Sunday, September 11, 2016

Barilla Pasta Under the 4 Train



The Barilla Pasta Company came to the Heavenly Vision Christian Church located on Jerome Avenue to give out hundreds of meals to the community as part of its 'Five Borough Fight Hunger Campaign'.




As you can see it was 'Pasta Day' under the 4 train.

Friday, September 9, 2016

Plaque Dedication for SGT. Saul S. Starrett at 50 PCT.


The 50th Police Precinct was finally able to honor one of the fallen officers of the local precinct who gave his life in the line of duty on September 2, 1953. 

The plaque was dedicated in beloved memory of Sergeant Saul S. Starrett of the New York City Police Department 50 Precinct. 

The inscription included the following - 

'No greater devotion to sworn duty can a police officer demonstrate to god and to man than to lay down his life in the line of duty.'

Dedicated by the members of the 50th Precinct.


Current 50th Police Precinct Commanding Office Deputy Inspector Terrance O'Toole stands proudly next to the plaque in memory of fallen Sergeant Saul S. Starrett of the 50th precinct.



Members of Sergeant Saul S. Starrett's family stand with current members of the 50th precinct and representatives of the Bronx Borough Command to honor their fallen family member, and brother in arms.

NYCC - EVENTS


October 6 - 9, 2016 | Javits Center

New York Comic Con - NYCC

batman: return of the caped crusaders with adam west thursday at NYCC
RWBY Comes To Protect NYCC On Sunday
Timeless is coming to NYCC
Alex Kingston Joins Matt SMith and Jenna COleman Thursday and Friday at NYCC
come meet yusei matsui of assassination classroom. thursday, october 6 at 6:30pm
Order Your Photo Ops Today

CITI BIKE BREAKS DAILY RIDERSHIP RECORDS TWICE IN ONE WEEK



  Nation’s largest bike share system hits 60,000 riders for first time on Wednesday, climbs to 61,266 by Thursday
                                                                                                                                                        
  Mayor Bill de Blasio today announced that Citi Bike, New York City's bike-share system, broke new daily ridership records twice this week. For the first time, more than 60,000 Citi Bike rides were taken on Wednesday, with the total number reaching 60,278. By Thursday, that number climbed to 61,266. With more than 9 million rides taken so far in 2016, Citi Bike should exceed the annual record of 10 million rides it achieved during 2015 sometime within the next month.

“Now that it is reaching even more and more diverse neighborhoods in New York City, Citi Bikes are being ridden in record numbers – breaking 60,000 rides for the first time on Wednesday and then hitting a new daily record of 61,266 rides yesterday,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio. “With 565 stations and counting in Manhattan, Queens and Brooklyn, Citi Bike is growing and we remain committed to bringing this great transit alternative to even more New Yorkers in the years ahead.”

“In Brooklyn neighborhoods like Park Slope, where Citi Bikes arrived only in the last two weeks, they have become so well-used and popular, it’s already hard to remember what it was like without them,” saidTransportation Commissioner Polly Trottenberg. “Getting around brownstone Brooklyn – along with other new Citi Bike neighborhoods like East Harlem and Red Hook – has never been so easy, convenient and affordable.”

"With this new 60,000 trip milestone, Citi Bike is the busiest bike share system in North America and one of the busiest across the globe,” said Jay Walder, CEO of Motivate, which operates Citi Bike. “The system is becoming not just a leader in bike share internationally, but a leader in transit right here in New York – on par with green cabs or the Staten Island Ferry. It is a useful part of our City's transit network, and we encourage everyone to strap on a helmet and give it a try." 

About Citi Bike 
The Citi Bike program is New York’s bike share system. It will have 10,000 bikes at over 600 stations by the end of 2016. Stations are located in Manhattan below 86th Street and in the Brooklyn neighborhoods of Downtown Brooklyn, DUMBO, Brooklyn Heights, Fort Greene, Clinton Hill, Bedford-Stuyvesant, Williamsburg, and Greenpoint, and in Long Island City, Queens, with stations located every few blocks. The program is expanding this year into Harlem, Park Slope, Boerum Hill, Cobble Hill, Carroll Gardens, Gowanus, and Red Hook. Annual members receive an electronic key to undock a bike from any station, allowing unlimited trips up to 45 minutes without incurring any additional costs. Twenty-four-hour passes are available for purchase at any Citi Bike station or through the Citi Bike app, and provide unlimited 30-minute trips. Reduced cost memberships are available for NYCHA residents and members of select credit unions throughout the city, and for IDNYC holders in their first year of membership. For more info visit: www.citibikenyc.com/expansion.

