this issue no one who has children, works in education, and sees how NYC residents have become secondary citizens under the newly arrived migrants should stay silent. There is something wrong here.</div></li><li jsname="gskXhf" style="list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><div class="LTKOO sY7ric" style="line-height: 16px; margin-left: -20px;"><br /></div></li><li jsname="gskXhf" style="list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><div class="LTKOO sY7ric" style="line-height: 16px; margin-left: -20px;"><i>Just saying...</i></div></li><li jsname="gskXhf" style="list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><div class="LTKOO sY7ric" style="line-height: 16px; margin-left: -20px;"><i><br /></i></div></li><li jsname="gskXhf" style="list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><div class="LTKOO sY7ric" style="line-height: 16px; margin-left: -20px;"><i><p style="color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; font-style: normal;">Betsy Combier</p><div style="color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; font-style: normal; text-align: justify;"><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;">betsy@advocatz.com</span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;"><br /></span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: quot;">Editor, </span><span style="color: #582995;"><a href="http://advocatz.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">ADVOCATZ.com</span></a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;">Editor, <span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="https://advocatz.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;">ADVOCATZ Blog</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Rubber Room Reporter</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://www.parentadvocates.org/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Parentadvocates.org</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://newyorkcourtcorruption.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">New York Court Corruption</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nationalpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">National Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Public Voice</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials</a></span></b></div></div></i><div class="vmod" style="font-size: 14px;"><div class="ubHt5c" style="color: #70757a;"><br /></div></div></div></li></ol><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://nypost.com/2023/05/27/migrant-influx-overwhelms-uws-school-costing-kids-programs/">UWS school so overcrowded with migrants that it can no longer provide popular programs: parents</a></span><div><div class="byline meta meta--byline" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--black); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 0.875rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.14; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline;">By <div class="byline__author" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline;"><a aria-controls="flyout-georgia-worrell" aria-expanded="false" class="meta__link" href="https://nypost.com/2023/05/27/migrant-influx-overwhelms-uws-school-costing-kids-programs/#" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Georgia Worrell</a>,</div> <div class="byline__author" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline;"><a aria-controls="flyout-susan-edelman" aria-expanded="false" class="meta__link" href="https://nypost.com/2023/05/27/migrant-influx-overwhelms-uws-school-costing-kids-programs/#" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Susan Edelman</a> and</div> <div class="byline__author" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline;"><a aria-controls="flyout-rich-calder" aria-expanded="false" class="meta__link" href="https://nypost.com/2023/05/27/migrant-influx-overwhelms-uws-school-costing-kids-programs/#" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Rich Calder</a>, NY POST</div></div><div aria-label="Date published" class="date meta meta--byline" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--black); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 0.875rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.14; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: nowrap;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">May 27, 2023</span></div><div aria-label="Date published" class="date meta meta--byline" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--black); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 0.875rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.14; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: nowrap;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></div><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The city Department of Education is ignoring pleas to help an Upper West Side public school so overwhelmed by an influx of migrant kids that it can no longer provide popular programs due to a lack of space, angry parents told The Post.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">With 535 students <a href="https://nypost.com/2022/09/19/nyc-elementary-school-community-welcomes-dozens-of-migrant-students/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">currently crammed into PS 145</a> – nearly 100 more than what the West 105th Street school is designed to hold – parents said all students, including newcomers from Ukraine, Russia, and Latin America, are suffering for it. Last year, the school had 393 students.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Since the fall, after the city enrolled scores of young asylum seekers – many housed in a former shelter at the nearby Park West Hotel – rooms previously used for a music program, a TV studio where kids produced videos and a Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics [STEAM] lab had to be converted into classrooms.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLWfj_Q7YYMVYWUvJwgAGOLyK1sxmTc1w2ROczGlqw0zOXQbtPz_5jGhj00h5sUrrmvY-zuBJe7i1rYyafoSKWNWtRpEv6G7QP2bjef5UTRIP15ZfifRnWmBvdeFx_7NuiQn0ipNfl03V5PF-UgIHF4tXC2tBDzN40iA82ovZVIInHxQxZAFXFQICD/s867/Overcrowding-former%20library.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="571" data-original-width="867" height="264" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLWfj_Q7YYMVYWUvJwgAGOLyK1sxmTc1w2ROczGlqw0zOXQbtPz_5jGhj00h5sUrrmvY-zuBJe7i1rYyafoSKWNWtRpEv6G7QP2bjef5UTRIP15ZfifRnWmBvdeFx_7NuiQn0ipNfl03V5PF-UgIHF4tXC2tBDzN40iA82ovZVIInHxQxZAFXFQICD/w400-h264/Overcrowding-former%20library.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><figcaption style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; caption-side: bottom; font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 0.875rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.14; margin: 0.625rem 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;">The former school library was partitioned into multiple, tight spaces for kids with special needs to receive services.[photo: <span style="font-size: 0.75rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em;">Naveed Hasan]</span></figcaption><figcaption style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; caption-side: bottom; font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 0.875rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.14; margin: 0.625rem 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-size: 0.75rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em;"><br /></span></figcaption></td></tr></tbody></table><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Science equipment, musical instruments, books, and other supplies bought with taxpayer dollars and grants now sit in a cluttered storage closet gathering dust, next to desks for displaced science teachers.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaTDoxDu36Kzgi5Js7KwjhEuZbrJbGdh5oLZRKXx02Aw5s7aahXaOt0AMAHjX2dSyxU7VcsGrcMz9TgOieY5GGs5dN2vO2sVsXsGEmCPeWKn7NPvCwV4mzJbUvaFjx1fwozkDKLEqqUCLtHUPkRJMIfRWs_31Mwq1Vtf9USMnSGiuXJoZP6dY0EPdj/s813/Overcrowding-science.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="644" data-original-width="813" height="253" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaTDoxDu36Kzgi5Js7KwjhEuZbrJbGdh5oLZRKXx02Aw5s7aahXaOt0AMAHjX2dSyxU7VcsGrcMz9TgOieY5GGs5dN2vO2sVsXsGEmCPeWKn7NPvCwV4mzJbUvaFjx1fwozkDKLEqqUCLtHUPkRJMIfRWs_31Mwq1Vtf9USMnSGiuXJoZP6dY0EPdj/w320-h253/Overcrowding-science.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><figcaption style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; caption-side: bottom; font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 0.875rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.14; margin: 0.625rem 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;">Science equipment, musical instruments, and other supplies sit in a storage closet next to desks for displaced teachers. [photo: Naveed Hasan]</figcaption><figcaption style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; caption-side: bottom; line-height: 1.14; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="credit" color="var(--wp--preset--color--gray-e)" face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 0.75rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.17; margin: 0px; padding: 0.5rem 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;">With the former library partitioned into multiple, tight spaces for kids with special needs to receive services, all PS 145 students lost an after-school sanctuary for reading and homework.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“It’s just unacceptable,” fumed Anna Azvolinsky, who has a daughter in third grade and a son in pre-K. “These kids deserve better.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Citywide, an estimated 16,000 migrant kids have enrolled in city public schools since the fall — far exceeding about 1,700 who arrived the prior academic year and started school in September.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span color="var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g)" style="letter-spacing: -0.01em;">Many PS 145 parents — who live in one of the city’s most liberal neighborhoods, overwhelmingly voting for Joe Biden for president in 2020 — insisted they welcome the newcomers, but are furious with the DOE for blowing off their repeated pleas for more space.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">That includes a proposal – pitched by Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine and City Councilmember Gale Brewer to Chancellor David Banks – for the DOE to rent two floors available next door at the <a href="https://romemu.org/romemu-manhattan-2/" rel="noreferrer noopener" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">Romemu synagogue community center.</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“I can’t get an answer from the city – nothing. They don’t respond,” said Naveed Hasan, the Manhattan parent representative on the city’s Panel for Educational Policy with a third-grader at PS 145. “We have the perfect space next door – get it for us. We have a solution – do it!”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Some parents were especially peeved after city officials paraded a production crew from “60 Minutes” through PS 145 for <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/asylum-seekers-new-york-city-60-minutes-overtime-2022-11-06/" rel="noreferrer noopener" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">a November news segment on the Big Apple migrant crisis</a> that cast welcoming public schools as “the one bright spot.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Since then, however, the city has ignored the cramped classrooms and lost programs, they said. The DOE is “not competent,” Hasan said.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In February, 207 parents signed a letter to Kamar Samuels, schools superintendent of Manhattan’s District 3, calling on the DOE to immediately re-evaluate PS 145’s “distribution of space” in light of a <a href="https://nypost.com/2022/06/03/bill-limiting-nyc-public-school-class-sizes-passes-in-albany/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">class-size reduction bill for Big Apple schools passed in July by the state Legislature</a>.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The package included hand-scribed notes to Samuels from second and third-graders.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqGy_6C3FX21GYfvcCxmOPQfnldNIenNlj0G7Sre0Gaf71G8IJ5hSY9jIB4FQXXE1OalGSNRJiX8vIoSv5se1QOQb6DvRPpR2lk8rH5-l683XNDegc-k27Z430dMZOZCAL_tkY9ep2OZ6e-KdLeW-88IhpCb1iGBQMmDBWC9o6NItVJ_o7gylU4amm/s614/overcrowding-student2.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="461" data-original-width="614" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqGy_6C3FX21GYfvcCxmOPQfnldNIenNlj0G7Sre0Gaf71G8IJ5hSY9jIB4FQXXE1OalGSNRJiX8vIoSv5se1QOQb6DvRPpR2lk8rH5-l683XNDegc-k27Z430dMZOZCAL_tkY9ep2OZ6e-KdLeW-88IhpCb1iGBQMmDBWC9o6NItVJ_o7gylU4amm/w400-h300/overcrowding-student2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />“I am happy that we have a lot of new kids, but it’s not okay that we don’t have enough space,” wrote Lucy Weingarten, 8. “Please work with our school to help get more space this year!!”<p></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The DOE’s response: It sent “space management” and “district planning” bureaucrats who blamed the classroom crunch on PS 145, parents said because the school increased enrollment before the migrant influx by adding two highly popular programs: universal 3-K and Russian dual-language.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“They didn’t offer any solutions,” recalled Lauren Balaban, whose kindergartner is in the Spanish dual-language program, which started six years ago. “They said, ‘There’s nothing we can do about it and it’s your problem.'”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">A City Hall spokesman said reps of the School Construction Authority and other officials visited the synagogue center on May 11 but “unfortunately” found the space “not viable for use” because most rooms don’t meet DOE guidelines for full-size classrooms, requiring “significant” construction.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The spokesman insisted Banks and the DOE have been “highly engaged” with P.S. 145 parents and are “committed to partnering… to alleviate crowding and support enrollment growth” at the school.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">A stunned Hasan said DOE officials never told parents about a May 11 visit. “Why are we getting this information from The Post?” he said.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">He questioned the DOE’s reasoning: “They come up with justification when they don’t want to act.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The city has <a href="https://nypost.com/2022/10/18/nyc-boosts-funding-to-public-schools-amid-migrant-student-crisis/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">poured more than $25 million </a>into cash-strapped schools hit with swelling enrollments, and promised more “adjustments.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://nypost.com/2023/05/17/migrants-removed-from-brooklyn-school-shelter-after-outrage/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">But parent patience hit a breaking point</a> this month when the city began putting cots for newly-arrived migrant families in school gyms. </p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">(See my post: <a href="https://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/2023/05/nyc-mayor-turns-over-public-schools.html" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif; text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="font-size: medium;">NYC Mayor Turns Over Public Schools' Gyms To Migrants</span></a><span style="color: #1a222a; font-family: "Times New Roman", Times, FreeSerif, serif;"> -Ed.)</span></p><div><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em;">Amid loud protests, officials quickly rescinded the move.</span></div></div></figcaption></td></tr></tbody></table></div>Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-62154189751542553122023-05-14T21:54:00.012-04:002023-05-16T17:19:13.077-04:00NYC Mayor Turns Over Public Schools' Gyms To Migrants<p><span style="font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGh9xyIyWq6zyIbw8Qr28Wr6F_L3lFbKibghHKKC5bQ7_3CzzjEZL_7pZl8HLdChYuGiv9lm72GzEKFmdnV3bNOoMmOGINMKSxLtUhB8oMF9BFgyDQR9C2ExvMNiVaQSXvDkxtJ0E4DDwRcKQJ2MLFT3UhcNHIzuqgvGj8Zi_5TaXf2pU06c6V2gpY/s560/migrant%20beds-gyms.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="560" data-original-width="363" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGh9xyIyWq6zyIbw8Qr28Wr6F_L3lFbKibghHKKC5bQ7_3CzzjEZL_7pZl8HLdChYuGiv9lm72GzEKFmdnV3bNOoMmOGINMKSxLtUhB8oMF9BFgyDQR9C2ExvMNiVaQSXvDkxtJ0E4DDwRcKQJ2MLFT3UhcNHIzuqgvGj8Zi_5TaXf2pU06c6V2gpY/w259-h400/migrant%20beds-gyms.jpg" width="259" /></a></span></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br />What an outrageous act by Mayor Eric Adams: displacing public school kids from their gym time/physical education classes, so that migrants who are entering this country without proper procedures can take valuable spaces in public schools <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/05/12/migrants-being-housed-in-ps-188-school-gym-in-coney-island/">without parents and staff allowed to say "no".</a> We have information that the following schools have been </span>used: elementary schools in Brooklyn. PS 172, PS 189, PS 188.<div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnRZxkW_gA2UxGfLeX_z0-_EhjzsEX9iLVFPg_ZA2MA3_rgE6w9jPsakulgzNIHWsmfP7rwvKEId4UCDTbisJ6QqXoga9uyZv8w9Y84ypCsSAwJ7Pq3D6Vm4Xe6hZVytBidHTpEAnxygWMxJoPv66s93wkcee45Fx4DPhvRASGjMsP8ixEhMpj_q9z/s798/migrants-beds-gyms.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="494" data-original-width="798" height="248" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnRZxkW_gA2UxGfLeX_z0-_EhjzsEX9iLVFPg_ZA2MA3_rgE6w9jPsakulgzNIHWsmfP7rwvKEId4UCDTbisJ6QqXoga9uyZv8w9Y84ypCsSAwJ7Pq3D6Vm4Xe6hZVytBidHTpEAnxygWMxJoPv66s93wkcee45Fx4DPhvRASGjMsP8ixEhMpj_q9z/w400-h248/migrants-beds-gyms.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><figcaption style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; caption-side: bottom; font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 0.875rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.14; margin: 0.625rem 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;">The move by the city has caused outrage in the Brooklyn neighborhood.</figcaption><figcaption style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; caption-side: bottom; font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 0.875rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.14; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="credit" color="var(--wp--preset--color--gray-e)" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 0.75rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.17; margin: 0px; padding: 0.5rem 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Paul Martinka</span></figcaption></td></tr></tbody></table><br />See here:</span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho7DMVJjIWm02d3hNcf28NpdGfIzlAAgWXamajWqpBnYTam_cCP-pJqrOHZBIakmrKzOUapzqkzeP9uM5SmNCW2OTJGkyd_VWxumgy_x2hTu3zaPuwy2I46o1InbtE4u1ZB9qzTHyRvSdEc6xxLRtzrt2zVEjqYrIItLAh2cL1Wm2Io75cCQCfsKO7/s926/migrants-beds-students.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="510" data-original-width="926" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho7DMVJjIWm02d3hNcf28NpdGfIzlAAgWXamajWqpBnYTam_cCP-pJqrOHZBIakmrKzOUapzqkzeP9uM5SmNCW2OTJGkyd_VWxumgy_x2hTu3zaPuwy2I46o1InbtE4u1ZB9qzTHyRvSdEc6xxLRtzrt2zVEjqYrIItLAh2cL1Wm2Io75cCQCfsKO7/w400-h220/migrants-beds-students.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: "PT Serif", serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: start;">Students and parents protest outside Public School MS 577 at N. 5th and Roebling Sts. Tuesday morning in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. </span><span style="font-family: "PT Serif", serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: start;">(Luiz C. Ribeiro/for New York Daily News)</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></div><a href="https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/parents-challenge-adams-claim-housing-migrants-in-nyc-public-schools-won-t-affect-students-as-number-of-schools-grows-to-20/ar-AA1bgX5c"><span style="font-size: large;">Parents challenge Adams claim housing migrants in NYC public schools won’t affect students as number of schools grows to 20</span></a><div>Bt Cayla Bamberger and Michael Gartland, NY Daily News, May 16, 2023</div><div><br /></div>Mayor Adams claimed Tuesday that <a href="https://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/new-york-elections-government/ny-nyc-fully-exhausted-options-migrant-crisis-20230508-lnb5ztrb2ffljp7pnra2fqkbia-story.html">his new policy of housing migrants in public school gymnasiums </a>won’t directly impact students s — even as parents protested his latest effort to find ways to shelter the more than 60,000 migrants who’ve come to the city since last year.<br /><br />“They will not be impacted directly,” Adams said during an interview on 1010 WINS. “They’re not going to be impacted. I’m never going to put our children in harm’s way.”<br /><br />The Daily News reported Monday that <a href="https://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/new-york-elections-government/ny-nyc-looking-to-use-dozen-public-school-as-migrant-housing-20230515-zgw6gy6hmfgfregazkwqyeyngq-story.html">Adams was either housing or attempting to house migrants in seven public schools</a>, but on Tuesday he sketched out a broader plan that could potentially impact 20 or more public schools.<br /><br />“This is not something we want to do,” Adams said. “What we did was identify 20 standalone gyms — this is not every gym in every school — 20 standalone gyms as one of the potential locations as we have exhausted our hotels and other locations.”<br /><br />But parents disagree with the mayor’s assessment of how children may be affected.<br /><br />More than 100 parents and students protested at the building that houses PS 17 and MS 577 Tuesday morning. According to event organizers there, migrants were housed in the building overnight, but cleared out ahead of the demonstration.<br /><br />The city’s repurposing of the gym at the school is particularly fraught because it just opened in January, after years of parents advocating for it.<br /><br />“We have a new building that we fought for so our children could have a gym,” said Stacy, whose 10-year-old son receives special education services. “They worked hard to get these activities. They have a carnival next week, and they may not have it now.”<br /><br />“I don’t want my child to be locked up because he was locked up for two years,” said Melida Rodriguez, a parent and the middle school’s PTA president, referring to the COVID lockdowns. “Now’s the time he’s coming out, socializing with other kids — and then this. It’s not fair.”<br /><br />The policy comes more than a week after Camille Varlack, Adams’ chief of staff, <a href="https://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/new-york-elections-government/ny-adams-orders-nyc-agencies-to-use-properties-for-migrant-housing-20230508-n4e3g3sr4bastlrnrdi25gp74u-story.html">directed all city agencies to identify city-owned buildings that could be used to house migrants</a> and as the city braces for an even bigger influx of asylum seekers from south of the border with the expiration of Title 42, a federal border policy enacted during the COVID pandemic that permitted for the expulsion of migrants coming into the U.S. from Mexico.<br /><br />The schools that already have been used to house migrants under Adams’ new policy are PS 188 in Coney Island and PS 17 and MS 577. Other schools being considered include PS 189 in Brownsville and PS 172 in Sunset Park, as well as PS 18, PS 132 and MS 577, all of which are in Williamsburg.<br />For <a href="https://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/new-york-elections-government/ny-nyc-looking-to-use-dozen-public-school-as-migrant-housing-20230515-zgw6gy6hmfgfregazkwqyeyngq-story.html">the second day in a row</a>, a spokesman for Adams refused to make public a full list of the schools that are being considered to house migrants.<br /><br />“As the mayor has said for months, we are facing an enormous humanitarian crisis, having served more than 65,000 asylum seekers in New York City since last year,” said Adams’ spokesman Fabien Levy. “As Title 42 lifts and we see the numbers of arrivals climb, no option is off the table. We have already opened approximately 150 sites to shelter asylum seekers in New York City.”<div><span style="color: #191919; font-family: Georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: 20px; letter-spacing: 0.1px;"><br /></span></span></div><div><div><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://nypost.com/2023/05/14/migrants-arrive-at-nyc-school-gym-in-coney-island/">Migrants arrive at temporary shelter in Brooklyn elementary school gym</a></span></div><div><div class="byline meta meta--byline" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--black); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 0.875rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.14; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline;">By <div class="byline__author" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline;"><a aria-controls="flyout-bernadette-hogan" aria-expanded="false" class="meta__link" href="https://nypost.com/2023/05/14/migrants-arrive-at-nyc-school-gym-in-coney-island/#" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Bernadette Hogan</a>,</div> <div class="byline__author" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline;"><a aria-controls="flyout-reuven-fenton" aria-expanded="false" class="meta__link" href="https://nypost.com/2023/05/14/migrants-arrive-at-nyc-school-gym-in-coney-island/#" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Reuven Fenton</a> and</div> <div class="byline__author" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative; vertical-align: baseline;"><a aria-controls="flyout-david-propper" aria-expanded="false" class="meta__link" href="https://nypost.com/2023/05/14/migrants-arrive-at-nyc-school-gym-in-coney-island/#" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">David Propper</a>, NY POST, </div><span color="var(--wp--preset--color--black)" style="font-size: 0.875rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; white-space: nowrap;">May 14, 2023</span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">At least 75 migrants will temporarily stay inside the gym at PS 188 in Coney Island, two NYC councilmen confirmed — with one of the pols calling the temporary site a “puzzling” move by City Hall. </p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Dozens of migrants will be housed at the gym outside the Brooklyn elementary school with no timetable on how long the building will be used as an emergency site for migrants, City Council members Justin Brannan and Ari Kagan said Sunday evening.