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Image provided by: Guilderland Public Library
18 The Altamont Enterprise - Thursday, March 16,2006 Sonya Pasquini and Brian Degener Pasquini, Degener to marry GUILDERLAND — Plans for a Sept. 2, 2006 wedding have been made by Sonya Felicia Pasquini and Brian Edward Degener. The bride- to-be is the daughter of Martha Fiato of Guilderland and Richard Pasquini of Albany. Her fiance is the son of Paul and Kathi Degener of Guilderland. The future bride, a graduate of Guilderland High School and the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, received her master's degree from Massachusetts College of Pharmacy, and is a surgical physician's assistant at St. Peter's Hospital in Albany. Her fiance, a graduate of Guilderland High School and the University at Albany, is the owner and manager of Benchmark Properties, L.L.C. The couple plans to move into their newly-constructed Albany home. A September 2 wedding is planned in the Cathedral of Immaculate Conception in Albany. Engagement Eva Greenblatt and Michael Smith Greenblatt, Smith to wed GUILDERLAND— Plans for a Sept. 2,2006 wedding in Wakefield, Mass. have been made by Eva Greenblatt and Michael Smith. The bride-to-be is the daughter of Daniel and Virginia Greenblatt of Burlington, Mass. Her fiance is the son of David and Nikki Smith of Guilderland. The future bride is a graduate of Somerville High School in Somerville, Mass. and holds a bachelor's degree in architectural engineering from Pennsylvania State University. She is a project manager wi th Shawmut Design and Construction, in Boston. Her fiance is a graduate of Guilderland High School, the State University ef New York College at:Cortla»d and holds a master's degree in construction management from Northeastern University. He is a project manager with John Moriarty & Associates, in Winchester, Mass. • • (Continued from Page 1) opinion about being placed on -' leave in the first place. She alsc offered no comment on her thoughts about the allegations against previous Superintendent Alan McCartney and former Assistant Superintendent for Business Anthony Marturano, two men whom Winchell had worked beside for many years. (See related story.) Many things in Voorheesville's business office has been reor- ganized since when Winchell was placed on paid leave, Pofit said. The district has been im- plementing recommendations given to it by the state and also outside consultants. Betty Curie of Advisory Solutions with the New York State School Boards Association submitted 50 rec- ommendations in her report, most of which have already been implemented. And Henry Binzer, an accountant who used to be the head auditor for the State Education Department, helped implement Curies's suggestions. Pofit said that Gordon Durn- ford, who was privately con- tracted to fill Winchell's post while she was on leave, will have a few sessions with Winchell to orient her, so she can pick up where he left off. When The Enterprise asked Winchell if she was concerned about adjusting to the changes, she responded, \I don't think it will be hard at all; business is business and I'm very positive about it.\ She concluded, \I'm just happy.\ Clarity Chris Allard, a bus driver for the district, said at Monday's meeting that the last few months have been very difficult at Voorheesville, and that em- ployee morale is low. Every day, employees come into work not knowing what to expect, she said, with her boss, Transporta- tion director, Michael Goyer, being questioned and files being pulled. \It's been terrible,\ Allard said. Pofit said the school board had no control over who the Albany County District Attorney's inves- tigator or what the state audi- tors wanted to look at. The district attorney's office subpoenaed not only McCart- ney's and Marturano's contracts but Winchell's and Goyer's as well — all the top administra- tors. Pofit said that the school board and state auditors met together the comptroller's inves- tigators prepared to leave the building after eight months. They will spend the next several months writing the report, Pofit said he was told. And then the district will have a chance to respond in writing to the find- ings before the final document is released to the public. The. final report is expected to be released this summer. But, the auditors have completed their review and data collection within the school board and told the school board they did not find any wrongdoing by any other administrator, Pofit said. Allard said' she wanted to make sure that got recorded in the minutes, that all others have been cleared by the comptroller, because a lot of good people were targeted in the auditing process, she said. Jennifer Freeman, spokesper- son for/the comptroller's office, told The Enterprise on Tuesday that