Carranza, lawmakers square off on hot-button issues

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Quick Fix

— State lawmakers grilled schools Chancellor Richard Carranza on specialized high school admissions reform, school diversity plans and preschool special education programs, among other issues, at a hearing in Albany.


— The state Education Department is looking to ease requirements for hearing officers to resolve special education complaints as New York City sees a backlog.

— The father of a former student at Sarah Lawrence College has been charged with sex trafficking for starting a sex cult in his daughter’s dorm room.

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Around New York

LAWMAKERS GRILL CARRANZA ON HOT-BUTTON ISSUES — POLITICO’s Madina Touré: A day after Mayor Bill de Blasio enjoyed a warm reception in Albany, his schools Chancellor Richard Carranza went toe-to-toe with state lawmakers on a series of of hot-button issues from school integration to funding.

— At a joint legislative hearing on the education budget Tuesday, Carranza dove into the contentious issue of specialized high school admissions, again calling for the repeal of Hecht-Calandra — a 1971 state law that mandates the use of a single admissions test at the schools — saying there is no research that shows a single test is the "best and most efficient way" to select students…

— Sen. John Liu has been among those arguing admissions changes — designed to admit more black and Latino students — could hurt Asian American students. But he pointed out Tuesday that Carranza did not need state intervention to change admissions at five of the eight elite high schools and accused the chancellor of distracting from that. "It's just a runaround that continues to obfuscate the issues," Liu said...

— Carranza also faced questions over the city's distribution of services to students with disabilities. A recent report by Advocates for Children of New York found that nearly 2,000 New York City students with substantial special needs could be without a preschool seat this coming spring.

EASING REQUIREMENTS FOR SPECIAL EDUCATION HEARING OFFICERS — POLITICO’s Nick Niedzwiadek: The State Education Department will present a plan in March to ease the requirements for hearing officers to adjudicate special education complaints amid a towering backlog in New York City, interim State Education Commissioner Shannon Tahoe said. The system is designed to give parents and guardians an impartial forum to challenge the adequacy of special education services, often in an attempt to place students in a private school that can better serve those needs and have the local school district cover the tuition bill. There were more than 10,100 outstanding cases in the five boroughs, according to data presented to the state Board of Regents in January, dwarfing the roughly 200 cases in the rest of the state.

SARAH LAWRENCE SEX TRAFFICKING CHARGES — The Daily Beast’s Pilar Melendez: “The father of a former student at New York’s elite Sarah Lawrence College has been charged with starting a sex cult in his daughter’s dorm room, eventually forcing one woman into prostitution and holding a knife to a male victim’s throat until he confessed to a crime he didn’t do, authorities said Tuesday. Lawrence Ray, 60, faces nine federal charges, including sex trafficking, extortion, and forced labor for allegedly subjecting ‘his victims to sexual and psychological manipulation and physical abuse,’ and laundering about $1 million from five different victims under the guise of self-help.”

— Journalism gets results: Prosecutors say the investigation was prompted by this New York Magazine deep-dive.

EAST RAMAPO SCHOOL BOARD TRIAL HEATS UP — The Journal News’ Thomas Zambito: “The East Ramapo Central School District’s attorney defended the district’s method for electing its school board members Monday, claiming a voting rights challenge by the NAACP is a response to the political power wielded by a burgeoning Orthodox Jewish community. ‘This case is about Orthodox Jews,’ attorney David Butler told a federal judge during opening statements in a voting rights challenge by the Spring Valley chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. ‘This case is not about racial discrimination.'”

ANOTHER DIVERSITY BLOW AT BROCKPORT — Rochester First: “Dr. Sandra Vazquez, SUNY Brockport’s Diversity Recruitment and Retention Specialist, has resigned from her position. In Dr. Vazquez’s resignation letter, she wrote in part: ‘Over the years the climate has had its challenges. And more recently, the impact of the events that have occurred will make it nearly impossible to recruit and retain underrepresented employees.’"

SCHOLARS PROGRAM HELPS LOW-INCOME STUDENTS ACHIEVE COLLEGE SUCCESS — The 74’s Taylor Swaak: “Every year, the SEO Scholars program asks 14-year-old, low-income freshmen in New York City for a staggering commitment: To spend one month of their summers, three out of their four Saturdays every month, and one school night each week in a classroom. By the time they graduate high school, they’ll have learned 2.5 years worth of English and 1.5 years of math — entirely outside of the city’s public schools. Not to leverage an advantage, but to have a viable chance at college and career success.”