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“Unclear how long they will need to stay. This location remains puzzling to me,” Brannan <a href="https://twitter.com/JustinBrannan/status/1657868567646281728?s=20" rel="noreferrer noopener" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">tweeted.</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Kagan, a Republican, also said in <a href="https://twitter.com/CMAriKagan47/status/1657864179171184643?s=20" rel="noreferrer noopener" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">a tweet</a> there was no “timeframe when this gym would be returned to the Coney Island community.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The school is currently in Kagan’s district, but following the redistricting of council seats, both pols are fighting for the seat that would cover PS 188.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The migrants’ arrival comes just two days after the principal at PS 188 warned the city to choose<a href="https://nypost.com/2023/05/12/migrants-being-housed-in-ps-188-school-gym-in-coney-island/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> the school facility as an emergency</a>, temporary site for migrants.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Several migrant families were supposed to be sent to the stand-alone gym adjacent to the rest of the school building late last week, but the plan was put on hold amid community outrage.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The Big Apple continues to struggle mightily to house and care for the flood of migrants arriving from across the southern border – with many of them bused from border states like Texas. Over the last year, tens of thousands of migrants have reached the city.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Migrants could be seen milling around the Sandra Feldman Gymnasium Sunday night.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Antuan, a 21-year-old migrant from Venezuela, told The Post that officials informed him and others they were only staying at the building until Monday.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“They put us here because they don’t want us out on the streets,” he explained. “They’re processing us, giving us our paperwork and then we leave.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Antuan, who reached New York on Sunday after eight months in Texas, said all the migrants were given a psychological assessment to determine whether they were dangerous before being sent to the Brooklyn neighborhood.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Brannan said in an interview Sunday that City Hall informed him the migrants began arriving at the school gym Sunday evening.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">He questioned why city officials chose the Coney Island neighborhood for a migrant site because the area lacks services for them and public transportation is poor.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“And I think overall just housing folks in a public school setting, a public school gym, is just concerning and I think the location is just puzzling,” Brannan said.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The Democratic lawmaker also criticized how City Hall has communicated to the community about the site.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“I think people in the community are obviously compassionate and understanding but the way you find out about something, that colors everything,” Brannan said.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">One neighbor asked why the school was the best place to house migrants.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“Why a school? That’s the part I don’t get. There’s always other options. A lot of the buildings around here, they have fallout shelters that are spacious, and used for emergencies,” a woman on the block told The Post.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">School safety agents who work at PS 188 were also concerned about what their role would be with migrants there.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“School Safety Agents are trained to protect children, not migrants. National Guard and federal assistance are needed. We protect City school children. That’s our responsibility. Not migrants,” said Local 237 Teamsters spokesman Hank Sheinkopf in a statement to The Post Sunday. </p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">City Hall press secretary Fabien Levy said the city is opening emergency shelters and respite centers daily, “but we are out of space” in a statement Sunday night. More than 4,200 migrants arrived in the last week with the city receiving hundreds of asylum seekers daily, he added.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">NYC Mayor Eric Adams has said repeatedly the city is running out of options with even more migrants expected thanks to the end of Title 42, a Trump-era policy that allowed for the quick expulsion of some border-crossers over COVID-19 concerns.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://nypost.com/article/what-is-title-42-expulsion-immigration-policy/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">The policy</a> ended last week.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">City Hall has also faced <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/05/13/orange-county-executive-sues-migrant-hotels-mayor-eric-adams/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">uproar over its plan to bus migrants</a> staying in city shelters to hotels in upstate Rockland and Orange counties. More than 80 migrants – all single men — were shipped to Newburgh hotels in Orange County, last week.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Orange County Executive Steven Neuhaus filed lawsuits Friday to stop the hotels from housing migrants. </p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Rockland County also took legal to thwart the city’s plan.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">More than 140 sites and eight mega-shelters have been opened in the city.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">***************************************************************</p></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">We are all, I guess, aware that the NYC Department of Education has <a href="https://www.parentadvocates.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=article&articleID=3414">very little interest in kids getting their gym time</a>, anyway. This is what public education looks like under Mayoral control. Parents and stakeholders in public education in NYC have no voice. That is abominable and must change.</span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Parents in NYC want to end Mayoral control, and have made that clear for 20 years. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">Several years ago I was outraged when I attended and submitted a statement to <a href="https://nyassembly.gov/mem/Michael-Benedetto">Assemblyman Michael Benedetto</a> at a hearing on Mayoral control, and before the parent advocates were able to give their speeches for 2 minutes or less Benedetto warned each and every person about to speak that he did not want to hear anything negative about Chancellor Richard Carranza, the person who used to be the lead "VIP" at the NYC Department of Education. But <a href="https://nypost.com/2021/09/04/ex-chancellor-carranza-shacking-up-with-staffer-he-hired-for-six-figure-job/">that is exactly what we were there to do</a>, with all that Carranza did not do "right" - for the kids (and see here: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mSguYXBb0TE">Carranza resigns</a>). We wanted him to stop playing politics and cite the reasons why the Chancellor and Mayor should continue to rule the public </span><span style="font-size: medium;">schools without a valid opposition - a vote on the school board. <br /><br />In fact, there has not been a day since October 2003 that I have not protested the <a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/disenfranchise#:~:text=transitive%20verb,disenfranchising%20the%20poor%20and%20elderly">disenfranchisement</a> of parents and stakeholders of public schools in NYC due to Mayoral control. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: medium;">In 2019, I wrote an update to my 2007 post on Parentadvocates.org:</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"> </span><a href="https://www.parentadvocates.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=article&articleID=8898"><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #336699; font-weight: 700; text-align: justify;">Editorial: Mayoral Control Of The NYC Department of Education Must End</span> </a><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><span style="font-size: medium;">by Betsy Combier</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;">In this post I copied and pasted the discriminatory argument made by then-Mayor Mike Bloomberg on the reason that the vote needed to be removed from the black and Hispanic parents of NYC:</span></p><p><a href="https://www.parentadvocates.org/nicemedia/documents/cardozoletter.pdf" style="background-color: white; color: #336699; font-family: verdana, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Michael Cardozo's introduction to his submission which removes the constitutional rights of NYC citizens</a><br style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana, sans-serif; text-align: justify;" /><a href="https://www.parentadvocates.org/nicemedia/documents/cardozo1.pdf" style="background-color: white; color: #336699; font-family: verdana, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Pages index -11</a><br style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana, sans-serif; text-align: justify;" /><a href="https://www.parentadvocates.org/nicemedia/documents/cardozo2.pdf" style="background-color: white; color: #336699; font-family: verdana, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Pages 12-25</a><br style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana, sans-serif; text-align: justify;" /><a href="https://www.parentadvocates.org/nicemedia/documents/cardozo3.pdf" style="background-color: white; color: #336699; font-family: verdana, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Pages 26-41</a><br style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana, sans-serif; text-align: justify;" /><a href="https://www.parentadvocates.org/nicemedia/documents/cardozo4.pdf" style="background-color: white; color: #336699; font-family: verdana, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Pages 42-58</a><br style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana, sans-serif; text-align: justify;" /><a href="https://www.parentadvocates.org/nicemedia/documents/cardozo5.pdf" style="background-color: white; color: #336699; font-family: verdana, sans-serif; text-align: justify;">Pages 59-80</a><br style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana, sans-serif; text-align: justify;" /><br style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana, sans-serif; text-align: justify;" /><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; text-align: justify;">I will highlight the claim made in the last paragraph:</span><br style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana, sans-serif; text-align: justify;" /><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; text-align: justify;">"As we have demonstrated above, Chapters 91 and 123 have neither the purpose nor the effect of denying or abridging the right to vote on account of race, color or membership in a language group."</span><br style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana, sans-serif; text-align: justify;" /><br style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana, sans-serif; text-align: justify;" /><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; text-align: justify;">My opinion: the City of NY didn't discriminate, but took the Constitutional rights away from everyone who has been given those rights (are citizens over the age of 18). This is a crime. But someone might ask, "Well - what about the Community Education Councils, set up to encourage parental participation in public school education?"</span></p><p><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; text-align: justify;">Other posts on my website:</span></p><p><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #336699; font-weight: 700; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://www.parentadvocates.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=article&articleID=7345">Betsy Combier Speaks Out on the Constitutional Mess Created by Mayoral Control of the New York City Board of Education</a></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #336699; font-weight: 700; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://www.parentadvocates.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=article&articleID=7337">Editorial: The New York City Department of Education is a Sham and Mike Bloomberg is the Flim-Flam Man</a></span><p></p><p><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #336699; font-weight: 700; text-align: justify;"><a href="https://www.parentadvocates.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=article&articleID=8879">NYC Department of Education Chancellor Richard Carranza Hires Cronies and Sets Up a Policy Opposing "White" People in Powerful Positions</a></span></p><p></p><div style="text-align: justify;"><span face="verdana, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #336699; font-weight: 700;"><a href="https://www.parentadvocates.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=article&articleID=7534">How The New York City "Gotcha Squad" Gets Tenured Teachers Declared "Incompetent", and Placed in a Rubber Room by Betsy Combier</a></span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">My four children are no longer in the NYC Department of Education, thus the DOE's efforts to harm them no longer exist and I still blow many whistles of corruption. But gosh, the DOE tried.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> </div><div style="text-align: justify;">My question is this: why would any parent want to give up his/her/their right to speak and be heard at the school board meetings, as is the current situation? Wasn't there a war to protect the right of "no taxation without representation"? </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The <a href="https://www.theblaze.com/news/elementary-school-gym-turned-into-migrant-shelter-despite-community-outrage-no-timeframe-regarding-when-building-will-be-returned-to-children-says-nyc-council-member">NYC DOE never gave the parents a timely notice. </a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Just sayin'....</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><p></p><p style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">Betsy Combier</p><div style="text-align: justify;"><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: start;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;">betsy@advocatz.com</span></div><div style="background-color: white; 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line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://newyorkcourtcorruption.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">New York Court Corruption</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nationalpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">National Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Public Voice</a></span></b></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials</a></span></b></div></div><p></p><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/12/nyregion/ny-migrants-public-school-gym.html" style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;">New York City Plans to House Migrant Families in Public School Gymnasium</span></a></div><div class="css-1e2jphy epjyd6m1" style="-webkit-box-align: center; align-items: center; border: 0px; display: flex; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0.25rem; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline; width: 600px;"><div class="css-233int epjyd6m0" style="border: 0px; display: inline-block; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span face="nyt-franklin, helvetica, arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 13px;">By Hurubie Meko, NY TIMES, May 12, 2023</span></div><div class="css-233int epjyd6m0" style="border: 0px; display: inline-block; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span face="nyt-franklin, helvetica, arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 13px;"><br /></span></div><div class="css-233int epjyd6m0" style="border: 0px; display: inline-block; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span face="nyt-franklin, helvetica, arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 13px;"><br /></span></div><div class="css-233int epjyd6m0" style="border: 0px; display: inline-block; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"><span face="nyt-franklin, helvetica, arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 13px;"><br /></span></div></div><span style="font-size: medium;"><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div>As New York City officials scramble to find housing for an expected influx of migrants, the city is planning to house them in a stand-alone school gym in Coney Island, officials said Friday.<br /><br />The city alerted the principal of P.S. 188 that the school’s gymnasium would be used as a sheltering site, said Ari Kagan, a Brooklyn councilman who represents the neighborhoods of Bensonhurst, Coney Island, Gravesend and Sea Gate.<br /><br />“People are really concerned,” Mr. Kagan said Friday night. “I got a lot of phone calls from concerned parents, from community leaders. Nobody, nobody expressed their support for this plan.”<br /><br />No migrants were being housed in the gym on Friday night, he said, but added: “What’s going to happen tomorrow and Sunday? Who knows?” He said that the city’s Office of Emergency Management would decide when people would be placed there.<br /><br />Mr. Kagan, who also criticized the plan in <a href="https://twitter.com/CMAriKagan47/status/1657117557474709511?s=20">a video he posted</a> on Twitter, added that the struggle to house migrants was a nationwide problem and a shelter in a gym was not the answer.<br /><br />The announcement comes one day after a Trump-era immigration policy called <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/11/us/title-42-border-migrants.html">Title 42</a>, which allowed for the rapid expulsion of migrants, ended Thursday night. The end of the pandemic-era policy is expected to lead to a <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/12/us/politics/title-42-expires-border-migrants.html">rise in cross-border migration</a> into the United States.<br /><br />The city is in the middle of a “humanitarian crisis,” Fabien Levy, a spokesman for Mayor Eric Adams, said in a statement Friday evening, adding: “We are opening emergency shelters and respite centers daily, but we are out of space. We will continue to communicate with local elected officials as we open more emergency sites.”<br /><br />New York City, which is the only major U.S. city with a “right-to-shelter” law, has <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/23/nyregion/migrants-nyc-eric-adams.html">struggled to house</a> the influx of migrants who have been bused from states like Texas since last year. Mr. Adams has proposed, pivoted from and implemented many options for housing migrants over the past year, even considering <a href="https://www.silive.com/news/2022/09/masses-of-people-in-our-staten-island-parks-reaction-pours-in-over-news-of-possible-migrant-ship-at-homeport.html">placing people on a cruise ship docked in Staten Island</a>.<br /><br />Earlier this week, Mr. Adams used an executive order to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/10/nyregion/nyc-right-to-shelter-migrants.html#:~:text=New%20York%20is%20the%20only,needs%20one%20under%20certain%20conditions.">temporarily suspend</a> some of the rules related to its longstanding guarantee to shelter anyone who needs it, including those that require that families be placed in private rooms with bathrooms and kitchens and those that guide how quickly people must be placed in shelters.<br /><br />“This is not a decision taken lightly,” Mr. Levy said in a statement Wednesday night. “And we will make every effort to get asylum seekers into shelter as quickly as possible, as we have done since Day 1.”<br /><br />Increasingly frustrated in recent months, the mayor has <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/19/nyregion/adams-biden-migrants.html">criticized President Biden</a> and pushed for federal emergency aid.<br /><br />Earlier this month, Mr. Adams said the city was projecting that it would spend <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/02/nyregion/adams-migrants-asylum-nyc.html?searchResultPosition=1">$4.3 billion</a> over the next two fiscal years to cover the costs of the migrant influx and that roughly 37 percent of that was likely to be covered by the state and federal governments.<br /><br />As the mayor desperately seeks places to house the migrants who are expected to arrive in the city, he also announced plans to begin busing migrants to other counties in the state, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/07/nyregion/rockland-migrants-shelter-nyc.html">setting off a clash</a> with other leaders. On Sunday, he told city leaders to send him a list of all facilities with enough space to accommodate large numbers of migrants.<br /><br />In an <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/11/nyregion/migrants-ny-adams-title-42.html">hourslong call on Thursday</a> with more than 100 officials from across the state, Mr. Adams heard complaints that he was not working effectively, adding to criticisms that he had not planned well for a problem he himself had been warning about for the past year.</span></div></div></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">*************************************************</span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;">And somehow <i>Yahoo News</i> got the news rather late, posting this on May 16, 2023:</span></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6V5sZdpHOnp8EWKyzdlnp7NvbL_G-vFKbdf7Az2Ag0ZLfci8LYCc3wJ0AiIFKNS0FWwteJ0e-LhCVSGRL-ZzF9n-Ixhk5rj2ME2jHZKLK7JOyd6n2iBBTGY_7qSEtqYTnFkJiXOHxwF-3dHnw9hp2YViTfUmzAyJQRWxwJ-fwvtrLju_zmjmSBxUK/s498/Mayor%20Eric%20Adams.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="469" data-original-width="498" height="301" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6V5sZdpHOnp8EWKyzdlnp7NvbL_G-vFKbdf7Az2Ag0ZLfci8LYCc3wJ0AiIFKNS0FWwteJ0e-LhCVSGRL-ZzF9n-Ixhk5rj2ME2jHZKLK7JOyd6n2iBBTGY_7qSEtqYTnFkJiXOHxwF-3dHnw9hp2YViTfUmzAyJQRWxwJ-fwvtrLju_zmjmSBxUK/s320/Mayor%20Eric%20Adams.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">NYC Mayor Eric Adams<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table></div><h1 data-test-locator="headline" style="background-color: white; color: #232a31; font-family: "YahooSans VF", "Yahoo Sans", YahooSans, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-stretch: normal; line-height: 1.25; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/adams-says-nyc-looking-housing-152749037.html">Adams says NYC looking at housing migrants in school gyms</a></span></h1><div><div class="caas-attr-item-author" style="background-color: white; color: #1d2228; font-family: "YahooSans VF", "Yahoo Sans", YahooSans, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18.005px; font-weight: 700; line-height: 1.5; position: relative;"><span class="caas-author-byline-collapse" data-id="m-0">Julia Shapero, </span><span style="font-size: 14px;">Tue, May 16, 2023</span></div></div><br />New York City Mayor Eric Adams said Tuesday that the city is considering housing some migrants in school gyms as it struggles to accommodate those arriving in the city.<br /><br />Adams <a href="https://www.nyc.gov/office-of-the-mayor/news/334-23/transcript-mayor-eric-adams-appears-live-ny1-s-mornings-1">told New York 1</a> that the city is considering about 20 school gyms, each of which are separate from actual school buildings. However, he emphasized that it would be “one of the last places we want to look at.”<br /><br />“We have an order, almost an order, of where we have to go as the crisis continues,” he said. “This is one of the last places we want to look at. None of us are comfortable with having to take these drastic steps. But I could not have been more clear for the last few months of what we are facing.”<br /><br />Adams <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/ap/ap-u-s-news/facing-influx-of-asylum-seekers-new-york-city-says-it-has-reached-its-limit-on-migrants/">warned last week that</a> New York City would not be able to handle the expected influx of migrants following the end of Title 42. The pandemic-era policy, which allowed U.S. authorities to rapidly expel asylum seekers, expired Thursday.<br /><br /><br />In the days since the expiration, however, a border surge has not materialized, and in fact border encounters dropped, according to the <a href="https://thehill.com/latino/4005280-title-42-mania-undercut-by-drop-in-encounters/">Department of Homeland Security</a>. Some Republican governors of Southern states have been putting migrants on buses and sending them north in recent months, though, <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/4002078-migrant-buses-from-texas-arrive-in-new-york-ahead-of-expected-surge/">contributing to the influx in New York City</a>.<br /><br />Adams said Tuesday that the city has received more than 65,000 migrants. Ahead of Title 42’s expiration, the mayor eased the city’s longtime guarantee to provide shelter to all residents and also began busing some migrants to counties in northern New York.<div><br /></div><div><p style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">Betsy Combier</p><div style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px; text-align: justify;"><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;">betsy@advocatz.com</span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;"><br /></span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: quot;">Editor, </span><span style="color: #582995;"><a href="http://advocatz.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">ADVOCATZ.com</span></a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;">Editor, <span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="https://advocatz.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;">ADVOCATZ Blog</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Rubber Room Reporter</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://www.parentadvocates.org/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Parentadvocates.org</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://newyorkcourtcorruption.