WHITE PLAINS CITIZENETREPORTER SETS RECORD VISITS FOR YEAR 7,017,658 VISITS! 2,098,003 VISITORS MADE 6 VISITS A DAY EVERY DAY. 63,330 UNIQUE VISITORS MADE 133,730 VISITS IN DECEMBER. WPCNR AVERAGED 17,284 VISITORS A WEEK, VISITING 31,270 TIMES.

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Out of the Sun

 

The Arizona engulfed December 7, 1941 Pearl Harbor

 

Out of the sun on the quiet Sunday they came

Steel birds of death blazened with red suns raining fiery havoc on Battleship Row.

One by one, ruthless planes dove, destroyed to their nation’s shame

Thunderous explosions scattered fiery death on Sunday dawn’s glow.

 

Flames belched from bowels of stricken Arizona, America’s pride,

On Hicham Field pilots raced to planes to defend

As their birds were crippled on ground by Zeros’ glide

Gunners in turrets on ships floundering filled skies with flack’s din.

 

In search of carriers the marauders could not find

They ruthlessly strafed and bombed leaving Pearl

In smoking ruin, ships sunk, burning as raiders flew into the Sun

The day of infamy had been ignited in the Zeros’ swirl.

 

The Attack Begins 8 AM December 7, 1941

 

As America listened a world away, a somber FDR

Spoke of December 7 as ever a day that will live in infamy.

America must never forget that  Pearl Harbor Scar

When an unsuspecting America slept in complacency.

 

To the 2,403 who perished that day under merciless bombs

Hails of bullets,  terror of torpedos out of nowhere

America must remember forces against our freedoms

Relentlessly work always to surprise us with deadly bombs’ glare.

 

Vigilence is the price of freedom that must always be defended

Against those who would destroy our republic from within

As well as the dark forces in far off places we have offended.

But the answer is not curtailing freedom at home rather it to champion.

 

The USS Arizona lies in Pearl’s waters, bleeding the lives

Of her men through the eerie eternal slick marking the rusting hulk.

Beneath Pearl’s waters, the blood of free people oozes from the shadowy bulk,

Bleeding forever, freedom’s spirit living forever in lost lives remembered.

 

She never rests.

 

 

Note: The Pearl Harbor attack which took place 65 years ago today and its aftermath is dramatically depicted at http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/events/wwii-pac/pearlhbr/pearlhbr.htm

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WPCNR THE HOMELESS NEWS. By John F. Bailey. December 6, 2007. UPDATED December 7, 2007 UPDATED 5:24 PM EST DECEMBER 7, 2007: Donna Greene of the Westchester County Department of Communications confirmed this afternoon that the Vaughn Glanton shelter in Mount Vernon will be closing as of December 14.

Meanwhile the City of White Plains, the clergy, and Westchester County continue to consider opening a White Plains Warming Shelter.

Ms. Greene said in a statement today:  “the Westhab shelter is closing because there is a separate 25-bed drop in in Mt Vernon that is still open and is in fact under-utilized.  We have had success in Mount Vernon getting people into the regular shelter system, where they get services. So this accounts for the lack of use of the other shelters.”

The WestHab Warming Center (Vaughn Glanton at Vernon Plaza) which had been open previously, WPCNR was told by Karl Bertrand of the Westchester Coalition for the Hungry and Homeless that the County has decided to close the Mount Vernon Westhab Warming Shelter in one week. This drops the number of Warming Centers for undomiciled persons in the county to four, where homeless can sleep in a warm place but only chairs are provided.  Bertrand said “It seems as if the county is concentrating on removing the safety nets rather than providing them.”

Bertrand added this information Friday morning: “There will however still be a fourth safety net resource: the drop-in  safety net shelters run in Yonkers by the Sharing Community, which fit together with their HUD-funded day-time drop-in center to make a coherent 24-hour safety net program.
Theirs is the only city with a comprehensive program that doesn’t leave homeless people out on the street with nowhere to go for hours  every day.”

They are located in Mount Vernon, New Rochelle and Peekskill:

Vaughn Glanton at Vernon Plaza, run by Westhab will no longer be available after December 14. Only Friendship Worship Center will be open in Mount Vernon.

Bertrand said that negotiations are continuing behind the scenes on the White Plains Warming Center plan where churches would alternate providing a warming center, with Grace Church Community Services providing the professional expertise. Bertrand added that the Coalition for the Hungry and Homeless is planning demonstrations to coincide with the opening of the Ritz Carlton Westchester in White Plains to dramatize the lack of a warming center in White Plains.

