March 8, 2013
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Special ed teacher fined for ‘unprofessional’ conduct

By R.J. MARX

New York State Education Department hearing officer Lisa Brogan awarded the Katonah-Lewisboro School District $3,000 from special education teacher Kristin Peterson in a decision announced by the department at the start of the school year. The fine, to be taken out of her salary, was levied for Ms. Peterson’s “unprofessional, insubordinate and inappropriate conduct” in disparaging her supervisor,
the superintendent and other district employees.

The Aug. 2 opinion drew an immediate legal response from Ms. Peterson and her attorney, Peter Hoffman, who filed papers in New York State Supreme Court to vacate the hearing officer’s findings. In the months since, both the district and Ms. Peterson have exchanged legal documents and exhibits.

An ongoing civil case in federal court also remains open in which Ms. Peterson charges the intentional infliction by the district of emotional distress, defamation, negligent supervision, negligent hiring, retaliation, a hostile work environment, discrimination based on disability, discrimination based on gender and violations of civil rights under New York State Law. Read more >

Cell tower’s up, so why don’t I have four bars?

By DON HEPPNER

When town residents look at the sky over the Pound Ridge Volunteer Ambulance Corps property, they see a cell tower. But cell phone users are finding that the tower is doing little to provide them service.

Residents using T-Mobile and AT&T as their wireless providers are still awaiting cell phone service in the Scotts Corners area. It was promised for late August of this year, after the tower’s installation.

“I have people calling like mad about this tower,” Pound Ridge building inspector Jim Perry said on Tuesday.

When asked this week about a timeline for service, Jimmy Schmits, project manager for Squan Solutions, one of the companies responsible for the construction of the tower and the placement of the antennas, said that one of the reasons for the delay is that the antennas needed to be hooked up to a land line, but a land line has not been available. “That tied our hands for weeks,” he said.

The delay in service is a mystery to Mr. Perry. “When people ask me when the tower is going to be done, I tell them that the last completion date I had was the end of August,” he said. “Clearly that is not good information.”
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