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">New York Court Corruption</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nationalpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">National Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Public Voice</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials</a></span></b></div></div><div><span style="font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div></div>Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-53571795372440376752023-05-06T21:15:00.002-04:002023-08-05T16:14:44.300-04:00Special-Education Teacher Marina Golfo Gets 3-Months of Paid Sick Leave While In Federal Prison Camp For Fraud<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjAGbNKRHnKHWsJga3vV7Q48R8lGIl6ywECLRir6-o0EzfMel-oQKas8yf4zg9iN0Jh7p8Gd7KhNgq2XA3VL1JcVpBDygdiXoscf8QUwycnlFmXrn3I7j06bhTc2snMMqUC6FAXPF_mXowZmNjQtwfN_0UNLsm-ROXmfXpoL9lBtPQxkQeEHU_xamB/s579/Maria%20Golfo.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="579" data-original-width="546" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjAGbNKRHnKHWsJga3vV7Q48R8lGIl6ywECLRir6-o0EzfMel-oQKas8yf4zg9iN0Jh7p8Gd7KhNgq2XA3VL1JcVpBDygdiXoscf8QUwycnlFmXrn3I7j06bhTc2snMMqUC6FAXPF_mXowZmNjQtwfN_0UNLsm-ROXmfXpoL9lBtPQxkQeEHU_xamB/s320/Maria%20Golfo.jpg" width="302" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #585858; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.14px; text-align: left;">Special-ed teacher Marina Golfo tricked her DOE bosses into paying sick leave <br />during her three-month prison stint for fraud</span><span class="credit" face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #585858; display: block; font-size: 0.75rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.17; margin: 0px; padding: 0.5rem 0px 0px; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;">Twitter</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Special Education teacher Maria Golfo evidently was found guilty of defrauding the Department of Education, and then was put into Federal prison for 3 months, but got paid by the NYC DOE for "sick leave". See the article posted below that was published in the NY Post.<div><br /> When I think about all of the wonderful, decent, honest teachers, Assistant Principals and Principals who have been charged with misconduct and then forced into a 3020-a and terminated, and then read a story like the one below, I get upset that the NYC DOE is so random and arbitrary when dealing out fines, suspensions and terminations as punishment for wrong-doing.<p></p><p>The Special Commissioner of Investigation Unit, SCI, is largely responsible for punishing the wrong person, or not punishing the right person.See<span face=""Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px;"> </span><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2023/01/Veronica-Hernandez-Case.pdf" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #3660c1; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Veronica Hernandez Case</a>. The so-called "investigators" are anything but that, and tout themselves as "independent" from the DOE yet get paid heaps of money by the NYC DOE. Whenever someone gets a lot of money from their employer, do you really believe that they would go against what the employer wants? No.</p><p>For example, consider Gerald Conroy, Deputy Commissioner of the Office of the Special Commissioner of Investigation for the New York City School District. He filed an <a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2023/01/Conroy-Affirmation.pdf">Affirmation</a> in the Supreme Court in a <a href="https://advocatz.com/2023/01/05/exclusive-teachers-accused-of-paying-for-fake-covid-vaccination-cards-are-vindicated-return-to-their-jobs-and-get-backpay/">case I worked on</a>, and he wrote in that Affidavit that he "believed" that anyone who went to Wild Child was guilty of fraud and deceit when they handed in vaccination cards 'without' (he wrote) actually getting the shot. He was never able to prove anything against these people, and now everyone accused by him are back to work (except several who resigned and moved on to other jobs). </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgilq-CzAhmIvFyHifWIHahXcvt8Shzhj2N0vVoDgXH0m_bhGYP4fya_gJgVr_vCqL5x6qyWgvRe7yGbrQWRDu6jsZP5Ej-ZOdxh5PYqK4xiiBbDOdrEBkZW7gSFcmas_rEZw3wAcvh_A8LqUa2bwSTAZE2yUTxZoypxqksSR1IuZSx1gWfZMdF12j0" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="527" data-original-width="714" height="295" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgilq-CzAhmIvFyHifWIHahXcvt8Shzhj2N0vVoDgXH0m_bhGYP4fya_gJgVr_vCqL5x6qyWgvRe7yGbrQWRDu6jsZP5Ej-ZOdxh5PYqK4xiiBbDOdrEBkZW7gSFcmas_rEZw3wAcvh_A8LqUa2bwSTAZE2yUTxZoypxqksSR1IuZSx1gWfZMdF12j0=w400-h295" width="400" /></a></div>Gerald Conroy's salary 2020-2021, SCI (Seethroughny.net/payrolls). In 2022 he made $190,554.<p></p><p>Yet no one at the NYC DOE caught Marina Golfo and her three months of sick pay while in jail?</p><p>There you are, proof of incompetency, political dumbness, whatever.</p><p style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">Betsy Combier</p><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;">betsy@advocatz.com</span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: quot;">Editor, </span><span style="color: #582995;"><a href="http://advocatz.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">ADVOCATZ.com</span></a></span></b></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;">Editor, <span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="https://advocatz.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;">ADVOCATZ Blog</a></span></b></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Rubber Room Reporter</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://www.parentadvocates.org/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Parentadvocates.org</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://newyorkcourtcorruption.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">New York Court Corruption</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nationalpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">National Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Public Voice</a></span></b></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials</a></span></b></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><br /></b></div><h1 class="headline headline--single" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--black); font-family: neue-haas-grotesk-display, sans-serif; font-size: 2.625rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.05; margin: 0px 0px 1rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://nypost.com/2023/04/22/nyc-special-ed-teacher-collected-sick-pay-from-prison/">NYC special-ed teacher collected 3 months of sick pay from prison</a></h1><p>By Matthew Sedacca and Susan Edelman, NYPOST, April 22, 2023</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">A special education teacher tricked her clueless bosses at the city Department of Education into giving her three months of paid sick leave — while she served a federal prison sentence for defrauding taxpayers and stiffing students, The Post has learned. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwA1ljIhcyMIbwlTCRp-TNzlVShYGtqcjBV9UW8fQcmg2PGbtJ7kY_sAtojXvx4KXeb0zQLPKfKexvnTbjA3OTuUVqjTKdLmYjSIktUE3A0oRTvXjGgygz9ydBKb3FS1sqKCm5Y7Ajc7xWDjxJJZlP-1aHDxuI8ffB77q8YS7w5giGv-l6CdsFh-YR/s818/Golfo-Prison%20camp.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="512" data-original-width="818" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwA1ljIhcyMIbwlTCRp-TNzlVShYGtqcjBV9UW8fQcmg2PGbtJ7kY_sAtojXvx4KXeb0zQLPKfKexvnTbjA3OTuUVqjTKdLmYjSIktUE3A0oRTvXjGgygz9ydBKb3FS1sqKCm5Y7Ajc7xWDjxJJZlP-1aHDxuI8ffB77q8YS7w5giGv-l6CdsFh-YR/w320-h200/Golfo-Prison%20camp.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #585858; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.14px; text-align: left;">Golfo spent three months at Federal Prison Camp Alderson in West Virginia.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span color="var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g)" style="letter-spacing: -0.01em;"><br /></span></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span color="var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g)" style="letter-spacing: -0.01em;">Speech therapist Marina Golfo, 49, collected $24,367 in salary last year while sitting in a cell at West Virginia’s all-women’s, minimum-security Federal Prison Camp Alderson, the Special Commissioner of Investigation for city schools found. </span></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“You’ve got to admire her nerve, if you don’t admire her stupidity,” said Ellen McHugh, a member of the Citywide Council on Special Education.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In October 2018, Brooklyn federal <a href="https://nypost.com/2018/10/04/therapists-accused-of-bilking-600k-from-disabled-children/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">prosecutors charged Golfo</a> and seven other employees with defrauding <a href="https://nypost.com/2021/01/15/nyc-kids-with-developmental-issues-fell-off-radar-amid-covid/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">the Early Intervention Program</a>, which serves developmentally challenged children and is overseen by the state Department of Health.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span color="var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g)" style="letter-spacing: -0.01em;">Golfo, a Long Islander, was accused of bilking taxpayers of $156,000 over the prior three years by submitting fake treatment notes and invoices for more than 1,500 therapy sessions she never provided. Many sessions were scheduled to occur in the homes of children or caregivers.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; letter-spacing: -0.16px;">She pleaded guilty in July 2021 to healthcare fraud, was sentenced to three months in prison and ordered to pay restitution for all the money disbursed, according to court documents. But she inexplicably remained on the DOE payroll.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Weeks after entering the clink in September, Golfo submitted an online request to her DOE managers for paid sick leave. She included a doctor’s note explaining that she was too ill to come into the office and should remain at home. </p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Golfo also submitted requests to prison and court officials for “compassionate release” due to health risks she faced from COVID-19, along with her elderly parents’ need for a caretaker, according to court records. She was denied on Oct. 6, with US District Judge Kiyo A. Matsumoto writing that neither her health conditions nor her parents warranted a reduced sentence.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">On Nov. 1, the brazen educator asked DOE for an extension of her sick leave through Dec. 1, which was two days after the end of her prison term.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Shockingly, the city approved the request, apparently not realizing its employee was a jailbird. In total, she raked in a quarter of her $97,469 annual salary from behind bars.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">But the DOE was initially well aware of her criminal case, which was <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-edny/pr/eight-therapists-arrested-scheme-defraud-program-developmentally-disabled-children" rel="noreferrer noopener" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">jointly announced</a> in 2018 by the city Department of Investigation and the US Attorney’s Office. A week after she was charged in Brooklyn federal court, DOE even rubber-roomed Golfo — reassigning her to a Committee on Special Education office in the Bronx while awaiting trial, according to SCI and a letter from a former colleague. </p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The DOE’s Human Resources division told SCI<a href="https://nycsci.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Costanzo-Golfo-Marina-SCI-Report-2022-9271_Redacted.pdf" rel="noreferrer noopener" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank"> </a>investigators it was unaware that Golfo was requesting time off from the slammer — despite her 2018 arrest having been widely reported — because she never informed the agency or her managers about her sentencing.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Delivering a lesson in unabashed chutzpah, Golfo told SCI investigators she did not know she had violated DOE sick-leave rules, claiming that she did not think her location mattered because she could not have come into the office, regardless, due to her illness. She suffered complications from shingles, court records show.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Golfo did not return messages from The Post.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">SCI said it first received a complaint about Golfo’s improper use of sick pay from a tipster in December 2022. The DOE finally fired her on Jan. 31 — about a month before SCI gave its findings to schools Chancellor David Banks on March 6.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">It’s unclear whether Golfo returned to work for the two months between her prison release and her firing. The DOE would not answer any questions.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Special Commissioner Anastasia Coleman recommended that DOE require Golfo to return the pay she pocketed while incarcerated. She also said DOE should bar her from any further work with the department. </p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“Her actions were clearly more deliberate than she acknowledged to investigators,” Coleman wrote. </p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Ken Girardin, a fellow with the Empire Center for Public Policy, a government watchdog, blasted the DOE for failing to keep track of an employee’s incarceration — and enabling Golfo to collect<span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span>her salary on top of it. </p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“In the private sector, three days of sick leave raises concerns. Three months should’ve been setting off flashing red lights and sirens,” Girardin said. </p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">DOE’s wasteful spending on Golfo’s salary outraged special education activist Fatimi Geidi, who ripped the city for failing “the students that need the most support” — even as it <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/04/06/eric-adams-orders-nyc-budget-cuts-as-migrant-costs-rise/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">warns of cuts</a> <a href="https://ny.chalkbeat.org/2023/4/4/23670470/nyc-school-education-budget-cuts-eric-adams-david-banks" rel="noreferrer noopener" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">in </a><a href="https://nypost.com/2023/04/11/expose-on-soaring-nyc-school-spending-should-outrage-every-new-yorker/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">public-school spending</a>. </p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“Everybody involved needs to be ashamed,” said Geidi, 37, the mother of two developmentally challenged students, one of whom attends public high school. “We’re arguing about the budget and you’re literally throwing it at somebody that committed fraud.”</p></div>Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-11673178522441853982023-05-06T19:19:00.006-04:002023-05-06T21:37:53.937-04:00Former Queens Superintendent Jennifer Carreon Sues the NYC DOE For Racist Policies and Discrimination<p> What is going on at the NYC Department of Education?</p><p>On March 4, 2023 the NY POST did a story on District 31 Superintendent Dr. Marion Wilson who allegedly sent out racist text messages to Chancellor Banks and others, vowing to "<span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #2a2a2a; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.16px;">get rid of white principals" and “clean up this island”</span></p><p>See: <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/03/04/nyc-doe-probing-anti-white-texts-tied-to-black-superintendent/" style="font-family: neue-haas-grotesk-display, sans-serif; font-size: large; letter-spacing: -0.01em;">City probing anti-white texts linked to black superintendent</a></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSr_rKCD_5OTbQQLWvX6Eftmb8nhrmd24MH6WQanUBeKvXfGk_5Pw30bCOBlaGP8ZoO1CdaAFf0xxJbBtHw1b2HoWHuna2iOEOg2jk6ScLDIYtaaKPXPSyFc-0Nig1zjqKY46VcYi2dXqCbH_DXAYhrH4vzEU8kyMzwK__GA5Is4nxGRsvwZWAb7wc/s580/Dr.%20Marion%20Wilson.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="580" data-original-width="433" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSr_rKCD_5OTbQQLWvX6Eftmb8nhrmd24MH6WQanUBeKvXfGk_5Pw30bCOBlaGP8ZoO1CdaAFf0xxJbBtHw1b2HoWHuna2iOEOg2jk6ScLDIYtaaKPXPSyFc-0Nig1zjqKY46VcYi2dXqCbH_DXAYhrH4vzEU8kyMzwK__GA5Is4nxGRsvwZWAb7wc/s320/Dr.%20Marion%20Wilson.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dr. Marion Wilson [photo: Jason Paderon]</td></tr></tbody></table><br />And the current news from District 31 (Staten Island) is that there is chaos going on. <a href="https://www.greatschools.org/new-york/staten-island/2182-Ps-46-Albert-V-Maniscalco/">PS 46 Principal Heather Jansen</a> (who is white) was removed on May 1, 2023. MUCH more about that in a future post.<p>Never a dull moment, folks.</p><p style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">Betsy Combier</p><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;">betsy@advocatz.com</span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: quot;">Editor, </span><span style="color: #582995;"><a href="http://advocatz.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">ADVOCATZ.com</span></a></span></b></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;">Editor, <span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="https://advocatz.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;">ADVOCATZ Blog</a></span></b></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Rubber Room Reporter</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://www.parentadvocates.org/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Parentadvocates.org</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://newyorkcourtcorruption.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">New York Court Corruption</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nationalpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">National Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Public Voice</a></span></b></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials</a></span></b></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><br /></b></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><p style="color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif;"><a href="https://nypost.com/2023/05/06/former-queens-superintendent-jennifer-carreon-sues-nyc-for-20m/" style="font-family: neue-haas-grotesk-display, sans-serif; font-size: 2.625rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em;">Former Queens superintendent claims city replaced her to elevate black males, sues NYC for $20M</a></p></div><p><br /></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPzdkXf0mA1k7xTgzqfw9cBOdeP6BfkXsyWcI6pszSFqffIbfFmNGQfbYXv9JjSWpzwkEzPIVb6EbiEwPujZHW0dFy-hx2sS3bKLIxVF8q8FU3DWWyPSmAOHSlbAoYPNgT4QcMxFJ8oP8xEUZYC6rI00rj-oQWBRcRiiEtapQUC96W6XOMYG5zqTPG/s557/Jennifer%20Carreon.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="557" data-original-width="378" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPzdkXf0mA1k7xTgzqfw9cBOdeP6BfkXsyWcI6pszSFqffIbfFmNGQfbYXv9JjSWpzwkEzPIVb6EbiEwPujZHW0dFy-hx2sS3bKLIxVF8q8FU3DWWyPSmAOHSlbAoYPNgT4QcMxFJ8oP8xEUZYC6rI00rj-oQWBRcRiiEtapQUC96W6XOMYG5zqTPG/s320/Jennifer%20Carreon.jpg" width="217" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #585858; font-size: 14px; letter-spacing: -0.14px; text-align: left;">Jennifer Carreon has filed a $20 million discrimination lawsuit against the city Department of Education.</span><span class="credit" face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #585858; display: block; font-size: 0.75rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.17; margin: 0px; padding: 0.5rem 0px 0px; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;">Helayne Seidman</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p>By Susan Edelman, NY POST, May 6, 2023</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">A Filipino-American woman replaced as a Queens superintendent by her black male deputy has filed a $20 million race and gender discrimination suit against the city Department of Education, The Post has learned.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Jennifer Carreón, 45, contends Chancellor David Banks demoted her to install her less-experienced No. 2, David Norment, out of desire to elevate black males.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The Manhattan Supreme Court suit, filed this week, is the first to legally challenge Banks’ choice of superintendents since he <a href="https://nypost.com/2022/01/23/nyc-chancellor-david-banks-to-ask-every-school-superintendent-to-reapply-for-job/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">made all 45 reapply</a> for their jobs last year in what he called “a shakeup.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">One of 12 removed, Carreón was assigned a lesser bureaucratic role.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The Asian-American Pacific Islander attended NYC public schools from K to 12, growing up in subsidized housing in Lower Manhattan. She started working for the DOE as a teacher in 2002, rising to principal, assistant superintendent, and acting superintendent. She was appointed District 27 superintendent in 2019 by then-Chancellor Richard Carranza.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Carreón told The Post that she hired Norment as her deputy, and took him under her wing. “I was fostering and nurturing his leadership,” she said.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">She even encouraged him to become a superintendent.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“When the process opened, he did tell me that he wanted to apply for the Bronx, because that’s where he lives. I said, ‘Oh, good luck, Let me know what I can do to support you.’” </p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">To her surprise, the DOE invited Norment to a <a href="https://www.rockawave.com/articles/three-candidates-vie-for-district-27-school-superintendent/" rel="noreferrer noopener" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;" target="_blank">District 27 town hall </a>to compete with his boss for her job.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Norment, an ex-principal at PS 140 in Jamaica, told the Community Education Council that he’d be the best leader to “turn around” schools with low test scores.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5MaO_wAxfUXzUga3ODQ5p-m1EdZTFod5gCJ8jeac7usZaZ7g0D5vEURJX01ZSl6VMQeiIj3pcdFaua7ZjCcKdnhldE9-wuBS-hfbmxD9ASSr0bnaXC5vUHvOBvaJMnHlCx_I9n1cGWStJ65yp8w2eLrujHZ7fOghIrb2dZx5hy07LxqxdTCcyKaBt/s750/Norment.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="591" data-original-width="750" height="252" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5MaO_wAxfUXzUga3ODQ5p-m1EdZTFod5gCJ8jeac7usZaZ7g0D5vEURJX01ZSl6VMQeiIj3pcdFaua7ZjCcKdnhldE9-wuBS-hfbmxD9ASSr0bnaXC5vUHvOBvaJMnHlCx_I9n1cGWStJ65yp8w2eLrujHZ7fOghIrb2dZx5hy07LxqxdTCcyKaBt/s320/Norment.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><figcaption style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; caption-side: bottom; color: #585858; font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 0.875rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.14; margin: 0.625rem 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;">Carreón claimed that she was replaced by David Norment because Chancellor David Banks wanted to elevate black males.</figcaption><figcaption style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; caption-side: bottom; color: #585858; font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 0.875rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.14; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="credit" color="var(--wp--preset--color--gray-e)" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 0.75rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.17; margin: 0px; padding: 0.5rem 0px 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;">district27nyc.org</span></figcaption></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“I have been a good fit,” Carreón argued at the town hall, saying she connected with immigrant parents and upheld high expectations for students.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In a final blow, Banks <a href="https://nypost.com/2022/06/27/nyc-introduces-new-school-superintendents-to-mixed-reactions/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">introduced the winners </a>at a City Hall press conference.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“I didn’t have any clue,” Carreón said. “Everyone was texting me, “Why aren’t you here? Why is your deputy here?’</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“It was a huge shock. I was devastated, because I was succeeding. I was highly effective. That was my last evaluation.”</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-OnpvuMNBwFH-ueVMeNlys3RtZL1aMVv2zL6LhpqJ4cHHsgnKKpWRWcqMDJoScNh9ZGlBEEVy4uH-yl5D_JLef3vDgZi3YhRaVELK3HrcZ7NKUZrcaIgfkM1FXxbKQ_IS1N8m9QcZlIbhVS9Rt3HpiSEdxkai8lUDzV4cbdZYS9sqyZDad9I7PW3W/s441/Chancellor%20Banks.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="441" data-original-width="383" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-OnpvuMNBwFH-ueVMeNlys3RtZL1aMVv2zL6LhpqJ4cHHsgnKKpWRWcqMDJoScNh9ZGlBEEVy4uH-yl5D_JLef3vDgZi3YhRaVELK3HrcZ7NKUZrcaIgfkM1FXxbKQ_IS1N8m9QcZlIbhVS9Rt3HpiSEdxkai8lUDzV4cbdZYS9sqyZDad9I7PW3W/s320/Chancellor%20Banks.jpg" width="278" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><figcaption style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; caption-side: bottom; color: #585858; font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 0.875rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.14; margin: 0.625rem 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;">Banks made all 45 superintendents reapply for their jobs last year.</figcaption><figcaption style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; caption-side: bottom; color: #585858; font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 0.875rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.14; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="credit" color="var(--wp--preset--color--gray-e)" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 0.75rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.17; margin: 0px; padding: 0.5rem 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Matthew McDermott</span><span class="credit" color="var(--wp--preset--color--gray-e)" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 0.75rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.17; margin: 0px; padding: 0.5rem 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span><span class="credit" color="var(--wp--preset--color--gray-e)" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 0.75rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.17; margin: 0px; padding: 0.5rem 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></figcaption></td></tr></tbody></table><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Desmond Blackburn, Bank’s <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/02/11/desmond-blackburn-dumps-nyc-doe-after-one-year/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">since-departed </a>deputy chancellor for leadership, had previously praised her 20-minute PowerPoint pitch — in which she described her accomplishments and plans — to remain in the post.