Strange Bedfellows On Cuomo Team: Eva, DFER and Mikey

Guess who is joining Cuomo's list of privateers?

MEMORANDUM

TO:        NYSUT Board of Directors

FROM:  Andy Pallotta, Executive Vice President

DATE:   January 15, 2014

RE:        NYSUT's Legislative Reception

On Monday evening, January 27, 2014, NYSUT will host a Legislative Reception and briefing in the Observation Deck of the Erastus Corning Tower at the Empire State Plaza.  The reception will be held between6:00 PM - 8:00 PM.

The Governor and his executive staff, members and the executive staff of the Senate and Assembly will be our invited guests.

Light refreshments will be served and a cash bar will be available. 

A copy of the invitation is attached.  If you are interested and your schedule allows, please RSVP to Karen Rhatigan at (518) 213-6000 x6626 or by e-mail, krhatigan@nysutmail.org.

cc:        NYSUT Cabinet

By the way -- this is being done without the approval of NYSUT president Richard Iannuzzi. Andy Pallotta is from the UFT/Unity Caucus wing and represents Mulgrew -- who is running a slate against the Iannuzzi slate in the upcoming NYSUT elections according to our sources. Ed Notes wrote about it in depth:

Looming Battle: Mulgrew vs Iannuzzi For NYSUT Leadership - Split Over Cuomo Endorsement?

And Mike Antonucci from EIA pointed out in this story

EIA Picks up Our NYSUT Story

that

This is a BIG DEAL because NYSUT not only ran a $24 million deficit in 2011-12, but the largest state union affiliate in the nation has a net worth of negative $303 million. If Revive NYSUT is telling the truth, there ought to be red flags going up from Albany to Washington, DC.

New York State United Teachers budget deficit

-$24,065,575 -$302,863,241.. Educational Intelligence Agency

One must ask at some point how anti-union and public education groups and the UFT/AFT/NYSUT can so often find themselves on the same side.

This below was posted by Leonie:

A lot of these guys also support the test-based teacher eval system—even though charters don’t have to adopt it.

http://ny.chalkbeat.org/2014/01/17/success-academy-donors-flood-cuomos-coffers-filings-show/

Success Academy donors give big to Cuomo campaign

by Geoff Decker on January 17, 2014

Backers of a top charter school network that Mayor Bill de Blasio has singled out in his plans to curb charter school growth are filling Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s campaign chest.

Cuomo’s reelection bid has so far received  nearly $400,000 from a cadre of wealthy supporters of Eva Moskowitz’s Success Academy Charter School network, according to an updated tally of newly-released campaign filings. Some money has even come from Moskowitz’s political action committee, Great Public Schools, which has given $65,000 to Cuomo since 2011.

A broader analysis of the filings shows just how much the charter school sector and its education policy allies have embraced Cuomo, a Democrat, during his first term as governor. It also shows how much support from the state’s powerful teachers union, a more traditional ally, has waned.

By one tally of the 2014 filings, Cuomo racked up at least $800,000 in donations from 27 bankers, real estate executives, business executives, philanthropists and advocacy groups who have flocked to charter schools and other education causes in recent years. 

The totals far exceed what the same group gave him for his first run in 2010: $136,000. The union, meanwhile, has donated one-quarter of the sum it gave Cuomo in 2010.

After having a close friend in City Hall for 12 years, the flood of contributions is a sign that charter school backers in New York City may have found a new powerful ally in government at a time when they need one badly. Mayor Bill de Blasio has taken aim at the charter management organizations with well-heeled donors, singling Success Academy out as one whose schools should pay rent for operating in city-owned buildings.

Cuomo’s education policy decisions during his first term in office have been more aligned to former Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a supporter of charter schools. This year, Cuomo is pushing a merit pay proposal and his education reform commission recently recommended that charter schools should be eligible for state pre-kindergarten funds.

Success charter schools, where three of four students qualify for free or reduced lunch, are considered the city’s highest-performing, though critics argue that Success doesn’t replace students who leave or serve a high enough population of students with disabilities (Success’ special education population is 15 percent, slightly less than the citywide average.)

John Petry, a Success founder and board member who has given $35,000 to Cuomo since 2011, said he was won over in early conversations with Cuomo, an attorney general who had a sparse record on education as a candidate in 2010.

“It’s really impressive how he’s thrown himself into education policy over the last four years and developed into a leader on the issue,” Petry said.

Petry was one of at least 10 Success board members, along with two spouses, who donated to Cuomo in recent years. (Success has 66 board members serving seven boards, each of which oversees a small number of schools — some oversee just one — in the 22-school network).

Topping the list is board member Jill Braufman, a philanthropist who is married to Daniel Nir, another board member who heads Gracie Capital, an investment firm. Braufman, who also chairs the Center for Arts Education board, gave $57,500 over the past two years, while Nir chipped in another $35,000.

Joel Greenblatt, a Success co-founder, and his wife, Julia, contributed $75,000. Moskowitz’s PAC donated to Cuomo four times in less than a year between 2011 and 2012.

As a nonprofit organization, Success Academy Charter Schools is barred from engaging or coordinating in political campaign fundraising activities for candidates, although employees may volunteer on their own time. A spokeswoman said that any donations by board members or through Moskowitz’s PAC were not coordinated through Success.

“They are committed to helping children gain access to high-quality educational options, but they serve many communities and causes; their decisions about political donations are purely personal,” said the spokeswoman, Ann Powell. 

As governor, Cuomo doesn’t have direct power over many policies to help the charter school sector. He can’t authorize new charter schools and it’s up to de Blasio to decide if they will pay rent.

But Cuomo does pull strings in budget negotiations and has a say over how much per-pupil state funding charter schools receive, which is less on average than district schools. Cuomo could give them a boost in the event that de Blasio chooses to charge rent or evict them altogether.

“He kept charter funding level during the recession and did not allow the already existing gap to get worse,” said Bill Phillips, whose PAC, the Coalition for Public Charter Schools, donated $10,000 to Cuomo.

