Category Archives: Uncategorized

Yonkers’ Assistant Athletic Director Quits And Heads To Poughkeepsie – By Brian Harrod

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The Poughkeepsie City School District Board of Education on Wednesday night gave its approval for the high school to hire Gregory Russo as its new athletic director.

Gregory Russo was most recently the Yonkers Public Schools Assistant Athletic Director. He also had stints as the AD at Blind Brook High School and Keio Academy, will now lead the Pioneers in Poughkeepsie.

Greg Russo was one of six candidates for the job.

Poughkeepsie, whose new superintendent Dr. Eric Jay Rosser announced the cancellation of fall sports last week, has been without an athletic director since early summer after Christian Hodge left for the same position at Pelham.

Greg Russo’s title will be Director of Physical Education, Health, Athletics and Recreation. He will earn $115,000 annually for a four-year contract beginning Tuesday, Oct. 13.

He comes to Poughkeepsie at a time when the athletic program has seen the highest of highs and lowest of lows.

The boys basketball team won the Class A state championship in 2019 for the second time in school history.

But the football program has struggled, with six head coaches in the last seven years.

And baseball could not field a team in 2019 and, after missing the 2020 spring season that was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic, it remains to be seen whether the Pioneers will have baseball in the spring of 2021.

University Professor, Former Yonkers Public Schools Teacher and Grant Director, Dr. Rosalba Corrado Del Vecchio , Sworn In As Yonkers School Board Member

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Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano and Yonkers Board of Education Trustee Dr. Rosabla Corrado Del Vecchio

Mayor Mike Spano swore in Dr. Rosalba Corrado Del Vecchiofor her reappointment to the Yonkers Board of Education. As trustee of the Yonkers Board of Education, Dr. Del Vecchio is part of a nine member Board, which is the official policy making body of the School District. 


“I am proud to reappoint Dr. Del Vecchio to the Board of Education as her extensive work in academia and her institutional knowledge of our schools have made her an ideal Board Trustee,” said Mayor Spano. 

“Together, we can further address the needs and concerns of the District and support our schools’ goals for our students.”

A doctoral degree graduate from Fordham University, Dr. Del Vecchio is a qualitative researcher who specializes in educational leadership, administration and policy, with a concentration on partnership development and professional development of aspiring school administrators.

Since 2005, Dr. Rosalba Corrado Del Vecchio continues to teach, mentor and advise students in the Department of Administrative and Instructional Leadership (DAIL) at St. John’s University School of Education. 

Dr. Del Vecchio is also the Director of School Leadership Programs for aspiring principals and administrators in non-public schools, a partnership program with NYC Department of Education (DOE) and St. John’s University. 

Prior to her work at St. John’s University, Dr. Del Vecchio was Director of Grants and Special Programs for over ten years in the Yonkers Public Schools and was responsible for the management and implementation of over $60 million in categorical and competitive grant programs in the District. 

Dr. Del Vecchio began her educational career in Yonkers as a high school teacher of Spanish, Italian, French and English, initiating the modern languages course offerings at Saunders and the award-winning Literary Art Magazine, the first in the history of a Trades and Technical High School. She also served as a building administrator, central office supervisor of ten schools, and coordinator of the first restructuring initiative, EDUCATION 2000.

A Fulbright Fellowship recipient to the University of Perugia, Italy, and National Endowment for the Humanities Fellow to Yale University, Dr. Del Vecchio was Vice President of the Fulbright Association of Greater New York and continues to serve on its Board. Dr. Del Vecchio also graduated from the College of Mt. St. Vincent, Riverdale, NY, with a BA cum laude in Spanish and from Iona College, New Rochelle, NY with a MS in Education and Latin American Studies.

“It’s both an honor and a privilege to be reappointed to serve on the Board. I appreciate and thank Mayor Spano for his confidence in my ability to serve in a way that may be helpful,”said Dr. Rosalba Corrado Del Vecchio.   “Our schools, in their diversity, are a rich source of talent and my belief in that talent has always been unwavering in all the years I have lived in Yonkers.   I look forward to working together, with Board President Lopez and other fellow Trustees, with Superintendent Dr. Quezada and with all involved in the education of our children, in a way that advocates for them and for their schools.”