FREE SUMMER CAMP — Daily News’ Michael Elsen-Rooney: “A new bill introduced in the city council Tuesday would make summer camp free to all city students. The bill, co-sponsored by Council Members Debi Rose (D-Staten Island) and Ben Kallos (D-Manhattan) would require the city’s Youth and Community Development Department to figure out how many programs they need by fall 2020. Then they have a year to make sure there is adequate space. It should be ready to go for Summer 2022.”

UALBANY STUDENT ASSOCIATION PRESIDENT ACCUSED OF MISUSING FUNDS — The Daily Gazette’s Joe Hoffman: “The same day President Donald Trump’s impeachment charges were cleared in the United States Senate, the University at Albany’s Student Association began debating whether to impeach its own president. Student senators on Wednesday accused Student Association President Desann Chin-Carty of making over $1,000 of unnecessary purchases and misusing the student association’s credit card.”

Across the River

NEW JERSEY STUDENTS LEARN ABOUT LGBTQ HISTORY — NBC News’ Liam Knox: “Future generations of Newark students will get the chance to learn about LGBTQ historical figures ... alongside their heterosexual contemporaries. A year ago, New Jersey became the second state, following California, to pass a law requiring public schools to incorporate an LGBTQ-inclusive curriculum into their classrooms; Colorado and Illinois soon followed suit.”

WESTFIELD ON BEST SCHOOLS LIST — Patch’s Caren Lissner: “In New Jersey, where there are 2,516 public schools (at all grade levels) and 1,428 private schools, being one of the top-ranked schools in the state would be quite an honor. And having several schools in the top 300 would be impressive for any district. The website Niche.com, which specializes in all different types of rankings, recently released a 2020 list of the top 300 schools in New Jersey, including public and private schools for all grade levels. ... But Westfield High School still managed to crack the top 100, landing at number 69.”

Around the Nation

JACKSON STATE PRESIDENT RESIGNS AFTER CHARGE IN PROSTITUTION RING — Daily News’ Kate Feldman: “The president of Jackson State University in Mississippi was busted over the weekend in a prostitution sting, officials announced Monday. William Bynum Jr., 57, was arrested and charged with procuring services of a prostitute, false statement of identity and simple possession of marijuana, according to the Clinton Police Department. Detectives set up a two-day sting at a local hotel after making contact with the accused offenders on “dark web” sites, according to officials.”

PROFESSOR USES N-WORD — OU Daily’s Jordan Miller: “An OU professor in the Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication used a racial slur during a class Tuesday morning, according to multiple students present in the class. Peter Gade, director of graduate studies and Gaylord Family Endowed Chair, teaches Journalism, Ethics and Democracy — the only capstone course offered for journalism majors. When asked to comment by a Daily reporter after the class had ended, Gade declined.”

Around the World

KIDS TAKE ON CLIMATE CHANGE — The Guardian’s Louise Tickle: “ ... Now young people in the UK are demanding that the government address the climate emergency through radical reform of what – and how – pupils learn. But is the government listening? [Joe] Brindle founded Teach the Future to campaign for a sustainable education system, after being inspired by the global school strikes that began in 2018. Its six demands are uncompromising, he says. “We feel the education system is wasting our time, because we’re facing the biggest issue of our time, and our education isn’t even touching on it.”

Extra Credit

Dr. Gerald Benjamin, associate vice president for regional engagement, is retiring from SUNY New Paltz after 50 years at the institution.

Binghamton University received a $60 million anonymous donation that will be used to build a baseball stadium complex.

On the Calendar

10 a.m. — Richard Carranza participates in Career Discovery Week and delivers brief remarks, Brooklyn Navy Yard, 141 Flushing Avenue, Dock 72, 10th Floor, Brooklyn.

11:30 a.m. — Carranza joins students and educators to celebrate Respect for All Week, Williamsburg High School of Arts & Technology, 223 Graham Avenue, Brooklyn.

6 p.m. — Community Education Council 8, JHS 123\MS 337 1025 Morrison Avenue, Bronx.

Follow us on Twitter Madina Toure @madinatoure



Michelle Bocanegra @michebocanegra

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