CITYWIDE

WEINGARTEN SUPPORTS CHANGES TO GIFTED PROGRAMS

The teachers union president said yesterday that gifted and talented programs have been “eroding” under Mayor Bloomberg’s leadership, as she endorsed a City Council bill that would mandate gifted programs. The union president, Randi Weingarten, called the proposed legislation a “no-brainer.” She added, “Every student who is able to benefit from gifted and talented programs should have a chance to do so.”

City Council Member Lewis Fidler, who introduced the bill, said it would require 10% of all classroom seats in each school district to be dedicated to gifted and talented programs. He said it would quadruple the number of spaces for gifted students and encourage families to stay at or return to the public schools.

A spokeswoman for the department, Michele McManus, said, “We support gifted and talented programs and will work to expand them throughout the city. This expansion should be based on sound educational policy and not a political numbers game.”

– Staff Reporter of the Sun

REPORT: PROPOSALS WOULD HURT STUDENTS’ MATH COMPETENCY

Proposed standards for elementary and middle school math would hurt students and jeopardize their chances of being mathematically competent, according to a new report. The report, by the Foundation for Education Reform and Accountability, said some recommendations by the Math Standards Committee, which was created by the New York State Education Commissioner, would help boost math achievement. But many would be harmful, it said.

The harmful recommendations include delaying the implementation of the No Child Left Behind accountability measures by a year, failing to define requirements and qualifications for math teachers, and relying heavily on calculators in early years. The Board of Regents is expected to vote on some of the recommendations today.

– Staff Reporter of the Sun

MANHATTAN

CANDIDATE FOR BOROUGH PRESIDENT HIRES DEAN CONSULTANT

The architect of Howard Dean’s failed presidential campaign, Joe Trippi, has been hired as a consultant by a candidate for Manhattan borough president. The candidate, one of many aspiring borough presidents, Brian Ellner, announced yesterday that he had hired Mr. Trippi as his general consultant for the 2005 race.

Mr. Ellner is an openly gay lawyer and a former member of the District 2 School Board. He faces at least seven opponents in the race for the borough presidency.

– Staff Reporter of the Sun

PRESIDENT CLINTON LAUNCHES APPEAL FOR TSUNAMI VICTIMS

President Clinton launched a $45 million appeal with the U.N. children’s agency yesterday to provide clean water and sanitation to victims of the Indian Ocean tsunami and said he expects America in the long run to contribute billions of dollars to rebuild the devastated areas.

Mr. Clinton and President George H.W. Bush were appointed by President Bush to increase private donations after the December 26 tsunami. Mr. Clinton said more than one-third of a billion dollars already has been donated to charities.

But he said he also tried to determine whether “an area of critical need” lacked enough money to meet the immediate and longer-term needs of the millions of people affected by the tsunami, especially children.

“Our inquiries determined that in the weeks and months ahead, more resources will be needed to provide clean water and adequate sanitation both for survival and for the prevention of disease,” Mr. Clinton said. “The initial inquiry that we made…was that we ought to try to raise another $45 million for this purpose alone.”

The new fund is a joint project of the Clinton Foundation and the U.N. Children’s Fund, and Mr. Clinton said he and his wife, Senator Clinton, made the first contribution, which was not disclosed.

– Associated Press

POLICE BLOTTER

POLICE SAY NURSE RETURNS TO SENIOR HOME TO STEAL DRUGS

A former nurse on a drug binge was charged yesterday with attacking two elderly female residents at a Queens nursing home and stealing their medication.

At about 8:30 p.m. on Saturday night, Joseph Rotolo, a 32-year-old nurse who once worked at the Ozinam Hall nursing home in Bayside, used an old identification card to break into the facility and then pilfered patient’s narcotics.

According to a criminal complaint filed yesterday, some of the stolen narcotics came in the form of medicinal patches, which Mr. Rotolo allegedly ripped off the chest of two elderly patients, putting their lives at risk, and injected the gel-like medicine into his veins with a syringe, prosecutors said. Mr. Rotolo, who resigned from his job at the nursing home in September, was arrested on Friday night after staff members noticed him there and called police.

– Staff Reporter of the Sun

BROTHER-IN-LAW OF VICTIM SENTENCED IN RAPE CASE

A Queens man was sentenced in the rape and disfigurement of his girlfriend’s sister, according to the office of Queens District Attorney Richard Brown. Juan Rojas Morales, 37, of Corona, was sentenced to 15 years in prison for raping his girlfriend’s younger sister on September 17, 2003, and choking her with an ammonia-soaked rag, burning, and scarring her, according to the district attorney. Morales pleaded guilty to first-degree rape at Queens Supreme Court on December 22. Dan Gutman, the lawyer representing Morales, declined to comment.

– Staff Reporter of the Sun