Winner of Vol. 72, No. 29
What’s inside?
the Pulitzer Prize
Thursday, August 26, 2021
$1.00
Vulnerable tenants prepare for inevitable FACES of
n As the moratorium on ejecting renters draws near, some brace for the worst
EVICTION
An occasional series profiling both residents and landlords in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
By JOSEPH DE LA CRUZ jdelacruz@riverdalepress.com
Delta plans Schools are reopening for in-person classes, but how are they handling the delta variant surge afflicting communities? Section B
Jennifer Medina always had it rough growing up in the Bronx. The 33-year-old mother of five is all too familiar with having to overcome adversity. But this time it’s different. “This past year has been unbelievably hard to deal with between the pandemic and then having to deal with unemployment,” Medina said. “To now have to face homelessness is one of the worst feelings in the world.” Like many others throughout the country Medina has struggled to make ends meet since the spread of the coronavirus worldwide shut down large portions of the economy, costing many — like her — their jobs. “I mean, it was hard before all of this happened,” she said. “But now it’s just too much.”
HIRAM ALEJANDRO DURÁN
Jennifer Medina sits at the rear of her car where she keeps some of the things that belong to her and her son. Medina’s family is at risk of being evicted from their home if state lawmakers fail to extend the existing pandemic-related moratorium. Medina faces eviction from her home next week when the state’s moratorium for kicking out renters who are struggling to
pay landlords because of the pandemic is set to end. That has become yet another stressor among many for Medina since
losing her job as an insurance policy processor. In fact, she’s contemplated leaving Kingsbridge — or even New York City — altogether. And that’s not just because of the expiring eviction moratorium, but also rent prices that are just too steep for her to afford. “Honestly, even if I were to find another place, how am I going to afford these rent prices?” Medina asked. “The Bronx is supposed to be the most affordable part of this city, but even then, the prices are still too high.” Medina has a little breathing room — at least for the moment. Although the state’s moratorium ends when August does, at the federal level, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has its own eviction stoppage in place for those affected by EVICTION, page A4
Welcome, Gov. Hochul City gives
Mexican Institute a $1M boost
Spanish housing Navigating housing laws in New York City is tough enough, but even harder when there is a language barrier. Page A3
n Organization plans more outreach to neighboring Mexican, Mexican American communities By ETHAN STARK-MILLER estarkmiller@riverdalepress.com
Courtesy of Gov. Kathy Hochul/Kevin P. Coughlin
Thanks, Irving Manhattan College’s student veteran organization honored with CB8’s top service award. Page A5
Kathy Hochul is sworn in as New York’s 57th governor by Chief Judge Janet DiFiore on Tuesday, while First Gentleman Bill Hochul holds the Bible. Yet this particular ceremony was just for show from the Capitol’s Red Room, since the three had gathered just after midnight to officially make Hochul the state’s first female governor. Hochul succeeds Andrew Cuomo, who stepped down after 10 years in the wake of a sexual harassment scandal in the executive chamber. Mask, vaccine mandates coming? See Page A5
Stanley Manne gives back to help others far less fortunate to succeed n Bronx Science alum donates $18M to build alma mater research facility By ETHAN STARK-MILLER estarkmiller@riverdalepress.com
After decades of personal success, one core mission now drives Stanley Manne: To give back to where he came from. “It’s my dream to kind of pass on what I have, and lead others to do similar things,” Manne said, which he adds “will exponentialize the improvement (of) the U.S., America and the world.” That’s why Manne wrote a check for $18 million to the alumni foundation for his alma mater, The Bronx High School of Science. The donation will fund construction of The Stanley Manne Institute, a state-of-the-art scientific research facility that will help not just teach the students of Bronx Science, but surrounding schools as well. Bronx Science is one of the city’s eight elite specialized high schools, its students selected through a rigorous entrance exam. Schools like Bronx Science are known for producing successful alumni, and also for receiving far more resources than many other public schools in the city.
Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office
Stanley Manne donated $18 million to build a scientific research facility on the campus of his alma mater, the Bronx High School of Science. Manne joined Mayor Bill de Blasio, Councilman Eric Dinowitz and a number of other officials at a groundbreaking ceremony for the institute last month. Manne, now 87, graduated from Bronx Science in 1952, when the United States was fighting the Korean War and Harry Truman was president. Some 70 years later, Manne says he owes much of his success as a chemical engineer to his foundational education from the West
205th Street school. Now Manne wants to give others the same opportunities he had. “I got my basis for my education, and my success at Bronx Science,” he said. “So, my job — and I consider it a job — is STANLEY MANNE, page A4
When he first started at CUNY’s City College of New York five years ago, Moises Quintero had trouble envisioning professional success for himself. “When I first started, I had a 2.8 grade point average,” he said. “And honestly, on paper, it looked like I wasn’t capable of getting into (grad) school or whatever.” But four years later, things have really changed for Quintero. The Staten Island native did indeed make it into not one graduate program, but three. Despite offers from Columbia and Yale universities, Quintero is about to embark on ad‘They vanced studies in architecture gave at Harvard me a University. Sure, it was chance. Quintero who did the hard And I work. But think his academic transformation didn’t that little chance happen magi- I got went a cally. Instead, Quintero owes long way.’ much of his success to CU- MOISES QUINTERO NY’s Mexican Mexican Studies Studies Schol- Scholarship Fund recipient arship Fund, which he won during his sophomore year at City College. The scholarship offers up to $7,000 to not just Mexican American students, but any CUNY student in need who does well academically. “They gave me a chance,” Quintero said. “And I think that little chance I got went a long way.” Quintero immigrated from Mexico when he was just 4. He earned his way into college, but his parents couldn’t afford to pay for it as they instead focused on making their own ends meet. It’s all too common a story among those earning the Mexican Studies scholarship. “So, that leaves us students not as developed emotionally, cognitively,” Quintero said. “The scholarship really knows that, and they try to fill in the gaps as far as that development goes with the workshops that they have. The little topics that they focus on. And I feel like all of that definitely contributes to career development, professional development, and just personal development. “So, it’s not just a source of funding. It’s more than that.” The scholarship comes from the Mexican Studies Institute, which is housed at Lehman College. José Higuera López, the institute’s depMEXICAN INSTITUTE, page A4