Board of Education President Rev. Steve Lopez enthusiastically noted about Dr. Del Vecchio’s reappointment on behalf of the Trustees, “Trustee DelVecchio’s contributions to the Board over the past three years have had a profound impact on our complex educational and fiscal decisions.  As an experienced educator she brings valuable knowledge and insight.”

“For me, working with Trustee Dr. DelVecchio has been an extraordinary opportunity and experience.  Her guidance, support and respect for the work has uplifted my spirit on many occasions,” stated Dr. Edwin M. Quezada, Superintendent of Schools.  “Thank you for everything you have already accomplished and will continue to contribute to provide quality education for all Yonkers children.”

Dr. Del Vecchio will fulfill the remainder of Dr. Ammir Rabadi’s five-year term through 2022, who resigned from the Board earlier this year.

Dr. Peter Tesler new chief medical officer for Elizabeth Seton Children’s Centers – By Brian Harrod

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Dr. Peter Tesler

Scarsdale resident Peter J. Tesler, MD, MPH, is the new chief medical officer for Elizabeth Seton Children’s entire family of organizations serving children with medical complexity across Westchester County.

Dr. Peter J. Tesler is a pediatrician, who will provide strategic and operational leadership over medical services at all organizations within the Elizabeth Seton Children’s family, which includes Elizabeth Seton Children’s Center in Yonkers, Elizabeth Seton Children’s School in both Yonkers and White Plains, and Elizabeth Seton Children’s Rehabilitation Center in White Plains.

An educator, administrator and pediatric physician for nearly thirty years he he obtained his Medical Degree from the University of Vermont College of Medicine and a Master of Public Health Degree from Boston University School of Public Health.

Dr. Tesler completed his internship and residency in Pediatrics at Tufts Medical Center in Boston, MA.

Yonkers Police Department To Embrace Active Bystandership Training To Prevent Any Rogue YPD Officers From Harming Residents – By Brian Harrod

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The Georgetown University Law Center’s Innovative Policing Program is being joined by the Yonkers Police Department. They will follow 33 other law enforcement agencies to partake in the Active Bystandership for Law Enforcement (ABLE) Project, a national training and support initiative focused on U.S. law enforcement agencies committed to building a culture of peer intervention that prevents harm in the community.

Backed by prominent civil rights and law enforcement leaders, the evidence-based ABLE Project was developed by Georgetown Law’s Innovative Policing Program in collaboration with global law firm Sheppard Mullin, pioneering active bystandership scholar Ervin Staub, and a host of other experts to provide Yonkers law enforcement officers with practical active bystandership strategies and tactics to prevent misconduct, reduce officer mistakes, and promote health and wellness.

Building upon decades of research and on-the-ground testing, ABLE ensures officers have both the training and the supportive institutional culture they need to overcome the powerful inhibitors individuals face when called upon to intervene in actions taken by their peers.

“The ABLE Project was created to ensure every police officer in the United States has the opportunity to receive meaningful, effective active bystandership training while helping law enforcement agencies transform their approach to policing,” said Professor Christy Lopez, co-director of of Georgetown Law’s Innovative Policing Program, which runs ABLE.

“Having duty-to-intervene policies on the books isn’t enough. Building a police culture that supports and sustains the successful use of proven peer intervention strategies is key to preventing harm.”

To be accepted into the ABLE Project, agencies must commit to 10 ABLE standards that demonstrate commitment to creating a culture of active bystandership, as well as support from local community groups and elected leaders.

Over the coming weeks, the ABLE Project train-the-trainer program will certify instructors for the Yonkers PD.

Then, over the coming months, these YPD instructors will provide eight hours of evidence-based active bystandership training to every officer in the city of hills while they take other required steps to build a culture that ensures that training will take hold.

The ABLE Project is guided by its Board of Advisors comprised of civil rights, social justice, and law enforcement leaders, including Vanita Gupta, the president of the Leadership Council on Civil and Human Rights; Commissioner Michael Harrison of the Baltimore Police Department; Commissioner Danielle Outlaw of the Philadelphia Police Department; Ervin Staub, professor emeritus at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and the founder of the Psychology of Peace and Justice Project; and an impressive collection of additional police leaders, rank and file officers, and social justice leaders.