Joe Williams, who has helped fundraise for Cuomo as head of Democrats for Education Reform, said that the flood of support is more a testament to Cuomo’s overall performance as governor than any specific education initiative. He noted an improved budget process, same-sex marriage legislation and “smart gun-control legislation” as notable highlights that have impressed donors.

“He came to us in 2010 and pitched himself as a grownup who could get state government working again,” Williams said. “Some people in our orbit thought it was impossible, but he proved he was up for it.”

A Cuomo spokesman declined to comment.

One group that has cooled considerably on Cuomo since he took office, if campaign donations are any indication, is the state teachers union. The PAC for the New York State United Teachers has offered just $10,000 so far this campaign cycle compared with more than $40,000 in 2010.

In the last four years, Cuomo has fought the union over teacher evaluations and aggressively pushed districts to adopt the systems after implementation had stalled. He also cut pension benefits for state workers, including teachers, which infuriated public employee unions.

A union spokesman declined to comment.  

Though Success board members were most-represented among Cuomo’s education donors, they were hardly alone. Below is a complete list of Success’ and other education donors, their contributions and their affiliations. 

— Sam Cole, Success board; JerseyCan board: $30,000

— Bryan Binder, Success board: $15,000

— Great Public Schools PAC, Eva Moskowitz’s PAC: $65,000

— Jill Braufman, Success board; Chair of Center for Arts Education: $57,500

— Dan/Margaret Loeb, Success board and wife: $29,367

— Joel/Julia Greenblatt, Success co-founder; Say Yes to Education board member, and wife: $75,000

— John Petry, Success co-founder and board member; Democrats for Education Reform co-founder and board member: $35,000

— Dan Nir, Success board, $35,000

— Charles Strauch, Success board, $15,000

— Jarrett Posner, Success board, $2,500

— Kelly Posner, Turnaround for Children chair; founder of Speyer Legacy School: $20,000

— Andrew and Dana Stone, Success board: $75,000

— Larry Robbins, KIPP board, RELAY Graduate School of Education board, $50,000

— Brian Olson, Chairman of ConnCan, Civic Builders board, New Schools Leadership Council, $45,000

— Brian and Tania Higgins, Harlem Children’s Zone board: $45,000

— Jon Sackler, Achievement First board; 50Can; NewSchools Venture Fund: $26,000

— Winston Fisher, Civic Builders board, $47,500

— Bruce Kovner, Bronx Preparatory Charter School board, $40,000

— Carl Icahn, founder of Icahn Charter Schools, $50,000

— Ken Langone, StudentsFirstNY board, $50,000

— Whitney Tilson, co-founder of Democrats for Education Reform, KIPP-NYC board, National Alliance for Public Charter Schools board, $12,000

— Bryan Lawrence, Public Prep board, $10,000

— Democrats for Education Reform, $35,000

— Coalition for Public Charter Schools, $10,000

Is PS 106 Better Run When the Principal is NOT There?- Norm in The Wave

Is PS 106 Better Run When the Principal is NOT There?

By Norm Scott

published in Rockaway's newspaper, The Wave, Jan. 17, 2014, www.rockawave.com

The NY Post branding of PS 106 as the “No School – No books, library, gym, etc.” and “The Worst School in the Nation” with a focus on principal Marcella Sills has captured the attention of local and even national media. George Mathis writing from Georgia (http://blogs.ajc.com/news-to-me/2014/01/13/report-worst-school-in-u-s-has-no-books/) attacked the Post for its reporting and placed the blame on the Sandy storm and for an unfair attack on Sills. “Where (other than the Post) does it say good principals can’t drive expensive cars or wear animal pelts?” Hmmm. Too bad author Mathis didn’t Google the school or Sills and he would have turned up a trove of articles about Sills and PS 106 in The Wave and on my blog ednotesonline.org from as far back as 2007-8 when Sandy wasn’t even a puddle.

Some local politicians also neglected their googling, blaming Sandy for conditions at the school. The fact that almost since the day Sills took over about a decade ago, parents and teachers have been lodging complaints at levels above the school with little response. Sills whose teaching experience was always somewhat of a mystery came out of the principal training ground known as The Leadership Academy, affectionately referred to by teachers working for these grads as Stalag training camps where principals are taught how to destroy the lives and careers of teachers while shutting down parent involvement in the school – unless the parents are hand-picked by the principal.

Let’s review the “brilliant” organization structure instituted by NY Post darling, former Chancellor Joel Klein that allowed a Marcella Sills to become an “empowered” principal free to go what she wanted – even show up late to school or not at all, a major charge the Post makes. Klein combined school districts 23 and 19 from Brooklyn with our own District 27 into what became Region 5, headed by Kathy Cashin. Michele Lloyd-Bey has been the Superintendent.

I thought it interesting that reporter Sue Edelman who knows how to google posted her story 2 weeks AFTER the Bloomberg administration left the field and wouldn’t have to field questions about PS 106. That was left to new Chancellor Carmen Farina, who the next day sent a team to the school to check it out. BloomKlein and Walcott had no interest when the complaints flowed in the past. It certainly didn’t surprise me that Edelman did not include the way Sills degraded and even destroyed the careers of experienced educators. In the world of the Rupert Murdoch NY Post that would make Sills a hero and she could drive a Ferrari and wear fur pajamas and that would be OK. Well, Edelman did make this point: “Staffers won’t speak up or even file a grievance with their union because Sills will retaliate.” The union? Someone ask UFT District 27 rep Marilyn Cooper what she has been doing all these years.

Teachers chimed in with comments on my blog:

“As a former teacher at this school.....it's about time that the public knew what was going on. It was obvious to everyone who has worked there that the Principal's connections to those in higher places has made things progressively worse. I hope the dam is about to crack at this school. The extent of the problems that have been created by this Principal since she took over were well known by everyone associated with the workings of this school but when those who you think can correct the situation are looking the other way a monster is created. Perhaps now, those who can attest to what has been happening at PS 106 will have their voices heard!”

