In the December, 30th article by the Journal News' Cops Release IDs of teen Shoplifting Suspects in Eastchester, the newspaper was successful in its FOIL challenge of the Eastchester Police policy on not releasing the names of four 16 year olds accused of shoplifting :

Each of the girls was charged with fourth-degree grand larceny, a felony punishable by up to four years in prison, Kiernan said(Eastchester Police Sgt. Matt Kiernan), because they allegedly were working together to steal the merchandise.Kiernan refused to release the names of the girls, saying it was department policy not to identify people who are under 21 and could be eligible for youthful-offender status.

That policy, however, may violate the state's Freedom of Information Law. Robert Freeman, executive director of the state Committee on Open Government, has said youthful-offender provisions do not apply when the charge involves a felony. And Mark A. Fowler, an attorney for The Journal News, has said youthful-offender provisions do not allow police to unilaterally withhold a suspect's identity.

The Journal News reports on changes to the New York State Freedom of Information Law made over the summer:

These changes are very welcomed to those of us seeking more accountability and transparency in City School District of New Rochelle. Unfortunately, the school district has refused repeated requests by Talk of the Sound to bring itself into compliance with New York State law.

Amendments to state law require that agencies provide records in the medium requested, such as compact disc, and mandatory awards of attorney's fees for violations of the Open Meetings Law.

The committee is asking lawmakers and Gov. David Paterson to require that agencies, when they can do so without undue burden, post on their Web sites meeting minutes, audits and other information that is "clearly public and frequently requested," Freeman said.

Providing the records is the only way that people are going to have confidence in government, said Assemblywoman Amy Paulin, D-Scarsdale.

LOUISE CHU from the Associated Press writes about Mark Felt (a.k.a. Deep Throat) a former number two man at the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) turned secret informant in a case that toppled President Nixon Administration in the 1970s has passed away at the age of 95. She reports about Felt:

Critics, including those who went to prison for the Watergate scandal, called him a traitor for betraying the commander in chief. Supporters hailed him as a hero for blowing the whistle on a corrupt administration trying to cover up attempts to sabotage opponents.

Felt grappled with his place in history, arguing with his children over whether to reveal his identity or to take his secret to the grave, O'Connor said. He agonized about what revealing his identity would do to his reputation. Would he be seen as a turncoat or a man of honor?

"People will debate for a long time whether I did the right thing by helping Woodward," Felt wrote in his 2006 memoir, "A G-Man's Life: The FBI, `Deep Throat' and the Struggle for Honor in Washington." "The bottom line is that we did get the whole truth out, and isn't that what the FBI is supposed to do?"

The following e-mail was sent to New York State Inspector General asking for some advice on how to proceed on asking questions about the relationship between the City School District of New Rochelle and MacMenamin's .

11/28/2008 8:09 AM >>>
Dear Inspector General,

Does the official endorsement of a failing business via Board of
Education resolution by a Superintendent of Schools seem suspect?
Is there any way the average person could look further into this?
What should we be attempting to FOIL?

Link below provides context for the concern:

http://www.newrochelletalk.com/?q=node/269

Best regards,

New Rochelle Parent/Resident

This was the response we received:

From: intake.unit@ig.state.ny.us
Subject: Re: New Rochelle Schools
Date: December 18, 2008 12:44:10 PM EST

The Office of the State Inspector General is in receipt of your email regarding New Rochelle schools.
Please note, the New York State Inspector General has responsibility, pursuant to New York State Executive Law, Article 4-A to investigate allegations of criminal activity, corruption, fraud, abuse, and conflicts of interest committed by State employees of agencies in which the Heads are appointed by the Governor.

Self-regulation is to regulation, what self-interest is to interest.
Timothy Geithner (in the spirit of what he said)

Last Tuesday night, December 16th, 2008 the Board of Education for the City School District of New Rochelle summoned its army of district and building administrators. The only other time you wold see so many district employees at a Board of Education Meeting is for tenure appointments. The Board of education did an outstanding job at fending off any would-be critics. Whenever an issue arises that puts political pressure on the Board of Education, filling the room with board supporters is a common and effective tactic is crushing any dissent and sends a clear message to any who would dare to disagree. If you disagree with the Board of Education, be careful not to step into their ring.