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">After her ouster, she said, Blackburn gave no explanation except, “The chancellor decided to go in a different direction.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“It’s not a different direction because they hired my deputy,” Carreón said. “I taught him how to do things, and he needed some work. He needed more growth and was not as experienced, or ready to take on the largest district in Queens and one of the largest in the city.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1_oe--xMXJoA7E--0EEjfHyCV7rj0H0VqIXXntbjJBFrTnpXBddiy2OlLJsVIs7NxDFF0AlDL_cGnTvfVneYg_inobJX0PacPSEvIhoiQjx9pQI3Vhsp3424i-exgIEvs8iiqkY4E5ibHFn_FRo_50M-syPsu8w216jJeXHkZq7zuLvKLvXvzxr_E/s839/Norment2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="590" data-original-width="839" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1_oe--xMXJoA7E--0EEjfHyCV7rj0H0VqIXXntbjJBFrTnpXBddiy2OlLJsVIs7NxDFF0AlDL_cGnTvfVneYg_inobJX0PacPSEvIhoiQjx9pQI3Vhsp3424i-exgIEvs8iiqkY4E5ibHFn_FRo_50M-syPsu8w216jJeXHkZq7zuLvKLvXvzxr_E/s320/Norment2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><figcaption style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; caption-side: bottom; color: #585858; font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 0.875rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.14; margin: 0.625rem 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;">Carreón originally hired Norment (second from right) to be her deputy.</figcaption><figcaption style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; caption-side: bottom; color: #585858; font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 0.875rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.14; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-align: left; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="credit" color="var(--wp--preset--color--gray-e)" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 0.75rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.17; margin: 0px; padding: 0.5rem 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Twitter D27NYC</span><span class="credit" color="var(--wp--preset--color--gray-e)" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 0.75rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.17; margin: 0px; padding: 0.5rem 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span><span class="credit" color="var(--wp--preset--color--gray-e)" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 0.75rem; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.17; margin: 0px; padding: 0.5rem 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></figcaption></td></tr></tbody></table><span color="var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g)" face="Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em;">District 27 covers 50 schools with 41,500 students in southern Queens and the Rockaways. The students are 41% Hispanic, 21.9% Asian-American, 20.6% black, and 9.9% white.</span><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Banks bowed “to the discriminatory push by certain members of the community to select Norment solely because of his race,” the suit charges.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Lisa Johnson Cooper, president of <a href="http://cdec27.org/">District 27’s Community Education Council</a>, a panel of parents who interviewed the candidates, told The Post she got personal Facebook messages from residents urging support for “the brother,” referring to Norment.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Cooper, who is black, wrote back: “Y’all vote by party line and by color. That’s crazy to me and no, I’m not getting ‘the brother’ in.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In an orientation for the newly-installed superintendents last July, Carreón heard from colleagues that a member of the chancellor’s team commented openly, <em style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“</em>Look around the room – what do you notice? There’s a black male at every table,” the suit says.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Carreón, like several other displaced superintendents, accepted a newly created title, executive director of School Support and Operations, in Lower Manhattan’s District 1, at the same salary, $187,400. The appointed superintendents got raises to $215,000 or $230,000.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“I feel degraded,” she said. “I’ve worked so hard my entire career, did everything you’re supposed to do, and exceeded expectations. Everything was always pointing upwards.” </p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Carreón’s lawyers, Davida Perry and Brian Heller, also have pending race-discrimination suits against the DOE on behalf of <a href="https://nypost.com/2019/10/01/fourth-white-doe-executive-sues-over-racial-discrimination/" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">four white women</a> and a white male who all claim that ex-Chancellor Carranza demoted and replaced them with less-qualified people of color.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: var(--wp--preset--color--gray-g); font-family: Arial, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: -0.01em; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">DOE and city Law Department officials would not comment.</p>Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-18491309488594905522023-04-12T17:18:00.003-04:002023-05-04T11:22:01.770-04:00Editorial: Reply To Chad LaVeglia<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5IDmMOm4MNuWrykiKo8RoJaXbWieKcrzp82kbIPnv_lGrWst6uWJWEIDUpDf93_RFzn_VgIJf9ad7yV197tQrk3ZTEodran7-2l3XQNv64OU5RgWM82B1z3fCHPFjbgQe2g4GkP4P584tFzbxALq3_vUNBd7k_D6sU8WlfnPwggBN9rn_2P-VpDOz/s693/Betsy%20Combier.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="472" data-original-width="693" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5IDmMOm4MNuWrykiKo8RoJaXbWieKcrzp82kbIPnv_lGrWst6uWJWEIDUpDf93_RFzn_VgIJf9ad7yV197tQrk3ZTEodran7-2l3XQNv64OU5RgWM82B1z3fCHPFjbgQe2g4GkP4P584tFzbxALq3_vUNBd7k_D6sU8WlfnPwggBN9rn_2P-VpDOz/w400-h272/Betsy%20Combier.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /> When an Attorney violates their code of ethics in any way, it is bad for everyone in the judicial system.<div><br /></div><div>Many readers of this post have wondered what happened that made Chad Laveglia turn on me as seen below. Let me tell you my thoughts. </div><div><br /></div><div>In October 2022 when I was quoted in the media about the "fake vaccination cards" case, Chad blew up, saying that HE was the only one who could speak for the Petitioners, "his" clients, and paralegals - i.e. me - cannot practice law, as I was doing by speaking about the case. Here is what he wrote in an email to a reporter: " I AM THE ATTORNEY REPRESENTING 30 TEACHERS. Paralegals cannot practice law...please do not attribute comments to my clients without speaking with me. I am the only one authorized to speak for them." Huh? That came out of the blue. He never made that a term of engagement. Moreover, he never spoke with any of the Petitioners, but I did, 24/7, whenever they called me to ask about writing an email to the UFT, getting benefits while off salary, etc. </div><div><p>Chad then followed up with another email: "Betsy is amazing. And is more knowledgeable about disciplinary matters than almost anyone....I am to criminal law what Betsy is to education law." </p><p>Thanks Chad!!! Then, in February 2023 after thanking Chad for using the papers I ghostwrote for a teacher appealing his case to the Court of Appeals, I received the emails posted below. I honestly was honored to have him use the papers.</p><p>Unbeknownst to me at the time, my position in Chad's eyes as a lowly paralegal who knew nothing about due process rights - or had no right to know - threatened his "I am much better than you" level. My goal was then and is now to assist people in getting their due process, and making sure that everyone can enjoy their rights to life, liberty and justice. </p><p>People who assist or judge individuals based on their perceived social-financial status level is not <em>my</em> way or the <em>right</em> way.</p></div><div><p><em>Just sayin'....</em></p><p></p><p>I believe that everyone deserves a chance, and I gave Attorney Chad LaVeglia every chance to be professional. He has continued his bully tactics with several of his clients. Therefore, I am posting my reply to his emails sent to me in February which should never have been sent.</p><p>Re-posted from Advocatz Op-Ed: <a href="https://advocatz.com/2023/04/12/my-reply-to-chad-laveglia/">MY REPLY TO CHAD LAVEGLIA</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Dear Chad,</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">I debated not answering your venom-filled email sent to me and your new “Chief Executive/client” Monique Parsons (Index No. 206973/2022) – who I don’t know, and never spoke to – but I see no other way to protect your future clients from the confusion and distress you have caused in the case I worked with you on, <a href="https://advocatz.com/2023/01/05/exclusive-teachers-accused-of-paying-for-fake-covid-vaccination-cards-are-vindicated-return-to-their-jobs-and-get-backpay/" style="border: 0px; color: #3660c1; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">the “fake vaccination card” case</a>. I believe no hate-filled bully such as you should be allowed to spread lies about anyone, at any time, and I will do whatever I can to stop your destruction of people’s trust and lives.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The email you sent your client Mrs. Parsons and me on February 16, 2023 is posted in full below.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Everything I write in this Op-Ed is my opinion, and I am not an attorney, as you very well know. I could have been one. My dad, an Assistant Attorney General for the State of New York for 20+ years under AG Louis Lefkowitz, the people you hate, wanted me to go to law school and he would have paid for it. But I became an investigative reporter instead. Life happens.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In June 2022 when I asked if you would work with me (at Petitioners’ request) on the case of teachers who were erroneously and unlawfully accused of defrauding the City of New York and the NYC Department of Education by allegedly “buying” a COVID vaccination card instead of getting the shot, you told me that you knew nothing about Education Law. I said this is a due process case, and I could contribute information on Education Law 3020-a, the tenure law protecting teachers’ rights. I told you about my experience as a non-Attorney participating in 3020-a arbitration since 2003. We also discussed the untenured teachers’ rights to due process. You agreed to work on the case and told me to keep the Petitioners aware of the case but not to contact you, and keep the Petitioners away as well. If needed, I would email you. I did exactly as you requested. Indeed, before February 11 2023 you told me that I did a great job.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">I know you HATED the fact that I was quoted in the media, and you believe that YOU should be the only person quoted. I chose to ignore your incredibly absurd outburst. And when we won the case, I emailed you that I was very happy that you used a paper I wrote for a Plaintiff who presented it to the Court of Appeals. All was good.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">On December 30, 2022 Judge Gina Abadi in Kings County Supreme Court granted the Petition, giving the Petitioners their jobs back, and backpay.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Then on Feb. 6, 2023, the City appealed point #4 in Abadi’s order, that they must never again place “tenured Petitioners on leave without pay or reassigning them to reassignment centers without the DOE first commencing disciplinary procedures pursuant to EL 3020 and 3020-a”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">See <a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2023/01/ORDER-OF-JUDGE-ABADI.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">ORDER OF JUDGE ABADI</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Neither I nor any of the Petitioners heard from you about whether you were going to submit an Opposition to the Reargument, so I and a Petitioner wrote you on February 11, asking whether you were doing the argument, because you had told me that you do not do appeals.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Your answer on Feb. 13:</p><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“Hi Betsy,</strong></div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Good to hear from you! And thank you for the kind words. I briefly read their motion. It’s pretty silly. </strong></div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">I had intended on reaching out. As an aside, I’ve been back and forth with corp counsel. I can respond, and have no problem doing so, just need to work out the logistics i.e., payment”</strong></div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Then we asked the substance of the communication with the Corporation Counsel. I guess that was our mistake. You despise questions.</div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">You answered on Feb 14, 2023:</div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><p style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“Hey Betsy,</strong></p><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Our conversations revolve around getting the administrative mess between DOE and UFT settled. </strong></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Their motion has nothing to do with backpay or reinstatement. they’re really misinterpreting the 4<sup style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 0.625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">th</sup> grant of relief. </strong></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">I don’t have time to speak. I also insist on an agreement upon which I am compensated before performing any further work. </strong></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">My Chief Executive is cc’d on this email. Please address further correspondence to her. </strong></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">thank you”</strong></div></div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">We emailed you and Mrs. Parsons asking if you were helping get backpay (we have no information on your help with this), and how much you would charge for the Reargument and Appeal. We were never trying to get any of your time for free. But dont you have to tell your clients how much you want to be paid?</div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">You replied:</div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“Hi Betsy,</strong></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">I’m going to explain something quick as a courtesy. This isn’t personal but take it as you like. </strong></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">I am no longer spending a single second of my time performing any legal services—directly or indirectly—unless I’m getting paid; like every single other business in the world. I am now extremely stringent with my time. My services are OVER per the engagement agreement. My job is done. I already got backpay for everyone, I won the case. It’s over. It is remarkable to me that not a single Petitioner was able to work this out internally with payroll. </strong></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">It is not my problem that the UFT and DOE are too stupid to figure out simple backpay. I was trying to expedite/facilitate getting the teachers backpay. I was generously giving up my time to help others for nothing in return. No more. </strong></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">I specifically told you to email Mrs. Parsons, and you just ignored me. That’s just disrespectful and inconsiderate of my time. I’m not dealing with it.” </strong></div></div><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Chad, you got backpay for nobody.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Then on Feb. 15, 2023 at 3:59pm, you emailed all the Petitioners in our case, and cc to Mrs. Parsons, his client (but for some unknown reason you did NOT send it to me):</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“Hi all, </strong></p><div class="gE iv gt" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div aria-expanded="true" class="h7" role="listitem" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" tabindex="-1"><div class="Bk" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="G3 G2" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div id=":1an" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="adn ads" data-legacy-message-id="1865c6b407af21e4" data-message-id="#msg-a:r-5188578803876493894" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="aju" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="aCi" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Unrelated- I am not dealing with Betsy going forward. I admire Betsy’s dedication to helping teachers, her fortitude, knowledge, and accomplishments. She has as good heart and means well. There is no drama here. I just don’t have the time, or the patience. I could always charge my hourly fee and bill for every second of mine Betsy consumes.”</strong></div></div><div class="gs" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="gE iv gt" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div><div id=":1ao" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The Petitioners answer to me: <img alt="❤️" aria-label="❤️" class="an1" data-emoji="❤️" src="https://fonts.gstatic.com/s/e/notoemoji/15.0/2764_fe0f/72.png" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: bottom;" /> <img alt="❤️" aria-label="❤️" class="an1" data-emoji="❤️" src="https://fonts.gstatic.com/s/e/notoemoji/15.0/2764_fe0f/72.png" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: bottom;" /> <img alt="❤️" aria-label="❤️" class="an1" data-emoji="❤️" src="https://fonts.gstatic.com/s/e/notoemoji/15.0/2764_fe0f/72.png" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: bottom;" /> we appreciate you! <img alt="❤️" aria-label="❤️" class="an1" data-emoji="❤️" src="https://fonts.gstatic.com/s/e/notoemoji/15.0/2764_fe0f/72.png" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: bottom;" /> <img alt="❤️" aria-label="❤️" class="an1" data-emoji="❤️" src="https://fonts.gstatic.com/s/e/notoemoji/15.0/2764_fe0f/72.png" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: bottom;" /> <img alt="❤️" aria-label="❤️" class="an1" data-emoji="❤️" src="https://fonts.gstatic.com/s/e/notoemoji/15.0/2764_fe0f/72.png" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: bottom;" /></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div><div class="utdU2e" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">On February 16 a Petitioner in the case sent your email to me, reluctantly, after I asked her if she had heard from you and she told me everyone had, but were very upset with your email.</div></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">I sent you an email asking you why you did not send the email to me, and to cease and desist from writing about me without my knowing, and making up false statements such as I spoke with you too much and wasted your time. You know this is not true.</div></div></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Very soon after I sent my email, you sent this to me and your client Monique Parsons:</div></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“Betsy, you are so out of your depth here. And your timing is horrible. This is what I said-</strong></div></div></div></div><div aria-expanded="true" class="h7" role="listitem" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;" tabindex="-1"><div class="Bk" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="G3 G2 afm" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div id=":1b7" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="adn ads" data-legacy-message-id="1865c9f35962fb2d" data-message-id="#msg-f:1758033276571941677" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="gs" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="ii gt adO" id=":1ba" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="a3s aiL msg8953525500705273162" id=":1b9" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div dir="ltr" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“Unrelated- I am not dealing with Betsy going forward. I admire Betsy’s dedication to helping teachers, her fortitude, knowledge, and accomplishments. She has as good heart and means well. There is no drama here. I just don’t have the time, or the patience. I could always charge my hourly fee and bill for every second of mine Betsy consumes. “</strong></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Where is the attack on your integrity and work ethic or maligning of your name? Please point it out to me. Because those words are called compliments. Either you live in a different reality, or don’t comprehend the English language. Which one is it? And you’re so damn selfish and thin skinned that you have the audacity to come at me again—at a time when I am scrambling to help hundreds of employees? What is wrong with you? I certainly have no respect for you now, not as a person or a professional. You want to see what an ultimate insult looks like Betsy? Here we go. </strong></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">This is the second time; you pulled this fake victim card. I have no tolerance for your bullshit. You talk too much and waste my time. Time, I don’t have to give. And certainly not for free. It’s that simple. You brought nothing to the table as far as the law or legal strategy. You go off on tangents. But you are extremely shortsighted and only care about yourself. Hence this second, absurd email. I let you get away with it the first time. but no more. </strong></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In fact, you seem to think you’re special. You’re not. I’d say you have balls for emailing me, but it’s stupidity. Further, I don’t give a shit what you drafted, or for who you drafted it for. You’re not a lawyer. Accept that. Stop trying to be one. And stop expecting to be treated like one. It seems like you think we’re on the same level. You’re delusional. Your administrative accolades are equivalent to me being the MVP of little league baseball. I fight every day for the plight of the little guy. But you’re not the little guy. You have a nice cushy place in NYC. You have nothing in common with the working class. You’re a phony. I could go on, but I’m bored. You’re insignificant to me. Truly, insignificant. Your cease-and-desist bit is hilarious btw <span id="m_8953525500705273162🤡" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><img alt="🤡" aria-label="🤡" class="an1" data-emoji="🤡" src="https://fonts.gstatic.com/s/e/notoemoji/15.0/1f921/72.png" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; padding: 0px; vertical-align: bottom;" />. I’m going to block you now Betsy. Good riddens. </span></strong></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></span></strong></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_rAcSaKqhflS94XmUlT-IrUhqG64gOgXTLT7RM4DwKs1LrP8q3nLA664W6tz7Nzp2mO8yv1Rt_7U6QLkRWb4a791nHQgSmNP4fN0BCYqPinajmSBwHlrMjBs9Xp25XzasdoYqyLzjfohSzifXpyayhvkommOVvi00ABAO4ank9_k21QTOB5Nara8p/s454/Chad%20Laveglia%20logo.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="114" data-original-width="454" height="80" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_rAcSaKqhflS94XmUlT-IrUhqG64gOgXTLT7RM4DwKs1LrP8q3nLA664W6tz7Nzp2mO8yv1Rt_7U6QLkRWb4a791nHQgSmNP4fN0BCYqPinajmSBwHlrMjBs9Xp25XzasdoYqyLzjfohSzifXpyayhvkommOVvi00ABAO4ank9_k21QTOB5Nara8p/s320/Chad%20Laveglia%20logo.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /></strong></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div id="m_8953525500705273162Signature" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-weight: inherit;">I hate to admit it, but I cried all night of the 16th. Your words really stung. But let your bully pulpit go unrecognized for what it is? Never.</span></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-weight: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-weight: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">You say you fight every day for the “little guy”? So do I. But I am available to anyone 24/7, i.e. every day, all day (unless I am in a 3020-a or a Court mediation) for free. Ah, I know what you say to that. I’m not an attorney, so I do not know anything, and people shouldn’t speak to me because what I say has no value. Ok, why not let them decide? Thank goodness many people do not believe you. For those who do, I wish them godspeed. They will need it. I play the victim card? Never have, never will. Is this a feeble attempt to intimidate me? I dont fall for stuff like that.</div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-weight: inherit;"><br /></span></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">You say I live in a cushy place in NYC? How do you know? I do not believe that you have ever been here. Did you judge my location as on the Upper East Side, so everyone lives a ‘cushy’ lifestyle.? You have no idea what my life is like, but let me tell you, it is a happy place, with items left from the happy school days of my four daughters, teen purple hair, rescue puppies, blind white labrador retriever, my guinea pig sophie, beanie babies and my Winnie-the- Pooh and Paddington Bear collections.</div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgorO5uRP3XXB4JwfmuQ7WJT6jsAnOfAy6PaMoIk-mlsXiOrhDNKhK2yeFOEr3pJelYhtIDbEj4cfxVZHNN5bKMvciRmyTzYhtrQP4-UXTNYKSY-wx6l9tJ6q-b3DNkePvtXEDbaoTQmdbh9VCT-POj2NH8a8Kb2QOcTCO8hudLMV21XPcwYAeW2yPC/s300/Betsydaughters-297x300.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="297" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgorO5uRP3XXB4JwfmuQ7WJT6jsAnOfAy6PaMoIk-mlsXiOrhDNKhK2yeFOEr3pJelYhtIDbEj4cfxVZHNN5bKMvciRmyTzYhtrQP4-UXTNYKSY-wx6l9tJ6q-b3DNkePvtXEDbaoTQmdbh9VCT-POj2NH8a8Kb2QOcTCO8hudLMV21XPcwYAeW2yPC/s1600/Betsydaughters-297x300.jpg" width="297" /></a></div><br /><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Chad, do you see the picture at the top of this Op-Ed? Do you see the man standing next to me and two of</div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">my daughters, and in the picture below with my mom?<br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRaReM3fcODjBsht3j4h0e33R6Ox0S0hqhYJN2ZjuBt72j7ttxsMNN8pTNLvsdoF8je8bnktwyNA1k_7JNOGcL3UA1Qjq4GHZbazpZZ2YRR78TJ-XzYv3VMlQinU7JHLUunE2NpQnGXFqE0rChG_ixZAyNmtLqV2AnMAAzcNk4P03A-Rx8VZoVOk4M/s4032/mom-David-Betsy.