Another: “Harassment and data fudging for years. Good teachers have been run off and or ruined and the current teachers who work their busts off work in fear. Teachers do so without any books or any of the CCLS aligned curriculum that was free for NYC schools.”

On my blog I placed the blame on Supertindent Lloyd-Bey which led to this comment: “I am sure the parents spoke up but I'm also sure the district office took up for the principal. I am infuriated that this is happening to our black and brown children. hen will real change occur? Norm please keep the spotlight on. I am willing to protest for the removal of ALL superintendents, crazy principals, and other powers that be. They are ruining the careers of good teachers as well. You know this is not the only school.“

Even Lloyd-Bey had a defender: “If the parents, and more so, the teachers are not forthcoming now with the investigators – do not seek them out themselves and spill all the beans, then they may be blowing their only chance to get rid of this monster lady. I am thinking that Ms. Lloyd-Bey's hands were tied due to her being given hands off directive. What makes anyone think that teachers are the only one who are intimidated!! Someone above Ms. Lloyd-Bey is responsible for this one.”

And a parent chimed in:

“Ms. Sills has not really cared about students’ well being or academic progress. She has a political hierarchy she has developed to intimidate teachers and parents. Meetings were held by parents to address the over-priced graduation clothes and venue. She assured us she would help those who would not have the money. However she would only help parents that she believed would be an advantage to her. At the graduation of my daughter two years ago she told her graduating class her teacher didn't care about her right in the middle of the ceremony. Children were crying I personally knew the teacher had been very ill and went through radiation and severe changes. She not only did not have empathy for the teacher but she hurt the students feelings saying that in front of their peers during her elaborate production. You can't claim to care if your capable of hurting children as a means of retaliation. Hopefully things will change soon.”

Hmmm. Exactly who is protecting Sills all these years? Certainly not PETA.

Look for follow stories on Norms blog: ednotesonline where we report how Cashin and Lloyd-Bey tried to bribe a teacher with another job to protect Sills.

EIA Picks up Our NYSUT Story

This is a BIG DEAL because NYSUT not only ran a $24 million deficit in 2011-12, but the largest state union affiliate in the nation has a net worth of negative $303 million. If Revive NYSUT is telling the truth, there ought to be red flags going up from Albany to Washington, DC.

New York State United Teachers budget deficit

-$24,065,575 -$302,863,241.. Educational Intelligence Agency

Is “Revive NYSUT” Viable?

---

Is “Revive NYSUT” Viable?

Posted: 17 Jan 2014 10:34 AM PST

Norm Scott alerts us to some internal division and a burgeoning movement within the New York State United Teachers over the direction of the organization. An opposition caucus calling itself Revive NYSUT launched a Facebook page with this call to arms:

It’s Time…
Over the last five years we have taken hit after hit to our profession. We have suffered through budget cuts, layoffs, Race to the Top, APPR, Tier V, Tier VI, a property tax cap, loss of teacher privacy and the botched rollout of the Common Core. While this has been happening, NYSUT has appeared rudderless, indecisive and unable to successfully fight for our members in a meaningful way.

The effort appears to be led by NYSUT executive vice president Andrew Pallotta and Karen Magee, who is challenging incumbent Richard Iannuzzi for the NYSUT presidency.

Norm has all the dirt on this, including the notion that this is a proxy power struggle between Iannuzzi and United Federation of Teachers president Michael Mulgrew.

My first reaction is to get myself a bucket of popcorn and watch the show. Revive NYSUT describes itself as a grassroots group. If it were, it would be either ignored or quickly squashed by the NYSUT leadership. What makes it worth noticing is its apparent inclusion of “local Presidents, members of the NYSUT Board of Directors and even a current NYSUT officer.” Insiders give it heft that a bunch of outside rock-throwers would lack.

There is another thing that makes this particular uprising more significant than past ones:

We are for Transparency. Have you ever seen the NYSUT financials? For nine years, local presidents, NYSUT Task Force and Committee members and even members of the NYSUT Board of Directors have been refused access to NYSUT expenditure information.

This is a BIG DEAL because NYSUT not only ran a $24 million deficit in 2011-12, but the largest state union affiliate in the nation has a net worth of negative $303 million. If Revive NYSUT is telling the truth, there ought to be red flags going up from Albany to Washington, DC.

Looming Battle: Mulgrew vs Iannuzzi For NYSUT Leadership - Split Over Cuomo Endorsement?

Oh, the tangled web at NYSUT and the UFT. A very intriguing story is emerging in what has been viewed as a monolithic UFT dominated NYSUT (NY State United Teachers). Some of this is hearsay and we may have follow-ups with new information and new interpretations over the next few days. But here is what we have heard so far. (WARNING- YOU MAY HAVE PROBLEMS WADING THROUGH THIS WEB -I'M STILL WORKING MY WAY THROUGH IT ) BUT IF YOU HAVE INFO LEAVE A COMMENT).

Few have questioned that the UFT/Unity Caucus has been running the state teachers organization, NYSUT, since it was founded in the 70's and Al Shanker installed Tom Hobart as a front for President, with himself as Exec VP. The UFT/Unity leadership has always wanted the NYSUT president to be someone from outside NYC to give the impression that the UFT isn't in complete control -- Unity Caucus in NYC has about one third the total NYSUT delegates -- the very same 7-800 Unity people that were elected in the winner-take-all UFT election in March 2013.

I should point out something I recently learned: that the statewide caucus is also called Unity - the only game in town - in other words, there is no equivalent like MORE to run against it in elections. This is similar to the national AFT where Unity is known as the Progressive Caucus, also pretty much the only game in town.

When Hobart retired Dick Iannuzzi was installed as President and the UFT's Andy Pallotta, a Bronx Unity Caucus staffer, as Exec VP. The other 3 VPs are split with 2 from outside NYC and one from the local NYC Unity. The other NYSUT VP from the local NYC Unity Caucus is Maria Neira, who has always garnered the respect of most UFT members, even those from the opposition.

