Perdido Street School
Perv teacher beat reporter Ben "Where are the perverts?" Chapman had a rubber room/perv teacher article in today's Daily News.I dispensed with that article here. This afternoon, the NY Post has an even more sensationalised article entitled "Abusive, Violent Teachers Let Off The Hook" that, like the DN piece, hammers away at the disciplinary process for teachers and claims guilt
You may remember that post from a while back by W.D. Haverstock that showed us how the Danielson rubric can be applied to sexual activity.Here he shows us the Danielson rubric, specifically competency 3b: "Using Questioning and Discussion Techniques," can be applied to pick-up moves in a singles bar.Another brilliant piece by W.D. Haverstock.Dunno who this guy is, but I wish he would wri
Democratic mayoral nominee Bill de Blasio, he of the "Tale of Two Cities" campaign, spent all yesterday meeting with the oligarchs of the city, including having a private and secret meeting with NY Post publisher Rupert Murdoch, NY Daily News publisher Mort Zuckerman, Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein and other members of the New York plutocracy.The de Blasio campaign is sending out the
Earlier in the week, Fred Dicker thought so:A Mayor Bill De Blasio would have “the power to destroy’’ Cuomo’s presidential ambitions if, as expected, the governor blocks De Blasio’s plan to raise taxes on the wealthy, a source close to both men has told The Post. The source, who insisted on anonymity, said Cuomo is nervously aware of the danger posed by the front-running De Blasio’s election and h
Daily News reporter Ben Chapman loves to hunt perv teachers.It's an obsession with him, perhaps stemming from a message he gets from his superiors at Team Zuckerman that this is a story they want covered every few weeks or so, perhaps originating from something darker and more Freudian.In any case, it's a subject he comes back to over and over and over.Today, he and Rachel Monahan have a rubber ro
Off Duty And Undercover NYPD Cops Took Part In The Biker Chase Of Man In SUV
The Daily News reports: A pair of NYPD detectives rode last weekend with the motorcycle mob that battered a Manhattan dad as his terrified family watched, a source told the Daily News. The two cops apparently waited several days after Sunday’s brutal assault before informing supervisors about their involvement in the high-profile case, the source said.One of the two was an off-duty undercover who
@#$% Education Reformers Say
Chaz has some great quotes from the likes of the Mayor of Money, Joel Klein, Dennis Walcott, Cathie Black, Bill Gates, et al.I added one additional education reform figure/enabler and his quote in the comments:"Sure, NYSED Commissioner John King makes a great independent arbitrator for the APPR teacher evaluation negotiations..." -- Michael Mulgrew.Go on over to Chaz's and add your own f
Bill De Blasio Has Private Meeting With Rupert Murdoch And Mort Zuckerman
Danger! Danger!Democratic mayoral nominee Bill de Blasio attended a private meeting with a number of leading New York City business figures yesterday.Among them were Rupert Murdoch, the chairman of both News Corp. and its sister corporation, 21st Century Fox (who has taken a particular interest in trying to reshape public education); Robert Thomson, the chief executive of News Corp.; and Mortimer
Danielson'd
Those of you who have already had an observation under the new Danielson rubric, I am interested in your experiences.Was this a formal or informal observation?Did you use a suggested lesson plan format?What was the pre-observation conference like?What was the lesson observation like?Did you allow it to be filmed?What feedback did you get from the principal or assistant principal?How were you rated
De Blasio Calls Himself A "Fiscal Conservative"
Turns out that Bill de Blasio the "Marxist" is also Bill de Blasio the "fiscal conservative" - at least that's what he told a group of business leaders today:De Blasio's ascension has created a sense of nervousness within some corners of the city's business community, which prospered during Mayor Michael Bloomberg's 12-year reign and is fearful of more liberal policies emanatin
Jealous Andy Cuomo
Anyone else wondering if @NYGovCuomo is getting jealous of @deBlasioNYC's poll numbers?— David W. Chen (@davidwchen) October 4, 2013We'll know soone enough.I suspect that Cuomo's tax cut commission headed by the man who knocked off his father as governor is the first sling aimed at de Blasio.Hard to see how Cuomo runs as a tax cutting governor next year but allows de Blasio to raise taxes on wealt
Charter Schools Cheaper Than Public Schools Because They Pay Little In Salary And Pension Costs