EDITOR'S NOTE:
When you visit the expansion website above you read - 'We’ll be adding more stations to the Upper East Side & Upper West Side in Manhattan and Jersey City, and moving into new Brooklyn neighborhoods'.  
My question is then - When did Jersey City become part of New York City? After all, isn't New York City subsidising the Citi Bike program?


Thursday, September 8, 2016

Mayor de Blasio visits PS 154 in the Bronx, a Renewal and Community School Part Two



This is the second grade class which Mayor de Blasio was to visit at 10:45 AM. with Chancellor Carmen Farina. There are only 19 students in this class rather than the normal class size of 30 or more children. That is because this school is a Renewal School, a fancy name for a failing school. The mayor arrived 30 minutes late and it was local Assemblywoman Carmen Arroyo and not Chancellor Carmen Farina who was at the school with the mayor. 


Above - The mayor and Assemblywoman greet Ms. Adams the teacher.
Below - The mayor speaks with Ms. Adams while the assemblywoman looks at the future voters.



Above - Mayor de Blasio watches as the students form groups of three or four and then do a lesson by answering among themselves the question the teacher has given them. 
Below - After the lesson is done the mayor gives high fives to all the students.



Above - The mayor Principal and staff walk around to the side of the school to see a school project. That is the Major Deegan Highway in the background.
Below - You can see the mayor is holding a half-dozen fresh eggs which the chickens in the chicken coup behind have laid. Visual Arts teacher Kendra Brown is the teacher in charge of the year round 'PS 154 Chicken Project'. Principal Coviello watches as the mayor asks Ms. Brown about the Chicken Project. The area is cleaned by the school custodian Ms. Lukry Tejeda.


The mayor took no questions, and then departed for the Manhattan school he was to visit followed by the last school visited in the five boroughs in Staten Island.







Mayor de Blasio visits PS 154 in the Bronx, a Renewal and Community School Part One



PS 154 is a Renewal and Community school. 

About the Renewal School Program

The Renewal School Program is a call to action. The NYCDOE will work intensively with each Renewal School community over the next three years, setting clear goals and—with support from Central—holding each school community accountable for rapid improvement. The NYCDOE has selected as Renewal Schools those schools that met all three of the following criteria and others that were added per the Chancellor’s discretion:
  1. Were Identified as Priority or Focus Schools by the State Department of Education 
    Priority: The bottom 5% lowest-performing schools statewide
    Focus: The bottom 10% of progress in a subgroup
  2. Demonstrated low academic achievement for each of the three prior years (2012-2014): 
    Elementary and middle schools in the bottom 25% in Math and ELA scores 
    High schools in the bottom 25% in four-year graduation rate
  3. Scored “Proficient” or below on their most recent quality review                                

    Key Elements of the Plan

    1. Transforming Renewal Schools into Community Schools, with deepened support from and for families and community partners. Partnerships with community-based organizations will enable these schools to offer tailored whole-student supports, including mental health services and after-school programs.
    2. Creating extended learning time – an extra hour added to the school day to give all students additional instructional time.
    3. Supplying resources and supports to ensure effective school leadership and rigorous instruction with collaborative teachers.
    4. Performing school needs assessments across all six elements of the Framework for Great Schools (rigorous instruction, collaborative teachers, supportive environment, effective school leadership, strong family-community ties, and trust) to identify key areas for additional resources.
    5. Bringing increased oversight and accountability including strict goals and clear consequences for schools that do not meet them                                                      

      List of Renewal Bronx Schools                                                                                              07X154 - P.S. 154 Jonathan D. Hyatt