Yonkers’ Teachers Union Lawsuit Says School District And Superintendent Routinely Places Members In Danger – By Brian Harrod

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Yonkers Public Schools Superintendent #EdwinQuezada,is personally named in the lawsuit that says teachers with, pre-existing conditions are being denied work from home requests during the pandemic.

YONKERS: The Yonkers teachers union has filed the lawsuit demanding accommodations for staffers with underlying conditions

The Yonkers Federation of Teachers (YFT) union lawsuit states that there has been a blanket denial of more than 40 telework accommodations for staffers, who have health issues like cancer or HIV.

The YFT says several vulnerable teachers were forced to use sick leave or possibly go on an unpaid leave of absence.

The YFT lawsuit comes at a contentious time for the school district, because the teachers and the Yonkers Council of PTAs/PTSAs leadership have been at odds over the reopening of school buildings.

The Council of PTAs/PTSAs bosses want students to immediately return to the classroom.

The teachers say they have safety concerns include air quality, asbestos abatement in some buildings and other issues that can adversely effect them and their student’s health.

Yonkers Schools To Get Full Aid This Month – By Brian Harrod

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Gov. Andrew Cuomo‘s administration says it will not withhold 20% of the aid due to Yonkers this month

YONKERS: The Yonkers Public Schools money crunch has been delayed.

New York State will send a full school aid payment this month, and won’t hold back the 20% as expected.

Yonkers Public Schools Superintendent Edwin Quezada was expecting for Governor Andrew Cuomo to withhold $14 Million in aid this month, but it looks like the Board of Education can expect the full $70 Million that is due this month.

Smaller aid payments in July and August came in at 80% of what was budgeted, because of shortfalls caused by the pandemic.

Yonkers Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-cousins and other legislators gave the governor power to withhold a percentage of school aid as he saw fit.

This has hurt Yonkers especially hard, because the funding formula already penalizes Yonkers, which gets $11,000 per student in aid, far less than aid delivered to Rochester and Buffalo.

The 20% A reductions in state aid had Yonkers looking at a doomsday scenario of firing hundreds of school employees.

Yonkers educators still worry about future deep cuts and more possible layoffs.

Most elected officials fault the federal failure to act and offset the New York’s pandemic related revenue losses.

The state teachers union is suing, demanding full payment of all the aid allocated in the state budget.

Smells Good To Me – New Park Proposed To Be Next Door To The Yonkers Sewer Plant – By Brian Harrod

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County Legislator Jose Alvarado wants to transform a vacant by the Yonkers wastewater treatment plant into a new Westchester County park

Yonkers Legislator Jose Alvarado Westchester County to spend $10 million on a small property that has views of the New Jersey Palisades, but is next to a sewage treatment plant.

Community groups in the Ludlow Park section of southwest Yonkers have pushed for this for nearly a decade, but have not been able to get their plan off the ground – mostly because of because of sewage smells that even has Bronx residents complaining to their community boards.

Supposedly, the county is going to spend $22 million for odor control.

Serial Killing Yonkers Cop Complains Of Horrible Jail Conditions – By Brian Harrod

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A former Yonkers PD officer accused of the gruesome murder of four Latino men says he dealing with awful jail conditions now that he is not dead billionaire Jeffrey Epstine’s cell mate.

Former Yonkers Police officer Nicholas Tartaglione’s lawyer, Bruce Barket, has asked for his client to be transferred from the Metropolitan Correctional Center to the Nassau County Correctional Center due to alleged awful prison cell conditions.

“He was put in a cell without the books and newspapers he was given on Thursday … Worse, he was placed into a cell without a working toilet. He was given a bucket! He was told to use that until the toilet was repaired,” Barket said according to the New York Daily News.

Prosecutors say Tartaglione never complained about a broken toilet.