The charter school-touting NY Post runs a story on a report showing charter schools cost less per pupil than traditional public schools because they have lower salary and pension costs.This is supposed to spur Bill de Blasio to begin to support charters, I suppose, but if you dig down deep into the story, you see the connection between de Blasio's Tale of Two Cities campaign theme and charter scho
Real Estate Brokers Are Sad Mayor Bloomberg Is Leaving Office
Just as the Wall Street criminals are sad Mayor Bloomberg is leaving office, the real estate criminals are sad too: Mayor Bloomberg would be crazy to try to run for a fourth term — but real estate brokers say it’s crazy to want anyone else in City Hall. “I’m depressed at the thought that someone else will be mayor,” says Shaun Osher, president of real estate brokerage CORE. “I wish we could change
The Charter School Question In The NY Times/Siena Poll
The NY Times is hawking a Siena poll today that shows Bill de Blaiso with a 50 percentage point lead over Joe Lhota, but says the poll shows notes of caution for de Blasio because some of his signature policy positions are in opposition to what a majority of New Yorkers feel about things.One of those policy positions is on charter schools.The Times asks "Do you support or oppose the creation
BREAKING NEWS: Two More Names On De Blasio's Short List For Chancellor Revealed
Gotham Schools and the Post ran speculation pieces about who Bill de Blasio might pick to be the next NYCDOE schools chancellor.Both pieces gave proponents of various candidates the opportunity to shill for them and try and promote their "perfect candidate" for the position.The Gotham Schools piece touted former Baltimore schools chief Andres Alonso, president of New Visions for Public S
OCT 03
Bloomberg In The Sky With Soft Drinks
Just a little reminder of all the goodness that Mike Bloomberg has brought us as mayor.
No Wonder The Education Reformer Don't Want Kids Reading Literature Anymore
From the NY Times:Reading Chekhov for a few minutes makes you better at decoding what other people are feeling. But spending the same amount of time with a potboiler by Danielle Steel does not have the same effect, scientists reported Thursday. A striking new study found that reading literary fiction – as opposed to popular fiction or serious nonfiction – leads people to perform better on tests th
NYCDOE To Put Statues Of Mayor Bloomberg In Every City School Before Bloomberg Leaves Office On December 31
Following the news that the NYCDOE gave a performance assessment test to seventh graders asking the students to rate the success of our Dear Leader, Mayor Bloomberg, Perdido Street School blog can reveal that the NYCDOE has drawn up plans to put a bronze statue of their hero, Mayor Bloomberg, in every school in the city before Bloomberg leaves office at the end of December.The statues will depict
Bloomberg DOE Makes Mayor Bloomberg Subject Of City Test That Will Be Used To Evaluate Teachers
All hail our Dear Leader, the Great Bloomberg!New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg is often the subject of debate — but now he’s the subject of an essay question that forces students in the schools he controls to rate his career.The question, part of new city-created exams being administered in public schools this fall, asks seventh-graders to read a recent speech made by Bloomberg and write about whe
De Blasio Up 50 Percentage Points In Q Poll
I thought the race would tighten, especially after all the attacks on de Blasio.Judging by thenumbers in the new Q-poll, I was wrong about that:Democrat Bill de Blasio is leading Joe Lhota 71-21% among likely voters in a Quinnipiac Poll released Thursday morning, a stunning 50-point lead that could prove difficult to overcome with just weeks to go in the mayor's race."These numbers say Public
More Andrew Cuomo Corruption News - Moreland Commission Edition
Cuomo said the Moreland Commission could look at anybody's campaign fundraising - including his own.But he's hiding something here: Gov. Cuomo’s anti-corruption commission killed a subpoena to the Cuomo-controlled state Democratic party, the Daily News has learned. The subpoena was to seek information on the party’s spending from its “housekeeping” account, sources said. The account raised millio
De Blasio Very Skillfully Ties Lhota To The Tea Party
Last night I posed that I thought de Blasio should attack Joe Lhota for his temperament rather than his past allegiance to Barry Goldwater and William F. Buckley Jr., saying that many New Yorkers may not care about Conservative icons from the past and what Lhota's allegiance to them says about his candidacy.But de Blasio managed to hit Lhota over this yesterday very skillfully: In a blistering bro