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRaReM3fcODjBsht3j4h0e33R6Ox0S0hqhYJN2ZjuBt72j7ttxsMNN8pTNLvsdoF8je8bnktwyNA1k_7JNOGcL3UA1Qjq4GHZbazpZZ2YRR78TJ-XzYv3VMlQinU7JHLUunE2NpQnGXFqE0rChG_ixZAyNmtLqV2AnMAAzcNk4P03A-Rx8VZoVOk4M/s320/mom-David-Betsy.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br />This person is my husband of 39 years, a nice man from Lima Peru who worked for the City of New York for 40 years, 37 years at Hunter College, as an electrician. Local Union No. 3 IBEW (“Local 3”). Is this the “little guy” I know nothing about? Isn’t my husband a working-class person with whom you say I have nothing in common? In my opinion, his respect for everyone on the planet – whether the person is black, white, purple or green, of any religion, gender, age, or financial position – makes him a better person than you. I dont know what level you are on that is so far above my level, but I couldn’t care less.</div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">One more thing –</div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">You ended your email to me on the 16th with “Good riddens “.</div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></div><div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The correct way to write this is “Good riddance”.</div><div class="columns-inner" style="background-color: #111111; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.5px; min-height: 0px;"><div class="column-center-outer" style="float: left; position: relative; width: 530.003px;"><div class="column-center-inner" style="padding: 0px;"><div class="main section" id="main" name="Main" style="margin: 0px 15px;"><div class="widget Blog" data-version="1" id="Blog1" style="line-height: 1.4; margin: 0px; min-height: 0px; position: relative;"><div class="blog-posts hfeed"><div class="date-outer"><div class="date-posts"><div class="post-outer" style="background-color: white; border-radius: 5px; border: 1px solid rgb(221, 221, 221); margin: 0px -20px 20px; padding: 15px 20px;"><div class="post hentry uncustomized-post-template" itemprop="blogPost" itemscope="itemscope" itemtype="http://schema.org/BlogPosting" style="min-height: 0px; position: relative;"><div class="post-body entry-content" id="post-body-205914169052306333" itemprop="articleBody" style="font-size: 14.85px; line-height: 1.4; position: relative; width: 498.332px;"><p>Betsy Combier</p><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;">betsy.combier@gmail.com</span></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: quot;">Editor, </span><span style="color: #582995;"><a href="http://advocatz.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">ADVOCATZ.com</span></a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;">Editor, <span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="https://advocatz.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;">ADVOCATZ Blog</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Rubber Room Reporter</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://www.parentadvocates.org/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Parentadvocates.org</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://newyorkcourtcorruption.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">New York Court Corruption</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nationalpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">National Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Public Voice</a></span></b></div><div style="color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials</a></span></b></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><br /></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">I</p></div>Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-2059141690523063332023-03-29T19:33:00.001-04:002023-03-29T19:33:49.636-04:00Fourth Grade Math and Reading Scores in NY Go Down<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglXy3pb_QeswXXv4Dl5lOCskFpMVYhu54vBmdJ7IpKQl8qDj0z1I2BNnwjJWpsZmdQsuymtggM0rAPswFOCHy-lxqW-ytupCSGSIpz3Y3s8XfPDEfQwNjPuYD6GlXRLq8zgTI6tHCC4F16506AOxhQObuc_vXoxq_Im7yUqhSfhDPPEji2__6lB7rr/s703/classroom-empty%20remote.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="470" data-original-width="703" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglXy3pb_QeswXXv4Dl5lOCskFpMVYhu54vBmdJ7IpKQl8qDj0z1I2BNnwjJWpsZmdQsuymtggM0rAPswFOCHy-lxqW-ytupCSGSIpz3Y3s8XfPDEfQwNjPuYD6GlXRLq8zgTI6tHCC4F16506AOxhQObuc_vXoxq_Im7yUqhSfhDPPEji2__6lB7rr/w400-h268/classroom-empty%20remote.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p>Our kids are not doing well.</p><p>The solution? There is no general answer. Parents have to decide for themselves what school they want their kids in, and whether they would do better in a private, public, charter or religious school. Do not be swayed by anyone. </p><p style="background-color: white; color: #1a222a; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;">Betsy Combier</p><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;">betsy.combier@gmail.com</span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: quot;">Editor, </span><span style="color: #582995;"><a href="http://advocatz.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">ADVOCATZ.com</span></a></span></b></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;">Editor, <span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="https://advocatz.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;">ADVOCATZ Blog</a></span></b></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14.85px;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Rubber Room Reporter</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://www.parentadvocates.org/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Parentadvocates.org</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://newyorkcourtcorruption.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">New York Court Corruption</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nationalpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">National Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials</a></span></b></div><h1 class="page-header" style="background-color: white; border-bottom: none; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-weight: 500; line-height: 1.1; margin: 46px 0px 10px; padding-bottom: 9px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="https://www.osc.state.ny.us/press/releases/2023/03/dinapoli-federal-data-shows-new-yorks-losses-fourth-grade-math-and-reading-scores-are-double-national">DiNapoli: Federal Data Shows New York's Losses in Fourth Grade Math and Reading Scores Are Double National Average</a></span></span></h1><article about="/press/releases/2023/03/dinapoli-federal-data-shows-new-yorks-losses-fourth-grade-math-and-reading-scores-are-double-national" class="ct-press-release is-sticky full clearfix" data-history-node-id="154956" role="article" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><div class="content" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="osc-pr-issued-date field field--name-field-issued-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field--item" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.28571em; margin-bottom: 31px;">March 13, 2023</div><div class="field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field--item" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.28571em;"><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1em; margin: 10px 0px;">New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli today <a href="https://www.osc.state.ny.us/reports/nations-report-card-underscores-new-yorks-need-academic-recovery" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #337ab7; text-decoration-line: none;">released a review of recent federal data</a> about how the pandemic negatively affected student performance in New York. In response, he urged New York school districts to assess their plans for spending federal pandemic funds and to target funds towards children most in need.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1em; margin: 10px 0px;">New York was allocated over $15 billion in emergency education aid during the pandemic from the federal government, with $14 billion from three rounds of the Elementary and Secondary School Relief Fund (ESSER) assistance. This aid was aimed at elementary and secondary schools and must be obligated by September 2024. Based on data from DiNapoli’s <a href="https://www.osc.state.ny.us/reports/covid-relief-program-tracker#notes" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #337ab7; text-decoration-line: none;">COVID-19 Relief Program Tracker</a>, through Jan. 31 New York’s school districts have spent roughly 40% of ESSER funds.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1em; margin: 10px 0px;">“The classroom disruptions caused by the pandemic have hurt New York’s students. Academic losses were greater for younger students, with fourth grade scores dropping more than the national average,” DiNapoli said. “School districts must act quickly to take full advantage of available resources to help students that are most in need get caught up, before time runs out.”</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1em; margin: 10px 0px;">Recent data from The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) shows student performance dropped significantly in 2022 from 2019. New York’s average score remained steady for eighth grade reading but declined in eighth grade math (down 6 points). Over this time, New York’s losses in fourth grade math and reading scores were double the national average and exceeded 45 other states in math and 38 other states in reading. The average drop for fourth grade math scores (10 points) was so severe that McKinsey & Company estimated this learning loss to be the equivalent of nearly an entire school year.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1em; margin: 10px 0px;">Over the same time frame, fourth grade math proficiency rates declined across all gender, racial and ethnic groups, and the decline was steepest for Asian and Pacific Islander students, at 14 percentage points. Students from low-income households also experienced steep declines in fourth grade math proficiency rates from 24% to 18%.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1em; margin: 10px 0px;">The Executive Budget proposes $42.1 billion in combined state and federal education aid for the upcoming state fiscal year (SFY) 2023-24; however, that total is projected to decline, as the balance of federal pandemic relief funds must be obligated by September 2024. This could be problematic if a significant portion of the relief funds is left unspent or is dedicated to programs with recurring expenses or if significant progress in academic recovery has not occurred.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1em; margin: 10px 0px;">DiNapoli urged the State Education Department to provide school districts with guidance on best practices for spending of funds and encouraged school districts to ensure funds are being used for evidence-based practices for students most in need.</p><p style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1em; margin: 10px 0px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: 700;">Report</span><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><a href="https://www.osc.state.ny.us/reports/nations-report-card-underscores-new-yorks-need-academic-recovery" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #337ab7; text-decoration-line: none;">“Nation’s Report Card” Underscores New York’s Need for Academic Recovery</a></p><br /></div></div></article>Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-17979926510053983002023-03-26T11:34:00.002-04:002023-03-26T11:38:28.738-04:00Does The End of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency Bring An End To Telehealth?<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-left: 113.5pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="color: #5f5f5f; font-family: Symbol; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; text-transform: uppercase;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihhQ3TbO3h4GlmI9bW3tmlbkX4KPekzX-3EJsGdw5stacOWzsiXiGCw7j1z4gGi57SLqN5DXiMr_wIOeLBNeM92dSenCINx-GV5YINx4bPyEOOnSyci6pwVcqCFzWNzhMfm-C-6qputSDWdgoBjGkBaVzFAxZxxe3AJ7AiBgbPATYoX_97zQ_GrjZ1/s836/end%20to%20telehealth.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="505" data-original-width="836" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihhQ3TbO3h4GlmI9bW3tmlbkX4KPekzX-3EJsGdw5stacOWzsiXiGCw7j1z4gGi57SLqN5DXiMr_wIOeLBNeM92dSenCINx-GV5YINx4bPyEOOnSyci6pwVcqCFzWNzhMfm-C-6qputSDWdgoBjGkBaVzFAxZxxe3AJ7AiBgbPATYoX_97zQ_GrjZ1/w400-h241/end%20to%20telehealth.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"><br /></span><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-left: 113.5pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="color: #5f5f5f; font-family: Symbol; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; text-transform: uppercase;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-left: 113.5pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="color: #5f5f5f; font-family: Symbol; font-size: 10pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol; text-transform: uppercase;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-feature-settings: normal; font-kerning: auto; font-optical-sizing: auto; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variation-settings: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-left: 113.5pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-left: 113.5pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-left: 113.5pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-left: 113.5pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><b><br /></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-left: 113.5pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; tab-stops: list .5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-outline-level: 1;"><b><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 24pt;"><a href="https://www.fastcompany.com/90867065/future-of-telehealth-public-health-emergency-ending" title="‘This could actually be catastrophic’: What the end of the public health emergency means for telehealth"><span style="color: black;">‘This could actually be catastrophic’: What the end of the
public health emergency means for telehealth</span></a><o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto; mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-outline-level: 2;"><span face=""Arial","sans-serif"" style="color: #5f5f5f; font-size: 18pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">When the COVID-19 public health emergency ends in May, some
patients will face new hurdles to the telemedicine services they’ve relied on for
three years.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><a href="https://www.fastcompany.com/user/issielapowsky" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #ef5b24; font-family: CentraNo2Book, Georgia-CentraNo2Book; font-size: 13px; font-weight: 700; letter-spacing: 1.4px; text-decoration-line: none; text-transform: uppercase;">BY ISSIE LAPOWSKY</a>, Fast Company, March 21, 2023 </o:p></p>
<p><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">Over the past few weeks, desperate <a href="https://www.keepourcure.com/resources" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="color: #ef5b24;">messages</span></a> have been pouring into the
telehealth company Boulder Care from patients who say a new proposed rule by
the federal government could put their health—and their lives—at risk.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.5625rem 0px;"><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">The
rule, <a href="https://www.dea.gov/press-releases/2023/02/24/dea-announces-proposed-rules-permanent-telemedicine-flexibilities" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="color: #ef5b24;">proposed</span></a> by
the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), would require anyone being prescribed
certain controlled substances via telemedicine to see a doctor in person in
order to continue their care online. That includes drugs like buprenorphine,
which Boulder Care’s providers use to treat people with opioid use disorder,
but also testosterone therapy for transgender people, Adderall prescriptions
for kids with ADHD, and any other controlled medications. When the pandemic
began, the DEA had waived this in-person requirement as part of the public
health emergency. Now that the public health emergency is set to end in May,
the DEA wants to take away that waiver.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">In the patient responses Boulder received, each message
was more dire than the next. Some worried about being able to even travel to
see a doctor. “There [aren’t] any clinics close to me, and I don’t have
reliable transportation to get an hour to an hour and a half away, which is what
I would have to do,” read one.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.5625rem 0px;"><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">Others
expressed fear at having to share their personal struggles with a local doctor
in a small community. “Being able to protect my anonymity was the only way I
was successfully able to get addiction treatment, and I’m sure most everyone
using these telehealth services feels the same,” read another. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.5625rem 0px;"><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">According
to Stephanie Strong, founder and CEO of Boulder Care, several hundred of the
company’s patients live in a remote area, lack transportation, and don’t
currently have a primary care provider. Now, she’s hoping that lifting up the
voices of Boulder’s patients will help convince the DEA—or other parts of the
federal government—that requiring in-person visits could have disastrous
consequences. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.5625rem 0px;"><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">“The
people who are struggling most in their addiction and in their lives are the
very people who will struggle most with this rule,” Strong says. “We expect
this could actually be catastrophic and put doctors in the really difficult
position of denying care for someone’s life-threatening condition.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.5625rem 0px;"><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">Before
President Biden’s State of the Union address this year, the White House laid
out an <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/03/01/fact-sheet-president-biden-to-announce-strategy-to-address-our-national-mental-health-crisis-as-part-of-unity-agenda-in-his-first-state-of-the-union/" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="color: #ef5b24;">agenda</span></a>,
which included a commitment to expand telehealth services for mental health and
substance use disorder. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS),
meanwhile, <a href="https://www.hhs.gov/about/news/2023/02/09/fact-sheet-covid-19-public-health-emergency-transition-roadmap.html" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="color: #ef5b24;">said</span></a> in
February that while the public health emergency was ending, the DEA would soon
propose a rule that would extend pandemic-era flexibilities for certain drug
prescriptions. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.5625rem 0px;"><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">But
while the DEA’s proposed rule is more flexible than the pre-pandemic law, the
proposal would reinstate an in-person-visit requirement that didn’t exist
during the pandemic. The rule wouldn’t apply to things like antibiotics or
blood pressure medication, but it would impose new hurdles for patients being
treated with <a href="https://www.dea.gov/drug-information/drug-scheduling" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="color: #ef5b24;">certain controlled
drugs</span></a>. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.5625rem 0px;"><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">New
patients would need to go see a doctor within 30 days of beginning telemedicine
treatment for buprenorphine, while existing patients would have 180 days to do
the same. For people seeking prescriptions for Adderall to treat ADHD, the
rules will be even stricter once the public health emergency ends, requiring
patients to have an in-person visit before receiving any further telehealth
care. That could be a crisis for kids, in particular, given the <a href="https://www.chop.edu/centers-programs/center-management-adhd/your-childs-appointment" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="color: #ef5b24;">monthslong wait
times</span></a> for child developmental specialists in the
U.S. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.5625rem 0px;"><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">For
Strong and others, these proposed hurdles suggest the administration isn’t
keeping its promises. “It’s not what we expected,” says Zack Gray, cofounder
and CEO of Ophelia, another telehealth company that treats people with opioid
use disorder. “It is unfortunate; and if it holds, it’s going to have
significant consequences for public health.” <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.5625rem 0px;"><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">The
DEA declined to comment, beyond its initial <a href="https://www.dea.gov/press-releases/2023/02/24/dea-announces-proposed-rules-permanent-telemedicine-flexibilities" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="color: #ef5b24;">press release</span></a> on
the proposed rule. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.5625rem 0px;"><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">An
HHS official tells <em style="box-sizing: border-box;">Fast Company</em> that the
agency has been working in consultation with the DEA and considers the proposal
a “middle ground” between the pre-pandemic law and the total flexibility of the
COVID-19 era. According to the official, HHS’s main goal has been to ensure
that there is a rule in place before the public health emergency ends, so that
patients aren’t immediately required to see a provider in-person before
continuing care. “If May 11 hits and we don’t have a final rule in place, it’s
pre-pandemic law that we default back to,” the official says. “Pre-pandemic law
is so much more restrictive than even the proposal that’s on the table right
now.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.5625rem 0px;"><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">But
the official says HHS is “very much aware” of the concerns Strong, Gray, and
others are raising and that the agency has been discussing these issues with
the DEA.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.5625rem 0px;"><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">The
Ryan Haight Act was signed into law in 2008 to regulate online prescriptions of
controlled substances. That law directed the attorney general to promulgate
rules that would allow for the special registration of telemedicine providers.
But those rules never came. A decade later, former President Trump signed the
Support Act into law, once again instructing the DEA to create rules regarding
the special registration of telemedicine providers within a year. That deadline
passed in October 2019. For people who have waited for years for the special
registration process to materialize, it’s frustrating to see this proposed rule
sidestep the question altogether. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.5625rem 0px;"><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">“We
needed a solution to this years ago,” says Libby Baney, a partner at the law
firm Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath and an advisor to the Alliance for Safe
Online Pharmacies, an industry group focused on addressing the illegal online
drug trade.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.5625rem 0px;"><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">The
public has until the end of March to <a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/03/01/2023-04248/telemedicine-prescribing-of-controlled-substances-when-the-practitioner-and-the-patient-have-not-had" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="color: #ef5b24;">comment on the
proposal</span></a> before the DEA finalizes its rule or pulls it
altogether. Already, thousands of responses have flooded in. “We thought that
they were going to make an announcement about a special registration that said,
‘Here’s how legitimate telehealth prescribers can get around the in-person
visit requirement,’” Gray of Ophelia says. “That’s not what happened.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">“We’re kind of begging to be regulated, as a sector,”
Strong of Boulder Care says. “We want telemedicine rules that are common sense
and protect patient safety and all the things that we know are important. And
this rule is not that.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.5625rem 0px;"><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">And yet, the HHS official warns that there is
no guarantee that this long-awaited special registration for telemedicine
providers wouldn’t come with the same in-person requirements as the DEA’s
proposed rule. “I don’t think you can just assume that the statute says create
a list, the list is created, and no other guard rails will be there,” the
official says, adding that the absence of the special registration may actually
end up saving providers from having to jump through additional hoops.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">Since the start of the pandemic, telehealth use has <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/healthcare/our-insights/telehealth-a-quarter-trillion-dollar-post-covid-19-reality" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="color: #ef5b24;">grown 38 times</span></a> pre-pandemic
levels. But the end of the public health emergency is bringing uncertainty even
to telemedicine providers who don’t deal with controlled substances. TimeDoc
Health offers chronic-care management services for providers whose patients
need long-term monitoring in between appointments with their doctor. The
reimbursement policy that allows for those services predated the pandemic, but
according to Will Boeglin, cofounder and CEO of TimeDoc, it’s still unclear
whether the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will reinstate the
in-person requirement for enrollment in those services when the public health
emergency ends. Reverting to the pre-pandemic rules, Boeglin says, would likely
lead to a drop off in adoption of these services, which help providers with
staffing shortages and also <a href="https://www.mgma.com/resources/revenue-cycle/chronic-care-management-leveraging-a-significant" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="color: #ef5b24;">reduce costs for
Medicare</span></a>. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.5625rem 0px;"><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">“I
think everyone’s kind of hoping and expecting that they’re not going to revert
some of these changes, because it feels like a step backwards,” Boeglin says.