“MCC staff members reported to the MCC Warden that there is in fact a working toilet in the defendant’s cell. The staff members tested that toilet’s flushing ability and confirmed that the toilet does in fact flush, but noted that the flush appeared weak. In response, the MCC Warden called the institution’s on-call plumber to immediately service that toilet,” according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Maurene Comey

Martin Santos-Luna, 41, 25-year-old Miguel Sosa-Luna, Urbano Morales-Santiago, 35, and 32-year-old Hector Gutierrez, all of Middletown, were found buried months later on Otisville property owned by former YPD officer Nicholas Tartaglione.

He is accused of hitting Luna repeatedly and killing him by placing a zip tie around Luna’s neck. The other three men were shot in the head,

Nicholas Tartaglione was a cop in the Yonkers Police Department, before moving on to Mount Vernon, Briarcliff Manor and Pawling.

The former Yonkers cop once shared a cell with Jeffery Epstein. He claimed to have helped Epstein after finding him unconscious from what’s believed to be a suicide hanging attempt.

He was separated from Epstein before Epstein’s ultimate death.

Following the 66-year-old billionaire’s death, Tartaglione said guards at the prison have told him “shut up,” “stop talking” and “stop complaining,” amid questions about how Epstein was able to kill himself in federal custody

Ravine Apartment Project Moving Forward In Yonkers – By Brian Harrod

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A 146-unit apartment project known as the Point and Ravine Apartments is under review in Yonkers

The Developer is Rochester-based Conifer Realty and built River Pointe at Drum Hill senior citizen apartment project in Peekskill.

They are  in the process of building 54 Hunts Place in Chappaqua, an affordable project near the Metro-North station, offering one-bedroom units staring at $1,120 per month.

The Yonkers Industrial Development Agency (IDA) voted preliminary approval of financial incentives for the two townhome buildings and one mid-rise building with 120 units.

The two townhome-style buildings will include one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments.

The YIDA says the project is worth 72 million and is expected to create 250 construction jobs.

There would be a total of 146 units in the project and three public parking lots would also be constructed.

The project currently is set to use electricity for heating in view of the Con Ed natural gas moratorium.

FRIGHTENED FAMILIES: Yonkers Parents And Teachers Are All Over Social Media And They Are Very Concerned About Schools In Yonkers – By Brian Harrod

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Disappointed sad woman holding mobile phone while laying on bed at night

YONKERS RUMORS: Some Yonkers Public Schools Parents Are Saying That They Are Hearing That A Teacher At Khalil Ghibran Tested Positive For The Coronavirus And They Fear That School Administrators Are Not Being Upfront With Them And The #WestchesterCounty Board Of Health.

SOCIAL MEDIA MESSAGES: The rumor is that the #Yonkers school was not closed to the teachers, as per, the plan submitted to Andrew Cuomo‘s administration.

UNCONFIRMED REPORTS: Some say this teacher was doing the remote teaching in a room with another teacher and we may have a second exposed teacher at the school.

NO OFFICIAL WORD: So far there has been no confirmation or news release from Superintendent #EdwinQuezada‘s officeor any of his administrators.

PLEASE NOTE: These reports are very preliminary and have not been confirmed by any officials in The City of Yonkers, but are being spread on social media in the city of hills.

Khalil Gibran School is located at 18 Rosedale Road in Yonkers

https://www.facebook.com/groups/YonkersNewswire/permalink/2761811320743095/

UPDATE #1:

Some are now saying the teacher at the school did test positive, but he never entered the building.

Its important that Yonkers Public Schools Superintendent #EdwinQuezada‘s office quickly reports issues to parents and teachers in a transparent manner, instead of waiting for days to get the facts out.

There are also some teachers saying that there were seven other schools besides Khalil Ghibran that had people who tested positive, but there is no official confirmation on this..

They all could’ve been people who never made it into the building.

This rumors can be contained if the Yonkers Public Schools are very open and transparent with homeowners, parents, teachers and other school employees.

UPDATE #2:

A Mini Yonkers Public Schools Coronavirus Outbreak Has Started With YPS Employees At School 1`7, Dodson, Martin Luther King Jr, School 13. And Roosevelt HS Have Been Put Into Quarantine With No Public Notification…..

YONKERS TRIBUNE: #YFT Member Action Needed Now!

