Knowing Is Believing in Latimer

 

Dear Editor,

 

As a registered Republican for over 40 years, I am ashamed by the excess press releases and the amount of money being spent by Bob Cohen in his efforts to win the election in the 37th Senate District for the State of New York.

 

Today, I consider myself to be a conservative traditionalist who is an independent thinker who looks at the facts, considers the outcome, and then decides who will get my vote, Republican or Democrat. I try and select the individual who would be right for me, my community, and my state, and who best represents my beliefs.

 

It’s easy to take snippets out of context in any published document and change the true overall meaning of the text. It’s easy to take numbers and twist and turn them into something that benefits you. What’s difficult is actually knowing the truth.

 

I have known George Latimer since coming to Rye, 29 years ago. He has always been the good neighbor, supporting the schools and the community. He has always stood by his convictions, understanding the issues.  Anyone who knows George knows this to be true.

 

I’d like to address the NYS tax cap issue. I attended many forums to clearly understand the position that Albany was pushing. For me it was clear that Albany (the Governor) wanted a 2% tax cap with NO mandate relief tied to it.  It was also clear that Albany said mandate relief would follow. 

 

We all know what happened. Albany got their 2% tax cap, but what happened to the mandate relief that was to follow? We still don’t have it.  Even the passage of the Tier 6 employee pension reform only affects new employees and will have no major effect on the expense structure of municipalities and school districts for many years to come. George Latimer was correct in his ‘no’ vote for the 2% tax cap; he was also correct in his walking out in protest on the Tier 6 vote.  Albany was again forcing late-night decisions.

 

We need George Latimer as our State Senator. He looks at the Big Picture and takes a stand to better support us as individuals, school districts, and communities. Others use snippets of untruths to try and sway voters to support them.

 

I am proud to say, as a Republican, that I support George Latimer, a man who stands behind his words and beliefs.

 

Sincerely,

 

Jim Culyer

The Gravity of the Rye Golf Situation

 

Dear Editor,

This letter was written to the City Council and forwarded to the paper for publication.

 

Pursuant to the Rye City Council’s vote on October 10, to concurrently and independently investigate, along with the other appropriate legal authorities, the allegations against the Rye Golf Club’s General Manager, Scott Yandrasevich, it is imperative, and, of equal importance, that the finance committee of The Rye Golf Club Commission and the Rye City Manager, Scott Pickup, be subject to the same investigation and scrutiny. These individuals have been nothing less than complicit and have worked in concert with Yandrasevich throughout his entire term of employment.

 

Specifically, I call for the immediate suspensions/resignations and a full investigation of Frank Adimari, Daniel DeVito, and Patrick Dooley who make up the club’s financial committee. I also call for the immediate suspension/resignation of the City Manager, who worked directly with, and had full authority over Mr. Yandrasevich.  Reluctantly, I lastly call for the suspension/resignation of Richard Verille who acts as the Chair for the Commission. Sadly, it is his function to oversee the financial committee as well as all functions of the Commission. This clearly has not been done well.

 

These named individuals are responsible for all aspects of the Club’s budget, its expenditures, expenses, and income. They have a fiduciary responsibility to the Rye Golf Club members and it appears they have grossly failed. Moreover, it additionally appears there has been nothing less than a dereliction of duty, deliberate misrepresentations, malfeasance, and an unbridled arrogance and abuse of power by all those involved. 

 

In view of the millions of dollars involved in this matter, the possible misappropriation and misdirection of the funds in question, and the very lives and wellbeing of many innocent employees, you cannot have the proverbial “Foxes Guarding The Chicken Coop.”

 

I trust the Mayor and the City Council members will recognize the gravity of this situation and will act with all speed and diligence in addressing this matter appropriately.

 

Sincerely yours,

Gary Ahlert

Giving the New Evaluation Test a Bad Grade

 

Dear Editor,

 

Rye students have now been tested to establish a baseline for teacher performance as part of the new performance evaluation system – the APPR. But, neither the nature of these tests nor expectations for student performance have been explained to parents in any systematic way.

 

Do these tests provide any fundamental value to the instruction of our children? No.

 

Do the test results really mean anything? No. They just define a teacher’s starting point for Albany and DC educrats.

 

Do the tests hurt the students? Not physically, but emotionally, given that they’ve been taught to do well on tests but should be unable to do well on these, maybe.  And then there’s the lost instruction time.

 

If the students were not expected to do well, were the tests needed? For instructional purposes: No. For baselining: No. A zero could have been assumed for each child, thereby saving testing costs and instructional time.

 

And how can teacher performance realistically be assessed based on one year’s results? There’s no true baseline for what teachers should accomplish with their students in a given year. There’s no understanding of what achieving an improvement of x% means for a gifted class versus a challenged class.

 

So, thanks to Governor Cuomo, Education Secretary Arnie Duncan, and President Obama for forcing this new way of evaluating our teachers on us at the expense of our children’s education. The Race to the Top NY “won” certainly isn’t a “win” for Rye students.

 

Sincerely,

Bob Zahm