Thursday, November 26, 2009
Board hiring 'a declaration of war'
A lawyer embroiled in a controversy over more than a half-million dollars in state pension payments has been hired by a bloc of the East Ramapo Board of Education, sending the already-divided community into turmoil.
“This is a declaration of war,” said the district’s deputy superintendent, Joe Farmer, at last week’s school board meeting.
The five men who approved employing Albert D’Agostino offered no reasons for their vote, which came in the early hours while the school board president, Nathan Rothschild, was away. Rothschild did ask the board to reschedule the vote for a special meeting, but it went forward anyway.
There has long been an undercurrent of tension between the public and private religious school communities in East Ramapo. The Hasidic Jewish community, which largely sends its children to private yeshivas, has clamored for years for lower school taxes. In recent years, more and more Hasidic Jews have joined the school board, with four now holding seats on the nine-member board.
There are— public schools in the East Ramapo Central School District, which is the largest district in Rockland County. The district’s budget of $293 million does not account for a new, more expensive lawyer, Schools Superintendent Ira Oustatcher said.
D’Agostino would charge $250 an hour, a rate about twice that of the former lawyer, Stephen Fromson. Because D’Agostino would commute from Long Island, he has also asked for $125 an hour for transportation.
Oustatcher estimated that D’Agostino would cost the district $600,000 to $1.36 million over the school year, as opposed to Fromson, who charged as little as $350,000.
“I think we’ve betrayed the public trust,” said one board member, Mimi Calhoun. “I think we’ve betrayed an attorney who has served us in a stellar capacity for 33 years. He’s just been the backbone of this district and has been very wise in his guidance.”
http://www.lohud.com/article/2009911260410
“This is a declaration of war,” said the district’s deputy superintendent, Joe Farmer, at last week’s school board meeting.
The five men who approved employing Albert D’Agostino offered no reasons for their vote, which came in the early hours while the school board president, Nathan Rothschild, was away. Rothschild did ask the board to reschedule the vote for a special meeting, but it went forward anyway.
There has long been an undercurrent of tension between the public and private religious school communities in East Ramapo. The Hasidic Jewish community, which largely sends its children to private yeshivas, has clamored for years for lower school taxes. In recent years, more and more Hasidic Jews have joined the school board, with four now holding seats on the nine-member board.
There are— public schools in the East Ramapo Central School District, which is the largest district in Rockland County. The district’s budget of $293 million does not account for a new, more expensive lawyer, Schools Superintendent Ira Oustatcher said.
D’Agostino would charge $250 an hour, a rate about twice that of the former lawyer, Stephen Fromson. Because D’Agostino would commute from Long Island, he has also asked for $125 an hour for transportation.
Oustatcher estimated that D’Agostino would cost the district $600,000 to $1.36 million over the school year, as opposed to Fromson, who charged as little as $350,000.
“I think we’ve betrayed the public trust,” said one board member, Mimi Calhoun. “I think we’ve betrayed an attorney who has served us in a stellar capacity for 33 years. He’s just been the backbone of this district and has been very wise in his guidance.”
http://www.lohud.com/article/2009911260410
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