11-3-19

We need to be back at the monthly meeting of the New York Regents coming up on Monday, November 4 at the New York State Education Department headquarters at 89 Washington Avenue, Albany. At the last meeting the State Education Department building was boarded up and barricaded to keep us out, and we expect the same this month. But the Regents have the authority to order the end to the wholesale lawbreaking going on to deny our children educations, and we need to keep the pressure on.

    Since the repeal of the religious exemption from vaccine mandates to attend school on June 13, the Education Department has been in disarray. Former Education Commissioner MaryEllen Elia announced she was leaving her position at the July Regents meeting, and her interim replacement, Beth Berlin, announced on October 18 she will be leaving the department on November 15. And sadly, Regent Judith Johnson passed away on October 22.

    Please click on the Take Action Link to send an email to the Regents, Chancellor Betty Rosa and Acting Education Commissioner Beth Berlin, demanding an end to the lawlessness.

     We want the Regents to order schools to stop allowing with the ongoing illegal activities including:

     The New York Constitution Article 11, Section 1 says, "The legislature shall provide for the maintenance and support of a system of free common schools, wherein all the children of this state may be educated."  “All” includes our children.

     The Federal government requires states to provide an education to children with disabilities, and to provide children with IEPs the services in the IEP document. There is no feasible way to provide those services to the vast majority of students except in a school setting, especially for students who have social and communication goals, which includes all children with an autism diagnosis. 

     Refusing to provide an education to children because of a fear of contagion from the child is prohibited by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Section 504. Excluding 26,000 children from school for fear of contagion is a massive violation of Section 504.

   New York’s Dignity for All Students Act prohibits discrimination against students by schools for, “religion” and “religious practices.” What could be a more blatant violation of this law than to expel children for exercising a right to a religious exemption? 

     The New York State Health Department has completely perverted Public Health Law Section 2164, Paragraph 8, which states, “If any physician licensed to practice medicine in this state certifies that such immunization may be detrimental to a child’s health, the requirements of this section shall be inapplicable until such immunization is found no longer to be detrimental to the child’s health.” Nowhere in the law are Department of Health bureaucrats or school employees given the authority to override the professional opinion of a New York licensed treating physician, or limit acceptable reasons for an exemption to arbitrary standards. We call upon the Regents to return to the original and obvious intent of the law and accept all exemptions written by licensed New York physicians.

     This is where you want to be on Monday, November 4:

New York Board of Regents

New York State Education Department

89 Washington Avenue, 12234

Directions: http://www.nysed.gov/about/driving-directions

     Meeting begins at 9 am. Doors to the Education building open at 8 am (if they open). Prepare for a slow security check-in, bring picture ID. The hearing room is very small (60 seats) so get there early.

    Bring friends, family, and your kids. Most of us won’t get in, but that’s the point. It will be an educational day for them. Wear white, it makes a powerful statement.

    The agenda for the meeting is supposed to be public on Friday. We do not know if our issues are on the agenda, but that doesn’t matter, we need to be seen and make our presence felt.

Additional Action to Take

    Please immediately write a polite letter to the Regents describing how denying an education to your children will do irreparably harm to them and your family.  If you wrote an affidavit for the Sussman trial you can use that as a model.

     Everybody in the state should snail mail and email copies of your letter to Chancellor Betty Rosa, Vice Chancellor T. Andrew Brown, and all the Members at Large (Reyes, Young, Norwood and Cottrell.) Then check below to see which Regent represents your county and mail and email copies to her or him as well.

     Note: Chancellor Rosa is the Regent for Judicial District 12, which is the Bronx, and Vice Chancellor Brown is the Regent for the 7th Judicial district (check below for the exact counties in the Rochester area)

Regents' Contact Information

Betty A. Rosa

Chancellor, 12th Judicial District, Bronx County

Regents Office

State Education Building

89 Washington Avenue

Albany, NY 12234

Regent.Rosa@nysed.gov

 (518) 474-5889

 

T. Andrew Brown

Vice Chancellor, 7th Judicial District, Wayne, Monroe, Livingston, Ontario, Yates, Seneca, Cayuga, Steuben Counties

925 Crossroads Building

Two State Street

Rochester, NY 14614

Regent.Brown@nysed.gov

 (585) 454-3667

Luis O. Reyes

Member, Member at Large

Regents Office

State Education Building

89 Washington Avenue

Albany, NY 12234

Regent.Reyes@nysed.gov

 (518) 474-5889

 

Lester W. Young, Jr.