CMS did not respond to <em style="box-sizing: border-box;">Fast Company’s</em> request
for comment.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.5625rem 0px;"><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">While
the DEA’s proposed rule wasn’t what most of the telemedicine sector was hoping
for, it also wasn’t a complete surprise. Last year, the Department of Justice
launched an <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ceo-of-mental-health-startup-cerebral-confident-in-companys-practices-despite-doj-investigation/" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="color: #ef5b24;">investigation</span></a> into
Cerebral, a telemedicine company focused on mental health, for possible
over-prescribing of controlled substances, including Adderall. Cerebral’s CEO
has <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ceo-of-mental-health-startup-cerebral-confident-in-companys-practices-despite-doj-investigation/" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="color: #ef5b24;">said</span></a> he’s
“confident” the company’s prescribing practices have been above board. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.5625rem 0px;"><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">At a
time when the government is concerned about reckless prescribing of drugs like
Adderall, Baney says, it stands to reason that they’d want to implement a rule
that slows down the process. “You can think of it as a stop sign, which to some
patients means they just won’t get access to care anymore,” Baney says. “But a
stop sign could be a very good thing if you’re the DEA, and you’re trying to
limit overprescribing of controlled substances. A stop sign is exactly the
intent.” But Baney warns that this stop sign might actually be an offramp,
leading patients to less safe online marketplaces for prescription drugs.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.5625rem 0px;"><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">When
it comes to opioid use disorder treatment at least, telehealth executives,
including Strong, point to mounting evidence that during the three years that
the in-person waiver was in place, <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2022/p0831-ccovid-19-opioids.html" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="color: #ef5b24;">access</span></a> to
telehealth services increased people’s chances of sticking with treatment and
reduced their risk of an overdose. “They’re ostensibly trying to regulate it to
prevent an overdose crisis,” Strong says. “We are trying to stop an overdose
crisis that already exists.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.5625rem 0px;"><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">Gray,
meanwhile, argues that no one in the government has made much of a case for why
in-person visits are medically necessary to treat people with substance use or
mental health issues. “If you’ve ever been to a psychiatrist for anxiety,
depression, they don’t take your shirt off and take your blood pressure. They
talk,” he says. “Nobody has come out and explained what the physical exam is
supposed to accomplish.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.5625rem 0px;"><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">If
the DEA moves forward with the rule, there are other levers the government
could pull to address at least some of the concerns telehealth companies have.
Legislators, for one, could pass a law waiving the in-person-visit requirement,
which Baney says Congress specifically opted not to do last year, as it was
drafting its omnibus bill, offloading the responsibility instead to the
DEA. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.5625rem 0px;"><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">Another
option would be for HHS and the Attorney General to agree to extend the
in-person waivers for buprenorphine prescriptions specifically under the <a href="https://www.cms.gov/about-cms/agency-information/emergency/epro/current-emergencies/ongoing-emergencies" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="color: #ef5b24;">opioid public health
emergency</span></a>, once the COVID-19 public health emergency ends. The HHS
official says that the agency is “still evaluating” that option, but
acknowledged that that would only address concerns for a subset of patients
whose medication is impacted by the rule.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.5625rem 0px;"><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">For
now, Strong and her team at Boulder Care are trying to prepare patients as best
they can, using their network of patient navigators to help direct people to
in-person providers. But she has little doubt that there will be people for
whom this requirement will mean stopping treatment or turning to illicit
markets for the drugs they need, with potentially tragic results.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 1.5625rem 0px;"><span face="Arial, "sans-serif"" style="font-size: 14.5pt; letter-spacing: 0.15pt;">“If
you’re choosing between going to a doctor, which is really hard, and getting
Suboxone or Xanax or something on the street, which is really easy, as the DEA
[itself] says, it only takes one pill to kill,” Strong says, “and that’s how
people overdose.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-29702953662426219112023-02-25T15:22:00.012-05:002023-05-09T11:51:09.568-04:00Notice of Claim Pursuant to General Municipal Law Section 50-E<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEtzikl-3kbqRIWKIFIfA5KDJiAkw2H_u5AooY5t7AJckNYTmNq-aPlpsrt7xPpSinnYuzbx5U3GMNQXKZNw5hrmH3pjzyzQFtD7vQ1hITga_3LDBIQe4nsmi7B0PPw5fkS30zNFM9npnCHg6UkPJyAk2sVTvYT1iH_T7A6gkNoNpnb2XBpnLlZV6i/s821/One%20Center%20Street.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="572" data-original-width="821" height="279" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEtzikl-3kbqRIWKIFIfA5KDJiAkw2H_u5AooY5t7AJckNYTmNq-aPlpsrt7xPpSinnYuzbx5U3GMNQXKZNw5hrmH3pjzyzQFtD7vQ1hITga_3LDBIQe4nsmi7B0PPw5fkS30zNFM9npnCHg6UkPJyAk2sVTvYT1iH_T7A6gkNoNpnb2XBpnLlZV6i/w400-h279/One%20Center%20Street.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p> What is a <a href="https://newyork.public.law/laws/n.y._general_municipal_law_section_50-e">Notice of Claim</a>?</p><p>Basically, if you have been harmed in some way by the Department of Education, another City Agency, or an employee of a City agency, you must file a Notice of Claim to that Agency that harm has been done, and that you want relief in terms of monetary damages or declaratory judgment.</p><p>The Notice of Claim must be filed within 90 days of the event(s) that you claim have harmed you.</p><p>And, once the claim has been written, you must:</p><p>1. print it out and notarize 4 copies, one for you to keep for your records, if there are 3 addresses at the top. If you intend on suing an individual who works for the City, the name of this individual must be included in the caption and in the body of the Notice of Claim, and this person must be sent a copy notarized, certified, and return receipt requested like the other copies.</p><p>2. go to the U.S. Post Office and send the Notarized copies (one copy) to each address specified in the Notice. </p><p>You keep a copy for yourself. You MUST send via Certified Mail and</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfb07I0KT-gq1nPcv19ZVn2ymrwSlHNecdAEVbS-TUzWFfc98rLS80FXXOr8tUh03C-aD14KbXJlbcKkvxnY_31W7DXnldFwmClau06tHvO52hbRV2-sD0Vbv4l073VRTSylJ6A8mvM7Vx-YHj9v0kkFHCL5eHjeA6j8F3RrkcHcD8LNsirCUqVOca/s388/Certified%20mail.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="233" data-original-width="388" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfb07I0KT-gq1nPcv19ZVn2ymrwSlHNecdAEVbS-TUzWFfc98rLS80FXXOr8tUh03C-aD14KbXJlbcKkvxnY_31W7DXnldFwmClau06tHvO52hbRV2-sD0Vbv4l073VRTSylJ6A8mvM7Vx-YHj9v0kkFHCL5eHjeA6j8F3RrkcHcD8LNsirCUqVOca/s320/Certified%20mail.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">return receipt (Green card) for each address. Make sure you put your name and address on the back before you stick it on the envelope! I asked a postman how often he sees no address on the back to mail the card back to, and he said, "I see that a lot".</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh20NPGzPp0LxEIi3Ruv4V-fLbF5n9Ye2NV_3bf-mA1E-MfvkGyCUrj1MWro0LRvuXde2kiPSWZGZjdQzdq52T7utmxmVliebU4H6OgQLXKeAZxj3GU9s9DQRV1swwmzrY38h3rDonsyyO2YY2q2bB2TkWarg6aj36PpLO3PGUsEZiF0QWkxkKMcwJX/s362/Green%20Card.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="233" data-original-width="362" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh20NPGzPp0LxEIi3Ruv4V-fLbF5n9Ye2NV_3bf-mA1E-MfvkGyCUrj1MWro0LRvuXde2kiPSWZGZjdQzdq52T7utmxmVliebU4H6OgQLXKeAZxj3GU9s9DQRV1swwmzrY38h3rDonsyyO2YY2q2bB2TkWarg6aj36PpLO3PGUsEZiF0QWkxkKMcwJX/s320/Green%20Card.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVT44Fdwlj2FFqzks_-PP4jVTi7RRV8dgIEX_gedU8M5uFuYcqPJnLqIELCqCJ41_yF6s-FxvMwMg24FmtzhRxwvoswrSlAjkadhjPRBMtUZQD_jiZg7cZXNrfircw_tvQQy6LwE_-CNn8TAnRiGZPFK75IGqDDAM5ZXHCPBmw-0UPT7SX3hdFFEge/s748/Green%20Card2.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="420" data-original-width="748" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVT44Fdwlj2FFqzks_-PP4jVTi7RRV8dgIEX_gedU8M5uFuYcqPJnLqIELCqCJ41_yF6s-FxvMwMg24FmtzhRxwvoswrSlAjkadhjPRBMtUZQD_jiZg7cZXNrfircw_tvQQy6LwE_-CNn8TAnRiGZPFK75IGqDDAM5ZXHCPBmw-0UPT7SX3hdFFEge/s320/Green%20Card2.png" width="320" /></a></div><p>Make sure that each of these forms is filled out correctly. Keep your receipts, your tracking number is on them. </p><p></p><p>A few weeks after mailing, you will receive a letter from the NYC Comptroller's Office (if you filed to that office in NYC) with your claim number. Keep this number in your records, you will put it into your lawsuit if and when you file.</p><p>The Notice of Claim template I am posting below (I created it in or about 2005) applies to any NYC Department of Education employee. If you are a municipal worker in NYC just change the addresses at the top: put your employer instead. Keep the Bureau of Law and Adjustment at the NYC Comproller's Office and the City Law Department addresses, add your employer to the send to list. </p><p>So, if you are a City worker of an Agency, or a private citizen, and you want to sue the City of New York, just put the Comptroller's Office, City Law Department, and your employer (if you are suing as a private citizen, you will omit your employer, and send only to the Comptroller's Office, the City Law Department, and any individual you are naming in the caption). </p><p>Anyone filling out a Notice of Claim can put as many facts and events as they want, as long as the most recent event that the Claimant says harmed him/her is within the 90 days prior to filing. Anyone with questions may email me at betsy@advocatz.com. In the NOC template below if you haven't filled it or something similar out on or before May 10 2023, then what you do is add to your timeline any responses you have received from anyone to whom you sent a request for reinstatement or backpay. No answer at all is a response. Put the date you mailed/emailed the person who did not respond (not Union). Unions are private entities, which are not City agencies and therefore do not belong in a Notice of Claim. If you believe that your union has not represented your interests as they should, file an Improper Practice Charge with the <a href="https://perb.ny.gov/">Public Employment Relations Board (PERB)</a>. The Statute of Limitations for filing an Improper Practice charge is 4 months. You do not need an attorney to represent you, I do PERB as a non-attorney.</p><p>After you file the Notice of Claim, you may receive a notice of a <a href="https://law.justia.com/codes/new-york/2014/gmu/article-4/50-h">50-H interview</a>. This is a deposition, which usually lasts less than an hour. The law firm hired by the City may tell you you should bring "your lawyer" with you. My suggestion? You can do this without an attorney. I know the whole thing sounds scary, but it's not, and you can do it. All interviews are currently by zoom. You are under oath, and a stenographer records what you say. You will receive a copy of the transcript with an errata page to correct any facts that were wrong. The questions asked are about the facts: what is your name? Where do you live? Why did you file a Notice of Claim? Your answers should be short, giving the basic details of when you were harmed by the City ("harmed" can mean terminated, forced to resign, accused of something you didn't do, etc) You don't make 'legal' arguments, and you shouldn't answer any question with a long statement of case law. A sentence or two is fine. If you have hired me and an attorney to work on your case, or any attorney, you may have these individuals sit in the zoom conference. The lawfirm hired by the City is the only party asking questions. </p><p>There is no Judge, no jury, and you are not going to win or lose your case because you did not think you made your point "correctly". Just give the facts. Period.</p><p>The template of a Notice of Claim is below and is mostly done except for #1 and #3. You fill in the information, and then notarize and mail as detailed above. <b>This is NOT legal advice, and I am not an Attorney.</b></p><p>Betsy Combier</p><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span face=""arial" , "tahoma" , "helvetica" , "freesans" , sans-serif" style="color: #1a222a;">betsy@advocatz.com</span></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: quot;">Editor, </span><span style="color: #582995;"><a href="http://advocatz.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">ADVOCATZ.com</span></a></span></b></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;">Editor, <span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="https://advocatz.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; text-decoration-line: none;">ADVOCATZ Blog</a></span></b></div><div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #1a222a; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Rubber Room Reporter</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://www.parentadvocates.org/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Parentadvocates.org</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://newyorkcourtcorruption.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">New York Court Corruption</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nationalpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">National Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor, </span><a href="http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;">NYC Public Voice</a></span><br /><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-family: quot;"><span style="color: #1a222a; line-height: 20.79px;">Editor,</span><a href="http://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="color: #843ddf; font-family: arial, tahoma, helvetica, freesans, sans-serif; line-height: 20.79px; text-decoration-line: none;"> Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials</a></span></b></div><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;"><b><u><span style="font-size: 12pt;">NOTICE OF CLAIM<o:p></o:p></span></u></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;"><b><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - X</span></b><b><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></b></p><div style="text-align: center;"><b>YOUR NAME</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;"> Claimant,</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">- against -</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b>CITY OF NEW YORK; CITY EMPLOYER, i.e. NEW YORK CITY </b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b> DEPARTMENT of EDUCATION,</b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"> Defendants</div><p><br />- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - X<br /><br />To: Office of the City Comptroller<br />Bureau of Law and Adjustment<br />1 Centre Street, Room 1225<br />New York, New York 10007<br /><br />Hon. Sylvia O. Hinds-Radix<br />Corporation Counsel<br />New York City Law Department<br />100 Church Street<br />New York, New York 10007<br /><br />New York City Department of Education<br />52 Chambers Street<br />New York, N.Y. 10007<br /><br />PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that the Claimant hereby makes claim and demand against the<br />individuals and groups named in the caption above:<br /><br /><b><u>1) The name, post office address, email, and phone number of the claimant:</u></b><br /><br /><br /><b><u>2)The nature of the claim:</u></b></p><div><br />This claim seeks recovery for monetary damages and backpay plus interest for the harm caused to Claimant’s reputation, livelihood, and career; additionally for the distress, suffering, mental, emotional, and physical anguish and impairment of Claimant's ability to secure future employment, and impairment of earning power inflicted upon the Claimant due to the negligence, carelessness, recklessness, and misfeasance, malfeasance, and negligent acts practices, and/or omissions of the Defendants. Claimant’s rights under the Constitution, both Federal and State, city and State Human Rights Laws, NYS Administrative Code, as well as employment rights under current contracts. The claimant now seeks to be made whole.<br /><br /><b><u>3) The time when, the place where, and the manner in which the claim arose</u></b><br /><br />PUT YOUR TIMELINE, and end it with:<br /><br />On February 10, 2023, the NYC Department of Education’s COVID Mandate was ended by Mayor Eric Adams. The claimant has sent out emails to the employer requesting reinstatement and/or backpay, and has received either no answer or, that Claimant cannot get backpay or return to a job with the same salary. The claimant objects to this punishment as unlawful.<br /><br />On or about February 10, 2023 Claimant became aware that their fingerprints remained tagged in the New York City Department of Education’s ‘Problem Code’ at the Human Resources Office of Personnel Investigations, but was never told why. The ‘Problem Code’ is used for employees who have committed what the New York City Department of Education considers misconduct. Therefore the New York City Department of Education has considered Claimant guilty of some kind of misconduct without giving the Claimant a chance to clear the codes from the personnel file and database.<br /><br />At present Claimant remains coded for an unknown act of misconduct, with a career that has been broken and tarnished by the unlawful acts cited herein.<br /><br /><b><u>4) The items of damage or injuries claimed are:</u></b><br /><br />damages to reputation; emotional distress; impairment of Claimant’s ability to secure future employment; impairment of earning power; tortious interference with business relations; malicious prosecution; abuse of process; fraud; and retaliation, defamation, libel, and slander. The claimant remains targeted, ostracized, and punished for not getting the COVID vaccine. The claimant demands that all rights to due process be honored and Claimant is made whole.<br /><br />The Department has criminalized Claimant’s rights to due process. The items of damage or injuries claimed amount to $2 million dollars<br /><br />The claim and demand are hereby presented for adjustment and payment.<br /><br />PLEASE TAKE FURTHER NOTICE that by reason of the foregoing, in default of the City of New York and the listed Defendants to pay the Claimant within the time limit for compliance with this demand by the applicable statutes, Claimant intends to commence an action against the City of New York and the listed Defendants to recover damages with interest and costs.<br /><br />Dated: </div><div> _____________________<br /> Claimant’s name<br />Signed Before Me on</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>_______________</div><div>Notary Public</div><div><br /></div><div>*I am not an attorney and do not give legal advice, only my opinion..</div><div><br /></div><div>Betsy Combier<br />betsy@advocatz.com<div style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #1a222a; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Editor, <a href="http://advocatz.com/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">ADVOCATZ.com</a></b></div><div style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; 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color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> Parentadvocates.org</a><br />Editor, <a href="http://newyorkcourtcorruption.blogspot.com/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">New York Court Corruption</a><br />Editor, <a href="http://nationalpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">National Public Voice</a><br />Editor, <a href="http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">NYC Public Voice</a><br />Editor,<a href="http://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials</a></b></div></div><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p>***************************************</o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p>From the First Department Appellate Division:</o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p><span face="Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;">A notice of claim is required as a condition precedent to commencing an action against an employee of the New York City Department of Education (Education Law § 3813[2]; General Municipal Law § 50–i), when, as in this case, the conduct complained of was engaged in as part of defendant's employment or in the scope of her employment (Radvany v. Jones, 184 A.D.2d 349 [1992]; see also Hale v. Scopac, 74 AD3d 1906 [2010]; DeRise v. Kreinik, 10 AD3d 381, 382 [2004] ). Here, plaintiff did file a notice of claim which described in detail the time, place and manner of the conduct by Livanis that allegedly interfered with his tenure rights and continued employment with the DOE, as well as his ability to enter into employment with other schools. Although he did not use the words “tortious interference with contract,” a notice of claim does not have to set forth a precise legal theory of recovery (DeLeonibus v. Scognamillo, 183 A.D.2d 697, 698 [1992]; see also Simons v. City of New York, 252 A.D.2d 451, 453 [1998] ). “[T]he notice of claim described in sufficient detail the time, place and manner of the occurrence and plaintiff's damages to advise the City of the basis for the claim so as to have an opportunity to investigate” (id.; see Parochial Bus Sys. v. Board of Educ. of City of N.Y., 60 N.Y.2d 539, 547 [1983] ).</span></o:p></p><p class="MsoNormal">If you want to read the version of the Notice of Claim that confused me when I first read it in 1997, read here or not: (my opinion =too much information, you don't need this):</p><p>See here: <a href="https://comptroller.nyc.gov/services/for-the-public/claims/e-filing/">Filing a Claim</a></p><p>and here: </p><p><b>FILING A NOTICE OF CLAIM</b> [NOTE: Persons without counsel are advised to consult with an attorney. Court staff MAY NOT give legal advice, prepare your papers or act as your attorney.] </p><p>Anyone who wishes to commence a civil lawsuit against New York State, your local government (county, city, town, village), or most government agencies for damages because of certain alleged conduct or negligence must first file with the State or municipal government agency a document known as a Notice of Claim and must do so within a fixed deadline after the accident or event. This is vital. Failure to file on time may result in dismissal of the case. What follows is a brief summary of the where's, when's and how to's of the notice of claim process. This is not intended to be an exhaustive or complete recitation of the law. The self-represented person is strongly advised to consult a lawyer or, failing that, a recognized treatise. A treatise is a book or set of books by a recognized expert that explains a particular law or laws, such as Bender on N.Y. Practice. </p><p><b>A. When is a Notice of Claim required? </b></p><p>The filing of a Notice of Claim may be required by a contract with the government or a statute (another word for a law). State law imposes such an obligation upon people who wish to sue New York State, local government or a government agency for money damages. A lawsuit against the State of New York may only be filed in the Court of Claims. First, however, you must file a Notice of Claim with the State (see Court of Claims Act §10). For more information about this process, for forms, or for contact information, you can visit the website for the New York State Court of Claims at <a href="http://www.nycourts.gov/COURTS/nyscourtofclaims/index.shtml">http://www.nycourts.gov/COURTS/nyscourtofclaims/index.shtml</a>.</p><p>The most broadly applicable notice of claim provision is set forth in the General Municipal Law (GML for short). These lawsuits are filed in Supreme Court and are actions against your municipal governments (county, city, town, village, fire district or school district ). Again, you must first file a Notice of Claim before starting anyaction or special proceeding for personal injury, wrongful death or damage to real or personal property alleged to have been sustained by reason of the negligence or wrongful act of the municipal entity or of any officer, agent or employee thereof (GML §50-i.) A proper and timely Notice of Claim must be served upon the government and at least 30 days must elapse before a lawsuit can be instituted. This allows the government agency, if it chooses, to begin a quick investigation of the facts concerning the claim. The papers that start the lawsuit in court must specifically recite the timely service of a notice of claim and the passage of the 30-day period.</p><p><b>B</b>. <b>When must the Notice of Claim be served?</b> </p><p>General Municipal Law requires that a Notice of Claim be served within 90 days after the claim arises (GML §50-e) . The claim will normally arise on the date of the accident (for ex., slip and fall) or 2 the event (for ex., assault) that forms the basis for the claim. However, in breach of contract cases, the rules are more complicated and beyond the scope of these instructions. </p><p><b>C. What form of Notice is required?</b> </p><p>The notice must be in writing, sworn to before a notary public, by or on behalf of the claimant (the person who wishes to make the claim), and set forth the following: (i) the name and post-office address of each claimant, and of his/her attorney, if any; (ii) the nature of the claim; (iii) the time when, the place where and the manner in which the claim arose, being as precise as possible; and (iv) the items and dollar amount of damages or injuries that are claimed to have been sustained to the extent practicable at that time. The claimant should take care to list all the claims he or she has. If not, the claimant runs the risk that the deadline will expire before the assertion of certain claims and the government mayargue that those claims are untimely and therefore time barred. Starting a lawsuit is not a substitute for filing a Notice of Claim. </p><p><b>D. How must the Notice of Claim be served?</b> The Notice of Claim must be served on the municipal government agency, by personal delivery, or registered or certified mail. The service must be made upon a person designated by law to receive summonses in Supreme Court actions or an attorney regularly engaged in representing such public corporations. (However, in a wrongful death case, the 90-day period runs from the appointment of a representative of 2 the decedent’s estate.)