May 09, 2008

Foundling Building to Become Public School

"Don't dump homeless on Brooklyn"

Interest spurred in domestic-violence discussion group

May 08, 2008

Political Role of Group Councilman Financed Is Said to Be Investigated

Nonprofit proposes group home for developmentally disabled in Yonkers

Staten Island Housing Hits a Speed Bump

Watershed Corp. announces grants

College students direct eye toward human services

Friday, May 09, 2008

"Don't dump homeless on Brooklyn"
- fred_scaglione @ 5:39 am EST

A Bloomberg administration plan to move the city's central intake center for homeless men from Manhattan's East Side to Crown Heights brought a bevy of protesters, including Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, to the mayor's doorstep yesterday to make their feelings known. As reported Thursday by Daily News columnist Errol Louis, city homeless officials want to shift the intake center from its valuable 30th St. property to the Bedford-Atlantic Armory.

Interest spurred in domestic-violence discussion group
- fred_scaglione @ 5:37 am EST
Interest in Coffee Talk, a weekly domestic violence discussion group at the College of Staten Island, has grown following an article in the Staten Island Advance.

Thursday, May 08, 2008

Nonprofit proposes group home for developmentally disabled in Yonkers
- fred_scaglione @ 6:37 am EST
Lifespire, an agency that serves the developmentally disabled, has proposed a group home in the Lockwood area of Yonkers. It has submitted an application to the Planning Board for a group home at 49 Burhans Ave. for six developmentally disabled young men. See today’s Journal News.

Staten Island Housing Hits a Speed Bump
- fred_scaglione @ 6:35 am EST
The City Planning Commission yesterday approved a small piece -- mostly just the removal of trees -- of a controversial South Shore senior housing plan that pitted an historic church against some of its own members and the surrounding neighborhood. However, the Commission also added a catch to the concession: Rossville A.M.E Zion Church cannot begin construction on 119 senior apartments until an archaeological survey of the property is completed. See today’s Staten Island Advance.

Watershed Corp. announces grants
- fred_scaglione @ 6:33 am EST
Twenty-seven education grants totaling nearly $135,000 were recently approved by the Catskill Watershed Corp. Board of Directors.The awards will go to schools and non-profit organizations serving school-age students in the Catskills and in New York City. See today’s Daily Freeman.

College students direct eye toward human services
- fred_scaglione @ 6:32 am EST
A class of local college students has produced a report on human services in the City of Poughkeepsie and how they are provided. The Poughkeepsie Institute, created in 1995 by the Common Council, creates reports on various issues facing the city. The institute Monday morning released its latest report at a press conference at The Children's Media Project. See today’s Poughkeepsie Journal.

Miles of Hope 5K promises miles of new inspiration
- fred_scaglione @ 6:31 am EST
Now in its fifth year, the Mid-Hudson Road Runners Club's Miles of Hope Family Fun Run has raised more than $50,000 for the Miles of Hope Breast Cancer Foundation (www.milesofhopebcf.org). Race director Lori Cassia-Decker said pre-registration numbers for this year's race have more than doubled the 2007 field. See today’s Poughkeepsie Journal.

Program helps get people off government services in New Rochelle
- fred_scaglione @ 6:28 am EST
Family Self-Sufficiency, funded through grants and federal dollars, started in 1996 and works with people living in federally subsidized housing. Its aim is to get them off government services and keep them employed. Individual goals are set for participants, who are also taught about saving, investing, debt, insurance, homeownership, retirement and the like. See today’s Journal News.

Family History Minus One
- fred_scaglione @ 6:25 am EST
An article in today’s New York Times recounts the struggles of family members to trace the histories of developmentally disabled brothers and sisters who were institutionalized at birth in facilities such as Letchworth Village and Willowbrook.