Member, Member at Large

55 Hanson Place, Suite 400

Brooklyn, NY 11217

Regent.Young@nysed.gov

718 722-2796

 

Wade S. Norwood,

Member at Large,

74 Appleton Street

Rochester, NY 14611

Regent.Norwood@nysed.gov

(585) 436-2944 

 

James E. Cottrell, MD

Member, Member at Large

SUNY Downstate Medical Center

450 Clarkson Avenue - Box 6

Brooklyn, N.Y. 11203-2098

Regent.Cottrell@nysed.gov

(718) 270-2331 

 

Find below which Regent represents your county and mail and email her of him a copy of your letter.

 

Manhattan, Nan Eileen Mead

Member, 1st Judicial District, Manhattan/New York County

116 West 32nd Street, 6th Floor

New York, NY 10001

Regent.Mead@nysed.gov

212-643-3039

 

Brooklyn, Kathleen M. Cashin

Member, 2nd Judicial District, Brooklyn/Kings County

Regents Office

State Education Building

89 Washington Avenue

Albany, NY 12234

Regent.Cashin@nysed.gov

(518) 474-5889

 

Josephine Victoria Finn

Member, 3rd Judicial District, Schoharie, Albany, Rensselaer, Greene, Columbia, Sullivan and Ulster counties

Regents Office

State Education Building

89 Washington Avenue

Albany, NY 12234

Regent.Finn@nysed.gov

(518) 474-5889

 

Beverly L. Ouderkirk

Member, 4th Judicial District, Washington, Saratoga, Montgomery, Schnectady, Fulton, Hamilton, Warren, Essex, Clinton, Franklin, St. Lawrence counties

303 Main Street

Morristown, NY 13664

Regent.Ouderkirk@nysed.com

(315) 375-8596

 

Elizabeth S. Hakanson

Member, 5th Judicial District, Jefferson, Oswego, Onondaga, Oneida, Lewis, and Herkimer Counties

Regents Office

State Education Building

89 Washington Avenue

Albany, N.Y. 12234

Regent.Hakanson@nysed.gov

(518) 474-5889

 

 

Susan W. Mittler

Member, 6th Judicial District, Delaware, Otsego, Madison, Chenango, Cortland, Broome, Tompkins, Tioga, Schuyler, Chemung counties

Regents Office

State Education Building

89 Washington Avenue

Albany, NY, 12234

Regent.Mittler@nysed.gov

(518) 474-5889

 

Catherine Collins

Member, 8th Judicial District, Chautauqua, Cattaraugus, Allegany, Erie, Wyoming, Genesee, Orleans, Niagara counties

508 Main Street

Buffalo, NY 14202

Regent.Collins@nysed.gov

(518) 474-5889

 

Currently Vacant

Member, 9th Judicial District, Westchester, Rockland, Orange, Putnam, Dutchess counties

Regents Office

State Education Building,

89 Washington Avenue

Albany, NY 12234

Regent.Johnson@nysed.gov

(518) 474-5889

 

Long Island, Roger Tilles

Member, 10th Judicial District, Nassau and Suffolk Counties

Lorber Hall, Room 211

Long Island University Post

720 Northern Boulevard

Brookville, NY 11548

Regent.Tilles@nysed.gov

(516) 299-3505

 

Queens, Judith Chin

Member, 11th Judicial District, Queens County

Regents Office

State Education Building

89 Washington Avenue

Albany, NY 12234

Regent.Chin@nysed.gov

(518) 474-5889

 

Staten Island, Christine D. Cea

Member, 13th Judicial District, Staten Island/Richmond County

Regents Office

State Education Building

89 Washington Avenue

Albany, NY 12234

Regent.Cea@nysed.gov

(518) 474-5889

     Please share this message with friends and family, and please share on social networks while we still can.

Autism Action Network <jgilmore@autismactionnetwork.org>

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