OCT 02
Times, Post, and DN Newspaper Endorsements - NYers Didn't Care About Them
Blake Zeff:Politicians thought voters cared what the top papers thought. That may not be the case any longer. In New York, the city’s three largest papers – which each happen to also be among the nation’s top ten in circulation – suffered huge collective whiffs in recent weeks. For the office of mayor, the entire trifecta of the New York Times, Daily News, and Post, all endorsed Christine Quinn in
The Mayor's Race - Where It Stand In Early October
The last two polls taken in the mayor's race and released a few days after the primary election showed Bill de Blasio beating his GOP opponent Joe Lhota by 43 and 41 percentage points respectively.Expect the next slate of mayoral polls that come out to show a bit of a closer race.First, de Blasio has been taking a beating in the press ever since the NY Times Sandanista hit piece.De Blasio has had
UFT Caught Paying "Fake" Political Consultant Group
The geniuses at 52 Broadway can't do much of anything right:A "super PAC" formed by the powerful city teachers' union paid more than $370,000 to an apparently fictitious political consulting firm, which was actually the well-known New York firm the Advance Group, records and interviews show.The listing of the phony firm, "Strategic Consultants, Inc.," in campaign filings, obscu
Merryl Tisch Attacks Bill De Blasio Over Charter School Rent Plan
The NY Post reports that Regents Chancellor Merryl Tisch criticized Democratic mayoral nominee Bill de Blasio for saying charter schools should pay rent:Chancellor Merryl Tisch said she’s concerned that forcing publicly-funded charter school to pay rent for sharing space in public school buildings, as the Democratic mayoral nominee has proposed, could stymie growth and innovation. “Anything that y
NYC Shifts From Plutocrats To Populists
12 yrs of trickle-down urbanism burst as the most left-labor candidates win Mayoral & PA nods. Big shift from plutocrat to populists.— Mark Green (@markjgreen) October 2, 2013De Blasio isn't mayor yet, Tish James isn't public advocate yet, Stringer isn't comptroller yet.There are still elections to be held in November as we learned in 2001, anything can happen between the primaries and Electio
Cuomo To Appoint Pataki, McCall To "Tax Cut Task Force"
Anybody who thinks a Mayor de Blasio is getting a tax increase on rich people in Governor Andrew Cuomo's re-election year should take note of this news: ALBANY — Gov. Cuomo is turning to the Republican who defeated his father to come up with ways to cut taxes, the Daily News has learned. In a surprising announcement scheduled for Wednesday morning, Cuomo will appoint former Gov. George Pataki and
A Very Solid Win For Tish James Over Dan Squadron Last Night
Turnout was pretty good for a runoff election with nothing else at stake.Tish James got over 111,000 votes.Some pundits were saying turnout was going to be about 100,000 overall for the runoff.It was closer to 187,000And James won by 36,000 votes.A very solid win for James and a stinging defeat for Dan Squadron.Given what a scummy campaign he ran, it couldn't have happened to a more deserving guy.
Bill Gates Faces Shareholder Revolt At Microsoft
Apparently teachers aren't the only people who think Gates wields more power than one man should:these Three of the top 20 investors in Microsoft are lobbying the board to press for Bill Gates to step down as chairman of the software company he co-founded 38 years ago, according to people familiar with matter. The outgoing Microsoft chief executive Steve Ballmer has been under pressure for years t
OCT 01
Turnout Was Pretty Good For The Public Advocate Runoff Election
@Azi @mnitzky @Tish2013 @WNYC wow. far more votes cast than I expected. James really got her vote out.— John Podhoretz (@jpodhoretz) October 2, 2013Indeed - Tish James got over 111,000 votes. That's not bad for a runoff election with nothing else at stake.Unions really did a good job here, as did the James campaign, getting out their votes.Again, now we see why Squadron was going so negative.He wa
Tish James Elected Public Advocate
Great, great news.Congratulations to Tish James and her campaign.More later.
87% Of The Vote Counted: Tish James 60%, Dan Squadron 40% - 10:05 PM
So much for those robocalls, Danny boy...
83% Of The Vote Counted: Tish James 59.5%, Dan Squdron 40.5%
First black woman to hold city wide office - Tish James.Very, very exciting.
79% Of The Vote Counted: Tish James 59.5%, Dan Squadron 40.5% - 9:58 PM
Squadron getting his ass kicked.Couldn't happen to a more deserving guy.
