[poweroften] Someone Else's Kids

Power of Ten Update
Special Edition: Someone Else's Kids

"They want me to care about someone else's kids, they obviously don't care about my kids."

This is how East Ramapo school board member Grossman characterized his constituents attitude towards public education.

How could anyone come to such a serious misunderstanding of our fundamental community obligations?

In fact, this is nothing new, the school district and the NY State Education Department (NYSED) have a long history of encouraging, or at least tolerating, this transactional relationship. The process of dismantling our school district has been accomplished by a series of deals similar to the one implied by Mr. Grossman.

In fact, the original deal was that the school district would ignore the lack of education in many yeshivas in return for not voting down the school budget. In this way, all the great achievements of the East Ramapo school district in its heyday were built on the backs of poor Jewish children who were cheated out of the education they were constitutionally entitled to.

The result of not caring about someone else's children is that all children suffer. 

NYSED must cease treating the school board as a trading partner. The legal and constitutional responsibility for every child's education rests with the state. All of the duties and responsibilities of the school district are delegated to it by the state. Whether or not Mr. Grossman or his constituents care about "someone else's children" should be irrelevant. They should not be allowed to hold children's education hostage. It is as if a babysitter refused to feed the children to extort a higher rate from the parents. The only reasonable response is: "you're fired!"

What You Can Do:

Please attend the next school board meeting:

Tuesday, April 26 at 7:30
105 South Madison Ave, Spring Valley

Please come early so you can sign up to speak. Please denounce Mr. Grossman's offensive remarks and hold NYSED responsible for it's failure to protect every child's constitutional right to a sound basic education.

Please FILL THIS FORM, calling on NYSED to enact regulations that hold nonpublic schools accountable for providing a basic secular education.

 

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[poweroften] Hundreds of Students Still Missing

Power of Ten Update
In This Issue:
1. Hundreds of Students Still Missing
2. A 76 Million Dollar Question
3. Many 58 Million Dollar Questions

1) Hundreds of Students Still Missing

As reported by Power of Ten last year, hundreds of East Ramapo students went missing during the pandemic. Now new data just released by the state indicates that the graduating class size fell by 22% from 2020 to 2021. The 2020 graduating class size as reported by NYSED was 759, and in 2021 it was 589. These students are not reported as either still enrolled or dropped out. This artificially raised the graduation rate, but there is still the question, if they didn't graduate, and they aren't still enrolled, and they didn't drop out, where are they???

The students who went missing were likely the most vulnerable, and concerns have been raised by community groups, especially Proyecto Faro, which has developed a program called "Every Child Counts" after discovering a child who was suffering abuse in the home after over 100 days of being absent from school.

Proyecto Faro has continued to be involved, and is holding regular community meetings on topics such as the Dignity for All Students Act

2) A 76 Million Dollar Question

As a result of the landmark civil rights trial won by the NAACP against the East Ramapo school board, we learned that Rabbi Hersh Horowitz support seems to guarantee a position on the board. As revealed in the trial, according to an elected board member, the major difference between winning and losing election to the board was that Rabbi Hersh Horowitz supported their candidacy, 

The Journal News has reported that the school board members who received Rabbi Horowitz support have voted to award his CEC organization at least $76 million of Federal Funds over the past decade.

Rabbi Horowitz has responded that "CEC will continue ... providing myriad essential educational services to thousands of children ... attending private schools". However, as revealed by the trial transcripts, in his private conversations with school board president Grossman, he says Science and Social Studies are "Hard. We are at basic literacy and math".

Students in private schools are entitled to an education which is substantially equivalent to public school. The school board is responsible to ensure this right, but they are put in place by someone who profits from the status quo. This is why the system of governance in East Ramapo is dysfunctional, and why systemic change is needed. 

3) Many 58 Million Dollar Questions

In 2015 voters rejected a bond to borrow money to repair schools, because no one trusted the school board with money. In 2016 the NY State Education Dept. provided written assurance they would monitor that the funds were spent correctly, and East Ramapo voters agreed to spend $58 million of their tax dollars.

How was this money spent? Who reviewed all the buildings and grounds, and produced a report on the conditions and repairs and cost estimates for each? What criteria were used to decide which jobs to do, and when did the state review the plans? Who was the project manager? How were the jobs bid out? What controls were put in place to prevent fraud, waste and abuse? Where is the final report that includes all of the details? 

This year we have experienced two school closures due to mold, asbestos, leaking roofs, and a boiler fire. Many areas in our schools are in disrepair and even closed for use. At one school, new equipment installed is so oversized that the noise is irritating neighbors hundreds of feet away. NY State officials must hold the Education Department responsible for their cozy relationship with the school board. They have given us 58 million more reasons that they cannot be trusted with even one dollar.