YFT LETTER TO THE EDITOR: The Yonkers Public Schools have only been open a few days and already COVID 19 positive cases are being identified.

Any hope that Superintendent #EdwinQuezada was going to make the health and safety of the district’s employees a priority is quickly dimming.

Since the opening of schools at least four schools have COVID positive cases or cases requiring the quarantine of staff members.

Across Westchester County the COVID rate has jumped to 6.5%, well above the 5% measure that signals an impending health crisis.

After a few days of school, a teacher tested COVID positive at School 17 and Superintendent Quezada refused to allow for a 14-day remote home instruction quarantine for teachers and staff until the YFT exerted pressure on the district to act.

Subsequently, other staff members at School 17 tested positive. Individual staff members have gone into quarantine at Dodson, Martin Luther King Jr, and School 13. Now, at Roosevelt HS, the principal has publicly announced that a teacher who had daily interactions with other staff members within the building tested COVID positive.

Superintendent Quezada has thus far refused to order a quarantine and institute a 14-day remote home instruction program….

Please Read More Of The Letter Sent To Editor #HeziAris At The Yonkers Tribune Here:

https://www.yonkerstribune.com/2020/09/yft-member-action-needed-now

UPDATE #3:

NEWS 12: Several teachers at 5 Yonkers schools test positive for COVID-19

Several teachers at five Yonkers schools have tested positive for COVID-19 since the school year began, according to the district.

So far, at least five teachers, staff members or administrators have come down with the virus at P.S. 13, P.S. 17, Martin Luther King Jr. High School and Roosevelt High School….

http://westchester.news12.com/several-teachers-at-5-yonkers-schools-test-positive-for-covid19-42621309

UPDATE #4:

Now a staff member from Saunders Trades & Technical High School, that the individual received a positive result from a COVID rapid test administered at a visit to a medical professional for an unrelated matter.

That staff member was in the building on Thursday, September 10, 2020, but Yonkers Public Schools Superintendent #EdwinQuezada is refusing to closed the building for 14 days….

UPDATE #5:

JOURNAL NEWS: Will Yonkers be ready for kids to come back to school buildings next month?

Carmen Goodstein, president of the Council of PTAs/PTSAs is concerned that remote instruction, underway since Sept. 8, will be hindered by a lack of clear requirements for daily live teaching and recorded lessons.

Teachers must come to school each day.

Leaders of the PTA Council recently toured several city schools, reporting that progress was being made in preparing the buildings to reopen and that teachers were enthusiastic about welcoming students to class.

They were looking to rebut statements from the YFT that outlined numerous concerns about teachers returning to school.

“The principals, in collaboration with teachers, were working to set the environment in the rooms – that is what parents need to know,” said Robert Rijos, immediate past president of the Council of PTAs/PTSAs.

Samantha Rosado-Ciriello, YFT president, disagreed with the PTA Council’s rosy portrayal of school readiness: “I can’t presume to understand what they’re thinking or why. It doesn’t reflect what’s going on in the schools.”

Samantha Rosado-Ciriello described what she called the district’s inability to adequately prepare for the new school year, in terms of teacher training, the readiness of technology, meeting health and safety guidelines, and more.

“Our teachers want to make sure the school year is as seamless as possible,” Samantha Rosado-Ciriello said.

“It’s unfortunate the district was not able to get their house in order.”…..

https://www.lohud.com/story/news/education/2020/09/14/yonkers-coronavirus-school-plans-put-parents-and-unions-odds/5756182002/

UPDATE #6:

NEWS 12 >>> Yonkers SD: 6 staff members positive for COVID-19 since start of remote classes

Several teachers in the Yonkers school district have tested positive for COVID-19.

There have been six positive cases of coronavirus since remote classes started back up again at Yonkers Public Schools last week.

The school district confirmed that the six cases are among staff at three buildings — School 17, Roosevelt High School and Saunders, which just reported a case on Saturday….

http://hudsonvalley.news12.com/yonkers-sd-staff-members-positive-for-covid-since-start-of-remote-classes




Dedicated Teachers And Students With The Right Equipment Is Makes Success Possible….

