New Bookmobile Whets Students’ Literary Appetites

By SHA-NIA ALSTON & SÍLE MOLONEY

When Dr. Joan Kong arrived as the new principal of PS 11X in Highbridge in September 2011, the first thing she checked out was the school’s library and immediately assessed that it was not fit for purpose. “This is not a library,” she said, at that time, to Roseanna Gulisano, the school’s librarian. “So we are going to start from here and we are going to make this a real library, where kids have the opportunity to read, to enjoy reading, to love books and have the opportunities that they wouldn’t have gotten at home or [by] going to the

By DAVID CRUZ

Dear Fellow Readers, The year’s thirteenth edition of the Norwood News is out with plenty of great community news stories to dive into. There’s almost something happening in this corner of the Bronx, and we’ve captured a good chunk of it. And as usual, we’ll start with page one! Our front-page story focuses on more additions slated for the Jerome Avenue Men’s Shelter, which will now see a drug treatment center offered to those not housed at the shelter. Read the story by Jose A. Giralt. Read why the move has irked Community Board 7. Inside the cover you’ll find a piece on a barely

When students show up for the start of the new school year in September at DeWitt Clinton High School, they can expect to find their building split up yet again. By a unanimous vote of 9 to 0, the Panel for Educational Policy (PEP) voted on May 29 to use some of the space deemed underutilized at DeWitt Clinton Campus (DWCC) to co-locate the District 75 school known as PS X721 Stephen McSweeney within its walls. The new school will move into the building already shared by Clinton, Bronx Collaborative H.S., World View H.S., and PS X168—serving students in grades

By DAVID CRUZ

Dear Fellow Readers, The year’s ninth edition of the Norwood News is out with plenty of community news you can use. There’s 20 pages full of great stories impacting the Bronx. And as usual, we’ll start with page one! Our front-page story has Mosholu Preservation Corporation (publisher of the Norwood News), asking a question: what are Norwood’s consumer needs? Norwood residents and stakeholders offered their take at a workshop that happened April16. But read about the needs from those who didn’t attend the workshop. We’ve picked up patterns. Inside the cover you’ll find a piece on Norwood Councilman Andrew Cohen

By JOSÉ A. GIRALT

Students, parents, school officials, and alumni following the future of co-locating a D75 school into the DeWitt Clinton Campus (DWCC) will have to wait until May 29 to find out the final outcome. The vote is now scheduled to take place at the William H. Taft Educational Campus at 240 E. 172nd St. After a joint hearing of the Panel for Educational Policy (PEP) and the Community Education Council (CEC) held April 2 at DWCC, the city Department of Education (DOE) determined that more time is needed to fully review some of the concerns of families and students. If passed,

Resistance Mounts Towards Third Co-Location at DeWitt Clinton Campus

By JOSÉ A. GIRALT

Students, parents, and teachers at DeWitt Clinton High School are once again being asked to share their campus with another school waiting in the wings. The new school, known as PS X721 Stephen McSweeney School, is comprised of students diagnosed with autism, intellectual or multiple disabilities as determined by their Individualized Education Program (IEP). The school would be part of District 75 (D75), where students from the district are already enrolled at DeWitt Clinton Campus, albeit in smaller classroom settings. And with the Panel for Educational Policy (PEP), the governing body comprised of mayoral appointees and slated to vote on

Electeds Want Your Questions for Town Hall Forum in Norwood

By DAVID CRUZ

Norwood’s representatives on the city and state level want you to bring your gripes to a town hall forum they’ve organized for tomorrow. The legislators–Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz, state Sen. Jamaal Bailey, Assemblywoman Nathalia, and Councilman Andrew Cohen–will be on hand for the forum starting at 7 p.m. at Montefiore Medical Center’s Cherkasky Auditorium. The forum allows residents to share any community concerns with the four representatives. For Dinowitz, this represents his fourth town hall since November, which has drawn roughly 100 residents on average. “I’m hoping we get a good crowd. We have, in the past, trouble getting crowds,” said

By DAVID GREENE

This week we asked readers if students should be accepted into specialized high schools on the basis of one test, or should the acceptance process be changed completely? Yes, I think it should be based on more than one test or maybe even something other than a test like overall grades. Some kids volunteer, maybe the extra work they do. Anything that shows how far they’ve been educated and what they know. Someone can recognize how good one is without the basis of a test. They should even look at a student’s interests. Richard Berroa Mt. Eden Yes, I feel

By DAVID CRUZ

Dear Fellow Readers, The year’s sixth edition of the Norwood News with plenty of community news you can use. We’ve packed 20 pages full of great stories impacting the Bronx. As usual, we’ll begin with page one! Our front-page story focuses on progress at the The Bedford Park Manor, which will now be occupied with a live-in super. The tenants have been fighting the landlord, The Stagg Group, for several months over the conditions at the building. Jose A. Giralt spoke to all sides. We also hear from West Bronx Housing, which breaks down the unconventional approach by tenants. Inside the cover