Let me give you some more background. When Randi Weingarten emerged as Sandy Feldman's successor c. early 1990's, the highly respected Alan Lubin (many of us in the opposition also liked him) who was the Brooklyn Borough head and a popular choice for Sandy's heir apparent was "kicked" upstairs to NYSUT as Executive VP. But it turns out this position is the real power in many ways in NYSUT in that the person in charge controls the massive amount of COPE money going to politicians. More important than the president in some eyes, Lubin had free reign on the use of this money so he was a major power broker in Albany.

But Alan had a heart condition I believe and retired -- (I saw him at the AFT convention in Seattle and he looked great and here's to continued good health to him.) So that was how Andy Pallotta was elected Exec VP - the NYSUT elections are every 3 years with the next one taking place this April at the NYSUT convention which will be held here in NYC at the Hilton April 4-6, 2014.

With Lubin no longer riding herd and Andy Pallotta viewed as somewhat of a weak link, Dick Iannuzzi assumed a stronger role in managing the COPE money and didn't give Andy the same unlimited range Lubin enjoyed. Lubin supposedly despises Iannuzzi and remained a prop to Andy as resentment soared. The story is that Dick put a 50 grand limit to Andy's spending.

Then there was what seemed some head-scratching differences between NYSUT and the UFT arising when Dick Iannuzzi began to take some positions against the evaluation system, common core and raising a greater share of criticism of the State Ed Department - Tisch and King in particular with his call for "no confidence -- while Mulgrew was relatively silent. In essence, Mulgrew has been forced to take a more critical stance than he might have wanted to. (See Eterno's DA report on the MORE and ICE blogs where James' call for a non-endorsement of Cuomo was rejected by the Unity faithful - and to see just how bad Cuomo is for us read the daily reports at Perdido Street School.)

Then there's the Cuomo endorsement factor. Iannuzzi seems flat out opposed to a naked Cuomo endorsement. Then this came in over the transom.

On November 21, 2013, Andy Pallotta, in charge of legislative action, used Vote Cope money to make a $10,000 donation to "Cuomo 2014". The purposes of this was to purchase an entire table at Cuomo's birthday celebration.  An entire table, in lieu of just sending one or two people (or none!).  This was done without Iannuzzi's knowledge.

Word is that Mulgrew is backing a slate to run against Iannuzzi and all the VPs (including the UFT's own Maria Neira who seems to be backing Iannuzzi with the exception of Andy Pallotta. They have a hand-picked candidate to oppose Dick (more on all that in a follow-up.)

Then the other day an anonymous Twitter account and Facebook page was created with the handle @ReviveNYSUT.  They are calling for a change in NYSUT leadership. The tweets are anti-Iannuzzi and seem to be coming from people who would normally be allied with us but insiders have challenged them for being phony shills for the Mulgrew/Pallotta team since they attack Dick but not Andy. We received this message:

THE ACCOUNT IS ANDY PALLOTTA.  The Mulgrew/Pallotta crew is behind it.

With tweets like this:

1. Sashammy ‏@Sashammy 2h

   @CNYTeacher @ReviveNYSUT & because they call for change yet leave one of our most ineffective "leaders" in place
2. Sashammy ‏@Sashammy 12h

   @ReviveNYSUT @NYSUnionTeacher @nysut nice try. take pallotta off your slate then come talk to me about grassroots.

And to top it off, a new Facebook page appeared called  ReviveNYSUT Lies which is calling out the supposed Mulgrew choice to oppose Iannuzzi, Karen Magee:

At tonight’s ED 15-16 meeting NYSUT Presidential candidate Karen Magee said nothing to her constituents about running for NYSUT President. Nothing! Does this mean she is afraid that she doesn’t have the support of her region?? Maybe she feels that she doesn’t need it because she has the support of the UFT or maybe the UFT has not given her permission to talk about it yet.

And this:

Good News: There are some independent candidates looking to run for the Executive Vice President position if he does not resign soon.

There could be a contested election for NYSUT leadership with Mulgrew leading the charge against Iannuzzi.

Officers and Board Of Directors

Officers At Large

• 
  Richard C. Iannuzzi
  President
  Executive Board Member
• 
  Andrew Pallotta
  Executive Vice President
  Executive Board Member
• 
  Maria Neira
  Vice President
  Executive Board Member
• 
  Kathleen M. Donahue
  Vice President
  Executive Board Member
• 
  Lee Cutler
  Secretary Treasurer
  Executive Board Member 
   
  NYSUT Election District Directors:
   

  NYSUT Election District Directors

  Of 84 election districts -- 53 plus 31 at-large, UFT connected - the names I recognize - and I may be missing some -- total 21 - all of them the usual suspects. Those who won't support the Unity move against Iannuzzi may face opposition for their position.
  

  • Janet Utz

    E.D. 2

  • Thomas Parker

    E.D. 3

  • Joseph Sweeny

    E.D. 4

  • Adam Urbanski

    ED 5
    Executive Board Member

  • Michael Herlan

    ED 6

  • Sylvia Matousek

    E.D. 7

  • Diana Giffune

    E.D. 8

  • Jeanette Stapley

    E.D. 9

  • Anthony McCann

    E.D. 10

  • Kenneth Smith

    E.D. 11

  • Stacey Caruso-Sharpe

    E.D. 12
    Executive Board Member

  • Kathleen Taylor

    E.D. 13

  • Paul Ellis-Graham

    E.D. 14

  • Karen Magee

    E.D. 15

  • Jeffrey Yonkers

    E.D. 16

  • Kenneth Ulric

    E.D. 17

  • Barbara Hafner

    E.D. 18

  • Christine Vasilev

    E.D. 19

  • John Mansfield

    E.D. 20

  • Tim Southerton

    E.D. 21

  • Paul Pecorale

    E.D. 22

  • Antoinette Blanck

    E.D. 23

  • Karen Blackwell Alford

    E.D. 24 (UFT)

  • Jose Vargas

    E.D. 25 (UFT)

  • Evelyn DeJesus

    E.D. 26 (UFT)

  • Rona Freiser

    E.D. 27 (UFT)

  • Arthur Pepper

    E.D. 28 (UFT)

  • Emil Pietromonaco

    E.D. 29 (UFT)

  • Anthony Harmon

    E.D. 30 (UFT)

  • Bob Astrowsky

    E.D. 31 (UFT)
    Executive Board Member

  • Catalina Fortino

    E.D. 32 (UFT)

  • Paul Egan

    E.D. 33 (UFT)

  • Michael Mendel

    E.D. 34 (UFT)
    Executive Board Member

  • LeRoy Barr

    E.D. 35 (UFT)

  • Iris DeLutro

    E.D. 37 (City & Private Higher Ed.)