Wednesday, May 07, 2008

Bloomy Eyes Unhealthy Deal
- fred_scaglione @ 5:39 am EST

Mayor Bloomberg is questioning stock options of up to $20 million that will go to the top executive at a nonprofit health insurer if it converts to a for-profit company, according to an article in the New York Post. The city is trying to block the conversion of HIP and Group Health Incorporated into a single for-profit company, arguing that would result in hundreds of millions of dollars in higher insurance premiums for all public employees.

Building Proposal by Greenwich Village Hospital Is Rejected
- fred_scaglione @ 5:36 am EST
The Landmarks Preservation Commission on Tuesday rejected a $1.6 billion development proposal by St. Vincent’s Hospital Manhattan. The plan would have demolished nine existing buildings to permit the construction of a 329-foot-tall hospital and a 265-foot-tall luxury condominium in conjunction with the Rudin Management Company. See today’sNew York Times.

Long Island Medicaid application delays could worsen
- fred_scaglione @ 5:35 am EST

Long Island has for years had some of the longest Medicaid processing delays in New York State, routinely taking more than twice as long to resolve a child's application than the 30-day federal deadline, state records show, according to today's Newday.
Now, officials say, the delays could get worse as a flood of new applicants seek publicly funded health care, prompted by a state economy heading into recession and a new push to enroll more people.

Sheep get clipped clean at Green Chimneys
- fred_scaglione @ 5:33 am EST
The animal-assisted therapy programming at Green Chimneys is profiled in today's Journal News.

New Nassau fees target day camps, the handicapped
- fred_scaglione @ 5:28 am EST
Nassau County is looking to impose fees on tanning salons, day camps and others -- including the handicapped -- to keep its budget balanced. Today's Newsday reported that the handicapped would pay a $15 replacement fee for lost parking placards, which could boost county revenue by $25,000 next year, according to a revised budget plan sent to legislators and fiscal monitors last week by County Executive Thomas Suozzi.

SI Community Board 3 Approves Residence
- fred_scaglione @ 5:24 am EST
Community Board 3's Human Resources Committee has voted unanimously in favor of a community residence for the developmentally disabled. See today’s Staten Island Advance.

Tuesday, May 06, 2008

N.Y. nursing shortage continues to worsen
- fred_scaglione @ 7:50 am EST
The state's nursing shortage is worsening and remains more severe than the national average, with hospitals facing serious challenges in hiring and keeping qualified nurses, according to a study released yesterday by the Health Care Association of New York State. See today’s Journal News.

Morahan among top 10 in state to get member-item funding
- fred_scaglione @ 7:48 am EST
State Sen. Thomas Morahan, R-New City, was among the top 10 state legislators to bring money back to his district as part of the legislature's discretionary funding, according to a list made public yesterday. The legislature doled out $147 million this fiscal year for more than 10,000 community projects across New York state. See today’s Journal News.

WIC program sees big gains in Brewster
- fred_scaglione @ 7:41 am EST
The WIC program, run by the Putnam County Health Department, started more than 21 years ago and has recently seen tremendous growth since setting up a permanent location in Brewster in 2006. See today’s Journal News

Dogswalk Against Cancer at Bear Mountain State Park
- fred_scaglione @ 7:36 am EST
More than 700 dogs and their owners gathered at Bear Mountain State Park yesterday for the 16th annual Dogswalk Against Cancer, according to an article in the Journal News.

Floating Pool Lady to splash into Hunts Point
- fred_scaglione @ 5:13 am EST
The city's acclaimed floating swimming pool is coming to the Bronx for the summer - and is most likely here to stay, according to today’s Daily News. The Floating Pool Lady, a seven-lane, 82-foot pool that docked in Brooklyn Heights last summer, is scheduled to open for business in Hunts Point June 27 as schools close and summer heats up. And Ann Buttenweiser, founder of the Neptune Foundation, creator and funder of the pool, called Hunts Point a "long-term," "perfect site" that was historically used for swimming a century ago.