In the November Edition of TIME Magazine "Rhee Tackles Classroom Challenge", Amanda Ripley reports on, Michelle Rhee, the controversial Superintendent of Schools from Washington D.C. The article contains some important points that our community should consider. Thank you Mr. R., for bringing this article to our attention.

Rhee is convinced that the answer to the U.S.'s education catastrophe is talent, in the form of outstanding teachers and principals. She wants to make Washington teachers the highest paid in the country, and in exchange she wants to get rid of the weakest teachers. Where she and the teachers' union disagree most is on her ability to measure the quality of teachers.

Kevin Huffman, head of public affairs for Teach for America said:

Most people think about their own longevity, about political considerations." He adds, "Very few people genuinely don't care about anything other than the end result for kids. Michelle will compromise with no one when it comes to making sure kids get what they deserve."

Rhee is aware of the criticism, but she suggests that a certain ruthlessness is required. "Have I rubbed some people the wrong way? Definitely.

Recently, one of our parents sent the following correspondence to the USDA's Team Nutrition regarding the some if the issues parents have been addressing with the lunch time situation at Trinity Elementary School at the City School District of New Rochelle.

Subject: New Rochelle Schools

Dear Team Nutrition:

I am a parent in New Rochelle who has serious concerns about the lunch time at one of our elementary schools. We do not feel the school district takes our concerns very seriously. We have documented and continue to document some of these issues and have only seen the issues minimized not been given the importance they deserve. As I read through "Setting Goals for Other School-Based ActivitiesDesigned to Promote Student Wellness" , I realized that our district has dropped the ball when it comes to the lunch at Trinity Elementary School. Maybe you can provide some assistance to our concerns.

Please visit the following links for context of some of the concerns:

Second Graders at Trinity Have a Long Wait Until Lunch
Second graders have to wait until 1:00PM to eat lunch.

Or, he just may not be telling the truth about what he knows. Let the readers decide. As a direct response to the the post on New Rochelle Talk of the Sound,
Now Playing in New Rochelle, "Book, Interrupted"! the High School Principal was interviewed by the Journal News.

Aman Ali from the Journal News quoted Donald Conetta as saying:

"We really can't determine exactly how this came about," Principal Donald Conetta said. "But it doesn't matter. The fact is that it came about, and that's not how we operate. We don't censor and when any book is tampered with; it creates concern."

In a separate article The Journal News reported:

High school principal Donald Conetta said the pages were actually removed several years ago - he believes in 2004 - but the matter came to light when another teacher went to use the book in his class this year.

Can't really determine how this came out? It doesn't matter? Hmm... School officials were repeatedly contacted by a concerned parent for an explanation.

On Saturday, December 6th, 2008, Trinity Elementary School opened its doors to the New Rochelle community in the spirit of the holidays with their Holiday Boutique. Thanks to the efforts of the Trinity Elementary School PTA, the Annual Holiday Boutique was a phenomenal success. The school gymnasium was converted into a wonderful shopping experience with a wide variety of vendors with unique gift options and an overall festive and welcoming atmosphere. Notably visible throughout the course of the day were all three Trinity Administrators, Mr. McMahon, Mr. Briceño, and Mrs. Pacheco. We commend them for taking the time. Unofficial observations would calculate the visitors in the several hundreds. This is not surprising since Trinity serves around 850+ students. Vendors were notably happy with the turnout.

Totally invisible were members of the City School District of New Rochelle Board of Education as well as members of Central Administration.

In his message on the City School District Home page Mr. Organisciak states:

As the economy continues to sink to even further depths, the status of our schools and our entire educational system must be preserved. Short sighted decisions to save a few precious dollars cannot be acceptable, if we see increased class sizes as a result. Budget cuts and tax caps which will reduce and even eliminate programs in the arts, career education, athletics and elective courses cannot be a solution if as a result we are mortgaging our childrens future. Shortening the school day or the school year, employee furloughs, charging fees for student participation in cherished activities or worthwhile projects limit the educational opportunities for all children.

Translation: Open up your wallets, hand over the cash and don't ask questions, because if you do, it will hurt kids.