Townsend Harris High School Principal Rosemarie Jahoda is Cited For Many Acts of Wrongdoing

Rosemarie Jahoda has been accused of ruining kids’ chances of attending college by withholding transcripts, ignoring Muslim student leaders and refusing to help disabled students.

 (NCSSS.ORG)

It is time for Ms. Jahoda to be fired. It seems that wherever she is appointed, she alienates everyone - staff, parents, and students - with all sorts of bad acts.

At this point, the only reason the NYC DOE is keeping her is because they HATE to be told what to do and to be shown to be wrong.

Put her in a rubber room, give her charges, and have her try to defend herself at a 3020-a arbitration hearing. ASAP.

Betsy Combier
betsy.combier@gmail.com
Editor, NYC Rubber Room Reporter
Editor, Parentadvocates.org
Editor, New York Court Corruption
Editor, National Public Voice
Editor, NYC Public Voice
Editor, Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials

EXCLUSIVE: NYC pols want Queens principal fired for ruining kids' chances of college, ignoring Muslim discrimination

Rosemarie Jahoda, The Sage Colleges
Cohort 10

Ben Chapman, NY Daily News, February 24, 2017

Local political leaders are calling on city schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña to remove an unpopular principal from a top Queens high school, the Daily News has learned.

The four Queens elected officials — state Assemblywoman Nily Rozic, Rep. Grace Meng, state Sen. Toby Ann Stavisky and City Councilman Rory Lancman — ripped Townsend Harris High School’s embattled interim-acting principal, Rosemarie Jahoda, in a Feb. 16 letter to Fariña.

Officials accused Jahoda of ruining kids’ chances of attending college by withholding their transcripts, refusing to help students with disabilities and ignoring Muslim student leaders when they reported discrimination.

Rep. Grace Meng was among the four Queens elected officials who slammed the interim-acting principal.

 (GO NAKAMURA FOR NEW YORK DAILY NEWS)

The letter accuses Jahoda of delaying sending senior transcripts to colleges and universities — adversely affecting students’ acceptance status.

It also accuses her of keeping a parent waiting five hours in her office when the parent sought help with one of the delayed transcripts.

“It is our belief that the Interim Acting Principal Rosemarie Jahoda lacks leadership and the ability to take action,” the two-page letter states. “Ms. Jahoda has clearly demonstrated that she is not the right fit for Townsend Harris.”

Jahoda, 55, a 16-year city educator, denied the accusations in the letter and said she’s working to help Townsend Harris students.

“While I am frustrated by many of these inaccurate allegations, I remain 100% focused on serving students and families at Townsend Harris and working to move the school community forward,” Jahoda said.

She was appointed acting principal of Townsend Harris in September, a move that many school staffers believed made her a shoo-in for a permanent job as principal there.

The controversial educator had come from Bronx Science High School, where 20 of the 22 math teachers she oversaw as an assistant principal filed complaints against her in 2010.

Jahoda, who earns a salary of $146,813, immediately clashed with educators and Townsend Harris students, leading parents, faculty and alumni to create a petition calling for her ouster. The document so far has 3,691 signatures.

The school’s parent-teacher association has also passed a resolution calling for Jahoda’s removal and students have held multiple protests to have her yanked from the job.

For its part, the city won’t rule out making Jahoda the permanent leader of the school.

Education Department spokesman Will Mantell said the city has received 38 applications for the position and a selection will be made by early May. He said he couldn’t give any other details about the candidates.

“Confidentiality rules prevent us from disclosing any individual candidates for a principal position,” Mantell said. “We continue to listen to feedback from this school community.”

Another letter to Fariña, this one sent Tuesday by Queens Borough President Melinda Katz, accused the city of withholding information about the ongoing search for a permanent school principal.

Katz maintained the city has not said how it will quell the unrest at the school.

“Parents and students deserve to know more,” she wrote to Fariña. “Accusations and troubling accounts are occurring on a daily basis ... I am deeply troubled.”

Townsend Harris students plan to take the steps of City Hall on Friday morning in a fresh protest of Jahoda’s leadership.

NYC Chancellor Carmen Farina

DOE to restart Townsend Harris principal search

By Patrick Donachie, Queens Times Ledger, jan 27, 2017

The search for a new permanent principal at Townsend Harris High School in Flushing will begin anew, the Department of Education and elected officials said. The news comes after the process was discontinued in the midst of student, PTA and teacher protests against what they alleged was intimidating conduct from Interim Principal Rosemarie Jahoda.

Jahoda will remain interim principal at the school, according to a DOE spokesman. A Facebook post by Queens Borough President Melinda Katz said she was advised the DOE would post a job listing Feb. 1. Susan Karlic, the co-president of the Townsend Harris Parent Teachers Association, expressed happiness and relief at the news.

“All are happy and very grateful to see the C-30 is being restarted Feb. 1,” she wrote in an e-mail. “At our PTA meeting after hearing of the news, everyone clapped!”

Jahoda was installed as an interim principal in September. Karlic and others had raised concerns about Jahoda’s managerial style, alleging she canceled or delayed school trips, hewed too strictly to DOE policy and did not support several students in the school’s Muslim Students Association who were harassed in the aftermath of the presidential election.

Jahoda was also criticized for her actions captured on a video taken by The Classic, Townsend Harris’ student newspaper, during a student sit-in held Dec. 8. In the video, Jahoda accompanies district Deputy Superintendent Leticia Pineiro as she speaks to student protesters. Students said Pineiro was dismissive and rude, and Jahoda should not have accompanied her.

The principal selection process, known as the C-30 regulation, takes up to 90 days, according to the DOE, and any candidates who apply and are a part of the principal candidate school will be considered for the position. The interviews will likely begin in early March, according to a post from the Townsend Harris Alumini Association.

“We are encouraged that there is now a plan here and that the process is moving forward, so we can really focus on the future,” the Facebook post said.

The post also said an appointment could be possible as early as late March. When called, an individual in Principal Jahoda’s office said she was not available for comment.

In December, Karlic and the PTA voted on a referendum calling for the removal of Jahoda, the start of a new C-30 process with independent oversight from the DOE, and the removal of Pineiro and District Superintendent Elaine Lindsay from the process altogether.

Karlic said all the names from the C-30 process started at Townsend Harris in September would be included in the new pool of candidates, which means that Jahoda will still be considered for the permanent slot, much to the concern of her critics. Karlic said she was worried that the DOE and Superintendent Lindsay might back Jahoda despite parents’ concerns.

“Even after all the news scandals at school and all the efforts of the whole Townsend Harris community, I fear that the DOE will feel that since she has been at the school since September, they’ll deem it adequate enough to appoint her as permanent principal,” Karlic wrote.

Reach reporter Patrick Donachie by e-mail at pdonachie@cnglocal.com or by phone at (718) 260–4573.

Posted 12:00 am, January 26, 2017

Townsend parents want interim principal removed

Townsend Harris PTA: Interim principal must go

Assistant principal harassed math teachers at Bronx Science High School: report

Meredith Kolodner, NY Daily News, April 28, 2010

An assistant principal created an atmosphere of "intimidation and harassment" in the math department at the storied Bronx Science High School, a fact-finding ruling has found.

The independent report sided with a complaint signed by 20 of the department's 22 teachers.

Assistant Principal Rosemary Jahoda referred to one teacher as "disgusting," addressed others in a "demeaning" manner like "children" and reduced seven teachers to tears on 12 occasions, the nonbinding decision says.

"The education community at Bronx Science needs to see substantial change," wrote fact-finder Carol Wittenberg.

She recommended the transfer of an assistant principal and the teachers union chapter leader, as well as the retraction of all disciplinary measures taken against math teachers during the last two years.

The Education Department rejected almost all of Wittenberg's findings as "not fairly based upon all the evidence."

Jahoda said she was the one being harassed and that the arbitrator's opinion is "not based in fact."

"There was no harassment, and to some degree the teachers were trying to intimidate and bully me as a new [assistant principal]," said Jahoda, who was hired in the fall of 2007.

Principal Valerie Reidy said she was disappointed by the ruling.

"It's about a supervisor doing her job," said Reidy. "You may not like what I said or the results, but that doesn't mean I'm harassing you."

Teachers at the school, though, disagreed.

"It really exposes the DOE's rhetoric about their supervisory process just being about getting rid of bad teachers," said Peter Lamphere, the union chapter leader. "In this situation, you had good teachers who fell victim to an abusive supervisor."

mkolodner@nydailynews.com

UPDATE on NYC DOE HR Manager Peter Ianniello's Worst Mistake Ever - Sending Out 400 Social Security Numbers

Below is the latest email from Peter Ianniello to the 400 paraprofessionals whose identities and private information (social security numbers) were sent out on February 15, 2017 to all 400 paraprofessionals who are taking courses from various educational institutions as part of the Career Training Program.

Mr. Ianniello insists that the social security numbers of the 400 paraprofessionals were sent only to the 437 paras, and were not posted on any website.

Sigh.

I think you should find another job. Private sector maybe. There must be some entry level or middle management employment opportunity you would be qualified for. Or, you can retire and make cabaret shows your full-time gig.

Betsy Combier

From: "Career Training Program" <CareerTraining@schools.nyc.gov<mailto:CareerTraining@schools.nyc.gov>>
Date: Thu, Feb 23, 2017 at 3:29 PM -0500
Subject: URGENT Career Training Program Matter *PLEASE READ CAREFULLY - IMPORTANT - ACTION REQUIRED*
To: "Career Training Program" <CareerTraining@schools.nyc.gov<mailto:CareerTraining@schools.nyc.gov>>


[Division of Human Resources  HR School Support  Scholarship Incentives and Speech Programs  65 Court Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201][cid:image003.jpg@01D28DE7.392518E0]

Dear Colleague,

As you are aware, due to a clerical error, your personal information may have been shared with other paraprofessionals enrolled in the Career Training Program. We notified you of this issue last week, and indicated that we were working to ensure that your personal information was not compromised.  Please note the following:

  *   The information was not published anywhere in the DOE or publicly on any website.
  *   The information was shared within the context of the email sent to a little more than 400 paraprofessionals in the program, and not all paraprofessionals.
  *   We have attempted to contain this information as much as possible from our end.

As discussed in the previous email, the NYCDOE has partnered with  LegalShield, an identity theft protection service, to offer you identify theft protection (IDShield Individual).  We have enrolled you into this program with an effective date of February 15, 2017, the date of the incident at no cost to you.  Any issues relating to credit or identity theft which occur on or after that date will be serviced by LegalShield.   LegalShield has a great reputation of providing quality service that we can depend on to ensure that your personal information is not misused or compromised.

The NYCDOE has provided LegalShield with a limited amount of your personal information – enough to enroll you in their IDShield program.  The program includes a variety of services such as: Identity Theft Protection, Identity Restoration, Privacy Monitoring, and a $5 Million protection guarantee. Additionally,  you will receive another email from LegalShield, to your  DOE email address, which will ask you to complete the full registration process by activating your IDShield account.  This will activate additional program functionality such as: Credit Monitoring, Credit Inquiry Alerts, and a Quarterly Credit Score Tracker. Furthermore, as part of the program, you can benefit from LegalShield’s Member Perks program offering you a number of discounts from a variety of major products and services.  It is imperative that you take the necessary steps to complete this process as soon as possible after you receive the email from LegalShield.  It is expected that you will receive this email by the middle to the end of next week.  However, please be assured that you are already enrolled and protected retroactively.

To view details on the IDShield protection package that the NYCDOE is purchasing on your behalf, please visit:

https://www.idshield.com/best-id-protection

Please feel free to contact the Scholarship Incentives and Speech programs office via telephone at (718) 935-2449 with any additional questions or concerns regarding this matter.  Thank you for your patience as we resolve this issue, and on behalf of the NYCDOE, please accept our most sincere apology.

Yours truly,
Peter Ianniello, PhD
Executive Director
HR School Support

posted on February 19, 2017

NYC Department of Education Human Resources Manager Peter Ianniello Sent 400 Names, Social Security Numbers and Other Private Information Via Email on February 15, 2017

re-posted from Parentadvocates.org:

I believe it is time for Peter Ianniello to retire or be fired.

Betsy Combier
betsy.combier@gmail.com
Editor, NYC Rubber Room Reporter
Editor, Parentadvocates.org
Editor, New York Court Corruption
Editor, National Public Voice
Editor, NYC Public Voice
Editor, Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials

Peter Ianniello

Mr. Ianniello, a cabaret singer wanna be, may pay dearly for his office error., sending out via email 90 pages with the names, social security numbers, and other private information of 400 paraprofessionals who are currently matriculated at various colleges in the New York City area . All the people whose private information was sent out are students in a Career Training Program (CTP) to help them improve their skills.

NYC Department of Education Human Resources Manager Peter Ianniello Sent 400 Names, Social Security Numbers and Other Private Information Via Email on February 15, 2017 to each of the 400 paraprofessionals listed.

He made a big mistake.

We know that the NYC Department of Education is not very good at keeping private information, private. The way they treat any information is random. If they decide they want to keep something secret, they will. If someone files a Freedom of Information request for public records at a school, like a personnel file, number of students who graduate, etc., the requester of this information will most probably wait two or more years to get the data. Personal whims matter, evidently.

On February 18, 2017, I received a call from a paraprofessional in the DOE Career Training Program at 65 Court Street in Brooklyn. Peter Ianniello is in charge, a man who really wants to be a cabaret singer. Paraprofessionals who work for the Department must, according to new rules in place since September 2016, matriculate into a degree bearing program after completing 60 credits as part of the Career Training Program. (CTP).

The problem is, a para told me, the rules keep changing all the time, and many are disgusted. Paras must do 100 hours in 5 years, and pay $30 for each two hours., I was told.

This para was very upset that she and 400 other paras had received an email with 90 pages of names, social security numbers, matriculation information with course work, money paid, and schools at which the matriculation occurred. 
What they were supposed to receive were the new rules for the Career Training Program. Below is the email sent by Adrienne L. Gilyard at the NYC DOE Scholarship, Incentives and Special Programs. The attachment does not have the 90 pages, only the first page, broken into 3 parts, with the names and social security numbers redacted:

From: Gilyard Adrienne 
Date: Wed, Feb 15, 2017 at 11:30 AM
Subject: Letters of Matriculation
To:

Please see attached correspondence and respond as indicated.

Kindest regards,
Adrienne L. Gilyard, MSA
Tuition/Default Coordinator
Scholarship, Incentives and Special Programs
NYC Department of Education
65 Court Street, Room 508
Brooklyn, New York 11201
Office 718-935-4272
Fax 718-935-4262
Email: AGilyard2@schools.nyc.gov

paras-socialsecurity

Peter ianniello realized the huge mistake and sent out a letter telling the 400 paras to kindly delete the email containing personal information, and "sorry that this may have caused you some concern". He added that he has set up all 400 paras with Legal Shield to protect their identities. Do you hear desperation? I do. Paras that believed him, called Legal Shield and were told that no information has been received and they should call some other time.

Adrienne Gilyard also sent an email urging everyone to delete the email sent in error.

Here is the email Ms. Gilyard SHOULD have sent:
CTP Matriculation Letter

Then there are the hiring practices at the Department....you have to know someone, or have to prove your worth by keeping any wrong-doing secret. Managers and principals are required to keep their schools and underlings "doing well". failure means your job. Yet hiring practices often use the same managers, even if they have proven themselves to be unethical or worse. Take NYC Chancellor Carmen Farina, for instance. In 2000 I asked her where the $225,000 was that the children at PS 6 (where my youngest daughter was a student) and PS 198 were supposed to get from the Annenberg Challenge For the Arts. She verbally attacked me (I wish I had taped it!) , I reported her, and she was removed as principal in 2001. She then became Superintendent of District 15 in Brooklyn, where she made people angry, then she was moved to Deputy Chancellor of the Department, when she was exposed as part of two scandals. She was told to retire or be fired. She retired. Then Bill de Blasio, NYC Mayor, brought her back and appointed her Chancellor. What the heck?

So, most administrators and managers fudge the data. A class has bad grades? After the teacher is sent to a rubber room on his/her way to a 3020-a trial, grades are changed in order to reflect "improvement" and/or excellent work. The people who know that this goes on but say nothing, stay in their jobs, and get promoted up the ladder. They are the "in" crowd. Until, that is, they whisper the truth to someone, and then they are whisked away to a rubber room.

That is exactly where Peter Ianniello belongs.

The paras are preparing Notices of Claim. Stay tuned, DOE!  

Hilda Gil, Paraprofessional, Loses Her Case to Get Her Job Back Because She Did Not Exhaust Her Available Contractual Remedies

and Ms. Gil through her Attorney Stewart Karlin  did not allege a claim against the union, a necessary party, based on a breach of the duty of fair representation.

Betsy Combier
betsy.combier@gmail.com
Editor, NYC Rubber Room Reporter
Editor, Parentadvocates.org
Editor, New York Court Corruption
Editor, National Public Voice
Editor, NYC Public Voice
Editor, Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials

Matter of Gil v Department of Educ. of the City of N.Y.

2017 NY Slip Op 00557

Decided on January 26, 2017

Appellate Division, First Department

Published by New York State Law Reporting Bureau pursuant to Judiciary Law § 431.

This opinion is uncorrected and subject to revision before publication in the Official Reports.

Decided on January 26, 2017 
Acosta, J.P., Mazzarelli, Feinman, Webber, JJ.

2880 100406/14 

[*1]In re Hilda Gil, Petitioner-Appellant,

v

The Department of Education of the City of New York, et al., Respondents-Respondents.

Stewart Lee Karlin Law Group, PC, New York (Daniel E. Dugan of counsel), for appellant.

Zachary W. Carter, Corporation Counsel, New York (Kathy Chang Park of counsel), for respondents.

Judgment (denominated an order), Supreme Court, New York County (Paul Wooten, J.), entered April 21, 2015, which granted respondents' motion to dismiss the petition seeking to reverse their determination, dated December 9, 2013, terminating petitioner from employment as a paraprofessional, and dismissed the proceeding brought pursuant to CPLR article 78, unanimously affirmed, without costs.

An aggrieved union member whose employment is subject to a collective bargaining agreement between the union and the employer must first avail herself of the grievance procedure set forth in the agreement before she can commence an action seeking relief under CPLR article 78 (see Matter of Plummer v Klepak, 48 NY2d 486, 489 [1979], cert denied 445 US 952 [1980]; Matter of Cantres v Board of Educ. of City of N.Y., 145 AD2d 359, 360 [1st Dept 1988]; Matter of Sapadin v Board of Educ. of City of N.Y., 246 AD2d 359, 360 [1st Dept 1998]).

Only when the union fails in its duty of fair representation can an employee go beyond the agreed grievance procedure in a collective bargaining agreement and litigate directly against the employer (see Matter of City Empls. Union Local 237, IBT AFL-CIO v City of New York, 28 AD3d 230, 231 {1st Dept 2006]).

Petitioner conceded that the grievance filed on her behalf by the union was not resolved at the time the petition was filed. Accordingly, the court properly concluded that she failed to exhaust her available contractual remedies.

Moreover, the petition did not allege a claim against the union, a necessary party, based on a breach of the duty of fair representation. Thus, this claim is unpreserved (see Matter of Cocozzo v Ward, 162 AD2d 202, 203 [1st Dept 1990]).

In any event, the petition did not allege facts sufficient to show that the union's lack of activity on petitioner's behalf was deliberately invidious, arbitrary or founded in bad faith (see Board of Educ., Commack Union Free School Dist. v Ambach, 70 NY2d 501, 508 [1987], cert denied sub nom Margolin v Board of Educ., 485 US 1034 [1988]). Given petitioner's history of similar misconduct, a determination by the union not to go forward with arbitration, if made, was rational.

Petitioner was not entitled to a name-clearing hearing because, as the petitioner conceded, [*2]she did not allege dissemination or likely dissemination of the allegedly false charge of infliction of excessive corporal punishment on a student (see Matter of Swinton v Safir, 93 NY2d 758, 763-765 [1999]).

THIS CONSTITUTES THE DECISION AND ORDER

OF THE SUPREME COURT, APPELLATE DIVISION, FIRST DEPARTMENT.

ENTERED: JANUARY 26, 2017

CLERK

How does your child’s teacher influence academic performance?

by admin | Aug 14, 2012

Education is an important tool that can shape an individual and allow creativity, opportunity and growth.  As a teacher, it is necessary to motivate students and help them recognize their strengths and weaknesses.  Educators are important role models for students and have a big impact on helping shape, create, support and establish students’ strengths, goals and knowledge.  Therefore, it is essential to be aware of the effective qualities, skills and characteristics that one brings into a learning environment.

What makes an effective teacher?

According to research teacher preparation and knowledge of teaching and learning, experience, subject matter knowledge and certification all establish teacher effectiveness.  Teacher preparation is important to their effectiveness in a classroom.  Good quality teacher preparation is important to student academic achievement.  Prepared graduates have a higher likelihood of remaining teachers and providing quality service to their students and to the schools they work in.

What is teacher-efficacy?

Teacher-efficacy is a teacher’s confidence in their ability to help students to learn.  Research shows that teacher-efficacy has an effect on his or her students’ academic performance.  It is important that teachers believe in themselves and in their abilities as a role model and educator, because it plays an important role on their student’s self-perception and performance.  It also helps a teacher communicate more effectively with students as well as with the overall perception of their student’s strengths and weaknesses.  Teachers with self-efficacy have a positive impact on their students’ academic performance.  It is something that all teachers need to build, because it is believed to have an important role on students’ academic performance.

Do teachers’ expectations of his or her students have an impact on students’ academic performance?

Student learning can be positively impacted by the encouragement of teachers to their students.  A teacher’s ideas and expectations of his or her students’ capabilities have an effect on student academic performance and achievements.  If teachers believe in their students, their students begin to believe in themselves.  Students take into effect the beliefs their teachers have on them and accept it as part of who they are and their abilities.  When students are viewed in a negative way by their teachers such as, being lazy, unmotivated and having no abilities, they take on those beliefs about themselves.  Many teachers may not be aware of their actions towards particular students in the classroom but their students become aware of them.  According to research finding, teachers’ beliefs translate into differential behavior toward their students.  For example, teachers who see particular students as highly motivated and highly capable would often make eye contact, smile and lean toward them, and praise and call on them more frequently.

Does teacher motivation affect student performance?

Motivation in infants and young children is very high.  Infants and young children have a big interest in their surroundings and environment.  Unfortunately, as young children get older, they become less interested and enthusiastic about their surrounding and environment.  Learning about their environment seems like an unwanted task and desire.