74% Of The Vote Counted: Tish James 59%, Dan Squadron 41% - 9:56 PM
Tish James is going to be our next public advocate.Buh-bye, Dan.
41% Of The Vote Counted: Tish James 57%, Dan Squadron 42% - 9:44 PM
And so now it's starting to look very clear why Squadron went negative with all the anonymous calls and mailers.
32% Of The Vote Counted: Tish James 56%, Dan Squadron 44% - 9:39 PM
Starting to look bad for Robocall Dan.
Did Dan Squadron Go With The Anonymous Negative Ads Because He Knew He Was Losing?
He sent out a ton of anonymous negative robocalls and anonymous negative mailers.Wouldn't own up to it last night on NY1 but did admit to it on Twitter today.Just as Cory Booker launching a negative ad this late in the campaign suggests Booker is facing some turbulence, Squadron's relentless negative barrage - most of it done anonymously - suggests his campaign knew it was losing.We'll see soon en
Cory Booker Frightened He's Going To Lose Senate Race
Two stories make me think Newark Mayor Cory Booker is worried he might lose his Senate race or barely squeak out a victory in what was supposed to be a huge blowout.First, Booker's opponent released an internal poll showing the race within six points.Now that's a Republican poll taken for a Republican candidate so we have take the results with a grain of salt.But then, there's this: Cory Booker pr
"Scissors-Wielding Lunatic" Slahes Five People, Including 2 Year Old, On UWS
Gee, doesn't Howard Wolfson live up there? A scissors-wielding lunatic stabbed and slashed five victims in a Riverside Park rampage before he was subdued Tuesday morning by a brave passerby, police said. An 18-month-old boy and his father were among those targeted as they strolled through the Manhattan park before the unprovoked 7:58 a.m. attack by a homeless man, police said. Crazed assailant Ju
Daily News Wants "Death Penalty" For Schools Too
They applaud Governor Cuomo for saying "failing" schools deserve the death penalty, then point to a Bloomberg Philanthropy- and Gates Foundation-funded research group study that pats the Bloomberg administration on the back for its school closure policies, replacing large schools with smaller ones.See here for how MDRC works is funded by Bloomberg Philanthropy even as it works in concert
More Sleaze From Dan Squadron
Dan Squadron is desperate to win this Public Advocate runoff, that is clear.Not only has he been running anonymous robcall attack ads (which he refused to own up to on NY 1 last night), but he's also sending out anonymous attack mailers.It's a shame Squadron is too gutless to take ownership of his attacks against his opponent.If you haven't voted for Tish James yet today, go out and do so - the po
Why The "Historic Low" Crime Statistics Bloomberg Hawks Are Not Believeable
Howie Wolfson likes to tweet the lie that NYC is the safest it's been since the 1950's, with crime at "historic lows."But tell that to the man who was chased 50 blocks by a motorcycle gang and then beaten on a Washington Heights street in broad daylight in front of his wife and two year old.You can see the video of that chase and the brutal aftermath below the fold. The man had called 9
Bloomberg Wrong As Usual
Mayor Bloomberg said yesterday that the government shutdown will make the U.S. look like a Third World nation.He's wrong as usual.The income disparity between rich and poor in New York City makes us exactly like a Third World nation.So does the rotting infrastructure.And the crappy voting machines.And let's not forget the authoritarian police force our dictator uses to quell dissent and keep the m
Don't Forget To Vote For Tish James For Public Advocate Today
The polls are open from 6 AM to 9 PM.Turnout is expected to be very, very low.John Liu said the following:Councilwoman Leticia James has spent her entire career fighting for working people both in Albany and in the City Council. She’s stood up against stop and frisk, supported laws that increased wages for working people, and fought against the closing of day care centers in our communities. She h
Sleazy Dan Squadron Refuses To Take Responsibility For His Campaign's Anonymous RoboCall Attack Against Tish James
Dan Squadron is a sleazeball.It's one thing to attack your opponent and take responsibility for the attacks.Alas, Squadron doesn't have the courage or the moral core to do that - as Politicker reports here: State Senator Daniel Squadron would not deny tonight that his campaign was behind a controversial robocall attacking his rival in the public advocate’s race, Councilwoman Tish James.In a tense
John Liu Backs Bill Opposed To InBloom Database
From the Daily News: Activists and elected officials, including city Controller John Liu, spoke out in support of a bill to prohibit the release of personally identifiable student information without parental consent at a City Council hearing Monday. The session comes on the heels of revelations that state education officials are working with the city to upload private information about students —
