Always

Vote like the lives of your children depend on your doing so!

Saturday, April 27, 2019

Faith on A Dead End Street

To some, this may look like a regular parking lot for a car dealership. At first glance one does not even ask why a street is running  through this parking lot.

When one looks closely, one notices the white on the blacktop. 
Yes, that is the remains of an old cross walk. Look at that little spire in the distance. That is the steeple of a Church. Late July of 1967, I arrived on this street, which connected to Forest Avenue. Children were playing stick ball and running about. The car drove through slowly giving the children the road. There is now a fence across the end of this former thoroughfare that denies access to the Community and the House of Worship beyond. The gate in the foreground rolls to close and lock.

This is Humphrey Street complete with sidewalks and crosswalk at the entrance. It was sold to a car dealership some years ago. This is Humphrey Street. The selling of this street cut off direct access of members to The Englewood Church of God in Christ and from Forest Avenue. The way finding system to this House of Worship now only consists of a sign on a traffic signal to turn left/north, but there is not sign on Van Brunt Street saying where to turn left to arrive at the Church.

This is the other side of that fence that protects the cars and the Dealership. I am in the middle of Humphrey Street looking south. South of the fences are cars to the left and cars to the right.

How do you sell a street and block off access a House of Worship? Imagine that request. I wonder how much a 4th Ward street goes 
these days? Elmore Avenue may still be on the list to be shortened. 

The last thing that a Funeral procession wants is be forced to navigate around on a Dead End street. This action represents the
gross disrespect that is generally shown "our places" in the 4th Ward.
Maybe someday, the owner of this Dealership and this lot will grow a heart and give the street back to the neighborhood.




Wednesday, January 16, 2019

A Dash of Machismo

Ricardo Whilby addresses the Englewood City Council


Each and every elected official on this council takes an oath to do the people's work. No preference is given to any religion or ethnicity, no preference is given to the have or have not's. We only hope that our elected officials will serve the interest of each and every one of their constituents fairly, without harm or malice to any group under the constitution of the United States Of America and the state of New Jersey.


I attend meetings regularly as a concerned and outraged citizen that has had enough of being a spectator to the systematic corruption, racism, and xenophobia, with a dash of machismo by cowardly, scared little boys stuck in the bodies of useless old men. 

No elected official should be intimidated or threatened by any citizen to circumvent the collective will of the people to serve the single desire of special interest groups eager to expand their selfish agendas by any and all means. We are a society of laws and we expect each and every member of this governing body to abide by the law and not operate above it. 

This includes the residency previsions of our city charter which Michael Cohen currently violates. 

I hope that this new President of the City Council will spear head an investigation into this, and all matters of corruption that have destroyed hope here in Englewood for the disenfranchised. This fraud has made the ugly underbelly of a permanent culture of corruption standard operating procedure for many. 

The most transparent thing about this house of cards is that it will collapse under the might of right. The unwavering courage of brave dissenters will never cease to shine the light of truth on the workers of evil.
Chapter 70"...For the purposes of this subsection, a person may have at most one principal residence, and the state of a person's principal residence means the state
 (1) where the person spends the majority of his or her nonworking time, and  
(2) which is most clearly the center of his or her domestic life, and 
(3) which is designated as his or her legal address and legal residence for voting.
 The fact that a person is domiciled in this State shall not by itself satisfy the requirement of principal residency hereunder..."
https://www.state.nj.us/csc/authorities/faq/NJ%20First%20Act.pdf

Thursday, December 13, 2018

IS The EPSD Warehousing Our Children?

*Substitutes have been outsourced. 
*Even long term subs have been outsourced. 
*Teacher Aides have been outsourced
*Secretaries have been outsourced.
*Lunch and Bus Aides have been outsourced.

At least 2 teachers are leaving every month for one reason or another.

So what does the Human Resource Manager/Director do again? 

Requirements for Substitutes changed in 2015. It is horrifying that Public Schools are leaving such a delicate area up to a "Referral Agency". This Referral Agency is a vendor. That means that the oversight for this program falls under the Business Administrator. Again, what is the Human Resource Director doing other than conducting the many exit interviews?

How do we know that the Substitutes hired by the "Referral Company" have completed the additional requirements set by the state? Who is the responsible Party employed by the Englewood Public School District to oversee this sensitive matter?
Changes to Substitute Teacher Requirements - N.J.A.C. 6A:9B-7
https://nj.gov/education/license/UpdatedSubChanges.pdf

Changes to Teacher Certification Requiremtnts (N.J.A.C. 6A:9B
https://www.nj.gov/.../edu.../license/UpdatedCertChanges.pdf

Memo to all Human Resource Directors
SUBJECT: Update to Proposed Changes to Teacher Preparation and Certification Requirements
https://www.nj.gov/.../pre.../060315Chapter9ProposalMemo.pdf

So whom do we blame for a teacher being subjected to having over 40 children per class, because of lack of Substitutes? Seems that Phantom Human Resource Director, the Business Administrator and the Outsource happy Superintendent need to put their heads together so they can STOP warehousing our children. Perhaps our School Board should also collectively wake up and begin to deal with our children as real boys and girls and their parents as real humans.

It would also be nice to read a breakdown of salary for Substitutes, Paraprofessionals & Secretaries (which the district abolished and never reinstated with a resolution) are paid like humans, which should be above minimum wage. Exactly how much of the amount indicated in the contract with ESS goes to the persons who actually work with our children.

It would also be nice to feel confident that there is an Aide on all school buses, since this is where much of the bullying is taking place.


1This document provides an overview of requirements for substitutes. For all official matters, such as issues brought before the Board of Examiners, concerned parties should rely on regulatory requirements at N.J.A.C. 6A:9, 9A, 9B, and 9C as the final authority.
https://www.state.nj.us/education/code/current/

The last I heard Englewood Public School District was over 70% free and reduced lunch. That is considered high poverty. That is definitely a Title I School District. A School Board nor a Superintendent has the power to change the law listed below. 

Take note and ask any Attorney, when the word "shall" appears within the wording of the law, the Board has no choice but to comply. Reports are coming in from parents who have been asked to have their children count heads in their classes that the numbers have increased to over 30 in many classes. 

This writer attributes part of that increase to the fact that teachers are resigning, retiring and being fired at an alarming rate and they are not being replaced. This would cause Class size to increase.


N.J.A.C 6A:13-3.1  - Pages 8 and 9 of 15 - Not FAKE NEWS, NJ LAW

6A:13-3.1 Class size in high poverty districts

(a) A high poverty school district as used in this chapter means a district in which 40 percent or more of the students are “at-risk” as defined in P.L. 2007, c. 260. 8

(b) Class size in school districts in which 40 percent or more of the students are “at–risk” as defined in P.L. 2007, c. 260 shall not exceed 21 students in grades kindergarten through three, 23 in grades four and five and 24 students in grades six through 12; provided that if the district chooses to maintain lower class sizes in grades kindergarten through three, class sizes in grades four and five may equal but not exceed 25.

Exceptions to these class sizes are permitted for some physical education and performing arts classes, where appropriate. 

https://www.state.nj.us/.../code/current/title6a/chap13.pd