The Journal News August 31, 2015 “Georgine Hyde, an Auschwitz concentration camp survivor who became an educator on the Holocaust, advocate for children and 36-year member of the East Ramapo Board of Education, has died. She was 90. Educating children and adults became Hyde’s passion after she survived the Holocaust and the Auschwitz death camp during World War II and came to the United States in 1952, settling in Pomona in 1957. She also served as president of the New York State School Boards Association and Rockland Board of Cooperative Services. [Read more…]
Robert Rhodes Remembers Georgine Hyde
August 31, 2015 Georgine Hyde was a remarkable woman. She was totally dedicated to the welfare and education of children. What may not be appreciated is how tough she was. Georgine would not give up, and as it became increasingly difficult to pass school budgets, she spent days on the phone rallying the troops and calling people to remind them to vote. [Read more…]
Was there Election Fraud in Ramapo? A Personal Opinion
Letter in The Rockland Voice August 29, 2015 “A few days ago, the Ramapo Town Clerk announced the results of the Ramapo Ward System vote which occurred on September 30, 2014. The results were as follows: [Read more…]
The Strange Results of the Ward Vote Count
At the Rockland Health Center: Sampson and Montal–Wrapping up a Christmas Present for the Boss?
August 28, 2015 The count of the Ward Referendum vote took place yesterday at the Rockland Health Center. Officials from the Town of Ramapo and the Rockland Board of Elections were present, and three counts were merged in the final totals presented later in the day. It came as no surprise to those supporting the Ward System that registered voters voted one way, and those who voted with affidavit ballots overwhelmingly voted against it. [Read more…]
Spring Valley residents fed up with ‘king’-sized turmoil
The Journal News August 26, 2015 “When a video clip of Spring Valley Mayor Demeza Delhomme calling himself “king” surfaced online this week, it joined a lengthy list of high-profile personality conflicts and blow-ups at Village Hall. Residents in this diverse, working-class community say enough is enough. “The politics is corrupt,” complained Romeo Stale, 40, as he ate lunch at the Island Spice restaurant on North Main Street. “That’s always the headline. That’s all it is.” [Read more…]
Yeshiva owns building used for anti-E. Ramapo message
The Journal News August 25, 2015 “A yeshiva owns the rundown house off Route 45 used without its permission as a billboard to describe the East Ramapo school district as “racist,” town police said Tuesday. The Adolph Schreiber Hebrew Academy of Rockland has had plans to tear down the dilapidated one-story structure near Exit 12 from the Palisades Interstate Parkway, police said. [Read more…]
“East Ramapo Gets a Monitor” The Brian Lehrer Show
August 20, 2015 The recently appointed East Ramapo monitor Dennis Walcott, former Chancellor of New York City Schools, and MaryEllen Elia, Commissioner of the NYS Board of Education, joined Brian Lehrer on his public radio show to discuss the problems in the district and their roles in addressing those problems. Listen to the show here: https://www.wnyc.org/radio/#/ondemand/523805
Spring Valley: Officials clash over seized computer
The Journal News August 19, 2015 “Mayor Demeza Delhomme and Building Inspector Walter Booker are at odds again–with the mayor this time pointing fingers about the district attorney’s seizure of Booker’s computer many months ago.
Bernard and Brendel Charles still Attracting Lightning
August 18, 2015 Last week, there was the rally in Spring Valley’s Memorial Park with parents calling for the removal of Bernard Charles from the East Ramapo School Board. Then a video showing wife Brendel hurling profanities at some of the good citizens of the Town, another video of Bernard threatening some of the locals, and a clip of his aggressive response when he was served with the lawsuit papers naming him with the other school board members for the profligate legal fees. And now, with a press release today from Town Councilman Daniel Friedman, there’s a call for Bernard’s removal as Ramapo’s Recreation Activities Coordinator. Friedman’s reasons are a virtual grab-bag of what’s wrong with Ramapo politics—they include nepotism, incompetence, lousy test scores, improper behavior, malfeasance, and not showing up for work. Daniel wants an up-or-down vote at this Thursday’s Town Board meeting. [Read more…]
New East Ramapo monitors met with hope, skepticism
The Journal News August 14, 2015 “East Ramapo’s future is a top priority for the state, Education Department Commissioner MaryEllen Elia told hundreds of frustrated parents at a meeting where a team of outside monitors was introduced to oversee the struggling district.“We hear you,” Elia told a packed audience Thursday at Rockland Community College. [Read more…]