 

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WPCNR THE HOMELESS NEWS. By John F. Bailey. December 6, 2007: White Plains is no closer to establishing a Warming Shelter for undomiciled individuals roaming the streets, sleeping in doorways or in subfreezing shelters in the woods, culverts and rooftops of White Plains than it was a week ago when members of the concerned White Plains clergy presented their plan to the Common Council.

A spokesperson for Reverend Carter Via of the Presbyterian Chuch of White Plains said Reverend Via thought there might be “something today” on the issue.

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Reverend Carter Via had been expecting a call from Mayor Joseph Delfino yesterday but the call never came. Via’s assistant at The Presbyterian Church of White Plains said possibly there might be some movement today on the issue. Via and Rabbi Lester Bronstein said at last Wednesday’s presentation they would go to the County Executive, Andrew Spano, to seek a commitment for funding the White Plains Warming Shelter, since the council last Wednesday had indicated informally by a 4-2-1 consensus that it would accept a warming shelter at a church within the downtown area of White Plains.

The county press office could not confirm whether the clergy had arranged a meeting with Executive Spano, had scheduled a meeting, or had even contacted Spano.

Meanwhile, the overnight temperatures plunged into the low 20s, high teens last night. The clergy had settled on a plan by which homeless individuals, turned away from overnight stay at county shelters because of refusal to abide by county conditions of service, would stay at a White Plains church overnight from 10 PM to 6 AM with the location altering between two to four churches through April.

To date, the program has not been implemented because it requires county funding and county staffing (supplied by Grace Church Community Services).

The city on another homeless matter, the stream of refugees from last week’s 208 S. Lexington Avenue fire has been quick to arrange with Centro Hispano and local hotels for the placement of those individuals

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WPCNR CITY CIRCUIT. By John F. Bailey. December 5, 2007: The White Plains Housing Authority is planning to issue $8 Million in municipal bonds for an extensive renovation of the Armory Plaza Senior Center and apartments.  A public hearing on the proposed bond issue will be held December 18 at the Planning Board at 7 PM.

The bonds will be used according to a legal notice for “renovation of the Residential Units and the Senior Center.”

Related Apartment Preservation of New York, the owners of the 52-unit complex, for which the City of White Plains pays $264,000 a year to rent the space (in a deal just agreed to in October, 2006), will use the bonds to pay for the alterations, according to Mack Carter, Executive Director of the White Plains Housing Authority. It is not clear at this time when the renovations are planned, what it involved and whether seniors would have to be temporarily relocated from the building. WPCNR has contacted the city and the Related Apartment Preservation press office for details.

The Related Apartment Preservation organization signed an agreement with the city in October of 2006 where the city pays $264,000 annually to rent the senior center until 2015, with 2% increase in 2016 to $269,280) through 2026, and to 2036 if the 10 year extension is agreed upon. 

At the time this rent was agreed to, there was no mention that the apartments or the senior center needed any renovations or was in any way, inadequate. 

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WPCNR FOR THE RECORD. From White Plains City School District. December 4, 2007:  As a service to our thousands of readers worldwide, WPCNR herewith publishes in its entirety, the Strategic Plan adopted for the next decade by the White Plains City School District Board of Education.

The report begins with a statement of the District’s Core Values and Mission Statement, followed by Strategic Objectives to be achieved by the year 2012.  When originally commissioned the plan was described as being devised to guide district policy for the next decade.

On the page reporting the Strategic Objectives there is a section entitled List of Results which as far as WPCNR can tell is what will have been achieved after the School District has attempted to meet the Strategic Objectives.

Following the Strategic Objectives are a set of 5 Strategies to achieve the Strategic Objectives, followed by the List of Results expected to be achieved by those Strategic Objectives.

Herewith, the Strategic Plan as adopted by the Board of Education Monday evening.

Core Values

We believe that:

·         All people have intrinsic value

·         Celebrating and embraching diversity enrich life

·         All people can learn, grow and contribute

·         Every choice matters, and that people are responsible for their choices

·         Respect, honesty and trust empower

·         When people serve the community, both the individuals and the community benefit

·         High expectations promote high achievement

 

 

 

 

MISSION

 

The mission of the White Plains City School District is to educate and inspire all students, while nurturing their dreams, so they learn continually, think critically, pursue their aspirations and contribute to a diverse and dynamic world.

 

 

Strategic Objectives

 

By 2012:

 

* All students will achieve challenging district standards of literacy across all disciplines.

* All students will continually choose to explore and enrich communities.

*  All students will choose to apply their knowledge and skills to solve problems meaningful to them.