 

 

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[poweroften] The Invisible Ones

Power of Ten Update
In This Issue:
1. The Invisible Ones
2. Listening Sessions Monday November 29
3. YAFFED Gala December 7

1) The Invisible Ones

It is a well-known fact that ever since the hostile takeover of the East Ramapo public school system, the basic functions of the system have been systematically dismantled. 

However, the personal stories of the lives impacted by the pillaging of district resources remain invisible to the wider community. 

What is the impact of dropping out of high school on an individual's life experience? What is the impact on our community when as many as 5 out of 10 Latino students do not finish high school?

What is the impact on a mother or father when their child is not learning to read? How does a child feel about him or herself when they are still struggling to learn the alphabet in second or third grade?

How does a teacher feel when they see children failing because classes are overcrowded, children are not placed according to need, there are no social workers, there was no bus, etc. etc. etc.?

The actions of the school board have directly caused these outcomes. They are the only ones who benefit from the invisibility of their victims. Those who remain silent are accomplices. As Bishop Desmond Tutu said - "If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant has its foot on the tail of a mouse and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality."

2) Listening Sessions Monday November 29

Proyecto Faro and the Every Child Counts Committee invites you to their upcoming community listening sessions on Zoom and Facebook Live.

Monday, November 29, 2021
English 6-7pm
Spanish 7-8pm
Creole 8-9pm 
Zoom  https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84905838431?pwd=VUJNaVRnWXNmNW11QXNPRHdXdW9QUT09
Meeting ID: 849 0583 8431 Passcode: 242254
Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/ksgD7fXRU / +1 646 558 8656 US (New York)
FB Live @ Proyecto FARO 

3) YAFFED Gala December 7

The other invisible victims of educational neglect in East Ramapo are children attending Ultra-Orthodox yeshivas. While some Jewish schools offer both religious and secular education, many do not. Failure to educate a child in private school has just as much negative impact on our community. The state education department has announced they will be implementing new regulations by the next school year. What better place to learn all about it than the Yaffed Virtual Gala?

 

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[poweroften] Monday Pizza and Justice!

Power of Ten Update
In This Issue:
1. Forum Postponed
2. Monday Pizza and Justice!
3. Too Much News

1) Forum Postponed

The Candidates Forum that was scheduled for Nov 13 has been postponed to a date not yet determined. 

2) Monday Pizza and Justice!

Are you dealing with mold or other environmental issues in your school, or lack of busing, or access to remote education, or special education? 

The New York Civil Liberty Union wants to share ideas (and pizza) with you!

OPEN HOUSE & WORKSHOP

Monday November 8th
Martin Luther King Multi- Purpose Center
110 Bethune Boulevard, Spring Valley
4:30-6:30 PM

NEW YORK CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION INVITES YOU
The invitation is to parents, students, and other members of the community. Come and meet the NYCLU Staff and get to know them and their work. A community workshop will be held, and pizza and drinks will be provided as well!

3) Too Much News

A special thanks to those who noticed Power of Ten has been quiet lately. There has been a lot happening, and we are short-staffed. I recommend readers also subscribe to the Journal News, and the Facebook groups "Power of Ten - East Ramapo for the Children" at https://www.facebook.com/groups/120338314981/ and "Save Our Schools: East Ramapo" at https://www.facebook.com/groups/190355663138

A very brief rundown of issues just this school year:

