High school principal, others removed pending probe into alleged grade-fixing for athletes
JERSEY CITY — The Jersey City school district on Friday removed the principal of Lincoln High School along with three other employees while school was still in session. School board member Sean Connors confirmed to the Jersey City Reporter that the removal took place and the employees were reassigned to the school district office pending an investigation. Connors said the investigation was looking into allegations that the grades of some Lincoln High School athletes were fixed to allow them to remain eligible.
Connors said he was informed by schools superintendent Dr. Charles Epps before the removal took place and after.
The removed employees identified so far are Prinicipal Jeannette Braswell-McRae and Athletic Director Artie Williams.
Connors said it would be “sad” for Lincoln if the allegations were true. He noted that the high school has enjoyed great press recently due to the success of their football team and the school’s soccer coach being honored by the Hudson County Interscholastic Athletic League.
For more on this story, check www.hudsonreporter.com for updates. – Ricardo Kaulessar
Ex-councilman sentenced to 18 months in connection with former Hoboken Mayor Cammarano
HOBOKEN – Former 2nd Ward Councilman Michael Schaffer, who was recently ensnared in a statewide federal sting operation into government corruption, was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison on Tuesday in U.S. District Federal Court.
Schaffer was accused of having been the link between former Hoboken Mayor Peter Cammarano and a government informant posing as a real estate developer. The informant, Solomon Dwek, met with Cammarano when Cammarano was running for mayor and offered to give him cash in exchange for favorable treatment regarding development.
Schaffer was accused of having introduced Dwek to Cammarano and being the conduit for the cash. He pleaded guilty last June to one count of conspiracy to commit extortion.
Stevens Institute picks new prez
HOBOKEN AND BEYOND — Just a week after the Hoboken school board completed an arduous process to find their new superintendent of schools, the Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken has also found their new leader after a long search, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal.
Dr. Nairman Farvardin, 55, is expected to be announced as the new president of Stevens Institute of Technology on Tuesday, Jan. 18, according to the report. He will take over this July 1, according to the Wall Street Journal, and will earn a $625,000 annual salary. Farvardin currently serves as a provost for the University of Maryland.
The previous school president, Harold Raveche, suffered during a scandal in which the state attorney general alleged that Stevens was mismanaging finances and also charged that the school was overcompensating its president.
For additional coverage, check this weekend’s Hoboken Reporter.
Hoboken historian to run for council
HOBOKEN – Leonard Luizzi, a 5th Ward Hoboken longtime resident and the current official city historian, is the first to publicly announced that he will challenge Councilman Peter Cunningham in the 5th Ward in the May 10 council election, when six ward seats will expire.
Cunningham has already filed paperwork with the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC) for the May election. No other 5th Ward challenger has filed paperwork to run for office, but Luizzi declared his candidacy in a letter/advertisement on page 3 of The Hoboken Reporter this past weekend.
Luizzi writes that he has never held elected office, but has “served Hoboken in a variety of civic capacities,” including on the Friends of the Hoboken Public Library, the Hoboken Jaycees, the Hoboken Elks Lodge, the Hoboken Knights of Columbus, and is a past president of the Hoboken Historical Museum, as well as other community organizations.
“[The] ability to work with all political factions, with every demographic group in our culturally diverse city, is arguably one of the most important qualifications I would bring to the City Council,” Luizzi wrote in the letter.
For the complete letter, see page 3 of the Jan. 16 Hoboken Reporter. – Ray Smith
NCAC to host free small business financing seminar
North Hudson Community Action Corp. (NHCAC) will host a free small business financing seminar on Monday, Jan. 24 at Union City High School from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.
The financing seminar will feature panelists from the Hudson County Economic Development Corp., the federal Small Business Administration (SBA), TD North Bank, and the Union County Economic Development Corp. Small business owners seeking financing for their businesses are urged to attend, ask questions, and meet potential lending organizations.
Union City High School is located at 2600 Kennedy Blvd. Free parking will be available at the Union City Parking Garage on 23rd Street, between Summit and Kerrigan avenues.
For more information, please contact Joe Lauro at (201) 819-2596.