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Charter School of Educational Excellence teachers educate some 850 students in grades K-9 and will grow to K-12 in the next three years.Upon completion of its new, privately funded high school campus, CSEE will be serving approximately 1,150 students.

YONKERS STRONG: Board of Regents Names CSEE “Recognition School” for 6th Straight YearONE OF NY’S BEST: Among select group of “exemplary public schools that demonstrate that all students can achieve at high levels with the right supports and resources,” Regents Chancellor saysYONKERS PROUD: The Charter School of Educational Excellence (CSEE) serves children in #Yonkers, the Bronx and Westchester County, and already is one of the region’s highest performing tuition-free, public schools.

YONKERS, NY – Now the Charter School of Educational Excellence been recognized by the New York State Board of Regents as a “recognition school” for the sixth straight year. #CSEE is continuing to accept applications from outside Yonkers for the 2020-21 school year.QUOTE: “These are exemplary public schools that demonstrate that all students can achieve at high levels with the right supports and resources,” Board of Regents Chancellor #BettyRosa said in a news release.

“Recognition Schools help to ensure equity for all children across New York State. The Regents and I are grateful to all of the teachers and administrators who, in concerted effort with their school communities, are guiding our students toward success.”“Recognition schools are the highest performing and rapidly improving schools across the state,” Interim Commissioner #ShannonTahoe said in the same news release.

“Recognition Schools across the state demonstrate the relentless commitment of teachers, administrators, staff and parents, without whom this growth would not have been possible.”This is the 6th straight year the Regents have recognized CSEE in this select group. (Note: the designation was changed this year from Reward School to Recognition School.)

The award comes as CSEE continues to deliver strong remote teaching and learning during the COVID-19 shutdown, with average student attendance at 95 percent.

All academic and extracurricular programs are continuing, including CSEE’s unique partnerships with the Giants, Jets, Knicks and the nation’s top orthopedics and sports medicine hospital, the Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan.CSEE has ensured that all students have access to educational technology, including laptops and WiFi.“We thank the Board of Regents, Chancellor Rosa and Interim Commissioner Tahoe for this honor,” CSEE Board Chair and Founder #EduardoLaGuerre said.

“It’s a tribute to our hard-working teachers, school leaders, coaches, board members and all our staff, and of course to our scholars, their parents and entire families. Everyone in the CSEE family is dedicated to learning, growth and development of the whole child.”CSEE Superintendent Cindy Lopez, in an email to staff, said: “It is because of you and your dedication and unwavering faith in our work as a team, faith in our students and families that CSEE has once again received recognition from the state as being a highly effective school. I cannot wait for us to be together, back in our buildings so that we may celebrate.”To be identified as a Recognition School under the federal

Every Student Succeeds Act, a school must:

● have an accountability status of Good Standing;

● have a Level 4 for the Combined Composite Performance and Growth indicator for elementary and middle schools or a Level 4 for the Combined Composite Performance and Graduation Rate for high schools for the All Students group;

● not have a Level 1 for any accountability indicator (English language arts (ELA) and mathematics progress; Chronic Absenteeism; English language Proficiency; College, Career, and Civic Readiness for High Schools) for the All Students group;

● not have any subgroups that were identified as Potential Targeted Support and Improvement (PTSI) based on 2018-19 school year results; and

● not have a 2018-19 Participation Rate for ELA or Math for the All Students group that is less than 95%. If a school did not have enough students to receive a participation rate, the school is still eligible to be identified as a Recognition School.

Parent demand is very high, with over 500 students on CSEE’s waiting list.

For More Information Contact Carmen Gomez Goldberg

Charter School of Educational Excellence

Address:

260 Warburton Ave, Yonkers, NY 10701

Phone:

(914) 476-5070

Website:

https://www.charterschoolofeducationalexcellence.org/

2020 ELECTIONS: Fundraiser for Verris Shako for Yonkers City Court Judge -Tuesday, September 22, 2020 At 6 PM

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There Is A Lot Of Support For #VerrisShako To Be The City of Yonkers‘ First African-American Judge…..

