Dream Event Wednesday; Letter: Rescue the Kids of East Ramapo; Cuomo Disappoints Again

Power of Ten Update

In this Issue:

  1. 50th Anniversary REALIZE THE DREAM! Event
  2. NAACP and JAMCCAR Host Candidate’s Forum
  3. Rockland, State Must Rescue the Kids of East Ramapo
  4. Videos from East Ramapo Underground
  5. Governor Cuomo Disappoints East Ramapo AGAIN!

1) 50th Anniversary REALIZE THE DREAM! Event:

Join us in this FREE Community Event to Celebrate the Advances while Empowering Ourselves to Help Rockland County. There will be: live music, and messages from community and religious leaders commemorating the 1963 March on Washington where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. made his historic “I Have a Dream” speech.

When: Wednesday, August 28, 2013 7:30PM

Where: Grace Point Gospel Fellowship 384 New Hempstead Road. New City, NY

 For more information call (845) 379-0810

Sponsored by: Grace Point Gospel Fellowship, The Monel Show & Wake Up Rockland

 2) NAACP and JAMCCAR Host Candidate’s Forum

Come and hear from Candidates running in the Sept 10 Democratic Primary Election for: County Executive and Village of Spring Valley Mayor & Trustee

When: Tuesday, September 3, 2013 6:30pm – 9:00pm

Where: Louis Kurtz Civic Center, 9 North Main Street in Spring Valley

3) Rockland, state must rescue the kids of East Ramapo

Community View in The Journal News by Ed Day

The writer, a New City resident and Rockland County legislator, is the Preserve Rockland candidate for Rockland County Executive.

4) Videos from East Ramapo Underground:

East Ramapo complains about the Lottery Spin-up money that they requested.

East Ramapo can’t get it straight as they try to elect a President for the Board.

East Ramapo School Board tries to nominate a Vice President for the Board

Treasurer Bier: budget policy not enforced

D’Agostino good enough for the school district but not Aron Wieder?

The next school board meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, September 3rd.

– East Ramapo Underground

5) Governor Cuomo Disappoints East Ramapo AGAIN!

The following letter is written from Peggy Hatton to Commissioner King because Governor Cuomo has not signed the bill to advance payment of lottery money to East Ramapo.  The East Ramapo school board doesn’t want the Lottery Spin-up money because the bill also has oversight of how the money will be spent!

The result is that the board cut another $3.5 million from the programs for the kids.  If you would like to tell Governor Cuomo how you feel about what is essentially a veto of help for the kids and oversight of our notorious school board, call him at: (518) 474-8390.

The letter also mentions that Peggy is moving to Florida.  We wish her well in her new home. She has done a lot for our kids, and will be missed.  Messages of thanks and good luck can be sent to eastramapounderground@hotmail.com

Dear Commissioner King,
I am writing this email to inform you that earlier this week, the BOE in East Ramapo cut 3.5 million dollars from the budget at the same time that they set the tax rate.

The reason they cut the 3.5 million dollars is because the Governor has not requested the Lottery Spin Up bill for his signature. School starts in less than three weeks. The Board is not happy about the oversight and accountability provisions of this bill. At the BOE meeting, they said that the bill had been ‘high jacked’ by the Assembly. In an normal school district, the BOE and Administration would embrace community input….but not East Ramapo.

These funds were supposed to be used this school year to bring back Art and Music Teachers, Nurses, extracurriculars, sports, etc. When I asked Dr. Klein what his plan was to teach regular Ed teachers how to teach Art and Music, he said there will be inservice sessions. None of the teachers I know were aware of any such training. Also, there is no plan that we are aware of to deal with the prep periods that the staff used during the Music and Art classes.

We are asking ourselves if your office was aware of these cuts since you were involved with the budgeting process, providing oversight from the deficits the BOE caused over the past few years? How could your office let this happen?