</p><p><b>E. When must a lawsuit be commenced?</b> </p><p>General Municipal Law provides that, even if a Notice of Claim is timely filed, the lawsuit must be instituted within one year and 90 days after the incident or event upon which the claim is based. </p><p><b>F. Late Notice of Claim</b> </p><p>Despite the above, the court has some authority to permit the filing of a Notice of Claim that is not served within the 90 days. The court may not, however, grant an extension that exceeds the outside limit of one year and 90 days. A person wishing to serve a late Notice of Claim must commence a special proceeding in Supreme Court. The application must be accompanied by a copy of the proposed Notice of Claim. In deciding an application for leave to serve a late Notice of Claim, the court will consider whether the government acquired actual knowledge of the essential facts constituting the claim within the 90- day period; whether the claimant was a minor or incapacitated; whether there was justifiable reliance upon settlement discussions; whether the claimant made an excusable error about the identity of the government against which the claim should be asserted; and whether the delay in serving the notice substantially prejudiced (hurt) the government in maintaining a defense on the merits. </p><p><b>H. Examination of the Claimant </b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p><p>General Municipal Law gives the government the right to conduct an examination of the claimant about the incident and the extent of the injuries or damages allegedly suffered. This examination is in the form of a deposition, which are oral questions posed to the claimant who is sworn to tell the truth. The questions and the claimant’s answers are recorded by a stenographer. The government may also have the claimant examined by a duly qualified physician. The claimant has the right to have his or her own physician present, as well as a relative or other person. </p><p><br /></p></div>Betsy Combierhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16854478415247528997noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6178330661968922056.post-51428381896448034532023-02-17T19:59:00.004-05:002023-02-17T22:29:27.675-05:00UPDATE: Educators Accused of Submitting Fake Vaccination Cards Get Their Jobs Back and Backpay<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI7ChTkdAdoBVkhHRVzWiRdHoF2foyskvpI2iczMST0XWriGCo7RAIoDPglSf0Z3TGiR6xAJe0sGTYYy58qZpA9jUzdq3UFwVSSXcPaWk0JGtgicqcujDRIGkIOtX9d_dTUgVO97jMxygAz43mWMEm1zUXjmXI_AHHmtcczllc3rqy6z9WevZmGUTJ/s385/Just%20Cause.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="304" data-original-width="385" height="253" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI7ChTkdAdoBVkhHRVzWiRdHoF2foyskvpI2iczMST0XWriGCo7RAIoDPglSf0Z3TGiR6xAJe0sGTYYy58qZpA9jUzdq3UFwVSSXcPaWk0JGtgicqcujDRIGkIOtX9d_dTUgVO97jMxygAz43mWMEm1zUXjmXI_AHHmtcczllc3rqy6z9WevZmGUTJ/s320/Just%20Cause.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p><span face=""Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; font-size: 2rem;"><a href="https://advocatz.com/2022/10/08/updates-on-the-alleged-fake-vaccination-card-fraud-scheme-and-82-educators-employed-by-the-nyc-department-of-education/">UPDATES ON The Alleged “Fake” Vaccination Card Fraud Scheme and 82 Educators Employed By the NYC Department of Education</a></span></p><div class="mh-meta entry-meta" style="background-color: white; border-bottom-color: rgb(235, 235, 235); border-bottom-style: dotted; border-image: initial; border-left-color: initial; border-left-style: initial; border-right-color: initial; border-right-style: initial; border-top-color: rgb(235, 235, 235); border-top-style: dotted; border-width: 1px 0px; color: #979797; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 0.8125rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0.625rem 0px 0px; padding: 5px 10px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="entry-meta-date updated" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 10px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="fa fa-clock-o" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; display: inline-block; font-family: FontAwesome; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 5px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: auto; vertical-align: baseline;"></span><a href="https://advocatz.com/2022/10/" style="border: 0px; color: #979797; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">October 8, 2022</a></span> <span class="entry-meta-author author vcard" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 10px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="fa fa-user" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; display: inline-block; font-family: FontAwesome; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 5px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: auto; vertical-align: baseline;"></span><a class="fn" href="https://advocatz.com/author/betsycombier/" style="border: 0px; color: #979797; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Betsy Combier</a></span> <span class="entry-meta-categories" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 10px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="fa fa-folder-open-o" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; display: inline-block; font-family: FontAwesome; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 5px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: auto; vertical-align: baseline;"></span><a href="https://advocatz.com/category/advocatz-op-ed/" rel="category tag" style="border: 0px; color: #979797; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">ADVOCATZ Op-Ed</a>, <a href="https://advocatz.com/category/advocatz/team-advocatz/" rel="category tag" style="border: 0px; color: #979797; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">TEAM ADVOCATZ</a></span> <span class="entry-meta-comments" style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 10px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="fa fa-comment-o" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; display: inline-block; font-family: FontAwesome; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; line-height: 1; margin: 0px 5px 0px 0px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: auto; vertical-align: baseline;"></span><a class="mh-comment-count-link" href="https://advocatz.com/2022/10/08/updates-on-the-alleged-fake-vaccination-card-fraud-scheme-and-82-educators-employed-by-the-nyc-department-of-education/#respond" style="border: 0px; color: #979797; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">0</a></span></div><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>UPDATE</b> for February 17, 2023: The teachers and administrators accused of submitting “fake” vaccination cards and removed from payroll on April 25, 2022, are now back to work at the NYC DOE. Some moved out-of-state or are working in other non-DOE jobs, but most are back to work, with their backpay:</span></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>“We are pleased to report that we have settled the grievance relating to back pay for individuals who were improperly place on leave without pay for allegedly submitting a fraudulent vaccine card.</i></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>All such situated individuals will receive payment for the period from April 25, (or your removal from payroll date, whichever is later) to June 30, 2022 (or up to your date of separation, whichever came first) including the proper adjustments to your summer pay disbursement. In addition, you will receive service credit for the period you were on leave without pay, meaning there will be no break in service on your record for that time.</i></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>The DOE has already begun the process and should begin issuing checks in the coming weeks. We will update you when we are notified of the pay dates.</i></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>This settlement does not resolve any individual grievances that may have been filed with regard to per session work or summer school. If you have filed such a grievance, you will be notified individually of the status of that grievance as it is processed.”</i></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">As for Julie Devuono, here is the latest:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg99Fv0EiXV2yAxopH4pd0xQZraeohvxV1v7eknB0uMuHh8QP8NAzU9RxFqY0qs5HsBBRhc1gbmi4PrVDoiOoiRGNp8aGWKp0TDi-CkkiRre00-mSMIA6ftGI7MUhGPt_fQ9WpBxyfvtJna538-ma9-F4pFp9sWOirl-QPZKS9xuOGfTbrV__4mrQt/s704/Devuono-next-trial-date.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="704" data-original-width="545" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg99Fv0EiXV2yAxopH4pd0xQZraeohvxV1v7eknB0uMuHh8QP8NAzU9RxFqY0qs5HsBBRhc1gbmi4PrVDoiOoiRGNp8aGWKp0TDi-CkkiRre00-mSMIA6ftGI7MUhGPt_fQ9WpBxyfvtJna538-ma9-F4pFp9sWOirl-QPZKS9xuOGfTbrV__4mrQt/w310-h400/Devuono-next-trial-date.jpg" width="310" /></a></div><br /><div><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">UPDATES: The 82 teachers and administrators accused of submitting “fake” vaccination cards to the NYC DOE pursuant to the NYC COVID Mandate and taken off salary on April 25, 2022, are now back on salary and put into a rubber room – reassigned to their homes until further notice. The NYC DOE made a mistake in putting these employees in LWOP (forced “leave without pay”), lost in Court, and gave all those harmed the partial relief of being placed back on salary September 6, 2022. The 82 educators are now fighting to get the backpay owed to them from the day they were removed (April 25, 2022) .</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">A second happy event occurred on October 4, 2022 when Judge Arlene Bluth denied the NYC DOE’s Petition/Order To Show Cause to throw these 82 educators off of payroll once again. Bluth said no. See <a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/10/DECISION___ORDER-Bluth.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">DECISION_ORDER Bluth</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">This matter, and the resulting cases (there are currently 3, see below) are all about due process and the way the NYC Department of Education denies all employees this Constitutional right. In order to win a case, you must detail the denials of due process to the Judge, and hope for the best, but it is indeed distressing to know that the NYC DOE does not care at all about any employee’s rights. If they see “any possibility” that an employee is guilty of something, they will go for termination without any facts.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The NY POST article in today’s paper:</p><h3 class="headline headline--single" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: 1.3; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://nypost.com/2022/10/08/covid-vaccine-fraud-witnesses-put-82-nyc-teachers-in-legal-limbo/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Witnesses in alleged COVID vaccine fraud case put 82 NYC educators in potential legal danger</a></h3><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Julie DeVuono is in danger, that is for sure. The Suffolk County DA arrested her after finding <a href="https://nypost.com/2022/06/11/accused-nyc-teachers-deny-buying-fake-covid-vaccine-cards/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">$900,000 in cash in Devuono’s house and receipts for $1.5 million</a>. Two staffers in her office, Wild Child, have evidently agreed to testify against their boss. She could face severe consequences if a jury finds her guilty of vaccine card fraud. See the <a href="https://www.governor.ny.gov/news/governor-hochul-signs-legislation-improve-state-response-covid-19-pandemic" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Legislation signed by Governor Kathy Hochul in December 2021</a>, and the Penal Code, below. But her danger is not connected to the educators’ ‘danger.’ If the Suffolk County DA had found a teacher guilty of fraud, this person would have been charged already. At this time, as far as I know the guilty parties remain Julie and her staff.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The New York City Department of Education decided, on April 19, 2022, that as the Suffolk County DA were charging the owner of Wild Child in Amityville, with fraud, any employee who went there to get a COVID vaccine was also guilty of fraud AND violating the NYC COVID Mandate. This Mandate says that any employee who did not get vaccinated cannot work inside any DOE building. The City Mayor, Eric Adams, in control of the DOE, then made a policy decision to stop all remote learning classes and force students to be inside the DOE buildings now off limits to any unvaxxed employee. This is appalling, but the clearest example of the lack of due process given to anyone that works for the DOE that I have ever seen. Did <em style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">everyone</em> who went to Wild Child go there to buy a fake vaccination card? Nope, I do not believe that and there is no proof that I have heard about at the present time. The DOE pattern and practice here is to throw the biggest amount of mud at the wall and hope that something sticks.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">This is the same as believing that if a complaint is made about a teacher saying something or doing something improper to a student while two paraprofessionals and 18 students were in the room, the teacher AND the two paras must be reassigned and charged, because everyone in the room “did it” or “is complicit” with the miscreant until proven innocent. That’s not how it works. People are innocent until proven guilty.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In my 20+ years of advocacy, I have never seen the DOE accuse and find guilty 100 people of doing something because they were in the same location at different times. That is not rational, in my opinion. Also, why would 100+ people want to jeopardize their careers and/or families by committing a crime? I know some people do illegal things because they think they will never get caught, but those people are not the educators I have spoken with.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Since the beginning of this matter, I have consistently stated the facts as I know them: the educators I have been assisting are innocent of fraudulently submitting a fake vaccination card. Period, end of the story. At this time there is no proof whatsoever that the educators in the case committed fraud. OTHER people who I do not know, who went to Julie to intentionally get a fake card, may be guilty of fraud. But let’s get the proof before we find anyone guilty. That is under the jurisdiction of the Suffolk County D.A. Maybe those people exist. <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2022/01/29/long-island-nurses-charged-with-faking-covid-jabs-to-earn-more-than-1point5-million.html" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">If they do, and they intentionally committed fraud knowing that their career and lives would be changed forever if caught</a>, they deserve to be given a penalty as determined in a court of law. I do not have any facts that anyone bought a fake card, and certainly, I would not hide this fact if I had such information.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Here is the case filed for 30 of the 82 educators in a case on this issue (See <a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/10/PETITION.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">PETITION)</a>. The educators were kept waiting for the UFT to get the decision of Martin Scheinman on what the procedures should be for all those put on LWOP without due process to get back on salary, asked me what my opinion was, and we decided not to wait.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Why did the UFT hand this responsibility over to Martin Scheinman? The UFT Contract Article 21 is very clear, and so is Education Law 3020: no tenured teacher may be terminated or removed from salary without a due process compulsory arbitration hearing. Luckily, Mr. Scheinman agreed: <a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/10/Scheinman-June-27-AWARD.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Scheinman June 27 AWARD</a>. This case would have been harder to win if we had to fight both the NYC DOE and <a href="https://scheinmanneutrals.com/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Martin Scheinman</a>. Scheinman is being sued right now in Federal Court (Broecker v NYC Dep’t of Educ., et al., <a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/10/Amended-Complaint.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Amended Complaint</a>., INDEX NO. 21-cv-06387) and….well, it gets complicated. The NYC Covid Mandate in NYC has uprooted lives, laws, rules and everything known before as rational thinking.<a href="https://nypost.com/2022/09/17/850-more-unvaxxed-nyc-teachers-school-aides-fired/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> Anyone who could not, or did not, get vaccinated because of medical issues or religious beliefs were put onto the road to termination.</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The NYC DOE had no right to put all those people who went to Wild Child into the new category of “Vaccine Non-Compliant”, and remove them from their salary. I am personally <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-02-14/nyc-fires-1-430-unvaccinated-workers-following-city-deadline" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">not in support of the COVID Vaccine Mandate</a> and want the City to put everyone, all educators, police and firemen, and women back to work. The City needs them.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">What is not in doubt, as far as I am concerned, is that the teachers who have spoken with me about this matter are all innocent of fraud, they received the vaccine, and many had reactions afterward.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://csa-nyc.org/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">CSA, the Union for DOE Administrators</a>, also sued the DOE for suddenly removing some of the members accused of the alleged fake vaccination card scheme from salary on April 25, 2022. <a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/10/VERIFIED-PETITION.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">VERIFIED PETITION</a>.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Another event that popped up concerns the Attorneys for Nicole Broecker who wanted to use the <a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/10/Scheinman-June-27-AWARD.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Scheinman June 27 AWARD</a> in their case, because Scheinman’s prior Award dated September 10 (UFT) and Sept. 15 (CSA) – See <a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/10/SCHEINMAN-AWARD-SEPT-10.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">SCHEINMAN AWARD SEPT 10; </a> <a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/10/CSA-Scheinman-Award.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">CSA Scheinman Award</a> Sept 15 -created “LWOP” without pay. Scheinman’s new version of leave issued in September came with conditions: you keep your medical benefits if you gave up your right to sue and your right to look for a job (no one was told that each employee was also flagged with the Problem Code). However, Scheinman’s June 27 Award seemed to override this and go for due process before termination. See letter, Graff, to Judge Matsumoto.<a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/10/Graff-letter.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Graff letter. </a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Mallory O. Sullivan submitted an Affirmation<a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/10/Sullivan-Affirmation.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> (see Sullivan Affirmation)</a> that she works as Deputy Director of the Office of Employee Relations at the NYCDOE, and she cited the “high probability” that there might be a reason to believe that 4 CSA members were guilty of fraud for submitting fake CDC cards to the NYC DOE. Wow. This is quite disturbing, the low standard Ms. Sullivan used to remove 4 administrators from salary without any due process. Ms. Sullivan mentions SCI’s Senior Investigator Gerald Conroy who is “independent” of the NYC DOE and is investigating this matter. See the <a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/10/Conroy-Affirmation.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Conroy Affirmation</a>.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Anyone may go to <a href="https://www.seethroughny.net/payrolls" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Seethroughny.net/payrolls</a> and see the employment history and salary of any person employed by the NYCDOE or any City Agency. Here is Mr. Conroy’s salary, paid by the NYC DOE in 2021:</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC-moFFF0iZddR9lsemXTXJna-u6cA50D3SQn7_TKQGlKaw4so2jblQZp5Ae31Ixcjdhdh4DLy95dmLCV53_rZloGyoJ53oBNwUbe_Xrs2ivm935ySJ1oGpiCsAefjg3D690Q4cuTCjHEqKBN4D2KE3vFwaAHLNDG5VMdtQ0YBLmUxSiSZTR1vDUTa/s833/Conroy%20salary.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="374" data-original-width="833" height="144" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC-moFFF0iZddR9lsemXTXJna-u6cA50D3SQn7_TKQGlKaw4so2jblQZp5Ae31Ixcjdhdh4DLy95dmLCV53_rZloGyoJ53oBNwUbe_Xrs2ivm935ySJ1oGpiCsAefjg3D690Q4cuTCjHEqKBN4D2KE3vFwaAHLNDG5VMdtQ0YBLmUxSiSZTR1vDUTa/s320/Conroy%20salary.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">In my opinion, as Mr. Conroy gets paid (at least in 2021, so it could be more by now), $190,554 or more as his salary, he is hardly ‘independent’. This is my opinion, that anyone getting paid that much money does what his employer tells him to do. That’s what I think.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">I also have some questions about the ethics of Mallory O. Sullivan. She handles the Problem Code at the Office of Personnel Investigations or OPI. <a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/10/Mallory-problem-code.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Mallory-problem code</a>.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">I have been working on getting DOE employees cleared from having a Problem Code on their fingerprints since I first learned about the Code in 2004. I have been writing about it and representing people who need their names cleared ever since.</p><h4 style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 1.125rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: 1.3; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://www.parentadvocates.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=article&articleID=8884" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">The New York City Department of Education’s “Problem Code” is an Unlawful Flag on an Employee’s Fingerprints, </a>Parentadvocates.org</h4><h3 class="post-title entry-title" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 1.25rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: 1.3; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/2015/03/the-opi-problem-code-and-how-to-get-off.html"><span style="color: #203377; font-family: inherit;"><span style="border-color: initial; border-image: initial; border-style: initial; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit;">The OPI Problem Code and How To Get Off of It,</span></span><span style="color: #203377; font-family: inherit;"><span style="border-color: initial; border-image: initial; border-style: initial; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit;"> </span></span>NYC Rubber Room Reporter</a></h3><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Then in October 2021, when almost 1000 DOE employees would not, could not, or did not get the COVID Vaccine, all were put on leave without Pay (LWOP) and secretly placed on the Problem Code and then fired. Lawyers representing Michael Kane asked me to sign off on a Declaration describing the advocacy work I am doing and have done. I detailed my advocacy as a Special Representative for the UFT from 2007-2010, and how Amy Arundell, in the Office next door to my office, would give me information about who was on the Problem Code and who was not on it. I did not name Amy, because I did not want to put her name into this horrible mix, but she is, indeed, the person I refer to in my Declaration below as being helpful and next door to my office at the UFT.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/10/Betsy-Combier-declaration.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Betsy Combier declaration</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> Amy Arundell </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw-RQiHO6yCkmiIjQoXoUschaE0FYgBFnL098boZcaCbMSGwPJSHcjJpCQBvEKCwR3ePs6pBI3kFmLrUR3IqG6ICL_6Os9GhqlGF0DFrBhQfNGUyaDUT3F5RRwOooP_gVK9sXQA6O8vsPtRtZb46R6FOGNuRhdDqr3C18ScgX2KOr6uyO_gdEinMs3/s354/Amy%20Arundell%202023.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="354" data-original-width="237" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw-RQiHO6yCkmiIjQoXoUschaE0FYgBFnL098boZcaCbMSGwPJSHcjJpCQBvEKCwR3ePs6pBI3kFmLrUR3IqG6ICL_6Os9GhqlGF0DFrBhQfNGUyaDUT3F5RRwOooP_gVK9sXQA6O8vsPtRtZb46R6FOGNuRhdDqr3C18ScgX2KOr6uyO_gdEinMs3/s320/Amy%20Arundell%202023.jpg" width="214" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">I recently found out in August that after I spoke at length about the denial of due process connected with the Problem Code at <a href="https://perb.ny.gov/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">PERB</a> in several cases where I represent UFT members, the UFT filed an Improper Practice Charge against the NYC DOE, and won a ruling. Amy Arundell, now <a href="https://www.uft.org/your-union/uft-borough-offices/queens/queens-borough-office-representatives" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Borough Chief for the Queens UFT office</a>, testified that she knew nothing about the PC Code until a member told her about it in 2012. I worked at the UFT from 2007-2010, and it was during this time, Amy and I were next door to each other on the 16th Floor of 52 Broadway. UFT headquarters in Manhattan. I left to start my own company, and widen my advocacy to other Unions and nonunion issues. I also sadly realized that the UFT did not support members enough.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">What astonishes me the most about this matter with the alleged “fake” vaccination cards and the problem code is the sheer audacity of a public agency (the New York City Department of Education) and a large Union (UFT) hiding a defamatory, demeaning flag on members’ fingerprints and wiping the payroll clear of tenured and untenured teachers simply because someone at the DOE thought that they were all guilty without proof of any misconduct, in violation of State public policy and <a href="https://advocatz.com/2019/03/03/teacher-tenure-3020-a-hearing-newswire/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Education Law 3020-a</a>. I told you it was complicated.