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Archives for December 2019

Bernard Charles, East Ramapo trustee, charged with grand larceny in scheme to rent out town facility and pocket fee

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Bernard Charles LoHud File Photo

“Bernard Charles, an East Ramapo school board trustee, spouse of Ramapo’s deputy supervisor, and former town employee has been charged with grand larceny and criminal impersonation after the Rockland District Attorney’s Office said he attempted to rent out the town’s Cultural Arts Center and pocket the more than $1,000 fee.

In the past, Charles has managed bookings at the Cultural Arts Center, located on Main Street in Spring Valley.

The 65-year-old Spring Valley resident was arrested Friday morning and charged with fourth-degree grand larceny, a felony, and second-degree criminal impersonation, a misdemeanor, according to Rockland County Chief Assistant District Attorney Dominic Crispino.

“He is accused of pretending to be an employee of the town of Ramapo,” Crispino said. He had no permission to enter into a rental agreement for use of the Cultural Arts Center. “He is not a town of Ramapo employee,” Crispino said. [Read more…]

Despite NYC investigation findings, state puts off rules for yeshiva instruction

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The chancellor of Regents board says no timetable for state regulations on what private schools must teach, despite a New York City investigation findings that some Yeshivas fall short on academics. (The Journal News)

“Even as a New York City investigation has refocused concerns that some ultra-Orthodox yeshivas do not meet standards for academic instruction, the state is putting off possible action on proposed rules for aggressively monitoring private schools.

A long-delayed report from the New York City Department of Education, released Thursday, found that only two of 28 yeshivas visited by city officials since 2015 complied with a state law that requires private school instruction to be “substantially equivalent” to what public schools teach. Nine schools were found to be moving toward substantial equivalency

New York City is home to about 275 yeshivas, but the probe focused on yeshivas that were targeted in complaints filed in 2015 by the advocacy group Young Advocates for Fair Education, or YAFFED. [Read more…]

New fire safety law for schools aims to erase risks that haunted Rockland fire officials

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“For years, Rockland fire volunteers concerned about questionable fire safety in private schools found themselves thwarted by lax local code enforcement and toothless state oversight. So they joined with state legislators to fix a faulty system.

This week, Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed legislation that mandates that all New York schools — public or private — undergo regular fire inspections and use qualified inspectors to perform them. [Read more…]

Appeals panel: Pomona discriminated against Tartikov as rabbinical college plans move ahead

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“A federal appeals court Friday upheld a judge’s ruling that village officials adopted discriminatory zoning to block an Orthodox Jewish congregation from building a dormitory college for rabbinical students and their families.

As a result, Congregation Rabbinical College of Tartikov Inc. plans to file site plans and seek variances now that it has clear sailing for a college amid 130 acres straddling Routes 202 and 306, the congregation’s attorney, Joseph Churgin of Nanuet, said Friday. [Read more…]

Judge sets up trial about East Ramapo voting that could alter how school board is elected

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“A federal judge today (Nov 20, 2019) denied the East Ramapo Central School District’s attempt to dismiss a lawsuit challenging how the district elects its school board members.

The ruling by U.S. District Court Judge Cathy Seibel sets up a two-week trial in February that could alter how votes in May’s school board elections are tallied.

The lawsuit filed in 2017 by the Spring Valley chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and several black and Latino voters sought a dramatic change in the district’s election process. [Read more…]

State comptroller audit questions payouts to East Ramapo bus contractors

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In 2017-18, the district’s transportation tab was $30.5 million and in 2018-19 $31.4 million, the audit notes.

“A state comptroller’s audit released Wednesday questions why the East Ramapo Central School District paid more than $800,000 to bus hundreds of private school students to yeshivas over the past two years even though they were not registered.

The audit by State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli said it discovered about $496,000 in payments for 717 students not registered with the district for the 2017-18 school year and another $337,085 in district payments for 455 students the following year.

Additionally, a sampling of 300 private school students raised questions about whether district money went to transport students who may not even live in the district, the audit noted.

Or even exist at all, it noted. [Read more…]

Rockland elections: Foley wins Low-Hogan’s legislative seat after absentee and affidavit ballot count

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“Republican James Foley won Democrat Nancy Low-Hogan’s legislative seat by 69 votes after a count of absentee and affidavit ballots in the race to represent parts of Orangetown and Clarkstown.

Foley led after an Election Day count of machine ballots by 66 votes, picking up three additional tallies with Wednesday’s counting of 160 absentee ballots and 25 affidavit votes. The final tally: Foley with 2,514 votes to 2,445 for Low-Hogan, according to the Rockland Board of Elections. [Read more…]