Friday, May 02, 2008

Quiet Day for Discretionary Funds Scandal
- fred_scaglione @ 5:29 am EST
None of the three major NYC dailies had articles on the evolving City Council discretionary funds scandal today. Yesterday, the Daily News reported on personal and campaign fundraising relationships between Council Speaker Christine Quinn and board members at the Hetrick-Martin Institute. And, the New York Times reported on Council Member Mathieu Eugene’s grants to Youth for Education and Sports, which he founded. The Department of Youth and Community Development reportedly refused to approve the spending last fall and recommended canceling all its contracts with the group.

Councilman Eric Gioia poor-mouths food stamp diet
- fred_scaglione @ 5:28 am EST
Yesterday’s Daily News also reported on City Council Member Eric Gioia’s efforts to live on $28 a week, the average food stamp allowance for a single recipient.

Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Cuomo Blocked $50 Million in Member Items
- fred_scaglione @ 6:07 am EST
Meanwhile, Attorney General Andrew Cuomo reported that his office had blocked over 1000 member item grants worth $50 million or 42% of the $122 million in discretionary grants approved by legislators in 2006. He said the grants were either “out of compliance with the law” or did not meet the requirement that they be “predominantly in the public interest”. See the Daily News and New York Post for more details.

'SOMETIMES, THERE JUST ISN'T ENOUGH FOOD'
- fred_scaglione @ 6:06 am EST
A shortage of food and funds is straining the city's Food Bank program, at a time the economic downturn is causing even middle-class New Yorkers to sign up for help. Many are being turned away from the programs because there aren't enough supplies to keep up with the increasing demand, officials said. See today’s New York Post.

No Audit Authority over Charter Schools
- fred_scaglione @ 6:04 am EST
The state comptroller has no authority to audit the finances or performance of charter schools, according to a State Supreme Court ruling in Albany yesterday. The decision came in response to a lawsuit filed by 15 city charter schools and two charter organizations that argued that Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli's attempts to audit the academic performance of charter schools duplicated oversight by other agencies and lay outside the boundary of his duties. See today’s New York Post.

Boys and Girls Club of Northern Westchester to cut adult program
- fred_scaglione @ 6:03 am EST
Today’s Journal News reported on the controversy surrounding a decision by the Boys and Girls Club of Northern Westchester to terminate an adult swim program.

Friday, April 25, 2008

LI Social services fair
- fred_scaglione @ 6:57 am EST
Middle Country Public Library in Selden hosted its first social services fair to alert growing numbers of struggling families and individuals about available resources. Participating organizations included the Suffolk County Department of Social Services, the Social Security Administration, Long Island Child & Family Development Service Inc., Home Energy Assistance Program and St. Cuthbert's Food Pantry. More than 200 people showed up during the first two hours, Sandy Feinberg, the library's director, told Newsday.

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Vallone tears into bad piece of pork
- fred_scaglione @ 7:43 am EST
On a related note, the Daily News reported that Councilman Peter Vallone proposed a fix for “pork-funding” abuses revealed. Vallone (D-Queens) asked Council lawyers to draft a bill banning members from doling out pork to groups employing their relatives or current and former staffers.

Not So Hot City Meals
- fred_scaglione @ 7:38 am EST

Proposed changes in the home-delivered meals program will freeze out the local and ethnic flavor of meals being provided to New York City seniors, according to Comptroller William Thompson who visited three Flushing senior centers - the Chinese Planning Council Nan Shan Senior Center, the Taiwan Center and the Korean American Senior Center of Flushing -- on Monday. See the Daily News for more details

Not so hot on frozen city meals
- fred_scaglione @ 7:37 am EST

Proposed changes in the home-delivered meals program will freeze out the local and ethnic flavor of meals being provided to New York City seniors, according to Comptroller William Thompson who visited three Flushing senior centers - the Chinese Planning Council Nan Shan Senior Center, the Taiwan Center and the Korean American Senior Center of Flushing -- on Monday. See the http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/queens/2008/04/23/2008-04-23_not_so_hot_on_frozen_city_meals.htDaily News for more details