• • Hundreds of students had no bus service, or intermittent service. Parents scrambled to get kids to school, and worried as they came home hours late. The situation may be improving, school board members have requested the numbers from the superintendent. One thing is for sure, many hours of instruction have been missed due to the bus driver shortage. Although there is a national shortage, in East Ramapo much of the blame for the shortage must be placed on the school board, which has over the last ten years sold all its buses and laid off all its drivers. the board was informed that this was bad policy by Superintendent Oustacher, who said when there is an emergency, you will need your own transportation department. The school board knew this was true, because at the same time they were dismantling the public transportation system they were funding a private system that was buying buses and hiring drivers, all on special contracts that commit those buses to only serve private schools. So they knew how important having your own system was, and they made sure it happened for the children that they considered important.
  • Spring Valley HS has been closed due to environmental hazards. The district has attempted to place students elsewhere, but the majority are back to remote learning. The number of students who actually participate, and the quality of that participation is unclear. Why the district did not discover the mold earlier is not known.  This is another instance in which the school board's actions have directly harmed children's education. The district has been overcrowded ever since the board sold Colton and Hillcrest Elementary schools. Again, Dr. Oustacher said they should not sell the schools, because future needs are hard to predict. No, he didn't have a crystal ball, it was just common sense for anyone whose main concern is the operation of the public school system for the good of the public school students. However, our school board has its own agenda, which is not the mission of the district, it is the benefit of their own private school system. 
  • Hundreds of affected parents have attempted to get answers at their schools, at the administration building, and finally at school board meetings. The school board has authorized use of force to prevent parents from entering meetings, resulting in the police being called to prevent school security from harming parents. The school board continues to use tactics to discourage and harass parents from participating in board meetings, including onerous sign in requirements, "losing" speaker cards, and calling the police for no good reason. Rather than an opportunity for dialogue, the board has turned their meetings into a confrontation, using gaslighting tactics to provoke emotional reactions and ultimately discourage parent and community participation.
  • The board created a subcommittee to appoint a community advisory board as required by law, but then overruled their subcommittee to remove Luis Nivelo, Latino Community Activist and public school parent. Mr. Nivelo would have been the only Latino male on the advisory board, he was recommended by the subcommittee. His replacement is highly problematic for a school district where 65% of the students are Latino, and zero percent of the school board is Latino. 
  • The state education department (NYSED) has a constitutional obligation to ensure every child's right to an education. The first children they abandoned were the ones in private religious schools where not even the most basic education is provided. Many public school advocates also turned a blind eye. However, it is the nature of universal human rights that if they are not ensured for any-one then they are lost for every-one. Tens of thousands of children have already suffered irreparable harm. If not NYSED, who will act? If not now, when? 

 

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[poweroften] All or None

Power of Ten Update
In This Issue:
1. Academic and Fiscal Improvement Plan
2. 2022 School Board Candidate Search
3. All or None

1) Academic and Fiscal Improvement Plan

The Monitors are required to solicit public comment and to consider your public comment in developing a plan. Read the plan here: https://www.ercsd.org/Page/11617

Submitting public comment is simple, but we don't have a lot of time. The deadline is October 19th. See here for full details: https://poweroften.us/afi-plan/

2) 2022 School Board Candidate Search

The next school board election is May 17, 2022. As always, we will gather to unite our community in this effort. The first step is for those interested in serving on the school board to fill out the questionnaire, available here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScmfRjL82QEnWBZGyxWd4HaF62KrX0x5-EoKFfW-TFsKXesUg/viewform?usp=sf_link

Please help us find people who would be good school board members. There are many qualified people in our community, but they may be unaware of the opportunity until someone brings it up. Why not you?

We have reserved space for a public forum at the Hillcrest Firehouse, 374 N Main St, Spring Valley. on Saturday November 13 from 11:00 AM -1:00 PM. Please save the date and come ready to discuss the issues our school district is facing.

3) All or None

The Power of Ten is organized to advocate for the rights of the children who attend the public schools in East Ramapo. In the course of advocating for these rights, it has become apparent that they ensue from the right of all children to an education, and that unless this right is guaranteed to all, it is guaranteed to none.

Read this powerful Op-Ed in USA Today about what's being done to address the plight of victims of educational neglect in East Ramapo:

https://www.lohud.com/story/opinion/2021/10/08/ny-must-create-uniform-standards-nonpublic-schools-yeshivas/6043520001/

 

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[poweroften] Jim Crow Busing in East Ramapo

Power of Ten Update
In This Issue:
1. Jim Crow Busing in East Ramapo
2. Private Privilege, Public Pain
3. NCLU Student Ambassadors Petition

1) Jim Crow Busing in East Ramapo

Ever since the takeover of the school board in 2005, the transportation department has been systematically dismantled. Now, the last of the buses have been sold and all the drivers laid off. Superintendent Oustacher had warned against this move, because when there is an emergency, having your own buses and drivers means the service keeps running.

At the same time that the board was dismantling the public-school bus system, they were approving contracts to large private schools to build their own fleets and hire drivers. As a result, the impact of the recent shortage has fallen disproportionally on the public school students of color, who wait for buses that sometimes never come while they watch their white neighbors zooming by to private schools in taxpayer funded buses.

For obvious reasons, a school bus system should be a model of stability. Major problems announced at the last minute are rightly terrifying for parents.

Parents attending the August 24 board meeting were told that bus passes would be sent out on August 30. However, as school started on September 10, hundreds of children had not received bus passes. Children missed school and parents had to miss work. The ensuing chaos also caused fear for the children's safety. The district was frantically changing schedules, at the last minute, leaving people stranded and even worse with a sense of insecurity about sending their children on the bus. Many parents prepared themselves to attend the next board meeting to express their concerns and get answers about how the district was going to live up to its responsibilities.

