Cobble Hill letter to klein - Special Commissioner of Investigation

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Hon. J. I. Klein -6- June 26, 2007 Philip Nobile As it did with some of the other teachers from Cobble Hill, the Scarcella report described two interviews with Nobile. 18 The first was a brief interaction at the school. 19 According to the Scarcella report, during that meeting, Nobile informed Scarcella that he had been “rated satisfactory until he made the [Regents tampering] allegations.” 20 Unlike the other teachers who were called down to OSI, on May 13, 2004, Scarcella conducted Nobile’s second interview at Cobble Hill. According to Scarcella’s handwritten notes relating to the second interview, Nobile “did not report the 2003 cheating until Jan & Fe 2004 because [his] wife died and [he] did not have the emotional resources to withstand the unconscionable blow back that [he was] getting currently from the administration. Wife died on 12/2/04 [sic] freeing [him] to pursue the regents [sic] matter.” 21 Nowhere in the OSI report did Scarcella indicate that Nobile had firsthand knowledge of cheating committed by Capra or done at her direction. With respect to the June 2002 Regents, Scarcella wrote: “Nobile said that in his mind, he recalled that Mr. Cohen, in particular, scrubbed energetically with Ms. Capra’s approval.” 22 Nobile added that June 2003, “was the same, only worse.” Nobile also told Scarcella that he “specifically remembered” Capra gave a stack of failing exams to Colon “for scrubbing.” Details in the OSI report then reverted to “Mr. Nobile said that Mr. Colon told him” or “Mr. Nobile said that Mr. Kaufman told him.” According to the Scarcella report, Nobile said: “Colon later told him that he changed many of the failing examinations to passing automatically, without reviewing the material to see if points were missed.” 23 18 The Scarcella report referred to a third interview with Nobile. However, it described the session as Nobile visiting OSI on July 1, 2004, to review the examinations. The report also referenced another visit by Nobile to OSI on October 1, 2004. 19 The Scarcella report indicates that Nobile told Scarcella that Scarcella “was not prepared to conduct the investigation.” 20 In fact, Nobile had received several “U” or unsatisfactory observations before he lodged the Regents tampering complaint against Capra. 21 Nobile’s wife died in December 2003. 22 Other evidence indicated that Scarcella likely meant Colon rather than Cohen. 23 Nobile also asserted this claim in a communication to OSI Deputy Director Thomas Hyland in May 2004. In contrast, at the George proceeding, Colon testified that he re-read the examinations prior to making grade changes. See the transcript at page 1058.
Hon. J. I. Klein -7- June 26, 2007 Vincent Leardi At the time of his April 4, 2004, letter which helped launch the Cobble Hill investigation, untenured Teacher Vincent Leardi was on leave for Restoration of Health as a result of his “bipolar Manic Depressive Disorder.” 24 By his own admission in the Leardi letter, the teacher had unrequited feelings for Capra which he described as “an emotional infatuation” with the assistant principal. 25 The Leardi letter alleged that he saw Capra “personally change grades” during the scoring of the June 2003 Regents, adding that he “could not swear that these [changes] were not legitimate but the climate was one of desperation.” 26 Leardi also wrote that teachers, including him, “were asked to review grades in the 60’s [sic].” Leardi asserted that he would “testify to this under immunity and strict confidentiality.” 27 On May 12, 2004, during his leave, Leardi was interviewed at OSI. The report indicated that Scarcella advised Leardi that no disciplinary action would be taken against him regarding the investigation. The Scarcella report described Leardi’s cheating during the scoring of the 2003 Global History Regents at Cobble Hill. According to the report, Leardi had come forward because Capra was treating Nobile unfairly and giving Nobile too many “‘Unsatisfactory’” ratings. 28 By Scarcella’s account, Leardi said that Capra had “‘blessed’” changing failing grades to passing. Scarcella also wrote that one of the reasons Leardi agreed to change the failures was because he “wanted to please Ms. Capra.” The report indicated that, according to Leardi, “the required third reader was not practiced” and, instead, Capra said to “‘scrub them’” which meant “to pass a failing examination.” 29 Kenneth Kaufman Teacher Kenneth Kaufman, who left his employment at Cobble Hill in June 2003, was interviewed at OSI in May 2004, in the presence of his UFT representative. The report indicated that Scarcella advised Kaufman that no disciplinary action would be 24 This information was included in Leardi’s letter. 25 Scarcella’s file contained two copies of the Leardi letter; each had a different signature. At the George proceeding, Leardi testified that he had signed both documents and claimed that he sometimes used different signatures. See the transcript at pages 1103 and 1104. 26 According to the Scarcella report, regarding the June 2003, grading of the Regents, Nobile told him “there was a sense of desperation in the correction room and the scrubbing began.” 27 In a March 2004, e-mail to the NYSED, Nobile suggested the idea of granting immunity to Cobble Hill witnesses. 28 An observation is a single occurrence. The outcome – “S” for satisfactory or “U” for unsatisfactory – is commonly referred to as a rating. An official end of year rating is a culmination of a series of observations. 29 In contrast, at the George proceeding, Leardi testified that a third reader was used in the grading process. See the transcript at page 1114.
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