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">No one, not the Suffolk County District Attorney nor anyone else, has announced that they found evidence of guilt for any of the 82 teachers and administrators and no one has been charged in this group. I believe that each and every one of the educators I have spoken with told me the truth, that they got vaccinated at Wild Child, the office of Julie DeVuono, and their cards are valid. Some told me that they paid for detox pills to lessen the chance of a reaction to the shot. This is reasonable, and I see nothing wrong with that. Holistic remedies give many people peace of mind, and that is good.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Certainly, if anyone buys a card saying they got the COVID vaccine, and they actually paid to get this card and NOT get the vaccine, then that’s a fraud, and the person should be punished.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Since I started advocating for teachers’ rights in 2003, I have often seen charges without proof, terminations without reason or justification, and people harmed in retaliation for being too pretty, too good at their job, too popular, or very bad and abusive towards children. Everyone is guilty, doesn’t matter what the facts and truth are. I have seen many in each category win or lose their jobs based upon the strength or weakness of their defense in arguing violations of fact and law. In NYC, the Department of Education does not care if an employee is excellent at what they do or terrible, and the DOE attorneys do not look at, nor do they seek, probable cause. If an educator is accused of something, and they do not know the “right people” who can get them free of any charges by making a few telephone calls, then this person can be “reassigned” to an alternate location. When the large warehouses existed in each borough, and I visited them all, I found DOE employees sitting there on full salary, sometimes for 10 years or more.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">This cannot be due process, nor is it good practice. The only way out is to suggest that representatives working on a case put 100% effort into winning, every case, all the time. This ain’t easy if you are dealing with the Department of Education, which has, sorry to say, people who <a href="https://advocatz.com/2021/09/05/the-new-york-city-3020-a-arbitration-teacher-trials-are-a-fraud/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">do not believe in proof or facts</a>., in my opinion.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Efforts to help the 82 educators “believed” to have been guilty of fraudulently submitting fake vaccination cards to the NYC DOE have been productive, and everyone is back on salary. Now they need to get their backpay as well. According to <a href="https://www.politico.com/newsletters/weekly-new-york-education/2022/04/25/uft-to-sue-doe-over-fake-vaccination-cards-00027381" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">UFT General Counsel Beth Norton</a>, the UFT has filed a Grievance.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The NYC DOE must comply with the law, and if they do not, they must be held accountable.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">See the details on the <a href="https://www.new-york-lawyers.org/forgery-in-the-second-degree-new-york-penal-law-170-10.html" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">website of Jeremy Saland:</a></p><h4 style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 1.125rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: 1.3; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Fake & Counterfeit COVID Vaccination Cards: New York State Crimes & Penalties</h4><div class="description" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><p style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Whether you create a fake Moderna COVID-19 vaccine card from scratch, alter a legitimate one with false information, or even possess a fraudulent Pfizer immunization card purporting to be a real one – knowing it is fictitious and with the intent to defraud – there is a real chance you will eventually find yourself under arrest. Yes, the courtroom may look different if you’re prosecuted in New York City’s criminal courts – Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Bronx, Staten Island – or a justice or county court in Westchester, Rockland, or elsewhere in the state, but the charges will be the same. As you stand before the judge with an <a href="https://www.new-york-lawyers.org/covid-19-faq.html" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">attorney versed in COVID-related crimes</a>, you’ll hear an officer read off potentially catastrophic crimes, the most serious of which will likely be the felony offenses of Second Degree Forgery or Second Degree Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument, Penal Law 170.10 and 170.25 respectively. In the event you used the “bogus” card and information to secure an Excelsior Pass, for example, you will also likely face arrest and prosecution for First Degree Falsifying Business Records, Penal Law 175.10, and potentially First Degree Offering a False Instrument for Filing, Penal Law 175.35, as well.</p></div><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong class="heading4" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">THE CRIMES: PENAL LAW 170.10, 170.25, 175.10, & 175.35</strong></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The two most common criminal offenses associated with arrests for possessing or selling a false, fraudulent, or counterfeit vaccination card are Second Degree Forgery and Second Degree Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong class="heading4" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">PENAL LAW 170.10</strong></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">You are guilty of <a href="https://www.new-york-lawyers.org/forgery-in-the-second-degree-new-york-penal-law-170-10.html" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Forgery in the Second Degree</a>, as it relates to COVID-19 vaccine cards, when you falsely make in its entirety or merely complete or alter a “written instrument” which purports to be or upon is completion will be, one or more of the following:</p><ul style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; list-style: square; margin: 0px 0px 20px 40px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><li style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Any instrument which does or may evidence, create, or impact a legal right or status.</li><li style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">A public record or instrument that may or must be filed with a public office as a matter of law.</li><li style="border: 0px; font: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 5px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">A written instrument made or issued by a public officer or government instrumentality.</li></ul><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Further, in creating or editing the particular instrument, your goal or objective must also be to deceive or defraud another person.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong class="heading4" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">PENAL LAW 170.25</strong></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">If Forgery is the making of the falsified item or instrument, <a href="https://www.new-york-lawyers.org/second-degree-criminal-possession-of-a-forged-instrument.html" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Second Degree Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument</a> is the offense the police and prosecutors will charge for actually having the type of altered or fake document referenced above on your person or constructively in your possession.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong class="heading4" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">PENAL LAW 175.10</strong></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">You are guilty of <a href="https://www.new-york-lawyers.org/first-degree-falsifying-business-records-ny-penal-law-175-10.html" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">First Degree Falsifying Business Records</a> if, with the intent to defraud, you cause a false entry to be made into the records of an enterprise whether private or public, or you prevent an accurate entry from being made. While there are multiple subsections in the misdemeanor offense that give rise to the First Degree felony, keep in mind that this felony requires the additional element that you also were trying to commit or conceal another crime at the time of your wrongdoing.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong class="heading4" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">PENAL LAW 175.35</strong></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">You run afoul of <a href="https://www.new-york-lawyers.org/offering-a-false-instrument-for-filing-in-the-first-degree-ny-pe.html" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">First Degree Offering a False Instrument for Filing</a> when you have a written instrument that you know contains false information that you present to a public official with the belief or knowledge it will be entered into the record of that public office. Like the other crimes, you must do so with the intent to defraud.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong class="heading4" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">THE PENALTIES: POTENTIAL FOR STATE PRISON</strong></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Before even addressing the possibility of imprisonment, the first issue you need to come to terms with is the fact that a felony will have drastic and permanent ramifications on future employment, professional licensure and certification, legal status in the United States, and a host of other matters as it relates to loans, credit, and far more. Remember, while a case can potentially be sealed after ten years, New York does not expunge criminal records. In other words, a felony conviction won’t merely go away with the passage of time.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Whether a judge sentences you to a conditional discharge, probation, or something else, understand that upon your plea or conviction post-trial, the court can sentence you up to two and one third to seven years in prison on either class “D” felony of Penal Law 170.10 and 170.25, and up to one and one third to four years in prison on Penal Law 175.10 and 175.35 even if you have no prior history of fraud or misconduct.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong class="heading4" style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">HYPOTHETICALS: EXAMPLES OF CRIMINAL CONDUCT</strong></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The easiest way to understand the potential arrest or indictment charges associated with fake COVID-19 vaccine cards is if you make one up on your computer that is totally fictitious, or you buy or get your hands on a real card and enter fake vaccine information such as changing a date or adding a second shot to the first real one you received. Remember, the card need not be completely phony. These acts would be considered Forgery. Whether you did it yourself or purchased this document, possessing the card and using it to gain admission or access to a location such as a restaurant or to provide proof to your employer so you can work, you committed Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument. Where things get even more involved, if you then present that written instrument to a government agency or allow the information contained on it to be entered into your employer’s database or to obtain an Excelsior Pass, you will have also committed Falsifying Business Records and Offering a False Instrument for Filing.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFLCCfb2zEs1qCkTmdioRvoALKEWmiys4DTOJHgv-d4ptt6td7c6TtizoBBPDpE6LBTte8eBvBgTfFhG7dE23ehpzBjwHUWDCfQ68t2kcFGVC9yLQ94PhNdAkogHxtmw1AonsQEKc2Rnz9FSZAb3dCeuiA4RwRllhDwylqF0T6oK2ieWTeyE0ejIpy/s721/COVID-card.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="493" data-original-width="721" height="219" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFLCCfb2zEs1qCkTmdioRvoALKEWmiys4DTOJHgv-d4ptt6td7c6TtizoBBPDpE6LBTte8eBvBgTfFhG7dE23ehpzBjwHUWDCfQ68t2kcFGVC9yLQ94PhNdAkogHxtmw1AonsQEKc2Rnz9FSZAb3dCeuiA4RwRllhDwylqF0T6oK2ieWTeyE0ejIpy/s320/COVID-card.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><h1 class="entry-title" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 2rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: 1.3; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="http://xn--court%20says%20no%20to%20nyc%20doe%20injunction%20that%20keeps%20teachers%20with%20alleged%20fake%20vax%20cards%20off%20salary-3625fic8bze/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Court Says “No” To NYC DOE Injunction That Keeps Teachers With Alleged “Fake” Vax Cards Off Salary</a></h1><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">July 8, 2022, Betsy Combier, Advocatz.com</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The teachers and Administrators accused of buying their vaccination cards but not actually getting the shot, must be placed back on salary says a Supreme Court Judge.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Judge Arlene Bluth made an important precedent-setting decision today in the matter of the 82 teachers who were suddenly removed from salary on April 25, 2022 because the NYC Department of Education <a href="https://advocatz.com/2022/06/12/teachers-accused-of-faking-their-covid-vaccination-deserve-due-process-before-any-judgment/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">“believed” they had submitted fake vaccination cards</a> when told to send proof of vaccination in September 2021 under the Citywide Vaccine Mandate. Why do I say precedent-setting? Because Judge Bluth said STOP to the Board of Education of the City of New York after they blatantly violated public policy, the UFT and CSA contracts, Constitutional rights under the Fourteenth Amendment, Education Law, as well as countless other state and City laws and rules, by placing 82 people off salary because of a “belief” in their guilt.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Imagine the angst of an employee being accused of committing a felony crime and suddenly placed on leave without pay without any proof or any other information, including when you will be able to tell someone you are innocent and get back on salary.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">When I first heard about this I did not believe any of it. Also, <a href="https://rubberroom3020-a.blogspot.com/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Education Law 3020</a> is very clear on the Constitutional rights to due process:</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">” No person enjoying the benefits of tenure shall be disciplined or removed during a term of employment except for just cause and in accordance with the procedures specified in section three thousand twenty-a of this article or in accordance with alternate disciplinary procedures contained in a collective bargaining agreement.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">This tenure law was created to stop any principal from suddenly terminating anyone for some nonsensical petty reason.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">When Mayoral control took over the NYC Department of Education, Mayor Bloomberg rented huge spaces in District offices around the City ( there were 8 all together, in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island and the Bronx) where tenured educators charged by their principal or some other person at the DOE were reassigned and suspended WITH pay sometimes for up to 15 years, while awaiting a 3020-a hearing or after being found guilty but not terminated at a hearing. These rooms became what is known as the <a href="https://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com/2009/03/gotcha-squad-and-new-york-city-rubber.html" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">“rubber rooms”.</a> People sat in these rooms ON SALARY but suspended from their teaching duties.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">On April 25, 2022 the NYC Department of Education went a step further, and unilaterally placed 82 teachers on unpaid leave who had received one or two Pfizer vaccine shots at Wild Child in Amityville. Simply and astonishingly, these 82 people seemed to have been picked randomly and found guilty of the same allegation of wrong-doing as the people cited in a sting operation by the Suffolk County DA – see <a href="https://longisland.news12.com/prosecutors-2-workers-from-suffolk-pediatric-doctors-office-arrested-for-selling-fake-covid-vaccination-cards" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">arrest in suffolk County of Julie Devuono</a> – because they went to the place of the crime.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">This seems to me to be similar to someone going to a bank to withdraw money, and suddenly robbers arrive and try to rob the bank. The police see the innocent person and make a connection to the robbers, and arrest the person trying to get a withdrawal.</p></div><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span>Beth Norton</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHtBuRGStWMw6mBS30Z5AMiov3n_Pmj-tec4bYqlVVwIkQDg1oWLUhQbeCIeEaJsbWIMjXfY5c0i998n4QKZttslc4nbKPlHCpxbQEYtYgVb1XWKeLFkzy9VCLxhbssDRez0HfZEl5eXFGdju03Vu41VstlqbcWBVEFEhhZPPM0NKrTwzJZ44U4pfx/s270/Beth%20Norton.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="236" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHtBuRGStWMw6mBS30Z5AMiov3n_Pmj-tec4bYqlVVwIkQDg1oWLUhQbeCIeEaJsbWIMjXfY5c0i998n4QKZttslc4nbKPlHCpxbQEYtYgVb1XWKeLFkzy9VCLxhbssDRez0HfZEl5eXFGdju03Vu41VstlqbcWBVEFEhhZPPM0NKrTwzJZ44U4pfx/s1600/Beth%20Norton.jpg" width="236" /></a></div><br /><div><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">As soon as the April 19 notice of pending leave without pay on April 25 was received, the <a href="https://www.stroock.com/alumni/a-conversation-with-alum-beth-norton" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">UFT General Counsel Beth Norton</a> (pictured above) wrote <a href="https://www.schools.nyc.gov/about-us/leadership/legal" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Liz Vladeck, General Counsel</a> (pictured below) an email letter which basically said, “stop this ridiculousness immediately, and put all people back on salary until a due process hearing has been held.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Attorney Norton also filed a <a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/07/UFT-Notice-of-Claim.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">UFT Notice of Claim</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span>Liz Vladeck</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAsxaZ93n604CZJca-shCpwT4v9WNjSqJqNmiEZoZpezGmX6ndVXebXjHpbKc85OTb2822MaYAxCt_bEWjMSc7K6j_-1WluejNRS8hI6ZSyGbw52YQ8DLCa8fVcCcu14DBmLj20f2shO-r_YMdsD6b1A-3ag4GMj7q4I1DKMykreb75L0ewjNi9lSX/s179/Liz%20Vladeck.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="179" data-original-width="154" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAsxaZ93n604CZJca-shCpwT4v9WNjSqJqNmiEZoZpezGmX6ndVXebXjHpbKc85OTb2822MaYAxCt_bEWjMSc7K6j_-1WluejNRS8hI6ZSyGbw52YQ8DLCa8fVcCcu14DBmLj20f2shO-r_YMdsD6b1A-3ag4GMj7q4I1DKMykreb75L0ewjNi9lSX/s1600/Liz%20Vladeck.jpg" width="154" /></a></div><br /><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">A few of the accused teachers wanted to file a Grievance with the UFT, and heard that they could not file a Grievance, but could request a 3020-a (the emails below were sent and received by a teacher in Brooklyn):</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/07/Request-for-Grievance.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Request for Grievance</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">No UFT member may request a 3020-a, so I’m not sure what Ms. Carte is doing but I am hopeful that she was just trying to be helpful. However, we have no information from Mr. Levine about whether or not he sent the request for the 3020-a to the Office of Legal Services at the DOE.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">On May 3, Beth Norton asked <a href="https://scheinmanneutrals.com/" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Arbitrator Martin Scheinman</a> to intervene, and he agreed. He issued his Scheinman Award on June 27 (see below), saying that the Department must put everyone back on salary until “guilt” is established:</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“Leave without pay is an unusual outcome. Yet, I decided it was appropriate for employees whose requests for a medical or religious exemption were denied. This is because such employees intentionally decided to disregard the mandate they be vaccinated by September 27, 2021, the date established by Commissioner Chokshi and Mayor de Blasio.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Implicit in such a designation of leave without pay is the individual failed to comply with the vaccine mandate. Here, there is a dispute whether the employees did or did not comply. Without that being assessed, or at least submitting evidence to show a high likelihood of non-compliance, the predicate for placing an employee on leave without pay does not exist.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The DOE immediately filed an Article 75 Appeal to keep all 82 teachers suspended without pay and without any due process, but on July 8, 2022 NY Supreme Court Judge Arlene Bluth decided the DOE was wrong. The DOE and UFT will have another chance to make their arguments to Judge Bluth on July 19, 2022.</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Meanwhile, 30 of the 82 teachers could not wait for the UFT or DOE to give them the relief they desperately needed, to be placed back on salary. They sued the NYC DOE in Kings County Supreme on June 30, 2022. I helped them put the case into the very amazing hands of Attorney Chad Laveglia who I asked to comment on all of this and the Scheinman Award issued June 27. He said,</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">“These teachers followed every instruction they were given. They uploaded their vaccination cards as required. Seven months later, the DOE had the audacity to send them an email placing them on leave without pay. Significantly, they did so in abrogation of the due process that these teachers are constitutionally and legally entitled to. Due process protects the innocent from determinations of guilt based on nothing more than the whims of the accuser. The DOE has no basis in fact or law to summarily discipline these teachers. The DOE’s arbitrary and unlawful actions will be rectified in court.”</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">All the unfairly suspended teachers and I are awaiting the next Court date, and we are hopeful that the denial of the Law by the DOE will be stopped, and everyone will be placed back on salary with back pay and any other relief that is just. and proper – including their jobs back!</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">See the papers in Article 75:</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><strong style="border: 0px; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Board of Education of the City School District of the City of New York et al v. United Federation of Teachers, Local 2, AFT, AFL-CIO et al</strong></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Index No. 451995/2022</p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/07/PETITION.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">PETITION</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/07/Vaccine-Mandate-August-24.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Vaccine Mandate August 24</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/07/April-19-email.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">April 19 email</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/07/Scheinman-Sept-10-Award.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Scheinman Sept 10 Award</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/07/Declaration-of-Impasse.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Declaration of Impasse</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/07/UFT-April-21-letter.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">UFT April 21 letter</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/07/DOE-April-22-letter.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">DOE April 22 letter</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/07/UFT-May-3-letter.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">UFT May 3 letter</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/07/DOE-May-4-letter.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">DOE May 4 letter</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/07/UFT-MAY-6-letter.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">UFT MAY 6 letter</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/07/DOE-May-10-letter.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">DOE May 10 letter</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/07/UFT-May-11-letter.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">UFT May 11 letter</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/07/Teachers-CBA.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Teachers CBA</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/07/2018-Memorandum-of-Agreement.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">2018 Memorandum of Agreement</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/07/Scheinman-Sept-15-Award.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Scheinman Sept 15 Award</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2023/01/Scheinman-Award-June-27.pdf">Sheinman Award June 27 2022</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/07/DOE-ORDER_TO_SHOW_CAUSE.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">DOE-ORDER_TO_SHOW_CAUSE</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/07/DOE-Affirmation-of-Good-Faith.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">DOE Affirmation of Good Faith</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/07/Proof-of-Notice-to-Respondents.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Proof of Notice to Respondents</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/07/UFT-MEMORANDUM_OF_LAW.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #3660c1; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">UFT MEMORANDUM_OF_LAW</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/07/Bluth-signed-ORDER_TO_SHOW_CAUSE.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Bluth signed-ORDER_TO_SHOW_CAUSE</a></p><p style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: "Open Sans", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: center; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://wp-advocatz-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/2022/07/STIPULATION-of-Adjournment.pdf" style="border: 0px; color: #203377; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline;">STIPULATION of Adjournment</a></p><p style="background-color: white; 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