The board routinely sets up artificial obstacles to grassroots parent organizing and participation such as changing meeting times and places. The last two meetings have been no exception, with one last minute cancellation, two last minute reschedulings, and arbitrary rules on capacity. 

Parents attempting to enter the school board meeting on Sept 13 were met with physical force by district personnel. There was a sense of fierce determination from those locked out of the meeting, especially from the mothers. The chief of security refused to call the police, and instead left a junior to watch the door, who seemed to believe his job included getting physical with the worried and frustrated parents. The situation was only defused when the police arrived (I had to call the police when the security chief refused).

Parent activist Ana Maeda is calling for a rally at the district offices this Friday to demand action by Governor Hochul to address these issues.

Where: 105 S. Madison Ave, Spring Valley
When: Friday, September 17 from 5:00 to 7:00 PM

2) Private Privilege, Public Pain

The NYCLU has released a report titled "Private Privilege, Public Pain" that describes the systemic racism that has ravaged the East Ramapo Central School District, in all its gory details, and the powers and responsibilities that NY state officials have to ensure the children's right to a quality education.

Read the report here: https://www.nyclu.org/en/publications/private-privilege-public-pain-2021

3) NCLU Student Ambassadors Petition

East Ramapo students have drafted a petition to express the need for better school conditions and supports for students.

Please add your name to support their demands here: https://action.aclu.org/petition/ny-eramapo-petition

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[poweroften] The Power of the Veto is Here!

Power of Ten Update
In This Issue:
1. The Power of the Veto is Here!
2. An Unorthodox Education: Exclusive Screening
3. Beyond The Wall

1) The Power of the Veto is Here!

For too long, the East Ramapo Central School District has faced a multitude of problems with its leadership. The School Board has continually given priority to private religious schools at the expense of the public school system that almost entirely serves students of color. While state monitors and a successful voting rights lawsuit have helped the situation, the school board has continued to pursue racist policies, leaving public schools severely underfunded. 

On June 29th, Governor Cuomo signed a new law empowering the monitors to take action against the school board when needed. East Ramapo is the only school district in the state where monitors have been given this authority, and its because the parents, students, and activists made their voices heard. Here are some of the new provisions in the law:

State monitors now have the power to override decisions made by the school board that undermine the strategic improvement plan for the district. The monitors, along with the state education commissioner, have approval power over the district budget. The monitors can require school board members to attend trainings, such as the anti-racist training they recommended last year but could not require. The School Board must create a conflict-of-interest policy and form a 10-person community advisory board made up of public and non-public school parents. The School Board must give the monitors 72 hours advance notice of decisions on their agenda. The monitors will have approval authority over the selection of future superintendents.

This law aims to ensure that all students in the East Ramapo Central School District have access to the same educational resources as their neighbors; it will succeed only if we as a community stay informed, involved, and active.

While the change in the law is a significant victory for the public school community, we still must ensure that our students will be protected. In the future, the NYCLU will be planning and hosting workshops that educate community members about this issue, the new protections under state law, and how to continue fighting for students' rights. And the NAACP will meet with the monitors, state officials, and school board members to stay on top of developments and be the voice of the East Ramapo public schools. They will be issuing a list of recommendations this fall, and will need your help to make sure they are heard.

Stay tuned for more information, and please share this email with your friends and family who want to get more involved.

Thank you for helping us protect the East Ramapo Central School District. 

2) An Unorthodox Education: Exclusive Screening

Wednesday July 28, 2021 at 7:00 PM

Join Yaffed for an exclusive virtual film screening of An Unorthodox Education to commemorate the six year anniversary of the 2015 complaint letter sent by yeshiva graduates and parents to NYC's DOE and to mark another year of the City's continued inaction.

Directed by Joe Kolman, this independent documentary-in-progress exposes a shocking truth-- tens of thousands of children attend Hasidic yeshivas in New York that refuse to provide students with the legally-mandated general education they need to lead self-sufficient adult lives. Hear directly from former students and parents as they tell their striking stories for the very first time, illuminating the consequences of being denied instruction in subjects like English and math. Learn how New York City's outgoing Mayor delayed reform efforts in return for political favors from the Ultra-Orthodox community, and how scientific ignorance led many in that community to protest COVID-19 safety protocols.

The 40 min. screening will be followed by a live Q&A featuring 4 panelists who appear in the film:

Register for the exclusive virtual screening here

3) Beyond The Wall

Beyond The Wall is an extensive art experience centering the Black and brown people of Spring Valley, New York. It features visual art work, live performances, poetry, dance and all art has to encompass. Through this experience, it is hoped that artists can find bliss in their expression and create community among their fellow artists.

More Information: https://www.medjineskitchen.com/beyondthewall

 

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