  • Steven London

    E.D. 38 Steven London

  • Ellen Schuler Mauk

    E.D. 39 (Community Colleges)
    Executive Board Member

  • Edward Quinn

    E.D. 40 (State Higher Ed. – UUP)

  • Rowena Blackman-Stroud

    E.D. 41 (State Higher Ed. – UUP)

  • Thomas Matthews

    E.D. 42 (State Higher Ed. – UUP)

  • Philip Rumore

    E.D. 44

  • Catherine Savage

    E.D. 45

  • Matthew Hill

    E.D. 46

  • Loretta Donlon

    E.D. 51 (Retiree)

  • Joan Perrini

    E.D. 52 (Retiree)

  • Thomas Murphy

    E.D. 53 (Retiree)

  At Large Directors

  • Kristin Sterling

    E.D. 1 & 3

  • John Burns

    E.D. 2 & 44

  • Eileen Healy

    E.D. 4 & 46

  • David DeFelice

    E.D. 5 & 6

  • Paul Farfaglia

    E.D. 7 & 8
    Executive Board Member

  • Rod Sherman

    E.D. 9 & 10
    Executive Board Member

  • Dona Murray

    E.D. 11, 12 & 45

  • Carla McLaud

    E.D. 13 & 14

  • Patricia Puleo

    E.D. 15 & 16
    Executive Board Member

  • Selina Durio

    E.D. 17-20

  • Edward Vasta

    E.D. 18-19

  • Nadia Resnikoff

    E.D. 21-22-23
    Executive Board Member

  • Richard Farkas

    E.D. 24-25

  • Howard Schoor

    E.D. 26-27

  • Carmen Alvarez

    E.D. 28-29

  • Michael Mulgrew

    E.D. 30-31
    Executive Board Member

  • Janella Hinds

    E.D. 32-33

  • Sterling Roberson

    E.D. 34-35

  • Barbara Bowen

    E.D. 37-38-39
    Executive Board Member

  • Phillip H. Smith

    E.D. 40-41-42
    Executive Board Member

  • Joseph McLaughlin

    E.D. 51-52-53

  • Shelvy Young Abrams

    At-Large
    Executive Board Member

  • Margie Brumfield

    SRP At-Large

  • Sandra Carner-Shafran

    SRP At-Large
    Executive Board Member

  • Catherine Rienth

    SRP At Large

  • Deborah Paulin

    SRP At-Large

  • Anne Goldman

    Health Care At-Large

  • Stephen Rechner

    Private Sector Higher Ed At-Large

  • Andrew Sako

    Community College At-Large

  • Morton Rosenfeld

    At-Large National Unification

   

My Old District in the News

Oy, the stories I could tell. There was a time when some people urged me to start my car by remote control.
But these stories are a bit beyond the pale and surprised even jaded old me --- except .... never mind.

Educator Who Allegedly Sexually Abused Students Ran for City Council

By Meredith Hoffman on September 9, 2013 9:19am 

@Merhoffman

http://www.dnainfo.com/new-york/20130909/east-williamsburg/educator-who-allegedly-sexually-abused-students-ran-for-city-council

Juan Martinez was accused of sexually abusing students at Progress High School.

View Full Caption

New York City Campaign Finance Board

EAST WILLIAMSBURG — The well-regarded educator accused last week of forcing his student to give him oral sex in his Williamsburg office ran for City Council twice and has ties to prominent North Brooklyn politicians, sources and public records revealed.
He also previously led the entire North Brooklyn school district and served on the community advisory board for Bushwick's Woodhull hospital, sources confirmed.
Juan D. Martinez, 51, sexually abused students at East Williamsburg's Progress High School while leading an after-school program he founded there in 2009 and 2011, an investigation by the Special Commissioner of Investigations for the New York City School District alleged last Wednesday.
And Martinez — whose alleged actions were denounced by the Department of Education as "reprehensible" last week and whose case is now being examined by the Brooklyn District Attorney's office — not only had a position of power within the school, but he has a history of influential roles in the district.
Martinez ran unsuccessfully for office in North Brooklyn's 34th District in 1991 and 2001, receiving donations from Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez, the United Federation of Teachers, and dozens of staff from the Department of Education and Woodhull Hospital, campaign finance records show.
And just last year in politics Martinez worked on State Assembly candidate Jason Otano's campaign, whose kick-off party Martinez co-hosted along with other members of the North Brooklyn political sphere, according to sources and a Facebook invitation.
Martinez "is considered a North Brooklyn power broker...[who] used his position as the head of Progress, Inc. to not only boost his own political career but those of many others as well," a source with longtime knowledge of the neighborhood said.
Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez donated $100 to his campaign and the UFT contributed $1,000 in 2001, records show, and Martinez collected a total of $183,083 for his campaigns.

Progress High School is part of the Grand Street Campus on the corner of Grand Street and Bushwick Avenue. The former assistant principal allegedly raped and molested students in his office in the school.