House votes to extend for 1 year a moratorium on 7 new rules
- fred_scaglione @ 7:36 am EST
In the face of President Bush's threatened veto, the House voted yesterday to extend for one year a moratorium on seven new Medicaid regulations that advocates on Staten Island and elsewhere say will gut services for the disabled, including children.
House members voted 349-62 to extend the moratorium until April 1, 2009. The moratorium was put in place after the original rules changes were approved, and it was set to expire on June 30. See today’s Staten Island Advance for more details.

Friday, April 18, 2008

About 100 Homeless Hudson Valley Vets to Get Housing Help
- fred_scaglione @ 7:44 am EST
Federal housing and veterans officials have announced a plan to provide permanent, supportive housing to about 100 homeless veterans in the area of the VA Hudson Valley Health Care System in Montrose. See today's Journal News.

Probers Slog Thru Pile of Paper in Council's Cash-Stash Fiasco
- fred_scaglione @ 7:42 am EST
Department of Investigation probers are poring through thousands of documents bearing the names of politicians, dollar amounts and a roster of nonprofit groups - some real, some not. See today's Daily News.

New Scandal Shows Flaws in Screening
- fred_scaglione @ 7:32 am EST
The city has an extensive checks and balances system to weed out shady groups it contracts with, starting with a program known as the vendor exchange system. See today's Daily News.

Mayor Wants Bids on Pork
- fred_scaglione @ 7:31 am EST
Calling for a reforms in how the City Council doles out pork-barrel funds, Mayor Bloomberg said yesterday that large grants to nonprofit groups should be awarded only by competitive bidding. See today's New York Post.

An Enroll of the Dice for Harlem Kids
- fred_scaglione @ 7:29 am EST
Parents of about 3,000 kids packed the Harlem Armory last night to participate in a lottery for just 600 coveted spots in the Harlem Success Academy, a charter school adding three new branches. See today's New York Post..

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

T-shirt exhibit takes stand vs. violence
- fred_scaglione @ 6:00 am EST

The 12th annual Bronx Clothesline Project, which hangs hundreds of T-shirts with anti-violence messages from the walls and ceiling of Eugenio Maria de Hostos Community College, was profiled in today's Daily News. The project raises public awareness of the rights of crime victims and the wide range of services available to them.

Thursday, April 10, 2008

Wednesday, April 09, 2008

Former Corporate Executive to Run Red Cross
- fred_scaglione @ 6:23 am EST
The American Red Cross announced Tuesday that it had selected Gail J. McGovern, a former senior executive at AT&T and Fidelity Investments, as its new president and chief executive. See today’ New York Times.

Largess is plentiful in Sheldon Silver's district
- fred_scaglione @ 6:21 am EST
Today’s Daily News took aim at Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver’s opposition to congestion pricing and his distribution of legislative allocations to local groups, including The United Jewish Council of the East Side, $669,500; The Lower Manhattan Cultural Center, $52,000; The Lower East Side Tenement Museum, $77,000; The Chinatown YMCA, $36,000; The Council for a Cleaner Chinatown, $12,000; The Lower Eastside Girls Club, $10,000; and nearly $1 million in recent years to the Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty.

Luxury ride is over at troubled nonprofit
- fred_scaglione @ 6:19 am EST

The Daily News also continued its coverage of questionable spending and executive perks at Evelyn Douglin Center.

Nonprofit groups should pay for trash collection, says Kingston alderman
- fred_scaglione @ 6:18 am EST

Kingston lawmakers are once again turning their sights on possible regulations that would force nonprofit, tax-exempt organizations to pay a fee for municipal trash collection. See today’s Daily Freeman.

Thursday, April 03, 2008

Nassau to keep Family Court building in Westbury
- fred_scaglione @ 8:11 am EST
County officials have again rebuffed a proposal by the Nassau County Bar Association for a new Family Court building, saying they will stick with their plan to build a new courthouse at its current site in Westbury. See today's Newsday for more.

Little Flower school deficit tied to budgets
- fred_scaglione @ 8:09 am EST
Little Flower school deficit tied to budgets

The Little Flower school district's general-fund unappropriated deficit nearly quadrupled from 2003 to 2006 due largely to failures to prepare balanced budgets, properly monitor expenses and bill tuition on time, according to a new state audit reported in today's Newsday.

Wednesday, April 02, 2008

2 men charged with stealing clothing from charity
- fred_scaglione @ 7:31 am EST

Two Amityville men were arrested early Wednesday morning for stealing a charity's clothing collection bins, according to today’s Newsday. The men were apprehended after the owner of the bins located them with. electronic tracking devices hidden in the containers.

Father of Slain Children Sues Nassau County
- fred_scaglione @ 7:24 am EST
The father of two children who authorities say were slain by their mother filed a notice of claim against Nassau County and several agencies yesterday, accusing them of negligence, recklessness and gross indifference. See today’s Newsday.

Rockland Child Care Resources to honor 7 for work with children
- fred_scaglione @ 7:21 am EST
Child Care Resources of Rockland will recognize seven educators and child-care professionals at an award ceremony this month for their efforts to improve the lives of children in the county. See the Journal News for details.

Monday, March 31, 2008

Middle class Long Islanders turning to food pantries
- fred_scaglione @ 5:34 pm EST
More and more working Long Islanders are straining to put groceries on the table and are turning to food pantries. See yesterday’s article in Newsday.

Gilda's Club celebrates 10-year mark
- fred_scaglione @ 5:32 pm EST
Gilda’s Club of Weschester, which provides support and services for people facing cancer, recently marked its 10th anniversary and was profiled in the Journal News.

Thursday, March 27, 2008

Nassau Red Cross in need after helping others
- fred_scaglione @ 5:52 am EST

Four fires in four days have added to the financial strain on the Nassau County chapter of the American Red Cross, according to an article in today’s Newsday. The American Red Cross in Nassau County has responded to 115 local emergencies since July 1, compared to 81 emergencies the previous fiscal year. Since July 1, the Nassau Red Cross has also provided nearly $140,000 in relief to more than 600 residents.

Law Enacted to Protect Tenants Using Vouchers
- fred_scaglione @ 5:51 am EST

The City Council overrode Mayor Bloomberg’s veto of a bill to prohibit landlords from discriminating against tenants who intend to pay their rent with federal rent-subsidy vouchers or any other form of government assistance. The law takes effect immediately. See today’s New York Times for more details.

Wheelchairs teach street lesson
- fred_scaglione @ 5:48 am EST
The people who design New York's streets and sidewalks found out what it's like to roll on someone else's wheels Wednesday, according to an article in today’s Albany Times-Union. "It was very difficult," said landscape architect Steve MacAvery as he stepped out of the wheelchair he'd used to travel about a hundred yards up Schenectady’s State Street and back. "It's very hard work on your arms. You feel all the little bumps." MacAvery, based at the state Department of Transportation's regional headquarters in Poughkeepsie, was among about 20 landscape architects from around the state who participated in a training exercise using wheelchairs on loan from the Center for Disability Services.

Assembly OKs bill expanding protection for domestic violence victims
- fred_scaglione @ 5:47 am EST
Legislation to expand protection for domestic violence victims, specifically for those in same-sex relationships, has passed in the Assembly. Assemblywoman Janele Hyer-Spencer, a sponsor, told the Staten Island Advance that the bill seeks to redefine domestic violence laws by permitting unrelated people to seek a civil order of protection through Family Court. Currently, unrelated persons must seek remedy through the Criminal Court.

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

The Juveniles Are Gone, Yet the Jails Remain
- fred_scaglione @ 6:37 am EST
The New York Times reported on the New York State Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) proposal to close three state facilities which are largely empty.

Swift Steps Help Avert Foreclosures in Baltimore
- fred_scaglione @ 6:36 am EST
The New York Times profiled efforts by Baltimore nonprofit housing groups to assist homeowners faced with foreclosure on their homes.

Swift Steps Help Avert Foreclosures in Baltimore
- fred_scaglione @ 6:35 am EST
The New York Times/a> profiled efforts by Baltimore nonprofit housing groups to assist homeowners faced with foreclosure on their homes.

Hail 87 more taxi medallions for wheelchair-accessible cars
- fred_scaglione @ 6:34 am EST
It has been nearly two years since city and state officials agreed on a plan to sell 150 new taxi medallions for use on wheelchair-accessible cabs. That plan will finally be completed May 4, when the Taxi and Limousine Commission auctions off the remaining batch of 87 medallions, according to today’s Daily News.

Expert: Youth violence affects all
- fred_scaglione @ 6:32 am EST
Preventing youth violence is not only beneficial to the mental health of children and their families, but also to the economy of Dutchess County. That was the message at Astor Home for Children’s Fifth Annual Policy Breakfast, co hosted by the Dutchess County Regional Chamber of Commerce. Attendees heard from Donald Meichenbaum, research director for the Melissa Institute for Violence Prevention and the Treatment of Victims of Violence in Miami. See the Pougkeepsie Journal for more.

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Lawsuit eyed to keep mentally ill out
- fred_scaglione @ 7:40 am EST
A state assemblyman from Staten Island yesterday threatened legal action to halt a plan by Saint Vincent Catholic Medical Center to house mentally ill people in a former convent in St. George. See today’s Staten Island Advance.

City streamlines pre-K application
- fred_scaglione @ 7:39 am EST
New York City has streamlined the application process for Pre-Kindergarten for September. The city is to release a standard application this week for use by families across all boroughs. See today’s Daily News.

Thursday, March 20, 2008

Community Approval Issues Dominate News on Staten Island
- fred_scaglione @ 6:23 am EST

Today’s Staten Island Advance featured two stories relating to community opposition to facilities being proposed in the Borough.

A St. George convent has been sold to a Manhattan hospital system with plans to convert the former nunnery to a halfway house for mentally ill people, according to the Staten Island Advance. Despite concern and protests from politicians and neighborhood residents when the plan was first revealed several years ago, the Daughters of St. Paul recently closed a deal to sell the building at 78 Fort Pl. for $3.3 million to Fort Place Housing Corp. The nonprofit has the same Manhattan address as Saint Vincent Catholic Medical Centers (SVCMC).

Hundreds of outraged South Shore homeowners packed the auditorium at PS 56 last night, railing against a 118-apartment senior complex planned for Rossville and shouting down and heckling its few proponents, according to the Staten Island Advance. The $19 million complex for low- to moderate-income seniors is being sponsored by Rossville A.M.E. Zion Church.

Harvard Law challenges NY schools to do good
- fred_scaglione @ 6:21 am EST
Less than a week after Harvard said it would waive third-year tuition for students going into public interest law, local law schools are considering following suit. See Crain’s New York for more inforation.

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Staten Island Community Board Approves Home for Developmentally Disabled
- fred_scaglione @ 7:37 am EST
Over expressions of opposition, Community Board 2 last night unanimously approved a home for three developmentally disabled women in Meiers Corners. The proposed residence will be operated by Person Centered Care Services, a nonprofit Willowbrook-based organization that serves the developmentally disabled. See today's Staten Island Advance for more news.

Feds fault patient care at Rockland Psychiatric Center
- fred_scaglione @ 7:35 am EST
Rockland Psychiatric Center is in danger of losing its Medicare and Medicaid accreditation -- and the millions of dollars that goes with it - because of poor treatment of patients, including inappropriate use of drugs as a restraint, according to a federal agency. For more information go to today’s Journal News.

Levy mulls closing nursing home
- fred_scaglione @ 7:34 am EST
Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy announced a plan Tuesday to explore selling the county's nursing home and cut 200 employees from the payroll to fill half the estimated $150 million 2009 budget shortfall, according to today’s Newsday.

Nixzmary's Stepfather Is Convicted of Manslaughter
- fred_scaglione @ 7:32 am EST
A deeply divided jury in Brooklyn convicted the stepfather of 7-year-old Nixzmary Brown of first-degree manslaughter for his role in her fatal 2006 beating, according to today’s New York Times.

Thursday, March 13, 2008

IRS trouble for agency; DA's office also probing
- fred_scaglione @ 6:30 am EST
The Evelyn Doughlin Center is under new scrutiny by both the Internal Revenue Service and the Brooklyn District Attorney’s office, according to an article in the Daily News.

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Friday, March 07, 2008

House Approves Bill on Mental Health Parity
- fred_scaglione @ 7:05 am EST
After more than a decade of struggle, the House on Wednesday passed a bill requiring most group health plans to provide more generous coverage for treatment of mental illnesses, comparable to what they provide for physical illnesses. The Senate has passed a similar bill requiring equivalence, or parity, in coverage of mental and physical ailments. Federal law now allows insurers to discriminate, and most do so, by setting higher co-payments or stricter limits on mental health benefits. See today’s New York Times for more information.

Rockville Centre diocese falls short in volunteer checks
- fred_scaglione @ 7:03 am EST
For the first time, the Diocese of Rockville Centre has failed a review by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops of its adherence to the church's Charter for the Protection of Children, according to an article in today’s Newsday. The charter is aimed at preventing abuse through such mechanisms as background checks on church workers and volunteers, and mandatory reporting of suspected abuse to civil authorities. The local diocese said it passed virtually every aspect of the conference's 13-article audit with one exception.

More kids forgo cigarettes, drugs
- fred_scaglione @ 7:02 am EST
For the fourth consecutive year, drug use among New York's adolescents decreased, according to a nationwide report released Thursday but survey indicates an increase in alcohol use among New York youth. See today’s Albany Times Union for more information.

Thursday, March 06, 2008

Law would give Family Court protection to abused unmarried couples
- fred_scaglione @ 6:32 am EST

Unmarried couples, including lesbians and gays, would find it easier to get an order of protection against an abusive partner under a law proposed by Mayor Bloomberg and Council Speaker Christine Quinn. See today’s article in the Daily News.

Yonkers YMCA launches investigation of executive director's spending
- fred_scaglione @ 6:30 am EST
The YMCA in this city has created a special committee and hired an attorney to investigate allegations of improper spending by its longstanding executive director, Gregory du Sablon, according to today’s Journal News. The attorney, Jeffrey Buss, was hired Tuesday as special counsel by the YMCA's board of directors and will look at du Sablon's spending, the ethics of four du Sablon family members working for the YMCA, and the family's use of cars leased by the organization

New Generation Gap as Older Addicts Seek Help
- fred_scaglione @ 6:29 am EST
Across the country, substance abuse centers are reaching out to older addicts whose numbers are growing and who have historically been ignored, according to an article in today’s New York Times. The article explores the rapidly growing need for residential and outpatient clinics dedicated to those over 50, such as the one operated by Odyssey House in East Harlem.

Nixzmary's grandmother filed $250M suit against City
- fred_scaglione @ 6:27 am EST
Nixzmary Brown’s grandmother has filed a $250 million lawsuit against the city for failing to prevent the death of the 7-year-old's death. The dollar amount was revealed yesterday during testimony at the trial of Cesar Rodriguez, the girl’s step father. See today’s Daily News for more information.

Rockland County Volunteers Honored