VERRIS SHAKO: “Excited to announce The Phenomenal Women’s Fundraiser with Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, Senator Shelley Mayer, Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard, Mount Vernon’s City Council President Lisa Adele(Lisa A. Copeland), Yonkers City Council Majority Leader Corazon Pineda Isaac, Councilwoman Shanae Natalee Williams and Counilwoman Tasha Diaz. Thank you for your support!”

From team Shako

YONKERS ROUNDUP: The City Of Yonkers To Bring Out An Employee Reduction Plan Next Week – By Brian Harrod

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THANKS TRUMP: The presidents failure to provide a stimulus package for states and cities to counter his administration’s mismanagement of the COVID-19 pandemic will mean that many of The City of Yonkers employees will soon join the growing unemployment lines

YONKERS: A Few weeks ago the City of #Yonkers announced that it was going to have to reduce programs and cut an estimated 200 vacant positions after New York State withheld some funding.

The Yonkers Police Department cuts are said to be will be mostly from vacant positions and members who are awaiting retirement.

There is a rumor that the Yonkers Firefighters Local 628 could see a consolidation or reduction of fire companies, which will be achieved with layoffs of firefighters and leaving vacant positions open, as well as #YFD officers being demoted back into the union.

Teamsters Local 456, whose workers are mostly Department of Public Works and parks employees are believed to have the most positions on the chopping block.

Yonkers has just under 2,000 civil service positions.

Previously, the Yonkers Public Schools have already let 53 teachers go and furloughed 414 CSEA Unit 9169 Yonkers School District employees.

https://yonkersroundup.com/index.php/2020/09/14/the-city-of-yonkers-to-bring-out-an-employee-reduction-plan-next-week-by-brian-harrod/

Teachers Unions Lawsuit Asks The Court To Declare Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Withholding Of $5.2 Billion As Unconstitutional

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NY Governor Andrew Cuomo

FIGHTING FOR THE KIDS: #Yonkers Teachers Join Other NYS Teachers And Sue Over $5.2 Billion Budget Cut

Several New York teachers unions sued the state in the Albany County Supreme Court on Tuesday after New York withheld $5.2 billion budgeted to help elementary and secondary schools operate.

Six hundred thousand members of the New York State United Teachers joined several other unions in calling the move “unconstitutional, illegal, and a violation of the separation and distribution of powers under the New York State Constitution.”
As a result of the budget cuts, Yonkers City Schools cut its universal pre-K program and laid off 36 teachers.

“In the midst of this pandemic and unprecedented upheaval in New York’s public schools districts regarding their operations, their delivery of services, and their financial burdens, as well as those of their teachers and support staff, the state has withheld and announced it will continue to withhold essential state funding to public schools,” the 23-page lawsuit states.

The teachers’ unions ask the court to declare the withholding of the budgeted $5.2 billion unconstitutional and order the director of budget to release the funds.

The teachers’ unions are represented by attorney Robert Reilly.

DEAD YONKERS MAN WAS THE FIRST CASE OF WEST NILE VIRUS IN WESTCHESTER COUNTY THIS YEAR

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YONKERS ROUNDUP >>> RIP: Yonkers Resident Who Contracted West Nile Virus Dies – Brian Harrod

PHOTO: A #Yonkers Man Was The First Human Case Of West Nile In #WestchesterCounty

 Man Was The First Human Case Of West Nile In #WestchesterCounty

A Westchester County press release says the Yonkers victim was 76 years old and had significant underlying medical conditions.

Westchester County Health Commissioner #SherlitaAmler said, “The overwhelming majority of people who get the virus do recover, and we generally have only a few cases each year.”

Last year, one Westchester resident was diagnosed with West Nile Virus.

In 2018 there were four cases, and in 2017 there were three…

https://yonkersroundup.com/index.php/2020/09/16/rip-yonkers-resident-who-contracted-west-nile-virus-dies-brian-harrod/

YONKERS NEWSWIRE EDITOR BRIAN HARROD IS ALSO THE WEBMASTER OF THE BRONX NEWSWIRE

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MORE HYPER LOCAL NEWS: Yonkers Newswire Editor Brian Harrod Is Also The Webmaster Of The Bronx Newswire

THIS JUST IN: https://www.google.com/url?rct=j&sa=t…

FACTS: No One Has More #Bronx News Than The Bronx Newswire