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DNAinfo/Meredith Hoffman

Martinez also served as the president of North Brooklyn's School District 14 for five years, sources confirmed, and he served on Bushwick's Woodhull Hospital community advisory board.
Martinez — who was accused of the abuses along with the former assistant principal of Progress High School, who was also accused of rape — was also the founder of Progress Inc., the after-school program at Progress High School where he worked during the alleged incidents.
Martinez, whose case has been referred to the Brooklyn District Attorney's office, did not answer multiple calls requesting comment, and the United Federation of Teachers and Woodhull Hospital did not return calls and emails requesting comment.
Otano also did not respond to emails requesting comment.
A spokesman for the Brooklyn District Attorney's office said they were looking into the case, and the Department of Education did not comment on the new findings but said Martinez was ineligible for jobs with the agency following the release of the Special Commissioner of Investigation's findings.
A spokesman for Velazquez would not comment on questions about her affiliation with Martinez, but said she called on the DA's office to "thoroughly and carefully review the findings."
“We all have a responsibility to keep our children safe. The...report raises troubling allegations and, if proven true, there can be no tolerance for this type of behavior," the Velazquez spokesman said. "Should the DA determine there is evidence supporting the report’s findings, the parties involved must be held legally accountable.”

Andrew Theodorakis/New York Daily News

William Abreu, 44, formerly an assistant principal at Progress High School in Brooklyn, has been indicted on charges accusing him of raping a 17-year-old girl in 2009 who had recently graduated from the school.

Two educators at a Brooklyn high school were arrested Wednesday after being indicted on charges they each forced a teenage girl into engaging in sex acts with them, authorities said.
William Abreu, 44, formerly an assistant principal at Progress High School in Williamsburg, is accused of raping a 17-year-old girl, who had recently graduated from the institution, in his office in 2009, according to city investigators.
Juan Martinez, 51, a former administrator of an after-school program at the school, is accused of compelling a 16-year-old student to perform oral sex on him in 2011, investigators said.

Both men were collared by police on Wednesday morning after grand juries returned indictments against them based on extensive investigation by authorities.

Special Commissioner of investig

Juan Martinez, 51, a former administrator of an after-school program at Progress High, was indicted on charges that he forced a 16-year-old student to perform oral sex on him in 2011.

The Department of Education’s Special Commissioner of Investigation Richard Condon found evidence that the men committed the vile acts, a determination that tipped off a police investigation, authorities said.

Documents from a report prepared by Condon in 2012 detailed how Abreu and Martinez allegedly colluded to force the two victims to submit to the sexual conduct and to keep quiet about it afterward.
RELATED: TO SIR, WITH LUST
The two victims came forward following the 2012 report, and their cooperation led to the indictments against the men, officials said.
Abreu was ordered held in lieu of $25,000 bail when he was arraigned on the indictment Wednesday. He was indicted on a single felony count of third-degree rape. He was also charged with misdemeanor raps of third-degree sexual abuse and endangering the welfare of a child.

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Progress High School for Professional Careers in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

Martinez was being held in lieu of $35,000 bail. The indictment against him included three felony counts — criminal sex abuse in the first and third degrees, and sexual abuse in the first degree. He also was hit with misdemeanor counts of third-degree sexual abuse and endangering the welfare of a child.
RELATED: MUSIC TEACHER ADMITS TO MOLESTING STUDENT
Abreu was canned by the DOE in November 2013. Martinez was barred from the school following Condon’s report.
Both men pleaded not guilty at arraignment Wednesday.
Frederick Spiegel, an attorney for Abreu, said his client denies the charges. “He’s a family man. He’s been a working man his whole life.”
Spiegel noted that Abreu is married and has four children; his wife was in court with him on Wednesday.
Martinez’s lawyer said his client professes his innocence.
bchapman@nydailynews.com

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/nyc-crime/2-ex-educators-indicted-sex-acts-students-article-1.1580991#ixzz2qip7lnb8

PS 106 Update: Retired Teacher Writes to Farina About Principal Marcella Sills' Leadership

When will Farina end the misery? If this were about teachers they would be out of there in the blink of an eye. Let me point out once again, that this information has been out there for many years and the NY Post missed it -- until their pals BloomKleinCott were gone. And by the way, that licensed librarian who put so much into the library and the school and was a wonderful teachers is a friend of mine. (There's even more to that story that makes Sills look even more disgusting than she even appears here but I won't go there now.)

Was this school in a devastated area of Rockaway flourishing before Sills arrived? Surely not. But it was a solid school community that Sills as a Leadership Acad grad went in to consciously destroy. In my world that is a criminal act.

Chancellor Carmen Farina 52 Chambers Street New York, NY 10007 January 16, 2014

Dear Chancellor Farina,

I am a retired Reading/ Writing teacher of District 27Q. I worked at P.S.106Q for about twenty-two years, providing AIS under six principals. (I have enclosed my resume so you have an idea of who I am, and how I have served the children and staff in my district.)

I must tell you how thrilled I was to hear that the new Chancellor of NYC DOE was a person of integrity that “came up through the ranks” of the education system. It is this fact, and your reputation of course, and the recent revelations in the media, that have inspired me to pen this letter to you.

I am one of the teachers who was unfortunately disrespected, abused and suffered greatly under the incompetent leadership of Principal Marcella Sills at PS 106Q. As a matter of fact, at this writing I am still involved in a grievance against Ms. Sills going back to 2009 and awaiting resolve of the issue. Ms. Sills neglected to sign and send in a Medical Leave form that I completed and gave to the payroll secretary. Ms. Sills actually claimed that she never received it. This is a grave untruth and I have a signed statement from the school payroll secretary, stating that she indeed gave her the form for signature. As a result of Ms.Sills’ negligence and deliberate retribution, I now suffer the consequences of possibly losing this grievance.

This would result in a loss of three months of pension monies. I am currently repaying the DOE for minus attendance days of my last year of service, during which time I struggled with breast cancer and underwent several surgeries.

I and my colleagues were quite disheartened by the appointment of such an unknowledgeable and incompetent school administrator (graduate of the PLA), to PS 106. It is the opinion of the majority of staff, those who left, were forced out or chose to retire as early as possible from PS106, that this Principal was unintelligible, dishonest, uninterested in the students and their well- being, and simply vicious toward others.