 

List of Results (By 2012)

 

1.       All staff, students and parents understand the strategic objectives, rubrics, processes for assessing student growth and their role in the process.

2.       Rubrics relevant to all student levels have been developed.

3.       Processes for collecting evidence and assessing student performance, using the rubrics, are being piloted.

4.       Processes for gathering/collecting student performance data, in areas not assessed through current state assessments, are in place and being used.

5.       Systems are being used to gather, manage, analyze and share relevant student performance data for use by faculty, administrators, students and parents.

6.       The data collected are being used throughout the school District to support student progress and achieve the strategic objectives.

 

STRATEGIES

 

Strategy 1

 

We will take the steps necessary to:

 

Gain the understanding and commitment of all employees to achieve our strategic objectives and mission

 

List of Results

 

1.       Every employee understands the vision, goals and implications of the mission and strategic objective.

2.       A climate that builds trust and supports risk-taking is developed.

3.       Employees’ ideas and concerns are valued in the decision making process.

4.       The district has established a culture that celebrates programs and people achieving the strategic objectives and mission.

5.       Employees are encouraged in their efforts to achieve the strategic objectives and mission.

 

Strategy 2

 

We will take the steps necessary to:

 

Align new and existing resources, both internal and external, to accomplish our strategic objectives and mission

 

List of Results

 

1.       A systematic process is in place that assures all programs and projects are mission reflective and cost effective.

2.       An evaluation/feedback system is in place that measures how effectively and efficiently resources are used.

3.       A systematic process is in place that identifies, attracts recruits, motivates, evaluates, and retains the people needed to support the mission and strategic objectives.

4.       A budget process is in place that assures that resource allocations are mission aligned.

5.       A systematic process is in place that assures we develop and maximize community resources to support the mission and strategic objectives.

6.       A systematic process is in place that assures the district has the fiscal resources needed to support the mission and strategic objectives.

7.       A systematic process is in place that assures the district has the capital resources and major equipment needed to support the mission and strategic objectives.

 

Strategy 3

 

We will take the steps necessary to:

 

Align and develop curriculum to achieve our strategic objectives and mission

 

List of Results

 

1.       As the foundation for all learning, at least 90% of all students are reading on grade level by the end of 2^nd grade and are maintaining or exceeding grade level thereafter. As our success rate increases, so will our goal.

2.       A systematic process is developed that analyzes and uses student demographic and performance data to inform and influence program curricular, and instructional decisions and reporting.

3.       Best practices of differentiated instruction (DI) are continually implemented to enable all students to achieve the strategic objectives so that each child will reach proficiency level in all content areas.

4.       School, classroom practices, and environments reflect principles that promote students’ motivation and love of learning.

5.       In all disciplines, curriculum maps ensure alignment with state standards and integrate technology, problem solving and global awareness to the strategic objectives.

6.       School and classroom practices and environments reflect principles that promote community building to achieve the strategic objectives.

 

Strategy 4

 

We will take the steps necessary to:

 

Develop and capitalize on leadership capacity within the system at all levels to sustain commitment to our strategic objectives and mission

 

List of Results

 

1.       All district administrators are proficient in the essential characteristics of effective leadership.

2.       All staff members, parents, community members, and students are encouraged and supported in assuming and sharing leadership roles that contribute to the achievement of the district’s mission and strategic objectives (i.e., “institutionalize” distributive leadership).

3.       There is a pool of skilled leaders from within who have successfully completed a district-specific, meaningful and comprehensive internship experience.

4.       The district has developed cooperative relationships with college and university graduate educational administration programs that have internships designed to support the strategic plan and district initiatives.

5.       The district has established a plan for a regional leadership academy for teachers and administrators in cooperation with other school districts and universities.*

 

 

·         Postpone until results 1 through 4 are achieved.

 

Strategy 5

 

We will take the steps necessary to:

 

Develop an open and ongoing communication process that results in all stakeholders believing in the value of a White Plains City School District education and actively participating in reaching our strategic objectives and mission

 

List of Results

 

1.       The district uses a coordinated and integrated approach to disseminate general and newsworthy information in order to educate all stakeholders.

2.       The district creates opportunities to engage stakeholders in an open exchange of ideas.

3.       Communication with stakeholders effectively reflects a multicultural and diverse community.

4.       Community members are working in systematic ways to support students’ achievement of the strategic objectives.

 

 

STRATEGIC DELIMITERS

 

We will not:

 

Adopt any new program or service unless it is:

 

·         Consistent with and contributes to our mission;

·         Accompanied by an analysis of the resources and the staff development needed for its effectiveness;

·         Accompanied by a plan to assess its ongoing effectiveness.