Friday, October 27, 2017
Vol. 94, No. 6
FOUNDED 1923
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LOCALLY OWNED AND EDITED
Halloween safety PAGE 8 n Parish party PAGE 22
Board probed on attorney position, unions react
UNITY DAY 2017
BY RIKKI N. MASSAND
After the story of Liam O'brien, a Garden City Middle School student who was bullied, went viral on the internet, students throughout Garden City donned orange t-shirts that said "#WeStandWithLiam in his support. Above, students at Stratford School spell out the word "Kind" to urge others to "Choose Kindness" on Unity Day, October 25th. Photo courtesy GC PTA
Bullying at GCMS makes headlines BY RIKKI N. MASSAND
Residents of Garden City, the New York tristate area and readers of a viral Facebook post learned of alleged incidents of bullying inside Garden City Middle School as Keith and Deidre O’Brien, parents of student Liam O’Brien, spoke to reporters about what they believe is inefficient follow-up by the school district. On Tuesday, October 24, the O’Briens’ attorney Nicholas Warywoda of Port Washingtonbased personal injury law firm of Parker Waichman, LLP filed a Notice of Claim against the school district. The claim stat-
ed that Liam, 13 and in his eighth grade year in 2017-2018, suffered at GCMS, as the district failed to provide “a safe and supportive environment free from intimidation, taunting, physical abuse, harassment, and bullying on school property and/or at school functions.” Liam has been treated for an eating disorder since early September and after dramatic weight loss he is staying at University Medical Center of Princeton at Plainsboro in central New Jersey, and his parents are concentrating on seeing him regain strength and eventually return home to
The Garden City Board of Trustees approved the hire of Kerry Oristano of Scarsdale as the “Deputy Village Attorney” last Thursday, creating a new position with base compensation of $145,000 for her, running through the balance of the 2017-2018 village fiscal year (May 31, 2018). The Board also approved a transfer of $20,000 from the village Contingency Account in the Administration fund as an additional allocation from budget needed for her hire in the position. Oristano has an official start date of Monday, November 20 or upon Civil Service approval if that comes first. The Village of Garden City’s in-house labor attorney position was ranked as the first “Primary” priority on the 2017-2018 Board of Trustees’ Priorities List, publicized online and discussed by the trustees on June 1. The item was followed by the high-profile St. Paul’s project which the board acted on at its September 21 and October 5 meetings as three consulting firms were hired in early October, preceding last week’s session. At the Board’s October 19 meeting, Village Administrator Ralph Suozzi explained a course of action over the summer with the labor attorney position advertised in The Garden City News, online and elsewhere. “The village has been seeking an executive position for a labor attorney and a human resources (HR) person who is versed in labor law. It was on the mayor and Board’s priorities list this year and we See page 38
Village Board adds more meetings to schedule
Garden City. On Wednesday, October 25 Warywoda spoke with The Garden City News via telephone. He says the O’Briens contacted the school district last year as incidents of Liam being bullied carried on, starting with his season on the GCMS soccer team. “The only thing we can seek is monetary damages, through the court case, but what the family and we would like to see is that bullying should never happen to anyone else again. Liam was the victim of physical and verbal bullying in
The Village Board of Trustees decided to continue to meet twice a month on Thursday evenings, after negative reaction to an earlier schedule that would have had the board meet only once a month. Letters to the Editor in The Garden City News and an update from the village in its weekly “Garden City News & Information” press release on Friday, October 20, referred to a once-a-month meeting potential that ultimately wasn’t to be. Days later the correct and updated meeting nights were published. They are: November 2 and 16; December 7 and 21 to round out 2017; January 11, 2018, February 8, Tuesday, February 27, March 8 and March 22; the annual reorganization meeting on April 12 and April 26, 2018. Residents applauded the decision to remain twice a month. After for-
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BY RIKKI N. MASSAND
Fall holidays at the Garden City Jewish Center PAGES 32-33 Trojans undefeated with 42-7 win PAGE 60