State Asks Scandal-Plagued Haredi-Controlled School District For A Face-To-Face Meeting
Like parents, friends and family trying to get a loved one to consent to
a stint in rehab, New York State education officials are taking the
much more rare step of requesting a face-to-face meeting with a troubled
school district’s leaders.
East Ramapo school board president Daniel Schwartz
State Asks Scandal-Plagued Haredi-Controlled School District For A Face-To-Face Meeting
Shmarya Rosenberg • FailedMessiah.com
It’s time for an intervention.
Like parents, friends and family trying to get a loved one to consent to a stint in rehab, New York State education officials are taking the much more rare step of requesting a face-to-face meeting with a troubled school district’s leaders.
“This sort of circumstance is really so rare, if not unprecedented,” Jonathan Burman, the spokesman for New York State’s Department of Education, told The Journal News yesterday.
The East Ramapo district is facing a $9 million budget deficit, deep program cuts, and the potential for even more, deeper program cuts in the near future.
The state proposed the meeting in a letter from Deputy Education Commissioner Ken Slentz to the district’s schools superintendent Joel Klein dated February 14. The letter was given to The Journal News yesterday by the state in response to the newspaper’s request.
“I share your concern regarding the anticipated deficit for the 2013-14 school year and would like to meet with you, the board president and your interim business official to discuss the steps the district plans on taking to address the deficit and provide an adequate educational program,” the letter says.
“We will certainly work with the district. However, we expect the district to come to us with a set of proposed solutions from which we can work,” Burman told the Journal News.
Klein was reportedly encouraged by the letter.
“I think it’s a very positive response. He wants to work with us, and we’ve been reviewing [the letter] this last week and we’re drafting up a response,” Klein said.
In his letter to Klein, Slentz asked for more financial data and noted that the district’s submission to the state in January was incomplete in several areas. He also noted his concern about the district’s ability to repay millions of borrowed dollars.
The haredi-controlled district has about 20,000 students enrolled in private religious schools, almost all of them ahredi yeshivas and haredi seminaries. The public schools have about 9,000 students enrolled, many of them poor Latinos and blacks.
The school board has nine member slots. Seven are held by haredim and Orthodox Jews. The only non-haredi non-Orthodox school board members recently resigned, citing haredi threats and intimidation, along with alleged dirty tricks against them by the haredi-Orthodox majority as reasons for resigning.
[Hat Tip: Devorah.]
Danny, did my tax dollars pay for that awful green suit? Please go to Barney's and order a different color. Just invoice East Ramapo and they will pay for it.
Posted by: Devorah | February 28, 2013 at 07:17 PM
Thank God! That district needs some serious help. First thing on the agenda should be firing all of the incompetent chassidim who dominate the committees and boards.
Posted by: Michael | February 28, 2013 at 07:47 PM
andy, you are despicable.
Posted by: dh | February 28, 2013 at 08:47 PM
The real deficit is much more than 9 million dollars. At least NYSED can see that there is no way for the district to repay the bond for 7.4 million plus the 2 million dollar bond for tax certs. This should get interesting.
Posted by: PearlodWisdom | February 28, 2013 at 10:29 PM
Wow scum of the world these hareidi politicians are
Posted by: Gopjew | February 28, 2013 at 11:47 PM
andy, you are despicable.
Posted by: dh | February 28, 2013 at 08:47 PM
Enlighten me, please: who is (or was) this "andy"?
Posted by: Darth Zeidah | March 01, 2013 at 02:07 AM
LOL Devorah :) Luke
Posted by: Luke | March 01, 2013 at 08:55 AM
If they choose Yossi G. as a Board member replacement maybe he could also act as spokesperson for the Board. He would truly represent their intelligence level. Luke.
Posted by: Luke | March 01, 2013 at 09:00 AM
Enlighten me, please: who is (or was) this "andy"?
Darth Zeidah @ 02:07 AM
Jimmy Hoffa?
Posted by: dh | March 01, 2013 at 11:30 AM
("Be True to Your School", The Beach Boys
When Shmarya’s FM tries to put them down
And says the school board is crap, I tell him right away
“Now what’s the matter buddy
With my fake school board?
We are raping the state!”
So keep stealing from school
Because our sanity has run awry
Keep stealing from school now
And if you’re caught deny
Keep stealing from school
I bought myself some nice threads and a fancy car
I got from property tax
I’m proud to wear them now
When I cruise around the goyishe parts of town
I know just what they all lack
So keep stealing from school
Because our sanity has run awry
Keep stealing from school now
And if you’re caught deny
Keep stealing from school
Come next week we’ll meet with New York State
And we’ll be ready to fight
We’re gonna rape them now
My lawyer will be working on our appeal now
And we’ll be yelling Anti-Semite
So keep stealing from school
Because our sanity has run awry
Keep stealing from school now
And if you’re caught deny
Keep stealing from school
Don’t let our stealing break down
Don’t let it break down
Posted by: Sarek | March 01, 2013 at 11:31 AM
The school board has nine member slots. Seven are held by haredim and Orthodox Jews. The only non-haredi non-Orthodox school board members recently resigned, citing haredi threats and intimidation, along with alleged dirty tricks against them by the haredi-Orthodox majority as reasons for resigning.
i'm not an expert but this sounds like a case for the feds .....
Posted by: gopjew | March 01, 2013 at 01:49 PM
gopjew,
I concur. Since the state hasn't done anything, hopefully the Feds will. As someone who believes that public education is one of the things that separates us from third world countries, I find the destruction of public schools, to be deplorable.
Posted by: curiousity | March 01, 2013 at 02:57 PM
Sarek: yashar koach.
Posted by: Yochanan Lavie | March 01, 2013 at 04:14 PM
Thanks YL
Not only here, but just once, I'd like someone to run for school board with a platform of cost efficiency.
Posted by: Sarek | March 01, 2013 at 04:30 PM