Stevens ranked 76th best national university by U.S. News & World Report
Stevens Institute of Technology was named the 76th best national university in America in U.S. News & World Report’s annual ranking.
Stevens was the third highest ranked national university in New Jersey after Princeton University at number 1 and Rutgers University at 70th.
Stevens shared its position in the ranking with nine other institutions, including Marquette University, the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, and the University of Delaware.
U.S. News & World Report ranks schools on up to 16 “indicators of academic excellence,” but how exactly they are weighted is a closely held secret. Well-known factors considered include freshman retention rate, acceptance rate, and median SAT scores.
Though the U.S. News rankings have been criticized as subjective and some schools elect not to participate, they are generally a good indicator of a school’s prestige.
At Stevens’ 144th Convocation last week, President Nariman Farvardin said the incoming Class of 2018 was the most academically distinguished class his school has ever admitted. The median SATs of students entering Stevens have increased 50 points in the past three years.
Farvardin also mentioned that graduate applications to Stevens have increased by 58 percent in the past three years.
Interim police chief responds to Councilwoman’s claims over Garcia termination meeting
In a letter recently released by the city, Interim Police Chief Edelmiro “Eddie” Garcia has responded to claims by a city councilwoman that “alarming…civil rights violations” occurred during the August Hoboken Housing Authority board special meeting at which Executive Director Carmelo Garcia was fired.
Garcia was terminated at an Aug. 4 meeting in City Hall’s council chambers that saw many more potential attendees that could fit in the room. The proceedings were marked by frequent chanting by HHA residents supportive of Garcia along with sporadic physical altercations, and Hoboken Police were called upon to maintain order.
In an open letter distributed citywide around Aug. 17, 2nd Ward Councilwoman Beth Mason alleged that HHA board members brought police from nearby cities, including K-9 units, to the meeting in an attempt to “exploit residents and portray them as hostile.” She also stated that the meeting was held in a room that was not handicap-accessible, “forcing a senior citizen who is confined to a wheelchair to sit outside in the heat.”
In a letter to Zimmer dated Aug. 20, Chief Garcia denied any animus against public housing residents, stating that all of his department’s actions at the board meeting were taken “to ensure that the public at hand during this meeting were afforded the safety and protection they are entitled to,” regardless of their political position.
“It appears that the councilwoman is injecting her own ‘spin’ on this meeting and possibly attempting to take advantage of the media attention that has been so prevalent of late due to recent events happening nationwide,” wrote Garcia, in an apparent reference to the protests in Ferguson, Missouri.
With respect to the presence of police and K-9 units from Union City, Weehawken, and other jurisdictions, Garcia said he was well within his rights to request such assistance and did so “to ensure the pubic safety [sic] city wide while maintaining cost-efficiency in the deployment of overtime personnel,” which is an issue that comes up frequently in City Council meetings.
“This is not a unique situation in Hoboken,” wrote Garcia, “as we have regularly deployed mutual aid personnel during many high profile events” including the St. Patrick’s Day LepreCon and Independence Day celebrations.
He said K-9 units were provided by one of the assisting police departments, but not at his request.
Garcia also stated that the council chambers had been handicap-accessible via elevator from City Hall’s Newark Street entrance.
However, in a follow-up letter dated Sept. 3, Mason maintained that the elevator had been non-functioning the night of the special HHA meeting and presented photographs allegedly showing an “Out of Service” sign on the elevator doors.
In the conclusion of his letter, Garcia asserts that the professionalism of his officers could be seen in the results of the meeting.
“NO arrests were made on any police complaint resulting from this meeting,” he wrote, “NO one’s civil rights were violated, there were no civilian complaints lodged against any Hoboken Police Officer, not one person was injured due to activities at this meeting, the meeting itself was not impeded by the actions of any attendee, and area businesses were not affected as a result of police activities which were in place.”
In the month since Executive Director Garcia was fired, the city administration has stayed assiduously out of the fray, with Chief Garcia’s letter being the first major official statement on the events of that night. Mayor Dawn Zimmer has stated repeatedly that she considers the HHA board to be an independent body and did not influence their decision to terminate Executive Director Garcia.
Zimmer was not present at the HHA special meeting on Aug. 4. In her open letter, Councilwoman Mason alleged that Mayor Zimmer refused to meet with the hundreds of residents who engaged in a peaceful march from 221 Jackson St. to City Hall prior to the meeting to “protest the Mayor’s interference with the Housing Authority.”
Carmelo Garcia was elected last year to represent Hoboken in the state assembly. He has had a long-term conflict with Mayor Zimmer, and has a pending lawsuit against her for allegedly forcing him to appoint hand-picked professionals and discriminating against him.
Hoboken financial consultant pleads to tax evasion; could face five years in prison
A Hoboken-based financial consultant has pleaded guilty to evading payment on taxes on income totaling around $273,000, according to a statement released by the office of U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey Paul Fishman.
