Archive

Update: Laborers’ Rep Calls Out “Corporate Greed” Amid Elevator Collapse

By DAWN CLANCY & SÍLE MOLONEY
This is an extended version of the story that appears in our latest print edition. A Laborers’ union representative is calling out elected officials to address “corporate greed” amid news of an elevator collapse in the South Bronx last week that left one person dead and another critically injured.     As reported by Norwood News, the FDNY responded to the collapse on Wednesday, May 19, at a site located at 20 Bruckner Boulevard in Port Morris in the vicinity of dense construction, part of a billion dollar waterfront development in the South Bronx. On arrival, they found one person dead and


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Schedule Announced for Bronx BP & City Council Candidates’ Debates on BronxNet TV

By SÍLE MOLONEY
          City Councilman Fernando Cabrera, Assemblywoman Nathalia Fernández, City Councilwoman Vanessa Gibson, retired NYPD Detective Sammy Ravelo, and State Sen. Luis Sepúlveda will participate in a debate on BronxNet airing on Monday, June 14, ahead of the June 22 primary election for Bronx borough president debate.  Photos via Twitter   BronxNet, in partnership with the League of Women Voters, City Limits, Norwood News, Dominicanos USA, Bronx Times and The Riverdale Press is presenting a debate between the candidates for Bronx borough president, as well as another series of debates between the candidates in the 11th, 12th 13th,


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Parents who Missed the “Pre-K for All” April Enrollment Deadline for their Child Can Still Apply

By SÍLE MOLONEY
Parents who missed the April 19 enrollment deadline to enter their child in the “Pre-K for All” program can still apply, according to the New York City Department of Education (DOE).   NYC Schools Chancellor Meisha Porter announced on Friday, May 28, a record ninety-one percent of families received an offer to one of their top three choices for free, full-day, high-quality Pre-K education. Seventy-seven percent of families received an offer to their top choice program, consistent with 2020. There are 57,511 families receiving Pre-K for All offers as of May 29, including all families who applied by the April


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Op-Ed: A Summer of Renewal for our Students

By MEISHA PORTER
This year has demanded that all New York City families and students do so many things differently—they’ve had to think differently, learn differently, and connect differently with teachers, peers, and the whole school community. At the Department of Education, we know we also have to think differently as we look towards the summer. For the first time ever, we are inviting all students to join us for a free, fun-filled, enriching summer program: Summer Rising.   This year, we will serve any student in grades K-12 in July and August who wants to participate, and I am excited to be


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NYC Parks & FDNY Rename Blackrock Playground in Honor of EMT Yadira Arroyo 

By SÍLE MOLONEY
Friends and family members of the late Yadira Arroyo were joined by community members and elected officials to officially rename Blackrock Playground, in Unionport, in honor of the FDNY Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) on Thursday, May 27.   Arroyo, a 14-year FDNY Emergency Medical Technician (EMT), was a dedicated leader and public servant who gave her life for the community.   She was tragically killed in the line of duty on March 16, 2017, one block from Blackrock Playground. NYC Parks First Deputy Commissioner Liam Kavanagh joined FDNY Commissioner Daniel Nigro, State Assembly Member Karines Reyes, and Community Board 9


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Commencement Ceremonies at Fordham, Lehman Celebrate Student Resilience

By SÍLE MOLONEY
  With a series of sunny, yet smaller-than-usual, diploma ceremonies held on the Rose Hill campus of Fordham University, as well as a university-wide commencement videocast, streamed on Saturday, May 22, graduates of the university were honored for their bravery and determination amid the pandemic, and Fordham flipped the script on an unprecedented year, offering the Class of 2021 a chance to celebrate their resilience, and look forward with hope.   During the videocast, Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of Fordham, officially conferred degrees upon nearly 5,500 graduates from ten different college schools, while acknowledging that it was not the commencement


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Big Guns Turn out for Swearing in Ceremony for Oswald Feliz as New District 15 City Councilman

By DAVID GREENE & SÍLE MOLONEY
A host of local elected officials joined former tenant lawyer and Hostos Community College adjunct professor, Oswald Feliz, as he was sworn in as city councilman of the 15th Council District, following his win in the March 23rd special election. Feliz assumes the seat left vacant for a few months following the resignation of the former councilman, now Congressman Ritchie Torres, after the latter won the 15th congressional race in November 2020.   The swearing in ceremony for Feliz was held on Sunday, May 2, at the Serviam Gardens, located at 2848 Bainbridge Avenue in Bedford Park. Officials in attendance included


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Politicians, Hip-Hop Legends Break Ground on New Universal Museum in South Bronx

By JOSÉ A. GIRALT
  The transformation of the South Bronx continued Thursday, May 20, with a groundbreaking ceremony for a new museum which will memorialize the history of hip-hop in the borough, part of a $349 million development known as Bronx Point.   With shovels in hand and scooping dirt from a pile of earth, elected officials, including Mayor Bill de Blasio, State Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, and Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr., joined hip-hop legends, Grandmaster Flash, Slick Rick, LL Cool J, Chuck D, Nas, and Fat Joe, in marking the ceremonial foundation of the museum’s construction.   The 22-story building


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