      07X162 - J.H.S. 162 Lola Rodriguez De Tio
      07X547 - New Explorers High School
      08X123 - J.H.S. 123 James M. Kieran
      08X301 - M.S. 301 Paul L. Dunbar
      08X332 - Holcombe L. Rucker School of Community Research
      08X375 - The Bronx Mathematics Preparatory School
      08X405 - Herbert H. Lehman High School
      08X424 - The Hunts Point School
      08X530 - Banana Kelly High School
      09X022 - J.H.S. 022 Jordan L. Mott
      09X117 - I.S. 117 Joseph H. Wade
      09X145 - J.H.S. 145 Arturo Toscanini
      09X219 - I.S. 219 New Venture School
      09X227 - Bronx Collegiate Academy
      09X276 - Leadership Institute
      09X313 - I.S. 313 School of Leadership Development
      09X324 - Bronx Early College Academy for Teaching & Learning
      09X325 - Urban Science Academy
      09X328 - New Millennium Business Academy Middle School
      09X329 - Dreamyard Preparatory School
      09X339 - I.S. 339
      09X412 - Bronx High School of Business
      10X080 - J.H.S. 080 The Mosholu Parkway
      10X085 - P.S. 085 Great Expectations
      10X331 - The Bronx School of Young Leaders
      10X363 - Academy for Personal Leadership and Excellence
      10X391 - The Angelo Patri Middle School
      10X438 - Fordham Leadership Academy for Business and Technology
      10X440 - Dewitt Clinton High School
      11X112 - P.S. 112 Bronxwood
      11X289 - The Young Scholars Academy of the Bronx
      11X370 - School of Diplomacy
      12X092 - P.S. 092 Bronx
      12X217 - School of Performing Arts
      12X286 - Fannie Lou Hamer Middle School
      12X384 - Entrada Academy
      12X463 - Urban Scholars Community School
      12X692 - Monroe Academy for Visual Arts & Design

MAYOR AND CHANCELLOR KICK OFF FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL WITH NEW EQUITY AND EXCELLENCE FOR ALL INITIATIVES REACHING OVER 800 SCHOOLS


New initiatives will raise the bar: 80 percent of students will graduate high school on time, and 2/3 of students will be college-ready

Building on Pre-K for All and Community Schools, City promotes academic excellence, student & community support, and innovation

  Mayor Bill de Blasio and Schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña today joined students, families, and educators to celebrate the first day of school, starting the day with a 7th-grade student and her new Single Shepherd at IS 392 in Brownsville. This will be the first full school year of the Equity and Excellence reforms first laid out by Mayor Bill de Blasio last September. The Equity and Excellence initiatives will support progress across all schools so that, by 2026, 80 percent of students graduate high school on time, two-thirds of graduates are college-ready, and all students are reading in 2nd grade.
There is momentum across the Equity and Excellence for All initiatives; below is a by-the-numbers breakdown for the 2016-17 school year:

Single Shepherd
Single Shepherd is pairing every student in grades 6-12 in District 7 in the South Bronx and District 23 in Brownsville with a dedicated school counselor or social worker who will support them in their school on the path to graduation and college enrollment.

This school year, approximately 120 Single Shepherds are serving all16,000 grade 6-12 students at all 51 middle and high schools in Districts 7 and 23.

Universal Literacy
Through Universal Literacy, every school will receive support from a dedicated reading coach who will work with teachers to ensure all students are reading on grade level by the end of 2nd grade. Within six years, at least two-thirds of students will be able to read proficiently by the end of 2nd grade, with the target of 100 percent of all 2nd graders reading at grade level by 2026.

This school year, 103 Universal Literacy reading coaches are supporting all107 elementary schools in Districts 9 and 10 in the Bronx and Districts 17 and 32 in Brooklyn.

Algebra for All
Through Algebra for All, by 2022, every student will have access to Algebra in 8th grade, complete Algebra no later than 9th grade, and there will be academic supports in place in elementary and middle school to build greater Algebra readiness.

This school year, 67 elementary schools are “departmentalizing” 5th-grade math – having their math instruction led by a specialized teacher who received intensive training the spring and summer. Including those schools, over 400 elementary, middle, and high school teachers across 205 schools are returning to their schools with expanded expertise in math instruction.

AP for All
AP for All is adding Advanced Placement courses at underserved schools across the City; by fall 2021, students at all high schools will have access to at least five AP classes.

This school year, 63 high schools are offering new AP courses, including35 that offered no AP courses during the 2015-16 school year. An additional 71 high schools are receiving pre-AP support to strengthen student and teacher readiness for AP courses in future years.

Computer Science for All
Through Computer Science for All, every student will receive computer science education in elementary, middle, and high school by 2025.

This school year, 246 elementary, middle, and schools are participating in Computer Science for All, including 98 offering full-year or multi-year sequences. Across these schools, 457 teachers are receiving rigorous professional development and support to implement these programs.