her office does not comment on the audit's status until it is completely finished. While Pofit may, have said that state audi- tors are out of the building, they are still completing the final report, and, until the final report is released, which is anticipated to take another couple of months, she said, she can not confirm one way or another if all others, or any other employees have been cleared. Similarly, Rachel McEneny of the district attorney's office, said she could not answer any of the Enterprise's questions since the criminal investigation is ongo- ing. feeling less informed than they would like to be. At times, discussion became intense as people from the group asked questions . about how mistakes happened in the past, who the school's attorney is, how checks weresigned and approved, why it has been so hard for the newspaper to get a copy of the contracts, and why the contracts weren't reviewed by an attorney. 'Business is business.' \This is my first involvement with the DA,\ Pofit said, and while the investigators are very thorough, they are also very quiet. School board member James Coffin told a frustrated public on Monday night the way he looks at it is, in the absence of the comptroller coming to Voor- heesville, \There's a very good chance that nothing would ever have been found — nothing.\ he said. As a member of the commu- nity, as a member on the board, as a taxpayer \as difficult as it is, I want that kind of stuff hap- \You're missing the point,\ Pofit said, as people asked more questions about the contracts. What McCartney's contract said is not what he ended up doing, Pofit said. \It's not the con- tract...He did transactions that didn't abide by his -contract,\ Pofit said. Coffin said one of the major changes which he thinks will make a world of difference is the two new positions of internal auditor and internal claims auditor, both who will report directly to the board. \That was one of the weak links,\ Coffin said; things hap- 'It's been terrible.' pening,\ Coffin said of intense investigation. \Any organization worth its salt wants this stuff pulled out,\ and fixed, he said And now, Coffin said, the school board is doing its darndest to fix the situation. What he asked of the public now is for residents to do their job. When looking at the budget this year, vote on the program for the children of the community, Cof- fin said. Come to the budget sessions, look at the budget, ask questions, he said. \That's your check, that's your responsibil- ity.\ Public comment During the public-comment segment of the board meeting, residents expressed their con- tinued frustration to the board. Free heart health class Senior Services of Albany is offering a free five-week educa- tional program for women ages 60 and over, who want to im- prove their heart health. The Women Take Pride program provides encouragement and support in making healthy changes in physical activity, nutrition, and stress manage- ment. In these five weekly meetings, women will learn how to reduce their symptoms and improve their overall well-being, and learn more about the resources available in their community. Classes will take place at the Troy YMCA, 2500 21st Street, on Wednesday mornings starting April 5. Women who are inter- ested in taking part should call Senior Services of Albany at 465- 1903 to complete the enrollment process. pened that didn't come back to the board. The internal auditor will be a direct employee of the board; the board can have the internal auditor look into anything — review employee records to make sure they are up to date, look at a particular employee's travel receipts. \This is a new process and a very important process,\ Coffin said. The school board has also now designated the board president to act as a chief financial officer (CFO) a new role that the board members have never taken on before, Pofit said. The superin- tendent is still considered the chief executive officer (CEO). Pofit said the district has spent about $30,000 so far on litigation against McCartney and Marturano. Free legal help Legal clinics are available to individuals who need legal ad- vice, but can't afford a lawyer. The clinics offer free, private, and confidential consultations on any topic, including divorce, tenants' rights, custody, child support, employment and dis- crimination issues, and bank- ruptcy and credit counseling. All consultations are held in the evening and scheduled by appointment only. Legal clinics will be offered in April on the following dates at the specified locations: — Wednesday, April 5, at the YWCA of Schenectady, 44 Washington^ Avenue, Schenec- tady. — Thursday, April 6, at Philip Schuyler Elementary School, 141 Western Avenue, Albany. To schedule an appointment or for more information, call The Legal Project at 435-1770.
