Welcome back to school.
​ ​
I hope you had a great summer.


Once again the Parent Center is holding  the Back to School Fundraiser with Modell's Sporting Goods.
​Please see the attached letter & coupon. Y
our help and support
​ would be greatly appreciated​
.

Regards
Wendy 

Hello everyone,
 
Please be advised that the NYSHIP message we received has been posted on the website. Please help us distribute to employees.
 
Thank you.
 
On August 12th, Health Now (Blue Cross Blue Shield of Western New York) confirmed that certain enrollee information in the possession of its subcontractor ID card vendor, Newkirk Products, Inc. (Newkirk), may have been accessed from a data security incident involving their contractor, Newkirk Products, Inc. (Newkirk). Newkirk issues health care ID cards for Health Now. This incident occurred on May 21, 2016 and was discovered on July 6, 2016.  This incident does not involve or affect any systems maintained by the State of New York, including NYSHIP and Health Now. There are approximately 12,500 NYSHIP members in Health Now.

We are advised that the information potentially accessed may consist of member and dependent names, mailing address(es),  type of plan, and member and group ID number. We have been assured that Social Security numbers, banking and credit card information, date of birth and medical claim data information were not accessed.

Newkirk has advised that it will be mailing notifications to all potentially affected individuals. Newkirk is also offering two years of identity protection and restoration services through AllClear ID, at no cost to affected individuals. Information regarding this incident may be obtained by visiting www.newkirkproductsfacts.com or calling 1-855-303-9773(TTY/TDD:711). This telephone number will be staffed Monday through Saturday from 9 A.M. until 9 P.M., Eastern Standard Time.

New post on Diane Ravitch's blog
BREAKING NEWS: Teachers Win Vergara Case, California Supreme Court Won’t Hear Appeal!by dianeravitchIn a big win for teachers and their unions, the California Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal from a lower court ruling. The vote was 4-3. See the report in the LA School Report (controlled by Campbell Brown and The 74) here.
The initial decision had over-ruled state laws that protected teacher tenure and seniority. That decision by Judge Rolf Treu was overturned on appeal by a unanimous three-judge court. The state supreme court let stand the last decision.
Howard Blume of the Los Angeles Times reports:
In a major victory for teachers unions, the California Supreme Court has let stand a ruling that preserves traditional teacher job protections such as tenure and seniority-based layoffs.
In refusing to hear the case, the state’s high court sided not only with unions, but also the state of California and others, who contended that these job protections are both constitutional and reasonable.
The case was being closely watched across the country as a bellwether on whether courts could be used to invalidate employment rights of teachers on the grounds that they violate the rights of students.
Attorneys for a group of nine students had argued that making it easier to fire bad teachers would improve academic performance. They also claimed that speedier teacher dismissals would narrow the achievement gap that separates white, Asian and wealthier students from their lower income, black and Latino peers.
There are states that have no teacher tenure, but no evidence was introduced to demonstrate that those states have higher academic performance by low-income, black and Latino students or smaller achievement gaps.
StudentsMatter, funded by a Silicon Valley entrepreneur and cheered on by the corporate reform movement, spent millions of dollars fighting tenure laws, and forced the unions to do the same.

dianeravitch | August 22, 2016 at 3:59 pm | Categories: California, Teacher Tenure | URL:http://wp.me/p2odLa-f4M

Hello everyone,
 
I hope you are enjoying the summer. Please be advised that the District has added Vanguard as an additional 403(b) provider option. Below please find contact information and the link to OMNI. This will be available on the District website under Personnel shortly.
 
Once you are on the OMNI link, go to the bottom left hand corner. Choose the State of New York and enter Bellmore-Merrick as the  Emp. Name.
 
Please let me know if I could provide any further information. Thank you and have a fabulous rest of the summer!
 
Vanguard Fiduciary Trust Co.     
                P.O. Box 1110
                Valley Forge, PA  19482-1110
                1-877-662-7447 (new clients)
                1-800-962-5068
                https://www.omni403b.com/Employers.aspx