College Access for All – Middle School
Through College Access for All – Middle School, by the 2018-19 school year, every middle school student will have the opportunity to visit a college campus.

This school year, 167 middle schools across ten districts will bring over20,000 students to college campuses during the school year, and offer new workshops and resources for students and families around high school, college, and career success.

College Access for All – High School
Through College Access for All – High School, by the 2018-19 school year, every student will have the resources and supports at their high school to graduate with an individual college and career plan.

This school year, 100 high schools are receiving new training and funding to build a schoolwide college and career culture. All 68,000 New York City high school juniors will be able to take the SAT free of charge during the school day on April 5, 2017.

District-Charter Partnerships
District-Charter Partnerships will pair district and charter schools to foster strong relationship and share best practices. Partnerships include facilitated conversations among schools, organized visits, and sharing of resources and strategies.

This school year, over 130 district and charter schools will partner around sharing best practices. Currently, this includes 108 schools – 11 co-located schools building campus community and sharing practices; 19 schools in District 16 in Brooklyn participating in a district-wide district-charter partnership; and 78 schools in Districts 18, 19, and 23 in Brooklyn engaged in the DOE Uncommon Schools-Impact Partnership. An additional 28 schools will be identified for new collaborative learning partnerships this fall.

Pre-K for All
Pre-K for All is in its second year of providing a free, full-day, high-quality pre-K seat for every four-year-old in New York City – better preparing our youngest students to learn and be successful in kindergarten and beyond.
  
This school year, 70,430 children are registered to attend free, full-day, high-quality pre-K, more than triple the 20,000 children who attended before the Pre-K for All expansion. Last year, on the first day of school,65,504 children were registered. Families can continue to find free, full-day, high quality pre-K seats by calling 311 or visiting nyc.gov/prek.

Community Schools
New York City’s 130 Community Schools recognize that in order for students to achieve academic excellence, we must support the whole child, as well as their family. Community Schools support students, engage families, and strengthen communities from all sides; integrating academics, health, youth development, and family engagement and providing access to critical programs and services like vision screening, mentoring, expanded learning programs, adult education, and mental health counseling. Each school is paired with a lead Community Based Organization partner that works collaboratively with the principal and the school community to do this work.

The Mayor and Chancellor will continue to highlight these initiatives with five-borough tours. After the visit to IS 392, the Mayor will visit the expanded pre-K program at PS 161 in Queens; PS 154 in the Bronx, a Renewal and Community School; and the KIPP Infinity Charter School in Manhattan.

Street Naming for Reverend Luis F. Serrano


  You should know that on Saturday, September 10, 2016 at 11:00AM, Chatterton Avenue, between Virginia and Puglsey Avenues in Bronx County will be renamed in honor of Reverend Luis F. Serrano.
As you already know, for many years, Reverend Luis Serrano has served as a Chaplain for the New York City Police Department, and as such, he has been one of the spiritual counselors for more than 30,000 men and women who comprise the NYPD, serving equally without regard to anyone’s race, color, creed, national origin, disability, gender, sexual preference, marital or veteran status, or any other legally protected status.
Reverend Luis Serrano has also been one of the Officers of the Assembly of God in the Eastern Hispanic District. He serves as the Parochial Vicar of the Assembly of God Church in Brooklyn. Reverend Luis Serrano is the Pastor of the Pentecostal Assembly Church located at 320 47th Street in Brooklyn, on the corner of Third Avenue.
Since he came from Puerto Rico, his homeland, where he resided in El Barrio San José, Toa Baja, Reverend Luis Serrano has resided in Bronx County where he has humbly served people from a variety of ethnicities including Jewish, Black, Italian, Irish, Asian, and Dominican, in many capacities.
It is important for you to know that Reverend Serrano’s social and religious efforts and contributions to families and residents of Bronx County has drawn the attention of New York City Council Members Annabel Palma and Rafael Salamanca, who have obtained approval of the New York City Council to change the name of the block where Reverend Serrano resides at 1965 Chatterton Avenue to Reverend Luis F. Serrano Way.
For this ceremony, they have chosen Saturday, September 10, 2016 at 11:00AM , when the Council Members together with other elected officials, community leaders, ministers, and Members of the New York City Police Department will be officially declaring Chatterton Avenue as Reverend Luis F. Serrano Way.
I am Councilman Reverend Rubén Díaz and this is what you should know.