We did make several attempts to follow protocol via the UFT, to gain DOE notice of what was happening at PS 106, but alas to no avail. None of the staff members could understand how Ms. Sills remained in her position after exhibiting pedagogically poor judgment in decision making and a lack of basic pedagogic knowledge; (not to mention the inability to write or speak coherent and grammatically correct English). We have all been appalled at what the NYCDOE considered an appropriate “leader” of an educational facility.

After Hurricane Irene flooded our Early Childhood Academy, we were never asked to submit any lists of professional and teaching materials that were destroyed. Nor were we asked what we needed in basic supplies for our classrooms. Surely, any competent school administrator would have done so, and would have attempted to obtain resources from the DOE and community at large. I can’t even begin to list the injustices to the children, parents and staff of PS 106, that were incurred as a result of ineffectual leadership over a period of eight or more years.

While serving on the SLT, we were never privileged to see a copy of the budget for PS106. It was as if we were lame duck committee members. We felt that our school should have had a financial audit under Ms. Sills, but it never happened. We were told there were no funds for supplies in the past few years, despite the fact that Ms. Sills ordered in hot breakfasts and lunches for staff and a catered BBQ at the end of the school year, which took place on the schoolyard.

There are a few catering places that refused to deliver to our school again, after Ms. Sills did not remit the incurred expenses. In the past three years, parents were requested to purchase reams of copy paper along with their children’s school supplies, so that teachers could duplicate teaching materials. What happened to all the funds amassed from the daily sale of ice cream at the school? Why weren’t these funds directed to purchasing a store of school supplies for families that could not afford to purchase any for their children?

Under Ms. Sills as principal, parents were asked to pay $12 to cover the costs of buses and a movie ticket for a June excursion to a movie theater. (Note: there are no free buses in June.) Was it an educational event? Was it an appropriate film for all grade levels? Can Pre-K and Kindergarten children sit that long in a movie theater? Was it necessary to send the entire school to a movie on the day the fifth grade had their stepping up program, (which was out of the building)? This is an example of how funds were disbursed at PS 106.

Ms Sills chose to close the PS106 Library. The library was sorely needed as a source of available free books to our students, many of whom were not taken to the Public Library by their parents. For several years, the library remained unused and the licensed librarian on staff was assigned to a classroom. What happened to the allocated funds to purchase new books for our library?

The IEP teacher hired personally by Ms.Sills, a friend of her mother’s, is totally unknowledgeable and incapable of the tasks required of his position. Yet, he is there as one of the Principal’s “cheer leaders”. This can be validated by all personnel involved with assessment, SBST, and Special Education.

On a personal note, for one entire school year, Ms. Sills refused to list my name on the Organization sheet and did not allow me to provide needed AIS services, in what was perceived as retribution for filing a grievance with the UFT. I did receive my salary for the year, but the students in the primary grades did not receive any support instruction in literacy that year. The grievance went as far as meeting with the Principal at the American Arbitration Association in New York City.

Ms.Sills, however, did not appear and claimed she had a family emergency. Please be aware, that Ms. Sills was at school instead. The city had to pay the cost of the appointed meeting. At the beginning of the next school year, Ms.Sills gave me the use of a small storage closet to use as an instructional area. I was able to make use of the space until the Fire Department declared it unsafe for children.

It is probably not beneficial to continue to list more examples of what appears to be poor leadership; you may be well aware of other examples yourself. I feel certain you will conduct a thorough investigation, including the apparent cover-up by District 27 leadership, of Ms. Sills’ actions and her gross incompetence as a principal of a NYC school.
 
Thank you for your ear.
Respectfully,

Miriam Baum Benkoe Retired Reading Teacher 

PS 106 Update: Why There's No Payroll Secretary

Who is responsible from above Marcella Sills after a decade of this kind of stuff? Will the NY Post blame Farina?

From a source:

Our last payroll secretary who had retired teturned to PS 106 part time after being begged by [Principal] Sills to return. But Sills was so nasty to her and treated her with gross disrespect. Finally the payroll secretary told her she was leaving due to the way Sills treats her and speaks to her. On her way out of the office  the secretary got a call from Sills who screamed at her to leave her school building or Sills would summon the police!  No school secretary lasted under Sills and there hasn't been a payroll secretary nor any other at PS106 in several years. Sills actually placed school aides in the office and assigned them to secretarial duties including handling confidential files and paperwork.

Press Advisory from City-As-School present recommendations on the future of NYC education for Mayor Bill de Blasio at “Performance-Based Education”

This was organized by my friend and fellow MORE steering committee member John Antush. John's mind never stops working.


City-As-School High School
16 Clarkson Street  New York NY 10014
Alan Cheng, Principal

For Immediate Release: January 8th, 2013
Contacts:  Kimberly Acosta (student): kimberly.acosta.13@cityas.org

Naomi Richards (student)
John Antush (Teacher): Johna@cityas.org
Tel: 212.337.6884

Press Advisory

City-As-School High School students present recommendations on the future of NYC education for Mayor Bill de Blasio at “Performance-Based Education” Conference.

Students from the “Economics and Education” class at City-As-School will host a school-wide “Performance-Based Education Conference” where they will highlight their recommendations for the future of the public school system. Mayor Bill de Blasio, Chancellor Carmen Fariña, elected officials, and other guests have been invited. Students will also showcase what performance-based education looks like through both large and small scale performances held in the auditorium and various classrooms within the school.

These presentations are representative of the performance-based model that City As School follows which includes portfolio presentations and hands-on internships throughout the city.

Student recommendations include:

• 1. Give Alternatives to Standardized Testing; 
• 2. Provide More Access to Performance-Based Education; 3. Replace Suspensions with Social Intervention; 
• 4. Provide Adequate Funding for the School System. Students will be available for interviews to talk about their experiences.

Where:  City-As-School High School 16 Clarkson Street  New York, NY 10014

When: Friday, January 17th, 2014.

9:45am-10:45am - Auditorium

Students present a sum up of their recommendations for Educational Policy.