In a Newark federal court on Monday, John Twomey Booth admitted to willfully attempting to evade the payment of federal personal income tax for calendar year 2008.
Booth, 66, offered financial consulting services in Hoboken and elsewhere. Between March 2006 and December 2009, he accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars in payments from an insurance broker based in Towson, Maryland, according to documents filed in this case and statements made in court.
The broker’s companies provided services for both the Weehawken Board of Education and the Union City Board of Education, among other New Jersey municipal entities, court documents alleged.
Booth neglected to report around $719,000 in income to the IRS for the years 2006, 2007, 2008, and 2009, according to documents and statements introduced in court. However, the count to which Booth pleaded guilty dealt specifically with roughly $273,000 in commission payments from the Towson insurance broker.
Booth was responsible for paying $119,731 in taxes on those payments.
Booth’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for Dec. 15, 2014. The maximum penalty he can be given for the tax evasion count is 5 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The U.S. government is represented in the case by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lee M. Cortes Jr. Booth is represented by New York attorney Richard Lawler.
Gold Coast chapter of BNI holds Visitors Day
BNI, an international networking organization specializing in business referrals among members, is holding a Visitors’ Day for its Gold Coast Chapter on September 17, 2014 at The Sheraton in Weehawken, NJ. Amir Illin, Director Consultant of BNI, will share the BNI secrets to success through word-of-mouth marketing. The organization generated over 5.4 million referrals for member businesses in 2013 alone, which generated over $6.5 billion worth of business for its members. Anyone interested in attending the meeting is welcome. Please call Pete Romano for reservations at (914) 715-2058. For more information about BNI, visit their website at www.bni.com.
Texas Arizona is first Hoboken bar to offer payment by mobile app
Patrons of Hoboken sports bar Texas Arizona can now open and close tabs via smartphone. Starting this past Thursday, the downtown bar and grill began allowing payments via HouseTab, a mobile payment app for iPhone and Android launched in 2011. HouseTab stores the credit card information of its users, allowing them to automatically pay upon departure, similar to a rideshare with Uber or Lyft. The app also has a social function, allowing users to chat with their friends and send and receive food and drinks. Texas Arizona is the first bar to offer HouseTab as an option in Hoboken, following a number of establishments across the Hudson River in New York City. The bar is located at 76 River Street adjacent to the PATH Terminal.
Hoboken Library looking for Book Buddies, Young Volunteers
Now that school is back in session, it’s time to think about your student’s after school activities. Starting on Thursday, Oct. 2 at 3:30, the Hoboken Public Library will resume its popular Book Buddies program. This program matches fluent readers, ages 8 through teens, with young children, ages 3 1/2 to 5, so that the older children can read to the younger children. We are especially looking for “readers” who are responsible and willing to commit to the weekly program. Students who have a community service responsibility in school or for Honor Society will be able to get a letter if they volunteer for the program. To volunteer, students or parents need to contact the library at 201-420-2348 or e-mail to juvenile@hoboken.bccls.org and provide the reader’s name, school, age, grade, phone and an e-mail for program reminders.
Hoboken Catholic Academy selling tickets for annual golf outing on Oct. 17
Hoboken Catholic Academy will hold its annual golf outing at Meadows Golf Club in Lincoln Park on Friday Oct. 17 starting at 9:30 a.m. The event of one of the largest fundraisers the parochial school relies on to supplement its funding from tuition every year. For a $150 ticket, participants can enjoy 18 holes of golf along with breakfast, lunch and dinner. In addition, the outing will hold a 50/50 raffle for prizes, along with special prizes award to the best foursome, longest drive and other categories. The event is open to both men and women. Those interested in attending should contact Mike Tennaro at (201) 659-4175 or mtbull0507@hotmail.com in order to receive an application. Meadows Golf Club is located at 79 Two Bridges Road in Lincoln Park, NJ.
Photography exhibit on display at hob’art gallery until Oct. 5
Beyond the Photograph, an exhibition of artwork by Don Sichler and Roslyn Rose, will be open to the public from September 11 to October 5, 2014 at Hoboken’s hob’art cooperative gallery.
Rose photographs and collects images of interiors and exterior facades exposing the space behind doors and windows to reveal new images. In contrast, Sichler’s camera records images created by shadows, light, reflections and colors that occur for only a fleeting moment in time.
On Sunday, September 21 at 3:30pm, the artists will talk about their artwork and welcome questions from visitors.
hob’art cooperative gallery is located in Room E208 of the Monroe Center for the Arts at 720 Monroe Street in Hoboken. Gallery hours are Thursday to Sunday, 1 to 5pm and by appointment.
More information can be found on the website www.hob-art.org or by contacting France Garrido at 201-319-1504 or director@hob-art.org. Free parking is available at the rear of the building on Jackson Street.