Student motivation is the desire and interest that a student has to be involved in their learning environment.  There are reasons that affect student motivation.  For example, an intrinsically motivated student looks at the learning activity as an enjoyable process and gets great satisfaction through the process of learning.  A student who is extrinsically motivated looks at the learning activity as something they have to do so that they can get a reward or not be punished.  It is also believed that motivation to learn is determined or affected by modeled behavior and communication of parents and teachers.  Children develop an idea about learning in their home setting.  Children are given a particular message from their homes based on their parents’ encouragement of exploring their world compared to children who are given the encouragement to explore the world around them.  Therefore, children without an encouraging and supportive home setting are less likely to deal with and handle failure, because of their feelings about no self-worth or competence.

Older children have a harder time accepting failure and seeing the positive side of trying to accomplish a goal, whereas, younger children see failure as a positive step to finishing or reaching a goal.  Teachers’ expectations of students also play a big role in motivation of student.  The rules and goals also play an important role on the thoughts and beliefs of the students.  It is important for teachers to view themselves as being able to stimulate student motivation to learn.  Tasks given to students can help increase motivation by being challenging and achievable, and showing students that the skills involved in a task can be used in the real world.  Verbally providing the reasons for the tasks to students is also helpful.  According to research there is a process called Attribution Retraining that includes modeling, socialization and practice exercises and is sometimes used with discouraged students.  Attribution retraining provides students with focus on a task rather than the fear of failure.

_________________________________________________________________________________________________

Karen Oquendo, M.S. is the Center Director at PRIDE Learning Center in West Los Angeles.  Karen is a Credentialed Special Education Teacher and Reading Specialist.  Prior to working at PRIDE Learning Center, Karen worked as a Special Education Therapist for New York City Department of Education.   You can visit the PRIDE Learning Center website at www.pridelearningcenter.com or email Karen directly at karen@pridelearningcenter.com

Betsy Combier
betsy.combier@gmail.com
Editor, NYC Rubber Room Reporter
Editor, Parentadvocates.org
Editor, New York Court Corruption
Editor, National Public Voice
Editor, NYC Public Voice
Editor, Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials

NYC Department of Education Human Resources Manager Peter Ianniello Sent 400 Names, Social Security Numbers and Other Private Information Via Email on February 15, 2017

re-posted from Parentadvocates.org:

I believe it is time for Peter Ianniello to retire or be fired.

Betsy Combier
betsy.combier@gmail.com
Editor, NYC Rubber Room Reporter
Editor, Parentadvocates.org
Editor, New York Court Corruption
Editor, National Public Voice
Editor, NYC Public Voice
Editor, Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials

---

Mr. Ianniello, a cabaret singer wanna be, may pay dearly for his office error., sending out via email 90 pages with the names, social security numbers, and other private information of 400 paraprofessionals who are currently matriculated at various colleges in the New York City area . All the people whose private information was sent out are students in a Career Training Program (CTP) to help them improve their skills.

---

Peter Ianniello

Peter Ianniello

NYC Department of Education Human Resources Manager Peter Ianniello Sent 400 Names, Social Security Numbers and Other Private Information Via Email on February 15, 2017 to each of the 400 paraprofessionals listed.

He made a big mistake.

We know that the NYC Department of Education is not very good at keeping private information, private. The way they treat any information is random. If they decide they want to keep something secret, they will. If someone files a Freedom of Information request for public records at a school, like a personnel file, number of students who graduate, etc., the requester of this information will most probably wait two or more years to get the data. Personal whims matter, evidently.

On February 18, 2017, I received a call from a paraprofessional in the DOE Career Training Program at 65 Court Street in Brooklyn. Peter Ianniello is in charge, a man who really wants to be a cabaret singer. Paraprofessionals who work for the Department must, according to new rules in place since September 2016, matriculate into a degree bearing program after completing 60 credits as part of the Career Training Program. (CTP).

The problem is, a para told me, the rules keep changing all the time, and many are disgusted. Paras must do 100 hours in 5 years, and pay $30 for each two hours., I was told.

This para was very upset that she and 400 other paras had received an email with 90 pages of names, social security numbers, matriculation information with course work, money paid, and schools at which the matriculation occurred.
What they were supposed to receive were the new rules for the Career Training Program. Below is the email sent by Adrienne L. Gilyard at the NYC DOE Scholarship, Incentives and Special Programs. The attachment does not have the 90 pages, only the first page, broken into 3 parts, with the names and social security numbers redacted:

From: Gilyard Adrienne
Date: Wed, Feb 15, 2017 at 11:30 AM
Subject: Letters of Matriculation
To:

Please see attached correspondence and respond as indicated.

Kindest regards,
Adrienne L. Gilyard, MSA
Tuition/Default Coordinator
Scholarship, Incentives and Special Programs
NYC Department of Education
65 Court Street, Room 508
Brooklyn, New York 11201
Office 718-935-4272
Fax 718-935-4262
Email: AGilyard2@schools.nyc.gov

paras-socialsecurity

Peter ianniello realized the huge mistake and sent out a letter telling the 400 paras to kindly delete the email containing personal information, and "sorry that this may have caused you some concern". He added that he has set up all 400 paras with Legal Shield to protect their identities. Do you hear desperation? I do. Paras that believed him, called Legal Shield and were told that no information has been received and they should call some other time.

Adrienne Gilyard also sent an email urging everyone to delete the email sent in error.

Here is the email Ms. Gilyard SHOULD have sent:
CTP Matriculation Letter

Then there are the hiring practices at the Department....you have to know someone, or have to prove your worth by keeping any wrong-doing secret. Managers and principals are required to keep their schools and underlings "doing well". failure means your job. Yet hiring practices often use the same managers, even if they have proven themselves to be unethical or worse. Take NYC Chancellor Carmen Farina, for instance. In 2000 I asked her where the $225,000 was that the children at PS 6 (where my youngest daughter was a student) and PS 198 were supposed to get from the Annenberg Challenge For the Arts. She verbally attacked me (I wish I had taped it!) , I reported her, and she was removed as principal in 2001. She then became Superintendent of District 15 in Brooklyn, where she made people angry, then she was moved to Deputy Chancellor of the Department, when she was exposed as part of two scandals. She was told to retire or be fired. She retired. Then Bill de Blasio, NYC Mayor, brought her back and appointed her Chancellor. What the heck?

So, most administrators and managers fudge the data. A class has bad grades? After the teacher is sent to a rubber room on his/her way to a 3020-a trial, grades are changed in order to reflect "improvement" and/or excellent work. The people who know that this goes on but say nothing, stay in their jobs, and get promoted up the ladder. They are the "in" crowd. Until, that is, they whisper the truth to someone, and then they are whisked away to a rubber room.

That is exactly where Peter Ianniello belongs.

The paras are preparing Notices of Claim. Stay tuned, DOE!  

NY City Tenured Teacher and Former Rubber Roomer Philip Nobile Gives Up The Fight and Agrees To Irrevocably Retire - Not

Philip Nobile

Re-posted from Parentadvocates.org:

This story is true, but unbelievable, that "fighter Phil", a well-known advocate for challenging the New York City Department of Education for every lie they tell, agreed to sign an irrevocable retirement agreement on October 7, 2016, in front of a 3020-a arbitrator. He then changed his mind, and told the DOE he wanted a full hearing, and the DOE says "no", they are not accepting his rescission.
          

Betsy Combier and NYSUT Attorney Chris Callagy

NY City Tenured Teacher and Former Rubber Roomer Philip Nobile Gives Up The Fight and Agrees To Irrevocably Retire - Not
by Betsy Combier, Editor, Parentadvocates.org and NYC Rubber Room Reporter

I could not believe my eyes when I saw Phil Nobile's lawsuit in the New York State Supreme Court. I met Phil in the rubber Room at 25 Chapel Street, after my friends Polo Colon and David Pakter sneaked me in to talk with the teachers about their re-assignment. I started visiting this rubber room in 2004, but met Phil around 2007.

When you meet Philip Nobile you see that he is a fighter

He spoke at the Panel For Educational Policy (2015)
See my posted articles about Philip Nobile
Principals Pressure Teachers To Cheat in New York City
UFT President Randi Weingarten Wants Whistleblower Protection For Teachers
Changing Grades and Cheating in NYC: The Saga of Lies at Cobble Hill School of American Studies and Current Chancellor of the NYC DOE Carmen Farina by Philip Nobile 5/21/2015
Update on Retaliation Against All Whistleblowers is The Name of the Illegal Game In New York City 8/15/2012
Brooklyn Local Superintendent and Principal Allegedly Cheated on Regents Tests, Then Vindicated After a Second Investigation 7/1/2005
Retaliation Against All Whistleblowers is the Name of the Illegal Game in New York City

Phil was found guilty of misconduct after a 3020-a in 2010.

So when I saw that he agreed to give up the fight on October 7, 2016, and sign a stipulation that he would irrevocably retire after his NYSUT Attorney Chris Callagy and NYC Department of Education offered a deal, I did not believe it. What happened, I don't know. I know his Attorney Chris Callagy well, having sat in 3020-a Arbitration hearings with him as an observer since about 2004. Chris has a cult following of UFT members who consider him the best of all the NYSUT Attorneys. He is very smart and charming, but never would I believe that Phil Nobile would cave to Chris' charms and give up the fight to stay working for the DOE, if that is indeed what happened.

My guess is that Phil was convinced he would be terminated by Arbitrator Mary O'Connell and he would rather retire under charges and have his teaching certificate permanently removed, than be fired. His Specifications are harsh, but he should never have agreed to irrevocably retire. He will never be able to sue the Department or fight any untruths in these charges. Also, getting the Department to agree to undo a signed stipulation is like telling someone we are going to do root canals on all your teeth without anesthesia.

I have been successful in getting a teacher's case back onto the calendar after the charged teacher signed a settlement to resign, so it can be done. Just not the way that Phil did it, in my opinion.

I have spoken about this giving up, and have written on my blogs about how a person who gives up and does not fight 3020-a charges will forever be guilty of the charges. And a Stipulation always prohibits the charged party from suing after signing. Therefore, if you sign a stipulation to resign or retire under charges, you will never work for the Department or any of its' vendors again. Your signing the agreement states that you give up your right to fight, and you are guilty.

Here is Phil's Stipulation of Settlement.

Evidently as soon as he thought about what he had done, Phil decided it was not the right move, and he immediately contacted Chris Callagy the Tuesday following (next business day, Monday was a holiday) to rescind his agreement and move forward to a full hearing.

The Department said no way, despite an email from the Director of NYSUT's New York Office Claude Hersh, the AFFIDAVIT of Phil, and of Chris Callagy. No reason was given.

Phil hired lawyer Leonard Shrier to pursue getting the 3020-a hearing back onto the calendar. Shrier filed the Complaint on or about January 27, 2017.

Shrier states in the Complaint that a Verified Notice of Claim was filed on January 20, 2017. This means that Shrier filed the Complaint a week later, violating the rule that anybody who sues after filing a Notice of Claim must wait 30 days:

On the New York State Court website:

After you have notified the City of the claim and obtained a number, you must wait 30 days to allow the City time to review your claim and perhaps settle with you. After the waiting period, you may start an action in Court. However, the action must be started within one year and ninety days of the time of the loss, damage or injury for the above agencies. Even though the Claim Number comes from the Comptroller, the Defendant who is being sued is: City of New York, Attn: Corporation Counsel, 100 Church St., 5 Fl., New York, NY 10007

 I'm not a lawyer, but I read the law. What happened, Mr. Shrier? The Corporation Counsel did not bring that up in her Motion To Dismiss, papers - see here and here as well - so maybe the judge will ignore the violation of the 30-day rule. Shrier also inexplicably gave Superintendent Karen Watts another name in the caption - Karen "Scott". He apologized to the Court, said he would amend the Complaint with the right name. Hope so!

The issue here is, when do you give up a fight to save your job?

I think a deal can be signed if:

1. You are guilty as charged.
2. You are ready to retire, you will get full pension benefits, and you do not mind your NY State Certification being taken away from you, permanently.
3. you are moving out of State and have another position.

If #1-3 do not apply to you, then I would not think if resigning or retiring and letting the DOE change my career without my consent.

Phil? What happened?

Betsy Combier
betsy.combier@gmail.com
Editor, NYC Rubber Room Reporter
Editor, Parentadvocates.org
Editor, New York Court Corruption
Editor, National Public Voice
Editor, NYC Public Voice
Editor, Inside 3020-a Teacher Trials

Teacher who exposed alleged grade-fixing back at war with DOE

By Reuven Fenton and Selim Algar

February 10, 2017 | 1:14am

A Brooklyn teacher whose accusations led to a massive 2004 grade-fixing probe is back at war with the Department of Education.

Phil Nobile is fighting to keep his teaching gig despite being cited in 2015 for harassing a former principal — a claim he denies, according to court papers.

Nobile made headlines more than a decade ago when he claimed administrators at Cobble Hill School of American Studies, where he worked at the time, were doctoring exam grades and passing undeserving students.

Amid a lengthy investigation, then-Assistant Principal Theresa Capra and Principal Lennel George were fired and the school’s reputation was left in tatters.

But a subsequent probe in 2007 by the Special Commissioner of Investigation found that the initial inquiry — led by infamous former NYPD Detective Louis Scarcella — was flawed and Nobile’s claims were meritless.

The SCI report exonerated Capra and George, asserting that Nobile manufactured the cheating claims because Capra gave him a bad review.

Soon after, Nobile was accused of corporal punishment and vengefully flunking students. He was assigned to a rubber room where he remained for four years before being placed in District 14 in Brooklyn as a substitute, according to court papers.

Nobile denied the charges against him and claimed he was targeted for his campaign to expose grade doctoring.

The DOE moved to fire Nobile last year, asserting in court papers that he was arrested in New Jersey for harassing Capra.

Nobile told The Post Thursday that the harassment consisted of him including Capra on an e-mail chain related to the cheating accusations and that he was never arrested.

“She decided to bring that e-mail to the police,” he said, adding that she filed a complaint.