Creative performance by students from a class called “Immigration Today.”

10:45-11:45 - Workshops in various classrooms.
Students present papers and lead discussion on their educational policy recommendations.

In other classrooms students present projects and papers from classes and internships.

11:45-12:15pm, Art Show and Refreshments.
#
--
Resource Coordinator,
City-As-School High School
212-337-6884

The Daily Howler On NY Times Confusing Farina Story

Do you understand that story? We don’t! If the school [PS 6] was so good when Farina was assigned there, why did it need a “renaissance” or an “upward swing?” If Farina was tasked with bringing the school “to an even higher level of performance,” why did it need to “blossom?”
... Daily Howler

While I generally liked the Javier Hernandez story on Farina, I to was puzzled by this contradiction the Howler points to. Here it is in full. I love it when he takes down the Times -- which is about every 5 minutes.




The attempt to report skool newz: In a report from today’s front page, Javier Hernandez profiles Carmen Farina, Mayor de Blasio’s choice to head the New York City schools.
In the following passage, Hernandez describes a promotion Farina received after she was identified as an outstanding teacher:

HERNANDEZ (1/15/14): Ms. Fariña’s results had caught the attention of top New York education officials, who in 1991 offered her one of the most difficult jobs in the school system: principal of P.S. 6, a 900-student school in the heart of one of the country’s wealthiest ZIP codes.
The elementary school had long been synonymous with prestige and academic excellence; it counted former Mayor Robert F. Wagner, the rock star Lenny Kravitz and the actor Chevy Chase among its graduates. The challenge was bringing P.S. 6 to an even higher level of performance without alienating a demanding group of parents: doctors, lawyers and building superintendents among them.

Already, we’re puzzled. As described, it’s hard to imagine how P.S. 6 could have been “one of the most difficult jobs in the [New York City] school system.”

That said, the report only becomes more puzzling as Hernandez labors on. Eventually, he writes this:

HERNANDEZ: P.S. 6 blossomed under Ms. Fariña, surging to become one of the city’s top 10 schools in reading and math scores, which Mr. de Blasio trumpeted in announcing her appointment as chancellor. But it is difficult to say how much she contributed to its renaissance.
The school’s upward swing began before Ms. Fariña arrived, city testing data shows. During her tenure, there was also an influx of wealthier families and a simultaneous decline in the number of poor children.
In 2001, the year Ms. Fariña left the school, 7 percent of students came from impoverished backgrounds, compared with 12 percent a decade earlier. And the proportion of white students had grown to 80 percent, from 72 percent.

Do you understand that story? We don’t! If the school was so good when Farina was assigned there, why did it need a “renaissance” or an “upward swing?” If Farina was tasked with bringing the school “to an even higher level of performance,” why did it need to “blossom?”
Presumably, no deadline pressure afflicted this piece. Hernandez’s writing just doesn’t make sense. Editors at the New York Times routinely miss such problems. 

Leonie on MSNBC On Why Charters Should Pay Rent

My appearance on MSNBC and Daily News oped: Why de Blasio is right to charge rent to co-located charters:

A  shortened version of the oped below is published in today's Daily News; along with the StudentsFirst opposing view. Also below is my brief appearance Saturday on Melissa Harris-Perry Show  on MSNBC. 
--Leonie Haimson

During his campaign for mayor, Bill de Blasio promised to focus the city’s energy and resources on improving our public schools instead of encouraging the further growth of privately managed charter schools.

More at http://nycpublicschoolparents.blogspot.com/2014/01/my-appearance-on-msnbc-and-daily-news.html
 

NY Post Editorial Tries to Shift Blame for PS 106 From Bloomberg to de Blasio

It was pretty clear to me that with the history of PS 106 having been out there (on ednotes and The Wave) for over 6 years) Sue Edelman and the Post waited until the real culprits were out of office and could no longer be held accountable.

Mike Bloomberg’s education policy wasn’t perfect, or PS 106 wouldn’t have fallen through the cracks as long as it did. But Bloomberg was pretty clear about what he wanted to do with failing schools: He wanted to close them down.... NY Post Editorial

This was as clear a hit job as we've seen. In as an astounding an editorial one can imagine, the NY Post today managed to ignore a decade of BloomKlein mismanagement of schools like PS 106 and protection for principals like Marcella Sills who as a Leadership Academy (Klein's Rosemary's baby) went after teachers with a vengeance.

It was pretty clear to me that with the history of PS 106 having been out there (on ednotes and The Wave) for over 6 years) Sue Edelman and the Post waited until the real culprits were out of office and could no longer be held accountable before publishing the story so they could now say:

All of which makes PS 106 an excellent field trial for de Blasio’s education “reforms.” If he and his chancellor are unwilling to close down a school as rotten as this one, surely they have an alternative that will turn things around quickly. We emphasize quickly — because children stuck in failing schools today can’t afford to wait years.
Chancellor Farina says the situation at PS 106 is “unacceptable.” The mayor admits it’s “deeply troubling.”
But it’s something else, too: It’s their problem now. And they’ll be judged on whether they can fix it.

Maybe Farina and de Blasio will come up with the kind of solution other than closing the school: remove a principal that was allowed to rise on the very back of the BloomKlein deforms that defended almost any principal no matter how awful and bring in the resources that a real principal will know how to use for the benefit of the children instead of for a personal political agenda like Sills did. (We'll get to the library destruction story another time.)

PS 106: Telemundo Video Report - Including Me Not Speaking Spanish

Reporter Pablo Gutierrez got in touch after googling my articles on PS 106 from 2008 (something Sue Edelman of the Post didn't do) and since he and his cameraman were on the way out to Rockaway they stopped over at my house to interview me. Then these hard-working guys spent the rest of the day around the school and caught Marcella Sills leaving. I can't understand Spanish but they got a bunch of parents to speak.

I hear Sills was with her lawyer -- it must be Take Your Lawyer to School Day.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3_vtDw4VBc



Here are some more stills: