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Thursday, September 29, 2011

NYC Public School Parents: Bloomberg Education Record Stained by More Corruption

NYC Public School Parents: Bloomberg Education Record Stained by More Corruption:

Bloomberg Education Record Stained by More Corruption

Special Commissioner for Investigation Richard Condon has released a blockbuster report on the fraud perpetuated by favored DOE contractor FTA. (Report pdf is here.) The SCI points to fraud of at least $6.5 million. The worst part of this episode is that despite obvious warning signs, DOE pressed ahead with giving more business to the firm.

After a series of damning columns by Juan Gonzalez, I urged the Panel for Educational Policy, at our September, 2009 meeting to vote down a huge contract extension citing numerous irregularities. During my investigation of the contract with FTA, senior DOE staff including Joel Klein confidant Photeine Anagnostopoulos, repeatedly claimed there was nothing wrong with the arrangements and attempted to block my request to see the actual contract before we voted on it. Only with the intervention of Borough President Stringer and Assembly