I believe that our students are going to suffer as a result of the politics that are being played out between East Ramapo and Albany. I am begging you to get involved and call the Governor to ask him to sign the bill today and free up the money that was promised to us so that our kids will have at least some kind of a normal school year and that our teachers and staff can be recalled for the first day on school. Our kids are already so disadvantaged, they cannot be ignored.

Due to a change in my husband’s employment, I will be moving to Florida in just a few days. I will keep involved in the East Ramapo issues as best I can. But I will be relying on others to be my eyes on the ground. It is even more important than ever that you take an active role in the East Ramapo. Our kids need your voice more than ever.

Regards,
Peggy Hatton

Protest Rally at Ramapo Town Hall TODAY

Power of Ten Update

In this Issue:

  1. Protest Rally at Ramapo Town Hall TODAY
  2. Journal News Urges Passage of Bill to Save East Ramapo
  3. State AG: Hillcrest Sale used falsified appraisal
  4. Slumlords endanger schoolchildren
  5. Where in the World is Governor Cuomo?
  6. Message from the editor

1) Protest Rally at Ramapo Town Hall TODAY:

This message from The Neighbors of Hillcrest and Wake Up Rockland:

The PROTEST/RALLY will gather in the rear parking lot of Ramapo Town Hall at 7:00PM. We need you to come out and support this broader effort with others in the community.

The problems with the Town of Ramapo government have gone well beyond anything that the average reasonable resident could expect. Yet we standby and “cherry pick” the issues to object to as they affect our own community within this town.  Its past time for us to unite and raise our voices against ALL of the injustice that we, the majority tax payers have suffered. Silence on the East Ramapo School District situation, Patrick Farms, Chicken slaughter house in residential areas, over development, favoritism laws, secretive and arrogant governance, misuse of taxpayer money, condoning / perpetrating housing discrimination, protecting slumlords, and neighborhood busting are just some of the misdeed of this administration.  It’s time for all of us to focus the attention on the core problem which is the elected officials in the Town of Ramapo.

When: Tuesday, August 6, at 7:00 PM

Where: Ramapo Town Hall, 237 Route 59, Airmont NY

2) Journal News Urges Passage of Bill to Save East Ramapo

The Journal News: Editorial: East Ramapo waits for help

The Power of Ten submitted a petition with 6,152 names to Governor Cuomo urging changes in education law to enable the NY State Board of Regents to intervene. The bill died in committee. After discussing the issue with Commissioner King, The Journal News is saying “It clearly needs to be resurrected”.

3) State AG: Hillcrest Sale used falsified appraisal

The Journal News: Appraiser charged in East Ramapo school sale

Back in 2010, the East Ramapo school board refused to release copies of the appraisal on which they based their decision to sell public property, bought and built with YOUR tax dollars, until forced by an appeal to the Commissioner of Education. That appeal, filed by Power of Ten editor Steven White was eventually successful.  The appraisal was examined by Save Our Schools President Robert Forrest, who has worked as a professional appraiser, and it was the details of his investigation which became the basis for the complaint to the NY Attorney General.

4) Slumlords endanger schoolchildren

The Journal News has followed their award winning East Ramapo Coverage with a blistering series of articles on reckless real estate profiteering that is putting school children, among others, at risk:

The Journal News: Landlords profit from illegal, dangerous housing, fire officials say

The Journal News: Haphazard housing: Ramapo lax as landlords profit

The Journal News: Ramapo laws let illegal schools operate for years

The Journal News: Editorial: Ramapo needs political resolve

5) Where in the World is Governor Cuomo?

Article by Michael Bongiorno, Former Rockland County District Attorney, in Our Town Newspaper:

Where in the World is Governor Cuomo?

6) Message from the editor

While The Power of Ten has been enjoying a lazy summer, The Journal News has been hard at work covering issues in East Ramapo.  Their coverage of East Ramapo has won an AP award for Watchdog Journalism! Congratulations to all the Journal News staff from The Power of Ten – Steve White, editor