Teachers With Stockholm Syndrome
Lhota tells NYC teacher there's no $ for retroactive pay. Teacher thanks him for honesty, "convinces me more you are the man for the job"— Mike Grynbaum (@grynbaum) September 30, 2013Nothing to say here other than this unnamed teacher is one of the dumbest people on the planet.Lhota says there's money for tax cuts for rich people.But those years you teachers went without a contract becau
SEP 30
Mad Max In Bloomberg's New York City
Thirty bikers surrounded a man in Upper Manhattan yesterday after a fender bender on the Upper West Side, caused when one of the bikers stopped short in front of the man's SUV, and pummeled him in broad daylight in front of his wife and 2-year-old.The Daily News reported: A dad out for a Sunday drive on his first wedding anniversary with his wife and 2-year-old child was attacked by a mob of moto
NY Post Uses De Blasio's Father's Suicide Against Him
We know from the hacking scandal that ended up with Rupert Murdoch's News of the World closed and dozens of Murdoch journalists from the NOTW and The Sun facing criminal charges for hacking, bribery and conspiracy that ethics is not a strong suit in the Murdoch Empire.Murdoch's Post has been hammering Bill de Blasio for a few weeks now, calling him a commie pink, Sandanista-loving Marxist and all
Charter School Operators Threaten De Blasio
The Wall Street Journal reports that charter school operators say they would "reduce services" if he is elected mayor and charges them rent for taking up public space in public school buildings.This is tantamount to a threat from the charter operators. They're using children as hostages in this battle.But I have an idea how they can handle the rent expenditures without having to cut serv
Incompetence At NYSED Causes Delays in Parent Notification Over Test Scores
It's all about the test scores for kids, teachers and schools these days.The Board of Regents and the NYS Education Department have gone full speed ahead with their vaunted new Common Core tests and teacher evaluation systems based upon test scores.Test scores plummeted across ther state as the NYSED instituted a new set of Common Core tests and many parents want to know how their children did on
Andrew Cuomo Ensures Moreland Commission Won't Look Into His Own Crimes
Ken Lovett in the Daily News reports Governor Cuomo, who once declared the Moreland Commission's anti-corruption work would be "independent" of his interference, has moved to take over the commission and make it do what he wants.In addition, Cuomo has ensured that the anti-corruption commission will not probe his own campaign fundraising or the largesse he or his PAC, the Committee to Sa
Siena Poll Finds Cuomo Is Below 50% Approval For First Time Ever
Governor Cuomo has bludgeoned his agenda through the last few years by using his immense popularity in the state (for a while there, he was riding with 80% approval ratings.)''He is facing reelection next year and is rumored to be seeking a very ambitious agenda in order to ease that bid - including a wide range of tax cuts and an education reform package that would include state takeover of "
Government Shutdown Isn't The Problem, The Debt Ceiling Fight Is
From the NY Times:Most Wall Street economists have said that the consequences of a temporary government shutdown would be relatively insignificant, particularly because spending on essential services — a large portion of the budget — would continue. Citigroup economists estimated on Friday that a one-week shutdown would probably cause a 0.1 percent hit to the national economy.In the long run, not
SEP 29
Save Her The Money, Bill
De Blasio, on tour of Sandy battered Queens, offered to write college recommendation letter to girl wishing to go to NYU, his alma mater— Michael Barbaro (@mikiebarb) September 29, 2013Write her a nice letter of recommendation to a SUNY school and save her the money, Bill.NYU - overpriced, over-hyped, overrated.Kids should look very closely at CUNY and SUNY schools instead and visit Greenwich Vill
Students United For Public Education Take On Teach For America
From The Nation:On October 1, Students United for Public Education will be launching its first national campaign, Students Resisting Teach for America.The goal is to raise awareness in prospective TFA corps members about the problems surrounding TFA; elevate the voices of students and TFA alumni whose stories are often overshadowed by TFA’s message; put pressure on TFA as an organization to change
This Comment Crystallizes Why You Should Vote Against Dan Squadron
Someone left this comment on the Daily News endorsement of Dan Squadron for public advocate:How can the Daily News, once the paper of the working man, endorse an anti-labor candidate who is in bed with Bloomberg's developer cronies and charter school hedge fund investors and charlatans?As I wrote earlier,the public advocate's office should be held by someone who looks out for the powerless and the
How To Resist Corporate Education Reform
Someone asked in a comment on an earlier post how to resist the corporate education reformers.Michael Fiorillo responded to that question with eloquent advice:Resist by showing kindness to our students, and support for our colleagues.Resist by doing what you know is right in the classroom.Resist by supporting the union, but exposing and rejecting the leadership's collaboration with those who would
If The Daily News Likes A Candidate, You Know He Must Be Bad
The DN editors endorsed Dan Squadron for public advocate today: Since 2009, Squadron has ably represented lower Manhattan and parts of Brooklyn, including Greenpoint and Carroll Gardens, in the state Senate. He brought intelligence, diligence and rationality to the post with a strong bent toward problem-solving on behalf of his constituents — exactly the qualities needed in a public advocate. As a
NYCDOE Hires Interim Principal Accused Of Sexual Harassment, Intimidation And Lewd And Racist Comments To Run Flushing High School
Even the NY Post thinks they did this as revenge for not being to shit the school down last year.The city hired James Brown, a former middle school principal, to act as interim principal at Flushing High School, with the possibility that Brown could be hired permanently. The only problem?Brown has a nasty past:As The Post reported last Sunday, Brown seems to have racked up a dubious record while s
Are Americans Waking Up From Their Self-Induced Comas?
Washington Post polls finds many Americans no longer believe in the fantasy of the "American Dream:Four years into an economic recovery in which most of the benefits have flowed to the top earners, a majority believe that the American Dream is becoming markedly more elusive, according to the results of a Washington Post-Miller Center Poll exploring Americans’ changing definition of success an
Should He Be Using This Comparison?
From Politico: If the government shuts down on Oct. 1, the GOP will “fold like hotcakes” in the fight to defund Obamacare, Sen. Tom Coburn said Friday afternoon before a critical set of votes.The Oklahoma Republican said that after seven or eight days of shutdown the Republicans will begin to feel the heat from their constituents over lack of services back home, like pay for members of the militar
SEP 28
Final Primary Vote Tally: De Blasio 40.81%, Thompson 26.14%
From the NY Times:More than two weeks after New York City’s primary for mayor, election officials have finished counting votes, and Bill de Blasio has officially avoided a runoff. Mr. de Blasio, a Democrat, finished with 40.81 percent in the primary, which was held Sept. 10. He exceeded the 40 percent threshold to avoid a runoff by about 5,600 votes. Election night results showed Mr. de Blasio wit
The Silver Lining In A Government Shutdown
It looks like we're headed for a government shutdown on Tuesday.The Washington Post reports:House Republican leaders proposed a new plan to the GOP rank-and-file Saturday afternoon: Make a new gesture of defiance toward President Obama’s health-care law, even if it increases the chances of a government shutdown Monday night.Their plan calls for amendments to a bill designed to keep the government
NY Post Attacks De Blasio For Is "War On Charters"
Another day, another half-dozen attacks on Bill de Blasio from the NY Post.The one I'm interested in today is here.They are claiming by making charter schools pay rent and ending co-locations, de Blasio is waging war against the industry. Making charter schools pay rent is not a "war on charters."Let me repeat, making charter schools pay rent is not a "war on charters". Many of
Mulgrew Waves Goodbye To Bloomberg
Mulgrew on mayor: "We can all take comfort from the fact that Bloomberg will soon be only a bad memory to the people who care about schools"— Lisa Fleisher (@lisafleisher) September 27, 2013Alas, with all the concessions Mikey Mulgrew and his boss, Randi Weingarten, made to Bloomberg and the state on Race to the Top, on APPR, on ADVANCE, even with Bloomberg leaving office and a new mayor
A Long, Long, Long Week
OK, so let me tell you about my work week.There was the grading of the performance assessments.There was getting my lesson plan ready for a pre-observation conference with the assistant principal.There was the Regents prep work with the two junior classes taking the ELA Regents exam for the first time in January - lots of reading and grading #26's and #27's responses.There was the Regents prep wor